Raines limped through the door on Monday, covered in dirt. There was dirt along the side of his jaw, in his hair, and the black t-shirt he was wearing was now a splotchy brown. He was bleeding — fairly badly — from his knee.
He was, however, grinning.
The last time I had seen him was that morning, when he left for his first day of high school at 7AM. He and his friends walked to school (over a mile), then he had soccer practice after school, followed by another mile-long walk home. It was now roughly 6PM and clearly something had gone down that day.
It turns out that the school soccer team he went out for on a whim (the kid hasn’t really played soccer in years), didn’t have enough kids to field both a JV and Varsity team. So the kids who went out for JV practiced — for the first time, on Monday — with Varsity players, hence the blood and dirt.
“Know what an 18 year old looks like??” Raines asked me, still grinning. “Not like ME, Mom.” But he couldn’t fully hide the pride in his eyes behind his faux-nonchalant shrug. I see you, Raines.
Anyway, later that night he came down with a sore throat and headache, only to be full-blown sick by Tuesday night. Roughly six rapid tests (long story) and one PCR test later, we figured out the kid had…a COLD. Remember those? We were all dumbfounded.
Anyway, I now have his stupid cold. In an odd way, it feels good to be normal-sick (uncomfortable and annoyed, as Raines called it), not that exhausted, stressful COVID sick from last January.
So I’m curled up with a cup of tea and doing a little Labor Day sales shopping. Not a bad weekend, all things considered.
ps. The photo above is from last weekend. I went to take a selfie with Raines and he was all, “wait let me fix my hair” and, well…that explains my face.
If you care, here are a few things that are currently in my cart, as well as a couple of favorites I already own that happen to be on sale:
Labor Day Sale Pieces In My Cart…
Starting off with a bang: these socks. The ‘ash’ color is perfect. They’ll look cute with my hiking boots this fall, and maybe even with some sneakers (or peeking out of mini UGGs).
Jenni Kayne: Take 20% off site-wide with code LDW20. I’m debating between the cashmere fisherman sweater in black (I already have navy and heather gray and wear them all the freaking time), the 100% cotton version in ivory in ivory, OR the classic crewneck in bone.
I need jeans to be easier. I’ve been trying on soooooo many pairs of straight-leg jeans lately, and continue to struggle with where I should hack them off. One inch above my ankle bone? Two? Five? Should I hem for a finished hem? It’s annoying. So now I’m ordering these Abercrombie straight-leg jeans in both ‘short’ and ‘extra short’ lengths and may just let the cards fall where they may. (There are also regular, long and extra-long lengths, too.)
But then…I see this pair. rag & bone Maya jeans have long been my favorites (the waistband is perfect for my softer stomach), and they issued them this summer in a dramatic, cropped wide-leg silhouette (now on sale). I LOVE it. Also on sale at Shopbop.
Norma Kamali: I’ve been stalking this Norma Kamali dress for years (an instant classic, I love the grecian goddess vibes) and it’s on sale for $136. I’m torn between the white and red. This dress comes in black, too, but if you’re looking for a new LBD, this one (also Norma Kamali) would be my top pick. On sale for under $100.
Staud: This boxy little sweater is exactly the kind of piece I wear a ton – it’s definitely coming home to me. I’m also debating between this blue turtleneck sweater (I’ve been having recurring visions of wearing it with light-wash denim and blue sneaks), or this sweater dress. Tank sweater dresses like this one have limited uses, but it’s so cute…and mayyyybe I can warm it up for winter? Hmm.
Sweatshirt extremes. Turns out that I like my sweatshirts cropped (see below) or oversized. I now have this cute and realllly comfy FP sweatshirt on its way to me (in green).
A Few Labor Day Sale Pieces I Already Own….
That sexy dress: Remember my Farm Rio cut-out dress? It’s $60 off, and shockingly flattering on (see it in action, here).
The happiest puffer: I’m not even close to being over my pink North Face puffer. It’s on sale at Backcountry (very few sizes left, medium left at Zappos) but is also fully stocked (and on sale) in this jaw-dropping print. Wow.
Cropped sweatshirts. Turns out, a boxy-ish, almost-cropped sweatshirt makes almost everything else in my closet work. Dick’s has my beloved Nike sweatshirt on sale (I’m wearing it now — in black, runs big), still the best sweatshirt I own.
Everlane: I know I mentioned this one last week, but Everlane’s cropped silk cami is the best thing I’ve bought in a while AND it’s on sale. I also recently bought the ’90s cheeky jeans in ‘Deep Atlantic,’ a really rocking true-blue blue but …gah!! I now see that it comes in various lengths, so I’ll be exchanging my pair for a shorter inseam (and taking advantage of the 30% off denim).
Rose oil. It turns out that Biossance’s Rose Oil is magic for jet lag. I used it before, during and after the flight to Europe. Actually…it’s the only moisturizer I’ve been using all summer. Words cannot express how much I love this stuff — 30% off this weekend.
One more: Before I forget (someone was asking about the Biossance routine I swear by for Raines’ teenage skin). It’s currently 40% off and lasts forever.
Chic, but unserious. I’m a huge fan of Printfresh’s gorgeous prints, but the PJs I actually wear the most are my Daughters of Triton PJ set. It’s the classic menswear vibe (I push up the sleeves and wear with glasses), but they also have whimsical little embroidered mermaids. On sale, but take an additional 25% off with code BYESUMMER.
Andie Swim! Whoa! Andie Swim is offering a whopping 40% off sitewide this weekend! If you recall, the Paloma swimsuit is my personal favorite (see my full review of the suit here), but this brand makes a ton of seriously cute, high-quality swim suits.
More socks: Stance socks are the only socks I’ll buy for the boys. They’re not only cute, but last forever. This 3-pack is on sale and perfect for Raines.
Enjoy the long weekend!
xo,
S
