1. I think I love blogging. Meeting Theresa and Teri when we were in California. Meeing Erin this weekend (And I can't believe I forgot to link to her in Wednesday's post! Sorry Ducks!). As we sat at lunch at Parc, she looked around at us all and said simply, "Blogging." If it weren't for blogging, this amazing world of new friends would never have opened up to me. And then, earlier this week, we came home to this (pictured above). Tina, at colourliving saw on Instagram that Callum liked some patches she'd posted a photo of and she touched base with me to offer to surprise him with some. When I told her that his birthday was coming up, she went to great lengths (literally!) to spirit some goodies to him. The extent of the goodies surprised and delighted even me, and I knew they were coming! Callum loved the London patches, but he especially loved the personal touches that Tina put in the gift. London stickers, a personalized card. One more delight after another unfolded, and Tina, we can't thank you enough!

2. I think sometimes I hate blogging. Yeah, I said it. I'm not hating my own blogging necessarily, but just wondering if all of your amazing blogs are setting me up for the cycle of dissatisfaction I've been trapped in lately. Hmmm. We've had those conversations about keeping it real and telling the whole story, and I'm not sure that's exactly what I'm talking about. I'm not sure we're required to tell the whole story. Face it, some things are private. Not meant for public consumption. But everywhere I read, people are doing big and bold things with there lives, and here I sit, feeling stuck.

3. I think instead of blaming blogging, I should probably just blame myself! I've been in a funk lately, no lie. And it's funny, because I've talked with so many friends who feel the same way. Just three this week. So what's up with that? September should be better than this! I had a wonderful chat with my friend Megan yesterday and she was 100 kinds of supportive and inspirational. She inspired me to keep on keepin' on (if I could only be a better self-promoter!) and made me want to include some house tours on the blog (But I'd have to travel to Nantucket! Oh well!) and just generally lovingly tried to push me out of my comfort zone. I think it's time I started paying better attention to things around here.

4. Speaking of Megan and her sage advice....I think I'm hoping my new Erin Condren planner will whip my butt into shape. I did it. I totally splurged and got one. It came yesterday, so I'll have to spend some time getting adjusted to it. I'll pop a picture of it on Monday Mash Up because, if I do say so myself, it's beautiful.

5. I think I've missed you guys lately. I know I've been AWOL. This time of year is hell at our house. That's no lie either. Start of school, birthdays, back to school nights, busy husbands, busy kids, new schedules and routines. Add to that my general feeling blue, and there you are. I had lunch with Neel this week and just started crying at the table. That almost always happens at some point in August or September. I had a rough project on my plate this week that I'd been putting off and it was weighing me down too. I can dust my hands of it a bit, and focus on the fun stuff. Like commenting on your blogs and responding to your comments here. I simply haven't had the time to do that and I've missed you. Every single one of you means the world to me. And when I do get down? Well, you lift me up. Each of you. xo

As much as I love our neighborhood, I often feel hemmed in by suburbia. We go back and forth about what we'd like, the solitary silence of nature or the vibrant pace of city life? Cities feel so alive, don't they? Teeming with humanity. I love the idea of living downtown in some metropolis and walking everywhere we need to go. This weekend, visiting our friends Erin and Boyfriend (and I'm proud to call them "friends" not "creepy stalkers we met on the internet"), gave us a sample of that. As soon as we pulled into town, we dumped our car at the hotel and didn't lay eyes on it again until it was time to leave.

Meeting Erin was nothing short of amazing. We quickly left our bags in the hotel and paced around outside waiting for her to arrive. Now that's an interesting moment, isn't it? Meeting someone you've never really seen before, but can't wait to? We took bets on which direction she'd come from, and Callum called it. He saw her first and as soon as he pointed her out (she was unmistakable!), I darted off down the street like someone in a cheesy movie. I promptly stepped on her foot, but she didn't seem to hold that against me. As for Neel and Callum, no introductions were necessary. I don't think we stopped talking for the rest of the night.

Erin suggested a wonderful diner for breakfast the next morning that was right across the street from our hotel, but sadly we had to bypass it. I love me some diner food, but we knew we'd be having a big lunch (hello, Parc!) and ball park food that night. We opted for pastries and coffee at Miel, just a door or two down from our hotel. And this is why city life is so nice. Walk to pastries? Not shabby.

Our hotel was located around the corner from Rittenhouse Square, named after a famed astronomer in the early 1800s. By the second half of the 19th century Rittenhouse was home to the fashionable elite of Philadelphia, which, I'm sure is why Neel's parents lived here for a bit when they were first married. Many years later, though. The square still teems with life. A farmer's market was set up on Saturday with Amish farmers selling gorgeous flowers. There are kids playing, people running and walking, sitting and talking. All manners of doggies sit and walk or bark at squirrels. It's not at all a bad place to spend a weekend morning. Or any morning really. Except perhaps a sleety, cold Pennsylvania morning when you're late for work and your dog won't pee damnit.

I, too can take photos of people when they aren't looking! Erin is a wonderful host in her beloved city. She bought us bus tokens and zipped us around town with ease. Part of why I love traveling to visit people in their spaces is how relaxing it is. I didn't have to worry about a thing. Erin had the tokens. Erin knew which bus to take and when to get off. She knew where to hop into the gift shop for Independence Hall and how to time our tours. We certainly felt well tended to. And besides, Philly is fun! We met up with Boyfriend for lunch at Parc, and I didn't take many photos because we were too busy having fun. We shared some mussels and pommes frites, and we laughed and talked the whole time. You'd never, ever know we'd just met BF. Ever! And you'd never have known he was feeling crummy either. Poor guy. What a trooper.

After naps all around, we were escorted to the ball park with more of Erin's mad skills. You can see how dark the skies are. No more on this shall be spoken. We're still sad.

Oh, but nothing some doggie love can't cure! Brunch with Erin, Boyfriend and Fitz was the perfect cap to our weekend. Their city condo is so charming, and I can attest that the guest room project continues apace. It's going to be an amazing space...it already is! Boyfriend made an amazing quiche and having Fitz around was like some kind of interactive dinner theater! He and Callum got along famously! We felt welcomed beyond belief and it was hard to tear ourselves away.

I should probably go on the record here and say that Cal (and Neel, but really, Cal) just loved Erin (and Boyfriend, but really, Erin). Meeting her and spending time with her was just about the only thing that could make up for that-which-shall-not-be-spoken-of. He had a wonderful time. I think she's probably his first celebrity crush! I We can't wait to go back.

five things, september 14th edition

streets of philadelphia {life}