Oh My God.

I have really dropped the ball. I only went on vacation for 2 and a half days and here we are more than a week later and no posts up! What is happening? Well, a lot actually, and only punctuated further by the fact that my mom was able to completely bust up her ankle and leg on monday by falling while working on a garden for a client. A surgeon had to use 2 plates and 10 screws to get her back in the right amount of pieces and now she is home resting comfortably on pain killers (I hope). I am an only child. So I've been sort of taken with that sitch.

So in an effort to catch up with life here will be a run down of things and pictures of things that are happening in my life at the moment. It is worth noting that I have the evening to myself for the first time in...years? and I am spending it virtually redecorating the house on the internets instead resting, sleeping or actually eating dinner. It feels so right though.

Ok so here goes:



The Ace Hotel and Swim Club is Awesome. I highly recommend it. Go there. Get the cheapest room that isn't anywhere near the 24 hour pool and go. And then eat and drink at their restaurant and bar. It is worth it. (You can see a lot more of my pictures on flickr.


I also love that they use these jars for everything from sugar for coffee to their homemade jam to qtips and cotton balls. I have these jars already. Does that mean I'm cool like the Ace?

Ok, so now that I'm 'home' and have some time I'm realizing that this place isn't so much mine as a beige box that I live in with people I love. I do not love this place. So I'm itching to do something to it. I feel like John Robshaw could help:


Along with something stripey or, if I'm just unabashedly looking for something fun and inexpensive that the kids can spill on and is better than the beige wall to wall, I'm considering this. I know it's wrong, but I'm hoping it's so wrong it's right. Also there's a PB close enough that I could go get that tomorrow and cover up the beige wall to wall.

I'd like to take a moment to express that I am really jealous of anyone on vacation, especially if they're in Europe. And somewhat related I want to mention that I get quoted as 'joliet' (my last name, did you know that?) in this sweet blog post about what France can teach you about vacation. It made me feel like a bit of an expert on the subject.

Also I was reading Nick Olsen's blog and he mentioned the Lalanne sheep. I've been noticing more often that people in the states are savvy to Claude and Francois Lalanne and wanted to take the opportunity to mention (show off?) that, yeah, totally my family. Claude is my grandma's sister and they are both artists and that whole side of my family has a pretty amazing aesthetic that has always inspired me to strive to live a life that is beautiful and interesting every day. This is something I'm trying to re-anchor myself to since I've been so stressed and busy lately.

I had more to tell you but I need to go to bed. I'll update more (maybe) in the next week along with a couple more before and afters.

good night my lovelies.