It's Good to Get Away

As I read some of my favorite blogs this morning, I was inspired to write a post - one I had planned to write earlier this month, but life got in the way.

Earlier this month, Steve, Lulu and I escaped to the beach - pretty silly for people who live at the beach,

but this little guy was our motivation.

KC and her family live a 6-7 hour drive from Ventura

so we made plans to meet in Capitola which is just a 2.5 hour drive for them with little Andy.

It was a 5 hour drive for us (had to stop for Lulu to run around) so we arrived late on Thursday and got in a moonlit walk.

KC, Jake and Andy weren't arriving until Friday afternoon so I did something really fun.

I met up with the Darrielle of D.D.'s Cottage and Design who I follow daily on Instagram - @ddscottageanddesign - at the flea market.

I bought a few things - my favorites are a bowl and pitcher I found for just $10.

I never tire of looking at Darrielle's house on IG so I forced her to take me there after the flea market.

It was fun to see this chippy door on her porch because she introduced me to the woman who sold it to her.

I got the grand tour - you'll notice a lot of green throughout the house.

Darrielle has great style and she turns chippy forgotten pieces into valued treasures.

I was a totally rude guest 

snapping photos

right and left.

It was fun to see, in real life, things I have admired in her Instagram posts.

I love how she incorporated fall into her beachy style with pumpkins and flowers.

An old stool and watering can look beautiful filled with seasonal greenery.

I have loved her old tub for years - why didn't my old house come with a claw foot tub?

Look at the great green cupboard reflected in the mirror

and the awesome job she did refinishing this dresser used to hold the sink.

Just to let you know that I didn't stalk Darrielle the entire weekend,

 we visited a few shops she said were "must sees",

 walked all over Capitola which is full of cute houses

Via

and ate at great restaurants.

But most important was spending time with our little guy who is full of life - it was good to get away.

Hygge

Last week I posted a picture of a plaid throw on Instagram

and I received a private message from Serendipity Loves asking if they could use my pic on a blog post titled

which I of course agreed to despite having no idea what hygge meant.

Here is my picture shared in their blog post, We Found Hygge on Instagram.

This definition came from the Oxford Dictionaries in a discussion on the 2016 Word of the Year shortlist.

The Danish blog, Skagen, with lots of easy adjectives for hygge helped me understand it best. 

Hygge descriptions talk about enjoying "life's little pleasures" - which for me is flowers in the garden

and a carefully arranged centerpiece on the table.

The words "hospitality" and "warmth" jumped out at me 

and came to mind as I created place settings for our holiday table.

Family and friends were mentioned and I think decorating using old family treasures leans toward hygge in my home.

I'm not sure if I fully understand hygge, but I think I'm on the right track.

How do you bring warmth and coziness into your home?

Northern Exposure

The purpose of our road trip was to gather with my cousins to celebrate

out paddling 3 days before her birthday

the 90th birthday of my amazing Aunt Kay.

Our rendezvous location was Fort Bragg which is nearly at the top of California

where the coastline is quite different from that of Southern California.

We stayed at a funky motel right on the ocean just a short walk to the famous Glass Beach.

We almost missed it because we were expecting a little more signage than this, but the road to the beach is under construction.

Glass Beach abounds in sea glass due to years of dumping garbage into the area - we couldn't find any sand beneath the glass.

On our hunt for Glass Beach, we passed cute cottages

with gardens that made me envious because we don't have the water for my garden to still be blooming.

We strolled through the downtown area of Fort Bragg

and my aim was to find Pippi's Longstockings.

 I had done my research and finally found a store that carries Maileg.

I had my pick of elves and other Maileg products.

But, I contained myself (and my wallet) by choosing just 2 little pixies.

I was not physically able to kayak with everyone so Steve and I drove to Mendocino which provided a blast of sunshine and color.

Charming houses - many of them are B & B's,

picket fences

and bay windows abound in the quaint coastal town of Mendocino.

So many picturesque views . . .

so little time.

We scouted out the Mendocino Hotel

where we would gather later for the birthday party.

Our getaway north with my crazy family was perfect - except for the 10 hour drive home.