a walk through the park

we like to go for walks on sundays...even when it's 48 degrees outside. oh, we love the fall...but i want to cry thinking about winter. so we are enjoying every last bit of these beautiful days with the beautiful scene all around us.

lovin' the rolls

don't you wish this was still cute at 30?

so the other day i took pictures of this sweet baby girl. she belongs to one of my good friends. we had too much fun with ALL of her!!! i know my own super baby will soon follow in her footsteps...my babes tend to get very chunky and cute as well.

i just love taking pictures of babies. babes are really my favorite subject to shoot because every picture turns out great. babies look adorable with every little face they make.

spring has sprung

it's AMAZING to me how almost overnight blossoms and buds appear. it's truly REFRESHING. after such a LONG, COLD winter...spring is a BEAUTIFUL thing. before moving to ohio, i never really anticipated something as much as i do SPRING! i woke up this morning {with my windows open} to the sounds of various pitches and songs of different birds and the rustling of the wind blowing through the trees...it felt like i was still dreaming. so before the "april showers" came for the day, i took pictures of all the lovely things present in my yard testifying of an ohio spring. for as much as i don't like the cold and gray days in the winter, this TOTALLY makes up for it. i feel like spring and summer help ohio to redeem itself from a long, nasty winter. the spring, summer, and falls here are really a dream. i'm so pleased that we were able to get out of our little square of the earth in arizona, and come here to ohio. not only do i enjoy the seasons, but also friendships. i have met many people that i will call dear friends till the day i die. thanks, babe for moving us out here in pursuit of your dreams.

toes...

7 {seven} more weeks...and counting

i wish...

i took this picture of my friend's cute baby

{the good ole' mister stork brought babies to us}
because this whole pregnancy thing is REALLY hard
we have a baby on the way and due to arrive June 19, 2009
it's gonna be a LONG winter,
but it will be worth it!

things i remember about being pregnant:
*the nausea! YUCK! (all day EVERY day!)
*i want nothing to do with chicken
*cereal always tastes good
*i'm in bed by 8pm or the next day is bad news
*every task seems daunting
*i can't wear perfume or scented lotion or i'll never wear it again
*getting up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom
*i'm ALWAYS "thinkin' Arby's!"
*i pretty much want to die from 3pm until i fall asleep around 8:30pm
*i kind of want to die the other times of the day
*my stove is the only thing in my house that is clean (i don't use it!)
*i have to say "no" to lots of things, when i'm always a "yes" girl
*i cry a lot
*i pray a lot

things i forgot or didn't know:
*i'd show a lot sooner with my 3rd baby (i look way more pregnant than my friend who is 10 weeks further along than me)
*crocheting can help me muscle past the urge to vomit
*a 3-year-old and 5-year-old can do many things they claim they can't do when forced upon them
*i miss my moms! (i wasn't embarrassed to have my mom come help me clean or come help me with J, and just give me moral support...it's not the same over the phone)
*i have wonderful people in my life here that are like sisters. it's been amazing and it makes me feel so good that i have friends who call, email, take my kids, and even bring me dinner. it is SOOOO hard for me to accept service, but i really appreciate it! thanks for being my ohio family.
*it's amazing how messy a house can get only after one day of not picking up after the kids

all in all, i'll take all the bad with the good. when i look at my two little ones now, and on wednesday when i saw the heartbeat of my little-one-to-be, i'll suffer all that i have to for a healthy, beautiful baby. just the fact that our Heavenly Father entrusts the lives of these little ones to me is humbling and it gives me faith and strength to do hard things...and pregnancy is a REALLY hard thing for me.

so, no i haven't fallen off the face of the earth...i'm just growing a baby!

how we told our families

{we sent our immediate families this postcard}
the other side of the postcard said:

Trick or Treat,
Trick or Treat!
Our 8 foot family
Is growing 2 feet!
We're so excited
We could scream!
Our baby will be
Here on June 19!

oh dear, is it really that time again??

{don't worry! you didn't miss it!}

just simply click here
and go to 'pictures with santa' for AZ or OH.
PICTURES WILL BE IN OHIO ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22
ARIZONA ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25
due to time crunches, i only have one day in each location open this year, so sign up quick!

{be sure to sign up so santa will know EVERYTHING on your list}

***for my OHIO friends...i will be taking pictures with this santa this year for the first time! i'm very excited about it!!!

it's the hap-happiest time of the year!

sorry my blogger friends that it has been so long since i last updated. i just got back from az 2 nights ago, and i've been busy ever since. i was so busy in az too! i took about 45 different families pictures including all the pictures with santa. i love what i do, but i was a little too busy...matt says that next year i need to cut back....i think i will just stick with pictures with santa.

any hoo...this is one of my favorite pictures, not only b/c it's my kids and all my nieces and nephew, but because it shows a true variety of personalities, and stages of life.

jack - "mom, why are you making me do this?"
kyson - "why the heck are they all crying?"
grace - "i'm LOVIN' this, CHEESE!"
lily - "mimi, help me!!!"
carlee - "mom, put me down!"
claire - "who is this guy! WAHHH!"
camree - "this big chubby guy is not my daddy! WAHHH!!!"

isn't this the best?! LOVE IT!!! poor santa got his feelings hurt after this one!

i believe, i believe

it's hard to believe that christmas is just around the corner again! i love christmas. last year i started pictures with santa, and it is by far my favorite job i have ever done! it's kind of a fun story too as to how i got started...

last august, we were at the park and jack comes running up to me and says, "there's santa!" as he is pointing at this older gentleman who had long white hair and a beard...but no red suit. then jack asks, "can i go tell him that i want a superman bike for christmas?" how could i say no? it would totally crush him, and ruin his chances of believing in santa...so i let him go up to "santa" with hopes that the older fellow would humor my son.

well, "santa" did more than that..he took jack up on his knee and let jack tell him everything that he wanted for christmas, he did magic tricks with jack, sang jingle bells, and even told jack to listen to his mommy and daddy, say his prayers, and be a good big brother to gracie.

i was floored! i thought to myself, "this probably really is the real santa", or at least the "santa" i surely believed in until the 6th grade (don't make fun of me...i've always been a big dreamer and have a wild imagination). after talking to "santa" for a bit, i found out that being "santa" is his job for november and december and has been for the last 15 years. he said he has the best job in the world. now, being a photographer...the wheels in my head began turning. i asked him if he had ever done photo shoots. he said only at the mall. i then told him the idea i just thought of...to give families 20 whole minutes with the best santa ever, and sneek a few pictures in the process. he said he would love to. soooo, he made room for me in his very busy schedule and we made "pictures with santa" happen.

last year i filled 2 days and had the time of my life - and so did "santa". he said that in the 15 years he has been "santa", this was his favorite "gig". the children absolutely adored him, and he got every child to sit on his lap...he was so sweet and really worked with the children who were a little afraid. he sang songs, did magic tricks, and even snuck in a few kisses with the babies. some of the parents brought gifts for santa to give the kids, but he still had a bag for all the children anyway.

i feel truly blessed to know the real santa, and i can't wait to see what fun there is to have this year. i hope you all can come experience this wonderful man and start off your holiday season with a bang!

above is another adorable picture of santa with my cousin's daughter...

and just because i love you...all of you who come to my blog...if you click on the ad on the right of my blog, and pay there...you get $10 off. i know it's still not the cheapest thing ever, but it's his job and mine. also...if you think about what you would pay for 1 5x7 at the mall ($15), plus a fake-bearded santa, plus only 1 minute to sit on his lap while the rest of the mall watches, plus you don't get to have the digital negatives to have forever and turn into the best christmas card EVER! whew...

hope to see you there!

a fairy princess

i found some cool new brushes, and decide to make this picture a little bit more fun and magical.....

i LOVE photoshop! i let my creative juices flow, and have a ball!

a simple life

well this weekend we went to amish country and saw many beautiful and interesting things. i admire them in many ways. i think we can learn a lot about them and their life style. they really believe in a "simple life" and in not trying to be better than all those around them, but equals. all their houses and land was pristine and beautiful. everything was so neat and clean and it's apparent that they take great pride in the upkeep of their homes, land, and country.

as we were there i couldn't help but think back to the tragedy several months back when that milk man that delivered to an amish community in pennsylvania and was grieved at the loss of his baby girl, and went and held hostage the girls at school and then killed and wounded them. i remember reading about how the amish community forgave that man and mourned for his family. this example was the ultimate story of forgiveness and christ-like love.

as i watched these people in wonder, i had nothing but respect for them and their culture. i thought how many times i make life way more difficult than needs be...to the amish the most important part of life is their family. if everyone is this world even just followed them in this one aspect, the world would be a drastically better place.
this was a general store in amish country that we went to with matt's parents and brother, rob, who came in town for the weekend (see next post). they had lots of cool toys and other nifty odds and ends.

galoshes

yesterday it rained all day here in mesa! (we needed it so bad...we always need it). our backyard was practically flooded today, and the kids wanted to go play in the puddles. lucky for them they had these fabulous rain galoshes! they both love their "boots". they wear them everywhere. we went to the doctor on wednesday to have the kids' well checks (gracie's 18 month...she's 22 1/2 months & and jack's 3 year...he'll be four in july - at least we got there!) anyway...the doctor said, where are your froggie and lady bug boots? my kids normally always wear them (yes, i let them wear them in public...i learned in one of my early childhood development classes at byu that if you let kids have some freedom in their apparel then they grow up more creative, and creativity leads to smartness...or something like that!) i know my kids are smart because they have huge heads! the doctor told us that jack is in the 95 percentile for height, weight, and off the charts for head! (he basically has a head the size of a 6 year-old) gracie, she said was a bit of a runt weighing in at the 45 percentile for height and weight, but her head was in the 95 percentile. i started thinking that with a big head and a little body, she's a bit of a lolly pop! my doctor said that the head is shaped the way the brain is...so big heads equal big brains. also, big brains are linked with higher intelligence...so there you go. let your kids wear galoshes and don't be sad if they have huge heads. i like to make the same jokes made on "so i married and ax murderer"...head, it's got its own weather system...it's like an orange on a toothpick. i love my 95th percentile headed children! I love how this picture shows their knees. jack has such short legs that gracie's knees and his are almost at the same level.

happy valentines

i love valentine's day. i think that i love it because my birthday is the day after. i feel that february is the month of love. so give love away...it always comes back.