...And instead focus on creating a backdrop that will adapt to her tastes and personality as she grows.

1. Antique or unique furniture

Found bedside tables, spindle scalloped shelves, and a carved sleigh bed each bring their own special touch.

2. Mix old and original wall décor

Mix paintings, photographs, antique frames, and a favorite piece of baby clothing for a sweet vignette that can be added to over the years. A great place to start is with our playful animal cameos.

3. Create a cozy nook or seating area

Give her a place to curl up with a book and daydream.

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4. Allover pattern

Match the curtains with the wallpaper to create a cozy, patterned cocoon.

5. ...Or an accent wall

If all-over florals are too much of a commitment, an accent wall can be the perfect compromise for a playful focal point in the room.

6. Mix classic patterns with playful ones

Bringing in classics like ticking stripes, gingham, and toile will stand the test of time as other accents in the room change.

7. Bring in a canopy bed

A stately canopy bed creates a perfect princess moment.

...or add a mini canopy with cornices and draped fabrics.

8. Add girly details

Scallops, florals, fringes, tassels, ribbons, or bedskirts? YES, all of them. You don't need too pick just one. At least one of these details is in just about all of these rooms. 

9. Painted wood furniture or accents

Painted shelving tie in with matching shades...

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...or try highlighting pieces with paint, like the painted edges on this feminine European bed.  

10. Sconces, pendants, and chandeliers

Make lighting an accent instead of an afterthought by bringing pieces with character that matches your daughter's. A glamorous, sparkling chandelier?

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Or maybe a sconce for reading in bed?

Wall Art

Over on Pinterest, you are loving the curb appeal of Bee Cottage, the former East Hampton getaway of Frances Schultz. Schultz documented the decorating process on her blog before writing a memoir (I’m ordering it now!). I discovered this beauty on Café Design, check out blogger Eva Contreras’ profile on Schultz and the interiors of Bee Cottage here. 

This woman’s tweet about her squirrel picnic table went “viral” (too soon? It’s what it’s called) this week, and in looking into where to get one, I was thrilled and strangely proud to learn it’s a business local to me in PA! (As if the proximity to their business is a reflection on me!). Check out Squirrelly Treasure Co. on Etsy. 

Now that Spring is here, we’re itching to get outside more and hoping to have a picnic lunch one of these days. Here’s a roundup of my picnic ideas and blanket picks on Motif Motif.

In our backyard, my husband mulched last weekend, and it really made our “monsta hosta” and daffodils pop.

Pachysandra is in bloom, and Tuesday was a particularly busy day for the foxes in the neighborhood.

 Take care,

Maura

How to Play

Print out two copies of your flashcards. Cut along the dotted lines, but on one set also cut the names of the animals off as well. I eyeballed it, and rushed because the kids were so intrigued by this point. I'm sure you'll plan ahead and do a better job.

Set up with flashcards with the names into a pile. Lay out the separated names around the center pile.

Your child can now switch the words to see which one matches the text on the card. Have them move matched cards to reveal the next card, and continue through the pile.

This simple game helps them learn how to recognize and spell the animals names as they see the pictures paired with their names. The first one is the trickiest, but by process of elimination they can gain confidence as the game progresses. You may need to work with them the first few rounds.

When they're done, display their work proudly. Download your flashcards here, and have fun!

-Maura

A project I've yet to complete that the kids have been asking about due to getting the new website here ready was finally about to be underway: printing out more of my cameo art prints for each of their rooms. Sprucing up is what I like to do to lift spirits around here and redirect nervous energy, so I decided it was time. Then, it occurred to me that a lot of kids could use something to cheer them up while they're cooped up, and I got to thinking about how I might be able to help.

I've decided to introduce digital products, and to offer them as rotating weekly freebies. This terrifies me a little bit, because it's really hard to protect your work when it's a digital download. I'm taking the faith in humanity route, and hoping these freebies and  instant downloads are a source of joy in your home.

All will be:

• Instant digital downloads (3 download limit - save it carefully!)
• Printable on 8.5x11” paper
• Free for personal use
• Free for 1 week, then listed for purchase

The first freebie in the series is Animal Cameo Flash Cards. 

These flash cards feature Bark & Burrow cameo illustrations, and can be used for not only letter recognition and sight reading, but a game that entertained my young kids (ages 2&4) for AN ENTIRE HOUR yesterday. UPDATE: they spent another hour playing today!

So, really this freebie should be called a miracle.

Download it here, or subscribe to the newsletter to receive a download link and stay updated about what goes on around here, receive future freebies I'm offering.

The Scavenger Hunt

Print out your flash cards and cut along the dotted lines. You need two copies for the game, unless you're doing variation No. 1 listed below. I printed some on regular printer paper, then some on cardstock for durability. I elected to laminate them before playing, so as to build anticipation, and provide further entertainment since my children are fascinated and delighted by lamination. They are their mother's children. 

The game is simple. Get your kids to look the other way while you dash to one set of the cards around your house. Save a match for each card hidden, and hand out one card at a time. The first animal must be found before a new card is received.

If they spot other animals along the hunt for their first assignment, they must try to keep it a secret - if they get that card in the future, they'll know where to look. If they don't, they must not reveal hiding places to their competitors.

We played in a largely collaborative way, without much competition and the cards hiding in plain sight since the kids are little.

On top of the dining room fireplace was a particularly tricky spot - just above eye level, and normally we just walk right by on the way to the TV room.

Here's some more ideas for how to play:

1. for really little kids, it doesn't even have to be a structured game, just let them run around and find them without dictating which animal to pick
2. race to see who can find a set number faster in a round
3. add in points per animal found, keep a tally over several games
4. make it collaborative (we did this to start, and I helped as needed, of course)
5. for beginning readers, cut off the words and hide the pictures. Then switch and hide the words and see if they can recognize them.
6. have the kids take turns hiding them for each other, and you (this can be hilarious)
7. for older kids, make it a bigger part of the day and plan ahead, hiding the animals in tougher to find spots that they might not discover until they're going through their daily routine

We also hid them by the back door...

And by the fireplace. Can you tell someone wanted to copy their big sister's idea?

Subscribe to the newsletter to receive the freebie

- or -

visit the description page to 'purchase' at no charge.

They'll be free until next Friday, March 27. Enjoy!

 - Maura

For handwashing advice from someone who's not mom or dad, try this Doc McStuffins video. Sing the song with your kids while they wash their hands to remember how fun it is and Doc does it too so it must actually be important, and remind yourself it's for the greater good when you find you're singing it to yourself while you fall asleep.

Over on Pinterest, you all can't get enough of this article I shared on English Country bedroom ideas. It's got great photos of beautiful traditional master bedrooms.

For a smile, follow this Shetland pony, Teddy. A reliable Instagram feed of adorableness.

I'm working on a freebie series to lift spirits since we're all stuck at home. The first is an animal flash cards scavenger hunt. Everything will be instant downloads and free for a week after introduction. Follow the link for more details.

In backyard updates, we woke up to a gloriously foggy morning here...

...and daffodils are in full bloom.

Next up is weeding and mulching the garden beds.

- Maura

You may have noticed the blog here is called “The Log.” A nod to the 'Bark' at this establishment, it’s a riff on the idea of a nature logbook used for documenting discoveries made while exploring nature. I also like that it rhymes, and reminds me a bit of Bob Loblaw’s Law Blog, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity.

For a little background about Bark & Burrow. Check out the about page to read a letter about how I came to illustrate cameo art prints. Caught up? I'll give you a moment.

I do intend for this to be a 'spot of whimsy' - not just the artwork, which I hope bring whimsy to your home, but all things Bark & Burrow.

I’ll be using the blog here to cover several topics:

Continue on to read more about my backstory and why I feel compelled to ramp up Bark & Burrow during a pandemic

- or -

Click here to skip to a link roundup and the freebie.

Why Now & Obligatory Coronavirus Coping Address

FYI, I’m also posting pretty much this same 'covid/reasons why' post both here, and on my blog Motif Motif where I talk about interiors and sell fabrics - I’m sure Google SEO hates that, but it’s the same me posting in both places, so here we are.

I decided to start blogging this Spring, after preparing for months. Actually, years. One major life event after another has delayed my efforts: baby number 1, house number 2, baby number 2, major health event, move across the country, house number 3, continued treatment. Because we planned the good ones, but what is it they say, we make plans, and God laughs, right?

And now, we have a pandemic.

I hesitate to move forward with the current state of the world, but the purpose of this blog and my designs remains the same, and is perhaps more important now than before the coronavirus took hold of the world and changed life as we know it. My goal was simple: A) first and foremost, to be a source of interior inspiration, and escape for readers, and B) to create and sell beautiful fabrics and illustrations that enhance people's homes.

It all feels frivolous at this point in time, but I know the impact design blogs, books, shows and projects have had on me, personally, in difficult times. Interior design has been a form of therapy for me, with its initial comforts built upon the foundation of endless hours watching HGTV with my mother growing up. I love decorating, I love learning about different styles, and I love peeking into strangers’ houses on the internet exploring inspiring home tours to see how they’ve been decorated.

This is also a new way to stay in touch with loved ones that we can't see right now - family and friends that are close by, as well as friends that we moved away from that still live in the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak outside of Seattle.

So, I hope my overexposure of our home and yard and how they’ve changed over time is an escape of some kind for you; a positive distraction amongst the daily stresses and uncertainties we are all currently facing. Because I don’t know about you, but I sure need a break from the news.

Right now, I’m thankful I have little kids. They’re only 2 and 4, but very perceptive. We’ve decided to shelter them from the situation so they don’t feel the uncertainty we do - because there is no need for them to. We talk about it in front of them only abstractly, and very infrequently. We say hello to neighbors in passing, then distract with a new game. Our neighbors recently had their kids send ours a card, and we’re going to reciprocate and pass that idea along to other friends so we’re keeping in touch in a novel way that helps to distract from missing them. We’re hunkered down to minimize germ exposure (thankfully my husband is able to work remotely), but nonetheless taking advantage of fun learning resources to help promote good hygiene, like this catchy hand washing video starring Doc McStuffins, whose medical authority they deeply respect.

Yesterday, we laminated so many things, and played a new animal scavenger hunt game that will be ready for me to share with you soon. (UPDATE: you can download the flash cards here)

The day before, we listened to Christmas music, assembled a new laundry sorter I ordered when I realized I'd be stuck at home indefinitely and could no longer just drive away to escape our mountains of laundry, played dress up, and made hummus.

We're just playing it by ear and trying not to watch too much TV.

Be well.

Maura