Weekly Roundup

Jenni’s barnhouse living room transformation is so lovely and I can’t stop staring at this archway.

I’ve been nominated for a blog award, please take a second to vote for me - thanks!

An illustrated comic on why you should turn your yard into a mini farm. Let’s just say I’m getting antsy to do this to my backyard.

I think I need this print right next to my computer, or maybe next to my phone, or maybe tattooed on my hand.

I’m hoping you’ve heard about the major fire in the Amazon rainforest. It wasn’t reported about until recently, but we’re two weeks in to very very destructive fires. It isn’t due to wildfires, its because of burns to clear the land for cattle. You can learn more here, and you can take action here and here. It feels helplessly far away, but there are actions we can take.

I’ve been watching Nicole transform this kitchen and when she painted it pink I was sold. It turned out so so great!

A few of my friends have had babies recently so I bought a handful of my favorite baby gifts. I first discovered these all-natural handmade wood rattles/teethers when I bought this dinosaur for baby Lucy of Yellow Brick Home and now I buy one for each new baby friend- and I’ve managed to theme each! I just picked up a dog for baby Sierra, a shark for baby secret-name, a bunny for baby Calder, and a cat for baby TBD name.

I’m in need of a new bra (I own 2 and they are both in bad shape) but I can’t decide if I want this one which is made entirely of recycled materials or this one which is completely compostable.

I had someone from County of San Diego Vector Control come to the house because of a prolonged and isolated mosquito issue. In this region, mosquitoes aren’t very common because it’s so dry and hot - so having lots of them can be a cause for concern. Here’s what the professional recommends if you’re having an issue: Look around for what could be a breeding ground then empty it. Put dunks or mosquito fish in unused pools and rain barrels. Sprinkle BTI in water or on soil that they’re actively breeding in to kill larvae. And set out traps to catch the adults. All of these are animal and human safe, so use freely! To keep the buggers away, she says the natural repellants are just as effective as the nasty ones - I use this.

Remember when I analyzed my energy consumption of each and every electronic I own? I didn’t measure the electricity used by any smart technologies like Alexa because don’t own any. Well, connecting smart speakers to TVs could cost pretty penny.

Happy Friday!