Joy of Love - {18}

I am hopelessly behind on the Joy of Love Challenge. Well, not hopelessly exactly, because I do intend to catch up. And in fact, I am posting Day 18 today even though I have not yet posted Days 9-17.

But it's my birthday and therefore my prerogative. It's also my husband's birthday. Growing up, I always loved sharing my birthday with him because he was a cool older kid, and here was little ol' me celebrating on the same day. Of course now it's extra special sharing a birthday with my favorite person in the world.

This year we celebrated a couple of days early. We finally found a wonderful babysitter up here in our new digs, and she came over Sunday night. When we go out, we almost always do a fancy dinner, often trying something new.

The experience this year was new to me: a tapas restaurant. Mark has been to Barcelona several times on various trips he made in the past up here to Connecticut. It is fun now to share in this part of his life that I, for years, heard about but didn't live.

Unfortunately, the lighting was bad and all I had was my iPhone, but the kind gentleman at the table next to ours snapped a photo anyway. I added a little extra noise in an attempt to make it appear like I meant for it to be that out of focus, etc., etc. It's a capture of the memory anyway.

{Day 18}
going out


To join in the fun, visit Willette Photography.

Joy of Love - {8}

{Day 8}
gift of love

My husband gave me this beautiful necklace on December 3, 2008, for our 13th engagiversary. I know of a lot of men who forget their anniversaries. My sweet husband always remembers our wedding date as well as the day we promised to begin our forever journey together.

Mark proposed to me on a mountaintop in North Georgia. It was the Christmas season, so he presented to me a beautifully wrapped gift. When I opened the box, I found a fun gift, plus another wrapped present. Inside that present was another gift and another wrapped present. There were a couple more "layers" to unwrap before the final one which was a small gift, the size of a ring box. And that is when he got down (precariously - we were sitting kind of on the side of the mountain!) and asked me to be his wife.

And the rest, as they say, is history. A wonderful history of almost 16 years. He's an awesome father, a great cook!, my best friend, my soulmate, the love of my life. He treats me like a queen and is so much fun to be with. I'm so lucky God gave him to me!



To join in the fun, visit Willette Photography.

Joy of Love - {3}, {4}, {5}, {6}, {7}

{Day 3}
then & now

Our sweet lil' Audrey. She was quite a surprise, and we can't imagine even a single moment without her in our lives. She is sweet and bubbly, imaginative and funny.

{Day 4}
what they wear

We gave the boys these matching robes two Christmases ago, and I'm glad they still fit. They are so cute in them on these chilly mornings. And, really, you never know who might show up...some mornings it may even be Darth Vader.

{Day 5}
things you love to hate

Oh, my children can be such absolute slobs!! And we do get them to clean their rooms on a regular basis, but even just minutes after they are cleaned, they are...not. I try to remind myself constantly that I was a total slob when I was their age.

{Day 6}
who they love

Spoiled rotten, she is...this cat. Alex is especially fond of her, and Cara reciprocates that fondness. She follows Alex around like a puppy dog.

{Day 7}
generations

How I wish we could get a live Generations shot with the kids' grandparents, but since we can't right at this moment, pictures have to suffice.

To join in the fun, visit Willette Photography.

Joy of Love - {1} {2}

I'm excited to be joining Willette Photography on their February journey called Joy of Love. This is a free class, and it is not too late to join.

Each day of February, we are to photograph our loved ones. It can be the same person throughout the month or different people each day. Even pets can be in the spotlight. Every day, Willette Photography gives us an assignment and then offers several options for sharing our snapshots with others.

Definitely, my photography strengths do not lie in capturing people well, so I hope this month will really help me become better at shooting portraits.

Here are my Day 1 and Day 2 shots:

{Day 1}
what they do

One thing I love about homeschooling is that there is no morning rush. There are no lunches to be packed, no rushing around looking for something to wear...In fact, though I do have my children get dressed for the day, we do have occasions where we might school in our pajamas. This day was one of those days: it was snowing outside, and PJs just seemed the appropriate attire for school. It seemed the least I could do since the public school system enjoyed a snow day and we did not.

My two boys here are not only doing school in their PJs, but they are also enjoying another perk of homeschooling: They do not have to sit at a desk all day long. I do make them do some things at a table if glue is involved, or if the assignment demands extra careful attention, but often you'll find them on the couch, on the floor...or in a tent. They built this tent about a week ago and have enjoyed sleeping in it, playing in it...and completing their assignments in it.

{Day 2}
how they look

This is my beautiful Alex. Of course, I am a biased parent. But she really is beautiful, isn't she? She is almost as tall as me and still has a good 4-5 years of growing left. Her feet are bigger than mine. So much for sharing shoes (though she does still steal my socks!). She is smart, compassionate, fun, silly, sweet.

She loves this hat. It has been a winter staple.

To join in the fun, visit Willette Photography.