TLP

Goodbye beautiful Summer- Hello calming Fall

2011-09-02T15:55:00.000-06:00

A time of warm sunny days, in little pink swimsuits, with the lawn sprinklers going, getting us all wet. We help and encourage each other to endless fun and laughter.

Come walk with me and let the sun turn our baby skin Golden.

Let pure joy fill our hearts, while the green grass tickles our feet and grounds us with the earth,

and keep these memories forever, because our child hood, is the foundation of how we will see the rest of our lives.

My Dad.

2011-09-01T09:32:00.000-06:00

There are many words that could describe the heartfelt love and devotion I have for my parents. I really do feel, and have always felt that I was blessed with the most incredible parents and family. I realize my life could have been very different had I been born into a different family. I didn't grow up in a family of worldly wealth, but we always have had an abundance of joy. Our love for each other and our savior has always been enough.

My parents moved their little family of 5 (at the time, ending up as 8) to the coldest, most barren and windiest place on earth......o.k. maybe not THE most of all those things, but it sure was close....(RockSprings, Wyoming should say it all)....to try to make a life for them. My dad got a job at Bridger Coal mining company as a mechanic and first settled what they had, at a place called Farson, Wyoming. Farson wyoming is a little clump of trees in the middle of nowhere, but it has a great tie to our family and our story, so we love the place and the life long friends we made there. :)

My mother was very pregnant with me at the time, and took care of my two older sisters also.

No running water, no power, no phone, a real start to a wonderful adventure we call our family history.When I was two, we moved to Rock Springs, which was a little more populated than Farson, but we lived 3 miles out of town, so we nearly had the wilderness to ourselves and a few other neighbors nearby.

In all the 30 years of my life, there has never been a time where both of my parents weren't working hard. My mom was at home while we grew up, taking care of and raising 5 girls and 1 boy, making sure we had 3 square meals a day, getting us off to school and church, and running errands, then later needing to take up jobs out of the home to help get us by when my dad literally had worked his hands and elbows to the bones and nerves, causing him to lose his job from not being able to physically work. I want you to know..that I have the same deep feelings of gratitude for both my parents, but I want to share something about my dad this time.

Despite the physical trials my Dad ended up dealing with, he has always had the gift of his hands, which are equal to the words and meaning of, work, hard labor, and love.

This gift is his personally, but boy has it blessed more than him, and more than his family a lone. This picture is something I will always treasure. My sister asked me to take this a while ago. She has the same feelings I do about it, as I am sure the rest of my family do too. My Dad recently turned 60. My sister made a special present for him with this picture, to tell him how she felt about it, and I was so very touched that she would ask me to help, and now I want to share it too.

As a little girl, I can remember my Dad coming home from work, and his hands were always stained black from the grease he worked with through the day. His hands always had cuts on them, the skin was always thick and leathery, and it seemed that at least one of his fingernails was always purple from being smashed in someway. As you can see, his hands still have years of hard work showing on them. Each deep-stained line, in the dry and cracked skin means the world to me. We never went without, because my Dad always worked his best to make sure our family was provided for. He was out of a regular job for 2 years before we were able to move back to Utah, yet between him and my mom, and several weeks with him gone, only to be able to return every other weekend, trying to do what work he could, we made it! Now my dad is retired, and even though he still hasn't had it easy physically and health wise, retired only means, that he doesn't work for someone else. He is still always fixing a car, or tractor, landscaping, building something, working in his garden, crafting something amazing or helping and loving his neighbors. Without his hands, all these amazing works that have come about wouldn't have. Dad you are amazing to me, the best Father and friend a daughter could ever ask for, and you are very dear to me. I love you!!!!

The KinderKids-part 1

2011-08-25T23:16:00.002-06:00

This is my adorable cousin, who I think of as my own. I watched her in my home from 9 months to 4 years, and she is still best buds with my Thing 1. They are both going to Kindergarten very soon! She starts on Monday, and Thing 1 has her evaluation on Tuesday and then starts the next Wednesday. I have been so excited all of Thing 1's life, for her to go to Kindergarten, but tonight after her "Back to School" night, I have started to feel a little nervous about it all. I can handle her being somewhere else in others care for a few hours, but everyday for 9 months is a long time! Well 5 days a week anyway. I am worried I am going to mess up on making sure her homework is always taken care of, that she is thriving and doing well socially and educationally. I know she loves her teacher already, because we got to meet her tonight and the first thing Thing One did was give her a big hug like she has known her for years. My life as a stay at home mom is about to change dramatically in a week and a half. I am not sure if I am ready or not? Totally excited, but how will I do? Thing One is going to be awesome, I am not worried about her to much, but can I support her the way she needs me to?
Anyway, we were able to have this cute little cousin over today for a few hours, as kind of a last summer play date before school starts, and well, she just looked so stinking cute, I couldn't help but pull out the camera like old times and get some fun pictures of her. She is a doll and I just love her and her parents soooo much! Here's a look-see of my favorites :)

She just lost those two teeth recently, her first ones to be lost :)


This one is my personal favorite, I love the bare feet, and her sweet pose. She did most of her posing on her own, I just gave her the props to work with :)

Also, if you are ever wondering about places to do pictures, sometimes, you wont have to look any further than the side of your house or your garage. Today, I was thankful that we have been putting off getting our house a new paint job :)

Every Jam needs a nose : )

2011-08-11T13:59:00.000-06:00

I told my mom not to put my shirt on me before breakfast, I was sure it would be a mess if she did.

Toast and Jam? ya.........

Jelly is my favorite food, and when I'm in a Jelly mood, I can't ever get enough, of that yummy gummy stuff!

Jelly on my hands, Jelly on my nose....................

Jelly on my belly............makes a good canvas,

I wonder how much It will take to get a good bath out of this?

I'm really going to need a good bath.

The result of a good breakfast


This is why we kept my shirt clean :)

Cute huh?

A mini mom

2011-08-03T14:09:00.001-06:00

Thing 1 loooves her sisters.....

When Thing 2 was born, Thing 1 had a little bit of a hard time with all the attention on the brand new baby, but she still loved her sister dearly. Now that Thing 2 is three and Thing 1 is five, they are best buds! They do everything together, and they take good care of eachother.

When Thing 3 was in my belly, her two older sisters loved her too. They didn't even know her yet and they loved her.
When Thing 3 was born, they loved her even more, so much that Thing 1 named her Guchi Gu :)
Guchi Gu is now Guchi Gu to everyone, it just fits her!
Thing 1 has a Tri-Cycle that she likes to ride.
Guchi Gu wanted to ride it too, so Thing 1 used her wonderful, thoughtful little mothering skills and gave Thing 3 her first experience on a bike. They rode it for at least a half an hour. Thing 3 loooooved it!
Here are some pictures of proof :)

Thing Two and her adorableness/haircut

2011-07-29T12:11:00.051-06:00

Some days I just look at my kids, and can't help but say "Oh I love my kids!!".

And then I continue to smother them in hugs and squishes and kisses, until they start to struggle to get away from their crazy mother, but they never leave without making me feeling like they are the best "things" that have happened to my dear husband and I (well, besides just being married, that's a pretty great thing too. :)

Little miss Thing 2, got a hair cut. From me, I might add. The only drastic hair cut I have ever done on any of my girls or anyone for that matter. Her hair was about 3 inches longer, curly and cute, but just not even, and she was due for a trim. So, about a month or so ago, I got brave and with what little knowledge I have about how to do an A-line cut, I start to snip away!

I looooove Her profile!!! That little ski-slope nose is THE Best!!

Somehow it turned out great! She loves it, and with her mild natural curl, it works perfectly, all we have to do when her hair gets wet, is brush it all back. It dries and curls on its own, in its own little perfect way. :)

Cute little eyes that melt me, like Chocolate :)

Yesterday it just looked so cute on her, so I snapped a few photos. She is a sweet silly girl, and I just love her!

I Love this Kid!!!

I love her

2011-05-26T17:28:00.001-06:00

Wispy Hair

Sunshine

Laughter

Giggles

LOVE

Sweetness

Teasing


Beauty

Those are just some of the things this little girl is made of.
Bless my heart.

Sweet little people

2011-05-18T11:44:00.000-06:00

I love spring flowers, they never cease to make my backyard perfect for pictures :)

Oh what a sweet, sweet little baby!!! This is my friends little baby, born at the beginning of April, I loved taking pictures of her. I forget how little and fragile they are when they are newly born, and I was afraid to even pick her up, lol. She is so cute and cuddly!

Beautiful Gwen and her brand new baby :)

my favorite, I just want to squish her!!

already dressing like a princess :) This family was full of boys until she came, and now her mommy gets to enjoy a world full of frills and flowers and Pink!

I love brand new,wrinkly, peely baby skin, it just shows how young she is, not very old at all

Congratulations Gwen, she is beautiful!!!!

Kissy Eyes

2011-05-10T10:20:00.000-06:00


My little 5 year old Butterfly (thing 1) took this picture..........I feel I have a future partner on my hands :)

My "things"

2011-04-16T21:14:00.000-06:00

It would be nice if I could get them to look at me and all smile at the same time, but really..........I don't think this could have been much cuter :) And Thing 3, is really getting the hang of being part of the clan:)

29+1

2011-02-17T14:23:00.002-07:00

So it happened.........................................my birthday did come, and leap year didn't happen like I wanted it to. I was hoping to just jump over February 17th, and I even celebrated being 29 last night with brownies, IceCream and staying up late. I woke up and well......my birthday still came. I figure I am going to turn 30 four times though, so this should be old school. How you ask?

When my spirit was created, 30 years later I turned 30..................

Then the day my body was actually created, was about 9 months before I was born, so technically I turned 30 about 9 months ago.............

Then of course today, my birth-day, and when my body is resurrected, I will turn 30 again. :) See, so today should really not be that bad. The hard thing, is this is the life where our bodies age, we get wrinkles (I found my first one next to an old dimple in my cheek, it can pass as a dimple for now), we loose important enzymes in our bodies that kept us vivacious before, my kids will start to go to school, and I will become a "soccor mom" I am sure of it. I already have the minivan for it. And it also means I am only 10 years from turning 40. Ugh. So I need to think about things that only 30 year old people get to do, and change it into a positive experience.............hmmmmmmmmm.................Help......................haha!

Well, o.k., I will be taken more seriously maybe... I like that.
ummmm
I actually blew out all my candles this year! I used to get so frustrated and I would even practice. So this time I focused real well, and it was even my wish, and I did it! That's a positive thing for a 30 year old birthday......
Oh, and my sweet husband surprised me with a big giant balloon. It has been my dream for a loooooong time to just see a dealership balloon up close. I have been telling him for years that I have to have one sometime, and if I don't get one before I die, he needs to make sure to have some at my funeral, so I can sit on top of it and look down at my family, and they will know I am there. hehe
So he went and bought the biggest balloon he could get for me this year. Its way cool! (I still want a big red one at my funeral though, hehe).

I also got awesome couch covers and an awesome Elephant picture on a canvas wrap, and an awesome Zebra stripe dishes set from some wonderful ladies, and some money to spoil myself! :)
O.k., I feel better now :) Yay 30!

eh hem. The End

New Songs on the Blog :)

2011-01-25T19:41:00.001-07:00

So I added a playlist to my blog again. I love the song "Daughters" by John Mayer, I can't help it, I have 3 of them! I actually dedicated that song to Thing 1 before she was even born, so ya......its special to me. For kicks I wanted to see if there were any songs that had the words "Touch of Love" in them. I found 2, and they are fun, so ya I had to have them on here too. :)

I was going back through my old posts from when I started this blog, its was fun. Its crazy to see how much my pictures have changed in the last 2-3 years too. Partly because I used to use a "point and shoot", lol. Nothing against point and shoot cameras, but I Love My DSLR. I am so grateful I was able to get it too, its been lots of fun!

Anyway, I just thought I would write! Here are some pictures from when I first started to really get into this stuff. The pixel quality makes me cringe, haha

"Things" Birthdays :)

2011-01-24T20:13:00.005-07:00

Thing 1 has hit the big 5, Thing 2, is almost the big 3, and thing 3 will be the big 8 months soon :) So I was of course excited for an excuse to do some new wall portraits :) Now I get to decide on which different process I want to print. ugh, how do you choose? Should I go with the original colored ones? Or go with the all black and white or all sepia, or the sepia with color and black and white with color? hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

My big ol' 5 year old kid now :) I can remember trying to imagine her as a 3 year old when she was just a baby....... and now she's 5, how'd that happed?! She is such a sunny little girl, her "Carol Tuttle" Type 1 energy is evident in her smile, and her personality and sense of humor is just as big :) I love her like crazy and I am so glad she chose our family, so we could have her bright spirit among us each day. :)


My big 2 year old, will be 3 in two days.............wow She catches me off guard sometimes with the big things that she says. I can't wait to give her, her birthday present. Last year she got a ton of baby stuff.....This year? She is getting a changing table, with a highchair hooked on it, and places to put all her baby stuff. :) She loooooves her dolls, that is pretty much all she ever plays with. Every once in a while she will play with a pony or something, but it doesn't last very long and its right back to her baby. I remember seeing her in the N.I.C.U. all hooked up to hoses and monitors, with the nurses poking her hands, feet and head trying to get an I.V. in her chubby little skin. So sad, boy was I happy to get that little kid home with us, I am so grateful to have her in our family :)

"She will be my Tootsie, Wootsie!" Yep that's what she is, and of course our "Guchi Gu", and "Wushy Gu",

(both names invented by Thing 1), man is she sweet :) It's not her birthday yet, but I still had to do a picture of her too for the wall :) I just want to kiss those toesies :)

Well, if you have any preferences, let me know, lol, I need help in deciding which ones to print. :) Which ones would you do?

Christmas and Thing 3's 6 month picsI

2011-01-11T17:40:00.005-07:00

It's been a while I know, I have been going crazy with Client sessions the last couple months, and had to buy more storage space too, so I have just been behind on a lot. I am catching up though! Here is our Christmas Eve Picture for this year. I love these, they always turn out interesting........The first year we started doing this, Thing one had pink eye, and Thing 2 was crying from being so tired, husband and I were smiling despite the crazy night, lol. It was great! I will have to see if I can find the picture. This one is perfect, but it would have been a lot cuter if we could see Thing 1's whole face, hehe. Thing 3 thought tossing wrapping paper around was more important. :) It was a very fun Christmas Eve and Day, everyone was happy and healthy too! I love it!

She really does think Dad's Awesome

and apparently she thinks the camerawoman is too, hehe

These are a couple of her 6 month pictures, I have a lot more, but haven't gotten to them yet. She had a great first Christmas!

I love her tootsies!

her fluffiness,

and she loved playing with the ornaments too :)

Hope you all had wonderful holidays!! Next up, lots of birthday's for us! yay!

The "B" Family :)

2010-11-19T11:52:00.003-07:00

This adorable family chose to have their pictures done at Murray Park
also. This place changed fast in a couple of weeks! With the 'R"
family it was still pretty green, but this time all the leaves were
falling and were everywhere!
They wanted more candid family shots than posed ones, which I am all
for! They are a fun little family, and are soooo adorable!
Here are just a few of the many fun shots we were able to get! :)

P.s. I am having a terrible time getting photos uploaded to this site! I had to e-mail them from my Picasa account and that results in the pictures not showing up so good when they are bigger. So, I promise the real quality of these photos is a lot better than what they are showing!

The R family :)

2010-10-21T11:02:00.000-06:00

I love this family :)
We took these pictures at Murray Park,
isn't this the cutest pose?
This was Dad's idea and I love it! I will definately keep this creativity in mind for future picture sessions :)

This big Fur tree was........awesome :)

Food 4.

2010-10-18T23:41:00.000-06:00

Finally..............stick in the toaster oven, and toast it.............

Serve.................

Smile..............

Makes mouth happy :)

Then End.

Food 3.

2010-10-18T23:35:00.001-06:00

Next put sauce and cheese on the top too................

I bet it would taste good just like that......, but it gets better

Lick the spoon.............

Finish off the extra cheese.................hehe, these pictures make me giggle.............

Food 2.

2010-10-18T23:32:00.000-06:00

Grate your cheese.............

Then spread it on your sauced bun :)

and close the bun.

Food part 1.

2010-10-18T23:29:00.000-06:00

First off, is anyone else having issues with bloggers new features? Its driving me nuts! I used to love being able to upload 20 pictures from Picasa, but now it only allows 4 at a time, I will have to do this post in many parts now, because trying to upload with the regular uploader here in blogger is just not working out very well, I know how to do it, but the server is rejecting them. hmmm.......

I love taking pictures of food, this is just a snack I invented:)

You need Mozzerella, pizza squeeze sauce, and flat hamburger buns. (I can't remember what they are called, I just know I got them in the hamburger bun section, and they are supposed to be the healthy kind. ).........

Open up the bun, and put some sauce on..........

then spread it with a spoon. Thats how they do it at Papa Murphey's (o.k. actually theirs is a big ladel)..........I worked their for a year ya know......

The most comfortable shoes

2010-10-17T00:54:00.004-06:00

I love these shoes soooooooooooo much!

I decided they were picture worthy.............

I might even frame them............

I have never worn a more comfortable pair of shoes, I think I might go buy one or two more pairs for back up! 

Love, My Feet :)

$16 for a $60 pair of Aerosoles! 

Boys and legs :)

2010-10-13T11:05:00.000-06:00

This is a family I did on Saturday, I will post more of them soon, but I wanted to share these of their boys. Such cute little guys!

The End :)

Candid portraiture contest

2010-10-12T17:53:00.001-06:00

4.

Hey all! I am trying to decide which picture I should enter into a "Candid Portraiture" contest! I would love your opinion, Cast your vote for the best quality and interest overall ! Thank you!

The adorable W family :)

2010-10-06T13:17:00.000-06:00

We used to go to church with this cute family, but they moved about 4 years ago. It was my privilege to take photos of them. Their little twins have grown up sooo much, I remember when they were just babies! And not to mention little K, she was just a brand new little one when I saw her last! Thank you so much for this opportunity to hang out with you guys again and to capture some fun memories for you!

We took these photos at the lovely Memory Grove in Downtown Salt Lake, Ut

This little family was always so ready with smiles! I have many more, still working on them, but I wanted to give the family a sneak peak : )

Some more of S and N

2010-09-29T18:17:00.000-06:00

I wanted to add a few more of my edits, I hope you like them!

Having a little fun with my clients pictures :)

I love the deep blacks that I was able to figure out.......just so ya know ;)

and the vintage coloring is a new fave too :)

Aren't they cute?

O.k., so maybe I have a little tooooo much fun with their pictures, but when I get fun shots like that, I just can't help it! :)

S and N session on Jordan River Trail

2010-09-28T12:20:00.002-06:00

Here is a little sneak peak of your pictures! These are my cute cousins, and I was so excited to do a session with these two! Thanks you guys, I love ya!

I hope you like your pictures, they should all be done soon! :)

I heart faces "Smirk Photo" challenge week 38

2010-09-20T12:22:00.000-06:00

She always has a smirk for me when I take her picture :) Silly Girl :)I thought this was especially cute though, because her popsicle, bow, and shirt were all the same color.
Check out iheartfaces.com for fun smirks! :)

T and A Engagement Pics :)

2010-09-16T09:28:00.001-06:00

Here is a sneak peak of your pictures! I love how they turned out, and I am so excited for you guys, you are such a cute couple!

And my personal favorite below :)

I can't wait to do your bridals A, but I won't be posting those on the blog until after the wedding, so T doesn't see you in your dress before then :)
Thank you so much for this opportunity! I hope you like them!

Little E and Little L

2010-08-26T18:42:00.001-06:00

As always these photos are copyrighted so please don't take them from my blog :)

This was a recent photo shoot for a friend. Her little ones are so cute, and so fun to take pictures of! Little E is very photogenic and she gave me some great shots, and little L is sooo sweet!
I edited these with a new vintage technique that I figured out and I loove the way it makes the pictures look.
Thanks family H for letting me capture these moments for you! I hope you like them!

Theses are just a few of what I have finished so far...

thing 3 is 2 months old

2010-08-16T13:23:00.002-06:00

I can't believe she is two months already!
She is so fun though!!

Family Camping Trip/nature

2010-07-07T17:56:00.000-06:00

My husbands family took a camping trip up Provo Canyon in Utah on Monday. I wanted to get some water pictures, because we camped right next to a river/stream. Not big enough to be a river, but to big and fast to be a stream. When I stepped close to the river to get a shot, I just about stepped on these Butterflies! I couldn't believe they would just sit there, I was a foot away from them and they didn't leave. So pretty!

I wanted to experiment with the slow shutter speed. It took me quite a few pictures to figure out what speed wouldn't over expose the pictures.

I was so excited to get one of these! I have always wanted to take a picture like this, showing how clear the water is. I am excited to get one of these printed to hang in my bathroom for Fung Shui. My sister got me hooked on Fung Shui stuff recently, so I have been trying to find things to photograph for it too. I am going to work on getting an Etsy shop set up, with Fung Shui pictures for sell. So cool!

I really liked the setting on this picture, and how it leads your eye to the back where the water disappears.

This was a reservoir near our campsite too, the water was beautiful, and I just love the trees!

That tall mountain in the back is Mount Timpenogas. Such an awesome mountain, and an even more awesome cave inside! : )

On our way home, we took a little detour over to cascade springs. It was a fun little place to walk around and it is all naturally formed.

I just liked these dead trees for some reason : )

This was at Cascade Springs also. Again I need to work on figuring out the best shutter speed for this type of photo, but hey it was my first day attempting it, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! : ) I can't wait to go into nature again, just to see what kind of pictures I can come up with :)

My girls :)

2010-06-24T18:14:00.001-06:00

Don't let their little curls, soft cheeks, and wispy hair fool you to much, (lol, they can be little stinkers) but aren't they sweet?

Fathers day

2010-06-21T09:38:00.001-06:00

Thing 3 has this cute little outfit, that says "Daddy's Little Girl", so of course I had to get some pictures of it :)

We added a sister! :)

2010-06-20T12:29:00.000-06:00

Here is another version, one that I was looking forward to for a long time! : )
I think I would actually like to get a different picture of thing 3 to add to it, but this works for now. I love having 3 little girls!! (and I love editing software : ) )

Two more, I promise I will get a different setting and poses soon. : )

2010-06-17T12:32:00.000-06:00

So here are two more from the same session with my little one. I really want to get more, but she sleeps so much, I don't want to wake her up to do it! lol

The first 10 days of life are the best for newborn pics, so I have 2 days left :(

Although, I am sure I wont quit there ;)

Also, I am trying to get my blog to be a little more readable, so I will be changing it up, hopefully I can figure it out.....:)

Some more...

2010-06-14T16:49:00.001-06:00

I love newborns

Same photo-different processing, which do you like?

2010-06-14T15:32:00.002-06:00

I am just curious about what your favorite editing is on this picture.

I am trying to decide. Sorry there are so many! : )

I heart faces "all about Baby" : )

2010-06-14T12:46:00.000-06:00

I can't imagine this theme coming at a better time, since I just gave birth to our baby 5 days ago : )

I have so many more ideas of what I would like to do with the little girl, and new born photo's, but so far this is all I have been able to get, from lack of energy and sleep ;) (totally worth the lacking)

I spare her name, for safety reasons, but on this blog she will go on as "Thing 3", to join her fun and crazy sisters "Thing 1", and "Thing 2" :)

Check out Iheartfaces.com for cute baby pics!

self attempt at maternity pics,

2010-05-28T13:16:00.002-06:00

I will officially be 9 months pregnant in 3 days, so I went and bought myself some cute pj's for the hospital, and liked them so much, I decided to attempt some self portraits. lol

Definitely not easy, pushing the shutter button, and running to pose, haha, especially since I didn't have my tripod, 12 seconds just wasn't enough.

but I think my girls made them priceless : )

They are the cutest anyway : )

I can't imagine not being happy in this condition, I am soooo blessed!!

I heart faces, "Faces and flowers" challange

2010-05-16T12:55:00.000-06:00

I was excited when I saw the challenge for this week, because I love this picture. : )

Check out iheartfaces.com for some more fun images!

I want one of these chairs!

2010-05-08T14:05:00.001-06:00

Here are some more of these cute little ones, I love this chair and
the whole setting, I wish to get something like that set up in my
yard. :) So pretty!

Two Cute!

2010-05-07T19:35:00.000-06:00

Two cute Kiddos, one fun, fun session! Just some for a sneak peak! : )

Cute

2010-05-06T18:53:00.000-06:00

She's just cute.....So I thought I would share : )

Love Dandelions

2010-04-26T18:57:00.000-06:00

And Sunshine :)

Spring brings

2010-04-23T12:23:00.001-06:00

Fun Times at the park

Playing in the Sand (my not so favorite)

And favorite pastimes with their favorite playmate : )

Spring, I am so glad you are here!!

First soccor game day

2010-04-17T12:42:00.003-06:00

Thing 1's bestest buddy, had her first soccor game today, and I had

the privelage of having her at my house this morning. Her Grandpa is a

proffessional photographer, (my uncle)(and I might add, my

inspiration, and who I look up to most in this proffession, he has

been doing it for years and has a beautifull talent), so between him

and I (I watched her in my daycare for 3 years) she has had many

portraits taken I am sure. : ) Poor thing, but she is not all smiled

out yet, and I love any and every chance I get to take a shot of her.

In fact I think she knows that if I am around, there is no getting

past having her picture taken. : ) Plus she is the sweetest little

thing, and my girls and I absolutely looooove her!!

My dog

2010-04-10T10:54:00.002-06:00

I have tried many times to get a good, sophisticated picture of this

guy, but they all end up having a similar look. :) I guess its him

though! : )

Thing 2 and her "Pampa"

2010-04-07T18:40:00.003-06:00

For Easter weekend we spent the day with my parents. Thing 2 is

absolutely in love with her "Pampa".

She even fell asleep in his arms for a nap, that I didn't think she would get.

The big kids were all playing on the trampoline, and she wasn't so

confindent, so Grandpa helped her. It was the cutest thing, seeing him

jump with her and make sure she felt safe. I just love the bond that

my dad has with his grandkids. So special! She isn't the first to fall head over heals in love with him either. : )

This wouldn't be a picture of my dad without the Mountain Dew can : )

Thanks Dad : )

Some more of thing 2

2010-04-05T11:23:00.002-06:00

The first picture, I love, because she looks just like my little

sister did when she was little. So cute!!

I love this camera!

Combining in photoshop

2010-04-05T10:15:00.003-06:00

I combined the first two images and came up with the third. I love photoshop!

2010-04-01T15:15:00.003-06:00

Just to let you know, I have been keeping a small blog of my pregnancy. I have 4 posts so far, lol, but I plan on keeping up with it a bit more if you are interested. : )

http://baby-june2010.blogspot.com/, and its connected to this blog.

Anyway, just thought I would share. : )

More of my Easter girl

2010-03-31T09:39:00.002-06:00

She is holding her Jelly Bean cup,

 in case you were wondering. : )

Ya....

2010-03-30T17:29:00.005-06:00

She's Cute

Thing One in her Easter outfit. Much more to come, but these were my

favorite : )

Innocent?

2010-03-30T11:50:00.003-06:00

I guess every child has there "flour" or "bisquick" moment......

My new hobby companion

2010-03-22T17:15:00.000-06:00

Looky, Looky!!

After a year, and 1 full, hard rock chair=sore Gluteus Maximus to the Max, day of research, grimacing (when I set aside the money from my savings account), and some previous convincing of the husband (who is now just as excited about it), we finally ordered our new camera!!!

This camera is awsome!!!

Its body is made of Steel Magnesium Alloy

......like Superman!

It is weather proof (majorly, like down to 10 degrees celcius), drop proof (for me, it has a neck strap, unlike my little point and shoot, plus its really tough), has leather grips

.....like superman in leather pants!

hmmmm.........maybe that is a little weird of a comparison, how about, a leather jacket! Or old sunburned skin! hehe

Anyway, it is 14.6 megapixels, 1/8000 shutter speed, great ISO performance, built in HDR mode, and built in image stabilization, and lots and lots of features, and really great reviews from a lot of professional non-biased sources.

I am so excited! I ordered today, and it should be here friday or monday, maybe sooner! I ordered a 50mm lense with it, and it comes with the standard lense kit, which I read was great. The video quality is supposed to be really awsome too.

I am a little humbled that I am finally getting a camera of professional quality. I am keeping my fun little point and shoot, it has been so good to me! I can't wait to try the bigger and better though, and can't wait to share pictures!

I Heart Faces new challange "Focusing on Angles"

2010-03-22T17:13:00.000-06:00

My sweet little Thing 2 and her chocolate brown eyes, she melts me.....o.k. her whole self melts me : )

Check out iheartfaces.com to see more fun entries!

My hips don't lie

2010-03-18T17:25:00.003-06:00

Updated belly pic

Puppies

2010-03-14T14:46:00.002-06:00

My brother has some adorable puppies wanting to find a new home. We

went and visited and had a blast getting pictures, and playing with

them.

They are half Lab, half Australian Shepherd and so cute!

Thing 1 thought they were pretty fun too : )

contrast

2010-03-04T17:52:00.002-07:00

I snapped this at the race also. I just thought it was interesting I guess. lol

Fun to edit anyway!

3rd post-more pics from Saltair

2010-03-01T01:07:00.002-07:00

A couple more I liked

2 more

2010-02-28T23:48:00.002-07:00

Couldn't get the chip bag from thing 2, and definately can't wait to

get them dressed up perfectly to do this again, but still cute I think

: )

Saltair pics

2010-02-27T20:19:00.002-07:00

My husband has been running races the last month, every other weekend.

The first time was so cold, the girls were crying and we sat in the

van freezing for 25 minutes for a 5k. The next one was pretty cold,

but we came prepared with a portable DVD player and sat in the van for

45 min while he ran a 10k.

Today was a 15k, so we brought the movies again, but it was such a

beautifull day, we spent most of the time seeking picture

opportunities for an hour and 20 minutes. : )

I was thrilled at how these turned out! I cannot wait for really warm

weather, this has to be my new favorite place to do pictures. More to

come soon!!

I should be getting my new camera really soon too, I can't wait!

re-edit

2010-02-21T12:05:00.002-07:00

I did this picture a few months ago, but I wanted to try my globe

overlay with it. I love taking old pictures and trying new things with

them.

Textures, overlay, combination

2010-02-21T00:50:00.002-07:00

I should be in bed right now, or atleast up watching the movie with my

husband, but my sweet Aunt Emily gave me the prettiest globe for my

birthday, and I wanted to see what I could do with it pictures wise.

So here is what I came up with :)

Fun, the things you can do with textures and overlays!!

I caught this picture of my husband and thing 2 last weekend at a race

my husband was in.

I love Daddy/Daughter squishiness!!

Hugs :)

2010-02-15T15:38:00.001-07:00

I had to get a picture of our little boy that we watch during the day
with "his girls". :)
We just love him!

Thing 1's pictures for Daddy

2010-02-11T19:07:00.002-07:00

She cracks me up :)

I just love this little girl!!!

Happy Valentines

2010-02-11T15:20:00.002-07:00

Thing 2, and her pictures for Daddy : )

I could seriously just eat her, she is so cute!

Thing Two, is Two!

2010-01-31T13:53:00.003-07:00

This is a little bit late, her birthday was the 26th.

My little thing 2 is 2 now!

And boy does she fit the part! She is not terribly terrible, but she

is getting there. : )

I still love her like crazy though. On both of my girls birthdays, I

couldn't use my camera! Thing 1, I didn't have any batteries, and then

thing 2 I lost my camera. I still can't find it. : ( I know it is in

the house somewhere, but ........where?

I did get pictures for the combined family and cousin party we did for

the both of them in between their birthdays, so we atleast got that,

but I don't have any pictures of them with the gifts we gave them.

For thing 2's birthday we gave her some really cute baby stuff. She

absolutely adores her babies, and takes care of them, the way I take

care of her. Her one special baby is continually attached to her, and

everytime I change her diaper, she makes sure her baby gets a bum

change too. : )

She is learning lots of words and sentences, and is very serious about

her coloring. She also loves to do whatever big sister does, and likes

to take naps in thing 1's big girl bed, instead of her own toddler

bed. :)

She is the sweetest little thing when it comes to affection. Kisses

and hugs, and snuggles and soft touches with her hands are a big part

of who she is. I just love it when she plays with my hair, she flips

it with her little hands and then puts it in my face and then says

"gum mamma (which means, "done mamma"), and then she looks at me

adoringly and says "ah, tute mamma" (meaning "cute mamma"). I just

love it! It boosts my self esteem evertime! : )

Little sweet baby girl, I am so glad you are mine! Your little voice

and face and baby boo body just melt me!! I love you soooooo much!!!!

Happy birthday Kiddo!

My little Girls B-day party

2010-01-28T15:14:00.007-07:00

This is a new element I want to be adding to my business. I really think it would be fun to be a birthday party photographer.

This way the party people can relax and have fun, and not have to worry about getting pictures, I will do all the running around, focusing on capturing all the fun kiddo moments, because well....that's my favorite thing to do!

Some changes going on here at home. My daycare is getting smaller, and a new baby due in May. I have been wanting to really get organized with my little business in photography. I should be getting a more proffessional camera soon, and when this baby comes, I will pretty much be daycareless.

Which is bitter-sweet.

I Love my Kids, whether they are mine or someone elses. Those who have spent time in my home, with my kids, depending on me to take care of them, while their mommy's and Daddy's need to go to work, they have just become part of my family, and there are sometimes I just wish I could adopt them all. It will be weird not having extra people here, I am sure part timers will come and go again eventually, and who knows if it is right, maybe I will get someone new to join the full time family, but honestly right now, I really feel like it is coming to a close.

So I have been thinking about new ideas of extra income. I would love to do photography a bit more. I have come to realize, I am just better at the kiddo stuff. I will still do family photos, but my main specialty will be capturing those cute little faces, and the timeless memories they give us all. There is just something different about taking pictures of kids. Maybe its their innocence, that I love, their carefree worlds, their ability to be beautifull in every way, just because they are, and no one can convince them otherwise. : )

My new areas will be:

Studio portraits (props welcome)

Imaginative Play (outside photography)

Kiddo Birthday Parties

Anyway, this is turning into a long post. I just wanted to explain my new blog I guess. : )

My little girl is 4!

2010-01-19T09:32:00.005-07:00

I am realy missing the internet today. Realy wishing I could catch up

on my e-mails, and facebook. I feel so disconnected from everyone,

isn't that sad?lol

Well, hopefully by saturday I will be up and running again. : )

Meanwhile good old picasa is the only way I can get an e-mail out.

I backed up my 2009 pictures yesterday, well finished anyway. Over 40

discs, lol. Thats what you get when you don't have a DVD burner, and

you have over 5000 pictures for just one year, and you can only fit a

little over 100 on a cd.

Maybe I will try to do better this year?

Anyway, this is a picture of my little thing 1, just days old. I love her smile!

That little smile, I never realized how beautifull it would blossom!

She has always been such a happy little girl, always looking for

something fun to do. She loves all of her little figurine toys, and

plays with them all-day-long. For her birthday, I got her a set of

littlest pet shop animals to go with her rising collection of "little

toys that get lost easily".

Luckily, we have come up with a system for all these little toys. I

now have been able to seperate them all into zip up bags or pop up

bags, and she can play with one set at a time. When she wants a

different set, we clean up the one she has and put it away, and then

get the other one out. As long as we keep it up, and don't get lazy

before bed, and not leave any out, it works great!

She loves her sunbeam class for church, and they sang to her and gave

her a picture of Jesus with little children, that she loves.

She loves to learn.

What amazes me, is she knows that candy and Tator tots are not good

for her. lol I told her candy wasn't good for her, but she decided on

her own that tator tots are not good too. : )

She wont eat tator tots, and if I offer them to her, she tells me "oh,

tator tots are not good for me."

She loves taking her kid herbs too.

And she loves to shop, especially for the baby. Everything is "so

cute", or "so cool", when we are browsing for baby stuff. She is

sooooo excited for this new little one to come, and fully prepared to

be a great big sister, to take care of her.

I love you so much little girl, I am so glad you are mine! You

brighten my everday, and I would be lost without you!!!

I hope you have the happiest 4th birthday ever!!!!

a picture for you

2010-01-06T18:46:00.001-07:00

Pink!!!

So its a girl, something about daughters in our family : ) I am sooooo
excited! I love little girl stuff!
I realy wanted a boy, lol, and I know husband did too. We were both
secretly hoping it was a boy during the ultrasound.
The tech said I could go to the bathroom ( I had a very full bladder),
and as I was leaving, she said, "ya I am leaning more towards a girl,
but we will check again". I will be honest my heart sank a little, and
I had to say a prayer to get me excited about it. lol Isn't that
awfull!!! Its not that I didn't want a girl, I just realy, realy
wanted a boy! : )
I think both husband and I didn't know how to react. lol The tech even
said "do you guys already have a little girl?", I said, "yes we have
two.", then she seemed to understand. I feel terrible that it was so
hard to act excited, because I realy am!! On the way home, I got
sooooo excited over having another little girl! I am going to paint
the girls bedroom in pinks. When we had thing 1 we painted the room
multi gender friendly, but now that we will have 3, I figure we might
as well go all girly! And I am going to get a new crib set. Our old
one is multi gender friendly too. hehe
I love little girl stuff, I am so happy!
I have an anterior placenta again, like I did with Kimberly, and that
is why I haven't realy felt the baby move at all. The tech said, that
position for the placenta is actually the best, because it protects
the baby more.
It has all its cute little arms and hands and legs and feet, and the
tech said the heart looked realy good. 148 beats per minute : )
She was realy wiggly too, twisting and turning all over, and her
profile is soooooooooo sweet! I just love it! I love being pregnant,
and I can't wait for this little one to come.
Also, the tech changed my due date to may 4th! I am not believing that one, lol
The measurements all said may 31st though, so it will be sometime in
may. That makes me happy, because I wanted a may baby. They said they
will recheck again to confirm.
Anyway Happy news!!
Love you all!
Julia

My growing belly

2010-01-05T16:34:00.001-07:00

Can't believe how quickly it went from not being noticeable to this! I
can officially no longer avoid the unwanted comments. lol
O well, its fun!

They start to get a little silly after a while

2010-01-04T11:09:00.001-07:00

My kids are getting so used to having pictures taken of them, that
they do poses for me. The first one of thing two, she was laying down,
and it was actually a sideways shot for me, so her eyes ended up not
showing up very well. This silly hand covering the mouth thing though
is a pose of hers (so is the legs up in the air one). lol
Thing 1 gave me mostly (4 year old idea ) proffessional shots, but she
in the end of course had to give me a toungue sticking out one or
more. lol funny kids : )

My cute little cousin

2010-01-02T19:14:00.001-07:00

I actually took these in october, but her mom wanted to save them for
christmas presents so I told her I wouldn't post them yet. But now its
after christmas so I can share!! : )
Doesn't she just have the cutest little dimples! And my beautifull
cousin and her boyfriend gave me some cute pictures too. : ) Thanks
for letting me take pictures of your adorable little girl Nicky!!

First Kid portraits 2010

2010-01-02T14:50:00.001-07:00

We gave the girls a bath this morning, and my husband dressed thing 2,
while I dressed thing 1. They ended up looking so cute, I had to get
some pictures!!
Thing 1 is a type 1 energy, according to Carol Tuttles energy
profiling. Sweet, happy, sunshiney, full of love and life type of
energy. Therefore her hairstyle and clothes look best on her if they
match that energy, and I just looooove the dress she is wearing and
that pretty little rose in her hair. Such a princess, I believe. : )
She loves to pose for me, the background is actually our microfiber
couch, I liked the color it had, but then added a couple overlays and
textures to get what I got.
Thing two is a more still energy, and has more finer features and is
just plain sweet. Her idea of posing is a little bit different, lol,
and out of all the shots this was the only one that turned out of her
sitting up and looking and smiling at the camera. The rest were her
laying on the couch with her hair all squished around, and her feet up
in the air. I may just have to share some of the other pictures,
because I still think they were cute, but I was happy to get these two
for some pictures to hang up in my living room.
I am soooooo wishing there wasn't so much snow on the ground, and
hoping for spring and summer to come quickly. I miss the outside
light, and chasing after kids outside with a camera is definately
easier than doing it inside.
I realy wish my basement lighting was set up better, I am hoping maybe
for my birthday coming up, to get some track lighting or something.
That would be fun!
Anyway, I loved the way these turned out, and wanted to share : )

Old picture, but I just love it!

2009-12-26T13:26:00.001-07:00

This picture is almost 2 years old, but I am just in love with it!
My Aunt in law took it for us when my youngest had her blessing day. I
just love how little both of my girls were in this. Thing one still
has that chipmunk cheek smile, but she is quickly growing older and
looking more like a 4 year old than the baby she was to me back then,
and thing 2 was so little and sweet in her blessing dress!
Husband was still in his 20's, hehe, such an old guy now at 31. Just
kidding, he looks as handsome as ever, and I have decided I need to
cut my hair like that again. : )
Anyway, I just wanted to share, I can't wait to get a family of 5
picture in June!

Such a beautifull white christmas!!!

2009-12-23T11:07:00.001-07:00

I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas!!! We have been getting
dumped on with the snow, and love it!!!
I wanted to share this picture of my house I got today.
I did a few things with it.
It has 2 texture overlays, then I decided to do something else with
it. I lighted the picture 3 different ways, in 3 different pictures,
then I overlayed all of them on eachother. Used the eraser a bit on
the house, but it made the trees stand out more. Fun!

I heart faces week 49-Just Pets

2009-12-14T08:37:00.002-07:00

My dog Tucker (the black one) and his first ride in the back of a
truck. He got to go with his new buddies (my cousins dogs), and this
shot was a perfect portriat oppertunity of them all enjoying their
little ride to Bear Lake. : ) We stopped to get some lunch on the way,
and were in the drive thru and they all posed for us. : )
Check out Ihearthfaces.com for some more fun entries this week!

More babies

2009-12-10T17:15:00.001-07:00

Try it out here: http://picasa.google.com/

Fishin'

2009-12-07T16:57:00.001-07:00

This was my husband last July. I wondered how deep he was going to go
to catch a fish. lol He never did catch one, but atleast he had fun. :
)

The first is what I originally edited, and the second one, is an
overlay. I finally figured out how to do an overlay in PS elements,
without having to just do it as a texture! Yay!

Sleepy

2009-12-07T10:09:00.000-07:00

She gave me some cute awake pictures and then decided she was sleeepy.
But don't worry, the sleeping ones are just as cute as the awake ones!

Christmas Baby : )

2009-12-05T21:54:00.001-07:00

some more!

Baby Hannah

2009-12-05T15:35:00.001-07:00

o.k., Carolyn, How could I go home and do chores, when I just got
pictures of your little cutie! I had to give myself some playtime
today. There was just no avoiding it! She just makes my heart melt
every time I look at her!
Lots more to come, I have to go grocery shopping, but I will probably
be back on here tonight while the husband watches his sports. :)
Thanks so much for letting me practice on this little sweetheart!

Some of my favorite girls!

2009-12-04T10:43:00.001-07:00

This is the beach pebble overlay

Kylie Wedding picture

2009-12-03T17:56:00.001-07:00

So, you are going to be seing a lot of these overlays. lol I just
can't get over how much fun they make a picture!
These are from the wedding I did back in May. Its a little pixely if
you look close, but I still like the effect. : )

some more overlay edits : )

2009-12-03T16:07:00.001-07:00

I just love the effects these have on my pictures!

New ps elements fun stuff!!!!

2009-12-03T12:26:00.002-07:00

So I am sooooo stinkin excited to have these!!
Iheartfaces.com had a little contest for a give away for the Patti
Brown Gallery Collection of overlays/textures and edges. I didn't win
on there, but I thought it was totally worth it to purchase them
anyway! It is a beautifull collection and if you go to her
Kaleidoscope website (pattibrownblog.com), you can take a look at what she has.
When I first bought it yesterday, I messed up and lost the download
somehow, but she was so nice to help me get the collection on my
computer again, and now I can tell you I will be spending lots of time
editing lots of photos!
I have still yet to figure out how to adjust the opacity of a texture
layer, or put an overlay on without just using the eraser in PS
elements, but I am working on it. Her tutorials on how it works in
regular PS show just how beautifull these overlays can enhance a
photo. So fun!!
Anyway, The first picture is an old picture of my neice that I revived
with the Gallery collection Impressionist edge, and the second one is
my Sister and her husbands picture enhanced with the Dirty watercolor
texture. Aren't they awsome! : )

A lot of pictures, but how do you choose?

2009-12-02T15:16:00.003-07:00

Well, this post is realy long pictures wise, but how do you choose which
ones to post? The area that we got these was actually in my parents
backyard. They have some realy fun spots!
The lighting was perfect, and even more what a perfect little family! So fun!

some more Morgan family

2009-11-30T17:03:00.001-07:00

These pictures were so cute, but the background was terrible with the
house and car, so experimented a little and came up with these. : )

Morgan Collages

2009-11-30T12:12:00.001-07:00

I took these pictures on saturday, So cute!! There are so many more of
these cute people!! I wanted to share these collages with her to she
which one she liked best.

I heart faces contest - Sun Flare

2009-11-23T09:24:00.002-07:00

This weeks contest for I ♥ Faces, is Sun Flare.
I just loved the tenderness of this photo, and what the sunflare added
to the moment.
Check out Iheartfaces.com, to see some more beautifull entries!

My new desktop screen picture

2009-11-19T11:39:00.001-07:00

My poor computer desktop screen has been black, with sparatic icons,
unorganized, messy and irritating. So I took a few minutes today to
make a new picture for the background. All my icons are now all
organized to the left of this picture.

My friend from theropersfamily.blogspot.com gave me an award!

2009-11-18T09:13:00.006-07:00

I feel so special! Thank you Steph for this fun award! I love
following your blog too, you totally deserve this award!
She is an amazing person with 3 little kids and a heart of gold to
carry twins for another family. She was so sweet to nominate me for
this Georgeous Blogger Award too. : )

So in order to accept this, I need to tell you all 6 facts about myself.

Hmmmm......lol

Well,

I am a member of a get healthy club with my sisters, mom, and a few friends and relatives. All girls. : ) We have been going for about 2 1/2 years or more now. We started with wanting to email our meals each day to eachother so we could encourage good eating, and reprimand for unhealthy choices. Its so helpfull to have to report your eating to someone each day, because it makes you think about whether you want to eat something bad or not. We have all made major changes, just from the support it provides, even when I am the only one e-mailing, lol, we have breaks every once in a while, everyone else still keeps up on the gethealthy vibes and is improving everyday. I went from eating crackers all day, to eating oatmeal and salads, and fruits and veggies on a regular basis. This isn't the only thing that has stemmed from it either. I am now very much into the natural healing and eating natures best, of herbs and whole foods. As I have practiced this, I learn more and more of the health benefits of herbs, and I have mostly eliminated things from my life, that I never thought I would. (most dairy, crackers(unless I am having a bad morning sickness day), red meat (unless I am having a bad pregnant craving), vaccinations, supplements that are not whole, like calcium tablets). I take care of my family with herbs, and essential oils for sicknesses, and preventative care now. I still struggle with a few things, but its all a practice and learn process to gain a testimony of it all. My major goals in this is to completely eliminate refined sugars, and to try a natural birth with no epidural, but instead positive thinking techniques. We will see on the birth thing. I do love an epidural. lol

I have learned so much about energy healing and tapping, rapid eye technology techniques, and they work! I am convinced there has to be a way for me to get through the pains of labor using mind over matter, but we will see. : )

I tend to leave realy long posts, because I like to be very detailed if I have something important to say. : ) I am quiet in person, but I can't seem to be quiet when writing. I communicate my feelings the best with writing.

I have a secret desire to be a childrens book author someday, but my writing might be to detailed and long for them. lol Maybe I should be a novelist instead. : )

I have a poem about Drids(little people that live in my pantry and spread crumbs all over the floor while no one is looking) that I would love to turn into a book someday.

You might have already noticed this one, but I love to budget! I love everything about it, love to teach what I have learned, as long as its in writing and try my best not to force it on anyone. lol

I love to draw people and pictures I take. My friend invites me to scrapbooking night, and I end up drawing my pictures instead of scrapbooking them.lol I would just rather leave them unorganized on my computer, and only print them to frame them. Although when I have actually scrapbooked I do have fun doing it, my pages never end up looking as cute as everyone elses though. I would love to learn painting skills. I have a nack for art, but probably dont do it as much as I should. Taking pictures is just a much easier hobby sometimes. Point and shoot, take a hundred pictures, then have the fun of editing!

I love figurine toys! I always have since I was little. The smaller the figuring the funner too, especially if it comes with a house and furniture and accessories. I always wanted polly pocket stuff when I was little, but never got any. I don't like the polly pockets they have now, they used to be smaller. : )

My house is covered in them, from Disney princesses, to little fairys, and my little pony's. I collected the movie "Cars" figures, and I now have littlest pet shop animals waiting for my 3 year olds birthday to come. I let my kids play with all of them, no sense in having a toy if it can't be played with. They do get lost sometimes, and I have a weakness for wanting to replace them. My kids love them though too, so it makes it even funner to watch their little imaginations come about and have them talk to eachother like they are real. My favorite thing to do when I was little. : )

My dream one day is to have a big red dealership balloon. I don't know why but this has been a fettish of mine for a realy long time! I just want a big red balloon, and I want to see the actual size of those dealership balloons up close. There is something mysterious about them to me. I told my husband that if I don't get to see one up close before I die, that he better have one at my funeral, and attach it to my coffin and fly it. : ) I want to sit up top of it and watch all my loved ones gather together, and have a great view of them all. : ) It will be fun.

Now that you know more about my weirdness, : ) I am going to pass this award along to 6 others who's blogs are inspiring to me.

trailthrougheducation.blogspot.com

This girl is amazing with her 5 boys. She has devoted her whole motherhood to homeschooling them. They are going to public school this year, but she is continuing to teach herself things. She has a beautifull voice, and talent for music too. : )

thesixofussmiths.blogspot.com

She has a beautifull family of 4 adorable girls, and she has a beautifull talent of making cakes, crocheting and being a lovely mother. : )

whatmakesusrich.blogspot.com

she always has a positive post of her little family. She is who I learn most from with the herbs and oils, though her blog is mostly about the cute little people in her life. :)

21daystoanewme.blogspot.com

She has been most inspiring on her get healthiness. She is a part of our get healthy group, and realy focuses on doing healthy things.

lundsfordclan.blogspot.com

I love keeping up with you and your kiddos Jenny!

fourberry.blogspot.com

She always has the cutest ways of editing your pictures with frames and stuff!

Just for fun editing again

2009-11-16T11:39:00.002-07:00

I think I like the coloring on this first one the best.

Original editing done in May.

I sometimes just like to get a dose of editing during the day for fun,
so I took this picture that I took back in May, and played with it. I
enhanced his eyes, softened his skin, added some texturing to the
fence, and played with the color a bit.

I heart faces-Autumn Beauty challange

2009-11-16T09:26:00.005-07:00

This is the I ♥ Faces challange for this week. Autumn Beauty!
I just love leaf pictures! Lets face it, Autumn wouldn't be so
beautifull without them right? : )
This is my little cousin I did some pictures for, she was having so
much fun playing in the leaves. I think leaves on the ground are the
next best thing to playing in the snow to a kid. Don't you think she
has the cutest, deepest dimples for a little girl? She is so cute!

I think the leaves give a great background to isolate the face, the
composition I guess would be texture?

I first added a little background light to help define the leaves a
bit more, a little bloom and contrast. Then I brightened up her eyes
with the dodge and burn tool, and added a filter for color and a
border to even out the shadows.

Check out Iheartfaces.com to see some more entries!

fun editing

2009-11-06T11:42:00.001-07:00

I decided to edit a few of my photos today for fun.
I love this picture of thing 1 and her Daddy, they have a special
relationship.:)

I heart faces-Fix it Friday

2009-11-06T09:03:00.004-07:00

I ♥ Faces Fix-it Friday photo!

The first photo is the original.

The second is my edit, and the third my edit just sharpened a bit.

I first lightend the picture with photoscapes background button, then
I adjusted the color curve a bit to help lighten.
Then I went into my ps elements, and made the eyes pop a bit, with
using the color dodge option to lighten the iris, and then the color
burn to darken the edges. I also darkened her eye lashes a little to
make them stand out a tiny bit more.
Then I added a crackle and plastic wrap background.

Go to iheartfaces.com to see more edits for this photo!

Check out my friends blogoversary 12 month giveaway!

2009-11-03T08:35:00.005-07:00

Hey everyone! Looking for a custom header for your blog? I know of a realy cute blog you should visit!
She is giving away a custom blog header each month, and they are realy cute!
I realy want one!! hehe
Just click on the Pieces of Me 12 month give away button on the right hand side of my blog, and it will take you to her blog. : )

My very first entry to iheartfaces.com- Balloons

2009-11-02T18:02:00.008-07:00

This is for the I ♥ Faces contest this week,

the theme is Balloons!

So, I have been wanting to do this for a while now. I was having a
hard time figuring it out before, but I am hoping I figured it out
this time.
I took this picture on my daughters 3rd birthday this year. Her daddy
bought her a big stash of balloons for her princess party, and she
loved them!
I hope you like it! She just looked so sweet that day too in her
princess outfit!

Be sure to check out http://www.iheartfaces.com/ to see all the other fun entries!

more fall pictures

2009-10-30T14:52:00.001-06:00

We had to get the kids out in the leaves again today. So fun!