Before Tom and I were parents, we’d go to Palm Springs at least twice a year. It’s one of my favorite places in the world—the delicious dry heat! The crumbly, sunsoaked mountains! The surreal wind power windmills on the drive in! The proximity to a Prada outlet! But since having kids, we haven’t visited as frequently… it’s a tad too far to travel with squirmy children and a lot of the places we like are a little too chic to frequent with kids who fling food on the ground and bellow like wildebeests. Anyway, we just got back from a trip to Arizona (Scottsdale, to be specific) and I LOVED it. It had the same weather as Palm Springs, is over an hour closer, and it’s within 20 minutes of an aquarium WITH SHARKS, a zoo, a butterfly garden, and more!! If you have kids, I’d highly recommend it!!!
So with that trip fresh in my mind, the first thing I’ll cover in this (yes, belated) newsletter are the things that made travel a smidge more tolerable. BTW, this will be a kid-related newsletter, for the most part, so if you’re not a mom you will definitely find this boring! I always try to throw in a few non-kid-related/beauty/fashion items in every newsletter though, so just scroll down to the end for those if you are not a parent or with child, k?
Kid stuff
VTech Camera: I saw this on my friend Patricia’s Instagram and ordered it right away! We gave it to Ren at the airport and told her she was the “official photographer” for the trip. She took so many unflattering pictures of us (note: shooting from the angle of a three year old gives you approximately 67 chins) but it was a hoot for both her and us.
https://amzn.to/2HBySCV
Sound machine: I think I’ve written about this sound machine before but it’s the best! Teeny tiny and charges with a USB. Tao sleeps with this both in our NYC apartment (he sleeps next to a highly trafficked hallway) and it made our hotel room a little more like home.
https://amzn.to/2vkgGv4
Nine bazillion snacks: the key to traveling with kids is to basically have an endless reserve of snacks (and patience). These Munchkin snack containers are my favorite, they prevent Cheerios everywhere but the opening flaps are soft and rubbery, so a three year old cramming her hand into it won’t scratch herself. I also use Stasher bags whenever I can to reduce waste—it’s one of my new year’s resolutions to reduce plastic usage and I’m trying SO hard to stick to it (I am, I must say, pretty proud of the fact that I’ve only used five plastic water bottles all year!! I used to go through five plastic bottles a day minimum! My hack is that at the start of the week I bring five reusable cups or mugs to the office so there’s one for each day. Each night, I bring one home the sullied (that word will always make me think of Game of Thrones) mug and toss it into the dishwasher. I usually use Swell cups or Byta mugs (which are quite chic IMO)).
Last baby thing of this newsletter! The Frida medicine dispenser makes it SO much easier to give Tao medicine, I can’t even believe it! We used to use regular medicine syringes that we’d get at the drugstore and this pacifier-syringe-thingy has meant less shrieking/vomiting/everything. Two very enthusiastic thumbs up!!
Now onto grown-up stuff
One of my 2018 pacts was to stop using my children as an excuse and get my skincare regime back together. I kickstarted it with a facial at Rescue Spa which was really, really amazing. My friend Emily had it and when I interrogated her about her preternaturally glowy skin, she told me to see Danuta. Honestly, I don’t know what she did because I instantly fell asleep but my skin GLOWED afterwards and was noticeably firmer for two to three weeks.
I’ve also been using all sorts of skin devices: I use a micro-needler that my friend Tina told me about and in case you’re wondering what micro-needling feels like.. it feels like you have little needles all over your face, yep. I follow the micro-needling (usually twice a week) with a hylauronic acid serum for plumping and then layer on whatever night cream I’m testing out (right now it’s Elemis’ Cream-Oil which I like a lot).
Really, though, the best thing you can do for your skin—and as a former beauty editor, I can say this with authority—is to wear SPF, eat well, and sleep enough. I tried a new sunscreen recently from Supergoop (whose serum has been my favorite facial SPF to date) that I like—It’s called Unseen Sunscreen and feels less like a sunscreen and more like a face primer (and it can act as one too). I also used their setting powder during the day when I was in AZ as well!
OurHarvest: I used to optimize for efficiency (wow, I sound extremely Silicon Valley here) and just order all my groceries online or have Tom just buy whatever we need. But now I get a lot of our produce from OurHarvest. Yes, it’s more expensive but when every berry tastes like a little sugary pillow from heaven… It’s worth it. Also, I’m in the middle of a #fakewhole30 so I’m trying only to eat things that bring me joy (and are grain/soy/legume/dairy-free) and I miss chocolate chip cookies less thanks to these Harry’s berries.
As for sleep… honestly… still working on that one…
OK, next week’s newsletter will be ON TIME (mostly because I already know it’s going to be a compilation of the things people ask me the most about on Instagram). Also, you heard it here first... stay tuned for the announcement about my children's book coming very, very soon :)
‘Til then!!
PS: the past newsletters are here!
Random Stuff I Like, Part III: including the gel socks that will cure your winter feet
How I Stave Off Illness: When I’m sick, I take 7 magic pills…
Sleep Stuff: Thank goodness for Suzy Giordano!
Random Stuff We Like: Every time I read this particular book to Tao, I weep profusely.
#Momhacks: seeing everything is more than half the battle.
Random Stuff I Like, Part II: I’ve become one of those people who talks about foamrolling all the time, sigh.
Beauty Stuff I Like: I’ve used this same tinted moisturizer for years!
How to Travel with Kids: We’re taking the kids to Arizona this spring break. Pray for me.
Random Stuff I Like: We use this tea kettle about ten times a day… thankfully it’s not hideous.
Kids Books: I plan to update this list next week! Well, maybe… I said that last week too.
OG Baby List: this is the list to send your friends who are expecting! It’s on my (vast) to-do list to add a few things to this list, so will do that in the coming weeks… (which I realize I said last week too)
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