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.

Snow Day

(image from www.weheartit.com)

I have to admit i was laughing prior to today. The state of Georgia had a "winter weather alert" for today. Everyone's facebook status's and tweets were talking about stocking up and getting ready for the "big storm." I even heard there was a line just to park at the grocery stores yesterday because everyone was panicking to get food. When i checked the weather to see what was expected, it said 3-4" of snow was expected.....I literally thought this was a joke. 3-4" in MN or NJ is nothing!! we drive in 3-4". Here, before the storm even came, they announced that school was closed and that flights for today were cancelled. Don't get me wrong. I understand that the south is not used to this type of weather and isn't equipped to handle snow removal, but its just funny in comparison.

Anyway, i woke up this morning to winter white outside, while the snow on my deck railing only shows about 3" of snow, its still nice to think of it as a snow day. Luckily its Wil's weekend so he, I and Gabe are spending quality time at home lounging around in our pjs. Perfect day for hot chocolate :)

I love the feeling of being in our home watching our baby play. Gabe is so cute crawling around the house. As i was cooking he crawled into the kitchen, crawled by my legs and sat down. It was such a priceless moment for me. I love snow days in with my family.

Here's to many hot chocolate happiness days.

Leaving Home

Again, sorry for the lack of posts, I've been here in NJ for the past 3 weeks. It was meant to be a week and a half trip home but it ended up getting extended to 3weeks!! Wil even had to assure his coworker that we weren't having marital problems :) It was just nice being here - around family and friends. It was a nice change from the quiet, lonely, pace of Atlanta. I miss3 being in my own bed, but i know i'll miss being around the people i love more.

A lot has happened these past 3 weeks that i'd love to share. i'll have more time to myself once i'm back home. But in the meantime, here is a beautiful pic of NJ from the NYC side. I've always loved staring back at the other side from across the Hudson. Not only is it picturesque but it brings back great memories of when Wil and I were just dating. Since we were in a long distance relationship, our time together was so limited so we made the most of our weekends. We would go for dates in NYC and watch the sunset from Battery Park - this is the view we'd always stare back at.

Its such a bittersweet feeling leaving tomorrow. I know everyone here got used to having Gabe around and its going to be such an adjustment for them not to see his smile or hear his giggles for awhile. Luckily, we'll be coming back for the holidays. But in the meantime, Ciao NJ. We'll be back real soon.

Atlanta Zoo

My goddaughter and her parents came to visit us last week :) We took them to the Atlanta Zoo since we figured she's appreciate it. It was a fun time for Wil, Gabe, and I as well since it was our first time there.

(I'm wearing an Old navy ruffled shirt, hm sweater, Michael Kors watch, button pearl earrings, Ray Ban sunglasses. Gabe's wearing a top and shorts from Old Navy)

We got to see a newborn giraffe - it was born at 6 ft tall!

This was Wil's favorite exhibit -the panda bears :) he loves everything round and he loves how they get to eat and sleep all day - i think he hopes to be a panda in his next life.

VIP

Honestly, we should be VIP members to the Atlanta Aquarium and the Coca Cola Museum - we've been there 3 times in the past 2 months. We go there often because we always take our out of town guests there - but we do love going everytime. I still can't wait for the day when Gabe can finally appreciate going and get excited to see the fish or the animals. But for now, I love holding him close to me. I know once he understands what these places are he'll be running away trying to look at all the animals. So for now, i'm cherishing our time together.

(i'm wearing, black topshop leggings, white men's vneck tee, paisley scarf I got from Singapore, Louis Vuitton tote, Michael Kors menswatch. Gabe is wearing Carter's white oneise and Gap linen pants)

Happy October!

Can you believe its October already? i can't - especially since its still pretty hot here in Atlanta . Anyway, October means fall which means new beginnings in the fashion world. Time to update the wardrobe! Well, in this case, the accessories wardrobe. Here's a bag that caught my eye in a magazine recently. Its of course by one of my favorite designers, Valentino. Its a grey lace leather bag. At first this bag did give a spring'y vibe. But then i pictured this feminine purse with my tall, light brown riding boots in the fall and a long grandfather cashmere cardigan in grey. Maybe even a nice jewel toned pashmina to add a pop of color - maybe a deep purple? Anyway, love this purse. of course it won't make it into my closet anytime soon, but just wanted to share.

New Joisey

My NJ accent was for sure "mad" strong this past week. Whenever i go home or hang out with my NJ friends - it always seems to seep back into my vocabulary. How cute would it be if Gabe had a mini jersey accent?

Here are I am with my sisters and my girls from NJ that came to visit for Gabe's baptism. We were drinking the night away having fun while the boys were playing Baci ball outside at Leon's in Avondale Estates. I loved being able to share my little world here in atlanta with my out of town friends. Plus, i have to say, it was my first drink since before i was pregnant with Gabe - very refreshing.

(Gail (my middle sister), Tina (my sister in law), Cheryl (my lil sister's BFF), Christine (my friend from way back when), Christine (my baby sister), and moi)

I'm wearing my Zara shirtdress in pink with a tan skinny belt, Michael Kors Gold menswear watch, rhinestone and canvas taping bracelets from my Designs by K Cayetano line, pearl button earrings, and my Louis Vuitton speedy bag is making a cameo right in the center of the pic

Celebrating Gabriel

On September 19, 2010 Gabe received the Sacrament of Baptism at St. Thomas More Church here in Atlanta, GA. Wil and I were so happy to have him baptized at that church. Its such an inviting community with great pastors and we couldn't be happier. 30 of our close friends flew into town to celebrate with us. Friends and family came in from New Jersey/New York/Minneapolis to be with us. It was a blast! Its always fun when my NJ friends mesh with my MN friends. Plus it was fun for everyone to finally meet our baby boy.

Just like we did it in Aruba, we tried to make it a weekend long celebration.

On Saturday, Sept 18 - we had a welcome dinner at our favorite local Italian restaurant - Anthony's.

On Sunday, Sept 19 - we had th Baptism and a beautiful outdoor reception at Park Tavern near Piedmont Park here in Atlanta.

On Monday, Sept 20 - we had a goodbye brunch here at our home before everyone took off for home

Here are some bits and pieces from Gabe's big celebration. A lot of TLC went into this party with a lot of Do-It-Yourself (DIY) party ideas.

(Gabriel in a vintage christening gown from his godfather - RG. RG wore this at his own christening 30 years ago)

(Gabe getting baptized by Father Brian at St. Thomas More Church in Avondale Estates. Godparents Gail and RG were there to witness it)

(All of our family and friends who flew in for the occasion sqeezed into a big family shot)

(The celebrant at his baptism reception after a long nap. Gabe is wearing a Gap button down shirt with Burberry shorts)

(Our table setting in the outdoor patio at Park Tavern in Atlanta, GA)

(Beautiful DIY centerpieces, Blue and white ceramic vases from Home Goods, fresh blue hydrangeas from Dekalb Farmers Market)(White cutout vases from Home Gooods)(Our lil family :) I'm wearing an H&M dress, Fioni shoes, and a David Yurman cocktail ring. Wil's wearing a DKNY pinstripe suit with a Burberry tie, Kenneth Cole shoes. Gabe is wearing a Gap button down with Burberry shorts)(DIY cupcake stand that i created with a crystal cross on top. Cupcakes from Atlanta Cupcake Factory - 2 flavors - Red Velvet with Almond frosting and Sugar Cookie Caramel Cupcakes. SOOO good. )(My family pic: Jim -Gail's boyfriend, my middle sister Gail, my dad, my mom holding Gabe, my youngest sister Christine, her husband Eddie, me, and my love Wil)(Favors were handmade rosary bracelets courtesy of Designs by K Cayetano. I loved that i was able to make something meaningful and special for our guests) (The handmade rosary bracelets were blessed and placed in sheer pouches with personalized ribbons as favors for all of our guests at Gabe's baptism)

Gabe's Buddy

We had guests in town here in Atlanta this week who came for

Gabe's baptism - of course we had to take them to the coca cola

museum and of course - Gabe had his picture with the polar bear :)

He's so tiny next to the big bear but he looks adorable!
I'm wearing: h&m scarf, logix heather grey tee, citizens for humanity jeans

Wil's wearing: vintage Starwars tee, H&M shorts

Cutiepie

My little cutiepie had a huge weekend!!! Not only did he celebrate his 4 month birthday but he received the sacrament of Baptism!! It was an amazing weekend with family and friends who flew here to Atlanta to celebrate with us. I'll post more pics in a separate post but in the meantime, here's Gabe at 4 months in his little whale bathtub. My sister, Christine, and her husband Eddie are creative with pictures and they decided to style Gabe's hair to look like Alfalafa. Cute :)

Gabriel Viggo Leano

4 months old

End of Summer BBQ

We went to an end of summer BBQ at Wil's boss's house this past weekend.

It was so great meeting his coworkers and putting faces to the names and stories he's shared with me. It was one of Gabe's first times going to a party and

i have to say he did an amazing job! He was so quiet and so chill

- everyone kept commenting on that. I'm so glad.

Two months ago, i would've sworn to you that he'd never stop

crying because he seemed so colicky. But now, he's calmed down so much.

He's such a good little boy. I keep telling Wil how i wish

he would stay at this age forever. I just love how cuddly he is,

yet he's old enough to interact, smile, and laugh with us.

Pretty soon, he's going to start crawling and wanting to experience the world

- he won't want hugs as much :( i'm cherishing all of my moments with him.

Gabe: 16 weeks -carters overalls.
me: jcrew ruffle button up shirt, h&M boyfriend vintage shorts, zara belt, steve madden ballet flats, michael kors menswear gold watch, jcrew crystal bracelet

PS - i got a new haircut!! i'm soo happy. Shout out to D from City Salon by Michelle Coulter here in Atlanta! (Thanks Jen for the recommendation!)

Sweet Tooth

I just found my new favorite spot here in Atlanta. The Atlanta Cupcake factory. Its located near the Virginia Highlands area -

and its absolutely adorable. You literally feel like a little kid

in the store staring at all the amazing colorful and yummy looking cupcakes.

I went there to other day to order some cupcakes for Gabe's baptism.

I went in thinking this was going to be like every other bakery.

But when i saw a flavor called, peanut butter chocolate bacon cupcake,

i knew this place was different. Wil of course tried this one. I got a

sugar-cookie caramel flavored cupcake. All i can say is,

i literally died and went to heaven. Both flavors were amazing.

I know, I know, you're asking, bacon?? on a cupcake?? i thought the same thing.

But i promise you, the mix of the salty and sweet flavors complimented each other. It really was that good. Atlanta Cupcake Factory, 624 Highland Ave NE, Atlanta, GAPeanutbutter, chocolate, bacon cupcake Sugar cookie caramel cupcake

Our first vacation

We were lucky enough to do a mini weekend getaway to the beach with our cousins and their kids to Hiltonhead, SC. Being an eastcoast girl, i've always heard of Hiltonhead but never really looked into it as a vacation spot. Since it was only 5 hours away from Atlanta we decided to make it our first vacation with Gabe and we were NOT disappointed. It is absolutely beautiful there. The beach was amazing. The water was lukewarm and the waves were very calm (perfect for kids to play in). The town of Hiltonhead is so serene with its lush greenery. Spanish moss hung down from the massive trees. Many people roads their bicycles around town. There were cute shopping areas with antique shops, souvenir shops, icecream shops etc. My favorite find was a store called Black Market Minerals, they had an amazing selection of fabulous beads and stones for a jewelry designer as well as ready to wear jewelry. I couldn't help myself from buying a few pieces. We loved the beach town so much that we're seriously contemplating renting a beach house for his 1st birthday and having our friends and family come down with us. We'll see :)

lush greenery around townShopping my heart out at Black Market MineralsFamily pics during a nice dinner there Grilled chicken with pinapple salsa, rice pilaf and

a side of salad with Greek feta vinagarette. yum!!!


Me and the love of my life :)

my outfit:

top - French Connection ribbon tie top

shorts - H&M boyfriend denim shorts

earrings - david yurman pearl earrings

sunglasses - Marc by Marc Jacobs sunglasses

More pics to come of our beach time!!

11 week milestones

Baby Gabe amazes me more and more every week. This week a lot of great things have happened (aside from smiling and laughing):

- Gabe slept for 5 hours straight at the night....I'm not sure how consistent this is yet, but i'll take it!!

- his "tummy times" are getting longer and longer - this is a big accomplishment. Gabe always hated tummy time and now he doesn't cry as if i'm torturing him :)

- when he's eating, he holds my finger like its the bottle, and he directs the bottle into his mouth when he's ready to eat, or he pulls my finger away when he's done eating. its sooooo cute

-on his little play mat, there are some rattles that hang down, and Gabe learned to push them. he realized that they would make a noise when he hit it so he would repeat it more and more.

- his neck is getting stronger so when he's in his swing, he can now look up and stare at the mobile and the little mirror

My favorite memory from this week is taking Gabe to Gymboree class. A few people have suggested this and so wil and i decided to take a trial class. We were a bit nervous about how Gabe would do. We took him to a play and learn class for babies ages 0-6 months. Gabe was the youngest one, but he LOOOOOOVED it. he was so cute. Its basically structured play where you sing with the instructor and do different things to enhance or work with the baby's senses. We sang a lot and Gabe was smiling the whole time. The best part for me was the tummy time. we learned how to make tummy time fun for our babies. We used paint brushes and rubbed it all over the baby's body - this helped their sense of touch. We blew bubbles and this helped their sense of sight. All the babies were just staring in awe at all the bubbles.

I play and sing with Gabe all day long, but its nice to learn new ways of interacting with him. Plus this was a great way for me to meet other new mommy's here in atlanta. So needless to say, we signed up. I'm looking forward to these classes for my son. Its definitely something for me as it is for him. i'll keep you posted on future classes. But in the meantime, here's Gabe with his new buddy Gymbo :)

Coca-Cola Museum

Another one of our stops while our friends were in town was the famous Coca-Cola Museum.

I have to say i really enjoyed this tour. It takes you through the different marketing signs and propaganda through the years. I loved seeing the vintage ads with pin up looking girls holding the old school coke bottles.

Image courtesy of http://www.picturestore.com/

You also walk through a mock factory of how the coke is bottled and shipped.

Wil's favorite part was the last part of the museum where you can taste over 60 different coca cola flavors from around the world. If i remember correctly, his favorite was from Chile.

So, I was hoping they would have the designer series that was done earlier this year. Several designers collaborated with Coca Cola for charity where they designed special edition covers. I especially wanted the Karl Lagerfeld one for Chanel. But to my disappointment, they didnt have this at the museum. Boo :(

But anyway, here are pics of some of the covers by some of the designers.

Manolo Blahnik

Fendi