fab friday

What's fab in our lives lately:
Getting outside: Summer has officially hit central Texas. And it's the sweet part of summer, where it's only in the 80's and 90's so it's more enjoyable being outside. Soon enough, it'll be 100+ every day, and although we will still likely be heading outside each and every day (Elliot would have it no other way) this mama will be HOT! We've been enjoying the pools (although the chlorine hurts Emmett's sore bottom) and yesterday we went outside and Elliot had a BLAST coloring the sidewalks with chalk. I will probably bombard you with more chalk pictures another day, too cute not to share!

 

dieting = weightloss: We weigh in every Friday. In 3.5 weeks, Aaron has lost 7 lbs & I've lost 6.6. That's pretty impressive, if you ask me, especially since all we've really been doing is cutting down on our snacking (particularly at night, for me) and I've been cooking healthier dinners and lunches. I haven't even been able to start Jillian Michael's Ripped in 30 like I'd planned for June, because of Emmett being sick. I still want to start it- hopefully he feels better soon!
Fun photoshoots: This week I had a blast photographing a tiny newborn and a couple who are expecting their first little one. Two pictures from their shoots are below. Feel free to check out my facebook page to see more :)

I think that's about all for this week. Go link up with Laura at The Everyday Joys. I was sad to read that this will be the last Fab Friday link up :( I've been participating sporadically for a long time. See my very first Fab Friday post (from 2011) here.

fab friday

What's fab in our lives lately: 
Welcoming new babies into the world: I was lucky enough to be chosen as my friend Nicki (from Mostly Average) to be her birth coach and also to photograph her labor and delivery. Now, playing both of those roles at once was a little tricky, so I didn't get any pictures of the birth itself. But I still managed to capture many other wonderful moments. To see more, visit Patton Jakob's birth on my facebook page.

Our diet is still going strong:  We've been dieting now for about a week and a half, and I'm happy to report that Aaron has lost 5 pounds, and I've lost 3. More importantly, I have so much more energy and enthusiasm! It just feels so great to be eating healthy again. And I've been cooking up all sorts of delicious dinners. On the menu this week? Chicken & wild rice casserole, skinny savory superfood soup, spinach & black bean burrito wraps, baked basil lime chicken, baked tilapia with peppers, skinny southwestern black bean casserole, and an asian chicken salad. For lunch today, I made a black bean & corn salsa, which I'll be blogging about tomorrow. (So check back!)

Our puppy, waiting for us in Costa Rica: Emily's dog gave birth to a litter of 6 puppies on either May 5th or May 6th (which also happens to be both Emmett's and her son's birthday). Unfortunately, stray dogs and accidental litters are common in Costa Rica. One of the things we hope to do there is to catch and spay/neuter as many street dogs as we can. Emily has already lined up families for most of the puppies, who will be spayed/neutered before they go to their new homes. Mama will be spayed soon, too. She is being kind enough to care for one of the puppies for us until we arrive. We picked #5, the black and white male. We want to give him a spanish name, but for now, we're calling him Cinco- not only was he the fifth pup in this picture, but he also may have been born on Cinco de Mayo, so it seems to fit. We had to rehome our beloved cat Charlie and our husky mix Luna before moving to our current apartment last summer, and we are VERY excited to have a dog around the house again. The boys both absolutely love animals and Elliot is fantastically well behaved with our friends' dogs. The added fact that Cinco will have grown up in a family with two young children before coming home makes me very happy.

Rubber duckies & rain: It doesn't rain here very often, so when it does, we get a little excited. It makes things green(er) for a little while- and by a little while, I mean a few days. There really isn't any nice green grass in this area of Texas, just prickly crab grass and weeds that hurt your feet if you try to walk barefoot... and soon even the crab grass will dry out. (Another great thing I'm looking forward to about Costa Rica- lush green vegetation!) It's raining today, and before it started raining, they pumped all the water out of one of apartment complex's pools so they could renovate, so Elliot took full advantage by taking his rubber duckies (his latest obsession) outside to play in the flooded playhouse and sandbox. It was sort of like a redneck water park. 

Google Reader/Friend Connect is going away on July 1st, let's find eachother on BlogLovin!

Fab Friday

What's fab in our lives lately:

Dieting & Eating Right: Aaron recently went on a diet, and I seized the opportunity to scrutinize the whole family's diet, too. We are now mostly eating the same things he's eating- lots of fruits and veggies, yogurt, cheese, rices, some healthy Kashi snacks, etc. I'm already feeling better and I LOVE it. We plan to eat mostly fresh, preservative-free food in Costa Rica, too... so I figured, why wait? Let's start now! So glad I made that choice.

Warmth & Sunshine: it's supposed to be in the 90's through the end of the week, and we absolutely CANNOT get enough of that heat and sunshine. Seriously. The boys simply adore going outside so we have been going on lots of outdoor excursions... everything from simple walks, to hikes, to trips to the lake/river or sandbox/playground adventures. We love it. Please stay nice and warm, Texas.

Emmett is WALKING: Emmett has been walking for a little while now, but he's just recently really taken off, in fact, I think I would venture so far as to say that he is starting to walk more now than crawl. I don't know what is much cuter than a baby toddling after you on two feet, or watching him follow his big brother around... it's adorable. It melts my heart. It's also a little startling, though... my boys are growing up! Ahhh! When did that happen?

Wildflowers: Grass doesn't grow too well in our area of Texas, so usually all you see is a lot of scraggly dried up grass and/or weeds. But right now, wildflowers (or as my husband calls them, pretty weeds) have sprouted up all along the sides of the roads- even the highway medians are bursting with flowers in every shade of purple, blue, or yellow you could imagine. I don't care if they're just weeds... they're lovely!

Blogging again: because, let's face it, I wouldn't be able to ramble about all these things without this little blog. I recently returned from a long hiatus. I came back because suddenly, I really missed blogging. So I'm not planning to disappear again anytime soon. I look forward to continuing to catch up on all of my favorite blogs!

Fab Friday

The fabulous thing about today is that both of my boys are finally, finally feeling 100% better. Just in time for a very busy, fun-filled weekend!

No more coughing, runny or stuffy noses, red puffy eyes, disgusting diaper explosions, or fevers in THIS house!

My bloggy Samantha from Where the Green Grass Grows made the three hour drive down for the weekend. Since she is a Thirty-One consultant, and 31's products are amazing, I'm hosting a party at my house tomorrow afternoon. We're using the new spring catalog, which is full of all kinds of bright prints and has a whole new organizational line {um, hello!} so that should be awesome.

He destroyed an ornament the other day. Luckily it was one of the cheapies I use soley for pictures

Another fabulous thing?

Sunday is Elliot's second birthday! 

I absolutely cannot believe that my handsome little man will be two already. Where has the time gone?! What happened to my tiny little baby? I'm seriously having a hard time wrapping my head around it.. but ready or not, his birthday is coming! And so is his birthday party! Sunday he will be having a Mickey Mouse themed second birthday party. He is obsessed with Mickey so I can't wait to see his face when he sees his cupcakes, balloons, and all the other decorations.

Naughty almost-two-year-old got into one of the Christmas presents the other day, too.

It was one of Emmett's presents, though. 

... and he made up for it by enteraining baby brother for quite some time so I could get some serious cleaning done!

Okay, I'd better get going. Lots to do in so little time! I'm also hoping to squish a few holiday photo sessions and Christmas crafts into this weekend, too- and I have a blog design to finish! Lots on my plate. 'Tis the season! I'll leave you with another festive photo of Emmett.

Fabulous Friday

It's Fabulous Friday again! Here's what Elliot thinks is pretty fabulous lately.

His plastic keys. Out of all of his toys, this $1 toy is his favorite!






His new playgym.





And OF COURSE, tubbie time!!








It was rainy and gross out yesterday, so he spent all day in his jammies!

Fabulous Friday

It's Friday ALREADY?? Don't forget to head on over to Between the Lines and link up. :)
So what's fabulous this week?
♥ Baby smiles {and grins, and babbles, and squeals, and screeches}: Elliot's feeling better, and he's making sure everyone in the house knows it.
♥ CANDY: Easter is in two days, which means I can FINALLY eat sweets again, which is good, because I've been craving dark chocolate like crazy lately. And the house is full of it. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
♥ MORE SLEEP: Elliot is finally starting to eat a little more at night, which means he is sleeping a little more, too. Only an extra thirty minutes to an hour at a time, but hey, I'll take all the extra sleep I can get! Someday, he'll sleep through the night. Someday...