The Home Page | If You Give Your Mama a Llama

This edition of The Home Page was originally emailed to subscribers on January 4, 2026. To receive Sarah Sinclair’s real estate newsletter in your inbox each Sunday, sign up at independent.com/newsletter

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You’re familiar with the “six degrees of Kevin Bacon” effect? Where one road leads to another, to another, and then they connect again? Somehow every real estate story this week — whether from our pages or otherwise, seems to have a mother’s day angle. Because today, all roads lead to mom. Our Design Doctor, Laura Gransberry, tells us of a friend whose mother lost everything in the Palisades fire and needed a haven while she came to terms with the disaster. Laura jumped in and volunteered her services to transform the friend’s extra bedroom into the perfect soft landing place for her mom. It’s a reminder that no matter our talents and special areas of expertise, we can all help in creative ways. Thanks, Laura!

How does the St. Louis World’s Fair from 1904 relate to Mother’s Day, you ask? Our Santa Barbara author Cheri Rae brought us this great story of the Santa Barbara connections to the fair, also known as The Louisiana Purchase Exposition. A sidebar to the story introduces Jessie Tarbox Beals, the first ever female photojournalist who was the official photographer for the fair. You can see why with efforts like those pictured right! It turns out that Beals was also a single mom — no easy feat at the turn of the twentieth century. Her work and travels brought Beals and her daughter Natalie to Santa Barbara, where she worked out of the Meridian Studios.

As a fan of maps as well as all things home decor, I’ve had fun getting to know Gooseberry Designs. They offer original hand-drawn map designs of all 50 states as well as cities, national parks, and points of interest, all displayed beautifully on tea towels, cutting boards, pillows, prints and more. Their website is a dazzling array. And if you need a very last minute gift for mom, Gooseberry is also available at three local retailers: The Vintage Fox, Honeys, and Devil & the Deep Blue Sea on Stearns Wharf.

Speaking of gifts for mom, I can’t let today go by without a shoutout to my amazing mom, Sally. This is one of my favorite photos from her birthday last June, when my siblings and I surprised the birthday girl with a trip to Canzelle Alpacas, a farm in the hills above Carpinteria. With over 40 alpacas, two llamas, dogs, sheep, chickens, and more, a tour of the farm is part petting zoo and part science lesson. It was a lovely afternoon in an idyllic setting; which was fitting for the guest of honor. I love you mom, today and every day.

The home on our real estate cover this week is certainly fit for a queen, and our front cover features Julia Child, queen of cuisine. However you spend today, enjoy!