Rocco and Ben's Last Day of Preschool | Social Circle, Ga.

These boys are so silly and so full of life!! Today was Rocco’s last day of preschool! And, it just worked out that we got to take Ben, his best friend, to school this morning too! They spent the morning playing cars in Rocco’s room. I could hear them laughing and talking in their sweet little voices. Ben found Rocco’s suction cup bow and arrow set and started shooting the arrows. Rocco came running out of his room to tell me, “He’s pretty good mommy!!” lol I don’t know if he was running from him or just to tell me how good he was OR maybe it was for both reasons!! Either way, I’m so thankful they got this time together to play and have fun!

Before we took them to school, I asked them to let me take a few photos on the front porch. Ben had just taken his lego sword out of his book bag to show Rocco. I wanted to make sure to document that!! SO CUTE!!!

Spring Break 2021 | Pensacola Beach, Fl.

We sure did need this week off! However, just three days into our spring break vacation and I was ready to come home! Ugh! My anxiety has been a little high this week. There have been some strange things (multiple things!) going on in our small town that just have me on edge. Even though I’m surely safer away from it all, I just wanted to be home in our comfort zone with our animals!

However, I swear we had a great time despite all this!

RyAnne and I got to go kayaking in the Gulf! This was so much fun and helped take my mind off things! Relaxing for me, stressful for RyAnne. My goodness, that girl was freaking out! We made it over the breakers like champs, without tipping our kayak over, but once we got on the calm water she couldn’t chill. I got to the point where I just had to tell her to stop paddling and stop talking - just breath it all in! lol I always long to be near water, on the water, in the water. It helps me clear my mind and gets me back grounded. With the water rushing around me all I do is talk to Jesus and just pray. That is where I find my peace.

Some of our fave new restruants we tried out this time around were:
Peg Leg Pete’s - their strawberry margs are the BOMB and I loved the fried shrimp po’ boy. We went back the next night for dinner again because it was just so good. The service was excellent too! That night I had the snow crab legs - BEST on the island!! We have tried other places and seriously, these were the best!
Cafe Nola - we went there for dessert. The kids got Italian Ice’s and Trey and I go the Chocolate Layer Mousse Cake. Holy moly. We will most definitely try out their dinner menu next time we visit Pensacola Beach!

When we visit Pensacola Beach we always stay at The Holiday Inn Resort. At the resort there is a restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and that makes it easy to enjoy the beach and then walk right back over to have a meal. We hardly leave the resort! It’s a very family friendly place! They had a pirate there on days that it wasn’t raining. He would entertain the kids with sword fights and fun activities!

Our last day on the island we headed to the public beach, which is actually very private, for family photographs. We found this beautiful spot surrounded by dunes and sea grass. I wish I could be a beach photographer!!! Seriously, the sand, ocean and open sky just makes everything so beautiful! Some of my fave family photographs are in the sand!

I’m so thankful we had this opportunity to sneak away and enjoy some uninterrupted time together as a family! I sure do love these people!

The Robbins Easter | Social Circle, Ga.

I couldn’t help but use the photo above for the cover! lol I mean life can’t always be so serious, right?! What a happy day Easter was! We started our morning off with a naked Rocco. . .In the mornings he hops out of his bed and gets in bed with us. He woke me up to tell me he needed help going potty. I helped him with his jammies and sent him on his way to the restroom. I went to the kitchen to make coffee WITH my fave almond milk creamer. EVERY single store I go to has been out. I mentioned this to my neighbor and she spots one, grabs it for me and makes my morning super fabulous!! I need caffeine y’all! Anywho, while I’m making a cup of coffee, I see Rocco standing on a step ladder her moved over to the fireplace so he could take a peek at his easter basket. I grabbed my camera and started snapping away. I then noticed Rocco never put his undies back on!! All of my original photos of him seeing his basket for the first time were of him naked. Oh my goodness, life with a boy!!! I ran and got his clothes and had him “rediscover” his basket! As you can see by his face in the next photo, he didn’t love this!

Our next stop was the early service at Church at the Grove. My amazing Thrive aesthetics team came together and decorated for Easter service. I found this beautiful wisteria on Amazon! It wasn’t very expensive and made such a fabulous impact!! It looks super cool in the auditorium with the stage lights! While we were walking into the foyer at church our sweet friends, the Bergman’s, surprised us!! It was so great getting to worship with them and here God’s message together on this special day!

Just before lunch, Karli, my niece, and I spoke to our family about how Jesus was a servant up until He died. He washed His disciples feet the day before His death, He prayed for the men beating Him before His crucifixion and prayed with the men hanging on the crosses beside Him. He NEVER stopped serving. We then wrote a prayer for someone else on a butterfly cutout and taped it above our fireplace in the dining room. No photos of this. It was such a beautiful moment with our family! When I walked into the dining room this morning and saw all those butterflies filled with their prayers, it made my heart so happy to pray over each prayer request! We started this earlier this week with our children. Before they would go to school we would ask them to write a prayer for someone else. We are working on teaching them how to have a relationship with Jesus. :) They have been so receptive and it’s been so beautiful hearing them talk to Jesus!

We were so thankful for such beautiful weather. Trey and I had just finished our outdoor table the day before and couldn’t wait to have a meal together around it! Do you notice that plume of smoke behind everyone at the table??? There was a fire at an abandoned mill building just behind our house. That was a little nerve wracking - it was very close! As far as we know, no one was hurt.

All the babies had so much fun gathering up eggs and then I asked RyAnne to take a few photos of her daddy and I. I love these folks so much!! I’m so thankful that we were able to spend almost every meal together yesterday!

I hope that you had a wonderful Easter with your family in remembrance of our Savior!!

Olivia's SEVENTH Birthday! | Social Circle, Ga.

When we handed Silas the bunny to Olivia on her seventh birthday, she thought she was just holding him for a family photo. Then when we said he was now her bunny, she had tears in her eyes and let out a big squeal of excitement!!

Olivia has ALWAYS wanted a bunny - a small one because she loves small things. She always says, “I’m small and tiny and I like small and tiny things.” While Silas looks big, he’s all fur! He is so very tiny! When we brought him home he was just eight weeks old and so precious. Well, he is still very precious but molting and looks even smaller. lol I keep calling him the whacked out bunny! It will grow back in!

Later that week we celebrated Olivia with a birthday party! She had a couple of family and friends over and let everyone love on Silas. Just before the party got started, I had Olivia pose in front of her decorations. She is such a model baby! And, then her brother had to copy her poses too! :)

Happy birthday to our sweet girl, Olivia! We love you so much - you are so easy to celebrate!

Rocco's Easter Session | Social Circle, Ga.

My GOODNESS!!! Our sweet Rocco Koi, your smile and “silly” laugh bring us so much joy!

Yesterday, after working on my spring mini session props, I ran to the back yard and set them all up, threw this outfit (and black socks, lol) on Rocco - ALL this in 20 minutes, just before we needed to take the kids to AWANA! WHOA!! I was sweating! I’m so glad I did it though!

Silas, is our newest pet! Olivia got him for her 7th birthday but, we are ALL in love with him. He is only ten weeks old and he WAS really, really fluffy. He started molting last week - like, so much molting has happened that homeboy has a bald spot on the back of his head! So, this quick little session with Rocco was also very much for Silas to make sure he didn’t look like a whacked out bunny in my sweet little client’s photography sessions in two weeks! HA! He passed the test! And, so do those props! Aren’t they so fun?!

I won’t be hosting these sessions in our back yard this year, it’s just not ready yet, but I was so happy to know that if I need to do a quick little session for our babes, it’s possible. Moving to this little half acre, city lot, that was a concern of mine, not having a pretty spot for photographs! My brain is just trained to look for the good light, where does the sun rise and set, what are the reflective surfaces that I’m dealing with, what’s in the background. . .and so on. One day we will be blessed with land again! I just know it!