2008: the year in pictures.

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"For last year's words belong to last year's language
And next year's words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning."
~T.S. Eliot

I saw some friends do this on their own blogs, and I thought it would be a neat way to capture 2008 - a photo for each month.

JANUARY...
...a winter walk through the neighborhood with my niece.

FEBRUARY...
...buds appearing on the Bradford Pear in preparation for spring.

MARCH...
...a perfect beach day in California with Jen.

APRIL...
...our back yard comes to life again.

MAY...
...discovery of the Cedar Ridge Preserve, a mere 20 minutes from our house...who knew?

JUNE...
...a trip back home to New Jersey - enjoying the mild weather and tall, tall trees at my parents' house.

JULY...
...celebrating 3 years with my wonderful husband.

AUGUST...
...a visit from Victoria for Labor Day.

SEPTEMBER...
..."young and fabulous" ladies' night out with Suz in Nashville.

OCTOBER...
...a trip to New Jersey to enjoy the gorgeous fall foliage.

NOVEMBER...
...one less item on the "life list" - we finally visited The Rainbow Room on the 65th floor of Rockefeller Center in NYC!

DECEMBER...
...a meaningful, handmade Christmas.

A sercy.

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Have you ever heard of a sercy? Well, neither had I, until I stumbled upon the blog Purple Bottle, where a blog writer named TruPeach posted about it. She had heard about it on another blog and was paying the kindness forward by posting it to her blog readers.

A sercy (also called a "cerci") is kinda like a little, unexpected gift. Another description I found: "It might be something you really liked – like your favorite gum, candy, ice cream or some small trinket. Usually it was something that you never asked for...but was often given out of friendship."

How delightful.

On TruPeach's blog, she said she would send a "sercy" to the first 3 people who commented on her blog that day, and then those 3 people, upon receiving their sercy in the mail, would then "pay it forward" by offering a sercy on their blogs. Well, I was the first commenter!

You won't believe what TruPeach sent me in the mail...this adorable homemade garland! What a thoughtful gift from a complete stranger! I've already hung it in my office!


So, now as promised, I am doing my part by offering you a sercy...

"Pay it Forward Exchange: Here are the rules: I agree to send something fun, cute, and nice to the first 3 blog owners who post a comment on this entry. In turn, those three will post this information and pick 3 people they want to send something to and so on. Unfortunately, due to postage costs, I can only pay it forward within the United States. If you are interested in participating, be one of the first 3 blog owners to leave a comment!

You have to promise that you will then post about this on your blog, link to me, and then send something to the first three people who comment on your blog so that this continues. When I have the first three to comment I will email you a request for your shipping address and I will send out something that I hope will make you smile!"

Color palettes.

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I cannot live without color. I love a neutral with a bright punch of saturated yellow or red or green or pink to liven it up. Decorating my home is like painting strokes on a blank canvas - it is my artistic expression and a way to welcome others into my world...and hopefully, to make them feel comfortable here.

So, after much online-fabric-browsing, dreaming, and tearing-out of magazine pages, I'd like to share my color palette for the guest room. I like to think of it as natural.cheery.joyful.serene.asian.bohemian.

(Click the image to see it larger)


Ahhhhh. Just looking at it makes me smile. In fact, I'm thinking of moving into the guest room permanently. With the new, FREE King size bed that our friend's Granny gave us (to which I added a fluffy white comforter and white sheets), it's even more tempting! I'm not sure which paint color to choose, as I love them both equally. The fabric is all from Anna Maria Horner's new line, Garden Party. The fabric on the right is going to be perfect as a headboard, which is so easy to make on your own! Top it all off with paper lanterns from Luna Bazaar and white branch curtains from IKEA. Now, I just need to put it all into action!

The other room in progress is my office - where I spend the majority of my days. I just painted it "Rain Washed" by Behr a few weeks ago, and now it's the perfect oceany calming blue, so that's one step in the right direction. Now, I need to add some more splashes of color! My inspiration began with this photo I took in India...

(Click the image to see it larger)
Here's how "Rain Washed" looks currently on the walls...


It's amazing how my tastes have changed over the last 10 years. My freshman year of college, everything was about sunflowers. I had the sunflower comforter, matching sheets, throw blanket, picture frames, photo albums, and even posters of sunflower fields on the wall - you know, the ones you buy at the campus bookstore. And all my accessories that weren't sunflower were either hunter green or royal blue. Oh, the horror. Then, after college, I wanted my entire house to look like the beach, so I replaced everything with natural wood and seafoam green. Getting warmer...

Now, I'm into bright flowers and vintage/bohemian patterns, and I think I'm here to stay. Thank God my husband lets me decorate how I want to. When we moved into this house 2 years ago, he wisely designated the inside of the house as my domain and the outside as his domain, and oh, how I love him for that! Men, we realize you have to remove 150 decorative pillows from the bed before you can go to sleep each night, but please, if you know what's good for you, let it lie. Just...let it...lie.

Whimsical mermaid stones.

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I recently discovered the whimsical art of McCabe of Dancing Mermaid and after viewing her Etsy shop, I knew I had to have some of her lovely painted stones. I needed herb markers for my garden so I asked if she would paint some for me. I received them today, and they are so lovely! They are perfectly charming, colorful, and unique!






She even included a lovely scented votive candle and 3 extra inspirational stones. The words could not have been more perfect...




I'm not sure where I'm going to put them yet...any ideas? Perhaps lay them in a bed of sand in a glass bowl? Or add them to another flowerpot in my garden?

To me, they are little treasures. Others have supported me as an artist, and I know that this quote is true...

“Throughout the world sounds one long cry from the heart of the artist:
Give me the chance to do my very best.”
~ Babette’s Feast

Rewards of the simple life.

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"To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter...to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life."
~John Burroughs

Lately I've been doing a lot of thinking and being thankful for my simple life. It's amazing what having a garden - big or small - can do for your spirit. Sometimes you need to be quiet in nature, in a secret, covered place. And I've not only found this in my backyard, but also at the Cedar Ridge Nature Preserve, which is only 25 minutes from my house.

When I left Nashville, I never thought I'd find another place like Radnor Lake, with its glass-like lake that was a centerpiece for the mulch-covered trails that winded around it. It was my haven in the city (a city that seems like little more than a town now, compared to Dallas…). I've lived in Dallas for almost 4 years, and not until 2 months ago did I discover what I was missing nearby. Cedar Ridge Preserve is like Radnor times ten - with multiple trails and prairie flowers and exotic succulents and birds and cattails and rocky paths winding down cliffs to lead you to bridges over the clearest creeks filled with sandy stones. My friend Bonnie took me there the first time, and we did a trail run that left me practically crippled for a few days but after that, I could not get enough. I've gone back 4 or 5 times now, mostly just by myself to have some quiet, simple time alone in nature.


Sometimes I walk; sometimes I run. On a running day recently, I needed to let off steam and went barreling down the hills at full speed, leaping on my toes down the railroad-tie steps and dodging rocks that could twist an ankle if I wasn't careful. And then, almost involuntarily, I suddenly came to halt when I saw a brilliant flash of blue just ahead on the trail. A bluejay. Fluttering from one tree limb to the other, he welcomed me to his little neck of the woods. I started walking ahead again, slowly, and he was gone.

I continued to meander down the mulch path between the towering trees with limbs that through the years have bent and crisscrossed one another as if to form a cathedral ceiling. The light crept through the "windows" and covered me and the ground with dots of light. It was the best church I had experienced in awhile...



I walked on, and came upon a clearing in the trees, a space where everything opened up to blue sky and the cool breeze hit my face as I found a pocket of sun. I stopped. I stood there with my face pointed upward, letting the sun wash over me. I breathed in deeply to the scent of evergreens and fragrant jasmine. I listened…and there were no sounds from people or cars or interstates. Just the trees peering down on me from up above, waving and showing off their new spring leaves with a swish-swish-swish. It was an August Rush moment.

Sweaty and happy, I finished the trail and made my way to the butterfly garden to cool off. I meandered the gravel path amongst the wildflowers and found a solitary bench in a back corner under a tree. I sat and held my knees to my chest, closed my eyes, and was thankful for a place like this so close to my concrete jungle. It was put here to be enjoyed. It was put here as a reward for those who stop long enough to see the beauty of simple life.