Pumpkins, pumpkins, and we're off to get pumpkins!

I always look forward to October because the kids can go pick out pumpkins at the pumpkin patch. We typically head out to Bates Nut Farm out in Valley Center, CA. Each year we tend to forget and end up at the patch close to Halloween. By then pumpkins are rotting, flies are taking over, and just not as fun. This year we decided to head out opening weekend hoping for nice variety and some Halloween displays.

It took couple shots to get them both to look at the camera. Nonetheless close enough.

They had so much fun wandering the giant pumpkin field and picking out different types and sizes as well.

Ava's cute Hello Kitty Halloween tutu I found at Target!

Joseph is excited beyond belief to pick and choose his pumpkin.

Look Mommy! This is the one!

Opening weekend is so great, there were food booths, live music, booths to teach kids about agriculture and farming, pony rides, tractor displays, and petting zoo! On top of all that, we got to have Mariposa Ice Cream!

Ava hauling around her baby pumpkin.

 I remember Ava at this time last year, she wasn't even able to walk yet! Time has flown by so quick! Here is a picture of her at Bates Nut Farm same time last year.

Pumpkin Loot!

Walking between the corn stalks.

It was a hot but fun day at the patch. Can't wait to go back next October! Pin It Now!

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Return of the Gnomes!

The Gnomes have returned! And they have re-landscaped their yard! Or that is what my son believes in. Little did he know, mommy and daddy spent the weekend going to the nursery and buying landscaping and decors to make the gnome yard come alive.

I knew I wanted some kind of "hobbit-esque" front yard which involved putting in Irish moss and moss ground cover. I was able to find a miniature tree that bear berry/fruit similar to a pomegranate. The gnome kit I ordered off Amazon gave the gnomes a nice fence, trellis that will eventually lead to a farm area (hopefully!) , birdhouse, shovel, and wagon.

My husband was nice to chisel out a square hollow in the tree trunk for me to build a window for nighttime magic. My plan is to throw in miniature glowsticks at night so my kids would believe the gnomes are home.

This is the earliest stage of the landscape work. Notice just wood pieces bordering the trunk of the tree.

 When I first put in the Irish moss, there were gap of space here and there that wasn't able to fit the moss, so I used cut branches and rocks to fill the space. Once I did that I started to have more ideas of how I wanted to expand on that. So I went out and got some ground cover moss as filler for those pockets of space and the mini tree.

The wood used as fillers became steps leading up to the house and small borders.

The tree adds a nice touch of height to the front door.

The doorknocker fell off and have been replaced by a screw, which will keep the door from falling as well.

As if I was not satisfied enough with the work in progress. I had to order accessories to make it more lively. Yesterday I had the kids help me add these offerings as a welcome back gift to the gnomes.

With a view of the window.

The final result for now.........

Trellis arch

Birdhouse and shovel

Eventually my next plan is to install a chimney and work on a farm area. But since winter is coming, that might not be ideal and may not sustain. Chimney idea is still a go though. That will be saved for another weekend so this will do for now!!




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We left our hearts in San Francisco.

Earlier this year we planned a family trip for San Francisco, but then Ava started daycare and got really sick. So we ended up cancelling the trip since winter time+daycare=sick girl. That was back in January. Come July, I was finally able to schedule and get everyone to make this trip up to San Francisco without cancellation!

I knew visiting a city there's always got to be food places to hit up while I am in town. But since this is Ava, Joseph, and Hubby's first trip to San Francisco, I wanted to also include some sightseeing places as well.

We took the BART all the way to Powell Station since we stayed at PARC 55 in Union Square area. It was not only convenient from the BART, but the cable car was right there as well! Everything was a walking distance and we were close to all sightseeing areas as well. Hotel was clean, very friendly, and upgraded us to a room with a view, comped a fridge, AND offered a playpen for Ava.

After dropping off the luggage we decided to head out to Brenda's Soul Food Kitchen to try some crawfish beignets and other southern style breakfast.

Crawfish Beignets. Amazingly delicious and what they are known for.

Chocolate beignet with molten Ghiradelli chocolate, Plain powdered beignet, and Granny Smith apple beignet in the back.

We decided to wait in line to ride the cable car. After more than an hour wait we were on! We got off Lombard Street stop to view what is known as "The most Crooked Street".

We decided to just walk down towards Fisherman's Wharf and hang out. Of course the place is just packed with tourist and lots of seafood!

Gorgeous view before heading to Fisherman's Wharf with Coit Tower in the top right.

Look at all those crabs!

Old streetcars from different eras. Very sleek!

The Rock

Went to the Ferry Building (Pier 1) for some Porchetta Sandwiches

Brother Sister Love!!

 We also did all the other tourisy things like going to Chinatown and of course seeing the Golden Gate Bridge, but we didn't have the time to walk on it since the weather didn't seem to be clearing up.

Joseph being upset at the crazy wind and having to manage Ava hahahaha

On our last day we got to visit the Balmy Street Murals in the Mission District. Lots of culture and beautiful hand painted artwork on walls, garage doors, and fences.

This one was my favorite and I believe was Joseph's favorite too.

Overall it was a great trip with the family. The weather was perfect and not a drop of rain. Hopefully we will get to visit again!

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Happy Birthday America!

Today is the last day of the San Diego County Fair, aka "Del Mar Fair". I thought it would be great for both kids to go together. Uncertain of how easy or difficult it would be to manage both kids at the fair myself on a holiday, it was actually SUPER easy! Definitely give credit to Joseph who fed his sister breakfast in the car and pushed her in the stroller the whole time at the fair. That right there is a Super Brother!

The kiddos had a blast seeing farm animals, going to Kiddieland for the rides and enjoyed this year's theme of "Game On!" Overall it was a great success and it makes me feel great that handling two kids alone is not at all a scary thing.

Came home to let the kids get cleaned up and play around in the house. Weather was great!

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And we're back!

It's been several months since my last post. To be exact, it has been about six months! With a new job, a growing baby girl, swim lessons, taekwondo lessons, school work and chores around the house, it was difficult to find that block of time to post.

Now that I am settled at work and my oldest is out for the summer I feel like I need to get back here and document all the fun things we have been doing with the family and also some trips I am planning. Stick around as I have definitely a lot more to post!! Thanks for reading Pin It Now!

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Ava's First Birthday Party!

After weeks of planning and collecting all the ideas from Pinterest and hunting out the actual supplies and decor items on the web, everything came together perfectly for Ava's first birthday party. I knew I wanted something soft and pretty for her, a cute little brunch. Originally the plan was the make majority of the items which I also found from Pinterest, but as I got closer to the party date, I had to improvise and search for items that didn't require too much work but would fit into her brunch. 

Store bought lemon curd from Trader Joe's and fig jam from the local supermarket went perfectly with simple scones I made that morning.

Tossed the berries in a little bit of sugar, except the strawberries

Decided to get prints of photos of Ava since birth to put as the background.

 Anything with a vintage and french flair I found through the website Save-On-Craft. The website has every kind of supplies you would need to decorate a wedding, baby shower, birthday, and/or any occasion. The mini milk bottles I got was much cheaper than other places I've seen. The paper straws was ordered from Etsy.com through a store that allowed you to select the styles you wanted for a set price.

The mini bottles were a hit with the different style paper straws

 Originally from my previous post, I did a test run on the pink ombre cake that I originally was going to make for her birthday, however due to time restraints, I ended up purchasing a cake from my favorite dessert restaurant in San Diego called Extraordinary Desserts. I got Ava the Shangri-La which is AMAZINGLY delicious. The cake contains white chocolate mousse, guava mousse, fresh strawberries and whipped cream are layered between vanilla cakes moistened with kirsch. I also love how the outside has off white and pink!

I ordered washi tapes from Etsy.com and made a little banner to put on her cake.

Costco mixed cookies in a jar!

Here is the final set up with the drinks in as well! I love it! Majority of the food I found at Costco, and surprisingly Trader Joe's carry a lot of miniature sized appetizers!

I was able to also make the pressed Italian sandwiches from the previous night using torta buns, salami, provolone cheese, pesto, and mayo all from Costco. The morning of the party, I cut each torta to make three small mini sandwiches and I wrapped it with parchment paper and pink/white baker's twine. Also since the food theme was more of a brunch, I decided to make a quick potato hash that I sauteed with onions, green bell peppers, and salt/pepper. I put a little in the mini cupcake liners I found at Michaels.

The two kinds of meatballs were also found at Costco that my friend sauteed and warmed up the morning of the party.  To cut time, I bought raspberry lemonade and guava juice I found at the market for refreshment.

The hardest item to find for her party was the cake stand. I saw so many beautiful white cake stands but with them costing $40+ just for one , it would of been extremely expensive to have multiple. I eventually came across this beautiful teal/blue 3 tier cake stand from Kohl's!! It was already on sale, plus an additional 30% off and free shipping, it was too good to pass up. In the end it gave the brunch table a nice pop of color and I was able to coordinate that to the strings for the balloons.

The strings attached to the ballons are just strips of plastic table clothes I found at PartyCity. This idea I also found on Pinterest!

Birthday girl enjoying her cake.

Ava playing with friends :)

Overall it was a perfect first birthday party for Ava, the party I had envisioned with the help of Pinterest came through and everyone had a wonderful time. Food was great and all the kids had a lot of fun. Now with two kids, I will have to start earlier planning for each of them since every birthday is special. Pin It Now!

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