family...

is important.

incredibly so.

this past thursday, 3 of my cousins were involved in a car accident.

2 of them were taken to the hospital by ambulance and later treated and released.

one was care-flighted from the scene and remains in the hospital.

the first couple days were scary. we gathered in his room and the waiting room. sharing hugs and prayers. holding his hand. talking to him. encouraging him to wake up.

yesterday, he did just that.

he is now awake and alert...and extremely exhausted.

and we are thankful.

the shot above was a total fluke. i pulled my phone out in the room and it snapped a picture. it wasn't even my intention to take a picture. i was only going to text an update to my sister. i didn't think i had actually captured anything...i mean i looked in my album and nothing showed up. as i looked again later, this image popped up...

and took my breath away.

i think it perfectly captures the importance of family and their love for each other.

***eta: he is being released from the hospital today! so thankful.***

lulu...

says hi...

in between naps, of course.

i finally...

made our summer to-do list.

never mind that it's nearly july. but we've still got about 6 weeks to get through it.

the best part? painting with watercolors. totally therapeutic. haven't used those in years!

we got a new...

kitty!

she's a rescue from the local shelter.

welcome home lulu.

world's longest and most random post...

ever.

there's no real rhyme or reason to this post. well, actually there is a reason.

i'm addicted to pinterest! full-fledged-need-a-twelve-step-program-addicted. love it!

no more tearing magazine pages out and cutting and gluing ideas into notebooks.

nope.

it's all right there. on my virtual pinboards.

the amount of inspiration is amazing!

i want to add some of my pics, but i have to blog them first. so this post is a combination of a where-the-hell-have-i-been-since-april-review and a way for me to pin some of my own work.

so, here's what i've been up to the last 3 months...

this monkey tried to ride a 2-wheeler for the first time...

this one turned into a robot...
and tried to DO the robot...
went to heaven's corner animal sanctuary...


jaden's 9th birthday - an art party. i used to have guests scrapbook a photo of themselves with the birthday girl before they left. i wised up when that got old and made this canvas for them to sign.

fun with pipe cleaners...
my 1st ever attempt at a rainbow cake! {this is actually the 1st stacked cake i've ever made}



a little scrappiness...
playing with sunlight...
and lens flare...
some shots from around the house... our frame wall.
vintage bedsheet as our shower curtain...
chasing butterflies...
tending to the garden...
camping at KOA brookville...
playing with sparklers...

making washi tape reference cards.
jackson's father's day gift.

so, that's it in a {very large} nutshell.

daddy's girl...

number 1. jaden. she is absolutely, utterly, and totally a daddy's girl. he loves her beyond belief. playing with her. teasing her. teaching her right from wrong. encouraging her to do her best in school. practicing her spelling words and multiplication facts whenever he has a spare minute. grabbing her up and hugging and kissing her every time she walks by. pretending to cry when she tries to go to bed without a goodnight kiss. talking her through bad days at school, arguments with friends, and temper tantrums. staying calm when she's not. lighting up when she walks off the school bus. making it known to her how special she is to him.

new lens...

i finally got my new lens. yay!! i've been dying to get a 50mm prime lens. that's the first thing i did when we got our tax return. (shooting joe & tara's engagement shots were a nice argument to my cause.) and although they'd probably rather jump in front of a semi, the girls obliged me in an impromptu photo shoot.

spring...

is teasing us. a couple nice days. a couple crappy days. some sun. then some snow. i'm over it. let's go spring!! we took advantage of one of the nice days and ran the girls out to the park.