#gardening Archives - Northern California Style

Hello I wanted to check in with you all and see how you faring. We made it through April and it looks like May could mean some loosening slowly of restrictions here in California. There is a little feeling of hope in everyone it seems and even tennis could be back in my future ! We’ve done well with our numbers and people here in Northern Cal have been mostly good about trying to do the right thing. Masks have become protocol and I am proud of us for all getting on that so fast and adapting it to our lives.

My family has gotten out more than some. My guys have done some hikes and bike rides with the family and I have been shopping for my dad and delivering to him. How about you all? Today I talked to a friend whose family has not left the house in the seven weeks and they have three kids.

The bright spot this week was putting in our garden! Dad brought us tomatoes he had grown from seed as he does every year. Jackson my oldest, did most of the work and my dad just gave a few social distanced directions before leaving us with the plants. I’m so grateful to have my dad nearby and helping us.

Jack and I are pretty excited to change up the garden this year by adding some larger containers of herbs and lettuce as well and flowers to hide the air conditioning unit. The walls have Bower Vines which replaced an invasive Potato Vine that was driving my neighbor nuts.

Carla, my landscape designer said these will spread out and cover the fence, but not take over. I will share our progress as the garden grows. If you are thinking of getting a victory garden in, now is the time, as the frosts have passed and the days are getting warm, so plants can take root and thrive in the hot months.

Max snapped this photo by the garden gate when we were back there the other day and you can see a bigger view of the rest of our yard. I shared more pictures this week on my Instagram stories, and how we came to own this very large and winding pool and a yard with a massive amount of brick!! We’ll never afford to replace it all so we’ve come to love its old school charm.

I am slowly working on each area and I have to say gardening has been good for me. There is something about being out there even if I am just pulling weeds and trimming, feels like I am working towards something and it’s calming. I am upping my garden game and even ordered some pots and supplies. You can still get supplies by delivery or curbside pickup at local nurseries during our shut down, so I am trying to support them.

On Instagram people asked about my camo shorts and they are my go-to for gardening and pretty much everyday when it is warm. They are from Sundry, one of my favorite companies with a cool California vibe and made in Los Angeles.

They have some adorable things marked to nearly half like this cool Mama sweater just in time for Mother’s Day.

And I know these shorts would be chic worn a million ways this summer.

This heart sweatshirt is also fun. I seem to be living in my shorts and sweatshirts lately. I love the softness of Sundry tops. If you appreciate comfy and cute weekend clothes, they are the place and right now that is everyday for most of us!

One other Mother’s Day thing I highly recommend and I literally live in now, is my linen Serena & Lily pajamas. I have the pink and I would one day love to get another pair in white or this cute striped set.

S&L pajamas are beautifully made in Portugal and easy to care for. I just pull them out of the wash, tumble for a few minutes and smooth them and air dry in the sun. Serena & Lily is having 20% off everything now with code ATHOME so it is a good time to pop over there if you have been considering any of their beautiful home goods.

My flip flops I also was asked about and they are Tory Burch red toile and they are on sale now for $39!

My yellow top above is a Liberty fabric blouse from J.Crew. Right now J. Crew has all shorts and swim on sale at 60% off. That never happens. I love these swimsuits with matching coverups! Maybe a early summer gift for yourself..

SO cute.

People love to give flowers for Mother’s Day so I wanted to call out a wonderful Farmgirl Flowers. If you aren’t already familiar, they are a SF company that delivers flowers by bike in the city, and also ship over the country. They use only farms that are pesticide free and pay fair wages to their employees. Many of their bouquets are benefitting charities too. I like that they use upcycled burlap to wrap bouquets. Keep them in mind when asking for or ordering flowers this year. Men always appreciate hints too.

I think their selections of bouquets are lovely…

Another local company Tancredi & Morgen in Carmel has sweet Mother’s Day kits. I love the packages they pulled together with their lovely curated things and some of those packages are on sale. I think it’s good to support local businesses now so they stay in business. I have loved their shop forever and have many things I treasure from them. They have free shipping and local delivery!

Some very lovely things and cool cards with them.

I hope you have a good weekend. There’s no beach is in our immediate future, but we are getting to know our neighborhood pretty darn good with all the walks! The New York Times had a great read for your weekend on how we are connecting again with our neighborhoods, one of the unexpected benefits of being stuck at home. You know we were all rushing about so much going here and there before this pandemic, many of us never had the chance to know our neighbors well, and a whole lot of us are now taking the time to do that which is so good for our communities!

One more thing, on my Instagram this week, I am asking people to post a photo of that brings back memories of travel to a special place. It can be a treasured souvenir, like my bowl from Positano I shared (below), or a place you want to get back to someday when we can all travel again. Tag your photos #dreamingofmytravels and I’ll pick a random winner at the end of the week to win a travel book, soap from Hawaii and a few other fun things.