The September issue of Country Living is our Small Spaces issue. It's one I look forward to every year because I'm fascinated by folks who scale back their home size, pare down belongings, and live in petite places. Have you ever watched Tiny House Nation? Obsessed.

I thought it might be fun to share how I styled each space within this 1,143 sq.ft. California ranch and give you some tips for using the concepts in your own home.

I thought it might be nice to break up my travel posts with more current daily life happenings. Going through thousands of vacation photos can seem like a mind numbing vortex and it's feeling a bit overwhelming to try and play catch up. So let's just jump back and forth, shall we?

Have I mentioned that we have a rescue pup named Liberty? She's a Bochi - half Boston Terrier, half Chihuahua. She's the result of a botched breeding attempt by the Boston Terriers owner. They couldn't sell the puppies as pure bred Bostons and had plans to take her and her sister to the pound. My husband drove 3 hours to rescue both. Hence the name Liberty - freedom from the shelter! Her sister, Henrietta lives with our daughter and now they have play dates.

Our stay at Valdirose happened to coincide with the monthly antique market in Lucca. And being that we both love a great flea market we were all too happy to make a day of it!

After our stay in Venice came to an end, we traveled by high speed train to Florence. I had been dreaming about visiting Valdirose for what seemed like the longest time and was thrilled we had the chance to spend a few days at the incredibly charming bed and breakfast. If you follow Irene or Paolo on Instagram, everything you see is just what to expect. Their breakfast sunroom is straight out of a movie set, evoking warm fuzzies and instant "I want to live here forever" feelings.

Scenes from a morning spent wandering the stalls at the Rialto Market. It's an incredibly vibrant and lively place; overflowing with intoxicating bounty and delightful Italians. In my mind, this is always the best part of travel - mixing in with the locals and doing your best to chat it up using your broken language skills and awkward hand gestures. I can still recall the mushroom guy yelling to anyone within ear shot - "Funghi Freschi, Funghi Freschi"!

Every year I challenge myself with finding new ways to use all the oranges we have at our disposal. In fact, I have a secret Pinterest board dedicated solely for this purpose. I've saved all kinds of things; cakes, breads, glazes, salads, donuts, infused oils, cleaning products, holiday decorations ...you name it, I've pinned it.  I'm not sure I'll ever attempt making all of them but they're there as inspiration should the mood strike. With oranges being in season during the winter months, I figure those cold lazy days could be made useful by making a few things.

Since becoming a Certified Master Food Preserver from UC, I've been spending some of my free time volunteering to teach others the art of food preservation. It's been a rewarding hobby and I've learned so much through the experience. I recently invited one of my fellow alumni over for a day of marmalading. It was my very first time making it and I knew I could use her expertise during my first go round. My mom and niece came over for the afternoon as well and we put on our aprons, turned up the music, and got to work.