Happy Birthday to Me Shopping Trip

On Tuesday, Ryan and I ran some errands together and put some of my birthday coupons and cash from some of my favorite stores to good use. 

I know everyone has a different opinion about store credit cards and credit cards in general, but I personally love the benefits that come along with using credit cards responsibly (I touched on this more in my travel tips post last year). And one of those benefits is the birthday gifts and promotions you get during your birthday month.

My favorite store cards are Loft, Banana Republic, Victoria Secret, and T.J. Maxx.

T.J. Maxx doesn't send out birthday cash, but they do offer a cash back program where you get $10 for everyone $200 you spend. It may not sound like a lot, but when you shop there as much as I do, it adds up faster than you think.

So Ryan and I stopped there first. We found a super cute mirror for baby girl's room (can't wait to share pictures from her room when it's finished!), this book for Ryan (he loves Pout Pout fish!), and a pumpkin cheesecake candle for me.

$19.99

$5.99

Pumpkin Cheesecake Candle- $7.99

New candles make me happy- especially Fall-scented ones! This was burning all day yesterday and made our house smell, well like pumpkin & cheesecake. Ahhh... Fall.

Ryan also found this picture of a cow that he was quite enthralled with and proceeded to "moo" through the next few isles. Sweet boo.

Our next few stops took us to the mall.

The Loft sent me $15 to spend, so Ryan and I stopped in there first. I found a shirt for $18 on the first rack I saw, tried it on, loved it and bought it. $3 and 5 minutes later, I had a new shirt that even gives me some room to grow. :)

Striped Bateau Tee ($18)

Victoria's Secret sent me $10 for my birthday, and $10 just for being a cardmember (they do this multiple times/year) and the two could be used together.

I bought this cute Sleep Tee- it also comes in two other colors ($35 or 2/$49) and this lip gloss.

I love their lip gloss ($10, or 2/$15 or 4/$20), and this color is really fun for Fall!

Banana usually sends birthday money, but I haven't gotten anything yet, so we ran into a couple other stores to make returns and then ended our trip in the food court for some lunch. I love shopping/lunch dates with my little man!

I treated myself to one other purchase once we were home. If you read my list of things I'm eyeing for Fall, you saw a pair of slip-on walking shoes I was wanting to add to my wardrobe. After that post, Matt's mom told me about these shoes that are even more comfortable (she's worn both), have even better reviews, and are less expensive! Win. Win. Win.

Sketchers BOBS slip-on flats

Each color has a different price depending on your size. I wear a size 7, so at the time, the black pair were only $32. Matt's mom actually had the same shoes when we were together a few days ago, so I tried hers and loved them! So I got myself a pair of the black, but love the pink and navy colors too:

 

Seriously, they were SO comfortable and much cuter on than they look in the pictures.

And lastly, two other "treats" I've bought for myself lately are these two books:

For the Love by Jen Hatmaker

and the One Line a Day Journal

I am starting For the Love tomorrow and can't wait to read it after all of the great things I've heard. And the One Line a Day Journal is my new favorite keepsake item and I've had it for less than a week. It lets you jot down a short memory each day about something your kiddos did or said. It takes no time at all and will be so fun to look back on one day. And the layout is super clean and makes the task of documenting memories so much less daunting. You mamas of young kids should definitely get yourselves one!

That about wraps things up for today!

If you missed Tuesday's confessions post, you can find that here.

Hope you guys are having a great week!