Hello. There’s so much going on in my little world right now. My daughter turned eight yesterday and that just makes my head spin. My husband started growing a goatee for no reason and I’m really not happy about it and so I’m strategizing how to get him to shave it off ASAP. My five year old son announced that he needs me to get him some Pokemon cards so he can play whatever it is with the other kids and I witnessed the Pokemon craze with my nephews and prayed and begged that it would pass over my household and apparently no one was listening. So today I’d like to share a few of the little things in life that help me survive the madness of it all.   

1.  The mirror reminds me I’m getting closer to forty every day so I have found a few beauty products that help me feel presentable when I leave the house.  Here are my four ‘if ever stranded on a desert island’ essentials.

Ole Henrickson Collagen Booster; Smashbox Photo Finish; Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20; Burt’s Bees Lip Shimmer (Raisin)

2. In December, my husband listened with close attention when I made my Christmas list clicked on the hyperlink I emailed him and bought me this lovely camera bag from Jo’s Totes for my Christmas present. It’s very green and it’s so lovely. And I will bring it to SNAP (did you know I’m speaking on a panel at SNAP?) and you attendees can all admire its cleverly divided compartments that hold this budding photographer’s lenses and lip gloss. Cause that’s really all I need when I’m out and about, my camera lenses and my Burt’s Bees lip gloss. And a Twix bar stashed away at the bottom.

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Did y’all ever see the movie Auntie Mame?  It’s one of my top ten favorite movies of all time, the book is hilarious too.  Rosalind Russell is so brilliant in this role as the eccentric yet glamorous Mame Dennis who is assigned the caretaker for her orphaned ten year old nephew Patrick in 1920’s New York City.  Auntie Mame is colorful and unconventional, a lover of art and theater, with a quick wit and a disdain for stuffy or snobbish society. 

The character is divine and the movie sets are magnificent.  The apartment Mame lives in takes on a completely new and different look every few years based on her iridescent theatrical personality.  During the movie, viewers get to see six separate and completely different designs, and to quote Jonathan Adler, “Watching Auntie Mame is a right of passage for every aspiring decorator”.  For a full tour of the six different makeovers during the movie in Mame’s apartment, visit Julia’s post on 3 Beekman Place.

So I have a neighbor named Tatiana and we met eight years ago at my annual garage sale. Tatiana is the closest person to Auntie Mame I know. Up my driveway eight years ago she walked with her husband Miguel and Tatiana and I became instant friends.  When I first met her, her name was Jennie, but then she decided she wanted her name to be Tatiana because she preferred Tatiana so she legally changed her name to Tatiana.  At the age of 45.  I love that.

Tatiana is my Auntie Mame, she eats and drinks and decorates as she pleases all with a zest for life that’s rare these days.  She lives around the corner from me and we meet for coffee from time to time to catch up. She always wants to come to my house because she finds it so soothing, and I always want to go to her house because I find it so inspiring, so we take turns.  But on our last coffee visit I won and got the pleasure of visiting with her in her home.  

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January is always a dreary month for me, it usually rains and rains and keeps us all indoors, but we’ve been having a mild winter so far and it’s changing the way I feel about this season.  At least for today.  I decided to be positive and focus on a few things I actually like about winter.  For example:

Hot tea on a cold day

An abundance of citrus

Cozy {faux fur} blankets

Indoor gardens

Lit fireplaces

What are your winter favorites?

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So I just decided the other day I was going to start a new series this year about things I’m noticing here and there and it’s sort of like the the “I Spy” game but instead I’ll say “Eye Spy:…” because sometimes I like to think I’m so clever.  :)  This week’s obsession is letterpress calendars, and I’ve been bookmarking several for this brand new year. 

I always always forget what the date is. I mean, I know what day it is most of the time, but I’m terrible with remembering the actual date. I like to keep a little calendar in front of me at my desk to keep myself informed. I suppose I could just look at my phone or get up and go look at the big calendar in the kitchen or click over and check my Google calendar.  But I prefer the idea of a small calendar to keep me in the know and also because some talented artist took the time to sketch and create and press something completely lovely on beautiful paper to represent the year and I find them irresistible.

Last year I bought one from 1Canoe2 and here is their 2012 version.  Playful illustrations that change from month to month, and I love that the desktop calendar sits in its own wood stump.  Talk about clever.

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My sister’s birthday is coming up this month so I wanted to make her something nice that I know she’d appreciate. I also like a hot bath at the end of the day especially since I’m exercising and eating raw foods and my body is rebelling (“Where’s the cheese? You’ve always fed me cheese! Where’s the d*#$ cheese lady?”) and as a result I’m a hint cranky. 

Plus there’s the whole kids home from school this week and climbing the walls and they’ve already played with their toys 3½ times and watched those two movies I bought, and they’re all “Get out of my room, stop touching me, Mom we’re boooored”.  So bottom line: momma needs a little aromatherapy. 

I go to Whole Foods maybe five times a year, and I stay away mostly because their prices are kinda obscene. My friend Staci calls Whole Foods ‘Whole Paycheck’ and that girl is right on. But the only place I could think of in town to buy the trifecta of ingredients for this latest concoction (essential oil, sea salt, and body oil) was Whole Foods, and since I’m a one stop shopper with kids in tow, I made the trip. 

I took some pretty pictures (with the lens I mentioned here) of the process and officially apologize for the next sentence which sounds like a commercial. A gentle rub with sea salt will exfoliate the skin and the essential oils possess beneficial moisturizing qualities and antioxidants!

To make your own, first equip yourself with some decent containers. Canning jars, old jelly jars, even plastic containers with lids will do.  I chose these 12 oz. glass jars with plain lids from The Container Store since I wanted to give two away as gifts.

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