Yes, camping in February. Who would have thought it was possible?! Although… it was still a bit chilly for even us Minnesotans.

It wasn’t Ephram’s first or even second time camping with us, but it was his first time in a tent. Though it was cold and rainy, we did get a weak campfire going, roasted hot dogs, and played with sticks. Nighttime was chilly, and I didn’t even bother taking the camera out for breakfast. I think my fingers would have fallen off. But we explored a few of the trails before heading home. All the alligators, birds, and rock throwing can really wear a little boy out.

I haven’t been in the mood for writing much lately.
But this is one of my favorite photos of Ephram lately, so I thought I’d share.

in, yet another, attempt to mimic mommy, Ephram’s love for the Magic Bullet blender (or ‘bar’ as he seems to refer to it) has translated into his playtime activities. I let him play with the cups but not the actual blender part that has blades and a plug, so he made his own out of cups. he does this at least once per day. objects found in Ephram’s blender this week have included, pretend strawberries, legos, puzzle pieces, pretend cell phones, and pretend hot dogs. What a creative little boy he is.

Ah, Valentine’s Day… I’ve got to be honest that I just don’t get very excited about this holiday. Is holiday even the correct word for it if it doesn’t include a day off of work for Beau? Well, anyhow, I did get excited just enough to buy red paint and red string for a Valentine’s Day project for Ephram. We made a little something to send to the cousins back home – and I’ll likely wait to share it online since I was late on sending them in the mail, therefore they might not receive them until tomorrow. As for Beau & I, picking up discounted candy tomorrow is about the only way I’ll be celebrating the “holiday”. And just maybe whipping up a batch of these, but only because they look amazing. On second thought, I guess I will consider today a holiday if it gives me an excuse to bake sweets.

If you are in need of a laugh + a few hair tutorials, check out this week’s posts on Pacing the Panic Room. Ryan is so talented at everything he does, but I’m really loving this new series. Especially since my hair is still awfully thin and yucky, even 2 years after having Ephram. Hair loss after pregnancy is so unfair… I’m in need of any tips to make my hair look like anything other than a stringy mess these days. Or just some humor to make me forget that I have hair issues at all.

I haven’t talked about it on the blog yet, but I’ve jumped into the scrapbooking craze that is Project Life. The main reason I haven’t shared it on the blog yet is due to the fact that I waited to order the kit until we had moved and by then, the page protectors were all sold out. (Becky says they should be restocked sometime very soon though!) But just because I haven’t shared it, doesn’t mean I have started! And I’m so glad I started at the beginning of the year even without the whole Project Life kit in hand. But if you haven’t started yet and still want to, I highly suggest going for it. No need to wait until a new year, or even for the page protectors to restock. I know you won’t regret it.

I’ve noticed a trend… Whenever a new pair of jeans become my favorite, I lose any desire to wear my previous favorite pair. Because of this, I’m thinking it might be advantageous of me to purchase multiple pairs of the same jean so that I have more than one favorite to choose from on a daily basis. Has anyone ever done this before or have I just come up with the best idea ever?

Song of the Week: Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift & The Civil Wars. It’s on the upcoming Hunger Games soundtrack, but you can already download the single. You know I can’t go a week without mentioning Hunger Games by now, right? Haha, well I loved the song from the first time I heard it, and then fell in love all over again when I saw the video. So many reminders of the books.

Oh, and if you have had trouble adding the blog to your Google Reader, try adding this link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/DonyaLuanaPhotographyBlog — you wouldn’t want to miss cute photos like the ones below, would you?

This weekend we headed to San Antonio for a last minute trip. Or as Ephram says, “teep!” He was very excited.

We got to San Antonio late Friday night and first thing Saturday morning (after a yummy Holiday Inn Express breakfast, of course) we drove to the Gaudalupe River State Park. Ephram was in love with the water/river and throwing rocks. It took quite a bit of convincing to get him to do more hiking after we stopped to skip rocks, but eventually he came with us. We also took the opportunity to teach him about prickly cactus since they were everywhere. From there on he searched for them on all of our hikes, mentioning how they are ‘shark’ (sharp) and ‘ouch!’ and ‘hurt!’ Love hearing him learn words every single day.

By late morning, we were done exploring the state park (at least with the company of a slow toddler – I think it might be time to finally buy a jogging stroller so we can go further on the trails with Ephram), so we headed back to the city for some River Walking and Alamo visiting. Though by the time we got there, we were all very hungry and Ephram decided it was a great time to break down and have a tantrum right in front of the Alamo… so you’ll see there aren’t many photos from there. Still it was enjoyable, once we found food, and a less crowded part of the River Walk to explore. And some Starbucks.

For the rest of the afternoon, we explored a second state park, closer to our hotel. Government Canyon State Park has a ton of trails and once again, we could have explored a lot more without a very slow toddler, but he really enjoyed hiking, picking up rocks, and pointing out the cactus and airplanes we saw along the way.

We hoped to explore another state park on Sunday but the cold temperatures changed our minds and we headed straight home instead. Yep, we’ve officially become Texans and are afraid of the cold. But in reality, it was only in the 30s with light rain, and that wouldn’t have been much fun to hike through with Ephram anyways. Instead, he slept almost the entire drive home, making for a really nice drive for Beau and I. ;)

Lately…

+ I’m inspired by the decor among these shelves, and hoping to replicate some of it in the built in bookshelves in our apartment.

+ Wishing I had the coordination to do Dance Aerobics on a Treadmill – or just posses the ability to dance without looking like a freak.

+ Gathering all of the “cooking” toys from Ephram’s room and swapping them with all other toys in the living room. He is completely obsessed with kitchen things these days.  (see photo)

+ Trying out oatmeal smoothies and loving them. Very filling and healthy!  A plus that Ephram loves them too – & can finally sip them from a cup without spilling!

+ Attending Toddler Time at the local library in hopes of meeting some new friends for E and I.

+ Reconnecting with my Wacom tablet, and finally found the correct drivers for it. Pen pressure enabled in photoshop, FTW!

+ Hoping Freebirds is better than our Bullritos experience (two local burrito restaurants – we treid Bullritos earlier this week and were not impressed).  Either way, I’m super glad we have a Chipotle close by to feed my addiction.

+ Figuring out how much sleep a 23 month old needs and whether a nap is still necessary for Ephram… (I’m not sure I’m ready for that!)

+ Cleaning up a minor paint mess from a small Valentines project E and I took part in this morning.

+ Fiddling with CSS + HTML to create a better, combined blog. I swear, it’s coming.  Someday.

+ Dreaming up the perfect arrangement of frames to hang in the living room. Of course it can’t be done until it’s perfect…

How’s your Thursday going?

The fact that I’ve already watched the trailer online about 8 times is probably evidence enough that I am dying to see The Hunger Games movie. And if you’re as obsessed as I am, you’ll be just as excited to find out that they are planning FOUR movies to cover all three books of the series. Seriously, a must read!

On Saturday, Beau and I ventured out to do something we’ve never done before. I know, it sounds really risky, doesn’t it? Well, in actuality, all we did was visit a bar in downtown Houston, but if you knew me in college, well then it isn’t a suprise that I have never really been to a bar. I mean, the occasional ‘after the wedding bar visit’ or once for a meet up with the professors after visiting my college for a conference, ya. But anything other than that? Nope.

Possibly the most interesting part of our bar experience was that the Green Ranger was sitting just a few feet away from us. I swear! At first I thought it was a joke when the entertainers had mentioned it, but we looked him up online when we left and it’s totally true. I was always partial to the pink ranger, but for Beau this was quite the exciting encounter. Who knew my husband was into Power Rangers growing up?

I think the Super Bowl got Ephram a little excited. Yesterday afternoon he started rummaging through his drawers, pulling out every piece of Vikings apparel he owns, bringing it out into the living room, and pointing at it while saying ‘fuh-ball’! Poor guy, if only he knew how long we have to wait until we see another football game, let alone with featuring our favorite Purple and Gold team. But hey, Adrian Peterson was in Houston this morning!

I’ve been trying out a few new actions in Photoshop lately. And I came across this gem this morning that Beau took during our ultra-lounge-around-the-house-superbowl-sunday, right after Ephram woke from his nap. Love that little boy more than anything. Yes, even a little more than the Hunger Games movie trailer or Football. ;)

Two huge months of change. A new state. A new climate. A new home. A new job.

Wow.

December and January were two huge months of change.  From (potentially) selling our house in the North Star state, to moving to an apartment in the Lone Star state, to trading our snow boots for sandals, to retiring from meteorology and staying home with Ephram.  Change I had dreamed of but never thought would be a reality. I’m not sure I could ever feel more grateful.  Grateful to have the opportunity to care for Ephram each day, enjoy every evening and weekend with Beau, and spend more time on my photography.  Grateful for our friends and family for helping us make the huge move; there aren’t even words for how thankful I am for them.

But back up to December.

December marked a month of unknown.  If you know me at all,  you know I don’t deal with change well.  But I think because I saw the potential for us to move awhile before we knew for sure, I was able to adequately prepare myself.  I guess it didn’t hurt that Texas is amazing and we had always hoped to move to a warmer climate someday.  A place with palm trees.  Where snow rarely visited — which is rather funny since snow has been a rarity in Minnesota this winter too.  Yet when it finally did snow, I was quick to put on my boots and snap a picture.  Someday I might actually miss the snow.  But not anytime soon. ;)

January brought less uncertainty, but more change.  We fell right into our new lives without skipping a beat, even though we had no furniture in our new place.  What likely would have taken awhile to feel like home, felt even more odd with empty walls, no desks, or couches, or chairs.  But we adjusted to the new lifestyle, soaking up the warm sun, and enjoying much more time as a family than we could in our previous life.  One of the best parts for me in January was time to rest, clear my head, and even enjoy a good book (or two).  It’s been so long since I had time to sit and read that I had forgotten how enjoyable it could be.

Below are those who are doing monthly self portraits with me. If you’d like to join us, place a link to your monthly photo in the comments below and I’ll add you to the list! – Remember to link back to me too!

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Doppler Dolly . Shanna

Since moving to Texas, Ephram has started sleeping in.  Like beyond 5:45am sleeping in.  And each day I think, maybe I should get up and start my day before Ephram wakes up.  Take a shower, get breakfast ready, do some computer work.  But every day I’ve lounged in bed, reading or catching up on Twitter or just dozing off and on until he has woken up.  Until today, that is.  I woke up, showered, put in a load of laundry, and got our breakfasts ready all before my 23 month old woke up for the day.  And. it. was. glorious.  If you have a toddler, definitely try it. Of course, now that I have realized this little early morning secret, I’m sure Ephram will quit sleeping in.  Isn’t that how it always works?

A certain uncle requested I get back on the Instagram wagon so he can keep up on everyday life with Ephram.  So I’m back, sharing random photos throughout the day, mostly of Ephram, but hopefully as we decorate our new living space, I’ll share bits of that as well.

Some things I’ve noticed about Texas so far:

+ We lose power just about every time it rains. At least seeing the CenterPoint Energy trucks is somewhat exciting for Ephram.  Whenever there’s an outage, we get to watch them fix the power lines from our window.

+ I cannot find sausage pizzas in Texas.  And I can’t seem to find out why!

+ The Houston Ikea does not have Huge A** Fans like the one in Minneapolis.  And apparently other Ikeas have them too.  Houston, I think you need to get with the program here.  It’s my son’s favorite part of Ikea!

+ Bugs. Other than a few bees who visit our lemon tree occasionally, there are no bugs in Texas.  Do they come in the Summer?  I don’t care at this point because no bugs + Texas Winter is like Minnesota Summer – pesky mosquitoes!

Reading: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, the third book of the Hunger Games series.  I think it was Ashley that mentioned this book sometime last year and I was hooked on the plot immediately.  I am so glad I finally had the time to read this series because it’s so well written.  And just in time for the movie! Any Houstonians want to see it with me?

Working on: A new combined blog.  I asked for opinions last week on Ephram’s blog if I should combine the two and I that’s just what I’ll be doing.  It’s going to take some time, but the blogs are in the process of combining into one simple blog.  More on that later.

Until then, I’ll be pondering how a not-even-two year old can operate an iPad so well.  He of course calls it the “pad” though – can’t put more than 3 words together in a sentence but he can use an Apple product.  Now that’s how you know it’s a good company. ;)

Wow, 2011 is done! And it was such a fantastic year. So many fun, amazing, beautiful clients. I can’t wait to see what 2012 and a whole new state and location has to offer my little business. While I’ve enjoyed working both as a meteorologist and a photographer the last few years, in 2012 I’ll be focusing purely on my photography – growing as an artist, developing my skill further, focusing even more on my clients. I have big plans for 2012 and cannot wait to share them once we settle into our new home this month.

For those of you in Minnesota: Wow. Thank you! I’ve already had a number of requests to come back to my home state and take sessions. I have no doubt we’ll be back at least a couple times this coming year to visit friends, family, and take on a few photo shoots. For those of you who have already expressed interest, I’ll be in touch with dates as soon as we make plans to travel north. If you’d like to be added to the list, please email me or comment below.

In no particular order, here are a just a handful of my favorite 2012.

Happy 2012 to you and your family!

Location: Richmond, Texas
What: Houston Family Portraits
Richmond Texas Family Photographer, Donya Luana

I wanted to say so much more on Tuesday… The whole “time standing still while moving at the speed of light” bit? Ya, I definitely had more to say. Like how we’ve been anxiously and quietly waiting to hear about a possible move to Texas for the past few weeks.

Well, we’re officially making the big move to Houston! We’re definitely sad about leaving our families and friends behind, but the cold temperatures? Not so much. In fact, I’ve been holding off on buying a new winter coat for nearly a month now until we found out if this move would really happen. I guess I’d better save that money for a new bathing suit instead!

I’ll have much more news on Houston once we settle in – which will hopefully happen by mid-January. Until then, enjoy the holidays and I’ll see you in the New Year!

xo, donya

ps. If you happen to know someone in the Houston, Sugar Land, or Katy areas of Texas, let them know that an awesome family photographer will be coming to the area soon! I’m so excited to meet new families from the area.