Apple Picking Mommy & Me Style

My Outfit:
Sweater: L'Academie (Sold Out - Similar) / Short Sleeve Tee: LOFT
Jeans: Madewell / Boots: JustFab (Old - Similar)

Baby Veer’s Outfit:
Top: Ralph Lauren / Jeans: Nordstrom / Shoes: Nike

Over the weekend we visited my parents up in Connecticut. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and we decided that it was the perfect time to do our favorite quintessential New England fall activity - apple picking! There’s just something so fun (and nostalgic) about apple picking, apple cider, apple cider donuts and tractor rides! Baby Veer took his first tractor ride and loved eating the apples! That evening my mom made the most delicious apple crisp for dessert. I’m so glad we got to make these precious memories with him like our parents do with us!

As a comfy and practical outfit, I wore an oversized sweater, jeans and booties. Even though it was a little warm out I was soo glad I brought my boots because the grass was pretty long in the apple field and a little muddy from the rain.

If you live near a place that does apple picking make sure you go!

Bahamas Vacation Outfits

I wanted to do a separate blog post on all the outfits I wore in Bahamas. What I love about all these looks is that you can wear them through the summer and for vacations. Resort wear, in my opinion is the best way to go for an island vacation. For daytime I lived in swimsuits and cute cover-ups and in the evenings I dressed up each night. Keep reading for outfit details!

This swimsuit was perfect for Baha Bay (Baha Mar’s newest waterpark). It was perfect because it’s a one piece and provides adequate coverage.

My favorite cover-up for our trip which can also be doubled for a daytime or nighttime look! This dress comes in two colors - this pink one and blue one. It can be worn either off the shoulder or normal and tassels really add that extra touch! Under this cover up I wore this bright red one shoulder swimwear from Beach Riot.

This beautiful cut out maxi dress was my favorite evening dress I wore during our trip. It’s well made and the material is light (perfect for Bahamas!). I paired this look with sandals but I think these clear heels would work perfectly as well!

This coverup is so beautiful and chic. It has an open front with a waist tie and this beautiful ruched shoulder detail. I wore this over my swimsuit but it would look super cute paired with jean shorts.

This tiered mini dress was the last look I wore at Baha Mar for datenight at the most delicious Mediterranean restaurant named Cleo. A little white dress is one of those items that will never go out of style and is always in my closet. I love that this version had a spin on it with the tiers.

Baha Mar Resort Review in Nassau, Bahamas

We just got back from the most amazing vacation in Baha Mar in Nassau, Bahamas. We had such a wonderful stay and today I wanted to break down the different parts of the resort in case you’re also planning a visit in the future. We saw all sorts of groups during our time at the resort - families, bachelorette/bachelor parties, couples, etc. We traveled with our almost 7 month old and our friends who have a 2 year old. This post is not sponsored in anyway - just wanted to share my thoughts with you since I got so many questions about our trip!

GETTING THERE

Baha Mar is located on the island of New Providence (Nassau), the main island in The Bahamas. There is a large airport in Nassau, which makes getting there pretty easy. We like Bahamas because it’s not too far from Philadelphia (about a 3 hour flight to Nassau) and it has some of the most amazing clear waters that I’ve ever seen. Many of you asked if we would visit again and I for sure say YES! The resort has something for everyone and if you’re bringing the kids, it’s also kid friendly.

We had booked a round trip car service from the airport to the resort and back. What was great is that the car service provided car seats so we did not have to lug ours all the way from Philadelphia and instead we just brought our travel stroller instead of our UppaBaby stroller.

THE RESORT

There are three places to stay at Baha Mar - Grand Hyatt, SLS and Rosewood. We stayed at the Grand Hyatt because we were traveling with our baby and I thought that it was the most kid-friendly out of the three. Check in was pretty seamless and the room was spacious. In Grand Hyatt there are the East and West towers. The blue rooms pictured in this post are located in the East tower and the West tower is filled with creamy neutrals.

What I loved about the room was the bathroom. It had a double sink feature, a huge tub and shower and Balmain bath products. What I found a little odd in the rooms were the sliding doors next to the tub, but since we had our baby with us it was nice that we were able to look into the room from the bathroom and check on him. We also had a large balcony with ocean views and it was nice to be able to sit outside.

Instead of room keys you get a wristband (each hotel has it’s own different one) which also acts as your room key and entrance into Baha Bay which is the new waterpark.

Just walking through the resort was has a total vibe. The casino floor is stunning with giant chandeliers and large windows to the outdoors. The resort grounds are immaculate, lush and no detail is spared.

We also noticed that it was much quieter on the weekdays versus the weekend so if I was traveling with family I would prefer the weekday but if I was going with friends the weekend would be more fun. Really depends on what you are looking to do!

WHERE TO EAT

The resort has so many different places to eat. The restaurants are split up within the three hotels - Grand Hyatt, Rosewood and SLS. You are able to go to any of the restaurants in any of the hotels! For the three nights we were there we had reservations at Swimming Pig (American), Katsuya (Japanese) and Cleo (Mediterranean). My favorite dinner was a toss up between Katsuya and Cleo. The best advice I can give is to reserve dinners beforehand. Reservations can be made easily through OpenTable or the Baha Mar website. I made our dinner reservations three weeks in advance. All restaurants were booked up by the time we arrived and the wait for walk ups was REALLY long.

Food and drinks were the most costly part of the trip - more than our flight and hotel room combined. I think you just have to go into the vacation knowing that and being OK with it. For breakfast we would grab food from Madeline’s or Pizza Lab (there is also a Starbucks onsite). Lunch was at the food trucks and one day at the Umami Burger at Baha Bay (which was SO GOOD! Better than Shake Shack and In and Out Burger). Dinner was Swimming Pig, Katsuya and Cleo as I said above. Baha Mar does a great job in providing a variety of food and next time we go we’ll check out the other restaurants! One thing to note is that if you are traveling on a weekday some restaurants don’t open in the evening until Thursday (i.e. Cleo).

Restaurants:
CLEO
KATSUYA
CAFE MADELINE
MARCUS
SUGAR FACTORY
25N
FILIA
PIZZA LAB
SHUANG BA
STIX NOODLE BAR
SWIMMING PIG
STREETBIRD
3 TIDES
CAFE BOULUD
CARNA
COSTA
STARBUCKS
SCOOPS (Ice Cream)

Beach/Pool Area:
EL JEFE
DA POKE BOWL SHACK
UMAMI BURGER

POOLS/BEACH

The beach was stunning and the water was the most clearest I have seen.

All the pools we went too were stunning and there were several of them sprinkled throughout the property.

We mostly spent our time at the Fortune Pool at the H2O swim up pool bar since we were with our little one but if we were traveling without kids I would recommend the Privilege Pool at SLS which is the adults only pool with parties on the weekends. The Dean’s Blue Hole pool is a large pool with a huge cave with sea life. It has the zero-entry so you could walk right into it and also had rocks you could walk up and jump off into. There were tons of big kids at this pool so we didn’t spend too much time here.

What I also liked were there were places to get food and drinks around the property so you never felt like you had to go out of your way to get something to eat/drink. During the day we would grab food near the pool/beach areas.

One piece of advice is to book a cabana beforehand especially if you are traveling with kids or a group - the cabanas come with fan / tv / fridge and it’s nice to have somewhere to park the stroller for the day. You can book the cabana in advance through the Baha Mar website.

There is also the new Beach Club which is located near Baha Bay. We didn’t have time to check this out but it sounds wonderful!

WHAT TO DO

Besides the pool/beach there are many other things to do!

BAHA BAY - Baha Bay is the newly opened waterpark. We loved the fact that there is something for everyone here! Adults, kids and babies we all had tons of fun! Baby Veer had so much fun that he fell asleep in the lazy river. It was the cutest thing EVER! I also liked that towels were easy to find and it was spotless.

WATER ACTIVITIES - There are stand-up paddleboards, single and double kayaks, water hammocks, floating lounges, personal floats, snorkels, and masks.

CASINO - Baha Mar has a beautiful casino with slot machines and table games. The tables opened later than we liked (around noon) but the casino at Baha Bay opens earlier. I actually preferred the casino at Baha Bay which is brand new.

SPA - I went to the ESPA on a prior trip to the Bahamas and had an amazing massage. The spa is designed beautifully and it’s nice that before and after your service you can lounge and have tea/light snacks.

SHOPPING - There is high end shopping - we didn’t really go into much of the store because the hours were weird during the weekdays - I think they open around 2PM but we did go into Cartier and Rolex.(inventory is extremely low due to covid).

AVIARY & SANCTUARY - There are birds which you can feed in the Aviary and also in the Sanctuary there is small ocean life petting zoo with stingrays, starfish, sea cucumbers, and sea urchins. There are also flamingos onsite.

GOLF & TENNIS

FITNESS CENTER - State of the art gym and classes

NIGHTLIFE - After dinner there is alot to do to keep the party going. There is the Rooftop Bar at SLS & Bond Nightclub, Monkey Bar, Blue Note - Piano Bar, Manor and Library Bar. SLS Hotel is the most “adult” friendly out of the three hotels.

TRAVELING WITH CHILDREN

Traveling with a baby was great for this type of resort. Veer is little so he was able to go with the flow. If he was tired he would nap in his stroller and I made sure to bring the portable fan that we hook onto the stroller. We did also bring the stroller onto the beach which was nice - for this trip we did not bring our Uppababy stroller we brought a travel stroller instead.

If you have kids make sure to check out the Aviary and Sanctuary. There are also flamingos on the property which are so beautiful! Each day at 9:30AM and 3:30PM the flamingos take a walk around the property and you can hang out with them! It was such a fun sight to see.

Also (not that this applied to us) but if your child is between 3-12 years of age you can put them in the Explorer’s Club for the day! They have an entire itinerary which I think is awesome.

Some of the items we brought for baby include fan, floatie, sunscreen, swimsuits, etc (blog post HERE).

WHAT TO WEAR

Resort wear, in my opinion, is the best way to go for an island vacation. For daytime I lived in swimsuits and cute cover-ups and in the evenings I dressed up each night. I’ll be doing a separate blog post linking all my outfit details next week so stay tuned!

OVERALL THOUGHTS

In terms of traveling during the pandemic, before traveling you need to complete a health visa for everyone in your party (if you are fully vaccinated you need to show your proof of vaccination or get a covid test done prior). To come back, Baha Mar offers covid testing onsite at the resort. They really make things easy which is great and it was nice to not have to leave the resort for any reason.

Overall, we LOVED our time at Baha Mar and can’t wait to come back!

Tips for Flying With a Baby

Baby Sleep N Play Outfit: Target (3 pack for $12.99!)

Baby Veer took his first flight at around 5 months in May 2021 to Arizona to visit family. Leading up to the flight we did alot of googling and reading through the airline website on what we could and could not bring for a baby. For all you parents out there having major anxiety on traveling with a little one, below are some tips on flying with a baby. It doesn’t have to be a scary process and with the right tools this can be a seamless process if you are prepared. We were really surprised at how well he did and can’t wait to plan our next vacation!

Book a Direct Flight

Where ever possible try to book a direct flight or a flight with a longer layover. Landing puts pressure on babies ears and causes pain, so less time having to take off/land (thus avoiding any tantrums) is worth it in my book!

Book a Spacious Seat

If you are able to do so, upgrade your seat to business or first class especially if your child is under 2 years old and are doing a lap seat so that you both will have more room. You can always use miles or points to upgrade!

TSA Precheck

We have had TSA Precheck for years now and I highly recommend having this especially if you are traveling with a baby. What makes it easy is that all items go through the X-Ray machine and you do not need to take anything out of your bag and do not need to take off your shoes. My husband put all our belongings (including our car seat and stroller base) onto the X-Ray machine while I took myself/baby through security. Veer is mostly on formula so we were able to bring a box of formula and a water bottle through security. Our diaper bag did get flagged because of the formula powder and large bottle of liquid so just know that TSA will look through your diaper bag if you plan on bringing formula, water, breastmilk., etc.

Gate Check

Why carry your baby around the airport when you can just stroll them around? We gate checked our UppaBaby car seat and UppaBaby stroller base and found this so helpful. Leading up to our flight we honestly did not know what to expect. American Airlines website says any strollers over 20 lbs cannot be gatechecked and for those of you who have the UppaBaby stroller know that the base itself weights 20 lbs so I wasn’t sure if we could bring this through the airport or not. We ended up bringing our stroller base with the car seat and did not have any issues. I do recommend buying a car seat cover (cheaper option) for the car seat and stroller cover because trust me, they will it get scratched up.

Another alternative way is to buy a travel stroller. There are so many out on the market but some of our favorite ones are: BabyZen YoYo and Doona (car seat and stroller in one!). We didnt feel like buying a stroller just for flying so we took our UppaBaby stroller.

Visit Restroom Before Flying

Right before we boarded we did a diaper change. Depending on how long the flight is you should be prepared to change a diaper in the small airplane bathroom (there is a tray that comes down in the bathroom for changing a baby). Make sure you bring wipes to wipe down the area in the bathroom, diapers, baby wipes and a changing pad.

Organize Your Diaper Bag

I always said to myself that I would never carry a backpack and here we are (lol). This is the diaper bag we use and I have found it so helpful to have my hands free - especially while traveling. In the diaper bag I have two large ziplock bags. One is for diapers, wipes, hand sanitizer, etc. The second ziplock has a extra set of clothes, bibs, burp cloths. I also kept a 9 oz bottle and water bottle on the side of the bag and a box of formula inside the bag. This diaper bag also comes with a changing pad which I have used multiple times. I also have a blanket in the backpack since it can get quite chilly on the plane. We kept the diaper bag easily accessible under the seat infront of us.

Pre Board

If possible, pre-board the flight. I always find it helpful for my husband to board infront of me so that he can wipe down the seats and put away our luggage. My husband had also already broken down the stroller base and car seat was in it’s bag ready to be gate checked. Another tip is to baby wear (using a baby carrier or wrap) instead of carrying them onboard.

Bassinet

Some flights (mostly international) have a bassinet you can request. I believe you can call the airline ahead of time to request this. Our first flight with the little one was domestic and there were no bassinets available.

Feeding

Feed your baby on take off and landing (nurse or give baby a bottle!). Encouraging swallowing really helps with their ears and I felt it kept Veer distracted.

Keep Baby Entertained

Bring your babies favorite toys and give it to them one by one. We love this and this - he hasn’t gotten bored of them yet!

Everyone was super nice to us and I would definitely travel with baby again!!

Roundup of Philadelphia Fall Activities

MAMA Sweatshirt: PinkBlush / Leggings: Zella
Combat Boots: Sam Edelman (Similar) / Sunglasses: Quay (BOGO Sale!)

Looking for fun COVID friendly activities to do in the fall in and around Philadelphia? Well you’ve come to the right place! Fall has to be one of my favorite seasons of the year and one of the things I love to do this time of year is get to a pumpkin patch (at least once)! My husband and I took a trip to Linvilla Orchards which is about a 20 minute drive outside of Philadelphia early Saturday morning. It’s such a fun activity to do and there is something for all ages plus getting the fresh apple cider donuts is soo worth it!

I wanted to wear something comfortable for our outing since we would be walking around so I opted for this super cute “MAMA” sweatshirt (non maternity size HERE) which was sent by PinkBlush, an amazing maternity clothing brand that has affordable and trendy clothing. What I love about the brand is that they have clothing for before, during and after pregnancy. I wanted to keep this look simple for a fun filled activity day outside so I paired this sweatshirt with black leggings and combat boots.

Roundup of Philadelphia Fall Activities

Design Philadelphia

Night Tours at the Eastern State Penitentiary

The Trails at Fairmount Park

Fall Fest at Morgan’s Pier

Take a Ghost Tour of Philadelphia

Morris Arboretum

Linvilla Orchards

The annual Chrysanthemum Festival at Longwood Gardens

Peddler’s Village

Pennhurst Asylum

Boo at the Zoo at the Philadelphia Zoo

Solesbury Orchards

Linking some of my other favorite weekend pumpkin picking apparel from PinkBlush below!