oh snap... tomorrow is valentine's day.

Wait... what? Tomorrow is February 14th? Sheesh... where did the rest of February go? I swear... I turn around for 5 seconds and February is dang gone.

I guess I better get a move on with my Valentine's Day gifts... and when I say gifts, I really mean super simple stamped love tags... with a little bit of glitter... for good measure, of course.

I'm still trying to decide what to do for my man tomorrow. Valentine's Day for married couples is just different... I mean, we acknowledge the holiday and all, but try not to spend loads of money or anything. I'm trying to get creative, but just realized I'm kinda running out of time.

Any suggestions? What are your thoughts on the big mushy holiday? Do you celebrate?

sweet little jovie {louisville newborn photographer}

Meet sweet little Jovie.

Isn't she just scrumptious?!? You might remember Jovie's mom, Shaelyne, from here or here... She and I have traded photography services a few times now... She is an incredibly gifted photographer... an amazing artist... and she makes beautiful babies... a woman of many talents, I tell ya.

Let's get on to the newborn pics, shall we?

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I had a hard time picking my favorite from this session... but I love #6... so sweet. Which one is your favorite??

thankful thursday {link up}

{Link up your own Thankful Thursday post below...}

This Thursday I am thankful for...

1) My husband. Lance is amazing. Our time in Louisville has been so beautiful for our marriage. I love watching him minister... and even more, I love ministering with him. He cares for me and encourages me every day. I am so grateful that I am married to a man that is constantly seeking the Lord and challenges me in my walk. I love you, Lance.

2) Crystal Light packets. Specifically the wild strawberry flavor... that has caffeine in it... the caffeine part is crucial. In the mornings I have been substituting Crystal Light in place of my usual morning Dr. Pepper. And I have to say... the Crystal Light is actually doing the trick... the wild strawberry flavor is for "energy," so it includes caffeine and vitamin B. It perks up my morning just right... without the sugar crash that normally accompanies my typical Dr. Pepper.

3) Gummy Vitamins. And speaking of vitamins... whoever thought of gummy vitamins is pure genius. Especially whoever thought of branding gummy vitamins to adults. They are almost as awesome as the Flintstone vitamins. I'm taking prenatal vitamins these days, and the ones I used to take were freakin' horse pills... you can imagine my excitement when I saw that I could get my prenatals in gummy form!!

I always love reading all of the Thankful Thursday link-ups each week... they always make me smile. I especially loved this quote that Maria from Lil Mys Ninja posted last week...

What are you thankful for this week? Grab the Thankful Thursday button from the right sidebar and link up your own post below. Be sure to visit the other Thankful Thursday participants and share the love!!

Also linking up with:

Kate Says Stuff

The Fontenot Four

First Day of My Life

dear diary :: lessons in gossiping

Dear Diary,

Gossip. It's that one little character flaw that I am constantly trying to justify... Convincing myself that it's not really gossip if I'm just responding... As long as I'm not the one that initiates the conversation... Constantly teetering the fine line between true concern and just plain-old-curiosity... And of course, it doesn't count if I'm talking to someone that doesn't actually know the other person... right? And, I mean, what if I'm funny about it? Surely that doesn't count.

Clarify funny.

Let's say you're at work... and you work a pretty professional 9-to-5 job... and let's just say you occasionally get annoyed with some of the vendors that you deal with. And just as an example, let's say that you sometimes send emails to some of your co-workers to "vent" about how annoying the previously mentioned vendors are. And you get more points from your co-workers if the emails are clever and funny.

Well... the emails are only funny if they are sent to the correct person.

Not quite as funny if they are sent to the above mentioned annoying vendor by accident. Yeah... not funny at all, actually.

Of course... this is all just a hypothetical scenario. This totally didn't happen to me two weeks ago...

Okay... so yes. This did in fact happen to me.

This may have been one of the most mortifying moments of my entire professional career. I called my co-worker (the one that was actually supposed to receive my "funny" email) and tried to simply laugh the whole thing off... "Can you believe what I did?? OMG... blah, blah, blah..." But here's the thing... initially, my response was to just pretend it never happened. Never.happened.

But it did. Why was it okay for me to say what I said to my co-worker... yet I would have never (purposely) said what I did directly to the person that actually received my email?? What makes a statement funny when said to one person... but just plain hurtful when said to another? I began thinking about how many things I say so carelessly... not realizing how ugly and hurtful my words would be if heard by the wrong person.

This, my friends, is gossip.

And the lessons learned in gossiping can be hard to swallow.

I did end up sending an apology email to the vendor that "accidentally" received my not-so-funny email. And although I felt better after apologizing, there wasn't really much to say... my words could not be retracted. I also made the decision to confess my email blip to my boss... a decision that was not easy to make.

Although this was a painful lesson to learn... and one that I still have a LOT to grow in... I pray that my lesson in gossiping is one that I hold onto.

Love,

Julia

"So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you..."

-Matthew 7:12

Linking this up to Capturing Motherhood's Picture Me {Im}perfectly

top 10 :: things i love about my erin condren planner

Okay, okay... I have been talking about this new Erin Condren planner long enough. My fabulous cousin gave me an Erin Condren gift card for Christmas and I knew immediately that I would be using it to purchase the weekly planner. And so far... I'm pretty much in love. Some of you have asked what is so special about this so-called-amazing-planner...

Well, I'll tell you.

How about a full-blown planner review?? ...Top 10 style...

1) It arrives in the happiest box.

Any box that is this pretty is more than welcome to sit on my doorstep.

2) It is SPIRAL bound.

Spiral bound means your planner can lay flat and open on your desk all day long... and makes it much easier to write in. I can't even begin to explain how happy this small, little detail makes me.

3) It has tabs.

Another small detail that makes life just that much better.

4) It has month-at-glance AND week-at-a-glance views.

When I shopped for a new planner each year, this was the one criteria I always looked for... but it became harder and harder to find... so many planners are just one or the other.

5) It comes personalized.

I'm pretty sure this is the Erin Condren claim-to-fame. There are countless planner designs to choose from... you can even add your own family photo.

6) It has to-do lists.

And let's just be honest here... I.love.lists. There are "to-do lists" and "goal lists" sprinkled all throughout this planner.

7) It comes with stickers.

Who doesn't love stickers? In the back of the planner there are pre-labeled stickers (birthdays, dr. appts, vacations, etc), as well as sheets and sheets of blank stickers for you to label yourself.

8) It follows a "Morning... Day... Night" weekly view.

I love this layout... it works for me. It makes it super-easy to plan our evenings and my lunch dates:)

9) It has pockets and pouches.

The planner has a pocket in the back as well as a sealed plastic pouch... perfect for stationary and stamps:)

10) It comes with excellent customer service (and free personalized labels!).

Those free personalized labels were such a fun surprise! I've already used them on a gift... and my pretty package became the talk of the shower! Erin Condren still has a small business feel to it... which I love.

So, there you have it. My Erin Condren planner review. If you are a little behind for 2012 and haven't found your perfect planner yet... I say, go for it... you won't be disappointed. One of my resolutions for this year was to use a planner (for the whole year)... and I firmly believe a pretty, happy planner is the key to success for consistent planning:)

Linking this up to Oh Amanda.

right now...

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Right now, I am...

...hearing Dave Matthews streaming on my Pandora station.

...adoring the photos I have been editing from this wedding.

...organizing our newly created pantry shelves.

...enjoying the space heater that I have hidden under my desk.

...contemplating a trip to Nashville in a few weeks.

...reading The Happiness Project.

...wishing that I made more time to read.

...savoring the large Dr. Pepper that Lance brought me from McDonalds this morning.

...planning up a storm in my new Erin Condren planner.

...missing the weekend.

Happy Monday peeps. What are you up to right now??

thirty & fabulous {louisville photographer}

Meet Courtney.

She just might be one of my favorite people ever. We work together and she keeps me sane some days... we have countless inside jokes and nicknames... she can make me giggle at the slightest glance... and I can make her snort if I try hard enough.

Well... Courtney just turned the big 3-0 a few weeks ago!! And what better way to celebrate her fabulousness than with a photo session?!? Not only did I get to capture Courtney in all her thirty-year-old-glory... but I was able to sneak in a few shots of Miss Hayley too! You may remember this adorable mother/daughter duo from their last photo shoot... well, they are still lovely as ever...

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Which one is your favorite?? Personally, I think #10 is pretty spectacular...

But everyone knows that all photos are a hundred-bazillion-times better as silhouette puppets...

I mean, really... makes me laugh every.single.time...

happy friday!

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thankful thursday {link up}

{Link up your own Thankful Thursday post below}

This Thursday I am thankful for...

1) My new Erin Condren planner. I.love.this.planner. I just got it last week, so I'm starting to fill it up with appointments and weekend plans. Each day has a "morning, day & night" section which works nicely for my schedule. There are stickers in the back to use for birthdays and appointments... and the best part are the free personalized label stickers that they sent with my planner... they are so cute and I can't wait to use the gift labels:)

2) Chicken pot pie. I've been on this chicken pot pie kick lately... specifically the Marie Callender's brand... What? Did you think I meant like a chicken pot pie from scratch?? Then you obviously do not know me well... I am a girl of ramen noodles and frozen dinners... thankfully my husband can cook, so we don't starve. Regardless... the Marie Callender frozen chicken pot pies are delicious... promise.

3) My Community Group. I know my community group has been on my Thankful Thursday list before... but they are totally worth mentioning again (and again). Our community group is our family here in Louisville. This group of men and women both challenge me and encourage me all at the same time. They encourage my walk with the Lord and for that I am very grateful.

I always love reading all of the Thankful Thursday link-ups each week... they always make me smile. Sometimes I feel like you guys can read my mind when I read your Thankful Thursday posts... which is exactly how I felt when I read the verse that Sugar & Spice posted about last week. It was as if she wrote that entire post just for me. I love when that happens.

What are you thankful for this week? Grab the Thankful Thursday button from the right sidebar and link up your own post below. Be sure to visit the other THankful Thursday participants and share the love!!

Also linking up with:

Kate Says Stuff

The Fontenot Four

dear january...

Dear January,

You came and went as fast as I could say "Happy New Year." And as usual, you arrived with your routines and schedules... with your clean calendars and unmarked planners... just how I like it.

And although the calendar didn't stay clean for long... you are always a breath of fresh air, with your untarnished goals and resolutions.

Not to be outdone by 2011, you decided to make a statement early in the year for 2012... filling up the calendar with a mix of business and pleasure... audit work... back-and-forth trips to Atlanta... new counseling classes at church... doctor appointments... hotel stays... company dinners... new goals... lunches with girlfriends... a new sofa... lots of packing... rental cars... less soda... and big life lessons...

January, thank you for being awesome.

Love,

Julia