Fall really is my favorite time of the year. The leaves changing, the weather is still somewhat nice (at times), but still chilly so that you get to cozy up with loved ones in layers.
I kept telling her. It’s NOT a swing! Well, she found out the hard way 😦 Doesn’t mean she didn’t get right back up and try again though haha.
After looking at this picture, I realized that my hair was NOT so happy with the wind and humidity. Might be the last of my straight hair days til the spring :{
Her face in this next one kills me! SO CUTE! 

For every 20 of these we do, I capture one of them perfectly 🙂 Who needs to go to the gym, when you have a toddler that loves to be thrown in the air??

Here I am telling her “Ok, you can jump in the puddle, but WAIT first!!”
“Now, Mom???!” 🙂
Sure…why not. 🙂
Hahaha. This next one cracks me up. It’s a little blurry, but could she be any more excited??
On me…
Author Archives: laurenkahan
Moto Inspired…
I’m a sucker for anything “moto” inspired! Leather jackets, jeans, boots, and don’t even get me started on coated and leather pants! However, I like to balance it out with something a little feminine, so people aren’t’ looking around for my Harley 🙂 Enter a flowing layered polka dot tank, and the perfect pair of black skinnies…
These are the 2nd pair of DL1961 jeans I go to try, and of course I love them. If there is one thing every woman should have in their closet, it’s a perfect fitting black skinny jean. You can read more about why I love this brand so much here.
When Zara had these sweaters on sale, I scooped them up in just about every color hahaha. I LOVE the button up back-or unbuttoned in this case 🙂 
LOVE this next one!!! I really never know what I’m getting with the self timer and tripod, but this…this is so us, and I am SO glad I got it!!
Maya- “Tickle me??!!!”
This is another darker pair of the Harper. The skinny boyfriend cut is so flipping cute!!
And, Maya’s moto faux leather jacket?? I almost died when I found it at the thrift store!! She balanced her look out with candy heart Vans 🙂
Then she saw some other kids and a dog…
and…they kept on going 😦 It always makes me so sad when she gets excited about seeing older kids and wants to play “Hi kids, HI!!!” and then they don’t want to play with her…
Not giving up though. LOVE HER!


Here she is trying to “Freeze” me when I told her it was about time to go home haha

Where’s Maya?? I have no idea where she could be… 😉




On me…
Happy Halloween! A day late…hope you recovered from your sugar coma ;)
Ok, so I’ll admit it. This is the FIRST Halloween that Maya really participated in. (insert horror emoticon that I can’t yet do via my computer :)) It’s the busiest season for me (workwise), so up until now, I just talked myself into thinking she really didn’t care, so…why stress myself out trying to do all the “stuff” that goes along with HALLOWEEN! Now that the day has come and gone, and her complete JOY over the 2 day festivities has really hit me. I realize, it’s such a fun day for her, and I will absolutely treat it as such going forward!
All that to say. I still bought her main outfit at Goodwill for a few dollars haha! When we were there and looking at all the stuff (insert CRAP), I pulled this one out and asked her
“How about this one?”
She said “I don’t like it!”
“But it’s a Pumpkin PRINCESS!?”
“Oooooooh, OK!!”
And so I made her a crown to go with the outfit and all was right in the world of Maya 🙂

I didn’t get creative with my look…all black works for Halloween, right??



These were before her preschool Halloween Party.
I asked her to “curtsy” and showed her how (I mean, how cute, right?!) She bowed and said “Your Majesty” hahaha
I’ll take it!!!
This just shows you that I woke her up about 30 minutes before it was time to go to school. Dazed and confused…yet so cute.
On me…
Sweaters that feel like old friends…
My favorite part of fall is rediscovering old favorites from last fall/winter. It’s almost like going shopping…in your own closet! 🙂
Right about now, it totally started raining all of a sudden. I’m like “Maya! We have to GO!!”
Then, as we were driving back home, I saw this! Yeah, I had to pull over!
On me…
Cashmere + Boyfriend Jeans
When we get into fall and it’s raining and windy (which it absolutely was when I got dressed this particular morning!), there’s nothing cozier than a super soft cashmere sweater and worn in boyfriend jeans. I’ve had this pair for 4-5 years, and they are so soft with all the washings. To avoid looking too sloppy with a baggy sweater and baggy pants, I wore some comfy booties. Just enough of a heel to add some polish to the look, but low enough that I easily ran after Maya when she took off and wore them all day running errands. Total win.







On me…
My favorite denim…
I honestly cannot remember how or when I came across DL1961 Denim. Looking back, I remember wearing them when I was pregnant with Maya because the fabric was perfectly stretchy and SO comfy. Obviously, that was over 3 years ago, and I now have 10+ pairs (I can’t help myself, they’re that good!!). What I do know, is that they are hands down my favorite denim. I’ve talked about the amazing 360 degree stretch a number of times on this blog, and how perfect they are for active moms. Really, they are good for anyone who wants to look better and feel like you’re still wearing your yoga pants haha. I actually wore them for my very first blog post-that was weird to look back on!!
All this to say, I literally could not believe my eyes when I got an email asking if I’d be interested in doing a Mother/Daughter collaboration with them!! Like…mouth hanging open, and I reread the email about 10 times before I convinced myself it wasn’t spam :}. Everything that they wanted to show, is exactly why I wanted to do this blog. That there are comfy cute clothes that let you play with your kids and still look good.
They just came out with a line for kids this summer that not only has 4-way stretch that is great for playing/climbing/jumping, but it’s also anti-bacterial, odor-resistant fabric-WHAT??! And if that wasn’t amazing enough, theirs are about 40% less than other designer denim for kids-only slightly more than chain store toddler denim!
So…in an effort to step up my mom game a little, I did my hair, actually put make up on, put a liiiiittle more thought into what we wore, and went to one of my favorite parks. All of which (besides the hair and make up :)) are totally within the realm of daily activities for us!
The weather here is still a bit bipolar. Raining one minute, sunny the next, windy and cold soon thereafter. Big scarves are the perfect in between accessory. They keep you warm, but not too warm!
I wish you could feel how soft and comfortable this fabric is! This particular pair “The Emma in Bloom” is softer than any other pair I have. Feels almost like a stretch silk denim.
The faux front pockets make it so you don’t have that annoying pocket lump. And really, who puts anything in their front pocket??
I seriously took more pics of my arse in this post than ever before. BUTT (haha ;)) they really do flatter the backside!! And, who couldn’t use that?!
I mean…can you sit like this comfortably in many other jeans? Fyi, Maya’s off to the side eating her apple 😉
And…playing with her dolls that I couldn’t manage to get out of her hands for half these shots. Keeping it real over here 😉
This was so fun for me as a photographer. I usually only set the tripod up in one maybe 2 situations, get a few shots, and then move on to taking pics of Maya or just put the camera away and play. I tried to get a little more variety this time and shoot shots that I would want to shoot if I were only the photographer vs also the subject.
Love, love, LOVE these next three. It’s so us. She loves to be cuddled, and I LOVE TO CUDDLE HER! 

Maya’s wearing a “slouchy slim” fit. The fabric on these is the same ridiculously soft fabric as my jeans! I admit to putting her in skinny jeans that probably aren’t the most comfy for her (yes, I’m admitting it Mom and Dad!!), but these? She could climb just about anything!



On me…
DIY Toilet Paper Roll Glitter Crown with Tulle
Maya is obsessed with “princesses”. Every dress is a “princess dress”, and her obsession with Elsa and Anna is (like most toddler girls) a bit out of control 🙂 I had brief thoughts of making her an Elsa costume, but then reality slapped me in the face. Esther, on the other hand, IS making Ava one, and I cannot wait to see it!! I went the easy route with Maya’s costume and found a cute orange and black tutu looking outfit at Goodwill for $4. It’s supposed to be a witch, but I called it a Pumpkin Princess outfit, and Maya’s in love haha.
But…every princess needs a crown, no? The DIY lace crown I made before was super easy, but I wanted to try something a little more complex and fun. I had the idea of using a toilet paper roll for the crown, putting glitter on it, and somehow having tulle shoot out. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how I was going to do it until I started making it ha!
As luck would have it, Mother had a post that very morning on Toilet Paper Roll Crafts. I had originally just cut my crown straight across, but their gold crown with the points was so much cuter! Saved just in the nick of time!
- Toilet paper roll
- Sharp scissors
- Glitter
- Marker that is either the same shade or complimentary to your glitter
- Glue
- Small Hole Punch
- Elastic
- Tulle (a yard should be plenty, although if you want a longer train use more)
- Large Cookie sheet lined with tin foil for easy clean up
- Toddler (added bonus :))
Instructions
- Cut your toilet paper roll in half
- Cut jagged design in one half
- Cut the other half into a fourth and then cut up one side so it slides inside itself to be smaller and will fit inside the jagged crown piece.
- Color the Crown piece with your marker. That way when the glue dries, you will see that color vs the brown toilet paper roll.

- Punch holes in opposite sides at the bottom of the crown.
- Lightly coat the crown with glue (I put a little too much on and it started dripping :{

- Have your toddler help with lightly pouring the glitter on. I used both black tiny ball glitter and gold dust glitter.
- Set that aside to dry. If you lightly coat it with glue, it should be fine standing up right.
- Next, cut your tulle into 6 inch squares. I had probably 8-10. Stack all the tulle with the corners at varying vs being all lined up. I think it would look cool if you did longer pieces and they were flowing down the back too!
- Place your cut 1/4 piece of the roll in the middle of the tulle stack and fold up, securing with a rubber band. Secure the excess with more rubber bands so it’s easier to feed through the crown.

- When your crown is dry, feed the tulled inner crown up through the middle and place some glue around the bottom to secure.

- Cut the rubber bands and fluff the tulle.

- Tie the elastic through the punched holes, and your done!
Have fun!!
Plaid and Coated Flares…fall in Seattle ;)
So, I’m on a roll with wearing things that I’ve been “saving”. These coated flares have been folded up in my closet just waiting to be worn, and I finally stopped waiting for the right occasion. Because playing on a pier overlooking Seattle seemed like the perfect occasion 🙂

These bubbles were totally faulty!! Poor thing. I even tried and got maybe 2 bubbles at a time 😦 That didn’t stop her though haha.
She got ONE!
Ok, screw bubbles. This pole is totally fun to spin around… 🙂
Her Gigi would be proud. We are getting our miles out of these boots she got Maya for her birthday!!
On me…
Thriftstore scores again!
I usually don’t buy things that “go together” when I thrift, but sometimes I get lucky and things just work. I posted this hat and these jeans on Instagram the day I scored them. These Current Elliott Boyfriend Jeans that I found in the mens’ section (woo hoo for workers not knowing that boyfriend really didn’t mean “boy”friend!!) were $4.80, and this vintage wool hat was $4.20!






On me…

Sometimes it’s fun to dress up for no reason…
As a work from home mom, sometimes it’s a miracle if I take a shower, let alone get out of my walking clothes. Yes, this blog has helped inspire me to into normal clothes more often than not, but I still have those days when 7pm rolls around, I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and think “YIKES!” Then I’m left to wonder if I even brushed my teeth… :{ Other days, I just feel like putting on some heeled booties and wearing a top that I’ve been “saving for a special occasion” for no real occasion at all. Sadly, I only put the effort in from the neck down haha. No shower, no make up, lazy mom top knot. I did however, brush my teeth 🙂
This is the same park we went to the other the day for Maya’s 3 year pictures. I love that it’s not really a park. It’s in the middle of this little neighborhood, but nobody has ever been there when we’ve gone. Perfect for running around, and nerdy self portraits 😉
This was actually sold as a dress. I may have washed it (dry clean only, WHATEVER!!), and shrunk it a little… Like I would ever have worn it as a dress anyway…
If Maya had control over what she wore, she would wear this dress and one other one every.single.day. Now, she knows to ask “Is the purple dress dirty?” Because I say that all the time in order to get her into something else haha.






She could jump into my arms over and over. “AGAIN!!!” Which is good, because it took me a while to time these right. I really wanted one of her mid air, but we’ll try again another day 🙂
Love this next one. I’m so glad she’s such a snuggler!!
On me…






