Goodbye, one. Hello, two.

I feel like I should title this post, "goodbye, one. Hello, naughty nelly" 

'Cause guys, she's full of spunk and sass and ideas of her own. 

I've got to say though-- watching Carla evolve from a mindful little one year old into a naughty nelly, also gives me peace.

  You see, when Carla was born, Sal's world was flipped upside down. I felt guilt for bringing another baby into our lives. I blamed the changing family dynamic for his naughtiness--while now it's clear to me--it was just TWO. 

Two is the year of finding a balance between autonomy and mommy. Two is the year of pushing every single limit and figuring out just how far they can go. It's learning about cause and effect, and so so soooo many social lessons. 

So here we are. 

Two. 

 I know someday I will look back and laugh at the things my kids did that at the time really got my panties in a bunch. 

Since I don't want to forget how cute the naughtiness can be (shhhh, don't admit that to my daughter!!!), here are a few of our recent naughties:

- she dipped her toothbrush in the toilet and sucked the water out of the bristles. (This happened while I ran to my bathroom to brush my own teeth). 

- she climbed up on her dad's workbench where I had our faux horse head, Beyoncé awaiting a fresh new coat of paint. She threw Beyoncé to the ground, where Beyoncé suffered a fatal blow to her head. I'm pretty bummed about it because it was my favorite part of Carla's room. She's a big time thrower, this girl. 

- she took a full plate of food, looked me in the eye, and dumped it behind our super-heavy-to-move sofa on a week that NZ was out of town. This left me to get creative in retrieving the food with Sal's grabber stick toy. 

-she escaped her crib fifteen times in one night. (We've since ditched the crib and she's now in the bottom bunk bed...but as you can see below, she isn't so keen on sleeping in it)

- she likes to color on the floors. Washable markers and polished concrete for the win. 

But then you know, there's the really cool parts of being two. The "I love you/ I love your eyes/ I love your hair/ I love your nose/ I love your..." that she so sweetly says many times a day. She greets her dad with an " I missed you!" each and every night, and welcomes her brother home from school with the same enthusiasm. 

She's a great helper in the kitchen, and likes to help me sort socks from our laundry. 

I guess I'll weather out the naughty nellies and hang on tight since she's so darn cute. It's sure to be a long ride. And hey, once she's out of them, it's Gino's turn! 

Stitchfix #5

Yep. I'm still doing stitchfix. 

Every time I get a box on my porch I am so damn excited to open it up & try things on...and then it happens...

I look at the packing list prices. 

And then I throw everything but one piece of clothing (I don't want to lose that $20 styling fee credit) back in the prepaid mailer and ship it back to stitchfix. I've said goodbye to many loved tops, necklaces, pants and dresses in the last four fixes, simply because I couldn't stomach the prices. 

I'd have to say, that's my only grievance with stitchfix. I actually love most of the items I've been sent. Most of them fit like they were made for me. I absolutely love someone else shopping for me and finding stuff in my size. 

Those prices, though. 

 They kill me. 

This was the first fix out of five where I absolutely loved every single piece and contemplated keeping them all to receive the 25% discount for keeping it all. Stay tuned to find out what I decided in the end..

evie drawstring funnel neck sweatshirt

By: loveappella

I had pinned this sweatshirt style sweater multiple times in my Pinterest board and was super excited to see it in my fix. It's perfect for southern CA, year round. 

Paulina graphic print lace detail blouse 

By: Daniel rainn

One thing I love about stitchfix is that it opens me up to brands I've never heard of before. I've found that I'm drawn to Daniel Rainn's blouses and love that they come in petite. It's hard to see but this had beautiful lace detail on the bodice. 

Mellie variegated knit top

By: pixley

I loved loved loved this raglan tshirt the minute I laid eyes on it. Funny enough, I don't have many cute casual shirts. I'm either in tank tops or hoodies and have been wanting to expand my casual shirt collection. This one was super soft and flowy--maybe even a little too flowy, but I loved how comfy it was. 

Maebe jersey maxi dress

By: London times

This one was the furthest item from my usual repertoire and not really my taste in prints and style, but for some reason, once I tried it on, I found myself envisioning places I'd wear it. I love when stitchfix gets me out of my comfort zone. 

The fifth item was a necklace that hung to mid chest and had miniature spoons hanging from it. That's the best description I can give. Nick loved it--me, not so much. But then again, I am not an accessorizer. Like, at all. My wedding ring even resides in safety while I wear a simple band. I'm wanting to branch out and polish my outfits off with jewelry and accessories but every time I put them on I keep thinking to myself , "this so isn't me", and I end up taking them off and leaving the house unadorned. 

Anyways, I liked all four pieces of clothing and considered the necklace because NZ liked it, and you know, who doesn't want to wear stuff their husband likes?

Then I saw this....

...and my heart sank. The cheapskate in me immediately threw everything back in the return bag and swore off stitchfix forever....just as I've done every other time. 

I told myself to keep one so that my $20 style fee wasn't wasted (it goes as a credit for whatever you keep), so I decided I'd keep the sweater since I've wanted it for so long. 

I knew I wouldn't wear the necklace enough to make the $34 price tag worth it, plus I'm pretty sure I can find something similar much cheaper at charming Charlie or somewhere similar. 

The baseball tee kept whispering my name, even though I thought it might just be a bit too big. I slept on that one ($48) overnight and tried it on with jeans, leggings and sweats and determined that I'd keep it too. Even though I really feel $48 is too much for a baseball T.

The Daniel rainn blouse and I parted ways, because I recently found out that Nordstrom rack carries his stuff (in petite too!) for about $20-24 per blouse. While I loved this one and would've worn it all summer, I sent it back and plan to stalk Norsdtrom Rack for it (or something similar) over the next few weeks. 

$64 for a blouse I can get for $24? No thanks. 

And lastly, the London Times Maxi. 

This one was hard. It was soooo not my style, but as I said before, it sort of grew on me, mostly because it fit like a glove and made me feel so grown up in it. It was a halter top with skinny straps--but this girl doesn't own a single strapless bra and I really don't have any desire to, either. So, back it went with its $68 price tag. 

I'm slowly realizing that my definition of what i consider "cheapest price range" and stitch fix's designation of "cheapest price range" are worlds apart. 

Either way, I really enjoy getting a box every few months and seeing what the stylist puts together for me. Everything I've ever kept from fixes gets worn on a regular basis, so at least I haven't thrown money away on things that I'd just leave hanging in the closet.