2023 Black Friday sales to shop

November 23, 2023

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Here’s a comprehensive list of the best Cyber Week sales of 2023.

Continue reading →

Comment on Post

Easy, everyday outfits: no. 1

September 25, 2023

I’m back on the blog with easy outfits for early fall!

Continue reading →

Comment on Post

What I Wore: Oct. 11 – 18

October 19, 2022

The weather is cooling down and the outfits are heating up. Here’s what I wore last week.

Continue reading →

Comment on Post

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/ihcfzuleiogs/public_html/index.php:16) in /home/ihcfzuleiogs/public_html/wp-includes/feed-rss2.php on line 8
Life Experiences – Skirt The Rules | NYC Style Blogger http://skirttherulesblog.com NYC Style Blogger Mon, 08 Mar 2021 03:31:52 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 My First Trimester Recap http://skirttherulesblog.com/2021/03/10/my-first-trimester-recap/ http://skirttherulesblog.com/2021/03/10/my-first-trimester-recap/#comments Wed, 10 Mar 2021 12:00:00 +0000 http://skirttherulesblog.com/?p=20464

Sharing my symptoms, cravings and overall thoughts during my first trimester!

Man, it feels like it’s already been ages since my first trimester. Granted, I’m writing this while on the cusp of my third trimester, but hey – better late than never!

*We took a pregnancy test in the morning, then flew to Arizona* a few hours later.

Excitement first, then exhaustion

While I was hoping that it wouldn’t take too long to get pregnant, I was also somewhat expecting that it wouldn’t happen as quickly as it did! We started trying in late July/early August. By September, I was knocked up! I felt both equally blessed and bewildered!

But really, we were over the moon and couldn’t wait to share the news with our family and friends. Coincidentally, the same day that we took a pregnancy test, we had plans to fly out to Arizona to spend time with our siblings for the week. We kept the big news quiet for the most part, but told James’ brother and his wife since we were staying with them for the week. Before becoming pregnant, our favorite pastime was drinking (a lot) together, so it would’ve been impossible to avoid without telling them!

By the time we got back to New York, I was technically four weeks pregnant and all of sudden, it felt like I was hit with a wall of bricks. I can remember it as probably the crappiest day I’ve felt in this pregnancy, but I’m thankful that it wasn’t anything that spending a whole day in bed couldn’t fix.

*Four weeks into my pregnancy and it felt like I was hit by a wall of bricks.*

Learning to take things slow and steady

The lower-than-normal energy levels carried with me through the rest of my first trimester. It was probably the toughest adjustment I’ve had to make to my life so far (harder than saying goodbye to alcohol and sushi – both of which I love dearly!). Pre-pregnancy and especially pre-pandemic, I moved 100 mph, had 50 windows open on my desktop at all times and didn’t like to waste a single minute of my time.

I spent the first couple of months of pregnancy having to rewire how I approached life – to take things slower and to not beat myself up if I didn’t check everything off of my to do list. And on the days that my day was a complete wash, I reminded myself that of all the things I didn’t do, I still kept busy building a baby!

*The only thing I wanted to eat during my first trimester was carbs, carbs and more CARBS.*

Food just didn’t egg-cite me anymore

When I found out that I was with child, my search history quickly became flooded with questions like: “Can I eat ________ while pregnant?” Turns out, about a month into my pregnancy, my stomach and my appetite would turn upside down.

I feel lucky that I never had any intense cases of morning sickness. Maybe some light nausea here and there, but for the most part, my first trimester symptoms manifested itself in exhaustion and food aversions. Nothing sounded good anymore. Pre-pregnancy, I would eat eggs nearly every day but the thought of a gooey yolk made me want to hurl. Same with salmon. It made meal planning really difficult, because I would never know what I’d be in the mood for until it was time to eat, and even then I would only want carbs (bagels, cinnamon raisin toast and cheese puffs to be specific).

At one point, I had trouble even taking my prenatal vitamins every day because they made me queasy. I ended up switching to gummy prenatals, which I know are not as effective as a capsule, but hey – whatever works. I tried ginger chews to help curb some of my stomach issues, but really didn’t love the taste.

So by the time I had my first OBGYN appointment at eight weeks, I had already gained a bit of weight from unhealthy eating. My doctor suggested that I try eating pears when I felt nauseous or not in the mood to eat and it actually helped! It was crunchy, light, refreshing and not too sweet – just the right balance to settle my stomach and get my appetite going again. It still crave and enjoy a crisp pear now, and always keep a few on hand.

*My first ultrasound at eight weeks – such a surreal moment!*

All in all, I’d say I had a fairly mild first trimester. It was a learning curve for sure – learning the do’s and don’ts of keeping my baby healthy and safe (I found Expecting Better to be a really insightful book!), sharing the big news with our family and friends and finally starting to see my bump go from food baby to real baby! Have any pregnancy questions that you’d like me to cover? Feel free to email me at jen@skirttherulesblog.com or DM me on Instagram!

]]> http://skirttherulesblog.com/2021/03/10/my-first-trimester-recap/feed/ 3 Our Journey to Buying an Apartment in NYC http://skirttherulesblog.com/2018/08/27/new-homeowners-in-nyc/ http://skirttherulesblog.com/2018/08/27/new-homeowners-in-nyc/#comments Mon, 27 Aug 2018 11:30:33 +0000 http://skirttherulesblog.com/?p=16746

Striped Top (another version here) / White Skinny Jeans / Gold Cuffs (c/o) / Satin Lip Pencil

Tomorrow will mark six years since I moved from Arizona to New York (James came five months after me so that he could wrap up grad school). So it’s pretty fitting / crazy / unbelievable that we’re celebrating by moving into an apartment that WE BOUGHT.

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think we would buy a place in NYC. In fact, before I started working at my current job, James and I were talking about when we would move back to Phoenix (he was ready to go, I wasn’t). But when we both landed new gigs in 2017, New York was looking like a more long term plan.

Towards the end of last year, James and I started entertaining the thought of buying. We had been in our same 1-bedroom rental apartment in Gramercy for five years (now six!). Every year we had been saying that it’s time for a change and every year we ended up renewing our lease. We started looking very casually at the end of 2017 and the great thing about having a little more time on our hands (our lease renews every November) was that we could do our due diligence, research different neighborhoods and be very picky about the places we wanted to see.

As you might expect, New York real estate ain’t cheap and we knew we would have to look outside of Manhattan to even be able to remotely afford something. While I would have loved to say that we live in Brooklyn (+10 instant cool points), it wouldn’t have been a good commute for me or James. Queens seemed like the more logical option — many of the neighborhoods are “up and coming,” reasonably affordable (all things considered) and was an easy commute to work and to the airports (which we fly out of a lot).

On a whim, we decided to take a look at some units in an apartment complex in Astoria. It’s a buzzy neighborhood with lots of restaurants and bars, but this apartment was a bit of the beaten path. They were all recently renovated inside, but there were a lot of things we didn’t love (a really dreary stairwell, oddly configured living room and no bath tub — mama has needs and an occasional bath is one of them!).

The holidays came and went and we picked back up this February. We saw a 1 bedroom in Jackson Heights that had split its living room into another room that could be used as an office, guestroom or nursery (one day)! Obviously not ideal in terms of square footage, but it was a creative use of the space. We could really see ourselves living their for a few years. Apparently, there were already some offers on the table and if we were serious, we would need to make a bid ASAP.

At that point, it really was just window shopping. We didn’t have a broker representing us and we really had no idea what the contract process would entail. After talking to my dad for advice, I got a little dose of reality — it’s not enough to say “I’m interested, let’s throw our hats in the ring.” We needed someone to guide us through the process, to represent our interests and help us navigate the complexities of NYC real estate.

So we reset our expectations and connected with a friend who also happens to be a real estate agent. She helped us find some listings that fit our needs and in April — literally the day I got back from Amsterdam — we visited the apartment that would eventually become ours.

Yes, it was only the third apartment we had seen in person. But after scouring apartment listings in the area for six months, I hadn’t seen anything else like it. It’s a two bedroom, third floor walk up. Not too far from the subway station. On a quiet street, flanked by lots of restaurants. The rooms are big and the kitchen is fully renovated and absolutely gorgeous!

We saw the apartment on Monday, put in an offer by Friday, went through some counter offers and violá — we had both accepted within the next week!

I know this was a long one and if you’ve stuck with me, thank you for reading along! There’s SO much more to share — what it’s like to buy into a co-op building, our move in process and of course decorating!! I can’t wait to share it all. If there’s anything specific that you’d like me to cover about buying a home, I’m happy to take a stab at it! Let me know your questions and thoughts in the comments section below and thank you so much for your support!

]]> http://skirttherulesblog.com/2018/08/27/new-homeowners-in-nyc/feed/ 9 Weekend Notes: 01.17.15 http://skirttherulesblog.com/2015/01/17/weekend-notes-01-17-15/ http://skirttherulesblog.com/2015/01/17/weekend-notes-01-17-15/#comments Sat, 17 Jan 2015 16:30:56 +0000 http://skirttherulesblog.com/?p=9828

It’s a cold one today and I’m not going to lie, my fingers are slightly frozen from taking a walk outside this morning. So let’s keep this short and sweet, shall we? I’m taking it easy this week, getting my workout on and maybe partaking in a brunch or two (that’s well-balanced, right?). Hope you’re staying warm and here’s what’s on my radar this week:

Forbes rounded up a list of 30 people under 30 who are changing the way we shop. Spoiler alert: they’re all brilliant.

LOFT is having a major sale this weekend. Take 40% off full-price (including new arrivals!) and 60% off sale items. I’m obsessed with this tomato red top and this polka dot blouse. New year, new outfits. Yes please!

By the way, I said yes to the dress this weekend! I can’t show you what it looks like, but I can share the dress I plan on wearing to our rehearsal dinner. There’s also plenty of more wedding insp. over on my Pinterest boards.

And speaking of wedding plans, I think we’ve decided on where we’re going for our honeymoon: here and here.

I need need need to recreate Shelby’s blush and black outfit! It’s so good!

Still obsessing over bucket bags and I want to add another to my collection for spring. There are plenty of options, depending if you want to save, spend or splurge.

Favorite post of the week? Five things I learned while traveling in Europe.

This year, I’m committed to investing in quality wardrobe staples. I’m starting with the ever-timeless black pointed pump, but the real question is: leather or suede?

I found a zen in the form of a DIY terrarium with Bare Minerals earlier this week. I learned more about their newest product line, Complexion Rescue. It’s part BB cream/CC cream/tinted moisturizer and 100% heaven for the skin.

You know I usually wear the same pair of sunglasses in black and in tortoise over and over, but I finally found another pair worth adding to the rotation.

I might be hopping on the Go Pro bandwagon and pulling the trigger on this camera. I want something I can carry around on upcoming adventures or in my bag around the city. If you have one of your own, I would love to hear your thoughts!

Follow:
Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // Pinterest // YouTube // Bloglovin’

Photos:
At Home In Love

Shop This Week’s Favorites:

]]> http://skirttherulesblog.com/2015/01/17/weekend-notes-01-17-15/feed/ 7