A Kitty for our Babe

Hello friends, meet Lucca!

For Harlow's first Birthday, we got her a kitty. He is a breed called a Ragdoll, and here's a lil about their characteristics..

"Personality is what matters, and the Ragdoll is named for its temperament. The Ragdoll is supposed to be like a child's ragdoll and many will go limp in your arms and flop like a stuffed doll when cuddled. In general, the Ragdoll cat is a loving, quiet cat with a very laid back disposition. If you are looking for a very active cat or a talkative cat, a Ragdoll probably is not the breed for you, although kittens and young adults can be very rambunctious and most Ragdolls are always willing to play. Ragdolls are known for their tolerant attitudes with other animals and especially children and many will allow themselves to be dressed in doll clothes and carried around by youngsters with absolutely no resistance. They are often compared to dogs because of their friendliness and intelligence and have even been taught to play fetch.

Ragdolls are one of the largest breeds of cats, and are slow to mature physically, obtaining full growth between 3 and 4 years of age. Altered adult males may reach 15 to 25 pounds; females will weigh about 5 pounds less. The Ragdoll's fur is rabbit-like, medium long with minimal shedding."

Since this is my first go round as a cat momma (without parental guidance), I thought this would be the perfect kitty for Harlow (and J & I as first time cat owners). Li'i needed a companion too! Lucca is only 12 weeks old and already the size of our 5 year old dog. Oh, and here's a little story made me giggle ..when John showed a buddy at work Lucca's picture, the guy said "he's cool, but if I was going to get my kid a cat I'd get a kitten..." HA! Yeah, I guess he does look like a LION already! I think we have a big guy in our future! Anyhow, if I could describe him in a list of words it would look like this:

Soft

BIG

Talkative

Sweet

Always Near

Playful

Loving

Funny

Nocturnal...very very nocturnal

So far he has been pretty sweet, and yes sometimes his kitten rambunctiousness comes roaring out in the middle of the night, which I am trying to be patient with. But, this little guy never stops purring, I swear. Any kind tips on keeping them off the table (yuck) and our brand new dining table chairs would be much appreciated though!

Here are some photos of our new little guy who we all are very in love with!

 

^^Lucca's first day home, and his first few minutes meeting John.. instalove?

A Pretty Pow Wow for Harlow!

Our sweet little lady is celebrating one fantastic year full of happiness and aloha today! She is the most laid back and happiest baby around, and we are super stoked to be her momma and daddy!

This past weekend, we had a pow wow for Harlow Michele at her favorite park! It was a beautiful day complete with beautiful people. Family flew across the country from North Carolina and Texas! Some drove in from places near and even as far as Phoenix Arizona just for her party! (thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for making those trips!) Some of our favorite gifts were the memberships to the Birch Aquarium, and the San Diego Zoo! We cannot wait to explore throughout the year!

Everything at Harlow's Pretty Pow Wow was handmade with love or purchased in the USA!

Her Feather Head Piece (which she kept on for most of the party) was made with special crystals, shells and all natural elements by the very lovely and talented Janis, owner of A Tiny Arrow! We will be doing a full interview and feature of her pieces very soon!

Harlow's crocheted dress was made by a wonderful Etsy seller, LoopIt! It is so unbelieveably soft and did I mention ADORABLE?

The wish tree was made by gathering sticks in our neighborhood and putting them in a house plant we already had, the sweet wishes on the paper leaves were my favorite thing to read after the party! (John's was my favorite, which read "Daddy wishes you the best life with mommy and daddy" (all together now...awwwwwwww)

We are very lucky to have an authentic Indian Store just around the corner from our house, so many of the details were purchased there, and we even took a little on the spot lesson in how to make the arrows! John rocked at that!

I for one feel very accomplished after hosting such a beautiful little shin dig for our beautiful little gal. Hope you enjoy scrolling through these photos of her big day! Here's to another year full of joy and fun!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HARLOW MICHELE!

^^ Sparkler *1* candle

Finals

Please excuse my absence for this week, I am coming up on finals! YIKES! It has really been a minute since I had to take college level finals and going back to school is really awesome, EXCEPT for finals. If you don't already know, I started my Bachelors at The Design Institute of San Diego. The first semester has flown by as I am taking night classes. So by the time I get to class after watching my love bug all day, I'm pretty much a zombie running on a reserve tank of fuel! Looking forward to the next semester (summer) to start because the classes I will have are going to be all artsy fartsy.. totally my style! Throughout the 4 year school I will be learning everything from building codes, flooring, lighting and electrical, to color theory, furniture, decor and business. It's really a fabulous institution! I'm sure you'll be seeing more posts on Design as the years go by.

Right now in class I am hand making a book to illustrate all the design principals and elements.. I decided to use yoga poses (of course) and watercolors as my subject.

If you are interested in checking out this wonderful private design school 

there is a fabulous open house coming up!

Monday Funday

We took a trip to the feed store this past Monday, and it was pretty entertaining, and FREE! Whoop! We also stopped into Pannikin (yes, again) and a sweet little florist by our house. I like mellow Mondays like this!

^^Pannikin was Encinitas' original train station^^

^^Hummingbird Nest in a fig tree with teeny tiny eggs!^^

^^Testing this out for her Birthday present.. 

maybe he will need one?^^

Go Padres!

Okay, so let's be real here.. I'm not really a sports kinda gal. I played soccer in my younger years, and I enjoy horseback riding and surfing (when it's for the soul), but when it comes to footballs, basketballs, baseballs, I'm not a huge fan... with the exception of the Padres games. I like the outside air and the atmosphere, until people get obnoxiously drunk but that's a whole separate post in itself. Anyway, John and I have some history with Padres games. One of our first "dates" was to a Padres game, where yup you guessed it, we were put on the kiss cam! Cliche? It was cute, and made for a great memory. This weekend was our third game and somehow we always end up going on military appreciation day each year. It was really awesome this year seeing as the Coast Guard members were the stars of the show! GO COAST GUARD! Not only was it special for that reason, but most importantly it was Harlow's first game (out of the womb). She was fantastic and loved every minute! Not one fuss or cry out of her and she was even cheering and yelling with us. This is one reason we really love San Diego, beautiful weather, fun times!

^^the hotel where Harlow became Harlow.. TMI??^^

Raw Lunch, Chai Tea, and a Farmers Market

Today we ventured to some North County spots for food and more food. In Leucadia, where we mistakingly THOUGHT the Street Fair was, we grabbed a bite to eat at a lovely little place called Peace Pies. Since John and I have decided to nourish our bodies in the best way possible by committing to eating plant based meals, we really enjoyed this little hidden treasure. The only thing I missed was  my chai with coconut milk so we also cruised on down to Pannikin, which of course Harlow loved. Trust me anything with flowers, birds, grass or a great people watching view is completely her heaven..and when she's in heaven, I'm am too.

^^ hooray for Saturday!^^

 

We also popped into the Del Mar Farmers Market and then played around down at the bluffs for a bit. Harlow was adored by a sweet family of little girls who couldn't get enough of her, she showed off her strong legs and sign language to them. John had her cracking up riding on his shoulders, it's these kinds of photos I am so thrilled I capture!

 

 

^^ I call it the lorax grass,

 but it's really "Temple" or "Korean Velvet" grass^^