Black & White Wednesday - "1"

Hailey is turning one. awww. They grow up so fast! Hailey is the daughter of our friends Heather & Justin. We shot some engagements for them, their wedding, Hailey at a few months old... and I was so excited when she asked us to do some photos for her 1st birthday! We went to a new location, but it wouldn't have mattered where we were, because Hailey was all smiles.

Hairstyles

I almost wanted to title this Hairstyles Unlimited. You know, 'cause that sounds semi-cool. Tack on unlimited to anything, and it does that... but in reality, my own hairstyle is indeed pretty limited. I'm sure the possibilities are pretty endless, but i just dont ever fix it any different. I blow dry it, or half-way blow dry it and leave it alone. Unless it's a special event...then it might see my large barrel curling iron.

Have you checked out that before and after picture in my sidebar? See where i had...bangs? They used to be super poofy. That was 10 years ago. I havent worn bangs since the end of my freshman year of highschool.

Until today. (Mind you, they got a little wet thanks the weather...) And the other pic is a year ago when i first cut them to even be side cut bangs. I huge puffy heart the length tho. And im always wondering how far im gonna let it go before i decide to change it.

today i just needed a change tho. That change was bangs. I uploaded it to facebook mobile about an hour ago and it has 11 likes and 7 comments. My friends are nuts. Most action a photo has had in awhile! haha Whaddya think, a nice change for every once in awhile?

 I think Angelina Jolie is my hair idol. She looks great either way! (Photos from Star)

Furniture Shopping - Madness.

Can you say stressful?

It probably wouldn't be so bad if we hadn't decided to put BLACK in the living room. It's so hard to find. Everything is wood. or espresso. or cappuccino. or dark cherry. or some other variation of the color brown. And even some black pieces are considered distressed black. with a brush of espresso. No thanks. I dont understand why Best Buy sells so many black tv stands when the market is so saturated with non-coordinating items! And then when you actually DO find other black pieces that look half way decent like they arent made of cheap flimsy material... you can only purchase these items online, and not actually see them in person. Another big no thanks. It's really frustrating.

I'll have to take pictures of our living room before and after once we actually remove the current tables, but...

Last weekend we went to Ashley Furniture in hopes we'd find some new coffee/end tables. Our entire bedroom is an Ashley collection, but it was purchased at Hilton. Anyway...my husband is picky. Picky picky picky. And while we do have similar tastes, he has more distinct preferences, and voices them. loudly. However, we found a set we agreed on (we didnt JUST go to Ashley...). Here's the set we picked...tho the color says dark bronze, it actually did look black in the store.

So we bought it. It would've given the living room some nice touches of color with those dark tiles. It's in stock at the warehouse. Where's the warehouse? Sugarland. Could we go pick it up? Yes. Off we went. We get there in the pouring rain, and one of the guys comes up to me and says that their computer systems are down. So just kinda looked at him and said...well what does that mean exactly? Are you telling me I can't pick up my furniture that I just drove all the way over here for? And he said basically, ya. So we were a little angry. I said, I dont care, just go pull our stuff, input the data when the computers come back on or whatever, just give me my stuff. All he was gonna do was keep a signed copy of the piece of paper I already had anyway I'm sure. Computers back on 5 minutes later and they go to pull our tables. 15 minutes later they come back and they can't find them. They don't have them in stock. I. was. livid. It's not like these are pens or shampoo they had to keep track of...these were large items. How do you screw that up. We call the store, because the warehouse won't, and immediately get the manager on the phone, who offers free delivery...on Thursday. Wasn't gonna work. We said how 'bout Friday? And of course he couldn't give us a time...that's....semi-normal. Yesterday Justin gets a call saying they still don't have these tables in. And deliver would have to wait. We ask for a refund. They said it's gonna be 4-5 days. Ok, so they take the money out the same day, but can't give it back to us as quickly because they have to fill out numerous forms. What a joke. Justin called and disputed the original charge with the bank and told them what happened...We had the money back within 24 hrs....   and have continued shopping since.

I spent all day Thursday shopping for furniture online. I had so many bookmarks to get home and show Justin, most of which he vetoed immediately. There's 4 table sets on the list of possibilities. Only one of which is in a showroom...in Beaumont! And another one, sold at 2 stores locally, which may or may not be a showroom. And the other 2 are online only (ick). I'll check back in when we pick one and show you all of them.

Don't get me started on black shelving/book cases. It's not even worth talking about until we actually buy some. Which may be never, because it's all online only too. Good grief...

Black & White Wednesday - Girls

I havent gotten to shoot alot for myself lately. I really need to get out and shoot some floral macro photography or some photos for my family that we just cant seem to get schedules in line for. Oh well. I guess it's all ok when I get to meet girls that are as cute as these 4!

My best friend Amanda's friend Tara was in town for a few days and wanted to see if I was available at all for a photoshoot of these lovely young girls. If you're in the Houston area...can you say ICK at all the gross rain we've had day after day after day and it's still coming... We had planned on shooting Sunday, but that totally didn't happen. So I did something I don't typically do, and rescheduled for a week night. Last night to be exact. We started off at the park, but because of the rain... the mosquitos were awwwwwful. And this really had the girls upset. See?

I wish so much that we could have stayed there and played on the hill and under the trees. The light was perfect and this area wasn't very crowded, but it was near impossible to continue there.

I suggested we go grab some ice cream, and off we went.

The girls then decided that they thoroughly enjoyed playing on the cement of the parking lot and shopping center, much more than the park.

Luckily, i found a small patch of grass, and they managed to sit still for all of two seconds.

but see why i wanted to stay at the park? All you had to say to this one was "Show me your teeth!"

New Pages

See up there underneat the title?! there's some girls names...and some other odd names... well im talking about the mustangs in our family! I could've just made them each their own blog post...and heck, i still might...but now they're visible all the time...

I just figured the blog could use a little more mustang love :)

Black & White Wednesday - "Engaged"

Sunday morning I woke up in the most ridiculous amount of itchy mosquito bites I've ever had in my life. I had spent Saturday morning at Brazos Bend State Park. My first trip ever there. Never mind the daily rains we'd had for the last week. Bringing a can of OFF never crossed my mind. Lesson learned.

I was at the park for Kelly & Andrew's engagement session. Here's a few I quickly edited the same day for their sneak peak on facebook. The larger ones in black and white for well...black & white wednesday, and a few small colored ones, because well, the mosquito bites were worth it.

See the pics a little larger.

Trash The Dress!

I cant believe I havent posted this yet!

that said...

A few weeks ago was my trash the dress session. I know I was facebooking and tweeting about it...but not here. My bad. Trash the dress. What dress? My wedding dress. *gasp* but whyyyy. I'd rather have this artwork than a big box with a stuffy dress in it that i'll never wear again. It was soooo much fun.

Here's the scoop on my photog(s).

My wedding photographer, Leslie Spurlock (from McKinney/Dallas area), and her 2nd shooter Todd (from San Antonio) were in town for a wedding at Moody Gardens. We met at my place of work early Sunday morning (with permission of course!), and then we went to a car wash! My friend from highschool Megan, of Greathouse Photography, was in town for a few weeks and with Leslie's ok, she tagged along for the session too. The last thing I expected...Leslie posted a preview of my pics immmmmediately. even before the wedding she shot the same weekend. They were fabulous and I cant wait to see the rest of them. She just got back from a wedding in Italy tho! And i told her she could wait to edit my photos til she got back since she had so much to do before she left. As a photog myself, I can relate to what little bit of stress that may have relieved her of. lol! Megan was a sweetheart tho, and I didnt expect her to just load her memory cards on my computer, but she diiiiid. And then she let me edit them. wowzers!! Want to know why I think that's cool?...

well if you visit Leslie's FB fan page, Greathouse Photography's FB page, or my FB page...you can see how each of us saw the image because they're all edited differently :)

Oh you might want to see them huh? Here's a few!

From Megan's camera, with my edits:

And here's a few of Leslie's!

Black & White Wednesday - July 4th

My Independence Day plans have changed drastically as I've become an adult with no children of my own.When I was real little, we would watch fireworks on a blanket at the t-ball field in Taylor, TX. Then when i was a little older, but still quite young, we'd spend the day at Lake Limestone and then when it got dark, out came the fireworks. Two of my aunts had side by side property out there. We'd lay in the hammocks, swim, grill, and set off fireworks as a family, and watch as other families did the same across the lake. Now, all my cousins I did that with are grown and most of us are married. The kids are only about 2, and well, we just don't do what we used to do. What we do changes every year. I suppose once I do have my own kiddo, we'll start making our own traditions. In the meantime, we just enjoy spending the day with whichever family we can.

This year, my husband's mother invited some of his family over for a late lunch. The pictures (yes multiples, LOL) for B&W wednesday this week are of Justin's cousin Morgan, who just recently turned 1, and will be walking any day now! Then Jordan, another of his cousins, was a flower girl in our wedding. And then there's the family dog, Rambo. Rambo has been in the family for 12-13 years now...just a little longer than me ;)

And this one for fun, in color. Jordan was throwing those pop-it thingies at the sidewalk. lol

I'm posting these on my studio blog also because well, i can post them a little bigger there, and havent quite formatted this one just right yet ;) And if you read the last B&W Wednesday over there, you'll see why I have two currently. Which i may explain later here this week too, just because, lol.

Photographer: Bobby Earle

Surely you've heard of Bobby Earle? He's the whole reason I even got a twitter. Not gonna lie. I started it so I could follow him. I also thought it was super cool that when I became his friend on facebook, that he acccctually took the time to look at my page and comment on a few photos instead of just clicking the accept button. Has he looked at my page since? Probably not, he's got a ton of friends...but still.

Anyway, you're probably wondering why I'm blogging about this dude. Mostly because he's just pretty awesome. But, also because he's giving away a shootsac! You see, one reason I love to keep up with Bobby is because he's always going on these awesome trips out of the country that he likes to call, Raddest Photo Trip Ever! His next trip is this December, and you can go too! Check out the details here. And while it's most certainly out of my budget this year, I dream of going one day. He brings back these amazing images that you just can. not. get. here in the states. He tells tales of these amazing people that I love hearing about. He gets to see parts of history that I've only read about. Life changing experiences.

In addition to his blog posts about the RPTE...there's a few other reasons I love following Bobby's work.
 - His style of shooting may not be for everybody...but it's his. It's distinctly his.
 - The love that he and his wife share is incredible. The way he talks about her is amazing.
 - Before & After Wednesdays - I love when photogs share things like this.
 - He's very open. and he just plain loves life and you can see it in every post.

So here's to Bobby Earle - thanks for blogging like you do, it's inspiring!

Hair Product Reviews

I dont know why I dont just stick with a routine and use the same products continuously. I think recently has been the longest time I've gone without changing. I suppose I found some stuff I actually like enough not to try new things? Lol

First up, Tresemme Fresh Start Dry Shampoo. I've mentioned dry shampoo on my blog a few times...and Veronika recently reviewed this product also. I've also tried Rockaholic (my least favorite) and Big Sexy Hair (my fave! but it's pricey for a small can). Enter Tresemme:

Love it. I actually quite like the smell, and it does a very good job on my hair. Much better than Rockaholic. and it's like 5 bucks. which is way awesome.

Then there's Pantene Pro-V Fine Hair Solutions line...the Volumizing Spray Gel/Root Lifter... My first experience with root lifter was the Catwalk Root Boost. and well, i always fall back to comparing things to it, but have yet to buy another can. Note to self, ask for some for my birthday, haha

I like it. I could live without it. but i will probably buy it again. It's actually not much like a gel at all. in fact i was google for a spray and this popped up and i almost didnt think it was the same thing...but it is. I didnt take any before pictures or anything, but i use it every time i blow out my hair these days. And i do feel like it helps. And one time i got it in my bangs and they were super fluffy. haha

The last few times I've bought shampoo/conditioner, I've been grabbing the L'Oreal EverStrong Bodify

It's sulfate free, and my hair is fine these days, so i like to buy anything that will attempt to enhance it. But i would definitely recommend this shampoo. I dont know what else to say about it other than that I woudl recommend it. I love the way my hair feels, its less greasy...and i dont know what kind of positive effect sulfate free is supposed to have, but i like it.

Next, Sebastian Whipped Cream - I do usually wait to buy with coupons at Ulta.

I use this when i want soft waves for a few days. Day 1, I'll use this, blow dry, and use a curling iron. Day 2, this just gets scrunched into my hair. It's not crunchy, and it smells nice. Leaves my hair soft.

Last up - Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly - my most recent hair product purchase

I use this when im feeling lazy and dont wanna use a curling iron. I did find that when blow dryed with a diffuser, I like it. If i let my hair air dry, this does become a bit crunchy and stiff.

If you have any ideas for products for me to try, let me know!

And because well, It's been awhile since ive had a self portrait up...and i just got an iphone 4 and the new camera is pretty freaking cool... here's a photo. My hair was pulled back since the minute i woke up. I didnt even brush it. hahaha I just pulled it back. I took this pic 8 hrs later when i finally took it down and brushed it.