Friday, April 30, 2010

happy friday!

there is so much about this photo that i love i don't know where to start. so just look at it and adore it.


some things i've been enjoying this week:

this recipe for kale salad is the BOMB...don't be afraid of kale...from one of my favorite new blogs eating is art; and this recipe from msl is quick, easy and very tasty

these flats (thanks, court!)
this dress
this necklace

have a lovely weekend! check back monday for another installment of 'monday morning madness' AND 'un-mom' will be back next week! can't wait to share. have fun(:

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

0 nw carpenter street, carmel-by-the-sea, california
























this listing is AMAZING! in these little real estate posts i try to find properties that are attainable...they aren't always super inexpensive and, let's face it, the ones in california are always going to be pricey. but to find a place like this in a place like this is almost unheard of--that is to say that finding a beautifully restored (ok, it is tiny, but that is par for the coarse in these parts AND part of the charm) cottage in carmel for under $1 million dollars is close to being a miracle. usually $1 million gets you a tear down.

this little gem was built in 1930 and has been beautifully maintained. as the listing* notes it has been tastefully modernized while keeping that classic carmel charm. can you believe that dutch door? (you know i am a sucker for such things) and that breakfast nook...love!

so why is the address"0"? homes and businesses in this one-square mile village have no street numbers (there are no street lights or parking meters either!) the village was originally an artist colony and many of the cottages were built by the artists and writers who settled there. most of them named their houses instead of establishing street numbers. in an effort to preserve the community, the planning commission has upheld this tradition.

read more about carmel-by-the-sea here.

*The perfect Carmel cottage. Totally remodeled to perfection yet retaining original charm. Gourmet kitchen with stone floors, new appliances and breakfast nook. Spacious master suite opens to deck and backyard. Complete attention to detail throughout. Close to town. JenAir stove, Miele dishwasher, granite. The ultimate Carmel cottage. Exceptionally cute!

0 nw carpenter street, carmel, california
listed at $799,950
2 bed/2 bath, 900 sq. ft., 0.90 lot
complete listing here


Tuesday, April 27, 2010

lobster love + no. 200

wow! this is my 200th post! for a girl that doesn't get to this space as often as she'd like, this feels like quite an accomplishment. anywho, talking lobsters today. don't like to eat them, but love them as design motif. llbean's got a ton of it this season. these are my favorites. i MUST get those pj bottoms and flip flops. and possibly the belt. or the clogs...

Saturday, April 10, 2010

yoshi


Oh, Yosh. I’ll never forget the first time I saw you—it’s like a Polaroid picture in my mind. It was at our house on 63rd Street. You and Cassie were nose-to-nose in the roses next to the driveway. She was busy posturing to let you know she wasn’t down with you hanging around her house and you had that look on your face that would come to be a symbol of your personality--everybody’s friend, a lover, oblivious to the aggressions of others. I even remember the words I said when I discovered you: “What a funny looking little face”.

You had the prettiest blue eyes. You were scrawny, just a kitten, a stray. Your fur was thin and rangy. With two dogs and a cat, we had our hands full, but we took you in and fed you. I even gave you a bath which you didn’t like. We tried to find a home for you but soon found you were meant to be ours. With proper nutrition and love you grew to be a stunning cat. Everyone remarked on how pretty and sweet you were. At one of your pet visits we discovered that you were a Ragdoll.

Through the years you had your share of accidents—first a car tried to get you, then a wild animal, then you suffered from crystals in your urine that almost killed you. A few years later, you got a cataract in your eye. The doc said it was probably from your first car tangle. About a year ago, you had your eye removed. You were still our beautiful Yoshi, though, with your black mask and white chin, socked feet and white-tipped tale and we loved you. Sure you could be a pest. You loved your peeps and always wanted a lap to sit on. Let’s face it you had a lot of competition with two little boys running around. Then last night a car finally got you. I found you this morning on the neighbor’s yard. I could see something laying in the grass, but that white-tipped tale was like a bulls-eye and my heart sank as I knew it was you and I knew you were dead. At first I couldn’t believe it but I now know it is true.

To say that I am devastated by your loss is an understatement. I’ll miss you so much. I’ll miss your fur all over the clean piles of laundry. I’ll miss catching you sleeping in the sink. I’ll miss seeing most of your 16 pounds spilling over the back of the couch as you take a nap. I’ll miss seeing you run up to me in the driveway when I get home from work, seeing you laying in the chair on the front porch and I’ll miss scratching that white-dotted chin. I’ll miss a hundred other things that I don’t even know right now. I won’t know until I catch myself thinking you are there and realizing you are gone.

I’m am sorry that we couldn’t protect you this time, that we couldn’t intervene as we had all those times before and rescue you from yourself. It breaks my heart thinking, wondering what you went through. I’m sorry. Matt and I both gave you some love this morning before you left our house. We will always love you.

We decided long ago that we wouldn’t have anymore cats after you and I don’t think we will. You were the best cat ever. I don’t want another cat, I just want my Yoshi.