wild.

oh this little boy is driving me wild lately.

absolutely wild.

does that seem to be a reoccurring theme on my blog lately?

well, it is a reoccurring theme in my life; that's for sure.

 asher's needs and passions and feelings are strong and sudden.

they are loud and angry and fervent and tirelessly exhausting.

but with the wild, there always comes good.

.

yesterday, out of nowhere, asher snapped out of one of his tantrums in the car and he looked at me with his turned down eyes and sighed, " i sowwy mommy, i sowwwwy."

 it was heartbreaking to see his little soul take a breath and voice what he feels in his heart.

i know that his tantrums and actions pain him as well.

and today, after an all out furious tantrum, he apologized again,
 "i sorry mommy."

and then he promptly invented a new ridiculous smile that he flashed to us all.
and we all laughed and smiled back.

and he said, "i happy! i happy!"

.

asher delights in love and affection and when he gets the attention that he craves - he beams with true appreciation and joy.

this is a boy who wants to be loved more than anything.

and he is a wonderful lesson to us all, that love doesn't always come easy.

and it shouldn't.

or it wouldn't really be worth nearly as much in the end.

.

.

Get 10% off led grow lights when you shop at www.AccessHydro.com. Valid until March 2014.
.

pictures of cows.

.
we were driving around the reservoir over the weekend, looking for new spots. and first of all, let me just say that i was so dang happy to get a picture of those cows. i have been thinking about taking pictures of cows for years. no really, i'm not just saying that.
many times as i drove home to our house in indiana, i would look at all of the cows that i passed and think about taking photos of them. indiana is full of so much pretty scenery: old barns, endless soybean and corn fields, pretty hazy sunsets and wildflowers. and there are so many cows. they truly became my favorite animal when we lived out there.
but i never took the moment to get the pictures that i wanted. i'm really bad about that; just stopping and getting out of the car to take a photograph. i'm too lazy i suppose.
and frankly, it never seems worth it.
.

but this day. the other day, when i saw these black cows grazing in the hills like this, i finally had aaron pull over the car and i rolled down the window and i got it. it was just too, too perfect. because if there is anything better than cows grazing in the fields of indiana, it is certainly cows in the mountains. hands down.
.
asher was stressing out in the backseat and roman was yelling at me and i had one of those mother-fail moments where i snapped for a moment.
and i just told everyone in the family to get used to it.
.
sometimes i'm going to hang out the window when it's 20 degrees out to take a picture of the creek by the mountains. and sometimes i'm going to ask aaron to turn the car around so that i can get a picture of the orange and aqua sunset even though everyone is tired and wants to get home. in times like these, little boys are sure to squeal at me from the backseat.
.
but gosh darn it, sometimes i'm going to pull over the car and take a picture of some cows.

and it's going to make me very happy.

.

oh, and my family is cute too. they forgave me and then i snuck in some pictures of them as well ;)

.

lucky enough.

"if you're lucky enough to be in the mountains, you're lucky enough."

<3

.

life right now / july update.

wow, i can't believe that we are already halfway through august! sheesh.

.

just a little recap on life right now for us since my last little update of our roadtrip here!

we found a condo super quickly and were miraculously able to move in right away since the property was vacant and the previous owner let us rent from her until the closing.

so basically, we left ohio on the 4th of july and we were in our new home on july 15th!

i actually really did not expect, obviously, to find something so fast. the plan was to stay with my grandparents while we looked for a place which i figured would at least take a month. however, we were very thankful and relieved to find a place of our own so quickly and start settling down!

.

here are some photos to share a little bit of what happened around here to finish up our crazy-fun-getting rid of most of our belongings-moving across the country-and finding a new home july!

.

aaron + roman on the rock climbing structure at the park near our house. ( i know, i know you thought it was a real mountain, right? ) we love this park and have spent a lot of time there! // love this guy who i met 13 years ago in july at church camp! // the boys at the trail near the foothills by our house // asher sleeping after a fun time swimming at my grandparents' country club

.

 

i adore this photo of asher.
i'm also loving all the sunflowers around here.

my view of the mountains + lake on a drive near our house // foothill hikes // more playground fun // asher loves carrying his own backpack now, and it's simply adorable of course

little ash on his birthday morning. what a darling little sunshine he is // coffee everyday in my "new" thrifted mug // clothes drying from the splash park ( also at the park near our house! ) // new wonderful colorful pottery barn mugs - FREE from craigslist!

and while i'm on the topic of criagslist... let me just profess my love.

have you checked out the free section? it is amazing! we used to check the free section on craigslist in our old town but there was hardly anything ever posted. here however, the free section is crazy full of all kinds of things! who knew so many people were getting rid of so much stuff and are willing to give it away to anyone who might be able to use it? we pretty much outfitted our kitchen as you can see. we also got a really nice, perfectly clean toaster oven. a printer. a bike.

and... a mattress and boxspring! i am seriously totally into thrifting and buying second hand but have claimed that i would never get a second hand mattress or couch. however, i now own both. and it feels great. we bought a really fantastic brand new looking microfiber loveseat from a thrift store and we got a twin mattress/boxspring from craigslist. the thing is with mattresses is that you of course have to be careful and very picky. the mattress we got came from a very clean house and the man we met was super nice! it is seriously such a thrill for aaron and i to find creative ways to find things for our life + home. it is such a good feeling to put things to good use while also saving landfills and not adding to consumerism.
also, we found our condo on craigslist! so, i'm just saying - it's awesome.

so handsome with his new haircut // playing at the library

more hiking at the foothills!

i have seen SO many rainbows here since we moved // my littlest + me :)

.

also, thanks for your votes on top baby blogs! happy wednesday!

.

a peek into summers past.

oh my goodness, i cannot believe that these photos were taken only a year ago!

hanging out in the backyard, in the peaceful countryside, soybean fields + purple flowers.

asher - just a year old, romping around in his cloth diaper, little peachy-pie hair curling in the wind,

roman - four, flying paper airplanes and always running commentary in his own little imaginative world...

.

we have moved two times since then. to our little cabin house in town and now to our condo in colorado. it is just crazy to think what all can happen in a year. and yet, everything feels comfortably still the same. although they look a little younger + chubbier, the faces and personalities you see here, are just the same as the ones i am loving on today. 

asher, tearing about, arms always flailed out to the side, stopping here and there to notice nature's treasures.

and roman, leaving behind a fury of tape + paper, his mind spinning with thoughts and ideas.

.

so here we are, another summer passing by, only to become another sweet long ago memory. i can already feel fall in the air, and slowly but surely we will need to start  hunkering down at home, busing ourselves with schoolwork and jobs, kindergarten at home for rome, and the never ending task of trying to entertain asher while he is climbing all over us reminding us to slow down 

because babies indeed do not keep. ;)

.

p.s. thank you to those who left comments on my breastfeeding post. breastfeeding is something that i am so passionate about and i absolutely loved hearing the different takes on what breastfeeding has meant for you and your little lovely ones!

.

puddles, rocks + other adventures.

i attempted to get some good twenty-two month photos of asher the other night.

however, it turned into more of a splashing through puddles, rock throwing, bird chasing adventure, which happens a lot around here.

maybe another day i'll get those more "perfect" photos, but i love these as well and they definitely capture asher's true personality and zest for life. :)

bath time beauty.

our little bath time beauty :)

i love when i get a chance to spend a quiet moment alone with ash. 

like this night; asher played in the bath - quietly pouring a cup of water, splashing it down his face and then carefully rubbing his eyes with the towel i gave him. 

and all the while, i just tried to save the moment, taking photos and taking in all the little wonderful details that make up my teeny boy:

soft, soft creamy baby skin, tulip lips, wet curls + curious eyes.

.

the photos below are a little flashback to an august bath in our old farm house.

i've decided by the way, that editing photos months later is much more fun and rewarding. :)

.

other favorite bath moments: here + here.

portraits of ash.

 

two portraits of my twenty one month old asher.

"i am your quiet place; you are my wild"

-Maryann Cusimano

happy friday!

i didn't used to like the idea of sharing my professional work on my personal blog. i like to be able to scroll down and just see uninterrupted photos of my boys, my family.
my blog is like a sweet little scrapbook. however, i have realized that my professional photos DO feel personal to me. after i put so much effort and care into them, i feel like i want to share them as many places as i can!

so there's a little preview of some photos i did for my sister's roommate for her graduation. you can see the rest of the photos on my sparse photography blog here.

.
in other words, today is aaron's last late night shift at his job!
for the year, and maybe, probably, hopefully forEVER!
because in the next eight weeks we are planning to MOVE across the country!
but, more about that later ;)
for today, i need to start cleaning my house since my family is coming to stay the weekend and we are going to celebrate my sister's college graduation!
and right now, my little one is climbing up onto the sink to wash dishes
(his new favorite thing)
so, have a great weekend everyone!
.
happy mother's day mamas!