Saturday

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. Of course, I am working all weekend but the buzz in the fashion retail world is fun during the holidays. Currently, I am drinking a small cup of coffee with vanilla cinnamon to give me a little perk. Tomorrow marks the beginning of the official last week of my first trimester, I cannot believe it! This pregnancy is going to fly by. Also, we are moving this weekend. I hope it's the last time for a while. I leave you with a quick and crappy quality iPhone flash photo of Pea and I before heading out to Thanksgiving dinner.

love,
Val


These are the shoes I am wearing, a holiday treat from my dad :)Rachel Roy snakeskin platform pumps. I am about 6 feet tall in them!

Daily breakfast, can't get over it.

Every night I go to sleep dreaming of my delicious new breakfast craving. A bowl of cinnamon Life cereal, fresh blackberries, and organic 1% milk. YUMMY.


*edit*
In the spirit of the holiday I switched it up today. Homemade cinnamon rolls, a glass of cold organic milk, and a stack of magazines. Yesssss.

The new nugget.

I am sorry for keeping you in suspense. Right now we do not know much about this new little creature growing in my tummy, other than he/she did not give me morning sickness as badly as Pea and he/she has given me an awesome pair of boobies! My due date is June 12, 2011. I am going to avoid another c-section as much as I can and thankfully I have found a supportive midwife. I would love to birth at home but currently I am not sure if this is what will happen. All I know is that this summer there will be another sweet and precious breastfed, cloth diapered, and super loved baby in the world!

This will be our last baby and I would really like to keep the gender of the baby a surprise until she/he is born. This will be SO hard but I am going to try. Don't you think it will be so worth it? What a tremendous surprise it will be to hear "It's a BOY!" or "It's a GIRL!"

Here we go again :)

image via: my dearest Sarita @ Where's My Other Shoe?

ASNTMJ!

Even as a little girl I have taken an interest in fashion. I'd sneak into my mother's closet and put on her fabulous high-heels and colorful jewelery. As I grew up, there was nothing funner than going to the kid's section at Nordstrom and going back to school shopping or getting a new fall coat. Of course, my style has evolved over the years and some style choices I have made in the past have been nothing short of BAD. However, to me clothing has always been a form of expression.

Currently at 11 weeks pregnant with my second kid my stomach is already no longer flat. This stage is super annoying because I am nowhere near maternity clothing shape but my regular jeans and fitted tops just do not feel/look right. I have been in a style funk and hate everything in my wardrobe. Yesterday I decided that it'd be a fun idea to start a new series of posts called "Always Say No To Mom Jeans". I am always so inspired by other mamas who continue being style conscious while also toting around their bebes. Motherhood is just one HUGE aspect of our identity, but it's important to stay true to our creativity and intellect.

So, post #1. The husband took this photo of me yesterday during our walk.

Dress: H&M (I bought it at the flagship store in Sweden!)
Cardigan: Target (SO soft, I need more).
Scarf: Vintage, stolen from my mum.
Boots: Target, super steal at $50! Genuine leather, too!
Ring on right hand: Forever 21

.... and one of the Pea yesterday just because!

Saturday Night

So is this how you date when you have a kid and no sitter?

I came home from work this evening and Olivia was already snug and sleeping in her bed. Todd had been home most of the day and felt like going to grab a bite to eat and a beer down the street. The predicament is that we can't both go without the baby! But, if I really wanted to go we could have bundled her up in the stroller and walked there together. However, I'm way too tired to make all that effort and was of course already in my pajamas. I envied Todd because a jalapeño burger and beer sounded delicious but I decided misery shouldn't ask for company and off he went.

We texted each other the whole time, me making sad faces and him documenting his excitement about his delectable dinner and refreshing beverages. I was cozy on the couch with my fuzzy blanket and he got some fresh air and brews. Sort of a date via iPhone, no?

On the subject of food...

Today I went to see my midwife and invited my sister, Paloma, to come along. It was a beautiful day in downtown San Diego and since Pea was spending time with my mom at home we decided to have some lunch while we were out.
We chose to eat at a regular spot for us and our group of friends, a vegetarian jewel of a place called Jyoti-Bihanga in the Normal Heights area of the city. The restaurant has a super chill vibe, and is owned and operated by students of Sri Chinmoy. It is definitely worth reading about him.
Every single dish on that menu is delicious and flavorful, with lots of vegan options. If you are ever in the area, be sure to check it out. I got my usual "neatloaf" entree and Paloma got the mock turkey & avocado wrap. Yum, yum, yum. It was a wonderful afternoon. As much as I would love to have a little boy, since this is going to be our last baby, I also think that if this baby is a girl it will still be absolutely wonderful because there is nothing like having a sister.

My lovely date

Lemon lentil soup

Vegetarian "neatloaf"

Avocado mock turkey wrap

Mini food connoisseur?

If I remember correctly, when I was preggers with Pea I did not have many crazy cravings. I think in the beginning it was pizza. And then toward the end it was Mexican food from Lolita's. Well, in the very beginning I could not eat anything at all.
This time around, the cravings are starting to kick in and they are very specific... and extraordinary. I think this bean may be a tiny foodie. I am craving serious dishes, upscale cuisine. I am talking macaroni and cheese with truffles, comté cheese, and pancetta or a yummy lobster strudel. Even some warm scallops in saffron sauce with angel hair or a warm mascarpone mushroom torte. Drool. Hopefully someone I know will take me on a dinner date soon...

image via thenibble.com

Tuesday Tunes

One of my favorite songs from The Beatles. I really dig the rare footage in this video, I like how hippie-esque and groovy they all look.

P.S. I usually think it's a silly question, but I will add my favorite Beatle is probably George. And yours?

Lovely Sunday

Yesterday Todd and I woke up very early (thanks Olivia) and by 8:00am we were showered and ready to head out the door. We decided to take a nice family mini-roadtrip out east to scenic Pine Valley for brunch and then to Julian for walking around and DELICIOUS freshly squeezed apple cider. Julian is a tiny little town east of San Diego full of beautiful trees, quaint little buildings, and AMAZING apple pie. I have fond memories of our pre-baby cozy and romantic dinner dates there.
It was a very sunny November Sunday so it was quite busy and the lines for the pie shops were way too long. I didn't take too many photos because then the husband tells me I am not enjoying the moment trying to get good pictures and he is probably right.

Olivia's stroller used to face us but yesterday we turned her seat around like a bigger kid and she LOVED being able to look at people and her surroundings.

Holiday Crafts

Although the Pea is still too young to really know what making crafts or baking is, I still want to do some fun stuff with her this season. She will surely eat the art supplies and put sugar cookie dough in her hair but at least I can share our holiday spirit with friends and family and say Olivia "helped". Does anyone have any holiday craft ideas or yummy recipes they would like to share? I think we are making construction paper turkeys and apple crisp this November. I would love to hear from you!

Here are the super easy instructions on how to make this cute and funky turkey centerpiece. Have I ever expressed how much of a holiday nerd I am?

One Year Stats

Height: 29 & 3/4 inches
Weight: 19.4 pounds
(Still petite!)
Mobility: Insanity! It's a combo of walking/crawling but she is quick and so HYPER. It is hard to keep up with her, I lack the energy due to my current, er, condition. I am happy she is such a dynamic and healthy kid but sometimes I need a breather.
Eating: She loves blackberries. They are her favorite food for sure. Pretty much all fruits and veggies are a go. Not a huge fan of chicken, the only meat we offer her, and that is totally fine with me. We do not keep junk food in the house so she does not eat any. If we have pasta or other dishes she will happily try those, too. We try to do as much organics as possible. She is still on formula and we will probably transition her to some sort of milk, but not necessarily cow's milk. I like the nutritional components of toddler formula, it makes me feel as if her diet is more balanced and she gets all she needs.
Sleep: Some nights are better than others. Usually she sleeps through the night and maybe only stirs once or twice but wakes up SUPER early. I mean, like 6:00am full of energy.
Teeth: Four on top, four on bottom. Also her top molars cut a couple of weeks ago and those nights were NO FUN.
Clothing: 12 month fits her best but 18 month is what I buy so it will last longer.
Diapers: Still in cloth :) No signs of wanting to potty train, she does not even mind a wet diaper. My mom swears I was PT'd by a year and a half. I doubt Olivia is following suit.
Speech: Chatterbox. Sometimes she can mimic a word, but usually she just speaks Pea Talk.
Car seat: Still rear facing, of course!!!

Wild Yellow Hairs

Hello lover...

Ok, I know I just posted about bringing it back to the basics and letting go of material desires but I mean, really, this thing looks awesome:

Chatterbox

Alarms are a thing of the past in our home. Every morning I wake up to the sounds of my chatty one-year old, recounting her dreams and demanding some breakfast. She continues chatting throughout our meal, as I wrestle her for a diaper change, and on our drives to wherever. Her tones change as she talks and I am fairly certain she has a lot to say. We get to my parent's house and she says hello to Winston the pug, squeals for her beloved grandpa's attention, and excitedly thanks us for the yummy berries she snacks on. Sometimes she almost forms another word to add to her small collection and I will patiently wait until I can really understand every sentences that comes out of that sweet little mouth of hers.

I suppose we need to add this book to her little library...

Bare

Motherhood has opened up the depths of my human instinct and directed me to going back to the basics. To parent as if I were living in a small village thousands of years ago without Pampers, Petunia Picklebottom, or Bugaboo. Sure, the baby gear is nice but my intuition makes me to want to keep my baby close to my skin, nursing her, and nurturing naturally and based on instinctual mothering not baby books.

Now that Olivia is growing that primal feeling remains and I find myself dreaming of a small farm where Todd can build our home. A chicken coop, clotheslines with cloth diapers drying in the wind, perhaps a cow or a pig, and of course an organic garden. I want my children to love and appreciate nature, to see and respect where their food comes from, and find joy in the essentials of life.

I've worked in the sales/fashion industry for a while and though I'm a style enthusiast at heart and can appreciate the finer (see: too expensive, not in my budget) things in life I want to shed some of those materialistic tendencies. At this point I'd happily trade in the heels for some gardening boots and my beloved Chanel foundation for rosy cheeks from being out in the sun all day, reading and making mudpies with my Pea.

image via: Google

Thursday Post