I went-went back-back to Cali-Cali....(part 4)

Eighth stop = Fairfield with the Greens for a week.

quality time with one of my fave kids + his momma, jen.
ahhhh.....nap-times galore.

My two fave Jack quotables:
(in a demanding tone) "mommy, amuse me."
(in a sad tone) "kassar, carry me."

Baby Jimmy @ Jen's PlayGroup BBQ

My friend, Shannon, had twins and this little one looks just like her dad (Jimmy).

Having only met them through f.book, I was stoked to get my hands on their cutie-patootie faces.

Lots of crafting for Becca's wedding

Becca's wedding!

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Allergies

It was this week that I suffered from the worst allergies I've ever experienced...ever. Sniffling, sneezing, coughing, itching, horrible eye irritation (feeling completely different from bacterial conjunctivitis aka pinkeye). Luckily, I had a slew of allergy medication with me; unluckily, nothing seemed to bring any semblance of relief. People kept asking if I had been crying, my face was sore from being unaccustomed to so many hours of glasses wear, and I was so fatigued. What was supposed to be a week full of photo taking and exploration with Jen ended up being a week of nightly cold compresses and early bedtimes. Blah.

The worst was the night before Becca's wedding, the night before I was supposed to get to see a large grouping of my CA friends. I had gone to bed super early, leaving Jen+family to catch up on their Survivor/StarTrek shows, and had fallen asleep quickly...only to be woken up by severe eye itching and extreme eye pain. For some reason, I felt compelled to turn on the light and grab a mirror...the pain was pretty intense and my vision felt a little cloudy. To my absolute shock and disgust and fright, the surface of my eyeball skin had BLOWN UP and parts of it were OUTSIDE OF MY EYELIDS. Ya, that's right....OUTSIDE OF MY EYELIDS.

BUBBLES ON BOTH EYEBALLS.

COMING OUT OF MY EYELIDS.

It sent me into immediate panic as I sat on my bed, trying to not cry*, and contemplating the desire to run down the hall to Jen/Pete or to call the 911-eyeball-hotline. Jen had bridesmaid duties beginning a few hours later and because it was a Friday/workday, I had babysitting duties while her husband went to work/gym/etc. Needless to say, I was looking forward to my one-on-one time with Jack and wanted to be a reliable resource for my friends. This eyeball situation was in no way ideal and the timing was horrible.  *I knew crying would have created further edema.

Instead, I took several deep breaths, checked to see that they weren't bleeding, and decided to painfully google solutions to "eyeballs coming out of their sockets" and "blisters on the surface of the eye". There wasn't a huge sensitivity to light so if I tried to ignore the pain of blinking, I was able to look at my laptop. It was a path of least resistance as I knew we had a hugely long day (becca's wedding) the next day. Why I didn't think to call my father-in-law physician in the middle of the night, I do not know. Instead, I piled on some meds and cold compresses, hoping a few hours of sleep would just make it go away.

Denial was a safer place for my brain to be than facing reality of EYEBALL BLISTERS.

The next morning, I was relieved to see the blisters had reduced in size significantly (they at least back inside my eyelids) and while they were still a little painful, it was definitely manageable. My vision was back to normal and I actually felt symptom-free other than the eyeballs (no other allergy symptoms). Jack and I took a morning drive to Sonoma to drop Jen off and we made our way back to their home to hang out before the evening babysitter came over. I waited until the last second to put in my contacts and managed to happily get through the wedding festivities....phew!

Once I was back in Hanover four days later (Tuesday), I was able to receive an in-person consult with aforementioned father-in-law (ahem...allergist...hehe) and identify what had happened.

Prepared to get grossed out by photos of Vernal or Allergic Conjunctivitis (non-contagious):

Some "cobblestone" blistering.
Here's a nice lady's blog....similar thing happened to her.
Does this look human to you? Hmm...might be a dog?
Google image: Vernal Conjunctivitis

I have a solid game plan in place for when/if it ever happens again and am taking precautionary measures to not let my allergies get to this point again. Eeep!!

Up next: last day in CA with Tara...

It's the bomb. (product alert & craft)

How freaking cute are these little happiness nuggets?? 

Yes, while most folks call them seed bombs, I like to call them happiness nuggets.

You will too, if you know what's good for you.

they come in cutely designed bags from anthropologie.

Made from a mixture of clay, compost, and seeds, these "seedbombs" are becoming an increasingly popular means (ahem, why won't anyone call them HAPPINESS NUGGETS?) combating the many forgotten gray spaces encountered everyday - from sidewalk cracks to vacant lots and parking medians. They can be thrown anonymously into these derelict urban sites to temporarily reclaim and transform them into places worth looking at and caring for.

they come in vending machines!

-cropping up in San Francisco/Los Angeles and Chicago-

"The Greenaid dispensary simply makes these guerilla gardening efforts more accessible to all by appropriating the existing distribution system of the quarter operated candy machine."

And if vending machines haven't started popping up in your neighborhood, you can order them directly online.  It looks like they come in regionally appropriate floral mixes, which is perfect for our various climates, other indigenous plants, etc.

But why not try making some of your own variety?

Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times

Check out some step-by-step instructions here.

REALLY hoping some of you will do this soon. 

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And if you're thinking to yourself,

"wow, is this another non-wedding related post? good for you, leslie!"

Not to worry:

Happiness nuggets as favors as shown on 100LayerCake...a wedding blog.

Lush Greenery (Woolly Pockets)

Have you noticed the crazy amount of greenery adorning the walls of Marvimon House? We had hoped to get away with homemade & reusable flowers for our wedding so having built-in "different" greenery was a perfect backdrop for our plans!

So much greenery in unexpected places....

 Hmmm....someone is sure taking his sweet time writing something seemingly naughty in our guestbook. Scandalous! Terrific! Hilarious!

I figure it's about time I focus on the "secret" behind the permanent wallscapes, surrounding our wedding guests in all sorts of lush greenery.  Woolly Pockets! Yup, lined or unlined pockets of "wool" to hold all sorts of fun plants! Succulents! Herbs! Happiness! 

Woolly Pockets comes in two styles: ones for horizontal surfaces and others to be hung on walls for vertical gardening. They can be used indoors and outdoors and have built-in moisture barriers to help protect furniture, but are durable enough to holdup outside. They’re perfect adding green to areas that are short on real estate (like bathrooms, garden walls, etc.).

And best of all? They're made of felt made from recycled plastic bottles! Yes!

Add some greenery to your outdoor shed or independent garage.

 Narrow kitchen? No worries, throw a Woolly Pocket up there!

The pockets were created by Miguel Nelson who owns Marvimon House and its sister property, The Smog Shoppe (bit larger than Marv). When we walked in and started talking to Miguel, I asked right away if those were woolly pockets on the wall because I recognized them from my fave SF greenery place, Flora Grubb. And guess what? That was his first installation outside of his own properties!

 I can see this hanging over a railing or even a towel rod in your shower.

Decorate your store front and advertise your coolness.

Miguel was pretty stoked that I recognized his brand spanking new product. And when I found out he went to the same Tucson high school as Jamie, I kinda flipped out. It was a lot of coincidence for me to handle.

Pretty awesome, right? And check it out. If you're at a school that could benefit from a garden of Woolly Pockets, click here for a terrific opportunity (ahem, Christine B., Holly M., Debi G., Brad S., and any other teacher readers!).

A Woolly School Garden is everything a school needs to create an outdoor garden classroom and begin teaching gardening and nutrition.

Beginning Fall 2010, our curriculum supplements will offer standards based K-12 lessons covering History, English, Math, Science and Health, all of which involve the Garden

How does it work?

Fast and simple. If your school has the budget, we send you your Woolly School Garden. If your school doesn't have the budget, we'll sign you up for donations, help raise the money for you and then send you your Woolly School Garden. Our goal is to grow 1000 school gardens by Fall 2010 and an additional 10,000 school gardens by Fall 2011. 

What does a school need to receive a garden?

• At least one teacher or school garden manager.
• A sunny wall or fence.
• $1,000 or a lil' patience while we raise the money.

How cool is that? I love companies that start thinking about giving back to communities and making socially conscious decisions right from the get go. It's something I strive to think about whenever I daydream of my own business and an area I'm really interested in learning more about.  So, if you're still reading and are involved in a school community interested and committed to trying to earn a Woolly School Garden, leave a comment and I'd love to contribute to your school.

Wanna read more? Click here for an interview with Miguel.

p.s. this is a non-sponsored product endorsement.

We've been featured!

While we were on our honeymoon, I got this email from our lovely photographers:

Dear Leslie!

Mark and i would love to get your wedding published. Can you write up something about your wedding and the details: How you did it yourself, where you got the supplies, your favorite thing about the wedding etc... the vision.... Blogs love to hear about how the client thought and designed everything.

Candice

Have a RAD day!!!!

Obviously, I HAD to comply. During our planning process, we relied entirely on what we learned from the internet and friends, never picking up a single wedding planning book. Some may probably argue we could've done things better (certainly with more grace) had we invested in a wedding etiquette book, but eh...not our style. So much more information and fun trends are all over the internets, duh. And if our photographer thought our pics would be cool for others to see? So be it!

and candice (his cutie-patootie wife).

I had been waiting on pins and needles to see if anyone would even be interested in featuring us so imagine my delight when I saw Green Wedding Shoes this morning*!

For a complete look at the feature, CLICK HERE.  And be forewarned...it was still only a few days after the wedding and I was feeling a bit [read: a lot] wordy [read: superfluously typo-y].

*am i just SO dorky for getting so excited? 

Oh my, Austin.

It all started with this amazingly detailed packet.

(from here on out, referred to as "The Packet")

Add in a wildly redhead travel companion (ali)

 + a beautiful momma-to-be (devs).

Throw in a couple of Davis-ites (jen + tara).

And top it off with a little Squish!

All in all, one of the best weekends I've ever had. So relaxing and hilarious and event-filled and happiness making!! Thank you so much, friends, for showing me love and devotion and "honk-honk" good times! I got to see little baby devon make her momma's belly pop (yes!) and kick back in what's got to be the coolest house in Austin.  

Lots of fun pics to come.

Fancy Finds Friday.

I found this silvery wristlet purse and immediately thought of a working mom's going out needs.

It's soft and worn, but has a strong tinge of glam because of the silver sheen.

As a mom of a 2 year old, she'll need room to hold a cell phone and snacks and/and/and.

This clutch is super lightweight and LARGE!

(i placed my phone there for size reference)

And check it out.

The flower is something I found and just attached for fun.
Every mom needs a big thang of fun for their hair, right?

See?
Super cool.

I'm a big fan of a multi-functional gift.

V.fun, right?

Brawling for Ornaments.

These nice folks decided to invite us to their 8th annual holiday ornament party.

Too bad they didn't realize what mayhem and raucousness we'd create.

pictures taken direct from the himmelbergers site.

 

We created useless alliances; busted out some mathematical formulae and old theorem; unwrapped 9 ornaments (somehow); got into one girl fight (that'd be me); and walked away with the two of the most controversial ornaments.  Our only goal was to get our hands on the Yoda one that Jen + Pete wanted for Jack.  Instead we got the built-in 7oz of Petron Tequila and the 3-ornaments-in-1, tied together to resemble happy male genitalia*.  

If we're invited back next year, we're totally pre-planning and sketching up a blueprint or something.  Thanks, Dan & Andrea!

*I was able to untie the 3 portions of the blue + sparkly ornament.  For the record, they're individually v.pretty and no longer resemble any kind of body part.

Uh...Happy December, Guys!!

---more on thanksgiving week in a bit--

I'm a few days late...ok, so it's already the 9th day of December, but I am just ankle deep in the holiday cheer and felt I ought to acknowledge the season with ya'll.  Spending the weekend over at the Greens' fully immersed me into the seasons; with loads of old fashioned Christmas music, holiday baking, pot roasts and baked potatoes! We decked their halls, watched Pooh+Friends Christmas with little Jack, and observed Pete move their lawn ornaments into 89 different configurations before getting them just so.  I returned home with jinglebells and silentnights on the brain and have been rocking the holiday tunes the past couple of days with loud vigor.

Luckily for the non-Christmas celebrating folk in our household, I'm open to all sorts of holiday music.  Away in the Manger never really did it for me like a Christmas CanCan can, you know?  What are your fave holiday tunes?

And for your listening pleasure, the aforementioned Christmas CanCan.....

Rub-a-dub-dub, Jack in a tub!

whatchoo lookin' @, lady?

P.S. CHECK OUT THEIR BATHTUB FAUCET:

Stop looking at me, SWAN!
(happy gilmore, anyone?)

Enjoy with your pancakes.

took this while jen heckled me from her car.
"leave that flower alone!"
sorry, friend. i liked the light.

Antique-tack-toe.

There's this antique store down the street from our place. It sat there, inviting, but unvisited by me for years. Then, all of a sudden, I stepped in and became immediately addicted. Old school fans, filing cabinets, lighting, piggy banks, HUGE lamps? I wanted to bring all of it home.

Now, my experience with "antiquing" and thrift stores is mixed at best. I grew up in strip mall county with our nation's highest grossing shopping mall (revenue of about 1.5 billion dollars per year). My thrift store went by the name of Urban Outfitters and otherwise we drove up to Venice to stare at old hats and shoes. Then camp happened and I got my hands on some beautifully "unique" tees and other random goodies; triggering a small, but distinct love for this ritual.

Don't worry, folks. I'm baaaack.

Ohmega Salvage

2407 San Pablo Ave
Berkeley, CA 94702-2010
(510) 843-7368

toilet tank tops.
aren't they beautiful??
weird thing is, i totally needed to pee.
reminded me of Big.
should've picked them up...wish they weren't $135.
faux George Michael sighting.
his name was sergio...i kept calling him sergeeorge michael.
my booty.
colors to glaze your clawfoot bathtub.
tons of windows and doors.
jumping for junking!
REALLY should've brought this home.
homage to my roots.
lines were too long because of the back-to-school sale in Oakland thrift.

Stay tuned for our BEST find of the day!

21st Birthday in Vegas!

Nope, not my birthday. I wish I had been more brazen to have planned a Vegas weekend for my 21st birthday, but that town was waaaay out of my league back then. For a friend's little sister, however, I was well-prepared and fully ready to partake in Vegas wildness! The younger kids dove into an all-day beer pong tournament, while the cooler kids gabbed away and perused the 18 magazines we brought poolside. Yup, I think we're cooler...just let me think that. :)

At night? Hmm...I'll include a few photos...but as they tend to advertise, most of what happened there will have to just stay there. Fun times, fun times.

jen's little sister, laura, turned 21.
she wore that tiara ALL WEEKEND, like a true birthday trooper.
we set up a t-shirt making workshop in a vegas starbucks.
that'd be a starbucks on the inside of a vegas target.
we took 3 cab rides, went to 3 different locations, panicked,
then came up with our brilliant target/starbucks scheme.
jen + tara are absolute geniuses.
getting carded for the first time!!
well at least getting carded and legally getting into a bar for the first time.
our shirts said "hit me with your best shot!" on the front.
and "laura's 21st birthday bash" on the back (or something like that).
obligatory photo with this guy.
and with an elvis.
tara smoothly handling her credit card debacle, poolside.
the cards called her to let her know someone was trying to use her account!
someone in, like, georgia or alaska or arkansas or somewhere she hadn't been.
weird....NOT cool.
i am SO MUCH LARGER than my friends.
the costanzo ladies.
teaching laura my infamous dance moves.
if only she could move like me, right?or maybe she should pick this one up from tara?
i tend to throw bows and tend to get into fights because of it.
jen got into some trouble for throwing her own bows.
college buddies!
ashley joins in the good time...hey, who's that guy?
"i TOLD pete to stop leaving pictures of me all over the vegas!"
it was obviously a GREAT time.

I flew straight from Vegas to meet up with Jamie in NYC and showed up all sorts of torn up. Sleepy, no voice, major bags under the eyes. I took "travel worn" to a whole new level. Good thing we didn't have much on the agenda! Just some tooling around Manhattan, casual shopping, hitting up our fave foodfinds, and meeting up with some friends. Those pics will be up next.