Love at first listen: Zee Avi, Frosty the Snowman

On my way home from work today, I was tuned in to a local college radio station called 89.1 The Wood, when "Frosty the Snowman" began to play.  Admittedly, this has never been one of my favourite Christmas songs, but when I heard this version, it was love at first listen.  I had no clue who the singer was, but luckily I had my handy dandy iPhone available (for the record, I was safely stopped at a red light) so I was able to *tag* the song using my Shazam app. and discovered the remake was by Zee Avi from the album This Warm December, Vol. 2

 I'm sure you will love it as much as me...happy listening!

Paris Je t'aime!

I must confess...I have a crush on Paris.  My love for all things France began in Middle School when I was introduced to the language of romance.  
My husband and I are actually planning a trip there soon (hopefully this summer for our anniversary).  We shall see.  In the meantime, we are going to dine at an authentic French restaurant in St. Louis today called La Bonne Bouchée.  I hope you have a fabulous weekend too. À bientôt!

Source: weheartit.com via Paula on Pinterest

Source: m.weheartit.com via Paula on Pinterest

Source: youtu.be via Paula on Pinterest

Source: 29.media.tumblr.com via Paula on Pinterest

Rainy days and Mondays....

Source: None via Paula on Pinterest

Source: designismine.blogspot.com via Paula on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Paula on Pinterest

Source: tinywhitedaisies.tumblr.com via Paula on Pinterest

Source: weheartit.com via Paula on Pinterest

It's a rainy Monday here in St. Louis...and I like it that way.  Rain just seems to make everything a little bit more romantic...don't you think?

Life is short...eat dessert first.

Since my last post, I joined Pinterest and have been happily pinning lovely things ever since.  Right now I should be packing for a trip to Kentucky, but instead I'm drooling over all of the desserts I've found...including these amazing Caramel Frappucino Cupcakes.

Source: pixiecrust.blogspot.com via Paula on Pinterest

For the recipe, head over to Pixie Crust blog.  Happy baking! :)

Music Monday: Fall edition: David Bazan, the Album leaf, & Firekites

 It's the first Monday of the season...seems like a pretty good reason to enjoy some of these wonderFall tunes. ;)

Sergio Membrillas

Hello, Fall

Sergio Membrillas

weathergirlshop

Dolan Geiman

Lieke Romeijn 




Happy first "official" day of Fall, ya'll.  Cardigans, pumpkin lattes, tights, hay rides, and gorgeous golden trees with apples ripe for the pickin'.   I don't know about you, but I can't help falling in love with this season.

It's a good day for a birthday...

Lissy Elle

Eliza Adam

Rifle Paper Company

Amy Atlas

Country Living

From left to right: Aryn, Sam, me, Britt

and today is mine...I'm twenty-nine! I will be celebrating tonight and this weekend by: eating yummy Nepalese food (my new fave) from Everest Cafe, getting free cheesecake from My Daddy's Cheesecake, going to the balloon glow in Forest Park, finally seeing Midnight in Paris, and enjoying the world's best banana split from the Fountain on Locust.  Happy birthday to everyone who was born today...and a very merry un-birthday to everyone else! :)

Music Monday: Of Time and Tide, Hiding May be the Death of us all

My favorite band from St. Louis, Of Time and Tide just released their highly anticipated new album, "Hiding May be the Death of us All" (available on itunes, amazon, etc...) and ya'll should seriously check it out.  If you like Circa Survive, Thrice, or Moving Mountains, you'll definitely dig this!

Wednesday's words of wisdom: Make art of it all

Oh. my. gosh! I love every single thing about this lovely piece by Amy Rice!  

"Tea" G.I.F. A puppy tea party

Did you know that August 26th is national dog day? Well, it is...(although, every day is national dog day if you ask me).  In honor of man's best friend, here are some "paw"sitively adorable pictures I found of some sweet pups in Britain having a tea party for charity.  Happy Friday! :)

Tea for Blue Cross Animal Charity Photos by: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty images Europe

Wednesday's words of wisdom: Great love

Inspired by one of my all time favourite quotes by Mother Teresa: "We can do no great things, only small things with great Love." A lovely polaroid by Parker Fitzgerald.

Dogs have a new trick: helping kids read

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it is too dark to read." ~Groucho Marx

Mostly everyone knows that dogs are good for your health...but did you also know that they can help kids learn how to read?  This story melted my heart and if you're a lover of books and dogs, I'm sure it'll melt yours too!

Happy reading from Maya & me :)

Music Monday: Summer Skin

Back to school. Back to work. I'm a teacher, all I need are minds for molding.  ;) This song by Death Cab is one of my favourites to listen to when saying so long to sweet summer days.  Enjoy!

Live with more books than you read.

Today is National Book Lovers Day. I happen to be a book lover, so I obviously agree with this quote about owning as many books as possible:

"He should live with more books than he reads, with a penumbra of unread pages, of which he knows the general character and content, fluttering round him. This is the purpose of libraries.... It is also the purpose of good bookshops, both new and secondhand, of which there are still some, and would that there were more. A bookshop is not like a railway booking-office which one approaches knowing what one wants. One should enter it vaguely, almost in a dream, and allow what is there freely to attract and influence the eye.

"To walk the rounds of the bookshops, dipping in as curiosity dictates, should be an afternoon's entertainment. Feel no shyness or compunction in taking it. Bookshops exist to provide it; and the booksellers welcome it, knowing how it will end."

--Economist John Maynard Keynes, as quoted in a Canberra Times piece headlined "Bookshops about more than just purchasing."

Unfortunately many children around the world do not have the luxury of being able to live with more books than they can read...some of them may not have any books at all. But an inspirational company called Out of Print  exists to try and change that.  They make adorable shirts like the one below featuring a classic and fashionable book cover (To Kill a Mockingbird happens to be one of my all time favourites).  For each shirt sold, they donate a book to a child through their partnership with Books for Africa.  

$28 shop here 

If you don't have extra cash to buy a cute T, you can still make a difference by "liking" Out of Print on Facebook. For each "like" they receive, they will donate one book to a child as well.  That's a great way to celebrate national book lovers day if you ask me. :)

"Tea" G.I.F. Sea for two

In honor of shark week, here are some tea things inspired by sea things.  Happy Friday! :)

Sea dream, blue green froggie mug

by: claycreaturecomforts for etsy.

JAPAN RELIEF EFFORTS - Blue Sea Grass Tea bowl

by: Artenchantedstudios for etsy.

100% of proceeds of the sale (minus fees & shipping) will go to earthquake relief efforts.

Mini Round Dish with Sea Horse or Conch Shell Design

by: zinniadesignstc for etsy. 

Perfect for holding tea bags

Sea shell textured Tea Bowls (set of 4)

by: TGRpottery for etsy

Gorgeous Sea Green Squid Octopus Teapot 

by: skybirdarts for etsy.

Wednesday's words of wisdom: Devour

I adore this linen tea towel by Studiopatro.  May the rest of your week be devoted to devouring delicious delicacies like the ones above.  :)

Hungry for change?

FEED Foundation Promo from //kneeon on Vimeo.


Head on over to the FEED shop to buy a bag like the one below and help change a child's life.

This is probably my favourite bag of all for two reasons. 1. It was made by deaf Kenyan women and I teach deaf children and 2) Not only does this purchase support women and deaf Kenyan artisans, but the donation provides nutritious school meals to two Kenyan children for an entire year. 
 Happy shopping! :)

Music Monday: Moving Mountains: Waves

Photo by: Ethan Luck

Moving Mountains is an ambient rock band from NY. "Their Triple Crown Records debut, Waves, harkens back to the early 2000's and finds inspiration from bands like Sunny Day Real Estate & Further Seems Forever." I saw Mov Mou preform at a smaller venue in St. Louis earlier this year, and they were amazing live, so I was beyond excited when I found out they will be joining Thrice on their fall tour (along with La Dispute)!  If you haven't yet, you can buy pre-sale tix here.  

Below is a video of them preforming a song from their new album. Happy listening & if you're in the St. Louis area, I'll see you at the show in October!

"Tea" G.I.F. Owl have a cup of that...

 Vintage tea/coffee cups with owls from etsy...happy Friday!

Cheeky red coffee/tea cup by PixieGoes2Market
$6.00

6 owl cups hanging on tree branches by LuRuUniques
$25.99

Vintage owl cup by The Vintage cup
$8.00

Vintage Enesco Ceramic Owl Creamer & Sugar bowl by linneamarie
$14.00

Vintage brown owl tea set made in Japan by TurtleHillShop
$65.00

Eat more ice cream, be happy :)

One of my mottos in life has always been this: Eat more ice cream, be happy...& guess what?  According to this scientific study, it's true! "Eating ice cream really does make you happy. Scientists have found that a spoonful of the cold stuff lights up the same pleasure centre in the brain as winning money or listening to your favourite music."  Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go visit my bffs Ben & Jerry. :)

Lovely photo by: D. Sharon Pruitt

Made in the shade

"Music, if it is an accident, may be one of the greatest miracles of them all, as beautiful as romance, or color, or the power of water." ~ Donald Miller.


It's a fact. I love music. I also love lovely handmade/romantic pieces of art relating to music, like this  mixed media piece by  Dolan Geiman:

Made in the Shade Guitar Collection (Small & Med)

24" x 18" x 2" (small)
36" x 24" x 2" (medium)
recycled household paint, salvaged wood and found materials

each with unique materials 

  

Mixed Media Collections

Dolan Geiman Original Mixed Media Collections are limited-edition and ongoing mixed media series. Each mixed media work is handmade and unique, featuring different materials, paint colors, or subtle changes to the composition. Each collection is available made-to-order via the online shop at any time

Music Monday: Thrice: Major/Minor

I am beyond excited that one of my favourite bands "Thrice" is releasing their next album, "Major/Minor" on 9/20/11...(5 days after my birthday!!) Ahem...birthday fairy, if you're reading this, please take note. :)

To download a free song off of their new album, click the link below.
http://soundcloud.com/vagrantrecords/yellow-belly-1

http://www.thrice.net/

"Tea" G.I.F. Strawberry Lemonade & Blueberry Bliss Rooibos

Happy Friday!  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!  Mine is off to a great start thanks to the delicious Teavana tea I just enjoyed.  It was a blend of Blueberry Bliss & Strawberry Lemonade Rooibos...a perfect combo for summer (especially when served cold).

"P" coffee/tea cup & white shirt from Anthropologie www.anthropologie.com
Ring: vintage
All Saints aesa stud earrings www.us.allsaints.com
OPI nail polish in big hair, big nails: www.opi.com

Strawberry Lemonade Herbal Tea at Teavana. Description: 

Irresistibly fragrant strawberries infused with tart lemon slices creates a new twist on an old favorite! This wonderful herbal tea is the delicious strawberry lemonade you've been waiting for. Great hot or iced, it also is a great choice for kids, since it is caffeine-free.
www.teavana.com

Blueberry Bliss Rooibos Tea at Teavana. Description: 

The distinctive tart flavor of blueberries married to the fresh citrus taste of green Rooibos make this tea pure joy in a cup. It's also delicious mixed with other Rooibos or white teas for a blended treat!


http://www.teavana.com/