julie likes....

The Santiago Huckleberry candle from Voluspa may just be my favorite scent in the world. When the wick on my candle gets really low, I've been known to just sit and sniff the empty purple tin to get every last whiff of its huckleberry goodness. I'm not sure I even know exactly what a huckleberry is, but I love it!

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf recently moved into Austin which was initially no big deal for me. I don't go out for coffee very often, especially being pregnant, so I saw no real draw. That was before my friend Gina introduced me to the white chocolate dream. It's an off menu blended drink that is amazing! I tried to order something comprable at Starbucks and was sorely disappointed. So it has become my favorite place to splurge on the precious little amount of caffeine I'm allowed to have these days.

My sweet puppy has been absolutely adorable lately. Her canine intuition kicked in long ago, and we think she's known I've been pregnant for a while. When I lay on the couch, she'll come and rest her head on my stomach really lightly. She's gotten so cuddly over the past few months, she spends the majority of her time curled up, sleeping by my feet. I love that her response to our family growing has been so sweet.

Speaking of sweet, how precious is this puppy?!? This picture is from the day Evan surprised me with the adorable little puppy he had adopted for us from a nearby shelter. 

WWW - GAP edition

Maybe I shouldn't commit to having scheduled blog posts...I'm pretending today is Wednesday. So here is your WHAT TO WEAR WEDNESDAY, Friends!!

Hi, I'm Jessica and I may own more than my share of clothes from the GAP. I've been this way for as long as I can remember. Too often I come home from a day of "running errands" only to be ragged on for having ANOTHER GAP bag in my hand. I just can't get away from their fabulous selection of staple items. GAP is just so classic. If it's not broke...

So, this issue of WWW is all about GAP (and that awesome engagement ring). I thought I'd mix it up a bit this week and show you how affordable and simple it is to put together a great summer outfit for a photoshoot.

This adorable summer couple is prepared for a casual, playful outdoor engagement shoot in their bright sunny duds.

I'm all about wedges with shorts too. This is a fabulous way to dress up warm summer clothes.

What do you think? Doesn't this outfit make you want to play outside?

sweet little addison | austin family photography

Oh sweet Addison! Anytime we get a chance to see her, I get downright excited. I start looking forward to her big brown eyes and sweet cheeks days before the shoot. Not to mention, seeing Addi means I also get to see her wonderful parents. The last time we were together I got to share with Amanda that I was expecting a little one of my own and her reaction was one of my favorites. Just thinking about the way she squealed with excitement and jumped forward to hug me brings a big smile to my face and so much joy to my heart. We are so blessed to have clients that feel like friends.

I cannot believe how quickly this precious little girl has been growing! She now has four perfect little teeth, an adorably wobbly walk and the ability to eat cake like an absolute champ. Her big brown eyes didn't disappoint either, they manage to melt me every time.

 

Jess Likes!

One might say that adding the "like" button to Facebook was just one more step to stifling people's creativity. They may be right, but I say "who cares, it gave me some great material for our new "LIKE IT!" feature header."

Yeah that's right, we're gonna start sharing with you, world wide web, what we're liking.  Maybe you'll learn a few things about us as we go along, or maybe you'll even discover something new that you LIKE!

Today, I'm beginning this party, so here we go...

There are just so many things I'm liking right now, so it was kind of tough for me to narrow it down. I think I'll start with food...

I'm really enjoying quinoa these days (pronounced keenwa, for those of you who aren't familiar). I love all the ways it can be prepared, and it makes me feel healthy.

I love oatmeal. It's for sure a staple breakfast item for me, but these days I've really had a thing for steel cut oats. The crunch that it ads to my morning meal just makes me happy!  

 

In case you mistakenly thought I was a healthy eater, I'll go ahead and throw a wrench into your perception. I LOVE Reese's!! When I discovered mini's, my life was changed. Better...store these babies in your freezer and you have a FABULOUS summer snack!

Ok, enough food. One of my favorite things to do these days is design invitations. It's the seasons of weddings and babies in my life, so showers is what I do. I designed these two invites for my sweet friend's wedding shower. It was a blast!

And finally, Stumbleupon. I discovered this little gem this week, and boy has it been a distraction. If you find yourself needing to crank out some good productivity, stop reading now.

Otherwise, jump on over to this site. After completing a few basic questions about your general interests, Stumbleupon provides hours and hours of web materials that will suit your fancy. Whether you like photography, cooking, travel or hippopotamuses Stumbleupon will provide you with websites you never knew you needed to know!

 

Thanks for tuning in!

Laura | Houston Senior Photography

This past weekend while I was in Houston spending time with some dear friends, I got the chance to take a few senior pictures of Laura for an upcoming NCL event. Her big brother is one of our dearest friends and stood alongside Evan in our wedding. When I met up with Laura this weekend, I was quick to notice that she's just like her brother. In fact, I notice the same thing anytime I'm around any of the seven siblings. They're so alike!  Don't get me wrong, they're all very different people, with very different personalities but they share this core quality that makes you instantly feel comfortable and at home around them. They're one of the most genuine, welcoming and loving families I've ever met. Any parents that raise kids like that (especially seven of them) deserve an award!

Oh, and did I mention that Laura happens to be absolutely gorgeous?

www - dressing for the sun

In middle school, we wore uniforms. Most days we could wear khakis and a maroon or navy polo. We were a good looking bunch...except on Wednesdays. Wednesday was chapel day and our chapel uniforms were awful. When given an opportunity to dress mass children, do yourselves a favor and don’t pick little navy ties and pleated skirts to the mid-calf.

They were tacky, but it was easy. It was nice not to pick out what I had to wear everyday for sure. As an adult, sometimes getting dressed in the morning is one of the toughest parts of my day (rough life, I know). I’m really hoping it’s an uphill battle. One day, maybe I’ll be surprised what a fashionista I’ve become (pipe dreams).

That said, I’m hoping the longer I put together What to Wear Wednesdays, the better I’ll get at dressing myself.

So for today’s WWW, we’re going with a mother/daugther fun-in-the-sun summer shoot. It’s getting toasty outside, so sandals and tanktops it is! Here’s one way to do it well, folks.

Accessories are key. Pull out a fedora, and put little Josie in her super cool heart shades.

Maybe next week I'll include some great props for shoots. Stay tuned.

life lately

For me, life lately has certainly been dominated by one thing: pregnancy. It dominates what I eat (or rather don't eat), what I read, what I wear and how much I sleep! It's also given us a lot of incentive to maximize pre-baby fun while still preparing for all the post-baby fun.

There's no better word for this time in life than transition. I know huge changes are coming soon and I'm doing my best to be prepared for them without being overwhelmed by them. I do better some days than others but I really am enjoying this season of life. Here is a quick post on what life has looked like lately.


My dad took my brother and husband on a guy's trip to Argentina, so I went to Arizona to spend time with my mom, my sister-in-law and my two adorable little nephews. We meandered around the local farmer's market, snacked on some delicious creme brule from a food trailer and enjoyed each other's company. Before I went to bed at night, my sweet nephew would come read me bedtime stories and give me goodnight kisses. Is there anything so precious? This is my newest little nephew and my baby's closest cousin.

One thing I've been excited about is all the nesting instincts you supposedly get when you're pregnant because truth be told, I've never had those. When I try to decorate, I get overwhelmed with the sheer array of options and get absolutely paralyzed to decision making. I feel the need to see every chair ever made before I can even think of choosing a chair, and since that can't happen, decorating doesn't happen. That's why I enlisted the help of my wonderful friend Liz to help get me inspired and moving toward a more decorated home. She gave me a new vision for a few different rooms in my house and gave me the confidence to actually buy things when we shopped together--which is priceless to a paralyzed shopper like myself. Here are a fre shots of my room, complete with handmade pillows from Liz, a dresser we refurbished and lots of happy mustard accents. I'm still waiting to find a mirror to hang over the dresser if anyone has suggestions!

We've also been making sure to fit lots of fun into our weekends our lately. We've been capitalizing on the gorgeous Spring weather by grilling out with friends in the backyard, frequenting the trailer restaurants downtown and hog wrestling in San Antonio. Yes, I said hog wrestling. We had some friends compete last year so this year we took a group trip to spend the weekend eating BBQ, swimming, playing dominoes and wrestling big nasty hogs. It's as absurd as it sounds and one of the most entertaining things I've ever watched. Basically, you and your partner are in a ring with the hog. You have to catch the hog, put the hog in a burlap sack, and run the sack over the finish line--best time wins. I have never felt so country in all my life. Here is my husband and his partner Chris bagging up their hog.

Our girls were the overall time winners! So proud!

So that is a taste of life lately. Today we're off to Houston to spend a fun-filled weekend with about twenty of our dearest friends. I feel so blessed. Have a wonderful weekend!

Berkeley & Freddie | Austin Engagement Photographer

She grew up in Austin, and though she ended up at TCU, this Texas beauty knew little more than Longhorn pride as a child. Berkeley's family loves the Horns and would never have imagined that they would eventually feel so pleased to welcome an Aggie into their family.

Of course that didn't come right away. When they started dating, Berkeley made it clear that until she heard wedding bells, she wouldn't be donning any maroon and white. Berkeley and Freddie would spend Thanksgiving day on opposite cheering squads until...

This last Thanksgiving Freddie decided he was ready for the woman he loves to switch teams. With her proposal, Freddie gave Berkeley more than an engagement ring.

As you can imagine, Berkeley's family was surprised and excited to see their little girl walk into their game day watch party in a maroon jersey. 

We may be a little bias, but we think she made the right choice. #WHOOP!

Now Julie and I get to work with a lot of outstanding couples. Our clients really are the best of the best. But unless you're Julie and I, rarely do you meet a couple as beautiful on the outside as they are inside. 

Berkeley and Freddie are just that. His charm and her beauty made this shoot one for the books. But my favorite thing about these two is how genuinely down to earth they are. 

I had such a good time getting to know Berkeley and Freddie, and I left feeling like I had made two  new, dear friends.