cheeky and trig photography

LDS Baptism Invite

2012-01-30T16:11:00.001-08:00

It's pretty unbelievable to me that my little girl and her friends are getting baptised in this next year. Ella is the first of this year, and I always love taking her pictures.. look how cute she is! This was an opening card, giving us four pages to fill.. so I knew I needed some cute paper. I found plenty to love on www.lillybimble.com

This is the first page..

And when you open, you see this. Most of the fonts I use I get from 1001freefonts.com There is always plenty to choose from, and I feel like it's so simple to download. You can click on the picture to see it without my side bar shtuff covering it.

And on the back of the card was this little tidbit..

So here's an idea of the card all as one..

">

Love my little Ella bo bella! And I can't believe my own little Benny Boo has her baptism on the way.. yikes I'm old.

DIY Valentine Wreath

2012-01-29T19:27:00.001-08:00

Valentine's Day is definitely my favorite holiday and I thought I'd share a wreath I made a couple years ago. I was pretty upset when I left my box full of Valentine's Day decor outside on the deck only to get rained on.. I'm blaming my pregnant brain for that. My feather wreath was all shriveled and sad. So I had to re-do it. But that means I can give you an idea of how it goes!

All you need is

2 wire hangers

1 feather boa

glue gun

ribbon

I really didn't take many pictures along the way since it's so simple.. and I used my old wire hanger because I'm lazy. All I did was connect the hangers together shaping them like a heart. I like using the hangers because they're a thick wire that's bendable without being too touchy and bending where you don't want it to.

Here's what my hanger skeleton looks like..

how sad are all those old feathers still hanging on?

pretty sad

And just when you thought it couldn't be easier, you just glue the feathers straight on to the metal. I twisted the boa around maybe three times, but for the most part I just glued it straight on.

Tie your ribbon and you're set!

This project ends up costing less then ten bucks!

If you have questions, feel free to post them.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Do It Yourself Valentine Photo Card

2012-01-17T20:09:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is coming up, and I thought I'd re-post one of my projects from last year.. I did this as a room mom activity for Bentley's Kindergarten class. It's so cute to look at just one year later and see how she's changed.I thought this was a fun idea for Valentine's gifts for parents and grandparents. Super simple.. I just photoshopped the images together. If you don't have photoshop, just print three different pictures and throw them in a frame together. Or put them on a card.. Have a great Valentine's Day!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T21:54:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things is New Years Resolutions. I love lists, and a list for the whole year always helps me commit. I usually see changes come from my New Years Resolutions lists. And I'm ready for some serious change! I've been thinking a lot the past month about what's important for me to accomplish, and what I want to change about myself. I found a great article that included many of the ideas that have been circling around in my head. You can link to it here http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/marcia-sirota/new-years-resolutions_b_1166042.html. The whole list is great, but certain ones I want to stop..

Avoidance - Come take a little gander through my house. Unfinished projects everywhere. And while I have gotten much better at finishing what I start, I am not going to start anymore projects until all my unfinished, or broken projects are complete.

Having a Bad Attitude - It may just be that I'm three months pregnant, but I need to focus everyday on having a good attitude, and appreciating the moment.

Complaining - Kinda the same thing. But I'm healthy, I have a great family, my husband is a hottie, we have a home, a great neighborhood and family.. what do I really have to complain about?

Gossiping - I've already been trying to stop, but I have to admit.. The other night I really wanted to tell a friend something that had happened earlier that day. It was a story about an acquaintance, and it wouldn't be a story I'd really want shared about me. It wasn't horrible, it wasn't untrue, but it wasn't nice. That's one of the first times I've really felt myself talking myself out of it questioning myself what good it would do. I really did feel proud to stop myself, and maybe a little more grown up.

Co-Dependency - I have been thinking a lot about if I could provide for three kids if something were ever to happen to Jesse. I don't work, and I never finished college.. Time to step up and make sure I could take care of my family if needed. That's my biggest goal this year. Plus.. I would love to be able to buy Jess surprises without him knowing I spent the money first.

Those are some of the ideas from the article.. Here are some of my personal thoughts..

Be a better mom - Have more fun with the things that already should be done.. Have my kids help cook.. Do more art projects with my kids.. take them new places.. take more pictures.. Be patient.. my kids are pretty sweet and they're growing quick. Blog more about them.

Be a better cook - Jess has me beat on this one.. I know it's in my genes (from Grandma Shirley.. not Donna), I just need to give it the effort.

Get better at the things I love - Photography, Writing, Painting, and singing. I want to improve all these things in the next year.

Get Organized - I'm going to start by throwing stuff out.

Budget - Waste less, Save more.

Jess & Me- Go out more.. but different restaurants and different things than movies. I love my date nights.

And of course, Blog more of what I'm up to. I'm really going to try.

Curious.. am I the only one who loves New Years Resolutions?

Our Grateful Tree

2011-11-10T11:57:00.001-08:00

I am always a sucker for a tree branch craft, so imagine how much I love a Thanksgiving grateful tree. For FHE this last Monday, I tried to get the kids to really think about the things that we are grateful for. It took some work for them to be serious, but they really loved writing and drawing (or telling me what to write) and then placing them on the tree.

For this tree, I just snapped off a piece from my tree in the back yard and spray painted it white. Instead of cut out leaves, I just did circles.. because I already had them.

One of my favorite parts of the activity was asking the kids to name something Dad is grateful for. It was pretty funny to hear what they see as Dad's favorite things.. the gym, football, beef? Bentley said beef.. she's on this weird beef kick.. She wrote "I love beef" on my foot the other night...

Some of my favorites from the tree:

pie-bentley

netflix-bentley

cars-bauer

definitely lemonade and definitely toast-bauer

More Fall Lovlies

2011-11-06T21:08:00.000-08:00

Look at this cute daddy-o with his beautiful girlie girls. You can see they all love him so much!

One of my favorites from the day..

Look at her hair! So gorgeous!

And this little beauty.. so many cute ones of her!

And this little sassy pants, gotta love a girl with some attitude!

Thanks for looking!

Fall Family Shoot

2011-11-01T10:37:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite families + one of my favorite locations = these delightful fall photos... I couldn't decide for a second what it all equaled. But I did have fun as I bossed them around a little bit.

We went for a little bit more of an urban feel.. cause these guys, as you can see, are a little bit edgier.

Look at these cute kiddos! All grown up.

And just to mix it up a little bit, we stopped at one of my favorite fields..

Thanks for being cooperative with me and all my demands!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

Yikes that's a bird-tastic crew. My little Bauer has never willingly dressed up for Halloween (he's only three.. but still). In September, I started asking him about what he would like to be. I gave him all kinds of suggestions that I thought would appeal to him including cars, trains, spongebob, etc. He turned me down to all of them. Out of nowhere a few days later, he said to me "Mom. I know what I want to be. A big, red angry bird." I laughed thinking how funny it was for him to come up with that. Somehow, one turned into four (plus two other misc costumes I had already made) and boom. Look at Aunt Sharon as mad a bird as could be.

Beautiful Fall

2011-10-27T13:23:00.000-07:00

How cute are these little twinners? I have picture after picture of this same pose, but in every one they are pulling different faces.. So much energy!

They have to get that cuteness from somewhere, right? Here's their cute mama, I loved how this one turned out! I hope she does, too...

When we first left for the shoot, I thought this little guy would not be into it. But he proved right off the bat that he is a photoshoot natural. Look at that G.Q. pose!

And this small gal is one of the cutest little girlie girls you've ever met! I love me a little spunk!

Thanks to Audrey for letting me spend a little time with her and her oh-so cute fam!

Onto my Brookie Cookie.. my lil sis, who always has a different idea of how photos should go then I do. We quickly ran up the canyon to snap a few.. We're going to have to hit up another shoot to get the pics she had in mind. "I just want them to look like I'm on a little hike"- Brooke

Aww... how cute is she? All grown up and about to get her drivers license. Watch out errbody.

Just a smidge of what I've been working on..

2011-10-18T21:25:00.000-07:00

So I have been slaving away. But don't ask me what I've been slaving away ON.. I seem to have a slight problem with painting everything over and over again. But that's another post.. I am happy to say that I have been working on my writing often, and I have actually been getting some things done around my house.. It's decked out tackily in Halloween and one of the bigger accomplishments- my garage is almost clean enough to park in (As long as you don't count the five pieces of furniture I bought last Saturday). I have had tons of fun photo shoots over the past couple weeks, and wanted to show this one..

I had the pleasure of working with a sassy little crew of ladies..

Do we love the tutus?

Super intense tea party. Many more cuties to come.. I'm a horrible blogger, but I'm trying my best to keep up with my projects.. Here's a list of things I want to show that I've been working on:

Bauer's room remodel complete with refinished vintage dressers

Bentley's finished product of a room

Our homemade Halloween costumes

Our homemade Halloween decorations

My new refinished coffee table.. in indigo

My ruffle pillows

My under construction chandelier

etc..etc...etc..

They may not be that interesting, but I want to post 'em!

Plus many more photos!

See ya soon! I hope...

p.s. can I just say I am obsessed with this Bruno Mars song?? I am dorky enough to admit it's getting me excited for the new Twilight movie!!

Epic Love Poster

2011-10-03T17:39:00.001-07:00

I am constantly inspired by Pinterest, and this latest project was taken from an awesome poster I re-pinned originally from a site called www.notonthehighstreet.com .. but I knew this was something I could easily make myself in photoshop.

This is how mine will look once printed..

Ah, we're so in love.

It was really simple, I just put it together in photoshop and used margins.. using a text box per couple.

So I'll post a new picture once it's printed and in it's oh so vintage frame. My bedroom is almost all the way put together!

Blanding Family Photo Shoot

2011-10-01T23:32:00.000-07:00

My oh so cute in laws were up for some family pics (a little while ago..) and I happily explored Blanding, Utah for some spot that would work.. Can I just say that I wish this little place was here in Salt Lake? I loved everything about it.. except the heat, it was blasted hot.

I love this one..

This little guy rocked it like zoolander.. he had more poses than I knew were possible. Pretty much the funniest kid I know..

I have the cutest nieces and nephews.. every picture of her turned out so cute!

Love the blanding landscape!

The wind picked up, but we had to pull to the side of the road and grab a few.. I'm so glad we did!

Thanks guys for being so good-looking, and being good sports about how long it's taken me to finally show you some pictures from your shoot! Luff your faces.

DIY Fall Beaded Bracelet

2011-09-30T19:25:00.000-07:00

I've been making a lot of jewelry lately. I mean, a LOT. My mom is kind of demanding and orders me around like Cinderella to put together her own custom accessories. She's a bit of a diva. I'm hoping that maybe if I share how I make this dangle beaded bracelet she will read this tutorial and make one of her own. Who am I kidding.. But maybe this will be of interest to someone! If that's you, read on.

This particular bracelet is much more autumn looking than the pictures leave you to believe. It's got pretty golds and turquoises-not the mardi gras type feel you're seeing here. If you jump to the bottom of my post, you'll see the same style bracelet with different beads.

This is what you'll need:

Tools: Needle Nose Pliers

Pliers

Side Cutters

These are available at any craft store.

Supplies: You can find all of these at a craft store. I like Michael's the most for Beads.

One Clasp- I prefer the lobster clasp shown because sometimes the cute toggles undo on your wrist.. you don't want all this hard work to just fall off!

Chain- Enough to fit your wrist. I show to different kinds in my pic.. you want a medium size..

Head pins with Ball Ends-You will need 50 of these (more if you want a chunkier bracelet than shown) You can use plain head pins also, but I like the ball because it does a good job of not letting most beads fall off, and it also is a prettier finished look.

Assorted Beads- 80ish. I like to do some pins with two beads, you can do more or less. What beads should you choose? I'll tell ya in a sec..

Silver spacers-Optional.. depending on the look you want. The silver spacers just add a little bit extra if you want a little more flash. You can also find the spacers, the pins, the chain and the clasp in gold if that's what you want.

The first thing that I do is attach the clasp to the chain. Make sure to try it on before you start beading, the clasp can add a good amount of length, and you don't want the bracelet falling off your wrist, but you don't want it too tight. Here's two different examples of chain.. they would both work find for this bracelet.

When making this style bracelet, I like to put all my beads on the pins before I start attaching them to the chain.

When choosing your beads:

It's important to know what style of bracelet you want. If you want a more messy look like the one I'm demonstrating, find varying sizes and shapes. Also this style looks really good with varying finishes (shiny, matte, etc) I was going for a metallic look with this one, so I chose all glitzy.

If you want something a little more clean like the pearl bracelet at the bottom of the post, choose beads in uniform shape and similar size.

If you are feeling clueless on what colors to choose, take a piece of printed clothing that you love and draw from that.

I start by putting the largest group evenly first. Don't get too worked up on spacing it exact. Just trust your eye, once more beads go on you won't be able to tell they're not perfect.. promise!

I chose this bead group next since it was so similar in color to the first group. And again, you just place and don't sweat it.

If you don't know how to attach a head pin, this link can help:

http://www.ehow.co.uk/how_8501558_twist-head-pin-earrings.html

My advice is to always twist the pin. Some like to clip it and just bend a small part over, but when you twist it, your bead is not going to ever fall off unless it breaks. If you've never done this before, you will pick it up after a few tries.

Starting to get a little more full. Maybe you really like the look how it is now.. this bracelet has roughly 22 pins in it.

Adding another group..

Suddenly getting chunkier..

and boo yah..

you're ready to be the belle of the ball.

Another example of the same bracelet, different beads:

The pearls in this make it a little more dainty and clean.

Thanks for visiting! Let me know if you have any questions!

Addicted to Pinterest

2011-09-22T08:00:00.000-07:00

This pretty much sums up how I'm feeling about life right now.

If you haven't discovered Pinterest yet, and would like an invite, leave your email below and I will send you one.

Refinished Hutch Yo Diggity

2011-09-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

I finally decided to work on this hutch, and I have to say.. it's my favorite piece of re-done furniture.

I'm a huge fan of grey and gold combos right now, so I used some leftover muddy grey Behr Premium in perfect taupe. I have been spray painting furniture like crazy lately, and thought I would give my head a little break from inhaling it. Also, my pointer finger is a little bit tired. But the good news is my garage is slowly getting cleared out! The goal is to be able to actually park a car in there. I know, high expectations, but Jess and I are really driven... After I finished the grey, I antiqued it with black antiquing glaze from Lowe's. But after the glaze, I decided to add a metallic gold glaze from Martha Stewart's collection at Home Depot over the other layers. On the inside of the hutch, I sprayed it with gold metallic spray paint from Krylon. It just might be my favorite.

Come back to see how to make super easy ruffle pillows!

Free Halloween Clip Art

2011-09-12T21:56:00.000-07:00

Halloween is on my mind! I have found so many awesome free printables, and wanted to share. These are all coming from different places, there's so much talent out there!

http://www.howdoesshe.com/free-exclusive-halloween-printables

These guys are giving away 20 free printables! And they're all very cute.
http://www.tipjunkie.com/free-halloween-printables/

http://papercrave.com/free-printable-halloween-goodies-part-1/

http://www.i-do-it-yourself.com/category/freebies-downloads/page/8/

http://www.southernaccentblog.com/2011/09/never-too-early-free-halloween.html

And last but not least, an adorable vintage alphabet. Not for Halloween, but I couldn't control myself and I had to lump it in with the group.

http://www.rookno17.com/2009/10/free-vintage-alphabet-clip-art-and.html

Wishing you a happy Autumn!

Cause my friends are smokin'

2011-08-27T00:16:00.000-07:00

So I have some pretty decent looking friends. Like, they're up there on a scale from one to ten. I love it when they ask me to take pictures of them because we always have so much fun. Recently, different projects have come up for them to need a few pics, and here's a little taste!

Here's my fav from Dana's shoot..

Love the chairs! And if you knew Dana, this backdrop just works for her!

Another fav.. I like how the edit turned out for this guy..

Meet Jessica, one of my most favorite roommates of all time.. We had an adventure finding this spot, but once we found a way in we had our own enchanted fortress..

Here's my fav of her for the day..

Love the light..

Thanks for being gorgeous! Love you gals.

Photobooth It Up!

2011-08-25T09:09:00.000-07:00

So we pretty much have an awesome neighborhood. I do have to specify...Of the whole block, I live on the coolest street, but the surrounding area is cool as well. When Jess and I were looking to buy a house, this one was the only one where all the neighbors came out to talk to us as we were looking. They invited us to their block party right off the bat. Needless to say, it has been a tradition on our street over the years, and this year expanded to the rest of the actual "block". We had neighbors who rented a water slide, a rock climbing wall, a magician, and had an awesome band play. I had to pitch in somehow.. I figured these little photo booths with props are all the rage, and who am I to turn down a trend?

I look at myself and I think.. I would've made a fugly man..

Rockin' the paper beard!
Yeah, you read it right. Bomb.com
Love the extra hand.. Brian demanded too many props and then proceeded to demand an assistant..

Love it!

Don't let the group scare you off! There are currently homes for sale.. Just sayin'..

If you are thinking about doing a photobooth, Do it!! It's super easy! I just found a fun large piece of fabric to hang on a fence. The props are all cut out of paper, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't do it an hour before the party. Think of how cute they could be if you didn't procrastinate! I just looked up ideas on pinterest and etsy. These were some of the ones I used as my inspiration:

A word of advice is to keep your sticks on the side. Some of them I taped right in the middle not thinking about the fact the stick would be placed in the middle of the person's face. Probably most people would think about it, but not me. Check it out, you can learn from my dumb mistakes. I used barbecue skewers and cardstock and just cut freehand. The kids loved this, and it was a lot of fun. I will definitely be doing it again.

Do it at your next party! Tell me how it went!

The Catch Up Begins

2011-08-03T01:35:00.000-07:00

So many pics to post! Here's a little shmidgen of what I've been up to...

How cute is this family? Their kiddos were such good sports in the blazin' summer heat.. and so photogenic!
Can't get me enough of this door...

Such cute couples!

Much more to come!

Do-It-Yourself Antique Spoon Herb Markers

2011-07-12T21:43:00.000-07:00

I've been doing some summer traveling and camping, and it feels good to be back to my blog! I thought this was a project worth sharing, although I haven't quite mastered it myself.

These are stamped, which is the part that can be tricky. But aren't they cute? I made them for my "secret sister" at camp. But I can't keep a secret, so she knew from day 1 I must be hers. I wanted something fun to give someone who gardens.. and this cute idea came up. First, I started by looking at the local thrift store for interesting spoons.

Notice how I started with twice as many? That's how many I messed up. Make sure to buy extra, and start with the spoons that are your least favorite.

You're going to want a metal stamp kit. There are a few different options at Harbor Freight. Your first step is taking a sturdy hammer and flattening out the arch in the spoon. You really won't get the result you want unless you set it on concrete (if you're working on concrete you're worried about chipping, put it on top of wood or something else on top of the concrete). Anything that is not really hard underneath it will absorb your hit, when you really want the stamp to get as much of it as possible.
So once you've flattened out your spoon, it's time to stamp it. Now we all know I struggle with the details, and this will sound funny, but make sure your stamp is facing the right way before you pound. Try your hardest to give yourself enough room for all your letters. I like the look of the letters being a little crooked, so I don't worry too much about that. If you want them straight, I would bet sticking on some painters tape would help guide you. A mallet packs a lot of punch, which getting one good hit is the easiest way to achieve the best look. If you're punching an "L" and you feel like it's not a very deep engrave, it's hard to line that "L" exactly up again, but it can be done. You have to hit hard. That's why it's good to practice, you don't really realize how hard you have to hit. Some spoons are softer than others.

The last step is to rub the spoons with antique glaze. I like the glaze I got from Lowe's.. you don't have to mix it with anything.

It's a really fun project.. not expensive, and once you learn to stamp, there's so much more you can do with them! I'd love to know if you're going to try it!

weLcoMe dAisY

2011-06-28T22:36:00.000-07:00

Some of our friends recently adopted this beautiful little gal.. And she is in neighborhood demand.. I have plenty other friends wanting a sneak peek.. So here it is! I know I said I was going to show you my cute 4th of July bags, but that'll be tomorrow, and a sneak peek of this girl is even better!

Since her Mom and Dad wanted to do some pics in her traditional Chinese dress, I thought it would be fun to do some Chinese architecture, too. I found some at the International Peace Gardens in downtown Salt Lake. I'd never been there before, and thought it was worth visiting..

aaaand here she is!

I think the right word for her would be "spirited." She was so cute and spunky.. I was in love automatically.

I can't believe how perfect she is for her new family.. she's the perfect fit. I loved seeing them all together.

And we are so glad to welcome her to our neighborhood family!

to a sPaRkLy juLy: music mix

2011-06-27T15:04:00.000-07:00

I always have to make my music mixes for different occasions.. and it doesn't take much for something to be an "occasion" for me. I thought I'd share my July mix with ya.. and if ya like it, let me know and I'll keep sharing different mixes. If you don't like my sweet Indie/Pop/Oldies taste then I apologize.. but not really.

For me, a July mix should be summer nights and summer drives fun that you can see yourself listening to while you watch fireworks and eat salt water taffy..

Hope you enjoy!

Come back tomorrow to see my oh-so-cute 4th of July goody bags!

My Gorgeous Gals

2011-06-21T08:22:00.000-07:00

Here's a little preview of our trip to the local orchard. This local orchard just happened to be full of long, wet grass that rocked my allergen world.. like no allergen ever has. I had a Hitch moment when my face and eyes got super swollen and my legs welted and were covered in hives. I learned my lesson... getting older=worse allergies. Also.. if your face and legs are swelling, go home and get out of the way of anyone with a camera-yeah, I'm talking to you, Marielle!!

I have been called to the Young Women in my ward longer than I was in Young Women's, myself.. and I love it. We thought it would be fun to get some cute pics of the girls before girls' camp.

Love the apple trees..
Such a cute smile!
Times two!
Times three!
This one's got the photoshoot down.. Seriously!
Love this one!
So photogenic!

"Ah, You girls just keep me young. I just love you so much."
- Mean Girls quote... but you already knew that.

FaTheRs DaY

2011-06-18T22:15:00.000-07:00

Here's a little example of the differences between Jesse, my husband, and Me.

Me: I wanna get you an Ipad for Fathers' Day. You deserve something nice, let me spoil you, pleeease?
Jesse: You going and spending money that I'm just going to have to earn back is not my idea of being spoiled.

Plan B. Actually, plan E...F? I always dream of surprising Jess with something unexpected.. but my plans never really pan out. My biggest dream? To one day surprise him with a big giant truck with some 4-wheelers in tow. Seriously.. I think about it all the time. Now... where do I get and then hide the 60,000 dollars to do so? Since I didn't quite reach my goal and lavishly surprise him, I had to go looking for some other ideas. And when I'm looking for ideas, I always look to my hero, Marth, first..

How cute is this? Bentley is my little artist, so she would love to give this.. and I think it would be something Jesse would use.
I always love a full basket of goodies. And once again.. practical. This guy might come from me..

On Martha's website, you can print off these labels. Count me in. I love you, Martha.

I also thought about some personalized gifts for my daddy-o, Big Bad Bruce.. I found this artwork on Etsy from sodapopcorleone. This may blow your mind for a sec, but there isn't a lot of Tab soda gifts out there. My dad drinks it like crazy, and yes... they still make it. And no, I don't think he's the ONLY one who still drinks it. He could be, who knows. Here's something I didn't know until a year or two ago.. Tab was originally marketed as a woman's diet drink.. pink can? Tab fact. My dad wears womens' wal-mart shape up's too. He's a complicated person to shop for.

My dad loves his tractor. He's always out working on it.. ordering things for it.. but never really using it? I plugged in "tractor" to Etsy and found this guy amongst thousands of kiddie tractor things. I don't see my brother or sister spending this kind of time looking for the perfect gift. And I'm the least fav?

Now for the Husband of mine who wishes he were raised on the Jersey Shore.. I thought what would be better than a Pauly D pendant? It would go perfectly with the dog tags he often wears, possibly on the same chain. You may think I'm kidding, but my husband would be stoked. Wish I would've thought of it in time!

Look at that stare. Right into your soul.

Last, but defintely not least comes the plaque that I know Jess would love. It's lyrics from one of his favorite shows. Also found on Etsy, from luciusart.. again. Wishing I would have gone diggin' sooner!

Happy Father's Day to all the amazing Daddy-o's in my life! I'm so happy my kids have such a great dad!

peachberry bites

2011-06-16T22:19:00.000-07:00

These little guys came about one night when I was late for a neighborhood bar.b.que. I'm always the disappointment who comes with something store-bought when everyone else has their delicious homemade sides. I couldn't be the flake who was late and bumming food off of everyone else. So I threw these things together, and botta bing botta boom! People tell me they liked them.. but maybe they were just trying to support my efforts...

All you need is right here

Athens mini fillo shells (I use two packs)

Smuckers boysenberry syrup (yeah, the stuff for pancakes)

Peach sherbet

Cool Whip

Raspberries

Don't judge my messy house.. I started this time by putting a little syrup in the bottom of the cup.

I fill the shell most of the way with the sherbet. Easier if it's softened..

Top it off with some cool whip..

At this point I freeze it until I'm ready to serve it. It softens up pretty fast, so especially for something like a bar-b-que you're gonna want it pretty frozen.

Ready to hit the party? Take those bad boys out and drizzle some more boysenberry syrup over the top, garnish with a raspberry and go!

I was trying to snap a pic while Benny was trying to steal one...

They're really easy and quick to make... My specialty!

it's okay for a girl to dream

2011-06-13T17:17:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again. I start putting together a folder of all my yard inspirations that I would love for my own yard. And every year my yard looks a little worse than the year before. But I feel like this might be the year that we make some progress.. I know, sounds crazy.. but I have already trimmed (butchered) my huge tree in my back yard, and planted some potters...so there. I really want a fire pit, with permanent seating like this guy. I also love the idea of a little waterfall behind the pit..

I have a wood pile in my backyard right now that terrifies me. I know there is a spider city in there, and anytime my kids go near it I have an anxiety attack. I love the way this looks-a somewhat organized stylish wood pile. Maybe it would contain some of the chaos that is my wood pile that is going on right now.. Spiders runnin the show and thinkin' they own the place in my backyard.

And this guy. How awesome would this be? Now I just have to get to work, I'll keep you posted if any of these dreams ever come true!

And I wanna know-What projects are you aspiring to this summer?

piNk LemOnAde CupCakes!!

2011-06-08T20:14:00.000-07:00

They're baack! And they're still supa dupa delish. I have missed my pink lemonade cupcakes. Summer is the perfect time to bust these bad boys out. I had to go back to my old blog to dig them up, and I stole this pic from http://www.ericasweettooth.com/ Her stuff looks crazy delicious! I originally got this recipe from Betty Crocker (I believe), and it's always a favorite at any summer get together! And we all want to be the favorite at any summer get together.

1 package white cake mix (not the pudding kind)
3 egg whites
1 cup water
1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup frozen pink lemonade, thawed, divided
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
5 to 8 drops red food coloring
4 cups sifted powdered sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
Lemon slice candies

preheat to 350
Beat cake mix, egg whites, water 1/3 cup concentrate, oil and 4 to 6 drops food coloring.
Spoon into cupcake cups.
Bake 18 to 20 minutes of until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for five minutes, remove and let finish cooling.
Beat powdered sugar, butter and remaining 1/4 cup concentrate in medium bowl with electric mixer at medium speed. Beat in remaining food coloring.
Spread frosting over cupcakes. Garnish with candies and straws (that makes it way cute) if desired.

Try them. Do it. It'll change your life.

Then tell me about how you were the hit of the party.

Spring Sunshine

2011-06-05T12:12:00.001-07:00

I've been wanting to get some pictures of my kids all winter long, so here they are!

The spring blossoms were so beautiful in the local orchard, Bentley loved it!

Thanks for Looking!

Bauer's Turning Three!

2011-06-03T18:18:00.000-07:00

And you better be there! Or else...

I wanted to do something funny for Bauer's birthday invitations cause he has such a funny little personality. This is what popped into my mind... getting him to cooperate was a whole different story.

He loves to punch things. Jess, the dog (don't call the humane society), the air.. he has such a cute little tough guy face.. I tried to get him to combine the two..

So then you flip your little invite over and you get this.

I know I already asked you not to call the Humane Society, but let's not call child services either when I tell you that to get him to cry we may have told him he had to go to bed while the other kids were playing. My friend's idea-not mine, of course. It's art, it's serious, it's a 3-year old's birthday party. So don't judge me.

These will go out with the little party favors that I got from http://www.beau-coup.com/. I thought the mini gumballs were so cute! I always love filling little bags, but this year I'm going simple and just doing one take home thing.

It should be a good one!

A little shmidgen of what I've been up to..

2011-05-21T09:34:00.001-07:00

I have been trying to keep up with so many things! Here's some of the photography I've been doing... I have much more to post, but here's a taste..

My little Bauer.. he usually won't pose for long, but is very well behaved in the one minute window he gives me.

Bentley is my cute little serious thing. This house reminded me of my great grandma's, so I love the porch!

My younger sister, Brooke.. she thinks she looks like an Asian man in the picture, but I think she looks darling.

My cute little Linds.. one of my Young Women who is now graduating from college!! She's going to make a great teacher!!

baptism invite example

2011-04-08T08:53:00.000-07:00

Back..

I never really post the cards that I put together, and thought I'd share this one.. maybe one day I'll get more with it and have cards people can upload from my blog.. if someone can tell me how I do that, I will post some free templates. Help a brotha out, yo!

Salt Flats Graffiti-Tastic Extraordinaire Family Shoot

2011-03-28T08:46:00.000-07:00

So I gotsta love me these Hodson girls! How cute is this family? And such troopers in the cold weather. I have to admit, I've never seen a family work the graffiti like they do. Notice the "sissy pants" on the door frame? We couldn't help ourselves... All three cute kiddos.. Someone's got a baptism coming up! We got extra of this cutie for her invites.. Love this one! Somehow graffiti just works better for teenage boys pics. Call me crazy, I know.. I'm sure a field of flowers would be great, too. Thanks for looking!

Utah Festival of Colors

2011-03-28T00:01:00.001-07:00

Gem Festival = I'm in trouble

2011-03-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

I promised Jess I would be disciplined enough this week to not spend any money. It started when I was talking with my aunt last week about how every time Jesse checks our account, it's always off by hundreds of dollars... When I told my aunt this, she said, "Poor Jesse." I was a little offended. I feel I spend money only on things I need. Maybe. But after I thought a little more about it, I decided I would try a little experiment to see if I could control myself from spending any money during the week. I thought I did well. I thought I deserved a little reward from all my hard work during the week. Plus, I did promise not to spend any money during the week, not the weekend. The gem festival was Friday. Anyway, I was in a little trouble.

(this is my mom's purchases combined with mine..)

But now think of all the cute projects I can work on! And I'll even blog how to on some of them, if I'm not lazy. So fun and springy! I can't wait.

The Gem Festival comes every three months, so if ya wanna go in June, I'll see you there!

Crazy Nail Polish Ya Gotsta Try

2011-03-18T20:52:00.000-07:00

So I'm always looking for fun beauty products and this was one worth sharing! I had seen these nail polish strips in a magazine being worn by Katy Perry, but you had to order them online and that, of course, was way too much work for me. So imagine my excitement when I found a Sally Hansen brand at Smith's! In all kinds of fun prints! Kinda made my week. Yup. Week. This is my life, here. Not Katy Perry's.

Anyway.. super easy to put on, and they stayed on great for at least a week. I pulled them off to try new ones. I did have to coat them with clear nail polish every now and then to keep them looking ship-shape. And, on a frugal note, I cut the strips in half so that I could get double use out of the pack. Frugal? Or is that ghetto? It reminds me of the time I was in high school and a particularily rude guy caught me applying the magazine perfume sample onto my wrist. This guy referred to me as ghetto then, and I think cutting them in half may be in the same category. Just sayin'

Sorry about the dorky pics... I was so excited to share I just grabbed the closest camera which happened to be my phone...or is that ghetto?.. I think there's a trend.

If you try them, let me know what you think!

Leprechaun Treasure Hunt

2011-03-17T08:44:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I love to leave my kids a green goody basket from their personal leprechaun, Leroy.. but you know I'm gonna make them work for it. These are the clues that I wrote, and I thought I would share if anyone wants to start their own St. Patrick's Day tradition.

When I wrote this out, I tried to keep it general enough that anyone should be able to use it. I print my clues on green (white this year, with green ribbon...it was kinda last minute) paper and tape them in their hiding spots. I usually throw tinsel or glitter around where the leprechaun has been.

Your clues will hide like this:

1. leave out in the open

2. under the couch
3. in the fridge
4. dining table
5. bathtub/shower
6. t.v.
7. in their closet-since I have two little ones, I will put

their surprises in their own closet.

Who knows? Maybe Leroy will visit my husband, too. If he's lucky.

I wrote these for younger kids, they shouldn't be too hard for them to figure out...

***

1
To my lil’ lads and lassies I say hello!
I am a wee lil’ leprechaun from the rainbow.
To find your St. Patty’s Day treasure, I have left you some clues.
Look under the couch for something green-me favorite color, it’s true!

To find clue number three, you won’t have to look far.
Just think of a place where all your green veggies are.
It’s full of good things to eat, and it’s so very cold.
But it can get stinky inside if things start to mold!

3
You’re on your way to finding your own gold.
Now be good lads and lassies and do as you’re told!
You’ve just taken a trip to the refrigerator.
Now go look around where you’ll eat dinner later.

4
‘Tis a magical four-leaf-clover kind of lucky day!
You’re getting closer to your treasure; alas! halfway!
You’re wee lil’ ones often stinky, or covered in mud.
Look where you go to get clean with bubbly soap suds.

5
Oh holy shamrock! You’re a great treasure hunter!
Hiding clues is lots of work-you’re aware I’m quite miniature.
Look next in a place where you shouldn’t sit and watch all day.
Eat your popcorn in front of it, then go out and play!

Your rainbow’s gold is one clue away.
And how I wish a wee bit longer I could stay.
Look where you hang all your clothes and put your shoes.
And you’ll finally find something besides just a clue!

Thank you for all the St. Patrick’s Day fun!
But it’s time that this lil’ leprechaun better run.
Back to the rainbow to give me Irish mum a kiss.
And make sure to wear green! You don’t want to get pinched!
Love, Leroy
Your personal leprechaun

***

Hope you enjoy!

For our treasure:
I just tried to find everything green that I could. So I found green blow pops, sprite, green bubbles, junior mints, a sparkly gold bouncy ball (all a $), the green basket is from All A Dollar, too. Bauer also got a green train for his thomas table and a big green ball. Bentley has wanted a Monster High doll for a while, and I thought this may be the opportunity to finally get her one. I felt like that would be a weird addition to an Easter basket. It turned out perfect, because there was one with green skin. I also found her green dippin' dots lip gloss from all a dolla. So there's some pot'o' gold ideas. And kids love just a pot of gold chocolates! I just somehow have suckered myself into a standard these kids are holding me to... or Leroy to.

Here is my first attempt at trying to upload my document. It sort of worked, I lost my cute fonts. If anyone has any advice for having attaching documents in blogger, let me know!

http://docs.google.com/document/d/1yC38KMCeq05YAROsIsr_1xtVPf0FIpO1ygKGBShpySk/edit?hl=es#

If you're not wearing green I hope you get pinched! And I hope it leaves a bruise.

Baptism Preview

2011-03-14T23:51:00.000-07:00

Cutest lil' thang ever! She was such a trooper even through cold windy weather. I can't wait to post some more of her and the rest of her cute fam!

damask fakesy wall paper

2011-03-12T21:29:00.000-08:00

My craft room/home office has needed some attention for quite some time now. I love that patterned wallpaper is so in, but I didn't want to go to all of the work of wall-papering so I started looking for other options. I found a wall stencil from a company called cutting edge stencils through Etsy, although they have their own site at http://www.cuttingedgestencils.com/. I have since seen that Hobby Lobby has a few patterned fakesy wallpaper stencils of their own (but not AS big as the cutting edge stencils). Originally, I put it off because I thought it would be a lot of work-but it was so easy!

See? That's a 6 year old, yo! Easy.

What you need:

Stencil

Paint (I used leftover Behr Ultra)

Small Roller

Painters Tape

Measuring Tape

Let's not kid ourselves here. I am by no means an expert, and if I can do it so can anyone. I finished my wall in less than an hour. It was as easy as taping the stencil to the wall and rolling the paint over it. I made sure there was never too much paint in the roller so it didn't bleed into the stencil, but found that if I had to push paint out of the roller that would make it bleed also. I found my groove just by trial and error. Even the tries that I felt weren't perfect still look good.

Here is the almost finished project..

I'd love to hear if you've tried stenciling or wall paper. If you have any questions, post me a comment!

more of my favorite baby pics

2011-03-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

Usually I only spend an hour on a baby shoot, but I spent 2 hours with this one. She was so sweet and had so much hair! Here are some more of my favorites from the day...

Can't Get Me Enough of This Baby!!

2011-02-23T20:11:00.000-08:00

So who couldn't get a cute shot of this little gal? She has so much hair, and the sweetest lil face.. I loved getting to take her pics today! I can't wait to edit the rest and get them on here... Feelin' a little baby hungry suddenly...

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-11T12:44:00.000-08:00

My faVoriTe holiday!! I love, love LOVE Valentine's Day! I must, if it makes me blog after two months!

I thought this was a fun idea for Valentine's gifts for parents and grandparents. Super simple.. I just photoshopped the images together. If you don't have photoshop, just print three different pictures and throw them in a frame together. Or put them on a card.. Have a great Valentine's Day!

LDS Advent Calendar Gift Idea

2010-11-30T15:52:00.000-08:00

So, just got the cutest gift from my awesome neighbor and I thought I would share.. I have heard of this before, but never been on top of Christmas enough to start it from the beginning. I thought the description of this cute calendar would be best just straight up taken from LDS.org:

President Gordon B. Hinckley has said, “Christmas means ‘giving.’ The Father gave His Son and the Son gave His life. Without giving there is no true Christmas, and without sacrifice there is no true worship” (BYU Speeches, 14 Dec. 1960, 3).

This advent calendar has no doors to open every day, no angels to glue on. But you can bring it to life and grow closer to the Savior by giving of yourself and learning to sacrifice this Christmas. The words of the prophets and the scriptures you will read each day highlight various parts of the birth, ministry, and mission of the Lord Jesus Christ. The suggested activities will help you draw closer to the Savior as you try to have a “true Christmas” as President Hinckley has suggested. Feel free to alter the activities to suit your individual circumstances.

With it, she gave me a little tree that includes an ornament per day. I know this will encourage my kids to love doing it, too. If you don't have a copy, the link is here.

http://lds.org/new-era/1998/12/oh-come-all-ye-faithful-an-advent-calendar?lang=eng

Meet Baby Abbie

2010-11-29T22:36:00.000-08:00

Little baby Abbie and I go way back. Really. Abbie's mom, Carrie and I grew up together. And before that, our dads knew each other from their missions. That's the story, anyway. So you can only imagine how happy I am to see her beautiful little face!
And thanks to my friend, Emily for making the cutest little chair there ever was... I'm surrounded by the most creative gals!

Little Angel..

Gotta love a sweet little baby!

Bentley Ray

2010-11-12T18:29:00.000-08:00

My little girl is getting so old! I loved these pics I got of her the other day..

I hope you're all ready for some serious craft posts coming up. Hold on to your hats.

Meet Baby Kenslie

2010-07-13T22:37:00.000-07:00

How fun is it for me to hold a teensy tiny baby? Especially since mine are born full grown?

I love this one.

What parent can't appreciate that look your little one gets right before they fall asleep?

And you gotta love that newborn little pose..

And what girl doesn't love shoes? Even if she is only a few weeks old..

My oh-so talented friend made the cute blanket (who happens to have had her third baby TODAY.. CoNgRats to the Trosts!!).. And I love the name, Kenslie by the way.. super cute name for a super cute little one.

Bride To Be Cazlyn

2010-06-16T19:21:00.000-07:00

So here's my cute sister-in-laws sis, Cazlyn. I loved how her pics turned out with her long dark hair.. she reminded me of a little princess in the woods.

This one totally reminds me of Snow White..
This one looks super peaceful, when in reality we were surrounded by angry geese who wouldn't mind their own business.
My favorite field.. especially for bridals.

Tryin' a little different edit..

Love ya, Caz! I wish you guys the best! Can't wait to see your pics from the wedding!!

What I've been up to

2010-06-15T10:47:00.001-07:00

So I have had my hands full, lately.. but I wanted to quick post some of the pictures I've been up to. If you have emailed me, or tried to get a hold of me, I am sorry if it takes me a while to get back to you. I will!

This is our cute little Brody.. who took a little spill during the shoot but was still a trooper.. there will definitely be more to come of him because he was such a little ham.
Senior pics went great this year, and I had a blast with all my cute gals!
Family pics.. new location.. I think it's beautiful!

Possibly my favorite spot to spend summer days? Liberty park.. so cute and vintage.. lots cleaner than I remember it!
Some of my favs.. a friend in my ward had me do her parents' pictures for their 50th anniversary.. do we love them?
Giddy up buckaroo. I did these of my little boy, Bauer to put on his birthday party invite. The party was postponed due to rain. We ended up having our families come by and in the middle of dinner my dog (a boxer named Rocco) walked in and had a heart attack and died... Happy b day Bow wow. Good thing all his little friends weren't there to witness!!
Awww....
One of my cute seniors, Kara, with her guitar...
My fav of Kara...
Baptisms!!
What a stud!
And our sweet little Brodster...
My sister Brooke..
The end. Thanks for your support!

sneak peak a roo of cazyln's bridals

2010-05-15T21:57:00.000-07:00

Cazlyn is (and caz, I am so sorry if I misspelled your name even after I asked you how you spell it!) the cutest little bride to be there ever was.. and she happens to be one of my cute sister-in-law's sister (read it twice if it didn't make sense the first time) With her long dark hair she looked like she was out of a fairy tale in half of our pics (but you'll have to wait and see!) I had so much fun just goin out with the girls and talkin' their ears off.. Thanks for hangin' out with me!

So of course I had to pick my favorite...

Check back soon, so many more to come!!

More of Baby Claire

2010-04-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

So, for this next pic I have to completely give creative insight to my sister-in-law Jackie (who I 100% copied this idea from.. she just sent out the cutest announcements of her own). Love the sweet baby in white with the contrast of black!

Now this one, I felt a little bit like I should be locked up for child abuse. It was the last shot from our day, and Claire was over it! I felt like in the hustle of just trying to snap her not crying, I didn't do the best job with composition. But it's still fun to look at a baby in a pot, right? Right...??

I was trying out a new little prop.. the colorful scarf.. what do you think?

ThaNks foR loOkin!

Meet Baby Claire

2010-04-20T17:14:00.000-07:00

I have to say that I have missed taking pictures during these winter months. I loved jumping back into it with my neighbor's oh-so-cute kids..

Love the big brown eyes!!
Sweet big sis and bro...
I think this may be my fav from the group...
Isaac has to take a break from smiling to poke his big sister in the eye..
Mommy.. baby.. spring blossoms.. love it!
After the eye poking incident... gotta love this one!!

Thanks for lookin'!

so eAsY maGneTs

2010-03-10T21:03:00.000-08:00

So here's a simple craft for pretty much any age... my 5 year old loves these. I love magnets (my fridge is covered in Anne Taintor and home made) so I can hang up all my favorite pictures. This was a cute idea I saw on a blog a while ago and I thought I'd share it because it is so easy.

All you're going to need is river rocks, rub on stickers, magnets, and hot glue.

My advice on..

the river rocks: lighter and flatter is best.. and I think it would be even better if you could find some that don't have the shiny glazed polished kind of finish (I think a hardware store would be your best bet for that.. in the landscaping). I didn't find those and it still worked. I like a more earthy look, though. If they're too big, the poor little magnet won't be able to hold up the rock, let alone anything else you want it to hold to your fridge or magnet board.

Rub-Ons: You can find these at any scrapbook or craft store.. there are so many cute options. Just find some that are small enough to fit and you're good to go! These are from the local Pebbles in My Pocket and are called Lucy's Bird Bath.

See! It's true.. here's the proof that my little trouble maker will stay out of trouble for 30 minutes if I put her to work on this one...

So basically, the hardest part is making sure your sticker completely rubs off onto the rock. This is why I say I think one without a polish is better.. it would probably get a better stick. But as long as you're careful, you'll be able to get it on there perfect. Maybe practice one sticker that's not your favorite first..

Next step, hot glue yourself a magnet. Don't let your five year old do that, though. Can you imagine?
And here are her cute little magnets.. ready for a fridge or a cute little magnet board.

Thanks for all your great support.. I love it!

tHanKs foR yOur SuPpoRt!

2010-03-01T23:30:00.000-08:00

I appreciate everyone who comments on my blog and hope to post more often and check out other blogs more, too! I love seeing what other bloghoppers are will be posting fun stuff and changing up my blog asap!

QuiCk FriEnd GifTs

2010-02-13T14:45:00.000-08:00

I think one of the reasons that I love Valentine's Day so much is because we used to always doorbell ditch and leave treats. There's something about doing that that makes me laugh so hard every time. Now I get to take my little girl, and watching her cracks me up. She panics and runs frantically looking for a spot to hide.. i love it. So my mom let me know about these cute little pretzels.. super easy and perfect for a last minute homemade Valentine's gift..

All you need are ...

small pretzels,

Hersey's kisses (I tried hugs, caramel filled, cherry filled and then I tried a few Reese's and Rollo's)

M&Ms

I just laid mine out on a cookie sheet with wax paper. Plop one kiss on each and cook for 4-5 minutes in the oven at 180.

Some recipes I looked over warned that if you load the sheet too full, they will melt unevenly.. but I loaded it anyway because I'm seriously insane. I didn't notice a problem, but I'm not really a perfectionist.

I did notice that if you're going to do the cherry filled, they melt the fastest (but they were also a favorite).

Once they're out, put an M&M or two on there.

Then all you need is a cute cellophane bag with a little ribbon tied on it and you're good to go!

Happy doorbell ditching!

pOm PoMs!!

2010-02-04T17:41:00.000-08:00

Let's get pomdiggity..
So tissue paper pom poms are my go-to decoration fav. I have used them for everything like baby showers to wedding dinners to decoration in my little girl's room. They are so super easy, and are really inexpensive, too. They are so fun and make a big impact because they hang down from the ceiling or wherever else you want. And with so many different colors of tissue paper, you're pretty much set for any occasion. All you need to make them is tissue paper, bendy wire (I use silver floral wire that I pick up from Wal Mart for .99), scissors and if you want to hang it.. fishing line or ribbon or whatev.

Do I get too into the Valentine's spirit? Ah.. you know it's just gonna get worse and worse as the years pass.

So here's an idea of whatcha need (not that I didn't just put it earlier?).. I have found that if you're only going to do a few poms, I would buy packs of tissue from either Walmart or Xpedx (Salt Lake) or any other paper supply store. *F.Y.I. Craft stores and WalMart also sells the Martha Stewart ready to go pack of 5 for around 20$ in limited colors.* If you're going to do pom poms in super bulk (like I did for my brother's wedding dinner) I would recommend buying them through Nashville Wraps. They're an online company that you can pick any color you ever dreamt of (my brother's colors were mustard yellow and Burgundy) and tons of it.

So for the bigger poms, I usually use anywhere from 10-15 pieces. The more you use, the more full it will be but it will be harder to fold. Okay, so I guess it's still not that hard... come on.. we're folding tissue paper. I fold it like anywhere from an inch width to an inch and a half accordion style. The tighter you fold it, the harder it is to pull apart once you're done.. but once again.. it's tissue paper.

Once you've folded it up measure (or fold in half) to find the middle and fasten with your wire. I wrap around twice and then just wrap the ends together.

Cut your tips.. you pretty much don't want to leave it how it is cause it looks unfinished once you pull it apart. You get different effects depending on how you cut the end. I usually cut a slant (like above with just one cut), a triangle point (two cuts give you more detail) or round it. You can also do like three rounds.. just kind of mess around with it and I'm sure pretty much anything you do will be cute.

If you're going to hang your pom pom (you can also just set them somewhere) this is where I would tie your fishing line on. Once you fluff it out, it's harder to tie it in there. I just tie it right onto the wire.

So after you've done that, fan out a side.

Then being careful not to tear the tissue, pull the sides apart from themselves. I usually do just one side at a time.

You can do different sizes, too. I took these pink sheets and cut them in half. When I hang them, I like to have variation in size. Also, when you do smaller pom diggities, you don't have to use as many sheets. These ones I used only eight and they filled out just perfect.

So I hang from my light fixtures or from the ceiling or whatever. You can also go on Martha Stewart for different ways to use the poms. I made a gazillion for a dinner, and used them for little decor on the wrapped silverware, as well as wrapped cookies for party favors. It was a lot of work, but inexpensive and so cute!

Go V*daY!

Day 14, 13 and 12

2010-02-03T16:18:00.001-08:00

I tried to get to it earlier.. but here is my first post for the countdown to vDaY!! I have found so many cute ideas, taken some other ones to make them my own. The first one I wanted to share is vday mailboxes/buckets. At any big box chain, you can find these cute buckets and Target even had mailboxes in their dollar section. At a ward activity an idea was shared to put out mailboxes for everyone in your house so you can leave surprise notes. I love this idea! So here are my buckets...

I love decor that hangs from the ceiling.. this is something I've recently learned about myself. I hung these with some simple yarn from my curtain rod. I tied some pink and white tulle to spruce them up a little bit. Ribbon would be so cute, too.

I feel like it just adds the right amount of Valentine-ness to my dining room.

So next, I thought it would be fun to surprise my kids with a little gift counting down to Valentine's Day. This technically would start 14 days before, but I got off to a late start. I wanted to go an inexpensive route.. so I found myself with my friend at Walmart at midnight shopping for random dollar items.. but I feel like we did well.

Everything but the Princess Tianna drawing kit was like a buck or less. At first I had ideas of the things I wanted to put in the buckets so that I could match some little cards I'd already written out but I found a few things that I thought the kids would like that wasn't in my plan. So I have over 14 days worth of little cards that I've put together that I've made vague enough that if you want to copy and print them you can. They could work for 10 days of Valentines, or 3 days of Valentines.. whatever you want to do. You can also spend as little or as much as you want.. I only spent about 20 dollars for two kids.

So here are these cards. There are 15, so pick and choose which ones work for you for the gifts you want to give. Some of them are really general, and some of them are more specific. Here's what you could give with my little cards..

candy

bubblegum

toys

shoes

sidewalk chalk

something heart shaped

something festive

a hat, a reading book (or coloring book)

a flute

glow sticks

bubbles

stickers

and your final special gift.

I also am doing surprise for the husband, but they're more all candy with funny sayings that I haven't come up with yet. I try not to do candy for the kiddos, because they don't know how to limit themselves and they're wired and then super ornery. I wish I knew how to make a link so you could just download these. If anyone has any advice on how to do this through blogger, please let me know. Also, if you would like an email of just the rhymes without the pages, leave me a comment and I will do that.

Tomorrow I will be posting how to make festive VdAy pOm pOms.

kickin' off V*day

2010-02-03T12:30:00.000-08:00

So the plan was 14 days of Valentine's.. makes sense, right? But I have a defect. I'm a little bit bi-polar when it comes to my blog. 90 % of me wants to fix it up and have cute fun stuff on it including pictures, crafts, recipes.. anything!! And the 10% of me that's too ornery/busy/ more in the mood to watch a lifetime movie usually wins. But.. that takes us back to the New Year's resolutions.. and I made a resolution to be better about blogging. I took a second to go through my old family blog yesterday, and now I realize why. There are so many little things I blogged about that I have forgotten about. And it's so fun to go back and see! So whether someone finds something here that they like, or I have something for a point of reference for myself.. I'm happy.

Here are two of my kiddos that didn't make the cut for our Valentine's Day cards.. but I thought they were too cute not to share.. I hate to post the ones that are on the card.. then it's like you're already seen it.. and what fun is a card you've already seen? None.

That takes us back to the 14 days of Valentine's. It's now down to twelve. That's how I roll. Next year may be better. Maybe I'll be worse? Maybe it'll be 9 days of Valentine's. Who knows.. that's what you get when you're dealin' with a bipolar blogger. ANywaY, In an hour or two, my official first day of Valentine's Partyin' will be up!

More of my cute Family + their cute dogs

2010-01-13T15:25:00.000-08:00

These are some of my cute cousins.. I always want to say nephews.. We went on a chilly Wheeler Farm shoot and they were such good sports even though it was freezin!

I feel short when my younger cousins are taller than me.. Chancey made me feel short! Or maybe just my shortness makes me feel short. Who knows.

I got to hang out with their dogs for a second, meet Bella...

and SUEY (you have to read that name in a really low voice). This is going to blow your mind, but no.. the measurements are not off on this picture. The dog is really that wide. When Jess got me my pug, Dolce.. this is what I hopefully thought she would turn into... so far no luck. I need to know the secret skills in getting your dog this awesome..

... mind blown??

One of my favs...

I like how the colors turned out in this one..

My favorite from the group...

A big ol' Thanks to my aunt Jeni for being so cute and patient while we went through me trying to make their Christmas cards! Next year I promise I'll have it down.

Big Changes For Me

2010-01-11T16:21:00.000-08:00

Many of you know I have been the Laurel's Advisor in my ward now for over four years. I have just been given a new calling, and have been released from Young Women. Of course I am excited for something new, but I am really sad to say goodbye to my beautiful girls. I love them, and they are all so amazing and fun. I've had so much fun being able to spend time with them, and I feel like I've watched them all grow up.

This is just a random picture of most of the from Girl's Camp last year. The good news is, I've been called to come up to camp with the Stake, so I don't feel too deprived! And here's to my new calling with Activities Days.. did I say that right? I love all the amazing girls and leaders I've had fun working with in my ward!! I will miss you SO much!

Let's get back into it!

2010-01-09T12:26:00.000-08:00

So this will give you an idea of how far behind I am.. these are some pictures from our stay in Las Vegas for Thanksgiving. My cute Christiansen clan fam, this is the Jon and Summer department. I have to say, I love Las Vegas, I could happily live there. Thanksgiving was great, Summer and Debbie's squash soup was aMaZing. I think about it fondly daily. One thing I learned about Jesse's brother, Jon, is that he HAtEs taking pictures. Hates it. So we had to move fast because he didn't want to spend much time. So we ran to a nearby spot and then Summer and I had fun running everywhere else with the kids.

My cute niece, Lucie Loo

One of the cutest boys, ever.. Max. He's full energy all the time.

Love this one!

The whole fam.. I love Summer's hair just blowin' in the wind.. like a sexy superstar.. So did the guys who were just hanging out in their van.. watching us take pictures. That's always great.

Hunter is the most grown up kindergartner you have ever met. He speaks more eloquently than most adults. He's such a stud. Sometimes I think Bauer is starting to look a lot like him.

So a huge thanks to Jon and Summer for having us at their beautiful house and another thanks to Jon, who checked Jesse and my eyes and we can now see much better thanks to our contacts (whew.. run on sentence??)

So that's a taste of some of the stuff I've been up to while I've been MIA on the whole blog thing.
And also.. I've been having some computer issues.. some kind of bug that always pulls up a "playsushi" game. It's been causing me headaches and then I made the genius move to organize my photobucket.. which broke many of my links. I don't know if I can commit to fixing it, but I might. So, that's why you see no pictures below and only photobucket stuff.

It's been a long time

2010-01-08T20:30:00.001-08:00

shouldn't've left you
without a slow beat to step to

step to
step to
step to
step to
step to

wickee wickee wickee...

I'm back. To all you five readers out there who may or may not check in. Did I make your day? Anybody? Um.. maybe not.

I have been so busy with everything that blogging has been last on my list.. as usual. And as usual, I'm going to promise to be better at it.. but we'll see. Soon I will have pictures of many of my cute boutique-y items that I may or may not be selling on Etsy.. I'm also thinking about doing a booth here in SaLt LaKe. My husband is working crazy hours at his new business which is great for business.. but sometimes hard for me. By the time I've possibly eaten a meal and if I'm lucky.. taken a shower? it's midnight and I'm tired.

I have many New Year's Goals to help with the way I'm feeling and to try and keep moving with all the things I want to do. Sometimes it really helps to look at my list, and sometimes it just really, ReALly overwhelms me. If it's winter blues.. I guess I better go tanning. It's healthy for you if it's curing winter blues, right? That's what I'm telling myself. But back to goals for the New Year.. Here's my list..

*Don't click on any of the links.. it's some kind of virus on my* *computer and it brings up junk*

1. Lose Weight (can it be a list of goals for me without that?) & Be healthy. I've joined a biggest loser blog, and so far I'm feeling way motivated (Thanks Christina!) And so far I've been over a week without sugar.. suga
2. Learn to be a better cook. I know it's in me. But sometimes I'm just so busy.. and then when I actually do cook, no one was expecting it and they all already ate. Or maybe that's just what they say so that they don't have to eat it. And my cute sister-in-law Jeanine is doing a blog because she's working on this same thing (she's a good cook, she's just trying to find the right recipes) so if you're interested in her blog, you should check that out.
3. Take my kids on "Field Trips" once a week. This week we did Classic skating. I was seriously just dreading it in the pit of my stomach the whole night before. It wasn't AS bad as I thought it would be.
4. Really develop talents that I've been wanting to develop. Get better at photography, learn to sew, I want to take singing lessons.. start up piano lessons again. This is the list that overwhelms me because I don't know where I'll find the time. But I'm gonna make it happen.
5. Keep my house clean. This was actually a goal I made last year and I've gotten so much better at it. And thanks to my cute friend, Marianne, I know one of the biggest keys is just to throw as much away (or give away) as you can.
6. Finish all my unfinished projects. There's a list. But I won't bore you. Oh wait, just a little boring taste... Bentley's room redone, Bauer's room finished, the playroom done, fix the floor in the office.. finish the painting for upstairs...ugh. But it's gonna happen!
7. Figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Here's my dilemma.. I've always thought I'd go into something more serious like law, or even medicine (whaaa?). But when I sit down, write the pros and cons.. I don't like science. I don't like math! Not to mention I'd be like 50 by the time I got done with school. What I like is art, and being creative. I've been that way since I was teeny. So I need to really figure out what it is I want to go for, and then go for it. Don't get me wrong, I love photography. I will always love photography. But when I'm too busy with it, it kind of ruins it for me. My passion is fashion (a serious fashion passion.. read it like Flight of the Concords would sing it) . And another passion is party planning. But, first of all... fashion. So I'm thinking I'm gonna go for it.
8. Put more fun stuff I love on my blog. Even if I have lost all my readers. It's happenin'..
9. Write more. I love thinking up stories. I think I'm gonna write one.. starting with one for Bentley.
10. After I feel confident with my musical lessons-perform a song somewhere. That one makes me nervous just typing it.
11. Run a little boutique. Not to make me crazy, but to keep me a little busy with the stuff I love.
12. Let my husband know how much I love him. Cause I do. Not to mention he's lookin' pretty saxy.. he's lost over 20 pounds in two weeks! Or does that make us kinda hate him?? Maybe just a little..

So here's to a new year! A new me, a better, happier, healthier me and my family.

(Should I have made it a goal that we wouldn't have any hospital visits? Or is that too unrealistic? I'll just keep magnets hidden)

I'm going to post monthly on how my goals are coming.

What are your goals? Do you usually stick to them?

I'll be posting more... and taking a gander your blogs more.. leaving hilarious comments for all to see.

Gettin' Hitched!!

2009-11-17T21:18:00.000-08:00

I loved working with you two! Thanks for being patient and cooperative..

This post is a mix of both wedding reception, day and bridals from the summer.. enjoy! Flowers and such were amazing.. their party planner was so cute, her contact is www.lcbydesign.com if you're interested in more.

Proud of her catch...
I think you gotta have the classic "cheer" pic cause it's hillarious to look back on it and look at everyone doing their cheers. I still laugh when I look at mine.

Love the dance...

my little sweetie

2009-11-08T20:37:00.000-08:00

this is little taste of how my photoshoot went with my kiddos today for christmas cards. it's almost like you can hear jingle bells ringing when you see this kind of holiday cheer.

bradfords

2009-11-02T21:34:00.000-08:00

This shoot turned out so well regardless of the cold. Poor Dax started shivering the second he got out of the car! His dad, Todd, is pretty frail so maybe he got a little bit of that. j/K Dax could take Todd in a fight any day. anyway.. such a cute fam!!
They really do like each other! They're not fakin it.
Once I handed him a punkin, he was happy again.

Love this! Paris with newbie, Brody.. remember Paris's maternities from not that long ago?

My Fav! El lovo fantistico!

brooke anne

2009-11-01T13:41:00.000-08:00

My cute little sis is growin' up! I did a few pics of her the other day and wanted to share how cute this one came out.

a very haunted halloween

2009-10-30T20:35:00.000-07:00

In my Martha Stewart Halloween book (yup, I really do have one) there are the creepiest pictures that I LOVE for Halloween. I wanted to mimic the eerie feel and I love how these turned out! I think I will love them for years to come, for decor! I hope you like 'em!

Could this lane be any more perfect for a fall shoot?

I think Bentley wins for the creepiest creeperton!

halloween shoot preview

2009-10-27T17:40:00.000-07:00

I have so much catching up to do!! But here is a little taste of the so fun shoot we did for Halloween...

richmond fam fall shoot

2009-10-26T09:07:00.001-07:00

So I can say that I feel like I'm over my photo block and have been having so much fun recently with my pics! On top of working on my boutique stuff and trying to learn a few other things, life is flowing again.

This was a shoot I actually did a couple weeks ago and am now just posting. Next I'm posting some pics of Todd and Paris's new baby, Brody... so stay tuned! Also.. I will probably be posting some of what I've been up to with my boutique, and I'm excited to know your honest opinions once that's up. I love you all, and am so grateful for all my amazing friends, family and support!

Kay, Sierra is such a ham! In between posing we would get a few natural, but the posing was so cute!

Look at that face. Trouble. Regan deserves it!

Sisters Sierra and Savannah.

Sierra's uncle had just gotten married the night before and Sierra was the lucky gal who caught the bouquet! She had slept with it the night before and had to have some pictures with it.

Such a sweet face!

Love the fall!

writer's block...

2009-10-12T22:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think there are too many things that I want to do.. and in the process of doing those things, other things fall through cracks (this week it's been my poor kids.. el neglecto) Other things I've been neglecting.. my blogS, my yard (who am I kidding, my yard has been neglected now for months), getting ready in something besides sweats, and photography! I have like whatever would be writer's block but to photography. Photography block. So anyway.. any advice? What can I do to help myself? Usually I find music I love.. and lucky me! Regina Spektor's new album has four songs on playlist, but it's still not helping me. I don't know if my brain is on overload from too many lifetime movies, too many home projects (most of them done!!), a rockin' Halloween decoration thanks very much to my friend, Marianne (we learned how to master a jig saw)! too many lunches out... very much el addictedo to Lone Star thanks to Ash and Jimmy Johns thanks to Marianne, and many other projects that I am VERY excited about, but will tell you about later.. Ah well, I guess I've been livin' it up outside of computer land. Anyway.. here's a cute one of Brody to make me feel like I am doing something photographyish!

a little bit of what i've been up to...

2009-10-06T21:07:00.000-07:00

bAbiEs n FaLL... here's a smidgen of it..

baby bobby preview

2009-09-21T08:55:00.000-07:00

Meet this sweet little guy! I loved this one where you can see his happy mama's smile.

There are more of these to be posted soon.

don't you wear your tutu to salt air?

2009-09-17T08:09:00.000-07:00

How cute are these girls? All of my friends seriously have the cutest kids! We decided to round up whoever wanted to come and ventured on out to SaltAir. I haven't been there since I was little.. and all I can remember about that is my mom took us there to ride elephants? I'm not making it up. I have pics to prove it.

Here's one of my favs.. Brooklyn with her balloons...

Both Miley and Bauer were not too excited about being there. But I got cute pics of Miley... Bauer not so much.

Anna was our little star! I had been warned beforehand about her lack of enthusiasm for picture taking, but she did so well!

The girls got spunk..

I love the old west feel..

Help me out! I love this picture of Bentley, and I can't decide how I love it most. Let me know what you think...

B&W

Color..

Color crop

The stinky trip out there was worth it!

saltAiR

2009-09-13T16:02:00.000-07:00

Ugh... I've been out of it when it comes to posting. Blame it on the Swine Flu. It knocked us out for a while, and ever since I've just not had the energy to get goin' again. But I do have plenty to post! Here's a preview of how cute these pics came out.. I have so many more of some of my cute friend's little girls.

I got a group of similar pictures to this one that I have to say are my favorites of Bentley to date..

This one's going on my wall!

Thanks everyone for your support.

And Happy Grandparent's Day! We love our Grandmas and Grandpas!

yummy s'more cookies

2009-08-16T19:46:00.000-07:00

Alright. So for a long time I've been wanting to get with it enough to start posting some recipes. The reason I think this may be a good idea is that it might make me cook. I always use stumbleupon and find these amazing pictures of food and think I'll try that. Well guess what. I tried it. And so far, so good.. These little fellas are from www.thecrepesofwrath.wordpress.com
That just happened.

Here's the recipe. You know you want it. It's basically cookie dough with some graham cracker thrown in, a layer of chocolate, a layer of marshmallow, and some more cookie dough graham cracker.

S’more Cookie Bars from Baking Bites
1/2 cup butter, room temperature1/4 cup brown sugar1/2 cup sugar1 large egg1 tsp vanilla extract1 1/3 cups all purpose flour3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 8 graham crackers)1 tsp baking powder1/4 tsp salt2 king-sized milk chocolate bars1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not melted marshmallows)
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and/or line an 8-inch square baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined. Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan.
4. Place chocolate bars over dough (2 king-sized Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate if necessary to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick).
5. Spread the marshmallow fluff over the chocolate.
6. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff (most easily achieved by flattening the dough into small shingles or panels and laying them together).
7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

If you try them, let me in on how they turn out!

KaCey'S bRidALs!!

2009-08-11T18:28:00.000-07:00

Kace was such a good sport to let me drag her around ALL over! So many gorgeous pics.. there will definitley be more.. let me know what you think.
I love how traditional her presence is behind her bouquet.

One of my favorites of Kacey and her fiance, Joe..

Check back soon!

girls camp 2009!

2009-08-03T11:32:00.000-07:00

I have been gone this whole past week at Girls Camp on our Stake property. I had so much fun! I thought I'd share a few pics from my week.
Because of all our summer rain, we were able to see so many beautiful wild flowers that aren't usually around this time of year.

One of my favorite parts of the property is the meadows. It's what always comes to mind for me when I think of Girl's Camp.

One other thing we got to do was have fires! It's been a while since we could have a fire due to the property being too dry. My ward's camp daddy was awesome! He taught us how to make our fires colorful.. they were so pretty. You get a copper tube (from Home Depot) and cut it into smaller pieces (like a foot long). Cover the copper tube in a hose that's cut to the same size. Put it into the fire and you have blues and purple flames with the orange. It was crazy! I am definitely doing it my next camping trip (which happens to be the Tetons this weekend). I learned all kinds of fun camping stuff. Believe it or not, I've never roasted a starburst before, and I couldn't get enough! I'll also be doing banana boats my next campout. Lots of fun stuff!!

My fav..

I love girl's camp!

el preggo continued

2009-07-22T22:16:00.000-07:00

I love so many of the pictures we got of pregnant Paris, let me know what you think!

One of my faves...

Don't worry about it. Just another pregnant girl sitting on the train tracks.

I'm still very much deciding what style is more me. I love a pop art feel. Tell me what you think!

Thanks Paris for being too cute while pregnant!

paris es preggo preview

2009-07-16T21:27:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited about how many CuTe PrEgGo pics we got! Seriously, Paris does preggo better than most anybody I know! Check back soon for more.

a sweet little double blessing

2009-07-13T19:25:00.001-07:00

I have two new members of my fam.. a niece and a nephew! Over the weekend, they were both blessed in Cedar City. I didn't have much time to do pictures, but here are my favorites from the weekend.
Cansas and Chloe

Carly and her first, Raymond.

Summer and Lucie

gloomy days r my fav

2009-07-01T10:50:00.000-07:00

Brace yourself for lots of train tracks and rickity wooden doors...

I know gorgeous little Ella's skin looks orange here, but it doesn't look like this in photoshop, and I'm too lazy to switch it over for my blog. I still thought it was cute enough!

One of my favorites from the day...

She's so stinkin' photogenic!

This one is a serious poser! She struck pose after pose..

All boy...

He's another one who's hard to get an unposed picture of..

But he is so cute when you finally get him just smilin'!

How can you go wrong with this cute girl, a hat, and train tracks? All of her pictures turned out darling.

Prettiest eyes!!

And my little pookie just sitting on the tracks with glass and who knows what else..

train tracks preview

2009-06-30T22:04:00.000-07:00

Broken glass and train tracks. This is a place right by where I used to work that I always wanted to do some pictures.. I have to say the pictures turned out so cute, but I don't know if I'd ever take anyone there again.. I dragged my cute neighbors with me.. so check back to see their cute faces!

RagNar

2009-06-22T11:26:00.000-07:00

ShaKe YoUr PoM pOm!!

Welcome to my weekend of no sleep, and all stinky runners. This was my first experience with the Ragnar race.

I have to admit, one of my favorite parts was our blow horn. Some people loved it, some people hated us. You could hear us coming for miles. Above you see my sister, Brooke very passionately calling to all ragnar racers. (p.s. this field made my allergies go ridiculous.. my eyes were pretty much swollen shut and had welts around them. I didn't want to take pictures because I had never had anything like that happen, and I was terrified in my delirious state that it might be permanent)

So what is this race you ask? Why is Lindsey dressed so politically incorrect? Because our team was the Wild Wild West, yo! (named after Camille's family's last name.. didn't even occur to me until right before) Ragnar is a relay from Logan to Park City, totaling 180 miles. Our team was made up of two cars of six. In our car we had me, my sister Brooke, my mom, my aunt, Sharon, my brother Colter and his wife Camille. In car one, Camille's family.
My leg was the first for our car, all along the way your car can stop and support you.. get you all the gatorade and e caps you could ask for. Or Rock Star, in my case (which just gave me kidney stones.. I think I passed one along the way.. awesome)

Camille's first leg was crazy uphill followed by one mile of straight downhill. Feels good on the shin splints. Can you see the little indian running up the hill?

Our car was the chief. Everyone decorates their cars, some definitely more than others. There are prizes for the best decorated.

Brooke and I tried to get some sleep before our second legs. It was hard for a couple reasons to sleep. First, it was 9:00. Second, we were on a hill of rocky grass. And I think third, definitely could have made a small impact.. We were right next to the "honey buckets" and every now and then we would get a potent whiff. It was so romantic. I wished Jess was there.

There are many distinct differences between the West family and the Rosenlof family. One of those differences are, Rosenlofs don't really burn. Wests do...

The runs were absolutely gorgeous. We couldn't have asked for better weather. The first day was super hot, our second leg was in the middle of the night, and leg three was overcast but not too rainy.

This is was a lot of the legs looked like when you came to your exchange. Beautiful scenery and lots of SUVs.

I kept trying to get a picture of Sharon, but I couldn't get her face because she wouldn't stop kissing her bicep long enough for me to snap one.

One of my favorite parts of the race.. (maybe because I was done running by this point..)

p.s. I do love my mom, pretty much all of the pictures I got of her I know she wouldn't want me posting on my blog. She was there, though!!

Jenny Pris is gettin' Hitched!

2009-06-16T14:37:00.000-07:00

Well.. GOT hitched. Holy cow! I'm to that phase in my life where friend's younger brothers and sisters are getting married. Now I understand how weird that feels. My family loves the Prisbey Family.. and it was fun to see how beautiful Jen looked on her day!

Daddy/Daughter dance..

Sisters!

Jenny and her adorable niece.

Imagine that! The groom made it in one!?

Jen and her mom..

Choc-Attack!

Thanks for letting me share in your big day!

Family Shoot

2009-06-14T09:13:00.000-07:00

So I was nervous because I've never tried to get a good picture with pets before, but I felt like I got some really fun pics!

My cute cousin-in-law and her little girl. She has the happiest kids!

And I love this little dance...

More from this fam to come!

sorte preview

2009-05-31T15:03:00.000-07:00

Here's just a little snippet from a quick family shoot I did this weekend at Sugarhouse Park. We didn't realize that it was Strut Your Mut, and there were so many dogs! Running and splashing everywhere!

Thanks to Ash for coming to be my "help" and it just ended up she got to hang out with me. Lucky ducky.

pretty little sadie

2009-05-21T15:22:00.000-07:00

My cute niece is so photogenic! I'm lucky to have such cute nieces and nephews.. here are some of my faves..

She did not want to be sitting up here. It's higher than it looks.

Maybe my favorite... such a pretty face.

pookies

2009-05-19T21:09:00.001-07:00

It's amazing how photographing your own kids can be so stressful, but I learn so much about how I really want my pictures to look. These pictures didn't turn out how I wanted.. so I know I still have so much to learn.. but I thought that I'd post some of them anyway.

I took these for Grandmas for Mothers' Day, and this is just about the time when Bauer became a mama's boy. He was fussy and just wanted to be held.. Benny gave him a sweet little kiss.

His poor little fat feet don't fit in shoes. :(

Sweet smiles...

So.. with this HTML can you see the picture or is some still being cut off? Let me know! Thanks..

p.s.. what am I going to do without Gossip Girl and all their awesome music? (That's where I got this song playing now that i LOVE)

Harts con't..

2009-05-17T07:53:00.000-07:00

So I loved how these turned out both in color and in b&w.. just a little more to see of the Hart kiddos

can you see the pics?

2009-05-15T09:59:00.001-07:00

So I just got a comment saying the pictures were not completely visible on her computer.. They are on mine, but I have a big screen.. So tell me, are the pictures being cut off for you?

I would love comments..

Thanks!

sweet sarah jane

2009-05-14T12:41:00.000-07:00

Welcoming the newest addition to one of my favorite families, the feinauers.. teensy tiny Sarah Jane

They're only this small for a split second, I swear! And if they're mine, they're never ever this small..

Welcome to the family, Sarah Jane!

I love a good cryin' pic..

She was so content and we lucked out, because in between little cat naps she was ready to open her eyes for us.

Welcome to a crazy world!

sadie loo hoo preview

2009-05-13T12:01:00.000-07:00

hart kids

2009-05-12T08:30:00.001-07:00

Kay.. I know. M.I.A. But at least that means I've got plenty to post! I've been in an anti-blog funk, and a Ticket To Ride online addiction. That's right. I play Ticket to Ride online, and I have an addiction. So that's how I've been spending the time I should be posting pictures..

This little group of kiddos live in my neigborhood, and wanted to surprise their mom with some pics... awww

You can't skip the waterfall when you go to Garden Park Ward. Ya just can't.

We got tons of great pics, and I'll definately be posting some of their singles. I hope that their cute mom had a great mother's day!

more from colter and camille's wedding

2009-04-14T08:25:00.000-07:00

Bentley kept fighting with Claire to dance with A.J.

With the Grandpa of the bride.

All of the boys..

The beginning of a long night for Benny Boo..

All the friends

Catching the bouquet is hard when there are so many bridesmaids! (18 total)

My happy smilin' little man.

happy easter

2009-04-12T20:34:00.001-07:00

wishing everyone a very happy easter

love,
lins

princess

2009-04-09T22:53:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to use this carriage for a while, and I can't wait to do more with it. It's one of my favorite childhood memories.. Benny loves it too! She's been wanting to go, and so we took off tonight. I think she'll like these for her room.. Next time we need a crown and gloves!

my faves from the augades

2009-04-08T15:09:00.000-07:00

Here are just a few more from the Augades shoot..

Hopefully I'll be better about posting more soon.. I've hit some growing pains with trying to decide how much time to spend on pictures, and defining my style and brand.. hopefully I'll get things figured out, and have lots of fun stuff to post soon! Thanks for all of the support that I've received from friends and family.. It means a lot.. although I don't get a ton of comments, I do get a lot of hits, and I appreciate everyone who has links to me from their blogs, and everyone who refers to me.

augade preview

2009-03-28T13:21:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite families from the ward.. Deidra and I used to be in Young Women's together, but now she misses me like crazy. Okay, maybe not. I talked their ears off the whole car ride to Garden Park Ward, and back. Am I the only one that finds themself doing that? It's a problem. Regardless, I love hanging out with these guys, and they were too easy and cute to work with!

I couldn't believe how well Zack did! He was awesome with his cute litte missing tooth smile.

I love this one!

More to come!

grandma donna is 84!

2009-03-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

My last grandparent left is 84 years old and still going strong. She'll probably outlive us all. I told her I wanted to snap some pictures of her for her 84th birthday, and she asked "why? for my obituary?" Nope, just cause we love your smiling face.

This piano is an awesome antique. It's one of the things that is so "grandma and grandpa's house" to me. Also, the painting behind the piano. I always loved to sit and look at that when I was little. I had no idea my grandma painted it!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

colter and camille's wedding dinner

2009-03-19T09:04:00.000-07:00

So maybe this is a post I should be posting on my personal blog, because the photography in this isn't anything special. But he's my bro, so I'm postin'! Sometimes I feel like I dwell way too much on details, but I was so happy in the ending after all of the work! We did the dinner at Trio Cafe, and they were great to work with my wishes. I loved that the menu had a picture of Colter and Camille..

Today just engaged.. tomorrow Mr and Mrs!!!

I got tons of compliments on how creative I am.. I just stole all the ideas from Martha Stewart. Isn't that how it always goes? Thanks Marth. I made tons and tons of hanging pom poms, sitting pom poms, favor pom poms. I'm cool going without purple and yellow tissue paper for a while. I wish I would have time to get a better picture that did it justice. It looked awesome!

Favors were delicious cookies from little dutch boy bakery. Wrapped in tissue paper, of course.

My table numbers all had pictures of Colter and Camille on the back. Everyone's napkin had a flower on it, too.

Mama Shauna and Papa Bruce. My parents also happen to be parents of the groom.

Meet the bride's parents, Jenny and Arnold West. I actually knew these guys before Colter and Camille knew each other.. I went to school with Camille's older sister.

Mix cd's of the couple's favorite songs. In my family, music is kind of a big deal. I think it comes from my dad. Colter has met someone who shares his same taste in music.. what else can you ask for?

Last, but definately not least.. the groom's cake. I love how this turned out! As I was stressin' about getting everything put together. I opened the back of my car to show my dad how awesome the cake turned out.. It had tipped over! I swore.. A couple times. But thanks to my dad, the cake got fixed (Grandma Shirl was a professional cake decorator.. it rubbed off). Stephanie Morgan, who lives in my ward not only does cakes, but teaches cake classes. If anyone is interested in a cake, she is the girl! She has the best prices! Ever since Colter and Camille got engaged, I'd been wanting to do a fun Nintendo cake. Colter always chose to be Yoshi, so I wanted to incoorporate that, but I think this turned out awesome..

congrats to my brother!!

2009-03-14T17:01:00.000-07:00

My brother, Colter and his cute girlfriend of five years (through high school and the mission), Camille, decided to tie the knot yesterday! I have been so busy with everything for the wedding dinner that I haven't had time to post anything. Here's a cute wedding dance photo.. There will definately be more to come!

True to her vintage style, Camille wanted old fashioned-y portraits to be there when you first walk into the reception center. Here's what we got...

congrats! love you guys!!

feinhauers

2009-03-08T08:45:00.000-07:00

I knew these would turn out cute just cause I knew the little models I was working with!

A happy little family (well..unless you count Annie.. she doesn't look too happy)

I'm a big fan of the blue water

Arrr! Pirate face!

Thanks guys! You're the best.