Day Eleven

Day Ten

The discovery of one's legs, a profound thing...

When You Wish Upon A Star

What could possibly be better than celebrating your birthday at the happiest place on earth? How about celebrating your birthday at the happiest place on earth... for free!  It's true... Disneyland is now offering free one day admittance to you; the birthday boy or girl, on your special day!  Go here to register!

Bembo's Zoo

This is beauty and brilliance all rolled into one!  Take your child by the hand, or anyone for that matter, and feast your eyes on this incredible alphabetical zoo magic!  I love the Monkey...

Day Nine

Unrequited

The Neilson Family Portrait 2008

Amongst the community of mommy bloggers, there are a few who stand out on their own, those who have truly made a name for themselves... One such blogger goes by the name of NieNie. She is a wife and mother of four young children, living in Arizona...Her blog is loved and read by thousands of people all over the world.  In early August of this year, Nie and her husband, Mr.Neilson were in a private plane crash and are trying to recover from very serious burns.  NieNie is in a drug induced coma, and has been for some time now, while doctors do the best they can to graph her skin...  While fighting for their lives, Nie's sister, C Jane, has taken in all four of her sisters children and along with her husband and infant son, are trying to live life as normally as possible after such a devastating event.  C Jane's personal blog has become a spot to report on not only the medical aspect of Nie and Mr.Neilson's saga, but a place to speak openly and honestly about their beautiful children. After reading this entry written by C Jane about one of Nie's children, Oliver, I was hooked... I read C Jane's blog daily, and almost every day I am brought to tears by the beauty and the deep felt love that she writes with.  I know that this will become a part of your life just as easily as it has become a part of mine.  Another daily reminder of just how fragile life is, and how very much your family matters... Click here if you would like to meet C Jane

Tooth Fairy Jar

I love this idea...

Heartfelt Handwriting

 

This is the first year that Sebastian and his friends are able to express themselves through their own handwriting.... I think that these first drafts of penmanship are absolutely priceless and adorable to no end.  Sebastian and one of his friends, Hannah, have developed a system of mail exchange through their school room cubby box.  One morning when we arrived to school, there in Sebastian's cubby was a sweet little card, left by none other than Miss.Hannah... We took the note home, read it, and then read it again and again and again.  We responded to the note by leaving her a note of her own for her finding the next day when she would attend school... So on and so forth.   Here are a few of  the pieces of hand written beauty that we have received thus far... Take note that some of the text is written by Hannah momma, who writes what Hannah is saying word for word, thus loosing none of it's four year old authenticity... My absolute favorite has got to be the illustrations of the Halloween characters and the knock-knock joke that has no apparent punch line, but that Sebastian thinks is hilarious! 

The drawing of Sebastian beside two of his friends, Gabe and Drew, was enclosed in a birthday card that he received earlier this year... I had to include it in this post as I just love it dearly! Great drawing Gabriel!

Day Eight

Brooklyn's first taste of whole food... Organic Rice Cereal...

Can't you tell by the expression of his face how very much he enjoyed it? 

 Not much was digested but a definate love of food was established that day...

GOOP

This website looks like it is going to be great!  It is the idea and creation of Gweneth Paltrow... I think that it is beautifully designed and that there is some good information here... I signed up for the newsletter and just a few days ago received my first bit of GOOP e-mail... These recipes look great, although I have yet to try them out!  Take a look around, see what you think!

Alexia Delilah Turns Five Years Old

I remember the day this little girl was born... 

It's hard to believe it's been more than 1800 days sense... 

We love you sweetie!

A Toast

Tomorrow my sister Kelly and her husband William celebrate their first wedding anniversary together.  I cannot tell you how pleased I am that she is married to a man that she truly loves, and that her life has taken such beautiful form.  I was lucky enough to have been chosen the maid of honor in their wedding, thus able to experience first hand the beauty of the day the were wed. 

Their wedding ceremony has held at the Historic Court House is Santa Barbara, and the reception took place at a beautiful hotel in the heart of the downtown area, complete with a rooftop cocktail hour overlooking the city... Spectacular...

My sister who is in my eyes is unbelievably beautiful, was absolutely stunning as a bride, and William could not have been a more handsome groom...  To view possibly the most beautiful wedding pictures of all time, click here... Enjoy the show... Featured in the photographs are of course Kelly and William, and their children Isabella and Isaac, our mother and father,as well as a very small ring bearer Sebastian, a beaming Anthony and a very pregnant, me... 

I was honored to have been asked to toast my sister and her husband that night over dinner, and although I had written and prepared something in advance, I was not able to deliver the pre-written toast that night... Maybe it was the nervousness that I felt as my name was called, maybe it was the awkwardness I felt all dressed up in heels, carrying a baby well into my eighth month of pregnancy...Who knows, but for whatever reason, I opted not to read what I had written , and instead to speak from the heart... 

So here,  one year later, I would like to toast my beautiful sister and her loving husband with what I had written and should have read that night...

"Hello everyone, my name is Corey Villicana, I am Kelly's younger sister... I had thought for quite awhile about what it is that I had wanted to say to Kelly and Will tonight, and the overall idea that kept coming back to me was that I wanted to take this moment as an opportunity to do something that I have not had many chances throughout my life to do... Being that I am younger than Kelly is, it seems as though she has always been the one to lead and to accomplish first in our lives.  She has always set the pace and the example for what it is that I wanted to do in my life... I have always been able to go to her for advice and information about feats that she had already accomplished, and I have always felt much more prepared because of it.  One of the most meaningful of  memories was in being able to watch her as a mother years before I had my own children... I was able to see first hand not only the miracle of child birth, but the intense love and sacrifice that a mother provides her child.   And so for the first time in our lives, I am actually leading her into one of life's most amazing ventures. I married my husband Anthony in July of 2006 and so now I am able to advise her for the first time about something that I was able to experience first, marriage.  I am not going to pretend that I know the secret to a happy and successful marriage, but I will share with you what I have learned thus far. 

 Love one another... look to each other to be more than life partners, but to be the best of friends and the closest of allies... 

Put your life in perspective, imagine yourselves together in years and years from now, enjoying your lives, growing old... 

Respect one another and never let a day go by without telling each other how very much you love each other. 

 I love you Kelly, more than words can explain... William, you are the luckiest man in the room tonight, to have such a beautiful bride, and such a wonderful woman as your wife.  

Enjoy tonight and enjoy every tomorrow... "

Truth

"The biggest mistake I made (as a parent) is one that most of us make... I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs.  There is one picture of (my three children) sitting in the grass in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four and one.  And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night.  I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less."- Author Anna Quindlen, reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. 

Lovely Lynn's Bruschetta

My very sweet friend Lynn brought with her to our house the other day, a bundle of fresh basil, and a recipe for her personal rendition of Bruschetta... 

I loved her sweet gesture, and this evening, our family loved her recipe! 

I feel as though it would be completely selfish of me if I were not to pass this delicious concoction along to you... 

The recipe is quite simple, quite quick and quite yummy...Mmmmmm

Lynn's Bruschetta

6-8 Roma Tomatoes

A squeeze of fresh lemon juice

One bunch of fresh basil(chopped)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Drizzle of olive oil

One clove of fresh garlic (add more if you like...)

One baguette

Dice tomatoes and salt in a bowl for twenty minutes,

add all other ingredients, 

stir, and serve!

Cut baguette into small pieces, 

toast in oven for five minutes at 350 degrees, 

or until slightly crisp on top.

Scoop Bruschetta onto baguette... Enjoy!

Day Seven

Here is our little sweetheart on February 14th!

What a treat to have not one, not two, but three Valentine's this year!

I'm so lucky... 

Heartbreaker indeed...

Day Six

If this isn't the sweetest thing I have ever seen, then I just don't know what is...

Day Five

I remember the morning that I took this picture of Brooklyn... I had just bathed and dressed him and figured that this would be as good a time as any to lay him underneath the same hanging bunnies that I had laid his brother under years before... He looked longingly at these suspended friends, probably wishing that he could reach out to them... Instead he laid there calmly watching all that was going of around him... Taking it all in... My sweet boy...

Day Four

Brooklyn's first Christmas...

December 25,2007

Wanna Wordle?

I just found a link to this website where you can quickly create yourself a wordle! 

What is a wordle you ask...

 Come here and find out!

 I used the URL from my blog, and here is what it came up with... Fun!

Etsy Beauty

Here are some of my newest and most favorite Etsy finds.... I figured that even though we are celebrating Brooklyn's birthday at the pumpkin patch amongst family, invitations were in order...if for no other reason then to have this precious memento in my hands years from now... I ordered these adorable invitations from SweetPeaInk...  The woman who made them was so kind and patient, letting me rearrange the original color palliate with warmer fall inspired colors... 

Also the birthday crown was a must have item. The sellers name is ArtfulMstudio, again the lovely woman who custom made this crown for our little prince, was nothing but gracious in her understanding of what I thought would make the perfect crown!  What's more... she had it ready for my viewing in one days time... Unbelievable!  I often wonder why I even bother purchasing anything from anywhere other than Etsy... Beautiful work ladies... Thank you...

Fun Stuff

Do you have any of these Cheerios play books?  There is a whole series of them... Sebastian's Nana got this book for him a few years ago, and it is treat to rediscover year after year!  The directions on each page are simple and soooo cute!  We have an in house rule that before you turn the page, you are allowed to eat the cheerios that you just used to complete the task at hand! 

And don't you just love the taste of air popped popcorn?  So yummy in the middle of the afternoon, all buttery and salty!  Oh, and that there is my mid-day pick me up... An iced pumpkin pie spice coffee... in a monster mug of course...

B's Little Red Car...

Happy

Birthday

To

You...

Happy

Birthday

To

You...

Knowing how much Brooklyn would love this little red car... How could we possibly wait a whole month to give it to him? Happy Birthday B!

Petite Pies

Last night as I was preparing for our autumn celebration, I happened to come across this idea for pies baked in little glass jars... Today while Sebastian was at school, Brooklyn and I ran around collecting all of the necessary ingredients, and when we returned home this afternoon, we made a few of these little pies for ourselves!  They turned out wonderfully... We made two apple pies for ourselves, and one cherry pie for Papa...  We ate them this evening after dinner dishes were washed and Brooklyn was fast asleep... A secret treat of sorts, for Sebastian ,Papa and I.  Mmmmmm... delicious.... "This is very good mom..." Yes my love, it is very good indeed!

Day Three

I think that this picture will end up being one of my most favorite of all time.  Brooklyn was around two weeks old when this photograph was taken... I love the way that Sebastian is helping to wash and comfort his baby brother... I remember how soft and slippery Brooklyn's body was within this tub of warm water and suds... I remember supporting his head when he couldn't...

My heart in my hands...

First Day Of Autumn

Tomorrow is the first day of Autumn...

I don't think that I had ever noticed it printed on my

calender until this year, but boy am I glad that I did!  

Tomorrow will start out just like every other Monday does... Hot coffee, a leaning tower of banana pancakes for my boys, taking Sebastian to preschool and returning home for Brooklyn's nap...  After all of that is said and done, I am going to treat us to an afternoon filled with all things autumn!  I am busily planning and prepping tonight...here is what I have come up with thus far...

Homemade apple pie... I will have everything ready so that Sebastian can add in the pie filling and help me stick it into the oven...

 

Leaf rubbings... do you remember these from when you were a child?  I do!  I will take the boys around the block to collect a variety of leaves which we will then make into beautiul peices of art!  

Maybe some carmel corn, and the anual first viwing of a Halloween themed movie...

 Will it be my personal favorite... 

or Sebastian's? Hmmm....