Habitat Kid

ENJOY: Happy Halloween from The Turkey & The Tiger

I finally got around to going through London's Halloween-theme birthday party - yay! It really was so much fun to plan and put together and I think all the kids had a good time. We started out with a simple craft, making spiderwebs out of sticks and yarn, followed by a mini pumpkin hunt in the garden (clementines with jack-o-lantern faces drawn on. Huge hit!) The kids bobbed for apples which was hilarious to watch and then we gathered everyone together for dinner which consisted of soup, cornbread, veggies, popcorn and apple tart. We ended it with a small gift exchange amongst the children and a Halloween story, "Mousekin's Golden House" by Edna Miller. I love having story time at parties, it's a great way to calm the kids down and send them on their way!

PLAY: Carton Cube Puzzle by Nathalie Lété

November is gearing up to be a crazy month for us, since it's the time of year I always send out my paper advent calendars I sell on Etsy (more info for you coming soon!) and Christmas right around the corner, not to mention the birth of a new baby. I'm hoping to have Christmas shopping totally done and everything ready by the last week in November...wish me luck! I love this little cube puzzle, which would be a great stocking stuffer, don't you think? With paintings from French artist Nathalie Lété on each side, there are six puzzles in one. I love her work and the colors she favors - she definitely has a certain playful style that appeals to children. Available from Anthropologie.

OBSERVE: Livable Bento Box

Having lived in small spaces for 12 years, I have a new appreciation for people who can make it work and do it beautifully. Take Japanese family of four, The Akiyoshi's, who renovated their Noho apartment in NYC to work like a bento box. The two teenage sisters share a room featuring raised beds with walk-in closets underneath – such an excellent use of space! I lived in a similar set-up in college, but with a desk underneath and it was just so smart. The whole apartment is very refined and tranquil, but with some fun touches carefully used throughout (like the on-display collections in the girls' bedroom). Designed by Koko Architecture and Design.

Images by Trevor Tondro for The New York Times

DISCOVER: New Pumpkin Patch

I feel like I've had writer's block (blogger's block?) for over a week now and I have struggled with coming up with something decent to post. I never want to post just for the sake of posting and I always want to share good stuff. I am still sifting through party pics from London's 5th birthday - holy crazy. It was fun, but I always end up asking myself every year why the heck I torture myself with all of the preparations for a two hour gig that my kid most likely won't remember... Next year I think I'm going to make things a bit easier and have her party at this super cute pumpkin patch/Christmas tree farm I went to with a friend yesterday. We practically had the place to ourselves, took a wagon ride, a train ride, played on the bounce houses and of course, spent plenty of time frolicking among long rows of bright pumpkins. Oh fall, I love you so much.

CREATE: Secret Garden Coloring Book

This past weekend we took off for Portland so that Scott could run his first marathon - woohoo! All of those early morning runs he's been doing seemed to have paid off and he got a great time: 3:01! I was so proud of him. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time staying right downtown. As soon as we got there I took off straight for a few of my favorite shops that I discovered last time and ended up falling in love with this sweet coloring book at Alder & Co. Each page is a work of art in and of itself, with detailed illustrations done by Johanna Basford, known for her extremely detailed pen-and-ink work. Johanna's designs are heavily rooted in the flora and fauna that surrounded her while growing up on her parent's fish farm in rural Scotland. I am so in love with this little coloring book, I almost don't want to give it to London for her birthday on Wednesday and just selfishly color it myself!

PLAY: Abooba Chair

This chair is hilarious! I don't know how many times a day I have to remind a certain someone in our house "no climbing on the furniture!" but this chair is meant for just that. Designed by Jaewook Kim of Korea, the chair is designed to allow parents to rest while still interacting with their playful child. "Abooba" means "piggyback" in Korean. :)

via Behance