project life 2014

Ok, so let's talk Project Life.


What is Project Life, you ask? Basically, the amazing Becky Higgins has created a simple system for scrapbooking your photos. (You can read all about it here on her website.) For the past 4 years I have taken the photo-a-day approach. And I have loved it. As I mentioned in my previous post, I was able to capture and record soooooo many moments and memories through my daily photography that would otherwise have been missed. Our yearly scrapbooks are a treasure, and not something that I'm about to give up anytime soon!



For 2014, I will be simplifying things a bit. See, for me, after 4 years of trying to take a picture every single day (and pretty much succeeding!) there was an element of guilt and stress attached to it, too. That may sound weird, I mean it's just taking pictures. But obviously there were some days that I missed and sometimes trying to find something different to photograph everyday was hard. In my Type A head, I really tried my best to have all my pictures in the exact right order, etc, etc, etc...so the process became a bit too much WORK than I wanted it to be. (Hence how I gave up on posting my 2013 pictures after only a few months. *sniff*)



So for this year, here's the deal: I'm going to continue taking pictures of my kids and our life on a *somewhat* daily basis. Sometimes I'll use my real camera, and on most occasions I'll probably be using my camera phone (wink). No stress. No worries. No expectations. Just snapping photos when I feel like something is photo-worthy. My hope is that I'll continue to capture our everyday moments, but I'm not going to worry about attaching a specific day or number to each picture. THEN, at the end of every month I'll post a photo collage right here on the blog of a handful of our pictures. Sometimes I might share only 3 or 4 photos and sometimes maybe I'll share 20! Some months I may only share photos from one specific day or event, and sometimes I'll share tidbits of everything. I'm not going to set a specific standard that I have to meet every month, because then to me, that will eventually equal STRESS. Heehee. I just don't want any rules! I really want this year's approach to be simple and satisfying, while still capturing our daily life. :)



When it comes to putting all of our photos from the year into my project life album, I'm simply going to print all the pictures I want to include in the album, divide them into months, and pop them in the album. Done and done. I'm not going to worry about having a certain number of pictures/month...just whatever pictures I like from that month will be good enough for me! Whew...did all that make sense?? Heehee.



With all that being said, here is my January collage. All these perfectly imperfect photos were taken with my iPhone, which is just fine by me. Of course I way prefer pictures taken with my actual camera, but like I always say...any picture is better than no picture!



So here we go....1 month down, 11 more to go! (Thank you to Rebecca Cooper for this handy collage template!)

1. Miss KK having fun at playschool 2. Payton and Crewie playing on the computer 3. Gabby swimming for FHE 4. My chubby boy fast asleep in his Buzz Lightyear jammies 5. The 4 kids celebrating New Years 6. Cuddles 7. The Terry cousins celebrating Winter's birthday 8. The Littles just chillin' one afternoon 9. Skating with Payton 10. Green smoothie yumminess 11. Mommy and her babies

And just for fun...here are the links to my past photo-a-day blogs:


2010 Photo a Day Blog
2011 Photo a Day Blog
2012 Photo a Day Blog
2013 Photo a Day Blog

Where to Begin?

So, wow.

Where do I even begin? After not blogging for an entire YEAR, it's a tad overwhelming to attempt this again! But here I am...attempting to get back into this blogging thing.

To be honest, I've been wanting to blog again for a long time. But with the ease and convenience of Facebook and Instagram (right from my phone!), the ol' blog was quickly and easily replaced. Now don't get me wrong, I love me some social media! (wink) I love how I can post a cute picture instantly here and there, or share something funny that one of the kids has said immediatley after they said it...but in turn I've missed out on sharing and more importantly RECORDING the more in-depth stuff stuff about our little family and our little life.

Last Christmas, my mother-in-law gave me this book for Christmas. My blog. In a book. I LOVE it. My blogging had already slowed down quite a bit when she gave it to me and looking through it, I was AMAZED at all that I had captured and recorded over the years through my blog. What an amazing gift! I absolutely love flipping through the pages and seeing our life in print. The fact that this life of ours is captured like that forever really hit home for me...and so it's been nagging me to get going again. ;)

Now, in my defense, for 3 years straight I took a photo every single day for my project life albums. I posted those daily photos and shared a caption to go with each one (aside from last year...I kept taking pictures, but kinda fell off the bandwagon when it came to posting them online!)...doing that on a daily basis kind of took the place of my regular blogging as well. And I am SUPER proud of our daily photos...they are such a treasure and a gift for our family to have for the years to come. The kids love looking through our yearly scrapbooks, and it really is amazing to see how quickly and how much they change. (As a sidenote...stay tuned for what my approach to my everyday photos and project life album is going to be this year...I have a plan!)

Anyways...as always, it sounds like I'm trying to defend myself as to why I've neglected this poor blog of mine. Well, I guess I AM defending myself, heehee! With our 4 kids, my photography business and just LIFE in general, I kind of let it slip to the back-burner. So instead of dwelling on that, it's time to move on and move forward! It's a new year. Life is good. We are good. I love my crazy little family so much and this is why I want to blog again. I promise to be back sooner rather than later. And even if it is only myself that reads my little blog posts, I am totally ok with that. 'Cause it's all about the memories and I want to remember each and every one of them. :)

Kherington, Graham, Crew, me, Gabby and Payton | September 2013

these feet

Yesterday I had a moment.



It isn't too often that I find myself in a quiet house with almost nothing going on around me.



The big girls were at school, Kherington was invited over to her big cousin's house, so it was just Crew and I at home. My little Crewie is, well....a handful! At 20 months old, he is busy busy busy and always up to something. So any sort of down-time with him when he is awake is rare. Because he is always. on. the. go. (wink)



We had a little time to kill before his nap, so not really thinking he'd stay there, I pulled him up on my lap, and just sat on the couch with him and hoped he'd watch a little Curious George with me.



We stayed in this exact position for a half hour.



For anyone with an almost 2 year old, you would know that this a LONG time for a toddler of this age! To sit still without moving for 30 minutes? That is very rare for my Crew!


As we sat, I cuddled his warm little body close to me. I snuggled into his clean hair from just getting out of the bath. I watched him cross and uncross his chubby little feet as he watched George on TV.



And I also realized that it wasn't George that he was content with, but ME.



My full attention. My time. My love.



As I held him, I realized how I do not do this often enough. As the youngest of 4, by default, Crew spends much of his being carted around in the car, dropping off and picking up his sisters from school and lessons, running errands with mama. He doesn't get the same down-time at home that his sisters had, especially the older girls.



It made me so guilty and so sad for him. Being a mama is hard. And all I want is for my babies to know how much I love them. And how everything I do is for them. I cuddled him like crazy and felt so very lucky for this quiet, uninterrupted time with my son.



It is so hard to believe that there was a time that this little dude wasn't a part of our family. Because now...we simply couldn't live without him. While we often joke about how much of a handful he is, the truth of the matter is...he has every single person in this family wrapped around his little fingers. We all live for his giggles, his hugs, his slobbery kisses. We all laugh when he does something funny, and we all jump to help him when we think he's been hurt. We love our boy.



How grateful I am for those quiet moments with my son. To hold his warm body and kiss his chubby feet. To not worry about the messes that needed to be cleaned, or the phone calls that needed to be made. To just be in the moment with him and put everything else on hold.



This was a reminder for me as a mother. Not just for Crew, but for all my precious children. To take the time to spend a few quiet moments with each of them. Whenever I can. To just sit and enjoy the moment and put everything else in the world aside and to focus on THEM. It is hard for me to believe that I have already been doing this mothering thing for more than 8 years. And it is starting to hit me how my time with little ones at home will all too quickly come to an end. And it was these little feet that reminded me of all these things yesterday. These chubby feet reminded me to slow down...just a little. To enjoy these moments at home a little bit more. And most importantly, to LOVE more.



'Cause we all need love, right?

the simple things...

A "simple thing" from this past week.


This is Kherington. She is 3 years old.


She loves red lipstick. LOVES it.


I often find her rummaging through my make-up drawer in search of the pretty stuff that makes her lips "so beautiful".


I try to hide it but it never works.


She always finds it.


xoxoxox

Payton's Baptism...

Well, Happy New Year! It is so hard to believe that it is 2013 and yet another year has passed by...where does the time go? We had a wonderful Christmas this year, I just love the time with all my kids at home just hanging out and being together. This year was even more special because Payton was baptized just a few days after Christmas. It was such a wonderful day! Back in August before school started, we went out and took some special pictures of her in her baptism dress...I am so glad we did! This little girl just shines inside and out and we are so blessed to have her in our family. She is full of so much sweetness and spunk and we just couldn't live without her. I am so proud of the decision she made to get baptized...she is such a good example to her little sisters and brother! xoxoxo

For those of you who aren't of my faith, you may wonder why children aren't baptized until the age of 8...you can read a short and simple explanation here, but basically we are taught that by the age of 8 children can understand the difference between right and wrong. Payton was very lucky to have her daddy baptize and confirm her as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. :)

It was a very emotional and wonderful day, and in the days leading up to her baptism and after, we've been able to have many special talks and moments with her. As the cliche goes, I just can't believe that she is already 8 years old and has reached this very special milestone in her little life! I hope she always remembers how happy she felt on this day. :)

After her baptism we had our families over for dinner and dessert, and we showed this little slideshow that we put together for Payton...it still makes me tear up watching it, heehee! We love our girl, Happy 8th Birthday, Payton and Congratulations!!! xoxox

thankful

so very thankful....

for my home.

for my friends.

for my beliefs and my faith.

for good times and laughter.

for trials that have brought me to where I am today.

and most importantly,

for my wonderful husband

and my 4 precious children...

who make my life complete, worthwhile and just plain awesome.

Happy Thanksgiving to anyone and everyone. Take a little time this weekend to reflect on the people and things YOU are thankful for.

Talia:)

4 kids

kisses

hugs

fights

messes

never ending laundry

toys

cuddles

movie nights

singing

diapers

soothers

bottles

reading

homework

bike rides

doctors appointments

dance lessons

life lessons

prayers

laughter

playtimes

naptimes

church

storytime

cleaning

sleepless nights

giggles

lots of fun

and

LOVE.

How lucky I am to be the mama to these 4 precious kids. Everyday is a challenge, but we're doing it together. Love these little rascals so much.

xo

kk

Now let's not forget about Little Miss Sassy-Pants...Kherington Gray.

(click on collage to see larger)

Okay, where oh, where do I begin when it comes to my crazy- cute 2 year old? Let's start off by saying she's full of spunk, sass and life. This girl always has us laughing and is developing quite the personality. While she's shy with people at first, once she warms up there's no stopping her personality and cuteness. We are learning that she loooooves to sing and dance. She sings "twinkle twinkle little star" in her own language on a daily basis...at the top of her lungs and with actions and all. She loves the movie "Tangled" and sings along with it, too...it is so funny. I think sometimes Graham and I forget that she's getting a little older...she's been our baby for 2 years and it's hard to believe those days will soon be coming to an end! We just recently moved her into her "big girl bed" and she has done so well...she thinks it's funny to come to her door with all of her pillows and blankets, but it's usually pretty easy to get her right back into bed. Oh, and she loves all of her baby-dolls...she is always carting one around. And she's very particular when it comes to tucking them in at night...everything has to be just so before she goes to sleep. Again...she's so funny! While 2 can be a challenging age, it certainly makes up for it in cuteness.

We just love our little princess. Her big sisters are totally enamoured with her, as are mommy and daddy. I don't think there is anything in the world that melts a parents heart more than hearing their little ones say "mama" and "daddy" clear as a bell...she definately has daddy wrapped around her little finger! Honestly, I could go on and on...she just brings so much happiness to our family, I don't know what we would do without her! I can't wait to see her be a big sister to her "boy baby" as she calls him...we love you, KK. *mwah*!!!

:)

gabby

Now onto my #2...Gabriella Mae.

(click on collage to see larger)

Once again, where oh, where to begin with this little munchkin? Gabby is now 4 and a half years old and is a little firecracker to say the least. Oh, don't let those cute looks fool ya! She is our stinker, but we sure do love her to bits. This little one has a mind of her own and usually wants to do things HER way...but she makes up for it by equally sweet (when she is in the mood...heehee!).

Gabby looooooves to be cuddled and loved, and she loves to cuddle us in return! She could honestly sit in my arms all day if I would let her...she is very content being held. She's learning her alphabet and still has cute ways of pronouncing words...I don't have the heart to correct her most of the time 'cause it's just too darn cute. Being in the middle 'aint always easy...but she sure does love her sisters. She looks up to Payton so much and looks after KK like any good big sister does. She loves dancing, riding her bike, getting "boy toys" from McDonald's, playing with flashlights and her latest obsession is Disney's "Tangled." She is funny, sweet, silly and LOUD...we're still trying to teach her what "whispering" is, haha! She melts our hearts when she says the sweetest little prayers every night before bedtime on her own...she never forgets to thank Heavenly Father "for her family and that the baby will come out of mommy's tummy soon." She has been such a blessing to me during this pregnancy...I have been soooo tired in the afternoons, and she is honestly AMAZING when Kherington goes down for her naps. She knows that it is "quiet time" and just plays and entertains herself all afternoon long...allowing me to rest, too! (wink) I have been so very lucky...at such a young age, she has managed to be very patient with her mama.

She is our perfect mix of sweet and sassy. While she definitely keeps us on our toes, she is always the first person to say "I love you"....and she says it alot.

We love you, too, crazy girl.

xoxo

payton

I am back. I am attempting to blog. I promised more pictures of the kids from last weekend, so here I am! As you can see I recently gave my blog a little makeover...it was long overdue and much needed, I just couldn't decide what to do so I was always putting it off. Anyways, I may still tweak a few things here and there, but I'm happy with it...I just needed to simplify, clean and freshen things up a bit! As part of my "makeover" I've been going through old posts and labelling them to make navigating and finding posts on certain subjects a bit easier...for you and for myself! (if you look on the sidebar near the bottom, you'll see a "labels" section where you can click on different subjects) As I was going through old posts, I realized how much I looooove the simple and personal posts about my children. This blog serves many purposes for me...it's fun, it's a creative outlet, it's a way to share photography, scrapbooking, decorating and DIY ideas...but for me, most importantly, it's a record and a journal. I am so grateful for all that I have recorded over the last few years...big things and little things alike. So, with baby coming in about in a month, I thought it would be fitting to do a separate post on each of my girlies as big changes are about to come in our little family.

So, here we go.

Payton Isabella.

(click collage to see larger)

Here is my gorgeous girl at 6 years old. There are so many things to say about her, where do I even begin? Payton has grown up soooo much in the past little while! While she is still a little girl who loves to play with her dolls, she has become so responsible and such a good helper to me. Honestly, I don't know what I would do without her! With all of my kids still being in car seats, she is the only one who can get in and out of the car totally on her own, she can be dropped off at school without needing to be walked to her door and she can actually help me with Kherington and little things that need to be done here and there. The other day we went through the drive-thru for supper, and parked the car to pass out the food...Payton was right there for me passing the girls their drinks and meals, talking in her little mothering voice...I was honestly so grateful. It seems like such a simple act, but the fact that I didn't have to get out of the car and do it myself...it just meant alot to me. (remember...I'm 8 and a half months pregnant!)

She has learned so much in grade 1 this year...she is already reading chapter books and is so bright. She's taking piano from her auntie, and I am honestly amazed at how quickly and easily she has picked it up! I hope she sticks with it...one of my biggest regrets is quitting the piano, so I am determined that one of my kids will play! Heehee! She is our one child who actually listens to us and obeys us...heehee! And feels bad if she thinks she's done something wrong...the other ones aren't quite there yet! (wink) Oh, and she's my perfect little model when it comes to taking pictures...I could photograph her forever...always so willing and cooperative!

All around, Payton is just simply a blessing in our family. She is confident, funny, and oh, yes she can be bossy (she IS the oldest, you know...) but we couldn't live without her. I remember being pregnant with her and just LONGING for her. She has most certainly fulfilled and exceeded all of our expectations in a daughter.

Love, love, love you sweetie.

xoxo

sometimes...

sometimes, when you think you've got it all figured out...things change.




...life throws you a curve ball, just to make things a little more interesting.





...an "accident" or a "surprise" if you will.





...'cause, you know. life isn't crazy enough already, so let's just make things a little bit crazier.










ya. oops.




this was the little "surprise" that graham and i received in september.




wish us luck. 4 seems like a really big number to me right now!




T:)

just because

Sunday night.

Kids are sleeping.

House is clean.

Air conditioning is on. (yay for warm weather!)

Sharing these photos just because.

Because they make me happy.

Because they look cute.

Because I love them so.

:)

all dressed up

Sunday mornings come around and sometimes I feel like that's the only day I can get everyone dressed and ready and looking cute. So you know what that means...pictures!

I totally remember my mom always wanting to take pictures of all of us kids on Sundays and this look on Payton's face in the picture above reminds of how I always felt when she wanted to take yet another photo. Haha! Cracks me up that now I'm the mama that's always harassing my family for yet another photo. One day they'll thank me! (...right?)

Anyways, the girls dresses are from Target, I picked them up while we were in Montana in February. Oh, what will I do when my kids won't let me dress them in matching outfits and put bows in their hair?

That will be a sad day.

But for now, bows and matching dresses it is!

T:)

P.S. Thanks for all the comments on my last post! It seems I'm not the only Sarah Richardson lover...I'll have to post more home decor stuff, that was fun!