getting to spend a ton of time with Julian’s older sister, Jes, who was in town for the weekend with her friend Raelynn – good times had by all, wish we could see more of that girl (& the rest of the fam!) • keeping up with my running schedule (& remembering to journal about it – am I the only one that does this?) – related, the sleep you get the night after running… I am so becoming addicted to this • smoked sea salt caramels… I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – AMAZING. • iced coffee on hot summer days • getting a reallllly good stretch • crisp, white, clean sheets on the bed • Julian in a simple black t-shirt (my fave color on him) • daydreaming about what our life will be like in our new house (I’m most excited about my reading/study room and our big backyard…) • getting some good time in at the cat sanctuary this past weekend • checking things off of our massive ‘moving to-do’ list • getting six ears of the sweetest white corn ever in our AHO box this week • meeting baby Hud for the first time ever! • this amazing scooter-riding dog - seriously the best thing you’ll see online all day • picking up two of Temple Grandin’s books on animals at the library!
P.S. Could you be a total doll (or.. Ken doll?) and give my friend’s baby a quick vote? No signup, just have to click a button and type a security code. Trey is by far the most beautiful babe in the contest and wayyy too far down on the rankings if you ask me! He would make the perfect cover model for Parents Mag. Thank you so much in advance!
That’s all for now. Hope you’re all having a fantastic Thurs!
Fresh white corn, carrots, green beans, potatoes, summer squash, red onion, lettuce, nectarines, black plums, peaches, and lavender.
Just an example of what we got in this week’s box from AHO. All organic, all local. All harvested just a couple days ago, and more delicious than anything I’ve ever bought in a grocery store. Sometimes living in an agriculture-friendly state like California is really, really great. And did I mention all this cost a mere $21.80? That’s for a small bin. Large bin is $36.80. Every week the contents change, for example, last week we got the most incredible honeydew. If you live in a place that offers a CSA like this, you are a fool if you don’t take advantage!
Sorry, no pictures of this week’s booty, but trust me, it looks fantastic (with the exception of the cosmetically-challenged peaches – what are ya gonna do?)…
Our new house! Yes, we’re moving again. But hopefully it will be the last time for a while. So much has changed since we moved into our current place, it became pretty obvious to us that we needed more space for Julian to work and something that is closer to the school I’ll be at nearly everyday for the next three years. We found an amazing place in a great neighborhood that has room for us to grow into, a beautiful backyard (with a pool… are you kidding me?), a guest house for Julian to work, record, and film in, & way more. It’s a beautiful place and the owners are amazing (we rent out here in LA LA land… too expensive to buy, even in this market). It’s going to be so so awesome. What’s not awesome is having to move in a month. Hello, never ending to-do list…
Temple Grandin – both the movie and the person! We finally sat down to watch this last night (we’ve had it on Netflix forever) and it was FANTASTIC. I felt so inspired afterward – she is such a remarkable person for the way she faced and embraced her autism and used it to change the lives of countless people and animals. Of course, I especially love her for the amazing work she’s done for the livestock industry, using her innovative and intuitive mind to create more humane practices & designs in slaughterhouses & beyond. I’ve already put two of her books on animal behavior on hold at the library and I cannot wait to read about her studies & experiences. Brilliant woman. (Claire Danes also did a phenomenal job in the film!)
Other fun stuff:
new babies! Congrats to our good friends Wendy & Chris who welcomed baby Hudson into the world on Monday. Yay! • when Scout meows at me after I sneeze, as if she’s saying ‘bless you’ – ha! • when awesome ‘old’ movies are on TV, like Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory and Empire Records (which was my fave in college) • having a super hot husband • finding a way to sit at my kitchen table on my laptop that doesn’t hurt my back (feet up on the chair across, sitting all the way back) – I don’t have a desk in this current house, but you better believe I’ll be getting one in the new house, esp with all that school work! • when J comes grocery shopping with me • when dinner turns out better than expected • having our house all spic & span – it’s neater than usual right now because we’ve had a slew of prospective renters coming over to look at it • talking to all four of my parents in one day… unfortunately this is rare because we are all so busy • saying bye-bye to parabens & sodium laurel sulfate & other toxins in my skin care & cosmetics… feels great to know I’m not putting poisons on my skin & in my body anymore. You should try it! • breaking my dependance on coffee. Today is the first day in seriously like a week that I’ve had coffee in the morning. I didn’t intend to stop, it just kind of happened. • when Scout takes a nap on me… she’s been kind of a brat this week (I think they’re going stir-crazy in this small house – she wants to go outside & climb to the top of everything), so any and all cuteness is met by extreme coddling on my part.
He was a Christmas present, so I decided he needed a Biblical name. I suggested Noah, and everyone agreed. Little did we know this would make saying “No!” confusing for him. He was our best friend for 13 long, wonderful years. He was a pain in the neck at times (like when he ate an entire box of candy bars, or an entire package of chicken breast, or an entire tray of muffins, or an entire lasagna, or nearly an entire pineapple upside down cake), but most of the time, he was just a fiercely loyal, sweet cuddle monster – both to his family and to his kitties. We’re fortunate to have been his family and to have so many amazing memories to look back on. Rest in peace, Noah. I miss you already big boy. Coming home isn’t going to be the same without being greeted by your shedding hair and wagging tail.
I don’t officially follow high-end fashion (too expensive and cut-throat), but every once in a while I take a gander at what’s coming out. And can I just say? This adorable number from Moschino Resort 2012 is so doing it for me.
And so is this one.
Wayyy cute, right? And pretty ideal for fickle in-between seasons in LA.
Happy Saturday everyone. This is the first Saturday in a while that I haven’t had serious plans, and boy am I excited about it. I hope your day is plenty relaxing and fun.
It’s been too long since I’ve put one of these together. It’s more work than you think, if you aren’t online all day long, clicking & saving links. And since I’ve stopped working a 9-5, I spend less time at my computer (at least I try). I know I usually do them on Wednesdays, but, I have a few worth sharing now, so here we go.
Best door sign ever, above. Oh Salt & Pepa… reminds me of my elementary school cafeteria.
10 biggest money wasters according to CNN. I’d have to agree with most if not all of these… even the daily deals, which have recently become more of an annoyance than a money saver. I’ve already had two of them go unused, and that’s two too many. I’m thinking about unsubscribing from the emails and just letting the power of Twitter notify me if there is a can’t-miss deal (like the $10 for $20 Amazon deal a while back).
40 iconic logos and how they’ve evolved over the years. This was actually really entertaining to look through! And just to show how powerful advertising is… I really wanted a coke when I was done. (But I didn’t drink one.)
What it’s like to not sleep at night. Lordy lordy this made me laugh… and unfortunately, most of my Mommy friends that I shared this with all replied immediately with emails about how “omg, soooo true” it is. Just another thing to look forward to in the future!
Study shows long commutes can cause divorce. One thing is for sure – long commutes do not make for a happy mood. Years ago, I used to commute 1+ hours each way to work – and it was MISERY.
The most literate cities in America are college towns. I’m proud to say that three of these cities are near my hometown (Alexandria, Arlington, and DC)! Not that the city I grew up in is particularly literate. Ha.
What to keep in a safe deposit box. Kind of boring, but super important. If you’re into safe deposit boxes, that is. I know it’s not everyone’s fave method of safe-keeping.
Old crab traps removed from Chesapeake Bay by the thousands. There are over 28,000 ‘ghost pots’ (lost traps) that continue to trap & kill crabs. Where I grew up, crabs are part of the local culture, so it’s a bit sad that the crab population is plummeting due to over harvesting, loss of habitat, and pollution. (Edit: I just had to fix my typo from “crap” to “crab.” Hahaha, hilarious. Crap traps. If only they existed.)
This video is cracking me up. It makes me so happy and nostalgic, yet thankful that TV has come so far and (for the most part) bid adieu to laugh tracks and cheesy music. All in all, amazing.
Why do you think we always feel like we need more? More clothes, more furniture, more books, more gadgets, more junk food, more more more more more. If the human race were a chick, we’d definitely be that needy chick that is never satisfied (now that’s a terrifying thought).
Everyone’s talking minimalism these days, and I just found this excellent video that brings up some interesting questions about our wild consumption habits and how it affects production (and ultimately, our health and the environment). It’s not super short, but it’s a great watch. (Sorry I can’t figure out how to embed the video!)
It also touches on our workaholic American ways (after all, you don’t get stuff without first getting a lot of money to buy that stuff). BTW, did you know that the US has less paid vacation days per year than Finland, France, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Greece, Switzerland, Netherlands, UK, Canada, and Japan? That’s a long list to be at the bottom of.
But let me get back on track. I’m not sure about you, but things like this definitely make me question my motives for needing x, y, and z. They say that the best way to promote change (whether it be in manufacturing, food production, whatever) is to ‘vote with your dollar.’ Lately I’ve been trying to be smarter and more mindful about the things I consume – do I really need this? How will it positively impact my life, my health? Will I have this for years to come? Or will it wind up in a dump? How will it impact the life of the person who made it? Should I buy this cheap version & replace it with something nicer down the road, or just save for the nicer version to begin with? Things like that.
It hasn’t been too difficult of a change for me – I’m not a big fan of clutter to begin with, and it feels great to think you’re making a difference of any kind. Knick knacks & the like really aren’t my thing anyway, paired with the fact that I’ve lived in apartments for most of my adult life and just haven’t had the room. And honestly, I feel much less distracted and claustrophobic when my home isn’t packed to the brim with crap. Over the past year or so I’ve donated loads upon loads of random junk I’ve accumulated over the years (rather, I put it in a box, Julian takes it). Guess what? I haven’t missed any of it. Not one single time have I thought, “Man, I really wish I still had that lamp/candle holder/sweater/DVD/etc.” What does that go to show you?
Have you made any changes to try and simplify your possessions and/or reduce your consumption? Any good tips, articles, websites? Please share!
We’re back from Chicago and it feels so good! We were greeted at LAX with June gloom, but after all the wacky Chicago weather, I didn’t even notice. We had our share of sunny days, but we also had 98 degree humid weather, thunderstorms, windy 60 degree days that called for coats, and everything in between. The beauty of the city makes up for the weather though – we had so much fun just walking around and taking it all in. The curbside flower gardens and tree-lined streets were my favorite part. We met up with some friends, went down to visit some family in central IL, rode bikes along Lake Michigan, saw a show at The Second City, visited with the cats & dogs at the Anti-Cruelty Society, ate wayyyy too much pizza (& Garrett popcorn), and much more. It was the perfect trip!
