Paul Family Maternity Shoot Pt 1

Last weekend I was blessed with the opportunity to honor my friend's incoming baby, Knox by doing a family maternity photo shoot.  We went out to the Space Coast of Florida for these pics and I think they turned out really beautifully.  Here are a few of the highlights, with a few more coming later this week.

Can we just pause and mention how fast time is flying at this point in the year?  It will be Thanksgiving next week!!!!!!!!!  SAY WHAT?!  My beautiful friend Abby is due at the end of December (hooray for Christmas babies) but we are thinking little Knox will be making an early arrival.  We shall see!  Enjoy the pics...

National Collection Week is HERE

Have you packed up your shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child yet?  If not, time to hop to it!  This is National Collection Week for OCC and you don't want to miss out!

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, please take a moment and check out the OCC website or watch the following video (if you don't mind possibly shedding some tears). 

If you have a shoebox and you just aren't sure where to drop it, proceed to this site to search in your area.

Happy Packing!

Proud Wifey

Good Morning!  It is a beautiful day here at UCF

I'm assuming by now you all have seen the world's greatest YouTube video, but if you haven't yet seen it... STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING AND MARVEL:

I would especially encourage you to check out minute 2:45.  So proud of my sweet, handsome, funny, talented husband.  So hardworking too, poor baby...

I would also encourage you to enjoy this Christmas Oldies station on Songza. 

Have a great day!

High Five, America

Guess what?  NO MORE POLITICAL ADS for a while... Sigh of relief?  Did you stay up last night watching the election results? 

I was terrified of waiting in Florida's historically ridiculous voting lines so I left work early, got caffeine and snacks just in case and I got to my polling place right around 4:30pm expecting a substantial wait.  I think that I had a voting angel on my side because there was literally no line, I just walked right in and they handed me my ballot.  I asked, and they said it was the only time that day it had been quiet and sure enough, as I was voting, the line grew.  So thankful for that.  If you are thinking I'm crazy... some of the voters in Florida waited at the polls for 6 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  WHAT. That is dedication. And bureaucracy at its worst.  And a shining example of Florida in action.

NONETHELESS... I voted, Mama voted, Sissy voted.  The President is back! 

 

More than anything I am hopeful that this brings some much needed balance to our country and a longer-range vision of helping Americans and the world than the short-range one we have embraced lately.  We are no longer a country of pure democrats and republicans.  A lot of people I talk with do not feel well represented in those two camps and feel they are just working to avoid the worst case scenario and not FOR the best case scenario.  Personally, I'm pretty tired of working toward mediocre and am hopeful we can move on from here toward greatness.  We all deserve it.

God Bless the USA! 

This One's For the Girls

I'm feeling very grateful for my girlfriends this week.  Not only was I blessed to get to speak with my sweet cousin/BFF and one of my most beautiful (inside and out) friends Courtney, I also got to celebrate Abby's baby shower for her soon to be here son Knox, I ALSO got to spend the day celebrating Lindzee's 30th birthday.  It was an epic weekend for Girl Time and I loved every minute of it. 

Happy Mommy

FaceTime is the Best... Pretty sure she'll kill me for this pic :)

About to get our shopping on

The Long Lost Blond Kardashian Sisters

Kickin it live in the nail salon.  Happy Birthday Bestie!

Hard to believe these two pictures were just a few days before and after Lindzee's 20th birthday... THAT WAS 10 WHOLE YEARS AGO. Feels more like 5 years ago.  We have gone through a lot in those ten years!  So happy to call her my best friend and to be able to celebrate so many milestones in each others' lives.  Here's to celebrating our 40th birthdays in about 5 minutes sister  :) LOVE YOU!

Halloweenie 2002!

Some lovely ladies right here... 20, 19 and Yumiko :) hehe

Knights Win!

Happy Monday everyone!  This past weekend was Homecoming for UCF and our wonderful friends Dave and Noelle came out to visit for the festivities! 

UCF has a long standing tradition known as Spirit Splash (that you should Google if you aren't familiar with it) that event kicks off Homecoming weekend in a big way.  After celebrating the Splash with my co-workers on Friday (do you like our What the Duck shirts???), Dave, Noelle and I celebrated a huge UCF football victory on Saturday night.  Enjoy the pics of us eating Jeremiah's (yum), cheering our guts out at the game, and the after glow with the Coach himself.  It's been awesome having our friends around this weekend :)

Spirit Splash 2012!

They LOVED it

Ready for Battle ~ Back in Black

Aww Snuggies :)

We're cute, yea?

This is what we really look like... love these two

We cleared the stands fast

My handsome Knight

Hamsome Boy

Did you all have a lovely weekend?  It has actually been down in the 60's here in good old Central Florida (holy guacamole, can you believe that?!).  It has been SO gorgeous.  I have been in heaven with the windows open and lots of outdoor fun with my main man Teeny. 

Besides being able to run errands with mom because he wouldn't roast in the car if I turned off the AC, the Brod-man and also enjoyed a beautiful 3-mile loop around Lake Baldwin this weekend.  Isn't it gorgeous there?  Kinda felt like we were out on early Spring day in Madison for an hour...

Look at that handsome hambone face.  What a sweetie.  I feel a bit horrible enjoying the fringe benefits of Hurricane Sandy as she is about to slam into our northern neighbors but here's hoping the people that needed to evacuated.  I have been glued to the news about this frankenstorm but all of my Floridian veteran co-workers think I'm just being dramatic.  I hope so!  We will see...

Blustery Weather

There's a nor-easter a blowing!  If you are in the northeast part of the US, please brace yourselves and get prepared as the weather experts say this will be a pretty hardy wind storm for you all and soon.  In the meantime, Tropical Storm Sandy has made some GORGEOUS, tropical, cool weather for us down south here in Central Florida.  Looking at my 7 day forcast was a breath of fresh air (sorry, had to!) as it feels like the first time I have seen a high in the 60's in about 2 years!  Looking forward to some beautiful weekend weather and hoping/praying the storm stays the heck out of Hungtington, WV where the fellas are this weekend.