And then we were Four!

I'm thrilled to announce the arrival of my precious daughter Princess M! born on Thursday January 21st. Bouncing baby girl, daughter to myself and dear Hubby and a little sister for Princess L! It's been a month and I'm feeling great! Little one has me enamored and I love our little family of four! Four is perfection! I absolutely love saying "My Girls" or "the Girls"! I wouldn't want it any other way! nevermind that I've always had a thing for symmetry and even numbers...

Four also brings along it's fair share of sleepless nights, lots of juggling and mountains 'o mountains of laundry! amongst the hubble and bubble of family life I have rare moments of quiet to myself, besides cozying up with a good mug of java or indulging in a long hot shower my preferred means of escapism is reading my favorite design and parenting blogs. I read ohdeedoh and apartmenttherapy religiously and check in for any new stuff on Babble daily, there's nothing like a little eye candy! unfortunately all this eye candy either sends me on wild goose chases tracking down "stuff" I just have to have for the kiddos or ends up on my ever growing list of wants. Blogs also seem to have a way of leading you into a black hole as I jump from one to the next bookmarking and "favoriting" away... there are so many talented and inspirational individuals out there that my list of projects and DIY'S I'd like to try keeps getting longer too.

It's really difficult trying to organize and keep track of all my links and favorites and sometimes after seeing an image somewhere I'll spend a frustrating hour of more just trying to track it down again! If you have any suggestions on setting up an organized and user friendly system for filing I'm all ears...

Some days when all is under control I pat myself on the back and think heck you're a domestic goddess other days I stare at the pile of dishes in the sink and the smudges on the white floor (yes very impractical...not my choice it's a rental...) and tunnel vision starts to set in... it's probably too early to tell as were just a month in but life with two in tow will no doubt be a learning experience with some strategic tactical planning and a bit of flying by the seat of my pants but I'm excited by the process and hope you'll tag along for the ride.

Jeu de Paumes

Last week Design Momma celebrated her 26th birthday....geesh! I'm getting old! and received the most amazing gift from my dear hubby. For years now I've requested design books as gifts for birthdays, anniversaries or any other occasion of which someone might decide to shower me with gifts! Books are definitely my favorite splurge but can be pricey and many titles wait patiently on my various wish lists for months sometimes years. Last year I spotted some Japanese Interior Design books over at Yvestown and instantly fell in love, I knew I just had to have them!

The series is published by Japanese publisher Jeu de Paumes and are written entirely in Japanese. While fully bi-lingual plus a nice amount of French I definitely can't read, write or speak a word of Japanese! that fact doesn't take away from the experience in the least! If a picture is worth a thousand words? well, these books will be "talking" to me for years to come. Their are currently four titles of Children's spaces. Children's rooms Copenhagen, Chambres d'enfant a Paris, Children's room London, and Children's rooms Stockholm. I received Copenhagen and Paris from dear Hubby.


When I first saw that little table and chairs my first reaction was "what the devil?!" they stole my Ikea hack! Upon closer inspection I realized that while similar this isn't the Latt set, and I sat back to take in the amazing Scandinavian wooden floors and pale green tones.

This is just a sampling of the eye candy that awaits you inside the Copenhagen edition. The book comes complete with a city guide and list of cool stores for sourcing some awesome euro treasures!

The allure of that amazing staircase pulls you in to one breathtaking photo after another! but seriously how Parisian is that pink! J'adore!

I'm very much in love with this green room, from the colour to the fairy lights to the dollhouse... I'm swooning!

The books pay homage to the occupant or occupants of each space and the first and last pages of the books are dedicated to artwork by the little sweethearts.

The pages of each book are filled with fun and whimsy. I think the eclecticism relied on during the formation of these amazing spaces is a uniquely European approach, I love the mix of old and new, bright, bold and many unexpected colour combinations. Coming from North America with an overriding tide of matchy matchy, pink or blue and brand new everything this approach is a breath of fresh air. Children are collectors by nature and all the rooms are brimming with collections of every sort imaginable. The spaces are beautiful, definitely juvenile yet sophisticated and with out a doubt lived in. They make me nostalgic about my own childhood but mainly inspire me to create such a dreamy space for my own daughter to cherish forever.

The books are available through their site, amazon.jp.. if your brave enough to tackle the ordering process or at the Yvestown blog. Dear Hubby contacted them via their site and reported that Sakai was especially pleasant and helpful, so they've got our two thumbs up! The books were wrapped sweetly and arrived within just a matter of days. Paumes has a huge line of books covering apartments, kitchens, studios etc. and the list is always growing. I feel that for me this is the start of a major addiction! so here's wishing me many many more birthdays!