palm springs

we were on a family vacation for 3 days in sunny palm springs.

we went swimming at night..
we went on water slides and lazy rivers all day long....
we slept in..
we stayed up late..

we ate yummy food and enjoyed having nowhere to be..
nowhere.
but in the water.

favorites

so as moms, we are crazy busy and do not have a lot of time to pamper..

i think i have got it down pretty good on how to get out of the house quickly without looking like i should still be in bed.

this is my everyday routine.

kinda boring for some but for me it is quick. easy and does the trick

{Clarasonic}

i think good skin is the key to looking fresh.

my clarisonic is first the thing i do {after brushing my teeth of course} every morning.

it is magic. total magic.

love..

it is my 1 minute facial..

your face literally shines after you use it..

i love it and would grab it in a fire..

{Dry Shampoo}

i have always envied the ladies who wash their hair every other day..

"ohh my hair is best dirty"

really? because i look like a dirt ball who is living under a bridge if i do not wash it everyday..

but then i tried dry shampoo..

i spray it on, let it sit and brush it out.

voila' second day hair is good and MAYBE a bit better if i am running a curling iron through it for some soft waves.

{let's not get crazy here.. that is VERY rare}

 {Nars}

third on my list is NARS orgasm blush and laguna bronzer duo..

can you say magnificent?  it gives me a glow and a bit of flush to my skin..

sheer...natural.. sun kissed..

NARS. NARS. NARS.

{Lip Gloss}

any kind really. just a bit of sparkle to you lips makes you feel so pretty...

sometimes i am in the mood for peachy.. sometimes pink.

i love me a new lip gloss!

this one is MAC ample pink.

it is always in my bag. a great gloss with any and everything.

{Nail Polish}

when my nails are painted i just feel put together..

it is hard to explain..

i stare at my nails a lot when they are painted..

they just make me happy..

a $10 manicure is a great investment!

this is essie nail polish which i love and it lasts for a long time and they have amazing colors.

{Earrings}

this is so easy! throw on a pair of fabulous earrings.. you would be surprised at how great you will feel! 

i have a ton {too many}.. but throw on a pair and i am not kidding, you are totally put together..

jeans. tee shirt. sandals..

even the most basic outfit with a good pair of earrings makes you mommy chic- alicious

read all about it..

the sheraton right here in carlsbad has an amazing spa that can pamper like nobody's business.. a day of relaxation goes so very far in my world of crazy.. the fabulous spa invited a group of us sdmomfia

ladies and our little princesses to a day of r&r..

it was any mamas wish come true.

i had the amazing opportunity to write a review for the la costa life blog and you can follow me over there to..

"read all about it!!"

stop

last night i had a photo shoot at the beach and as the sun was setting i had one of those moments of ahhh.. i love it here in san diego..

just one of those moments of exhaling and taking it all in..

my life is pretty crazy and non stop..

but last night.

i actually stopped.

i listened to the crashing of the waves, watched the seagulls gliding above, gazed at the paddleboard surfers on the horizon, smiled at the giant orange sun dipping into the vast ocean..

it is just heavenly..

i. love. the. ocean.

all it takes is a moment to stop and breathe.

i did and it was great.

:)

thank you ocean.



{image via tumblr}

chloe and company

this is chloe and her pals.

she LOVES these girls..

they play and play and play.

jordan on the left..

lily on the right.

chloe is spunky girl with a fabulous imagination..
i love the things she comes up with and how passionate she is..
if she is mad or happy..
it is 150%.

she loves to color, loves to dress up, play barbies, do anyones hair, nails or make-up, LOVES to swim, dance and sing..

you know any kind of girly stuff..
she doesn't like anything "boyish"

i am so happy she has these best girlfriends..
they are the same as her in every single way..

this pic is from our camping trip to julian..

{iphone photo}

7

my little makena. 

she turned 7 on friday.

you know how people ask you if you feel any older when you have a birthday?

well, i asked makena and she said yes.

and i have to say..

i couldn't agree more.

she is for sure older.

she is acting bigger.

smarter.

and braver.

sassier. {ahh-hem}

and maybe even prettier if that is possible.

this is her last day of being 6 on her bike.

we surprised makena on her birthday morning with the gift of piercing her ears..
followed by a pizza pool party with the neighbors..

and who was the luckiest girl really on this day?

little chloe.

makena's response was only if chloe can too and she had to go first..

same at the dentist and pretty much anywhere makena feels a bit scared.

chloe of course leaped to the sky with a YES!! she climbed in that chair at the store so fast, crossed her legs and she didn't wince a bit..

makena was up next and she DID wince..

but NOT a tear..

happy birthday my sweet 7 year old..

you make me so proud to say you are mine and i explode with love for you..

flustered

it has been a whirl wind of just STUFF.

i am so blessed and excited that sequins and candy is keeping me busy.

BUT.

i am having a hard time balancing my everyday.

i have had the amazing opportunity to shoot a couple weddings with a fellow local photog and it has given me great, great experience for my 2 weddings quickly approaching..
i am sooo happy about these..SO happy...

BUT.

if you could see my house?

my laundry?

my floors?

the toys, barbies and food i find everywhere.

oh. my. goodness.

my house is a disaster.

i am so thankful for my wonderful supportive husband.

he is the calm in my craze.

thank goodeness he doesn't expect dinner on the table and slippers at the door when he comes home..

it's more like why is the tv on and nobody is anywhere to be found..

oh. they are up the street and is anybody going to eat this string cheese and apple i just found on the couch?

ahhhh-camping we will go!

so we went camping..girls trip..

it was me and 3 other moms..

BUT.

it was 12 kids.

yes. 12 kids..

there was a lot of action..

the girls rode bikes, skipped rocks, saw horses, camels, cows and sheep on the ride up..
they all had dirty dirty.. i mean
..fiiillltttthhhyy feet..
the kids were in heaven..
 i have to say, one of my very favorites things was sleeping in our tent in between them..
aren't kids so darn adorable when they sleep?
so peaceful and sweet..
{i mean, not that they aren't all the time.. ahh-hem}
so..
chloe curled up next to me and we chit chatted before she fell fast asleep.. meanwhile makena was in the next tent over.. reading a book with a friend by flashlight before she eventually made her way over to us..
 camping is quite the process..  
it's not my favorite thing to do..
which i realized on this trip..
 {i felt like quite the princess when i caught myself washing my feet before our car ride home}  
but it is for the girls..
and we will do it again and again because 
the smiles and memories are worth it all..

and here are some iphone photos..

Guest Post!

I had the honor of writing a guest post for a fabulous website San Diego Deals and Steals about hiking the gorgeous Torrey Pines State Reserve.. I included these photos which were from last year-ish and I can not believe how little the girls look.. 

sniff sniff.. sniff

it is sooo cliche to say but..

they DO grow up sooo fast!!

go grab your little ones and savor these moments..

sigh..

the {savvy} tooth fairy

so makena lost her first BIG tooth.

you know the mamma jamma's up top..

i am not good with the wiggly tooth drama..

i get woozy when she wiggles it..

she lost it at a birthday party in the bouncer..

they whole party was searching high and low for this little gem worth some money..

so what is the going rate for a tooth these days?

my daughter's friend got a gift basket..

another friend got $20..

our tooth fairy brought her $10..

she is a savvy tooth fairy i guess?

i mean HOW can the little tooth fairy CARRY a basket?

it's a big mystery to me...

day 30 {my striped closet}

TAHHH-DAH!!!

30 days of photos!!

It was SO hard! 

Thanks to the lovely Maryam for giving me that last push with a request to see a photo of my closet..

stripes and all..

i have an obsession with stripes.. and sequins.. and candy..

hence..

sequins and candy photography..

I feel so free..

I can start blabbing about all things simple around here again..

there has been some fun stuff goin' on!!!

yippee!

day 28 {cookbooks} and day 29 {juggling}

day 29 {juggling}

makena's friend asks me "fawn, do you juggle?"

me- "i can juggle like 2 lemons at a time.. wanna see?"

her friend in the sweetest.. most sincere voice- "that is pretty good for your age fawn!!!"

me- plain speechless.

day 28 {books}

i LOVE cookbooks..
the more photos the better..
go figure :)

newest to my bunch is gwyneth paltrow's cookbook..

it is faaaaabulous.

day 27 {her fav tee}

day 26 {heavenly}