nor cal thanksgiving

family gather at gami and papa's, thanksgiving 2012

mama becca

beautiful mama rebecca (all photos courtesy of laurie welsh)

 When you look "mother" up in the dictionary you get everything from the "egg uniting..." to the "superior of a church community" and "giving birth to a child." But not so much about nurturing, caring for and raising a person. My sister in law, who is due in about a month with her second (I can't wait), is the latter with all those she befriends. Not only as a mother and wife, but selfless and extremely giving to her community, friends and extended family. She always over extends herself because she is willing and eager to do things to help those around her. I'm constantly in awe of her selflessness.

Her sister Jenny, her dear friend Laurie and myself cohosted an intimate gathering to shower her, last weekend at my parents home (thanks mom and dad!). It was such a lovely afternoon, with sweet people, relaxed energy and coziness all around. Here are some highlights from our rainy celebration. Congrats Mrs. Z - love you and that balu-to-be!

cousin elena and tiny milena

turquoise and yellow

amazing(!) hand picked apples and homemade apple balu-butter favors - by laurie

"balu"-ga shower invite

hostess (my mama) suzanne, where you usually find her - the kitchen

becca's sister and sister-in-law

ibarra hot chocolate bar: cinnamon, swizzle sticks, marshmallows, baileys and kaluah

feasting on fall. pumpkin pie, buttermilk pie, dried fruit, spiced nuts, fig cheese torte, apricot torte and baked brie

love for our becca

our tiniest attendee and winner of the belly measurement shower game

thankful for family

grandpa, nana and babes

i have seen a lot of people showing daily thanks this month, which is so awesome. last weekend we had the pleasure of attending one of my dearest friend's wedding. months ago it was relayed it would take place in carmel valley. i thought it might be a good time to plan for an overnight with the hubby,  a little get-away (even though a mini-someone has slept nose to nose with me for her 6 month life). as the weeks approached i knew this overnight was not in the cards. funny enough i was no longer interested in being away from my babies - even for 24 hours.

my sweet parents were on board to go to carmel with us and stay with the girls while we went to the wedding. i would pop back to the lodge to nurse when necessary. how wonderful is it to have parents and family that are able to do things like this for you and with you? we all had such a lovely time together, uninterrupted, quality togetherness that doesn't happen at home when there is always something to do, or somewhere to go. d and i decided to make a z-family-vaca out of it too, by taking the girls to the monterey bay aquarium the day before the wedding. e didn't stop talking about it for a week leading up to our departure, her favorite sea animal on the list to see: the jelly fish.

we arrived mid-day friday, had lunch and got-in to enjoy all the aquarium had to offer. every exhibit was so much more amazing than it had been in the past, when you're looking through your child's eyes at the wonder of the big sea. we saw the jelly fish, penguins, open sea, kelp forest, touch tanks, sting rays and a handful of other really cool exhibits. we got to the lodge, with two sleeping girls in the back seat, tuckered out from the stimulating day. enjoyed a delicious feast at the hotel's restaurant and saloon, before calling it a night. my parents arrived later in the evening and on saturday after exploring the village's shops and walks, spent the latter half of the day with the girls while we enjoyed the ceremony and reception. it was so nice to know the girls were having fun, getting lots of love and we were just 5 minutes away! it was so nice for them and so great for us! the ceremony was so sweet, beautiful and another testament to the importance of family. congrats carly and robert!

thank you mama and pops. the girls love you so much and so do we. xo

sea lion spotting

family vaca

so many great shark shots - hard to chose one

interactive play

nicholas the bunny

carly + robert

chase me grandpa

is it raining mama?

special walks with nana

cold morning, hot breakfast

our cozy and historic accommodations

shell beach stretch

groceries in los olivos for dinner

emily rose + salty

emily and salty in a traditional front-stoop photo on their wedding morning

my sister tied the knot! what a joyous day. in an effort to keep some things intimate, especially those events that are other's to share...her day, although juicy with design and details will go un-posted.

at this point i'm thinking dessert tables will need to have their own label on this blog. they seem to be an ongoing interest. it was just 6 months ago that i was planning for evia's 2nd birthday dessert table and with this month's festive event, emily and salty's wedding, it seemed only fitting they have a beautiful table as well. my sister's middle name is rose. as a child my dad called her rosebud. her "now" husband's name is salty. often asked if it's his real name (it is), it's completely unique and a perfect compliment to a "rose" theme dessert table (a perfect compliment to my sweet sister as well). emily and i went to work, planning all the elements that would make-up this delicious and beautiful table. the party was an intimate celebration at my parent's home, where the couple's two worlds could celebrate together. their co-workers could toast them and meet one another and a few family members and friends sprinkled in to join in the festivities. the dining room table was where my mom requested the dessert table be set-up and it wound up being an amazing backdrop for the beautiful treats. i once read on amy atlas' blog that seeing your space is so essential to planning the table. often what is already there is a perfect base for your creativity. in this case, above the dining room table is a large wrought iron and crystal chandelier (could be seen as salty and em, yes?). behind the dining room table a large round mirror, a wonderful blank canvas for lipstick art. the result a table that screamed french boudoir.

at the wedding only weeks ago, we arranged jessica foster confections to create a truffle that was rose infused dark chocolate with sea salt atop. she makes a delectable rose truffle and the salt just made for a tasty addition. we decided to take this same rose and salt theme and expand it with various sweets. funny enough we didn't do anything rose flavored, but went for rose hues, rose decor and rose packaging. our first purchase, while i was at our local market, de la rosa candies. anyone who has grown up with these knows, when you see the rosebud on the plastic wrapper, you're in for a treat. made up of peanuts and sugar, it's very similar to marzipan...but with peanuts - so good. the next purchase was from lazy acres bakery, where the extremely helpful manager adriana came up with putting fresh roses on the cupcake order instead of frosting. i spoke with the flower merchant, also at lazy acres and he made sure to order the red and pink spray roses that friday and supply the bakery with the perfect amount. they turned out so lovely and were beyond tasty. it was such a pleasure to get sweet cakes made of wholesome goodness and be so gorge! the last element to represent the "emily" aspect of the table were chocolates from chocolats du cali bressan. a local chocoletier. although the selection wasn't roses, they were red lips and seemed fitting to include in our pink, red and white table. these amazing bonbons were called "french bisous" and made up of dark, milk and white chocolate with tangerine liquour.

on to salty delicacies. what better from our beach town, then salt water taffy from the wharf? peppermint flavored and so good. another favorite the turbinado and sea salt morsels from trader joes, dark chocolate covered almonds. and would a dessert table be complete without macarons? i think not. caramel-sea-salt and raspberry for some added pink flare. the best place in town for macarons, renaud's patisserie.

to finish the design a himalayan rose sea salt poured directly on the table in the shape of a heart. i think my favorite visual of the space. my mom had mercury glass and gorgeous roses to make it all sparkle that night. the evening was a delight and the table just added to the already special ambiance. we had so much fun with this one i can't wait for the next dessert table in our future!  

emily and i (+ one mini-helper) at work finishing the sea-salt heart

my sisters and i, on the wedding day at san ysidro ranch

yes to the dress

the month of october is a special one in our family. my parents anniversary, our anniversary and soon to join, my dear sister emily and her fiance salty. yesterday was the perfect way to start the month - wedding dress shopping for the bride. in an effort to make her nuptials and events proceeding, no frills just simple, sweet and lovely my sister requested that a day of shopping was her ideal for pre-wedding festivities. my mom, em, m, e and myself left sb at 8am, dropped e off in ventura with her auntie and favorite cousin and headed to la. we started at neiman marcus where we met our la resident sissy anna. the items selected off the racks were nothing short of spectacular. i have to say, as i sat in the dressing room, now a mama, nursing the littlest z and gazing at various shades of white dresses that hung on the rack, the girl in me couldn't help but be envious. this was such a special experience and i was so happy to witness it. needless to say, she found "the one." that was one productive hour. our day ahead was pleasantly altered as we realized lunching and accessorizing were the details now on the agenda. and as the sales woman so perfectly stated when she saw my sister in the perfect number "[it was] divine!"

next anna took us to a newer eatery, son of a gun, on 3rd. this inconspicuous looking joint was bustling with patrons by 1 o'clock. the menu - fabulous, the staff - so friendly and the decor tastefully nautical. dark wood tables, white linen napkins, jelly jar glassware and antique ship paraphanealia on the walls. again divine! highlights from the menu were the fried chicken sandwich with spice bbq sauce pickle slaw, heirloom tomato salad, roasted chiles with garlic aioli and bonito flakes along with what my mom said were the best fries she had ever had. the ladies sipped rose and espresso and i enjoyed a delicious arnold palmer (simple syrup for sure!). o.m.g it was all so fab.

on our drive home we followed a pink and purple sky as the 90 degree day came to a close and to make sure we had a slice of reality mila cried almost the entire journey. she was one shopped out muffin and had been the mellow apple of my eye all day long. evia had the best time with auntie, tio and cousin - we're so blessed to have our family. diegas fed us all upon our return with homemade cioppino and crusty bread. with the wedding approaching and the dress in possession, i think my sister slept well...truthfully after such a lovely day, i think we all did. so excited for you emi!

nieman's: a good sign - the mannequins are dancing

deelish menu

fried chicken sandwich i'll now dream about, peppers, rose and arnold palmer

beautiful bride to be and our sweet mama

evia helping to pick up her big boy cousin from kindergarten