owlin' for you.

see ya later fall.  

thanks for being so pretty this year.

by her

 link here for credit

alright jessie, don't get creeped out but your baby's halloween costume had to be made known.

wait, i need this.

here

birthday outfits since 1984

{sleepless night}

i am doing this two nights before the 29th at 4am.

can't sleep.

i have had five days off for the holidays off which is unusual so i've been taking these naps that has messed up my schedule so digressing back to where i started, that's why i have taken time for this post.

i was looking through my old pictures and discovered some pictures with 

awesome bangs and great outfits.

let's discuss...

(minutes old)

let's disregard what i'm wearing and talk about what vic is sporting...

blue is your color dad.

(2)

faint pink striped dress under this great bib. age appropriate.

lazy right eye. or maybe my left eye is lazy.

oh boy, was i was a fat and happy kid or what.

especially with chocolate cake.

my dad's mom's chocolate cake to be exact. 

totally made from a box but couldn't be beat.

(3)

pepto-bismo colored onsie. 

great for those cold november mornings in carlsbad.

(4)

too bad i can't still fit in the floral number.

i would still wear this one.

\

(11)

 i don't remember why i thought i should wear this for my party but i do remember how much my mom hated this shirt. this was when clueless came out and when style was bumpin' with "as if" shirts and words on shirts.  i wore this at my party in dana point with the biggest grin on my face.  

then scrapbooked about it. even better, i'm blogging it now.

(13)

these are some awkward years...

no braces, however, no style either.

it's the random demin shorts with cotton shirts, 90210 era.

right before my sweet sixteen birthday party...

still that confusion of fashion is apparent by wearing double red denim, 

white platforms, white belt, and a shirt that is too short since it's showing my innie.

years passed...

i'll skip some pictures...

a wedding dress. yep.

i will never forget that uncle who joked with me when walking out right after getting married, 

"you better not get divorced because your birthday will forever suck!"

who gets married on your birthday?

(23)

 here i'm wearing cherrios in my hair, the best slobbery toddler kisses, 

chuck-e-cheeses germs, a simple shirt and jeans.

(24)

here i am wearing the colors of the season... and chipotle sour cream...

broken sunglasses from letting jackson play with them while he sat in the stroller next to me.

today i celebrate 26.

i'm really happy to get to spend it with close friends and family and especially my babe.

i get the whole day off.

i wish i really liked my birthday but i really like the people i'll be surrounded by so i think i'll choose to love it. 

thankful

thanksgiving was really sweet. we relaxed most of the day with my babe but here are some highlights:

my little nephew asher was born a few days before so we were so excited he could join us!
to see more pictures, click here

for thanksgiving, all the boys played football, surfed while us girls cooked, went for a run, took the kids outside to skateboard to keep them from trying to dip their fingers in the food.

and then we went to see the new disney movie tangled in 3D.  it was super cute.  jade let me hold her in my lap the whole time while jack and micah shared a seat.

then we ate dinner at the devines, enjoyed an amazing dinner.  it was my first gluten free thanksgiving my sisters and i had.  here is the recipe i made the stuffing with...
i mostly followed it but ended up adding more chicken stock...

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/1354

Add finely diced sausage or bacon bits to the sautéed vegetables, if you like, or toss in diced chestnuts, apples or raisins.

Ingredients

6 cups gluten-free bread cubes (i got this cheesey bread, well no, elise picked it up for me; it was good)
2 shallots, minced 
2 onions, diced 
2 celery ribs, diced 
2 carrots, diced 
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) salted butter 
2 teaspoons dried sage 
2 teaspoons dried thyme 
2 teaspoons sea salt, or to taste 
1 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste 
1/2 cup white wine 
1 cup gluten-free chicken broth 
4 tablespoons parsley

Method

Toast bread cubes carefully in a preheated 300°F oven for 20 minutes or until dried, stirring occasionally to promote even browning. If using Gluten Free Bakehouse stuffing cubes, skip this toasting step. 

Sauté shallots, onions, celery and carrots in butter until they are soft and onions begin to caramelize. Add sage, thyme, salt and pepper and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add wine and continue cooking over medium heat until liquid is reduced by half. 

In a large bowl, mix sautéed vegetables with bread cubes, chicken broth and parsley. Transfer to a baking dish and bake for 20 minutes at 325°F. 

Nutrition

Per Serving (154g-wt.): 180 calories (80 from fat), 9g total fat, 4g saturated fat, 4g protein, 21g total carbohydrate (2g dietary fiber, 4g sugar), 20mg cholesterol, 790mg sodium

then me and jack went to bed early. like 8:30pm early. it was such a nice day.  i'm sure my sister elise will post professional pictures not from her phone like i did soon.

the next day we tried to take jackson out surfing but the waves were tiny and it has been extremely cold, so we watched movies and cuddled most of the day and then went over to mitch and linds' new house to roast marshmallows and have leftovers.

hope everyone enjoyed their holiday!

fashion for this winter

stone cold fox

j crew

marc jacobs

what i am grateful for this year.

found here

thanksgiving has to be one of my favorite holidays.  november for me is a great month of family birthdays, the birthstone is my favorite, i love to cook and bake all day, i like the smells, the warmth everyone feels and that anticipation before christmas. its that holiday were family gets together expecting no gifts, but time. time together.  time to think of what we are grateful for.

during the holidays everyone seems to open up.  i guess i haven't opened up on here, really, for some time.  i have been in bed sick most of the day, so i have had a lot of time to think.  just laying there, i thought about all my blessings, what i'm grateful for but what i'm grateful for this year.

i am grateful for not always getting what i want.

i think this is great lesson we all have to learn.  i am seeing jackson learn this lesson everyday as i tell him what he can or cannot have.

i think i grasped this concept when i was younger with always feeling sick.  i never wanted to have stomach aches, but i did.  i learned that when i was feeling good, i am more grateful for my health. i notice when i feel well and not dread when i feel sick.

then to get deeper, i felt this even more so when i went through the trial of loosing my son isaac.  i wanted so badly to be a mother. i learned that day when my friend invited me to the hospital who was due the same day as i, and held her healthy baby, that i too, could be happy for others when good things happen to them, and not me.  a true happiness, not something i could have found on my own.

when i had my first surgery, i didn't want to have to go through a major surgery and stay in the hospital for a week.  i learned how to empathetic to those who have to go through some health trials like i did. i have some sort of idea what to say or give.

i didn't want to go through a divorce.  i knew all of the stigmas it brings, stereotypes, the trials i would face, the back and forth of sharing jackson, moving, etc.  i have grown more than i could have imagined from this one. i have become such a stronger person because of it.  if i am ever lucky enough to find a man to want to spend eternity with me, i will be so grateful for him more-so because of what i have experienced.

during the trial of my second surgery, i dreaded it.  i thought the doctors were pulling a prank.  i didn't want to go through another life altering hurdle that could cost my possible memory, my health or even be fatal.  i did it with faith and i believe it taught me that i can endure anything.  if i want something, i can do it.

as i have been raising jackson, i have wanted to be finished with my degree, have a home on my own, be able to spend every waking minute with him, have no worries, find a really good man, have the rest of my children before i'm thirty... you know that kind of stuff...
... but daily i am reminded that i have many opportunities to learn from not having everything i want.  i have come to know how wonderful it is to be grateful and not wanting.  i don't need everything when i have it all.  i have the necessities like the foundation i can build upon, great people surrounding me always, the knowledge of how to raise a good family, these past life experiences i can take with me to give me courage and not use as a crutch, talents i have been blessed with so i can provide for my little family, my health, my determination to be someone or something great because i have a little man depending on me and so many other things i know i have to counts as blessings.

i don't have everything that i want, but i do have everything i need at this time.
i have to learn from this everyday and remember to always be grateful.

our weekend in

this weekend i had jackson.  it is so much fun getting voicemails from him during the day of him leaving me long, rambling messages about his day, what he ate, what he said to his friends at preschool, what he wants to do when i get home from school or the salon and how much he misses me.  it makes me want to get home as soon as possible.  

earlier this week, i have been feeling sick, so we decided to be pretty mellow.  friday night we went around town for a bit, bought a large box of foam robot stickers and made a fun mess of them all over the floor.  jack and i then made a fort and watched the grinch. 

some friends came over earlier and fat-boothed jack.  i call it, "jack if childhood obesity was the fad."

saturday night he wanted to go to bed early so we grabbed take out to share, read books and he told me his eyes were hot so he wanted to close them.  we both fell asleep at 8:30pm.  socially acceptable or not, this week has been bu-sy.

FIND by jonathon canlas

elise and drew are the cutest! they got to have a photoshoot for jonathon canlas.  he is well known around the world for his talent.  elise has assisted him for years so he asked them.  i'm glad she got this done since she is always taking pictures of everyone else.  i remember when we first saw him together at a wedding in san diego years ago and she got sweaty palms like he was a celebrity.

i just loved these pictures.  he always does such an amazing job.  i have to admit, if i ever get married again, i'd love for him to be there.
to see more and more, click here.

the friday before thanksgiving links

i apologize for my lack of posting.  i have been more than my usual busy lately.  i'll skip the nitty gritty details and give ya some links.




jackson has been coming home from preschool with the cutest props he's been making at preschool.  here is something you can make with your kids for the kid's table for thanksgiving.


i think i will wear my hair like this for thanksgiving dinner.

if you like music, you will appreciate these limited editions

many might disagree with me, but i am digging these stairs. 

my good 'ole friend kayleen from arizona has gotten so good at photography.  she is doing a picture a day.  

getting your christmas lists ready? i am getting my yeah right, i wish list ready. these are on it.

did you know why most guys are growing a mustache out this month? movember. i love. it.

do it yourself snowflakes from free people... they are almost worthy to keep up past the holidays.

maybe i've directed you to this site for weddings, but i really like the most recent post of the wedding she did.  it's incredible.

these stay-at-home moms had some fun in san francisco and renewed my love for this city through their pictures.

want to learn how to make your heals sparkle? my friend gives you a tutorial. 

the military look is in with fashion as we know it.

not sure whether i am attracted to the chair or the guy in this chair more. i'll take either or.

autumn de wilde has some of my favorite artists she has photographed.

gluten free pumpkin cookies

ingredients:

1 package 1-2-3 gluten free chewy chipless scrumdelicious cookie mix

1 cup of unsalted butter/margarine, softened

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/3 cup sweet rice flour

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

2 cups of raisins (optional)

1 cup of walnuts (optional)

icing:

2 cups confectioner's sugar

1/4 cup unsalted butter/margarine, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

3 tbsp. orange juice

add all ingredients to bowl of mixer with wire whisk attachment.  blend together and then beat on high until smooth and creamy.  

i scooped this frosting up with a spoon and let it puddle on top of the cookies, then it drizzled over the sides.

instructions:

1. preheat oven to 350.F

2. using a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter for one minutes.  add approx. 1 c. of 1-2-3 gluten free chewy chipless scrumdelicious cookie mix.  beat until the mixutre is light and fluffy for 2-3 minutes.

3. add in the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.  add the pumpkin puree and mix well. 

4. add the remaining mix, sweet rice flour and spices.  mix well.  after all ingredients are well incorporated, increase the speed of the mixer and mix on high for one minute.

5. stir in the raisins and walnuts by hand, if add.

6. refridgerate dough for 15 minutes.

7. scoop the dough by heaping teaspoons onto a spilat-lined (or parchment-paper-lined) baking sheet. 

8. bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the cookies are browned around the edges and lightly golden brown.  baking times vary with appliances.

9. after removing the cookie sheets from the oven, let the cookies rest for one minues.  then, using a spatula, carefully remove the cookies to cool on wire racks.

pictures by little jackman

{san fran window}

i have bene lagging on posting these, which means i have a plethora of pictures jackson has taken.  i went through them, and picked out the ones worth a mention.  i think he will keep this hobby of picture taking like his grandpa and aunt. 

{jackson's main room window}

{irvine park}

{on a plane, he's so fancy huh}

{his bunk bed * note the sticky thing on the ceiling? that's a super hero he threw up there, that i'm too short to reach}

{a new disneyland ride on a grey day}

{flying over the san mateo bridge}

{his best friend/cousin micah}

{on the BART in daly city}

{our silhouettes at fashion island}

{driving around town on one of our dates}

{we are getting hot chocolate}

{another BART ride. we look like we are going south, i believe :)}

{oh why, hello.  caught'cha man in the suburban} 

{post grocery shopping, at my finest}

{pedros tacos with grandpa}

{another flight}

{clashing flannels}

{the eel we visit every san francisco airport trip}

{our favorite place to eat, islands}

{micah wearing jack's shoe for our little outing...

apparently he does own another pair other than those plaid ones..}