This lovely Malaysian singer named Yuna is worth a listen – I’ve really enjoyed listening to her sweet voice the last few weeks. I also wish I could pull off a head scarf like she can, don’t you? She picked up songwriting at the age of 19 while in law school. I’m so glad she did!
Happy Friday! xo
A few weeks ago I mentioned that the Mr and I were making the most of the little time we have to spend together this summer. Here’s a little romantic soundtrack that has been playing in the background during these sweet times, if you’d like a listen.
It’s also just a lovely playlist for lazy summer days. :)
Enjoy! xo
Photo: Natalie Wood & Robert Wagner
I just discovered Johnnyswim this week, a fantastic husband-and-wife duo (Abner Ramirez and Amanda Sudano) and had to share them with you. This is some of the most wonderful music I have encountered in a long time, and it was tough to settle on which one of their gems to share. “Adelina” is just achingly good, a gorgeous mix of strings and soul and heartbreaking harmonies.
What makes their music that much sweeter is their romance:
S: Then we started hanging out and at one point, I was like, do you want to write together? So we started writing and singing together.
R: And I took her request to sing and write together to mean we were taking the relationship further. So she asked me how much time I had, and I figured the rest of my life would suffice.
Isn’t that darling?
Hit up their site, listen to their delicious tracks, and have a fabulous Wednesday! xo
Here’s a sweet subway performance by Michael Bublé. How cool would it be to step out of a subway car and get your own impromptu concert?
This busy weekend will include editing a best friend’s wedding video (four years later, eesh!), taking a barre class, clocking some serious beach time, running this race, and of course a BBQ on Monday.
Any fun Memorial Day plans you’d like to share?
Happy long weekend! xo
Some friends and I are running a 200 mile relay race this weekend from Huntington Beach to San Diego. The race will benefit a school here in San Diego called Monarch, that specifically serves homeless kids.
The most exciting part about the race is that a team of older kids from Monarch who wanted to get involved will be running as well! I’m so blown away by their motivation and am excited to hang out with them this weekend (while trying to keep up with them :)
Those kids, and this song by James Morrison, are inspiring me today. (And I will need all the inspiration I can get to run 15 miles, haha!) Wish us luck, and happy Friday!
The Mr. is coming home today (!) and so I thought I’d match my happy mood with this happy tune by Dan Croll (along with the somewhat bizarre music video).
UPDATE: A friend shared this version of the song with me, which is equally amazing!
Have a lovely weekend! xoxo
Move over Beyoncé. Emeli Sandé’s album Our Version of Events is AMAZING – one of my most favorites in a long time. While a lot of the songs on this album are soulful and quiet, ‘Wonder’ is so energizing and joyful. Happy Friday!
Speaking of Beyoncé, I’m excited to see this. How about you?
An astonishing cover for your Friday by Bon Iver.
We are looking forward to a quiet weekend at home, that will include a date night to this new spot, and coffee and conversation by the fireplace (even though we’re expecting 79 degree weather… thank you San Diego!).
Any lovely plans for this weekend? I would like to hear!
My grandparents in the mountains of NC
This tune by Lori McKenna is haunting, and at first listen, sounds like a mournful ballad about how her man doesn’t love her the way he should.
But the chorus clarifies the intention of this bittersweet song, which is that the love he has for her runs more deeply than what he does or doesn’t do to give her a sense of value or beauty.
Sometimes he loves me more
than I deserve to be loved
And sometimes he’s more than a heart like mine
could ever dream of
I’m thankful that my husband is the kind who listens when I tell him how my day went. And the love he has for me is sweeter than I could ever hope for. But the daily reality is… he is just a man. And he knows well that I am just a woman. And this mutual understanding of one another’s humanness frees us from the expectations of perfection and fulfillment that would ultimately crush us both. It frees us to love each other, wildly and without fear.
This song reminds me to be thankful for the darling man God gave me, regardless of our circumstances, our expectations, or our broken humanity… and reminds us both that our ultimate value is found in our Maker, not in one another.
PLAY // Work With What You Got
My man isn’t scheduled to deploy for quite some time, and we have no babies (yet). And even though Navy life for us has been inconvenient and a pain in the keester at times, I am in awe of the women (and men too!) who juggle life with work, kids, and a deployed spouse all at the same time.
This tune by Socalled will be on standby for those days in the not-so-distant-future when being apart from my best friend has worn me down to a fray, or I want to punch the Tricare website (all three of them) in the proverbial face, or I just need a reminder that, sometimes, all you can do is Work with What You Got.
AWEIGH WITH ME 