The Outside & In

The historic Castillo de San Marcos

Last week we spent a week at the beach near St Augustine. It was wonderful and just what the doctor ordered. Although we love traveling to new places very much, this is the other type of vacation that we love – a home away from home type vacation. For seven days, we were together with no work, no school, no scheduled activities and no chores. Talk about a needed refresh.

We pretty much stay for a week at the same beach there each summer, and sometimes also go for additional long weekends or camping. What I love about coming back to the same place is that it allows us to relax, but there is so much to discover still. And not necessarily tourist attraction stuff. St Augustine is a great city on its own.

Here are some of the reasons St Augustine is one of our favorite places to visit in Florida:

The proximity. There’s something to be said about getting away to somewhere that you can quickly get to. You don’t lose days traveling to and from your destination, which means you can stay longer and enjoy. At 1 1/2 hours from home, this fits the bill!

San Marco Boulevard

The beaches and waterways. Staying on the beach and waking up to the sun rising over the Atlantic Ocean. It cannot be beat. It motivates me to actually go for a early morning runs when I am there just to be able to soak it all in and watch the birds all hanging out together for their breakfast. But even beyond the beach, there is water everywhere. It’s hard to look away as you are driving next to a sunset on the intercoastal or over the Bridge of Lions heading into town.

Early morning on Crescent Beach

There is a community there outside of the touristy stuff. We tend to enjoy visiting places that actually have a culture and a community outside of the tourist attractions, and St. Augustine is definitely that. You can see that in all the local shops and restaurants that abound. They have an awesome farmer’s market at the Amphitheater on Saturday mornings chock full of locals (if you have never been, go). There are even several schools all over the places we visit, which shows people are actually living and raising families here.

SWING Park

They have a flourishing local food scene. So many great local eating options in St. Augustine. We keep trying new places each time, with still more left to try! Our family standing family favorites include The Floridian and The Hyppo, but there are many more. These local restaurants take pride in their ingredients being high quality. Most make their food completely in-house, with local ingredients and lots of gluten-free and vegan options. Believe me, even if you are not gluten-free, organic or vegan, this is a good thing for all of us.

The Hyppo off of St George Street. Brian’s least favorite of the three in town because they don’t dip the popsicles in chocolate. But still worth it!

Artists and creatives are welcomed. There are so many creatives in this little town. Art galleries are everywhere, but also handmade markets like “Flagler Creates” show that there creative expression is encouraged here. My personal friend and amazing ceramic artist, Amanda Blair Dexheimer, has her home studio in St Augustine and is part of a tight-knit community of other talented artists that live here as well. I got the pleasure of meeting some of these amazing talents at the MAKE(R) weekend she hosted and I posted about a couple months ago.

Photo Source: Amanda Blair Dexheimer

Nature hikes and state parks. It is no secret that we enjoy the outdoors and that Brian is obsessed with camping and hiking. St Augustine offers so much when it comes to surrounding yourself with natural beauty. Anastasia State Park is fantastic for camping. We took a family hike through the Moses Creek Conservation Area on Thanksgiving morning. In the afternoon, we explored Washington Oaks Gardens State Park with my parents and brother. Wow! It is just so beautiful. A great park divided in two, one half on the ocean with natural coquina formations, the other half on the Matanzas River. We walked through the gardens and enjoyed seeing dolphins swimming by.

History. It would be insane to talk about this city and not mention the history. I love that this city has evolved through centuries and is influenced by so many cultures that have come through the years. We are still exploring and learning about this history each time we go. Of course, the fort, Castillo de San Marco is a “must” (photo at the top of post). This most recent visit, we went to the Colonial Quarter to learn about the Spanish and British reign over St Augustine, in addition to the historic Spanish Military Hospital Museum which was fun too.

Great local shopping opportunities. You may not think of St Augustine as a shopping mecca. And if you love big malls and outlet centers, maybe it won’t be what you typically expect from a shopping town. But they have a wonderful selection of local shops all over the place. If you leave the hustle and bustle of the tourist-filled downtown and head up San Marco past the fort, you can find some lovely shops. The boutiques are a varied selection of home decor (new and antiques), clothing, accessories and much more. I was so happy to discover this part of town a few years ago, and enjoyed drooling over these shops during this visit.

Every season is great for different reasons. In the summer, we spend most of our time near the water. We typically would only go into town in the evening to grab a popsicle from the Hyppo or maybe an early dinner at The Floridian. Why? Because it is HOT in the summertime. And crowded. But…Florida’s fall and winter is awesome because it allows you to enjoy sights and activities that would be miserable during the months of May through September. This past visit allowed us to check out the Colonial Quarter, which we would have never done during the summer. Plus, camping at Anastate State Park is super fun…but only in the winter months!

So that is just a few of the reasons we keep coming back to the same place year after year. Check back soon for a post on our list of top recommended places to visit on your next trip to St Augustine.

Posted by Ale & filed under Family Time, Travel. This post has 3 comments.

Playroom – Summer 2014

Christmas is on its way, and with that comes a new challenge for us. How is Santa going to redecorate the playroom this year? That sounds odd probably. For most homes, I am sure Santa just sticks to leaving gifts. But in ours, he also redecorates when he is here.

How did we get ourselves into this ridiculous situation?

It all started innocently enough maybe 5 or 6 years ago when he came, brought a train table, a side table and a lamp. The next year, he rearranged the furniture and added a homemade Lego table. The following year, he brought a new area rug. Another year, he came and set up a little art station in the garage. He always timed it perfectly with something I was thinking about doing. Such an intuitive guy.

Then, last year, he just didn’t seem to get his act together, and it seemed like all he could do was just slap down a few gifts to be found under the tree. After the boys opened the gifts, Ben (6 at the time), ran to the playroom shouting, “Come on, Max! Let’s see what he did in the playroom this year!” Oops. He was running everywhere looking for Santa’s redecorating project. We trailed behind him saying things like, “What could he possibly do? He has done everything already.” Ben would have none of it. “He always does something in our house. Let’s go in the garage. I bet he changed something there!” Nothing there. Talk about feeling like you have disappointed someone. It will not happen again.

Wheels are turning as to what can be done and rearranged in this small room that hasn’t been done already, and that won’t cost much. The image above is from this summer. Right now, we have the couch under the small window you see. The wall where the couch was is now wallpapered with a map. The Lego table in the foreground was also brought by Santa two Christmases ago. Looks like his elves made it using an IKEA side table. The boys haven’t used it for a while though.

For this year, I think Santa should be on the lookout for a low table to go in the center of the room, throw pillows for the couch, and a tall open bookcase to go on the other side of that window.

I hope he can pull that off in less than a month.

Posted by Ale & filed under Our Home. This post has one comment.

As I posted about last week, I have been working on some inspirational mood boards for my friend Becca. You can read more about it here. Becca is a talented photographer, whose photos are light, bright and crisp. We want to reflect the same feeling in her home.

Like many of us, she has an open floor plan space, where the living room, kitchen and breakfast nook are all open to each other. It is a great setup for family life and also for hosting people. It also helps make a small space seem larger since there are no walls to block your views. But it also can seem a little overwhelming to tackle all at once. One thing to consider is the rooms don’t have to “match”. In fact, its best that they don’t. Too restricting and too hard to make changes later. They should “speak to each other” though. What that means is just repeating a few elements throughout the rooms. That could be the wall color, textures or a finish.

These were a few of the rooms that inspired what we put together for Becca. Similar to the living room space, what we pulled from these was the lightness, a cottage feel, with a bit of traditional and natural elements mixed in.

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Here is the inspiration board for her breakfast nook. The space is open on two of the four sides, and the two walls that anchor it have windows. The three priorities in this space (in order of impact) are: 1) a statement lighting piece, 2) light and flowy window treatments, and 3) a round table with chairs that don’t “match” finishes.

Chandelier / Chairs / Table / Rug

If Becca isn’t crazy about any of the pieces, she can make some easy swaps. First off, the lighting. Here are two other ones that are completely different but can work just as well. Mainly, what we need is something with a larger scale and that makes a statement.

Piedmont 4 Light Lantern (Ballard Designs)

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For the drapes, I recommend something light an airy. The greek key banding would be a nice touch to make it more traditional and sophisticated without being fussy. There is an awesome online Etsy shop, Martha and Ash, that does custom linen panels and will even add the banding. I think this would be a great way to go for Becca’s home. They have a ton of colors to choose from, and you can always order a few swatches before to help you decide. I envision a lighter color on Becca’s panels.

And a few other options of tables and chairs that could be swapped in based on her preference:

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I hope you enjoyed the thought process and planning for Becca’s new reimagined space. Next up…the kitchen!

Posted by Ale & filed under Home Decor. This post has one comment.

One of my greatest joys in having kids is getting to dive into children’s books with them. My boys know I will stop whatever I am doing to read to them if they ask. Picture books are extra special because we value the illustrator as much as the author. A well-illustrated book with a good story is like hitting gold.

Today I wanted to share some of our family’s favorite picture books that make us laugh. There is real talent in creating a humorous children’s book. In my opinion, the ones that do it best are the ones that do not “dumb down” the humor. They use subtlety and restraint. The looks from the characters, the ridiculousness of the predicament can be enough if done right.

Below are 6 of our favorite picture books that make us laugh. If you are looking for an Christmas gift idea for a little one in your life, perhaps one of these will fit the bill.

This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers – We are all big fans of Oliver Jeffers. In fact, two of his books are on this list. His illustrations are genius. In this story, this bossy little boy and his pet moose have quite the relationship.

I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen – Here is another illustrator who writes great books for children and adults. The pauses in the book are the funniest! You’ll have to read it to see if the bear gets his hat back.

Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin, illustrated by Daniel Salmieri – The premise is ridiculous, and the illustrations make it even more so. Whatever you do, don’t let the dragons eat the spicy salsa.

Stuck by Oliver Jeffers – The second Oliver Jeffers book on this list is super silly. Everyone can relate to having something get stuck in a tree and throwing stuff at it to get it down. However, this little boy takes it to the next level.

Creepy Carrots! by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Peter Brown – This is an example of how the illustrations can take a book from good to great. It’s spooky and funny all at the same time.

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems – So, so funny. Referencing a classic tale, Willems takes the reader on a silly twist to this story by replacing the bears with dinosaurs. And the fact that the third bear is Norwegian is the cherry on top.

If you are on Pinterest, feel free to follow along on my Children’s Books Board for more book ideas for kids.

Posted by Ale & filed under Books, Creativity, Family Time. This post has no comments yet.

Today, I am so happy to be able to share little bits of a lovely time-crafted home of a good family friend. Maria and her family moved to Ocala from Argentina almost 30 years ago because of her husband’s job to manage a horse farm here. It’s the same reason we moved from Peru 33 years ago.

While her children are now grown and living on their own, Maria and her husband Ignacio still live on the farm at the same home they moved into 30 years ago. This home is aesthetically beautiful, but when you realize how much of the beauty, charm and character come from Maria’s resourcefulness, it is truly inspiring. Through the years, with her own two hands, she has created a place that truly reflects who she is. That seems to be the common thread to homes I am drawn to: a reflection of the owner showing through in their home.

What I admire most about Maria is her “can do” attitude with projects in her house. Like many of us, she has wishes and wants for her home. Instead of letting budget derail her, she figures out how to do what she wants, and then jumps right in. I am not just talking about paint either. This talented lady has built her own back porch, resurfaced her fireplace, built and reupholstered her own furniture, sews her own drapes just to give you a few examples.

I hope you enjoy stepping inside this serene home in the country and that you can “meet” Maria through the images and her own words.

You’re home has so much character. What do you think it says about you?

I think it says everything about me because I never try to imitate or follow trends or rules. It is just what and how I like it. It is like wearing white after Labor Day. Just do it if it feels right for you.

Do you have an approach for furnishing and decorating your home?

It is not really an approach but some crazy need to have everything balanced. I like pairs and hate diagonals. Love clean lines. I do not like plants in the house, but love what nature gives you for free like pine cones, branches or stones. In my home, flowers and plants stay outside since that is were I like to be the most.

How would you describe your aesthetic/style?

Simple and straight. Never a ruffle. Furniture mostly bare. I like a room painted the same color on all four walls. And definitely easy to clean.

You are extremely talented and fearless when it comes to DIY projects around your home. Have you always been this way? How did it start?

Since I was very young I took every oportunity to change things my way. When my parents traveled, as soon as they left, I was in town buying paint and brushes. Upon their arrival, they would find that doors or walls were a different color and furniture would be rearranged. I also loved helping my mother with the garden. She taught me to sew and knit. She made us help in the kitchen and cleaning the house.

In my own house I try to take on changes I what I want on my own. Whether it be a simple molding to building a deck or resurfacing the fireplace with concrete. Every project is a challenge since I actually do not know how is the best way to do it. But I have perseverance. Lots. And I always finish what I start.

What traits draw you to others’ homes?

I admire good craftsmanship in every style and every part of the house…floors, cabinets, mantelpieces. I do not have the luxury of such things in my own home, so I get creative in disguising imperfections.

Where do you find home inspiration and ideas?

I am very creative but love windowshopping, Pinterest and magazines. And of course from traveling.

What do you splurge on in your home? Where have you saved?

My only luxury inside the house is the furniture I inherited and brought from Argentina. OUTSIDE is where I really splurged. I have this amazing yard which has evolved during the years. Working in the yard is my therapy and exercise and results are much better than paying a gym o therapist.