Lemon Inspiration

I think a bowl full of lemons in a sunny room is just the the prettiest thing. And since it is a dreary, rainy sort of Monday (at least here in northern California) I thought I would share a few pictures to hopefully brighten your day!

{Images: 1st,2nd,3rd,4th,5th}

Don't they just cheer you right up? 

How about these gorgeous lemon inspired wedding pictures? I love the easy breezy feel of the lemons on that little table in a field. And it would be so cheap and easy to do yourself!

{Image}

I hope everyone is having a great start to the week!

Maribel, Gertrude, and Beatrice

Remember how I mentioned we have three chickens? I got the first two for for Christmas two years ago and Beatrice (the black and white one) last year when she was just a tiny chick. Here are some pictures!

{Maribel and Gertrude}

{Beatrice}

{Beatrice and her eggs}

{The Chicken House}

I live in a neighborhood in California, not a farm, but having chickens is easier than you might think! For food we get them a 50 pound bag of chicken scratch every few months and throw all the scraps from our meals every morning. They run around their area of the yard during the day and around dark every night make their way to where they sleep at night in a little coop my dad and I built for them. They each lay one egg a day during the summer and stop laying all together in the winter for a few months. The eggs are extra bright yellow in the middle (I read this is because they are free range?) and are extra delicious!

And just for the fun of it, here is a picture of Beatrice when we first got her, she was so tiny and cute!

The Best Way to Waste Time

Have any of you guys started using Pintrest lately? Never heard of it? Its is a perfect way to find some amazing pictures of anything you are interested in. I think it would also be a great place to make a wish list to give out to family or friends since each picture links back to the site it was pinned from. 

Here is a photo of my pin boards - I just started a few days ago and it is addicting!

 {how embarrassing is it that my first three boards are about cakes, kittens, and parties?}

If you haven't tried it yet, you should definitely give it a go, I promise you will find some great images and links no matter what your tastes. Right now the site is by invitation only but I have some extra invites so if you want to join let me know, I will get you started! If you do already have an account, come follow me!

On another note, it is Friday and I am off work early! This weekend, if it doesn't rain, I want to repaint and find new handles for an old set of drawers I have had sitting in the garage. Not the most exciting weekend but cross your fingers I actually get it done!

What about you, does anyone have any fun weekend plans?

Update: Pintrest isn't working very well now (I think they are doing updates) but if you try to check it out and it doesn't work, don't give up, it usually works great! 

The Orangutan and the Hound

This video has been around a while but it makes my day every time I watch it. Its well worth 4 minutes of your Friday!

I Like You

The picture above is of a sweet little book called, "I Like You" by Sandol Stoddard Warburg. Mitchell gave me a copy last year on a trip to Santa Barbara and it is now one of my all time books. It is a perfect present for anyone, friends, family or anyone else you love because it describes all the things that make us like each other. Every page in the book is quote-worthy but these lines are my favorite:

 

I like you because I don't know why but everything that happens is nicer with you.

I can't remember when I didn't like you...It must have been lonesome then.

 

{and}

 

When I say something funny
You laugh
I think I'm funny and you think I'm funny too
Hah-hah

 

 

Things I Love: Cake Plates

  

I have a major infatuation with cake plates. I have collected some already but they are horded away in a cabinet above my refrigerator and my dream is to have a huge collection somewhere on display in my house. Here are a few of I have been drooling over for the last few days!

All these are from Pinterest, my newest obsession

Things I Love: Family

This funny group is my brother, sisters and me posing for pictures last year.

There are six of us in my family and when everyone is home our house is the picture of chaos. In addition to the six of us, there are always countless neighbors, friends and animals running around and it is easy to imagine guests watching our house spin and thinking, what the hell is going on...



A few highlights from the Edmonds' household:

·         At one point in my life we had triple the number of animals as people (did you know rats double gestate and have up to 20 babies each pregnancy? surprise!)

·         When I was 13 we went had “Transportation Day” and rode on over 35 different methods of transportation (is an escalator pushing it?)

·         We throw killer parties

·         We have three chickens named Mirabel, Gertrude, and Beatrice (Remember this post about lacking pet follow through?)

·         My dad had biked across the country, how rad is he?

·         We have a 24 pound black cat who can sit, shake, and lie down on command

Dream Kitchen

 

I love my apartment, it is wonderful. But the one thing I would give anything to change is the kitchen. It is tiny and darkish and when you are in there you can't see into the living room - it doesn't exactly inspire me to spend much time cooking there, that's for sure.

I keep telling M that if I had a kitchen like this I'm pretty sure I would crank out some spectacular meals and he keeps telling me that we don't have forty thousand dollars...

Piper Maise

I have a terrible habit of adopting animals then leaving them with my parents to care for. The expensive adorable Bengal kitten you see above is a pet I begged Mitchell to get me for Christmas last year, realized was the worst creature ever born, dropped off at my parent's house for a visit, and a year later have never taken back. Sorry Mom and Dad!


Reasons she is such terror include broken plates, pitchers,  glasses, one cashmere sweater torn to sheds, and countless meals ruined by her habit of jumping on the counter and helping herself to anything left unattended for more than 6 seconds. And this is just the stuff my mom is mad enough to call and tell me about...


On the plus side, she can fetch.

update: make that two cashmere sweaters ruined :(

Starting Off Right

I am starting this blog to share things things that make me happy. Over the next few days (weeks?) I want to post pictures and descriptions of all the things that I think make my life wonderful.