the C family {san francisco, ca family photographer}

very quick sneak peek for this super special family. they were my last session before the new year and so glad i went out with them!!

overdue five on friday {san jose, california family photographer}

1) a quick shout out to Tiny Prints. You know, the online store with a TON of adorable invitation options. Well, now I have an official store front with them. Visit it here. I can help you customize an invitation with YOUR photos on it! Yay! So excited to be added.

2) i'm a little overdue for a five on friday. last week got the best of me but i'm back!! It's only 9:39 pm here so it's still friday!

3) early bird got sick on christmas... yep, christmas, so unfortunately it wasn't as exciting around here as it could have been.

4) even though early bird was sick she managed to open all her presents! And you know what her favorite present was? a $7 grocery store purple unicorn stick horse picked up at the last minute. Figures!

5) random photo of the day:

taken at the nutcracker ballet. a delicate point ballet shoe signed and all. you know early bird was ecstatic to see that!

five on friday

1) a heavy heart tonight thinking of the tragedy at the elementary in Connecticut. My mother has been an elementary educator in the public school system in texas for over 40 years and i automatically thought of her as i was driving home today. I truly truly believe educators are angels sent to our schools to protect our kids. luckily Early Bird was home from school today sick or i would have been even more upset than i was.

2) a post from a photographer friend on Facebook posted this beam of light today, ‎"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.' To this day, especially in times of 'disaster,' I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers - so many caring people in this world." - Fred Rogers. So true! Look for the helpers. Luckily there are way more helpers in the world than non-helpers!

3) currently listening to Pandora on my phone. I love to listen to it when editing, because editing photos is my least favorite thing. it makes the time go faster when i'm listening to strong, independent women singing. you go Stevie Nicks and Dixie Chicks!

4) 11 days and counting until Christmas. i'm continuing my Favorite Things list, a la Oprah style:

my favorite all time movie: Hope Floats and for several reasons.

1. It was filmed in Austin, Texas, and i loooove Austin, 2. the lighting is beautiful in the movie and 3. the accents. reminds me of home. Oh, and 4) i like the story line!

one of my favorite quotes. Found on this blog.

if i had it my way this is what our house would look like for christmas. 

5) random photo of the day: 

this is what's been going on at our house lately

Stay safe this weekend and hug an educator!

five on friday

1) while i was kissing Early Bird goodnight she told me she had made her list for Santa. she only asked him for three things; 1. Giggly Goo (Brother Bear from The Berenstein Bears had asked for this on his list. I'm thinking it's similar to flubber), 2. a new dress (shocker!) 3. and a rocking horse (hmmm.... not sure where she got this but ok!). Overall, not too shabby!

2) we've had almost non stop rain for the last week and i'm officially OVER IT! A few days, ok, but both Early Bird and i are starting to go a little stir crazy. there's only so much baking, crafting and decorating two girls can do. 

3) speaking of baking & crafting. this week we have made pumpkin snickerdoodles, chocolate chip cookies, salt dough ornaments, homemade present for some special people (can't say too much here. not sure who MIGHT be reading this ;), our version of an advent calendar and of course decorated. If it starts to warm up not sure we'll be doing too much more inside.

4) My Favorite Things list continues (Oprah style!):

my ugg boots

let me start by saying the ONLY reason i remotely like these is because they're comfortable (ok, I LOOOOVE that they're comfortable). NOT because they look nice. and that's all i have to say about that!

 

 Bumble restaurant in Palo Alto, Ca

I freakin LOVE this place! It's waaaay cute, serves the best and healthiest food and it's AWESOME for kids, as in, the local owners kept families in mind while redoing this old house.

 there's a separate play area in back just for the kids. the parents can sit and eat (and watch their kids through the fish tank) while the kids play. we've been to it many times!! it's a hit with Early Bird too.

pecan pie bars

can't say enough about these! yuuuum!! found the recipe here.

5) random photo of the day:

this is what we woke up to this morning. olivia was kind enough to bake us cookies during the night!

what olivia has been up to this week

today marks one week since Olivia has been at our house. (need to catch up on who olivia is? click here).

here are some things she's gotten into so far.

we had no idea she was a little artist!

I guess making her own zipline is part of the fun.

relaxing in her own bubble bath after a rough night!

Oliva our elf is here to stay

after struggling with the concept of Elf on the Shelf (read about my turmoil here in last Friday's Five on Friday, #2) I finally decided to invite her/him into our home. The Elf turned out to be a girl and she is now known as Olivia.

However, it turns out I'm not the only mom that has pondered the Elf's place in a home around Christmas. My fabulously smart and kind friend, Elisabeth Johnston, who is a professor and has spent years studying children, sent me this article from Parents' Web site, "I don't have an Elf on the Shelf. And I don't want one."  So glad that I'm not alone in my feelings.

However, after seeing how excited Early Bird was the first two mornings to see what Olivia had done overnight I decided that yes, maybe it is worth it after all. Early Bird won't be young forever and she won't believe in all the magic of childhood in a short few years, so, yes, Olivia is here to stay as long as Early Bird still finds joy in her. (Side note: luckily Olivia spends most of the year at the north pole.... whew!)

As it turns out Early Bird and I aren't the only ones enjoying Olivia. The Sweetie has also gotten excited about the possibilities to come! Being creative is in his soul so I was really glad when we both started to try to come up with ideas on how Olivia will spend her time while she's with us.

So, stay tuned!

And here's how she spent last night, drawing a Christmas tree for us!