AMELIA PRESENTS

aren't these keychains the bee's knees? i found them at Amelia, which has quite the collection of lovely things to look at.

i would wear this watch, ask you to put your drink down on these coasters, and write you a note just because.

and some of my favorite children's items: 

backpack, balancing blocks, chester the raccoon, skirt and scarf, lion print, wingtips pillow,  alphabet blocks, recycled bucket, black tunic

happy friday (finally) !!

GRAPEFRUIT ROSEMARY COCKTAIL

first things first. watermelon oreos, don't do it.

i regretted it the moment i took my first bite, but it provided an afternoon of entertainment at work with people coming by my desk to test taste and give their oreo rating and just like that, the whole package was finished. i'm glad that it didn't go to waste, but i feel a tinge guilty about helping people consume a sugary cookie that tasted like plastic.

secondly, the triple ginger snaps from trader joe's - DO it.
i've been doing this ginger snap + chai tea combo at work for breakfast dessert and all that spice is a a flavor explosion deeelight.  and yes, breakfast dessert, it's a thing.

 thirdly. the other day, i opened my fridge door, stared at the grapefruit flavored San Pellegrino inside and fantasized about a grapefruit and rosemary infusion. once i got my hands on some rosemary, i made a rosemary flavored simple syrup (heat and stir 1/2 cup of sugar + 1/2 cup of water + one spring of rosemary), added it to the San Pellegrino, topped it with some vodka, stirred it all around and voila! making my fantasies come true, one drink at a time.

fourth. i have other fantasies that i am going to make come true. some of them involve drinks and foods, others of them have to do with writing more.  the key words here are discipline and practice. another key word: confidence.

MARTHA'S GARDEN TEA PARTY BABY SHOWER

Yes, another baby shower!

This one was the last of a string of showers that happened this past month and it was extra fun because several of us gathered together to make up the party planning committee, and what’s better than one head? Four heads.

Martha is one of the ladies that I looked up to while I was pregnant with my bebe. I was lucky to be around several friends who were mothers, but something about the way Martha handled her own pregnancy and transition into motherhood really appealed to me. She was down-to-earth, honest, transparent, all while maintaining a sense of humor about everything. She also remained so much herself, and I would say, she became even more of herself, if that makes sense to you, and it really encouraged me during those times when I would freak out about how having a baby would change me into a person that I didn’t want to become. It helped me see that being a mother could mean that you could become more aware of who you are and who you are meant to be. We all love her for her warmth and genuineness, we have loved seeing her grow as a mother, and we are so glad we are going to get to be around for her second one! 

The shower’s theme was a garden tea party and we did things like make a tea bar with various loose teas for guests to put together their own blends to drink at the shower and also take home as a favor, make lots of food appropriate for a tea party, decorate with greens and flower garlands, and asked guests to bring their own tea cups to use and then gift. It was so much fun and I'm resolved to have more tea parties in my future.

 

elizabeth putting together the pavlova, which was my personal favorite.

pavlova by elizabeth, cake by mignon (with vanilla bean frosting!)

i could have eaten the whole thing

i woke up craving this curried chicken salad made by laura. so addictive.

the scones + clotted cream + jam combo is tea party food perfection (scones courtesy of elizabeth and jams from meghan)

the cold drinks before they were ushered inside due to the heat

make your own tea bar! tea bags from Natural Tea Bags were perfect to create our own tea blends

the ginger + cardamom + black tea combination was killer

there were a few little ladies that joined us for the party 

three bumps with girls in them! 

martha with the hostesses

the lovely ladies who showered!

KISHI BASHI AT FRIDAY CHEERS AND ITS OFFICIALLY SUMMER

Happy summer! Happy longest day of the year!

 

It is worth noting that it being the first day of summer gets two exclamation point out of this gal this morning, even though I am still half asleep. My babe insists on waking up at 5:15AM each morning and is very bossy these days about being allowed to explore the world on her terms. I am fast sipping my coffee and thanking the good Lord it’s Friday.

 

This past week, it has felt like I am getting to know my daughter all over again.  I’m getting to know her as Sloane the toddler, Sloane the wild-ling, Sloane the explorer, Sloane the tiny ball of will. This process of getting to re-know someone and falling in love with them again and again is a familiar feeling, but now it’s happening with my daughter and it makes me feel more like a mom than ever. It also makes me really feel like a parent to wonder and research about discipline issues/methods/idea/philosophies because we are quickly realizing that is our next frontier.  

 

I am especially glad for summertime because we get more chances to be outside to best channel this recent restless and energetic spirit of hers.  A place like Friday Cheers is so fun for us to go as a family because she is entertained, enthralled and interested in all that is going on around her and we get such a joy out of watching her take it all in.  Kishi Bashi played at last week’s Friday Cheers and I am so glad we got to see him do his thing. We three all came away from this with the great satisfaction and buzz of having been bathed in sunshine and great music. Summer, we love you.

as soon as laid down our blanket, i sat sloane in front of this tupperware full of food (ground turkey, potato, onion, peas & carrots seasoned with garlic and cumin - she love sit) and she hunkered down, feeding herself, enjoying the music....

doing her thing

kishi bashi! 

venturing out after her meal to check out the scene

we went up to as close to the stage as we could, and we stood there for a few minutes, listening and watching. sloane also got face deep into a donut peach that she destroyed. observe: dripping juices

waiting to cross the street 

toddling back home. 

SLOANE AND SIMONE

I spent a significant amount of time untangling knots from my hair this morning. I’m pretty sure that it is the work of tiny hands that weave their fingers through the lengths of my hair each day, sometimes to hold on while in route, sometimes to shove in her mouth, and other times for comfort.  This is all to say, my hair looks like a bushel of wild today.

 

I think we can officially declare that we have entered into a whole new era with this little one. I don’t think I can call her a baby anymore, but I’m still gonna. She is a bundle of energy and she is all about getting her hands on and into everything. She was curious and adventurous before, but now it’s at a whole new level because she can move so quickly on her feet, she is confident of her exploring abilities aaaand JUST this past week, she has been catching on that she has the option to ignore our ‘NO’.  This morning, when I opened the fridge to grab some fruit, she practically ran over from where she was removing (throwing) items from the bench to the floor and happily marching around with a box of popcorn she discovered, in order to grab one of the bottles at her eye level out of the fridge and toddle off with it as quick as she could.  This happened in a blink of an eye. If my reflexes have gotten slower in order to accommodate and appreciate the unhurried ways of an infant, I am going to need to sharpen them up in order to keep up with this whirlwind. Ten and a half months seems way too early to be mourning the end of the baby era, but it’s hard to deny that there have been a shift of sorts as I watch her, packed full of purpose and energy.

 

She is my little wildling, and these photos seem appropriate. We got to spend some relaxing hours catching up with our friends the Robinsons this past weekend and having our little girls run around the house under our feet together while we talked was my enthrallment and joy.