Fatherly Love

This is the second time I have had the joy of shooting Nate and Griffin.    I must say I just adore their bond: playful, sweet and filled with love!  And I have to admit, if it were legal to kidnap a kid…I would choose Griffy.  Common, look at that face!  We went to my favorite downtown spot for a morning shoot…here are a few moments we captured. 

'Send Me'

A manager at my work was going on a trip to Jerusalem and offered to take our written down prayers to Jerusalem’s Western Wall.  So excited at the opportunity, I wrote on a little yellow post-it, with two simple words: ‘Send Me.’  While I know the Lord hears my prayers, I think He used the little yellow post-it in a major way….

Since high school I have had a weird attraction/pull to Africa, anytime someone would speak of Africa, or a news channel would cover a story on Africa I would find myself completely captivated.  I have always desired to serve internationally to experience and understand other peoples view on who God is, how they worship and love Him.  I have watched and greatly admired many peers go and be sent out on many great adventures, crazily following God’s call.  But I lacked the belief/confidence that God had something that incredible for me.   I don’t have a degree, or a valuable trade like medicine or a background in construction that would be valuable on mission trips.  I have always felt like I wasn’t equipped, talented or skilled enough to go.  However, the truth is God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.  I believe that God has called me into a season that requires me to get off my knees and pray, to be courageous enough to go boldly in the direction of my dreams and pray God will bless the journey.  By no means can I afford to go to Africa to serve on my own, but living by faith alone I know God will open doors and provide. 

Is it scary, HECK yea!

Self-Doubting, been there.

Am I right where God wants me to be, ABSOLUTELY. 

As I blew out the candles to my 27^th birthday cake, my wish was to “ always be in God’s Will,”  what a beautiful feeling to know I am there….

Sweet Spot

It’s been a while since I’ve been this excited for a shoot!  But last night I was SOO wound up I couldn’t go to sleep.  You see I was early to a birthday party last night, so I decided to drive around downtown to look for new locations to shoot and found this gem!!  It’s a welding building that is currently for rent and it just so happens to be me new FAVORITE place to shoot.  I literally felt giddy  when I drove past it….as I circled around the location I knew it would be perfect for Greg and Nellie’s sweet family.    Here are a few shots from this sweet little family.  Enjoy!

 

Black, White and Gold….Oh my!

What girl doesn’t love the simple elegance of Black and White.  Today’s choice was a black and white color blocked, button up blouse.  This top features a fun coat tailed back and color blocking right along the waist line.  I find a color blocking adds structure to any outfit, just make sure you are adding emphasis on the right areas.  This top gives the illusion of an A-line for my body type that works perfectly!   Another great thing about black and white is the endless array of colors you can wear it with.  I chose to stay with the beautiful black and white theme…however a pop of red, turquoise or chunky silver would have work too (experiment with fun pieces) . Pair with a wide leg trouser jean with a simple peep-toe heel and  you have a casual yet classy wear to work look.  

El Jardin

One of my ongoing goals in life is to ‘Serve Joyfully.’  I couldn’t ask for a better model than Dan and Val Naish.  I have been attending Bible study at their home roughly 8 years now.  One of Dan’s passion is gardening.  After a trip down to Mexico to an Orphanage named ‘Esperanza para los Ninos’ (Hope for the Children)  he discovered that the kids and their caretakers could majorly benefit from a vegetable  garden.  For going on three years now he has been taking down supplies, manpower and giving his time and money to plant and maintain a garden at the orphanage!  I have been blessed to be a ditch digger beside him….watching, learning and fully enjoying his skill, passion and servants heart, what a blessing!  

In  Matthew 13 Jesus tells a story of a farmer sowing seed.  The scriptures discuss a farmer planting his seeds on four different types of soil: along a path, rocky soil,  among thorns, and good soil.  The path, birds came and ate the seeds, the rocky ground the plants sprang up quick but their roots weren’t deep or strong so the plants quickly withered.  The seeds that were planted among thorn got chocked out, but the seeds planted in good soil grew healthy, strong and steadfast.  I was reminded of this story that Jesus shares in the book of Matthew while working on the garden this weekend.  Producing good soil is hard, laborious work.  It is completely exhausting and will take every bit of energy you have.    But, it is the good soil that produces the good fruit (or veggies in our case).  For me, seeing amazing people like Dan and Val Naish that remind me of why it is so important do the work it takes to make my life the, “good soil,” because I see the incredible fruit in the lives of Dan and Val and know I want the exact same for mine. 

Here are a few photos of the garden. This season we relocated the garden to the old sheep stable.  So excited to see what this soil will bring J!  

Matthew 13: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+13&version=NET

Esparanza para los Ninos:  http://esperanzaparalosninos.com/ 

Lopes Up!

I work as an Administrative Assistant at Grand Canyon University!  One of my recent responsibilities was to plan an appreciation dinner for our Ken Blanchard Executive MBA staff, as we were celebrating starting the largest cohort class the program had ever seen, quite an accomplishment!   Every fiber of my being was excited to plan this event.    The dinner took place at The Capitol Grille at the Biltmore in their beautiful wine room.  Remarkable food and exceptional staff.    But the food wasn’t even the best part….for me it was crafting the printed invitations and place card (they matched :0), designing  the floral arrangements, purchasing the recognition awards and choosing the menu.... what a blast (I get paid for this!!!)!  Here is a just a few photos from our evening.  

LOPES UP!

The Blues

Majority of the time an outfit will pop in my head simply from seeing a fantastic accessory piece: Hats, Scarves, Necklaces, earrings, or  rings…..YES PLEASE!   That was exactly the case for today’s outfit…..I purchased these blue pieces of wonderful (earrings, that is) at a late night rendezvous to Arrowhead mall last night.  I simply couldn't wait to rock these little gems!!!  While traditionally, I am not a fan of matching my outfits and accessories today it worked!   A blue flouncy blouse topped on a white camisole, pair with trouser jean and cowboy boots!  Yeehaw

STYLE YOU: When you are buying loud or busy accessory pieces you can take one of two approaches.  First, only buy the piece if after seconds or minutes you can put an outfit together (in your mind)  to wear it with.  Second, if you LOVE it, buy it.... but, then be  intentional to buy two different pieces that you know it you will wear it with!  Jewelry is intended to decorate you…not the inside of your jewelry box  J  Happy Accessorizing!

So Fresh and so Clean Clean!

I believe often we try to overdo  style!  Sometimes the best thing you can wear is a white shirt, jeans and a smile!  Today,  I rolled up full length jeans  to Capri’s, wore them with this white polka dot blouse with a white camisole under ( I love to layer).  Finish the outfit with a pair pearls and was set!  Simple, clean, cute!  

For the LOVE of Polka Dots!

Lately I can’t get enough of this mustard yellow!!!  Seriously, I just can’t pass it up whenever I see in the store.  Today, I paired it with this sheer black and white polka dot blouse that I placed over a simple black camisole…fold up the sleeves and pop out the collar and BAM you have some much needed structure to this outfit.  I wore this with a dark wash trouser jean (a staple in my wardrobe).

 I choose a bold gold chain necklace as a statement piece.  (One thing to remember is if you have to lose the sweater at any part of the day…due to it being too warm, you still want to have some sass to your outfit….the gold necklace provides just that.) Pair the necklace with a simply diamond stud earring. 

Style YOU:

My encouragement for you: Try pairing a bright solid with a fun complimentary print!  

The Craziness Begins...

Two things that I thoroughly enjoy in life are fashion and photography.    I invested in a light kit about a year ago and sadly, it has been sitting in the corner of my room, pretty much since its arrival :o(!  Such a shame, I know!!!   Well no more…I have decided to brush the dust off  that suitcase and put my studio to good use.   I am very excited to start blogging about my daily outfits!  While I am no New York fashionista,  I do enjoy the challenge of choosing pieces that will flatter my curvy figure, pairing great outfits with unique accessories and finding those great bargains!  My hope is to share tips, tricks, and inspiration to help you pull a great outfit together from your closet!  

Felt Fun

I had some left over materials from the Halloween costume project I have been working on.  Just as I was folding up the scraps of felt about to put them in the craft box, I remembered the felt flowers I had seen on Pinterest.  I remember being surprised at the simplicity of the craft and thought….it can’t be that easy!   With the hot glue gun and scissors already out…I thought I’d give it a try!  (Now you do need a good pair of sharp scissors) I followed the steps in the photo,  exactly as I found on it on Pinterest, which was:

For the bottom I just cut out a small circle of felt, hot glued the bottom and stuck a skewer stick (literally from my kitchen drawer…sometimes you have to be resourceful, Ha!) in the bottom of the flower, and you have a cute, cheery  felt blossom!  Put them in a mason jar and they provide a lovely little centerpiece for my dining room table.  

Chalk Talk

I am blessed to be able to attend Grand Canyon University, pursing my undergrad in Applied Management.  I am currently in a class titled ‘Organizational Change and Development’… and loving it! My professor has worked as a Dean in higher education, Director at Sperry Aerospace and Senior Vice President at SRP.  He has his Doctorate in adult learning; simply put, he is brilliant!  In last night’s class he began by handing out a paper that had three questions on it:

1. What is motivating you? 

2. What are your personal goals this year?

3. What are your professional goals this year?

While not profound questions…they had a profound impact on me that ignited tonight’s project.  Zig Ziglar once said “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why recommend it daily.”  How often we get caught in the day to day routine that we quickly lose sight of our true goals, aspirations and dreams.   The daily drudgery of over-sized workloads, hectic schedules and trying to meet everyone else’s needs has us wondering what our own purpose is!  I sat in class able to clearly identify what my goals were…but the daily disciplines I need to exercise in order to attain those goals weren’t so easy to see.  Thus….Chalk Talk!  Hobby Lobby carries chalk board contact paper.  Peel and stick right on your wall…and WHALLA, you have a chalk board!  For this season, I have dedicated mine to my goals, providing me a daily visual reminder of my motivation, purpose, passion and direction. 

Cheers to ChalkingJ!

Straight for the Heart....DIY Project

I’m not an avid DIYer…more of an avid Pinner, but nonetheless every now and then I get the itch to do a project.  It was a friend’s  son and daughter combined  birthday party;  I knew there would be tons of your run of the mill cutesy outfits and noisy toys….but I wanted to make something special!  Me and a friend decided to tag-team a hanging letter, photo collage project.  Our aim, straight for the heart! Here is a little video of the project.  Totally worth it!   

VIDEO LINK: http://animoto.com/play/722ceR3BLx3x06klw9gLvQ

Project details: The wooden letters were purchased at Hobby Lobby.  Photos were transferred to wood with Liquidex Gloss Gel. We painted white and grey chevron pattern to the sides to tie it in with their home.  Added crochet flower made by Teri Babcock (thanks Teri).  Then Super glued flowers, buttons and scrabble letters on to personalize it…and TADA, a one-of-a-kind gift, perfect for any age.  Happy DIYing! 

Saul and Adrienne

This past weekend I was delighted to shoot one of my best friends, Adrienne and her boyfriend Saul.   Saul had reached out to me months ago booking a photo-shoot  in advance for a surprise photo session date with Adrienne.  This was just one of his many surprise dates he is famous for.   Saul suggestion Castles’N’Coasters as the shoot location and I reluctantly agreed.   Truthfully,  I just couldn't see past my junior high opinion of Castles’N’Coasters as a dated arcade that desperately needed new carpeting.  I was pleasantly surprised that the location was anything but dated, it offered backgrounds o’plenty with brilliant colors and lots of fun.  It fit Saul and Adrienne’s relationship and personalities  perfectly .    Well done Saul, well done!!  Here are just a few moments we captured from our session!

In the Mood for Great Food!

 It’s one of my favorite weeks in the valley; restaurant week!  Arizona’s Restaurant Week theme boasts: ‘Priceless Dining without the Price,” and with over 150 participating restaurants it is sure not to disappoint your cravings.   This week is a perfect  opportunity to gather your friends and dine at that restaurant you have always wanted to try!  Tonight, my best friend Kendra and I tried a divine little west side hideaway named Betty’s Nosh, mushroom bar.  Tonight’s menu was:

         

• Wine: McMannis Chardonnay – California
•  Starter: Betty’s Signature Salad
• Mixed baby greens, candied walnuts, fresh sliced pears, Maytag blue cheese crumbles and citrus vinaigrette
•  Entrée: Steak Au Poivre
• Eight ounce New York Strip seasoned with cracked black pepper, seared and topped with Sautéed Mushrooms and a touch of brandy. Served over Garlic Mashed Potatoes.
• Dessert:  Peanut Butter Cheesecake

The Chardonnay and Betty’s Signature Salad provided a perfect pairing. The Peanut Butter Cheesecake…a must!  We will defiantly be back for a ‘Noshing’ good time! 

Get out there and support your local restaurants.  Cheers! 

http://www.arizonarestaurantweek.com/

http://bettysnosh.com/