Catch Up

Its been a long week and half. We have been so busy. It has been good and bad. Some things have suffered.....cleaning for one but some things have flourished.....fun, business, and just being a mom.

Last week Anthony was out of town all week. He has been this week too. So it is just me. The one night we had a storm and the power went out right as I was going to start dinner so that meant we ate out. Eli did go and see Aunt Tracy so it left me and L. We had a quick shopping trip. It was great. She loves seeing everything. I visited Marshalls for the first time since living here. I didn't buy a thing while out but had fun looking and just getting out. This tree came down in the storm........


The next morning I caught Eli in the bathroom doing this while I was changing Lilliana for the day. I guess I was not quick enough to getting his teeth brushed.

I got those funny reflective things again. I am assuming it is from the lights.

That night we really just wanted to relax but do something fun with Eli. We decided to make it a Chinese night. There is a great mom and pop Chinese place we love. The family is hard working and the kids are always there. Eli loves it too. So away we went. We decided to have a movie night and ate chinese.

One thing about Fall I very much dislike is the terrible light. Winter just brings early evenings and dreary days. My pictures have suffered the past weeks for that. I long for later sunsets and brighter days!

Saturday was Anthony's birthday. We were supposed to go to a Marriage Conference but some circumstances prevented that. I don't even want to get into it because I am trying to move past the circumstances. Needless to say Anthony and I were both very bummed. We had been looking forward to it. Anthony's mom graciously took the kids for us though. They were gone a lot of the afternoon and it was a nice break. Usually I have at least one. We cleaned the house and even shampooed the carpets. It was nice to not be interrupted and I was able to get it done a lot faster.

Sunday was a beautiful day. I had a shoot in the afternoon. We had rescheduled it several times due to weather so I was glad we were finally able to do it. I also discovered my new favorite location to shoot. It is perfect. Anthony and the kids tagged along as it is a nature center with lots of trails. He walked with them and let Eli run while I did my shoot. Then I took pictures of Lilliana. My mom saved two dresses I wore as a baby and I have been trying to get her pictures in them just have not found the right moment so I did them that day. The light was starting to fade but she was in a great mood and we were able to accompolish it quickly. I did some vintage looks to them. These two are my favorites.
Then I made storyboards of the others. She was so good and I had too many to choose from but that is ok!

Eli wanted to get some pictures with Lilliana. He has been into a no picture taking mood so I took advantage. He was more interested in showing her sticks which I thought was nice.

This is me wearing the red dress as a baby with my Great Grandma Ruby. Ironically Lilliana's name was going to be Ruby after her until about a week before I had her. It just did not fit and I don't know why. Now I know after seeing her and watching her grow. It is amazing how you just know the perfect name for your children.


Yesterday I had a newborn photo shoot. It went wonderful as well. Here are a few of my favorite shots. He was so easy and good.

Lilliana is growing and is such a joy! She loves this toy!


She tries to figure out the reflection and peaks around the front expecting to see somebody. She is now crawling backwards but screams with rage as she backs herself into things frequently. She adores her brother and they now play together in his room a lot. The first thing Eli asks in the morning is to bring Lilliana into his room to play.

Eli is just a sponge. He is beyond smart and has such an imagination. He has said so many funny things lately. I let him sleep in my bed the other night. I told him as I was tucking him in, "Stay in your bed and go to sleep!" As I walk out I hear, "No MOM!! Stay in YOUR bed and go to sleep!" LOL He just knows. Lately he has had a fascination with cooking and baking and making things for me to eat. He will get my measuring spoons and cups out along with the whisk and get water and mix toys in with them and ask me to eat the things he has made. He also makes a mess but oh well. Today I had enough the water mess and decided to do something with it so we worked on colors. We mixed primary colors to make secondary colors. We poured it all in a bowl and made black and then Eli made a mess but it was a blast.........

We are halfway through the week! Can't wait for the weekend. Now I must go and get these two adorable kids to bed.......