Elementary School Meets Fountain of Youth

Took the day off on Friday so I could attend the Mother's Day Brunch at my daughter's school.  It was so nice to not go to work and to watch my little girl put on a show with her friends.  I was told the night before, in no uncertain terms, that I was to "dress up" for the event "in a dress".  Since the weather seemed to be cooperating, I chose the Fountain of Youth dress.  Can't tell you how much I love it!  There doesn't seem to be much you can do to dress is up or down so basically my outfit consisted of dress + shoes.  Easy!

I did put on a cardigan for the walk to school.  The show and all the little notes and gifts the kids gave to their moms were so cute.  They sang us some songs, we enjoyed some bagels and juice, and took pictures with the teacher.  It was very well put together and extremely adorable.  Here's me and my little princess in her classroom.

On me: dress - Anthropologie Fountain of Youth; cardigan - Merona for Target; shoes - Seychelles "Joan"; toes - China Glaze Purple Panic (neon)

On Lil Miss (she asked me to include her OOTD deets): dress - Target (was a mere $17 and we get so many compliments on it); cardigan - ? from Neiman Marcus a few years ago; glasses - Sears

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!

Another Day, Another Birthday

Right after the birthday cake for my son's third birthday, off we went to the hospital to await the arrival of the little princess.

Happy birthday to my little peanut.  I hope you have a fabulous day!!

Of course, another journey through pictures.  It's just what moms do.

Thoughtful enough to let her brother enjoy his birthday cake, a teeny little chicklet waited just long enough to come into the world so each sibling would have their own day.

Such a petite little flower, I am constantly in awe of your adventurous spirit and strength (clearly your mother's child).

 Most of the time super sweet,

 But sometimes a little sour,

She's just so cute that even her brother can't pass up the chance for a little hug.

You've got lots to smile about and have given us tons to smile about too.  Can't wait to see what the next year brings for you.  We love you munchkin.

My Little Man Celebrates a B-Day

I know I haven't been around as work has been nuts, but I HAD to carve out a few minutes to wish my first born a very happy birthday.

I love you my little big man.  You have made me worry like I never thought I'd worry before, but we wouldn't change a thing.  You are turning into a wonderful and thoughtful fellow.

Life's journey in pictures (a/k/a mom's brag book):

Once upon a time, God granted me a cute and lovable little boy.

He was so wonderful, we decided to try for a playmate.  Sometimes she wants to kill him, but mostly, she loves him too.

We've had some seriously scary times but you are so strong, you pulled through with flying colors and have inspired and helped others going through the "Cranio Wars"

You are the family rock star in more ways than one. 

You are very much a boy but do clean up quite well.  :)

So keep on climbing.  The best is yet to come.

 We love you!  Peace out.

OOTD - First Day of Spring & a B-Day

This year on the first day of spring we had a party to go to.  My little nephew (actually, he's my grand nephew but that just makes me sound much older than 37) is turning 2.  Party was held at my sister-in-law's house and the weather was pretty nice.  Warm sun but the wind had a bit of bite to it.  I figured a good ole cardigan was the way to go here.

And luckily I decided not to have my new Paige Lou Lou's hemmed before washing and drying them.  The length is now perfect for the wedges I would typically wear with these.  Probably could lose an inch off the bottom, but after seeing how much they shrunk, I'm just going to keep 'em as is.

jeans - Paige Lou Lou via Anthropologie; tank - Gap outlet; cardigan - Land's End Canvas; shoes - Preview via Nordstrom Rack ($21 score!); nails - Zoya Eve

The kids all had a blast playing outside for the first time in a while!

 The beautiful birthday boy.  Can you say eyelashes for miles!

And we had skebbies for dinner.  This is my grand niece and her first spaghetti slurp.

And one of the hubs just cuz I think he's cute.  :)

Happy Spring everyone.

Mini Moto OOTD

My daughter wanted in on the action again after seeing my Feminine Moto post.  So here she is despite my speedlight slowly dying while I shot.  Such a tough little munchkin!  :)

jacket - PS Kids; jeans - Levis; boots - Kohls; glasses - Sears Optical; cuteness - all hers

Trip Planning Time - New Mexico

One of the greatest pleasures I get out of life is traveling.  And since having kids, I love opening up new worlds and places to them.  In recent years, we've had to seriously cut back on trips.  And I mean seriously cut back.  But every year, usually around February, I start to plan a summer trip and can usually save us some money here and there because of this advanced planning.

Last year we did a very budget trip to Sanibel Island, Florida using nothing but a holiday bonus for all pre-planning (air, hotel, car).  We then saved up a few dollars a month to cover meals and incidentals.  It was a great trip for not much $$.  My son declares that as his favorite trip so far.  I'll have to do a Sanibel trip report soon because I truly think it is one of the best US family destinations going.

This year I'm very excited to start planning an August trip to New Mexico.  We have settled on the Albuquerque and Santa Fe areas, but there is just so much to see out there that I would need three weeks to cover it all.  Hoping we can fit in a few Southern New Mexico sites as well (I really want to see White Sands National Monument and Carlsbad Caverns).

Trip planning has been a passion of mine for as long as I remember.  Without exaggeration, I can spend 100s of hours planning a weekend away.  Hopefully this trip will be more like seven to ten days.

Here are some pictures and links for anyone else interested in visiting lovely New Mexico.  As soon as the plans are set, I'll share those too if you like.  And of course, after all is said and done, a trip report is a must!  My apologies in advance to anyone who doesn't love immersing themselves in all the minute details of another family's vacation.  I love it!

All photos found on Google Images - they are not my own.

Carlsbad Caverns

Bandelier National Monument - there will be lots of climbing here

White Sands National Monument

Hello sledding in August!

From "snowy" adventures to white water rafting - we will be doing this!

Plenty of Native American sites for a little education

Petroglyph National Monument

Pueblo homesteads - hoping to witness some ceremonial dances

Afraid of heights?  The Sandia Peak Tramway may not be your thing

And plenty of plain old wilderness to explore! 

Oh my gosh, and there is just so much more!

So from now until August, I will be planning, re-planning, formulating itineraries, obsessively checking airline and car rental prices, and most importantly, researching the best places to EAT (OCD type A anyone?).  Can't wait to share my actual photos with you all.  Time to get back to practicing with my camera!!  Too many great photo ops on the horizon.

Any other travel buffs out there?  Where will your wanderlust be taking you?

Mini OOTD

My daughter decided to jump on the bandwagon the other morning.  She had a birthday party to go to and saw my husband taking pictures of one of my outfits and wanted hers done too.  Apparently, she was very proud of what she put together.  I liked the price.

We have Levis distressed skinny jeans from Kohls ($19.99 - coupon), jeweled henley and shark skin puffer vest from P.S. Aeropostale (sale rack - 30% F&F sale), finished off with faux black Uggs (Kohls).  Quick blow out courtesy of my husband.  :)

And that is my little one's first OOTD.  I think we should expect more.  Seems she's been bitten by the fashion bug too.