a letter to Tumnus

Saw this and nearly died.

The Chronicles of Narnia was one of my favorite series when I was little. Do you remember being so engrossed in fairy tales that you were sure they were real?

image via weheartit

Forget.

Forget what you know about romance. Seriously.

I've been living in a world separate from the present one forever but it hasn't been detrimental to me until recently. I read too many books. I identify with the wrong characters. I won't get into details but I'm in love and it isn't what I thought it would be. Love is taking me for walks to strengthen my foot, and love is quizzing him for his physiology exam, backscratches, tickle fights, and late night rides home from the train station...which, as it turns out, is way better than anything Emily Bronte ever taught me.

Rachel Antonoff

Rachel Antonoff's Fall 2010 Collection is everything I want my wardrobe to be. Really, everything. Clean lines and neutral colors, sheer fabric and feminine ruffles, sexy and sophisticated: A reflection of Grace Kelly in Rear Window. Excessive fashion has it's place in the world but not my closet.
My heart races when I see these pictures.




That black and white dress is a dream. I would wear it as my wedding dress, I love it so much.

Photos via Refinery 29

best year

For the past 12 months, I have counted myself the luckiest girl on the planet. I suspect I'll feel that way for a while.


From Greatdad.com

Kids define love:

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love."
- Rebecca - age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." - Billy - age 4

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." - Chrissy - age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." - Terri - age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." - Danny - age 7

"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss" - Emily - age 8

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." - Bobby - age 7

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." - Mary Ann - age 4

pierrot le fou

I die

I usually hate tweed but my heart skipped more than one beat when I saw this Chanel Couture SS/10 video. I am swooning over every detail (including the heart-shaped hair).

Did you write the Book of Love?

Each of these page-turners will have you reaching for the tissue box and the nearest boy (or girl) to kiss. I'll spare you the synopsese since you can find those on any book site, but here are my thoughts on each:



Katherine by Anya Seton

The story of Katherine Swynford and her love affair with the Duke of Lancaster. Filled with honest longing and uplifting surrender.



Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

This book is so beautifully written that the story could be terrible and no one would be the wiser. Not a typical romance but it illustrates the limits of love and devotion in a way that will tug at your heartstrings.



Green City in the Sun by Barbara Wood

Chronicles several generations of misguided love. Set in Kenya this epic will make you reevaluate all of your thoughts on real love.



The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough

Exploding with sexual tension and repressed passion, be prepared to cry every other page and promise yourself that you will never settle for anyone other than your true love.



The Ice People by Rene Barjavel

This is one of my favorite books of all time, I rarely lend it out because of my tremendous fear that I'll never get it back(it's out of print). The 1960s science fiction novel recalls an old world love, literally frozen in time. Beautifully written, racy, and utterly romantic.



Love Poems by Pablo Neruda

The Chilean Nobel Prize Winner defines the love poem. Truely.


Other notable reads:
Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, and Witness to my Life: Letters from Jean Paul Sartre to Simone de Beauvoir.

If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear!

The Little Prince

Antoine de Saint Exupery's The Little Prince is one of the most beautiful, heartbreaking, profound, and educational books I have ever picked up. It's full of childish wisdom and perspective, laced with Exupery's sweetly simple illustrations -now brought to life in pop-up form!


Available at Anthropologie.

Some quotes:
"Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."

"I should never have listened to her," he confided to me one day, "One should never listen to the flowers. One should simply look at them and breathe their fragrance".

"Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction."

"You become responsible forever, for what you have tamed."

Are you in love yet?

I love you already.

Before I begin, I'd like to say that I am the proud owner of the most charming and adorable yorkiepoo ever- Pookie- and no one, human or animal, could ever replace her. However, Pookie is my family's dog and, well, I look forward to owning (and raising) a pooch of my own one day.

My better half and I have been daydreaming lately about owning a couple of these:

Chow puppies! I want one so bad it hurts.

Oh, and if you like dogs do yourself a favor and see the movie UP.

photo via themarthablog.com.

Drooling just thinking about it

My latest food obsession is this wonderful browned goat cheese from Scandanavia called Gjetost (pronounced YAY-toost). The best way to describe it is the love child of caramel and cheese. Sure that sounds disgusting but tastes like magical super powers.


photo by The Cheesemonger’s Wife

I've been eating it broiled on toast with apple slices.

Hug Your Mothers

Dear Mom,

Thank you for dedicating your life to allowing me to have mine.

If I could be anyone in the whole world, I'd be you.

It's Not as if New York City Burned Down to the Ground

ASofterWorld.Com


Now this blog is about the things I love and those that are dear to my heart, but sometimes we have to let those things go. Let's talk breakups. No, I'm not talking about a split from your sweetie but a breakup from something else that you love that is bringing you down. Running is one of my greatest pleasures (yes, some people may think that's crazy). In my opinion, there's nothing better than hitting the pavement and just taking off. But after averagine about 50 miles a week, I developed Plantar Fasciitis and had to take several months off, and now, after attempting to ease back in, I'm plagued by Shin Splints. So I have to wonder, is this the end of my love affair with running? Should I just deal, continue to dish out Doctor fees and possibly hurt myself more or is it about time I retire my sneaks and make better friends with the elliptical? Tell me, dear readers, have you ever suffered a bad "breakup"? Maybe you ended things with mac and cheese after your pants went up one too many sizes. Maybe those amazing, designer boots were just not worth the blisters you developed. How did you cope? Is there anything with which you wouldn't dream of breaking up, no matter the pain?

See It.

Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange in Grey Gardens.

You will fall in love.
Better yet, see the original documentary.

I'm Just Sitting On the Shelf

I have a serious girl crush on Zooey Deschanel. Have you seen her in the new Cotton ads? She has a great, quirky style and I think Autumn de Wilde really captures that aspect of her in these shots.


A winning team.
Also, how cute is that outfit? It's like someone crossed a China doll with a bumble bee.

See more Autumn here.

And check out this video of She & Him (Zooey and M. Ward), so fun!

Do yourself a favor and buy the whole album, "Volume One".

One Day Late

I will sing a song to you

and you will shake the ground for me

and the birds and bees and old fruit trees

will spit out songs like gushing streams

then Jesus will come through the ground so dirty

with worms in his hair and a hand so sturdy

to call us his magic we call him worthy

Jesus came up through the ground so dirty.

"Jesus" by Page France.

Easter is one of those holidays that gets better as you get older. It seems to me there are so few obligations and expectations attached to Easter and so there is something wonderfully quiet about it. Whether you're religious or not, it signifies the real start of spring, marked by symbols of rebirth and new beginnings, longer days and pastel dresses, resolutions and sunny dispositions. Also, the story of Easter is so loaded with hope and belief how could you help but feel smitten. Oh, and did I mention there's candy? Lots and lots of candy...

Marie Antoinette Heels

Let me Start by saying I loved Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette. I can't decide which scenes I enjoyed more, the ones involving pastries or those involving shoes. Anywho... Christian Louboutin created these limited edition heels as an homage to the last queen of France herself and while the $6,000 price tage is questionable, what else is questionable is whether or not you like them? Honestly, I sort of love them. I think they are so fun to look at and as soon as I saw them my mind was all aflutter about with what would I wear them. I'm thinking little shorts.


Also, enjoy this.

Give My Gun Away When It's Loaded

I wrote a few days ago about seeing Lisa Hannigan live and while her performance was pure genius and I'm so proud that her solo career is taking off, I can't help but feel sad that she and Damien are no longer a duo. It's so rare that two people can create the same musical chemistry that they did.
How lovely is this video?

Not the Worst Way to Save a Soul

I love Dans Paris because it is filled with the sweetest and wisest quotes, such as:

"I think we grossly underestimate our sorrows, in general. We always die of sadness, actually".

or

"We can pray to be loved by only one person. It's not the worst way to save a soul".

And also a very attractive cast.


Christophe Honoré makes great films.