Some close-ups. He almost makes me want to have another one.
Trev thought this positioning/angle was weird. Any thoughts?
3/31/08
The Right Look
This bathroom matches the look of our Master bedroom perfectly. Just a thought.scanned from Renovation Style, winter 2007 issue
Fairfax Bed
Every time I read my son a book in his bed I am reminded of why I like cloth headboards {and desperately wish he had one}. This Fairfax bed from Williams Sonoma Home {Love the other fabric options too} was one of my favorites for a long time and I still love it. I need to start thinking about what we will do for A's room when she switches to a big girl bed and a comfy headboard is definitely going to be part of the plan.
Something I thought was worth remembering
Robert Kiyosaki's answer to the question, "How do you find great people?"
"To answer this, I turn to my good friend Donald Trump, who says, "Set the example and you will be a magnet for the right people." That means doing what you say you will do, holding yourself to the highest standards, working to exceed expectations, learning from your mistakes and then sharing those lessons with others."
"To answer this, I turn to my good friend Donald Trump, who says, "Set the example and you will be a magnet for the right people." That means doing what you say you will do, holding yourself to the highest standards, working to exceed expectations, learning from your mistakes and then sharing those lessons with others."
3/28/08
Porter
This little guy is such a love. I can't wait to go through the rest of the photos.
I've decided I want to figure out photographing newborns and am lucky to have a friend who just had this tiny little peanut and is letting me experiment. I have another friend who needs her blankets photographed, so I was killing two birds with one stone.
I'm sure there will be more to come . . .
Fireplace Surround
Beautiful room, but I scanned this for the fireplace surround on the far right. Very interesting.scanned from April 2008 BHG
Purples, Pinks and Greens
I love the color used in this garden. I like a more monochromatic use of color, it feels so soothing yet vibrant.
This garden's plan. I like that everything isn't just pushed to the edges.
More details.Scanned from April 2008 BHG
3 Days
Photographed this little guy again today. His Mom put together this cute little trio from last time and I thought it turned out really nice.3/26/08
Just Imagine
I want this view and these windows.
I love the art on this wall.Found these images through this great blog, just imagine, through desire to inspire.
I am losing my mind, but . . .
I read recently that we do start losing our memory as we get older, but our mind also gets better at sorting and remembering those things that are worth remembering.
So . . . I am losing my mind, but I am better able to appreciate the information before I lose it?
hmmm. I wish I could find the article again.
So . . . I am losing my mind, but I am better able to appreciate the information before I lose it?
hmmm. I wish I could find the article again.
Sparkly Settings
I thought this was a fun decor idea scanned from Martha Stewart Living (Jan. 08?). They suggest doing this for New Year's, but this is a fun starting point for interesting variations. Plus I am not on the ball enough to read the magazine by the proper holiday.3/24/08
White Kitchen
Living in a bit of a project house means we are constantly discussing things we do and don't like, and I think I have decided that I love bright kitchens which usually means white cabinets. We spend so much time there and there is not a lot less motivating (in the cooking and hanging out sense) than not enough natural light. Darker cabinets just seem to absorb it all even though they may look great.This kitchen really isn't me, but I am loving the feel of it. But when I say I like white, I mean just enough, not too much.
Chocolate Eggs
I don't know if I will ever actually do this, but I love the idea.
via tutus & turtles via marthastewart.com
3/22/08
More Garden Ideas
I love this use of color.
Why am I afraid I would have to have a full-time gardener to have something that looked this amazing?scanned from MS Living - Mar. '08
Stone/Rose Garden
We are tearing out our entire front yard, and I am supposed to be finding samples of what I like for the design plan. I find myself attracted to unrealistic plans instead, and have decided to save some favorites for future projects.
These details, especially the water feature in front of the front door, are incredible. It amazes me to imagine how much thought was put into this yard.
3/21/08
Easter Bouquet
I am not one for cheesy holiday decor, so this would be a great way for me to get into the Easter mood.scanned from MS Living's April Issue
Frank Gehry for Tiffany & Co.
I fell in love with Frank Gehry's Collection for Tiffany & Co. the moment I saw it. This man has an amazing eye for attractive lines regardless of what he is designing. Not being a jewelry person, I occasionally head to the website to get my fill.With a fairly big anniversary coming up, I find myself checking back more frequently. Orchid has always been my favorite category, and this pendant necklace is incredible. The only thing holding me back? It wouldn't hang and move as beautifully as the earrings,and I am not tempted enough to pierce mine.
3/20/08
Butter
A favorite activity as of late has been making our own butter. Eating it is another favorite activity. It is so delicious. My plan was to get the kids involved and have them watch the progress. While their participation in the shaking only lasted a minute, they liked me showing them all the different stages that took the cream to butter and buttermilk.We followed the "recipe" from this link and I halved the amount of cream. Because the shaking can get tiresome I would just stick the jar in the fridge in between the occasional shaking session. It still turned out great. The buttermilk wound up in our waffles!
I must admit to pining after a butter churn, but cannot rationalize spending $150+ on one seeing as we don't have our own cow (and that is for one that you still have to churn by hand which is what I want, electric would take too much of the experience out of it!). Who would've thought?
More thoughts on creativity
A friend expressed interest in knowing more answers to my "helping your child increase creative thinking" thoughts. Since I really don't have any answers I will try to piece together thoughts as I have them.
I think that raising a child who thinks for herself and thinks creatively means that I have to indulge any creative and independent thoughts from a young age. As my kids develop new opinions and preferences, I need to go with them and indulge the free-spirited wild ideas and let them feel like their choices and opinions matter and that I support them. Sure, my daughter looks like a complete fruitcake in her outfit of choice, but the important thing is that this is the outfit of her choice. Yes, dropping off and picking up her older brother at preschool made me grin sheepishly, but that is just fine.
I think that raising a child who thinks for herself and thinks creatively means that I have to indulge any creative and independent thoughts from a young age. As my kids develop new opinions and preferences, I need to go with them and indulge the free-spirited wild ideas and let them feel like their choices and opinions matter and that I support them. Sure, my daughter looks like a complete fruitcake in her outfit of choice, but the important thing is that this is the outfit of her choice. Yes, dropping off and picking up her older brother at preschool made me grin sheepishly, but that is just fine.
Naturally I still have to parent these choices and make sure that I am not letting things be pushed passed reasonable limits. I don't want to raise a bunch of wild brats (even though I might occasionally feel like that is exactly what I am doing!). I also want to make sure that my kids are safe and not endangering themselves.
Which leads to my other thought. There are consequences to every decision we make, and finding these consequences out for ourselves is an effective way to learn. If my little stinkers think that going out without a coat is fine when the wind chill puts the temperature below negative, letting them go out coat-less for a minute will not cause them to freeze and will probably have them running back for a coat almost immediately. And they just took responsibility for their decision, hooray!
We had an interesting twist on this situation today that I probably shouldn't share because it shows what a bad parent I am, but here it is: A glass was broken and both kids insisted that they wanted to help me clean it up. I said no because it is dangerous and carted M off to school with the plan to do it right after we returned. When I started cleaning A would not leave the situation alone, she was so focused on helping me clean that she couldn't see straight. She is rather stubborn and snuck in and grabbed a piece of glass and put it in the garbage. At this point I had repeatedly warned her of getting hurt, so stopped and carefully helped her put one more piece in the garbage. The third piece was the piece that cut her. After an emotional minute and many more spent holding her thumb to stop the blood she was bandaged up and ready to go. I was incredibly grateful that the cut was minor. The rest of the day involved her telling all of us how she got cut on the glass and that her finger is hurt. She was actually quite proud of it. (The funny part? It is the thumb she sucks that is bandaged up so I am curious to see if this helps wean her off of it.) I don't need anyone telling me how bad this could have turned out and how I should have put her in a locked room while I cleaned up. I know this. I also know that she now knows what glass can do to her and next time a glass breaks or she sees glass in the street, I have more hope that she will remember the pain in her finger and either be very careful or walk away and come get me.
So, this is mostly for me because it helps me to process my thoughts when I write them, but I hope this is a bit helpful to the one person that was interested. Hopefully any future thoughts will be more groundbreaking!
Which leads to my other thought. There are consequences to every decision we make, and finding these consequences out for ourselves is an effective way to learn. If my little stinkers think that going out without a coat is fine when the wind chill puts the temperature below negative, letting them go out coat-less for a minute will not cause them to freeze and will probably have them running back for a coat almost immediately. And they just took responsibility for their decision, hooray!
We had an interesting twist on this situation today that I probably shouldn't share because it shows what a bad parent I am, but here it is: A glass was broken and both kids insisted that they wanted to help me clean it up. I said no because it is dangerous and carted M off to school with the plan to do it right after we returned. When I started cleaning A would not leave the situation alone, she was so focused on helping me clean that she couldn't see straight. She is rather stubborn and snuck in and grabbed a piece of glass and put it in the garbage. At this point I had repeatedly warned her of getting hurt, so stopped and carefully helped her put one more piece in the garbage. The third piece was the piece that cut her. After an emotional minute and many more spent holding her thumb to stop the blood she was bandaged up and ready to go. I was incredibly grateful that the cut was minor. The rest of the day involved her telling all of us how she got cut on the glass and that her finger is hurt. She was actually quite proud of it. (The funny part? It is the thumb she sucks that is bandaged up so I am curious to see if this helps wean her off of it.) I don't need anyone telling me how bad this could have turned out and how I should have put her in a locked room while I cleaned up. I know this. I also know that she now knows what glass can do to her and next time a glass breaks or she sees glass in the street, I have more hope that she will remember the pain in her finger and either be very careful or walk away and come get me.
So, this is mostly for me because it helps me to process my thoughts when I write them, but I hope this is a bit helpful to the one person that was interested. Hopefully any future thoughts will be more groundbreaking!
Timing Is Everything
I love finding my kids in these funny situations. I have to remember to cherish the sweet memories of them sneaking out of their bedrooms before they are teenagers and my mindset changes drastically.
3/18/08
Dreaming of Daffodils
I love bulbs, but have only recently started to really enjoy daffodils. Arrangements like this are an argument for them being my favorite flower. {Tulips are my favorite}
My Mom has a hill full of Spring bulbs and I would love to have something similar one of these days. It just allows you to freely cut without completely clearing out the outdoor color. I liked this idea of using scalloped scissors on parchment paper to make a nice, simple wrapping for a floral gift.As a little reminder to myself, my Mom always let us cut the flowers from her front yard to make these fun little "flowers floating in a bowl arrangements." I highly doubt she regrets or even remembers that her yard may not have always looked perfect, but I will always remember those afternoons spent making arrangements and always remember that she gave our curiosity priority over aesthetics.
I aspire to always do that.
images scanned from April 2008 MS Living Mag
3/16/08
3/13/08
Laundry
Really, what is the deal with laundry? I get it all washed and put away and am feeling oh so proud of my housekeeping skills and then . . .
I accidentally look in the laundry room or the laundry baskets and see giant piles of dirty laundry.
I surrender.
Gathered Duvet
West Elm's gathered Duvet is fabulous and organic. We found a comforter for our bed, but I like this better. We use a down all winter so maybe this can be our winter comforter?3/12/08
Creativity
I had a brief, yet interesting discussion with my Mom about creativity. I have always realized that people are creative in different areas and on different levels, but a point she made has really stuck with me. Not everyone can think creatively or originally. It is a gift. A blessing to be appreciated and cherished, never to be taken for granted. Something we need to use, but never to the detriment of one who may not be able to see things the way we can.
This sums up my thoughts, but I'd like to take it further. I have to believe that creativity and originality are somewhat innate, but also have to believe that like a small seed they are thoughts, feelings, and ideas that can be grown and increased. While I would love nothing more than to increase these things in myself, I feel that there is more possibility and potential within my kids. The question is then, how do I help them develop these gifts while realizing that it is really up to them?
From things I have read and from my own experiences I believe that originality and the ability to think for one's self are going to be more necessary than ever as our world continues to change. Higher education is no longer the exception and great jobs are going to be harder to find. Add in school systems that seem to put more of a a focus on "the right answer is the only answer," rather than exploring all the different ways you can get to one of many solutions, and you start to worry that your child could turn into one more cookie in a cookie cutter world. Those that will be able to rise above and truly succeed are those that will cultivate originality and innovation, the ability to look outside the box and find what works, not just for them but for everything around them.
So how do I help cultivate that seed of curiosity, that desire to explore and learn more?
Some rambling additions on another night:
How do I raise a child that thinks for himself, and that feels a need for something more, something uniquely his that he can call his own? A child that is comfortable with that uniqueness, with that individuality, with not being one of the crowd. A child that doesn't just strive for a higher level, but one that looks for and finds ways to get there. How do I help this child to know that reaching that level isn't always the important thing, and that the lessons he can learn from attempting those heights are likely the most important thing he can take with him? That the only one that can truly measure his success is himself?
M has a game that I hate because he gets worked up if it doesn't look like the bottom of the box that he is always looking at to make sure things are put together the right way even though there are many more possibilities than what the box shows. I need to toss it (alright, donate it). I try to put thought into the toys and books that we own, making sure that most are interesting and require thought rather than button-pushing. I do fun stuff with the kids although I do it more on a quality rather than quantity level because I would go insane if all I did was do stuff with them all day or even every day. Maybe that is a bad thing but I like to think that it forces them to come up with ways to entertain themselves. It is also why walls and furniture get colored on. But to be with them 24/7, solving their every problem would be harmful to all of us. If I stepped in at every whimper they would never learn how to solve a problem on their own and would never feel the pride and satisfaction gained when one realizes their confidence in their own abilities.
This sums up my thoughts, but I'd like to take it further. I have to believe that creativity and originality are somewhat innate, but also have to believe that like a small seed they are thoughts, feelings, and ideas that can be grown and increased. While I would love nothing more than to increase these things in myself, I feel that there is more possibility and potential within my kids. The question is then, how do I help them develop these gifts while realizing that it is really up to them?
From things I have read and from my own experiences I believe that originality and the ability to think for one's self are going to be more necessary than ever as our world continues to change. Higher education is no longer the exception and great jobs are going to be harder to find. Add in school systems that seem to put more of a a focus on "the right answer is the only answer," rather than exploring all the different ways you can get to one of many solutions, and you start to worry that your child could turn into one more cookie in a cookie cutter world. Those that will be able to rise above and truly succeed are those that will cultivate originality and innovation, the ability to look outside the box and find what works, not just for them but for everything around them.
So how do I help cultivate that seed of curiosity, that desire to explore and learn more?
Some rambling additions on another night:
How do I raise a child that thinks for himself, and that feels a need for something more, something uniquely his that he can call his own? A child that is comfortable with that uniqueness, with that individuality, with not being one of the crowd. A child that doesn't just strive for a higher level, but one that looks for and finds ways to get there. How do I help this child to know that reaching that level isn't always the important thing, and that the lessons he can learn from attempting those heights are likely the most important thing he can take with him? That the only one that can truly measure his success is himself?
M has a game that I hate because he gets worked up if it doesn't look like the bottom of the box that he is always looking at to make sure things are put together the right way even though there are many more possibilities than what the box shows. I need to toss it (alright, donate it). I try to put thought into the toys and books that we own, making sure that most are interesting and require thought rather than button-pushing. I do fun stuff with the kids although I do it more on a quality rather than quantity level because I would go insane if all I did was do stuff with them all day or even every day. Maybe that is a bad thing but I like to think that it forces them to come up with ways to entertain themselves. It is also why walls and furniture get colored on. But to be with them 24/7, solving their every problem would be harmful to all of us. If I stepped in at every whimper they would never learn how to solve a problem on their own and would never feel the pride and satisfaction gained when one realizes their confidence in their own abilities.
3/11/08
Great Stairs
I have always loved the look of these stair railings.via desire to inspire, photographed by Guy Mendlin
3/10/08
Chandeliers
I love what these chandeliers do for this outdoor set-up.
I think I found this on Style Me PrettyLubi Daybed
This Lubi Daybed by CB2 works double duty as a sleeper.I am really loving attractive furniture that beds extra guests.
3/9/08
3/7/08
Not-To-Do List
In absence of actually following through and doing my own 'Not-To-Do List', I wanted to keep track of this little blurb about it out of US News & World Report. It think this could be a very effective way for me to analyze my time and make the changes needed. I'm still sorting things out though . . .