The Day Julie Joined the Fam

Evie Frances is such a little light.  She is the most loving and snuggly kid EVER.  I call her my sucker fish lately because she loves to come and do sucking kisses.  YES, I have to watch that she doesn't give me a hicky, but oh man, this kid loves.  She is the first to hug and the last to let go.  If you have the privilege of holding some of Evie's affection you are a blessed individual indeed.

Its good, God knew I needed her to be that way otherwise I probably would have eaten her.  The kid has gumption and boldness and strength to match even the fiercest mother.  On more than one occasion I find myself on my knees going, "Jesus, take the wheel, cause I got nothing!"

All of June we celebrated this little girl and the birthday celebrations just kept happening.  One of the really special moments was when Evie got her first American Girl Doll.  With gift card in hand, we all headed up to the store in Scottsdale for the entire experience.

AG is a mecca for all things girlie.  Upon entering the store you are brought into this amazing world of dreaming and playing and fun.  There are so many dolls, and so many things to do.  Everywhere you go you can pick up a doll and start playing.  With so many options I was afraid that we would never get out of the store.

I am ever so grateful that we met this lovely lady.  She told us to "just wait, you will see her want to play with one doll more than the others.....just watch."  After about 10 minutes Evie walked right up the the Blonde haired firey Julie and said, "Mommy, I want her!"  So our helper got her down and told Evie, "Now, you hold her and make sure she fits right, okay?  Let me know if she is your dolly."  Evie walked around the little kiosk and said without wavering, "I love her."

So Julie became part of our family.  She represents a bold time of history and I believe without doubt that Evie will mirror that.  She is bold and will fight.  Trust me......I know.  She made the decision and didn't look back once.  This little girl embraced her little friend with all the love she has.

The day Julie joined the family was a special day and a small snippet in the many adventures of Evie's 4th birthday.

A Visit to the OC

Wow it's been quite a month, it seems like I can't ever get caught up on these blogs but I am determined to actually catch up even if I have to live in the past for a bit. 

A couple months ago I had the unbelievable opportunity to go and visit my girlfriend Traci out in California. I simply love her so much and I'm so eternally grateful for our friendship. A lot has happened in life and we really don't see each other that often but you know you found a good one when you can see each other after 2 years and still have a friendship.  She is a blessing to me. The last time I saw her, her first born was about 2 years old and this time I got to see her brand new baby. When she got pregnant with her second one I knew that I had to make it out there to take pictures of her family and frankly I'm so glad that I had the excuse of Photography to make a visit.

One thing I'm learning lately is that it's not the quantity of time you spend with someone but rather the quality of time. I just flew out for a quick weekend visit and it seemed as though the time flew by yet every moment was spent catching up and speaking life to one another. Again I'm simply just grateful for her. Traci is a phenomenal mom and she and Tyler make incredible parents. 

There's a chillness about the house that I loved. It was so chill in fact that one afternoon I laid down and ended up sleeping for 3 and 1/2 hours. There's not many homes that I can do that in and hers is most definitely one of them.

I enjoyed a run nearly every morning and had a blast exploring their life a little. Audrey is simply a doll and so smart. I felt like I was talking to a 12 year old. Actually I felt like I was talking to Evie. All of these smart little ladies have got the brains to match the balls.  We spent one morning swimming in the pool and the most of our time was spent just chatting. It's really special to have a friend that you can just sit and talk with for hours on end and never run out of conversations.

We ended up spending about an hour taking their family photos right in their community. It's truly gorgeous there and I had a blast chasing Miss Audrey around and working to capture all four of them together. They are a very best blessed family indeed and I love how their pictures turned out.

I will admit that I am selfishly hoping they have to move back to Arizona one day. I have loved Tracy as a friend and a sister and I love her even more as a fellow mother.  Our times together are brief, but we were blessed with 2 visits in short order.  After my trip they had a layover in PHX on their way to a family vacation so I got to bring Evie and Bob and we all had a mini party in the airport.  Audrey and Miss Evie are two peas in a pod.  A budding friendship is most definitely emerging.  

Again, sometimes great friendships aren't about quantity and are simply more about making the moments you have count. My short visit to the OC was wonderful refreshing and spoke a lot of life to my heart. Just thanking Jesus so much for the blessing of friendship.