It’s hard to believe that 2018 is almost a wrap! What a wonderful year it has been, both in my personal life and in my business! My family is happy and healthy! Remington loves being a kindergartener, riding the bus, learning to read, and learning new skills. He loves working with tools for woodworking projects with his Dad. He even shared his old toy workbench with his little brother Emerson. And Emerson knows what a flathead screwdriver is, because his big brother has one too! Reggie continues to flourish in his automotive business, Reggie’s Motorworks. He never stops learning and growing and dreaming of the future. He is such an inspiration to me and to my children!
As for my photography business, I’ve met many wonderful new families and couples this year! What an honor and a delight to witness, document, and share in some incredibly beautiful weddings, senior sessions, family sessions, and more! I have a long list of blog posts to write over the winter season, so stay tuned for those! Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who supports me and continues to help me pursue my dreams!
Before we had children, people always said how fast they grow…and, gosh, that is so, so true! We try to spend quality time with our boys, enjoying each day, the good and the not so good, while they are little!
Our boys, Remington (6) and Emerson (who turns 3 on December 22nd!), are growing each day, and they love playing and wrestling and goofing off with Reggie! It is such fun to watch them! And when they climb onto Reggie’s lap to snuggle before bed, when they give him the biggest hugs, when they say “Daddy!” (and “Mommy!”), those are simple, yet amazing moments that I want to hold onto forever.
We love arts and crafts and games! Being creative and feeling inspired are so important to us and to our kiddos. Earlier this year, Reggie hand-crafted this gorgeous table for our unused breakfast nook area. We love that there is always abundant natural light streaming in while the boys paint, draw, race trains/cars/trucks, build with LEGO, etc. It is one of our favorite spaces in our house!
From our family to yours, we would love to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!
Thank you, Stefanie Childs, for sharing your time and talent in capturing our lifestyle family portraits. You are amazing! And many thanks to my sweet friend, Julia, for making me look and feel my best! xoxo
How can it be that our baby boy is now 3 years old?! From the first day we met you, Emerson Ray, you’ve filled our hearts in every way! You are snuggly, silly, sweet, soft spoken (most of the time!), sharing, and curious. Each day you amaze us with new words and timely hugs. You love your Big Brother, Remington, and when the two of you laugh together uncontrollably, you make our hearts soar!
You have a sweet shyness at times, that eventually turns to smiles and cute little giggles. And you enjoy entertaining others around you with silly name games.
You love planes, trains, helicopters, semi-trucks, anything with wheels! You especially love cute animals, like baby frogs, baby sharks (doo doo doo doo doo!), puppies, and dinosaurs. Stories and movies and magnetic blocks are some of your favorite relaxing activities. And you love special treats, like popcorn and gummy bears!
When we found out Remington would be getting a little brother, we couldn’t possibly have imagined anyone better than you to grow up and play together! Your name is a special one, not without a story. I remember seeing the name Emerson and loving it. It was fun to write and fun to say. And we loved the way it sounded adding the middle name Ray, after your Grandfather Ray. Daddy found the following quote in some of Grandma Patti’s belongings, and it’s like the pieces fit together exactly how they were meant to be!
“To laugh often and love much; to win the respect of intelligent people, and the affection of children; to earn the approbation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to give one’s self; to leave the world a little better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived… this is to have succeeded.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
While you have your quiet and serious side, you also have a fun, loud, energetic, and all-boy side! You love rocks, just like your Big Brother, playing in the sandbox, and running so fast with your “strong muscles.”
We love you so much, so much, so much! And we wish you a very Happy 3rd Birthday!!!
It seems like just yesterday we were bringing our baby boy home from the hospital. Most every parent we’ve met over the years has told us that kids grow up so fast. And I’d have to agree that it’s so very true! Remington starts kindergarten tomorrow, and we couldn’t be more proud of him! He is quite excited for a great year ahead! I will admit, I’ve been dreading this day for some time. One of my best friends, who has taught both kindergarten and first grade, has assured me that kindergarten can be a difficult time emotionally for parents, especially mommas! I have worked less during the month of July to be able to spend as much time with Remington and Emerson as possible. We’ve camped, canoed, played at the park, stayed up late playing outside, made crafts, had water fights, and snuggled while watching movies together. I guess it’s just a bittersweet time…my baby boy is reaching another special milestone, and enjoying so many life experiences. I know he will absolutely love school, making new friends and keeping up with old friends from preschool, while learning more and more each day. When I took Remington to visit his new school for kindergarten round-up earlier this summer, I saw a quote in the hallway that summed it up perfectly, so I’ll paraphrase it here: There are two gifts that we should give our children. Roots to grow and wings to fly. Gosh, when I read that, it hit me like a ton of bricks! What a special gift it is to be a parent! I’ll never forget how he held my hand as we toured the school together, and the excitement in his eyes as he got to get on a school bus, after drawing a frog, writing his name, and being given a book to take home. Oh my sweet little guy!!!
Daddy and I are beyond proud of you, Bub!!! We love you so much and wish you a wonderful first day (and year!) of kindergarten! We cannot wait to hear all about it!
A few weeks ago, we went out for a quick photo session of these two silly, loving, wonderful boys! Here are a few favorites!
Today is our 10th Anniversary! Every day I count my lucky stars and thank the good Lord for bringing you into my life, Reggie. I couldn’t ask for a more loving, patient, warm, funny, creative, intelligent, talented man to stand by my side, holding my hand, and enjoying this crazy adventure ! Time seems to have flown by in some ways, and, here we are today with two handsome little guys of our own and sharing this life we have created for us. Thank you for being an amazing role model to our children, for showing me what love and happiness truly means, and for introducing me to new things that I may never have tried without your encouragement, like guacamole, hot sauce….and photography. You are such a bright light in this world, and I love you more and more each day. I’m excited to celebrate with you and our sweet boys today! Happy Anniversary, honey!!! I love you so much!
We happen to share this special anniversary day with my parents too! Mom and Dad, Happy 49th Anniversary to you!!! We love you both so much!!!
{Family Photos // Stefanie Childs}
I love looking at our wedding photos! Here are a few favorites from April 12, 2008:
{Wedding Photos // Katie Collier}
It’s hard to believe that 10 years ago today we were married in our beautiful church, Holy Cross, among our family and friends. It was a chilly, misty April day, and I vividly remember welcoming the cooler temperature as I walked from the back of the church building to the grand front doors. A few guests were still arriving as I waited there. We hadn’t seen each other yet that day, and yet I knew you were right there, on the other side of those wooden doors with your Mom. I remember hearing the music play before walking down the aisle. And then it was my turn to walk through the doors, arm in arm with my Mom and Dad, as we walked down the aisle to see you! You looked so handsome! We listened to the readings that we had chosen and to the words from our officiant. We greeted friends and family during the Sign of Peace. And our hands shook and we giggled as we lit our Unity Candle. We walked hand in hand down the aisle, lined with candles and flowers, until we reach the church doors, where our driver was waiting with his umbrella. We hopped in the antique car, a 1953 Rolls Royce, and drove off! It was a beautiful day, and just the beginning of so many more beautiful days together! Cheers to us!
We woke up at 5am and headed to breakfast on one of the lower levels of the ship. I was a bit seasick that day, and not being able to see outside and feeling the slow motion and engine rumblings at this point proved unfortunate for me! Did we come prepared with seasickness prevention patches? Yes, we did. Did I have one on? No. Did I learn my lesson? Of course! Well, sort of…I will definitely use them the next time we cruise! Once I got some fresh air and could get my bearings, I felt much better. I did not want to miss anything, especially our first day in Italy! We met up with our new friends Donna and Shane without any expectations of what the day would bring! We decided to share a taxi. And that was one of the best decisions we could have made! Carlo was amazing! We thoroughly enjoyed his company and local expertise. We zoomed through the streets of Naples, his hometown, to the beautiful, colorful, charming town of Sorrento! The four of us agreed that we would love to come back to this place and spend more time exploring and taking it all in. We had an hour to explore on foot before Carlo picked us up for the next leg of our trip: the ruins of Pompei! On our way, Carlo stopped so we could take photos along the coast, overlooking the Bay of Naples, views to Capri, and some delicious fresh squeezed orange and lemon granitas! (See my previous post for the coastal images!) He also purchased some delicious fruit candies to enjoy!
Our next stop was Pompei, where we spent 2 hours walking around the ancient ruins. Again, you could spend so much time here! It was so amazing to see what has been preserved by the volcanic ash and how they are working to preserve all of the ancient structures today!
We hopped back in Carlo’s taxi and headed back to Naples to enjoy his favorite pizza and gelato. And oh my goodness, it was the best pizza and gelato (in hand-rolled cones) ever! He carefully gave us directions and made sure we knew the way back to the ship. We really should have taken a photo with him, because our time with him made our whole day of adventure so much more fun and personal. He hugged and kissed us each goodbye, while again making sure we knew how to get back to our ship! Carlo, mille grazie! Thank you so much for sharing your day with us, it was absolutely wonderful!!! He gave us his business card, and I plan to send him photos from our trip!
As we enjoyed our late lunch of the best pizza ever, we strolled up and down the pedestrian streets taking in as much we could. We were invited to take photos sitting on a 30 year old motorbike by friendly locals. And we took photos of each other in a colorful alley that captured a slice of Naples, Italy. We saw the main square downtown, and Donna helped me chase some pigeons for photos, and we browsed a huge castle with intricately carved details. As Donna said, it was such a lovely day! It’s safe to say we enjoyed our time and already knew it was such a special place to visit!
We made it back to the ship on time and were greeted by Norwegian Cruise Line’s staff and music. They really make you feel welcome each time you set foot on the plank! That evening we enjoyed some cocktails and got rested up for our next day in Rome!
