Grey Out

this dress is from the forever21 shopping spree in chicago - due to my jackpot winnings. let me point out - the new pink sushi socks too.
ems surprised us all dressed up like moana and with a disney pop.

Gimme an E !

three cheers for Emma - with some help from lalaloopsy preppy pompoms.

Cat in Black

first day back to school from thanksgiving break - ariana wanted to wear the cat ears headband and gloves. these are accessories she picked out at the chicago shopping spree. the sweater is kate spade (via nordstrom rack) with black ponte pants. we actually call these "slime pants" because she had splashed pink slime on them. good thing i had vinegar to get it out thanks to a google tip.

Let it Snow

She's baaack - Emma da elf. she reappeared the day after thanksgiving - just as ariana expected. although i think other elves come back on december 1st. emma's first few days are spent resting - jet lagged coming from the north pole will get you. when ariana came home from school - emma brought her a can of snow. along with all the winter-themed mini lalaloopsy dolls.

Thankful Together

we didnt make any plans for thanksgiving dinner since we werent sure of our flight plans from chicago, my sister invited us over her place, then josh texted us to have it at his. i left it up to them to coordinate. we all ended up at my sisters since she cooked the turkey. we played a couple game apps on the tv using our smart phones. played speak out game too - josh got a bunch of mouthpieces from amazon and got an app. i have a hard time playing because i am totally cracking up at everybody.

Family Jackpot

this was the first time the morgan brothers seen each other since mom's passing. the family arranged to have dinner at ameristar casino. funny we crossed the indiana state line, and the address of the restarant is east chicago - like at the southern bottom of the lake michigan. we ate at the buffett - something for everybody (kids, vegetarians, desserts, etc). after dinner i had taken off to go to the casino. i put in $20 bucks and sent pictures (via imessage) of my $30 to $88 winnings on a penny slot within 15 minutes. then i switched machines and in a half hour - hit a jackpot.

Cold Chicago Bound

we managed to catch and get ON the noon flight to chicago ohare. 2 seats together in the last row. byron sat in the emergency row. when we got our luggage, i pulled out the scarf & hats. we were welcomed with 30 degree temperature. brrrrrr. all of ariana's friends families went on vacation for the thanksgiving break - except one. we flew to chicago, N drove to grandparents down in so cal, C on a short cruise ensenada-baja calif, S to monterey.

Black Gold

this black & gold metalic stripe shirt came from target. but really this outfit started from the jordan retro 12 kicks that she wanted to wear. boys out of the blue would pass by and say "nice shoes",

Yeah Pink

temperatures are going down and you most certainly can feel the chill in the air. ariana picked out this YEAH sweater (target). i knew she wanted to wear it today, and we found the perfect pants (forever21) to go with it. her bffriends noticed she was in her favorite color - pink.

Filipino Tuesday

the girls have filipino club afterschool. ariana and cam are in the dance committee. with both girls in Likha filipino dance troupe, the advisor asked them to teach everybody "itik itik". i am so proud of them - they have been in cheerleading and likha together. so they know how the coaches and instructor leads a class.

Warriors Filipino Heritage Night

the warriors put on two filipino heritage night games - one in the fall, the next one in spring. the Likha filipino dance group kids performed in march. tickets were scarce for the performers and parents. i didnt want to end up in that situation again - so i had bought a pair. the likha group will dance at the march game - its too expensive for the dancers to do both. i gave the pair of tickets to josh, then 3 seats together became available - and we all went. at the tailgate event - took pictures with curry's mvp trophies, filipino food trucks, and picked up the promotional giveaway (blue tank with jeepney).

Laugh Love Sparkle

dressed a little patriotic this day after the presidential election. i was the only one that stayed up - hoping there would be a mathematical miracle for hillary clinton to be the next president over donald trump. ever since trump announced that he was going to run, ariana didnt like him and mentioned that everybody at school hates him too. remember she is only 11 years old, and the only president she has ever known for the past 8 years is Obama. i broke the news to her in the morning trying to explain the popular vote vs electorial vote per state. and basically to teach her that you have to give some people a chance and the benefit of the doubt. and to calm her faith down in America, i also explained that when trump steps into office in january - it really wont effect us directly at once. i hope he doesnt prove me wrong, though.

President-elect

i was one to stay up til midnight - hoping more states' votes would come in for Hillary Clinton. even if you did the math in every which way scenario - it wouldnt add up to a victory. a hillary spokesman told everybody to go home, and then you find out she had conceded to trump. there wasnt any emotions seeing the trump family making an appearance on stage. i went to bed and prayed "God help us". 

Brown & Blue Monday

can we just ask for the most perfect weather of all. not too hot, not too cold and nor windy, no rain in site, etc. since ariana has to change for PE everyday, the plan is to simplify her wardrobe. then we realized as long as she can do a quick change on&off, she can wear it. its actually easier to change out of a dress compared to pants. here she is wearing a lace dress from target, which was worn the first week of school. paired with matilda jane leggings that i purchased years ago, they ended up not producing the blue coordinating top, and i held onto the leggings.

Pretty in Pink Purse

the length of dresses are made short now, but the rule at school is to be longer than finger tips with hands down on the side. ariana style has always been to wear leggings or bike shorts. its a minimum day again. so ok to dress up not to have to change for PE. this time the outfit was based on her new MK michael kors purse. in middle school, the backpacks are kept in the lockers and not allowed in classrooms. kids carry these zipped-up binders from class to class. ariana's binder had a front zippered pocket to hold her phone in the mean time. kuya gave her money $ on her birthday for a purse. we went to every single purse store at the outlets you can imagine. the criterieas: crossbody, iphone5, size, and pink is a plus. narrowed it down to coach, kate spade and michael kors. pink MK it is.

ariana has her 11-year old doctors physical appointment. her stats are leveled out at 50% both for height and weight. 81 pounds and barely 57 inches tall. doctors said to expect another growth spurt for the next year and a half as she goes through puberty. at this rate, most likely she will be taller than me. and she walked out with 3 shots: flu, whooping and 7th grade booster.

Floral Lavender

middle schoolers have minimum day for parent teacher conferences. they are usually scheduled for students that are at risk or for behavior. the core (language & history) teacher wanted to meet with everyones for 10-15 minutes. we werent able to discuss yours chld at open house that was held the first 2 weeks of school. ariana is adjusting fine and doing well in middle school. i think its ME thats having a hard time trying to cope with it. i'm just so used to being so involved and in the know at the elementary school.

Chicago Cubs Champs

the cubs elimnated the sf giants from the national league division series, and went on to play the dodgers. but with byron born and raised from chicago, we were glued to the tv watching the world series. i have a new favorite number #27 addison russell being filipino. russell was drafted by the Oakland A's straight out of highschool in 2012, and traded to chicago in 2014. especially i didnt want cleveland to win again, only because they beat the warriors in NBA finals. the cubs made a remarkable comeback from down 3-1, and ended the longest championship drought of 108 years. first thing byron said "i've been waiting all my life".

Nautical Fall

the bay area's indian summer was short lived earlier in the month. but fall is definately here and the rain has moved on after halloween. ariana picked to wear the sweater recently purchased at tommy hilfiger outlet. it has some angora in it. i worned her that it might be itchy and to wear a camisole, she wasnt bothered by the angora at all. infact the only problem was that her classmates kept wanting to feel how soft the sweater really is. paired it with a brand new pair of jeans from justice - which i said i would never pay $40 for. shes lucky that we caught the 40% storewide sale. and the navy nautical Toms shoes were the perfect match.

Rainy Uggs

just a few showers left from halloween night. todays outfit is based around the ugg boots - waterproofed. they are made for the rain and snow with the cozy fur lining inside. the skirt/leggings are from targets "kind is cool" line. at first ariana thought there was another pair of leggings, when actually its a belt to look like you're wrapping a jacket (sleeves) around. funny - her friends thought the same thing. ah-ha!