1.18.12

my friend Becca

is, among other incredibly awesome things,

a super-superior-stellar photographer

she's inspiring in all she does

because she is motivated by the LOVE of God

to live and love freely,

serving those around her

with compassion and grace

but anyway, that's not what this post is about

it's about how awesome her photography skills are.

i can only hope that one day i'll be a fraction as good 

as she is behind the camera

(she took the 2nd to last photo while i was at her house and i cannot believe her eye for the extraordinary in the ordinary--simply amazing to see her perspective and ability!)

until then, i'll take my 3 squirmy girls who often make photos blurry*

(*yup, just blamed them for blur)

and continue to document their daily life!

oh wait...we have a blog?

in between swinging with (what clearly is) a very enthralled J

playing with toys

learning how to sit

making crafts

for little sisters to wear

being coy (and so cute)

I've been bitten by the sewing bug

(8 dresses, 7 days, 6 t-shirts, & 0 modeling skills)

that last one = 3 shirts + 3 dresses + 3 happy babes

or, at least, one very crazy kid

one very grabby sitter:

and one perky baby Emily

we're also neck-deep in 2-year birthday party preparations (Cutie Face will be TWO on Sunday but we're celebrating a day early) and post-Cutie-Cakes-baptism brunch hoopla.

It's quite insane

but it's fun!

catch ya on the flip side...

Sunrise, Sunset

Thanks to those of you who sent me encouraging notes about J's departure. I did not mean to overdramatize his absence--we're very used to surviving as a family of 3 from sunrise to sunset (BUT note that I used the word "survive" because the world is so much better with a husband & dad in the picture). The girls and I are very grateful for him and his presence in our lives! 

Also, we chose to move to the ATL because my parents and sister (+ her family) live a scant 45 minutes away. So, if I was at my wit's end or needed a break during J's absence, I have many opportunities to seek support or take a break.  We are also very thankful for all that family and friend support!

Okay! Back to our day!

We started with breakfast at the Parish Market. We forgot it opened at 8 so we encouraged Cutie Face to dance around in her new dress (i'm on a sewing kick!) to pass the time....

I LOVE the way they decorate their store--so fun and creative.

After a nice family walk, we headed home to pack and go up to the 'burbs for a gorgeous baby shower for a neighborhood friend...pictures to come soon...

Then we drove like mad to get back home and get J ready to fly to Singapore. It felt like we were rushing and getting everything done in an efficient manner but somehow we were even more rushed when we went out the door--J had to be at the airport in 15 minutes and we still had to stop at the ATM!

Thankfully, he made it on time, and life with me and the Cuties began again. The girls were great for the most part--Cutie Cakes has decided that cartrips are no longer for her so she was a little cranktastic but what can you do? She'll grow out of it...right?

Cutie Face hit the pillow for an 1.5 hour nap when we got home--HOW NICE that was! Upon awaking, she had a quick dinner and we were out the door yet again to meet some new friends at Centennial Olympic Park.

We're very excited to have the privilege of hanging out with a great 7-year old who lives in the heart of Atlanta. More on that later, too...for now, here's a quick iPhone picture of our evening. 

Cutie Face totally dug being able to interact with older kids and run around on a performing stage, eat watermelon, and play (eat?) bubbles.  And, besides spitting up all of her meal, Cutie Cakes was a dream--happy, gurggly and didn't start crying until we got back in the car (of course! we now expect nothing less :)

What a great way to end the day! Of course, the day didn't end until 9:58 when I officially walked down the stairs after finally laying both girls down...here's hoping for a decent lie-in from both of them!

PS If I owe you an email or comment response...i'm getting to it! i promise! i've just been a royal slacker on the email department. Call it old fashioned but all of a sudden i'd rather call people on the phone--it's so much faster :)

busy bee

the cuties might not have been too busy today but their mama sure was! 

we started the day with breakfast (of course!). Since we'd been inside practically all day yesterday, i wanted the kiddos to be outside as much as possible. So Cutie Face ate on our side porch. She asked for a Fig Newton and I thought, ehh, why not--decent on the nutrition factor and super easy for me :-o

Unfortunately for her, a lawnman was using a leafblower across the street. This noise literally brought tears to her poor eyes. She was sooooo scared of it but I told her that he was cleaning (she loves being clean so this thought was a comfort to her) and then i told her it was like mommy's vacuum. These thoughts brought some solace but not much-she was soon begging to go back inside. 

I couldn't resist snapping some photos, though, because the light was nice and i'd slacked severely in the picture taking department these last couple of days.

Thanks to my mother-in-law, I was able to take a 2-week sewing class. The last class ended today and it was great. I wound up being the only student enrolled in the "beginning sewing" lesson so i technically had a 1-on-1 sewing instructional. It was so fun and informative!

Because it was from 9:30-1, I left the cuties with a sweet babysitter (though they both gave her a rough time by crying her ear off...we need to work on the truth that i'll always return...no need to cry!)

then it was home and lunch and bed and nursing and finishing the sewing project (a fun skirt---if i had elastic it'd be done by now! here is its semi-finished state...appearing more vibrant in this pic than in real life).

and then it was clean clean--my first woman's Bible study was tonight! oh my! {it was wonderful, by the way--so thank you all for your prayers in preparation of it.}

I, unfortunately, burnt the brownie cupcakes i made for the ladies so it was off to our local health food store for some last minute goodies.

While Cutie Face ate dinner & Cutie Cakes entertained herself in the bouncer (thank goodness for that bouncer!),

it was time for bedtime prep for the girlies--bath, bottle, bed for CC and potty, book, bed for CF.


15 minutes later the Bible study gals were at my door...too bad CF decided she needed to go potty yet again (she has impeccable timing, that one)

While that doesn't seem like a lot, being away from the homestead and the cuties for 3.5 hours definitely made the day fly.

Thanks for bearing with me on these boring catchup posts. When i write daily, my posts tend to be more fun and less...boring/diary-esque.

Let's bring the fun{k} back! here's to writing every day!

eeeeek! for some reason my computer just shut down and i lost half this post. Sorry for the disjointedness (yet again)...off to go backup my computer should it completely go on the fritz!

Sew busy!

I haven't been posting or taking many pictures this week because I've found a new obsession.

It is one that takes me away from the computer (unless I need instructional help!) but is still incredibly time consuming:

SEWING!

I LOVE IT! I'm having so much fun playing around with my machine and making things for Cutie Face.

Sadly, I've neglected my blogs (and my camera and twitter and facebook and really all social networking!). My current project is this Halter Dress that I'm making for Cutie Face and her cousin, Lil Miss.

{Shhh...it's supposed to be a Christmas present (here is hoping it is done in time!)}

Thankfully, Cutie Face keeps herself occupied while I finished a few things today.


I LOVE that she is a reader!