Monthly Archives: September 2012

Sponsor the Kiddo! OCTOBER spots still open!

OK friends. I just realized that this scheduled post had the wrong date on it, and never posted. And I realize that October 1, 2012 is totally upon us. Ah well! So here’s what I’m gonna do. If you sign up by this Wednesday as a Modern Kiddo sponsor, your ad will run thru the end of November as a bonus! Kowabunga!

Some things to note, October is one of our biggest months, so this is an EXCELLENT deal! Our annual Modern Kiddo Costume Parade gets so much attention (thanks to YOU my genius readers) so it’s an excellent time to boost  your shop or blog traffic. Email me at Alix[at]modernkiddo .com for a rate sheet and let’s get this spooktacular month off to a boo-tiful start! bwuahahahaha….. (that’s my sinister laugh….)

Cutest Little Book // Spectacles.

Oh happy Friday! I wanted to share this cute lil book with you guys. SPECTACLES by Ellen Raskin. Ellen also illustrated the book. It’s about a super cute little girl who realizes that she sees the world slightly differently than other people!

Before she wears glasses, Iris has is seeing things strangely. What she thinks is a dragon, is really her Great Aunt Fanny:

And a giant bird? Oh that’s just her friend Chester.

And the chestnut mare? Well, that’s her babysitter.

Her mama decides Iris needs a snazzy pair of glasses!

And so little Iris gets her spectacles!

And everything looks like it’s supposed to look….well, except for that rhino with a tulip in his ear!

My friend Jen’s Wedding {and the Peachiest little flower girl!}

Well, my friend Jen got married this past weekend.  I’m sure you may remember me writing about Jen in the past.  A few years ago, she left all that she knew in California to pursue her PhD. in London.  It was an amazingly courageous thing to do and in between all of the insane papers and teaching and community, she managed to find and fall in love with a wonderful fellow.

As many of you may know, grad students don’t have extravagant budgets to say the least. But Jen was determined to stretch her tiny tiny tiny budget to envelope all of the people she loved.

Twenty of her closest friends came out to  Santa Cruz, CA to watch her get married at her sacred spot. This California girl chose the surfer statue up the street from the famous Santa Cruz boardwalk to get her MRS. degree.

As the Peach’s godmother, Jen chose her to be her flower girl and made the Peach feel so special for being part of the wedding. And the Peach took her job very seriously dropping flowers even after the wedding ceremony happened.

Did I mention Eric and I did her flowers too?  Jen bought some flowers the night before at the farmers market and we turned them into very simple bouquets. And I love that Jen wore her grandmother’s necklaces as bracelets. I’m sure her Nonna was smiling down on her that day.

As you can imagine this lovely newly married lady has a thing for the ocean. She loves to surf and spent most of her life within 20 minutes of the ocean.  And with budgets as tight as Jen’s she she could find only one place by the beach for her reception–a tiki bar! The other bridesmaids and I hustled to turn the space into something more charming with the help of some vintage tablecloths and mason jars full of flowers and candles. We also created a little bunting action as a salute to the groom out of some Union Jack paper bags Jen bought.

We also had pins made of the lucky couple along with some of their favorite sayings. It was great to see all of the members of the wedding party wearing them!

Jen picked up two Playmobile figurines which were quite fitting as James is a skateboarder and Jen is a hardcore swimmer.

We all had so much fun at the reception between toasts and Jen stories and dancing. Oh, the dancing. Man, it was a blast.

Oh, Jen, what a fun and personal and beautiful wedding that was! Amazing job, Mrs. B!

 

Like a Teenage Dream // Vintage Bedroom

My sweet friend @virginiejolie posted this vintage bedroom set on Instagram a while back. It was in a thrift store she was shopping at and she (and I!) about DIED. This super bright and colorful fun house of a room was made by popular furniture company Drexel back in the 70s. The “Plus One” collection is insane….daisy drawer pulls, kooky cut outs, flower petal pedestals. It’s amazing. And even better? Many of the pieces are labeled, “Desk”, “Bed”, “Telephone” (YES! a phone nook!). And the colors are fun too, of course: “Green With Envy” and “Hello Yellow!”

{THE WALLPAPER!!!}

{THE PHONE BOOTH!}

{THE RECORD PLAYER AND LOVE RUG!}

Apparently the set was “designed” by teens (readers of Seventeen magazine who were consulted throughout the process!).

That a-frame vanity??? Oh yes.

{Thanks to Gold Country Girls for scanning those amazing images!}

Happy Birthday, Shel Silverstein!

Image: Finding My Balance.

Today is Shel Silverstein’s birthday! I don’ t know about you, but when I was between the ages of 8-10, I thought Shel was the ultimate poet. Sorry Walt Whitman, apologies e.e. cummings, but you really can’t hold a candle to the beauty of Sarah Cynthia Silvia Stout who would not take the garbage out. At least in the mind of a third grader.

Shel Silverstein wasn’t just an amazing children’s writer. He was a profoundly creative person writing songs for Johnny Cash (he wrote “A Boy Named Sue”) and started his career creating cartoons for Playboy.  But really, his writing for children is pretty darn marvelous. Sometimes rogue, sometimes gross, and sometimes so completely spot on and heartening.  Like these:.

 

Oh yeah–and he gave us this book… As I get older and read it again, my thoughts on the book change.  So simple, yet so profound. Particularly as a parent. Oh, to read this as a parent is insane–like reading a different book.

 

 

Sadly, Shel died in 1999, but his work will be read by kids all over the world with a giggle.

I can’t wait to introduce the Peach to him!  Do you remember any of his poems?