it's.

oh so quiet over here on the blog front. i wish i could say the same for our days and nights but that just isn't the case. it seems that the holidays have already started to hit us pretty hard which means we've had somewhere to be and some place to go nearly every day/weekend for the past few weeks ( although last weekend was a quiet few days of rest ). so here a few photos to fill you in on what the gignac family has been up to.

plus a quick trip to houston to visit this guy ( which we'll be having down here in a couple weeks to honor in a mini furniture showcase, email me for the info! ). and my runaway sous chef.

and OH YEAH! happy november!!

tomorrow.

we're taking our little family on the road again for another little weekend trip.

i'm starting to learn a little more about car travel with a little in tow. and how to travel with an almost toddler instead of a nursing baby that at one time wanted to be nowhere but in my arms ( so not the case anymore ).

we're making a quick stop in austin before we head to college station on saturday. really hoping to squeeze in at least a couple of minutes here ( and of course here, but that's for purely selfish reasons ).

and OH YEAH! have y'all seen these family pictures? if i could have our family photographed in any way possible, this would be it! love their house too :) like a fourth member of the fam i tell you.


hope everyone has a splendid weekend!

our weekend.

in iphone pictures.

all of these football pics really make me realize how fast time has passed. remember mila's FIRST aTm game?

who's with me.

i am absolutely positively convinced that the family and i need to pack our bags come november. celebrate my birthday a little early and see this guy. here. i seriously laughed out loud while writing this post. gamble chocolate? heart shape antacids? love him.

and also because at barely four months away from this city, i'm already itching to go back as soon as possible. i'm really liking how our new york ventures just seem to get closer and closer together. so husband, just say the word and i'll make the reservations. ;)

a busy week indeed.

last week the family packed our bags and headed to new york for a few days.

we spent a few lovely evenings over dinner with friends. one especially nice night at our dear friend jenny's wedding to her dapper new husband mr. eric. ate one too many cupcakes from café angelique. went here wayyyyy too much. experienced a very child-UN-friendly {but delicious} indian restaurant in tribeca. gave in to the locals' way of navigating the city with a soon-to-be toddler. and polished off the trip with a quick train ride to boston for a radiohead concert.

this was one adventure that i really wish didn't have to end but alas we are home {after a quick camping trip on the frio river during the second half of the week} and things are nearly back to normal. i.e. mila went to sleep at about 8:30 instead of the more recent bedtimes of 10:00 and even 10:30. so like i said, NEARLY back to normal.

happy monday!

a few tidbits from our weekend in the cold.

last week, the family spent a little much-needed time with my brother in kansas city. it was all sub-30 degree weather, great hair days, coffee drinking, museum visiting and everything we wanted it to be. not to mention a reminder of how bread is supposed to taste and a lovely farewell dinner here. we hope to go back soon {or that we will see uncle justin here in corpus in the very near future. hint, hint.}. but until then, we came home with a few kansas city goodies.

perfection in a scarf :: the best trail mix ever

a wedding/baby gift from a very good friend :: new coffee table coasters

a *tidbit* that a certain little someone left behind

{also a sign that justin may miss us as much as we miss him}

until next time kansas city.

xo

i'm not an expert.

but a few of my friends have asked for some tips on traveling with babies. on our way home from our christmas trip the other day, nick and i realized that by december 31 2011, miss mila eleanor had traveled on twenty-eight different planes, visited three different states and received two official stamps in her passport. so yeah, we've definitely learned a few things since that first flight to college station.

my first saving grace was definitely breast-feeding. when she was an infant, we would nurse right when the plane started to taxi and m would immediately fall asleep {i do think the humming of the engines helped as well}. nursing transitioned into just giving her a pacifier to suck on and now she's just become conditioned to fall asleep soon after the cabin doors shut.

ergo carriers {baby bjorns, infantinos, whatever you use}! this is something i've only recently started doing. we used to always use our stroller, but after having to go through security multiple times, the carrier just works better and we check our stroller and carseat.

other than the flying aspect of travel, packing always seems to get me a little stressed. no matter what the reason for the trip, i always feel like i need an arsenal of baby items to make the transition a little easier. but i have to remind myself that i don't need to replicate home when the whole reason for traveling is to get AWAY from home. i do pack travel size versions of mila's shampoo and lotion, as well as books that she's familiar with, but other than that, we use what's in the hotel. so that means bathing in the bath tub with lots of towels to keep from slipping {thanks mom}, buying diapers once we arrive at our final destination {not so easy when you're in a place like roatan, honduras. but hey, you live; you learn}, and mila sleeping right in between her mom and dad {something we do every night, but might be an adjustment for other mamas and papas}.

 

a little toy variety. after being in the same seat for a while, a little mix-up helps. whether it be nick and i switching her off into each other's laps or just giving her a crinkled up barf bag. mila still isn't very mobile so i definitely realize that what may have worked for us last week, might not work tomorrow, but these are all things that usually kept m pretty calm and satisfied.

and finally, don't, by any means, DON'T change the babe's diaper in your seat. yes, we tried. no, it was not successful, in any way shape or form. lots of clothes were changed, lots of paper towels thrown away and we received LOTS of dirty looks from fellow passengers {fortunately we have a cute baby that pacified the whole situation}.

i talk to a lot of friends that say they're scared to travel with their kids and i think this might be one of the hardest things about traveling. getting over that fear. mila certainly hasn't been an angel on all of her flights, we have definitely been "those parents with the screaming baby", but i think she's become comfortable with traveling. and that comfortability came, i think, because we started her early. i hope some of these hints help y'all with your next, or first, trip with baby.

happy travels!

***just wanted to reiterate that i surely don't think i'm a pro at this, but it's what has worked for us and a few things we learned along the way***

a little trip.

to central america.

now to finish some christmas shopping. followed by the inevitable wrapping. a ridiculous amount of time going to different family members' houses {we really do love every minute of this though. promise.}. one more trip. and then finally FINALLY a return to normalcy.

gotta love the holidays.

greetings from roatan!

{from the mila diaries}

on thursday, mom and dad lugged me onto a plane {again} for my first trip out of the country! i was so excited i stayed awake the entire plane ride down. since we've been here, i've received my first stamp in my passport, eaten a little honduran sand and got a custom hat made for me by a nice man on the beach. yes, this winter sun has been quite wonderful. now i'm off to do a little shopping for my penpal and the rest of the family.

an austin kind of weekend.

in pictures.

m meets two of her aunts :: we visit yet another coffee shop

somebody stole mom's seat :: happy little mila moo

one serious breakfast spread

mila and uncle barett finally meet :: future besties

my love :: future mrs. barbato and me

eleven for eleven.

so far, miss mila moo has successfully breezed through flights on eleven planes with minimal crying. thanks to some helpful hints from babble.com, we nurse almost immediately upon boarding and once that engine comes on, she's out.
like that past few, this last weekend was another full of traveling and m breezed right on through. love this kid.

our weekend away.

m's first trip on a plane: success. she slept most of the flight on the way to college station to see the aggies play {and win....she must be a good luck charm}. after a quick interception at the very beginning of the game, nick and i had to immediately leave our seats and go back inside because the noise was too much for her, can't believe i forgot these! but it was fine, gave us plenty of chances for nick to critique my photo-taking skills, apparently i need some serious practice, which is why we ended up with about a million variations of this.

then he jumped in.

{m with her dad and raycito}

finally got back on the plane for some much needed rest.

such a quick weekend trip but it was nice to be back in college station. there are definitely lots and LOTS of things i miss about that wonderful town. like the wonderful breads of blue baker {which is why i brought a good stock home with us}, and morning runs around the campus. and now it is good to be home!

fortunately.

we will not be meeting you.

{irene}

while we're here.

{ny}

to see them

{the pixies}

and stay here

{mercer}

if the 'shopping bags' at these sites weren't virtual.

i'm pretty sure they would have torn through the bottom by now.

a little sampling of what i may or may not be wearing this summer......depending on how generous the husband is.

{anthropologie}

{emerson made}

{madewell}

aaaaand i'm quite ready to go back here. because we had such a grand time on our last trip, and i think mila would enjoy it. a lot.

{our nyc hotel}

or here {although, i'm pretty sure that i'll have a lot more luck with the first destination of choice}.

{our majorca hotel}

stay tuned to see what the summa' REALLY has in store for our little familia.

friday.

which means....

lunch with nick's grandma
dinner with friends
hanging out with this guy...

taming a few of last weekend's bright colors with a little bit of this...

{natural twine from the home depot}

and possibly taking a little day trip up to h.town. and i just miiiiight have to do a little v.day shopping for the husband.

apparently we're ballers.

mila, meet your parents.

{köln, germany about five years ago}

we know you'll be proud.

end of year hoo-rah.

so as you know, my fam and i got to take a trip south {wayyyyy south} for a little end of the year/christmas vacay. our travels took us to south america this year to the lovely country of argentina. we spent much of our stay in buenos aires but ventured out to la colonia del sacramento in uruguay {just an hour boat ride from buenos aires and a highly recommended day trip for anyone in much need of some beach time while in the city}.

{me, my aunt patty and cousin victoria}

that night we enjoyed some delicious french cuisine at a restaurant called brasserie petanque. i definitely recommend this restaurant for the ambiance but the food was just so so...

{brasserie petanque}

we visited one of the soon to be seven NATURAL wonders of the world...the waterfalls at iguazú, absolutely B-A-utiful but being a two hour plane ride from buenos aires, i almost wish we would have opted for the mendoza region, patagonia or possibly the antartic if we had to do it all over again.

{waterfalls at igauzú}

as for the rest of our days, they were spent eating some delicious food

{the husband and me at casa cruz,

second best meal EVER, thanks nytimes}

{lunch in colonia}

{barbaric steak at casa cruz}

{farewell lunch}

viewing amazing art throughout the city

{modern art museum of buenos aires, malba}

{floralis generica}

and the rest speak for themselves....

{my love}

{the bag lady}

{tango show!}

{getting ready to go through the waterfalls}

....an unforgettable trip indeed!