Playing downtown

I had the opportunity to have a great mini session with a beautiful and fun family! I knew they would be fun when they called and said, "Lets have a shoot somewhere different, not the typical pretty locations!" We found a fun and different location downtown and played! Here are a couple of the pics from the mini session.

* Mini Sessions are 30 minutes for $30.00! Quick and Easy! Email if you would like to book or need more info.
Email: Tiffany@LifeLoveandPhotography

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!!

Does anyone need a "Little Helper"?

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today I celebrate another wonderful year! Long gone are the years of planning sleepovers, big parties, balloons and making a wish list!

Instead, this year I told Brandon that all I wanted was to spend the day gambling and playing slots in Hobbs! Simple and Fun!

...And boy did I get that! Brandon was so thoughtful to surprise me and invite my entire family! (Normally I know about surprises but he really did surprise me!!) As I was playing a slot I turned around to see my Mom, Dad, Granddad, Aunt Deb, Uncle Shane, Uncle Larry and my great grandparents! WOW! What a fun birthday surprise!! We had a great time playing slots and gambling on the horse races! We finished the evening at Chili's with dinner, cake, presents and great company!

I am so happy that I have such a fun family to spend my birthday with! Thank you all for taking the time to spend the day with me! It meant the world and I had a fantastic time!! I am so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life!

Where was Kolton???
He was spending the day with a babysitter! They were busy eating pizza, playing in the sand box, reading books, drinking organic juice and he showed her where his Mommy and Daddy keep the candy stash!! I know he had a great time because when we got home he had a great big smile on his face, showed off a little bit, hugged the sitter and waved Bye Bye!

So much has happened this year and I have learned so much!
*I married my True Love! He is a great husband and Dad! I am very proud of him!
*I have laughed and laughed and laughed!
*I have taken tons of pictures.... (Mostly of my son!)
*I have met new people and made lots of great new friends.
*I have learned a little bit more about navigating through this crazy journey called parenthood! It's hard but so much fun!
*I have learned to keep God very close to me! It really is a blessing to have God on your side! He pushes me when I think I could just about give up!
*I am starting to see the beauty in things that 2 years ago I wouldn't have even noticed!
*I can cook.... and I am pretty good at it!
*I love a good cup of coffee in the morning! (Sometimes 4 or 5!)
*I will do ANYTHING for my son!
*Always trust your gut.... It's always right!
*Being a Stay at Home Mom is a NEVER ending job!!!
*I HATE laundry! I would rather clean the entire house then do one load of laundry!
*Fear of failure is a ticket to mediocrity.
*Grudges are poison...
*Store brand jelly, bread, shaving cream, canned goods, etc are great! (and save you a little bit of money!!)
*I enjoy hanging out at the house with my husband and son more then anything else!!
*Pursue your passion!
*My family is and will always be my number one priority!

Cooking and Giggles...

While I was cooking dinner tonight I heard a little giggle come out of the cabinets....

This is what I found:

I thought Mom's didn't get sick!

I have been a sniffly, sneezing, sore throat, head hurting mess the past few days. I told myself that today is the last day that I can be sick, and I actually am starting to feel a lot better! Positive thinking really does work!!!

I have to brag for a minute... Brandon has been so great the past few days!! He bought me medicine, made me soup, kept the house clean and organized and surprised me with pretty flowers!! Also, he has given me Tylenol Pm and sent me to bed at 8 every night! I forgot how great it is to sleep! Also, he not only made me and Kolton meals, he also made extra meals for me to heat up for Kolton during the day so I don't have to cook! WOW... Is that not awesome or what!? I think I might just have the best husband out there! (Still seems kind of weird to say husband! haha)

Kolton has been great! He is talking up a storm! Sometimes in English and sometimes in his Kolton language! Sometimes I look at him and wonder how the heck did you grow up so fast?

Now that I am feeling better I am out and about today trying to catch up on a few ideas that I have going on in my head!! Also, I am buying a new camera lense! I will take some pictures later to show it off! I hope everyone has a great Thursday! The weekend is almost here!!!

Here are a couple pics from yesterday...

Week End Review

What a weekend! Kolt spent the entire weekend with Grammy and Papa. He had a great time at the fair, the park, McDonalds and all of the other fun stuff that you do when you go to Grammy and Papa's house! I am so lucky to have parents that are always wanting to keep him! Thanks Mom and Dad!!

Friday night Brandon and I went to Jazz for dinner and ran into some old friends. We ate and ended up having drinks. They are a great couple and have a son about Kolt's age. We will have to get together again soon! They are lots of fun!

Saturday was wonderful. I did not get out of bed until 12!! I never ever get to do that and I enjoyed every single minute of it!! Saturday night Texas Tech played UT! (Huge weekend!) So I spent time with a great girl named Samantha! We watched the game and ended the night at CrawDaddy's. We had a very fun time!



I was so excited to have Kolt back on Sunday! It's too quiet around the house without him!! That evening we watched the Cowboys play and relaxed outside!







When Monday rolled around I started feeling sick. Yuck!! I am trying to get over it.... Brandon went to the store to get a few things for the house and this is what I found when I walked into our kitchen.... He is the best!!!

10 things I have learned from being a Mom...

Don't buy your kids expensive clothes or toys!
Kolt will grow out of clothing and shoes in ONE month! That's crazy expensive! Kolt also has every toy you could imagine. You know what he wants to play with? Pots and Pans, spoons, tearing the DVDs out of the entertainment center and throwing them on the ground one by one, my hair brush, the remote control and REAL phones! (I have bought every fake phone known to man and none of them will do)

Sleep is a precious thing of the past.
"Sleep when the baby sleeps" is NOT true! When Kolt sleeps I am cooking, cleaning house or having "ME" time!!

We are a TEAM!
Kolton has brought Brandon and I even closer. We have a deeper commitment and love towards each other. We are a TEAM and I can't imagine this journey with out him by my side!

Running while screaming is fun!
Next time you are at a playground stop and listen. All the kids are just running aimlessly and screaming! To me it translates to the idea that sometimes you need to let it all go and run around and scream a little bit. Try it one day with your kid, neighbor, niece/nephew or friend's kid. You will forget all of your problems for a little bit!! It really will make you laugh and feel better!!

Sometimes Non-Parents don't understand...
I lost a few friends when that stick said "Positive"! Sometimes people don't understand how time consuming and stressful parenthood is or the joy that comes from it. But... I know that the friends that I have are the best girls in the world!!

You are being watched!!
No matter what time of the day it is Kolton is watching me. Being under this supervision is a little taxing!! You will find no bad behavior here... My kiddo might see me!!

I watch the news religiously and look at world events in terms of how they will affect my son.
Funding for education matters a whole lot more to me now. Every missing or suffering child on the news breaks my heart and makes me hold Kolt that much tighter. I would have never imagined 3 years ago worrying about global warming, the federal deficit, health care or the ongoing quest for peace!

Messy house...
A toddler can make a house dirty before you can count to three!! Vacuuming once a day can't even begin to keep up with all the crumbs on the floor.

Entertainment...
You will always have entertainment as a mom.... Just not the kind of entertainment you use to have! Kolt comes up with the funniest things that crack me up daily.

LOVE!!
Before you have a baby you don't realize how much you can love someone. The love I have for Kolt is indescribable. He melts my heart. I thank God for choosing Brandon and I to be Kolton's Mommy and Daddy!!!

Cream Cheese Pumpkin Bread... so good and so easy!!

This is a great recipe for the Fall and it is so quick and easy!! And... it smells so good while it's cooking!

Here it is:

3 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp Nutmeg
2 tsp Cinnamon
1tsp vanilla
8 oz cream cheese
3 1/2 cups flour
15 oz pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup soft butter
Powdered Sugar
*You can also add nuts... I didn't bc my son would not touch it if it had nuts!!

1. Pre Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease loaf pans. (9x5 in)

2. In LARGE mixing bowl cream together sugar, butter and cream cheese. Add eggs one at a time and mix well. Mix in pumpkin. Add in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg. Mix dry ingredients with pumpkin mixture until smooth and moist.



3. Bake at 350 degrees for about 60 minutes. I checked mine with a toothpick. After it cools you can add a little powdered sugar to the top.

Wordless Wednesday- Checking out the hotel

Silly Kolton

It's starting to feel like Fall! The weather has been wonderful the past few days! Kolton and I spent today at the park. He is constantly amazing me! As soon as we pulled up he knew we were at a park and was so excited he could hardly stand it!! He RAN from the car to the playground... it was adorable! I think he had a great time!

Here is the proof:

Cinnamon Rolls... YUM!

I never bake, but I gave it a try and made cinnamon rolls! They turned out great! Here is what I did. (Remember, I don't measure much, I just go with it!)

Dough
1 package of instant dry yeast
1/3 cup of unsalted butter
2 eggs
4 cups flour (I used bread flour)
1 cup butter milk

Filling
Sugar
Brown Sugar
Honey
pinch of salt

Icing
Cream cheese
Powder sugar
1 table spoon vanilla


1. In a large mixing bowl combine 2 cups of flour and the yeast, set aside. In a sauce pan heat and stir milk, granulated sugar, 1/3 cup of butter and salt. (Just until warm and butter is almost melted) Add flour to mixture along with eggs. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. (About 3-4 minutes)

2. Put dough on a floured surface. Knead and add enough flour to make a soft and elastic dough. Shape dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the other side. Cover and let rise for about 2 hours.


3. Punch dough down and put on a lightly floured surface. Divide in half. Cover and let rise about 20 minutes.

4. Roll each dough half into a rectangle. (About 12x8) Sprinkle filling over the dough. (Filling: I did not measure, I just spread honey and sprinked lots of cinnamon, granulated sugar, brown sugar and a pinch of salt)



5. Roll up each rectangle starting from the long side. Pinch dough to seal the seams. Slice each rolled rectangle into desired size. Arrange on a greased pan. Cover and let rise for about 1 hour. (They will double in size)






6. Pre heat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for about 20 minutes.

7. Cream Cheese Icing: I did not measure I used about 3 oz. of cream cheese, vanilla mixed with an electric mixer and slowly added powder sugar (about 2 cups) until it tasted good!!