Creating a sanctuary.

First thing after I woke up on Saturday I called The Madre and we embarked on a mission to find a new ceramic fountain bowl to replace the one broken in the move (her treat!) Apparently, tabletop fountains have fallen out of popularity and we have checked three different stores earlier in the week with absolutely no luck. After a little bit of online research she found some leads at a popular nursery on the Eastside, but I really wanted to check out the Indoor Sun Shoppe first since so many of my friends had raved about it and their website also suggested they had fountain supplies.

Just in case you're doing your online research and thinking you can trust the sparsely updated local store's websites - DON'T. Seriously folks, it seems no one makes their own tabletop fountains anymore. My cats love the damn thing and it always gets a good giggle out of guests who catch them drinking from it, so I couldn't imagine not fixing it.

The Indoor Sun Shoppe sold us a nice, used (workable) bowl that we found tucked back by the gravel for practically 70% off the original price so Ma decided we should also pick up the gorgeous orchids that caught our eye(s.) After that, we still thought it might not be a bad idea to trek over to the Eastside to check out the other nursery's fountain making kit.

Guess what? Yeah, they didn't have that in stock either, but I picked up some extra rocks, chocolate and Moroccan mint to grow on the balcony and some chive seeds to plant then spent the rest of my afternoon assembling, planting/re-potting and arranging my living room. As I laid on my couch that evening barely able to keep my eyes open I could feel the bruises smarting while I cuddled with Bread.

After sleeping in as late as possible, I unpacked boxes all day Sunday and took a walk over to pick up some groceries once it cooled down to make sure I got out to enjoy at least a little of the fabulous weather we had. As I wandered through Westwood Village I couldn't help but smile - despite all the black and blue, I am so happy to be back in this neighborhood and so thrilled to see my home coming together. I definitely have plenty more boxes to unpack (mostly books and the fra-gee-lay stuff now) but I can see the bones of a place where I can be safe, comfortable, creative and content.