Hiiii, girls! ❤️

Welcome back for another week here on my blog!

This time, I'm writing to you surrounded by family ❤️ My youngest son, André — the true king of giveaways — won a weekend for ten people at @casalima, in Braga. And it's not just any house... it's none other than my dear friend Dora Lima's. What a dream house: huge, spacious, beautiful! The result? The whole family came: aunts, cousins, nieces, brothers, sisters... it was simply amazing 🙏🥰

The weather helped immensely, and yesterday, we spent hours by the pool, with music, laughter, cocktails, and slushies prepared by my sister. The kids? They didn't even feel the cold 🥶 — they were swimming all day long 🥰

As for the menu:

  • Friday: pizza night made by my brother-in-law Fábio 🍕

  • Saturday: breaded cutlets and salads for lunch 🥗
    Since my mother celebrated her 70th birthday on May 13th, we took the opportunity to celebrate all together, with a dinner-style snack worth mentioning: codfish fritters (my daughter-in-law Ilda's specialty 🥰), shrimp, cheeses, cured meats... and of course, the famous Espadal 😂😂😂

And yes, even being from Porto, I can't help but congratulate Sporting on their victory. Fair is fair!

Today, to conclude with a flourish:
Another barbecue, again led by Chef Fábio 😂😂😂 Right now I'm writing with that lump in my throat... nostalgia has already hit. Good times always pass quickly 😩😩😩

Since today is election day, we have to go back earlier. Fortunately, everyone here voted early last week — duty done!

I take this opportunity to thank my André once again for managing to bring the whole family together like this ❤️

More news...
This week we had a new addition to the Carla Valente team! With Carina's sudden departure due to health reasons, we were forced to restructure the team. Phew... what a hassle! It would make three blogs just about that.

But, back to the beginning: Sara joined, an experienced collaborator who, it seems, is doing very well. So well that, with only 4 days in the store, she was left alone with Ari — and guess what? They managed wonderfully! 👏 Thank you, girls!

I sincerely hope that everything stabilizes this time. I really need time to be creative. I spend 8 hours in the store, and then there are still videos to record, collections to check... I'm exhausted. And when the body is tired, creativity also disappears 😩😩😩

But I believe everything will be fine. Despite the setbacks, 2025 has been light and has already brought fantastic people into my life ❤️

Soon, I'll share more news 🥰

I wish you an excellent rest of your Sunday!
Keep following us on social media and on our website too!

Thank you for being there 😇
A kiss to your hearts 💕

With love,
Carla Valente