The Beauty of White

Women think of all colors except the absence of color. I have said that black has it all. White too. Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.

~ Coco Chanel, Chanel 

I am always on the lookout for the perfect backdrop. When I spotted this gorgeous, natural archway made of white blooms, I may have smiled like the Cheshire Cat. You see, it was literally in my own backyard! And before all the pretty flowers fell away, I had an opportunity to capture all the white beauty… 

Kyla is a hair stylist and make-up artist at Bella Salon. I’m very excited about future collaborations with this lovely lady. Beau, my any day muse and good sport, is always a wonderful presence. Thank you both for waiting out the rain, making it easy peasy, and always supporting my ideas and 2Rtist Photography. xoxo Ren

FLORA-da {part two}

During a brief bout of dry weather {less than two hours}, we enjoyed Leu Gardens. It literally felt like a rain forest with the amount of rain coming down.

Lovely Spanish moss

More photos from the garden here.

FLORA-da {part one}

I look at every travel opportunity as a little adventure…

What I didn’t realize until a few days into our stay at Orlando, Florida, was that there was a tropical storm by name of Andrea that was bringing rain, heavy winds and tornadoes. Wait, what? On the one day that we rented a car to venture out, it poured. It rained, and rained and RAINED. The thing is, one can look at this as half-empty or half-full. I wanted to see the beautiful Leu Gardens, stroll around Winter Park, venture. I convinced Matt that we could wait it out, buy another umbrella (because that’s what we do every time we’re in Florida!) and go with it. Half-full, see? Because of the monsoon, we had the gardens to ourselves, and I must say, it was BEAUTIFUL.

See more FLORA here.

recently

Lots of birthday celebrations this month, including mine. It came and went and after a week, I’m still eating celebrating and thankful for friends {old and new} and my family, who put up with my moods and creative ventures. I love you guys. Truly, madly, deeply.

Pre-birthday brunch at Sophia’s was buddha-belly carb heaven. The monkey bread {top} and maple-spiced bacon pancakes were to die for. I realize I’ve been using my birthday as an excuse to eat not-so-healthy meals, but I believe a small sampling of each is perfectly OH—KAY. Yes, I like having my cake and eating it too.

I took off work on my birthday because really, if I don’t have to work on my special day I won’t. If I really allowed myself the luxury of doing whatever I wanted, I would have stayed in bed. All. Day. Long.

But my license expired, so I spent a good part of the morning at the DMV. Always a good time.

My better half, M took me to Bangkok Gardens {one of his favorites} for delicious fat thighs phat thai. Again, sampling a little because I was saving up for this…

… Creme brulee bread pudding at Flat Branch Pub & Brewing. Not gonna lie, I ate almost all of it without guilt. It’s my birthday, after all.

It was a beautiful day and after all that feasting, we took advantage of walking downtown and enjoying all the pretty flora along the way.

The bed was sounding good, as in a nap. But I had a hair appointment with Jenna who is a miracle worker. What’s the secret to feeling young{er}? Being happy, eating well, and having a fabulous colorist. Thank you Jenna and Michael at Green Meadows.

I had a birthday dinner date with lovely Beau. We’re back at Sophia’s because it’s one of our favorites, and even though I wasn’t hungry, our friendly waitress offered free chocolate lava cake for my birthday. How could I say No?

We ended the evening watching this handsome boy play soccer. I was quite full and sated, but mostly, very thankful. {Ren Reiske © All Rights Reserved}

{Matt Reiske © All Rights Reserved}

lately

instagram @groovininthesun {Ren Reiske © All Rights Reserved} 

Well, hey sunshine…

I’m a big fan of Trader Joes and these cookies are my latest obsession. So delicious for guilt gluten-free chocolate chip cookies.

I enjoyed a pre-birthday dinner with my sister at Bristol Seafood Grill. I could show you the wonderful and healthy salmon entree I devoured, but I know you’d rather drool over the chocolate lava cake with raspberries. I did. The hazelnut gelato was melting … we could not eat it fast enough!

Red, red wine. divine.

Another pre-birthday meal with my good friend, Chris. Is there anything better than dinner and a movie? Especially if it’s delicious tapas {calamari, pita bread with cheese, hummus, fruit, caramelized pecans, and roasted garlic} at Sophias and Looper. Looper is a action-packed movie with Bruce Willis {no really, this one’s gooood}, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Emily Blunt. I love Blunt and will watch anything she’s in because she’s such a talent. Check it out.