ana montiel

illustrations by london-based, spanish visual artist ana montiel.

blessed

i am so blessed. today is mother's day so i'm giving thanks for my mother, whose beauty cannot be fully completely captured by my insufficient words. happy mother's day to a single mother who made it her life's mission to give herself to her loved ones -- generously, abundantly, selflessly, gently/tenderly and completely... physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. i have an amazing and most beautiful woman for a mother. (here she is in a photo as a little girl!)

in addition, i'm also giving thanks today (and for the rest of my days) for my handsome, amazing, funny,  servant-hearted fiance. it was my birthday last week and even though we're on a budget (getting married, and all), he planned a tiny celebration for the two of us. in addition to a most delicious dinner (proscuitto-wrapped chicken, stuffed with breadcrumbs, dried cherries and herbs), he got me the loveliest cake and a copy of elizabeth messina's new book!





(these are at our new home by the way... can't show any photos right now because we have barely any furnishings)

juxtaposition

i'm loving this space, part of an 18th century old flat remodeled by architect benedetta tagliabue. she had the crew stop whilst working and leave this amazing celebration of the old structure and the new.

"No sketches or models were devised; nor was there a master plan of the type so popular for signature residences by many architects of their caliber. As Tagliabue has stated, the house itself, and its history, steered the direction of the works. "

read more here.

i was born by the river

it's the home stretch guys! i have exactly 29 days (excluding today) until i become a mrs! i'm getting a bit anxious because we've been dealing with some not-so-reliable vendors and because so many of the things on my monthly to-do lists for this wedding have been pushed into the month of may. however, there's a silver lining too: we signed the lease on our new home (hence, all the pins of interiors on my pinterest lately)!

this last period has been very bittersweet and full of mixed feelings. i don't usually talk about very serious/personal things here, but one of the most difficult things about this period of time is my grandmother. she has fourth-stage lung cancer, but by God's grace has been okay for the most part living on her own... until the past couple weeks. the wonderful part of having my own business, is my ability to go and see her in the middle of the week and just help where needed. last week when i went to see her, i found that she had fallen in the restroom and couldn't get up for hours. we took her to the ER, where the doctor found fractures in both feet and in her hip. i know i shouldn't, but i feel so guilty that my wedding is during this period of time, where our family has more than enough to deal with. yet, despite what seems to be a bad situation, i trust that God is working and using the seemingly bad for his good plans.

it's definitely been hard to be 100% at life: relationships, managing my business, preparing for marriage, etc.. i definitely feel that i'm not doing well in either category because i'm constantly being pulled to and from each one. i keep waiting for the period of time after the wedding when i can focus on one thing and be excellent at it, but i know that's not the nature of life :).  in any case, here's looking forward to finally getting hitched!

i wish i could post photos of the things we're working on but i want it to be a surprise!



(image: nicolette's studio via odette)