The Mirror

I have a large mirror on the wall in our living room. Eric made it for me a few years ago. We bought the plain mirror at Home Depot and then he designed, built and painted black a wooden frame for it.

3 days old

I pass this mirror every time I go to or from our bedroom. Since the changing table and baby bed are in there, I am going in and out of our room and passing by this mirror many times every day.

4 days old

Not surprisingly, there is often a little baby in my arms as I traipse back and forth putting away clean clothes and changing diapers.

5 days old

I love the view I see in the mirror as I pass by of my little girl slung over my shoulder; sometimes asleep, sometimes not.

20 nights old

And I can't help but grab my camera and snap a few.

5 weeks old

Over the course of the last 8 weeks I've amassed a little collection of these mirror pictures. They make me smile every time I see them.

8 weeks old

I love how little she looks and how I can see how much she grown by comparing the pictures.


I love that I'm in the pictures too, even if I'm usually in ratty clothes (apparently I throw on that gray sweatshirt a lot!) with my hair pulled back in a ponytail and no makeup and with a large, black camera in front of my face. This is about the only way that I get to be in the pictures with my baby since I'm always behind the camera.


But, every once in a while I manage to get my face in the frame, too.


I think I've started a little tradition that I hope continues as Clara grows. It's something special that I've only shared with her; only Clara has a collection of these quirky snapshots.

Capturing the little moments. Making memories. That's what photography is about.

7 weeks old!

I'm still figuring out where the good light is in this house. By "good light" I mean those sweet spots where the natural light is soft but bright enough that flash isn't necessary.


I found some good light yesterday. This was taken during a diaper change as Clara laid on the changing table. Not bad, huh?

Small Successes Vol. 4

1. We got out of the house yesterday and I took Gustin and Clara to the park. We've had a very cold winter (for Houston) this year and we've been cooped up way too much. It only took us about an hour to get ready for a trip to the park that only lasted about 30 minutes, but we did it!

2. I finally decided on my Lenten fast. I'm giving up sweets/desserts again. I do every year but that doesn't mean its an easy or unfruitful fast. I love, love, love cake, cookies, ice cream, chocolate... the list goes on and on and I need Lent to help me keep my appetites in check.

3. I also made another Lenten resolution, something that I would do rather than give up. I thought about the usual suspects, more prayer time, spiritual reading, exercise or less TV or internet. But, the more I thought about the more I realized that God was calling me to do something a little different this year. I'm going to make a point of being more affectionate toward my husband. Husbands can feel a little neglected when a newborn demands so much of the wife, so I'm going to make an effort to give him a few extra back scratchings and hugs and kisses, to sit next to him on the couch instead of alone in the recliner and to hold hands more. Since physical touch is one of Eric's love languages, I know he will appreciate it.

Click over to Faith & Family Live for more Small Successes!

My photography

The Pioneer Woman picked another one of my pictures to feature on her site! It's the first one featured in her post and one that I've shared with you all before. So exciting!

I've also begun recently decorating my house with some of my photography. I've always put my portraits up, but now I'm using some of my nature photography as well. I picked the same butterfly picture as The Pioneer Woman did for my first floor bathroom, the public bathroom that all our guests see.



I also printed three of my photographs on canvas (I had to save my money for awhile to do it!) and hung them in our master bedroom. I love how they turned out!

Note: This is not my normal bedding because my good stuff is in the wash. I really must take another picture with my nice bedding and from a different angle to show what the room is really like!

One of my passions about photography is color. I love to photograph colorful things and I love to manipulate and enhance those colors in photoshop. I also love (I am using the word "love" way too much in this post!) the colors that these prints have brought to these rooms. The rooms feel so much more alive and welcoming and not quite so blah. Every time I see them during my day as I do chores and tend to my duties it brings a smile to my face.

What a blessing photography has been to me! It took me 30 years to discover a hobby that I'm truly passionate about and I thank God for it!

7 Quick Takes Friday (vol. 8)

--1--

I've been loving watching the new Masterpiece Theater version of Emma on PBS. I haven't been able to watch when it airs on Sunday nights, so I've been catching up online where they have the full episodes. Great entertainment while nursing a one month old!

--2--

With the Christmas holidays followed by the birth of a baby, we haven't been eating too healthy around here. My sweet tooth has been over indulged and it's time to reign it in. We've had so much junky food that I'm actually craving fresh fruits and veggies right now. So, my plans for the Superbowl include lots of guacamole, grilled chicken and a fruit salad with fresh berries (I don't care how much the cost in the store right now, I'm buying blackberries! Yum!).

--3--

For Clara I finally bought some decent nursing bras. For the other kids, I spent about $12 per bra and the fit/support was definitely in proportion with the price. Not so good. So, this time I got a few Bravado nursing bras and a couple of nursing tanks. They're great! I especially love the tanks with a pair of fun pajama pants for nighttime nursing.

--4--

I saw the first signs of spring this week! A few trees are beginning to bud out and I saw some paper whites in bloom. The first week of February seems early even for Texas!

--5--

My favorite word of Gustin's right now: fidge-er-fay-ter. Also known as a refrigerator.

--6--

My other favorite word of Gustin's: Tare-luh. Also known as his baby sister, Clara.

--7--

I just finished a fantastic book, The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton. The book is about a search for the truth of the past for a woman named Nell. The book switches between Nell's search for her birth parents, her granddaughter continuing the search 30 years later and the actual events some 60 years earlier. The story is absolutely fascinating, the writing superb and I thoroughly enjoyed the journey across 100 years and two different continents. I loved, loved, loved this book and it is definitely one that I will read again.

Be sure to head over to Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes!

One month old and chubbing up nicely

My how time flies!


That's her first grin caught on camera. Most of her smiles, though, happen when she sleeps. She will also sleep with her eyes open. I've heard of people who could do that but I've never actually seen it myself. Clara will be in full REM sleep with her eyes wide open and smiling away.

She's a good little eater (as evidenced by the chubbiness of her cheeks) and is getting to be a better sleeper. Last night she only woke up once between 10 pm and 5 am. That's progress!


It's amazing how different the entire household seems since Clara arrived. With three kids, Eric and I were already outnumbered, but now that we have our fourth, it really feels like we're outnumbered. Someone (or more than one someone) always seems to need something and sometimes it feels like we're on a run away train. We just can't keep up. And, that's okay. The house is just going to be in complete chaos for awhile until Clara gets older and the rest of us can adjust. The older kids are going to have to take on more responsibilities and we'll have to work together better as a team. I'm also trying to identify ways to organize us better and Eric's been throwing lots of stuff away. We just don't need unnecessary junk adding to the chaos.

I have a bunch of posts in my head that I want to write. I don't know if or when they'll get done, but I'm going to try to post as often as I can. I'm keeping up with reading all of your blogs but sorry that I haven't been a good commenter. That will come again in time! Thank you for coming by my blog and commenting when you can. This blog really helps me deal with stress and all your support helps me keep my sanity!