winter wonderland

this summer i had the bright idea, as it was scorching temperatures in our living room, that i wanted to experience the snow and all the chilly weather it had to offer. i wanted the kids to see what white hillsides and and branches looked like. the chance to build snowmen, ride sleds and have snowball fights were all in my master plan. the perfect snow vacation included more family than our four...with homemade meals, lots of togetherness and a fireplace to warm our frosty feet when we were done for the day. 

mammoth was the town of choice. diegas loves the eastern sierra's. we've only done two trips their together, as he spends most of his travel in the area, hunting. it was our chance to be there as a family and enjoy the spectacular scenery. it really is majestic for hundreds of miles. out the window, on the drive alone is a sight to see.

our zavala counterparts, were in, when we mentioned the idea and the planning ensued. after reading a ton of trip advisor reviews on hotels and rentals in the area we settled on a condo through homeaway.com. there was plenty of room, it was equipped with everything we needed to accomplish our ideal winter vacation and we had a gorgeous view of mammoth mountain to boot. 

some of the highlights of the trip: experiencing a cold front + a storm + waking up to fresh snow, gingerbread house construction, sledding, snowman building, snowball fights, a chilly mama's only walk, birdhouse decorating, snowflake crafts, watching movies, snuggling in front of the fire, cookie baking, deer migrating and hot cocoa sipping!

what i wasn't prepared for, were two little southern california girls, who would prefer flip flops and tank tops year round. dressing in layers and spending 1/2 hour putting on their snow clothes was torture for us as much as it was for them. tears, tears and more tears to get ready for the snow. who would have thought? a couple of times, we made it into the fluffy white snow and a couple of times we made it out the door for only 30 seconds only to return to the fire where the layers could be removed.

all in all, it was an amazing trip and we're hoping it can become an annual tradition!

our family traveling on the beautiful 395

isei, gamaiel, evia and mila - the kids first romp in the snow

on a mission to find a perfect sledding stop

the boys sledding

d with his binoculars, a familiar sight

snow angel break

isei and evia sledding

evia sledding on the golf course with papa, below mammoth mountain

the brothers chillin'

where we spent all our indoor time, fireside

evia and mila, a cozy nap together

rose and snowflake-ballerina-making = heaven

our snowman was a snow"mound"

how cute are these two? auntie becca and cousin isei

mama and evia, brrr

gingerbread house construction, evia and papa

gingerbread house building, becca and isei

the wee-est zavala and taking the cutest category in her plaid bunting

our mama-only walk only 10 degrees

eating a bowl of fresh fallen snow

evia and papa getting ready for an adventure

a cozy night by the fire -7 that night

 

elk heard

 

we scouted with diegas before returning home to witness the migration of the deer. we saw two golden eagles, the heard of elk and roughly 50 deer. it was beautiful, winter nature at it's best

 

thanksgiving is such a good reminder

there were 27 of us this year at the thanksgiving table. that's a lot of people for our little cottage living room...but somehow we squeezed everyone in. isn't that the best? the fire going, elbow to elbow, tons of holiday energy, loud and just full of family. we signed on for hosting this year. which really means providing the location. although we do the turkeys, everyone attending brings something delicious. it's nice when each person can focus on a dish (or three). they put so much love into it and we wind up sitting down to a feast of culinary treats.

the preparation is the same for all of us that host any get together. lots of list-making, cleaning, shopping and cooking and all while managing the whereabouts of, in my case, two little energy balls. add to the list "tiring." but nothing beats sitting down to the table, hearing what everyone is thankful for, looking down the long row of guests to see young and old faces, hear laughter and watch loved-ones dig in. this holiday is such a good reminder to be grateful on so many levels. below are some photos of the fun-filled day.

our neighborhood turkey, possibly someone's thanksgiving feast

thanksgiving morning. pure excitement.

the tablescape

sweet little silver ballet flats empty, while the wee ones nap before the festivities

pre-dinner yummies for the kids table

array of hors d'oeuvres and desserts

pre-dinner tasties: honeycomb with asiago, quince paste with manchengo, olives, radishes with olive oil and sea salt

our beauts!: one brined and roasted and one canjun-seasoned and deep fried

the men around the deep frier

the energy of the kitchen, turkeys being carved and dinner about to commence

my babies

our "big" kids table

my perfect view

 

the house was quiet at 10 o'clock and i turned out the lights

the next day the furniture was all in a disarray, but we had the fire going and just enjoyed the stillness

and a gift that kept on giving. auntie becca made a manzanita tree with bird ornaments. each person wrote on the birds what they were thankful for. so fun to continue to see all the grateful words

fiesta to halloween + everything inbetween

the end of summer is so dreamy. the days becoming shorter, the trees a little bearer and the nights a little cooler. i don't have "school age" children yet so there isn't a cut-off day of summer turned fall....the warm lazy days just slowly begin to slip away. i guess in reality the days during summer are anything but lazy. lots of play dates, activities and days of celebrating holidays and birthdays. 

i left off our last update with the end of july and anyone who knows sb, knows that the very next weekend is our city's biggest annual party: fiesta. we had so much fun this year. did as many activities we could manage to squeeze in, saw lots of family and dreamed about all the additional things we could do next year.

our dear friend rina, moves across country. we miss you lees!

with every block, we couldn't believe it could go any higher!

 

hot summer days, spent on the porch

can you believe this is how long evia's hair is when wet (between her shoulder blades)?

right after the bath, it looks like this - amazing how tight the curl is

sillies!

special time with auntie

viva la! - fiesta norteno

carousel with aminah

sometimes it can be TOO much fiesta (we've all been there).

 

first cascarones selection

 

walking to the pancake breakfast

fun to see old friends everywhere you go. hi linnea!

passing auntie liz, not without a hug!

zavala cuties

santa barbara snow, confetti

 

friends everywhere you go: theo, tonya, gary and jeff - our lady of guadelupe

sunday pozole

  the next weekend was diegas' birthday. we spent the day at the zoo and had dinner on the beach with diegas' brother and sister-in-law. the kids had a ball playing in the sand and going down to the water. it was a magical evening.

d's birthday, spent some hours at the zoo

 

dinner on the sand

sand angels

a girl's night at the drive-in

a delicious lunch date (i have an obsession with food photos)

 

childhood memories at this family cabin of the willumson's - revisited 20ish years later

 

nighttime reading with nana

in search of "mila-bugs"

 

meeting sweet river

 

taking her friend's for a "drive"

mamas and muffins

learning the old school way, of warming up after the pool on the hot cement

kiley and i introducing our children to eachother

new friends

mama's bday

a traditional olive oil cake + fig compote for my italian mama

evia awaiting the festivities

girls night in honor of elizabeth

we drove 45 minutes to build a bear to find they were under construction

gelato, a pretty good substitute

it's dress-up all the time in our house

more river time, sweet moments with friends

chocolate zucchini cupcakes - worth every bite!

seeing my great uncle after about 20 years. special dinner remembering grandpa frank

the handsome gents

 

the ladies

evia taking notes on hullahooping from uncle L

summer sprinkler fun, at gma lu's and gpa bob's

keeping cool in the pool with aminah

cousin dinner date

celebrating baby moreno

evia learning about bees from grandpa the beekeeper "tell me the bee's story grandpa"

walking through the farmer's market COMPLETELY ALONE

seeing this gem on my walk home

up and over the bridge, beautiful night

evia's dollar store selection face crayons

grandpa's birthday breakfast...evia's happy

road trip begins, bye grandma lu

walter and kevin our hosts ;)

evia taking in the view

our real hostess with the most-ess, clarissa

 in september we were lucky enough to celebrate my cousin and finance's baby on the way. it was a beautiful celebration, given with such love and on the way we snuck in a much needed visit with the ellis' to see their house in the woods. a truly spectacular piece of property....and as always beyond-gracious hosts!

these cuties had so much fun together

evia captured our relaxing visit

 

spectacular view

no picture of the gorgeous mama-to-be, but here are her beautiful nieces and mother in law

the perfect favor - krispy kreme's!

ibarra hot chocolate with gam

mila sleeping as soundly as i do at my grandparent's

playdate at sb zoo with the henson' girls

 

emi's fun birthday (pre pj!!)

capturing the a sneaky out-of-bed-during-nap moment. it could be worse.

getting some much needed cover time while in sb. miss that family.

 

a date for mama and papa. deelish

 

antique silver - love

 

d's company party, went above and beyond with activities. we had the best time - again.

evia learning how to hold a hose from the fire fighter, salty

 

sweet moment captured on our daily walk (new route = new place to sit)

these girls definitely got my chocolate gene

 

was invited by auntie jackie to a private home, pottery barn trunk show. have you heard of these?

 

william sonoma was there with the delicious food!

 

the boys went fishing. can you say DELICIOUS fish fry that night!

evia reacquainted with eggnog (the pony she rode during her bday party), at a local carnival

a photo for her "last day" of swim...we're back in lessons. she loves it!

 

hangin' with the tylers

mama finally made it back into a dance class and got to experience BAC's studio. love it there!

 

tyler, moreno, zavala excursion (pre-pj!)

 

sister date, so fun!

 

carp avocado festival. mila enjoying elote

 

working out in papa's gym

 

some garage sale scores

postcards from grandpa and nana's visit to vermont

pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

hoping for rain...only sprinkles

hot chocolate with auntie

 

we can stay busy for hours, just tearing your magazines

pepe le pew

 

date day, to celebrate 8 years. ate lunch on the wharf, grabbed ice cream and enjoyed the scenery

 

first crockpot meal - ribs!

 

anniversary dinner, romantic table for four (tortilla soup)

reminiscing (save the dates 2005)

one of my favorite photos from one of my favorite days!

making caramel apples

santa barbara museum of art with papa

mila turns 18 months. day spent at sbma's dia de los muertos festival

fall morning

pulling my costume together

our sweet-bees at boo at the zoo

halloween prep and experience has been totally different this year. we spend our morning walks scouring the neighborhood for the best decorations. evia is old enough to understand it's make believe but not old enough to understand that the dripping bloody knife and hanging head is "what it is." she asked anna yesterday "why is that scary gobblin (hanging from the tree) wearing uggs like ME?" oh sweet girl - we don't know. it's a strange holiday...but we're finding all the FUN parts about it. including going to boo at the zoo this year. the girls had an amazing time dressing up in their costumes, "trick-o-treating" on the grounds and winning prizes from the various games. we all had a ball!