inspired by... {Indian Summer}

It has been a very very busy week here.

Actually... my busy-ness only comes from myself.
Since last week I am back consulting part-time and of course... I want to keep working on my shop with full force... then I am training for 1/2 marathon... which is happening next weekend! (It seemed like an awesome idea two months ago)

So yes. I got my plate full.

I know I am limited to the time I have in my hand... so I try to stay focused on the task. I also try to take care of myself and my energy level for the sake of all of us involved in the family. Little roo needs me... no matter how exhausted I am and it is my number one priority... to be a good mama for her.

So when I have her in my arm, we enjoy our time with each other. It has been a very warm days here (close to 90F° today! Oh my) so we spend quality time taking walks around the neighborhood and admiring little fruit trees in our backyard.

I am crossing my fingers that once I finish my 1/2 marathon, I will be little easy on myself. Maybe do some more yoga and have little time for breather... we shall see:)

inspired by... {spooky story}

Growing up in Japan and Germany, we don't have a particular tie to American holidays nor cultural icons.  Thanksgiving, 4th of July... and of course... Halloween... My sister who is more into costumes (well... she is more Japanese than I am, I suppose) dragged me out to several Halloween parties over last 10 years but other than that, Halloween has been another day of the year for us.

Now we have a house in a little neighborhood and a daughter, friends have been asking if we would give candies to trick-or-treaters or dress up our little roo in the first costume...

Well. We don't really know yet. Most likely no to the first question and maybe we will put a cute hat with ears on little roo. We kind of decided that if we have time to decorate the house, we could use the time to go through the stuff in closet and garage... (are we too boring?)

But that does not mean we can not enjoy the Halloween decorating party at our friend's house! Last Sunday we had so much fun helping our friends' kids to decorate their front yard. Did you know that each corner must have a "special story"?  One corner became a graveyard and other corner was a chop shop!! I love the idea of the mini story as a vignette. This I can totally get into!

Inspired by... {moisture in the air x fresh green}

We had one rainy week here in Los Angeles! We barely saw the sun come out so we stayed mostly inside. As much as I love sunny days, it's nice to have a change of scenery here and there. Weather like this reminds me of my days in Seattle.

Foggy morning is my favorite time of the day! The smell of wet soil... very quiet surroundings... I could almost hear the sound of water. Our garden plants are also loving the moisture in the air. The fruit trees we planted in early summer is greener than ever and we are starting to get mossy ground in our (slightly empty) backyard.

When little roo one was asleep, I was able to explore our garden and capture some moments.

I hope your week is as sunny as the sky above these clouds!

Inspired by... {my kitchen - heart of home}

Happy week everyone:)
I want to thank you for all the lovely comments/emails I have received on my shop relaunch. It's very very exciting:)

In order to get things done for the shop, I have spent many many hours in my little kitchen where I cooked both our meals and my shop... (it's the brightest and most secluded part of my house) so I thought it would be fun to share a little inspiration from my kitchen today.

I love love love that we're starting to collect very international cookwares. I got a picture of Tagine here but we also have a Japanese nabe (we do shabu shabu in this pot), Römertopf (German clay pot), Scandinavian cast-iron casserole (our kind friend gave this as our wedding gift but wow... just realized you could buy one at MoMA store), and German pressure cooker by Silit all on the same shelf.

I believe kitchen is the heart of our home... we cook, eat, celebrate, work, share...  In this tiny space we live and breathe our life!

Inspired by... {crisp air & warm cuddle}

I don't know what happened... but the temperature in LA has dropped almost 40F° in last 7 days... crazy. Now we have rainy days, cold air and darker evenings...

Time to cuddle in the big bathrobes during the morning hours, sip warm hot chocolate in the mid-afternoon and take brisk walks every time sun peeks out.

Happy October:)

inspired by... {light}

This past week we had really hot days here in Southern California.

On Monday the thermometer hit 113F°!! Supposedly the hottest it has ever been in LA... so we got our "outdoor" moments before and after the day light.

light is something that shifts from one to another very quickly yet tells so much story about the scene.  I love capturing light that fills my view...

Inspired by... {beginning of fall}

Throughout the week, I take tons of pictures. Some make it to this blog and some don't... mainly because they don't fit with what I write about. But I still take these photos because they inspire me and I want to capture these moments.

So I have been thinking of the way to share these photos... and decided to do a weekly wrap up of photo inspiration board on Wednesday.

I am thinking that it will be a lovely opportunity to open my window to yours. What do you think?

This week we are enjoying a cooler weather here in LA. I love how photos taken on a gloomy day come out so differently from the ones taken on a sunny day. It feels like I am living in a different city.

If you are posting a photo collage that shares your inspiration..., can you leave me a link? I would love to visit your world too!

p.s. I have another series I am dying to start from this Friday. More coming in a few days:)