Vanity

I do this alot. Just sit and take pictures. It's silly, but whatever. haha. This was Halloween night - the lighting was good and I can't resist taking photos when I'm wearing fake eyelashes.

Brothers

Look at these boys.

I figure that eventually we will forget that while these photos were being taken we had to remind Monkey to share his blocks with Bug, to let Bug have one block, to get Bug a new toy of his own if he didn't want to share the blocks, to be gentle with Bug, to not open the cabinet while Bug is in front of it, to not climb in the cabinet, to not taunt Bug.


That's right. Someday we'll look at these pictures and think "oh, look how nice they were to each other" and "they were so happy playing together." Of course Bug thinks Monkey walks on water so he truly was happy spending some quality time. Monkey was happy as long as Bug didn't mess up the "bus" he was building. Haha. Brothers are fun.

It makes me wonder (and try to remember) what was going on while my mom took pictures of my siblings and me when we were younger. I'm sure there are some awesome stories in there somewhere.

For those of you without Facebook

Which I'm pretty sure is none of you, but still. Here's a little more backstory.

He just woke up. The position of his fingers is accidental. He refused to cuddle with me and then voluntarily got up, walked over to my friend John and cuddled with him for like 5 minutes.
This boy has a habit of not being able to decide which sister he would like to cuddle with. I almost always lose out in the end, but that's the way it should be. It's fun to watch him go back and forth giggling and smiling at whoever isn't holding him.
This is just such a great face he's making. That would be mid-screech. It was a happy screech at least.
A bathtub in the sink! Mostly because I wasn't paying attention while feeding him and he kicked squash all over himself. Oh well. He loves baths. Isn't he just so pinchable?!
Modeling the legwarmers and getting ready for a nap.
We rolled around for a while with Monkey's towel. He loved being wrapped up in that.
Playing peek a boo and trying to cuteness his way out of a nap. Don't worry, I was strong and he slept for a long time.
This was when we were standing in line for the giant yard sale we went to on Saturday. That hat was too small and it made me laugh. Still, he's so freaking cute!!
Monkey was showing me his hat. He had a good time with Grandma and Papa on Saturday.
And he got a Lightening costume! This is him "riding" the car. haha. He's happier than he looks.
Lauren's awesome yard sale purchase. We took a bunch of photos with it.
The only one i got of him looking at the camera and smiling. It probably would have worked better if i had tried to take the photo before the cookie eating.

We had a nice Sunday as well with a delicious dinner prepared by Lauren and Wil for Christy (she left for Texas, then she's home to Australia). Our friends John and Jacob came and we mostly just sat and enjoyed each other's company. It was a very nice and relaxing (and fun!) day thanks to Lauren and Wil and their adorable boys.

This one too.

I love the stuff she does for magazines - it's always interesting and pretty.

What a difference six months can make.

I count six adorable children, five noticeable growth spurts, four haircuts, three full-time school attendees, two almost 3-year-olds and one crawling baby.

Future Wedding Ideas - Yeah, I know, I'm crazy.

Okay. This is probably the lamest/nerdiest post I will ever write. It's wedding centric. The lame part comes in the fact that I am not even dating anyone, but I care very little about that fact. I just like wedding stuff (I stumbled upon Brooklyn Bride and have become slightly addicted). I blame it all on my creative side - I love the endless options for color/cards/dresses/shoes/gifts, etc.

Also, I was at Emily's house on Friday and started talking weddings with her and her mom - they have idea books (as well as photos from her's sisters weddings) and it got me wanting to put things I've seen that I like in one place. So here's a post with those things.

I've always wanted daisies at my wedding. That hasn't changed since I first thought of it as a little girl.

My color scheme has changed a lot over the years, but I always go back to wanting to include a little yellow to pick up the accent from the daisy. Now, I know there are tons of daisies out there, and my mind may change on this, but I tend to prefer the simple good ol' regular daisy. My mom also had daisies in her wedding so I like the idea of having that in common with her. There is the option of a white Gerbera daisy with a black center should I get married in the winter or fall then I can cut out the yellow and focus on black/white/green combination.

So I went from blue/yellow, pink/yellow, pink/yellow/green, blue/brown, black, yellow/white/black and finally green/yellow/black (and obviously some white).

This is the deciding factor in color for me:

That's right. Limes. It makes sense if you know me and my love for lime in my water. Also - it would add a splash of bright, happy color without going overboard. I like the idea of being able to use a lot of greenery and having that take care of a lot of the color for my wedding.

I like the bird cage for cards and such. I've seen this idea lots before, but I've wanted one, it can be used again, and I love that this one is green. Also, classy colored cutlery and some more yellow and green flowers.

Then there's these rings. You can have your finger print engraved. That's just cool.

And paper lanterns. Green and maybe some black and/or white. Paper Lantern Store.

Now there's cake. I don't really like cake, although I'm inclined to find someone who can make me a delicious pistachio cake with strawberries. That would make my day perfect. I would love to have cake stands all over the place, maybe as center pieces with the limes on them somehow? I would either pick a lime green or go all black and then have my wedding cake and the grooms cake on white ones. I like the idea of a small wedding cake and a small grooms cake and then just getting a sheet cake for the masses. I don't like cake, I don't want to eat more than what tradition requires.

The cake on the upper right corner is more of an idea of how I would want the cakes to look with a black ribbon and flowers matching whatever I have in the bouquets.

Of course, I already know where I will be married. The Washington DC Temple.

I would just need to find a place to have the reception.

I would love polaroids and/or a photobooth. This is very much in line with my tastes and personality. It would be fun to get the candid photos. I LOVE the idea of a polaroid cake topper.

And this is a fun save the date idea.
I also like the idea of a gallery wall of sorts to display our photos instead of the slide show/video/poster formats. Inexpensive frames can be found at wal-mart or ikea and then I can fill them with childhood photos and photos of us as a couple.

Whichever I decide to use will make an appearance in the form of our engagement photos as well. I'm leaning more toward the polaroids at the moment, mostly because I love the look, but the gallery wall idea would be cheaper. Any of the photo themes would be very much in line with my personality so we'll just have to see how Mr. Right feels about it...and also Mr. Pocketbook, who, let's face it, will have a heck of a lot more say then me or Mr. Right.

Speaking of invites/announcements. I love these.

I love the yellow RSVP envelope and I love how it's simple and elegant but still fun and you know I love the run-on, uncapitalized sentence "aregoingtothetemple & they'regonnagetmarried." It even says temple. Makes me wonder if it's a Mormon wedding.

I'm going to wear my mom's veil (as long as we can still find it) which is really long and spanish lacy. I love the idea of saving the veil - because a veil will fit anyone who wants to wear it. I'm also a sucker for traditions/passing things down it's just that much more meaningful.

There might be some adjustments made but I love that veil. It's just gorgeous. (catch a look at the flowers - daisies and roses, my bouquet would have the daisies and lots more green)

Of course, there will be fascinators. Perhaps I'll wear my mother's veil for a portion and then switch to a fascinator for dining/dancing/mingling? Perhaps I'll make my bridesmaids wear them. However it works out, they will be tasteful and fun.

Now on to dresses. I like simple dresses. No beads, no frills, just simple and neat.

Obviously my dress will have sleeves, but these pictures give you an idea of the style and shape I tend to like.

Buttons are fun as long as they are decoration to hide a zipper. I don't want to spend 8 hours trying to get in and out of my dress.
Most of those are JCrew. I won't be spending nearly that much, but I love the simple style and the clean lines and the pockets. Seriously. Why doesn't every wedding dress have pockets? I'll have to keep in mind matching my dress to the veil and I don't hate the idea of a dress with coordinating laciness, but for the most part, I really like simple simple dresses.

I also really like this bag. Except I can't remember where I found it. Oh wait. It was on Amazon. I remember adding this and it's matching pieces to my wish list. They have some small zipper make-up bags that would make cute bridesmaids gifts.

I like the idea of chunky, funky jewelry like so:
But I would need a different style for myself. Maybe something along those lines for my bridesmaids? Who knows. I like the idea of making the jewelry as part of the wedding gifts, but who knows if I'll have the time, energy or desire to do so when the time comes? Chances are I'm crazy enough to do it. Again, it's just a little more meaningful and I want everyone to match/coordinate. It's part of my endearing OCDness that you all love about me.

And then Bridesmaids dresses. I love the look of this photo with the black and yellow:

The dresses I pick out will have more coverage (since the majority of my bridesmaids have already gotten married) but I want them all black and probably all the same. The color will come in with the flowers and a sash or fascinator. Again, something simple but fun. And, with black dresses you have some wiggle room regarding the time of year you are married. These colors should translate well in any season - the flowers and such might have to change, but I can be flexible.

So there ya go. Random wedding ideas from my head to the internets. Who knows how much of this will change by the time I actually get married, although I think my only factors of change will be cost and the opinion of Mr. Right (should he feel the need to voice one). I really do prefer things simple and the most important thing for me is to get a really good photographer - as you all know, I'm a photo freak and I don't want to regret not getting good pictures.

Anyway, for anyone who actually got this far in this post, I give you 10 cool points.

fashion - update!

I posted this photo on the new blog:

That would be my Grandad, Grandmother and her twin sister, Marion, and my uncle Paul (Grandad's brother). First of all...look how tiny they were (the twins)! No one in that family really got any tall genes, but since they were twins, they were always tiny - they even went to school later because of their size and that's how my Grandmother and Grandad ended up in the same class where they would meet when they were 18 and 15 years old.

But this is about the clothes. I don't know what they were doing, but they all look so nice. Clean shaven, crisp lines, there's even a nice breeze blowing. Sometimes I wish they still made clothes like this. The heels are sturdy, but amazing. Gram is wearing an awesome hat and the skirts are knee length! That may have had something to do with the fact they are both only 5 feet tall (at the most) but who cares.

**Update. This was my grandparent's wedding day and they are on the family farm in PA. Aunt Marion was the maid of honor and Uncle Paul was the best man. I've previously written about certain stories around their wedding (they honeymooned in Eerie, PA and then Grandad went back to VA to finish up his service in the Navy). I really don't know why I love this picture so much, but I do.

welcome to the world baby blog!

So I started a new blog. It's a photo blog for family photos as I get them scanned into the computer...well, not all of them, but some of the good ones. Anyway, if you ever get bored photos will be there to look through.

Just because.

jBug

So Monkey and Bug had matching outfits this past Sunday. Tres cute. I took some pictures of Bug in his and here's what we got...






Does anyone else see "drunken frat boy" here?

Taking a ride on the motorboat

I lurk on many blogs. In my travels I have encountered many new and wondrous things. What, pray tell, is THE most wondrous thing I have encountered?

The Motorboat. Hands down. No contest.

Witness the magic and the wonder and next time you have a camera, spread the love.

I took many photos of myself doing the motorboat and this is by far the best of the lot. I look so confused in all the others.

This one was accompanied by a sound that closely resembled a moose call. It was amazingness squared.

Even the kids are in on it...and really good at it. This was the first and only attempt!

John is the reigning king of the motorboat.

Love. It. It's all about the eyes. You can tell a lot about a woman by her eyes.

**I feel compelled to add that these are hard to take...It's extremely hard to make this sound with your mouth when you are laughing and you can't help but laugh because it's so silly and the photos are so funny. So when you get a good one, you feel so accomplished and proud!