loulou::1 month

this is not an original idea. thanks to pinterest, i discovered a photographer mom with a brilliant method for keeping up with her son's development. i thought this would simplify some to the record-keeping i want to do as a mom... i haven't been as good to do this for charlottes., but, i'm going to start documenting more of what she is saying and doing in a similar fashion.

Age: 1 month
Weight: 9lbs. (gained 19.5oz in 14 days!)
Length: don’t have a current measurement… 20.5in at birth
Size: 0-3 month clothes; started wearing size 1 diapers today
Eyes: Blue, and a little crossed since they don’t focus well yet. So cute.
Hair: You were born with angelic, shiny blonde hair, about a ½ inch long… it has grown some this month.
Teeth: none

Nicknames: LouLou, Louisa-Greys., the loulounator, loulou lime, and louritto [when swaddled and resembling a burrito.]
Sleeping: knows nighttime from daytime… sleeps well with noise around… has a long stretch in the morning, shorter naps throughout the afternoon/evening, and a longlong stretch at night. I am still pretty sleep deprived because we have an hour nursing stretch around 3am then our morning starts around 5am, nursing, then getting up with charlottes… you prefer to sleep on your tummy, but, unless you are closely monitored, i put you on your side.

Naps: throughout the day [see above]. nothing scheduled as of yet.
Eating: breastmilk, and loving it.
Movement: you are a mover… like to be put on tummy; you try to kick and hold head up. When being held, you hold up your head and look around some, bobbing lots.
Milestones: being born! nursing.
Outings: first outing with just mommie and charlottes. was to mail some things at otter coop; you slept the whole time… first outing as a family of four was to Krause berry farm w/ aunty karla and JB… first time out just the four of us was to get ice cream in ft. langley one evening; you had to nurse while we were at both of those places.
Favorite toys/activities:  eating and sleeping, being swaddled, being talked to and kissed!
Words/sounds: we call you “snorts” sometimes because it tends to be something you do a lot. You get hiccups a few times a day. You coo and grunt… your cry is louder and more intense than charlottes. was; i wonder if you are particularly passionate.
Memorable moments: one moment, memorable for being scary, was your first night home. You choked on mucus and didn’t breathe for about 15 seconds. Daddy and I were starting to get very concerned ‘til you coughed out the flem and proceeded to burp a bunch… sort of heart-stopping for a few moments. There’s so much in your first month to remember!! The first time we saw your face, found out that we had another girl (just what we wanted!), when charlottes. met you in the hospital, introducing you to many friends and loved ones. Mimi and Grandy and LeaLea have been here a week and it has been wonderful to watch them enjoy holding you.

personal:: may goal recap

May:: 

may was a long, hard month... i'm sure the fact that charlottes. was sick the first week of the month, then waking up multiple times in the night for nearly the entire month, made it that much more difficult. it was sort of an arduous finale to her second year with us; celebrating her birthday was that much more wonderful, as was the discovery of three new molars on her second birthday, which helped explain the lack of good sleep!

we got tons of gardening done this month. i worked outside quite a bit while the weather was nice [this week is rainy again!], weeding as much as a nearly-eight-month-pregnant girl can... there's still tons to do, but, it's been fun doing outdoor projects together, tending the flower beds, mulching, etc... marks. built charlottes. a sandbox, which was the hit of her 2nd birthday party [the theme was "breakfast with charlotte!"... it was hilarious to have 10 little ones playing in the sandbox together in their pajamas.]... we built a fire pit, too, and look forward to enjoying that together through the summer...

in addition to what got done below, i finally got around to taking the little fox to the vet, and got his city dog tag updated since our move last july!

also, marks. got me an iphone, which has been a fun companion during all of the may happenings and daily live stuffs... i look forward to sharing some favorite instagram images soon!

here's a rundown of my list::

Personal::

run/walk 4x week
drink 8-10 glasses of water daily
have a sweet treat once a week [and no other time] (don't think i stuck to this as well as i could.)
run the run for water 5k on the 27^th (this didn't happen because i missed packet pickup the day before. i really needed that nap after charlottes.' birthday party... but, the registration money went toward a good cause, and i am still going 5k when i exercise, so, there you go.)
plan/execute/host charlottes.’ 2^nd birthday party
spray paint bed and do bedding for charlottes.’ “big girl bed”
repaint chest of drawers in dining room
host one art night at my house
take charlottes.’ “smimmin” 1x week (we went swimming OR to the zoo at least once a week, so, i am counting both as fulfilling this goal.)
find/buy a used pack ‘n play
find/buy a used little tikes slide
find/buy little dresser for play kitchen (we decided not to make one and borrowed one instead!)

 find/buy dresser for bebe.03 or tv stand
sew pillow covers for living room
keep potted plants alive
post april pics to facebook
write thankyou notes for my birthday (which was in march!)

read "shepherding a child's heart"

grow bebe.03 [that way, if nothing gets marked off above, at least i have something to account for it!]

picture((me))foto::

edit all outstanding photoshoots
shoot 3 sessions, minimum
update main slideshow on website w/ recent work
register business name (got started on this. long overdue.)

i'm probably not going to bother with sharing june goals. there is a lot going on right now and a lot being accomplished. i'm wrapping up work and will not be scheduling sessions in july. however, i will try to blog some more when i can...

just going to finish this off with a shot from charlotttes.' 2nd birthday party... i'm so incredibly blessed to be her mommie.

sarnia, ontario:: goss family portraits

meet the goss family.

this is my friendfamily. when marks. [my husband] and i were dating, many were the nights he would be hanging out with matt&jody... the first year we were married, many were the nights we spent with them, too. these are the friends we have missed in our everyday-ness since leaving ontario for beautiful BC. there is something special about friends with whom you can be as vulnerable or as shallow as you need to be... these friends are truly special.

i've had many opportunities to shoot portraits for their family over the years. unfortunately, lots of the sessions i've done for them have been almost after-thoughts at the end of visits together. so, this year, i told jody that we would make their family portraits a priority, hence, the images below! enjoy!

sarnia, ontario:: the mini-sessions

it's always wonderful to return to my first home in canada~ sarnia, ontario. shooting portrait sessions while back east affords me the opportunity to reconnect with good friends, and meet new ones as well! the following images are personal favorites from the mini-sessions i shot march 31st, at canatara park [as well as a couple of days the following week, for clients who couldn't make the event that day.].

i love how unique every session is. enjoy!

p.s. if you click on the image below, you can view the entire post in a full-screen slideshow!

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