We love to travel. We’ve been to France, Tennessee, Florida, Spain and the list goes on. There is something wonderful about seeing new places and experiencing life, for a brief moment, of others.
Whether it’s a road trip to Austin or a flight across the pond…always say yes to new adventures.
Love, Wife C
With each new season comes new trends and quirks. New little treasures to place around the house and quirky outfits that make you smile. I can say wholeheartedly that fall is my favorite season. It’s when the leaves turn amber shades, when family comes together and on a personal note, it always makes me nostalgic for when I fell in love with my husband.
This year, my favorite trend is anything fox related.
I love their pouffy little tails, the orangey color of their fur and the little heart shaped noses. I just love all the things! I’ve picked out some of my favorites for this season.
How about this foxy man from Etsy shop Chasing the Crayon? I just want to cuddle with him! Her whole shop if full of whimsy and precious prints. I want them all!
How about this cozy sweater from Urban Outfitters? I want to pair it with leggings, boots and a big scarf! (Check out ways to tie a scarf from TPA in related articles!)
Wouldn’t this rug from Anthro be just precious? Picture it now! I see it in my entry way welcoming everyone that comes through our door.
Just dropping by to say hello? How about this perfectly adorable card from Rifle Paper Co? I would be delighted to receive this happy little guy.
What are your favorite fall trends?
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There is always more to come!
Love,
Carah
Hello beauties,
I’ve been saving the best for last. Everyday in Spain was beautiful but this day was my most favorite.
We went to the Spanish version of Central Park, Parque del Retiro. The light was beautiful, the scent of the rose garden filled the air and it the weather could not have been more perfect.
We entered the beautiful gates and found a woman selling rosemary, she said, “It’s for good luck, it brings joy and harmony to your stay”
We indulged and picked up a few sprigs
I took in every breath with such deep fulfillment. The park is home to the one attraction I was begging to see. The Crystal Palace. It finds itself nestled in the trees towards the back of the park, so we perused on and enjoyed the scenery.
Our passion for style was heightened overseas. Chartreuse, pale pinks, periwinkles and chambray. They all made appearances today!
Shortly after entering the Parque del Retiro, you find a gorgeous pond of sorts with street vendors and quaint little women selling all kinds of trinkets. I am the trinket queen… so I have to contain myself in situations like these. However, this time wasn’t too hard. Just beyond the railing of the pond sat the cutest baby ducks you’ve ever seen! 
We hung out with the ducks for a little bit, we even tried to pick them up! (I was trying to channel cinderella but I came up short on the woodland animal songs)
As we rounded the park and came to a clearing, I saw it. Standing right in front of me in all its glory. My heaven. 
The Crystal Palace. My excitement could not be contained! 
The light hit it just like I thought it would. Soft and delicate.
Unfortunately, it was closed for renovation. The good news? It allowed us to see the inside completely empty. Giving way to really understand how the light works and plays with the glass.
I my heart was full.
But our tummies were empty! It was definitely time for lunch. Papizza here we come! 
You pick your pizza and they heat it right there in front of you. So yummy!!
With full hearts and fully stuffed stomachs, we ended our perfect day, and trip, in Spain.
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Thank you so much for going on this Spainsh Adventure with us. I hope you enjoyed reading about our journey as much as we enjoyed telling you about it.
See see other posts from the Spanish Adventure series:
(P.S. Day 3 has a video of our trip to Toledo!)
Love,
Wife C
Hello everyone!
Happy Friday! We are definitely glad it is almost the weekend. We have a whole lot of relaxing planned, what about you?
Today I am going to share with you our trip to Toledo, Spain! The homestead of the infamous Don Quixote.
(I love DQ)
Toledo was actually the capital of Spain until it was switched to Madrid in the early 1500s. Since Toledo’s existence, it has been ruled by many people and many religions. With so many different influences, their architecture is so eclectic! Cathedrals next to churches next to mosques.
We walked around this precious little city and let the history soak in. It is just amazing. Remember the Cervezarias I told you about in this post? Well this was the cutest one we went to! Old photos on the wall, the perfect Aztec curtains and little jukebox giving it the best atmosphere.
Cheers!
After we get refreshed and ready, we headed out for our double decker tour around Toledo. We are so excited to say we have a video to show you our little tour! I hope you let it take you away and feel the cool Spanish breeze on your face. Enjoy!
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Wife C
Hello all!
I know not everyone follows my instagram feed, so I wanted to share some of my favorite photos from Spain that I took with my iPhone. The iPhone camera surprises me daily with the quality of images it can capture. I hope this inspires you to get out there and document your life, too!
We love to take pictures of everything! Our camera of choice is a Canon Rebel T3i. She’s a pretty light friend to carry around so it is easy to keep it with us most of the time. But sometimes if we can’t bring her with us, our iPhone photos are great, too! I love the way Elsie and Emma talk about taking lifestyle photos in this post.
Between Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and blogs, there are so many ways to share your life with your loved ones. Don’t be afraid to snap a selfie here and there! Capture the moments that mean something to you, so when you’re older and you look back on yourself you will have so many beautiful memories captured.
To follow me on Instagram click here! Or click on my side bar where my Instagram feed shows up.
Share some of your favorite Instgrams with me by adding @littlcosmicgirl and the hashtag #MyMomentsLV – I will do a feature next month and post our favorites from all of you! Can’t wait to see all of your beautiful moments!
Also, be on the lookout for a very special video post tomorrow! Can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve been working on!
Love,
Wife C
Hola bonitas!
Today I want to introduce you to “we”. There were seven of us enjoying this journey together and I want to give you a little background on them.
During this trip we were put into three categories by the ever-clever Papa Vallejo.
Of course you have Claudio and Carah, we are the Love Birds.
Then Husband C’s parents, Claudio Sr. and Margarita are the Middle Birds.
Last, but most definitely not least…we have the Old Birds. Grandpa Lee, Grandma Juana and Tia Juanita.
Grandpa Lee is from Malta and is very keen on all the history. The Knights of Malta were actually from Spain and there is bit of Maltan influence in Madrid. He loved to point it out each time he caught a glimpse. Which was normally followed by his signature phase of “By Joe Blimey!” In what was, undoubtedly, the most precious British accent you’ve ever heard.
Grandma Juana took care of Lee and made sure he had everything he needed. (A lot of coffee and a shoulder to lean on, most of the time) She is a nurturing soul and her love for her husband is ever beaming. It was a beautiful example for us young Love Birds.
Tia Juanita gave us so many giggles! She has a laugh-at-yourself sense of humor and a vivacious personality. Her style was precious with little high-heeled booties all week and bright, flowy outfits.
Each day started with coffee and breakfast. There is a Cafe & Te on almost every corner so it’s not too difficult to grab a bite to eat. I prefer a café con leche and a mini bocadilla de jamón, myself!
First stop is the royal palace, Palacio Royale , and cathedral, Santa María la Real de La Almudena. The palace was similar to Versalles in France. A grand structure with many rooms all dedicated to a different ritual. The best room was probably the “Royal Dressing Room”….a huge room literally dedicated to getting ready in the morning. Sign me up!
We weren’t allowed to take photos inside the palace, but we snapped some at the cathedral. Both structures were breathtaking on the inside and out. I’m still in awe of the sheer fact that they exist.
The light in the cathedral was heavenly.
“I will live to enjoy the light” John 33:28
We left the cathedral and made our way around the city, I believe mosey would be the right word here. Finding little trinkets and precious buildings along the way.
(You never say no to a matador)
I’d like to take a moment and offer a travelers tip. The weather in Madrid is mild and chilly in the morning and then quite warm in the afternoon and back to brisk in the evening. I recommend a scarf and a maxi skirt. The scarf can be worn around your neck in the morning and then to shield your face from harmful rays in the afternoon. My maxi skirt was the best! It kept be warm in the morning but it was very breathable in the afternoons. Last, go with light jewelry. You don’t want a heavy bauble necklace weighing you down or big earrings getting caught in the wind. Here’s an easy hairdo that looks great and keeps your hair off the neck when it gets warm.
Life in Madrid was perfect. Completely unimaginable. I would go back in a heartbeat. My favorite day is coming up soon. So many beautiful pictures. I will let most of them speak for themselves, so look out later this week for a photo-heavy post full of images dripping with beauty. I hope as you view them, you let them take you away to paradise…even if for a moment.
There is always more to come.
Love,
Wife C
Hello beautiful people!
Sincerest apologies for our absence. Our hotel in Spain did not have the finest Internet connection.
I hope you were able to enjoy our trip via Instagram (@littlcosmicgirl). When we popped into little Cervezarias I would jump on their wifi and post some beauties of each day.
I cannot put into words how much we cherished this adventure. But for you, I will try!
Before I take you on this journey with us, I want to share with you how I am going to do so.
We spent 6 whole days in Europe, between Madrid and Toledo. I will post a couple of days at a time and throw in a story or two about the precious treasures we came back with and other extraordinary memories.
We tried to capture quintessential España within our photos, and I hope you soak up all the sunny brilliance through our images.
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I’ll start by showing you around our hotel room at Senator Gran Via. What an adorable room, let me tell you! Complete with fabulous crown molding and the most unexpectedly perfect shade of yellow that filled the walls. Get out of town!
Our view did not disappoint, either. Right in the heart of Madrid, the sounds and sights were out of a Meg Ryan movie. Again…quintessential.
We started our trip with our feet on the ground and ready to get out and see all that historic Madrid had to offer.
First stop is Plaza Mayor. We picked up our museum and metro passes for the week and started interacting with the locals. There are so many things to do and see. So much rich culture and so many amazing people.
A lot of the first day was filled with simple walks and seeing the pinnacle monuments, like the Metropolis. Which is indeed as breathtakingly beautiful as it looks. I die.
We ended our day on a rooftop bar, enjoying a cerveza and soaking in the unbelievable view.
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I am overjoyed to share these next few days with you. Prepare yourself for funny moments from Grandpa Lee and touching experiences with the whole family.
There is always more to come.
Love,
Wife C
Recently, there are been a lot of flower headbands out there in the universe. Some are big and flashy while others are boho and dainty. I’m obsessed with all of them! They speak to the flower child inside of me just dying to get out.
I’ve been making a few of my own. They’ll be making their debut in Spain next week!
How do you wear your botanical beauties?
Love,
Wife C
At my senior prom I was voted “Best Dressed” of my class. It’s really the only thing I’ve ever won and some of my friends like to tease me because I am a grown woman still yapping about high school.
But even though there was no trophy or anything more than my picture in the yearbook, it was very special to me and still is. It meant that the person I was portraying through my clothing was someone that my classmates admired.
I love clothes, putting together outfits is like a work of art in which you can express how you’re feeling. Take, for example, why people wear black to funerals and why a bride wears white on her wedding day. Colors and clothes matter.
I am fortunate that I have a husband that is actually jealous of my award from senior prom. He loves looking his best and we find oursleves bonding over a new trends.
With that being said, we have to start packing in advance when we go on trips and such. If we didn’t…it would be chaos.
We are leaving for Madrid, Spain next week and we could not be more excited! We’ve started to pack a few things and I wanted to fill you in on some of our essentials.
The weather is Spain is in the mid-eighties during the day then falls to mid-sixties in the evening and into the night time. So we need to prepare for anything.
When we went to Paris last year, it was freezing and raining. Unfortunately, that trip was more of a learning experience since we didn’t bring anything heavier than blazers. Needless to day, we will be ready for anything on this adventure. Swimmys and winter coats will both be coming with!
We both picked up some new kicks for our trip. We probably need more shoes like the beach needs sand but these were just too good, there was no way they were getting left behind.
My sweet mother-in-law always brings back a pair of huaraches for me from Mexico every time she visits. They’re so comfortable and absolutely the cutest shoes in the world! Can I just bring all of them??
Claudio loves his short sleeve button ups. Rightfully so, he looks so handsome in them! We both go through hat phases but I have to admit, his page-boy hat phase is my absolute favorite.
I am taking a lot of flowy, solid-colored items. I love the simplicity of textured solids. Articles like lace and tule are a gift form above.
How could I go anywhere without my trusty chambray? It literally goes with everything, in every season and will never go out of style. At least, not in my book.
Our clothes make us feel like we can show the world who we are without saying a word.
We will be posting more about our Spain adventures over the weekend and hopefully some photos while we’re there. It is going to be a beautiful experience.
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There is always more to come.
Love,
Wife C
Los Vallejos Blog 