Jullien Turns 21 Today!

My little boy man is 21 today, and is celebrating in Paris right now. He left on a two month trip to work/model with his agencies in Europe. He traveled to Germany and Spain already and is now in Paris and will end up in London before heading back to New York. So unfortunately I'm not able to celebrate this momentous occasion with him.

Jullien has always been my tenacious kid. He was born two weeks early and when he was not quite a year old we moved from California to Utah to be close to my family. Just as we arrived he became very sick and listless. We rushed him to the ER and it turned out he had pneumonia. It was really scary and we weren't sure if he was going to pull through; little did I know way back then...I had a little fighter on my hands (in more ways than one!) Luckily he came through it with only slight lingering lung weakness that appears whenever he gets the cold or flu (it drops straight to his lungs.)

Jullien was always a skinny, lanky kid but had a huge attitude to compensate. He would stand up to anyone who came at him or his brothers, his friends, or someone who was getting picked on. This served him well in sports. He was really talented at football, baseball, basketball, surfing and volleyballl. He had a never quit, never let anyone get you down or tell you that you can't do something attitude. He would push through any obstacle like a bulldozer. No one was going to hold him back from something he wanted or wanted to achieve.

During his Senior year he started at safety but was moved up to linebacker for Edison High School. He didn't look like your typical linebacker, but he hit like a freight train. No one could ever understand how he had so much strength. During one of Edison's practices, Jullien kept getting by one of the huge lineman and sacking the quarterback. The coaches began to yell at the kid for being unable to stop Jullien. After about the third or fourth time of getting beat, the 250+ lb kid charged Jullien after the play was over hitting him from behind and knocking him to the ground. Jullien...all 130 lbs of him went crazy on the kid, flipping him over and ended up on top of him punching him. They finally had to pull Jullien off the kid. He definitely earned the respect of the players and coaches and proved that the size of the player doesn't necessarily matter, it's what's on the inside that's important. I think that's when the coaches decided to move him from safety up to linebacker.

Jullien has applied that same perseverance to everything he does. I can honestly say that I admire his fearlessness; his ability to charge at an obstacle and conquer whatever is in front of him. I've been so blessed to have such a wonderful son who has not only a big personality but an even bigger heart!! So today on his 21st birthday...I've posted 21 pictures of my boy throughout the years. I want him to know how proud I am of him and how much I love him. Happy Birthday Jujy!! I love you and am so blessed call myself your mom.
Never stop chasing your dreams!!

 YOU"RE 21 WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey, It's Me!

I haven't updated on my son, Jullien Herrera, who is a model, (Red Model Mgmt) living the jet set life that I can only dream of. He recently returned to New York from Paris & Milan. This time around, I sent him off with a new camera (Christmas present that I told him is a must!) he was required to take pictures for me. He said it was really hard because he had so many castings and spent his time running around trying to find the places & communicate with the French and Italians for help.

Milan Agency-.Fashion-show card

Paris Agency-Marilyn MGM-show card

But he managed to take a whole day in Paris and said he got some AMAZING pictures for me. Unfortunately he dropped his laptop & now it wont turn on...so I'm still waiting for him to get it fixed and send me my pictures!

He has been to Paris before but this was his first time in Milan. As he stepped off the plane & walked through the airport, he was surprised to find this huge picture of a campaign he did for Sisley, shot by Terry Richardson, in the store window.

Jullien Herrera for Sisley Campaign
photo by: Terry Richardson

He said, it felt pretty cool and a little weird seeing his picture in Italy. He stopped to snap it with his camera phone to send to his mommy (yes I love it!).

Unfortunately he had to return a little earlier than expected, and wasn't able to do the Paris shows due to the passing of a friend that he went to High School with. He'd just hung out with her over Christmas. He was pretty shook up. He's had a lot of friends pass away and it never gets any easier to handle especially when kids are dying so young, and needlessly at the hands of prescription drugs and alcohol.

He's doing much better now and is back in New York with his girlfriend, Nichelle (also a model) and his comfort zone, which helps when you need support.

Jullien & Nichelle (Central Park last summer)

He's continuing to work and go on castings...New York Fashion Week's coming up.


more Sean John




photos by: Vincent Dilio

He will be heading off to Hong Kong in a few months...more pictures for me! yaya! What wonderful life experiences for my young 19 year old son!

Happy 19th Birthday Jullien

Today is my middle son Jullien's 19th birthday. It feels weird that he isn't here with us to celebrate, living so far away in New York leaves me with only my Blog to mark his special day.



Jullien was my shadow...never allowing me to leave his sight for a moment. He was always very sickly when he was little. He developed pneumonia before the age of 1 & seemed to have bronchitis & asthma problems forever after that. As weak as his health was, his inner strength more than made up for it. He had such a strong, determined will in EVERYTHING he did. He expected nothing but perfection from himself.

His athletic abilities made him the star of every team he was on, baseball, basketball & football. He pushed, until he surpassed his own personal expectations of his self. He was fearless, never shying away from a challenge & there were many. In baseball he always played up with kids 2 or 3 yrs. older than himself, even under those circumstances he made every all star team.

double click to view larger



One particular year, at 10 yrs. old playing on the 11 & 12 year old all star team, Jullien received his uniform with his name spelled wrong. He went into the dug out to tell one of the coaches, who smugly replied, "It doesn't matter anyways, you'll be sitting on the bench." The coach figured that he'd be strictly minimum player because he was so young. Well that comment made Jullien so angry. He said, "I'll show him!" And he did...he became the starting centerfielder & had the second highest batting average in entire District 62.

He continues to carry that complete determination & drive as an adult. When people tell him he can't accomplish something or isn't going to achieve his dreams for whatever reason...Jullien pushes harder. He has truly mastered the saying, "Never Say Never." When others doubt him, or he doubts himself, he digs deep down, turns to his faith & trust in the Lord, pushes, seeks, & perseveres beyond the doubts.

Jullien w/ Pete Carroll

Jullien Varsity Linebacker

vacation-Jalama Beach

modeling in NY

Calvin Klein Presentation

William Rast/Justin Timberlake Fall 2010 show

Hisham Oumlil Fashion Show

My son is an inspiration. His fearlessness & inner strength, encourages me to tackle the unknown, chase after the hidden impossible dreams within.

I'm so proud of my son & the man he's become!

HAPPY 19th BIRTHDAY JULLIEN! YOU ARE A SPECIAL GIFT FROM GOD IN MY LIFE!

I LOVE YOU!!

Jullien's Modeling Update

The jet setter is now back in New York after graduating High School, flying off to Paris for two and a 1/2 weeks, which made him pretty homesick. He feels very comfortable in NY and now realizes that he will have to actually move there. Which makes me sad but I'm so proud of him!

He has been booking several jobs~Look Books and magazine's, one coming out this month and another next month. He finally is getting pretty excited because the money is starting to come in. I'll put the link up once they're out for you to see.

He has also been getting tons of positive feedback from top designers, photographers and stylists telling him he is going to be HUGE! Yay...let's see those huge paychecks, mama needs a new pair of shoes...J.K. LOL!

In the meantime, here's a few photos:



















Calvin Klein