daffodil days at blithewold

daffodil days and a fairy festival at blithewold mansion and gardens in bristol, ri was occurring this sunday. how can you deny twin four-year-olds this delight? so the girls put on their fairy costumes with crowns made from pipe cleaners, tape and weeds found around the yard and off we floated to take in the sights. our favorite thing was building the fairy houses but, darn that fairy dust. i have been vacuuming all morning and it doesn't want to be expunged. 

elle decor goodness

just look at all this loveliness elle decor has blessed us with. this is the home of susan hable smith and her family in athens, goergia. susan and her sister are the founders of hable construction,  the successful textile and home accessory company. i am really loving all of the hable construction textiles seen in the couch upholstery, pink flower curtain and the screened-in porch banquette. and the fact that susan and her family made the escape from new york city to a charming college town in georgia where they are living the good life makes me smile. 

photos by richard powers for elle decor.

scenes from maine

maine = art + nature

book finds

you'll never guess where i found these books published in the 50's and 70's? the dump. the town in maine my parent's live in does not have roadside garbage pickup. you have to take your trash and recyclables to the transfer station, otherwise known as the dump. and their particular station has a shop where people take books, dishes, lamp bases, and anything else people want to get rid of. i found these unique books there and used some lysol wipes to wipe them off just because i'm anal and added them to our book collection. i also found a maine public radio tote bag, a white ceramic vase with an organic shape, and two large puzzles for the girls. it really is the thrill of the hunt. do you like to dumpster dive or shop at thrift stores? 

coastal homes in port clyde, maine

when we were in maine last week for the girl's spring break i couldn't help but take these photos of some coastal homes in port clyde. the architecture of these homes embody my design aesthetic. the simple clean lines. grey shingle siding. cape cod style home with 2 over 2 windows. painted white. now i just need to get the guts to ring the door bell and ask to see the interiors.

a love letter to the city of boston

 

 

 

i have a heavy heart like many of you do. we were away in maine staying at my parent's house last week when all the horror unraveled in boston. to those families that lost their loved ones and to the 140 and more that were injured i say prayers of comfort and peace. it is so very sad.

i wanted to share some pictures that capture the beauty of that beloved city. we lived in belmont, massachusetts  from 2006-2010. josh worked in watertown, massachusetts and i worked in cambridge, mass. so the events that unfolded hit way to close to home. 

i'm sure you all are trying to deal with the awful events of last week not only in boston, but in texas and china as well. as i struggle to deal with what occurred i thought i would write a little letter to the city of boston. i want love to prevail. i changed a great deal as a result of living there and it has been always been there when our family has needed her the most.

dear boston, 

thank you for providing cutting edge medical care to my father in 1981 at massachusetts general hospital when he found out he was born with a leaking heart valve and had to have open heart surgery.

thank you for not blushing and being so cool when my modest mother nursed my baby brother in public for the first time in quincy market. my uncle saw a bee on her boob and swatted it away, dropping the blanket and exposing her for all to see.

thank you for opening my mind. changing the way i think about politics.

thank you for having an awesome aquarium that my family visited when i was younger and jump started a love for marine biology within me.

thank you for providing the best medical care at beth israel hospital when i had preterm contractions at 27 weeks and had to be on hospital bed rest for 1 month before k + r were born. dr. takoudes, and nurses maya and radka i'm talking to you. 
 
thank you to fresh pond, mount auburn cemetery, and arnold arboretum for offering a refuge from our busy lives and urban surroundings and providing a peaceful place to go. 

thank you for adding culture to our lives. the mfa, isabella stewart gardner museum, the ica, and the harvard museum of natural history. these institutions are a huge happy place for our family.

thank you for your focus on historical preservation that maintains the city's character and offers a sense of place.

thank you for not laughing when i rode the t bus for the first time and fell in the woman's lap next to me.

thank you for being the home to pizzeria regina, the best pizza i have ever tasted. 

thank you for being a city that is strong, efficient, and intelligent. 

thank you for taking care of my baby girls when they were born 2 months early.

thank you to the first responders that ran to the heart of the danger instead of running away.  

thank you for all these things and many more. i love with you with all my heart. 

demarest lloyd state park

Nature

O Nature! I do not aspire
To be the highest in thy choir, -
To be a meteor in thy sky,
Or comet that may range on high;
Only a zephyr that may blow
Among the reeds by the river low;
Give me thy most privy place
Where to run my airy race.

In some withdrawn, unpublic mead
Let me sigh upon a reed,
Or in the woods, with leafy din,
Whisper the still evening in:
Some still work give me to do, -
Only - be it near to you!

For I'd rather be thy child
And pupil, in the forest wild,
Than be the king of men elsewhere,
And most sovereign slave of care;
To have one moment of thy dawn,
Than share the city's year forlorn.

-Henry David Thoreau

my happiest moments in life are in nature. where my mind is clear, inspiration is vast, beauty is everywhere.

above are photos from our little excursion last weekend to demarest lloyd state park in dartmouth, massachusetts. we packed a picnic and were the only ones on the beach that day except for some dog walkers. all senses were alive. where do you like to go to clear your head and feel alive?

on a side note, the girls spring vacation started yesterday so i won't be posting next week. need to get away from the computer and connect with the girlies.