Christmas in Pictures

Christmas Eve at midnight

 

Having Fun with a couple of presents...

at a reasonable hour

Some of my DIY decor

 

Natalia's DIY project with Mommy

We used old Christmas cards & ribbons to make wall decor

 

 

And our holiday card

 

Hope you had a good one!

 

 

In Her Shoes and Through Her Lens... the Interview

So this time I get to share my interview with one of the first bloggers I ever started reading.
Her blog had me at "Shoes" and has continued to entertain me with her absolutely honest thoughts of being a wife, a mommy AND a photographer. I even followed her to Wordpress when she moved there, traitor! But its not just her thoughts that are worth checking out, she takes AMAZING photographs and if I didn't live so far, I probably would hire her to take pictures of the twins every other month... so Jeff and my bank account are probably happy about the distance. Here she is:

Hi Guys,

Andrea here from "In Her Shoes and Through Her Lens". Long title, hey? Well, I'm a photographer and I love shoes so there ya go! :) I'm a wife to a firefigher (no, the novelty has not worn off!) and mama to two kiddos - Eli who is 2 1/2 and Gabriella who just turned a year. I'm a stay-at-home-mom who runs her business when the babes nap and while my days are crazy and hectic, I love every minute of it!

Which do you enjoy buying more: Shoes, Cameras or Books?

HARDEST QUESTION EVER!!! I guess I'd have to say cameras. I get a rush out of buying all of them but there's nothing like purchasing a new piece of equipment that will take countless amazing images for years to come. I'll never say no to a new pair of shoes though ;)

 

What would you tell yourself about being a Mommy if you were able to go back three years in time?

I would tell myself, "You will be pushed to your limit in every way possible. You will love like you never loved before. Get angry like you've never been angry before. Become frustrated like you've never been frustrated before. But it's all worth it. You know you're going to love your kids but you will not truly comprehend that love until you feel it with every fiber of your being. Also, don't be surprised if your perspective on things change. You will consider things that never crossed your mind before - natural remedies, new eating habits, parenting styles. You'll never be the same person...in a good way though".

Best memory so far of your adorable Eli and beautiful Gabriella?

Ah, there are so many. It was a bittersweet moment, but I'd have to say the last time I nursed Eli will always be with me. We had a long, painful journey and I made it to 7 1/2 months but that last time was still really sad for me. I cried so hard that night. I don't want to hold on to that sadness but I do want to remember that special bond we had. With Gabriella, I think I'll always smile thinking about how she interacts and laughs with her older brother. I can't explain the joy of watching these two grow up together. I grew up as the only child so it's really amazing for me to see sibling interaction.

 

What's your secret to losing your baby weight? Because you know: I hate you (with love!)

Hehe....oh, it takes a TON of discipline. I really wish I could say I was one of those mamas who saw the baby weight disappear with no effort but that's far from the truth. Like most people, I adore pizza, chocolate and wine and it takes a lot of self control to say no to those things. The majority of my time I spend eating Paleo, which is basically food in it's natural form. I don't eat bread, beans or other processed foods. I track my food intake using an app called My Fitness Pal and try to keep my carb intake under 20% of my daily diet. So that means I eat a lot of protein and healthy fats - eggs, coconut oil, grass fed beef, avocado (I LOVE avocado...I eat one every day!) and nuts. Honestly, it isn't a "diet" to me...it's how I always intent to eat regardless if I want to lose weight or not. I can really feel a difference in my mental alertness, energy level and mood. I believe this is how we as humans were intended to eat and I can't see myself or my family straying away from this way of life. Don't get me wrong though...you WILL see me eating pizza and sipping on a glass of wine occasionally ;)

 

Being married to a twin: weird or cool?

At first I was kind of freaked out by the idea. I had this horrible fear that I would go to my then -boyfriend's house and accidentally put the moves on his brother! (They were roommates). But within a couple weeks of dating, I realized that while they might look alike, they are such different people! Today, it barely registers in my mind that they are so similar in looks and I'm totally cool with it.

 

Favorite TV show? 

Of all time? Friends! Currently, I'm obsessed with The Bachelor (when it's on), Sister Wives and Modern Family. Random, I know.

 

Vampires or werewolfs?

Ooooh, dang, Team Edward all the way! Did you see Breaking Dawn Part 2?! He's so hot, I can't stand it ;)

 

How did you get into Photography?

 I actually worked for 5 years at a photography studio throughout high school and college. But this was one of those places with the dorky backgrounds and weird poses. At the time I did mostly administrative work and album designing but I found myself studying the images my boss would take at weddings. I never really gave a thought to becoming a photographer though, even after I purchased my first DSLR. But I will say that when I bought my first camera, I swore to myself that I would learn everything about it and not be one of those people who thought the camera did all the work. I simply cannot tell you how many hours/days/weeks I have put into studying, learning and practicing since 2008. My first client inquiries actually came to me...I never sought them out, which was probably the push I needed. After I became restless in corporate America, got sidetracked off another potential career path and had the urge to be my own boss, I started a legitimate photography business. I feel corny saying this but I truly believe this is the path I'm supposed to be on, regardless of the ups and downs it has.

 

What inspires you the most in your work?

I know the PC thing would be to say my children but that's not true. They hate the camera right now! One day I know they will be the reason I pull my camera out but right I get inspired by so many other things - a piece of old furniture, a stunning sunset over a field, a couple in love, a newborn baby, raw emotion of new parents or a couple in love. I think when I go to a photoshoot and see a family so in love with each other, I'm inspired to be the best photographer I can.

 

Tell us about your photography business!

What else can I add? I suppose you should come on over to my site, http://www.andreaweissphotography.com/ and check out my work. Right now I work mostly with newborns, young children and families but recently found a strong love for high school seniors. My husband encouraged me to try it out and at first I didn't think it was something I wanted to pursue. But I'm so glad I listened because working with teenagers, laughing with them and hearing all about their future goals really makes my day! Plus, they take direction pretty well so I get like 300 amazing images from one session! That's quite a treat after working with 2 year olds the majority of the time ;) To end, I'll say that being your own boss is quite the personal journey. At first you work simply to get known, then you work to make money so you can afford equipment and classes, but then you find yourself at a point that you work because you LOVE it and you LOVE the feeling you get when you make a client happy. Every time I send off a final disk to a client, I think about how much they trusted me to capture their family's memories at this point in time and I'm incredibly humbled and honored. I'm blessed to do what I do.

 

Thank You Andrea!

Lets see.... Discipline? that explains it..., Friends? My number one favorite too, Did I see Breaking Dawn 2? Umm, is the Pope Catholic? YES, and it totally had me going ;)

I Killed That B...

That B... being my inner Goddess.

Why?

Because of Anastasia Steele. And let me tell you I didn't even know I had an inner Goddess but in case she decided to come out and annoy me, I killed her.

So, I gave in and I'm reading 50 Shades of Grey. Edward and Bella Christian and Ana are okay-ish. Why didn't anyone warn me that it was Twilight characters minus Vampires and supernatural stuff? (well, with some added xxx) I had no idea of this going in that I would encounter the same Mr. Greek-God-copper hair- Crooked smiled-Extra millionaire- adopted kid- who disarms anyone who looks at him and is fascinated by clumsy-mousy-brunette-shy-virgin-whose parents are pretty much Bella's parents- that doesn't understand the effect she has on Christian, and it kept me distracted the whole time instead of getting into this story.

 I'm not done with the first book yet but I had to share my annoyance. Not because of the characters, I just didn't know to expect this but I can live with that. But Ana's inner Goddess? I want to shoot her. Must she Gasp! her thoughts so often and THEN say what she thought again? I swear this book would have 50% less words if the inner goddess didn't show up every other line to repeat what we already read word for word. If/when I ignore her, I get into the story and am interested enough to know what happens but every so often I just want to put my kindle on the floor and jump on it.

If you like the inner goddess, I'm happy for you because she sure pops up a lot. I'm not trying to tell you to hate her too, I just can't deal with her. In the beginning, I thought it was cute but now... grrr. That's it that's all I had to say. Except for... yes, I'm still going to finish reading it. And no, I don't have a gun on my head but I had a bone to pick and I'm picking it, and now I can move on ;)

I Just Can't Wrap My Head Around That...

1- Today is my grandfather's funeral.
2- His cousin (another grandfather) also passed away yesterday. This makes 5 deaths in my family this year.
3- The innocent souls in Connecticut that were lost. This... I.Do.Not.Understand. :'(

Very sad...

R.I.P. "Daddy" a.k.a. my grandfather.

He has been sick for a very long time and passed away last night in his sleep. His infectious joy will surely be missed and all of the wonderful memories he shared with everyone he crossed path with will live in our hearts forever.

We love you Daddy, may you rest in peace....

This Is The Journey God Chose... the Interview!

And do you know what journey that is?
A Twin Momma PREGNANT with another baby (just one this time) (Phew!) My bloggy friend Kandice agreed to be my new victim, she blogs over at This is the Journey God Chose and thank goodness for her fellow Mommy of multiples she isn't afraid to share how hard AND awesome life with twins can be. Enjoy!

Well hello. My name is Kandice. I am a 30 year old mother to two monsters wonderful 17 month old twin boys. We are about to welcome our 3rd boy in less than four weeks. And the answer is yes we are absolutely nuts! Our life is full of crazy, but we love every minute of it. I originally started blogging about my wonderful inability of my lady parts to do the one thing they were meant for. Our twins were conceived through IVF after 3.2 years. The 3rd you might ask? Yep, pure accident and blessing. Now I’m lucky if I have time, energy, or life in me to write about the daily debacles as a twin mom.

Being a Mommy of twins... describe it!
I’m not sure I even know where to begin. I think a good way to describe it is a catch 22. While it is a HUGE blessing it also comes with a lot of responsibility/work that most people can’t even begin to understand. Let’s pick some words that I think describe it best. Love, confinement, rich, broke, hilarious, overwhelming, miraculous, exhausting and really most of all it’s just double of everything. I could focus on the negatives of the double, but for today I will choose the positives. I get double the kisses, double the hugs, double the “mommies”, double the smiles, double the giggles, and double the joy of seeing their love for me. TWINS ROCK!

Do you have any phobias?
Sadly enough, yes. It’s kind of a weird one, but I’m afraid of elevators. Funny because I have to take one up to the 23rd floor every day. I’m not sure why I’m so scared of them. I’ve never had a tramatic experience (knock on wood here) with them. I just have this fear of getting stuck in it or it dropping. Hey I never said I wasn’t a little strange at times.

What is your biggest pet peeve?
Today I’m going with indecisiveness. This probably actually changes daily, but my morning experience has led it to be this today. MAKE A DECISION PEOPLE! Thanks for letting me yell that out on your blog. I feel better now.

What was the last book you read?
I’m not much of a reader. Believe it or not (being a mom of twins) I’m actually a very impatient person. Hence why the above is probably my pet peeve. Anyway, I can’t tell you the last book I finished. I picked up Twilight while I was on bedrest for my embryo transfer and made it to Chapter 7. Then I picked up Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks the other day and made it to page 2. I prefer magazines with pretty pictures.

What's more likely: You are going to be super spoiled by your 3 boys or you are going to be the best slave they ever had?
I think you already know the answer to this question, but for the other readers out there, definitely going to be the best slave they ever had! I mean they already expect me to do all their laundry, cook all their meals, bathe them, change them and keep them entertained at all times. They are 1 ½. Can’t they do this for themselves yet?

When was the last time you went to the movies?
BAHAHAHA. What’s a movie? Even if we got a babysitter I think we would both rather spend our time sleeping. I really don’t think we have been since the twins were born.

What's the biggest difference with your twin pregnancy and your singleton pregnancy?
COMFORT! by far. I’m not sure people understand how miserable a twin pregnancy is. Not only did I throw up until 27 weeks, but it just hurt, everywhere, every day. The next would probably be the monitoring. I went twice a month with the twins and got ultrasounds constantly. A singleton is kind of boring. I’ve had two and only go once a month. Do they not care about this one too? Last would be the movements. I have now realized I didn’t know what it was like to feel a baby move inside you. The twins got so cramped so early on that they didn’t have much room. This kid on the other hand feels like he is going to crawl out of every area of my body.

How do you plan on surviving with twins and a baby?
I’m actually planning my funeral now. Ok I’m kidding obviously. Maybe. I actually really look forward to experiencing one baby. There was this part of me that felt I was going to miss out on that bond you feel with a newborn. Yes I bonded with the twins, but the one on one time just wasn’t possible. Life is going to be extremely difficult and challenging, but to already know the immense amount of joy those two boys bring I can only imagine what adding one more will do. Sure I’ll have some grey hairs and a few more wrinkles, but it will all be worth it. Just the other day my husband looked at me and said, you know all these people ask us how we do it, do you ever stop and think, how do we do it? I don’t have an answer for that because I honestly I don’t know. We survive on about 5 hours of sleep a night and pure exhaustion every day, but we manage. Our kids our fed, clothed and clean at the end of the day and believe it or not we all still have smiles on our faces. So the answer to survival is we just will. We won’t know how, but I know we will do it with a grateful heart.

Thanks for letting me be a part of this!

And there it is... Wish her luck!
Me? With my two, I don't envy her. I admire her bravery and will continue to follow her to see if she even has time to update us. Give us updates Kandice, don't forget us just because you are going to have 3 adorable little boys to take up your time. Once a quarter at least, kay?

You know what's NOT fun?

Being sick... with sick twins.
Don't try it.
I'm here to tell you: it SUCKS!

A week and a half later and I'm still sick. Five days later and Natalia is still sick. And we are just one day in on Noah getting sick. Natalia and I have the same Mother/Daughter voice: RASPY and totally not in a cute way. Well not me anyway, Natty sounds adorable.... umm, when she is not crying, of course.

I haven't taken her to the doctor. Why? Well, she is playful (mostly), she is eating, no diarrhea/no puking, I have her hydrated and her fever is in check. What exactly will the doctor tell me to do that I'm not already doing? Noah, though? He is another story. So far he is OK. But it did take us girls like 2-3 days to really go down. He has a much weaker immune system and we have to make sure he doesn't stress out much. I've dealt with them with a cold/fever before but this one right now is a whole other level when I, myself, wanted my Mommy at my worst. Hopefully Noah's daily steroids keeps him from getting as bad as Natty since its supposed to be an anti-inflammatory too.

Either way, I'm over this. It's shitty and getting in the way of my Christmas spirit.
I need us to feel better so I can go shopping, I need to decorate... well I need to clean and then decorate, and I need happy kids for a happy season. And yeah, I need to sleep. And Jeff needs NOT to get sick too. And then I want to sleep some more. That's all. Then I can really have fun during the holidays... who can make that happen? Like not now, but RIGHT now?

Life With Giggles... The Interview

Who doesn't like to giggle?
Well, I'll introduce you to one girl whose life is all about it!
Meet a bloggy friend who likes to have fun and share her thoughts in full honesty over at Life With Giggles, I'll let her do the talking:

Hiya there!
My name is Kenya and I blog over at Life with Giggles. I am a wife of 4 years to a man who deals with my corny jokes. I am a fur baby mama to a yorkiepoo named Sadie who likes to pee on my bed and steal socks from our laundry. I love chocolate. I am fun-sized, not short! I am just pure awesomeness.

Why Giggles?
Because I am that girl who has the most annoying loud laugh. Once I start giggling, I can't stop. It is like a sickness! And to top it off, I laugh like the tickle me Elmo doll. No joke!

What would you do if I sent a bunch of guys wearing white sunglasses your way?
I would punch each one in the face. And after that, I would punch them in the face again. Freaking douches.

Who is your star crush? Only one!
Are you serious? I can only pick one?!?! This is not fair. That's like telling me I have to pick between chocolate cake and chocolate brownies....
You can't just pick one! But it is YOUR blog, so I guess I can answer with one. So here it is... I will go with The Rock. Have you seen him lately? Oh Lordy is he on fire. He works out, cooks, acts, and just exudes hotness. What more can a girl ask for? But let's get one thing straight, HE IS MINE, ALL MINE. No stealing. I know know, it is tempting... But you are poop out of luck.

Morning or Night person?
I am a total morning person. Hubs is not. Which causes major problems in the Giggles household. Lets just say Saturday mornings, I am bouncy and ready to go out and the hubs is snoring away. Mind you it is 8am. So, now since we have the pups, I am on morning duty which means 6:30am since hat's when Sadie gets up to lick my face telling me she needs to pee. So at least I have a snuggle buddy in the morning time.

What is your favorite book of all time?
My favorite book is Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt.

Which one would you choose: Books, gadgets, or clothes?
I choose books and clothes. And don't give me lip about how I was suppose to choose one. You failed to note that in the question. #WINNING

Why do you blog?
Because it makes me happy. Blogging has helped me in learning who I am.  And the connections I have made with people are amazing.

What have you learned these past four years of marriage? Any wisdom to share?
It is hard work. I never signed up for hard work. I think a guidelines book should come with the ring when the guy proposes. If I would have known that I would have to cook 99% of the time, clean 80% of the time, have to smell the hubs farts, have to witness the hubs clip his toe nails, have to share sheets and bed space... I would have added some clauses in the agreement. But seriously, marriage takes a lot of work and it seems every year that passes, we have to work harder. But I think what everyone needs to remember is that communication is key. And also, make sure you giggle!

There you go!
Isn't she fun? Yes, yes she is! Clicky here to follow her! Also, if I may... I think Kenya Giggles sounds like a great name, no? Perhaps she should change it, just saying...
Also, don't forget to tune in next Monday for my next victim ;)