HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Its been so long since i've blogged - but HAPPY HAPPY 1st birthday to my baby boy, Gabriel!!!! I can't believe how fast this year flew by. We had a week long celebration in beautiful Hiltonhead Island. We shared a HUGE home with our close family and friends and enjoyed a wonderful week together. Pictures to come soon. In the meantime, this is a picture of my beautiful baby boy enjoying his cupcakes. Photo courtesy of Blowup Babies Photography.

Philippines

Taking a little break with my little family :) we're heading to Japan and to the Philippines! Looking forward to the mango shakes, laying by the pool, shopping at all the little bazaars, eating all the yummy food, and spending tons of time with my sisters and family. Best of all, I'm looking forward to sharing this with Gabe. i'll try to update during my trip but incase I can't, have a wonderful two weeks!!

These are a few pics I found online, can't wait to share our actual photos with you.

The beautiful Manila Bay on Roxas Boulevard,

adorned with colorful capiz lanterns

Serendra - a place of serenity, our condo

The pool at Serendra

Jeepney's - popular mode of transport in the Philippines

Big Girl, Big Diamonds

"Big girls need big diamonds."

Elizabeth Taylor

(1932-2011)

I share 2 things with this legendary actress - a love for jewelry and misunderstood romances. If there were a picture of the word fabulous, it would be a picture of Ms. Elizabeth Taylor. RIP

My other love

My other love, Wil, is another year older! we celebrated his birthday last week - both in NJ and in MN. in MN, we had an impromptu dinner with our close friends and family and had such a great time catching up and just hanging out like old times.

in NJ, we ate at a famous filipino chain, Max's in Jersey City. The food there was amazing. It was a bittersweet meal since, aside from Wil's birthday, it was also our last family dinner in NJ. After being there for 3 weeks it was so hard to leave my family. The thing that keeps me going is knowing that i'm going to see them in a few weeks for our fam trip to the Philippines! Can't wait!!!

Happy Birthday, my love. I love you so much.

famous filipino dessert - "halo-halo"
our little family
Gabriel Viggo 9 months old
Jersey City, NJ

Sleep, Happy Baby, Happy Mom

Just when i thought the battle to sleep through the night was coming to an end, i find out that 9 months is a tough time for babies to sleep through the night. Most people say its the separation anxiety the babies are feeling. Others say its their discomfort from teething. Yet others say babies cry because they know they're going to be picked up. Its so hard to decipher whether or not Gabe really needs me or if he just wants to be picked up.

2 recommendations I got from people:

1) a book by Dr. Marc Weissbluth, "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child"

2) Fischer Price's light up seahorse that lights up and plays soothing lullabies.

I recommend them both 100%. For the sake of your own health/happiness and that of your baby, you both need a good night's sleep. I learned how important it is to instill good sleeping habits early on.

3 months of love

Here are 3 month's worth of baby Gabe growing up :) These pictures are snippets of our life from December 2010 to March 2011 so Gabe is between 6 to 9 months old. They flew by way too fast if you ask me: (disclaimer - i have to apologize for Gabe's wacky hair - it has a mind of its own :) )

Spring is in the Air

Spring is in the Air. Another year, another season and yet, i still do not have this wardrobe staple - a classic trench coat - a sin I know. I guess I keep looking for the perfect one. I do have to say though, this caught my eye. It was absolutely darling on the hanger in the BCBG store. Let's just say you'll make an impression as you leave the room with those ruffles on the back. LOVE.

BCBG "Ophelia" ruffle trench coat

Retail price- $348

www.bcbg.com

front view - in Khaki

back view in grey

Tuesday Shoesday

Jcrew Avenelle wedges

I got the new JCrew Catalogue and spotted these fabulous wedges. They look sexy with the cutout design but comfortable enough to wear everywhere!! Looks like a staple for every fab mom's spring wardrobe if you ask me.

Here's my board through polyvore.com on how I would style these pretty little things. Of course I had to add a Valentino clutch for fun :)

sunday in the park by kleano featuring suede shoes

Lady Liberty

Liberty House, Jersey City, NJ

This post is a bit late, but last month I had an amazing dinner with Wil, and my sister and brother-in-law (Christine and Eddie) for Valentine's Day. As much as I love dressing up, I usually prefer hole in the wall restaurants to high end, trendy places. I love eating from street vendors, mom and pop eateries, and true home cooked food. But of course in honor of Saint Valentine and in honor of a day of free babysitting (courtesy of my parents) we wanted to do it up.

Wil and Eddie planned a romantic dinner at Liberty House in Jersey City, NJ. This venue is famous for its beautiful views of the NYC skyline since its right along the Hudson River. But what makes it a diamond in the ruff is its impeccable view of the Statue of Liberty. Romantic views, great food, wonderful company, an amazing husband,all made for a night to remember.

Wil, Christine, Eddie and I enjoying our 3 course dinner. (at first glance this picture looks like a split screen duplicate)I enjoyed a delectable fish entree (sorry for flash)

How adorable are these heart shaped desserts - a perfect ending to a perfect dinner.

Far Away From Home

Gabriel Viggo 9 months

The month of February was filled with a lot of traveling for our little family. The month began with a road trip to Tampa, FL. The middle of the month we found ourselves on a plane New Jersey-bound for a trip that was meant to last 1 week but ended up as three weeks. And to end February, we flew to snowy Minnesota to celebrate Wil's birthday with friends and family. Its been fun, but i'm kind of looking forward to time off here in quiet Atlanta. We'll be flying overseas within a few weeks so i really want Gabe to be able to enjoy his own crib for a little bit.

While we were in NJ, I was able to do a lot - see a lot of friends, catch up with people i haven't seen in awhile, spend time with family. We were also able to attend one of my good friend, Archieline's son, Connor's baptism. Its always so nice to catch up with everyone. Here Wil, Gabe and I are getting ready to party for Baby Connor. As you can tell from Gabe's smile, he's excited to party and meet his buddy.

Nail Polish Snob

Loreal Nailpolish in "Apple of my Eye"

I just got over my nailpolish snobbiness. My go to brand for nailpolish has always been essie. I have no idea why - maybe its the pretty packaging with the square shaped bottle and the neutral white tops, maybe its the consistency of the nailpolish itself, maybe its their wide array of trendy colors that I always seem to go for. I don't know.

I've been itching to get a nice coral or peachy color for spring/summer. When i went to the store, i was ready to buy an $8 essie bottle until my eye spotted a similar looking bottle in the loreal section - white top, square bottle and all! I skimmed the shelf and found this pretty little thing - "Apple of my eye." Its a rich coral tone perfect for my skintone. and the best part - price tag was $4.99 (or 3.99 -can't even remember). All i know is it was way less than essie. The consistency of the nailpolish was great and its lasted a long time without chipping. A++ in my book - especially for mommies who find themselves washing their hands a gazillion times a day.

So now, me and my pretty colored nails can go on our merry way with a few bucks to spare :)

Fuschia Fashion

Revlon Lipstick in "Fuschia"

Ok, so i am a drama queen. And I do like dramatic looks and fashion trends that sometimes people don't get. I REALLY

like the look of a rich lip color. I love pin up girl red lips, i

love deep coral lips for this spring, and I especially love the color fuschia. I think i'm leaning towards fuschia just because its a universally flattering color. Since I'm darker toned, I usually have a tougher time picking out lipstick colors. But i really want to take the plunge this spring from my normal glossy nude lips. I just bought Revlon's lipstick in "fuschia." I couldn't resist the chanel looking quilted pattern on this tube.

I know that pulling off rich lip colors like this is tough so here are a few tricks i found online. I also found some fab pictures of celebrities sporting pink pouts. Enjoy!

How to rock fuschia lips and look good!

1) Always start with a heavily exfoliated lip, make sure to add a lip moisturizer as a base after exfoliating.

2) Line your lips, for bright colors such as fuschia, precious is key so lining your lips is necessary, for even more precision, apply lipstick with a lipstick brush. Start from the center of your mouth and work your way to the outer corners.3) Since this color is so dramatic, keep the rest of your face neutral and fresh, do not use heavy eye makeup. Also, keep your outfit subdued. You really want your lips to be the main event.4) if you're like me and are used

to glossy lips, this matte look might be too much of a shock for you, so to ease the transition, you can apply a sheer gloss over this lipstick. Please note that this color on the runway is portrayed as matte and hardly ever glossy, but for us com

mon people who don't walk the runway on a daily basis, a gloss would be fine. A makeup artist i spoke to suggested looking at lustre lipsticks which have a lot of shine to ease the change from gloss to lipsticks.

info found from:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5849832/fuchsia_lipstick_how_to_apply_it_and.html