Emma planned out her Valentine’s Day outfit over the weekend, and it was the cutest. 
Outfit/room details here.
Hello! Here’s what comes to mind today:
-
It was Valentine’s Day madness over here with the girls yesterday. Between outfit planning (these dresses and these sweaters), school cards/goodie bags, our special dinner at home and little kids’ gifts, I am zonked.
But everything was so cute and the girls had a blast. They spilled their treats out onto the kitchen island after school and were absolutely giddy! Special thanks to my mom and Aunt Michelle who always make holidays so special. -
I cannot manage to get a driver’s license test appointment. Mitch is going to Colombia with his best friend in a few weeks for a wedding. (I was originally going to go, but backed out because we have a lot of upcoming travel and I didn’t want to get overwhelmed/overtired.
) So yeah. I need to have a license so I can get Lucy to and from preschool. Though we COULD walk after Emma’s drop-off; it’s just an hour roundtrip and that’s a lot during February in Chicago, haha. But good to get fresh air! Anyway, everything is booked solid, I suppose because things were shut down for so long. Haaalp. It’s fine. (WHY DID I LEAVE IT TO THE LAST MINUTE?!) - You need to buy this (sale) cotton-cashmere sweatshirt/sweater! I’m obsessed with it. It’s an elevated sweatshirt, and looks really nice paired with nearly anything. It’s one of the most versatile pieces of clothing in my closet, and it’s extremely practical. Zero itch and lovely fabric. No need to steam. Runs a bit large.
- Watching: Inventing Anna on Netflix. Who isn’t?! The Anna Sorokin story is so fascinating. Mitch and I have been watching an episode or two a night; we’re that hooked. While the situations she gets herself into really do stress me out, haha, I can’t look away! HOW did she ever pull this off?!
- We took our wooden baby gates down. Crazy. I have been a nervous wreck about doing it because I am constantly envisioning Lucy falling down the stairs. But she is 100-percent stable and I know I just need to let go. Apparently you’re supposed to take them down around two years, and she’s nearly three! Mitch has been begging to get rid of them for months, though, so we finally did it. Feels so weird. I’m both sad that one chapter has ended and excited that another is beginning. Parenthood, man.
- Lucy learned how to put her boots on by herself. Do I even have a baby anymore?! It’s the sweetest. She leans against the wall and presses her feet into the boots, and then everyone in the family cheers and hugs her. I really have to hand it to Emma. She is the most supportive and loving big sister.
- J.Crew came out with new arrivals and these are my favorites: This gingham bathing suit, this cropped cashmere sweater, these super comfy sandals, and this plaid smocked dress.
- I cannot party like I used to. We had four “events” in a row this past week—a mix of kids’ and adult stuff—and I feel like I was hit by a truck. I actually had to sit out the Super Bowl because I was so exhausted, haha. This is 37, I suppose! ;)
-
Mitch dumped approximately one gallon of red wine on our living room rug. I was really impressed with how I handled it.
But seriously, it happens, right? The whole concepts of rugs is so ridiculous when I really think about it. How are families expected to not ruin them?! And don’t even get me started on carpeting. We had carpeting in the playroom for a hot second and Lucy puked on it within the first month. Anyway, I’m going to send the rug out to Rouzati Rugs. They’re the BEST. And if they can’t get the stains out, I might move it down to the playroom because the setup of the couch might be able to hide them. So there we go! Good plan, haha. -
Speaking of rugs, I’m in LOVE with this one from Ballard, which looks like a neutral version of our wine-stained Winn rug. Hoping it doesn’t come to this
, but it’s really beautiful. - We’re headed to Shaheen and Trevor’s this weekend! YAY. They came to stay with us over the summer, but it’s been a minute. We’ve missed them so much. And love that when we get the crew back together, it’s like no time has passed! Looking forward to laughing so hard my stomach hurts. ;)
- Mitch and I went to the Tortoise Supper Club with 0ur friends Dave and Natalie on Friday and I think it’s now my favorite restaurant in Chicago. It’s beautiful! I’m relatively new to the concept of supper clubs, but it’s a Wisconsin thing that my grandmother introduced me to. (She married the nicest WI guy when I was in college, and he has a home there!) Anyway, the Tortoise Supper Club has a very similar vibe to the Ishnala Supper Club in Wisconsin. (Pictures here from our trip!) The atmosphere is beautiful and the food is off the charts. If you’re in Chicago, or the next time you visit, GO!
-
This Amazon lamp looks JUST like our living room lamp, and it’s such a great deal! I’m an admitted lamp addict. I love them. I look forward to the time of day when I can turn them on. But I think this style is my absolute favorite out of all our lamps. It’s timeless!
- Emma and I had to run to school this morning. What a morning! Luckily, Emma scoots, so it was really just me running. ;) At least I got a good workout in… and Emma and I sure did laugh a lot.
-
One Home Project Every Day update:
- I steamed the floors. We’ve been living under a whole lot of snow, and as much as we try to keep our boots in the mudroom and on the doormat in the front, the floors get pretty mucky. It takes me about 10 minutes to steam the first floor and it’s always worth it! We have this steamer, which is on sale today, in case you’re interested. (I use it on the lowest setting with our hardwood floors and the finish is never affected. Just be careful not to leave it standing while on, as I’ve heard that can damage the rectangle of wood it’s on.)
-
We took everything off our kitchen countertops except for our cutting board and coffee machine. I’d been leaning toward doing this for a while, and when Mitch told me he was totally on board, I went for it—and wow! What a difference. We put the toaster and air fryer above the fridge, the dog treats in the cabinet, and the decor in other parts of the house, and that was that. It’s amazingly calming! I also find that Emma puts her belongings away when she’s done with them because they visibly look out of place… which is nice.
-
Mitch and I took down the last of the Christmas decor just in time for Valentine’s Day. It was getting embarrassing. But it’s done. And now the house looks bare and sad. Going to get out there with the window washer thingy and clean things up soon. Maybe wipe down the front door and switch out the wreath. February in Chicago. Ugh.
- I found a wonderfully affordable marble bistro table for our stair landing. Been wondering what to put in that corner for the longest time and when I found this, I knew it was the answer! I think I’ll put a couple of frames on it and maybe a faux plant? Off to Pinterest I go…
- I bought a rechargeable lightbulb for a lamp without an electrical socket, and WOW. First, it’s insanely simple to use. All you need to do is put it into another lamp that does have an electrical socket, and leave it on for 10 hours to charge it. And that’s it! It lasts up to five hours on its own. I think I’ll usually have this lamp on for an hour or two at night, so I might get a second that way I can make it a few days. Excited to see whether it works well or is just an annoyance.
- I did all the laundry on Sunday. Feels amazing to start the week out with an empty laundry bin.
- I digitized more kids’ artwork. Right now, I just store it in a desk drawer, and digitize it when I have a good amount. I just use my iPhone and take a pic of it on my white desk. Works well!
- I declared war on the playroom. I don’t know WHAT it is with me. I have organized every square inch of this place over the last couple of years, but I just cannot get the playroom under control! My new thought is that we simply need a better toy rotation. I need to utilize the closet and put bins in there, and cycle things out way more often. The do not need access to all toys at all times; toy rotation actually makes them way more excited about playing in there because things feel new and exciting! So I started to work on that. Will report back.
- I adore this simple bathing suit. Bummed that it doesn’t come in a long torso style, but bravo to J.Crew for coming out with so many this year!
- I’m taking Emma to see her great-grandmother. Eeeee! She hasn’t seen her since the summer, and we’re both just so excited. Plans include baking, crafting and playing with my childhood toys. I’m also thrilled about having some quality one-on-one time with Emma for a few days.
- I’m helping my sister-in-law with a design project and I’m SO excited about it. I can’t wait to share more details about it next week. But get ready for lots of design planning posts!
The post 15+ Things, 2/15 appeared first on Kelly in the City.