Five Things: October Edition

On a rainy walk from the parking garage into my office building earlier this month I was inspired by my umbrella to pull together a new list of '5 things' for the month of October.

Number one on the list is yes, an umbrella, as a born and bred PNW-er umbrellas are a taboo subject. Most people ditch them altogether and just stick with a rain coat and hood. I recently acquired my umbrella at the Create & Cultivate conference courtesy of my friends at Shopstyle. The conference was at an indoor/outdoor venue and being that it was in Seattle in September there was definitely some drizzle going on. The Shopstyle team smartly had some on hand and lets just say it found its way back home to Portland with me. 

Back to my umbrella usage though. I spend a lot of time walking between buildings for meetings and arriving late to work (haha) which means that in our rainier months I can occasionally look like a wet dog as I walk into the office or a conference room. So just this year I have finally decided to embrace the umbrella! Read on for my five things for october:

1) CLEAR UMBRELLA (per the above) this thing is so much fun. Plus I like the fact that I can rest it on my shoulders and it become a little see thru tent and I can text and walk. 

2) DINNER After a busy (and boozy) summer things have slowed down a bit and allowed us to figure out home cooked meals more often. The first two weeks of October allowed for maybe seven or so home cooked meals which is a major milestone at our house. My typical go-to options are what I call a 'japanese bowl' and pasta, lots of PASTA. I have added tortilla soup and various dishes featuring garbanzo beans to my home menu. Hopefully November keep us on good pace with home cooking too.

3) MY NERD ALERT PHONE/WALLET HOLSTER I love this thing but to be fair it was not love at first sight. I really liked the concept and walked around wearing it for about an hour in the store before I decided to bite the bullet and never looked back. Its a phone holster/purse/wallet combo and every person I run into gives me great feedback on it. I absolutely love how utilitarian it is. Highly recommend this as a holiday gift for your BFF or even yourself.

4) MAGNATILES Add these to your holiday shopping list. We bought these on our drive from LA to Joshua Tree the other week. After playing with these with his cousins in Santa Barbara I decided to get a set that he could play with throughout the rest of our trip. The poor kid was surrounded by grown ups most of the trip so I figured he deserved some kind of reward. BONUS that the adults like playing with these too.

5) BAGGU BACKPACK I cannot remember if I bought this pre or post baby. Must have been pre baby as the style is not available on their site any more. But I use it for lots and lots of things. I have packed it with kid stuff for Momo, computer and gym clothes for work and a day out bag for myself. It is so versatile and packable. I have been using it recently as my gym bag. Plus I just love their site and the way it is organized. It has a very calming effect.

                               Thats it! xx ly