Little Jelly Bean's First Birthday

Tala's first birthday party was short and sweet. She was feeling a little sick so she barely smiled, poor thing. I think the only fun part for her was when she smashed her cake. She looked so cute in her tutu with matching ballet shoes. I need to take her to a studio so she can have professional pictures wearing the tutu.

I can't believe she's already a year old. It seems like only yesterday when she looked like an alien! A very cute little alien. Now she's all over the house walking. Or climbing the stairs. Or making strange little sounds. She even hums. I think my baby's gonna be a singer. Or at least someone who loves to sing, like her Nanay.

Here are some pictures from her party.

Summer Birthday Fever

A week into the summer and it's already August-level hot here in San Antonio. Good thing we had the fortitude to book the little one's first birthday party indoors. There's no way that we could handle it out in the sun in the middle of July. The party room has an under the sea theme so I've been busy going to stores online and otherwise to scrounge for under the sea stuff.

After searching high and low for a birthday outfit, I finally found one at Nordstrom. It's a pink petticoat dress from Popatu. So cute! It looks fancy enough with its ruffles and sparkles. Perfect for the birthday girl. I can't wait until she wears it. I'm still looking for pink ballet shoes or satin sandals.

We already had her birthday banner, garlands and party hats printed at the Office Depot. It's cheaper than buying ink and printing them ourselves. Good thing there's Pinterest 'coz that's where I found the free printables. My ever creative mother-in-law is making the table topper or center piece. She says she's going to use socks to make fishes so I'm excited to see the final product.

We already ordered the cake/cupcakes, but still have to decide on the food. We'll probably end up with hotdogs, sandwiches and pasta salad. We'll see. I'm just glad that we don't have to rush anymore since we pretty much have everything covered.

So thankful to God for blessing us with a beautiful sweet little baby. She is silly and funny and smart and so well behaved. I may be busy doing all sorts of stuff for her first birthday, but in my heart I'm a little bit sad and totally not ready yet. She's growing up too fast, my jelly bean.

Blessings

Today, I'm grateful for the following:

1. Getting approved for an apartment rental here in San Antonio. The place looks beautiful and is centrally located (shops, restaurants, etc.). This will be our first taste of apartment living so hopefully all goes well. Also our first abode in this lovely city.

2. Having a happy and healthy baby. Tala turned 11 months yesterday. One more month and we will have a toddler! Right now, she's into flipping her books, looking at the pictures, pointing and blabbing. She can do this all day. She also started singing along with me. At least that's what I think (or hear). If she takes after me, she'd be breaking out into a song every now and then.

3. An outstanding show (The Wire) that I could watch during my free time. I just finished episode 5 of Season 1 and it's so good I can't believe I didn't see it during its heyday. I've always come across with articles saying it's the best show EVER and I'm convinced they could be right.

Vacation: Rockport, Texas

Had a fun weekend trip to Rockport, Texas with some of hubby's family. It's the closest beach to San Antonio; just a two-hour drive. Tala finally had her first taste of the ocean. She had a blast. My baby is a little mermaid, I swear.

She kept on splashing in the water. I bet it all looked like a giant bathtub to her. We went to the beach where dogs are allowed so she was just so happy watching them play. Except for the really strong wind all throughout our stay, everything was wonderful. The cottage we stayed in had a pool so the little one got to take a very short dip. It was just too cold by the time we got back from the beach for her to stay longer than a few minutes.

We took some photos and videos of her little ocean adventure. Her itty bitty swimsuits looked too cute on her. I didn't get to swim so I sure wanna go back as soon as we can. I didn't have my fill of the ocean at all. Hubby, on the other hand, got to explore the beach and its fishes and shells with the not so little nieces.

how happy is my baby?

first family trip to the beach

cousins

fishy fishy

father and daughter

"i can stay here all day"

beach bums

our little cottage

Tala's First Easter

Vince's family decided to hold an Easter celebration at his grandmother's place. He said they haven't done this since they were kids. It was a good call as the kids had a lot of space to run around and play. Perfect for Tala too since this was her very first egg hunting experience. I think Vince and I had more fun than her, though. Lol. At nine months, I don't think she really cared for any egg hunt.

The kids were so cute. They had fun searching for eggs scattered all around the property; some having $5 inside courtesy of grandma. Tala has a lot of cousins close to her age; the main reason why we don't wanna move out of San Antonio. It would be great if she would get to grow up with her cousins like Vince and I did.

Here are some photos:

A Beautiful Wedding

Yesterday was a breather from recent unhappy personal circumstances. DH's cousin got married in civil rites on a sunny and beautiful day. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. The wee one had a lot of fun being outdoors and interacting with family and friends. The bride and groom looked so happy and radiant. Their little girl looked so cute in her pastel pink dress with matching pink shoes.

I loved what the bride wore. It was a dress with a corset-like top and flowy skirt that was above the knees in front and longer at the back. The groom looked dapper too in his suit. I love going to weddings. Call me a hopeless romantic, but seeing two people make a vow to love each other for the rest of their lives just makes me have more faith in the world.

There is so much out there that could turn anyone into a cynic, but weddings always give me hope. I suppose it's the promise of forever that does me in. I hope I get to attend more weddings this year. :)

Goodbye, Our Beloved Pop

It's been a crazy couple of months. DH lost his dad yesterday due to diabetes complications. It all happened so fast. We knew he was sick, just not that sick. Our only consolation was that we were given a little time to come to terms with the inevitable. More importantly, his dad had the opportunity to accept everything.

It's amazing how gracious he was, how full of humor and silliness amidst his pain. And Tala. Tala was the light of his life. How he loved his little princess. He would play and pretend  to fight with her every time we were at the hospital to see him. He was so brave. The only time that he broke down was when he told her he was sorry he was not gonna see her grow up.

He was so thankful to Vince. I'm really grateful that they had these last three years to be with each other, and bond as only a father and son can. We didn't see it at the time, but perhaps the reason why Vince chose San Antonio to be his last station was because of this. So that he and his Dad can enjoy each other which they absolutely did up to the very end. Two playful and silly men who loved making fun of each other.

Rest in peace, Dad. May the angels take you to the heavens where pain is no more; where only love and happiness reign. I will take care of your boy and little princess. And all of your future grandchildren. We're already working on another one . :-)