Lately

This week was my very last week with the kiddos that I started nannying five years ago. Initially a full time gig that changed to part time just as my photography business took off. And over the past year I’ve really only had Will in the summers when he is out of school and only had Mallory for about 10 hours a week. So hardly even part time. But enough that we’ve still been a big part of each other’s lives. It’s hard to believe that this time is coming to an end. But it couldn’t be timed more perfectly. Mallory will be starting Kindergarten in August just as I’ll be figuring out this new mom thing. You better believe that the kids’ mom and I were both pretty emotional over that incredible timing.

On the left was them in 2012 not long after I started nannying them. And on the right is them from earlier this week. My oh my do I love these kids!

Me and Mallory in 2012 on the left and the two of us again just this past week on the right. I have loved this little girl since she was an itty bitty baby and now she’s obsessed with all the details of my own baby girl which I think is so sweet!

They both love to poke my belly and say “Wake up, Baby!” to get her to start moving. It’s more than a little adorable. This week has been an extra sweet one as we’ve enjoyed our last days together. But now I need to stop talking about it before I turn into an emotional mess, haha! Thankfully they live less than five minutes from us and we are good friends with their parents so I’ll still get to see them! 🙂

Christopher and I have been spending tons of quality time together lately. Our goal was to finish our “house/baby to-do” list by June so that we could spend the month of July just enjoying time together (unless of course Baby V had already arrived in which case we’d be glad we had things finished early). And that’s exactly how it has worked out. We’ve eaten at all our favorite restaurants, spent tons of time with friends, stayed out late, eaten frozen yogurt far too frequently (if there is such a thing as too much frozen yogurt), explored new coffee shops, enjoyed lots of pool days, and we’ve even eaten out at a couple of fancy spots that we normally avoid because they are on the pricy side. It has been a sweet end to the “just us” time we’ve had over our nearly 9 years of marriage. I’m so thankful for this time and we are so looking forward to the next chapter of life!

My mornings are still marked by prenatal yoga and then followed by gym time. I definitely have to take it easier than I did pre-pregnancy, but I’m so thankful that I’ve been able to continue working out throughout this entire pregnancy. Those endorphins are great and I know it’s good for both me and Baby V. Plus I’ve been told that it helps with delivery and recovery so hopefully that’s true!

As of today I am 38 weeks and 3 days pregnant. And on this coming Monday, at 38 weeks and 6 days of pregnancy, we’ll go in to the hospital to begin the induction process. I get so emotional when I look back at this pregnancy and see every answered prayer. And there have been so many. Odds have been beat, miracles have happened. And we are so close to Monday. If you are the praying type, please join us in praying for continued safety for our daughter and that her delivery will go safely for both of us. Thank you!

Recent Happenings

Happy Friday, friends! Just wanted to share a few recent things.

I started nannying Mallory when she was 9 weeks old and this week she graduated preschool. Believe me, her mom and I both cried happy tears when we realized how perfectly my due date lined up with Mallory beginning kindergarten. Speaking of tears… I totally cried during her little graduation ceremony. She is such a big girl!

Oreo doesn’t know it yet, but his world is going to be rocked this summer. We’re trying to give him a little extra loving lately. 🙂

We’ve continued to work on projects around the house. Most of which aren’t that exciting to photograph. And really this one isn’t that exciting to look at either, but I’m so pleased with the change that I wanted to share. 😉 Ever since we bought this house, our entryway has looked pretty rough. No matter how much it is cleaned, it always looks dirty (even immediately after cleaning). Turns out that it was because whoever put the floor in, used the wrong kind of sealer on it. So we removed the sealer, cleaned the floor really well, used Grout Renew to fix the hideous grout, and then put down the proper sealer on it. It was a TON of work, but absolutely worth it in the end! Eventually we might replace the slate with a brick entryway because we think it would look better with the look of the house, but for now this is a major improvement! 🙂

Aaaaand finally, baby showers! Our very first one is this weekend and the next will be in a couple of weeks. It’s hard to believe that they are here already. We’ve been receiving gifts in the mail over the past couple of weeks and every one of them brings me to tears. We have been just amazed at the sweetness and generosity of friends and family! Also on the fridge – that “Mom-to-be” card was from my sister, Holly, in honor of Mother’s Day. Whew, there were definitely tears as I read her sweet, encouraging words. Definitely feeling the love and I’m so excited to celebrate Baby Girl with family and friends this weekend!

All the Kiddos {Photography Favorites}

Last week I shared some of my favorites photos of babies and toddlers from last year. And I had a couple of you ask if one of the toddlers was the little girl I nanny. It wasn’t, but it made me realize how long it has been since I shared a photo of her! You guys are not going to believe how big she is! So today I’m going to share my favorite “Kid” photos from last year and the very first one is of Mallory. She was four last summer so she’s even bigger now! Ah, how time flies!

These kids are all just so precious. I love getting those sweet, genuine smiles and laughs from them. Does that sometimes require me to make animal noises, sing Disney songs, and tell corny jokes? Why yes, yes it does. But it’s absolutely worth it. 😉

Priceless

Earlier this year I got to see For King and Country perform live. I love, love, love them (and can give you a list of favorite songs if you like their sound)! They performed a new song at that concert that I hadn’t heard before and I immediately fell in love with it and came home and started playing it on repeat. Since then I’ve heard this song on the radio quite a bit so I’m sure many of you have heard it. But I want to talk about why I love it so much. It’s called Priceless.

This whole song is about how priceless you are. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve cried (or at least teared up) listening to this song. I think of so many ladies I know and love who don’t see their worth. Of the teenagers I’ve mentored over the past 11 years. And I especially think of my nieces who are coming so close to their preteen years when I know they will be hit with an onslaught of being told by the world that they aren’t enough. I remember those years so vividly. Feeling like I wasn’t pretty enough or funny enough or skinny enough or smart enough or athletic enough. Just mediocre at best. No one special. I battled those feelings through my teen years and really even into college. Today I am confident in who I am and when I look in the mirror I see someone I can be proud of smiling back at me. But I hate that my nieces are at an age where they will soon be walking right into those years.

{taken earlier this year in May}

My niece, Makenzie, and I have belted out the lyrics to this song together so many times. And I pray, oh I pray, it is sinking deep into her heart. That she never questions just how priceless she is. I don’t see my other nieces as frequently, but I pray that they, too, know how priceless they are.

{taken in a sunflower field yesterday – you can see more of these shots here 🙂 }

And my Mallory. So young and sure of herself. Confident that everyone she meets thinks that she is the most special girl there ever was. Precious innocence. I pray that she remembers these feelings of being loved so deeply when the world throws lies at her later in life.

Mirror mirror, mirror on the wall
Tellin’ those lies, pointing out your flaws
That isn’t who you are
That isn’t who you are

It might be hard to hear, but let me tell you dear
If you could see what I can see, I know you would believe
That isn’t who you are
There’s more to who you are

So when it’s late, you’re wide awake
Too much to take
Don’t you dare forget that in the pain
You can be brave, hear me say:

I see you dressed in white
Every wrong made right
I see a rose in bloom
At the sight of you (oh so priceless)
Irreplaceable, unmistakable, incomparable
Darling, it’s beautiful
I see it all in you (oh so priceless)

Precious truth. Love this song!

Who do you think of when you hear a song like this?

Do you relate to the struggle I went through of not feeling good enough? Are you still there? Take the lyrics of this song to heart. You are priceless, my friend.

Back to school for my little loves

I blinked and summer is over. The kids I nanny and I had an awesome summer together! But now August has arrived and Will goes back to school today and in a week Mallory will start two-day-a-week preschool. So I’ll hardly see Will at all and only see Mallory a couple of days a week. I don’t even want to think about next year when she starts kindergarten. Thankfully they live just a few minutes away from us so I’m sure I’ll still see them some, but it won’t be the same as being involved in their daily lives. Oh the tears… I’m definitely not ready to think about this yet, haha!  On a much happier note, I wanted to share two videos of the kiddos from the past couple of weeks. 🙂

In case you can’t understand her. Here’s the beginning dialogue:

Mallory: “Daddy tells me not to sleep in socks.”
Me: “Why is that?”
Mal: “Because only psychopaths do… and we’re not psychopaths.”

Makes me laugh every single time I watch it. She’s just so matter-of-fact about it. Even if she has no clue with a psychopath is. She just knows that she isn’t one and therefore doesn’t wear socks to sleep in. Also, now we all know how her dad feels about people who sleep in socks, ha!  😉

You guys, this video is the essence of childhood dress up and playing. I just love it. Will came up with the idea and script for this video which just makes it even better. The only thing I did was actually hide Spiderman (they really didn’t know where Spidey was), film it, add dramatic music, and put it together in a video. Side note: in case you can’t hear Will at the 2 minute mark he is looking inside the pantry and says, “If he was in here, he would have a Thanksgiving feast!”

We’ve had an awesome summer! I’ll miss seeing them all the time, but I’m excited to see how much they will grow and learn this school year.

Who or what did you dress up as when you were a kid?

Tell the truth… do you sleep with socks on? 😉

Lately

And we’re back to lately posts, ha! It’s 100 degrees here right now so I keep thinking the photography business will soon slow down dramatically. Instead I keep having people book July sessions which is awesome for business! But, you know, hot. So we’re attempting to beat (some of) the heat by having early morning sessions. Tomorrow I have a 7:45am session and on Friday a 7am one. On the bright side – I’m an early riser – so this is no biggie for me. Hopefully the kiddos (and their parents) will be bright eyed and bushy tailed! 🙂

{awkward post-gym selfie from today – I was trying to not look bald by turning my head, but now it just looks weird. Obviously I need to work on my selfie game, haha!}

One thing I’ve been really proud of myself for during this busy photography season has been prioritizing time at the gym. I really enjoy working out and I feel great all day when I kick off my morning at the gym. The only times when I don’t go regularly are during photography busy seasons (spring-early summer and then fall-Christmas). So after this past fall/Holiday season when I was crazy busy and missed a TON of gym days, I decided not to let that happen again. So while I’m not present here as much as I’d like, I am still getting in that much needed gym time. Thanks for hanging with me while things are busy. 🙂

Ever since our A/C leaked through our ceiling three weeks ago we’ve been attempting to repair the damaged ceiling. We’ve tried two fixes and both haven’t matched the texture that is already on the ceiling. Which required RE-scraping the ceiling. Yuck! So last night we pulled out the big guns and rented a ceiling texture sprayer to fix it. Thankfully the third time was the charm and the ceiling looks way better now!

This deserves more than just a passing mention, but since blogging has taken a backseat lately, I don’t want this week to pass without me at least acknowledging this. A friend of ours from college passed away very suddenly this week. I remember when his wife and I were freshman and we were having a slumber party and giggling together about these super cute boys we were dating and how we both thought that they just might be the ones we would marry. We were right. And now, at a ridiculously young age, he is gone. My heart just breaks for her and their young son. Please take a moment to pause and say a prayer for them. Hug those you love a little tighter today.

Speaking of those I love… these two hooligans have kept me busy this summer. It’s so nice to spend some quality time with them without having to worry about school or schedules. And if you missed last week’s post about them, check it out here. These two are so near and dear to my heart. 🙂

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Christopher and I recently began volunteering with World Relief here in Memphis. We are volunteering with a refugee family from Syria who are just absolutely precious. We don’t know all of their story yet, but I am already so amazed by their resiliency and eagerness to adapt to life here. I’m not sure how many stories or photos I’ll be able to share here due to privacy, but this is what we’re doing on Monday nights now.

I know this post is such a mix of lighthearted and heavy things, but I suppose that’s life. I may not be blogging like normal right now, but there are definitely some things I want recorded to look back on. Thanks for hanging with me, friends.

Four precious, wonderful years

Yesterday my little Mallory turned 4.

How is she so big already?! I’m pretty sure it was just yesterday that she was this size:

And then I blinked and four years flew by.

Oh Mallory, you sweet, hilarious little girl. May your life always be filled with so much love and laughter.

May you keep your sense of humor and pair it with kindness and humility. May your tender heart be protected from the cruelty of the world as long as possible and when the day comes that life hurts – may you remember that you are always surrounded by people who love you. And sweet Mallory, as you grow up, may you always seek after the heart of Jesus. This is my constant prayer for you and your brother.

Four years ago when we met our financial goals and I left my desk job to be a nanny I had no idea what was in store. I knew I would love what I was doing, but I had no idea just how much. I had no idea how precious this family would become to me. And how these children would be like my own family. Watching both of them grow and change has been such a delight over the years. I do get a little weepy seeing them growing up on me, but I love the awesome little people they are becoming.

{please ignore my wet hair. I wasn’t originally planning on being in pictures yesterday when I threw my hair up in a bun after a shower and walked out the door, ha!}

I also had no clue that taking a nanny position would give me the freedom to pursue things I am passionate about. Like my photography. Will and Mallory were some of my first subjects that I photographed regularly. And nap time gave me plenty of time to learn the book side of photography as well as to edit photos. Their mom was one of the first to  brag on my photography on social media and make me feel like I might be able to make my hobby into something bigger. And then when the photography business picked up and I found myself needing to make a decision between the two – my nanny hours changed from 6:30am-3:30pm to 11:45am-4pm (about a year and a half ago). This has given me the opportunity to still see the kids during the week (especially in the summer when Will is out of school) while still pursing my photography business full time. I love that instead of having to make a choice between two things I love doing, I got to choose both. Blessing upon blessing. 🙂

Happy fourth birthday, Mallory! Four years ago, I had no idea how much you and your family would bless me. I love you for always.