hope

how amazing would it be if you could bottle up those precious times you have with your loved ones and open it up just to experience it again at any given time? if i could do that, i would have bottled up our evening last thursday. i was supposed to go to atlanta and decided to wait because i just wasn't feeling that it was where i needed to be that night. i've learned to pay attention to those nudgings and so glad i did on this one. luckily it was a light homework night so em and i picked up pizza and pb got wil from lacrosse practice and we all met downtown at pb's studio. the two of us used to have date nights with pizza and wine there a lot but we haven't ever taken the kids to join us. i've mentioned before how beautifully his studio lights up at night and it was especially cool in there on thursday. he has been working on a project for the new harbin clinic cancer center and had some of his large completed photos there for us to see. i need to write another post about this (or he does) because it has been quite a journey for him. he has been photographing cancer survivors and hearing each of their stories along the way. it has been an exciting and sobering project at the same time. very proud of him.

so thursday night was the unofficial unveiling of some of his photos for us. wil and em were intrigued. they didn't quite understand the term "remission" and they had lots of questions about the faces they were seeing. we sat and ate pizza and talked about which photos we liked best hanging on the brick wall in front of us. so intriguing to hear their opinions and what they love about a photo. it was like our own little art critique.

after we ate, pb took some photos of all of us to test his lights, backdrop, etc. for a party we had scheduled for last night. he wanted to make sure his idea would work so we were more than happy to serve as guinea pigs. we all know that wil and em are not shy in front of the camera. everyone was jumping and laughing and i think we got some pretty great photos.

if we had planned this night in advance, it probably never would have worked out like it did. the kids kept commenting on how much fun they had and how they loved eating dinner at pb's space. family dinner is so important to me. that time of day when we are all together, can decompress, share about our highs and lows, sometimes argue, most of the time laugh, means so much. i think it provides a stability and security for parents and kids. it's the time of day when everyone can let their guards down and be glad to be home. so it was fun to do this at pb's space and break up the routine of the week a little bit.

if i could bottle up that night, i would. the little things like that make such an impact on our lives and those are times we are all going to remember. last week was a bit of a heavy week for some people we care about so having that time together on thursday makes me realize what matters. i hope wil and em will always remember that silly evening as one of their best childhood memories.

"sand tropez"

2 things on this sunny wednesday:

1. essie polish now at walgreen's!!! i ran over there after lunch to pick up a prescription and spotted 2 bottles at the medicine counter. i asked the girl if they were carrying essie now and she said "huh?". she had no idea what i was talking about but said the polish was from their store. i ran over to the nail aisle and found a large display of my favorite polish in lots of shades. this is either a good thing or a bad thing...i only got one today.

2. loving jennifer aniston's new bobbed haircut. i saw it last night on a random website. i think the cut is so cute but she looks a little odd to me in this photo. is it the lighting or??? i do think this is a great length on her. i wish i had the nerve to chop.

spring "tees"

we have had quite the weekend. thank goodness for the warmer temperatures and sunny weather! it started off on friday night by letting em go to atlanta and spend the night with one of her best friends and her mom. they had a cheerleading competition this weekend in atlanta. we let her go on friday night to have some girl time and not have to get up so early on saturday for the competition. i got up early yesterday morning and drove down to meet them. the gazillion people in atlanta and the traffic trying to reach the world congress center, find the parking deck (i had reserved parking online last week because of the enormity of this competition) and then racing through crowds of people in platform clogs(???) and a giant purse that was hitting everyone i ran past, were all indisputably my "lows" for the weekend. one of the definite "highs" was seeing em's bright little face when they came off the stage. her cheeks were rosy and glowing. her eyes were sparkling. how can i not support my baby girl when she loves this so much even if it is all so foreign to me? another high was having girls lunch in atlanta with her at bricktop. she has been dying to go there ever since she read that her girl, t swizzle, eats at the one in nashville. the girls were so excited after the first round of competitions and em was entertaining us all at lunch with her stories and antics. she amazes me. so much confidence at such a young age. another high.

so friday night while em was heading to atlanta, wil was "relaxing" at home after lacrosse practice. his "for sure" high for the day. we were invited over to our good friends' house around the corner to help them paint some things for a school auction. they had volunteered to create a large cardboard car that would attach to a golf cart for the auction (it was supposed to look like the pope mobile... would try to explain but it would take too long). so they lured us over with thai food, wine and beer. we had a great time painting and hanging out on their porch. i appreciate the simple friday nights with friends so much. high.

after the marathon day in atlanta yesterday , wil's scrimmage lacrosse game, and pb helping construct the golf cart car for several hours, we went to the auction last night. a fun time sitting with friends at the table and being entertained. we both crashed hard last night and are looking forward to a slow sunday at home and a family dinner tonight. em requested burgers for our sunday night dinner and we are going to attempt onion rings in the fry daddy.

to celebrate the great weather we have had, here are a few finds and images from this week.

1. redken's new line called nature's rescue.
"a new collection of paraben-free, sulfate-free and silicone-free haircare essentials, with plant and marine extracts, that remove impurities and buildup while helping nourish hair. Formulas with water-fresh fragrances, cooling sensations and ocean-inspired textures provide the perfect balance of moisture. Suitable for all hair types. Alternate with your regular haircare regimen or use daily to detox, replenish and experience an instant ocean escape!"
i tried some samples of this last night and lovvvvve it. it smells so amazing and fresh. the refining sea polish (step 2) felt a little strange at first. you are basically exfoliating your hair. but followed by the cooling deep conditioner, it made my hair really silky soft and shiny.

2. stila lip glaze. my atlanta friend found this shade on sale at j. crew and sent one to me. it's called grapefruit and is a great color for spring and what i love about this lip gloss is that it stays on.

3. cute tees from american eagle. i never go to our mall but happened to be out there last week and had a second to run in ae. spotted these on the table and got one in this marled gray and a black. they are a drapey cotton knit and could even be dressed up with a fun necklace or earrings. they look more expensive than they are at $19.00 and they are an extra 20% off this weekend thru monday for president's day sale.

4. i just love this outfit. saw it online at calypso and think it is adorable. i love the shoes and the long shirt under the short sweater with leggings. super cute.

5. last is this photo of a bar that i found on another blog. i am obsessed with beverage carts and chests that are set up with vintage glasses, bottles and other bar accoutrements. we have an antique beverage cart that i use as a side table but i would love to have a bar set up on a chest with all the pretty trappings one day. we just don't have the place for it right now...or i haven't rearranged to make one. my look book is full of clippings for ideas for one. loved this one.

happy sunday!

girrrrllll....

happy late valentine's day! our party saturday night for the bride and groom to be was a success and a grand time was had by all. pb transformed the space that normally houses our dining room table into a mini-studio with lights and backdrop included. we had quite the spread, lots of candles and lots of champagne. the valentine playlist was a hit and pb's fire on the patio was stellar. the weather cooperated and it was a perfect night to be outside. a special shout out goes to larry for providing us with some dry firewood. it also one the prize for "coolest" firewood ever by several guests. it is chopped by him to perfection for our fire pit.
so cheers to the happy couple and thanks for giving us a reason to throw a party!

the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs

i love birds. i painted a lot of them at christmas time this year. i saw this ring online and think it is adorable. and the sun is out today for the 2nd day in a row so it has me thinking of spring. this ring would be a perfect spring accessory.

if you like birds too, or just need a happy little tune for your ipod, download the littlest birds by the be good tanyas. always a great song.

highs and lows

this is not an original idea. i have some friends that play this game and then i read about it again on another blog last week. sometimes when i hear about something or hear a certain word several times in a row, it makes me stop and think...this is probably not a coincidence and i probably need to pay attention. so after i read about this little game again last week, i decided to try it out on pb, wil and em at dinner one night. we already have a nightly tradition of "giving it up to somebody"...we toast somebody that has done something great, somebody that needs our thoughts, or just somebody that we are remembering for that moment. so i wasn't sure how another nightly ritual would go over. especially one that really does require a little more thinking.

so with that, let me add that this january has been pretty blah for me. i don't know if it is the continual stream of gray and cloudy days we have had, the lack of warmth and sunshine, the boredom of winter months, or what it is. but it is has not been fun. i have tried to keep an open mind and a positive attitude so as not to drag everyone around me down into the miry funk, but that has been hard. so the idea of this game seemed like perfect timing. the game is simply the act of taking turns at dinner, telling your "high" and your "low" of the day, starting with the low. but the object of course, is not necessarily to focus on the low. by sharing your "low" and listening to others, you see that we can all have crappy parts to our days and you know you are not alone. when you share your "high" and listen to others, you do realize how much we have to be thankful for and how little the "lows" really are in comparison. it sounds completely hokey, but it works. and the kids reminded us again last night to play "high, low" before we could even suggest it.

the first time that we tried this was last thursday night. i started us off, em was next, then wil, and we were going to finish with pb. but before pb's turn, he started to tell us something that happened to him that day that had nothing to do with the game. when he paused mid story i said, "awww, and that must have been your low for the day." he stopped for a second and thought about it. no, it had not been his "low" but now that i had mentioned it, he guessed it could have been. this turned into a conversation that took up the rest of our evening. not exactly how we planned for the game to work. but it was productive in the end.

so last night we fixed a yummy dinner of fajitas and guacamole and decided to play "high, low" for the weekend. this time, the game went much better. everyone had a different "high" and our "lows" were pretty insignificant. i think that is how it should be. and if somebody does have a big "low" to share, then we have each other to be there through it. so i will end this post with a description of my "high" for the weekend...

last week was a week full of lacrosse practices, tumbling/cheer competition practices, lots of homework, some sore throats, rain and more rain. wil and em wanted zaxby's for dinner on friday night. em had another late tumbling practice to get ready for her competition on sunday. so we picked up dinner for them, started a fire, and let them eat in front of the t.v. (not on the new rug) and we ran to harvest moon for a date night dinner. it was crowded so we had a great time sitting at the bar, talking about our day and enjoying dinner and drinks. we got home around 8:00 and were ready for pj's and bed. we sat down in front of the fire with the kids for a few minutes before planning to get everyone settled for a good night's sleep. well...4 hours later...we all went to bed. we ended up staying up and talking with them about everything from their days at the lower school to trying to figure out how to get a fine arts center built at school. we listened to music, told stories, laughed and were entertained by wil strumming the bass guitar to his favorite dave matthews tunes. this was definitely my high for the weekend. we are always so busy and we miss too much when we don't make the time to sit and talk and listen to each other. wil and em are growing up fast and it is priceless to catch them in this mode.

when i was waiting for my turn and listening to everyone else last night, i was amazed at how many "highs" we all had and how difficult it was to really think of any "lows". so glad we made time and room for one more thing in our nightly routine.