swell...tering oustide

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not sure when or where I got this...sorry. Claim it if it's yours.

Its hotter then blazes outside. My kids have been playing in the sun and dippin their toes in the water almost all day. Funny how when your young all you want to do is lay out in the sun and now I can't do it for longer then a few minutes. I'll take that lounge chair under the umbrella, thank you. 

Here is an article on how to keep those kids safe in the sun. 

Eat

pic from Flickr by karimian- says Andy Leong Photography

I was reading this article after my grueling boot camp this morning. I thought it was a great way to get refreshed and on track after a nice hard workout. Now I am headed to the store to stock my fridge with some colors of the rainbow.

madewell

So excited for this.
Swing by, you wont be disappointed.

If you can't be there check out their site. They've got some good stuff.

Baby Advice

I have three children and life is KAAH- RAY -ZEEEE!!!

As parents we would love to be perfect, but that's just impossible. I always like to get advice and read up on helpful hints on how to become a better all around parent. Lately I have been loving my monthly updates from Baby Center .

This month I got some advice on how to help my child become a better listener, how to help your child not tattle tale, and how to help your child sleep in their own room. I seriously think I will print some of them out to have them on hand. I especially found the listening one and the tattle tale one helpful, considering my 4 year old is loving to tattle on her friends.

Check out their site, it's worth the read.

weekend Inspiration

This weekend I was catching up on my blog reading and I came across this post on one of my favorite sites for inspiration, 6th Street Design School. She featured Hailey's Rug, an awesome do it yourself project.

My goal this week... make this rug and put it in my living room by this weekend.

Apricot Nut Bread

I like I mentioned before I am obsessed with the book, The Green Diet. When I photographed for the book I was able to try a few things and I just died over the deliciousness of this bread. You must try it. It's so moist and so so yummy.

1 cup apple juice
1/2 cup all-fruit apricot spread or jam
2/3 cup dried apricot pieces
1/2 cup oat bran
1/3 canola oil
2 medium ripe bananas, mashed
2 Tbs. honey
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/4 cup chopped walnuts ( or other nut)

1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring the apple juice to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove the heat and add the apricot spread, apricots, and oat bran. Let stand for 5 minutes.

2 Combine the oil, bananas, and honey in a large mixing bowl; whisk well. Add apricot mixture. Add the dry ingredients to the banana-apricot mixture, stirring just until moist.

3 Spoon the batter into a greased loaf pan. Bake for 55-65 minutes or until pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool and enjoy.

Servings 12.

Love a Bargain

I signed up a few weeks ago for Living Social. All you need to do is enter your zip code and give them your email address and they will send you daily deals in your area. I thought most of them would be pretty cheesy and I might catch a few here and there that I like. I was wrong. So far I have wanted to purchase every deal. I just bought the one above. Check out the site and enjoy the crazy deals.

Reaching for the Moon

{not sure where these pictures are from...sorry}

A lot of the time I get junk email and forwards I usually just browse over quickly, but this email caught my eye. There were a ton more interesting pictures, but these were the ones I liked the most. I thought they were so unique. Maybe I was so intrigued because of all the talk about the super moon or just because I think the moon is fascinating. Either way these shots are pretty cool. My kids always want to touch the moon or hold it in some way. I've got to get a picture of them doing something like this, they would definitely get a kick out of it. I'm sure my daughter would love to grab a latter and climb to the moon, or lasso it to the ground, then maybe tie it to a string and keep it as balloon. As a kid pretty much any thing is possible.

Me oh My

I really enjoy blogging. It gives me an outlet to be creative, get feedback, and also sort of keep a record of the things I loved, wanted, or want to remember. I read blogs, to get inspiration, keep up with friends, and learn new things. I love that Nicole makes all those things possible for me. Her blog is so fresh and full of how to's, where to shop, design ideas, and even has a shop to buy her one of a kind items. She started blogging a little over a year ago is quickly becoming the sensation of the blogging world. 

Get your booty over to her blog and check out her ish. You wont be disappointed!

Oh and did I mention that she is an incredibly talented interior designer. These pictures are all from her home. Amazing!!

Green, super GREEN

My dear friend Mary published a book a while ago called the Green Diet. I was flattered and excited when she asked me to take the pictures for her new book.  After one long shoot, some delicious food, and one great cook we came up with some great shots. I got these pictures off of her book, and there are tons more. I urge you to check it out. She has great insight into how to live a healthy life, and maybe even how to keep those muffin tops in check.

one of my favorite shots from the shoot

She recently started a new blog which you can check out here. I am absolutely loving it. I honestly can say I have not tried a recipe I didn't like. 

{ pic from Rosyln Living }

Oh my doesn't this look delicious!!
 Don't ask questions, just purchase. It will be worth it.

Tat by Matteo

I am in the market for new bedding and I can't seem to get these linens out of my head. So far I've heard nothing but the highest of compliments regarding Matteo bedding. I think they might have the softest sheets I have ever touched. I just might 

cave in and splurge. 

These pictures make me want to slip into bed and cuddle with my babies. I don't even think I would  mind their 

cute toes in my face or a tiny knee in my back.  

My favorite in their collection is the White Tat Duvet mixed with Coal Vintage Linen Sheets. The white with the grey, it's simply

Heaven. 

Accents

 It has almost been 1 year since I have moved into my new home. I absolutely love it. It is my dream house. Since moving in I have realized that my style has changed a bit and just about everything from my old home doesn't go or fit in my new place. It's a hard realization especially if you're like me and you want your whole house to flow nicely and hate unfinished areas. However, I've been able to let the unfinished rooms stay for the time being, because I have come to appreciate a clean yet simple room and I want to make sure each piece I buy is going to stay for a long time. It's going to be a slow process but so far we have made some progress and I'm happy with the direction we are going. At the moment I would say my house is sort of a beachy, modern, meets traditional.

The best advice I always give is, to not buy things just to fill up space in the moment, instead save your money for the big items you're going to keep forever.

I have to constantly remind myself to not just buy things because I hate looking at the empty space.  I find myself loading things in my cart, little nicknacks, cheap frames, things I always end up tossing or giving away. If I could have only saved myself years ago and put that money towards say an entry way table, or some dinning room chairs my house might just be half way done or I would have some extra spending money. Either way I have found the best way for me to shop is to make a list of things that are most important. Then figure out what brand and style I like, then search for items one room at a time. I try not to get side tracked and shop for a different space in my home. We shall see how well I do.

Happy Shopping.


items pictured;
glass vase, white frame, starfish bowl, wood bowl: Z Gallerie
sunburst mirror: Wisteria