gigi and geri in vegas again

Crazy cousins love the Spice Girls, so they paid ridiculous money to see them in concert at Mandalay Bay. They also got to see Aspen for the first time. It's always great to see relatives.

bonnie wharton's baby shower

Today, I attended Bonnie (& Oliver) Wharton's baby shower in Henderson. I love baby showers (and so does Plain Zane)! It was at their neighbor's home (amazing, by the way) and it was a girly, fun time. Bonnie is 9 months pregnant and was getting teased for not having the baby room done, the car seat and clothes for the baby. Regardless to say, she did very well and got everything they needed to welcome the new baby home. I had delicious Sangria (and so did Aspen via my milk) and Freed's Tres Leches cake - yum! It was so nice for me to be able to go since I rarely got to do Saturday events when Jonathan was working his impossible hours. The baby is due Dec 27, possibly a Christmas baby.

fallon's winter festival program at merryhill

It was Merryhill's Winter Festival Program where the kids perform their songs for all their families. Classroom 8 performed "The Lion Sleeps Tonight." They did awesome! It's so cute to see them perform and no one cried or got scared! Even Fallon was up front and center - singing and doing the motions. You've got to watch it! We were all proud parents!

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a visit from the peckhams

My old friend Niki was back in town from Altanta. She now has 2 kids since she gave birth to Max, a week before Aspen. Her first one is a girl named Emmi. They are cute, cute kids! It was great to see them and catch up!

gotta love ikea

I heard that the Swedish furniture giant, IKEA, is putting roots down in Las Vegas! It's about time!!! Ikea has a been a staple in my decorating needs since the early 90s. Despite it being cheaply made furniture, I love their marketplace and of course, being able to get that modern look for so much less. After selling all our Pottery Barn and Crate Barrel furniture at our old house, I won't lament over the Ikea furniture when it comes time to change styles again. I put this Torsby Dining table in my office.

fallon and friends

We went to the Bedford's house for a little Holiday gathering and a chance for the classmates to get together. It was so nice to see how well Kylee, Michaela and Fallon play outside of school. And of course, it was all about fairies and princesses. Their imagination is amazing. After playing with every single toy in sight, it was time for beauty shop - where Fallon was the guinea pig!

market @ bleu gourmet

We are doing a Holiday TRUNK SHOW event at Bleu Gourmet on Saturday, Decmeber 15, 2007 between 10 am - 4 pm. It will be so fun to be in a retail location where we can snack and get cozy with customers. I will have brand new blankets not seen in the online catalog and gift cards for the Holidays.

lookin' for a new lamp

I am in love with this lamp - original design by Achille Castiglioni and designer price is about $2500! Yikes. It is one of the classics of modern lighting design-and part of MoMA's permanent collection-the Arco Floor Lamp (1962). As much as I love art and furniture, I'm still on the fence if I would invest in such a lamp. I guess I can justify it being functional art and the fact it would fit perfectly in our great room.

happy birthday mom!

It's my mom's birthday today. She is in LA right now helping my sister pack up to move. Mom is always lending us a hand - even on her birthday. She is probably the most selfless person I know. She helped us out when Fallon was born and with Aspen. I can't imagine how I could have gotten through my adjustment with the kids without her! Much less any other time I've needed her! I love you Mom and have a great birthday! This is a picture I found of Fallon and Mom at our old house in 2005.

holiday handiworks show 2007 in idaho

Here's the new ad I did for the 3 shows in Idaho this week. The Holiday Handiworks Show begins tonight at three different Sasser homes - Ashley Sasser Gunson's families.

aspen's 1st thanksgiving

We went to Tony's house for Thanksgiving. Jon made a bunch of side dishes: creamed spinach, pureed cauliflower, butternut squash risotto, corn, and I made tiramisu and spiced pecans. Tony made a deep-fried turkey (yum!) and a roasted turkey. His sister-in-law, Janet, made an apple pie, pumpkin pie, sweet potato casserole and cranberry sauce. It was a true feast and oddly, I did not stuff myself, but I did go for seconds with Tony. Nursing calories! Fallon made headdresses for herself and Tony. There were no kids, but she had a blast with Uncle Walter (Christina's dad) while Aspen slept away in her car seat the until after dinner! We love going to Tony's - it's always fun, comfortable and feels like family when we're so far away from home. It was a very nice, laid back Thanksgiving and we do have a lot to be thankful for. We are blessed with 2 very happy and healthy girls. They are amazing and make me a better person everyday. Click photo to see larger.

fallon's thanksgiving feast at school

We joined Fallon and her friends at school for their Thanksgiving Feast. They had turkey with all the fixings and we got to eat, too! Their teachers made them paper costumes to look like Pilgrims and Indians. Fallon loved her outfit.

ohio and LA friends in town

Fallon and "Tito Boy"
Sung Hi and Jeremy with Aspen
Armand and Cliff with Aspen
Armand "Tito Boy" with Aspen
Armand and Cliff waking Fallon up
Sung Hi (Baker) and Jeremy came into town for the weekend. Armand and Cliff were also in town. It was their first time to see Aspen. We hung out at the house for a while and Fallon was in Uncle Heaven! "Which Uncle is going to read to me? Which is going to toss me in the air? Which is going to give me money (or not)?" You figure out which was which! It's always great to see them - especially the Newlyweds, Sung Hi and Jeremy. It was also big day for Aspen to meet our friends.

aspen: 2 month update

2 Months! Aspen is getting bigger (by Ayala standards) and developing so fast. She's very smiley and responding to our goo-goo-ga-gas. She loves her car seat, riding in the car, her swing, a clean diaper, but loves no diaper even more. She sleeps well among the bustle in the house. She's an overall good girl, similar to Fallon in so many ways. I have adjusted pretty well with her schedule and Fallon's. Jonathan and I are still zombie-like at times, but we're hoping the 3 month mark will change that. Nursing is going ok, but I'm definitely not doing 18 months like with Fallon, so I'm shooting for 6 months to nurse - only 4 more to go! Everyone says she is looking like Jonathan.

pool and landscape design

Since we have moved into a new house that is very modern, we have been agonizing over the landscape design. I was very happy with the design I did at our old house, but I feel truly challenged by having to add a pool that will not need a child fence (such an eyesore) and we have an additional courtyard to design. The solution is to raise the pool above ground. Not only should the landscape be kid-friendly, but dog friendly and it MUST look fabulous! I want to feel like we are at a hotel because we will never be able to afford another vacation after this!! These are pool pics that we absolutely love - kids or no kids!

double stroller

Upon the arrival of Aspen, we were faced with the notion of having to give into the limo stroller. However, on our hunt for one, we found the double sport stroller by Phil and Teds. Even though it's a bit cumbersome for me to fold up right now (I'll get the hang of it soon), Fallon says it's very smooth. A sweet ride for the kids and glides like a Cadillac, what's not to love? Thanks Mom and Dad, who bought it off our registry.

sweet reward

Today, Fallon finished her whole lunch at school so I took her to get ice cream. I got some, too.

julius maximo

This is Julius Maximo in a pirate costume at his Halloween parade at school in Los Angeles. He is now 2 years old and looks just like his daddy, Zosimo when he was a little boy! By the way, Zosimo will be appearing on America's Smartest Model tonight as a guest judge - heehee. The Maximos are like relatives to us. Our fathers went to Medical school together in the Philippines.

let's go bucks!

Our little Buckeye in the making. Ohio State makes us proud again today!

tiny treasure boutique 2007

Darleen Meier is heading 3 Tiny Treasure Boutique shows on the East Coast: Boston, 1 in Old Greenwich, CT and 1 in Stamford. If you know anyone in the area, please pass it on...