Happy Find

belated birthday pics

Stella is officially one.

Well to be honest, she was "officially" one the 7th of November and yes, I'm just now posting. BUT, her party was on the 19th, so technically I'm not too late to share.

Got the deer idea from Apartment Therapy. I so LOVE these. They're stayin' up for Christmas... hmmm.... well actually indefinitely.

Made the garland and had it strung all over the place.

The animal jars are from Ohdeedoh, the mushrooms are from Martha Stewart, and the lovely owl is from my work.

Notice her dress? Yup... another Charlie tunic. What can I say? I LOVE this pattern!

It was a wonderful celebration with family and closest friends. I apologize for the lack of photos and the quality isn't much to boast about as well (this is what happens when the photographer wasn't doing her job). And thank you all you crafty blogs out there and Pinterest for the cool ideas. The party was a hit!

Oh my sweet Stella... how my heart aches as each passing day, you grow older. I wish I could make time stand still and just be in the moment a little while longer with you.

Happy 1st Birthday, Lala-Bear.

 

 

race for the cure

This past weekend was a busy one. Spent all day Saturday running errands and preparing for Stella's birthday... nothing noteworthy.

But Sunday was much different. It was a day to reflect, raise awareness and support all of those who battled and are still battling with breast cancer. There is a total of 4 beautiful and courageous women in my life that has been afflicted. One is in remission, one is currently in treatment and two have fought it to the end.

I'm a pretty private person, I don't let many people in and I tend to internalize a lot of things. I kind of see myself as a turtle. I'll just crawl into my shell and pray that everything will be alright. What I have come to realize, is that sometimes I need to do more than just pray.

Now I didn't do the walk (it was already too late to register), but we (my family, cousins, nieces and nephew)came out to support my sister and aunt who did register. It was powerful to see thousands of people walking, cheering and showing their strength in numbers.

 

That was an awesome day.

***

In other news... my giveaway is now closed. I'll be back with the winner...

road trip: Julian, CA

With hubby at the wheel, the girls on fall break and a little cash (and I mean LITTLE), it was the perfect opportunity to take a road trip.

Destination?

Julian, California.

Every year in October, we go to the pumpkin patch and then to Julian for their world famous apple pie (yummm!). This year, we had to do one event one day and the other on another. It was just easier for little Lala, plus the day we went pumpkin hunting was so dang hot, we were just not feeling up to apple pie.

And I'm so glad we went to Julian when we did.

The weather was awesome... it rained the night before, so everything was fresh and clean. Big puffy clouds floating in the sky, kissing the mountain tops and the crisp breeze stinging our faces. Perfect.

Yes. Fall is here.

I know a lot of you think, "San Diego? Where's the beaches? The malls? Seaworld?".

 

Friends... there's so much more.

It's so refreshing to get out of the city and head to the mountains. For just one day, slow down and BE in the moment.

Say good-bye to summer and embrace autumn.

And this is what we do every year.

Mmmm... apple pie...

or how about apple boysenberry crumb or rhubarb strawberry or apple cherry flaky?

 Nah... apple is just fine with me, thank you.

We made new friends...

 and discovered some cool shops.

 
With our bellies full and the shops closing, it was time to head back.

So what family traditions do you do this time of year?

the great pumpkin hunt 2011

Happy Ocotber 1st, sweets!

wonder bowl

After reading Meg's post here and here, I quickly took her que and created a wonder bowl (sorry... I didn't have a basket) for Lala. What a wonderful surprise for her!

There was a big spoon, chenille yarn, a fabric swatch, rice pillow and a baby food jar.

It was very interesting to watch her. She sat quietly... very curious at what was in the bowl. Her favorite item? The spoon. Straight to the mouth.

To watch her facial expressions and her hand coordination was just amazing to me. After the spoon, she pulled and petted the yarn, tasted the jar, chucked the brush and dumped out the rice pillow and fabric. And what do you think she did with the empty bowl? Wore it as a hat of course!

This was a great exercise and I intend to do this with her as often as possible. I'm also going to check out the book, How To Raise An Amazing Child The Montessori Way, that Meg recommended.

Yup, my interest has definitely been peaked and I want to learn more about Montessori learning. I'll let you know what I find out...

In the meantime, we're off to our annual pumpkin hunt this weekend. I'm sooo excited! Any plans in your neck of the woods?

***

Have a wonderful weekend!

down for the count

Hi! Hi!

***waving arms***

I'm still here!

Oh dear... the Perez household has been struck by a dirty-rotten-nasty-bug. First, it started with hubby... Ooooo, did he get it bad. Then me, then baby, then Lily Moon and last, Sophie. It was bad folks... BAD.

We're slowly recovering...

Last week was a roller coaster. Besides being sick, Sophie had her 8th grade promotion (woohoo!)and I had received some bummer news.

After giving birth to Lala, I just wasn't myself. I didn't feel well. Just a couple of weeks ago, I woke up with blurry vision. To this day, my eye sight is so-so. So I had blood work done, specifically the A1C1 Glucose test, and sure enough the doctor diagnosed me with Diabetes Type 2. I had gestational diabetes during my last pregnancy and it was not fun. At that time, my blood sugar levels was hard to control, I ended up giving myself insulin twice a day. With that along with a super strict diet, I cried many nights. I prayed and hoped I would never have diabetes again, but unfortunately God had other plans.

So the doctor wants me to loose 10 lbs. and I'm back on a strict diet and meds. On the bright side, I'll get my ol' body back. It'll be tough to break my old habits and I know I'll have my moments of weakness, but I need to be strong and healthy... for my hubby... my girls... and most importantly, me.

So please bare with me for the moment. I need to free myself of this nasty cold and hang out with my girls.

***

...big hugs...

***

{{smile}}

16 years

 
Three girls, one dog and 16 years of a marriage full of love and laughter. Crazy to think we have been together for that long (Well actually it's more like 20 if you include the dating years), and I'm still crazy-madly in love with you.

Happy sweet 16th wedding anniversary, Papa. Let's shoot for another 16 years!
 

 

education killing creativity?

I was over at Candepop the other day, have you been there? If you haven't, you must go and visit! A great blog to inspire just about anyone who has kids or is a kid at heart. 

Anyhoo...

I saw this video over there and I had to share with you. This strikes a chord with me. It truly does. Growing up, I LOVED to draw. I would draw, color, paint anything and everything from flowers to faces to futuristic homes for hours. I wanted to be something fun when I grew up. At around 8 years of age, I dreamed of partnering up with my cousin (she's the best, btw) and owning an advertising agency. To come up with cool commercials and killer ads, I thought that would be the ultimate job. 

Then I grew up.

I grew up to be taught that education is more important than creativity. "Be a lawyer" or "We need a doctor in the family" was always stressed to me by my parents. Being someone creative was not going to pay the bills and most certainly not going to make the family proud. And so that creative side of me slowly went to sleep. A coma if you will, for many years. I went through life, dragging my feet, not knowing where to go or what to be.

Then I met hubby.

It was he who allowed me to be ME. My creativity awakened and my life feeling complete. This is who I am. I live for my husband, I live for my children and I live to create...

and I promise to not let the creativity go to sleep in myself or in my children.

 

our newest member

Here she is!

Allow me to introduce to you, Miss Stella Harper Perez. 

 

enough is enough!

Hello my sweet dear friends!

Okay, it has been way too long since my last blog and I must apologize for that... so-so SORRY! With the news of having a another child along with personal struggles and keeping up with all the end of the school year activities, graduations, family reunions and weddings, it has been quite overwhelming for me. I had to take a break and refocus. Thank you so much for your emails and kind thoughts! It brought a smile to my face and really touched me to know that lovely people such as yourself care about the person behind the blog and not just the blog itself. Big-BIG hugs to all of you!

THANK YOU!

So, enough is enough!!! Let's get crackin'...

First of all, my pregnancy is coming along quite well. I'm 20 weeks along and after a battery of tests and several ultrasounds the results are back and everything looks great! {{PHEW!}} I was holding my breath up until now. Praying for everything to be alright.

 

AND... (drum roll please)... it's a GIRL!!! 

The third musketeer... the three Graces... the three caballeros! Speaking of caballeros, have you seen this old movie from Disney?

 

The moment the girls found out, they chimed into song:

We're three caballeros,

Three gay caballeros,

They say we are birds of a feather!

:::

My funny little girls! They're so excited.

 

As my belly continues to grow, I'm finding it hard to find pretty maternity clothes at a DECENT price. SHEESH! I find it hard to swallow, spending a lot of moolah for clothes you're only going to wear for a few months. So what do I do? 

I SEW-SEW-SEW!

 

This design was inspired by this blouse (pictured below) from the GAP.

 

GAP's price: $39.50 

MY price: $12.23

Hmmmm... not bad, ay? I wore this to my last doctor's visit and the Nurse Practitioner said it was Anthropologie worthy. She made me blush... I like her!

Here's another one,

 

 

I added side panels to give a slimmer look. I should've matched the pattern, but I got lazy.

 

Out of the two blouses, this is my favorite! 

 

I also converted a pair of my jeans. I got the idea from here. It feels sooo good to be in my ol' pair of jeans again!

:::

Again, thank you for your comments, emails and patience. It's so nice to be back!

{{smile}}