Christopher, this photographer’s BFF

I’m currently on maternity leave from photography, but I’ve been thinking recently about how thankful I’ve been to have Christopher as such a big part of my photography business. Since the beginning of this photography business, Christopher has come to every photo session that he can. Many sessions happen while he’s at work, but if he’s able, he likes to come along. And I love for him to be there. It’s nice to have the sweet encouragement, but even more than that – he is super handy to have around!

First of all, I like to be able to check the lighting before my clients arrive. So having a person to model for me helps a TON! This shot was taken to test lighting just before a client arrived and it has turned into one of my favorites. I just love how cozy Christopher looks with his scarf and coat and beard. 🙂

Kids love him! He is great at keeping kiddos occupied while they wait their turn for photos. In the photo above he was playing with the kids while I took couple photos of their parents. Christopher is quite the child wrangler. 😉

He helps out with lighting! Usually by using reflectors to reflect soft light onto the clients, but in this case we had one giant shaft of sun coming down in the middle of the photo so he’s actually using the reflector to block the sun.

He’s great at getting kids to laugh! You can see here that he has a toy in one hand and a burp cloth, paci, and ball in the other hand. Not only is he great at lugging around purses and diaper bags as we move from spot to spot, he’s also great at getting natural smiles from kiddos while I snap away. He usually stands right behind me while he does this so he has been known (on many occasions) to drop a toy on my head to elicit laughter from kiddos. Works every time. 😉

And best of all… he has become my second shooter for weddings. All along the way, he has been interested in what I’ve learned so I’ve shared it with him as well. He may not have quite as much hands-on practice at photography as I have over the past few years, but he has a natural eye and the practical know-how to take beautiful photos. I absolutely love having him as my second shooter for events! 🙂

I am so thankful for the way he has supported me from the beginning and has helped out all along the way! I love my lenses and lighting equipment and Photoshop, but Christopher is the most invaluable asset to my business of all. He is definitely this photographer’s BFF. 🙂

Do you have a person or thing that helps make your job much easier?

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Casablanca

I haven’t done a restaurant review on here in a long time because I’ve shared pretty much all of my favorite Memphis eats at some point or another already. However, Casablanca is a place we’ve discovered this year and really enjoy.

Hummus with pita is a favorite of ours. Casablanca’s is good, but I wouldn’t say it’s better than the hummus at other places we’ve eaten here in Memphis.

Christopher loves their Super Sandwich which is a pita stuffed with lamb, beef, and chicken not to mention all the other goodness you see above.

And chicken kabobs will always be my favorite. They are seasoned so well here! The “veggies” it comes with on the side are really more just a couple of starchy potato and sweet potato chunks, but the delicious kabob makes up for it.

In general Christopher and I agree on all our favorite places to eat here in Memphis, but we are definitely split when it comes to our favorite Middle Eastern / Mediterranean place. I still prefer Zam Zamz. I love a good chicken kabob and the one at Zam Zamz is so great. And less expensive than Casablanca’s. And we love the hummus at both places equally. However, Christopher prefers the rich flavors of the other dishes at Casablanca. Plus we can both agree that the decor at Casablanca’s is more fun.

If you are looking for a quick and affordable lunch, Zam Zamz is your place. If you want a slightly nicer place where you will sit down and be there for a bit (and pay a bit more), then check out Casablanca. Or better yet, try them both and let me know which you prefer! 🙂

A Healthier Cake-in-a-Mug

So this isn’t a healthy snack. Don’t read the title above incorrectly. It’s a healthier version of the traditional cake-in-a-mug recipe (you know, the one that includes oil and sugar). But this isn’t exactly like having a sliced apple for a snack. 😉 Now that we’ve got that out of the way, I want to share with you guys our favorite way to make cake-in-a-mug!

A Healthier Cake-in-a-Mug

Ingredients:

4 tbsp all purpose flour
1 tbsp granulated Stevia
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa
2 tbsp Egg Beaters (or 1/2 of a whisked egg)
4 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
3 tbsp no sugar added applesauce
splash vanilla
3 tbsp dark chocolate chips

Directions:

Add ingredients to mug and mix together. We have a tiny whisk that we use for this and it’s perfect for making sure everything is combined perfectly. Microwave on high for 1 minute or until middle of cake is set. Enjoy!

Speaking of mugs… apparently I have an affinity for them. Which means we have a bunch of them. And I love them all. Want to see?

Travel related mugs! All but one of these were gifts from friends and family over the years. The only one we actually bought was the blue one right in the middle which we found at a thrift store. It’s from the Cinque Terre which was one of our favorite places we’ve traveled. From Left to Right: Wuhan, China (where I spent my teen years), Tupelo (where we filmed a commercial), Rome, Cinque Terre, Prague, Czech Republic, and Disneyland Tokyo (where I visited as a teenager, but apparently have never blogged about).

The mug on the far left was the first set of mugs that we ever owned as newly weds. We ended up giving a couple of them away over the years and as our random mug collection grew I realized that I didn’t feel strongly about having all matching mugs so we gave the rest away as well. The rest of these are a mix of gifts and ones I found on sale at Target and thrift stores.

The three on the left were gifts, but the two on the right were Target discount finds. I just love them so much!

So yes, we have 18 mugs. For 2 people. And I’ve had to slow myself waaaay down on purchasing them over the years (even when they are the cutest ever and super cheap) since we’ve been given so many as gifts. But I have to tell you guys, we use them for everything! Sometimes I use them in place of anything I would put in a bowl (like soup, cereal, or oatmeal). Obviously we use them for cake-in-a-mug and of course we drink from them as well. So while we probably don’t need this many mugs, we certainly use them! 🙂

Do you find yourself drawn to cute mugs?

Have you ever had cake-in-a-mug?

Happy Adoption Day to our Mutt!

Seven years ago today we adopted this pup. He has been our only child for such a long time and sometime in the next couple of weeks his whole world is going to be rocked. But until then, we’re going to give him as much extra attention and love as we can. 🙂

Oh sweet mutt, you have been such a big part of our lives these past seven years. Happy birthday/adoption day, Oreo!

Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

A few years ago I shared a recipe on this blog for lemon poppyseed muffins. I’m not sure where I initially got this recipe, but I’ve been making it again lately and it is such a winner! So I wanted to share with with you guys. 🙂

Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tbsp poppy seeds
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar in the raw
2 tbsp lemon zest (2 large lemons)
1/4 cup melted butter
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Zest the lemons over a small bowl of sugar. Rub the sugar and zest together until the sugar is slightly moist and fragrant.

2. Add egg, melted butter, buttermilk and vanilla. Mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add liquid ingredients to the dry slowly and stir just until moistened. Be careful not to over-stir. Fold in poppy seeds.

3. Spray muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Divide muffin batter evenly into 36 mini muffin cups. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

I made these recently for a group of friends and they were such a hit! I had forgotten  just how yummy they are and how amazing they smell as they bake!

Speaking of baking things… I will be baking today. Apparently the ridiculous number of freezer meals I have stocked up suddenly doesn’t feel like enough and I’m itching to bake and freeze some scones and waffles as well. And I’m planning to bake cookies for the nurses (to take in with us when I deliver) so I’ll pop those in the freezer until we head to the hospital. I’ve never actually frozen baked cookies before, but I’ve heard they thaw quickly at room temperature and are super delicious. So here’s to hoping!

Does anyone have experience with freezing baked cookies?

What was the last thing you baked?

Nursery Sneak Peak

This past weekend Christopher and I took a few photos in the nursery. I absolutely love how they turned out so I thought I’d share a couple with you guys! Plus this gets you a sneak peak at the nursery for everyone who has been asking! 🙂

“Ciao Bella” means “Hello Beautiful” in Italian (or also “Goodbye Beautiful” since “Ciao” can be used for both). Our talented friend, Mandy, offered to make any sign for the nursery that we wanted so after looking at lots of options, we decided on this. Initially I was leaning toward long phrases or scriptures, but when Christopher saw the “Ciao Bella” idea, he was sold. Knowing he loved it so much made it easy for me to go with it as well! 🙂

That dresser was my grandparents’ first dresser after they got married. And the crib is the one that I was in as a baby (as well as my sisters and niece and nephew). It was originally a drop-side crib so Christopher and a master woodworker from church converted it. A few coats of paint and they perfectly fit the vision we had for this nursery. I cannot begin to tell you how much I love how these pieces of furniture turned out! Also that pink blanket on the side of the crib is was made for Baby Vendetti by my Aunt Denise. She literally knitted the hearts into the blanket which just amazes me!

The rocking chair I’m sitting in belonged to my sister, Holly (it was a gift from our mom). She used it with both of her babies. And the crochet blanket draped over the chair is one that Holly made for Baby Vendetti at my request. It turned out exactly as I imagined so I loved that! This book is one we had on our registry, but I love that it was my mother-in-law who ended up gifting it to us. Lots of prayers have been prayed for this sweet baby.

These are the floating shelves that Christopher built and installed above the rocking chair in the nursery. My mom got us that “Congrats” Willow Tree figurine. Kelsi (who I mentored when she was in high school, but is now more like a sister to us) made the “For this Child I have Prayed” sign for us. “La Dolce Vita” means “The Sweet Life” in Italian and the pink frame it sits in came from Thailand via one of my sister, Abby’s best friends. Speaking of Abby, she drew the Memphis skyline on that canvas and had friends and family add stars above it for our baby shower. And the little owl was a handmade gift from our niece, Makenzie. So much love on these shelves!

And finally, this shot was actually taken in our kitchen, not the nursery. But I love, love, love how it turned out so I wanted to share it with you guys as well. Christopher really does take the sweetest pictures of this bump!

There are so many other sweet elements to the nursery, but some of them include her name which we are waiting until she is born to announce. So the rest of the reveal will have to wait until then. There is so much love in this room. Everywhere we look in there, we see handmade gifts and treasured hand-me-downs from friends and family and we are reminded of how many people love this little girl already.

Quick Pseudo Italian Dinners

I hesitate to call either of these “recipes” because they are more like meal ideas than anything else. But they are both super delicious and both always big hits with other people. So I wanted to share them with you guys! 🙂

So first up, French Bread Pizza. Friends, this is simple. So simple. Slice a loaf of French or Italian bread in half length ways. Cut into “individual size” portions (3″-4″) and then take a heavy tray and attempt to flatten the bread as much as possible by pressing down on the bread and compressing it. I learned this tip from Serious Eats (see link for photos of what I’m talking about) and it makes a huge difference in keeping the sides of the bread from being too curled. Pre-bake bread at 350 degrees for about 7-8 minutes and then remove from oven. Top with your favorite sauce (our recipe here!), cheese, and any desired toppings. Bake for another 8-10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Bada boom bada bing! Dinner is served!

If French Bread Pizza is simple, then Baked Spaghetti is practically effortless. Especially if you have leftover spaghetti and pasta sauce from a previous night. It’s really up to you how much trouble you want to go to. You can even use jarred sauce and pre-shredded cheese and this meal takes on new levels of simplicity.

For us, we usually make this with leftover spaghetti sauce (our favorite recipe here!) that we tossed in the freezer after a meal. I’ll pull it out of the freezer, let it thaw overnight and the next day all I have to do is boil my spaghetti noodles and shred my mozzarella cheese (I don’t know why, but I think the block cheese that you shred melts better than the pre-shredded stuff). I combine the cooked pasta with the spaghetti sauce and pour it into a 13×9″ pan then top with a little extra layer of sauce and then shredded mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove foil and turn oven to broil. Put pan back in the oven and watch carefully so the minute the cheese begins to bubble and turn brown, you can pull it out. Or if you don’t like bubbly cheese, you can skip that last step.

So yes, two super simple meals. Neither of which are even really Italian. More Italian-flavor inspired. 😉 But they are delicious and simple and crowd pleasers therefore definitely worth sharing in my book! 🙂

Do you ever make baked spaghetti or French bread pizza?

Do you have a favorite meal idea that isn’t really a recipe, but is always a hit?