what's in a name?

 In love with these custom necklaces found at Brevity Jewelry. Choose your name, a term of endearment, anything you'd like to keep close to your heart (a secret hideaway you share? your blog name? a special song?). One-of-a-kind necklaces hand lettered by calligrapher Crystal Kluge, and then etched into stainless steel. Once you've placed your order, Crystal will hand letter several pendant options for you and the $195 price tag includes two rounds of adjustments.
If that's a bit steep you could go for ready made sentiments at a lower $75 price but still full of charm and whimsy including Honey, Sweetheart, Babe and Love. What a fun and thoughtful gift!

gypsy life

Source: google.com.au via Karma on Pinterest

Source: j.mp via Fawn on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Victory on Pinterest

Source: daily-deals-for-moms.info via Alise on Pinterest

I have always loved the idea of a gypsy lifestyle although I do need my *stuff*; but remember gypsies had wagons to carry their *stuff* as well. The important things were carefully packed and brought from place to place; boho-chic clothing, jewels, scarves, and pillows to relax on.
That being said we have decided to stay in our hometown for one more year--renting a home--and take our time (and save a few pennies) before a big move to the coast... Santa Barbara. Love SB, but it IS expensive no matter how you do the math. Renting would be double or triple of what we would pay here and buying a house almost makes me cry comparing square footage to square footage.
The next year at my school will be one full of change which always breeds chaos, but I sort of thrive in that as well. It's fun to look back at the beginning of the school year in May and realize how far you've come and how many changes you have accepted and been a part of as well. Three more weeks for me and then husband and I are off to the Santa Barbara/Montecito area for a month and then hooking up our wagons to return to "home"once more...and now we know where that will be.

are you reading it?

If you don't already know about the much talked about "50 Shades of Grey" by E.L. James...you will. The trilogy, “Fifty Shades of Grey,” “Fifty Shades Darker,” and “Fifty Shades Freed” has taken the publishing industry by surprise with its rapid rise from a fan fiction e-novel to New York Times bestseller.
I ordered my copy after a college friend of mine included this in a recent email "...trying to keep up with yoga.  Would love to do my eyes.  Reading the 50 Shades of Gray trilogy and learning new tricks for my sex life.  Life is good." Wha??! Who wouldn't be intrigued?
In the steamy first book, the protagonist, Anastasia, is presented with a very detailed dominant/submissive contract by her love interest, Christian Grey — a devastatingly handsome, young billionaire, who just happens to be a bondage enthusiast on the side. The author E.L. — her first name is Erika--confessed she had tried out a lot of what she put in the book on her own husband…whose reaction was more on the line of “Oh, it’s going to be one of those nights again.”
Parts of the book read like a 15 year old adolescent wrote it and a bit corny to me (perhaps showing the naiveness of 21 year old Anastasia?) but don't be fooled. It's very adult and you might choose to read beneath the sheets before bedtime rather than passing the time in the carpool lane waiting to pick the kids up from school. But then again; time might pass a bit quicker if you turned a few of these pages.

a dog's life

Lola was at doggy daycare today. I picked her up at 3:30 so she missed a couple hours of fun...maybe next time. And yes; we are nuts.

peek

We are lucky enough to enjoy a few days off for spring holiday (otherwise known as Easter break...) and I had the pleasure of helping a friend learn the basics of eBay and wanted to snap a pic or two of her home with my new phone. yep. new phone (and her house is beyond easy to photograph.seriously; looks like a stylist set this up).

I decided on the "old" iphone4 to learn the ins and outs of new technology and I didn't really think Siri was necessary in my life at this point. Plus the $99 pricetag made it an easy choice.

Loving the camera, instagram, and texting is beyond easy with a keyboard. My old phone had me hitting the number buttons to get to the designated letter of the alphabet to communicate. I would complete a sentence while I would receive paragraphs from others.

Here's to learning new things and Happy Easter everyone!