vignette love: falling for asbury park.

hello friends.
today was an amazing day and as i've had to retire my canon rebel (story coming soon...) it's a perfect time for me to start sharing some our adventures via vignette (my droid's version of instagram).

today we went on a scouting mission to asbury park. it's about 1 hour south of us on the jersey shore (2 by train) and it's the cutest little beach town we've visited in a LONG time.


we took a stroll on the boardwalk... LOVED the art on the old abandoned casino building and the artsy/surfer/vintage vibe of the whole place.


stopped for a fruity drink...


we ate at Langosta Lounge. we shared the Sahtki Tuna Wrap and Pop's Burger which was amazing! grilled pineapple, grilled onion, jalapenos, & chipotle mayo on a cheesy burger... yum!


after that abby and i checked out some surf shops...


and the little waterpark on the boardwalk for kids. we didn't play this time because we needed to get back home BUT i can't wait to take her to it. there is also a cute little playground area right on the beach that's sectioned off for kids. like the beach could get any cooler?

so we actually went down today to look at a couple of potential places. no decisions have been made and we are seriously weighing on the options because the commute would be killer for joey but seriously it was hard not to fall hard for this little lady...


i don't want to share too much and jinx it... we could also totally decide it's just not the right move logically for us right now, but she really does have everything we need. yard, washer/dryer, enough space, garden, established compost area! a little place to call our own and have a real sense of home until we decide where in this crazy country we really do belong permanently.

maybe it's asbury park? little miss seemed to approve of the place...

(not sure what she was telling me at this point but she was very emphatic about it!)

other things i loved about asbury park: concerts at the stone pony, another park about 3 blocks from the place we LOVED, so many consignment/thrift/antique stores as we took a drive on main (really wished we had time for a little thrifting fun for mommy!), so many cute bed & breakfasts for our family to enjoy... oysterfest... lots of seafood, ice cream, tacos, & other tasties...

ok. time to start getting objective! hope you all are having a great weekend so far! tomorrow promises to be a lazy day at home, then a trip to the laundromat (ugh, seriously despise that place)... i'm sure we'll spend the whole time talking about how wonderful it would be to live in a house with a washer & dryer.

love.

oh, hi august...

hey there.
sorry for the radio silence.

we've been doing a lot of resting, playing, cuddling...

joe's had a few really tough weeks at work and little miss is finally towards the end of the nasal drip. so we've been doing our best to get out of the house and stay in good spirits. not so good for my current project list... but totally fun and worth it anyway!

i have a few posts i'm finishing up on so i'l share those over the week. i'm itching to start knitting again but until i can put away the tissues i'm not bringing out anything i've cast on. there is no way abby will be allowed to use any of my WIP's to wipe her nose!

love.

craft nostalgia: friendship bracelets.

happy friday friends!
earlier this week while catching up on blogs and pinterest i noticed that lots of lovely friendship bracelets had popped up here and there (and here too!) i thought... hey! i know how to do that! so with little miss and i still feeling a bit yucky and all of the other projects waiting to be started seeming a little too daunting while under the weather i pulled out my embroidery floss and went to town.

i immediately started thinking about summers past and was transported right back to my camp days. back then we made crazy bracelets... 2 inches thick... with names and hearts knotted into them... rushing to the counselors at every activity to beg for their clipboard to use. and we wore the hell out of those bracelets... NEVER took them off to go swimming or take a shower. i'm fairly certain i could still find some of them among my boxes at home or in storage (i know i have a hair wrap from a random trip to disney world tucked away too).

thinking back on those days makes me so excited to watch as abby grows up and discovers her world! i can't wait to start introducing some of my favorite craft activities from back in the day and witness as she spends countless hours tying knots and gluing things together. a whole new generation of crafters to experience the joy of making stuff with and share it over giggles, secrets, playtime, and great adventures.

i plan on making lots and lots more friendship bracelets during my lifetime... they never get old. i made abby a little bracelet of her own. she studied it for a minute and then decided she liked it enough to keep it on and go about her reading for the day...


very much her mother's daughter, haha.

we really are feeling much better so thank you for all of the well wishes here and on facebook. my little lovebug is a trouper and always has a sunny disposition even when not feeling so hot. (all the the extra cuddles we a big bonus this week!)

hope you have a great weekend!

love.

sick day.

hello friends.
sorry i don't have something amazing and wonderful to share today... little miss and i are feeling everything but amazing and wonderful. its the same old story... daddy works really hard for two weeks straight with no breaks and super long nights. daddy and his coworkers develop a slight cough and general ickyness and daddy brings it right home to us. no matter what we do we get it. we wash our hands, are careful not to share glasses or too many kisses with daddy, take extra vitamins, eat fruit, drink lots of fluids... but we still get sick (and have a million extra diapers to boot!)

today both abby and i started feeling it pretty hard and by the end of the day were both totally drained of energy. we had some good moments... lots of playtime... lots of cuddles while watching yo gabba gabba, fraggle rock, and random gordon ramsey shows. i had a few brief episodes where i felt motivated to get started on a real task but trying to figure out "what to do next" made my head hurt.

little miss had a super hard time getting to sleep tonight... and her frantic cries only made her throat worse. in the end a little pear snack and the chance to be awake when daddy came home was all it took to usher her off into dreamland. and now it's time for mommy to follow!

i hope all is well in your worlds and that you are having a great week! i'm hoping we are all feeling better by tomorrow so that we can be a little more productive... the original plan today was to take a few snapshots of the happy places in our home to share as part of mrs. rachel denbow's {smile and wave} photo challenge but as i obviously took a sick day it will have to wait until tomorrow.

goodnight.
love.

hooks & needles: a housewarming lap throw

crocheted 'housewarming' lap throw
size: 44" x 44"
yarn: loops & threads cozy wool
7 colors/ 2skeins per color +1 extra of border color
hook: P-15

good evening!
i hope everyone is having a good monday night... little miss is giving me a run for my money tonight but hopefully she'll be 100% settled soon. we might have caught joey's little cough but i'm praying we didn't.

today i finished a lap throw for my sister. she chose the pattern and i chose colors to match her new condo's great room/open kitchen. (on a side-note the condo is GORGEOUS and i'm totally jealous of it!)

the throw is just one large granny square with a stripe variation that i eyeballed on my own based on which colors i wanted to be dominant vs the accents. the border is two rounds of double crochet.

if you'd like to know how to get started with this style of throw there is a great pattern to use as a base from lion brand called the 'pansy patch throw'.

also... if you are new to crochet &/or knitting or want to get started check out lion brand's instructional videos and how-to's at their online learning center. they are very clear (in my opinion) and a great way to see if you are interested in yarncrafts. if i taught myself you can too!

if you ever have any questions about projects i post or my crafts of choice in general please feel free to ask... if i can't answer them i can always help point you in the direction of the resource that can!

tfl.
love.

mommy + me style: new feature!

hi friends!
i'm really excited to be starting my new feature 'mommy + me style'! as i shed my cotton tee & yoga pant uniform of the past year i will be sharing some of the fun things little miss and i have in our closets...

*disclaimer: there is absolutely nothing wrong with cotton tees, yoga pants, or any other uniform you adhere to. to be honest my wardrobe is still and forever will be full of my favorite cotton tees from target BUT after leaving my job at anthropologie, a pregnancy, and my first year as a SAHM i have gotten lazy and complacent in the fashion department... this is an opportunity for me to share as i kick myself in the butt and fall back in love with my clothes and my closet.

{mommy's accessories: ag denim jacket/anthropologie, vintage restyle necklace/anthropologie}

sunday morning was again super crazy hot here. looking at me in a jean jacket makes me break a sweat... the idea was that little miss and i would wear our jackets in church but it was so hot inside even that we didn't need them!

i stepped a little out of my norm and opted to let my hair down. i surrendered to my natural wave and used a few pearl pins from anthropologie to twist back the front (still waiting for a good opportunity to get my bangs cut).

{on mommy: top/eloise by anthropologie, skirt/bcbg}

this skirt is several years old and is one of the few things that has survived through many closet purges post florida. it did have a dumb hot chocolate stain on the front that was about 4 years old and so last week it was put into the bag to donate this month. but for some reason i was determined to wear it and keep it yesterday. on a whim i thought i'd try to get the stain out once more so i poured straight bleach onto a paper towel and went to town. lo and behold it came right off! i had washed and taken this thing to the dry cleaners several times but for some reason never tried straight bleach. now i know i guess know!

{on little miss: top/koala kids, bloomers/carters, shoes/faded glory}

abby was not in the mood to stay with me for some photos... she wanted to show off how good she is at standing and stepping. not quite confident enough to walk in her sandals but she does these cute little step outs and then bounces and claps for herself. so cute. she also wanted to get down and crawl to daddy with the camera... not happening on the sidewalk with those chubby bare little knees!

hope you all had a great weekend and stayed cool... sunday began our tiny break from the heat wave hitting the east coast. i'll be sharing more a bit later and introducing more new features all week!

love.

inspired by: the rv life.

morning!

it's friday! joey has the whole weekend off and i couldn't be more happy... it's been a very long 14 days with no day off for him. it's so crazy hot outside so i don't think we'll be spending too much of it outside of our little flat but we are planning to hit up the st. ann's fest (our church's big street festival) and maybe try a little park time. regardless of what we do it's going to be heaven having our little family together!

this week i've been obsessed with all things summer vacation. we are gearing up for i guess what would be considered an 'indian summer' vacation in september to california and i seriously can't wait. this trip is going to be the first 'real' vacation for our little family that isn't specifically to see family or celebrate a holiday so it's going to be fun to have just the three of us explore and have fun. getting ready for this trip has made me dream about all of the future summer vacations we'll have and the amazing times we'll share.

my number one dream... RV's.

one day we will have one. it's probably my biggest dream to have a home on wheels that we can take anywhere we want and really explore this country like neither of us have before. i want to take a crazy picking adventure in some of the states we've only breezed through and i want my kids to really experience true Americana before it disappears. check out Sara's amazing family at walk slowly, live wildly . they have done some fantastic rv remodels (they use veggie oil too!) and LIVE on the road. literally. this is their photo stream...


how can you not fall in love with these little slices of heaven?

{source}

{source}

{source}

or how amazing would it be to run a business out of a restored vintage camper...

{enjoy cupcakes}

{fresher than fresh}

{adelante's curb service}

*sigh* love.

vintage 70s floral dress // for sale

hello friends.
i bought this little cutie at a 60s/70s vintage store in new york city on the lower east side... it's in beautiful condition. unfortunately the print is a little young and doesn't look great on me so i'm offering it up to a better home. i don't have my etsy store up and running yet, but i thought i'd offer it here before taking it somewhere around here for consignment.

there's no tag/brand on the dress so i'm guessing it's handmade... and it's made very well! the ruffles/bow on the back are so cute!

i took the measurements with the dress laying flat so you'll have to double where appropriate. it fits me well and i'm about a 8-10ish right now...

bust: 16"
hips: free
length (armpit to bottom): 25"

price: $25 OBO

this is such an affordable little vintage sundress! i priced it way below what i bought it for because i think NYC vintage prices are crazy insane...

i have a paypal vendor account and if you feel better going through our ebay i can accommodate. i will charge flat rate shipping to USA only.

please share this post with anyone who might be interested!

thanks. love.

little miss: just another monday.

{mornings are daddytime!}

abby just turned 13 months, and (taking after her momma) already knows everything. she's fiercely independent, smart, loving, and so curious.

mornings are her daddy time and this morning was no exception... despite getting in around 4am this morning he sprang up when she called at 6:30. (don't worry i'm not an awful wife, i took over and let him sleep!) when it was time for daddy to wake up she was so excited to jump in the bed... we always play this ridiculous game where she & i bang on the wall at the head of the bed and say 'help! help! i'm stuck in the wall! how did i get in here?' she cracks up. we crack up. perfect way to wake up!

{always in her book corner}

in between meals & snacks (the most important parts of the day) little miss has lots of work to do. she pulls out her toys and puts them back again... takes her blocks out of the drawer to taste, throw, and put back again... watches a couple of shows or baby einstein dvds... takes apart the stereo. yup. she's gotten so good at taking things out and putting them away. she hands things to me and is giddy when i say thank you or give them back.

her reading time is very important to her. it's not my job to read any book she's currently interested in. i can read a book that she's not interested in out loud and show her occasionally... but her special stack of books that she pulls out is off-limits. period. don't touch mom, in fact, stay a few feet away.

abby is constantly learning new things and showing me. it's so amazing to watch her when she 'gets' something new a about a toy or an object. she lights up, gets so ecstatic, claps, waves, yells, babbles. it's phenomenal to watch and you can't help but laugh and be excited with her.

she loves learning about color & music... lots of baby dancing! today we pulled out the crayons for the second or third time...

{picking her own colors}

we didn't have to talk to much about eating them this time... she has decided i'm correct and they are not something she considers edible. she did want to pick out her own colors from the box instead of the ones i picked to show her how to draw on the paper.

{all ready! so excited! where to start!?!}

{figuring it out}

she did so good this time and was really working on figuring these skinny little things out! she actually made some marks on the paper and stayed near the paper instead of losing interest or trying to use the crayons in another way (i know i'll find them stuck in her train or something at some point, ha). as she does when she's trying to learn anything she did lots of yelling at the crayons to make them work...

{!!!!}

and at the paper!

we had fun and when she got bored of the paper she spent another 10 minutes taking crayons out of the box and putting them back in.

little miss is not quite a walker but definitely pushing herself out of the crawler stage very quickly. she's a perimeter cruiser and furniture mover... if she encounters an obstacle she will literally throw all of her effort and strength into getting around it. sometimes that means moving a dining room chair or using her bouncer (which i move everyday but still think is heavy) as a walker.

until about 4pm we were having a super typical, chase the baby from one room to the next, work on 'no please' (as in no please don't play with mommy's typewriter)... monday. and then tragedy struck!

in an attempt to stand up using the small tub we keep her 'little people' in little miss fell face first and scored herself a bloody lip. oh she was not pleased. not at all. but we survived.

she recovered from the incident & cleanup a lot faster than she recovered from the swelling she woke up to after a tiny sleep. she had rolled into her 'downward sleeping dog' pose and i think the rush of blood exacerbated her condition. not happy, but again we survived.

and so we come to the end of our monday. bedtime was really quite normal this evening... little miss stayed up a bit later than usual so we could take our time with dinner and still blow off a little steam before bed. she told grandma + grandpa about her day and performed a couple tricks before letting me know it was time to call it a night...

cuddles... a song or two... and another monday, all done.

love.