Flower Girls

I have to work all weekend so I was off today. I took the opportunity to hit the wedding photos pretty hard and am very pleased to say that I am half way finished!  :) This makes me happy…very…very happy!

So I mentioned that the wedding party had 7 children in it. Cute Cute CUTE children!

Here are a few of my favorites of the flower girls.

Aren’t they adorable!?!?!

Wedding Party

I might be a little MIA over the next few weeks.  If you are looking for me I have probably drowned in the sea of editing wedding photos or I am on the elliptical.  I shot a wedding this past weekend and so I now set off to edit the photos in a timely manner while still holding down the fort at home, working a full time job, tending to two kids, my husband and myself and still making sure I fit in time to exercise on a daily basis!  WOW that was a mouthful. 

 

Anywho…here are some of my favorite shots from the day so far.

 

There were a ton of kids at this wedding and by a ton I mean that there were SEVEN in the wedding party alone!  Most bride and grooms may choose to exclude children from the invites but not this fun loving couple.  They embraced the children, even setting up a special area for them and there were almost more children than adults, so it is only natural that most of my favorite photos involve children. 

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels

I finished Ree Drummond's (aka The Pioneer Woman) book earlier this week. I loved it, wanted more, and was so sad to see it end!

Ree is such a talented writer so it is no surprise that her very popular blog is award winning and her books have done so well.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks Recipes From an Accidental Country Girl

Charlie The Ranch Dog

This book is about how she met, fell in love with and married her  cowboy husband whom she refers to as Marlboro Man.  The way that she tells the story is so captivating. It draws you in and makes you laugh and cry right along with her. If I didn't know better I could have fallen in love with her cowboy myself.
She had to have kept a journal throughout their courtship to have remembered their love story with such colorful detail.

This book was definitely a delight to read and I am looking forward you reading her next book.

I frequent her website, own her cookbook and love making recipes of hers.  A couple of weeks ago we had friends over for dinner. On the menu was the Marlboro Man Sandwich. Here is {my link} from another time I made it.  I was talking to my friend about how much butter the recipe calls for and that I didn't even use half of it seeing as I am trying to lose weight.  Lauren, my butter loving child, couldn't believe her ears. She started calling her the "butter lady" and all through dinner kept talking about how she wants to meet her since they both love butter so much.  I tried to get her on video but of course it is never as good the second time around or when you have a camera in their face.  But here it is.



She loved the "meat and butter sandwich" and was still talking about it and the butter lady days later!

Lauren mentions a movie because we had been talking about how the book is going to be made into a movie starring Reese Witherspoon!

It’s All About the Outfit

At any point in time you may have a chance to do something really special. And of course you must be dressed for the occasion.


Even if that occasion is practicing riding your bike. 

A girl still needs to look her best.

And a Fancy Nancy sequined tulle tutu dress is perfect for an occasion such as this!

Wouldn’t you say?

I thought so!

Too Cute

Lauren-isms

"The sky made me a birthday cake.  It {the clouds} are all pink, purple and gray."

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"Can I have some chewing gum so I can stick it on my plate while we eat?"

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Lauren: "Can I kiss you on the junk eye?"

Me: "what is the junk eye?"

Lauren points to my face

Me: "That is your cheek, not a junk eye!"

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Row Row Row your boat careful down the stream. Mary Mary Mary life is a bought dream

Pumpkin Spice Latte

It was no where near Pumpkin Spice Latte "season" and I found myself jonesing for a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks. Too bad it was March and they had long been done with the seasonal flavor and I would have to wait 6 months for it to return.  Then I remembered that a while back I saw a recipe for one on Eat Live Run.  I tweaked it just a bit to get it just the way I like it.  :)  I also use almond milk because I have a sensitivity to milk AND almond milk is WAY lower in calories than cow’s milk!                
Lucky for me, canned pumpkin is available year round! It has become a staple at my house. I seem to be having a love affair with it. I have been making lots of things with pumpkin.





Pumpkin Spice Latte

Ingredients:

1 cup strongly brewed coffee
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
2 tablespoons canned pumpkin
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 pumpkin pie spice plus more for sprinkling on top

Directions:

Brew your coffee and make it strong.  The directions on the bag of coffee that I have say 1 tablespoon of coffee to 6 ounces of water so I usually do 2 tablespoons.
On the stovetop {microwave directions below} in a small saucepan combine the almond milk and the canned pumpkin.  Cook over medium heat until steaming, stirring occasionally. 

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and pumpkin pie spice {don't have pumpkin pie spice on hand.  That's ok just combine 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 ground ginger, 1/8 tsp allspice and 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg to make 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice}

Pour mixture into your blender and blend on high until mixture is nice and foamy

Pour pumpkin milk into a very large coffee cup.

Top with your cup coffee and stir gently and top with more pumpkin pie spice if desired!  MMM! Delicious!

*****In a hurry???  Want to make this recipe quicker and more on the way out the door morning friendly?  Do it in the microwave.  In a glass bowl or large cup that has a lid combine all the ingredients except for the coffee. Whisk or still to combine and break up the pumpkin a little bit, then put the lid on and here is where I get super high tech, baristas everywhere are probably going to stone me for this one.  SHAKE that bowl like your life depended on it.  Shake shake and shake some more.  You want the milk to get nice and foamy and almost double in size.  Then stick it in the microwave for about 1:30 depending on how hot you like your milk.  Just make sure that you don't over heat it.  Pour in your very large cup and top with the coffee. 

Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Glaze

Like I mentioned in my first post of the day…today is my brother’s birthday.  He is a lover of all things red velvet and lets me experiment new recipes on him!  I have been eyeing these Red Velvet Pancakes ever since I saw them on I am mommy but I wasn’t sold on the recipe that she used.  I wanted to use whole wheat flour so I scoured the internet, found two recipes that I liked, picked out the ingredients I wanted and waala! my Red Velvet Pancakes!


I mixed up the batter and the glaze at home, loaded the griddle up in my car and headed to my brother’s work to surprise him.  It was awesome!!
He loved them and declared them better than regular pancakes! If that isn’t success then I don’t know what is.

Red Velvet Pancakes

 

 

Ingredients
1½ cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1 1/2 tablespoons vinegar

1 1/3 cup whole wheat flour

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 eggs

2 tbsp melted butter

½ tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tablespoons red food coloring

Directions

Whisk together milk and vinegar and set aside to curdle.

In a mixing bowl, add wheat flour, all purpose flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda. Make a well in the center, and pour in milk mixture, eggs, melted butter, the vanilla and food coloring. Mix until combined.

Preheat griddle on medium heat. Using a

1/4 to 1/3 cup measuring spoon pour the batter onto the griddle. Once bubbles form, gently flip and cook for a few more minutes.

Top with cream cheese glaze.

For Cream Cheese Glaze:

Ingredients
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoon almond milk

Directions
In a medium sized bowl mix whisk the cream cheese, vanilla and almond milk together and then add powdered sugar.  If the glaze is too thick you can add a bit more milk. It will thin out/melt a bit when you put it on the hot pancake.

Makes 12-15 pancakes.

 

You will enjoy these pancakes.  I promise! {yes I served them on paper plates and yes they are not as pretty as I could have made them but they are delicious!}

Happy Birthday Aaron

 

 

 

A very happy birthday to my big brother!  We Love You!!

Music Therapy

It's amazing how a song can transport you back in time. When you hear a certain song it sometimes feels as if I are right back in that moment... the moment you first heard it; a first kiss with a new boyfriend; a time in your life.

In the book Sing You Home that I blogged about earlier this week, Zoe, one of the main characters is a music therapist.  She used music to help kids undergoing chemotherapy, Autistic children, Alzheimer patients, a depressed adolescent and many other patients.  This was very interesting to me.  I have always realized the connection between music and emotions, songs and memories but I never knew there was a profession based on all that. 

picture credit

This picture of the babies popped up when I googled Music Therapy and I just thought it was too cute not to share.

Often when I hear certain songs I feel very emotional, does that ever happen to you?  A song will just come on the radio and instantly transform my mood.  Sometimes they make me want to dance and sometimes I even cry!

On my way to work the other day I popped in a mixed CD that I made over 10 years ago. It was so funny to hear the songs I listened to in high school. oh the memories that came back to me. The places I went, the friends I had, the boys I was convinced I was in love with!  I have realized how my taste in music has changed since then but it didn't stop me from singing along with every song and thinking back on the person I was when I made that CD. And I would say that YES it was theraputic for me to take a walk down memory lane even though that was not my intention when I put the CD in.

This Little Man

 

Makes My Heart Sing

 

This little man has been sick. He started running a fever last Thursday and it lasted all the way until Sunday afternoon.  When I took him to the doctor they said it was a sinus infection. Oh how miserable he must have felt.  He was totally not himself. He would just cry and cry and break his momma’s heart.  I felt so bad for him! I of all people know how bad sinus infections suck and I just wanted to take it away from him and make him better. 

 

Luckily we caught it early enough and the doctor had us start him on antibiotics right away.  He is finally starting to act like his normal happy go lucky self!

I’ve Got Work To Do

Well actually I have some reading to do.  One of my goals for 2011 was to read more.  It is a nice quiet hobby that I can do in a variety of places.  I often read on my lunch break, in the doctor’s office waiting room, before bed instead of watching TV or any other time I can find to squeeze in reading.  So far this year I have already read

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

Love and Logic Magic for Early Childhood by Jim Fay and Charles Fay

Love the One You're With by Emily Giffin

Heart Of the Matter by Emily Giffin

Baby Proof by Emily Giffin

Made To Crave by Lysa TerKeurst

The Four Seasons of Marriage by Gary Chapman

Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult

I think that I am doing a fairly good job at reading more!  Last year I can only think of 4 books that I read and I only blogged about two of them!

While I am checking most of the books out from the library, Sonya, thought she would help me along.  When we went on vacation in August she brought along with her, ALL of her Jodi Picoult books except for the ones that I have already read!

 

So it looks as though I have some reading to do…A LOT of reading!  I know that I won’t get them all read before the end of the year. I hope she isn’t expecting them back anytime soon!!

Sing You Home

A book about unexpected love and ultimate forgiveness.

Source: jodipicoult.com via Sonya on Pinterest

This is the second book that I have read by Jodi Picoult.  When I first read the synopsis on the cover of the book I knew I had to read it.  It had reeled me in already and I got way more than I was expecting!  It deals with such issues as infertility, gay rights, parenthood, and religious beliefs. 

After being married for 10 years and dealing with heartbreaking infertility two of the main characters divorced and then they each fall in love to some very unexpected people.  I love how Picoult takes you through through so many twists and turns although I thought that many of the outcomes were predictable.

While I may not totally agree with the opinions and events that happened in the book I did walk away from it feeling like I had done a little soul searching as well as learned a little something.  I have realized, in just the two books that I have read from Picoult, that she researches her books very well.   I love that she includes real places and real events that happened around the time that she wrote the book. 

What a Difference…

A year makes.  

The pictures below were all taken in September of 2010 when we were barely embarking on Colton's treatment for his hip dysplasia. 


It is very hard for me to go back and relive these moments.  I was hurt, confused, upset and scared.  I felt so alone.  I wasn't sure if the harness was going to work.  I was upset that this was happening to my son.  I had no idea what I was doing with the crazy contraption and I was finding little or no information on the internet.  I was scared that he may never walk.  When I re-read this post it brings tears and so many memories.  Yet when I look at Colton, now a year later, the harness is just a small part of what I remember.  A tiny composite of what his life is and the little boy that he is blossoming into. 

And here is he, one year later WALKING!  Yes I know he started walking months ago, I am just still in awe. 



Even though I have been doing a lot of  "one year ago" type thinking I do not have that bitter feeling that I had one year ago. God is faithful, he brought us through, the harness did it's job, I was even able to help a friend by offering support and compassion along the way. 

We have come so far in the past year!

What’s up Wednesday

I am in sort of a blogging rut. I feel like I have so many things to talk about but yet nothing to say. Do you ever go through spurts like that? I seem to…a lot! I have a lot of stuff going on right now that I would really like to blog/vent about but I am scared. Scared to put myself out there, scared of what people will think, scared of being so incredibly deep down real. Not that I am not real on my blog but the real me that is going on in my head right now.

I am sure that makes no sense whatsoever.

So today I bring to you “What’s Up Wednesday” basically all the random thoughts that are going through my head at this very minute.

I am ready for fall. I love when it is cooler in the mornings and the evenings but yet still nice enough to walk around without a jacket during the day. I love waking up in the mornings, well not really the actual waking up part, but the part where you are all warm and snuggly in bed and there is that cool crispness of the air inside the house from the temperatures dropping during the night. Fall is one of my favorite times of year. The cooler temperatures, the leaves changing and the food! OH THE FOOD!! I am looking forward to making all kinds of soups, chowders and chilis. Also fall means the season of pumpkins. Pumpkin Spice Latte, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin whoopee pies…I could go on and on. You should see how many recipes I have that involve pumpkin.

I have been a rock star at doing some sort of exercise every day for about the last 3 weeks. I have only missed a couple of days due to an unexpected medical annoyance. I am back on the mend and am pushing it through even though it may not be the most comfortable thing to do. But hey exercise is not supposed to be comfortable! I feel satisfied in doing some sort of physical activity every day. This is not something that I normally would say…I don’t know what has gotten into me! But really, I feel better physically and emotionally when I do something every day that pushes myself. Last Friday I had to work late and so did Brian which meant I was on bedtime duty, LATE bedtime duty none the less, by myself. I had picked up the kids who were with my brother and sister in law, a little after their normal bedtime. By the time I got them home and tucked in to bed it was late and I was exhausted. But I made myself get on the elliptical. The sense of accomplishment when I was done was amazing. Not only had I pushed through but I was able to go farther than what I had thought and it felt good. I hope that I can keep this up.

I have another wedding coming up this month and I will be honest I am not looking forward to shooting this wedding. The entire thing is indoors and I am more of the outdoorsy kind of photographer. I enjoy landscapes, not the plain background of a hotel ballroom. When I first met with the couple I suggested going outside to do some of their shots so that we could spice it up a bit. You would have thought that I was predicting rain by their reaction and the look on their faces. I have no idea why I accepted the job. I guess it will be good experience!

Enough of my random thoughts for the day. I hope that I can get back into a blogging groove soon.

Lauren-isms

Lauren is so funny!  She comes up with the craziest things.  Not only does she say funny things as you can see by all of the “Lauren-ism” posts but she also comes up with some pretty crazy things to do.  While we were on vacation we were getting ready to leave the water park and I look down and she is putting her dad’s shoes on….over her flip flops. 

She actually tried to walk around like that!

Now onto the Lauren-isms.

Mom, you can just call me "Fancy Lauren"

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My shoes are over there by the white wall because that is where I parked them.

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It doesn't matter they are goodilicious!

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Fancy Nancy got cupcakes so I got fruit snacks.