Happy Valentine's Day!

One thing I love about Valentine's Day is that my Daddy ALWAYS makes it his special day for his girls. No matter what he is always prepared with a gift, a card, and candy...chocolate, of course!! He's such an amazing Dad and I always look forward to his Valentine's Day treats for us!!



Sadie also shared her first Valentine's Day with us this year. She's one sweet girl who we love oh-so-much (if you couldn't already tell...) and she was certainly our Special Valentine this year!! Puppy kisses to you Sadie Lady!!





Gifts from Grandma & Grandpa!

What's in the bag!?!

Such a cute new shirt for the spring!! Thanks Grandma & Grandpa!!!!


And Jack surprised me with Lou Malnati's (our favorite!) heart shaped pizzas!!

Photos, Photos, Photos

...I thank Sadie, as she is my main model for right now and she gives me some pretty great shots!!


I've always enjoyed taking pictures (if you know me...you know a camera is always close by and I'm ready to snap away any time!) and capturing the moments and memories of my life. Pictures are so very special to me.
I've had this "bug" in me for the past couple months to get a really nice DSLR camera - one that we'll have for a while, be able to capture the quality pictures I want to take, have the speed to capture emotions & quick happenings, and to practice a hobby I'd like to pursue into something more one day!

After a few months of saving and helpful Christmas $ from our parents to go towards our camera, we were able to bring our new fun toy!!
Jack actually surprised me Monday night with it - I had no idea it was coming!! Great guy, great gift, and now...great adventures!!!

I'm not really great with it - there's SO much to learn and practice with. The good thing is - I'm excited and ready to learn and practice!! :)

Here's me documenting my first few shooting adventures. I can't wait to look back on them years from now and see how far I've come!!

Blizzard of 2011

Feb 1st - The night the blizzard began - Sadie is ready to go out - she LOVES snow!

Yep...this looks about right...she loves sticking her whole face in a snow pile and eating it!


Well - first BIG snow storm as an adult and really can see how big of a deal it is. Apparently there was one in 1999 - but I don't seem to remember it - then again, that was a different chapter of my life. This chapter of my life is a little different from when I was 13, and a blizzard like this puts these kind of things on my mind:
-I hope my house doesn't blow over with the wind
-Gotta make sure we shovel so our cars can get out for work
-Need to make a path for little Sadie to be able to go out and potty
-I hope the snow isn't too heavy or wind too strong for our electricity to go out
-I have a free day to do laundry and clean the house!! :)
-As much as I love the continuous news report all morning...I really wanted to see Oprah today...she had on Jennifer Aniston & Adam Sandler! (I hope her 11 o'clock show isn't filled with news reports like this morning!)

But what I have also thought about today is...we are pretty "trapped" in our homes today and while some may be "bored" or upset from not working or having a day without pay, this was really a gift to us from God! We are SO busy, fast-paced and non-stop these days and it is necessary and healthy for us to take a day to STOP and ENJOY!!! Today I am thanking God for dumping this blizzard of snow on us because it really has stopped us in our tracks - gave us time to enjoy the simple things and be with our family! And snow really is a beautiful part of nature - it truly is!! :)

Here are some pics I took to document God's gift to us!! I'm still amazed at how much snow we really did get!! Too fun!!


Down our street (no plows had made it down by 8 am) and our backyard - which had some pretty impressive drifts against our fence!




On the driveway - had to trudge through some deep snow!!


On top of the hill of snow at our corner - pretty cool! Felt like a kid again when I climbed right up to the top!



And so it starts...it only took 2 hours! (Don't worry, I did help him!! - And I'm beyond sore to prove it!!! ....I think this will count as my workout for Feb!)