Domo Arigatou Gozaimasu

My husband and I have a wonderful gentleman as our neighbor. A few years ago his wife passed away and ever since he's become part of our Thanksgiving family. He is a former Captain in the Navy and his presence over the past few years always adds a little extra warmth and depth to our Thanksgiving celebrations. Today I arrived home to find this package on our doorstep.

 A treasure from while he and his wife lived in Japan...

 Each one is individually and delicately wrapped...

Within the box is a set of five beautiful hand painted chopstick rests. I love that that they are still in their original box and that our sweet neighbor haa saved several sets of chopsticks with them for all of these years. I am so touched by this thoughtful gift, it is always so special to have him join us for Thanksgiving and I will always think of him and his lovely wife whenever I use them. 

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

xo, 

To Love, Laughter and Friends...

Today I was surrounded by love. 

It was a quiet love, the type that is unspoken but simply present. There have been a few great men in my life and today it was an incredible gift to be surrounded by those who have always been there for me. After an early afternoon with family my GH (gay husband) and his BF joined me at our house for an evening of love, laughter and friendship. 

My GH, the third generation of some truly incredible gentlemen and gentle men...

A simple but sweet afternoon...

...

I have many loves in my life, these however are some of my greatest...

Nap time...

The greatest compliment a guest can pay me is to demonstrate that they feel at home in our home. I just love when people can relax enough to really enjoy themselves and I truly mean it when I say, "Please make yourself at home!"

I feel so privileged to have such incredible men in my life. My sweet, amazing actual husband joined our posse after work and my day became complete. I hope your day was also filled with love laughter and friends. 

xo, 

An Afternoon of Fun

My "gay husband" produces events around the world for some really incredible clients. At a recent event with Anthropology they had the adorable activity of creating miniature succulent gardens that guests were able to create and then take home. If you follow me on Instagram you know I'm just about useless in the garden, but I've always thought succulents were cute, and I've always been drawn to their varying textures and colors. Not to mention my GH told me they are nearly indestructible. 

What we began with...

We've been talking about creating some miniature gardens of our own for several weeks now and just hadn't found the time. As time went on we decided this would be the perfect activity to surprise my mom with as she loves gardening and I knew this was something she's never done before! And so on an unassuming Tuesday, with what my mom thought was a BBQ dinner at our home my GH came and surprised her with this little project. 

First step, make sure you have good drainage...

Add soil nearly to the top...

Make sure to get the proper type of soil, a mixture made especially for cacti, succulents and desert plants will make your succulents happy little plants. 

Be creative and have fun as you plant your micro-garden!

 GH helps Mom to neatly pack her gravel...

Use the remaining gravel to fill in the gaps between your succulents.

Make sure to give your new garden a hydrated start...

The succulents will only require a few teaspoons of water a couple of times a week! Check the texture of the leaves to know if your plants are thirsty, they'll loose their firmness when they need water. 

My boy and I were great helpers throughout the process! 

 Hope you enjoy!

xo, 

Tradition and Style : My take on the menorah

Happy Hanukkah! Aside from the traditions, festive food, fun parties and being surrounded by friends and family, one of my favorite elements of Hanukkah is the menorah and lighting the candles.

While menorahs come in all sorts of designs from very simple to incredibly ornate, the majority seem to be rather simple and plain. In case you haven't figured it out by now, I'm not one who tends to follow others. I relish in discovering beautiful and significant objects, especially those that offer a unique twist on the traditional. As I grow older, traditions become even more important and are something that I honor in my life. 

One of my very traditional but favorite menorahs

I've always liked the symbolism of trees and their metaphorical comparisons to family. Their roots establish them and keep them firmly grounded, their limbs are sturdy and provide shelter from the elements, the bark of their trunk protects them and their delicate leaves provide them energy and nourishment. 

 The latest edition to my collection, not technically a menorah but it will do :) 

I found this candle sculpture at one of my favorite local stores, and while it was not intended to be a menorah it has the perfect number of paces for candles. As it is only the first night its true beauty is not really shinning though :) I purchased this a while ago and I have been saving it for especially for Hanukkah. I can't wait to see how pretty it will be when all of its candles are lit!  

All Wrapped Up!

This year I decided that I would wrap all holiday gifts using the same wrapping. I chose to do this for a few reasons. One, I think keeping things simple is often times more beautiful. Two, I prefer monochromatic color themes when decorating, and I consider wrapping packages a form of decorating. Three, I thought it would look pretty under the tree if all of the packages looked alike. Here's how it all turned out. 

I used simple recycled brown paper as wrapping and accented it with bright white ribbon that has silver stripes. I found adorable sparkly stars as gift tags at Target that add texture and the perfect finishing touch. 

A cute little package :) 

Home for the Holidays II

I love the holiday season! This year holds many firsts for my husband and I. While we have been married for over a year, our first year of marriage was a whirlwind of traveling that didn't seem to end until a few weeks ago. Crazy and insane I know, but it made for a great first year! 

This year will be the first in our new home, our first Christmas tree together, our first time putting holiday lights up on our house, well you get the idea, many firsts. The day after Thanksgiving we put up our holiday lights and decorated our tree. I just love how our house feels!

Our Tree

My husband's mom brought over all of his childhood ornaments and together my husband and I went through them. He shared his special memories of each one before we put them on the tree together. 

The Stockings

I have not yet managed to get our stockings embroidered. That is on my to do list for this week. I am going to put our names on one side and our nicknames for one another on the reverse side. I think this is a really cute way to make them both traditional and uniquely special. 

The Hanukkah decorations have not gone up yet, but they will be coming shortly. I have been keeping my eyes peeled for anything really wonderful but I have yet to encounter much. I did find an absolutely beautiful candle sculpture that I plan on using for a menorah. Stay tuned for more holiday decorations!

I know I will always remember and cherish this holiday season with special fondness.

Beginning Our Traditions

Rituals and traditions enrich our lives and make them unique and special. This year will be our first year in our new home and the day after Thanksgiving my husband introduced me to a new tradition, one that I know I will cherish for many years to come. 

From this year forward, every day following Thanksgiving we will go out together and choose a special ornament for each other. My husband's only instruction was to look for something that reminded me of him as he would do the same and choose something special for me. What we chose may surprise you!

When I saw this ornament I knew that I had found the one for my sweet boy, a green tractor. There's a country song about a big green tractor that sparked his love for these objects. Ever since then, whenever I see one I think of him. This summer while in Italy we found a model of a vintage green tractor and it now sits in our living room. I knew this ornament would conjure up many wonderful memories and when my husband saw it I knew I had made the right choice! 

A Big Green Tractor for my Boy

As for what my husband saw that made him think of me...he could not have chosen a sweeter or more meaningful ornament. He chose a black London taxi cab, fashioned after the old style London cabs. You may be thinking this seems like an incredibly odd choice for me, but let me explain. My grandfather was my entire world and he passed away a little less than five years ago. Patrick and I met shortly after  and therefore they were never able to meet one another. Patrick has always known how special my Grampsie was and how much he meant to me and he has always made a concerted effort to include him and honor his presence in our lives together. 

My Grampsie brought an old London Cab over from London years ago. Our family still has it and it has long been a goal of mine to restore it and bring it back to its original glory. Having recently visited London my sweet boy explained that when he saw this it made him think of me and Grampsie. 

My London Cab

I feel truly blessed to have such an incredibly thoughtful husband and I look forward to beginning many other wonderful traditions of our very own :) 

Thanks and Giving

Thanksgiving is almost here and as I prepare to celebrate with my family I am reminded of how fortunate I am. One of the things I am most thankful for is my health. I became sick when I was 18 and I continue to struggle with health issues. There are good days and better days, never bad days. I believe we choose to see things and live either positively or negatively, and I choose to see and live the good. 

In the spirit of giving thanks, one cause that I have always admired and supported is St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Their holiday Thanks and Giving campaign is a great way to give back this holiday season. Any store bearing this logo will make a donation to St. Jude's for selected products. Whenever possible I try to purchase these products. 

Yesterday evening I purchased these wonderful candles at Pottery Barn. They smell delicious and come in pretty mercury glass votives.  I use small candles in our kitchen and these will look great in front of the pictures I have on the counter. 

These candles are excellent gifts for the holiday's. I love being able to give gifts that have a deeper significance.  Every donation makes a difference and helps to spread awareness. 

Snuggling with Fall

I find Autumn to be a peaceful time of the year. I'm not exactly sure why but there is something about the leaves changing colors and the crisp of the air that make this season especially appealing to me. I also feel like September and October tend to be the calm before the craziness of the holidays. Here are a few of my favorite things that make Fall especially cozy. 

  

I found these pillows last year at Pottery Barn and they are by far the softest pillows I have ever encountered. They are so plush and cuddly that I purchased one for the pillow I sleep on. Their basic color and simple texture lend themselves to being accented with a variety of colors and patterns.

Another Pottery Barn find and favorite are these woven chenille throws. I had a very hard time finding throws that I liked but when I found these I was pleasantly surprised. They are incredible soft and I liked the texture of their herringbone weave. I purchased them in two colors, smoke blue and the deep green. I use the smoke blue in Spring and Summer and the deep green for Fall and Winter. They make cuddling nearly irresistible. 

There is simple nothing like curling up with a cup of tea and a good book. While I find myself doing this throughout the year there is something that I love about this ritual during this time of the year. A while back I discovered Tea forté and it is simply my favorite tea, Oprah Winfrey is also a big fan. I love their Earl Grey blend and all of their teas comes in the most adorable triangle shaped infusers. 

Home for the Holidays

It's hard to believe but the holidays are fast approaching. Halloween is just around the corner and then before you know it Thanksgiving , Christmas & Hanukkah will be here too! Growing up there was not a holiday that our home was not decorated. This tradition of my mom's truly made our house a home & created many wonderful memories. Now that I have a home of my own I'm really looking forward to decorating for the holidays! 

My overall style is simple & clean & the same is true of my design aesthetic. When decorating for special occasions, I prefer a few simple but fun pieces.

I purchased two of these pumpkins & I love their texture & color. They have an iridescent glow about them & change colors depending on the light.

I found these pumpkins and loved their texture and sparkle. Not to mention I though their faces were awfully cute as well!

I fell in love with these giant candy corns & placed them with a sparkly pumpkin as the centerpiece on our dining room table.

A cute leaf shaped bowl, candy corns, & ghost candles greet you & add a little holiday cheer when you enter our home :)