at least its good for something

Yep. even though we got super excited about our Dora potty a few months ago.. and we have actually sat on it about 15 times with out screaming!!.... a certain exactly 2 1/2 year old cutie head still has no interest in actually doing her business in the potty.
take that back.. she has interest in "pretending" she can go potty.. like last week at MOPS , when I picked her up and the lady said she was so cute, and when the took the kids in underwear across the hall to the bathroom.. Tatum said.. "ta ta wants to go potty!".. I laughed and said, "well , she doesn't really know what that means.. lol".. the lady said "oh, well she sat there like a big girl " and that is my Tatum.... such a charmer....=)

and so , so silly. this girl is such a hoot and just keeps me laughing all day long! I asked her if she wanted to go sit on Dora potty and she went to the bathroom and came back like this.

This girl has quite the little imagination too... she has really engaged in interactive play since Brigham has been in school all day. Instead of doing what he does, or just reacting to the torments of big brother.. she is creating little towns. and setting up little families. sometimes it is with pumpkins, from our fireplace fall display... (she has little conversations with them.. daddy and Beckham are mentioned quite often.. lol) or playing with the farm set.. or this one.

she has really been obsessed with this little people's bus. not only do the boy and the girl in a wheel chair go to school.. but the giraffe and Ho Ho (Noah from the noah's ark set) , along with Diego and the spider monkey travel as well.

I love to hear her stories. It makes me smile when I am sitting across the room, and she doesn't know that I am watching her.

and speaking of creating... I have NOT been scrap booking.. in fact my friend Heather and I were venting to each other the other day, because our passion for scrap booking has been pushed back these last few months due to crazy busy AWESOME photography gigs we both have been having.

I *think* I am going to have a scrap night tomorrow night. Grandma wants to take the older kids for the night, and Andrew will probably find something to do.. so maybe next week I'll have some pages to share. It has been SO long.. you all probably forgot that I was a die hard scrapper before photography.. lol

however, due to my little man's fascination with consuming way to much milk waaaay too fast, and then smiling all the while he pukes down my arm, my back, the floor, etc. I made some boyish burp cloths. totally wanted to monogram them, but I have no idea how, and the store I was going to take them to went out of business. so I am just dealing with these.

and speaking of my little guy... who is FOUR months old now.. (how did that happen?)

He had is dr. appt on Monday and I didn't even get to be there =( I totally didn't realize that I had leader training for MOPS that morning and I couldn't get him another appt for a while, so since Andrew had Monday's off.. he took him. Of course I prepped him on what to ask.. which was really nothing.. but I did warn him that little man was going to get two more shots.. and my husband being the wuss that he is... could he handle that?

I actually think Andrew did worse..lol. the feed back was that Beckham didn't even flinch for the first one, and cried for like 30 seconds on the next one.

and the stats are in......

Weight: 16lbs 9 oz

Height: 27 inches

So he is slimming down a bit.. thank goodness.. I was so afraid he would by pass all the cute clothes I have in 3-6 and 6 month sizes left from Brigham. He actually does fit into some 6 mos stuff already.. but he is starting to bust out the toes of things.. thus the time is coming for him to graduate from the bassinet =(

and so we are going to Indianapolis on Saturday to scope out and hopefully buy bunk beds, so that next weekend we can transform Brigham's room into the "boys" room.

and so I'll leave you with a pic I took a little while ago... he was actually 3 1/5 months in this pic:

and he is wearing the same outfit that Brigham wore in his 3 month photos.

and so in this one I went with a vintage look because I was curious if it would look similar

to this one:

took a picture of this framed one we have displayed.........

think they look similar?

whatz going on....

(and now I have that 4 non blondes song in my head)

we have had so much going on lately, I sometimes wonder if I'll make it to Christmas!! lots of family/friends outings and my photography has been slamming me (and keeping me captive to my computer.. lol !!) But I totally LOVE it.. LOVE meeting new people and playing with new kiddos and itty bitty baby toes... YEP.. I definitely LOVE what I do. I am so thankful for those of you who have asked me to take your family's photos and those of you who have referred me! I am starting some work on some new business related things... hoping to have it done by the end of the year.. (maybe.)

not sure if anyone read my previous post.. BUT it was Andrew's birthday.. and I we got to go out for a fabulous dinner celebration here.

It was so incredible... we usually have get our sushi fix from Bea One , but had heard this place offered an all you can eat sushi special.. the menu was totally overwhelming, and after my first order, (which I could not even finish).. I realized where they make their money!! LOL
Grandma had all 3 kids , so we enjoyed a nice lei surly dinner with some nice wine!! then a trip to Starbucks for some lovely conversation.

His actual birthday was Monday , which he has off from work, so we just sorta hung out. He fixed breakfast for us after he took Brig to the bus stop. YES. HE cooked on his bday. He LOVEs to cook. especially breakfast. So he spoiled us with a yummy way to start off the morning.
Around 1 pm we headed to MOE'S for Moe's Monday, where they have specials on their burritos. Tatum loves the 'cheese crisps' and chips and green salsa..(the spicy kind , of course) and the cookie.
We had some other running around to do, before Brigham got home from school.. and then I made a pork chop dinner.
We went to the grocery store to pick up snacks for Brigham since he was TOP DOG on Tuesday, and ended up doing a full blown shopping trip!
Got home around 9pm and we still hadn't had the cake I had made. Actually it wasn't even frosted yet.
Brigham got in his jammies, and created a masterpiece complete with half a jar of blue sprinkles (b/c blue is daddy's favorite color, don't ya know?)
The cake was super yummy, and we (I ) have been eating on it all week..
* I LOVE BIRTHDAYS FOR THAT REASON*

and today is career day in kindergarten.. remember Brig's career goals were an artist, or a janitor.
we went with artist, (since a mop or broom could have become a weapon in his class)

NO! I am not trying to sway my son one way or another!! He can do what every he sets his heart on. I will support him no matter what. (and if he is a janitor, or said artist) we WILL be supporting him for many , many years! LOL
but doesn't he look so dang cute?

I went with the 'french' artiste... but has I was tying a little lime green neckerchief on my son, I was hoping that this day of dress up was not going to scar him for life... hoping children don't 'label' him ... lol !
maybe the faux stache would declare his manhood, even if it was carefully manicured!

and look who has a new chair!! borrowed this from Tatum's little boy friend Finn , who is now a big boy and no longer needs it.

Beckham LOVES IT!!! (for about 3 minutes) and then he loses it.

its the most liked piece of furniture we have gotten in years. the kids are all testing it out. yep. even my 5 year old , fits quite nicely in it..

(don't worry, Katie, he has been warned not to do it again.. he breaks it and he buys you a new one with his money)

Love that he is looking up, like 'hey! what is going on?!"


got this basket like (at the end of summer! ) sorta on a whim, while in HL to buy a little trunk/suitcase thing to do Beck's 4 month pics in. I had this scene totally worked up in my head from walking down this trail, and just had to wait for the leaves to drop. Well, and the trunk was like $59 and NOT on sale, so then I saw this lady putting up displays using this bushel basket.. and asked if they were for sale. $4.99 is my cheapest prop yet!! LOL

and I have used it quite a bit with other families this fall. bonus.

as you can see almost all the leaves around here are off the trees. I am becoming creative with my photo sessions.. lol.

and the bare trees are putting me in the spirit of (Gasp!) Christmas! well, that , and the fact that I have been working on getting our church outreach party under wraps. My first year to chair it, and since I have never been before , I am kinda learning as I go.. its going to be so much fun though. I can't wait!

off to enjoy the continued 60 degree weather we have been having, I NEED to plant my bulbs.. been putting it off forever! and then lots to edit, and then actually get to prep for a scrap booking night!

(another Gasp!) its been so long, not sure if I'll remember how to scrap!!

enjoy your weekend everyone!

they say its your birthday.....

and it IS... we have been celebrating for a couple days now as Andrew is officially "in his thirties"...

I am so thankful that God gave him life 32 years ago. So happy that our paths crossed on that crazy New Year's Eve 2000. Giddy that we fell in love and got married.
Amazed that we have been together 6 years and have 3 fabulous kiddos. So very appreciative of all the love, support and kindness that he shows continually towards me. So in awe, of what an amazing father he is to each one of our kids.. and gives each one of them something special. Full of disbelief at his insane love for music, and the memory he has for artists, lyrics, etc. Full of excitement as I watch him watch his favorite teams. Go Bronchos .. give him a birthday *W* tonight!!!
Grateful for the fact that he works so hard to provide for our family so that I can stay home and raise our kids. Amazed to watch him grow in his faith. Thankful that he is teaching our kids to be like Jesus. Unworthy of his unconditional love he shows towards me.
Incredibly blessed to call him as my husband and best friend.
just a little glimpse of what you mean to me

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDREW!!! I LOVE YOU!!!!

(pictures to come from our celebrations!)

every year it happens...

we dress our kids up in ridiculously cute outfits resembling some sort of character or animal.. sent them out in sub freezing temps and force them to beg for the stuff, that we spend the rest of the year telling them they can NOT have.

But our kids did not disappoint, and we have been enjoying their rewards all week!

So I mentioned that we did a lot of tricking and treating festivities... below is a picture of when we visited grandma at her office. Her coworkers always go way into dressing as themed characters.. last year was the wizard of oz.. and this year was Mickey Mouse and company. the kids loved it, and they got lots of attention and a little bit of the sweet stuff.

here is our ZOO CREW!!!

I am finding it is super hard to get 3 little munchkins to all look at the camera at the same time.. it couldn't have anything to do with the chocolate they inhaled before hand right?

and here is the super cute craft that I brought in to do with Brigham's class for his party. I was so excited, that I was able to attend his party. I had had a photo session scheduled for like 2 months for that morning, and all week, they had been calling for rain. I wasn't going to cancel my session until the last minute, so when we woke up to downpours, I did a little happy dance.

(don't get me wrong.. ) I was bummed not to have the family session, but we rescheduled for a much warmer , non - raining kinda day, and it turned out fabulously.

SCORE. Brigham was so thrilled to have me in his class room and I admit, it was pretty fun helping out, and being able to finally be that fly on the wall..

Here is our trick or treating crew on Halloween. we continued our 3 year tradition of running around with friends.. we realized that we are missing a little one for the group picture. I thought Andrew had brought him out, and he thought I had. sadly, we had left our little giraffe all alone on the couch inside! lol

(not sure he noticed though)

and action shot.... the two older kids ran around up and down.. while the two littlest ones lingered for a bit..

about half way thru, I was waiting 4 housed behind, for my little monkey to come back down from the houses. she got distracted with the candy.. or with some decoration on the front porch.. or the fact that she said 'thank you.'

she did not fail, in coming down each drive way yelling " I say Tank you"!!

her first experience with a pixie stix.... and it did not go well.

sucking powder out of a tiny hole can be very frustrating!!!

our giraffe trick or treated in style.. not sure he really made a peep the whole time, until it was pitch black and 10 degrees colder than when we started. he became a tad unhappy

here is the pic of him (left inside by himself). Does he look sad? that about wraps up our Halloween adventures. still have to share our museum pics. they are pretty cute too. hope you all had a great time too !

************************

Beckham turned 4 months on Tuesday.. and since I have yet to even post his 3 month pics, I'll leave you with one from his 4 month mini shoot..

I had posted his traditional "4 month" pose on the chair, but I just accidentally deleted it and don't want to redo this post. so you get this super cute one where Tatum just couldn't stand not being "in" the picture. she kept trying to climb up on the chair while I was trying to get Beck.. finally I gave in.. and I am so glad I did !

boo at the zoo and other fall stuff...

last year , grandma took Brigham to our little zoo's festivities... this year we piled up the car.. and took an elephant and a monkey. we figured they would be in their element...

where a monkey could practice their putting...(the elephant actually got a hole-in-one!!)
and an elephant would be super scared of the mouse that ran across the grass!!!



lots of different games were played.. and it only rained for like 3 minutes so we headed into the butterfly garden , got sprinkled by fairy dust, and saw some scary creepy crawly things.

this cracks me up. as if people staring into the cages of the llama , the goats, and the rabbits.. were not strange enough.. NOW... an elephant and a monkey.. (and lots of other spooky things) peered over the edge to catch a glimpse.

don't worry.. we didn't get 'treats' from these folk

Brigham always likes the "mad scientist" tent.



it was a bit too much for Tatum, but Brigham got to do all kinds of crazy things.. the highlight was making slime. which ended up (supposedly left on our bumper in order to disappear), but instead got shut in our trunk, so that we drove around town for 2 days with a large baggie full of hot pink slime hanging out!! LOL

the end of the night... one pooped out elephant...


***************************************

Tatum sporting her new favorite coat... I think this was taken at the rest stop somewhere in Kansas.. lol... and yes.. people.. I know I haven't even blogged about the Colorado trip... I am really losing pts.. (and probably readers too! ) HA! and yes, brig's pumpkin patch field trip was on the 22nd.... I have become the worst bloggin' mom ever !!

um, Heather.. we've got bunny ears too!! LOL
maybe he knows peace out.. don't know how though..

and these are two of Brigham's bus stop buddies Skye and Jaylie

getting into postition to find that perfect gourd....

and he spots it... wanted one with 'a little bit of green".. he kept sayin.. lol

lunch time.. Brigham was so excited that I packed a cooler with lunch for him and I. except one poor kid forgot to bring a lunch so I gave him mine.

well ... dang... didn't have to force down the lunchable... bleck!!!

Brigham with one of his class mates Toby showing off their prize pumpkins...

and his friend Adam, who is in a different class so it was fun for them to play together

success.... after a fun day out! perfect weather, and it didn't start raining until the kids were on the bus, and moms were in their cars.

thank you Lord!
could have made for a muddy, miserable day!

*************

and so there are a few glimpses into our October outings..

I'll post more pics of our trip to the Children's Museum in costume on Halloween as well as our trick or treat night!

We actually celebrated several days... as the kids went to with grandma trunk or treating at a local church last Wednesday, and then we went to dinner with friends Friday night all in costume. were supposed to do our traditional downtown trick/treating.. but it rained cats and dogs... =(

(seriously, our kids are not lacking in the candy department)

Thank You Lord!!!

And I just realized that I haven't posted the littlest trick or treater...

any guessed on what he was?

3 months!!

my cute little punkin head!!

so, yeah, I am a little behind on posting his 3 month pics. Did two different photo sessions with him. One I did right before we left for Colorado. ... which still have yet to be edited =(... and then while in Denver, met up with my friend Farrah and our visit turned into a mini session for Beck and then she took our family pics too. she rocks.

Isn't this fabulous!! I am so going to blow this one up BIG and put it on canvas up on my wall.
( the wall in my lr that I still can't figure out what images /display collage I want up).. but THIS one will be there...lol

We did some super cute shots of him with baby legs on. Can't wait to see them. and we did a baby parts collage. I had one for Brig and Tatum at 3 months, so I wanted one of him too. I love to create these same types of collages for my clients. In no time at all, you forget how teeny tiny.. their parts really are =)
and though these pictures don't document it.. Beckham is such a happy baby. almost always smiling and he is belly laughing quite a lot. He has just found his *deep* baby man voice, and uses it all the time. He is decided that sleeping thru the night is over rated and about a week ago, has been up 2x a night. joy. He is a big boy, not sure his stats yet.. but as my mentor mom said to me on Tuesday "oh, my kids had big heads too... " !! yep. he does. it is all in proportion, but he does have a perfectly round.. Charlie Brown kinda noggin going on. Beck is wearing some 6 month clothes already, and I am hoping that I didn't miss my window on the tons of 3-6 mos outfits that his older brother wore (at 6-9mos)

This is NOT our family photo that she took. Just one my uncle took after I passed him my camera(set on auto.. lol) at the wedding reception. Notice, I didn't even bother to crop out my daughter's exposed crotch. she'll love me years from now! LOL

So glad I did have our family session finished, because ever since we returned from our trip , it has been a whirlwind of activity around here. Trying to get in as many photo sessions in as we can before the leaves fall off.. and pretty IN becomes , blah. nasty. gray IN.

I just have to get our card design decided soon, so I can forget about that and start working on stuff for clients. That is always more fun for me anyway .. I love new faces =)

Still need to edit the pics from Brigham's first field trip last Thursday. I went with his class to the pumpkin patch and took my little p/s camera (it was calling for major rain, and I was not about to risk rain on my heft lens!) If nothing else I got some great pics to scrap up.

Luckily, the weather was fantastic, and not until we are all in our cars(the parents) and the kids were on the bus, that it started to drizzle. THANK YOU GOD!

Its been so busy, that we have yet to even turn our little pumpkin dudes in to jack. Hoping to get to it tonight.. after the BOO at the ZOO. our local little zoo, puts this thing on and State Farm sponsors it. My mom took Brigham last year and he loved it! full of all kinds of creepy crawly stuff.

She took the kids minus Beck to a local church's trunk or treat last night while we had our lifegroup celebration dinner. They loved it. and I have been enjoying their candy all day today

I . Love. Halloween. (for that reason)

so there is a quick catch up on what we're doing... we're heading into another busy weekend. still need to blog about our trip and I'll put more of Beck's pics and our fall festivities up soon.

enjoy the last few days of October!!

it has made its way to my house....

and I am the only one that got it.

the killer sore throat. splitting headache. chills. cough. aches.. etc.

My amazing husband went to the store at 2am last night to get the essential remedies. I slept in late, while he watched the kids... and now I am trying to figure out the day.

Was supposed to have a play date this morning, and I am really sad to have to miss out.. Brig is off school for fall break today, so I had wanted us to all do something FUN !!

But all I really want to do is cuddle under the heaps of blankets and sip my tea. At least there will be no yelling in my house(by me anyway.. lol) ! that is a good thing!!

On an up note, I did have a great weekend, UNTIL about 10pm last night.. lol

*had a family movie night Friday with pizza and popcorn and Night at the Museum part 2

* had photo sessions on Saturday, while Andrew went to the PU football game (which we won. YAY!)

* had a date night with Andrew Sat, (was supposed to be a double date with our friends Scott and Emily, but we were both late, and missed each other).. so we ended up having separate date nights.. lol.. which was all good !

Andrew and I saw Couples Retreat.. and LOVED it! It was so good. Cute. Funny. and definitely a LOT of eye candy.. for both he and I .. lol

then we went to Kohls, and A got me 3 cute new shirts.. one of them was only $6 !!

and then we went to the Irish Pub for a late dinner. I got my fave chic salad sand.. and splurged on their shamrock pie. DElish..(if you're local.. you must try it! =)

and all three kids were at gmas.. so we finished our date night at home .. lol

*Sunday we drove to Indianapolis for the 2peas IN shoot out! Met at the circle, and then all of us just went nuts shooting various things and each other's models. It was great to meet all of my online friends IRL. can't wait to edit them and post .. but it will be awhile.. as I am getting bombarded with photos from sessions to edit.. (but its a good thing =)

* and then I had a super family session to round out the weekend. Can NOT wait to start in on editing these.. they are so cute!

... and now friends.. back to my sick self.. seriously.. I am just going to go to back to bed. ( and I hate HATE doing that, when I have so much do to.).

I want to be well enough to go to MOPS tomorrow.

so if you read this.. please send your healing vibes to me.. and pray that the sickies stop their infestation with me. I would hate for my kiddos to catch it !!