5.10.2014

Happy Mother's Day


If I should have a daughter…“Instead of “Mom”, she’s gonna call me “Point B.” Because that way, she knows that no matter what happens, at least she can always find her way to me. And I’m going to paint the solar system on the back of her hands so that she has to learn the entire universe before she can say “Oh, I know that like the back of my hand.”

She’s gonna learn that this life will hit you, hard, in the face, wait for you to get back up so it can kick you in the stomach. But getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air. There is hurt, here, that cannot be fixed by band-aids or poetry, so the first time she realizes that Wonder-woman isn’t coming, I’ll make sure she knows she doesn’t have to wear the cape all by herself. Because no matter how wide you stretch your fingers, your hands will always be too small to catch all the pain you want to heal. Believe me, I’ve tried.

And “Baby,” I’ll tell her “don’t keep your nose up in the air like that, I know that trick, you’re just smelling for smoke so you can follow the trail back to a burning house so you can find the boy who lost everything in the fire to see if you can save him. Or else, find the boy who lit the fire in the first place to see if you can change him.”

But I know that she will anyway, so instead I’ll always keep an extra supply of chocolate and rain boats nearby, ‘cause there is no heartbreak that chocolate can’t fix. Okay, there’s a few heartbreaks chocolate can’t fix. But that’s what the rain boots are for, because rain will wash away everything if you let it.

I want her to see the world through the underside of a glass bottom boat, to look through a magnifying glass at the galaxies that exist on the pin point of a human mind. Because that’s how my mom taught me. That there’ll be days like this, “There’ll be days like this my momma said” when you open your hands to catch and wind up with only blisters and bruises. When you step out of the phone booth and try to fly and the very people you wanna save are the ones standing on your cape. When your boots will fill with rain and you’ll be up to your knees in disappointment and those are the very days you have all the more reason to say “thank you,” ‘cause there is nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline no matter how many times it’s sent away.

You will put the “wind” in win some lose some, you will put the “star” in starting over and over, and no matter how many land mines erupt in a minute be sure your mind lands on the beauty of this funny place called life.

And yes, on a scale from one to over-trusting I am pretty damn naive but I want her to know that this world is made out of sugar. It can crumble so easily but don’t be afraid to stick your tongue out and taste it.

“Baby,” I’ll tell her “remember your mama is a worrier but your papa is a warrior and you are the girl with small hands and big eyes who never stops asking for more.”

Remember that good things come in threes and so do bad things and always apologize when you’ve done something wrong but don’t you ever apologize for the way your eyes refuse to stop shining.

Your voice is small but don’t ever stop singing and when they finally hand you heartbreak, slip hatred and war under your doorstep and hand you hand-outs on street corners of cynicism and defeat, you tell them that they really ought to meet your mother.


--"B" by Sarah Kay

Hear Sarah's TED talk here.  Found via Clementine Daily.

5.07.2014

Design Challenge: Budget Area Rugs

About a week ago,  I got an email from a friend who had reached the end of her decorating rope.  "I need a rug for the area between my kitchenette and living room area (Probably like 5x7, but I could maybe go a little bigger)," she wrote.  "I think I need something with color--my living room is mostly grays, navy blues, and white, but I also already have a lot of graphic prints, so I think it needs to be more colorful without a huge bold pattern (which is SO hard for me to avoid!)"  With those parameters, it actually seemed like this would be a pretty simple find.  Until she hit me with the price point:  "between $100-$200".

On a normal day, I probably would have just said, "Tough beans, kid.  Ain't gonna happen."  However, I recently had a similar dilemma in our own home when we were looking for a new crawling-baby-knees-friendly area rug for our living room, and much to my relief I found Rugs USA and an enormous selection of unbelievably priced rugs.  I had read a few good experiences by bloggers I trust and so I took the plunge and bought a 100% wool flat weave 9x12 rug for around $350 (including the pad).  Luckily, it is amazing and looks much more expensive than it was.

So, with my friend's instructions, I knew Rugs USA was the place to shop.  She sent me some inspiration photos of rugs she likes (here and here), as well as a couple of pieces she is buying to put in her apartment (this for a sideboard/bar and this amazing headboard), plus I know her decorating style and her current furnishings pretty well so it didn't seem to be such a daunting task.

Here's what I found:


A: Oriental Weavers Kaleidoscope Rug, $199 (4' x 5'9")

B: Rugs USA Overdye RE21 Multi Rug, $472 (5' x 8') + 60% off coupon code = $188.80

C: Rugs USA Overdye RE31 Rug, $482 (5' x 8') + 70% off coupon code = $144.60

D: Windsor Grove Rug, $399 (5'5" x 8'2") + 55% off coupon code =  $179.55

E:  Jasmine FR3 Rug, $834 (5' x 8') + 70% off coupon code = $250.20

All in all, pretty close to price point and I think pretty close to the inspiration images as well.  Whaddya think, did I succeed?

So help a brotha out--which one would you pick?

xoxo
--mel

5.01.2014

Teething Style + moshi moshi Discount!

So, NC is teething.  

The thing about teething, at least in our case, is that it is never ending.  Our child has had white, bumpy, lumpy, sensitive gums for at least two months.  Every morning we wake up and think, "Okay, today is the day we go into her nursery and we find Gary Busey in the crib."  But it just never happens.

Anyway, teething is not fun.  So the only thing we can do is continue to let NC put whatever she damn well pleases into her mouth to help ease the pain.  Thankfully, we have some pretty stylish options for her.

I jumped right in when she was only a few months old and bought NC a raw amber necklace to wear to help with any inflammation that may be causing her pain.  I don't have any hard data to support the success or failure of said amber necklace, but it doesn't seem to be doing any harm, and NC is a super happy baby most of the time so I'll keep it on.  Plus, she looks so cute wearing it.  Case in point:  


My friend from college also sent us an adorable teething necklace for NC to wear so she can pick it up and chomp on it herself.  NC LOVES it.  And of course, she looks so cute wearing it.  Again--case in point:


While I of course know that when it comes to teething, the priority is that whatever you are using to help with the situation has to WORK, I also want my life to remain somewhat enjoyable to look at and not completely filled with merely functional baby gear.  Thank god there are others that feel the same way:


Kangaroo Care Modern Mama Teething Necklace / nihama Teething Necklace

Do you have a teething baby on your hands too? Just need some new gems for your little one or even yourself?  You're in luck:  
My friend Anna from moshi moshi is giving Suggestion readers 15% off now through May 12
(Use code MEL15)  

Her necklaces really are amazing and every teething baby will love them.  And even if you don't have a teething baby, I may or may not have worn NC's myself because I think it's so cute, so buy one for you or someone special!  With Mother's Day coming up, Anna's necklaces will make perfect gifts.   

If you need further incentive to buy a moshi moshi necklace, here's another dose of cuteness.  As if you haven't already had enough.  What?  I'm not ashamed.


xoxo
--mel