celebrating one: the decor

so i mentioned in my last post 

that even though i didn't get too many pictures of the girlies' first birthday party on the day of

i did get to snap some photos of the decorations the next day  

you know, to remember what it all looked like twenty years down the road ;)

plus, Daniel, my sister and i DIY-ed quite a bit for the party

which made it that much more special.  

anyway, as you can probably tell, the color scheme was turquoise, navy blue and white 

and the overall theme was burlap and lace
it was pretty and girly and everything i had hoped it would be
hooray for pretty birthday parties! 

celebrating one: the party

i totally didn't want to be that crazy mom 

who goes nuts for her kids first birthday

but i kinda did

and to be honest, i'm kinda glad i did

what i'm not so glad about

is that i was so worked up / busy / scatterbrained

that i didn't get too many photos during the party

i did, however, get a few

and then a couple more the next day

(my sister and i spent way to many late nights on those decorations to let them go unpictured!)

in fact, i think i tried to make up for the night of by taking a bazillion and one afterwards

(which i'm still going through)

but i've left you guys hanging for a bit now, 

so here's are a couple to tide you over

don't worry - there's more to come!

thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate our littles turning ONE

we felt truly blessed and honored  - y'all are the best!

throwback thursday

k...so if you are on my facebook or follow me on instagram
you know that earlier this week,
i promised a post on last weekend's birthday festivities for the girlies

obviously, that hasn't happened yet
and i'm going to have to dash your hopes once more
because i've had some uber whiny baby girls on my hands
(and in my lap, and in my bed, and hanging off my back, and everything in between)
not sure what's going on, but whatever it is has required a lot of extra mommy cuddles
which is keeping me from getting too much done outside of the bare necessities
it's been painfully frustrating at times, but i know that this too shall pass

in the meantime, i'm at least trying to enjoy the extra snuggles
on the plus side, i have been able to steal a few minutes here and there
to go back through some of my images
and pick a couple of favorites to use in the photography portfolio i've got in the works

since i want to specialize in maternity / newborn / family photography
i pulled up my sister's maternity shoot to look through
i can't believe little mr. B was all wrapped up in that belly of hers
and now he's out and about,
eating solids, working on that tooth collection, etc - our bodies are truly amazing!

My Valentine

i never was one to get all lovey dovey ooey gooey

but since daniel walked into my life, something's changed...

...i've gotten girlier

and so, rather than fight it - i'm just going with it

(if you can't beat 'em, join 'em --right?)

with that said, i'm serving up a fresh, ooey gooey, dose of valentines mush today

because it makes that girly side of me very happy 

(consider yourself warned)  

ahem

i love his eyes

how they shift colors: sometimes an intense blue; sometimes a mellow green; sometimes a kind, soft grey

i love his smile

it's contagious and reassuring all at once

i love his hands

they fit mine just right and can give a mean foot rub

i love his sense humor

witty, sarcastic, dry and yes, even silly sometimes

i love that he chooses whole wheat english muffins instead of bagels, 

low sodium soy sauce instead of the regular stuff, 

and plain cheese pizza instead of pepperoni

just because he knows that's what i would prefer

i love that he's smart, and logical and everything i'm not

that he balances me out,

often seems to know me better than i know me, 

and calms me down when i get a little loopy

nine valentine's days ago, 

we were "just friends" 

who made plans to study for a midterm that we had the next day

only to read over a few notes then head to the beach

for one of the coldest walks of my life

but i didn't really mind

something tells me he didn't either

i think back to that "date" every year around this time and smile

here's to nine valentines, daniel ...and many more to come!

***

k - here's your reward for putting up with my mush:

a fun, catchy tune to celebrate the day!

also, no valentines day is complete 

without some pink mixed in 

so here's some pink, cuddly sister-time for you

happy Vday!

Little Mr T // Surrey Newborn Photographer

weekends are pretty awesome

spending time with the fam, 

getting to visit with friends, 

having an extra hand with the kiddos...

yep, pretty much the best

this weekend was extra special because i did my first official photoshoot!

that's right, i got to spend saturday morning 

with the most mellow little gentleman

he was super patient as i snapped away

and when he did decide enough was enough

a few snuggles with his big sis, who was my "assistant" for for the morning,

bought us a few more shots

i'm so happy with how they turned out

and so grateful for his family, who were so relaxed

thanks for trusting me with your little one's pictures - it was a pleasure!

#myday

i'll admit it,

some days i'm a bit of an instagram addict

i just love taking pictures

and looking through other people's pictures

and being visually and creatively inspired

and being able to share my ordinary, everyday tidbits, just like that? 

sold!

today was one of those heavy instagramming days

(funny, how language has developed around culture - instagramming? googling? ten years ago, people wouldn't know what i meant by those terms, but nowadays - i bet most of you didn't skip a beat when you read that last line!)

so i thought it might be fun to share my day on here too, 

since not everyone is as insta-crazed as i am. 

started the day off by making juice, in an effort to pack in as many cold-fighting vitamins as we can

...we're sick of being sick around here!

ordered a copy of the girls' blurb book for my mom and it came in today

i know i'm biased, but i love, love, LOVE it!  

totally worth the late nights pulling images together and piecing the thing together.  

i haven't ordered my own copy yet, because i've got a lot of extras to add in mine (like their letters from on here), which i've yet to do.  

but if you're interested, you can see an online copy of the current book here.  

we also felt well enough to go out for a walk in the afternoon and enjoy some of the beautiful sunshine, much to this little girl's delight.  

lastly, i got to spend a few minutes reading my Bible today  

my new testament reading was in Hebrews 5, 

and a couple of verses (7 and 8, to be exact) really struck me

"In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death and he was heard because of his reverence.  Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered."

i've read Hebrews lots of times before, 

but today, it suddenly struck me that even Jesus didn't always get a "yes" answer to prayer every time

and it made for such an encouragement 

 to know that He understands our situations,

even (or maybe especially) when we're crying out to the Lord

to change our situation

to remove whatever pain or trial we're currently facing 

it was a good reminder that although we may not get the "yes" answer we're looking for,

we can be sure that all things work together for His ultimate glory and our ultimate good.

how uplifting is that?

healthy chocolate peanut butter "pudding"

you know those days
when 3 o'clock rolls around,
your stomach's rumbling
and you're fighting the urge to down an entire bag of chocolate chips?

yea, i get those days more often than i'd like to admit
especially now with the girlies around;
since i don't often get a decent lunch in
and my blood sugars go all wonky
so that i end up craving something sweet
when what i really need is real food

and while this is far from a real, wholesome meal
it does dole out a hefty dose of protein
and satisfies my sweet tooth
in one fell swoop
it's like pulling a bait and switch on yourself for your own good!

you really do have to try this,
it's possibly be my best "raid the pantry / fridge" snack to date
and it's so simple, i wouldn't even call it a "recipe" (double bonus!)

healthy chocolate peanut butter "pudding"

1/3 cup nonfat greek yogurt
1 scoop vanilla protein powder 
(I used Trader Joe's brand, leftover from being preggo!)
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
1 tbsp agave nectar
a twist or two of Trader Joe's Sugar, Chocolate and Coffee Bean grinder (optional)

- dump all ingredients except the sugar/chocolate/coffee bean bits into a mini prep and blend until combined, stopping to scrape down sides if necessary

- top with ground sugar/choc/coffee mixture

tada - that's it!  it turns out super velvety and smooth, almost like a mousse (but not quite thick enough to pass for one) and tastes like peanut butter cup heaven.