A Bag for the Road

So, we evidently didn't suffer enough have enough fun getting to and from our last destination, and we are on the road again this weekend. I just keep trying to focus on how great it is once we do get to the place and not the actual getting, which can be very unpleasant. This time we are driving, which makes things a little less stressful because if the kids are screaming it's only you that hears it and not 100 other people sitting in very close proximity. I came across this bag made by Skinny Vinny while I was stalling my packing and thought it would make traveling a lot more fun...because that's what bags tend to do, make things more fun.

Mini Berlin

I've told you about my Mini car obsession...I just can't get enough of the little guys. Yesterday, my sweet friend Hilary, who has been living in Budapest for over a year now with her hubby and two kids [she actually had her second while she was there, which I think is way cool and brave], sent these pictures to me and I was so excited - made my day!

[The bear on the top is the symbol of Berlin]

And just for kicks, here I am in the Mini convertible we took to the beach this summer...

[We loaded that baby down with 2 adults, 2 kids, 2 carseats, beach chairs, beach balls, buckets and shovels, a cooler, 4 towels, snacks - I mean it was crammed!]

The Brochstein Pavilion

Back from Houston - had a great trip! Was so pleasantly surprised when we walked onto the Rice campus by this stunning new building - the Brochstein Pavilion. Sadly, it was built after our stint there, but I am so glad it is there now.

The pavilion was built as a gathering space for the Rice community - think coffee house meets retro lounge. It has over 10,000 square feet of wrap around porch seating, and was designed to incorporate the natural campus surroundings - namely the amazing Live Oak trees. And it does this so well. You can tell from the picture above how you can see right through it, from one side clear to the next. It is such a happy thing when buildings are designed and built with so much thought to their surroundings.


I'm off to play catch-up and recover from all the queso eating I did this weekend!

Be Your Guest?

You bet! Check out this guest house...




We're headed to Houston today...had to reschedule our trip because of Ike, but know everyone's got power back and is ready to hang - can't wait!

Times Tidbits

Did you know that retired London subway cars have now become affordable work space for artists? Thanks to the Village Underground, who bought the cars from the London transport authorities, gutted and renovated them, and now rent them to artists for approx. $60 a week. Did I mention that they are on the roof of a warehouse, too? Such creativity, ingenuity, vision and resourcefulness - I love it! [read more here]


Speaking of creativity in re-purposing things, there was a feature on Wieki Somers, who likes to find the beauty in everyday things, like turning a boat into a bathtub.


Looking for an addition to your design library? Check out Modern Americana: Studio Furniture From High Craft to High Glam by Julie Iovine and Todd Merrill.



And lastly, I appreciated the page dedicated to dressing boys by Ellen Tien. Finding non-jersey, non-sports-related, not sloppy boy clothes are such a challenge, and there were some fun combos represented. I do wish, though, that the shoes had been listed as well. I'm all about the shoes. [To see the complete slideshow, click here]

Birthday Delights

When I was a little girl, I always wanted to have my birthday parties at McDonald's. Until I was about 6 years old and realized that I could have ponies come to my house instead. I haven't had McDonald's in years, but I have such good memories of the place - Ronald and his big shoes, the bouncy cage things on the playground, the french fries. No McD's this birthday, but it was a good one. Slept in until 9:30 am [I can't believe that this is my definition of sleeping in now!] on Saturday, went to see Ghost Town [it was really good - heart-warming and hilarious], did a little shopping and lots of good eating [my parents brought up a cake from A Piece of Cake - the best cake ever]. And some sweet people gave me some sweet gifts...

[Earrings from give a penny. designs from ma mere and pere]

[A book on the making of Princess Di's wedding dress from Weez...I've always been intrigued with the British monarchy, and I remember asking my parents when I was little how I could become a princess and thinking it was totally unfair when they told me you were born into royalty.]

[And this beautiful paper from a new friend; she bought it at a store I have been meaning to check out called Toots & Magoo, but I've always had both boys with me whenever I'm in the neighborhood and they aren't the best shoppers. Now I just need to decide how to use it - oh, the possibilities!]

The boys went shopping as well, and I got a big bag of "mommy candy" [Swedish Fish and Sour Patch Kids] and magazines...a perfect gift.

Birthday Hints

Reggie keeps asking me for some hints on want I want for my birthday, which is this weekend. I keep trying to think of something small, you know, just a little token gift, but I keep coming back to these two things:

[Branch Twig ring, $675. It comes in silver, too, but I like the gold.]

[And a dog, preferably one like Bradley, my friend Emily's. He's a Yorkie, but not a little yippie one...don't want a dog that's too small with all the action around our house. You know who else has really cute dogs is Erika. They are terrihuahuas - so cute!]

Here's a fun fact: I had dropped the hint about a dog for my 25th birthday, and Reggie was looking into it, but then we found out I was pregnant - an even better surprise! We decided to wait a little while on the dog...still waiting...

Blurb All About It

I wrote about these gorgeous books a week or so ago, but here's another [cheaper] option for custom photo books - Blurb. I used Blurb to make a Christmas present for my parents last year [pictured above], and I am planning to make another one this year. The images + printing were great [although, this year I am definitely going to get a hardcover book instead of the softcover - the edges of softcover tend to curl-up and it bothers me] and it was relatively easy to make. I say relatively because if you wanted to customize a template [the font, font color, etc.], you had to do it for every page [I think they may have changed this since last year], so it took me a while to get it the way I wanted it.

One really great thing about Blurb is that you can "slurp" your blog, meaning the program will take all of the content [images and text] from your blog and put it into a book. Very cool. I figure each year I will just slurp my family blog into a book and there's our photo album for the year. No cutting, pasting, taping, or gluing involved. And they start at only $29.95* for a portrait size [8.5 x 11"] hardcover. It makes me happy just thinking about it.


*And if you order your book by 9/30, you can get $15 off your book purchase of $34.95 or more [enter code encore at checkout]!

Times Tidbits

Lots of interesting things in the Times this Sunday...here are my top 4 morsels:


A biannual magazine called The Last Magazine, a play on all the talk that print media will soon become obsolete [may it never be!], will hit newsstands in October. The founders of the magazine describe it as a mix between newsprint and an art book, and want to use it to showcase new talent [artists, directors, designers, writers, musicians...]. The magazine will be over-sized, printed on refined newsprint. Being the magazine addict that I am, I will let you know when I spot it and what I think!



Ellen is the new face of the Cover Girl ad campaign, which will start running in January. I don't get to watch her show often, but I'm always laughing whenever I do, like the time she had Jenna Bush call her dad live from the show. So funny.


Parents in Amsterdam can be seen riding these bad boys. Holy Schmoly, how awesome is that?! It's like a foot-powered car on two wheels with cargo space and all!



And lastly, I learned that Houston is being called the new Miami. I know a lot of people think of Houston as oil and concrete, but there is a lot, lot more to the city than that. A vibrant arts scene, incredible restaurants and shops, an opera and ballet, etc, etc. The museums are awesome, partly because of all that oil money. And the restaurants, oh the restaurants...delicious and quirky all in one, like Cafe Brasil, where we used to walk to on Saturdays to read the paper [this was before we had a mobile youth!]. Anyway, I've never been to Miami, but Houston was already high on my list.

Crazy for Cardies

Ah, the cardigan. It's so nerdy and hip at the same time. I love them. I love that grandpas have been wearing them for decades and here they are all over the place for young and old. I tore out the image above from the Anthropologie catalog before we moved with plans to order, but then got totally distracted and didn't and now the cardigan isn't available anymore. Anyway, I just found the picture in one of my stacks and thought "I need more cardigans!" So, I've found some good ones out there...

[all from Anthropologie :: Looky-Here $106, Grandma & Grandpa $98, and Rising Sun $209]

[Free People :: Cotton Grandpa $108]

[Theory :: Ange $345 and Gap :: The Belted Cardigan $39.99]

[J. Crew :: Pima Cotton V-neck Cardigan $69.50]

I bought the one from the Gap recently...I am planning to remove the belt loops and wear it sans the satin belt. Now, it just needs to get a little bit cooler around here!

And for the younguns, J.Crew's Crewcuts has some really cute sweaters, cardigans and sweater vests...

Quiet Weekend

We were headed to Houston this weekend, but postponed our trip because of that mean old Ike. Not sure what we will do now...nothing will be quite as good as being with old friends. Any suggestions?!

A Year on the Wall

I just pre-ordered this 2009 wall calender from Miriam Bereson, and I can't wait to mark it up! It's so nice to see the entire year in one place, and in such a colorful, not boring way. Here's a close-up of last year's planner...

Shades of Blue + Yellow

It's like the rain and the shine...two of my favorite colors in the '09 spring lines at NYC fashion week. Style.com has complete coverage of last week. I always enjoy seeing how designers mix colors and patterns and textures. And the hairstyles on the models, too. It's art walking down a runway!

Also, if you are interested in Pantone colors, the '09 Spring report has been released, and you can find it here...

Oh, Rain

It has rained a lot since we moved here, and when most of your getting somewhere involves walking, biking or waiting for a bus, it's hard to ignore and more than a little irritating. I saw this umbrella on In(side) the Loop and thought it was hilarious. My sentiments exactly only in another language so it sounds prettier and the kids won't know what it means!

Naked Decor

While I was searching for the flag pillows, I came across Naked Decor. They have some really fun pillows [including the majesty/union jack one] as well as other home accessories. The dachshund items were some of my favorites. Maybe it's because my friend Suzanne had two of them in high school, and she always made me laugh when she talked to "Beau-beau" and "Malkie" [their full names were Beau and Malcolm. I'm a nickname person, so I get the whole nickname thing it just made me laugh because they would get so excited and wag half their backside around]. Anyway, my two favorites in this category are the Happy Hot Dog pillow [$49.95] and the My Pet Lamp: Dachshund [$59.95].


Another cool feature of the site is a house tour of the designer's house...[I think this is cool because I am nosy and I like to see where other people live.] I especially like the first bedroom pictured below...I would've never thought to paint the ceiling that dark color, but it has such a calming, quiet effect that I love. And with the wood floors...oh, how I miss wood floors!