enJOYing the little things . . .

Can you believe

that this young lady had been in the ER getting stitches right before I took these photos of her family? Tate was a total trooper and also happens to be one of my former students. :o)

Tate's parents are so photogenic, taking their solo pics was a piece of cake!

   

One of my favorites from our session. I wasn't sure how everyone would feel about baring their feet for photos, but these guys were totally willing and I'm so glad they were! Love their expressions in this shot.

 

Couldn't let the family dog feel left out. He was incredibly well-behaved when it was his turn!

 

And finally a more traditional family photo, the kind that's perfect Christmas card material. 

 

*Tate and family - thanks for the fun session and for the hot chocolate! Can't wait to show you guys all the rest of your pictures.

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I'll be spending the next few days cooking and cleaning, preparing for the 25 people that will be spending Thanksgiving dinner at my house. I will also be mentally preparing for Black Friday because I am one of those crazy lunatics who will be up before the sun hoping to score several hot deals at Target.

Happy week!

Baby Mia

Congratulations to our good friends Joann & Jere on their beautiful baby girl! My kids are excited that their circle of friends has grown, although it will be awhile before they can actually hang out and play with their new friend. Baby Mia was celebrating her two week birthday when I took these photos.

Big sister was oh-so-sweet and gentle with her baby sister.

A fun angle of Baby Mia, safe and sound in her daddy's arms.

In six weeks

one of my childhood friends will be getting married. My sister and I have known Rachel since we were in diapers. We have experienced countless childhood memories together - sleepovers, carpooling, scary movies, camping, silly games like truth or dare, boy crushes, sneaking out of second story windows (LOL) . . . seems like it all happened in a blur! Rachel has been dating Sean for as long as Ronald and I have been married (!), and I am truly honored that I get to be a special part of their wedding day.

 

  

     

Happy Things

Wanted to share a few of my current favorites:

• Jill McDonald's Show and Tell blog. She is hands-down one of my favorite artists. Love her stuff.
• The Holiday - I watched it three times last month. Darn cable! I'm hoping Santa leaves me a copy of this movie in my stocking this Christmas.
• Origins' Smileage Plus Liptint in Organic Plum - I'm really picky about my lip balms/glosses, so discovering this little gem has made me really happy. It's not thick or waxy, goes on smoothly, smells like limes and leaves a hint of color.
• Häagen-Dazs coffee ice cream - so yummy! Their Baileys Irish Creme flavor is to die for, but unfortunately it's not available in grocery stores. Boo.
• Real Simple. Real Life. - I have loved Real Simple magazine for years, and now I am a fan of the show. It's nice to know there are other women who struggle with the same issues that I have.
• Speaking of Real Simple, I receive their Daily Thoughts in my inbox. I was really loving the quotes from the past two weeks. Here are the ones I really really struck a chord with me:

        The purpose of life is a life of purpose. — Robert Byrne

        The love we give away is the only love we keep. — Elbert Hubbard

        Joy is the best makeup. — Anne Lamott

        Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine. 
        — Anthony J. D'Angelo

        They cannot take away our self-respect if we do not give it to them. 
        — Mahatma Gandhi

• Game night - Cadence & Clark are really big into playing board games. Makes me happy because I really loved playing board games as a kid. My favorites were Chutes & Ladders, Candyland, Life and Monopoly. I created this layout for one of last month's weekly challenges on Two Peas. The challenge was to scrap a fun family activity and I decided to scrap our family's love of playing board games.

 

Happy November!