the maddox's

as i previously had mentioned, i had the opportunity to take some family photos of my bff ashley's family. i have never, ever attempted to take any sort of professional photo, & i'm pretty sure these don't qualify as professional, but it was really fun to have a photo shoot! they were so easy to take pictures of, especially her adorable little boy. i love him. he is perfect, i swear.
she just had her 2nd baby (crazy!) & was wanting some family photos + newborns (i'll share those soon) before little millie was too big or old for a newborn shoot. she had contacted a couple photographers, who were sadly booked, so i offered up my somewhat expertise.. that meaning, i have taken a few photo classes & happened to have my camera & new lens i had gotten for graduation with me that i had been wanting to try out, so it was really a win win for everyone! 
we went over by mt. boney (if you know what it is) where there are ton of fields & went to town. i definitely wouldn't mind taking more pictures for people if they needed. it truly was so fun.

it's good to be home.

since being back >>> we got our garden planted & growing & i couldn't be more excited for it! >>> we went to our lovely friend shayla's golden birthday. it was so fun celebrating & seeing friends we don't get to see all that often. plus it was decorated entirely in gold & looked so good. happy birthday shayshay >>> spending every moment in the world with the hubby is kind of amazing. i know, i know, we were only apart for one week, but it kinda felt like forever. i just like being with him. we've been really lucky since getting married in the fact that we get to almost always do everything together & i'm trying to soak it all in while i can, cause i'm pretty sure come november & spain & mba school, there won't be nearly as much time together. & then after that comes real life, & people keep telling me that we won't get to spend all of our time together then either, so let me soak it in. >>> while on a drive around town, austin suggested we go have lunch up at snowbird,(pictures above) so we did. i have never been to snowbird before. it was really fun going up there. it was so pretty & still was quite a bit of snow & people skiing & snowboarding. + cedar got a chance to play in the snow, since he's more able to than before, being older & all, but i'm not sure he was as impressed as we thought he would be.. ohwell. >>> we got snow cones with my austins brother & sister-in-law. i love snow cone season & am so happy it is finally upon us. >>> austins family had a party to celebrate both his & his mom's birthdays after church on sunday, that i sadly had to miss because earlier that morning i found out i have strep throat. worst luck. i was so bummed to have missed it, but i hear it was pretty fun, so that's good! >>> & went to a family bbq to celebrate memorial day.

so it's been pretty busy around here, which is a good thing. austin & i both have felt like without school we didn't know what would occupy our time when he wasn't off working, but apparently we're pretty good at filling our time up :) summer always goes so fast, don't you think? i cannot believe may is practically over. it was SO fast & it's only going to get faster.

things to look forward to: 1. i've forever been interested in floral design & this week i am officially shadowing two people on two weddings, i am soo excited. but more on that later. 2. our two year anniversary is on sunday! life moves to fast guys, i'm telling you. 3.possible concert on tuesday, it's still tbd, but i'll count it anyways. 4. my mom is coming into town on tuesday for... 5. CEDAR'S 1st BIRTHDAY! really am mind blown with this one

so that is our life, until next wednesday. pretty busy & exciting, lots going on.
oh ya, & 6. book club!

an outfit post + some ramblings


dress:target// boots:jeffery campbell// purse: kate spade// 
necklaces: anthropology- 1 & 2

my time in california has officially come to an end. it's a bittersweet thing. after missing our first flight due to traffic, getting a new flight & then having it delayed 2.5 hours, cedar & i finally flew home last night leaving behind our friends & family that we've loved spending all of our time with these past few weeks & it was a little hard to say goodbye. buuuut we flew home & now get to be with austin, which is the best. i hate when he has to go away for work, seriously is such a bummer. but i am happy to be back in our home &  be with all of our other friends & family that we missed so much while we were gone! 
our last few days home were perfect. the weather was hot, we spent ample amounts of time in the pool & at the beach, so you really can't go wrong. we ate good food, which is about all i do anytime i go anywhere it seems, saw million dollar arm which was really good! i finished gone with the wind & as expected was slightly heartbroken, really, if you haven't read it, you need to. my mom & i also watched it one night, i really have a love hate relationship with the story, but i mostly just love it. while i was home my friend asked if i could take family photos & her daughters newborns. i have never thought of really doing photography besides for myself but i really loved taking their pictures, it was so much fun. 
& now we get to get back into our groove of things, whatever it may be now that we don't have school holding us back. it's still crazy to think about. i'm a person that likes having things to do, so i'm sure i'll find something to occupy our time with :)

pizza party

while whitney & jason were here, we had a night was pizza & poker night. jason made homemade pizza dough & we all came up with our own pizzas to make. jason made his famous pistachio & potato pizza, we made our pesto/mozzarella/tomato pizza, russell made some sort of egg pizza invention & of course, a cinnamon/sugar dessert pizza. they were all really good. i love making homemade pizza & coming up with different toppings. while everyone was busy prepping, i spent the majority of the night singing a song from one of mary-kate & ashley's movies, "p-i-z-z-a, gimme pizza!" everyone got slightly annoyed, but i found it fitting.
last summer when whitney & jason visited we ended up playing card games most of the nights & we wanted to keep the tradition going. so after  we finished making & eating all of our pizza's we played a bunch of different, really fun, card games that russell taught all of us. we even put in real money to make it slightly more interesting. i was pretty proud when i ended the night with a total earnings of $9.50, haha. 

santa barbara

for part of our graduation present my mama offered to watch cedar for one night so austin & i could have a getaway. she saw how stressed we both were & decided that we needed a break.
we decided to take our night away up to santa barbara to hangout & relax on the beach. it was so much fun. we stayed at hotel milo santa barbara, which was right across the street from the beach & pier, right by state street. 
we got there friday evening, so we went to dinner at cielito restaurant & it was aaaaaaamazing. for reals, so good. our friend that lived in santa barbara for a long time recommended we go there & i'm pretty happy we did. it's a little more on the expensive side, but if you're ever there, you should go. it's spanish, tapas style & all of the different plates we had were delicious. afterwards we walked up & down state street, checking out everything going on & afterwards sat & talked on the beach.
it was so weird not having cedar baby with us. during dinner we both felt like something was missing, but it was good to have time just to be with each other. it's rare that we get to have dinner or do much of anything without our little 3rd wheel, so it's strange when we do, but so good at the same time.
the next day we woke up late, had breakfast & rode bikes up & down along santa barbara, hung out some more on the beach & the pier, & walked along the shops on state street before heading home. it was a perfect getaway. 
thanks mom! 

frankly my dear

it's been in the high 90's almost 100's the entire week in california. it's abnormally hot, especially for may. but i've decided to put this heat & sun towards good use during cedars naps & lay out while i have a chance to, in the hope of obtaining somewhat of a tan. that's my goal. being extremely pale, i can't hope for much else + having a baby doesn't help my tanning situation.
before going out today i was looking through my moms library of books to find something to read while i laid out & i came across my old favorite: gone with the wind. ever since i can remember i have loved the movie & when i was 8 i read it for the first time & i played the theme song at a piano recital... i realize it's not the normal choice of an 8 year old, but i really, really, loved it. 
i first saw it after visiting my dad's aunt cammie, who i learned played the role of bonnie blue butler & after that, i was hooked. i wanted to watch the movie constantly, i loved that my aunt was in the movie, it made the movie just that much better in my little mind, & my love for it has definitely stayed. i used to walk around constantly quoting the movie & when i was 8 years old, my grandma gave me her copy of the book as a gift. it was one of the last things my grandma gave me & one of my last memories of her, so i have forever cherished that book. since then my collection has grown. i don't know why, but if i find another copy & i like the cover, i have to buy it. 
i had never seen a copy of the book in my moms house though, so today i was pleasantly surprised when i found it tucked away in the highest shelf & i immediately had to start rereading it. some of my favorite quotes

>>>frankly my dear, i don't give a damn.
>>>burdens are for shoulders strong enough to carry them.
>>>i can't think about that right now. if i do, i'll go crazy. i'll think about that tomorrow.
>>>after all, tomorrow is another day!
>>>i was never one to patiently pick up broken fragments and glue them together again & tell myself that the mended while was as good as new. what is broken is broken-& i'd rather remember it as it was at its best than mend it & see the broken places as long as i lived. 
>>>that is the one unforgivable sin in any society. be differend & be damned! 


zuma

obviously we have been going to the beach as much as possible while in california. on cinco de mayo we went zuma with whitney, jason, wren, nick, shayla & my mom. unfortunately, it's a little difficult to work on a tan with a baby because all they do (at least mine) is explore & crawl around the beach as fast as possible. i spent the majority of the time chasing cedar around & taking pictures. it started out perfectly. it was the perfect temperature & so pretty & clear. but about an hour & a half into it got windy & pretty chilly so we bundled up while the boys were surfing before leaving. but at least shayla & i both got some good pictures out of it!

the beginning of a great summer



so far this summer, we have been very busy.

 the day after graduation we went down to kick-off summer in california. we have been packed with hundreds of things to do, leaving me little time for blogging, but i'm not complaining. it has been so fun. we flew in & immediately headed to the disney hotel, where we stayed the night, before going to our wonderful friends nate & danielle's wedding in newport.

it was unbelievable beautiful. their reception was at his grandparents house in newport, with an unreal view of newport & the ocean, in the backyard which was covered with flowers & sparkle lights. it was so pretty, i couldn't get over it.

the next day we went to disneyland with my family & cousin whitney, jason & their little girl wren, for her very first time. it was so fun. cedar was more interested already than the last time he was there, & it was adorable to see wren seeing all of the characters & loving it all.

on wednesday my my best friend had her second baby, amelia & we went to meet her on thursday. i can't believe that she already has two kids! it's crazy! i always forget how teeny, tiny babies are when they're first born. shes so small & sweet, i'm so happy i was here when she had her so that i could meet her.


better late than never

cedar hit the 11 month mark on sunday. i can't beleive it has almost been a year since he was born, this year has gone by SO fast. he has grown & changed so much, it's crazy. he's getting 2 more teeth, making the grand total 10! he babbles constantly, tries to mimik whatever we say, he still loves the itsy bitsy spider, he can feed himself with a fork if i put the food on it for him, he climbs on whatever he can & is in  e v e r y t h i n g. he loves books, especially this little christmas book he found somewhere in our house. he digs through all of his toys & books until he finds that one & then will sit happily looking through it. he took his first steps! i think the grand total of steps so far is about 10! he loves to eat anything & everything, especially graham crackers. he waves hello & goodbye to basically everyone that he encounters. it has been so fun.
we celebrated his 11 months at disneyland with our family & it was so excited to see him looking at everything. we took him for the first time in march & he was already much more interested this time around than he was before. he got excited on rides, laughed & smiled, he got scared on rides, clutching onto austin & my hands. he was excited to see mickey & really loved going on dumbo. happy 11 months to my sweet boy!