Wednesday, February 29, 2012

if i were a butterfly..


she says to me as we are driving along.. "mommy.. if i were a butterfly, i'd want to be your pet and i would sit on your shoulder alllll day long"..
i perked up to smile at her in my rear view mirror..  just to see her go back to singing along to the radio, like no big deal..
it was a fleeting thought in her head.. she didn't think twice about  her comment.. but that comment happened to make my heart melt..
twice.

Sunday, February 26, 2012

a shy smile..


it was crazy dress day at school and i shot this photo on our way out in the morning..
coffee in hand.. frantically looking for my keys..
i am always barking and rushing to get us out of the house..
i ran back in the house real quick, grabbed my camera and yelled" smile.. real quick!!!"

i love her shy smile.. 
you can't really see her face but you know she is smiling and she looks so grown up..
she is such a good girl and i am so proud of her.. 
so. proud.
really.. my heart aches for how much i love these girls.

Friday, February 24, 2012

some happenings and favorites for your friday..

i took a little mini vacation this week from thee' ol' blog..
i got a great nights sleep last night and sprung up bright and early this morning..
nobody is up yet..
just me, you and a hot cup of joe..
i have not been online much this week..
i have been taking a break to get outside, go for a run.. i volunteered at the little ones school and i had a few great lunch/coffee dates with friends and although it was in the back of my mind that i needed to blog..
you always come back a bit refreshed after a small break..


 it is no secret i am obsessed with all things french.. wine, fashion, their culture, the language..
 not so much food.. {unless cheese and bread counts.. then yes. for sure.} 
i recently bought this book and am extremely intrigued..


 i spotted this photo of olivia at london fashion week.. as usual olivia is spot on..
man, she is fabulous..


speaking of pinterest.. this is a photo from my blog that has been trending over there.. it is my yearly mothers day breakfast in bed the girls and damian "surprise me" with every year.... i snapped a photo and posted it on the blog..  i recently came across it on pinterest.. 
it made me feel so special..

 this is a scanned photo i took in a cafe in paris in 2000..
this little lady stole my heart..
she was so fabulous..
i have this photo framed in my home..


i just ordered a ton of my iphone photos from postal pix.. have you heard of it? it's a free ap and it makes it SO easy to get your iphone pix printed! so amazing..
here is a photo of hermes in new york.. a family trip to palm springs.. a horse in julian..




 speaking of photos..
i did a 30 day photos challenge last year and it was so hard but looking back at the photos.. i am SO glad i did it..
this one was titled "laundry"..
my enemy..
if you do one.. please let me know so i can follow you..

happy friday my friends..



credit: olivia  
        book

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

emotion

i love when you can feel emotion through a photo. i feel like you know this family after you see their photos.. you can see the love for each other.. a mom's love makes my heart skip a beat..

IMG_wp9842


IMG_wmp9887

IMG_wmp9748


IMG_wmp9786

IMG_wmp9801



IMG_wp9866

IMG_wp9905


IMG_wp9768

Thursday, February 16, 2012

on cloud nine..

i am being featured over on engaged and inspired today..
one of my lovely brides has this amazing blog where she is sharing her journey of planning her special day...
this wedding is in november.. 
i will be flying to gorgeous sausalito..
at the most amazing venue..
 her. him. the details.
all. of. it..
man..
2012 is going to be a great year..
i have SO many talented, creative, beautiful couples who have given me the ABSOLUTE honor of being their wedding photographer..
i don't know what i did to deserve all this love but can i tell you..
i am on cloud nine..

 

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

screen shot

love this photo..
i googled how to take a screen shot and with all my windows opened and the google search bar in this photo, you can see my whole process..
i just started a "my work" pin board on pinterest..
so please join me over in the wonderful world of pin-land..
it oozes creativity and inspiration..
i wish i could make wallpaper of all my boards..
find me here..

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

happy valentine's day

i explain it to my girls as a day to do a little something special for the ones you love..
something small, thoughtful and sweet..
we put 2 dozen balloons in the girls room last night so this morning they woke up and knew it was a special day..
it poured rain last night and makena came down a bit scared so at 2am we started off with a fabulous valentines day cuddle..
we write sweet notes and say i love you a little more than usual today..
{although we do say it alot already..}
damian and i eat by candlelight every valentines day after the girls go to sleep..
always take-out..
 but always by candelight..
i love a simple and sweet february 14th..
how do you celebrate?
 

Friday, February 10, 2012

friday favorites

quinoa cookies..
the perfect breakfast..





pretty packaging...
this lipstick makes you want to keep pulling it out of your bag and re-applying just because it is so pretty..
{thanks maria for the inspiration}



this scarf how to...
i can't live without my scarves..

this amazing gold chevron tray makes my heart sing..


tearing out magazine photos as inspirations for my lovely brides..

 i am so in love with this hermes tray i can not tell you..
the color, shape, name, size... love!

happy friday my dear friends..



sources: etsy, ashleyrandom.org, 9gag.com, bonappetit, ysl.com

Thursday, February 09, 2012

another scanned photo..

i love my scanner.
recently purchased and it and is worth every dime..
this photo is from 2000..
before we were married on a trip to costa rica..
ahhh..sweet sweet love.

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

11 things i learned from camping..

ok. so this past weekend we.. as a family.. decided to go camping.. we recently bought a vintage pop up camper with dreams of road trips, beach days, smores, cards and the pounding of the surf..

well.
we had NO idea what we were in for...
none.
we decided to go for a trial run out front of our home. about 1 mile west is a campground on the cliffs of the ocean and it is gorgeous. sooo gorgeous. we are close to home and what could go wrong?
hardy har. har.
what could go wrong?
let.
me.
tell.
you.
so the day was good. we set up. the girls played in the camper and climbed a tree all day. we painted rocks, played cards and i took a nap on the beach..
it was gorgeous weather and we were so excited about our great set-up..
then came night fall..
it was cold within seconds of sunset..
we went to light a fire..
turns out
1.) you do not just throw logs in a tee-pee style and light it (wait. back up.. we forgot a lighter and had to borrow one from a neighbor) yes. i am serious..
moving on..
so lighter fluid, big logs and a bit of fire do not start a fire..
it MUST be the wood right?
well. lets light the new propane lamp that we bought so we can at least SEE this mess of a campfire..
we slid the cool green lantern out of its sparkly box and realized..
oh.
2.)you need loooong matches to light a propane lantern..
do you think we had those?
you guessed right.
we did not.
soo. we took wood skewers and lit those and the wind was not helping matters...
after awhile of that fiasco.. we actually got the lantern lit and moved on to the fire again...
damian ran to the store (good thing we were 1 mile from ralphs huh?)..
bought more wood and asked the rangers on the way back in.. with our sweet, (i know i sound so dumb but i really need to give my girls smores and it is freezing" desperation of a voice).. any tips on starting a fire?"
we got some tips about
3.) kindling (not the kindle you read from)..
and
4.) breaking wood into smaller pieces and FINALLY.. we got a fire..
yay! we are happy...
oh ya.
5.) do not touch the top of a propane lantern because you will get blisters IMMEDIATELY..
(poor damian)
 ..
one of my favorite moments was that night, on my birthday.. both my girls fell asleep in my arms..
it was divine.
first chloe.
then we transferred her to the tent then snuggled makena and she too fell asleep by the fire.. in my arms. 
it has been years since the girls have done that and it was the best gift ever.
so once makena was asleep we thought we'd transfer her and took the to the tent..
well.
did you know that..
6.) 400 pounds on one side of a tent camper would umm... MAKE IT TILT!
7.) those silver triangle stilts that were in the cabinet of the camper... um. those are for stabilizing the camper so it doesn't tilt...
yes.. we see-saw'd..
popped a wheelie.. reared like a horse into the sky..
you get the visual right?
whatever you want to call it...

and thankfully between my screeeeaches and makenas shreeeeeks.. damian ran to the other side and brought us back down to the ground..
o.m.g.
so, we evvvvveeeentually made it to bed.. slept decent and then came sunrise..
it was beautiful.
we brushed our teeth and hair.. afterall it was a NEW day..
we sat in our beach chairs and were so excited to get our bacon and eggs..
we went to hook up the propane tank to the camp stove and i had my french press all ready to go..
you see. the ONE thing i NEED is my coffee. i was dreaming of waking up.. having a delicious cup of joe on the cliffs over looking the ocean while my gorgeous husband cooked and our beautiful children sang, danced, and rode unicorns on rainbows.. {that last one might as well been}
because.
well.
the propane tank hose or valves or something were nott right and we couldn't hook it up
{sigh}
so.
8.) starbucks really are everywhere
hubby climbed tn the car made a starbucks run including breakfast sandwiches..
this was not camping my friends..
{side note: a friend of ours stopped by later that morning and hooked up this "crazy valve hose to the propane tank and we had fire in 2 seconds}
really damian?? really?!!
moving on...

we went on to have a great day..
a wonderful day.
then came nightfall again..
we got that pretty green lantern lit, the fire going and the the camper was stable as can be..
9.) you learn a lot by experience..
i was ready to throw in the towel especially when we got home and i had 8 loads of laundry including comforters to wash..
10.) everything smells like campfire after you go camping
but hubby reminded me (blistered fingers and all) that
11.)everything takes practice..
and look how much we learned just this weekend..
so.
we are not throwing in the towel..
we are having a couple more go arounds and i hope they will be successful..
afterall...
i have 6 nights in tahoe booked for august..
that gives us 6 months to get it down..
6 nights..
oy.

here are some photos of our first camping trip...





IMG_p0076

{our first photo taken of our first camping trip}

IMG_wp0135

{there is nothing like the ocean..nothing}

IMG_wp0170

{caprese is amazing}

IMG_wp0139

{front row seats}

IMG_0169

{you can see alllll down the coast}


IMG_0167

{those little silver triangles}

IMG_wp0155

{serious game of cards for hubby..}

IMG_wp0095
{million dollar view}


IMG_wp0173
{nutella face}


IMG_wp0190'
{we have fire!!}

IMG_wp0099.
 {until next time..}
ps. see where those triangles are? duh! no wonder we tipped! 
we are so dumb!

Friday, February 03, 2012

happy birthday to me.

today is my birthday..
yesterday my grandma told me she is so proud of me that if she "had buttons, they would pop.."
and a great friend of mine told me i am the "bee's knee's.."
I had a great girls lunch with my mom and little sis...
that is a pretty great day!
..
i feel great about my life, where i am, what i have done, and my plans on where i am going..
i feel very loved.
the older i get the more i am ok with imperfections, in myself and others..  embracing the crazy moments.. and being comfortable in my own skin {wrinkles and all.. ahh-hemm}.. 
it really feels great.
life is pretty darn fabulous and i am one blessed chica..
happy birthday to me.
..
  i am camping at the beach with the family this weekend.
i am so excited.
stay tuned for a few photos.
{of course}
:)


Thursday, February 02, 2012

winner winner..

the winner of the perfect hair ties are.....
monique, angela and lara...
email me your address at sequinsandcandy@gmail.com
and i will get these beauties to you asap.