guess what? i turned 30 last saturday! i was seriously thinking that i would vaporize when i turned 30, but i am still here. more alive than ever before. to be honest i don’t feel any older. i feel wiser. a little more wiser than i was at 29. maybe because i managed to read four books in one week. we were on vacation in the deep south visiting family. with grandparent help i was able to catch up on reading. my book pile was getting hard to look at. i read mostly business books. lord knows i need lots of business knowledge. for the last three months i have been working on something very special. you will know it when everything is ready. pinky promise.

i told you a while back i would show you pictures of my new bike. my amazing man got it for me for christmas. i love this bike. every little detail is made to perfection. there is also a rack waiting to be mounted on the back. it will be perfect to carry a basket full of food. my little ladies and i are ready to load up and go to a picnic at the park. we are blessed to live so close to lots of bike paths. we can ride and ride until our hearts are content. and how about this baby girl? isn’t she lovely? her little personality is sugar sweet. we can’t get enough of her.

this is the fleur made by electra bike. we are hard core fans of electra around here. ever since little k got her first electra bike i have been wishing to get one for myself. wish granted!

spring is here and gardening boxes are waiting to be tended to. be back shortly!

i believe it is time for a little update on our food journey. we have been labeled everything. from vegetarians, to vegans, to crazy. we have learned so much though. i confess i have become neurotic about food. for the last month we (meaning the adults) have lived on a diet based mostly on plants, nuts, grains (read rice), and very small quantities of fish. at the 30 day mark we went to our family physician to do a complete blood count. i wanted to be sure we were not doing any damage to our bodies. the results came in the next day and everything looked great. our doctor was very encouraging. just a little background info for you. last year my 36 year old (skinny and handsome) husband was told (not by our family physician) he needed to be on a cholesterol medication. i immediately told him, not a chance. and we began changing our diet then. just before the new year as i told you, we watched forks of knives. the evidence is very compelling and it reassured me we were doing the right thing by saying no to drugs and changing the way we eat. in case you are new to my blog, let me say, science is home to me. let’s see, my degree is in cell and molecular biology, i have interned at the national institutes of health (in a neuroscience lab), and i read things like nature. in other words, i am a scientist disguised as an artist. for me science is real. but, i do not believe that medication is the answer to everything. in the name of profit medicine and science as a whole deceives us far too often. in my husband’s case, 30 days on a plant based diet lowered his cholesterol enough to put him in the lower end of normal range. and to think his doctor’s first option was to prescribe medication. i don’t know what you think, but something is broken in today’s society.

and so the quest for plant based meals began. it is not new to me that heat denatures protein, duh. and so i began searching for ways to eat more raw food. let me tell you, that’s a whole new world and breed of people. after a couple of weeks of raw foods we were craving our warm denatured food. so i cooked up vegan recipes (some delicious, some not even the dog wanted to eat). i found myself in the midst of an ocean of information. mostly conflicting information. all we wanted was to eat well and eat real food (read raw or minimally processed). looking back on the last month, it makes me happy to know we did not cave to substituting things like cheese for vegan cheese. just the though of it makes the want to puke. in recipes calling for cheese i either omitted it or added a small amount of real cheese. one week into this new lifestyle i began missing my morning egg. i didn’t think twice about having eggs again. so far i have not missed red meat or milk. this journey has been hard. the hardest being responsible for feeding two families. one family eats a lot of plants, the other eats meats and cooked veggies. i don’t care what any documentary says, i will not take away a whole food group from my children’s menu. although i entertained the thought briefly. at the end of the day, an intuitive mother knows best. and it is based on that conviction that i live by.

we have found lots of foods we enjoy. and my husband even learned to eat raw tomatoes. little k eats kale and raw beets. never thought that would happen. i remember growing up eating so many raw veggies. so it’s been fun watching k eat the same foods i enjoyed as a child. baby m eats whatever. most of her food ends up on the floor anyway.

just today we decided we don’t want to be labeled as anything. because labels are too charged. and because if we want to have a small piece of chicken. we will have it. and when we go to brazil in a couple of months, we will have some good bbq, worry not. it is all about moderation (oh wow, earth shattering) and eating fresh foods, mostly plants. the rule for meats is just one, if the meat is not raised nearby on a local farm, it’s not making it on our dinner plates. even living in a large metropolitan area, i have found no shortage of raw milk, grass fed beef, and free range poultry. fresh eggs are plentiful as well. the way we eat today is what michael pollan suggests in his book in defense of food. this is the same guy who was involved in food inc. you might also want to watch the botany of desire. interesting facts about food.

all of this rambling brings me to the picture below.  a couple of days ago my husband came home and was greeted by a pretty table setting. he looked confused and asked what we were celebrating. i told him we were celebrating today. because there is no better day to get your pretty dishes out and enjoy some good foods on them. the church we have been going to is about to kick-off a no regrets challenge during lent. this inspired me to use my best dishes. after all, who knows what tomorrow holds. i am blessed to have a beautiful family to gather around the dinner table. so, i put forth my best effort for them.

i was not trying to be too long. impossible. too much to say.

it’s about time to get the sewing machine fired up. winter (err, summer in texas) season reminds me of cozy nights and snuggles under piles of quilts. the last time i pieced a quilt was when baby m was born. you can see below her quilt is all done. well, it has been ready for a long time and i am just now getting around to posting it. isn’t it so pretty? i love this fabric line so much that i am making a queen size quilt for little k’s bed. oh, i can’t wait to decorate her room. if my vision comes to life, it will be a very fun room. this nest here is getting to be more and more like i want for it to be.

for those of you who love to sew, don’t be afraid of quilting (or like me, piecing a quilt top). i know it may look daunting, but it is a very fun project. baby m’s quilt was not a long project. i took me a few days to cut the circles and the sewing was done in just two days. yeah, i traced each circle by hand and cut by hand. once i was done cutting i came across the go baby! cutter. dang it. could have saved me many hours. once circles were all cut, i pieced the three different sizes one on top of the other. then stitched the biggest circle on top of the white fabric squares. after circles were sewn on white squares i pieced the squares together. see really easy. i didn’t have a pattern for this. just took some measurements and went from there. now, the actual quilting part was done by my trusty quilting lady. that my friends could have taken a million years for me to do by hand. it was worth every penny because she did a beautiful job on the quilting. look at the back (pink) of the quilt. amazing, huh?

enough talking and back to sewing. got to finish up k’s quilt top today so i can send it off for quilting. i don’t know what i would do if i couldn’t create/ make something everyday. it is very fulfilling to see finished projects around the house.

just when you think i fell off the face of the earth, i show up to say hello. this time with some images of our home. i am trying, i am trying. these newly constructed homes can be a major challenge to decorate (glad to have a home though so, i am not in any way complaining). but our old little bungalow had so much character and we didn’t need a whole lot to make it lovely. this house is a different story. we are trying to make it look different than everything else you see around these parts. i have noticed time and again, when people walk in they are happily surprise to see white walls. we had to pay extra for the builder not to paint the house beige. so glad. beige is not my friend. and in this area is all you see. you can’t even walk in someone’s house and say, oh, we have beige walls too! yawn…

my new friends seem to like that i didn’t go to any particular store and said, can i have this living room please? and just transplanted their catalog to our address. i am not an expert in decorating but for me, so much of it is about finding things in unexpected places. or mixing old and new, store bought and handmade, expensive with cheap (that doesn’t look cheap, of course…aside from my fake peacock…he looks cheap and fake, but i like him). in this post, i will make some notes of where i found the different items in this room.

the other day i was going through some of my sewing boxes and pulled out the embroidery hoop below. the embroidery had been stashed away for years. i added the bunting flags and hung it on the wall by the front door. it’s a happy surprise and an inexpensive touch. the little baby below is mine. i like to keep her around. i love how she matches the decor.

the lamp was the first thing i bought after we moved in. two reasons, one it is called meryl, the other is that i love the modern arched look. it is a monster though. but, it adds nice contrast in front of the old china-cabinet-turned-bookcase (see unexpected). the vintage wire baskets were found long ago during my springfield antiquing days (i miss it so!). the wire chairs, in case you are not familiar with designers, are vintage harry bertoia side chairs (thanks miriam for letting me have these). little metal accent table, found at a garage sale, $5. does it look similar to this one, or am i crazy? the awesome pouf was made by moi. i have to show you the other one i made.

yes, finally big tall walls to hang my photography, the native brazilian artwork, and other things we love. i had no plan here. it was a matter of collecting all of the stuff i had and start nailing the walls. do you love it? i do! the extra long white curtains (127″ in length) are from ikea. i used a double rod from pottery barn teen with four panels on the front and 4 panels on the back.

decorating is my own happiness project. our friends tend to smile when they walk through the doors as well. one friend has told me many times she would like to live in this room.

the sofa was a present from my dad. urban outfitters doesn’t have it in this green anymore. for a long time i thought it was a huge mistake to have asked my dad to buy it for me. but, it could not have married a more perfect wall.

the end tables belonged to my husband’s grandparents. they were refinished and stained a darker color and i also changed the knobs. please look over the toy-chest-coffee-table. not a fan, but it will do for now. also, no more glass on frames. the glare makes it a nightmare to photograph. from now on photographs will be mounted on foam core and just placed inside the frames.

i hope you enjoyed this little peek into our home. more to come soon…ish…

tchau!

oh wow, hi there 2012! i heard you are going to be a very great year. so, here’s to all of  the many achievements you have in store for us!

what’s a new year without some resolutions? right? i am here to report i followed through with one of the many resolutions i set for myself last year. this was a given as nature was the one in control. baby m was born, there was no way to fail. but, i believe it should be enough and make up for all other failed attempts to stick with something or some change. however, this is a new year and the slate is clean once again. and clean we will be. starting today we are going to begin the process of removing most animal products from our diets. and hopefully achieve a balanced diet that is not solely dependent on animal meat. it will be baby steps. we are planning this for adults in the house only. as they say though, children learn by modeling. it will be hard. but, we love a challenge. i don’t plan on flooding my blog with daily updates on how good/bad, easy/hard it is. but every month or so i would like to note here our progress. we have many personal and health related reasons to make the change. the last push was inspired after watching forks over knives. trust me, my vegetarian friends are already making fun of me. which is all fine because they endured me making fun of them for not eating meat. now it is their turn to have a laugh at my expense. i guess, never say never, has never been more true than now. ha! and oh, and we have no plans on joining PETA or stop talking to people who eat meat. just a heads up!

so, for a very happy and prosperous 2012 we ate greens and black eyed peas. it was so delicious we all (including the small ones) had seconds. this recipe was cooked in my new french oven…courtesy of santa. i am waiting for my other gift to arrive. it was much too big for his slay. thank you santa!

here is the recipe for you…

3 cups of soaked and drained black eyed peas (peas were soaked in water the night before)

2 medium carrots

6 cups of vegetable broth

1 tablespoon of cider vinegar

1 bunch of collard greens (remove stalks then chop the leaves)

2 medium yellow onions chopped

6 cloves of garlic minced

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 stalks of celery chopped

kosher salt to taste

in a medium french oven or pot heat olive oil, add onions, garlic, celery, and carrots. cook until onions are translucent. add broth, peas, and vinegar, and salt to taste. bring it to a boil. let it boil for 5-10 minutes than reduce the heat. cook until peas are tender. add chopped greens and let simmer for 20 minutes of so. serve and enjoy.

i wish you the best year yet! happy 2012!

overwhelmed with happiness. oh hello there! how long has it been since i fed my blog? humm, a million years. poor blog has been hungry. how are you all getting through this magical season? we have had much fun decorating the house. i must say christmas season in texas is nothing like in missouri. just today we were wearing shorts. this reminds me of my childhood in brazil. i could never understand why the christmas movies showed people wearing winter coats and scarves while i was prancing around in my havainas sandals. nothing to complain though. it feels great being warm again.

speaking of scarves, mr deer needed a new accessory to accompany his posh crown. i looked through my closet and found a suitable scarf for him. and lights, and ornaments. what’s not to love about him?

the living room is looking festive. this year i ditched every bit of traditional and went with more candy colors. i made a stocking for k and passed on her baby stocking to baby m. thank goodness i kept all of my instructions written down while i was making the stockings. the pattern was also inside an envelope labeled christmas stockings. three gold stars on my chart!

we need some wood for the fireplace. apparently i am the only one in the house who is against a real wood burning fireplace. for some reason it scares me to death. let’s just blame it on culture, get some wood, and move on. the ideal would be to get some pretty birch and leave it as decoration only. that would be perfection and everyone would win. don’t you agree?

let’s not even pretend that i plan on blogging again before christmas. however, if time allows, i will do so. as you can see the new home is taking shape. little by little i am putting my touch on everything. if we don’t meet again, i wish you a very merry christmas! and may santa bring you lots of good things!

i love interior design. i do. and i get the biggest rush when i photograph it. sharon is a great friend and a up and coming designer. great things are in story (go ahead make fun of my spelling) for her. it won’t surprise me to see her work on magazine covers in the near future. of course, i want to be the one to photograph it for her….hehe! not too long ago sharon took the big leap and opened a brick and mortar shop. i am happy we will visit her soon. no telling what awesome things she has been up to. more of sharon lovely designs to come.

1- i barely finished the costumes, 2- i barely photographed them. 3- don’t ask me how i do it, because i don’t.

our neighborhood yesterday was filled with all sorts of princesses, ghosts, cartoon characters, and parents looking for a fun time. we put together a halloween block party and i was happy to see many of our neighbors. we even had not for kids spooky juice…it was sinful.

since i have made all of k’s halloween costumes, i was not going to change course with m. k the snow white and m the bluebird.

i made k’s dress from patty young’s addison pattern. check out all of the modkid patterns. it was extremely easy to sew. i just added the red applique on the sleeves and the white collar. next time i will use more interfacing to make the collar stiffer. m’s wings came from this tutorial. so cute i want to make more!

on another note, i attended quilt market this weekend. it was so fun to meet my favorite designers. patty was there and i loved meeting her. pictures of market to come. ohh the new fabrics that will hit the stores soon. candy to my eyes!

just before we left springfield i did this little shoot. these sweet sisters had such a great time. and i had fun choosing something for them to wear. mom came with a gigantic load of matilda jane love. what’s there not to like? if you have been living under a huge rock and is not familiar with red velvet art…well, this is the brick and mortar shop of blogging super star elsie larson (really, elsie’s blog is like in the top 10 in the world….something crazy like that.) anyhow, at red velvet, vintage lives and breathes. and elsie’s sister emma makes the sweet treats for the sweet shoppe. thanks girls for letting me use the store for this little project. sending great wishes your way! also thanks aimee for letting me photograph avery and olivia!

is there really anything more beautiful than the love between mother and child? if there is, i don’t know it. i was lucky enough to capture my friend (and extra talented photographer) amy playing with her sweet rose. oh how much fun we had. amy i hope these will find you warm and cozy. i can’t wait to see you both again in november.

just changed my mind.))