friday fashion

Gwyneth can do no wrong in my book.  LOVE her style and am especially loving the above looks she so effortlessly pulls off.  Today I am channeling her with freshly trimmed hair, blond highlights,  a grey t-shirt, and my favorite white jeans.  Who says celebrities get to have all the fun, right?

remember these things

Five months.  Time is a tricky thing.  It's cunning and has the ability to seem so fast and so very slow at the same time.  Anderson, I can't believe how much you have grown, how much you have changed and how much you can do!  I honestly have to strain a bit... I have to squint my eyes when I look back at the past to see my life before you.  It's seems like you were always here,  that I have known you for so so long.  And yet at the same token, it seems like just yesterday you were the size of a grain of rice as I tenderly held onto the secret that you were with me...before I told the world.

There are so many things you do that I try to forever preserve in a memory jar I store in the back of my mind.  Inevitably, we do forget things, even though at the present moment it seems impossible.  I wanted to jot a few recent ( *my heart may just burst*) moments down here so I will have them.

1.  I love your breath, it's so sweet and warm.
2.  Your eyes light up when you catch our reflection in the mirror before bath time.
3.  You love the bath, which I enthusiastically refer to as "Bathy Time Bubble Time".
4.  You are great at giving hugs.
5.  And playing peek a boo.
6.  Your idea of a perfect nap is laying forehead to forehead with me, as you firmly hold onto the hair at the nape of my neck. *this is my idea of perfection too
7.   You love hair, and I think you dream of hair! Fistfuls and fistfuls of hair to play with.
8.  A bit of naked time makes you wild! You love to do the naked baby dance before bath time.
9.  Oscar the cat is positively fascinating.
10. You make my day when I get home from work and you nearly bounce out of Daddy's arms to greet me.
11.  You have the most adorable thighs. You even got complimented on them at Barnes and Noble one afternoon.
12.  You smile just like me and Daddy, with a wide open mouth!
13.  You love Elmo.  The first time you saw him was printed on your diaper and you love watching 'The Elmo Song' on mama's phone as a treat.
14.  You can hold your own bottle and proudly hold your paci too.
15.  You are a light sleeper just like your Daddy.
16.  You make many of the silly faces your Daddy makes. Your favorite one right now is sticking out your tongue.
17. Just before you fall asleep in my arms you do this little movement with your head, just a little side to side motion, that melts my heart, it's so sweet.
18.  As I rock you at night you love to reach up and put your hand on my mouth, it is beyond sweet.
19. You are so strong, it's incredible!  And you are so proud of all of the physical achievements you make.  If I had to guess I would say you will be very athletic.
20.  You are so sweet, so pensive and so patient.  All such wonderful qualities.
21. You have the longest eyelashes.
22. I think you might just be left handed like your Pap Pap.

The list could go on and on but these are some of the treasured things I have in the forefront of my mind.  It is true that it seems like you have always been here, I think that's simply because you were meant to be here.  You are so many things Anderson, you are the key to my heart, the love of my life and you make me incredibly happy and proud.  I am one lucky mama.

everything is new

Have you heard of the theory surrounding baby mental development called, " The Wonder Weeks"?  Basically it a theory based the premise that there definitive periods in the first two years where a baby goes through great mental leaps.  There is a method to determining these said "wonder weeks" using your due date ( not the actual day baby was born) and there are 10 leaps that you can expect along the way. This leap in the mental development of your baby means that suddenly there are many changes in his head.   Essentially, it is believed that during these periods of mental leaps a baby's brain suddenly  perceives things it wasn’t capable of perceiving before. This change is so great that his entire world suddenly looks different.   Anderson's world did seem different today.  After a few nights of bedtime fussiness ( I think he was trying to find his cry....and it turns out that he does have a set of lungs after all!) everything suddenly seems new today.  He played a game of kick the blankie off with daddy.  Every time Jamie covered Anderson's legs in his bouncy chair he quickly kicked away the blanket with a proud grin.  He was full of smiles and his gaze seemed stronger then ever also his sense of recognition seemed fine tuned, he stared at me more intensely than ever before.  I strung a colorful paper bird ornament from a piece on yarn to the light above our bed.  Laying under the bird before bed tonight Anderson, while fighting off sleep, stared up at his new friend for nearly an hour, joyfully kicking the entire time.  When I picked him up to rock him and his heavy eyes closed I was certain he had finally succumbed to sleep.....but no, he opened his eyes turned his head just to take one last look at his new bird friend before drifting off. 
Happy 7 week birthday to my sweet boy, so far it has been 7 weeks of wonder for me.

baby bird

At 1:26pm on Saturday April 21st our lives changed forever and our hearts grew, so much so, that we thought they would burst.

Anderson Sutton was finally here!

He is perfectly perfect, calm, pensive, sweet beyond measure and we feel like we are the luckiest parents in the world!  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to all of our family and friends for welcoming him with such love!

unforgettable

Today I received the most amazing gift in the post.

First let me preface the arrival of this gift.  Jill, my most talented and art savvy sister-in-law, was recently involved in helping to organize a dinner hosted by none other than designer Kelly Wearster to celebrate the opening of an exhibit,  The Painting Factory: Abstraction after Warhol, at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles where she( Jill)  works.  How exciting!!!  I have been a huge fan of Kelly's work for as long as I can remember.  In fact, her first published book, Modern Glamour: The Art of the Unexpected,  is still proudly displayed on a white lacquered tray on my coffee table.  I like to think I channel a bit of her design aesthetic with everything I do.  Her fearlessness in regard to scale and her uninhibited ability to effortlessly combine color and texture inspire me. Like her, I love, (the way ahead of her time)  designer, Dorothy Draper (and secretly dream of one day visiting The Greenbrier to see her bold use of black and white stripes in person).  Kelly's affection for all things gold and gilded speaks to my design soul. For me, it was Kelly who so boldly put Hollywood Regency back on the map.  Honestly, the first time I came across her work I thought, wow, she designs what I am thinking.  What I am too afraid to do in regard to design, she effortlessly does.  She has guts and she is my design hero for that reason alone.  Kelly Wearstler doesn't hold back.

Jill and my brother Reed were in attendance at this dinner ( so lucky they are!) which was not only hosted by Kelly but was held at her LA home (her home was described by my brother as "magical").  The evening, I was told, was brilliant!  Much to my surprise, the night of the party, in the wee hours of the morning, as I struggled to keep my heavy eyelids open as I nursed Anderson ( only days old) I received an email from my brother.   It was a video clip of Kelly Wearstler congratulating me ( yes, little old me) on the birth of my son.  Wow, I thought this is a moment in my life I will always remember.

Today, I as I closed my eyes (yes, I am still so so tired) and cat napped next to my sleeping son
(did I mention that he is simply the best best baby?).  A package arrived.  As I searched the box for the return shipping address I gasped when it registered that it was from....Kelly Wearstler(!).  Jamie, my husband,  said that he could, "hear my heart beating as I opened the box".  Inside I found an absolutely breathtaking copy of Kelly's most recent book, HUE.  The book, in the most luscious shade of fuchsia,  is housed in a gorgeous canvas sleeve.  As if this story can't get any better than this, it does.  The limited edition signed copy also included a note, from Kelly to me.

Can you hear my heart beating now?


I know that some people will say it's silly to get wrapped up in the likes of celebrities,  but Ms. Wearstler, to me is so much more.  She is truly an inspiration, and at the end of the day, she may seem worlds away in LA but I must remind myself that, she too (raised in Myrtle Beach, SC) , started out like me, an east coast bird. :)

xo-
A

east coast {baby} bird's....nest

Where have I been these past 8 months??  Well, here is a glimpse at what I've been up to, getting ready for the newest member of our east coast bird's nest.  baby bird makes his debut in a mere 6 weeks, and well his "nest" is all ready for him!  I can't wait for him to see it!
Here is a list of my resources, I did so much scouting online that I wanted to share in case anyone is curious:

Crib:  Ikea Gulliver Crib
Dresser:  Vintage/ Yard Sale
Table Lamp: Vintage/ Flea Market
Ottoman: Vintage Eero Saarinen Tulip ottoman which I recovered in a slub cotton chevron fabric
Rocking Chair: Ryder Rocking Chair from West Elm ( a gift from Baby Mac's Gran)
Curtains:  West Elm Stripped shower curtain ( X2) cut and hemmed
Curtain hardware: West elm
Giraffe: Melissa and Doug

Changing Pad cover and crib sheet:  Dwell Studio/ Gio Aqua
Ceiling Fixture:  Lights Up!  Faux Bois silk, handmade in Brooklyn
Book shelf:  Ikea expedit
Mobile:  Blabla circus mobile ( gift from Gram-mama and Pap Pap)
Deer Print:  photo by Pap Pap!
Frame:  Ikea
Mini wooden London: Muji

carried away

I must be honest, I have a fear of balloons!  Isn't that silly?  I would be better off with this adorable print by lovemaki a torronto based artist.  the sentiment is sooo sweet {If you knew how much I love you  you'd faint}.  It would be a lovely gift and how sweet would it be in a nursery( you can also get it in french).  visit her equally adorable website here.   If you don't suffer from globophobia ( yes, that is the fear of balloons) like me, how fun are these giant balloons by geronimo balloon troopers?  perfect to have at a photo shoot, wedding, soiree or really just any old day!  Check them out here.


xoxo