Red Rock Canyon after 6pm

is closed. So, if you decide to park your car at the first parking lot (about 2 miles in) and car pool with someone the rest of the one-way eleven mile stretch, Make sure you do it long before 4:30. Otherwise, you will have to be dropped off at the closed gate of the park's entrance ( at 6:15) and walk or run uphill , with your camera bag, in your jeans and not your workout clothes, to your car, by yourself. You see, NO ONE is coming in the park behind you, the gate is closed! And it's a one way street so, You will be getting to your car on foot!

That's what i did Saturday! I also took 2 Senior photos at Red Rock Canyon that day. I took some kids photos on Friday. I played with my girls and Daddy. we went out with Jeantiel and Todd Saturday night for a nice dinner! Sunday we went to church and to Mike and Natalie's then Heidi and Q's place to stare at Baby Tatum and have great food. It was nice! I love weekends like this. i am rested and ready to edit LOTS of photos now, make more jewelry, train another assistant and edit more photos:) As well as take 3 peoples pics this week. And my regular 5 day week workouts!
Bobby( My Trainer), You are a MEAN guy! You never let me quit and you are a BRAT! Thanks for pushing me. And YES, I'm more flexible than practically everyone else my age( minus the cirque du soliel dancers) So, don't be shocked anymore.

Brandon, I LOVE you so much. you are the best husband ever. You help me get the girls ready every monrning, you do dishes and want me to hug you all the time. You are still flirty with me and so motivated to be a great provider. You are so fun and such a good daddy and MAN! LOVE YOU, BABE!( GUSH,GUSH!)

Oh yeah, i want to publicly congratulate these people for having BUNS in the Ovens!

Sarah and Michael S.-?
Hayley and Erik-?
Kierston and Kyle-Boy
Kierston and Matt-Boy
Catina and David-girl
Tiel and Todd-?
Denise and Brian-?
Tirza and Brad-Boy, Chase
Chelsea and Darin-Shea
Danielle and her hubby-Diesel

I'm so excited for all of you! I can't wait to be on your team( prego mommas) and to see your sweet babies!
~C

Been Busy- Need Vacation...

So, I'm headed to San Diego tomorrow( thursday) and i will be hanging out with my dad and Mary, The beach clan, my brothers and possibly a few other friends. The REAL reason behind the trip is my Aunt Diane is getting SEALED to her husband GLEN in the SD Temple.
This temple is where Brandon and I got Married and also the place of many special memories for me.
On Thursday we will visit, relax and take a walk with MIMI, ( dad and Mary's Dog) and maybe play with the Basso Bunch. Friday we crazy Mommas( erin and me) will take our kids to play in the sand and slides with grandpa in tow! I hope to hit up Ikea for a few necessities( ie. shadow box frame, gallery frames, round mini hatboxes etc..) and Friday night we will do whatever.
Saturday will start with a nice walk to the local park, then to the temple for the sealing then a restaurant, then more time with the family as we watch ANNE in her AIRBAND performance at El Cap! How fun, right?

Sunday we will go to church at 9 amd head back home around 10:30-11. Or possible just leave Monday morning. Hmmm? We shall see.

Good News... My Friend/cousin-in-law( 2 times removed) Hiedi, Just had her baby girl today!) Congrats and also a newly re-aquainted friend from Santee, Angie just had her baby , Zoe, last Saturday . Both girls are healthy and surrounded by love!

Sianara!
~C

Progress and Learning

Brielle is AMAZING! 3 nights ago she woke up at 4 am and knocked on her door. I came to he door and asked her what she wanted and she said she needed to go potty.I thought" how odd, she has a diaper on yet, she wants to go potty? I looked and beheld no diaper in sight. She was sleeping with only little big girl panties and she KNEW she didn't want to sleep soaking wet in them. I thought" Brandon must have forgotten to put them on her. So, Brielle went potty then back off to bed.
I couldn't believe it. We barely even talked with her about not wearing a diaper to bed anymore. We really didn't expect her to do this all on her own. It's been 3 nights now and NO accidents since. She literally trained herself! Crazy! We are so proud of her.

She also shows much enthusiasm about coloring INSIDE the LINES now. She getting very meticulous about her art these days. It's awesome. I need to take pictures of that too!
Brielle likes to point out where Jupiter is almost every night and she is also recognizing what instruments are being played in radio music. She says" i hear drums, mommy. That sounds like the guitar. The piccolo is like a tiny baby flute, mom" It's awesome.

This week was so BUSY! I worked out hard as usual, i did Photography of Melyna's Baby boy Ryder, and did some C.C. Baby Inc. Photography to get out my new spring/ summer items. It went really great today! Gorgeous babies. I'm now super exhausted but looking forward to helping with yard work tomorrow and getting a 50 min. massage at the massage school tomorrow as well!:) Hope you are all well. Oh, On MOnDaY, I'm teaching my first class at Quiltique! Cute Little Smarty Pants! It should be sooo fun:)
~C

Luv my girlies!

Just some cute pics of my girls!
she's mostly like this when she's happy. Very wide-eyed and lively!

And loves to give her big sister hugs as well as Myla!

Happy to play BOO in and out of the tent.


She still has those sweet cheeks i love to munch on and kiss! Brielle was kind of camera shy this time, very weird and unlike her normal self. Hey, we all have those days!
We had such a fun day this last Saturday just doing nothing- almost. We went to the park, made tutus with our neighbors and friends, jumped on the tramp with Daddy and Brielle, made yummy waffles with Blueberries and Bananas, read stories, played playdough and just laughed like kids. Daddy watched the UNLV game with his bro and cousin. And had a fun time watching them barely win.
Then, i woke up Sunday with a worse cold than i had before and an earache. It SUCKED. it's almost gone now. I didn't know adults could get them. It's awful. Anyways, I'll write again later.

Valentine's Day!

Marshmallow roses for Brielle and Aria!
Valentine's Muffins, i made the week of Valentines, not on the actual day! We went to IHOP for Breakfast and had fun with the girls. we rarely got out for Breakfast but, thought this would be a fun tradition to start- breakfast out with our kids on Valentine's Mornings! we will try a new diner every Valentine's too!



She's such a HAM for the camera now, what a poser!

Aria LOVES LOVES LOVES lollipops! She calls them PA- Pops! She will see them in the pantry and almost say it like a question. Pa-pops? mommy? Peez? Peez?
My attempt to get them having fun together at the mini valentine's party at my friend, Cachay's house!( i know it's blurry ,silly)


I LOVE this blouse i got for them! It's just too sweet! I bought it last year on clearance at a boutique.

more silly pictures!


SUgaR FaCe, baby!

The Valentine's Loot!


I'm a good hider, mommy!

we got to see Dawn, Kara and Megan on Valentine's too! It was a great day. I got a massage as well that morning after breakfast. Brandon got his TV and stand and receiver and speakers and so forth. Now he wants a HARMONY remote so, we don't have to have 5 remotes. I don't blame him. I'm not a big sound system person. It's too noisy and it wakes the kids but he's been great about it! The flat screen we got has weak sound compared to our booming huge old 55 inch Big Screen on wheels. Oh, BTW, we are selling that TV for 300. if anyone wants it! It's great Brandon just got a great deal on a 45? inch plasma flat screen. It's really thin, kinda wierd but cool.

I get to get a Double jogger and a bike trailer for my bike. I'm looking at a few right now, Joggers- of course, what i already have the Bob Rev. but i want a Duallie in Black with 12 inch wheels all the way around, the Valco, Dreamer Design, and a couple others. Trailers- I'd love a used Burley, used Chariot, Bell, Trek, really anything gently used or new but not super pricey or super cheap. My sis gave me some good advice on bike trailers! Thanks, Cristi! I'm still looking.
well, Hope you all had a great Valentine's Day!

ARIA UPDATE!

Obviously, it's been a while since i updated you all on Aria!!! She's almost 19 months now and is doing great. Her teeth are all starting to fill in a bit. She runs like crazy everywhere and has NO fear of anything. we call her Bruiser and Teeny Bits b/c she is exactly that. She's the smallest of all her friends and won't hesitate to try and get her way. Brielle has to watch her back with her sometimes and we are teaching Brielle to not whine when she takes things from her but to Take it back from her! Heck, She's the OLDER sister.
Aria is speaking tiny sentences like: Mommy baby down! Be-l seeping! Baby seeping nigh night!

No mymy( our dogs nickname) mommy eat food. etc...

She LOVES her baby dolls and Brielle likes dolls too but Aria likes them more. Aria loves humming, singing, dancing to music, playing with big girl shoes, trying to get socks on her feet( that takes about a half hour!) and climbing up and opening things!
she's a doll and lots of cuddles and work. She will be such a great bigger sister someday!
That's her in a small nutshell:)

Brielle's 3rd B-day post 1

Brielle got to celebrate her 3rd b-day in high style with a Princess Tea Party at a local boutique in town, Pattycakes, and had her a few of her great friends there to have loads of dress-up fun with her. Here's some pics...
The girls got to make a wooden princess craft and Brielle LOVED decking her out in sequins!
All the girls got to pick out thier own ball gown, get there hair styled, do a craft, pick out the crown and shoes of their choices!
They walked in a mini princess parade then sat down for tea.
The girls loved twirling outside and in and loved the 3 course catered tea party. Brielle got a BELL to ring whenever her or her friends needed anything.

It was so adorable and i got to actually enjoy it quite a bit. i have more photos of this coming up. they will be done in some creative fashion though. more to come

Updating and Labeling

So, i still need to update my header for our blog but that's not really what i want to update you all on. I PUT MY LABELS on our sidebar, So please check out Brielle's to see her 2nd yr pictures and so forth. I'm trying not to repeat too many blog posts about the same thing. But, i kind of already have so, look at her posts and I'll post on some sweet pics of my girl this last year!

Other things to update you on...

Brielle is 38.5 inches tall and weighs 27.5 lbs.
Aria is 25.5 inches tall and weighs 22 lbs.
( went to the Dr.)

Me, I'm 5ft 4.5 inches tall and my new body fat measurement is 22.4% Yep! Still losing it!
I started with Nora at 39.6% then i started with Bobby at 26.9%
I lost 8 lbs from when i weighed in last time too! My goal is 18%

Growth is wonderful and so is weight loss!

Brielle's B-day post 2

We loved Brielle's first year and at the end of it she got to announce that we would be welcoming a new addition to the family! Literally a week after her sealing I got pregnant! We loved playing and chasing her all over the place. She developed a bit faster than most her age but, we didn't realize that till people pointed that out to us. She was such a vocal little girly and picked up signs and words so very fast! She was a great toddler and i must say from about 1-20 months was probably her most chubby time as a baby. It was adorable! Here's some more pictures.











Now to see how she grew into her 2 yr old self, next time!
~C

Brielle's Birthday post 1!

So, 3 years ago our little girl was born to a wonderful birth-mom in hospital about 15 mins away from our home. We were invited shortly after she was born to come see her.
We walked into a hospital room with 5 generations of B's birth-family's relatives! Yep, great great gma got to be there and we've never felt so much love from a family like that before. We awed and adored this sweet little girl who we couldn't believe would really be OURS? It was like a movie or a dream. After 4 years or failed attempts at having a family, our wish was made possible by one strong young woman and her family stood behind her all the way.

5 long(government holiday weekend) days later, Brielle was placed in our arms. Our placement day was amazing and so sacred i can't share too much without losing it! We were both just so amazed that anyone would do this for us and for their child. Brielle's birth family is so strong in the gospel and we still see them every so often. We have a deep respect and love for her birth family and we always will.

When she we took her home it took us another 5 days to figure out her name. We kept praying and running over our name list and Brielle kept sticking out to us. When we decided and told her birth family they said that was the name they liked the best too.


On her adoption day the judge looked at us and said that she had never seen a more glowing family and such a beautiful little girl. She told us that adoptions are what get her through the ugly divorces and custody hearings, she saves her adoptions for certain days so the end of her week can end on a happy note!
It was a perfect note to start on for us!

On her sealing and blessing day, she lit up the temple and peeked around the room's mirrors to see her own reflection in it. She was all smiles. So were we. It was a moving experience and we are so blessed to have her in our family! She's the duaghter we were wating for to help our family go forth. A week after her sealing day, i got pregnant with Aria but, i didn't know for a couple more weeks:)
It's like God knew she had to come first in order to have our family begin.

It's not like we are the only people to adopt and then later get pregnant but, i sincerely know that children are meant to be part of these families that they are placed with through adoption.

Brielle's first year was awesome!...

New and ever Changing and Growing!

So, ever changing and growing... We had/have 3 birthdays in January. Mine the 4th( i turned 27:). Myla, our pug turned 4 on the 7th and Brielle is turning 3 on the 12th!



New.. is the year 2009 and all it brings, the sweet 15 ft. trampoline in our backyard, and my new lenses for my camera( well, new to me:)( thanks Jimmy the nikon guy in Reno:) I got a 70-300mm, 50mm fixed AF, 55mm micro-nikor M lens( you got that for me Betty and Clair with your very generous gift card:) and a ProMaster flash. Buying these lenses gently used was the way to go. I saved heeps and got lots and Jimmy has been so helpful- if anyone needs Nikon gear email me, I'll give you his info!
Here's few pics i took of our upcoming Birthday girl while Aria was napping...








I still can't figure out why when i upload my pics to blogger they never come out quite as bright on the blog. Anyone have answers?
~C

Playing Catch up!!!

SO the week before Christmas, we had some cool things happen( besides the snow!)

Hayley and the girls stayed over for a night and Brielle had her 1st official sleepover with little Ava!
watching Cinderella on DVD and playing was what the girls did until about 10 or so. They were so tired the next day!

Aren't they too cute?

I went to my friends Christmas Party where i was the designated( and payed) Photographer for the event at the Anthem Country Club and it was a Blast! They have such a fun company and i enjoyed taking pictures and such and at the near end of the party, John, ( melyna's Husband) responded to some of my friends in the crowd who were shouting for me to sing. I said sure but then sat down( thinking it was just a joke) and then John says"Many of you met Corrine, the photographer, who is a close friend of ours and is a great photographer but, she's also an amazing singer.. So, give it up for Corrine!"
I stood up an pointed to the singer who was already there and said" and JOBELLE was one of my teachers- so give it up for JoBelle!" I wnet over to the band gave them my pitch and started singing...

I didn't sing the best i have ever sang but it wasn't all that bad. It so fun singing with a live band. The people started getting up on the dance floor and slow dancing with there significant others and i continued to sing. It was so much fun and i don't know when the last time I have done something that Spur of the Moment, in who knows how long!
It was like i was living a movie right then. It was so much fun! Here's some pictures of my sweet girlies!

Merry Christmas!

We hope you all have Wonderful Holidays!