unpaved alleyways.

while all this readin’ and studyin’ of the photo biz is great, the best way to improve my photography is by getting out there and practicing.

practice. practice. practice.

well, yesterday i was hoping to have the hus-band be my guinea pig.

and after hours of begging and pleading, he finally gave in and allowed me to take his pictures. thanks, babe.

but before we went out on our photo-taking adventure, we made a stop by his sister’s house to drop off some stuff to add to their garage sale. see ya grody-ol’-hand-me-down couch!

time passed quickly and the sun was setting fast, so we made a quick change of plans and decided to simply practice a little in the alley. and once i got set up, our niece logan eagerly ran to join zach in front of the camera.

i should just ask her to be my model next time.

haha.

here’s what we got.

look at those baby blues!

ol’ bruiser-bruise wanted to join in through the hole in the fence.

i’m off to second-shoot for another wedding with the lovely helen today!

what are you up to this weekend?

p.s. don’t forget to enter in my first birthday giveaway! it ends tomorrow!

the kids.

it’s been quite a while since i’ve shared anything about our three ill-mannered children, so here are a few pics from the weekend. enjoy! :)

 just cheesin’ for mom.

gotta love ‘em. gotta love ‘em.

5 friday favorites.

i’ve been bitten by the spring fever bug, so here are your 5 friday favorites spring style!

1. neon, neon — while i do love the song written by john mayer, it’s not exactly what i mean. lately there has been a new trend involving bright neon colored clothes. and i mean highlighter neon bright. i remember walking into the gap in albuquerque feeling like i had to squint it was so bright in there! i almost feel like you’d glow in the dark. i guess it’d be great for a black light dance party! anyway, even though i’m not 100% sold on dressing my self in highlighter yellow, i do think you can dip your toe into this new fad without diving in head first. neon nail polish and accessories would be a great and less blinding way to get your feet wet, without the full commitment of the entire ensemble. what are your feelings about this new neon trend? i’d love to hear them!

2. al fresco dining — in west texas, there is a short window of time between the winter and summer months when the weather is actually pleasant. most of our springs are accompanied by blowing dirt, sporadic snowfalls and even days around 90 degrees. but when the weather has goldie locks’ approval and it’s “just right,” i love to dine outside. as summer draws near and the days grow longer & warmer, i truly believe it does our cooped up winter bodies some good when we sit out on the patio and enjoy a nice relaxed meal or beverage. call me a sap, but there’s something kinda romantic about it, don’t ya think? unfortunately, we haven’t been able to do this in a long time without our 3 ill-mannered children climbing into our laps thinking they are teacup yorkies. hopefully that dog run will be up sooner rather than later!

3. sunflowers — i’d have to say these are my favorite flower. growing up, i remember my mother would line our back fence with soaring 14-footer sunflowers. i think they are so cheerful. i look forward to one day doing the same thing in our backyard. and if we get the giant ones, i’m sure my sunflower-seed-loving hubby will be thrilled to have his own personal stash. however, i’ll probably have to concoct something that resembles his favorite spitz bbq seasoning recipe.

4. shorts — “who wears short shorts?” just kidding. i used to, and i don’t know WHAT i was thinking. why in the world would my parents let me out of the house!? eesh. bad, bad, bad, BAD decision on my part. anyway, i’m ready to bust out some more modest cuffed boyfriend shorts and give my translucent legs some sun! but i might have to start out in the privacy of my own backyard so i don’t scare anybody with my extreme paleness. i’m loving these polka dot shorts from jcrew!

5. hats — oh, how i LOVE a good fedora. my bff molly and i probably have enough hats between the two of us to open up our own hat store. just as scarves are my go to accessory for the fall & winter months–and some can be worn year round!–a cute fedora completes that spring/summer outfit hands down. and it may or may not be the perfect excuse to hide my laziness of not wanting to do my hair on a particular day. hehe. check out target or urban outfitters for fashionable & reasonably priced hats!

happy friday everyone!

p.s. to all you guys out there, hang tight because next week i’ll have a dude’s 5 friday favorites brought to you by my hus-band!

5 friday favorites.

happy friday to all!

here are your 5 friday favorites this week.

1. dwell — both the hus-band and i are in LOVE with this magazine. gorgeous architecture, design & landscapes from many beautiful modern homes lie within its pages. i think we’ve decided our style is modern southwestern, if there is such a thing. i love the simplicity and clean lines in modern design, but i’m obsessed with the warmth of the colors and textures you’d find in the southwestern style. anyway, let’s just say we find ourselves constantly drooling over the amazing things you’d see in dwell. check it out for yourself.

 

 

2. natalie dee — if you are in need of a good laugh every once and awhile, check out her daily cartoon drawings. when i was an RA for our university apartments in college, i tried to use relative photos from her site that coincided with our resident messages and events. it was fun. however, i will have to put a disclaimer on this one. while some are extremely hilarious and completely random, others might contain some strong language/content. so, viewer discretion is advised.

3. sirius republic — if you have a favorite pooch, like my three ill-mannered children, you’ll love their collars. i first saw these on love and a six foot leash, and adorable blog about a family’s story on fostering and adopting out rescue pit bulls. not only are their pictures fantastic, but the stories will melt your heart. anyway, sirius republic had the folks from love and a six foot leash name these collars! from things like “broken spoke” to “hippie hollow,” all the collars names reflect special characteristics known to austin, tx. but it gets even better! for every collar of these ten patterns sold by Sirius Republic, 20% of the proceeds will be donated directly to Love-A-Bull! these just might have to go in our kids’ stocking next year. did i mention they have doggie bowties? click the pic to see for yourself.

4. ree drummond  — aka the pioneer woman. i just adore everything about her. her writing, photography, recipes, stories & personality. i want to be her friend. anyway, we received her first cookbook as a wedding gift, and while the recipes in there are something you should make in moderation, they are the yummy, wholesome & fill-the-belly-full kinda eats. with her new cooking show on food network and a second cookbook soon to be released, i’ll be thoroughly entertained as well as packin’ on a pound or two or… well, let’s NOT hope for the latter.

5. juicing — after watching joe cross’ documentary fat, sick & nearly dead, the hus-band and i have been contemplating doing some juicing in order to reboot our system, detox our bodies & jumpstart weight loss. as a part of the season of lent, we chose to give up eating out, in hopes of saving our money & time, as well as our waistlines. so with the combination of lent and juicing, we got ourselves a juicer yesterday. and boy, is it the bomb-dot-com. we decided to start off slow and ease our way into it, only juicing our lunch–the meal we’d be eating out the most–and eventually doing both lunch and dinner as we adapt to eating better. not that we eat bad in the first place, but we definitely don’t eat as many raw veggies as we should. watch it for free on netflix and consider rebooting your life!

happy day everyone!

merry merry.

we wish you all a very merry christmas & a happy new year!

see you in 2012 folks!