Life As Of Late

The darling picture above was taken by my friend, Emily Camp Photography

Life is quite busy these days, as I'm sure it is for most families.  The holiday season is in full swing and I am hustling around getting Christmas presents from this store and that, decorating our home to my delight and trying to keep my hyper toddler busy with lots of play dates through it all.  The hubby has been putting up lights and running lots of errands with me.  The weather has gotten a bit chillier so we are spending less time outside and more time inside which is not my favorite with a 2 year old. lol.  We've been playing lots of lovely Christmas carols and filling the house with the aroma of fragrant holiday candles...my current favorite being apple spice:).  I'm missing my Gram especially during this holiday season and continually working through my emotions since her passing.  I still can't believe that I can't pick up the phone and chat with her when I want/need to or that I won't get a phone call from her on my birthday singing me happy birthday in her awful singing voice (sorry Gram but, you know it was right?:).  I miss her so much...but, somehow life moves on as it always does.

So, what have we been up to lately? Well, we continue to work through potty training with Daisy. She has gotten so much better but, we still have occasional accidents, so I have actually kept her in pull ups, because it is so much less stressful for me and less mess to clean up. For the record we tried wearing big girl panties and it did not improve the potty situation so we know that pull ups are not the issue.  She currently has a cold and it seems that with every cold or flu comes a potty training set back. I have no idea why but, it has been that way every time.  Daisy is very smart and I know she could be completely potty trained by now but, whenever we are in a store or in someones home she gets nervous and doesn't like to tell me or anyone for that matter that she needs to go and that is when we have accidents.  She does great when we are at home for the most part unless she is having to much fun playing and forgets to go in time.  Oh my. Potty training is a very long term effort for us that's for sure.  I still have the toddler potty out for her (I realize this is very bizarre to some people...sorry but, if anything makes my life simpler I am all for it!) for the time being though she uses it much less these days.  The toddler potty has been great.  I have no complaints.

 We are in the process of transitioning Daisy into a big girl bed!  I realize that I have done this process much slower than a lot of people but, Daisy has always been so content in her crib and has never attempted to climb out so I savored her confinement as long as I possibly could. hehe  I think she would be content to stay in her crib until she was 18 but, the fact is that she is outgrowing it and I want to give her the right of passage that she deserves. So, Daddy set up the big girl bed last night.  It was a craigslist purchase and looked so cute online...setting it up at home has been a drag.  Long story short we got jipped and the bed is kind of flimsy as a result but, it will do for now.  I still need to get a box spring, a bed rail and a mattress protector so Daisy hasn't actually slept in it yet but, hopefully one night in the next few days.  For now she gets to adjust to the big girl bed being in her room and I can tell she likes it but, that she is also not crazy about it...almost as if it is weirding her out a little.  She seemed almost relieved to sleep in her crib again last night. HAHA.  My girl is so silly.  I'm planning to do a very simple room update with her decor.  I'll admit I was actually sad last night as my hubby was setting up her bed.  I stared at the crib and leaned on it and felt a sadness that the baby chapter is rapidly coming to a close.  I told my husband that I wanted her to sleep in her crib another night so that I could say goodbye to that season so to speak.  I always like to make sure that I get healthy closure before making a change.  For whatever reason this process has always helped me to have less sadness and regret looking back on things.  That's just how I am.   

 I have been really busy with my photography over the past couple of months. Just wrapped up a couple of family sessions, a maternity session and shot a lovely night wedding in November.  I'll be editing for a while to say the least but, I have been really enjoying this creative outlet.  So thankful for photography.  Though it hasn't been an easy thing to pursue it has kept me distracted and given me a satisfying sense of accomplishment in the midst of a life of mom-ness...if that makes sense.  It has also provided for our family in little ways and that has been such a God blessing!  I never would have dreamed that I would shoot a wedding, let alone do it on my own and I can truly say that I love it.  It is the most amazing feeling to be a part of such a special day in two people's lives and to have the honor of capturing the love and joy of their celebration.  I don't see myself shooting many weddings as a mom with young children, because they are a lot of work (both the weddings and the children! lol) but, one every now and then is a huge treat!  I love looking through all the pictures that I take after a session or event is over and smiling and laughing as I remember the moments that I have captured.  I feel the love when I look at the wedding shot below.  The bride and groom were dancing their first dance as husband and wife and the moment was so tender and sweet.  Then, I find myself smiling when I look at little Levi's serious face (two pictures down).  He wasn't interested in looking at the camera but, somehow I managed to get this beautiful and serious shot of his handsome face.  Those deep brown eyes melt my heart and seem so full of mystery!  Then I find myself cracking up when I look at the maternity picture (3rd picture down)....little Lila was not interested in kissing mommy's tummy initially as we were requesting of her but, I thought this picture captured real life so perfectly.  Photos are such a treasure and they all tell a story of some kind.

A few weeks back my sweet photographer friend, Emily Camp, (who is oh so talented!) and I exchanged skills and shot each other's Christmas family sessions.  We set up a couple of hay stacks and a few Christmas decorations and did a quick little mini session for each other.  It really is such a blessing to have such talented photographer friends because I don't know that I could afford to pay for a family session each Christmas!  Emily did a fantastic job.  I absolutely loved our pictures and will cherish them forever.  I even got a couple printed on a large canvas to hang in our living room:)!  Daisy cooperated quite well, which surprised me and we were able to get a couple cute shots of her looking in the general direction of the camera.  Yeah!  I will say that I am not a fan of family picture day....not at all.  Somehow even when I plan way ahead, pick out our outfits in advance, set up early, get dressed early etc...things seem to unravel in some way or another and I find myself incredibly relieved when it is all over.  It must be worth it though because, I continue to do it ever year:). lol  Enjoy the pics and sorry that this blog post was so long.  I suppose it is to be expected with how little I blog now though. hehe :)

Sweet Princess Ballerina

This year our little one was eager to be a princess for Halloween. Her costume of choice was a gift that my Mom had gotten her while we were out in California recently, a princess/ballerina combination.  Thanks Marme. The costume looked absolutely darling with her hair swept back, her cheeks dusted with a sparkly, peach blush and her little legs warmed in fuzzy white tights.  She melts my heart.

 What they say is absolutely true.  A little one brings back the sense of wonder and magic into all of the holidays.  I find myself getting just as excited as my daughter about every holiday the night before it arrives.  Joey's Grandparent's joined us again this year which was such a treat and we also made our traditional Burritos for dinner.  They are SO delicious! I am beginning to love the little traditions that we are creating with our little one. 

Daisy has been fascinated by princesses since, her 16 month photo shoot when she wore her first Princess tutu and carried her first wand.  Ever since then, even without watching a single princess movie, she has been captivated by all things Princess.  If we remain on this course, it's quite likely that her 3rd birthday will be a Princess party.  Big surprise right? :) This little munchkin loves to have princess dress up parties, complete with tea with all of her friends. 

Daisy went to bed the night before Halloween ridiculously excited about dressing up and knocking on doors and yelling "trick o tweet!" As I was tucking her in bed she kept saying, "when I waykup I guna dwess up and knock on de duwahs wike dis, (knock knock on her headboard) and den I say twick oh tweet!" Oh my goodness it was so cute to hear her rambling on about it all. 

Halloween day was a long day because Daisy was ready to treat pretty much from the moment she woke up.  I managed to keep her out of her costume until around 4 but, then she couldn't be restrained a moment longer.  We spent the next two hours pretending to treat at our own house and hanging out with Granddad and Beach (as Daisy calls Great Grandma). 

After much anticipation, the time finally came to treat!  We stopped at our good friend Erin's house first.  Daisy had an absolute blast to say the least.  She loved knocking on doors and choosing a couple of candies from the bowl of each home that she treated at.  She did great for the first 45 minutes or so but, as it began to grow dark she wanted to be held continually because she is not so fond of the dark these days. 

Just before we wrapped it up for the night, Daisy ran in to her little play date buddy.  It was so cute because, they immediately gave each other a big hug and chatted kiddie chat for a minute.  It's such a joy to watch my daughter growing up and becoming a little girl.  I honestly never thought that I would celebrate Halloween with our kids but, there is something so adorable about kids dressing up in their cute little costumes and going around a neighborhood collecting candy.  So Daisy, thank you for putting the sparkle back in the holidays for me.  I adore you little Princess Ballerina.

Fast forward to the present...surprisingly, Daisy has not been begging for candy all day long.  She does like to chuck pieces of candy into her candy bucket and count pieces from one to ten.   I've been letting her pick a few pieces out each day to eat but, otherwise she doesn't bother me too much.  Thank goodness because the last thing that Daisy needs a lot of is sugar. lol  And below is a little video that Daddy got.  So glad that he did:).