Friday, April 29, 2011

baby boys love mud!


YES THEY DO.


judah just LOVES being outside. every morning when he wakes up & when he gets up from a nap he goes searching for his beloved rain boots. when he tracks them down he brings them to us and sits down holding his feet up for us to slip the boots on. it is the sweetest thing.


splishy
spashy
slimy
mucky
gooshy
smooshy
brown
and
yucky
MUD!







they see it...


they smile.


they sit right down in it & then...

they do their favorite thing: SPLASH!!!


oh how i love my sweet baby boy!


Love, Sarah

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Childhood Memories

My sister and I are very nostalgic people...we LOVE remembering our childhood, looking at old pictures, sharing stories & especially finding treasures from when we were young(er) =)

This post is for my sister because I know how much she will enjoy looking at these pictures!

While visiting my parent's house I ventured up to their attic in search of some toys for Judah to play with. And oh my did I strike GOLD! I couldn't unbury all the treasures with out my VERY organized (and wonderful) dad growing a few more gray hairs...so I just grabbed a few favorites.

I found our old make believe house, kitchen set, baby buggy & high chair, bins FULL of barbies & dolls, a red corvette for our dolls, millions of stuffed animals, beanie babies, books, trinkets...too much to name. But my heart skipped a beat when I came across a gigantic bin of our Fisher Price make believe foods. The memories of HOURS spent baking cakes & pizzas, taking picnics and cooking up elegant diners. I couldn't resist & brought it down for Judah. I just wished my sister could have been there to relish the joy of finding such a sweet memory & watching Judah dig in and have a blast with it all.

I hope to photograph some more of these gems, but here a few I have to share today:

Our dear old tea pot.


The wedding cake that celebrated MANY barbie dolls big day...
and converted to a birthday cake.


The beloved mixer...whipped up the best strawberry, chocolate or vanilla icing!



Our trusty old grill...look at those kabobs!



Part of the stash...the other half was in the sink getting cleaned up. I have to say I think I spent more time playing with this today than Judah :)


Do you have any favorite toys from your childhood? I hope this inspires you to remember those days... there is just something so calming and refreshing about remembering the carefree days of childhood. I am SO happy I have an excuse to enjoy these things all over again now that I am a mom :)



Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Ahrens Family Photo Session

It was a beautiful Sunday evening when I drove out to meet the Ahrens family at their home for a little photo session. They have an absolutely gorgeous back yard. We let the kids just play & have some fun on their swing set, ventured up a hill behind their house and just kept it casual & low key. It made for some great pictures! Enjoy this little preview of a few of the images from their shoot :)











Contact me today to capture some beautiful moments in the life of your family!

somethingbeautifulimages@gmail.com

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

GoOd sTuff

Since having Judah my husband I have really started to think more about what we eat, where it comes from, what we use on our bodies, where it is made, who it affects, what's in it?!

I want to start photo journaling some of the things we are doing to make our lives healthier and hopefully inspire a few people along the way. This will just be one of the many things I will keep up with on here :)

We started out thinking about what we eat and from there it has seriously led from one thing to the next this past year...

Just a short bit about how we have changed our eating: LOCAL first and foremost (when possible), organic & sustainable, fair trade and homegrown (when possible). We have signed up for our first vegetable CSA starting in early June through Westridge Farm. I am SO excited to share that experience with you when it starts! We have also selected only a few grocery stores that we are shopping at, first the Willie Street Coop, then Trader Joe's and on occasion Metcalfe's. Willie Street Coop has a LOT of great local options as well as Metcalfes, and Trader Joe's has a no artificial ingredient, no preservative, no high fructose corn syrup policy. It is so much easier to shop when you know that most or all of the products fall under what you (don't) want in your food. The biggest thing we have decided to be strict about is eating ONLY local meat...and it's sure not easy.It's expensive and hard to find. But, in our opinion very important. We want to know where our meat is coming from.

There is so much more to say about food, but that is just a little of the basics that have got us going.

Anyway, since we started thinking about food I have started thinking about what else we put in our bodies or ON our bodies...I raided our bathroom and researched ALL of the products we use on a daily basis...shampoo, body wash, soap, toothpaste, ect. I was totally horrified at what I found out. YUCK. There is SO much scary (cancer causing) stuff in the things we use everyday and I never ever thought twice about it. Since then I have done more research on lots of products: what is safe, what is fair trade, what is affordable? There are actuallya lot of options out there! I did a little photo journal of a few of my favorite new products that you might be interested in as well :)

For Judah:

Every Day Shea Wash & Lotion- This stuff is AMAZING! Not only is it certified fair trade, all natural, biodegradable, & paraben free...It supports an incredible Community Empowerment program in West Africa. 10% of all sale go towards community projects, maternal health care & reforestation/environment projects! And it leaves Judah super soft & sweet :)



For the mamas & the papas:

Burt's Bees Citrus Facial Scrub- I picked up this little beauty at a small health & beauty store on State Street. It is ammmmazing! Leaves my skin SO soft. It is all natural, smells delicious and if you get hungry you COULD eat it...but probably wouldn't taste as good as it smells :)



Trader Joe's Spa Cleanser & Lotion: It's natural, it comes in a pretty bottle :), and best of all it is SO afforable at $2.99/ bottle!

Desert Essence Organic JoJoba Oil: I am addicted to this stuff! It is great for your skin & hair, SUPER moisturizing. I also like to use Vitamin E oil on my skin. I can't decide which I like better...I just know I feel good about putting both of them on!



Thank you so much for reading :) I hope to share more about what I am learning through my pictures! I don't intend to tell YOU what to do, I just want to share what I have decided to do for myself & my family. I just think it is fun & interesting to hear what others are doing and share what I am doing...so, please comment or if you have questions don't be afraid to ask :) I am NOT an expert, I am just a mama & photographer trying to find out what is best for my family.

Have a great day!

My New Web Site!

Check out my brand spankin' new web site AND PLEASE SHARE it with everyone you know!!! :)

www.somethingbeautifulimages.com

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

ZoO

It was Judah & the ladies again today :)

Lucky man.

My friend Carolyn & I took Judah to the Zoo/Park today, it was too glorious outside not to enjoy it!

Judah LOVEd it.

He c-l-i-m-b-e-d up the rope maze.

fleeeeeeeew down the slides.

ooo-ooo ahh-ahhed at the gorillas.

tried out his independence.

skinned his knee. twice.

giggled at the penguins.

ate some sand.

SCREAMED when we left.

Here are a few pictures of our fun afternoon :)









Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Looking Out The Window

There is nothing my little buddy loves to do more than look out the window at the:

birds.
people.
cars.
squirrels.
bikers.
leaves blowing.
rain falling.
capital glowing.
world.

I snapped a few pictures of him & our sweet little friend, Jaeda watching a robin in the tree outside our window:


stayed tuned in the next few days my NEW "official" web site will be up and running...


ALSO, in the month of April I am offering a limited number of FREE family photo sessions to build my "family portfolio." Get in on this fun deal and spread the news about me! Even if you do not get in on the free session I am always offering a discounted session for referrals :)


contact me at somethingbeautifulimages@gmail.com


Keep Up With Me!

Check back regularly to see my latest photo session previews, read about my inspirations & just check out what I'm up too :)

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