William's Walk

On one of William's Walks last week we decided to snap a few pictures of spring. It's happening! After having spent most of my grown life in the northern reaches of the Midwest it feels incredible to have spring this early in the year. I'm used to having snow showers in April. And it nearly sleeted on our wedding in Duluth at the end of May. That's what I'm used to. Not warm sunshine and spring beauties peeking through mid-March! But I love it! Just love it!

XOXO,
Jewels

Friday Favorites

1. Hand-cut fancy gumdrops by fahrenheitgoods
2. Sea foam Green Teddy Bear from seventytwostitches
3. Vintage Tea for Two from sushipotparts
4. Bridge Printed Canvas shoulder bag by aftershowershop

Oh, he's so happy this morning--all smiles and giggles. After a few days of "constipated hell" this is a welcome change! It's the little things, I assure you. We have a lunch date in Manayunk (manna-yunk) with good friends this afternoon--we're going to enjoy the sunshine and the ridiculously warm weather with our boys. I'm pulling out the skirts and ballet slippers. So excited!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

XOXO,
Jewels

Granola Bars

Happy St. Patty's day! William and I are decked out in as much green as we can be without being "too much." And, yes, you know what "too much" looks like. It's garish and frightening. And although it has nothing to do with St. Patrick, I'm posting on these amazing granola bars--they're made with rolled oats and that's cousin to steel cut oats which you can get in a snazzy can with the label "Irish Steel Cut Oats"--so, maybe it could be related to St. Patty's Day. My friend up in Duluth sent me the recipe and I tried them out last weekend. Delicious! You'll never want to buy another box of store brand again. I wrapped them up in wax paper and put them in a ziplock bag for lunches. And snacks. And dessert after dinner.

Dry
3 C old fashioned oats
1 C crushed nuts
3/4 C seeds
1 C dried fruit

Wet
2/3 C brown sugar
1/2 C honey
1/2 t cinnamon
dash salt
4 T butter

Toast oats, nuts, and seeds in a 400 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. You'll need to stir a time or two! Move dry ingredients to a bowl and mix in dried fruit. Add wet ingredients to a small pot. Heat over medium heat until the mixture boils for 2 minutes. You'll have to keep stirring it to avoid burning. Remove from heat and add 2 tsp vanilla. Mix in sauce w/ dry ingredients. Coat a 9 x 13 pan w/ oil (I used a 8x8 pan and it worked just as well). Spread granola with spatula. Cover and let sit for one hour. Cut into bars and wrap in plastic wrap to keep soft.

PS. I really, really appreciated your thoughts on my blog Identity Crisis the other day. I can't tell you how affirming and encouraging it was. I have a few ideas up my sleeve--they just need a little more time! Thank you again!

XOXO,
Jewels

Identity Crisis

Orange cranberry muffins--in an effort to add variety to Andrew's breakfast fare I'm trying out different muffin/scone recipes. These were tasty!

So, I'm in an interesting place right now creatively. In relation to my blog. I feel like I want to do something more with it--make it a vehicle for... something. What that something is, I'm not sure, but something more than it is right now. I know that one of my New Years resolutions was to use only my own photography--except for Friday Favorites of course--but another resolution was to give it a little more content. This is where you guys come in. I realize that one of the reasons I have a blog is so I can share the lovely bits of life. But, it's also a place for me to reach out and say hello to YOU! I've met so many wonderful friends through this blog and I want to nourish those relationships and potential relationships. How do I share? What do you like to see? What would you want more of? I think we all go through a "blog identity" crisis every once in a while. We want to give, but not sure what. We want to engage, but not sure how. We want to show our world, but not sure why. Yeah, a little heavy for a Monday morning, but I would really, really love to hear your thoughts. Any thoughts!

Okay, I'm going to go make a pot of tea and have a muffin. Sending you heaps of love!

XOXO,
Jewels

Friday Favorites

1. Cream by SusannahTucker
2. Blue Feather Scarf from WhiteMoth
3. Kimono Style Robe from plumbprettysugar
4. Little Chickadee Earrings from lulubugjewelry

It's stopped raining so the little babe and I are off on our morning walk! Sending you guys love and hopes of a fabulous weekend!

XOXO,
Jewels

Nursery

Good morning! I wanted to give you a peak into William's nursery--forgive the poor photography--it's been a hard space to capture. We have a one bedroom apartment so his space is tucked away in a quiet corner of our living room. Trying to make it feel like a distinct space was tricky--but, thanks to the genius of IKEA and a little imagination I was able to cobble something together. The bottom right photo is my great grandmother's nursing chair covered in a sheep skin rug. I have all of his board books stacked on top of our mini suitcases and in my mother's magazine basket.

Quiet Post

Quiet post ~

Granola

A few weeks ago Amy posted this scrumptious recipe on her blog! Wow--I've tried quite a few granola recipes and have had both extremes: soupy, buttery mess to drier than dust oatmeal. Yeah, it didn't matter how much honey I added or didn't. But, this one was simple and allowed for tweaks here and there without completely destroying it. It's fabulous with yogurt and dried cherries!

Friday Favorites

1. Double Chocolate Cookie by LaCodaGlutenFree
2. Vintage Cutwork Linen Napkins from RedHenStudios
3. Ivory Flower and Pearl shoe clip from No114
4. Pale Pink by AmandaRaeK

I'm pulling all of my Golden Mum paper out into the living room, exacto knife, ruler and cutting mat, too. Time to make a mess. My job is to create pretty messes, though. I had a girlfriend walk into my studio the other day and marvel at how lovely it all looked. I saw heaps of paper scattered about, ribbon strewn across the table and in clumps in the corner, books stacked on top of books and thought "she's crazy--this isn't lovely, it's a disaster!" But, if you didn't actually observe how unorganized and inefficient the mess is, it could be pretty. Maybe.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Sending love,
Jewels

Spring has arrived

During our last ice storm the crab apple tree outside our window lost a large limb. My mother, ever the clever one, suggested cutting some of the smaller branches and forcing the blossoms. I really had no idea what I was doing and had no idea of the outcome--but I cut enough to fill three vases and waited. And waited. And waited some more. I honestly thought I had ugly branches stuck in water all over my apartment. Then last week the buds started to open and yesterday the blossoms appeared! Spring has arrived!

Weekend

Happy Tuesday! William is fussing behind me, we need to go out for our morning walk, but I wanted to post these pictures from our weekend really quick. We soaked up as much sunshine as we could. On the agenda today: shortbread, yoga, baby play date and a trip to the post office!

Sending love,
Jewels