Just like Yoda but prettier...

The Red Band Society isn't the only show I'm hooked on this season. I've also been tuning into watch one of the most mesmerizing woman on television: Dr. Shefali Tsabary. The woman with the hypnotic green eyes and Yoda like reasoning has been featured in several episodes of Oprah's Life Class. Most everything she says about parenting is so spot on you'll find yourself slapping your forehead and saying, "why the hell didn't I think of that?" One of my favorite episodes featured kids talking smack about their parents...opening up about what they really think of mom and dad...turns out, they can read us like a book no matter what their age. If you think parents really roost, see if you still think that after listening to what Dr. Shefali has to say...

My Upper

I don't drink. I don't smoke. Or do anything remotely "bad".  I garden. A fix that always puts a smile on my face.

 I can lose myself for hours in the yard: digging, planting, yanking out what I just planted, planting again. 

I'll keep going until I'm covered in sweat and dirt, a smell so bad even Roxy turns her wet nose up at me. It's my therapy. A natural high that lasts long after I've washed off the last speck of  the garden...like nailing crow in yoga or finding those kick ass shoes you've been looking for all year...on sale. It's my upper, what's yours?

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Just goes to show you even if your day starts out poorly doesn't mean it's going to end that way. The players didn't let the pee wee pile up keep them down.

Checking off the to do list...

This time of year always fills me with happiness and dread. Play dates, birthdays, the upcoming holidays, oh, my! So, much to to do and so little time to get it done. Good thing Tinyprints can help take the edge off. Need a glossy invite for your kid's Halloween party? Check. A fancy gift for the boss you just can't seem to win over? Check. Or maybe you're looking for a new way to display that sun kissed family photo you took over the summer. Check. Now, that you've taken care of everyone on your list, you might want to keep that free mug they're giving away for yourself. 

Ad Ad on behalf of Tinyprints.

Mascara Face

Well, it finally happened. I broke down in front of the television last night. What made me end up with black mascara all over my face? A wounded animal on Animal Planet? An ugly home makeover on HGTV? Nope. A fictional show about hospital kids on FOX. Red Band Society is one of the best new shows I've seen in a long time. Touching, funny and just well thought out from beginning to end. One of the last lines of the show made me cry something ugly. Bet studio execs will be doing the same if the series gets cancelled...despite good reviews it only did so so in the ratings.

Laziest guard dog I ever did see...

Roxy protecting her turf from afar...watching workers in the neighbor's backyard.

So, is she going to bark or just hypnotize them with her good looks?

Take a peak...

Peak into my daughter's closet and you'll find some cute outfits but nothing I paid a bundle for. Even the high end dresses or sweaters were purchased for a steal. I promised myself while I was pregnant - that I would never throw money away on clothes that Natalia would outgrow  in just a few months. I'd rather save that money for big ticket items like trips, furniture and the backyard pool I swear I'm going to have some day even if I have to dig down fifteen feet with my bare hands! That's why I stocked up on sale items before Natalia  was even born and still do the same today nearly eight years later.  Hard to pass up an offer like this one from Gymboree.  Think it's time to do some back-to-school shopping...

This post is brought to you by Gymboree.

Pretty as a peacock...

I spent a couple minutes looking thru some old photos the other day and came across one of my favorites...a stunning picture I snapped when we were living down in South Florida where the wild things are.

                                                                                     
I know many folks consider the peacock a problem down there...they squawk, poop all over the place and even attack cars, but when they're behaving nicely, they sure are nice to look at.

Then there was one...

Now that the school year has kicked in, it should just be a couple weeks before Natalia's sock drawer starts emptying out. Every Fall socks start disappearing at a maddening pace around here. Sometimes I wonder if Natalia's playing tricks on me - hiding dirty ones behind the washer machine instead of in it or cutting up clean ones to make some outfit for her American Girl doll. But she isn't. And I  can't blame the dog - Roxy is two-and-a-half now and no longer gnaws on the house, slipcovers or "anything Natalia". So, I've resorted once again to my rudimentary sock tracker...something I picked up years ago at Anthropologie.

When a sock loses its mate I clip it to this board hoping I'll find the one that's missing some day.

Doesn't make the socks appear any faster...but it's so cute it makes me smile...and almost forget that I'm too cheap stubborn to buy more socks.

My lanky lollipop kid...

 Natalia's off to third grade...dimples and all.

Doggie bliss...

When a dog realizes he can get his owner to do just about anything for him.

The latest in lighting is now hanging in my dining room...

 I've seen basket lamps for up to 8-hundred dollars on some websites but this one was practically free.

The rattan basket's been sitting in my garage since we moved in five years ago.

 Not sure where or when we first came across it - my mother-in-law may have passed in on to me at some point. Just glad I had it! 

After nabbing a pendant chord kit from Pottery Barn (on sale!), I simply cut a small hole on the bottom of the basket, then my husband installed the pendant fixture in the ceiling, it took about an hour tops. 

Simply stunning...

This Under Armour commercial has been out for a couple weeks now - but since I usually watch things on the DVR so I can skip the ads - I didn't catch a glimpse of this until last night and it took my breath away. Real life ballerina  Misty Copeland is stunning. So much so, I rewound the ad so I could watch it again and again... and each time I did , I teared up.  Why can't more ads be more like this one? I might actually watch regular television again!