LOOK I: GREY CROPPED SWEATS | BLACK RACERBACK TANK | DENIM JACKET (SIMILAR HERE) | SNEAKERS |

You guys know how much I love my loungewear – now more than ever being pregnant! I found this pair in-store the other day and have been living in them. Not surprising, but what was surprising was how many questions I got about them and even more surprising – the price! Nobody could believe they are $17 – definitely a steal and they are one of my most asked about pieces so I wanted to share details.  They are really versatile as far as sweats go actually! For a casual street style look, I added a racerback tank and stole Cody’s denim jacket (similar here). The crop and relaxed fix of these sweats makes them easier to dress up so I also paired them with a graphic sweater for movie night and a blazer and sweater for a few errands. They are pretty true to size but I sized up for a more relaxed fit and to accommodate the ever growing bump, but love the fit! Keep scrolling to see other ways I’ve worn it.

LOOK II : GREY CROPPED SWEATS | FRENCHIE SWEATER

I didn’t get a pic of this outfit so I just took a screenshot of my stories, but here I am wearing them again.  🙈

LOOK III : GREY CROPPED SWEATS | WHITE TRENCH | STRIPED SWEATSHIRT | SNEAKERS | SUNGLASSES

Below are a few more loungewear pieces I’ve had my eye on lately:

XX, Christine

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DETAILS. 1. BLUE FRINGE PILLOW COVER  | 2. WHITE STRIPED PILLOW COVER | 3. HONEYCOMB LIGHT FIXTURE | 4. DIP-DYE STOOL (UNDER $100) | 5. DUVET SET  | 6. PERCALE SHEET SET | 7. RATTAN STOOL | 8. WHITE WOOD COFFEE TABLE | 9. WOVEN BASKETS | CONSOLE TABLE | 10. LINEN QUOTE | 11. EMBROIDERED PILLOW | 12. JUTE RUG | 13. WOVEN BASKETS | 14. DENIM WOVEN RUG | 15. SHELL CHANDELIER | 16. RATTAN COUNTER STOOL

Guys, I still have so many posts I need to put together on our new home and I promise for all those who have sent in questions, I’ll be answering soon! We are still finalizing a lot of spaces and I’m still in the process of decorating, so I wanted to share a few of my favorite pieces from the Serena & Lily sale where the entire site is 20% off with code INSPO (ends soon!).  I’ve had a few pieces in my cart for a bit, and they never do this sale, so it’s just the push I needed to pull the trigger! Also wanted to share a few quick lessons I’ve learned while going through this decor process – keep reading to see

It really is all in the details.

I never realized what a difference even the smallest changes make, from baseboard trim to light fixtures. Getting all new furniture can really add up, but making a few updates to your lighting, decor, or even just throw pillows can go a long way! I love this striped pillow – how cute are the side tassels! Also this light fixture –  we brought the honeycomb pattern into our new house in a few spots, and now I’m craving it everywhere. For more of a statement, I’m obsessed with this shell chandelier.

Picture [it] perfect.

I’m such a visual person which I’ve realized is one of the hardest things about the process for me when it comes to decorating. I have such a hard time deciding on different decor items without seeing them in person, but the turnaround time for furniture is so much longer than clothes (obviously) so it’s not an ideal process. I ended up putting together mood boards with all the pieces I was thinking of for the room to see how different pieces would come together. It might seem like a time-consuming step, but taking a few minutes to help myself visualize a space ends up saving a massive headaches in the long run.

Neutrals vs. Color.

This is one of those things I’ve learned in fashion that I found myself adopting in home decor, too. If you’ve followed my for a while, you’ve seen a gradual transition towards neutrals. Colors are always going in and out of season, but when it comes to those investment pieces, its the neutrals that will be truly timeless. I love bringing color in with pretty accents that are easier and more affordable to swap out occasionally as your taste changes. These rattan stools are one of those neutral pieces you’ll love forever (also these!) and I love this console table. Also obsessed with these dip-dyed stools! Such a great balance of neutral and color and they are under $100.

Sale ends soon, but just a reminder to get 20% off with code INPSO Also, I would love any other tips you guys have for decorating!

XX, Christine

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So excited to share with you guys we’re having a baby!! If you follow on Insta you probably already saw the news 🙂 I was going to do blog post the same day we announced, but after we shot them I just got so excited to post, I didn’t finish the blog post 🙈.  So here I am a couple days later …. thanks for being so patient!!

We are so so excited!! I’m due in October! So I’m still in my first trimester 🙂 I was sick for a couple weeks and now it’s just kind of faded to “evening sickness” I’m super tired and nauseous by like 7-8 and asleep before 9 or 10 at the latest. It’s crazy I can’t remember the last time I slept so much!!

How I got pregnant? This question has been flooding in, as a lot of you have been following along as I shared early on this pregnancy wasn’t as easy as our first with Beckam. (Those that are new here – Mara and Wes are my step babies, so Beckam is my only biological son.) It took us a little over a year to get pregnant this time around, and I want to start this by saying I know a lot of people who have been through a lot more,  my cousin, who is one of my best friends, it took her 6 years to get pregnant. A lot of our other family members have been through it too. They were all such a huge support to me! I realized there may be women out there who don’t have family or friends who had been through the same thing, so I wanted to share our struggles so that someone who felt alone or just needed someone to vent to wouldn’t feel so alone. Also writing has always been really therapeutic for me. I know a year seems like nothing to someone who has been trying for 3 or 5 or 9 years, but anytime you are trying to have a baby and it’s not working out, its frustrating and emotional, and at times it feels really isolating. I posted this quote by Jimmy Fallon on my instagram but it really stood out to me, because everyones journey is so different:

“We tried for a long time, for five years. I know people have tried much longer, but if there’s anyone out there who is trying and they’re just losing hope . . . just hang in there. Try every avenue; try anything you can do, ’cause you’ll get there. You’ll end up with a family, and it’s so worth it. It is the most ‘worth it’ thing. I’m just so happy right now. I’m freaking out.”

So what all did we do?

We had been going to a fertility clinic since September.(If you’ve been trying and don’t know when to call – they say to wait until 9 months of unsuccessful pregnancy, a lot of clinics are hard to get into, it was a 3 month wait for ours so I called in June to set our apt.) I wrote more about it here.  A quick summary of why I wasn’t getting pregnant was I wasn’t ovulating. I have PCOS (polyscistic ovaries) which makes my cycles very irregular. The likelihood of me getting pregnant on our own was very small, because I can’t time my cycles, and I don’t know when I’m ovulating. After we did all the fertility testing, we spent 3 month medicating my cycles so I would ovulate. Then I would take a different medicine that would make me have my period if I didn’t have a successful pregnancy that month. During this time we did three rounds of timed intercourse with injectables. What does that mean exactly? You’re taking medicine every day to help you help ovulate. About a week before they think you will be ovulating you start coming in every couple days to get a ultrasound to see if you have “follicles” that are growing.  Follicles are what holds the baby. When you’re on clomid or femara, the likelihood of having multiple follicles is higher, because it’s helping you make them.  They want your follicles to grow to about a 17-18mm. On our final round when I got pregnant I had three mature follicles so technically we could have had triplets haha. But only one took 🙂 I promise there’s no surprises coming just one ;). Once they grow to 17-18mm you take a trigger shot at home in your belly by your belly button. I remember re-reading the steps like 50 times because I was so scared I would mix something wrong, or mess it up somehow.  I hate needles so much so once we mixed the medicine, I would make Cody give me the shot.  A trigger shot is full of different hormones that help your follicles mature and increase your ovulation. Once you’ve taken the shot, the doctor gives you two times that you will be “most fertile” to make the baby. You then take progesterone hormones everyday to help the egg continue growing if it took. The final round worked!! and I got pregnant!! It was actually our final round  before we moved to IVF. So I am so thankful it worked!! I’ve followed so many women who have done so many rounds of IVF and the needles scare me so much, my heart goes out to them ❤️.

With a fertility clinic they monitor you’re pregnancy until 9-10 weeks, because their is just higher risk for something to go wrong. We went in for our first ultrasound and they saw the implanted egg! Yay! We had our next one at 5-6 weeks to hopefully hear the heartbeat. They told me their would be a slight chance we didn’t. We came in that week and no heart beat. She told me not to stress yet, because sometimes it’s a little later, it didn’t mean I would have a miscarriage. I still  left crying. Even though they had warned me, I still felt like something had to be wrong, and I tried to convince myself not to really think I was pregnant and get my hopes up. Cody is so positive and he kept reassuring me everything was ok. That felt like the longest week as we waited to go back in. We didn’t tell any friends or family I was pregnant, I just didn’t want my hopes up. We went back and this time we heard the heartbeat!! I was so happy!! She said everything was measuring great and the baby had a strong heartbeat! And here we are – I’m 11 weeks and anxious to wrap up the first trimester to get over the nausea!

I mentioned in my last post I was also seeing a foot reflexologist. I had so many people recommend acupuncture – but I tried it once a couple years ago and it gave me so much anxiety laying on my stomach with so many needles in my back (it doesn’t hurt) I just felt trapped,  I couldn’t do it. I really believe my foot reflexologist played a role in me getting pregnant. I started seeing her in December and she said I had a lot of stress and anxiety built up. They find pressure points in your feet that help detox your toxins. She also made me aware of my lack of balance in life and talked about how I needed to create more time for a baby. I really took what she said to heart, and set more time aside for family and recharging myself. I think it also helped we finally moved into our house, I think that was a huge stress for last year. She also told me what vitamins I was deficient on, and I started on those too. I think the combo of seeing her to get my body balanced, and the fertility treatment helped us get pregnant. And the biggest factor, God 🙂  I believe He has a plan for our lives and his timing is always better than ours ❤️ Looking back I honestly know I was too stressed and my body wasn’t ready last year to be pregnant.

This pregnancy has felt so different than when I was pregnant with Beckam. It’s hard to explain, I’ve had a lot bigger highs and lows and I’ve been a lot more sick this time around (You guys have probably noticed my endless applesauce packets on insta stories, they instantly calm my stomach.) I asked my OBGYN about it and she’s like welcome to pregnancy in your 30’s haha. Did you guys notice a difference between pregnancy in your 20’s and 30’s?

The kids are all so excited about the new baby!!  Beckam tells strangers and friends all the time it’s pretty funny. He actually knew I was pregnant even before I did. I’ll be sharing that story on Instagram later… We’ve all made our guesses wether its a boy or a girl. We are going to find out after Spring Break what we’re having. I’m so so excited!!

Thank you for your thousands of sweet notes and messages we read them all and continue to read them! Can’t wait to share more this journey with you!! Love you guys!

XX,

Christine

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One thing I’ve always believed in is giving yourself something to look forward to, big or small! Everything from setting ambitious goals and rewarding yourself with a trip to a destination you’ve always dreamed of, to finishing a healthy day with a yummy treat, to getting excited for what the next season holds. The anticipation and build up is half the fun, right?! Here are a few things I look forward to every season:

1. Pulling out my favorite seasonal pieces like spring dresses or summer sandals after they have been packed away for months. I’m always counting down until when I can start wearing next season’s pieces!
2. A family trip, whether it’s a quick weekend getaway or a planned vacation to a new destination.
3. Treats! Easter cinnamon rolls, spiced chais in the fall, s’mores on a summer night – food is always a finishing touch for the best memories, am I right?
4. And I always get so excited for the seasonal blooms, spring tulips, summer peonies! I just got my first tulips last week! They make me so happy!
5. One of the new things I’ve started looking forward to every season is the Fab Fit Fun boxes – they come out once a season and have everything from beauty and fashion to fitness and lifestyle products ($200+ worth of product for just $49.99). I’m obsessed with Ouai (who isn’t haha) and their leave-in conditioner smells so freaking good! Everybody swears by the No More Baggage eye cream (I’ve been using their No More Needles firming cream and love it) too so I’m excited to put it to the test. Lastly, you guys know I live in sunglasses, so these Quay aviators are definitely going to get a lot of use. It’s one of my favorite sunglasses brands!! All the products are full size meaning you can actually use them consistently and be able to see results, instead of sample sizes! Also how cute is the spring box? I’m such a sucker for pretty packaging and love the little cacti!

Have you guys tried Fab Fit Fun before? Would love to know what you think! You can get $10 off your first box (and check out the rest of the products in the spring box) at FabFitFun.com – just use code HELLOFASHION.

XX, Christine

*In collaboration with Fab Fit Fun.

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Spring break is upon us! Cody and I are still trying to finalize where we are going for the kids’ spring break – part of his family is going to Hawaii and another part is going to California so we are jumping on board with one of them, just haven’t decided which yet! But no matter the destination I always look forward to spring break as a little nudge to get started on a spring wardrobe refresher so I wanted to share some pieces to kick off spring, head into summer, and beyond. Here are 5 spring trends I’m loving right now and the best part? Everything is under $150!

1. Simple Slides: Okay I’m in love with this brand for sandals! Have you guys tried them yet? Almost all of their styles are under $100 and I’m obsessed with the simple silhouettes but in the prettiest colors! They are super versatile and perfect for mixing and matching throughout the season. My favorites are these white slides and this blush pair – so pretty!
2. Flowy Favorites: I find myself gravitating more and more towards flowy pants! They are really comfortable but still super feminine when paired with a fitted tank or cropped tee. This pair looks really high-end and also love this off-the-shoulder jumpsuit and both are at an amazing price point.
3. Subtle Stripes: Stripes will never go out of style, but there’s something so fresh about the pattern in pastel that we are seeing right now. Love this peplum top and the asymmetrical buttons on this mini dress.
4. The Best of Beachwear: I think swimwear is my Achilles heel – I can never say no to a good suit! You guys have seen me in this one repeatedly and it’s one of my favorites. Really comfortable and great for water sports and other beach activities. And I love this bikini top (also comes in black)!
5. Destination-worthy Details:  Never underestimate how much simple details can transform an entire look — think accessories, bags, or even the perfect phone case! (I’m a little late for International Women’s Day, but we should celebrate women every day and I love this phone case as a reminder of our support for each other!) Shells are another detail that will update your spring wardrobe and I love these simple earrings. Also how pretty is this pink tortoise pair??

Below are a few great picks for spring break and beyond:

XX, Christine

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DETAILS: SHIRT (under $30) | PANTS (under $40) | CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN HEELS (old similar here) | CLIPS

BECKAM’S BLAZER | BECAKM’S SWEATER | B’S JEANS

If you saw my ig post a week or so ago you know Beckam is in a “blazer” phase. I have NO clue where it stemmed from, but all of sudden he wants to wear a blazer jacket to school, the grocery store, everywhere. He wears them with jeans, sweats, whatever. I love when the kids go through these little phases and its something I know we will look back on when he’s older and talk about 🙂

I got these pants and I am so obsessed, I love the loose fit they feel like you are wearing pajamas but are uber chic. They come in a couple different colors. They would look super cute with white platform sneakers too. The whole Uniqlo collection is amazing. Everything is under $100, and I loaded up.  I got this white linen shirt. Its so cute on it’s own but also unbuttoned as a lightweight swim coverup. Is anyone else obsessed with all things linen right now?

Well, off to run some errands – we just got back from Florida and I have to head to NYC for work late tonight. Hope you guys had a great weekend!

XX, Christine

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Happy Friday guys! We are still in Orlando with Disney, and wanted to share some of the things I packed for the trip 🙂

DETAILS: SWEATER | SHORTS | SHOES

I wore this outfit on my instagram recently and got so many questions about this sweater (women version here)   Isn’t it the cutest?! Our family loves to get decked out in all things Disney for our Disney trips and I thought this sweater was perfect for our trip.  These are some of my new favorite jean shorts and they are on sale right now!

DETAILS:  DRESS | NECKLACE

So in love with this dress!  Its perfect for a beach trip – I love how it flows and feels relaxed and comfortable but is so beautiful!  I have been wearing a lot of dresses by this brand lately and I’m addicted!

DETAILS:  DRESS | NECKLACE | SHOES

I was so excited to get this dress in time for our trip.  The color is so pretty and combined with the lightweight material its the perfect wrap dress for Florida! I do a need to steam this baby real bad though 😉 I also just got these new slides!  They came just in time for our trip and are on sale under $100!

DETAILS:  DRESS | NECKLACE | BAG (UNDER $20) | PHONE CASE

DETAILS:  TOP | PANTS | MICKEY SWEATSHIRT (ON SALE UNDER $30)

This two piece set is so fun!  Not to mention the pants are so comfortable! I love making it casual with a cut off sweatshirt. Did you guys catch me DIY-ing this on instastories.

I love both the print on this one and that A-line hem!  Its so different than your normal little black dress and I am going to wear this one to a nicer dinner out. It would be cute to wear back home in the summer with a jean jacket over it to make it more casual too.

DETAILS:  DRESS | NECKLACE

DETAILS:  SWEATSHIRT | JEANS | BAG | SHOES

We kicked off the trip sporting our Mickey gear right away 😉 Such a comfy travel outfit for Disney! This is the sweatshirt you guys watched me cut the bottom off of on my insta stories to make it a little shorter and distressed. I love how it turned out! This bag has been my go to travel bag lately – it holds so much and is so easy to keep clean. And these jeans!  They have been my favorites for awhile and are part of the big sale going on right now too – so grab them while you can!

Hope you guys have a good weekend! See stories and pics of our Disney trip on Instagram @hellofashionblog!

XX,

Christine

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