i’m finding it a funny thing–funny is one word for it–the way we women fight age, and the way we regard men with a certain awe, sexiness, ruggedness, handsome, call-it-what-you-will when time etches lines in their faces. paul newman only got more attractive with time. would we say the same of audrey hepburn? we already know the answer, but seriously what is that?
five things I’m loving right now.
01. these overalls // the price is right and they’re from target! we both know you’re looking for a reason to visit that glorious mothership. they’re a fun pair for summer. i wore them on the 4th with a red scarf in my hair, as one does. (p.s. if you’re looking for more of a fall/winter pair, i got these awhile back and love them. i was on a longer-than-i-care-to-admit search for a pair of overalls just like these ones.)
02. this clarifying shampoo // i’ve been looking for a clean alternative to my beloved beautycounter shampoo that’s now out of stock, and this is fitting the bill (and for a fraction of the cost). i saw a ton of body and curls (my hair is naturally fairly wavy/loose curls when air-dried) in my hair after one use. and clean ingredients! i love it.
03. this beautiful breezy dress // i mean, look at it.
04. this book // i’ve neglected virtually everything in favor of reading this book nonstop. it is really so good so far. so beautifully written, and in a landscape and lifestyle entirely different from my own. thanks to all who recommended it! i’m plowing through this one quickly.
05. this linen jumpsuit // bonus–such a great shop. i have a top from them and it’s made so well. highly recommend any of the amazing linen pieces from them.
besides the overalls, i’m wearing a mini dog tag necklace c/o tiny tags, this tank top, these earrings, and these sandals
Notes for the Road.
Happy weekend, friends! The weather is beautiful here today and I hope you’re able to get out and enjoy it. Yesterday we hiked around a park in our town with friends, ending with the kids wading in the river. A perfect summer afternoon, if you ask me. Soak it up!
Some weekend reading…
Rainy day back door pictures.
Suddenly I put together a planter and I’m suggesting the back door be the new backdrop for all Tales of Me and the Husband photos going forward. Martha Stewart of gardening, that’s me. But really, it was more fun then I ever could’ve imagined going to the nursery (Kane’s in Danvers!) and taking the clumsy cart through the aisles of perennials and annuals in the heat of a June day last week.
Thoughts lately.
We headed straight for New Jersey the next morning after school was let out. June 21–the true first day of summer when you have kids who are technical and mine are technical (Me: summertime! Parker: technically, Mom, it is still spring.)— came and went while we were there. But now that I am home, sitting in front of my computer at 5:51 AM (if I could forever be the person who wakes up in the 5:00 hour to work, to have a quiet cup of coffee, to meditate, all before my kids arise, I would be a better human being, I think), I’m thinking about summer ahead of us in all of its kids-running-through- sprinklers glory and, if I’m being honest, a (just a small) dash of “Shit — July is already around the corner” doom. I always get nervous when July comes around.
steve + bridget: vlog (finally!) on life + marriage
Here it is. The long-promised Steve and Bridget vlog. I opened my IG stories up for questions like… last February and have finally done it. I’m sorry for the delay!
Now a little bit about this video and the questions we got…
taking stock / 24.
Making: how about what I’d like to make? These lemon cream cheese cookies. Are you at NYT Food subscriber? I was for a long time, and then I wasn’t, and now I am again. Mostly because I got blocked out of seeing recipes that I really wanted to see when I’d hit my allotted number. Which is a very small number. It’s pretty cheap (like $5 a month) and the recipes are typically pretty damn good.
Drinking: Spindrift Seltzers when I’m feeling fancy. Water when I’m not (which is most of the time). In the last year or so, I’ve really stopped drinking any alcohol during the week, unless I’m out with friends or on a date night. And very little on the weekends too. I’ll say this–it saves money!
Reading: So I’m working through this book, while also wanting to pick up Pillars of the Earth again, and really feeling like I should too.
Wanting: for summer to move reeeeeally slow. Like ant’s pace slow. And for wonderfully slow, sweaty summer days with bike rides to town for ice cream, and playing catch with the baseball, and lying on the grass, and eating popsicles.
Watching: Handmaid’s Tale, of course. Are you? I’m enjoying this season so far.
Listening: A lot of Bibio these days, and really loving it. Also, halfway through the Rob Bell podcast with Richard Rohr and really enjoying it. Steve is a big fan of Richard Rohr and is always telling me to check his stuff out. This is a good start.
Wishing: not for a whole lot, really. Except maybe to check some more National Parks off my list this summer (or year). We just got a big catalog for these National Geographic expedition trips. What a dream job to work for them and get to host these incredible trips!
Enjoying: Parker’s baseball season. It was such fun going to his practices and games and seeing him improve, and be a part of a sweet team with great coaches. This was his first year doing baseball and I don’t think it’ll be his last.
Loving: the Les Miserables series on Masterpiece. Some of the Fantine scenes were really tough to watch. (Lily Collins is fantastic though, and is Phil Collins daughter. Did you know that? I didn’t!)
Hoping: I can continue modeling gratefulness to my kids. It is so easy, especially in the town we live in, to make comparisons and want things you don’t have. I feel like I have a good handle on this, but I know it came with practice and active gratefulness. Can I teach them the same by modeling this behavior every day? I hope so. P.S. Good read on this.
Needing: this fantastic hat for summer. Love it.
Feeling: nostalgic with all this end of the year stuff; kids getting older; same old, same old. You guys know me at this point! But all the celebrations really kick it into overdrive.
Wearing: currently? This tank. It’s my favorite summer tank ever.
p.s. best hat ever (nearly identical; style and brand)
camping in Acadia.
Memorial Day weekends, most of them in my childhood, were spent at a campground teeming with kids. A lot of whom I knew from school, town sports, church, and some of whom I didn’t. No Moms, just Dads and kids. My Dad organized this trip; its inception was when I was in grade school I think, and at a time when kids were old enough to be away from Moms without requiring too much of the Dads, but young enough that I can’t actually remember the first time.
Notes for the Road
The rosemary pots at Earth in Kennebunk giving me serious outdoor planter inspiration. We get a lot of sun on our deck, and they love sun, so I think they’re the perfect fit. Hope you all have a good weekend!
Some weekend reading…
Mother’s Day at Mohonk.
Mohonk Mountain House. Well, this place is a little slice of heaven. There’s something almost Narnia-esque about it. Like you’ve passed through the wardrobe and, oh my word, there you are in another world in all its beauty. I had to come down off the high before I even felt like I had my bearings such that I could write about it. Like, did it really look that way outside our hotel room? Was the brunch really as good as I imagined it to be? The answers to these questions are always yes. Let’s start at the beginning.