I don't like pants mommy!

Every morning is a battle with my little fashion diva, but some are worse than others, today being on one of the bad ones.  She has strong opinions about what she wants to wear, she would dress like she was having tea with the Queen of England everyday if I let her. We are having a very rainy day here in North Carolina due to what is left of Tropical Storm Beryl plus we have a rather long walk into day care so I wasn't feeling her choice of yet another dress and flip flops so selected this outfit by Persnickety Clothing Company (http://www.persnicketyclothing.com/) and these shoes by Joyfolie (http://www.joyfolie.com/).  Gabby had a total fit because only BOYS wear pants, GIRLS wear dresses, um I am not sure how many boys wear pants like these....

So, I dropped her off at Day Care and her teacher said good morning Gabby and she said today I am a boy, call me Bob...

All of these pieces are from this season and still available, most of the Persnickety Spring Line is 35% off right now.  We love both Persnickety and Joyfolie (and they look so cute together).  We bought our outfit from one of our usual and favorite stores Addy's Closet.

**UPDATE**  Smart and Sassy Looks has just located several of these Grey Gauchos and they are 50% off and you can use code Kami to receive free shipping on yours!

Gabby's first dance recital

We had a nice holiday weekend, we didn't go to the beach, mountains or anyplace cool like that because Gabby had her first dance recital.  Our 3/4 year old Ballet class danced to Kiss the Girl from The Little Mermaid.  They didn't do all that much dancing but they were cute and that is what it is all about at this age.  I am so proud of Gabby and her entire class, no one had stage fright they all looked great.  I am so looking forward to next year when she can take tap too!

Gabby with her big brother

Gabby & I

One with daddy

Recital flowers, I ordered these but once Daddy saw her on stage he had to be the one to give them to her.

After the recital the whole family went out to eat (all the grandparents) and since this blog is supposed to be about what Gabby wears, she wore this adorable Jelly The Pug bubble dress from The Frilly Frog (www.thefrillyfrog.com) and yellow (I am really loving yellow this season) Livie & Luca sandals from One Good Thread (www.onegoodthread.com). Both are from this season so they are still available if you decide you have to have.  I love Jelly The Pug, not only are the dresses super cute they are also super affordable (for a boutique brand).

Need at home summer activities? Try Kiwi Crates - $10 off coupon below

Ok, so this blog is supposed to be about clothes but I discovered these the other day and am dying to receive my (well Gabby's) first Kiwi Crate. 

I am not a crafty or creative person so I find it hard to do projects with Gabby at home and find that each weekend we are watching too much TV out of a lack of interesting things to do, then I discovered these little babies.  It is an at home arts/crafts/gardening project delivered to your door complete with everything you need for the project (so no running around buying things from 3 different stores) in its own cute little box.

There are different subscriptions you can buy, I bought the monthly (which can be cancelled right after receiving your first if you find it is not for you) for $19.95 per month, with no tax and free shipping.  If you want to try it out, you can use this link for a $10 off coupon making your first crate only $9.95.  Have 2 children? No problem, add supplies for a second project to your monthly crate for $7.95.

http://www.kiwicrate.com/Refer?i=KamiB Refer?i=KamiB

Crates are mailed on the 15th of each month.  I can't wait to receive our first crate and post all about it.

Smart and Sassy Looks $100 Gift Card Give Away

One of the online stores I frequent Smart and Sassy Looks (http://www.smartandsassylook.com/) is givng away a $100 Gift Certificate on their Facebook page.  All you need to do is enter the word "Shopping" under their status and you are entered to win.  If you mention that I sent you, Kami Brunson, I am entered to win a $25 gift card.  Hope WE both win

Favorites from the week

We have had a rather uneventful few days (wow, I feel like I have either missed something or am living another life this week) but we have been busy gearing up for Gabby's first dance recital on Saturday (so looking forward to writing that post).  So stumped for an interesting story, here are a few of our favorite outfits from the week:

First up is this adorable Jelly the Pug skirt and Lilly Pulitzer plain white tee.  I got this skirt for less than half of its original retail price during a Facebook sale from The Frilly Frog (http://www.thefrillyfrog.com/) and found the shirt on ebay for $10.  I bought these red Livie & Luca Sandals to match another outfit that didn't fit, so I was over the moon last night when I realized they matched this skirt.  These are from this season and I bought them from One Good Thread (http://www.onegoodthead.com/).  You can get your pair there, they will be perfect for 4th of July, they are a free shipping boutique!

Several years ago I was turned onto another company local in North Carolina, Chez Ami.  They have their offices and a warehouse in Raleigh.  The warehouse also includes a small store area that is open various days of the month.  Earlier in the week Gabby wore this cute skirt and tank that I picked up at a warehouse sale over the winter for $18.  The deeply reduced prices used to only be available at the warehouse but they recently added a finale sale section to their website so that everyone could join in on the savings (http://www.chezami.com/). 

Last up for today are these shoes by Foxpaws (http://www.foxpaws.com/).  I love this shoe brand but hardly anyone carries them, not sure why because they are not expensive either.  I buy them from a store in Texas and a shopping buddy turned friend that I met on Facebook mails them to me.   We have several pairs but these leopard print peep toes are my favorite.

Please note, my little model has not wanted to cooperate this week...

Family Date Night - Tea Collection Sale & Coupon Code Details

Do you have a family date night?  We started Family Date Nights this Friday night.  Friday night is supposed to be one of my "Gym nights" but it didn't take much, well any, convincing for me to blow off the gym and have a family date night.

We took out my husbands convertible Trans Am.  Him and Gabby both love it, me not so much but she likes to ride in "the speed car" as she calls it.  Gabby doesn't like her hair to blow so she wears this ridiculous winter hat with her sunglasses...

We had a simple dinner at Mellow Mushroom.  Pizza just about always works best when going out with Gabby.  Then we were off to Sandhills Gymnastics for open gym night, aka Fun Gym.  Have you ever tried this?  Do you have a Gymnastics center in your area?  Check with them and see if they have open gym nights.  It is fantastic.  The kids gets to run wild in the gym, on the mats, jump in the foam for $6 per hour (so cheap as well), usually 1 to 1.5 hours is plenty of time and they are wore out and ready for bed by the time you get home.  Gabby has no fear and tried to rock climbing wall this time.  Daddy got a little nervous seeing her climbing the wall, so had to step in an offer a boost. 



All in all we had a GREAT NIGHT.  Gabby is wearing a super cute and comfy Tea Collection (http://www.teacollection.com/) drop waist dress. We love Tea for dinner and play, works so great for both and is super durable.  Tea Collection is having one of their best sales ever on their website today, $15 dresses & $10 leggings, plus you can save an extra 10% with codes SS12SAS, that gets you over 50% off the original prices!!!

Mother's Day Weekend Myrtle Beach Road Trip

I am a little late with my Mother's Day weekend entry, but since I was slack this morning and didn't get a picture of what Gabby wore today, I thought I would reach back a few weeks for something to write about.  I hope all of you had as great of a weekend as I did.

My parents were at Myrtle Beach and got a great deal on a 2 bedroom unit at the Marriott by agreeing to sit through the timeshares sales pitch and invited us to come stay with them.  We arrived late on Friday night and met them at Broadway at the Beach for dinner at Johnny Rockets.  Gabby had her first "real" milkshake and after sucking on the straw for about 30 seconds said "What is wrong with it, nothing is coming out!?!"  So, we had to let it melt a little bit.  We walked over to the Pavilion area at Broadway at the Beach, it is nothing like the old Pavilion on the strip was but it fit the need for the night, which was a few carnival rides for Gabby.  You can't see much of her outfit but she has on a tunic & leggings by Anita G and I paired it with this Cream Stella Jacket by Persnickety Clothing Company.  If you do not have this jacket, you NEED it.  It matches everything, dress up or dress down.  It is from Spring 2011, so you have to buy one second hand at this point.

Saturday Gabby & I headed out to the beach and it was sales pitch time for Mom & Dad.  They thought it ran long, but I didn't have to attend so that was no sweat off my back, Gabby & I were on the beach.  Gabby wore this adorable Kate Mack Bikini (before you ask NO, I do not have a problem with my 3 year old wearing a bikini, I will have more of a problem with it when she is 16 and going to the beach with boys, than I do now).  We got this and all of our Kate Mack swimwear at one of our favorite stores, Addy's Closet (www.addyscloset.com).

 

After several hours on the beach, we headed up to the pool area for lunch and some cocktails for me.  They had these 2 great life guards working the water slide and playing with the kids, so I was able to kick back and relax for a little while.

Saturday evening we headed out for dinner at a local place, Bovines. (I like to support the local guy rather than the big chain when I can).  The food was great but we got more compliments than we could count on this Persnickety Clothing Company outfit.  I had to piece this outfit together from Addy's Closet and Katiebugs, as the items sold out so fast.

The evening ended with Mommy getting this great Katie Holmes look alike necklace from an Etsy store for Mother's Day (mine has a G, but this picture was the only one I could find on the lady's website this morning).

Anyway, looking for a nice but cheap vacation, take places up on the offer to sit through the Timeshare Sales pitch.  It only takes 2 hours out of your trip but gives you a several night stay for a deeply discounted price.

Have you attended a Facebook wall sale?

Have you attended a Facebook Wall Sale? Wondering what in the world I am referring to?   Well, continue reading...

A Facebook Wall Sale is when a boutique hosts a sale on their Facebook Page, selling past season outfits at deeply, deeply discounted price, like 50-80% off  retail prices.  This is how/where I do a lot of my shopping.  Store owners will post pictures of an available item with the price and size.  Sizes and quantities are very limited so you have to act fast when you see an item you like (if you snooze you lose).  Under the picture you comment with Sold, Size and your paypal address.  It is best to have this info ready to cut and paste to the comment box, if you try to type it all out you will be to slow for the really hot items. For me, no size is off limits, as long as it is larger than our current size, I will buy and save for when it fits, at these prices, why not?

If you want to see what the frenzy is all about, check out the Facebook Page for The Frilly Frog (www.thefrillyfrog.com)  She will be hosting a wall sale very soon and details will be listed on her page.  I snatched up lots of goodies by Lilly Pulitzer, Lemon Loves Lime and Persnickety Clothing Company at her last sale.

The Morning Wars & the Little Giraffe Blankie

So, you overslept and are now running late and this is the morning your daughter decides not to cooperate...

Of course that is how is always happens.  She never has a difficult, uncooperative morning when I am ahead of schedule (which is not often, but still) it always happens when I am late and in a hurry.  This morning was a total disaster from breakfast, to tooth brushing to hair and then we had the blankie war...

Lemon Loves Lime Dress for today

So, she is not Suri Cruise, but Gabby loves her Little Giraffe blankets (www.littlegiraffe.com) just as much.  We recently had to upgrade to the larger version since outgrowing the baby blanket and she wants to take it everyplace.  She has the sleeping bag at day care but is overly attached to the Pink Luxe at the moment.  Being the germ-a-phobe that I am, I don't let the house blankets travel to day care so this morning ended with me carrying her kicking and screaming into daycare in her Lemon Loves Lime Salmon Dress from Addy's Closet (www.addyscloset.com) and the pink blanket remaining in my car. 

Here are a few more pics of our Little Giraffe collection purchased at Belli Bambini. 

This morning

Sleeping Bag - Spring 2011

 

Keeping it small business, both local and online

Since my blog is about What Gabby Wears, I thought I should have an entry about where I shop.  I like the concept of keeping it local, but in small towns that is not always possible, so I try to apply the same concept when shopping online, supporting small individually owned boutiques - so I call it keeping it small. 

When shopping local in Moore County, North Carolina I shop at Belli Bambini.  It is owned by a dear friend that is responsible for getting me into this world of pricey toddler fashion.  She carries everything from clothes, shoes, baby gear to the super luxury baby blankets by Little Giraffe.  One of my favorite brands at Belli Bambini is Peaches n Cream. This is really keeping it local as they are also located in North Carolina.  Here is a pic of Gabby in my favorite Peaches n Cream outfit

My first online boutique was Addy's Closet (www.addyscloset.com).  I ran across this boutique when Gabby's doctor suggested buying a pair of squeaky shoes to help encourage her to walk flat footed (she was a toe walker).  I found Mooshu Trainers at Addy's Closet (the red sandals above are Mooshu).  I ended up finding many, many more things I loved at Addy's Closet including Persnickety Clothing Company, Lemon Loves Lime & LunaLuna Copenhagen.  One of my favorite Persnickety outfits is shown in the picture below.



Through Addy's Closet, I discovered another boutique, Katiebugs (www.katiebugsonline.com).  She also carries Persnickety & Lemon Loves Lime but also has Misha Lulu and this unexpected favorite Paulinie Collection.  How cute is this dress??  The owner has 2 little girls so she is fantastic at helping with sizing concerns.

Last, but certainly not least  is The Frilly Frog (www.thefrillyfrog.com).  Can you say Lilly Pulitzer??  Find it here.  Lilly is one of my newest obsessions but glad that I am only late to the whole world of Lilly.

You can also find each of these stores on Facebook.  The owners go above and beyond to satisfy.  Also check their Facebook pages for SALES (don't we all love a great sale?).  I discovered all of these stores within in the last 4 years and now consider each of the owners friends.  Now, that is great customer service.

While you are checking out the Facebook pages of these stores, you can also check out my Buy/Sell/Trade page Gabby's Goodies, as each of these outfits will be available soon

Fishing, anyone? Well at least she looked cute.

My husband LOVES to fish, I do not. I am not all that outdoorsy, my idea of nature walk is getting a bad parking space at the mall and having to hike all the way to the entrance.  Since our son doesn't fish, my husband decided he would start Gabby early, hoping to inspire a life long hobby.  I was originally against this and then a smarter head prevailed and I realized if she enjoyed it, that would be something he could do with her and give me an afternoon "off." 

We ventured out for our first fishing trip a few weeks ago.  I tagged along to show Gabby that girly girls can fish, well I didn't participate, I took the pictures.  Our fishing trip started with selecting the perfect outfit, girly yet not frilly.  We went with this Tea Collection (http://www.teacollection.com/) skirt and nesting doll tea, then we paired with Ladybug rain boots (not sure where they are from, gift from grandma).

Our first stop was Walmart to buy a Barbie Fishing Pole. Daddy seemed to think she was going to enjoy fishing with her brother's leftover Spiderman pole, I knew that wasn't happening, so it was off to Walmart to buy a pink Barbie Fishing Pole

Now that we had the right gear, it was off to the pond.  Gabby had a ball catching fish after fish.  She had to touch each one and then wash her hands with baby wipes to get the smell off, but she loved it.  No fish were harmed, all were put right back in the water.  Now, Daddy & Gabby have something they can do together and mommy can get her dressed and then sit home and relax for a few hours.

But, a girl always has to take a moment to run through the flowers



Kami, please explain why our daughter thinks her clothes magically appear in the mailbox???

As a fellow shopacholic, I know that one of the biggest fears is having your hubby beat you to the mailbox.  It is necessary that we get there first so that we can secure our packages and hide the new additions to the closet before he sees them.  Well, on Monday, Hubby picked Gabby up from day care and beat me home and here is what happened...

I always check the mail as we pull into the driveway, with Gabby in the backseat, eagerly waiting to see what goodies mommy is about to retrieve from the mailbox, with her saying something along the lines of "oh, are those my new clothes?"  On Monday, hubby pulled into the driveway with Gabby in the backseat, completely bypassing the mailbox (it has taken a lot of training to keep him away from the mail) but on this particular day little miss Gabby chimed in from the back seat with "UGGGHHHHH Daddy, you forgot to check the box and see what clothes the mailman brought me today..."  (she needs more training on keeping her little mouth shut about these things when daddy is around).  So, hubby was forced to check the mail and luckily, on this day, there was only one package.  (here is Gabby modeling that outfit from Addy's Closet)

So, when I arrived home I was met with - Kami, can you please explain why our daughter thinks her clothes magically appear in the mailbox each day? When she was pressed on the issue by daddy, she totally gave me up and explained how the clothes arrive each day and that mommy puts them away in her closet...

Busted by the object & beneficiary of my shopping addiction...

I thought I would start my blogging with a picture of the closet that I will be blogging about.  She really needs a walk in, but this will have to do until she can move into her brother's room when he leaves for College in 2 years (how he ended up with the room with 2 closets is beyond me).  Papa had to build a 3 tier shoe rack to hold all of Gabby's shoes.  The bins at the top (3 of them, the 3rd is out of view) is where we house all of clothes for upcoming seasons that I scored for at least 45% off retail.  My shopping philsophy is to buy 75% off her clothes from End of Season sales and save for the next year and fill in the other 25% with new releases from the current season.  Unfortunately, this does not work for shoes, so we have to pay full price for those (all 30+ pairs in her closet).  I have learned that if you make the initial investment in clothes, you can sell them for almost what you paid for them and dress you little girl for a fraction of the cost in upcoming seasons.

Close up of the shoes.  Happy shopping everyone and look for daily updates on What Gabby Wore Today.