Easter Bunnies

In an attempt to help guide my family on the path of healthy eating, I opted to have the "Easter Bunny" give my kids muslin bunnies for their Easter gifts instead of baskets filled with candy. The fun thing about these cute bunnies is that they have outfits that match the clothes I made my kids for Easter. They were a big hit. Evie wouldn't give up her bunny for more than 2 seconds today- she had a little girl at Church that wanted to see it, and she refused her even a small glance in the fear that she wouldn't get it back. Henry spent a bit of the day "honking" the bunny's nose. Very funny. Here are a few pictures of them with their bunnies:

We had an Easter Egg hunt with the cousins yesterday, and then Easter dinner tonight. It has been a nice weekend. We will probably do the zoo tomorrow seeing as everyone will be home!! Yeah!

I have the bravest girl ever!

We just got home from the hospital. Evie, for those who don't know, was born with a port wine stain birth mark on her face that we have been getting laser treatments in the hopes that it will fade and be unnoticable. This morning was such a laser treatment. This morning we had to wait quite a while because the attending anethesiologist was busy doing another case before he could come and do Evie's case. While we were waiting, another family came in. They had a really cute little boy that had a port wine stain on his face, but he has more bad effects of the condition than Evie does. When I was talking to the boy's mother, I really started to see how lucky we are that Evie's birth mark, while red and covers her face, does not effect her development or her eyesight. The little boy's sister was the same age as Evie and the two little girls sat and played until the anethesiologist came in. It was very cute. When it was time to take Evie back, she just took hold of the nurse's hand and led the way to the OR. She didn't seem to worry about the fact that she had left Mamma and Daddy behind. When she woke up, she was very calm and didn't cry. She hasn't cried after a treatment for a long time.
She really is a very brave girl. I think that part of it is that she is just naturally brave and strong, and part of it is that she has a lot of faith. Before each laser treatment, Nathan gives her a priesthood blessing- and by golly, it really helps. It really is amazing to see the amount of faith that this little girl has that her Heavenly Father will help her through her troubles. Her birth mark is fading really well...we have a lot of treatments left, I think, but there is already a significant difference in her birth mark. I am grateful for that.

Cutest, Gooey-est Couple Ever

Saturday was Matt and CarrieAnn's wedding. I don't know if I have ever seen Matt so happy, and I have known him for 4 1/2 years. They are perfect for each other...they just fit so well and have a great time together. Everytime I have seen them together they are always laughing! They had a wonderful day, even though there was a small hiccup when they got to the temple, but no big deal. The weather was not ideal, but at least the snow stayed away until after we were done shooting our pictures at the temple. It was windy, but not too cold. CarrieAnn liked it because then we could try and use the wind for fun. It turned out, though, that the wind just blew her veil out of her hair, and it had to be retired for most of the shoot. Their reception was really good, too. I don't think I have seen that MANY people at a reception...well, a Mormon reception. I mean, there was a steady stream...no a river, of people coming the entire reception! It was crazy, but they had fun. I got tired, and probably didn't take as many pictures as I have at other weddings, but they still ended up with almost 300 shots, so I don't know if there is going to be any complaining.

Capitol Bridal Shoot

Today I had the wonderful experience of shooting bridal portraits in the Utah State Capitol Building. What a wonderful building! There was a bank of big windows that we started at, and that turned out fun. Add columns and stairs and so much marble it starts to all blend together, and you have a recipe for really fun pictures. I almost fell down the stairs twice today because my scatter-brained brain lost track of where the first and the last step were. That would have been bad...I probably would have broken my camera and hurt myself. But, lucky, I came out unscathed. There is a huge overhead skylight over the big marble staircases...Oh my goodness! It was perfect! I didn't have to use my flash hardly at all! I was so excited! I don't like flash photography (except in the studio) and I am really more comfortable doing natural light photography, so it was perfect. We were inside away from the cold and the snow and the wind, but I got to use mostly natural light! It was great!

I have a couple of favorite pictures from the shoot. Here they are:

Happy Valentine's Day!!

So, we aren't really "celebrating" Valentine's Day this year. The last couple of times we celebrated Valentine's day, we ended up with babies born in November. So, Valentine's day is now outlawed in my house.

But, I thought we would do something fun anyway. I made heart shaped petit fours for dessert. I am making a heart shaped pizza for dinner. And Evie and I made "Love Bug Crowns" this morning. It turned out pretty cute. She was excited that she gets to be the Love Bug Princess. Here's a picture:

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

My Big Boy

My baby is 15 months old! Boy! It has gone by soooo fast!! I took him to the doctor today and he is 35 inches tall and 25 pounds 11 ounces. In 3 months he has grown 2 inches and gained 14 ounces. He is so tall! I noticed the other day that his little spine sticks out through his skin! He is beginning to take after his big sister...Tall and Skinny!

Isn't he cute?

Really cool soft light box

Yesterday I bought the coolest thing ever. I did a ton of searching on the internet trying to find a doable solution for CarrieAnn that wants her bridals shot in the Capitol Building...but I don't want to haul around stand-mounted lights and umbrellas and soft boxes and all that crap. I like to be moveable when I do pictures! Anyway, I found a 12 inch by 16 inch soft light box that can attach to my Speedlight that attaches to my camera. It is so cool. I was even going to buy a off-camera mount flash bracket...but the nice salesperson at the store gave me a better idea. Instead of spending an additional $100-$200 on a bracket, she suggested just putting my camera on my tripod and then hand holding my flash with the soft box attached...that way I can move it to where it needs to be manually and easier. My pocketbook thanks her!
I am shooting CarrieAnn's bridals in a couple of Saturdays, so I will post the results from my really cool soft light box when I get them!!