Parenting & Polka Dots

Many bloggers take the weekend off, but I would still like to do a Saturday post, so I've decided that this will be my "daily life" post. Books, fashion, recipes, fitness, etc. Stay tuned!

No I am not a parent yet, but I heard about the book Bringing up Bebe on a morning talk show and was very intrigued by it. 

It's written by Pamela Druckerman, an American woman living in Paris. It's all about the philosophies of French parenting. She talks about why their children aren't picky eaters and why they don't interrupt their parents, and other such concepts that I think many parents have a hard time with. 

Now, she says of course not all parents in France are great parents and they don't all parent the same way, but overall they have a certain "way" about it that greatly differs from many American families.

So to get a little taste of the book I have started reading a condensed version that she wrote called Bebe Day by Day. It's a very interesting read and it has lots of great tips, some that I have thought of before and others that I think I would like to incorporate when I have my own kids. 

One of my favorites is the section about food. She says that French families all eat the same thing (no special meals just because your child doesn't like what you fixed), from a young age they eat a variety of foods (especially veggies), and they get their children involved in the cooking. 

While I've been reading I keep saying to myself, this doesn't seem so genius, but when I think about how most American families function these days, I guess it is. 

 I know I'm not a parent and it's probably harder than it looks, but I still think that a lot of parenting pitfalls are from bad learned behavior from the start.

All in all it has been a good read and I would definitely recommend it. 

Up next I have the full version, Bringing up Bebe, and Heaven is Here by Stephanie Nielsen of nieniedialogues.com. They are both on their way from Amazon :) 

In other news, if you follow me on Instagram you saw my post last week about my love of patterned jeans. For Christmas I got this pair of polka dot jeans from J.Crew and I love them! I have to stop myself from wearing them everyday. 

Well one of my followers asked if I would do a post on what to wear with them, so here it goes! 

Of course any solid is what we first go to when pairing with a print. If you are going to stick with a solid, try and choose something with a fun detail (Option 1 and Option 3) or texture such as silk, lace, or velvet (Option 2 and Option 7). I love pairing these dressier fabrics with jeans, and it doesn't mean that it can't still be a casual outfit. 

If you're up for a more daring option you can go for a print. The key is to make sure the print you wear on top has a color that ties in with your jeans. My jeans are navy with white polka dots, so if I do a print on top I choose something that also has navy in it such as Option 4 and Option 5. 

I also like to take into consideration the scale of the print, but I've seen many people break this rule and still look great. My pants are sort of a medium polka dot, so I would do either a really small floral like Option 4 or a really oversized floral. Same with stripes. 

A colorblock top like Option 8 looks great with any print or solid and a chambray shirt (Option 9) is seriously a must have item. It goes with anything! 

If you want to pop on another layer, a denim jacket or leather bomber (Option 6) is perfect. These two items are staple pieces in anyone's wardrobe.

Good luck and embrace the pattern! :)