{Pish Posh Girls!}

Busy.  That's been my life (I know it's a word most everyone can use to describe life today).  Nothing new just repeating myself.  I've begun an new business venture to add to my repertoire.  I'm crazy I know - but a few nights ago I woke up at 1am and couldn't go back to sleep.  My mind was racing...it wouldn't stop and I came up with some business ideas that I'm ridiculously excited about!  I wish I didn't need any sleep at all so I can just create, work and accomplish the goals I have for my current and new business venture.  This new business direction is catered toward helping other photographers....design stuff.  Stuff I love, but haven't had time or energy to think about.  I'm working on a new blog for it and I'm soooo excited for it's release, but it may be a while since I'm in the middle of lots of projects!  One is working with the many talented designers that I'm so lucky to have an opportunity to photograph and work with (something I never want to stop doing).  I'm so excited that I got to work with the amazing talent behind Pish Posh Girls, Laura Owens.  She founded her clothing company based on her obsession for beautiful fabrics, colors and stylish interiors.  She's created some of the most beautiful heirloom quality pieces.  And let me say first hand, these heirloom quality dresses are made with amazing attention to detail.  The colors she's chosen for this part of her clothing business is perfection.  I really can't say enough about her work.  I'm truly amazed by the talent I come in contact with and I feel so lucky.  Check out her boutique.  Note:  The dress Brielle is wearing is limited so keep that in mind if your interested in ordering this particular dress.

{Happy Heart Day!}

It's Valentine's Day!  It's been fun, festive, sugar filled and it's done.  Have I told you how much I love celebrations?  I love them.  I will celebrate anything and everything right now since my kids eat it up and so do I.  It makes life fun and hopefully makes wonderful memories for my kids.  We began the day giddy, excited for school - gathering our treats and teachers gifts and heading out the door ready for classroom parties.  Tyler had a 'Publishing Party' first thing in the morning - he's been busy studying Tyrannosaurs Rex Dinosaurs for the past three weeks.  Then there was a parade at school - the 4th graders made floats of each county in Arizona and revealed them in the parade.  The kids loved it.  Finally it was Brielle's class party.  The hair image shown below is a little girl's in Brielle's classroom.   Her mom is sooo creative and does the cutest things to her daughters' hair.  I had to snap a shot of the heart she made out of braids - how clever!  Once we got home we got the party started at home.  I was as excited as they were.  I made a scavenger hunt for them and in the end they found a little gift (markers with roller stamps on the ends).  They loved it so much they created 5 more scavenger hunts for me!  Yep, for me!!  So sweet and so fun to see their cute clues.  Then we sat down to a special dinner.  Brielle is just like me....she loves presentation.  She was so excited about the place settings she didn't want to unwrap the silverware of its twine.  She requested ones from the drawers so she wouldn't mess up the one next to her plate.  After our tummies were full we got started on making sugar cookies for some friends.  Brielle made almost the whole thing herself and Tyler sampled the dough giving his thumbs up before he left the kitchen to play with the puppy.  Jeff got home late :( but he was sure to give the sleeping kids kisses when he got home. Some to me too :).  Hope you had a great Valentine's Day with you and your family.

{hearts, candy & sweet cheek smiles}

Oh Valentine's Day is almost here!!  Are you as excited as I am?  Not for the gifts . We don't do gifts - my hubby & I.  Instead we make it a fun celebration for the kids.  I had sooooo many ideas for crafting, gifting, ect. but business commitments didn't allow any time for all the things brewing in my head to experiment and play with (boo hoo) :(  But we are getting ready for tomorrow around here. We have garland strung, valentine cards filled out, teachers gifts made (or in the process), baking, and drawing.  We'll be up late tonight :)  The kids love it!!  Tomorrow Jeff is working late so the kids and I are going to have a special dinner together.  We're going to make placemats, light candles, and eat heart shaped foods.  Most likely we'll make mini-heart shaped homemade pizzas so the kids and put whatever toppings they want on their pizza :) & a green salad - not sure how to make that with a Valentine flair but I'll think of something.  And for desert, we'll enjoy the heart shaped sugar cookies we made today.  Ty & Brielle can't wait!  Me too!

Well I hope you're day is full of wonderful moments with your family & loved ones.  Happy Valentine's Day to you all.

{desert sunset with an itty bitty newborn}

I've got newborns on my mind today since I'm photographing one later this afternoon.  I love newborns - their so squishy, squeaky, scrunchy!  And I get my newborn fix when I get to photograph them.  Ah... I miss that stage.  It was a hard stage but I loved every minute of it.  I knew my babies would grow in a blink of an eye and now I'm a mom of an 8 year old and 5 year old.  How did that happen?!  Each stage goes by so quickly yet when you're in it, sometimes it feels like a lifetime {the sleepless nights, the rocking -that I miss so much now, house chores wearing my baby in the Bjorn}.  New moms, treasure these times because you will miss them {really, you will}.  I do.

Not to long ago I photographed this little newborn and his family.  We ended our session with some family photos in the desert nearby.  Sadly this desert is no longer...they've cleared it to build houses :(  My heart sank when I saw that my favorite little desert space was gone - I know, there's a lot more desert around here.  But this was one I had grown to love.  So now these photos are even more special to me since they are the last pictures I have of this beautiful desert area...and I was lucky that I got to photograph this beautiful baby their.

{Curly Gurly Couture}

It's already February (wow, that came upon us fast!) and I'm excitedly getting ready for Valentine's Day.  Not for me but for my kids.  I've never totally understood the romantic aspect of it as an adult since I feel like everyday is and should be special with the one you love.   But for kids I think it's such a fun, happy holiday!  My ideas are brewing for crafts, gifts and decorations.  So hopefully in my next post I'll be able to share that with you :)

I'm so excited to share this next designer with you!!  Her name is Gina and she's also an amazing photographer out of St. Louis Missouri!  She's expanded her talent with the creation of Curly Gurly Couture, where you can find lots of her girly creations!  Her hair accessories are gorgeous {unique, well made and with a mix of textures}, she also makes the cutest vintage lace topped leggwarmers!  I fell in love when I got her package and became an immediate fan!  I love her style.  It's exactly the look I lean toward and love- her vision & creativity rocks!  Check out her store and her Facebook page where she features the latest accessories, specials and Curly Gurly Couture news.  She's currently out of the leg warmers shown below the last one was just sold but she has many more of styles, colors and designs to choose from in her shop.  :)

{Polk-a-dots}

The weather changed yesterday.  We went from 80 degrees, clear and sunny - BBQed, swam and spent this weekend outdoors.  Then yesterday, the it all changed and I welcomed it.  It was cold, rainy and so cozy inside.   I had my fireplace going and of course when the kids got home we splurged (as we always do when it rains) and had hot chocolate and marshmallow {heart shaped ones}.  The kids were giddy, as was I.  I celebrate the rain.  I celebrate the cooler weather.  To me, it's not winter unless it's cold, raining & snowing: I embrace 4 seasons, I yearn for 4 seasons.  So this week is supposed to be a little bit cooler and I'm not complaining (except when my fingers are numb and I can't warm up...then I'll just hop in the bath tub to thaw out).

Speaking of changes in weather...Kait Emerson has the some cute designs out right now that are perfect for winter & for spring!  I'm so luck to have worked with the talented Feanna, owner of Kait Emerson Designs for the past few years.  She always has me giddy with excitement when I open her packages.  Look at what's in her stores right now.  Brielle begs to wear the polk-a-dotted number all the time.  I'm surprised it doesn't have holes in it from all the washing it's been through.  Check out what's new in her shop.  She also posts her latest designs, specials and other news on her Facebook page.

{Little Milla}

**Squeal** Look at this little doll-faced cutie!  Milla and her mommy (my cousin) came all the way out to AZ from Seattle to do a photo session.   Okay....not really.  Her mom lives here so when she was planning her trip out here she booked a session!!   I was so excited to see her and baby Milla!   She wasn't a fan of all the dirt AZ has to offer but she did fall in love with the citrus fruit.  It kept her entertained - enough to even put a little pretty on her head (she pulls everything that's on her head off immediately) for about 3 minutes :).   I wished we could've visited more but next time Reid's in town (this was a quick visit), we'll get all the kids together and have some pool time!  I miss being so close to my cousins in Seattle -- makes me miss the NorthWest even more.   Sigh... :)  That just means I'll have to visit more often.

{getting ready for Spring with Eliza Kate & Nuxiemade}

Is it still snowing where you are?  I take that back, don't tell me.  I'm a four seasons kinda girl so jealousy will ensue ;-)  Since I'm in Arizona I'm living vicariously through other friends photos in the cold, white snow and I'm taking many trips out of town to trick my body into thinking I'm living in a four season kinda world.  My body & mind aren't easily tricked but I'm having fun visiting many wintery wonderlands.  Here in the land of the sun it's been 75 degrees so it's preparing us for an early Spring.  And with Spring coming soon Eliza Kate has some ADORABLE new designs coming out.  And Nuxiemade has a new hat design (my favorite design so far!). I get so excited when we get to work Krystin & Melissa.  Their work is amazing, they collaborate so perfectly and I love how their styles coordinate so well!!  Melissa's hat can be found along with many others in her shop.  Check them out.  Eliza Kate Designs is introducing this new Spring inspired peasant dress , should be popping up in her store soon.  The colors she chose coupled with the peasant style design make for a perfect sunny day dress.  It's in Brielle's closet right now begging to be warn again.  I think this week with the temps creeping up B will be giddy to wear it again.  She's  a girly-girl - very into dresses, ruffles and anything 'pretty'.  Thank you Eliza Kate & Nuxiemade for sharing your talent and your 'pretties' with me.  xoxo.

{last night they understood}

Last night my children understood… We were sitting at the table eating dinner and talking about babies.  Somehow the conversation had me casually answering a question mentioning that I was adopted (something I thought would go over their heads since we’ve mentioned it before in front of the kids).  Tyler and Brielle froze, their eyes popped out of their heads and their jaws dropped. ‘You’re adopted’ they both barely got out.  It wasn’t even a question, it was a realization.  They were in shock.  Oh my gosh, they can't get it?  They won't get it?  Do they get it?  My heart was racing confused, surprised and not prepared for their reaction.

Me: ‘Do you know what being adopted means?’.

Brielle: ‘ Yes, it means your mom didn’t want you’.

Tyler piped in ‘um yeah, they left you – right?’.

I couldn’t help but giggle.  I wondered how they knew that.  So I asked.

‘On Annie, she was left too'  they answered.

Ah-ha – that’s right, we watched the movie ‘Annie’ about a month ago and we talked about Annie’s biological parents and why she was in an orphanage.

Brielle thought for a minute and said, ‘who adopted you?’

Then Tyler asked, ‘Did you have a name before you were adopted?’

Me:  ‘No, no name’.

Tyler: ‘Then what did your mom call you when you were in her tummy?  Baby?  Honey Buns?’

We all laughed at that.  Many more questions were asked and answered.  I’m so surprised they understood and were so interested.  They wanted to know everything.  I gave them all the answers I knew and we pondered the ones I didn’t know.  I explained that my birth mom loved me so much that she wanted a better life for me and gave me up.   That it was extremely self-less and took tremendous strength.  The questions and answers went on.

Then Brielle later said with persuasion,  ‘ Mommy, I think I was adopted’.

Me: Why?

Brielle: ‘Because I don’t remember being born and being in your tummy’.  ‘Yeah’, she sighed ‘I think was adopted’.

I assured her she wasn’t, but somehow she’s still convinced she’s adopted.

{Boston & Chicago - Winter Wonderland}

I've been away so much this month.  Where?  Well one of the trips was to one of the most beautiful cities in the states!  Boston!  I love it there!  I hadn't been in 10 years so this was truly a treat.  My husband had some business there so he asked me along.  I jumped at it!  But what about the kids right?  Well we're lucky to have such wonderful grandparents close-by, they stayed with the kids!  We owe them big for all they do for us and the kiddos.  Anyway, Jeff and I left on a Saturday morning for our snowy adventure!  It was cold and snowing when we landed - I was in heaven even though I couldn't feel my hands or feet and my face was numb.  This to me was 'winter', winter in a big-beautiful-historic city.  Our long underwear came in handy since we walked or took the 'T' everywhere.  What a cool city!  It seems I only travel to big cities in January.  In January of 2010 I visited Chicago for the first time.  It was A-MAZ-ING!  Everyone thought I was crazy for visiting in the midst of their freezing weather, but I was thrilled to be there.  I don't think I ever shared those pictures on my blog - so I share those here too.  :)  First up - Boston in the winter!

{Below:  I couldn't resist the lines in the two photos below.  This door was on an unmarked building on Commonwealth.  I loved it.  And the escalator was in the tunnel on the way to the 'T'}

{below:  random alley that I liked in Government Center (I think) and the statute of the soldier below was in that alley in front of a bar.  I liked him :)}

{below:  in Little Italy - a cool street sign.  On that same street we noticed silverware in the cement  on the stoop of an Italian Restaurant.  Cool hu?}

{above:  'T' Sign - we got to know those well.  Their transportation system made life so easy there.  I wish every big city had such a slick system.}

{below:  The 'T' - notice that the guys on the right are in their underwear...they were musicians playing at the station.  I'm still not sure why they were in their underwear. Entertainment everywhere in Boston.}

{below:  the beautiful Capital, just off Boston Commons}

{above:  random narrow alley - cool lines.  below:  one of the many places I want to live in Boston.  Doesn't this look cool and quaint?  Sigh....}

{below:  we stopped for breakfast 2 mornings at this great little dinner on Beacon Hill - The Paramount.  So yummy.}

{below:  view from the Institute of Contemporary Art.  I sat in this area of the building for over an hour.  So therapeutic.}

{below:  the Holocaust Memorial.  So sad, yet so beautiful.  The lines on the tall pillars (there were 6 pillars) were the serial numbers of the victims who were killed.}

{below:  random splashes of color on the waterfront}

{below:  Jeff and I named this wondering boom-box carrying man - the 'boom-boom man'. We saw him several times in the Public Garden carrying his beach-scene-painted boom box, blasting his tunes.  We couldn't make out what he was listening to.  Entertainment a-plenty lol.}

{below:  Artsy building among the beautiful brownstone on Commonwealth}

{below:  used books liked the exterior walls of a second hand book store Jeff and I stopped at.  :)}

Next are pictures of Chicago - Winter 2010.  Another city I love and can 't wait to visit again!!  So amazingly beautiful!!

{below:  The Carousel on the Navy Pier had such an eerie look, slowly moving with empty seats.  It was begging to be photographed}

{Below:  Man fishing in the ice off the Navy Pier.  They were catching alots of fish on this cold winter day}

{Below:  the next several images are taken from the Sears Tower. What a fun experience!  I walked a few miles in the freezing cold to get to the Sears tower.  I was numb by the time I got there but it was 100% worth it!}

{Below:  'American Gothic'.  Such a pretty setting for this statue.  They moved it shortly after I left Chicago and brought it to....guess?  Mesa, Arizona!  Really.  I need to photograph it here since that's where I live. Crazy how that happened}

{below:  Cemetery that was calling me off the freeway on the way back to our hotel.  I thought it was beautiful.}