A Walk on the Wild Side: Past vrs Present.

As a self-proclaimed former "wild child" without a fear in the world, I find it extremely ironic that as a "practical adult" my fear levels have greatly escalated.  While I once lived my life with what others might call "reckless abandon,"  my present life is nothing short of a strategic military initiative.

THE EVOLUTION:

PAST

As a two-year old: Climbing to the top of the high dive at Army Navy Country Club and jumping. . .while no one was watching. A perfect 10.

As a teenager: Hoping on a train in the middle of the night to NYC and scoring the first train home in the morning. No biggie, I wasnt going to pass that test anyhoo...KRISTIN!

As a post college graduate: Get on a plane to Munich as an afterthought and fly to Germany without a map or any idea what or where a glockenspiel is to meet the only person in the whole country I know. . .

In Decorating: Painted an entire room lime green in my $500 a month Myers Park rental. . .How much could my landlord really care??

PRESENT

@ My Three Year Old: You are going to need a life preserver, a Life Guard, Daddy on the diving board AND Mommy AND Sadie in the pool, and a clean drop. All other children please exit the deep end.

@ Taking Sadie into NYC for the 1st Time: Suffered from nightmares, sleep deprivation and anxiety for weeks. Multiple tour books, printed out maps, cell phone, extra pull ups and hourly check in's with Daddy. Anxiety transferred to my Step Mother and this is her turf.

*Sadie Age 4 at Grand Central for the 1st time. No fear.

@Flying on a Plane: Requires two weeks worth of planning, packing, laundry, twelve trips to Target, 2 trips to church in deep prayer and a valium. *kidding on the valium, I couldnt find any if I tried.

@Decorating: Longing for grasscloth wallpaper to put in the sunroom. Suffering from wallpaper commitment issues. That stuff is NOT cheap and is a pain in the YOU-KNOW-WHAT to remove. I might have it forever.

So what do you think? Should I JUMP. . . 

I love the depth and texture of this grasscloth with the dark floors.

@KMK thinks my sun room needs to be lavender

Or

The Safest Option. . .

SORRY BUT I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS ROOM!

Collin and I decided this would be our model for the room.

AND

And then wrap the wall of windows in curtain panels. . . .

@my loveliest of lovely readers, what do you think?

I REALLY, REALLY WANT TO KNOW!

If only I had been this cautious when I . . .

Now that information is top-secret. . .

Cheers,

Tay

Summer in The South: Southern Living Does It Charlotte Style

What better magazine to glamorize my favorite city than Southern Living. Check out the special edition of Southern Living's Summer in the South  feature on our very own Queen City. The topping on the cake is local fashionista goddess Laura VinRoot Poole (of Capital) shares her current summer favorites and reminds us that this city does indeed rule!

 The Summer Calendar already has me reaching for my phone, I have A LOT of babysitters to book and friends to call!  First up and specifically calling my name is the June 1st The Year in Jazz, 1957 event at the Bechler Museum.

Download the Summer Play list and get down to bands like Alabama Shakes, Marie Mize and Moon Taxi. I am chilling right now to  Sugar & The Hi Lows belting out Show & Tell all 70's style and I am more than happy about that.

Summer in the Charlotte is my favorite and I cant wait to share it with you!!!

Cheers,

Tay

Check it out directly and then download it straight to your computer at:

summer-events-charlotte-north-carolina

Open Minded: Why yes, yes I am!

For absolutley no reason at all, I have NEVER wanted to go to two places in the world. The First was Las Vegas and the Second was Cancun, Mexico. These are both places that my sweet husband dragged me to "kicking and screaming." Ok not really, but there was a lot of sleepless nights and anxiety leading up to both trips. If left to his own, my husband would frequent Vegas at least once maybe twice a year and I would visit it NEVER! My speed is drastically more quaint, I prefer a small french bistro to my husbands favorite luxury brand steak house.

But marriage is all about compromise and  for the record, my love of adventure trumps my stubbornness, so I reluctantly went with him to a Las Vegas conference a couple of years back. Plus, I am cheap and the business expense sealed the deal! For the record, I LOVE IT!! The first time we stayed at The Paris and the second time we stayed at The Hotel. I can say that I honestly felt quite at home at both the Bellagio and the Wynn, are you surprised? And yes, while I may prefer small and quaint to large and luxurious, where there is luxury there is luxury and I am on board!

*Me on the 64th Floor of the Hotel at Mix (I think it is still there??)

It was this winter, right after we returned home from St. John, that the Westin Resorts (because we LOVE Starwood Resorts!) sent us an offer so sweet  we could just not turn it down. The brochure and website promised amazing luxury  and two bedroom villa at it's new Westin Lagunamar Resort in Cancun, Mexico. I was sceptical, but sweet Scotty and his sister Melinda promised I would like it, and well, because they are smarter than I am, are very rarely wrong.  Besides the Caribbean is the Caribbean, right?

Before leaving my fears were (NOT) comforted by remarks such as "since the break down on the police corruption last December, I hear it is much safer. . . "   and "dont worry there are police with machine guns."  WHAT!!!  Where am I going. . . .more sleepless nights, anxiety and even (gulp) some tears! But we have points (thank God) so you knew I was going right!

We landed at the nicest Caribbean airport I have ever flown through or traveled from. Seriously people, it is as divine as an airport could ever be!  Newark, NJ you could take some lessons from the Mexicans! 10 minutes later our Westin driver snags all of us. . . Melinda, Scott, Sadie, Cooper and me!  We drive down a modern highway, passing luxury brand flagship stores like Cartier, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Ruth Chris and more. . . .5 minutes later we arrive at the Westin Lagunamar. It is spectacular and well, they told me so, lux and  I LOVE it! So we had a fabulous time and I was reminded about how I would have never had the experience if I hadn't  (no not dragged kicking and screaming) opened my mind and let my husband show me his way.

*That's us before dinner at the resort!

*Lounging on the pool!

*Family not at all enjoying themselves!

Next, it's my turn and I will bring him with me on some romantic adventure that is not at all logical and I will remind him why he loves me so much!

Cheers,

Tay

Salt Heaven. . .

Several years ago (ok 3 1/2 years ago) I visited my sister Ashley in Sydney, Australia. While we were traveling we flew to into Adelaide, South AU and traveled south as far as Kangaroo, Island.  We stopped in McLaren Vale, home to some of the most beautiful vineyards, best wine tasting and gourmet foods that I have ever had the honor of experiencing first hand.

*At the Cellar Door, bowls full of Murray River Sea Salt, the perfect sprinkle for the freshest olive oil and homemade baguette!

While totally indulging myself in wine, I also discovered the amazing taste  of Murray River Sea Salt! The Murray River, is the largest major source of fresh water (it is high in salinity, thus the salt) in Australia. It is also the worlds third largest river. The salt is produced naturally from the underground brines in the Murray Darling Basin in Australia. It's perfect peach color comes from carotene that's secreted from the algae in the saline waters that have been dormant for thousands of years. It has the lightest "flaking"  salt crystals that make it melt quickly and the perfect ingredient for everything from salad to salmon.  I found it locally at my favorite home away from home, Dean and Deluca.

To learn more about the Murray River go to: http://www.murrayriver.com.au/about-the-murray/