this has been recovery week after the excitement of ramona’s first birthday. we watched ramona let her first balloon go up up and away, caught up on a lot of missed naps, cleaned up the house after the big celebration (some rooms are still disaster zones), tried on new birthday-gift outfits, celebrated four years of marriage, attended the top of the town party, and relished our quiet family time in bed. this weekend, we plan on doing some thrifting, eating some birthday brunch w some local friends, catching up with some out-of-town friends, and just relaxing. you?

denver stuffs:

• don’t be shy! the giveaway is still open! you don’t have to be local or even from colorado. new readers, longtime readers, family, and friends: sign up! mountain vs plains is an incredible little shop.
• my new friend, dan garza, of a small print shop, started writing this really honest and moving prayer and illustration journal, for you when you sleep, on tumblr. i look forward to his daily posts.

other stuffs:

• i’m adding this backyard pool to our list of “home improvements”
• here’s an interesting way to possibly make a little bit of money from all those millions of photos we all take. (via glotalot)

• GIVEAWAY! check out this recent blog post for a a chance to win some brilliant and quirky greeting cards.
• ollie’s vintage is updated with some amazing recent finds. 10% off to ADHC readers. 
• welcome, megan, to denver! i got the chance to guest post for her, sharing my current top 5 6 denver must-dos.
• fellow denverites: fancy tiger is turning 6 and there’s going to be a party saturday! i’ll be stopping by for sure. 

• it really is this simple. though sometimes easier said than done. 
• slightly insulting chicago posters.
• beautiful beautiful kids clothes. not in my price range but certainly exactly my aesthetic.
• i am so overwhelmed by this epic collaboration. i don’t even want to think about what the line will look like opening day.
• che and fidel giveaway in honor of poet turning one. happy birthday, poet!

these photos from my phone are from the past two weeks or so. as i’ve mentioned in recent posts, it’s been a busy summer! recovery, for me, has been unexpectedly hard. this past week, with denver’s 100+ degree days (five in a row!) i’ve been grumpy and sluggish. things haven’t been getting done like i am usually good about doing and day-to-day life has seemed a bit monotonous and, well, difficult. mama said there’d be days like this. now ramona is (finally) sleeping, i’m sipping on a vodka tonic, and i’m eager to hop in the shower and start fresh. the house has cooled down, the clouds are calming the fierce sun’s heat, and my dear friends are getting married today. there are many reasons to celebrate and to come out from this slump.

so it looks like i did take some photos these past two weeks….

a couple explanations of these photos.

• ramona loves band-aids. cannot get enough. i was the same way, so my mother tells me. and my niece has the same infatuation. is it all little girls?!
• jp and i are looking for another couple to have a monthly standing euchre date. any takers?
• fountain parks have got to be the greatest invention for little children.
• my father is doing a one month long yoga teacher training in BC. pretty much anyone who knows my father knows that in his previous life no one ever saw this coming. yoga has changed his (and my mother’s) life and i am so so proud of him for taking this risk and this leap.
• i’m trying juicing again. so far i’m 2 for 3 mornings. our garden is growing kale like no one’s business so i gotta get moving before that stuff bolts.

twas a full week. i love birthday weeks. but i need a really long nap. also, if anyone knows a better way to insert and format instagram photos into wordpress i’d love to hear from you. should i be using a third party app? (psst: click through to see that i didn’t completely screw up the formatting. also, click the images for larger, less distorted versions).

elsewhere:

• i’d like to make a fort like this for ramona in the backyard.
• i’m coveting beautiful and way out of my price range white tops. also this. and this.
• pj pinned this idea for a washi tape use and now i need to step up my organizing game!
• consumer reports posts an article on what to reject when you’re expecting. bravo, consumer reports. it is my hope that expectant women are aware of and given all their options.
• jp’s restaurant planning/demo-ing/constructing/styling is in full throes. i like these lights for over the tables. but maybe that’s been overdone? suggestions?
• drea over at maiden metallurgist always has thoughtful views. i like her response to time’s most recent cover.