beachy

As I mentioned in my previous post, I got to spend a couple days with my older sister and her kids at the beach. It was such a neat place. We stayed at Rosemary Beach, which has a similar vibe to it's larger and more well known neighboring beach of Seaside. I would recommend either! Both towns are master planned communities that were designed with the idea of recreating the small town life that is so rare these days. The idea was to make a place where cars weren't needed and that's what I loved about this place. You can walk anywhere, to the shops, beach, pool, park, tennis court, in just a few minutes.  We plan to go back as a whole family in the fall. I'm looking forward to it!

Around town in Rosemary Beach

My sister's little ones.  It's such a sweet picture you'd never know all the threats we used to get Shannon to give her brother a kiss! 

A very special week

Last week was a bit of an odd time for me. Originally I had a plane ticket to meet up with my family for a beach vacation. Obviously plans have changed for us, on a daily basis. I intended to spend my whole trip in Memphis with Lindsey, but then Aubs got a cold the day before I left, which meant we had to keep our distance from Lindsey. While waiting for the cold to resolve, I met up with my older sister and we caravaned to Florida and spent a few days at the beach house my parents had rented. After a couple days there I drove to Memphis and spent the remainder of my time with Lindsey. The time was too short! Just 28 days and I'll be a permanant fixture there. I can't wait. Lindsey probably doesn't need me by her side as much as I need her by mine! The picture above is us having a slumber party at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital while she was having a blood clot monitored.

There is no place like St. Jude. St. Jude is the only pediatric cancer research center where families never pay for treatment not covered by insurance. No child is ever denied treatment because of the family’s inability to pay. The daily operating cost of St. Jude is $1.4 million, which is primarily covered by donations. The research at St. Jude is cutting edge. They were the first to cure the most common form of childhood leukemia, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), helping to drive the cure rate from 4 percent in 1962 to 94 percent today. They give hope to families and allow them to focus on fighting the cancer, not paying medical bills that for most would be impossible to cover. I'm anxious for Zach to finish school (for many reasons!) but one of them is to contribute to this amazing place that saves children's lives.

Below is us with my parents at the Target House, a long term housing facility for patients like Lindsey who will be undergoing bone marrow tranplants and where she and my Mom are living. You won't see a fragment of carpet at this place! The name of the game here is to maintain a sterile environment.

Before having to leave school, Lindsey was working on her nursing degree, with the ultimate goal of working at St. Jude. I look forward to seeing her in action there one day. Can you imagine the lives she will touch, the spirits she will lift, the compassion she will share, and the hope she will bring? The patients will be fighting over her!

It was a bit tiring week in many ways (one of those MAIN ways being my child's behavior). But the time I got to spend all my family members (minus my little bro) was so so special and important to me. I love you guys!

happy cute cupcakes

There's something very nostalgic about eating a cheerful little cupcake. There are several places specializing in cupcakes around Pittsburgh that I've been meaning to try out for quite some time. I got a chance to visit two of them with a friend of mine a few weeks ago, although I'm sure I was lame company because I couldn't stop taking pictures, but cupcakes have got to be one of the most photogenic foods around!

Vanilla Pastry Studio

They had me hooked just with the name. And then I went there and it was even better then I'd imagined. It is such a whimsical little place, from the delicate china and silverware they serve the cupcakes on to the grandma's cottage-y tea party atmosphere.

I'd love to decorate my little girl's ceiling just like this.

Self-restraint is not my strong point...

Coco's Cupcake Cafe

Definitely more of a modern, urban, minimalist type of place. I thought the cupcakes were equally delicious, but if you're going for the overall experience and only have time for one place, I'd go to the Vanilla Pastry Studio. Although I do LOVE these signs, I'd like some for my house!

Rows and rows of fluffy frosting goodness...

And finally, here's a link to a blog dedicated solely to creative cupcake recipes. They look so good I'm almost tempted to (gasp) bake!

http://cupcakeblog.com/

For Daniel....

As I think of each individual in my family, I realize that I have been very blessed to have some amazing people in my life. Lately I've been thinking of my little brother, my only brother, a lot. It's an understood fact in my family that Daniel and I are the most alike. He's my buddy. Right now he's serving a 2 year mission for our church. Most of you know that means the only contact our family has with him is a once a week email. I miss Daniel, but I'm glad for the distance, I know it enables him to focus 100% on what he's doing and be the best missionary possible. I was worried about him and how the news about Lindsey would affect him, being so far from home. I got the most amazing email from him last week and I cry and cry whenever I read it, because I'm so proud of him and his faith. I hope he's not offended that I'm sharing a bit of his email...

I cried on the phone then I  had a strong feeling of peace.  I knew what Lindsey would want me to do.  I knew how she would face this situation, and I knew what my Heavenly Father wants me to do.  So I stayed on my  mission. This is a time of growth for all of us.  The Lord loves us and gives us opportunities to grow.  Its up to us to decide if we are going to met the challenge. This is the point where people accept God's will and continue in faith, or get angry and ask why, and turn away from God. 

All I can say is, thank you Daniel.

So this is my little tribute to Daniel. Last year he came and visited me and we trekked all around the city looking for graffiti for him. Before his visit, I'd never paid much attention to graffiti, but have been on the lookout for it ever since, thinking of how much he would like my "discoveries". Daniel, I feel bad about some of the lame stuff we spent so much time taking pictures of, because you wouldn't believe some of the places I've been to recently! So much better! I wish I could take you to them. So instead, here are some pictures for you. I love you!

Daniel educated me that one of the things that'll get you more street cred for your graffiti is if it's in a precarious spot. So do I get any sort of cred for taking graffiti pictures from those spots? 

Must see TV

This will make you smiled. I'll bet money on it. Such a deep belly cackle of a laugh from such a little girl. Some of my favorite laughs are from about 23-53 seconds. I also love at about 1 minute 15 seconds when she stands up straight and you see that although her daddy had her in a shirt and jacket, she has no pants on. Zach should thank me for ditching him that night to hang out with my friends or he wouldn't have had the opportunity to share such special moments with his daughter. 

A couple people have asked me how I got Aubrey to stay still for my header picture. The answer is, I didn't.

We had a split second here, when I also snagged a shot of her feet....

And then she was off! Despite both of these pictures not being in focus, the charming little expression on her face makes up for any lack of quality. What a doll!

I'm definitely on a red door kick right now. I hope to get to some again soon and have a more successful time getting photos of my family. For more Pittsburgh red doors, check out my photo blog here.

We all become our mothers

Our girl has never been one to show affection. Not to us anyways. But she's been a perfect little mother to Mickey. I taught her everything she knows.

She changes his diaper.
And gives him love and cuddles. She makes sure he has a well balanced breakfast (goldfish), complete with a sippy cup and a favorite blanket.

And she grocery shops for him in in mandatory mom grocery shopping attire (pajamas).

Being so caring tuckers her out, just like her mom.
I might buy myself a giant Mickey Mouse costume so I can get some hugs from the little miss. In all seriousness, I did not pose any of these pictures. Miss A carries Mickey everywhere and she's constantly surprising me with the things she does. Today she read him a book, feed him chips, and put him in the dog cage (not something she learned from me, promise)

Other blogs you should check....

Last week my little sister Lindsey (click her name for an old post I did about her) found out that she had relapsed again with leukemia. She's started treatment already and is working towards a bone marrow transplant. I wish I had the eloquence to convey just how incredible Lindsey is as a person. She is more caring and compassionate then even the best of them. Her amazing attitude and unwavering faith truly leave me in awe. I've told Lindsey on a number of occasions, "Stop being so perfect! You're making me look bad!" She's started a blog to keep everyone updated on her progress. Please visit it, I know Lindsey would love to feel your love and support. But if you're like all the other people who have been lucky enough to cross paths with Lindsey, you'll find that she's the one helping you. You can't meet Lindsey without her touching your life and inspiring you towards bettering yourself.

http://lindseyatstjude.blogspot.com/

On a side note, I have just created a photo blog. I know, me and every other chica with pricey camera they don't know how to use. But my original blog was meant to be a family journal and I had always intended on making it into a book that my kids could look at. I just don't think my daughter will be as interested in pictures of other people's kids and random flowers and such as she would be in things that have to do with her. And I miss seeing my fuzzy point and shoot pictures of her doing funny things. On the other hand, I also want to post my photos so I can hopefully see an improvement as time goes on. There's just not room for both on here, and since I have been given a fresh start by Zach's helpful deletions of all my pictures (last time I mention it honey, promise), now seemed like to time to seperate the two. So here you go....

http://lifeasa4x6photography.blogspot.com/