In the last couple of weeks, I've had some conversations that have plunged me into my good old navel-gazing mode. I'm going to babble on for a while today, so don't feel obliged, or you might want to pour yourself a hot beverage and settle in... "I always feel like I have to be perfect," a friend told me quietly the other day, matter-of-fact, and I bobbled my head in wholehearted agreement. For as long as I can remember, there's been a perfect version of me lurking in the back of my mind - ... Read more

Today is M's and my 8th wedding anniversary. We'd been together a long time before we tied the knot, and I always think of this ring above as symbolic. The story: in my early twenties when I was living in Japan, I was flipping through a magazine when I saw a Tiffany's ad and stopped mid-flip. As you know, I'm not a jewelry person. I have weird allergic reactions to most metals and though I love beads and baubles, I don't think I'm very good at accessorizing so I've never really tried. In ... Read more

Seven? Wasn't it yesterday that I watched your gigantic eyes widen in fear and excitement at the start of kindergarten? Or just last week that you learned how to walk without me holding your hands, without me hunched over as you toddled so precariously? Surely, it can't be eighty-four months since you became a real, breathing, human in my arms? Seven. You seem at once so fragile and brazen. I see glimpses of the teenager you will become, but you still smell faintly of that powdery sweet ... Read more

Happy Friday! That little illo up there is something I did ages ago, but thought it had a bit of a retro feel to go with my giveaway. And the winner of the retro fabrics and Lotta book is...#5, Liza Jane! She said: "I can turn any song into a song about my cat at the drop of a hat. My current fave is the one I sing in the tune of the scooby doo song." Awesome talent! Congrats Liza Jane, you should have received an email from me already. Here are a few of my favorite comments, though they ... Read more