So they finished digging the foundation of our new house today – look at all of that red Carolina dirt!

This is standing at the top of our driveway:

Looking out over the big flattened spot toward what will be our main lake view:

The view toward one side, standing at basement level:

And the other side:

I will be leaving tomorrow to travel back to PA to do a bunch of sessions this weekend, so pray the weather cooperates! If all goes well, I should have a bunch of new images to post next week. Have a great weekend everyone!

I thought these were such a good idea – pretty, fun to do, & inexpensive! Great way to recycle old drinking glasses, jars, & votives, and a trip to the dollar store should get you everything else you need. You can make them in any color combos – match whatever picnic tableware you have. Best of all, occupy your kids with a fun project!

Directions here: Easy Sand Candles

I know it’s early, but you might want to start saving your pennies for this one…if your guy is a runner or works out a lot, I think this would be fabulous:

These are Oakley sunglasses with a built-in mp3 player & ear buds! No more fussing with the ipod lariat or arm band! The speakers come off & they can be worn as regular sunglasses, too. They look good, and are resistant to water & sweat-

But, at $249, a little more than a father’s day tie, but still in line for good sunglasses: Oakley Split thump sunglasses

…my sister does a little house cleaning on the side because she has two girls in college right now. She used to do light cleaning for me when I was in PA, but since I can’t seem to convince her to make the 9 hour commute to keep that up, she has one opening in the McDonald/Robinson/Bridgeville/possibly Washington area. Email me if you are interested & pass on your info!

oooh how I love these! Really like the beachy/rustic/chic look to these, and how they would brighten up a corner with great vacation pics!

Find them here: Simple Living

Summer is coming, and with it the huge wedding season – which means that a lot of you will also be celebrating special anniversaries! If you are going to celebrate a milestone anniversary this year, why not consider a couples session? Perhaps you didn’t get the kind of wedding photos on your Big Day that you dreamed of – you were just starting out and on a budget, your photographer didn’t do the type of artistic images that are popular today, or you were simply too rushed on the day of the wedding to have the time for romantic shots. NOW is your chance to do a session that captures all of what makes your relationship special! We can do a regular session such as my engagement sessions, where you are in jeans & casual clothes & just being yourselves; or we can do a Trash the Dress session (here for background ). Don’t worry if you can’t get in your original dress (only 10% can), you can pick up something long & flowy anywhere!
Just  think about being able to have a wonderful series of romantic images in your bedroom as art, or a keepsake coffee table book that celebrates you both as a couple (and not just as someones’ parents, lol!).
Drop some hints to your hubby that this would be a fabulous Mother’s Day or Anniversary gift for you!

Now how fun would this be to have in some otherwise blah kitchen apartment …spring break forever! They come in very cool solid colors too, and "stainless-steel" if you just want some decorating pop without spending $$$ for new appliances.

FridgeFronts

I spent last weekend with Stacey & David and my granddolls who are just growing so fast that I can’t believe it. Gavin is now firmly talking in sentences, and Genevieve has gone from asking "what is that" to "why is that". The weather was pretty good, and we were able to get outside for them to play and for Nanna to get some pictures. Genevieve is getting a lot better at cooperating – briefly. Gavin is now where she was last year, which is not really into the whole picture-taking scene.

Isn’t his shirt a riot?

We went to a coffee shop, then tried to do some cool urban-looking shots with them. But Gavin wasn’t really into it and wouldn’t smile – instead of my vision of a cool edgy image, he looks more like a homeless waif:

But Genna hammed it up a little:

Of course we HAVE to try to get both of them:

The next day was cool, but I wanted to get something wit the blossoming trees:

And at the playground:

…and a dream begins to come true….

Construction on our new home has finally begun! They started clearing the lot today – a pretty big job considering that they have to take down a lot of trees, some as tall as 60 feet, without anything falling on the houses on either side or the leisure trail in the front! It was an amazing sight to see, one that sometimes seemed as if it would never happen. Poor Jim had to work today, but hopefully there will be enough light for him to see today’s results. We are on our way!