Halloween Time!

Breakfast morning I made a yummy spooky breakfast for her!  She loved it!  I actually just used crepe mix and did chocolate chips for eyes and sprinkled a little confectioners sugar on top.

Cortney loved it!

Costume time!!!!  She wanted to be Ariel, and can I just say for the record there are not really any good mermaid costumes for little girls out there, even the one made by Disney.  So I ended up making one.  It was kind of scary, I had never really made anything like it before and I wanted to make sure it was perfect for her, and I love the way it all came out.  And I also love the wig!

 I liked this one, except her eyes are closed, but I still liked the smile...so I kept it!

 I made matching bracelet an necklace out of little pearls, and I made a couple stars out of felt...one for the headband, which I also made.  One for her shirt.  And one for her bucket!

 I did the tutu in 2 different colors of tule, and the sewed ruffles onto the shirt!

It was so puffy!  I loved when she laid down to look at a book, so I snapped a couple pictures of how much it sticks up!

When I took pictures of her she got excited and wanted to take pictures of Honey Bear, who had a cute costume too.  So here she is with her camera!

 Let me say it one more time, I love the wig!  I found it for only $17 online and it had free shipping! I also think little girls look so cute with really long hair, and I loved how the curls bounced as she walked around!

Here are some pictures of Cortney holding Honey Bear(who is Sebastian the crab on little mermaid)

 I crocheted the costume myself, I made eyes for where the ears go into the costume!

Here are a couple shots of just Honey so you can see it better!

 I even did little legs!

It was a fun little project!  Here is her elmo bucket she had that I transformed into one that matched her costume.  It needed a ton of tule to cover up all that red!

Here is the first trick or treating house!  She was so excited, we went to Norman and Jans house, they are one of our nieghbors!

 I love this picture, and the way her skirt was flowing as she ran!

Here she is enjoying her first piece of candy after trunk or treating at the church!  She chose a kit kat bar!

She got way too much candy (it is almost Christmas now and she is still finishing it off!)  It was a fun Halloween, and it wasn't even too chilly either!

Pre-Halloween Time!

Pre - Halloween! Lots and lots of fun!  This was the first year I made Cortneys costume, and it took a ton of time and work, but I just love the results!  For the Monday before Halloween Cortney got to wear her costume to class!  Audrey was there too of course, and they were both adorable!  Just wait until you see of picture of Cortney in her wig too!

Corntey was Ariel and Audrey was Sleeping Beauty...the whole class was actually Disney!  So cute!

The teacher was wearing an Asian theme shirt and decided she would be Mulan so she would fit in :)
Sorry the pictures are a little off, it is hard to take pictures of moving little girls with a big glass window in the way!

Her tutu was very poofy and long, she loved it! 

Cortney is doing good in ballet!  As soon as the teacher figured out to separate Audrey and Cortney they were much better listeners!

Audrey did her whole routine holding on to her dress like this

She always makes the best faces when she is dancing!!!

They also do a dance every class where they pretend to be Ariel, and Cortney loved it because she was all dressed up like her!  Audrey and Cortney now call each other Ariel and Sleeping Beauty.  And if they ever see one of those princesses they say look it is me!  Or look it is Audrey or Cortney!  Love!

Pumpkin Carving next!

We enjoyed our annual tradition of carving a pumpkin, and it was the first year that Cortney got to pick what her pumpkin looked like...she didn't get to carve it, she just picked the shapes!

Here is me carving mine!  I am a traditional kind of girl so I love the toothy grins and triangle eyes!

Here we are in our matching Aprons!  The top pattern on mine is the bottom part on hers and her top is my bottom!  Super cute, they were a present from Grandma Carol last Christmas!  We use them all the time!

 Cortneys job was to get the seeds...as you can tell she was super excited about it!

 Mama's pumpkin!

 Cortneys pumpkin!  Not only did she pick hard shapes but her pumpkin was super hard to cut, it keep coming off in chuncks instead of just where you cut it, like most pumpkins.

 Daddies pumpkin, and our pumpkin family!

 My cute girl and her pumpkin!

 Here is Cort making the same face her pumpkin is!

Next post is Halloween Day!  Check it out to see her costume all together!

Blog Catch Up Time!

Ok, ok, ok!  Time to play catch up on the blog again!  The last couple months have been crazy busy – which is a good thing in a way too.  I have had many photography sessions, which has been amazing and I have learned so much, but that also means I have like zero time to do much of anything.  I try not to open the laptop while Cortney is with me, sometimes I will open facebook or something on the ipod while she is around but I try not to do too much work, and focus on spending time with my mini me – who by the way is growing  up way too fast!  So when she is at preschool or asleep I am editing pictures, and sometimes I stop and take a break to do something like clean the toilet or do the dishes.  Then it is right back to pictures.  Things have been slowing down a bit…I am very glad they are and I have had a little time to relax.  I want to get all caught up before the new year though.  So the next couple posts will be me doing that!

Christmas Magic!

I know it has been a while since I have blogged... I actually have all the pictures uploaded and ready to be put in but it has been a busy season for me!  I would be remiss if I didn't write down some Christmas Magic in our lives that happened today!

First let me set the stage.  This morning our beloved car we have had since we got married finally decided to bite the dust.  Next week after Christmas we need to try and find another clunker Chris can drive to and from work with.  So Cortney and I had to drive Chris to work this morning unexpectedly.  By the time we got in our front door we had exactly 12 minutes to get Cortney and I dressed, fix Cortneys hair, find what she wanted to bring to show and tell, and individually package 20 snacks for her class and be back out the door.  (When it is their turn to bring snack they get to bring show and tell).  Some how we pulled it off and we were able to get her to class just in time!  But there is a lot of stress that has come from having to look for and buy a car, and having such a crazy morning.

I have also been somewhat stressed lately with my photography business.   Although I have had many happy clients, who were more than satisfied and let me know, I have had one customer who was unreasonable and gave me a pretty hard time.  I have been doubting my ability as a photographer because of that and wondering if it is even worth it to keep my business open if I am going to have people treat me in that way.  By nature I avoid conflict and always try to go out of my way to treat people (especially my clients) well so there is no reason for conflict.  Even though the pictures came out amazing (in my opinion) and I gave them more than they paid for nothing was really good enough for them and they decided to tell me that multiple times.  Let's just say I have been feeling a little down.

Then on top of that with the whole school shooting I just look at the world we live in and am saddened by what it is.  I have felt little hope and trust in people in general, and knowing that things have to get worse before the second coming it scares me to think of what is yet to come.

This afternoon Cortney and I had to run out to the store.  We needed to pick up a few things for an older lady in our ward.  We wanted to help cheer up someone during this season so we made her some chocolate crinkles, and went to the store to buy a nice plate, a card, and a poinsettia to brighten her day! 

As we were in the parking lot walking back to our car an older man stopped us and started talking to Cortney (this happens a lot because she is so cute)!  He asked her how old she was which she answered 3!  He smiled and said I have a grand daughter who is going to be 3 in January.  Then he handed Cortney a red envelope and said "here this is for you!"  We said thank you, and he walked quickly into the store and we quickly walked to our car because it was so windy today.   I buckled her in and then started driving to pick up Chris from work.  Corteny opened the card and then said "Money!"  I was thinking what?  The next red light I asked Cortney to hand it to me.  I opened it up and saw a $50 bill (wow!)and quickly read the note he had written inside.  It was a short note basically saying at some point in our lives he hopes we are able to pay it forward to someone else during a holiday season like he just did for us!

Heavenly Father must have known I needed a pick me up!  I can't even explain the change in my heart, and the renewed love and hope I have in people, and in the world.  We do live in a place where people care, and are willing to show kindness even to a stranger in a parking lot.  That kind old man will never know how much his simple kind act means to me!  And although I can never thank him personally, I can (and will) pay it forward to others in the future!   Because I want others to feel the same way I do now!  I have always looked forward to the Christmas season, because there is just a special magic in the air.  Today I was recipient of my own Christmas Magic, and I want to remember forever what it feels like, and spread it to others in the future!  Giving strangers a red envelope with some Christmas Magic inside in a parking lot will have to become a Christmas Tradition in our home!

Stay tuned for more posts soon!  Lots of Halloween and Thanksgiving pictures heading this way!

Fancy Juice Party!

After finding a book at the library about tea parties Cortney was in love with the idea, and since we don't drink tea, we decided to have a Juice Party instead!

The first thing we did was make invitations!  I told Cortney she could invite one person, and of course the person she invites is Audrey!  They have become great friends since we moved here, we are so lucky to have a girl so close to her age that she can play with!  Audrey turned 4 in August, and Cortney will turn 4 in January, pretty close!

Warning: there are a TON of pictures, I just couldn't help it!

So here is a picture of the fancy invitations:

 We used glue and glitter to make it super fancy, and Cortney drew a couple things, she told me that the picture by the teacup is a picture of Audrey and Cortney (I don't see it?) there is also a yellow heart down by the bottom and she also had to draw a line of blue - because that is the best color ever!

 We used some glue and glitter after we finished the inside to make a seal on the back!

 Picture of the font!

All morning we have been getting ready for her party!  First we picked some flowers outside - pickings are a little slim for flowers we could find close to our home, but we did find a few:

We set up her little table in the kitchen - usually it is up in her room.   She also got to pick out a table cloth to use and she chose one we used at our wedding.

 Here is another view:

 Here is a picture of the place setting - I tried to do the best I could, I even looked online to see the proper way to set a table!  I think it turned out nice!

Then Cortney got all dressed up!  Honey & Moose were also invited to the party (favorite stuffed animals!)  So Cortney made sure honey was all dressed up in her little dress too!

 She also put on her "fancy dancing shoes" as she calls them!

 Cortney also informed me that having 7 things in your hair is very fancy...so that is exactly what we did!

 She decided the fanciest thing she had to wear is her Ranpunzel dress - which I am so glad I bought too big when we went to disney land - still fits pretty good!

 Cortney told me that this (below) is how a princess smiles!  Can I just say that I LOVE little girls!  They are so cute and sweet!  I am a little biased that mine is the cutest and sweetest too!

Audrey showed up and we had a "eight course" lunch!  I almost had as much fun putting it all together as they did eating it!

Their first course was some banana bread that I made yesterday!

Pinkies out!

 Here is a picture of them eating the bread, they used their knives and forks to cut and eat the bread!  Such grown up ladies!

 The next "course" carrots - I cut little tiny ones - I stuck my thumb in the picture so you could see how little they were - and remember I have really small hands!  The girls were good and ate all their carrots!

 The third "course" was strawberry rolls - which was bread that I flattened out between parchment paper with a rolling pin, then I put strawberry jam on top and rolled it all up.  I cut each piece of bread into 4 pieces and this is how they turned out:

 Super cute!

The girls talked about all kinds of things during their meal - and both acted very grown up!  Absolutely adorable!  They used these cute grown up voices and talked about friends. clothes, jewelry, movies they had seen recently and more!  Once in a while they would say something that showed their age.  They would say things like "did you ever see a curtain go down a toilet?!  Followed by tons of giggles.  Not sure where that comes from but it sure was cute!  Some of the pictures are dark - there are no windows in the kitchen so the lighting was not ideal.

The next course was animal crackers:

 Here is an Audrey shot of "pinkies up"!

 And another one of Cortney - cutest girls ever?!  I think yes!

Here are a couple more pictures, just imagine them talking their big girl talk:

On to the next course:  I put a couple things in things with lids - to make it more dramatic when I showed what they were going to eat next.

 This one was strawberries and whipped cream!

 Notice they have their napkins on their laps!

 Audrey showing me her animal cracker!

 Love this one of Cortney!

 This is the next course - "tea sandwhiches"  but really they are just peanut butter and honey sandwhiches - with little toothpicks in them!

But right away the toothpicks were a distraction and the girls had to clean their teeth:

 I know her eyes are closed - but still cute little shot!

Here are some of Audrey talking, she was very animated when she was talking -  I just love how grown up they acted!

 For some reason she kept blinking when I took pictures - but she still looked lovely!  In this one she was showing us her "fabulous" heart bracelet!

 This one is so cute!

Here is the next course - (If you are counting it is the sixth one!)

 A lovely fish, baked with cheddar and a light dusting of salt ;)  hows that for fancy?

 I even made some little ice they could have in their water cups - even though mostly they drank juice.

Audrey enjoying the fishes!

 Time for dessert!  The last course and the most yummy!  Not only that but there was another surprise on top of that for them!

They were excited to see what was inside!

 Sprinkles!

They loved it! I mean come on - what is better than an ice cream sandwich heart with sprinkles?

After they finished eating the last of the sandwiches they had about 3 cups of juice each - they loved pouring it!

Then they sat down and read the book that started it all together :)

 They sat down in Cort's thinking chair together - Cortney and I had read it so many times she was able to tell Audrey what each page was about:

 When Audrey's mom came back to pick her up Paige - Audrey's little sister got in on the Juice Party and was even doing pinkies up!  (Plus just look at those big brown eyes!)

 How cute is that?!

All in all it was a success!  We will have to do it again sometime!