A serene patio with a black door adorned by a floral wreath, flanked by vibrant pink flowers in pots, and a relaxing dog lounging on the patterned floor, showcasing inviting patio decorating ideas

Random thoughts on a sunny spring morning:

1. I’m in the middle of the BEST book right now. It’s called The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton.

She’s a new-to-me author and I can’t wait to read some of her other books. If you have a recommendation by her can you leave it in the comments?

You can see The Forgotten Garden here.

2. Have you tried Strands through the NYT games? It’s SO GOOD. We also play the daily mini NYT crossword as a family and all report our scores. Yesterday’s took me 10 minutes.

Yikes.

It is not for the faint of heart.

3. We are heading to a mini-class reunion next week. I’ll spend this week trying to decide what to wear.

4. It was an amazing week on the blog. We talked about:

  • 9 books you won’t be able to put down
  • these fashion hacks to stretch your fashion budget
  • how to hem curtains without sewing
  • the scariest thing that happened

5. Does anyone have a seamstress online (like through etsy) that they’ve used before? I have the CUTEST idea for slipcovers for the dining room and I want to work with someone to recreate that vision.

6. I have a new show recommendation for us. Have you watched The Leopard? It’s a beautiful period piece (with subtitles) that’s supposed to be so good.

I’m watching it this weekend.

7. Westleigh came home and brought me my birthday present that the twins made for me. It’s the prettiest set of blue and white clay coasters.

And now?

Let’s see all the amazing finds I discovered for us this week.

Two greeting cards featuring pressed green fern leaves. One card reads "FERN" and the other "SPRING." The cards are on a textured, light brown surface with small flowers in the background.

Aren’t these the prettiest pressed flower handmade cards?

There’s one for every occasion.

You can see the how-to here.

A large platter of Caesar salad with Romaine lettuce, sprinkled with grated cheese and breadcrumbs. Garnished with fresh mint leaves. A floral napkin, serving forks, a cork, and a small jug are on the wooden surface nearby.

Salads don’t have to be boring.

Look at this yummy romaine salad with french bread crispies.

You can see the recipe here.

A wicker basket filled with purple and pink hyacinths, surrounded by green moss. Beside it, a golden rabbit figurine holding a small golden tray. The arrangement is set on a textured surface with a blurred background.

Look how pretty this spring arrangement is.

And the nest bowl is perfection.

See the how to here.

A plate of puff pastries topped with chocolate spread and small candy eggs, garnished with powdered sugar. Surrounding the plate are pink flowers in a vase, a lit candle, and pastel-colored candies on a plaid napkin.

Isn’t this the sweetest dessert?

It’s puffed pastry nests.

You can see the recipe here.

 

And in random news:

This garden tour

How to fix paint runs

Love how this space goes from indoor to outdoor

Grow these flowers to have bouquets all summer long

This home tour is so pretty

How to organize leftover paint

This BEAUTIFUL spring wreath

How to be a good listener

Famous writers’ houses you can visit

This beautiful home tour

The prettiest DIY wreath

And this

I’m so excited to create one of these—what a fun idea.

Two white plates with intricate blue floral designs are stacked on a gray surface with a blue cloth napkin beside them. A bouquet of yellow flowers is blurred in the background, with a few petals scattered around.

And in amazing news, Anthropologie is having a BIG SALE this weekend.

Use the code ANTHRO20 for 20% off the entire site on orders over $100.

Like these blue and white plates that you can see here.

A rectangular doormat featuring a colorful illustration of a flower shop facade with a black and white striped awning. "Les Fleurs" is written above a blue door, surrounded by potted flowers and greenery.

Or look at this super cute flower shop door mat.

You can see it here.

I put together some of my other favorites here.

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And one more for the road

Every now and then I find a story on the blog I forgot about.

This one I wrote seven years ago made me cry and smile all at the same time.

happy random Saturday to you

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