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Monday, April 23, 2012

two looks good on you!...

oh preston robert, it hurts my heart to say that you are two. how in the world did this happen?  even though it makes me sad to think of you as such a big boy, it really is amazing to watch you grow.  you are funny, handsome, bossy, sweet, a pistol, a wonderful cousin, a heartbreaker---all rolled into one.  you keep us laughing and we are always on our toes with you little man!  aunt candace, uncle justin and ava love you SO much!  happy second birthday!!!!

a look back at your second year...









 














Saturday, April 14, 2012

a visit with peter cottontail...

we stuck with tradition this year, and woke up easter morning with brad, sarah, and preston to see what the easter bunny brought!


the lighting was pretty fantastic, and the kids got to work on finding eggs.  preston was more interested in what was inside the eggs.  he's find one, open it, and proceed to eat whatever it was :)  ava, on the other hand, was just wanting to get every egg outside!





we were able to get a photo of each family and the kiddos together :)




preston also wanted in our picture :)


after some relaxing and naps, the rest of the crew arrived for easter linner :)  too funny, all but one kiddo was in sear sucker -- NOT planned.  apparently, sear sucker really is an easter staple :)

** the shot of preston cracks me up.  clearly, he was over me taking his picture :)

as usual, it was a great day spent with friends and family!

Friday, April 13, 2012

easter weekend photo shoot...

we got fancied up on saturday afternoon and headed to the ranch for a little photo shoot.  sarah and i were a little bummed when we realized that we only got one photo of the kids from the shoot back in november, so we made sure we did theirs first this time!

a few months ago, sarah got some adorable sear sucker shorts for preston to wear on easter.  i was out shopping at the outlets a few weeks before easter and spotted a sear sucker dress for ava.  it was perfect.  this is the first time we have done matchy-matchy with p & a, and i must admit, i think it was pretty stinking adorable.  we really do have some good looking kids!


*the two photos above CRACK me up.  first, all smiles, then ava's face in the second photo is priceless.  i can hear her "reeallllyyyy" just from that look. ha!


*quite possibly my favorite from the day!

Sarah was able to capture some fun shots of our little family yet again! we manage to look like we kind of like each other in these photos [but i promise there are some bitchy images of yours truly in some of the outtakes!]








and here are a few from sarah, brad and preston.  i'm sure she will be posting more on her blog.









Wednesday, April 11, 2012

SAVE THAT: quotes from bloom...

its no secret that i read a lot of blogs of people who i've never met.  it's crazy the connections that i feel towards certain bloggers, or specific posts.  one blogger had me at the first picture i came across.  then i started to read, and i was hooked.  Kelle Hampton has a little ol' blog affectionately titled "Enjoying the Small Things".  all i can say is, girl can write.  her posts and photos make me want to be a better mother, a better friend, a better wife, a better me. 

she announced that she had written a book, and i am pretty sure i squealed.  being a book nerd lover at heart, i knew it would be a must read for me.  she announced a pre-book offer, and i reserved my book immediately.  on April 3 it appeared in my nook reader, and i was so excited.

 

i'm so glad i did.  this book resonated with me.  weather you are a mom, or a sister, or a friend, there will be a part(s) of this book that will have you totally nodding your head in agreement.  i found myself highlighting parts that i wanted to save and re-read.  quotes.  words that had an "ah-ha" effect. words that for me, were extremely powerful.

“I was inspired…inspired to face challenges and leave my comfort zone and go through hard things because that is what turns the screenplays of our lives from boring to Oscar-Worthy.”

“I am learning the older I get to stop pretending I think something just because its right. Real is sometimes better than right.”

“A sister. I was going to give her a best friend. Someday they would know each other’s thoughts from just a look, and one day, they would have each other on speed dial to complain about kids mouthing off and husbands who don’t pick up after themselves.”

“It’s knowing that life is short, and the moments we choose to fill our cup with should be purposeful and rich. That we should be present for life, that we should drink deeply. And that’s perfection.”

“Sometimes, you get a Get-Out-of-Adulthood-Free card and you can, for a moment, wave your card and wait for your mom to come running. And she’ll help you fix it.”

“But it was in this beautiful mess of my former self that true potential dwelled – potential to be molded and shaped by a grand defining moment. And when there is potential…there is greatness.”

“Confidence doesn’t always come in surges. Sometimes – lots of times – it brews unbeknownst to us, building during the times we feel the least confident – through the tears, the questioning, the self-doubt, the begging God to make it better. Confidence, like contentment, is earned, paved stone by stone until you finally turn back and realize it has been pieced together to create something strong. Confidence is a process.”

“Words are merely words – meaningless unless given power to affect us. It does sting, however, to know that the world is full of pain – pain that people harbor inside and last out, projecting their hurts onto the undeserving.”

“Pain has a way of pulling you forward to a surprising place of “I didn’t know I had it in me,” and while you think there is no way you will ever make it through in the beginning, you do.”

*all quotes are from Bloom: Finding Beauty In the Unexpected by Kelle Hampton.






Thursday, April 5, 2012

how a mom's obsession can be the cutest thing in the world...

so. i think it's time to let you in on a little secret.  Sarah , preston's momma, ava's aunt, and my crazy best friend...is obsessed with justin bieber.  its true.  last year when his documentary cam out, i wasn't sure who was more excited [but i will go out on a limb here and say it was sarah].  being the opportunist awesome aunt that she is, she decided that ava needed to see never say never - in 3D no less - for being star student.  pretty sure sarah cried no less than 6 times through that movie.  i think she liked the biebs before, and after seeing that movie, she fell hard. 

fast forward to present day.  she has definitely given the bieber fever to my blond headed nephew. ask him who he wants go be when he grows up?  Justin Bieber.  ask him who is in his class? Justin Bieber.  little man knows the words to "baby" and boyfriend's current obsession is "boyfriend". 

here he is singing and dancing to "baby" in the car. [be sure to turn up the volume so you can hear his sweet voice!]  so.FREAKING.cute.


see? he totally has the fever. 

10 is the magic number...


my brother and his wife, tacia, welcomed this little sweetheart on Sunday.  he is such a handsome addition to our ever-growing family.  he made my parents GRANDparents for the 10th time.  welcome to the world and our family little man!

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

saturday spotlight...

its no secret that we spend a lot of time with the 'other' emersons.  some might think it is weird that at least once a month, we spend the night at brad and sarah's.  at least one saturday afternoon/evening and sunday morning is spent at their casa, and i wouldn't trade it for the world.  sometimes its fancy and we cook out or make a big breakfast, and sometimes its low key and we just watch the kids play and then stay up too late talking, then kicking ourselves the next morning when the kiddos (ava usually wakes up a little before preston) wake up early and raring to go. 

this past saturday was a little different, as the boys went fishing with their dad, so sarah and i had the afternoon/evening with the kids.  it was beautiful outside, so we spent time watching the kids play and dance in the front yard.





rollie-pollies, cousin love, and baby boys




ava breaking it down...

preston adores ava, and wants to be just like his big cousin...he thinks her dance moves are awesome, and breaks it down too!

watch this last video all the way to the end....it'll be worth it, i promise :)
think he is used to having a camera in is face?  haha!

i love our weekends, especially when we can spend it with the other half of our family :)

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

little moments...

ava.  my sweet, sassy, girl.  sometimes i forget that she's just 6 and a half.  but every once in a while i'm able to catch a glimpse of my baby.  one of my favorite things to watch is her sleeping.  so sweet, innocent, and little.  its these little moments and more that make me so grateful to be her mom.