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I’ve been on a little shopping spree for my children — all my best finds detailed below:
01. Just bought my son several pairs of Oso & Me shorts — these are my absolute favorites. You can see my tiny three year old son wearing them a few summers ago with Floafers and a Lacoste polo (select colors on sale!) above. A great retro (read: short) length in the best colors. I also love the Cadets and Minnow ones, but find the Oso & Me need the least “care” — they seem to come out of the laundry less wrinkly than the other brands. I also think the contrast color drawstring waist tie is adorable. They run TTS! With this order, I threw one of their striped tees into the cart — I love the look. I always randomly hunt for promo codes and discovered KATE20 got me 20% off my order! Hope it works for you. I don’t know who Kate is, but thanks for the code!
02. Just ordered my children new Natives for the season ahead — lilac for my daughter (because purple is Taylor Swift’s favorite color) and these blue/green ones for my son. I know these are no secret — everyone has them and love them! — and I continue to think they’re the greatest shoe for little kids in the summer. Hose down, no ties, breathable, less likely to fall off a foot than a croc. The colors are amazing. I think I’ll tuck these into the Easter baskets. I also did find a few pairs 50% off at Marshall’s — if you’re lucky, you’ll find your little one’s size! These and these are cute! I’ll probably also buy my son another pair of Floafers — such a cute option for a boy in the summer. Slightly dressier than Natives / work with nicer outfits.
03. I don’t know what it is about boys and socks, but my son destroys his (read: stained them dark brown / spattered with black) within a matter of weeks. (His shoes are also always full of wood chips, mulch, and miscellaneous twigs. Boy things? This never happened with Emory.) Ordered a new set of these after I went on a rampage and threw out all his socks over the weekend.
04. My son plays with Magnatiles constantly. They are one of the few toys we keep permanently out in a bin in our family room — we relegate the rest to their bedrooms, the basement, and the upstairs play area. (We do keep lots of coloring/art materials and games on hand in the family room, though — these feel more appropriate to the space.). I just found these little Magnatile people (all of the magnetic tile brands are interchangeable I’ve found) to add to his Easter basket. (BTW, not sure if the deal will still be going on, but there are some sets of Picasso Tiles that are included in Amazon’s Big Spring sale.)
05. Recent J. Crew kids orders: these shorts for mini; tennis whites (for him: shorts, shirt; for her: shorts, half zip); and a new bikini for my girl. A few other swimsuits I saw and liked while shopping around: this sailboat print for girls and boys; this pom two piece (on super sale); Hunza G (and a look for less from H&M); this textured Old Navy; and this adorable Minnow (it’s in my cart)!
06. At the last minute, we’re taking a little trip over spring break that will entail a hotel pool. I am surprising the kids with a few new dive toys: these gems and these ray gliders. I also have a few others in my cart to buy for summer: penguin diving sticks, Gabby’s Dollhouse diving toys, these dive buddies.
07. Three other pool finds you need to know about: the best lightweight towels (fold down to nothing — I used to keep this in my stroller / diaper bag back when mini would frequent the splash pads of NYC), the best goggles (that elastic strap is SO much better than the usual rubbery kind — doesn’t snag in hair and easier to stretch out and put on head), and reusable water balloons!
08. A really cute inexpensive play dress. ($6?!)
09. A rainbow detangling brush for your little lady! I also love the Wet Brush brand ones. I own multiples and our nanny thinks they are superior to Mason Pearson!
10. Soccer season is starting soon! I’ve been hunting down cute athletic wear for my girl. I like these shorts.
11. Mentioned over the weekend, but I love these dry erase chore charts! My children have been super motivated by this. We use less for chores and more for “these are the things that must be done every day.” I find my children are exercising more independence and ownership over the things we are always nagging at them to get done.
12. A few recent activity purchases for upcoming travel / Mass / restaurants / other excursions: this travel game pad, water color pages, pin art toys (I bought two because I know my children will fight over this in the car), dinosaur puffy stickers, Polly Pocket poodle set, these sticker wows.
13. Tiny NBs in a great color!
14. Sitting here trying to pick which color Calpak Luna to buy. I love the new monochrome options. I keep having a need for stowing kids athletic wear / something smaller to schlep after school outfit changes and accessories and think this is perfect.
P.S. Motherhood is a surfeit.
P.P.S. It’s still their day.
P.P.P.S. Have been working to keep my Amazon shop updated! Wanted to specifically mention that a Magpie found my obsessed-over platform sandal on sale for under $200 on Amazon. Linked here!
Haha! Your comment about your son’s socks made me laugh because SAME HERE. Mine brings home half the playground every afternoon and his socks are permanently filthy. I even wash them with bleach.
Haha! Glad I’m not alone!!
Thanks for sharing! I need to get on this. I’m seeing some floafers on sale at Marshalls as well!
https://www.marshalls.com/us/store/jump/product/kids-baby-kids-baby-girls/London-Slip-On-Shoes-%28Little-Kid%2C-Big-Kid%29/4000262313?colorId=NS4155396&pos=1:28&N=2918287395+0
Oo! Great find!! Thank you. Immediately searching for my son’s size…
Wow, I love those Floafers!! I’d never heard of them and they’re sooooo cute. My son wore Cat&Jack water shoes or 10 Little sandals all last summer, but he needs a nicer looking option. And he’d love to match me and his dad.
Emm, if our son’s in our arms (he’s 2) we do nothing or a kickboard for him to hold, but by the shore we do a PFD that’s rated to flip him over.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B071J3V714?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title
We do brightly colored swimwear, so my son has bright red trunks and a red and white long sleeve swim shirt. The swim shirt makes wearing the life vest more comfortable and means less spots to apply sunscreen. We also bring his bathrobe from home and that’s what we pop him in after his shower poolside.
Our beach club sells cheap pool toys at the gift shop, and my son’s favorite water toy since the day we bought it is a bright red watering can, which now has a permanent spot in our bathtub.
Yes! The Floafers are perfect for that.
Thanks for all the smart, thoughtful intel on gear!
xx
Thank you, Kelly, these recs and tips are SO helpful. Opening several tabs!
Along the lines of pool and summer gear – any recs in the floaties/swimmies realm for younger toddlers? TY!
Hi! There are lots of strong opinions on floaties/swimmies — but we always used these puddle jumpers:
https://amzn.to/49aAK0v
That I covered with monogrammed covers:
https://bit.ly/4arup1Y
xx
Ah, exactly what I was hoping for – all of the garish designs gave me pause (yes, I know the point is safety, but still!) and this is the perfect solution. Much appreciated!