Mini-Photo Shoot

So Andrew is turning 18 months on the 19th of this month. I had hopes that I could get his photos taken but luck would have it that our backyard projects took all of the reserved funds to do so - which left me with the attempt to take them myself. And one of my dear friends may help me as well!

To gear up for the event, I took the kids to the community playground by our house and had a little fun with the camera so I could practice for the big day. For the most part, it went pretty well. Besides the sun setting and shining in our faces (I now have a UV lens which should help with that) and the big swarm of wasps I found near the slide. Hence why a lot of them are taken near the swing set! :) Please don't be shy to tell me what you think! I need all the pointers and suggestions I can get! Here are some of my practice takes (including my dear daughters - I just couldn't leave them out!):

Sunday Solitude

After we got home from church, the girls went down for quiet time after lunch and John was working on a home project so that left Andrew and I twiddling our thumbs. It was a beautiful day and I've been wanting to go and enjoy some peace and quiet and take in all the Fall colors. So I packed up Andrew and I and we drove off to Lee Drive - one of our family's favorite places to go in the general area. Of course I've noticed a lot of the amazing red and orange hued trees were along busy two lane streets or off the busy 95 Interstate and I just couldn't justify pulling off the main road and calling it an emergency to take their picture so the green and yellow hues were my company today. I didn't regret it one bit. It was an hour of solitude that I am so grateful I didn't pass up! I really admire nature. Enjoy the pictures.

Oh Happy Day!

{Andrew: 11 weeks to the day}

This morning I went in to go scoop up my snuggle bug out of his bed and this is how I was greeted. Smiles and all! I love this little guy of mine with all my heart. What better way to start the day than to see this cute smile that was meant just for me? :) It really doesn't get any better than that.

Andrew's Baby Blessing

We had Andrew's baby blessing at church today. We had asked our home teacher and good friend to give Andrew his baby blessing and he was honored to do so. Seeing that we won't be back in the Northwest with family until the end of summer due to change of moving plans, we felt it was a good time to have it now while he's little. We also wanted to carry on the tradition of having the blessing within the first month or two of life just like our girls' baby blessings were. The people at church in our ward have been instant family and friends to us since the time we moved here to Virginia so we were really grateful to share this special day with them. My Mom also happened to be visiting in town with us when the baby blessing occurred so it made it that much more special to have some family attend. It turned out being a really nice blessing. Andrew did well and slept right through it all - even pictures! :)

{Our family right after Andrew's baby blessing}

{Our family with my Mom}

{Our family with the Smiths - our home teacher (who blessed Andrew) as well as our great friends!}

{Dad, Mom & baby Andrew}

Baby Shower

My friends from church threw me the best baby shower for Andrew! We planned it so the shower would be a few weeks after Andrew's birth so he could enjoy the special occasion with us - and so my Mom could partake in the fun while she was in town visiting her newest grand baby. The food was awesome, the gifts were appreciated and needed (1st BOY!) and the company of my friends was a reprieve from the long stresses of the week (John leaving for OCS). I thought it would also be fun to bring along Aubrey and Jocelyn so they could have a night out with their mom and grandma. Both seemed to enjoy themselves. There was a point where I didn't know where Aubrey escaped to - until a blessing was being said for the food. Music pouring out of a piano in the basement was a dead giveaway!! LOL She loves to play the piano and anytime there's one nearby she's on it in a heartbeat. Many thanks again to my friend Heather for taking a lot of the photos from my shower! Not everyone at the party is pictured below but I was so happy to have my friends there to celebrate with me. I had so much fun. It was a great night! :)

{I had to take a picture of the food and decorations - food was great and decorations were so cute!}

{My friend & baby shower host: Annette}

{My friend: Sabine}

{My friends: Ann and Jean}

{Started the shower with a game - Aubrey really had fun with this!}

{Cute pajamas}

{Andrew "helping" me open presents}

{My friend: Heather - sitting with Aubrey and lending a helping hand to hold Andrew for me so I could open gifts with ease!}

{Andrew got some really cute stuff and lots of clothes.}

{My Mom with Jocelyn}

{Grandma with her grandaughters}

{My friend Heather (who took our family photos) framed these awesome pictures for us to hang at home. This was such a great surprise!!}

{A collage of photos Heather put together for us of our family. They turned out so good!}