instagrams: march edition.

these are all from march.
yep, i'm behind :)
are all your instagrams of your kids & food?
me too.

4 month shots

 learning about animals in utah

 that perfect feeling your teeth have when you leave the dentist's office

 edward sharpe & the magnetic zeroes

 it snowed when we were in utah :)

 her first airplane ride!

 rolling around on the carpet

 pizookies with my sis (i miss her so much!)

 violet dancing on her playmat

 sleeping on daddy

 sleeping in mama & daddy's bed

 sleeping in her carseat

 and...another sleeping girl

 some chubby thighs

 udon, vegetable tempura, and potato croquette at mitsuwa

 starting to love tv

fun fun days.

our first family photos (as a trio).

here are some photos we took while in utah last month.
our photographer flaked, so will & i took the photos ourselves.

we took some of the whole entire group using a tripod.
pretty silly, but it worked out just fine.

here's our immediate family.

my family is made up of 10 adopted children.
almost all of us are in this photo,
except for my oldest brother, who has passed,
and an older sister & younger brother who couldn't make the trip.

i took family photos of each of the individual families.
there are too many to share them all,
but look how sweet this one of my sister jenessa turned out...

and here are a few of our little family,
including our new addition.
thanks to my big brother dan for snapping these!

it was so great to see everyone.

i miss them all so much!

messes.

i could blog about violet's first time going in the ocean (2 weeks ago),
or how she saw snow for the first time (last month).
i could write about her first earthquake (this morning),
and how my mommy instincts were so intense.
i could even share photos from our trip to australia,
where we were lying on a beach and first felt our baby girl kicking.
or photos from when my sister & nephew came to visit from down under.
or how about our first family photos we took last month?
i'm so so behind in sharing!

but more pressing on my mind...
is the fact that i'm still in my pajamas,
cleaning up these types of messes.

and thinking about all the things that stress me out...

will's truck broke down this weekend.

our washing machine has been broken for a few weeks,

it stained my favorite blankets & baby clothes with thick black grease,

and i've been scrubbing them with spray n wash as hard as i can.

we decided to buy a washer off of craigslist.

 today we find out it doesn't spin the clothes.

i still have 55 papers to grade for my abnormal class

(collected them 2 weeks ago, and students keep asking for them),

and just collected 40 more from my psych testing class.

honestly we haven't scrubbed our showers for weeks now.

our usually overflowing fruit bowls are empty on the counter.

the weeds are back in my backyard, taunting me.

there are always photos to edit, and clients asking for them.

taxes? we filed for an extension.

etc etc etc.

people ask me how i do it. (i'm not sure if i really do)

how i am a professor, run my own photography business,

take care of a home, and now have a little baby girl of my own.

she gets priority. 

i want to spend my days giving her whatever she wants.

walks, baths, stories, tickles, funny voices, toys, and 100% attention, 100% of the day.

being a mom is amazing.

i love it.

i also love that i am using my education, 

and contributing financially to our family.

i'm too scared to pause from my work, because i'm afraid those doors will close.

and this is the paradox that many women find themselves in, eventually.

okay, so i know i'm very lucky.

i only have to work away from home 2 nights a week,

and violet gets to hang with her daddy those nights.

but wow, working home from while taking care of baby is so so difficult!!!!!!

it's just a busy time right now...most of the time it's not so bad.

we are SO looking forward to summer break, 

where besides a few weddings & editing,

i can spoil little violet each & every day, all the day long!

now, if you can find the time,

i would love to hear your words of encouragement.

how you manage taking care of babies,

and your home, and having quality time for your hubby,

and some of you even have time to work,

or craft, or garden, or even exercise!

please do share!!!!!

4 months.

here are little v's 4 month photos.

she has been 4 months for awhile now. these photos are a little late.
what a good baby we have, and what a fun age she is!
she loves to laugh, smile, and kiss her mama & dada's faces.
she is a nonstop wiggle worm, kicking and rolling back & forth.
she loves to play with her feet too.
her favorite game is peekaboo.
at her 4 month checkup last month the doc was amazed at how advanced she was.
that makes me so proud :)