Flowers, friends, and an avocado top...

The Humble Bungalow Garden is starting to bloom...
May is truly a great month for flowers.

Columbine

Lilacs in mauve and white

(same tree!)

 poppies...

Pure white lilacs

showy pavement series rose

Pacific Iris dwarf variety

 my current read

I did buy this book because of the cover!

alliums

Lily of the valley

I have masses and masses of this plant.

I could probably set up a stand and sell it to people as they wander by...

love the scent 

of

"muguet de bois"

If the weather holds I'll take my tea down to this wee table 

sit in the sunshine and soak in some vitamin D

after I've done my weeding.

Later perhaps I'll soak in the tub with some restorative epsom salts

and  I might pop on this new top with white capri's.

Green is my favourite colour and this avocado shade called my name.

It's from the Joe Fresh line

perfect for summertime

light and rather gauzy.

I realized that I "need" to go sandal shopping

I only have one pair of decent sandals and they are going into their 4th year of service.

Flip flops are OK for casual wear 

(and I have two pairs)

but with a dress or a skirt I like to have something a little more stylish.

I looked at lots of shoes but nothing really spoke to me.

I don't want anything too heavy or verging on frumpy

and a bright colour would be fun.

And why are decent shoes so darned expensive?

My BFF got a fabulous dress for the wedding

and we found an unconstructed cover

rather like a sweater alternative 

soft light cotton

with great details that add a chic effect.

She also bought a new Roots cross body bag

and we lunched at Rebar and both enjoyed a delicious quinoa and wild rice salad with beans and avocado.

If you are looking for a fabulous vegetarian spot to lunch do not miss this diner.

Nothing like a fun day with my BFF and some successful shopping 

to put a contented happy smile on my face.

Hope that your weekend is ticking along nicely.

The domestics just got more glamourous!

Domestics in this old bungalow are never done.
Which makes it often difficult to sit and relax
particularly when I spy
dust bunnies and cat hair gathering on the dark wood flooring...
If it were a dull grey day I would not notice but they are
illuminated by the warm afternoon sunshine...

Our cleaning gal has been on leave and I am not keeping up her standards.
I now see dirt where I have never seen it before.
I had no idea that we were so messy and I consider myself organized...

I honestly do miss her weekly visits.
The good news is that she is coming back very soon!

I decided that I needed to do a more thorough job 

that meant buying some newer 

fresher and better tools...

 Oh! look at the lover-ly prep inspired label 

 Boston Warehouse has glamourous products

the gloves have polka dot frilly edging

prints and flowers 

in a rainbow of colour

I could have bought the entire stock of gizmos

and revamped my dull utilitarian cleaning cupboard

it could stand to be made over!

Broom in black and white!

(Pepper approves)

She "helps me" sweep...

which takes much longer

I do appreciate her "being on the job"

I replaced my worn out scrubber

with this new one

it's in a happy lime green colour.

Let's dress up domestics a bit!

I wonder what Elizabeth Taylor would say about these...

do you think she ever pushed a vacuum

or 

scrubbed pots?

Remember to wear your gloves when doing heavy work

your hands will thank you for the protection.

Speaking of protection...

 it's a good time to discuss SPF

we need to save our skin from the sun's harmful rays

 chemicals cannot be good 

baked by the intense heat of the sun

so it is a safe solution 

that I seek...

and have found

Organic Mineral Sunscreen

SPF 30

recommended by a girlfriend

whose

 complexion is looking radiant these days

I think this might be part of her secret!

Break time is over...

I am off to massage the tub with a micro fiber cloth...

Shopping with my BFF, we've been getting into mischief like this since grade 3!

I got an early morning call from my girlfriend SMB. whom I have known since grade 3...She is my BFF and have shared all kinds of adventures. We are very close, symbiotic almost, love the same things, do not compete in any area, love and honor each other, have way too much fun together, doing anything and nothing. We are still growing up and getting older together,  hopefully, with a modicum of grace. We are not navel gazers,  do not take ourselves seriously, we laugh, we share and we DO.

I feel so incredibly blessed to have her in my life. We are like family, but more so.  Our kids hang out together, they are like cousins.
We CELEBRATE.....birthdays, dinners, lunches, we go boating together, we shop, we share books, we both live in arts and crafts homes, we can talk on the phone for hours, (until the batteries die and we need to hang up and recharge them!) we share similar opinions and have the same taste in clothing. It is actually quite funny... when we shop individually we frequently end up at the same event dressed in the identical piece of clothing. People smirk and think we shopped together...LOL! (We stopped phoning each other asking about our attire when we were out of high school, well, truthfully we still do it once in awhile!)
Here's one of the BEST BITS...our husbands really get along, and famously, they trade books, help each other on the boats, and go crabbing together. They are both self employed and so have much in common  as bosses and business owners.

Today we met at the Mall she was on a jean shopping mission and so was I, we ended up at the Gap and both got some dark wash denim, mine are curvy ankle length 1969 and she got 2 different pairs of 1969's and not the same styles as mine!
After the Gap, we cruised the mall and I found my black wool "dream coat." I have been looking for one like it for about 2 years!  And it was on SALE 50% off the regular price of $600....looks great, feels soft, will go with everything! European made by OLSEN.

We stopped for a bowl of hot soup before parting and getting on with our grocery shopping...which we do at the same small independent market in her neighbourhood, (a very Tony area) I drive 15 minutes to get there as I am closer to town. It is well worth the drive as this market has the best produce and organic meat and poultry. I work in this area so I usually drive by and shop on my way home, but today I was off work and I needed a chicken for dinner and a few fresh veggies.

My pictures do not do it justice but trust me ithe coat is sumptuous! Cashmere and wool, what a great combo.
I love it and with any luck and TLC it should last me years. The CPW will be pennies as it will be my fall and winter basic all occasion coat.
The collar is wide and asymetrical, it can stand up with a kind of "Elizabethan" feel, very soft looking and flattering for my curly hair and roundish face.

I am pinching myself as I write this...another "AH HA" moment.