Sunday Spotlight

Motherhood - Adjusting to this role as "mother" as been real hard for me for some reason, but every day I seam to fall more and more in love with these two blue-eyed kids! Yesterday I went to the General Relief Society Conference where four great talks were given. As I listened to these great speakers I got thinking this "Cheesy Mormon Mom" I've been so afraid of becoming is actually what makes me such a successful mom! Also, Pres. Thomas S. Monson said "Don't pray for tasks equal to your abilities, but pray for abilities equal to your tasks." This is great advice for anyone, but for me it was just what I needed to hear at this point in my life. What I mostly have to say is that I am so grateful to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints because it's standards are magnificent, it's gospel peaceful, and the joy and happiness of it all is the end to which I wish to live my life!

Miss Shower Cap

Today I found Liv jumping on my bed wearing my shower cap & it was just too cute so I had to grab the camera and take a couple pictures. Ironically enough it was one of the rare moments Liv actually wanted to pose for me, so I got a little camera happy, but isn't she just the cutest... shower cap and all!?

Bridals

Our wireless router has been on the fritz so I've had limited internet access thus the lack of posts, but life definitely had not been so limited... A couple weeks ago I took out my life-long friend, Laura, for her bridal pictures. This'll be the first wedding I've ever done professionally, what an adventure! I had a lot of fun, but I was also really frustrated cause my mind would draw a blank whenever I'd want to set up another pose. I was so worried that we'd spend all this time & have just one pose... how boring, but when I got looking through them, in the end I had used most of the poses that I had visualized in my mind after all! I was frustrated with the setting sun in combination with the overcast skies, it put a rush on the whole session. A photographer friend suggested still using the flash to pick up the "sparkle" in the person's eyes, but I mostly forgot that tip as I was struggling to capture the best light... that may have made a huge difference?? So there was a lot to learn from this photo shoot, but in the end I was very satisfied that I was able to create my dear friend with some great photos that didn't look as though her amateur photographer-friend took them! So here are some of my favorites, I hope you all enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday

"Reflection"

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Finally...

Hey Everyone... it's been a crazy couple of weeks getting back into the swing of things since our trip, and Liv starting preschool. So I've finally gone through all the pictures from our Texas trip and created a slide show so that everyone can see just what we were up to. There's quite a few, just so you know, but I'm sure that there's a few of you out their that will really enjoy them if you just let it run while you do something at the same time. Yes, I just advised multi-tasking! Let me tell you the highlights though. The Saturday after we arrived my cousin, Lexi, turned four. To kick off her birthday celebration we all went to build-a-bear so the girls could create something special. The next day we headed to Austin where the Harward family had a little reunion at Uncle Brent and Aunt Judy's. Their place is probably my all time favorite place ever since they're backyard is Lake Austin! I'm soooo jealous! I tried talking Todd into buying one of their multi-million dollar houses... yeah right! Maybe in 20+ years! It was so wonderful to see my uncles, aunts, and cousins... it's been at least three years since I saw most of them. While we were there we celebrated Lexi's official birthday with a Princess Party. The girls thought that was so cool! When we got back to Houston, actually Richmond, we spent an afternoon at Kemah. We ate lunch at a restaurant with five aquariums! Gary loved watching the fish, he thought they were so silly... only Gary! That week I was able to take my cousin, Jessica, out for a day of pampering. Shannon's boss kindly gave her four dugout tickets to the Astros game the next Friday, so we hired a babysitter and had a girls night at the baseball field! That was one crazy game... we decided to leave after the 13th inning... can you imagine!! Unfortunately the Astros lost the next morning, by like five, so we were glad we left. But it was wonderful seats for a photographer... I had so much fun learning how to take still shots of such quick action! Kind of our last hurrah was our trip the Houston Museum of Natural Science. I had to make this stop since I remember going there & being amazed by the butterfly exhibit, since you walk through this large tropical room with thousands of butterflies just flying around you! Another great stop for a photographer, but let me tell you this... if you go for that reason, don't bring the kids they limit the time you can spend capturing the butterflies. Anyways, it was so GREAT, the whole trip. I miss my aunt and family there so much already, but I look forward to the next visit, cause it was so super-duper fun!

Stayin' on Beat

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!I've been staying up late tonight playing with this new site... it's a HOOT! I think Todd looks so stinkin' hansome, big head and all! It's real easy and fun to play around with, so go have some of your own fun!!

Wordless Wednesday

"BUTTONS!"
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Sunday Spotlight

p.s. I'm still working on the final editing of the pictures from Texas so they will be up soon!

Jewelry Made

Here are some pictures of the jewelry I was able to create while in Texas thanks to my sweet Aunt Shannon's large bead inventory! It was so relaxing to be able to browse the beads and create several pieces at home while my kids watched a movie, colored, played, etc. It made me even more excited to turn this fun hobby into a business!

Wordless Wednesday

"Open Wide"

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Labor Day on the Lake

This Labor Day was a whole lot of fun (up until I caught the stomach flu...). We took out my dad's wave runners to Utah Lake... yes that gross icky 5ft deep body of water we still use for recreation since it's what we got close. I was so surprised that Liv was game to go for a ride right of the bat! She thought it was so fun, but wasn't as anxious to go again the rest of the day. Gary was a hoot! He had to hold the handle bars just like mom and dad did... that made for quite the challenge. His head was so close that he'd hit it every bump, thank heavens there is cushion there between the handlebars! He thought it was awesome, and I wasn't even going all that slow. From time to time I'd hear him say "WEEE!" Half way through the ride Todd and I switched so he could ride with Gary for a bit. It was real fun to ride along next to him, cause he'd wave while keeping his arm snug to his body, so cute! By the time we went back to the beach, though, he was out... ready for a nap for sure! I packed up my camera & took pictures of my little brothers as they did their thing. I think Todd just about had a heart attack when I told him what I was up to, but it was so exciting to try to capture the best action shots while keeping in mind lighting & all that! I turned out with some real fun ones, so it, to me, was worth the risk... maybe. hehe!

Sunday Spotlight

I've been meaning to do this special spotlight for awhile now, but as you all know I have been so distracted by my Texas getaway! But this was a real special event... last month it was finally Todd & mine's turn to become an Aunt and Uncle! Koda Lawrence Young was born to Koby, my brother-in-law and Heather! He is healthy & growing well! I haven't had the chance to meet him in person yet since they are living in Colorado & I've been in Texas, but I can't wait to meet him! I am very proud of this young couple and new family... Congratulations!

Happy Reunion

We came home yesterday from our Texas trip. It was so sweet to watch the kids run up and give their daddy big hugs and kisses! And Gary wouldn't leave his side for a long time! It was such a good experience! So I guess distance does make the heart grow founder! It was fun cause towards the end of our trip Liv would want to call Todd to say hi cause she missed him so much... so sweet!