CohabiTOT – living stylishly with children

When I was 30, my wonderful friend indoctrinated me to her philosophy: on your 30th you’re allowed to celebrate for 30 days! I still thinks it is one of the smartest things I have ever heard.  Yes, I am birthday girl and I do like to be spoiled and I do like to celebrate. And yes, I see nothing wrong with celebrating for  whole a  month. Especially since I have 3 kids under age 5 and there are certainly no guarantees that they will actually comply on the given day.  Well I must say, for the most part I had superior compliance!

And I gave myself an actual allowance for the day! $85.00 seem appropriate after my mishap at the beginning of the week. So here’s what I did: Keep reading →

Early Sunday morning I got a ticket for not stopping at a stop sign. I mean there was no traffic and I was just zoned. I guess there are no breaks for tired moms! Anyway- I keep thinking what a waste of money; and I can’t seem to let it go! Doesn’t everyone have their wish list of things they want to buy and then something stupid crops up and sets up back.  Well I know in the scheme of things that it is not that much money but here’s my list of 10 other things I much rather spend $85.00 on:

1.  The cool new orange desk from Ikea- perfect scale for my son’s room.

2. These adorable sundresses from OliveandOllie for my girls!

3. A set of prints for my girl’s room by Corid. This one says believe—never to early to instill self-confidence!

4 Tickets to see the current exhibit at the ICP

5.  Buckets from Home Depot–we love to organize our toys with these. Check back to see how I spiff them up!

6.  Curtain panels for my dining room from Ikea

7. New socks for everyone in my family; because who knows where they all went and I am tired of trying to match them!

8. Dinner for all of us at Smashburger–that actually only costs $30.00 (we got the ordering down; which means we can go out for icecream too!)

9.  As many fresh lilacs as I could buy.

10. And of course:  Starbuck’s soy lattes to keep me going.

What would you spend $85.00 on?

My son brought home a sweet pinwheel from school last week. Again such a simple thing that gives so much pleasure.  And they make great mobiles too.

The two above are fantastic! Whether done with paper or fabric they don’t seem too complicated.  There’s a great tutorial here if you are the DIY type. Mamax has so many fabulous papers ones to choose from!

I always suggest making or buying mobiles for the ceiling. Crib mobiles need to be disassembled at about the 6 month mark and that just seems too fleeting.

No time to waste; it’s  a great time of year to open the windows and see  the pinwheels work their magic.

To me; parenthood doesn’t get much better than this.  The above is sweet drawing I found on flickr; when looking for my usual Friday find. I stopped at this even though it doesn’t have to do with interior design.

It’s just reminded me to slow down a little. I try to get my gang out every day and I am probably over ambitious. I am at a hard stage–18 month old twins who run/crawl in opposite directions and a 4 year old boy who likes to go the playground every day! For sanity sake I have to pick him my playgrounds wisely. Otherwise K is going down the slide head first and L is stuck in tunnel and I am having heart palpitations.

So, I am trying to have simple backyard fun. The above reminded that sometimes it can just be sweet and simple.  But it would be unlike me not  to say bring out your camera and perserve the day and maybe even make a book.

My client’s daughter recently asked for a turquoise room.  Her mom was skeptical at first, wondering how turquoise would fit into their beautiful historical home. But like most moms, she decided that she was going to let her daughter have this one…not every battle is worth having! After all, paint is the easiest of all things to change. And it helped that I was all for the idea.

The thought in the back of my mine was when did 9 year olds suddenly become so design savvy. Did she really know that turquoise was Pantone’s color of 2010! Probably not–but maybe she is seeing the trend in fashion.

Not wanting this bedroom to be out of vernacular with the rest of the house, I advised that it would be best to keep the furnishings traditional. We could add the turquoise with bedding and pillows.  And I suggested we throw red into the mix to keep it fun.

Above is my initial story board, it’s a work in progress.  It has to meet the distinct opinions of both mother and daughter. The details as follows (you can click on the above pics to make them larger):

The bed’s decorative element is a tufted headboard fabricated with a crisp linen.

The bedding is from John Robshaw with a traditional trellis pattern in the funky turquoise color.

The pillows are an  updated  damask  pattern with turquoise and red.

The desk is traditional updated in with a fashionable red finish.

The chandelier has beads of turquoise that tie in all together.

The chair is an updated wing chair with fabric to be determined.

So what do you think; do I hear a good compromise?

So here’s my ode to the apple! Enzo Mari knew something I hadn’t really realized this week. A simple red apple can make everyone happy.

Why you ask? Because my  18 month old daughters will happily sit and eat whole apples down to the core. And happy babies makes for a happy mom! ( did I mention that it takes them about 1/2 hour to eat them–and I  can actually read a whole magazine article)

The poster of La Mela will brighten any room. So an apple a day- It’s a good thing!

( Photo – Domino Magazine)

The Cherry blossom trees are in full bloom! They are absolutely gorgeous in New Jersey.  A graphic designer in LA created these simple, clean and fun prints. I am especially fond of the grey version–so serene.

They are 8″x 10″ with room for framing and only $16.00!  At the price you could order 9 and make a lovely grid of original art on one wall. Or she will order do custom sizes and custom colors. Check out all her other cheery designs too.

I know I say this alot–but I absolutely LOVE this image. It’s pure genius and  what a great way to perserve your childrens’ art. Don’t be fooled it’s not wallpaper–the artist painted the frames with  black craft paint. She used sharpies to do the detail work. Simply spectacular.

My own version is spinning around in my head; with 3 kids I’ll have enough art to fill a room and more! If you want a head start  on the frames; Land of Nod makes this wallpaper.

My mind has been on chic  and stylish bunnies! So I hopped on over to the what’s cool section at ducduc to see what’s happening. I found a new link to a Swedish Company-PlaySam. The Swedes understand that good design is just as important as function.

I know my girls would love this rocking rabbit!  Though at approximately $170.00; I will have to think seriously about purchasing it. Tell me what you think in the comments —is  it a must have?