Me and Lil' C

We had the pleasure of photographing this lil' one recently. What a sweetie...check out more from the shoot, here!

DIY: Before-n-After Glass Candle Holders

Inspired some time ago by a post over at Design Sponge and itching to create somethin' a lil' different, I raided the local mission stores to recycle some glass. They were a blast to make and completely different. (They're each made of two or three pieces...my fave three are pictured here). I think the beans give it a cool look and have the added bonus of keeping the tea lights in place!

Happy Harvest!

Foto Frenzy

Some shots from the latest photo studio experiment: children! A few things learned about mobile children vs. cats contained on a tabletop like, outside you can chase 'em--inside...not so easy. But that's why we do these things, to play and to learn. I promise this won't turn into a bunch of cat/kid photo-only posts, but these are just too fun not to share. In the last pic, a congratulatory wrestle began with a giggly exclamation from the little one: "don't mess up my hair!"

Click here for more of Lil' P and Lil' J. Thanks ladies, it was lots o' fun!

Friday Night (Strobe) Lights

While neighborhood folks enjoyed local football games, we were in my art room experimenting with our new portable photo studio (backdrop, lights, meter, etc). Since we don't have the space for a permanent set up, this seemed the most logical for us now...and it forces me to clean out the store-room (aways a good thing!). I know enough about the details of this equipment to make me dangerous and that keeps me in play mode, which I prefer. We corralled the kids for the first "session" Friday night, and here's a few of the results. I'm so excited about them! These are the raw photos, no touch-ups or cropping. I love that I can finally get a pic that really captures Luna's beautiful blue eyes.

Vacation Wrap Up

We are back from sunny Mexico! We spent 7 nights at an all-inclusive, adults-only, resort on the Riviera Maya to celebrate our 10th. Very relaxing, great food, beautiful resort (with an amazing staff), and of course, visually inspiring! It was just what we needed to get away from our responsibilities at work and at home, if only for a little while.

Enjoy some random pics and a "top 10-ish" list (in no particular order).

1. A new love for limes

2. Being in the ocean and snorkeling for the first time

3. Renewing our vows October 8th, on the beach at sunrise

4. A $248 peso bottle of sunscreen (translation: $21 usd, yike!)

5. Releasing baby sea turtles with local biologists Gaby and Jesus, under the moonlight

6. The clarity and range of blue tones in the Mexican Caribbean Sea

7. Watching hubby try to master chopsticks

8. Truly relaxing

9. The color of the flora and fauna in the tropics

10. Mayan Coffee. It's flambe'd!

11. No glasses and no sneezing for a whole week

12. Watching the most beautiful cloud formations I've ever seen

13. Scoring the resort's soundtrack from Roberto

14. An appreciation for beauty of the Spanish language

DIY: Before-n-After Table Top

Our first before-n-after! Really, just an after, but that's okay! Just close your eyes and imagine what it would have looked like before it's makeover. Thanks to Kelly for bringing this to the blog!

"My mom’s neighbor, Kathy, found this table at a garage sale, added trim around the top (my dad cut the wood for her), painted it white, got some glass and broke it into pieces and laid it in the grout….I thought it turned out pretty cool. The picture is not the best angle to see it..but you get the idea…she had this picture of it…it was pretty cool to see in their house. I thought of your blog and had to share!"