Sisters

Sometimes, especially in the early morning hours, my gratitude really takes me over, and I get overwhelmed from all the goodness that family brings... I'm so happy that each of my daughters have a sister. To me, sisters are like having a part of my childhood that can never be lost. Never. It's there - just in the fact that we grew up together: rollerskating, scheming, laughing into our pillows after dark, borrowing, bickering... Just having them, is having that. We share our thoughts, fears, and dreams with each other. We share the fights we have with our husbands, our worries about our children, our musings about our mother. We share everything important, and yet - we're children when we get together...laughing into our pillows after dark. Sisters are truly a gift, and I'm thrilled to watch the bond between my girls grow and grow.

Art Stock!

I'm always on the lookout for more organized ways to minimize any stash of stuff in my home - be it a new form or organizing spices, the best way to arrange a bookshelf, or how to store bath toys. I especially love lists and methods that help me reduce what I've got - clutter is my enemy. When cleaning out a closet or cabinet I generally go the "if I haven't touched it in 6 months it's garbage" route, but when it comes to art supplies I'm always a little on the fence about it. I use this drawer unit to store our artistic stock, and I keep 2 top drawers filled with random and crazy supplies (some that I haven't touched in a year - but still hope to explore). The other drawers are pretty much filled with these basic go-to supplies.  I though I'd share the find - especially for these weeks in between school and camp! :)

Weekend Round-up!

What are you up to this weekend? My mom is coming to visit tomorrow morning, and I'm very much looking forward to sharing a few solid summer days with her and watching my girls interact with their Bubby (mostly I'm just excited to show off Hudi's fat baby legs, though! :) My younger sister (we'll miss you Rivkee!) will also be staying with us until Thursday when she'll be jetting out to NYC for the summer. Plus, my brother is driving in from San Diego tomorrow with his two daughters to hang out with us for the day. We've got a full-house, folks! So we'll be keeping the plans simple and efficient: swimming out back, a walk to the ice cream shop, the afternoon in a well-shaded park, and a pizza + salad dinner picnic. #Foolproof. :)

Anyways, while I make sure I have enough clean bedding for everyone, here are some things I've stumbled upon this week that I though you might enjoy:

- Talk about pizza + salad!

- Freida's favorite, most-worn dress is now on sale - check it out!

- Creative cardboard madness!!

- Currently coveting these flats for fall!

- Fun Mad Men facts that you totally didn't know.

- How precious is the watermelon rattle Hudi is holding??

- Lego Anatomy totally made me laugh out loud!

- These blocks would make for such a fun arts and crafts project!

- For some reason these fashion-shoot photos really inspired me... (?)

- Clash it or match it??

- These are perfect for picnicking!

Hope you have a wonderfully summery weekend!! Lap up the sunshine!

The Sum of Summer

Happy summer, girls!! Can't quite believe it's already that time of year again!! As you well know by now, I love comparing growth at the start of each season... can't get over how much has changed! (This time last year I was newly pregnant, and my sweet baby girl is by far my greatest accomplishment of the year! :) Anyways, I've been summer-bucket-listing sporadically for a few weeks now, and I just want to reiterate just how helpful this method of list-making is! For instance, you know how when Sunday comes around it can take about an hour or more of bickering back-and-forth before settling on something everyone wants to do for the day? Bucket Lists nip that baby in the bud! Sunday comes around, you look at your list (of already agreed on fun and enjoyable trips and activities) and pick one that suits the time and weather. It's pie!

Anyways, I think yesterday was the perfect kick-start to the season: Camp Mom (plus the next-door-neighbor :) spent the entire afternoon in our backyard - swimming, fresh cherry-bombing, tricycling, gardening, and generally frolicking! Freida was so wiped out that she cried all the way through bath and dinner until I finally let her conk out in bed at 6:10pm! :)

But that's when the fun really started - and this is where "bucket listing" comes in to play; it was the first day of Summer and Manash and I were scheduled for a date night... We jumped head-in to that list of Summer-goodness and knocked off one of our want-to's: hiking Runyan Canyon together at sunset and going for sushi and drinks afterwards. It was a lovely start to the season, and I'm so looking forward to many, many more pre-determined moments with my kids, husband, family, and friends!

I'll be posting more about some of the things on my list this year, but I'd love to hear some of yours! Anything awesome or simply relaxing you have planned for this Summer?? Would love some more new ideas!!

P.S. Apologies for the instagram photos - my camera is busted after I jumped in a pool on Sunday with it still in hand. Drowning is a very real, very frightening, and hauntingly silent thing - please exert serious caution this summer!!!!

Ombre

These gradient colored tights will have your digits looking seasonably chic for fall! Ombré Olé!