Happy Monday, Ladies!  I hope everybody had a wonderful weekend!  We are soaking up the last few moments of summer around here because the little guy starts back to school 1 week from today.  We’re enjoying lots of grilling and pool time, as well as late nights and even later mornings.  Carter slept until 10:30 on Saturday morning, and I slept until 8:00 which is pretty much unheard of for me!  I sure am going to be sad to see these lazy days of summer come to an end.

I’ve been so excited about today’s post going live because I’m working with JCPenney again, and the deals I’m about to share with you are pretty unbelievable.  If you remember, I worked with them last month, and today is Part 2 of the 3 part series.  I received a lot of great feedback after the first post (click HERE to see it) and was happy to hear that many of you enjoyed a more budget friendly retailer being featured. We all love a good bargain, right?

What makes Part 2 extra special today is that Carter is getting in on the fun!

So I hit up my local JCPenney again, spent several hours there, and emerged with a couple of great head to toe outfits.  We’re talking earrings down to the shoes because the store proved to be a 1 stop shop for these looks.  (And don’t forget I can get my shampoo and conditioner here too!  I’ve been using them for over 10 years now, and don’t think I will ever change.)  It’s my hope that if you are already a JCP shopper that you throw a couple of new items into your cart today.  And I certainly hope that if you aren’t currently a JCPenney shopper, you will now look at the retailer through new eyes.  Their prices definitely make it a great place to try out looks/trends that you might not want to spend a lot of money on….but you can also pick up some good solid basics.

And let me say one more time…the prices are fantastic.  They are always running different specials, and today’s deal is an additional 25% OFF purchases over $100 with the code 7BIGSALE.  Also, I’ve got an ONLINE TIP for you!  You will notice when you go to your cart that there is a box near the top of your screen that says “FIND BEST COUPON” in green text.  Make sure you hit that button, because almost every single time it will find a coupon that will save you money!  I placed an order yesterday for $64 for 2 Adidas shirts, 2 Adidas shorts (click HERE for all boy Adidas items), and a 6 pack of no show socks for Carter…but I found and applied a coupon that took $10 off, making my total only $54 for all of those items!  What a deal!

MY OUTFIT

Let’s start out with my outfit.  I grabbed a pair of jeans since we’ll be putting away our shorts and heading into fall soon!  But since right now we are still dealing with temps in the 90s most days, I still wanted the outfit to feel seasonally appropriate, so I made that happen with sandals and bright colors.

off the shoulder blouse / earrings / necklace sold out 🙁  – other Erica Lyons jewelry HERE / jeans (destructed jeggings) / straw tote / sandals

The top is brightly colored and off the shoulder, which is great for summer….but the longer sleeve length makes it a good transition piece as well.  I’m wearing it with sandals here, but as the days cool off you could definitely switch up the sandals for a pair of neutral booties.

I love the smocking and ruffle detailing on the shoulder, and the scalloped sleeves with eyelet designs are so pretty!

Since we are still in the throws of Summer, I kept the outfit summery with the jewelry as well.  The bold turquoise necklace looks great with the magenta, but it will look just as great with a black sweater and boots all the way through fall.  The earrings are nice and light, and I like how they coordinate with the necklace without being matchy matchy. They will be great year round as well.

Now, let’s talk about the jeans!  First of all, they are ONLY $24.99 right now (and only $21.24 if you spend over $100).  The distressing does go higher on the the thigh than I am used to, so be aware of that and decide if it’s appropriate for the type of event you want to wear them to.  I’m wearing a 4, which is my regular size.  They are quite stretchy (and comfy!), so I suggest sizing down if between sizes.

The straw bag also kept the entire outfit quite summery, and it’s on sale for ONLY $18!

I really loved the whole look and how it came together!

CARTER GETS IN ON THE ACTION

JCPenney thought it would be a fun idea to include Carter in the August post so we could feature some Back To School outfits as well!  Now, let’s be honest…this outfit of Carter’s is something he will most often wear to church, because Carter predominately wears “cozy clothes” to school.  All of his his shorts have an elastic waistband, and all of his his shirts are soft tees without a collar.  But even though Carter wears his comfy clothes 90% of the time, we of course always keep some nicer clothes in his closet for certain occasions where comfy clothes just won’t do.

Carter’s Outfit:  collared shirt / khaki shorts / no show socks / similar Adidas sneakers ON SALE

The collared shirt is a perfect basic, comes in several colors, and it’s a great fit.  And y’all, it’s only $6.60.  I’m going to let that sink in.  A classic pair of khaki shorts are a necessity for a young boy, and these are only $9.60!  They come in several color choices as well.  And Carter is IN LOVE with his Adidas sneakers.  Click HERE for all of the Adidas sneaker options for boys.

And wait for it….here’s Carter giving us his best model pose.

Look at him getting his model on.  HaHaHa!

I just love him so.

And you know I had to take the opportunity to grab a handful of pics of us together.

He’s growing up so fast, and I just love watching the little man he is becoming.

Each year before school starts (and lots and lots of times throughout the year too), we talk about how the most important thing is to BE KIND.  Yes, Carter knows that it’s important to us for him to try his best in school, to work hard, and it’s of course important to be respectful and listen to teachers.  But we stress again and again that the most important thing is being kind.

We saw the movie Wonder last year and loved it, so this year we read the book together over the summer.  Reading it together gave us lots of opportunities to have conversations about how to act in different instances, how to show kindness, and how to lead by example.  I hope and pray that when an opportunity arises, that Carter will show kindness, even if it’s not the easy thing to do.

We also brainstormed some simple ways to practice kindness at school, and he came up with lots of wonderful ideas: *** say “hi” to a student that I don’t normally talk to  ***don’t just say “hi”, say the other person’s name too (ex. “Hi, Lucy!”)  ***say something nice to a friend (ex. “I like your shoes, Joel!”) ***sit with somebody at lunch that looks lonely or ask them to sit with me and my friends ***say “good job” to another student when they do something that is hard for them  *** say “thank you” to the janitors that are cleaning up at lunch  ***invite somebody to play that doesn’t normally play with my group.

He’s got such a sweet little heart, and I sure am proud to be his mama.

But he’s not just sweet, he’s funny!  The kid is straight up HYSTERICAL.  He’s constantly surprising us with 1 liners, and he has us rolling the majority of the time.  The kid also thinks he can dance (you should see him do the robot)…. but I’ll tell you this, he can floss with the best of them.

And he insisted that I show off my flossing skills as well.

Being his mama is my greatest joy.

Get Our Looks Here!  Just Click On What You Are Interested In!

 

 

I wanted to show one more BACK TO SCHOOL outfit for my guy!  This one is way more casual with a graphic tee and camo shorts.  And he absolutely loves his Nike flip flops.  They are the shoes he reached for all summer long.

short sleeve graphic tee options and long sleeve graphic tee options/ camo shorts / Nike flip flops

Carter squints like crazy in the sun, so he borrowed Dad’s shades for all of our pics.

And my goodness he looks just like Chris to me in this pic.

But just so you don’t think he’s taking this modeling gig too seriously, right after the above picture was taken, he asked “Do you wanna piece of me?” in some sort of strange accent.

And then he did this funky little dance.

I’m telling you, he’s a hoot.

Get Carter’s 2nd Look Here:

 

So like I’ve said previously, every time I pop in to JCPenney, I walk out with several items that I’m super excited about that are AMAZING deals!  And don’t you agree that the above outfits are outfits that you could see yourself and your kid in?!?!   Yes, I spent several hours on my shopping trip, but I feel like the pieces I finally left with were more than worth that time investment!  And there’s no denying that the prices are incredible! These darling outfits were totally worth my time and effort.  Sometimes I know we don’t mind spending money on investment pieces and/or pieces we know we are going to get a lot of mileage out of, but I know that there are also times that we just want an adorable outfit and a FANTASTIC deal.

A HUGE thanks to JCPenney for sponsoring this post and for providing us with so many reasonably priced options!

In closing, as you head into a new school year with your kids, here’s a wonderful quote from Brian Skavnak. The quote is geared towards kids, but it’s so true for all of us.  Now, let’s all go out into the world and BE KIND!

source

I would love you guys to sound off in the comments on 1 of the following topics:

*  I’m curious how many of you are already JCPenney shoppers, and I’m also curious how many of you have tried it for the first time.  *If you have any KINDNESS suggestions for kids, please leave them here!  I’d love to be able to give Carter more ideas before school starts!