PINK

ROADTRIP!!!

Saturday morning we packed up our bags and left for SLO.

We stopped by to admire the vineyards on the way. 

One day very soon our vineyard will be this far along. 

We went to see some of our favorite people - the Kesleys - for Sophie's 13th birthday.

(Happy Birthday Soph!!)

.... and we stayed at  the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.

I never knew I loved the color pink so much. 

I guess you don't know how much you like a color until you are surrounded entirely by it.

This weekend we slept, ate, dreamt, breathed... emanated PINK!

It was so beautiful to see open pastures with horses and miles and miles of country white fences.

I love the countryside. 

I love the life in the countryside because it is simple, close to the earth and sweet.

Tyler knew we all needed a break.

He took a chance and magically arranged a stay in the Jungle Rock room. It was a large cave-like room with trees and walls of rock, animal prints, blue carpet and a waterfall shower. 

It was literally a wild room and we fit in it perfectly for the night.

The Madonna Inn has the most personality a hotel has to offer. I was mesmerized! I thought it would be  a bit cheesy, but it really was not. It's one of those places one must see before they die.

It's hard to explain it except that love it or hate it, it will stop you in your tracks.

...and I loved it!

Breakfast! Mylie wore her pink pjs. 

We must go back for some of the cakes. We ended up eating too much to have dessert so we missed out on the incredible cakes. We MUST return for those cakes.

This was the steak house and the room with the most amount of PINK.

It was awesome! It was surreal... kinda like living in pink frosting.

Beautiful weekend with some of the most beautiful people we know.
and we got a nice heap of pink to last us a while.

Life in vivid color rocks!
I definitely recommend it!

wishing you a vividly colorful week ahead!
xoxox

You've Got Homework, Family!

It's been a long first week of summer. 

We beat the stomach flu and now have new challenges ahead. 

But, as I'm telling Ty.... we can do this; we can see the other side; it's merely a test of our strength; 

we will succeed.

And we will need your help.

 My son's beautiful blue eyes need glasses. Not only that, his left eye is almost legally blind. All summer and most likely into the school year we will need to patch his strong eye so that his brain will use his weak eye as well. Otherwise, after the age of ten we will have lost the possibility of training his brain to use both eyes. It's called Amblyopia.

He is not exactly excited about this prospect but he has handled it with such understanding and willingness that I am humbled by his maturity. 

I would never have been able to do this at his age. And yet he is wearing his patch a minimum of 4 hours a day, maximum of ALL DAY... and wearing his glasses without any complaints.

I think he looks so incredibly handsome! 

What I need you, as his family, to do is when you see him please do not make a big deal of his glasses. He does not do well with "big deals". A mere "Hi Ty, cool glasses. So, how was that Mavericks win?!" 

And if you are ever so honored to see his patch on, don't even mention it. He really doesn't like it.

This has sparked some great conversations between us and I know Ty will learn a lot about himself throughout this process. Thanks for helping him and us.

And as for Miss Mylie... she is in the process of being potty trained and is learning sign language. 

I can teach you some basic signs so that you can communicate with her. 

She has been very frustrated not being able to express herself without language, so this way she can freely express herself to the world. 

I encourage you to use sign language when you see her. 

You will be surprised at how fun it is and how wonderful it is to communicate with Mylie.

Thank you!!

lots of love your way....

xoxoxo

Getting back to normal...

This past weekend we just laid low. Tyler got sick with the stomach flu and then I came down with it. Luckily, Ty stayed clear of it.

We were so happy to know that Mylie's illness was simply the stomach flu and not anything that would require surgery, which was what her doctors were afraid of.

The worst part about the past few days: being back in the hospital with Mylie, having four people attempt to find her veins leaving her punctured all over, being separated from each other (Mylie and I in the hospital and Tyler and Ty at home)

and the part that leaves me humbled... how much Ty worries about his sister.

Ty came home early Friday afternoon from school. We thought he had gotten sick too, 

but it turned out to be anxiety. 

He would never admit it. 

But, as his mom I know that's what it was. He's seen his sister too many times in the hospital.

So, as soon as we felt better we did what we normally do on the weekends: hang out, watch basketball, eat together, get ice cream, go to the beach and play.

Mylie was better and back in the groove of things pretty quickly. She had two days of IV fluids, lots of TLC and many prayers from family and friends.

Best part of the past few days: seeing all the nurses on the Pediatric floor that we came to love over the years. It had been over a year since we had seen them and they were sorry to see us under such circumstances but so happy to see Mylie again. They genuinely love her!

They are true friends.

Greatest part was to see Mylie and Ty back together again doing their thing, 

knowing that miracles happen in each moment, 

remaining peaceful and in faith.

Ty is happy and settled again.

I think this time around I realized how much we need to be aware of how Ty processes times like these. 

We need to lead by example and stay in peace, 

teach him he is safe and so is his sister 

and that life can be difficult sometimes but it is always a gift

and we are always protected.

Thanks for your prayers and energy and love!!

xoxoxo

Back from the hospital...

We are back safe and sound from a brief hospital stay with Mylie. Thursday she woke throwing up bile every 15 minutes for 8 hours straight... not a good sign for someone who has had intestinal surgery. 

So, we stayed and took tests and got her full of IV fluids. Turns out it's only the stomach flu - a pretty nasty one (Tyler, Grammy and I all succumbed) but it's ONLY that. Never been so happy to have a diagnosis of a nasty stomach flu! They are no fun for sure but a heck of a lot better than surgery. 

So, we are home... basking in the blessing of being back together again as a family 

and knowing that this too shall pass soon. 

Hope you all are healthy and happy and enjoying this weekend!

xoxox

Roots

Another fabulous weekend together in what seemed like Hawaii weather: warm rain and tropical smells. Joaquin came for the weekend again and we loved every minute. He and Ty are like brothers. I tell them stories of when they were babies and they laugh at how "long long ago" that was. 

I love that they are growing up together. 

Tyler has friends to this day that he grew up with here in Carpinteria. They've been friends since birth or elementary school. They have stories that go way back.

I grew up moving all the time. I went from Costa Rica to Tennessee to Florida back to Costa Rica to Spain to Santa Barbara. I had to make friends every time. I don't remember liking it very much.

I think that's why I love seeing my kids grow up on the same property their dad grew up 

and making friends that will last a lifetime.

Roots...

Joaquin is like my second son. 

Mylie and Ty have the stability I always wished I had. That makes me a very happy person.

And I have to say that as much as I love Costa Rica and will always be happy that I grew up there, I am very happy to be in the United States. I love this country!

and I know my kids do too.

Can you see these two in high school together, playing sports, going out with friends, being boys? 

maybe they will be in band like Tyler was...

and maybe Mylie will be prom queen just like her dad was prom king!

Planning on staying here the rest of our lives...

on our little finca (farm)

and will be grateful every day

to pass it all along to Mylie and Ty one day.

Happy Anniversary Babe!
Loving the seeds we've planted together and the roots we continue to nurture.

Thank you to all our family and friends for being part of our strong, healthy and vibrant roots.
xoxoxo

Date Night with Ty

Monthly, Ty and I get our cameras and go down to Linden Ave to take random pictures. We walk up and down the street finding select images, talking about good lighting, abstract photography 

and then end the night at Corktree Cellars for a burger and fries. 

I get Ty all to myself. 

It is a big treat for me!

This Friday happened to be First Fridays in Carp where all businesses stay open later 

and have appetizers and wine or beer for the customers. There is music, art, sculptures, 

people biking around, kids running around. It's a cool scene.

We checked out Lola Boutique where there was good food and great music. 

Ty was too shy to take pictures of the band. It does take being a bit assertive to take pictures of people, especially if you don't know them. I think he was a bit embarrassed that I did. 

 Ty is terribly cool these days. He likes walking independently, tries to keep a serious face sometimes, absolutely without a doubt will NOT let me kiss him goodbye at school or in public. 

 I totally get it.

I'm pretty sure I did the same thing to my parents... (sorry mom & dad)

 We walked over to one of Carpinteria's Art galleries. 

Something Ty and I share is a love for art. 

He's been an artist since he was able to pick up a pen. 

He has the vision for colors, substance, depth and composition like a seasoned artist. 

He paints, sculpts, uses charcoal, water color pencils, makes pottery and now loves photography.

I once introduced him to a friend who is a professional artist and told them Ty wanted to be an artist, too. Ty, age 5, right away exclaimed, "I'm already an artist!" 

Ever since I've known he has always been an artist.

 Ty's self portraits. 

Every famous artist has at least one self-portrait. I like this one because he's making his cool face, 

which is ...uhm cool, but Ty is not a serious dude. 

He is funny, silly and always telling jokes. 

Absolutely favorite part of the night was having dinner with my boy. We sit at the same table by the window, order a burger and fries, try and find the longest fry and take a picture of it, tell jokes, order the Fudge Brownie with Ice Cream and Whipped Cream dessert and then waddle back to the car complaining how full we are. 

I love these dates with Ty. 

I love hearing what he has to say. 

I love his 7 year old mind.

I adore his 7 year old heart.

He's the greatest boy I know!

Wishing you the best quality time with the ones you love!! It's always a win win isn't it?

xoxoxo

Seasons

It's summer season! Yesss! I'm thinking warm weather, both kids home, beach, sleeping in, little adventures together. I'm excited!

But, suddenly I've realized that it's more than just summer. It's a season. It's a rite of passage... small maybe but significant enough for me to capture it so that when I'm 90 and in the last season of my life, I will remember the little things that made up my season as a mom of little ones.

I know that is all I will want to remember. Not the places I went or the people I saw or the money I made, saved or spent.
I will want to remember things like:

Mylie outgrowing her naps. She is outgrowing her crib, her changing table, her diapers. She is ready for a big girl bed, to be dressed upright and to be potty trained. She has ALL the signs. It's up to me to take it to the next level and yet.... I'm so used to how things were.

Mylie is getting her sense of a big girl mattress.

She is oh-so-nonchalantly booting her brother out of the experience.

We tried every mattress and Mylie chose the one with a plushtop. It was ridiculously comfy!

Ty is outgrowing all his clothes, his shoes, his OH so cute baby teeth! Why oh why am I attached to his old shirts and baby teeth?





Mylie is outgrowing her need to be with mommy ALL the time. She is independent now, with friends that love her and teachers that are introducing her to so many new things.

Ty is ready to understand things such as war, terrorists, peace and good choices. He's understanding concepts such as death, faithfulness and relationships and yet finds flushing Star Wars' General Grievous' head down the toilet absurdly funny.

Mylie is ready to talk and communicate and to make friends herself without help from me or from her special ed teachers. She is ready to decide what foods she likes and what clothes she wears and if mommy is giving her one too many kisses. She is ready to make her own choices and yet she curls up in my arms at night and pushes my face the other way so I can't see her and lets me rock her to sleep.



Ahhh, seasons.... it's sad to see the old ones go and so nice to see the new ones come forth. Bitter sweet, and so important for me to take mental note - Do Not Forget This Moment.

Ice-Cream. A family favorite!

Wishing you the beginning of yet another fantastic season in life!

xoxoxox