EVERYTHING STARTS NOW.

Well folks, here we are.

There are no words to describe the last month and a half since I've seen you all last, my dear internet cosmos.  I now have a brand new home.  I don't only mean house.  I mean life.  I no longer live in steamy FL.  I'm now a proud CO transplant and could not be more thrilled about everything that means for my future.  I also just celebrated my two year anniversary being married to my Mr. who will now be referred to as Dr. Mr., another incredible change in our lives.  We drove 1900 miles in 4 days, had our entire family here to bless our home together, and moved in successfully.

We are indeed alive and very well.

And now that I am back to life, I will also come back to you.  Don't think I haven't been stalking the internet for the past month to find all sorts of goodies for you.  I absolutely have.  Here are a few hints* as to what I have in store for you this week:

*Don't worry, I will indeed attribute all of the above images properly in the following posts of the week.  Make sure you come back to hold me accountable.

And just because I can never make up to you all the time I left you alone, I give you...

CHOCOLATE:

Everything does in fact,

start now.

XOXO
--MEL

Weekly Shuffle + Ode to FL

Happy Friday, my dear internet cosmos!  I hope you had an amazing week and I hope the weekend holds some fun for you all.  We are headed to CO on Monday to begin (and hopefully finish) the house search.  So far, browsing homes online has been tons of fun mainly because my imagination goes crazy thinking up all the ways I can decorate a new home.

Recently I came across this adorable bathroom makeover and was frankly shocked that I liked it.  I'm never one for a theme room, but I think they hit "nautical-yet-not-ashamed-to-like-the-beach" on the head with this one.  Maybe it would be nice to incorporate a little tasteful beachiness into our new home as an homage to the sunny sandy state we are leaving behind.

In case coming up with your next home renovation project isn't in your weekend plans, here's your weekly shuffle to keep you occupied while I'm gone.  Or at least for a couple hours.  If this is your first shuffle experience with me and you like what you hear, go check out all of my shuffles here.

Have a fabulous weekend!  XOXO

Weekly Shuffle #7 from lombardo.megan on 8tracks.

A little change of scenery...

So, the big news is...

WE'RE MOVING TO COLORADO!!!

Yes, we are completely stoked.  Yes, we are completely overwhelmed.  Yes, we are completely over the moon.

Yes, all the details of moving across the country in less than 3 months, have in fact not hit us yet.

We are on cloud nine for the moment and trying to savor it as long as possible.  We have begun the house hunt and started trying to tie down some loose ends here before our journey.  We're already starting to experience some stressful moments associated with the move, which kind of terrifies me.  But overall, we're nothing short of thrilled.

Here are a few little sentimental things that I may just have to pick up to signify this momentous occasion in our lives:

I'm thinking it would be wonderful to have a custom portrait made of our home here in FL by Rebecca Seale.  After all, our little home here means so much to us--we got engaged here, married here, adopted our newest pup dog here.  It would be beautiful to have a little memorial to it all.  (Found via Babble)

We've made a ton of amazing friends here who we are going to miss like crazy.  Plus, we have family here who are going to miss us like crazy.  I think this pillow would be an amazing gift to give to the people we love who we will be leaving behind.  (Found via the lil bee)

My husband and I have lived in some really amazing places in our lives and it would be great to represent them in our new home.  I love these state bird prints by Kelsey Oseid.  They are so whimsical and would be perfect artwork to carry with us throughout our lives.  (Found via Design*Sponge)

I hope you'll come with us, my dear internet cosmos, as we embark on this new journey!

XOXO
--MEL

honey bee

With spring right around the corner (and by around the corner, I mean slapping us in the face with humidity and allergens; and by spring, I mean summer (remember:  I LIVE IN FL)), I am getting super excited about getting my hands in the dirt and spending some well needed time with my old gardening/bee keeper friend (remember him?).  He has invited the Mr. and I to help him plant his spring garden which means I'll get another well-needed lesson in tending to the earth.  And hopefully some pointers on how to make our own garden super successful this year.

It also means that I'll get to go visit his honey bees.  Last April, he invited us to his annual "Honey Slinging", a big family affair where generations gather together to collect the honey from his loyal bees.  I was so unbelievably honored to be a part of it.  It is an amazing process to watch how honey is extracted from the combs.  Plus, you cannot imagine the most amazing floral sweetness that comes from chewing on a freshly torn piece of honey comb, filled to the brim with fresh honey.  It really is an experience like no other.

Naturally, I got super excited when I came across this post the other day, showing so beautifully the art of "Honey Slinging".  Here's the video of the process:

       

honey harvest from tiger in a jar on Vimeo.

If you ever get the chance to interact with honey bees and be a part of extracting the honey, don't miss it.  It is truly a miraculous little example of creation.  

Hope your Wednesday is sunny and springy today!

--MEL

Happy Haunted Friday

Well, hello everyone!  Again, Florida is so far behind the rest of the country (if you wish to read into that statement politically, please do).  It has been upwards of 80 degrees all week long.  So the last thing I want to do this weekend is celebrate Halloween.  This is supposed to be fall!  We're supposed to be all bundled up going from door to door asking for candy and so excited to get home and sit in front of the fire and dig in! We're supposed to be trick-or-treating through big piles of orange leaves and with the sun setting early in the evening!  We're supposed to sip apple-spiced cocktails and eat grilled cheese and tomato soup!  Come on, weather!  You're killing me here!

Okay, the rant is over.  For now.

Anyway, wherever you are in the country, I do sincerely hope that you have a fabulously chilly Halloween weekend.  Drink an extra hot toddy for me, will you?

Here are some goodies from around the internet for your Friday enjoyment.  Enjoy!  XOXO

How to make your very own spicy sugary crumbly coffee cake in 5 minutes.  (via Say Yes! to Hoboken)

Prudent Baby

Anthropologie has just started carrying the most adorable children's clothes from Handmade Charlotte.  I have to say, Anthropologie is officially winning the race to conquer the world.  (via Black Eiffel)

Little Plume Coat

Love Letter Bloomers

Merry Mount Dress

Another book to add to the list:  5th Ave, 5 AM:  Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's and the Dawn of the Modern Woman.  This interview with the author, Sam Wasson, is a great insight into the book.  I'm so happy that the incredible importance of such a classic book and movie is finally being written about.  Now, my obsession is just a little more validated in normal social circles.  (via wit + delight)

Foodie Friday

Hello my dear internet cosmos!  I hope you all had a wonderful week.  The weather got hot again here so naturally my brain turned to mush and I was unable to create anything productive or interesting.  This morning, there's a crisp breeze in the air and I'm feeling alive again so here's some inspiration for your day!

I'd like to talk about food for a moment.  For me, it's much more than just a bare necessity--it's a hobby, an obsession, an art form, a challenge, and a joy.  That is until I eat an entire cake in one sitting and then it is no longer a joy.

Anyway, here are a few of my favorite posts from around the web concerning the joy of eating.

I recently came across this charming blog La Domestique and fell in love with the recipes and the easy-to-follow extremely well organized nature of it all.  Every week, a new ingredient is chosen and the entire week is dedicated to worshipping it.  One of my favorites is this post about 10 ways to use honey in cooking.  You remember my bee-keeping friend, don't you?  He recently gave me more of his amazing clover honey and I'm excited to use it in some of these recipes.

Next up, pine nuts get caught up in the ombre trend.  Who knew nuts could be so fashionable?  (Okay dirty minded readers, this is a family friendly blog.)

Tiger in a Jar

Last but not least, we have eating, well, in a slightly different form.  At first glance I saw the title of this article, well, completely unappetizing.  But I have to say, after reading, I can see some logic.

Okay let's all be honest here--would you do it?

Babble

I hope you all have a nutritious weekend!
--MEL

Fall clean out

Well folks, fall has finally made it down to Florida and I couldn't be more happy.  I blame my recent lighter than usual blog postings on the unbearable heat and humidity of the summer--it's just too damn hot to do anything.  And unfortunately, the summer lasted right up until about last Friday.

But, now that the cooler climes have arrived, my brain has been let free of it's sticky shackles and I'm back in the game.  That means it's time for a clean out of my inspiration folders.  Hope you enjoy!

I'm completely obsessed with this series, aptly named A Dress & A Gig Poster.  Found via Unruly Things.

dress/gig57 by theshallowend featuring a silk dress

dress/gig52 by theshallowend featuring a shift dress

dress/gig45 by theshallowend featuring print dresses

Untitled by theshallowend featuring a jersey dress

I am also obsessed with this baby gear from Threadless.  The next baby I come in contact with will be receiving a onesie.  Found via Unruly Little Things.

I'm also head over heels for The Canal House.  Not only is their website totally rad, it is stock full of sneak peeks into their cookbooks.  You can subscribe for a year and get 3 seasonal cookbooks delivered to you.  I mean, look at how good this stuff looks?

Pimiento Cheese

Broiled Mussels

And now I'm starving.
--MEL

Summer at the Movies

So, I know most of us aren't in a place in our lives anymore where summer means anything else except hot weather.  However, there is something about the long steamy days that just screams "don't do anything productive, have fun, stay up late, eat ice cream, etc. etc."  Regardless of the fact that summer is no longer a "break" for me, I still find myself trying to take part in as many parts of the holiday season as I can.

Unfortunately, in FL, this means staying inside.

So when I found this awesome round up of foodie films and TV collections that can be found on Netflix Instant, I immediately updated my queue.  A few I'm immediately ready to press play on:

Delicatessen on Netflix

The Real Dirt on Farmer John on Netflix

The Garden on Netflix

Enjoy!
--MEL

United Thread

Well, folks, it is summer in Florida.  And you know what that means.  For the next 3.7 months, I will be constantly complaining about not being able to play outside because of the thickets of mosquitoes poised and ready to attack at my first step out the door, the blanket of humidity that envelops every single thing that walks near it, and therefore, my overall lack of ability to be outside and look and feel in any way acceptable while doing it.

All that being said, pretty soon I will be craving cooler climes.  And by pretty soon, I mean, right this second.

Not long ago I ran across this post about this lovely Etsy shop, United Thread.  I adore these paintings--they are so whimsical and dreamlike, yet they have such a poignant particularity about them.  All of the animals look so exactly real.  And the watering hole series is beyond amazing.

Another thing I love so very much about all these paintings is that for some reason, they remind me of fall.  All the warm lush colors and soft brush strokes--just looking at them makes me feel a little cooler.

(All images from United Thread)

Post script to the Mr.--I think those hens need to be added to your newfound collection asap.

Happy Earth Day!

There are so many reasons to go out and enjoy this beautiful day.  Spring is here (translation:  summer is trying to get here in FL, and winter is hanging around in some other places in the world, but I guess the definition of Spring is different for everyone), the earth is coming alive again, the sky is blue, the earth is nutritious and we are alive.  How wonderful.  Ideally, we wouldn't need a holiday to appreciate the gifts of creation but since we have one, why not celebrate it to the fullest?

Here are a few earthy inspirations to kick off your green weekend!  Hope you enjoy!

Remember when I told you about my gardening experience with a very wise man?  Well, this amazing man (and remember he's 80!) is also a master bee keeper!  I got to go over to his house and see his bee hives and he gave me a crash course all about the bees and to say I was amazed is an understatement.  Bees are such an amazing testament to the power of the environment and the perfection that is found in the natural world.  They've got quite the set up!

The wise man's hands and his bees

Ever since I got to go check out my old friend's bees, I've kind of been obsessed.  I really want to build hives for myself!  So, I was delighted when I found this book on Design*Sponge this morning--just the thing I need to get started!  Plus, isn't it beautiful?

D*S

Here's a great green tip for the gardeners in my audience.  The Mr. & I have been doing this for ages so I was so glad to see it talked about online.  A great tip for making your plants extra happy:  add your used coffee grounds to the soil!  This post talks about adding them straight to the plants, but we add them to our compost pile and it makes the soil extra rich.  However you do it, it seems plants love coffee too!

Apartment Therapy

Last but not least, I leave you with a little creation humor.  I hope you have a fabulous day enjoying the gifts of our planet!  XOXO

Sapling Press, found via Design is Mine

Ethan Robert

So, all of my baby hysteria as of late has paid off--I have a brand new nephew!

After 30-some-odd hours of labor, my sister-in-law delivered this beautiful boy.  He is completely perfect.  I know I'm a little biased but seriously, look at that!

So, now that the impending delivery of nephew is good and done, maybe there will be less of a baby extravaganza on this blog for a little while?

Yeah right, who am I kidding.

XOXO
--MEL

Green & Giddy

I'm feeling particularly inspired by nature today.  Yesterday, I spent all day planting a garden that we are starting at the church I work at.  All the fruits and veggies we grow will go into meals that we cook for the homeless and underserved in the community.

There is an 80 year old member of the church who headed up the planting and design of the garden and he singlehandedly taught me how to do all of it yesterday.  He and I spent hours with our hands in the soil, lovingly inserting new growth into the ground to be further raised by the nourishment of the earth.  He told me all about nitrogen and the importance of rain and reasons we should all go organic.  He also showed me how to rake and level the garden (My body is paying for that today), stake out and make straight rows (well, his were straight) and fill them with seed and cover the seed appropriately with a correct level of soil, all the while pushing me on with a sturdy "Thata' girl."

I felt so inspired and connected to our ancestors in connecting with his old wise soul.  I'll share pictures of yesterday's garden raising soon.

Until then, here are some images from my life that inspire me and encourage my continually evolving relationship with creation.  I hope you all will nourish your relationships with creation today--go outside, look into the sky, touch a tree or flower.  Or just breathe in and out and remember how that simple act is a miracle.

Magnolia at the Mississippi River, Memphis, TN

Pax in the Grass, MLC

Weathered Tree, Colorado

Mom & my rock, Colorado

Majesty, Colorado

Sky, New Mexico

Road to Taos, New Mexico

Enjoying the River, Colorado

Voluptuous Aspens, Colorado

Sidewalk, MLC

Wedding Walk, MLC

Yummy fruits of the earth