Merry Xmas 2015!

Happy holidays to you and your loved ones!

Feeling so very thankful for all that I have and all that I've achieved since one year ago. My girls are my everything. This is the dream. xo



Outtakes :>

Happy Hollerdays! (2015 Edition, Estéanna)

Below is big sister Michelena from four years ago! Uncanny, huh? :> xo

Holiday Gathering With The Clan!

We had a successful dinner party this past weekend with The Clan, who finally got to meet baby Estéanna, as a farewell to brother's visit.

So very fun to see the cousins hold E and little Micah discover his love of raspberries :>

We are the next generation, one of greater acceptance and more open minds. Thank goodness for that. Cheers! xo

Christmas 2015 Decorations Have Begun!

Wreath, lights - Walmart

Thankful sign - Target

What I'm Thankful For - 2015

I'm thankful for...

• My little but growing family. We may be untraditional but there's a whole lot of love. Just last year we were only three (Mom included), this year we are four! The journey we took to get here wasn't easy, making this moment all the sweeter.


• My growing library of photos I still have yet to share. I can't seem to keep up with the good-time moments, they're happening too fast and too often, if that's possible :>


• My friends, my non-blood relatives, both near and far. For their love and support, and respect for my most meaningful life decisions. They are what truly define family.


• My health and my recovery. The most critical elements of the life I've always dreamed have come true and, at the time, it was too far in the distant future and too unknown for me to fathom it but this life I've worked so hard and have come to build is as amazing as I'd expect it to be, if not better. When you're dying, anything's better. When you're healthy and living a dream, the feeling is surreal and you're thankful daily. Minutely, even :>


• Our home and the choices we have. It's been a tough year for many. Many are without homes, separated from their loved ones, and many other terrible things. I don't take for granted this so-called bubble I live in, the choices I have and lifestyle I live. It's not extravagant but it's no where near the suffering others endure.


• Coffee and doughnuts. Dark roast and cronuts, especially :> Bitter and sweet, they're both particular postpartum favs :>

What are you thankful for this year? Share in the Comments below, we'd love to hear! :> xo

Xmas Train And Snowflakes Window Decals! [MOMLIFE]

It's beginning to look a lot like xmas...

I know, I know, Thanksgiving is still a week out but this year, for some reason I'm getting antsy to decorate for the holidays. And since I missed fall and that theme of decorations these past few months, I'm trying to go all out for xmas to make up for it.

I picked up a wreath first thing this week along with these window decals. I've seen them used in retail stores and think they can add a lot of playfulness and cheer, and are really easy because as much as I would like to spend time decorating and getting all into the spirit, I'm still very limited on the time I can spend to do such things.

I got both the wreath and decals at Walmart. The wreath was a comparatively good deal and the decals, a steal at 98 cents per sheet-- better than the dollar store :>

What's even more perfect about them this year is Nui Nui's love of peeling off stickers and just putting them on paper. I don't know what it is about doing that, that she loves, but she does it all the time. Looks almost therapeutic for her and, in my mind, it's helping her fine motor skills. This decal activity is the same thing so she really enjoyed doing this. Educationally speaking (because everything ideally has an element of learning :>) it also helped build her skill at following instructions-- on the sheet, there was a layout of how the pieces fit together and she actually followed/imitated it.

Let's be real. Where I live, we don't get snow-- rain is let alone hard to come by. But that won't stop us from having it. I made sure to get a sheet full of snowflakes :> Brrr, baby it's cold outside! (but glad it's not really) :> xo

What decorations do you love for the summer? Share in the Comments below, we'd love to hear!