Belly Art!

You know what can make you feel much better at the "I feel like a balloon" stage of pregnancy?

Belly Art! It makes you feel special, and beautiful, like a walking piece of artwork :D

My Hubby helped me create a belly cast that will one day make a welcome addition to our bedroom wall art.... next to This One.

(I was a little shy to post the whole pic....so here is just the belly for now...)



and my very talented little sis came by for an evening of Belly Henna





Belly Henna is a bit of a long process that involves quite some time siting still (very difficult at 9 months preggo), but it is well worth the 2 -3 weeks that it stays with you! Mine lasted long enough to be captured in my "official" maternity photo shoot!!





You can find more from that photo shoot Here!

(Thanks again to my Hubby for being the talented one behind the camera!)

Three - 30 Days of Beauty - Getting Outside!

Though the warm weather is not quite here yet......we have been pretending that it is!

Oh to have a nice walk outside, after being indoors all day :D



Basking in the sun..



Wondering....how much higher can I climb??



Taking notice (see the heart)



and a beautiful Sunset.....



and Moonrise all at the same time!



We are soooo ready for spring!!

30 Days of Beauty

A fellow blogger, over at bluebirdbaby, has started a winter challenge!

The challenge? photograph something beautiful everyday until the first signs of spring arrive :) This will definitely help us all through the winter slumps huh?!?

So here is my first entry, taken this morning.....



After a year of sleeping in his own bed.....kiddo has decided to join us mid night in our bed.....the family bed is officially back :) (well at least part time). I have to say I had missed waking up to his sweet sleeping face....

Holiday Shop & Stroll......brrrrr!

Quickly becoming one of our Holiday Traditions is our neighborhood shop and stroll.....and this year fell on a night that dropped to 21 degrees!



We did have many chances to warm up indoors.....meet some friendly faces....and even be a little silly :)





and oohhh the window shopping!





yay for Holiday festivals!

Without My Sewing Machine

Since the disaster with the three sewing machines.......I have hardly sewn a stitch! I have come to the conclusion that my machine needs to be taken to the shop...boooo!!

As always though some disasters are blessings in disguise, and I have reconnected with my non sewing crafts :)

A few headbands courtesy of Creative Yarn



A BIG project made of cardboard......(tutorial coming soon!!)




Last but not least I would like to announce a project that has been keeping me busy most of all

......drumroll please.....










Olivia Jean Photography!!

So you can now expect some posts about my photography adventures as well......stay tuned :)

Green Tip: Save Gas and Get a Great Ass!

This was the title of a Craigslist add that really stuck in my head......and if you ride a bike.....they are both true!

So what is my bike of choice?? Well.....

Its a beautiful Vintage French bike,



Found at Goodwill for $25, and tricked out by my good ol' Daddio!



I love the details on this bike....complete with mud from yesterday's rain!






Why else do I love this bike......its light, and its got a coaster break!





Oh yeah, and kiddo loves it too ;)




So get out there and ride! The more the better :)

Splish Splash!

Seems like I have seen many many posts this summer about seaside fun...some examples are here and here

I was beginning to get a bit jealous when I realized we too have a special place to cool off even in the middle of the desert!!















It may not be the beach.....and it has not been renovated in, well, never.....but most of my summers were spent here as a kid, and its looking like my kiddo might grow up here as well :)

What special place helps you through the summer??