Hello, friends! I hope you had a great week. I can’t believe it’s October already!
I started working with a tutor this week and am already starting to feel better about learning Spanish. It’s really challenging to be so limited in the number of things I can say (“the man drinks milk” doesn’t help much when you need to buy vacuum bags), and last week I started to feel a little discouraged and isolated, which I know is very common when you move to a new country. Once I finish writing this book I’ll have more time for discussion groups that will help me to progress more quickly, but at least for now I’m starting to get a basic grasp of the language in terms of possessive pronouns and things like that. I’ll tackle verb tenses when I know a few more verbs!
We’re keeping a close eye on Hurricane Joaquin as it approaches the east coast. My sister and brother-in-law are staying in our apartment while we’re away, and so far life in NYC has presented quite a series of challenges for them. I wish I could be there to help out, but I trust that everyone will be well prepared for the storm. If you’re in the path of the storm, be safe!
Pinterest Picks
Such a sweet little Tea Party Sundress.
This is the next Cappuccino Dress I’ll be making. Such a beautiful color! Silk or silk/linen, or maybe even just linen, we’ll see what I can find.
And as long as we’re thinking about that beautiful dusty peach color, I think it would be fun to lengthen the City Stroll Skirt to make a skirt similar to this one. Just use the lengthen/shorten line and add a LOT of length for this look.
Isn’t this a cute idea for packaging a gift? I love the sewn detail.
Weekend DIY with the kids: hand-made party blowers!
Weekend Reading
- When I pick up S from school at the end of the day, she’s completely exhausted. Learning another language is hard work, and with so many changes all at once I completely understand why she’s so tired. But I still want to know what’s happening in her life, and these questions really help to gradually draw her out and get her to talk a little bit about school and her new classmates and teachers as we walk home. By the time we’ve arrived, I usually have a pretty good picture of what her day was like.
- As long as I’m on the topic of learning a new language (sorry!), a dear friend sent me this fascinating article about why it’s more difficult for adults to learn a new language than it is for children. All this research makes me wonder: since S is 10–right on the cusp of the brain change that seems to happen–and she has a very strong grasp of language and the meaning of words, which side of the language learning divide will she fall on? I’d love to know. (By the way, S and I are dedicating part of each day to learning Spanish by watching Peppa Pig en espanol together. I know; it’s tough, right?)
- I don’t know about you, but I get tired of hearing the same style icons trotted out all the time: Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Marilyn Monroe, Jackie Kennedy, Edie Sedgwick, you know what I mean. We need some new style leaders, and I loved this article for exactly that reason. Right now I’m inspired by the unique styles of Tilda Swinton, Daphne Guinness, and all the Advanced Style ladies for their eccentric looks. (P.S. Have you seen the Advance Style documentary? So fun, and I think it’s available on Netflix!)
- Do you make a point of being stopping to be thankful during the day? Lots of research has shown that gratitude contributes in large ways to our overall feelings of happiness. And that applies to how we approach our work, as well.
And on that note, I want to tell you how grateful I am to be able to sit here and write this to you. It’s a beautiful day, it’s a Friday, we’re going to the ballet tomorrow, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend doing whatever you’re planning to do! See you next week.