hello kitty birthday party (for my THREE year old girlies)

my baby girls turned three last week

so we celebrated with family on the actual day

then, once the weekend rolled around, we threw a hello kitty party for them

that was dreamt up, planned out and executed from beginning to end in six days total

yep, you read that right.

i totally dropped the planning ball this year

but our family is awesome and they blessed us with so much help in order to pull it off

some highlights from the party:

- the dark chocolate coconut cake topped with coconut buttercream + shredded coconut
(best cake i've ever made, hands down)

- lemon yogurt cupcakes topped with raspberry buttercream

(a big thank you to my sister-in-law for that flavor combination tip!)

- PINK foods 

(because, when you have three year old girls, a good chunk of your life is dedicated to the color pink)

- a crazy addicting sweet n salty popcorn concoction

- a laughter-filled game of pin the bow on the kitty

aaaaand it wouldn't have been as sweet without all the wonderful people

who gave up their Saturday morning to help us celebrate

so thank you family,

and thank you friends
my girlies are well loved, that's for sure

so, without further ado, some (err--lots of) photos:

hello, 2015

happy new year, friends!

i cannot believe 2014 has come and gone

by now, i'm sure you've heard about a bajillion other people say the same thing

(it's not just me, right?)

so i'm going to join the chorus

'cause the latter half of 2014 especially has been a complete and total blur:

a search for a new home

then a move

(thank you, Jesus - always providing just the right thing at just the right time!)

***

a frenzy of s-l-o-w unpacking

mingled with a couple visits from family

(my first time ever hosting people in our home!)

***

my first opportunity to second shoot a wedding

(one of these days, i'll pull together and share some favorites of those images)

***

my sister-in-law's wedding

(hooray, we're so happy for them!)

***

travel, travel and more travel

***

six family birthdays

***

a big Christmas trip

***

my photography business picking up

***

preparations for a two special someones turning three this week

...those are just a few highlights since the crazy began in September,

so i shouldn't be surprised that the whole family is now sick

and the tantrums have kinda hit an all time high

(if you are my neighbour and are reading this, please feel bad for and forgive us...!)

yesterday was particularly rough, 

but today is a new day

and i've decided to hang on to the moments in between the not-so-pretty ones

like these, from a rare half hour or so of quietness and cuddles in our house yesterday

also, i saw this quote a while back

(i can't remember where, so if someone knows who i can give credit to, please fill me in!)

and used it to make a desktop background for my laptop

that has been a great source of encouragement

so if you're feeling a bit frazzled today, 

or if, like me, you are in a season that feels so over your head

here are my two cents for you:

1)  sift out and hang on to the good moments

2)  lean in, hang on to and trust Jesus.  

even if you can't seem to find any good moments, 

know that He loves you, 

He is in control

 and His grace is enough to get you through

cast your cares upon him; He will sustain you and give you rest