2012

Happy new year! Another fresh year before us. I just love the optimism and positivity that a new year brings. It's amazing how turning the page to a new calendar incites people to want to be better, do better and try harder, and we aren't an exception. We will be working on our Villanueva Family Goals, stay tuned for a future post.

We rang in the new year with a low-key, family-friendly weekend in Sausalito and had a great time. We started off at the Bay Area Discovery Museum where the air was crisp and the sun shone bright. There were so many people because every New Year's Eve the museum hosts a "Noon Year's Eve" party for all the little kiddies, complete with bubbles, a DJ, goodie bags and giant beach ball drop! Too cute.





After soaking up the sun and running off some energy, we headed over to Cavallo Point Lodge at historic Fort Baker, right next to the museum where we booked a room for the night. It was our first time there and we will definitely be going back.





We stayed in one of their contemporary hotel rooms which had a beautiful minimalist quality accented with lots of natural elements like stone flooring in the bathroom, beautiful wood and floor to ceiling windows that seemed to bring the outdoors in. I especially liked their eco-friendly efforts.

For dinner we met up with our good friend April and dined at Intramuros, a Filipino restaurant that I've been wanting to try for a long time. I've heard a lot of good things about it and had to see for myself. The verdict: good but not great. See my Yelp review for more details! Nevertheless, the food was satisfying and the company made it a great evening all around. Being our first time there we went a little overboard on the ordering:





After dinner we headed back to the hotel where we got cozy in our pjs, tuned in to Dick Clark's Rockin' New Year's Eve and welcomed the new year with our two little boys. The next day we checked out of Cavallo Point and headed to San Francisco for dim sum at Yank Sing, another establishment on our "to eat" list. The food was amazing - perfectly formed dumplings, fresh crispy lettuce cups, melt-in-your-mouth peking duck and more. It's definitely on the pricey side and not somewhere we'd go regularly, but hey, we had to start the new year off right! It's a must-try for anyone who's a fan of dim sum.

Our last stop before returning home to Vacaville was a visit to my friend/coworker Rosa. Rosa and I have been friends since I first started at Genentech and she has been a constant supporter of both me and our family. It was her first time meeting Lucas so it was an especially nice visit.

All in all it was another wonderful family mini-getaway. We look forward to what 2012 has in store for us...happy new year to you and yours!

Gingerbread House Party

In my quest to have a kid's party for every holiday (gradually that is, not all in the same year), I hosted a gingerbread house making party for Cruz and his closest little buddies. Overall it was a great experience for one and all, particularly because it was the first time for everyone, including the parents. The moms and dads helped with the "heavy construction" of assembling the walls and roof and the kids took over the decorating. Each house was beautifully unique.






To round out the merriment the kids enjoyed festive cupcakes and hot chocolate with peppermint swizzle sticks and marshmallows.





Although these little events add more to my already heavily-laden plate, I get so much joy out of bringing people together, sharing with them the little treats that they wouldn't normally give to themselves and most importantly, creating lasting memories for my kids.

We're baaacck!

It has been over a year since my last post - geez louise! Needless to say life is busier than ever, but here we are on the cusp of a new year and I'm making a New Year's resolution to blog regularly...now that I've put it in writing maybe I'll actually commit to it! I won't bother trying to pick up where I left off from the last post, but will just fast forward to the "main event"...we welcomed another baby boy on October 3, 2011! Please meet Lucas Randy Villanueva...

Lucas is a very different baby than big brother Cruz and we eagerly anticipate discovering more of his personality as he continues to grow. Cruz is the ideal sibling, loving and never jealous. We feel so fortunate to have been blessed with two healthy, beautiful babies.

Lesson Learned from Denver

I was in Denver last week for 3 days for a work meeting; it was mostly business with some soft skill development sprinkled in. The last session on our last day featured two patient ambassadors; patients who have participated in our clinical trials and speak about their experiences. One woman had rheumatoid arthritis while the other had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer.

I was so moved by what they shared and I find myself reflecting on their experiences. Both women at some point in their disease progression, were debilitated and could not do the simplest tasks including getting dressed, filling out paperwork or lifting an arm to an armrest for a blood draw. The woman who had breast cancer lost her hair, eyelashes, eyebrows, fingernails and toenails. I think about these women and what they had to go through, and I tell myself, "you see, things could be so much worse". As human beings we become mired in the "small stuff" and forget to see the big picture of our lives. Hearing these women speak reminded me that life is short and unpredictable. We have to be grateful every single day for the positive things in our lives because there are people in this world who are suffering far more than we are. And more importantly, we cannot take for granted the things we have. Maybe we don't have the newest car, the biggest house or the most fashionable clothes, but at least we can wake up each morning, stand on our own two feet, and go to our jobs. Anything else is just gravy!

Left our Hearts in Maui

We've been home from Maui for almost a month and we still miss it every day. From the beautiful sun-kissed beaches to the laid back lifestyle, it has been hard to come back to our crazy commutes, strict schedules and the race against time.

They say a picture says a thousand words, so here are some of our favorite pictures to tell the story of our wonderful vacation...

We're baaacckkk

In Maui that is! Randy is on his official vacation block (4 weeks, once a year, taken as a "lump sum") here we are in beautiful Maui. It is our 4th trip to the island and it feels like home away from home.

We were fortunate to get a direct flight from Oakland to Kahului; we arrived yesterday afternoon at about 2:30pm. After collecting our baggage and a rental car we headed to our "pit stop" - the little town of Makawao in the Maui upcountry. We previously decided to spend a couple of nights in Hana, but didn't want to make the precarious drive immediately upon arrival, so we planned to stay somewhere close to Hana Highway then make the drive in the morning.

I found a charming B&B in Makawao called the Banyan Tree House, high up in the hills and set in a garden-like setting. We stayed in the Gardenia Cottage which is a large, spacious suite complete with 2 queen beds, a kitchenette and lanai. With all the foliage and provincial feel to Makawao, it reminded me very much of the Philippines. There are lots of fruit trees on the grounds and guests are encouraged to pick and take as much as they like. Unfortunately it showered almost the whole evening, but as a result we were rewarded with a beautiful arching rainbow right over our heads.

This morning we packed up early and had breakfast at a great little coffee shop in the neighboring town of Paia, Anthony's. They have an awesome assortment of coffee and tea varieties, plus hot breakfast and pastries. Randy's first Maui breakfast was - of course - loco moco! Once our bellies were filled and our coffee in to-go cups, we hit the windy road to take us to Hana. After an hour and a half we pulled up to the lovely Hotel Hana Maui.

Ordinarily we wouldn't be able to afford a hotel of this caliber (AAA - 4 diamonds), but perhaps because we are here in the off season we scored an awesome deal and decided to treat ourselves. The service has been impeccable from our first few minutes on the property. As we waited in the lobby for an available registration receptionist, the bellhop appears with ice cold glasses of POG juice (passionfruit, orange, guava), cold towels to freshen up and complimentary kukui nut necklaces. Once we check in, Eddie the friendly bellhop, loads our luggage onto his golf cart and proceeds to take us on a complete tour of the grounds. Finally he escorts us to our room which is amazing! It's a large, airy suite with a separate bedroom, living room, bathroom and lanai. I have no idea whether we were upgraded because the hotel is not at maximum occupancy, but the room is not what I thought I booked!

Randy, Cruz and I spent the next couple of hours swimming and lounging in the infinity pool which overlooks the Pacific Ocean...I could not be more grateful for the countless blessings the Lord gives to us. We have only been on the island for one full day, but I can feel myself beginning to switch gears, to a slower, more relaxed pace. I feel myself taking longer looks at my surroundings, taking in deeper breaths and having no idea what time of day it is. I'm looking forward to the week ahead!

First pony ride

August was here and gone so quickly that I'm behind in posting - in any case, mid-August we joined Hilarie's Helpful Hints (a mom's group that I'm a member of ) at Play Cafe in Oakland. It's another fun indoor play space for kids. On this day there was a special event being featured - pony rides and a petting zoo, so we knew we couldn't miss it.

This was Cruz's very first time riding a pony and he was pretty stoic the whole time. As we waited our turn in line he started to get cold feet and said he didn't want to ride, but when our turn came I asked him if he wanted to go for a ride and he nodded his head, silently yes. His pony's name was Pixie and it was a short round trip ride the length of the parking lot, and Cruz looked concerned the whole time! Part way through I asked him if he was having fun, and he said "yeah" but still had a furrowed brow. He never once cracked a smile.

Now looking back, I'll have to tell Cruz that his very first pony ride was in a parking lot in Oakland...not exactly the great outdoors!