My Second Love: May 2012

Designer I Admire: Toni Gallagher

Morning y'all! I got the best email the other day from an awesome reader, Susan, who sent me a link to a designer she thought I might like. This is the kind of thing that makes my blogging ~~week~~ month. I always love hearing from y'all, especially because I sometimes forget this isn't my own private journal to write about sleep issues and muse on The Bachelor episodes. And I LOVE when you point me to things I might like!

Case in point, Toni Gallagher Interiors. I know I've seen the name and I've definitely seen some of the rooms she's designed, I'd just never put two and two together. Toni Gallagher is based in Rye, New York, but has done vacation homes all over the country including Sea Island, GA (my happy place)! So here are ~~all~~ quite a few rooms that I absolutely love from her portfolio. Lot's of blue and white y'all!

Enjoy! (And thanks again Susan!)

sketchbook drawing : poses and a cat

Street Style

CÉLINE IN STORE: Mini in Palmeleto Leather

2012 Price $3250

Street Style

Where Can I Get Some ...

blue and white planters like these??

via Bathwater

Carolyne Roehm via The Pink Pagoda

I can't even deal with how much I need these in my life. In the midst of organization and cleaning, all I want to do is shop for the new house. These would perfectly set the tone for my blue and white house - yep,spoiler alert, that's my basic color palette for the next house, I know, shocking. Sorry for the short (and kind of weird manic) post, but I gotta go wait for some hot firemen to come haul off all of the junk in our basement. Apparently, buyers are not into hoarder-chic, so I've got to take care of that. If any of the firefighters look like Sean from the Bachelor I will be asking them to promptly remove their shirts. Is that inappropriate? I'm sure Kip is reading this and thinking, "what is wrong with you?" I love you honey! Ok bye y'all.

Wordless Wednesday

Dallas Weekend!

Morning y'all! I hope y'all had a wonderful, relaxing Memorial Day weekend! I didn't get a chance to say a public thank you to all those who have sacrificed for our freedom. I appreciate it now more than ever as a mother. I'm lucky I get to raise my son without many of the serious worries that mothers around the world have to face. I think about it probably more often than is normal and I'm incredibly grateful.

We had a super relaxing weekend with my family in Dallas. I watched my sissy graduate and sufficiently embarrassed her after graduation when I danced on a bench so she could find me (raise the roof!).

Edward touched all of the "mustn't touches."

On Saturday night, Kip and I went with some dear friends to see The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, which I highly recommend. One of those movies where you want to write down many of the lines and you leave smiling.

Speaking of marigolds, The Suze gave me a copy of this cookbook put out by the Junior League of Peoria in 1970! I recognize so many of the recipes as ones I used to eat when I was little. Apparently, she and her friends learned to cook on this book. I'm told I need to make the Glorified Spaghetti and Duchess Potatoes so I will definitely share the recipes with y'all when I make them!

And whomever had this book prior to me recommends the broccoli casserole.

Speaking of home-cooking, we went to Sissy's Southern Kitchen on Henderson, and I'm pretty sure it's my new favorite restaurant in Dallas. If you haven't been there you must go. Now. It's soo good! The restaurant itself is fabulous. I'd describe it as fancy country chic.

It's all-white interior with dark wood and a marble bar running down the middle is a nice fresh backdrop to indulge in comfort food. We ate in the dining room, but there is also a screened in porch on the side. I loved the wall of plates and the deer heads on the back wall. It almost comes of as tongue-in-cheek, which I love.

We ordered two buckets of chicken and a bunch of sides for six of us. It was plenty! The chicken is really crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside, just how I like it. The chicken was definitely the star and next time I will save room for more. They have an extensive menu so you can get other things besides fried chicken.

For more photos and a better review visit Dallasnews.com

Well, I'm spending today cleaning and catching up on emails. Thank you again for all of your tips! They are soo helpful! I checked off three things on my big clean checklist last week. Today and tomorrow I hope to have it completely dunzo. It's really ambitious, I know. Have a lovely day!

The Big Clean Checklist

Laundry Room Cabinets

~~Utensil Drawer~~

~~Junk Drawers~~

Pantry

~~TV Shelves~~

Under the Sink

Spice Cupboard

Refrigerator

China Closet

Guest Bedroom Closet

~~Playroom Closet~~

~~Coat Closet~~

~~Linen Closet~~

~~My Closet~~

~~Edward's Closet~~

~~My Nightstand~~

~~My General Side of the Bed Area~~

~~Make-Up Bag~~

~~Master Bath Drawers~~

~~My Dresser Drawers~~

~~Den Bookshelves~~

~~Edward's Cabinet in the Kitchen~~

~~Edward's Dresser~~

~~Edward's Changing Table~~

~~Bed in Edward's Room~~

~~Clean off countertops & surfaces (pack tchotchkes)~~

drawing : the wind

COLEEN Rooney

FERGIE

sketchbook drawing : sleepy day

sketchbook drawing : bottle

painting : the thought

Have a Lovely and Safe Memorial Day Weekend!

Sadly, I won't be headed to Martha's Vineyard on my private jet (I know, hard times), but we will be heading to Dallas on Southwest for my littlest sissie's graduation from HS! I'm so proud of the little lady! I hope y'all have a wonderful long weekend!

I think I need this print for my new master bathroom. I especially loved the way it's framed here.

The House on Pooh Corner is for sale

We have an old copy of When We Are Six on the back of which The Suze wrote a letter to her parents telling them she was "runnign away" and that they can "go get anovr dauter" - soo dramatic!

A cute idea for keeping in touch with friends

While I think about changing a few things in our new master bathroom,

I have heart palpitations thinking about Tina's finished bathroom

But I love this pink and white bathroom, too!

This is how I feel most of the time

Cute Blue & White Ikat Strapless Dress

Great post on ready-made frames

sketchbook drawing : lazy cats

Safe.

I lie next to him in bed. Our faces are so close I can feel his breath. Our noses are almost touching. His curls are tucked into his silky, gold, sleep cap. My left hand cups his right shoulder. It feels so very small. My eyes are closed but when I open them briefly I see deep into his dark eye. "What are you worried about?" I ask, seeing a great fear in that space. "Noffing," he says. "There is nothing to worry about," I assure him. "Ok Mamma," he says. We lie here together and I wonder to myself just how long it is going to take before he finally feels safe. Will it ever happen? Up until last December I would say things like, "Today we are going to eat pancakes, go to so and so's birthday, and then shop at..." He'd interrupt me to ask, "And then I get a new mommy?"

I think about what it must be like for him. He is three. This already seems to be a jacked up time developmentally for any kiddo. "I do it myself!" seems to be the mantra, whether they can or not. I feel he is in a big place of growth right now. He is his own person, with big beautiful ideas, and some nasty three year old behavior. He likes to spit. This drives me crazy. I want to throttle him when he spits. He pushes my buttons. Today I tried a new tactic to deal with these types of things. I tried, whenever he did something to piss me or anybody else off, to just shower him with complete love. "I love you Melese. I love you so much. We don't spit in this family. We don't throw food. Do you need extra hugs today? I think that you do." I hug him, and hug him again, and wonder how on earth this beautiful child will ever feel safe.

At preschool the other day I told him I needed to use the bathroom. When I came out of the bathroom I found him sobbing. I hugged him and he whimpered into my shoulder. He thought that I had left without saying goodbye. "I was just in the bathroom," I said, "I just had to pee. I was coming right back."

What is it like to be three and to have had two moms, and to have two dads and to have family in different, far away places? Isn't life confusing enough? Isn't it enough for a three year old just to figure out why they can't have a fucking lollipop whenever they want? Isn't that enough worry? Why can't I have a fucking lollipop mommy?

But instead we have this. "Why did my mommy die mommy? How are we family if they are there mommy?" Really goddamn good questions Melese.

His eye is blinking. It is finally getting heavy with sleep. I know that I will have to move soon because he can't physically touch Meazi with me between them. The only way they both sleep soundly is if parts of their bodies are actually touching. If they are not they will thrash all night, searching for each other. I have been between them sleeping, and gotten a good elbow in the throat, a fast slap in the face, and a heel blow to the ribcage. I know now to find a new place in the bed so that these two can find each other again.

Why wouldn't they try to? It is all they know to be constant. It is all they know to be there, and to be here. The two of them together through the trauma of their past, the confusion of their present, and the vast unknown of their future.

I look at him one more time. His eyes are closed. I'm not sure if my eyes are watering from his hot breath on them, or from my great sadness of what I think it must feel like to be my beautiful son.

My Ultimate Summer Day

Morning y'all! So yesterday I posted about an awesome Sea Island cottage (I know many of y'all didn't like the kitchen. For the record, I liked it. It's a real estate listing so I imagine with people in the house and food all over the countertop it's much warmer. I also love gray cabinets - our new house has gray cabinets. But as The Suze says, that's why there's chocolate and vanilla!)

Anyway, today I wanted to share with you My Ultimate Summer Day. One King's Lane is hosting an Ultimate Summer Day Pinterest Challenge, and I'm pretty sure I have experienced my ultimate summer day tenfold. So yea, I got this. This day could pretty much happen anywhere you have a beach, a porch and a patio. In my head, I'm in Sea Island, but you can be anywhere you'd like.

Morning

Let's start with coffee. Coffee on the porch, listening to the sounds of the birds chirping, the smell of morning dew on the grass, a little deer comes to lick your hand and a bunny comes to sit at your feet while you sing to him about the day ahead.

A sweet mug for my coffee.

Sweet tea for the weirdos who don't drink coffee.

A morning bike ride under the spanish moss. I read somewhere that Jennifer Aniston starts every day on vacation with a workout. That's why she's thinner than me, but I would like to be like that from now on so we're going on a bike ride.