DIY Bat Tree...

This is a re-post from last year, but I thought I'd share it just in case anyone wants to make it! If you do make one, let me know, I'd love to see yours!

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Halloween is next week! So here's a fun little activity I modified from Martha Stewart Living to decorate your home, create with your babes, + put you in that ghoulish spirit!

1)Trace these bat templates onto black card stock (I used black construction paper) + cut them out following the template instructions. 

2)Using a tack, punch a small hole in the center of each bat. 

3)Poke a piece of thread (I used floss) through each hole and knot it. 

4)Tie the bats to a few branches (painting them with black acrylic paint is optional). 

5)Then place the branches in an old vase and fill with autumn leaves (real/plastic), or hang one branch from two pieces of thread secured to a window frame with flat thumbtacks. 

6)Have a happy Halloween! 

This month///Santa Baby!

In the past month we've been to 2 baby birthday parties (Happy birthday Miles Fox + Graham---James loves you both!), decorated our home for the holidays, taken James to pick out his first Christmas tree, been to New York City for the first time (post coming soon!), Christmas shopped/wrapped gifts, sent out Christmas cards, made TAMALES (post coming soon!), and have been to 2 Christmas parties!

All that to say, I'm sorry blog. You've been neglected, and for that, I am sorry! I'm SORRRRRY. Ok, enough of that, I'm back.

Oh, I also wanted to share this...

We're the worst parents ever. Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving...

Where have I been? Well, I've been to the grocery store, Target, Wal-Mart, doing laundry, washing a never-ending amount of dishes in the sink (one day we'll have a dishwasher), playing with a chubby bunny named James, walking Teddy, and spending time with my handsome Mitchell. Oh, and Arizona!

This Thanksgiving was so much fun! We weren't too sure how James was going to do with the 5+ hour car drive thru the desert, but he did so so good! He played Fisher-price games and watched "UP!"on the iPad which helped a bit. All in all, it was a pretty good drive to and from Arizona.

While we were there I was able to see my immediate family, which was amazing since half of them live in Florida. It was sooo great seeing all of them in the same week, not to mention the fact James got see some family he hasn't seen since he was born.

the men.

We spent Thanksgiving at my dad's house, which was nice because I also saw some of my step-siblings and their families. It's crazy how big their kids are! James had turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, bread, + pumpkin pie! He didn't care for the turkey too much, but he sure did love that pie!

where'd that pie go?

Seriously, where's the pie?

Confession, I went "Black Friday" shopping with my brother at Toys-R-Us. We got a few good deals

:)

On Friday we woke up and took a stroll in Old Town Scottsdale, only a few blocks from our hotel room. We enjoyed a cup of coffee at Starbucks, and bought some baby Minnetonka's for James. We made a snap decision to take a drive up to Montezuma's Castle + Sedona as we walked back to the hotel room. The drive up was about 1.5 hours, not too bad, and totally worth it!

crooked/timed photo op! (we lost the camera after this was taken. So on Saturday before we checked out of the hotel, I called the shop where we bought James' moccasins, and they had it! The shop was called "Lucky Goods + Jewelry", ha!)

"Southern Sinagua farmers began building this five-story, 20-room dwelling early in the 1100s CE. It stands in a cliff recess 100 feet above the valley. Early settlers marveled at the structure and assumed that it was Aztec in origin, hence the name Montezuma Castle."

-National Park Service U.S. Dept. of the Interior

A little fist pump for Montezuma's Castle!

This tree was beautiful! The photo does no justice...

leaves + blue sky!

Mitch, James + javelinas!

James wasn't sure about this guy...

Sedona is so gorgeous. Red rock = wow! 

On Friday night we made our way back to Scottsdale and had dinner at Grimaldi's Pizzeria. It was delicious. That's all. Just delicious. And James LOVED it too, which was a bonus. We met the owners too! They just so happened to be visiting from New York City! 

No cheerios! I want pizza mama!

Howdy y'all!

On Saturday we got ready to come back home, but we stopped by my dad's to have lunch (Pete's Fish + Chips til we diiiieeeee!) and say adios, until next time!

James + tata Bob

On Sunday my mom + sister stayed the night at our place. They had to drive back to Arizona to return their rental car & catch their flight to Florida. It was so nice having them over for a night/morning.

Nana + James

James + aunt Moriah

And now, bring on the Christmas everything!

1,826 days and counting...

5 years. That's how long 1,826 days is. 43,829 hours...2,629,743 minutes, that's how long I've been married to the man of my dreams.

So what's our story? How did we meet and know we were meant to spend the rest of our lives together?

We met at church. New to our faith, we were those Christians that were at church every waking moment. He served in the high school ministry, and let's just say I was there too :)

We began dating when I was a senior in high school at the ripe age of 18! He was 21, and we knew it was going to work out despite our age difference. Because let's be honest...I was/am a sophisticated lady with wisdom beyond my years...ha, I wish.

So we dated for a few years while I pursued school and he paid off some debt (credit cards are from the devil!) and on December 17th, 2006 he asked me to be his bride at the Snow White Wishing Well at Disneyland.

A little less than 10 months later on October 6th, 2007 we got hitched at The Orchard in Menafee, California. It will always be a cherished memory because that's where we promised our hearts to one another forever and ever.

Wanna see more of our awesome wedding photos? Click here. You know you wanna!

Autumn or Fall...

Whatever you call it, it's here! 

This year the seasons take on a whole new meaning now that there's a little man in the picture, so naturally, we are planning a trip to Oak Glen to go apple picking, pumpkin patching, + memory making!

My good friend Erin re-pinned this on her special "Is it fall yet?!" Pinterest board, and I HAD to share it...

S.O to tinkerlab.com for the sweet bucket list!

How many will you check off this fall? 

I'm aiming for all of them! (minus the football game).

Costume ideas...

Earlier this week James and I took a little field trip to Target to get a few things when low & behold I saw...HALLOWEEN + AUTUMN decor!


Can you believe the 1st day of autumn was last Saturday?! Where does time go, seriously? I wanna know?

So now that I have a son, I've been thinking maybe it's time to seriously consider this lil' guy's costume. With that said, I really want to make it. And I hate to admit this, but I don't even know how to thread a needle, so it's going to have to be something clever, easy, and possibly thread/needle-less. OR I might just have to buckle down and learn...I have about 40 days, so that's plenty of time, right? Right.

So here's a short list of costume possibilities:

ewok baby!

spider baby!

lumberjack baby aka just-like-daddy baby!

owl baby!

moose baby!

plankton baby!

Did you see a baby costume you love? 

Follow me on Pinterest where you can get the links to these cuties!

ps-we're leaning toward ewok baby or just-like-daddy baby :)

Independence Day...

Remember me saying something about these?

Well, here's a few for you to enjoy on this festive day!

 Thinking today will look alot like these photos...
except with BBQ, more family & of course fireworks!

It's bound to be a blast! (see what I did there?)

What are you doing to celebrate our freedom?

Happy Father's Day...

I've known you for 10 years, and never in my wildest dreams did I know you'd be such an incredible husband, and now, father to our son.

I'll never forget how HUGE your eyes were when I told you we had a bun in the oven! Your face lit up and your eyes watered as we stared at each other dreaming of our baby.

And the way you looked at me when the doctor said "Get your camera, here comes your son!"-your face lit up once again, just like it did the day I told you we were going to be parents.

And today, just like yesterday, and every day in between, your face lights up when you hold and kiss our boy.

No one makes him laugh like you. No one swaddles him as tight as you. And no one loves him like his father.

Happy 1st father's day, love!

2 Months...

Pretty sure the second month goes by much quicker than the 1st month! James is growing at such an incredible speed, it's mind blowing! Seriously. We were just talking about how we could feel his tiny feet kicking me from the inside of my tummy...and now his feet fit into socks and size 1 baby shoes! Size 1!

Here's what this past month had in store for you sweet baby James...

You took your very 1st trip to LACMA! And you did great in the women surrealist exhibit! Slept like an angel most of the day, except for the meltdown on our way home when dad had to pull over on the 5fwy so mom could take you out of the car seat to calm you down...but other than that, you did great!

You took your very 1st trip to Target! And you did great there too! Except for the meltdown you had as we were leaving the store because you pooped. Mom had her first solo diaper-change-in-the-parking-lot experience accompanied by annoying-lady-that-wants-to-compliment-me-on-my-cute-son-while-I-am-trying-to-change-and-soothe-my-crying-son-at-the-same-time experience. It was all very stressful, but hilarious looking back at it.

You took your very 1st nap in your crib! Sure, you only slept for about 30 minutes, but you did it! Way to go James! (ps-I checked on you every 3 minutes to make sure you were ok).

You had your very 1st EASTER! Your Gramma Rita made you a very special Easter basket filled with baby toys, bottles, pacifiers, a onesie, and even some candy (sorry son, you're too little for that, but don't worry-mom and dad enjoyed it for you!). We even took you out to the Pacific Amphitheater at the OC fairgrounds for some church! It was really warm in the sun, so dad held you in the shade so you could pay special attention as Francis Chan explained the love Jesus has for us. You were all dressed up in your baby Gap plaid romper, some cute brown shoes, a baby lamb knit cap in the early morning, but then a sun cap when it got too sunny for your sensitive head. You looked adorable!

You also learnt to pick up your head and turn to look at things! You even follow us with your eyes if we walk past you! But you get really fussy and sleepy after tummy time and look like this...

My absolute favorite thing you've learnt this past month...flashing that gummy grin of yours! We look at you and smile and talk gibberish, and then you do the SAME back to us. It's heavenly seeing those little dimples + chubby cheeks all smooshed together when you smile so big!

Other things you've learnt this past month:

Being rocked back to sleep and sung to is the best. Your lullaby I sing to you every night is a special one that will always be yours.

Dad's swaddles beat mom's ANY day.

Lately...

I've really been into these things (in no particular order):

Being creative! I went to an amazing workshop a few weeks ago hosted by painter extraordinaire Sarah Carter,  & photographing master Trever Hoehne. I learnt quite a few things about what it means to take some time to tap into my creativity, which was a beautiful thing. I really did cherish that rainy Saturday and I don't think I will ever forget it...

I created this! And if you know me, you know I do not paint or make creative things outside of the realm of film/photo. Thanks Bloom workshop!

So being creative has stirred a need to photograph! And I must say, my subject these days seems to be a handsome little guy I love to call James. Wish I could do this for a living...maybe one day! 

Reading out loud to my baby boy. I've finally figured out a way to finish Perelandra, and James seems to love it, which makes me one proud momma. 

 Hanging out with one of my dearest friends, Emily. 

PS-We LOVE the Hunger Games! Can't you tell by our big ol' grins!

Dressing this guy up in the cutest clothes ever. Who says boys can't be hip & cute?! 

Being so excited for Easter! It's next week you know. Oh, you didn't know?! Me either until this morning. But last year was so amazing, I can't wait to see what this year will be like. 

Christmas Time...

It's here, it's here, it's finally here!

And I can't keep up.

Actually, I am trying my best to keep up, it's just happening so fast. I want time to slow down a little so I can soak up the Christmas-y events and cherish them.

Alas, this past week was made up of a few mentionable Christmas events...

We went to the last movie showing at the Fox Theatre and I know the suspense is killing you so I'll just tell you what the movie was....

HOME ALONE! 

It was freezing, but oh so worth it. I didn't need my fingers or toes anyway...

And tonight we got our freshly cut Douglas Fir Christmas tree!

Doug is about 5 foot tall, and has a few funky branches that are really long, actually, they are seriously long.  But we still love him...

 

And tomorrow night we will be attending our traditional trip to Disneyland Park to see the Candlelight Ceremony where the nativity story is read straight from the bible. Accompanied by a full on choir and orchestra, It. Is. Amazing. 

It really puts the entire season into perspective for me, not to mention the fact we sing hymns/traditional Christmas music together as one big crowd. Every year I wonder to myself if that is what heaven will be like, unified voices praising the Lord... so amazing. 

God is so good to our little family, and we love Christmas time so much, see?

Mushaboom...

Taken on Friday, November 19 2010 at Disneyland

I finally read the lyrics to a favorite song by Feist the other day & immediately thought, "Hey. That's us."

By the way, I am loving this holiday season with my little family...really, I am. And here are those lyrics that made me smile & appreciate the boys in my life...

"Helping the kids out of their coats
But wait the babies haven't been born oh
Unpacking the bags and setting up
And planting lilacs and buttercups oh

But in the meantime we've got it hard
Second floor living without a yard
It may be years until the day
My dreams will match up with my pay

Old dirt road,
(mushaboom, mushaboom)
knee deep snow
(mushaboom, mushaboom)
Watching the fire as we grow
(mushaboom, mushaboom)
o-o-o-o-old

I got a man to stick it out
And make a home from a rented house oh
And we'll collect the moments one by one
I guess that's how the future's done oh..."

To hear the rest, click here.

Halloween...

was the best!

We converted the photo booth to a Halloween theme! Families & kiddos were photographed all night. It was so great!

Soon to come: a post on one eventful weekend in Arizona...art, family, kisses from a 10 month old & good eats.

Pumpkin Carvin' Time 2010!

So 2008 was great and 2009 was a lot of fun...but I LOVE my pumpkin this year!

Do you remember GOOSEBUMPS? You do! Me too...

I really like Mitch's good ol' fashioned pumpkin. His inspiration was taken from here.

Happy Halloween!