Anna Karenina

I am pretty excited to see "Anna Karenina" when it comes out. I read it a long time ago but the first line remains imprinted in my brain:

"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Without giving too much away because I have a lovely family and so many people who love me, but for whatever reason I connected with that line when I was an angsty teenager.

Beyond my connection to the book, I just love a good costume film. I own and have watched the six-hour long BBC version of "Pride and Prejudice" many, many times. I like the Keira Knightly one as well. I loved last year's "Jane Eyre." I think my favorite films are a good, sprawling costume movie.

My favorite one of all I think will always remains this one:



When I was in high school and a devoted reader of Sassy magazine (who wasn't?) they often had quizes about what kind of girl you were. I think one of the questions was always are you the girl who loves "A Room with a View." I can't remember what kind of girl that meant you are but I think it's safe to say that I am that girl.

Summertime Rolls

Suddenly summer begins tomorrow! I feel like I just blinked and spring began. There's a lot of things I want to do this summer. I wish it included a jaunt to some exotic locale, next year perhaps? In the meantime some time at home with my favorite two guys and home projects will have to suffice. I also hope we can have a long overdue housewarming party this summer (is a year in a home beyond the statue of limitations for housewarmings?).

One of the first projects I am dying to tackle is in our family room/playroom. We have these great windows that are crying out for a window seat. I love the idea of curling up with a book by the window, and creating some much needed storage for Hank's toy clutter. We need cushions as well. I have been looking at pinterest for window seat inspiration. Here are a couple nice ones: 

Another home project I hope to tackle is simple adding some more furniture to our home (not too much Mike don't worry). We have taken our time, but we are missing some vital elements like lighting in our living room.

There is only one sad lamp in our living room at the moment

Speaking of Mike I haven't spent a single weekend with my husband in the last month. Either I was travelling or he was travelling. So I can't wait for a long overdue date night and a chance to just hang this weekend. Hope everyone has a lovely first day of summer.

Wedding Photos

Josie giving Hank some love when he was less than two months old

 I just returned from a whirlwind trip for work that meant 3:00 am wake up calls and very little sleep. In fact I wound up catching a horrible cold. The one highlight was getting to see an old friend or two and enjoying a delicious meal. One of the highlights was catching up with my friend Josie. We have known each other for eons. We grew up just a few blocks from each other in Chicago. We both even attended the same gymnastics day camp (she was in the advanced group and I was not in case you were wondering). Always a stylish lady back then she had a buzz cut and rocked a cute gym outfit. These days she no longer sports the buzz cut but is just as stylish as she was in third grade. Josie is an incredible photographer and teaches photo as well in New York. I caught her before she was heading to the Berkshires to shoot a wedding and then to Istanbul, Turkey to shoot another! She still shoots on film which I love. She has a beautiful eye. If you are ever in need of a talented wedding photographer who will give you unique, gorgeous shots that capture the spirit and energy of the day then Josie if your gal. She has also shot lots of fashion spreads and has other fine art works. You can find her work and information here.And here some of her gorgeous wedding shots:

House Hunters

At any given time I will have seven to ten episodes of "House Hunters International" sitting on my DVR. If the number starts to dwindle too low I panic and immediately browse HGTV so that I can start recording and always have ample episodes waiting for me. I love this show. I have even been known to save a great episode, like that couple in Paris whose budget for apartments was four-million-dollars! If you haven't seen the show, go watch it. I found this show and HGTV in general when I was nursing my son when he was so little and you spend hours upon hours nursing. I think the network executives might be aiming for the nursing mother perhaps. I couldn't get enough back then.

Now I am not sure if I have shared this here yet but my husband actually works in reality television. He has even worked on a real estate show so I should know better than to believe that this is actual reality here, but somehow I ignore his comments during the show and choose to believe that the crew actually returned six-months later to see what couple X's life is like now in Malaysia or wherever it may be (sure it's an incredibly expensive production cost but I want to believe people). So I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised when I came across this and this. Now to be fair these posts are about "House Hunters" and not my beloved International version but I have a sinking suspicion that things are similar on my show, and that perhaps my husband was right. Even if it's augmented reality I think I will still tune in.

Quilt

Here is what the quilt squares looked like when they were placed together for my friend Dana to see. I entertained a lot of different ideas for my square. I thought about making one out of a scarf that I had, Dana had a matching one, but at the last minute I decided to visit this store called the Needle Shop in Chicago. The store was full of gorgeous fabric and all sorts of kits. While there I stumbled across these lovely embroidery designs and decided to try my hand at embroidery despite the fact that I only had twenty-four hours and little experience. I found a kit kind of like this: 

It ended up being really fun and not that hard although I kind of made it up as I went. I found a really cute design and used transfer paper to trace it onto the fabric. It turned out pretty cute. Who knows maybe embroidery will become my new thing. Here is my first attempt: 

It's hard to see in this photo but there is a mother bird in her nest surrounded by baby birds. 

Baby Shower for Dana

My friend Dana and me in seventh grade

Dana and I have been friends since the fourth grade. I think it would take several posts to explain our friendship. She is just someone who knows me inside and out. We both lived in New York together in our twenties. We have seen each other through heartbreak and jobs and dramas (and not just adult dramas but middle school dramas which we all know are intense!). She makes me laugh harder than anyone. Suffice it to say she is an amazing person and she will be an incredible mother. Recently I helped her sister throw her a baby shower. By the way she and her sister are both having babies within a week of each other which is beyond amazing.

Dana and me in Palm Springs enduring 100 plus temperatures 

There was delicious food, lovely flowers and so many friends who came from far and wide just to help Dana savor this beautiful moment. It says a lot about a person when their friends will fly in for, in some cases, only five hours just to be there for your baby shower. The one thing we did ask of guests was to create a quilt square and bring it to the shower. While the party was happening Dana's sister Leigh quietly laid out the squares into a mock quilt and took Dana to see it. The tears were flowing. She was overwhelmed and touched. There were squares that were embroidered and bits of fabric that had meaning to her and her friends. It was such a lovely way to commemorate a baby shower, and I have to confess initially this project kind of overwhelmed me, but the results were amazing. If you have a baby shower to throw I highly recommend this idea.  

Rebecca Taylor Kids

Rebecca Taylor just launched the cutest line of girl's dresses ever. Check it out. It isn't the most affordable line but it is lovely.

Here are a few of the cute looks: