We ran into...

After being stuck in the house for 4 days and needing a little sunshine and happiness in our day, I took the girls out for a little photo shoot and we ran into these folks :) ha...not really, we planned it. I told them they needed their pictures taken and to meet me, and they did :)
Meet my parents...otherwise known as Mimi & G-Pa.

I think they did AWESOME!! These are just a sample of the pictures I got of them today...do you know how long its been since they've had pictures taken together?? Me neither! That's a long time.

I love you Mom & Dad, thanks for being the BEST and for Sunday night dinners! :) hehe!

Next up...some really cute girls, and they aren't mine ;-)

Little Wee One

Since I am layed up in bed with bronchitis, I thought I would show you the pictures I was able to take of Little wee one. I pick LWO up early on Wednesdays from school, and with that little extra time we had this week, I decided to take her to do some test shots. I have 3 photo shoots for this week that I had to cancel due to my sickness. The best part of it all is that my flu test came back negative! Phewwwww!! I didn't want to have to buy that tamiflu...expensive stuff!

So here is my little model...if you read this blog you know how hard it is to get her to smile, she did pretty good :) Some serious shots and some smiley ones! I kind of wish she was in a cuter outfit, but she picked out her "soccer" shirt (which I'm sure all of my family is so proud right now!) and it definitely is "her" :)

*when resizing for web, some of the pictures may have become a little blurry...not to worry, they are not in real life :)

Happy Belated Birthday

To my sweet little 3 year old.

At 3 you are hysterical!! Some of my favorite things that you do at 3 years and almost 2 months:

• You chose your own Halloween costume, because it was so soft. You have worn it every day since the big day you picked it out with Mimi.
• You run your hands (wildly) through your hair and ask me, "Am I gorgeous Mommy? Am I?"
• You go from playing babies to playing lions and blocks in seconds.
• You like to "sneak" medicine (vitamin C drops)
• You love to pick out your own movie, clothes, spoons, shoes...heck EVERYTHING!
• You call your sister by an even shorter version of her shortened name...lol! and you sound so cool and "old" when you do it.
• You reason with me: "Just one more (holding up a tiny little one). Please Mommy, just one more?" "Five minutes. I'll be ready for bed in 5 more minutes."
• When you count in the 30s, 40s or 50s....sounds so cute!
• Your dancing skills (ha! you take after your daddy, sorry sweety...lol), and singing, "I like to move it. I like to move it!"
• Your love for tomatoes! Any kind, any time of day.

You fill all of our lives with so much happiness. Your sister loves you, and we love you too. Thank you for the hugs and kisses and the funny little moments you give each of us everyday. Happy Belated 3rd Birthday bug!! XOXO

A Perfect Morning.

Homemade Apple Cider Donuts and Vanilla Coffee. Delicious. Warm and Cozy on this yucky rainy day.
Recipe is here or below for you to make delicious donuts as well :)

Ingredients
2 red apples, such as Cortland or McIntosh
2 1/2 cups apple cider
3 1/2 cups all-pourpose flour, plus more for dusting
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons vegetable shortening
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
Vegetable oil, for frying

Directions
Core and coarsely chop the apples (do not peel). Combine with 1 1/2 cups cider in a medium saucepan over medium heat; cover and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Uncover and continue cooking until the apples are tender and the cider is almost completely reduced, about 5 minutes. Puree with an immersion blender or in a food processor until smooth. Measure the sauce; you should have 1 cup. (Boil to reduce further, if necessary.) Let cool slightly.
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon, salt and nutmeg in a medium bowl.
Beat 2/3 cup granulated sugar and the shortening in another bowl with a mixer on medium speed until sandy. Beat in the egg and yolk, then gradually mix in the applesauce, scraping the bowl. Beat in half of the flour mixture, then the buttermilk and vanilla, and then the remaining flour mixture. Mix to make a sticky dough; do not overmix.
Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper and pat into a 7-by-11-inch rectangle, about 1/2 inch thick. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Meanwhile, make the glaze: Simmer the remaining 1 cup cider in a small saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 1/4 cup. Whisk in the confectioners' sugar until smooth and glossy, then set aside. Mix the remaining 1 cup granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon in a shallow bowl; set aside for the topping.
Heat 2 inches of vegetable oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with paper towels. Cut the chilled dough into 12 rounds, using a floured 2 1/2- or 3-inch biscuit cutter, then cut out the middles with a 1-inch cutter (or use a doughnut cutter). Slip 2 or 3 doughnuts at a time into the hot oil and fry until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes per side, adjusting the heat as needed. Transfer to the paper towels to drain.
Dip one side of each doughnut in the cider glaze, letting the excess drip off; dip just the glazed side in the cinnamon-sugar or roll all over in cinnamon-sugar, if desired. Serve warm

Sad, sad day...

It has appeared that my digital layout folder has been accidentally deleted from my external hard drive...what does this mean Tina??

It means that about 500 (give or take) layouts are gone. I am trying my hardest to recover them...searching online for options, so wish me luck! I really do not want to have to redo 500 LOs :(

Sad, sad day....

With that being said, I am digi scrapping with some friends and I was able to complete some cute LOs :)

Brandy @ Polka Dot Plum created this kit with Marni Designs called Defining Moments and it is so adorable! I can't wait to tackle more LOs with this it.

I was able to catch Big wee one looking through her first birthday album, and thought it was so sweet. I used Brandy's kit to create a LO to document why I scrap :)

Brandy also came out with the most adorable dance kit called Twinkle Toes. If you have a little ballerina, then you must snag this kit!

Go check out these kits if you are in the mood for something new and while you are at it, check out Sunflower Designs...I used this kit:

to create my new blog header!

On another note, my photography is taking off a bit. :) Which makes me very happy!! Check out this handsome stud...so sweet!

If anyone knows anyway I can retrieve my deleted files...I'd love you forever~!

Fall is here...

and so is my new camera! Loving life...and taking pictures.

New Releases

Mornin' scrappy friends, and my other peeps :) Can you believe I've posted again for (I think) the 3rd day in a row?? I'm pretty amazed as well...maybe I'll actually post about my life and wee ones soon...hehe :)

I wanted to give you a heads up about a couple of new releases at The Digi Chick.

Just this week I joined Roben-Marie Designs as a CT (creative team) member, which I am very excited about. Her kits are beautiful! Stunning! Love them! If you like artistic creations, you will love her!

Roben-Marie and Dawn Inskip have created a collaboration kit called Art Nouveau and it's available at The Digi Chick today and it is on sale!! Lucky you :)

Isn't this kit so sweet? It's awesome for everyday moments!

I created this LO of Big wee one and fell in love with the all of the elements...can you tell? LOL!

Not to leave my girl Jana out...she has a new release at The Digi Chick as well (image is linked)

Due to some unfortunate corrupted files on my external hard-drive and working a little extra hard on some other projects this week, I was unable to complete a LO with this kit (but I will...don't you worry!). When I do get the external HD straightened out, I'll post some of my other LOs as well :)

Have a fabulous day and go snag these awesome kits!