Living in Abundance

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday I am of course thinking about the things I am thankful for. And I decided today that what I am most thankful for right now is Dolly Parton. Let me explain...

Because I'm happy!

As a resident of dowtown Los Angeles I am in love with Pharrell's new music video for "Happy". In the video Pharrel walks (and dances!) his way through LA involving what look to be local residents. The video has such a great genuine feel to it, and I think it speaks to what it feels like to walk the streets of my city. I think this video is a wonderful representation of LA urban culture. And if you want more, there is actually a 24 hours version you can watch here.

Confession: I love Sci Fi

I have a confession to make. I'm a bit of a sci fi geek. And at some point I'm sure I'll post about my love of Star Trek: The Next Generation (everyone shoudl watch it!). But what's on my mind right now is Pacific Rim, a movie I just watched with D one Saturday night after the Pepper went to sleep. Luckily, D and I both enjoy a good sci fi film so it's usually easy for us to agree on a movie to watch. When I first heard about Pacific Rim I was so excited to see it. It had so many things going for it: Guillermo del Toro! Charlie Hunnan! Idris Elba! And of course, giant robots fighting giant monsters! But when it actually came out the reviews were mixed. So I lost my enthusiasm. But I'm glad I still suggested we watch it the other night because I loved it!

Girls, gender colors, and princess culture

We decided not to find out the gender of our baby while we were pregnant. And it was funny to me how often people asked "but what color clothes are you going to buy for it?". Seems to me that there are lots of colors that a baby can wear that aren't pink or blue. But we as a culture seem to have certain ideas about gender and what each gender should be. But a good reminder that these things are subjective is this article which notes that until the 1940s boys were actually encouraged to wear pink and girls blue!

Caffeine

I really enjoy a good cup of English tea. I have not taken to the taste of coffee. But my mom's British colony background meant tea was a staple in our household. And a strong cup of black tea definitely gives me the caffeine jolt I sometimes need. But, D has been encouraging me to give it up for years.

People with no kids don't know

The above video is hysterical (I particularly love his impression of the smug non-parents). The Pepper is still pretty young so I can't directly relate to the comedians stories, but you don't need to be a parent long to know he is hitting on the truth. But it does make we wonder what we have in store as our little one gets older.

Favorites from around the web...

1. Who wants to join the circus? I get the diva vibe from these cool girls too.

2. These are surprisingly funny.  The Reservoir dogs one is my favorite.

3. I would love to see these in person.

4. Very moving and emotional self-portraits.

5. A great way to revisit some of these wonderful moments.

6.  This woman is my new hero. She had me at the Snoop Dogg quote.

7. What snowflakes really look like.

8. This story is adorable. I love the world that children live in.

9. Apparently I'm 56% left-brained, 44% right-brained. Take the test!

10. I'm not a Van Damme fan but I love thinking about the marketing team that came up with this.

Photo via. I'm craving an escape to the country!

My Little Square

I recently discovered a site for kid stuff called My Little Square and my Pinterest just exploded with tons of their adorable items! One of my favorite items is this little red and pink dress. I normally don't go for pink, but I like the simple design to this one. My other favorite items are...

A happy instrument

"The banjo is such a happy instrument--you can't play a sad song on the banjo - it always comes out so cheerful". -Steve Martin

Growing up I never learned to play any sort of instrument. My parents did put me into a number of arts classes but they were the visual arts. Therefore, when I married a musician and I felt there were things about his world I just didn't understand. Also I felt that I needed a hobby. So, I decided to learn to play an instrument. Enter the banjo.

Children's International

I often walk between our loft and D's studio, usually with the Pepper in tow. Over the course of a week I was approached daily by volunteers asking me to sponsor a child in an impoverished nation. Living in an urban area you learn to just walk past these people. But after a few days their persistence paid off and I couldn't say no anymore. They got e to sign up, and it's once of the best thing I've done in awhile.

How do you handle your fears?

Seeing the words "I had a still born baby" in my blog feed yesterday morning was jarring. But I really appreciate that Kate Suddes was willing to share her story on A Cup of Jo. I think it's important that people share their happy, and their sad stories. It let's us connect to each other. And hopefully for those who have been through something similar it shows they are not alone. For me though, when I read a story like this along with the sympathy, love, and compassion I feel, I also feel fear.

London calling

As mentioned here we were in London for 10 days at the end of October. The main reason was that we asked our dear London-based friends to be the Pepper's god-parents, so we of course wanted them to meet her. But it was not a vacation for us. D had a few meetings with some local people in music publishing and I worked the whole week. I luckily got approval from my company to work from London so I worked Eastern time on the weekdays. This meant I had my mornings free and then worked in the evenings. Even though it was a working trip we made the most of it!

Amazing diversity in this modern world

In this modern day global economy it can feel like people located across the globe aren't really that far away. I work with people in Uruguay, Ukraine, and Romania. And our lives are all pretty similar. We work hard on our computers relying on our high speed internet and skype to keep us connected.

So it's wonderful to see the work of photographer Jimmy Nelson. Jimmy has photographed 30 secluded and slowly vanishing tribes from all over the world in an attempt to assure that the world never forgets how things used to be.

How to spice up a conversation

 
I love the tumblr Fill the Silence. It gives you interesting little facts and tidbits that you can use when a conversation has hit an awkward silence.

Humans of New York

I discovered this website a few months ago and I am obsessed. Brandon Stanton, the photographer and blogger has really done something special.