Five Things // 02.02

Natalie Riendeau

4 months ago

Hello, friends! It’s been a while — Happy 2024!

I found myself in a trifecta of reasons not to blog for the past few months:
(1) the holiday season and the months preceding it always feel incredibly busy and almost like a festive rat race that I am just barely keeping up with, (2) the winter weather in the PNW has been it’s usual dreary self which means that I am feeling uninspired + it’s a challenge to capture quality photos for blog posts because of the lack of sunlight, and (3) I found myself in the first trimester of my second pregnancy and while it wasn’t the worst situation, I was nauseous a lot and almost always incredibly fatigued which meant that I was taking naps during any free moments.

I know that I don’t owe anyone an explanation, but I think it’s important to share because we all go through phases in life where things that we love have to be put on the back burner for a while and that’s okay. Anyway, I’m really happy to be in a better place (a few more hours / days of sunlight, out of the craziness of the holiday season, and finally in my second trimester) and having the energy + inspiration to blog again!

Today’s Five Things are items that have piqued my interest or things that have been on my mind / going on in my life recently!

Teleties Flat Clips

These flat clips are my new hair obsession. Ever since I wrote this post sharing different ways to style your hair with postpartum regrowth I’ve been gravitating toward using varying sizes of claw clips (in lieu of hair ties), but I’ve definitely run into frustrations regarding their shape. I don’t find traditional claw clips to be comfortable for sitting up in bed, not comfortable (or safe!) for driving, I have to be specific about placement when I put my hair up for working out, etc.

When I saw these flat clips by Teleties I knew they’d be the answer. I was a little skeptical that it would hold my hair (not that my hair is super thick, but it’s pretty long so there’s a lot of it 😅), but I’ve been putting my hair up in a modified French Twist and the clip stays put all day — I’ve even fallen asleep with it in my hair and it still largely hasn’t budged when I wake up (a few short face framing pieces have fallen out, but everything else was still intact!).

I obviously can’t swear that they will work for everyone, but I’ve been SUPER impressed and think they’re worth checking out, no matter your hair type! (I own both the Large and Medium for different use cases, but I’m feeling like I may need to add the Small size for half up / half down styles!).
*Note: Teleties JUST launched a tortoise shell option and I didn’t hesitate to order all three sizes!

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TAKE BACK BAGS

I have been dragging my feet on ordering a couple of these bags and I don’t know why it took me so long! It’s such a brilliant and helpful service for recycling items that are too far gone to repair, sell or donate, but you want to keep it all out of a landfill. You can send in unwanted clothes, bags, shoes, and linens in your Take Back Bag to be responsibly recycled / repurposed — it should go without saying, but they should be washed / cleaned to the best of your ability before you send them in.

This photo feels like it’s deceiving regarding the size of this bag — the large Take Back Bag measures 24″ x 24″ and can fit up to 15 lbs, so there is a decent amount of room! I plan to just add to it as items need to be discarded and send the bag back when it’s full. It feels like such a “small” thing, but if we can all do the same it will make a big impact! Please consider ordering your own bag(s) to repurpose items and keep them out of landfills.

After this pregnancy, I plan to do a full closet cleanout… I haven’t done one since before 2020 because life has been weird between quarantine, two pregnancies, and a move. I need to determine what’s actually serving me in this life chapter and I’m gonna Marie Kondo the shit out of my closet. haha! This will include posting nearly new items for sale on my Poshmark, making donations of more well-loved pieces, and then utilizing the Take Back Bags for anything that doesn’t meet the criteria for those other two options.

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Little Green Machine

I was so excited to get this wet vacuum device ordered ~a year ago during a Prime Day sale. It’s been great to have in my cleaning arsenal (just in case), but haven’t actually needed to use it until recently.

OH MAN. Color me impressed! Now that we are having another baby it was time for me to clean our glider because… yikes! I basically LIVED in that chair for most of the hours of the day for a year and a half and it got embarrassingly grimy from sweat, oil and dirt. 🫣

It was pretty far gone so it’s taken me three cleaning sessions, but it looks at least 85% better! I feel like it just needs one last session to get it back to “Looks Like New” status! My husband was honestly shocked at the difference it’s made so far. I’m so glad to have this tool available for fabric and rug cleaning situations and highly recommend it, especially if you have kids / pets.

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Strawberry Cake Mix Cookies

My friend Meaghan shared this recipe with me recently and you know I love an easy-yet-delicious treat — this one is only 3 ingredients (the classic boxed cake mix trio) and the results are soft and delicious! Such a fun activity to do with little ones (and minimal opportunity for mess! 😜). A perfect festive delight for upcoming Valentine’s Day.

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KINETIC SAND

I know that kinetic sand is hardly new or revolutionary, but we just introduced it to Sophie and it’s been such a huge hit! It’s so much easier to clean up than dry sand and we’ve been having a lot of fun with it! If you haven’t already introduced kinetic sand to your little ones yet (and you think they might be ready) I highly recommend it! We’re practicing getting familiar with the texture for an upcoming trip to the beach, but I can already see so many different ways we can play with it!