A Model

Nine days after our little love was born, we headed to a local photographer's in-home studio to get some photos done.  Ashlynn Marie Photography certainly delivered - she is like the baby whisperer, and we are thrilled with these photos of our little doll.

My Love, My Bump, and Me

Weeks before our daughter surprised us with her early arrival, Handsome Husband and I headed to Old Towne Orange to get some maternity photos done.  I was on the fence as to whether or not I felt the need to get maternity photos done, but I am so glad we decided to do them.  I love looking back at these, especially now that we've met the little blessing that was inside my belly during these pictures.

Our photographer for these photos, Jen from Simple Smiles Photography, was great and very reasonably priced if you're located in Orange County, California and looking for a family photographer!

Aloha August!

Double month recap time!  Oh yeah oh yeah!

In June...

We started off the month with birthday celebrations - dinner at Goofy's Kitchen for Sisters Singer and Swimmer, and a local Italian restaurant for Gardening Mom.

 

I had a long overdue meeting with an old friend, filled with catching up and apologies, forgiveness and moving forward.

 

We headed to the San Clemente pier to one of our favorite restaurants for a perfect Saturday lunch with Cute Apartment and her Boyfriend Number Cruncher.

 

Arizona was calling our names, and we finally got back out on the boat!  The whole family went out for Father's Day and it was so nice to spend some time in one of our favorite places (especially with the addition of brand new air conditioning!).

There was lots more family fun to be had when Uncle Firefighter, Nurse Auntie, and Cousin Snapshot and her darling kiddos came to visit!  We had two lovely dinners, and it was nice to see family that we don't get to see as often as we'd like.

We finally revealed to family that there was a little BABY in our future!  It was so fun to tell all of our family, and a relief to have the secret OUT!

I got to get some more practice in with my camera when I took some photos of Mother-in-Law Red, and Mr. Bear.

I graduated from 1st trimester to the 2nd trimester of my pregnancy - time is flying!

In July...

Handsome Husband spent some time at the International Negotiation Conference, negotiating with law students from all over the world!

We celebrated the 4th of July by hosting our friends for beers, bbq and a big surprise!

 

Best Cousin and I headed to the fair to see Colbie Callait, and I was inspired to write my first letter to our little baby on the way.

We got to see all of our favorite future lawyers at a Vegas-themed birthday bash!

HH and I spent the day with Cousin Study Buddy and company - breakfast followed by a fun-filled day at our neighborhood water park and pool!

Handsome Husband's family finally got together for another Poker Tournament!  It had been long overdue, and I was so happy (almost as happy as I would have been had I won again) that Tutor Girl took home the prize!

We got another little peak our our sweet New Years baby on the way, and a few days later held a Gender Reveal party to find out whether we are expecting a baby boy or a baby girl!  I can't wait to share with all of you in just a few days!

In August? The ladies in my family head to Seattle for a long weekend, there are lots of birthdays to celebrate, HH goes back to school, and we'll get to see our little Baby M again!



No April Showers Here

In April...

 

I got to spend a lot of time with Cousins Halloween and Teeny Girl, as their mama Cousin Study Buddy studied into the late hours with my very own Handsome Husband.  Law School final time is a real joy, lemme tell ya.  But the only saving grace has been hanging out with my two little friends so much!

 

We had a long overdue dinner with Baker Girl and her husband, The Esquire, over for dinner.  We got to catch up with them, and we loved hearing about their new home plans, their exciting jobs and just catching up with an all-around wonderful couple.

 

We celebrated Lucky P's arrival and Tutor Girl's second time becoming a mommy with a Sip and See at Grandma Beach Bum's house.  I put together a super (in my never to be humble opinion) adorable and useful gift that you can see HERE.

We had a fun morning at the Farmer's Market at Orange County's Great Park with Mother-in-Law Red and Mr. Bear.

To celebrate two years of smiles for Sister Swimmer and her BF YOLO, and for me to get some camera practice, we headed to San Juan for some cutesie photos of the happy couple!

Handsome Husband's family got together at Lucille's BBQ to celebrate two special birthdays!  Grandpa Backgammon and Uncle Lighting!

Another HH Family event - the Annual Family Golf Tournament!  For the past few years, I've enjoyed attending the tournament and taking photos, as this girl is no golfer.

We had a fun night out in LA to celebrate the birthday of my dear friend, Best Friend Swagger!

I had a fun day with Gardening Mom, hopping around our community garage sale, hitting up a garden show or two, and doing some craft area organization!  May sound boring to some, but we live for some good sorting of craft supplies!

HH got deep into studymode for his upcoming finals, which start May 1st!

 

Linking up with Jennifer.



Current Obsession: Chevron and Camera Wrist Strap GIVEAWAY

My name is Casey, and I am addicted to Chevron.

I know I am about 46 years too late for this trend, but dammit, I don't care!  I just cannot get enough of the cute little zig zags all over my ish.  Handsome Hubs should thank his lucky stars that I've got about zero patience, or our house might be covered in the chev.

 

 

I have seriously accumulated quite the chevron collection. 

 

 

My former phone case was the most adorable chevron from Abigail Lee.  FYI It's only a former case because my sweet generous Handsome Hubs got me the iPhone 5 for my birthday, and I had to retire it.  I had my Abigail Lee case for over a year, and it was in amazing shape.  Highly recommend her Etsy shop if you're in the market for a cute monogrammed case!

{Mine was similar to this one, but way cuter}

My planner (yes, I still use a paper planner, though I also use Cozi, which is amazing!) rocks the zig zags also:

{Maybooks}

My clothes are no exception either. I've got chevron undies, yoga pants and even shirts!

My yoga pants actually have pink chevron trim (go figure).  Both from VS PINK collection.

Clearly enthused about my chevron top from Francesca's on Christmas morning.

My latest chevron purchase, however, just might be my favorite.  What is it you ask?

This little beauty, turning my camera from a boring ole DSLR to the cutest lil camera you ever did see:

You can find these straps at SewTamz Etsy Shop HERE.

I'm also addicted to monograms, as you can see.

The strap is from SewTamz Designs and I, for one, think it is adorable.  I'll be honest and admit that HH thinks its a wee bit ridiculous, but then again, he thinks a lot things I do are ridiculous, so what's one more?

Tammy from SewTamz was gracious enough to throw in a little wrist camera strap for one of my readers with my camera strap order, and I am pretty jealous I don't get to keep this little guy for myself. 

You can see this strap and other adorable versions for sale HERE.

This wrist strap would be so perfect for a small point and shoot and great for outings to theme parks, at recitals or events for children, and even a night out with your girlfriends.  Everyone deserves a cute accessory for their camera, and a trust way to tote your memory saver.

Enter below via Rafflecopter to camera-match me win this darling wrist strap, and make your camera cute as can be!



a Rafflecopter giveaway