I've decided I'm a fan of Valentine's Day

So we planned on making these cute cookies from 30 days blog... but we made them way too big... so we bagged the sandwiching idea and just kept them like this.  Then we still didn't have enough.. so we did some cut out rice crispy treats too...

These are the tags we used for the top of their cellophane bags.

Finished product.  Not as cute as Mique's heart oreos.... but cute enough.

This is the extent of a valentine gift for Ross. We don't do gift gifts.  Which I'm grateful for since it's hard enough for me to pull his birthday together in January so soon after Christmas.  So I did a little picture banner.  A look-at-us-we're-so-in-love token above our bed in case it's a go-to-bed angry kind of night..  Whoa... way too much work to put that many hyphens in a sentence.  Another lesson learned.

 I just made a super simple little fake polaroid template as a 4x6 in photoshop (it's down below if you're into that sort of thing and want to download it. Open in photoshop, drag your photo on top of my gray square, right click, create clipping mask, ctl-T if you need to resize your photo to fit, hit the infinite sign above so you don't stretch it to weird proportions.) Then I printed them at Costco as a 4x6's and trimmed the bottom.  If you want, you can write things like "I love you more than Hula Pie" because your photo's at the Cliffhouse and you REALLY love hula pie, or "I think you're nicer than all the white people in Maui" because you were surprised at how many white people were on Maui and how unfriendly lots of them were... really romantic things like that.

Cookies and pictures for Valentine's Day.  Sometimes I'm just so innovative I feel the need to share.

Also chocolate.  I suggest chocolate.

Here's my genius polaroid template.

fake polaroid.psd

PS. Can you tell I finally switched the newer blogger interface and can't figure it out.  It's AMAZING because I don't have to edit the html for 15 minutes to make my pictures bigger... but I can't figure out how to make my photos stay lined up and keep my text the same size with the captions etc.... 

Christmas in Orange County

We started up in the loft for some hot chocolate and a little reminder of what it's all about:

Then headed downstairs for the loot!

Luckily--- we managed to enjoy the magical day-- even though Mila and Finn were throwing up off and on for DAYS. including--- THAT day. :( I think this has been our worst winter ever-- with sickness. Booh.

I certainly don't feel like I did a very good job capturing it this year. I just wasn't committed enough to my camera. It's getting harder and harder to do that. I've probably got more from my phone... ooh-- maybe I'll have to post those too. I've just really embraced phone pictures... so much less pressure, time, space, thinking-ahead.... all my style... and especially once I pick up my new iphone 4s with my Christmas gift card!...

I'm still coming out of my post-Christmas blues. At least we're one day closer to next year's Christmas with every day that passes. Hope yours was merry!

Tonight we laid on the couch

(in the room with the tree)

as a family.

We listened to

Still Nacht by Mannheim

and soaked in the twinkle and sparkle

one last time for the season.

Ross has made me do this

since we first got married.

I use "made" loosely, since I wait for his lead...

but I wait anxiously.

It's one of my very favorite

small Christmas traditions.

Sophia soaked it up, just like her dad.

Mila kept saying-- "this is it? This isn't fun!"

(Because Ross had said we had one special thing to do

after they brushed their teeth------A surprise.)

She's more interested in surprises wrapped in bows or chocolate.

She's four---and she's Mila... and she's MY daughter (the chocolate)

we don't blame her.

We laughed and she got mad at us for laughing.

Finn slept upstairs.

Sophia lay silent, staring at the tree.

She's every bit as tender and nostalgic as her dad.

Tomorrow it comes down,

and I usually feel a little more ready than I do this year.

But we're excited for 2012.

I have a feeling it's going to be a really good one.

Happy New Year.

Catching up in Instagrams

I'm really hoping that after the holidays--- and after I finish up the end of my 2011 shoots.... I'll have time to blog again...

until then--- little pretend polaroids will have to do.

The 4th of July- seen through the iphone... and the shake it app, of course

Ok well we spent our actual 4th back here in the desert for the first time... ever I think? But we started the weekend in San Diego with my family for some fun on Friday.

My brother, Byron got some new wave-runners so we met on the bay-side at ski beach, in Mission Beach-- which means we had super easy parking, grass, picnic tables, the shade of a huge tree, bathrooms close by, and calm waters for all the kids to swim... ideal.

I can never get over what it feels like to get in the car at like 11 am here in 114 degree weather... and then out of the car in San Diego, near the water. I fill my lungs as fast as I can with the deepest breath I can muster. Like maybe if I get enough of that fresh, 70-something, salty air in me, it'll heal whatever damage MUST be happening to me from the insane climate I live in. Seriously. We are so nuts for living where we live.... and there are few things that feel better to me than a gorgeous, crisp San Diego day.

The girls got to play with their cousins, swim, get dragged around on tubes, and Sophia had the TIME OF HER LIFE, on the back of the wave-runner. Ross couldn't get over how thrilled she was, yelling in his ear the whole time, "THIIIIIIS IIIIIIS SOOOOOO MUUUUUUUCH FUUUUUN! GO FAAAAAAASTER!!!!" She couldn't wipe the grin off of her face afterwards. And I got to sit in a beach chair and hold my sleeping baby--- A surprisingly rare and dreamy situation for me. Ahhh summer....

Record 4th of July: check.

Father's Day

A few days late... here's a shot of our super dad. He's a popular guy in our home and we are SO grateful for him.

This Father's Day was interesting for me. I definitely thought of my dad a lot. I had flashes of the silliest memories going through my mind all day--- it made me want to write each of them down in case I run out one day. It's just a scary feeling to not be able to make more. I miss my dad and was grateful for a special day to reflect a little more on him.

But the day was wonderful--- and as always, I felt especially thankful for my step-dad, Kirk who serves and teaches and loves me so much, and for my father-in-law, Steve who raised his sons to be kind and gentle and patient like him...

And especially for my 72-and-sunny, very own, Ross. I still feel lucky every day.

Father's are so incredibly important. Happy late Father's Day.

The Pumpkin Patch!

It's our fourth year going to Live Oak out in Banning. We always hope we'll get something resembling Fall weather when we go... but are not always so lucky.

This year, we got ready in our hot house... and it was hard for me to even grab layers "just in case".... but the 45 minute drive took us straight into a fabulous, big, dark cloud. It was wonderful... cloudy, chilly, dim... all of the pumpkins looked extra orange and I didn't have to take off my cardigan and worry about love-handle exposure.

Speaking of, I know what you're thinking in my photo with just Ross.... I wasn't kidding right...I'm HUGE! And I cropped off the bottom of the photo ( I NEVER take time to crop photos)... because I looked even huger.

(And my hair is three-barrelled for the halloween party later that night where I attempted some sort of super-hero look.... poofy hair was the least I could do since I couldn't fit into anything but a superman t-shirt and work-out pants.)

But I did hit 30 weeks today!! There's something about entering the 30's in pregnancy weeks that makes me breath a little sigh of relief. It's still a long leg, but the last leg. I am COUNTING down.