Sometimes life’s messy and unscripted moments are the finest.

Shutterfly Party 

Do you remember the Shutterfly party I had last year?  I threw another party this year and it was soo fun!  I wanted to get the moms together to talk about and compare different photo products and companies.  I also wanted to try to get some cute holiday photos of the kiddos so I asked everyone to dress in holiday gear.  Here are a few of my favorites~

This might be one of my favorite photos of the year.  The kids look so cute and it reminds me of a Gap holiday ad. 

 

One of the things we looked at were photo calendars.  I love making these as gifts for family.  They’re so much simpler to make than photo books and they’re such wonderful & useful keepsakes. 

  

Giveaway

Everyone who came to the party got special gifts from Shutterfly and goodies from me!  I have more Shutterfly gift packets to give away here!  Each gift packet includes 1 photo calendar, 15 holiday cards and a $10 gift card to Plum District.  Leave a comment if you’re interested and I’ll randomly pick 4 in the next few days!  [Yay for Miriam, Sharon, Gina & Sooki!  I will message you soon!]

Disneyland

It all started with an advertisement we received in the mail.  There was a photo of a kid hugging Minnie Mouse.  After Evan saw it he asked us every single day…Evan hug Minnie Mouse?  Evan go Disneyland?

We got an annual pass!  It was Andy’s birthday so it was nice to start the pass on a special day. 

And this is what happens after a few hours at Disneyland…

 

Thanksgiving 2011

Hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving!  We had such a wonderful time at my in-laws’ place~! 

 

There are so many things to be thankful for.  Whenever I find myself complaining or grumpy I close my eyes and think of how blessed I am.  I’m so lucky to even have these things to complain about.  I don’t want to take any of it for granted.  It might be hard being up in the middle of the night to feed Joy but at least I’m not losing sleep worrying about having a roof over my head or finding food to eat.  I might complain about how hard it is to handle Evan’s tantrums but thank goodness he has the strength and conviction to struggle instead of being chronically ill or too weak to care.  Try it the next time you’re feeling grumpy…just think how lucky you are to even have the luxury to complain!

iPhone Love

1 – my silly girls

2 – staring in awe at my Joy

3 – 90% in weight at her 2 month appointment!

4 – my happy baby

5 – I want to stay in this moment forever

6 – fabulous mini photographer thanks to Miny Eemo!

7 – must never forget how tiny these fingers started out

8 – these two carry on such fascinating conversations all in Chinese

9 – people say Bella looks more like me than my kiddos do!

 

Hello buddies~~ I can’t believe it’s already November!  I got the best CD in the mail~ Sky Blue Seed’s photos from when Joy was born! 

Hospital Photos

I remember with Evan’s birth that we hardly had any photos yet those few images from the first days are so precious to us.  I feel so blessed that Sako of Sky Blue Seed was there to document our first days as a family of four.  She is such a talented photographer and has a gift for capturing perfect moments.  Here are a few of my favorite photos from Joy’s birthday and from Evan & Joy’s first meeting.  You can see the rest on the Sky Blue Seed blog here and here.

Here are a few things that helped make Evan & Joy’s first meeting a smooth & memorable one: 

* A gift from Evan to Joy and vice versa.  I had the gift and his outfit all picked out and set aside.  Each day leading up to the birth I would tell him that he would wear that outfit and bring the gift to see us at the hospital.

* I printed out photos of Evan to have in the hospital room and in Joy’s bassinet.  It made Evan happy to see that he was included in everything that was going on.

* Our pediatrician said not to have Joy in the room when Evan first arrived.  It might be upsetting for him to walk in and see her already with us…as if we went off and made a new family without him!

* I made a simple birthday card for Joy and had Evan color it in.

A Gift to Myself

It was just about a year ago that I returned to blogging after a long absence.  I’m so happy that I haven’t given up.  Blogging is a gift to myself.  Even when the laundry is piled high and there are almost 2,000 emails in my inbox I still like to step away and reflect.  Life moves so quickly and it’s easy to just get caught up in the daily to dos.  Blogging gives me a chance to appreciate, to reflect and to truly see the blessings in my life.  Also, if I didn’t post my favorite photos then all of my photos would just remain in a giant abyss on my hard drive!

I just want to thank all of you for always being there to cheer me on and encourage me to continue blogging.  I received such a nice comment recently.  Thanks V for taking the time to leave such a wonderful comment!  If I ever get discouraged about blogging I’ll remember this… 

Hi Jenny - I just want to say, “Hang in there!”  While we don’t actually know each other, I’ve been a silent lurker on and off for a few years (no, I’m not a stalker – just enjoy seeing your updates! ).  I just wanted to post because it seems you’re having a tough time, so maybe a few positive words would help a little.  You really have an inspirational and awesome blog.  I’m so impressed that you are able to maintain it despite all the changes going on in your life!  If I ever need a pick me up, I check your site and see if you have any posts.  Even when you’re stressed out, I love how you maintain a positive attitude (as hard as it can be).  It’s made me re-think some things and change my attitude when things are tough!  Bella, Evan, and Joy are all just adorable, and you and Andy seem like the perfect couple!  I also think it’s so great that you can look back and reflect on everything – it inspires me to start a blog as well!  Please keep up the posts (but not if you’re TOOOO sleep deprived – even mommies of two young kids need to sleep, though it seems you don’t need much given all that you have going on on the side ), because I’m sure you’re making an impact on not just my life but those of others as well by setting a great example! :)  Take care!

Halloween 2011 

I love Halloween!  Last year Evan was Mickey & a pumpkin.  This year he was Tigger & a fireman.

We were overzealous and ready to go trick or treating at 5pm.  It wasn’t dark so no one was out yet.  I told Evan we had to wait until it got dark.  We waited outside and he kept saying…Where did dark go?  Dark~ where are you?  LOL!

Hope you all had a fabulous Halloween!