Thanksgiving

Our first Thanksgiving together as a family, and I forgot to get a picture. Oops. I was having so much fun, it didn't even cross my mind.

This year both our families joined together for Thanksgiving dinner. It was wonderful. Matt and I have had a hard time in the past fitting in two families and two dinners. We are thankful that we were all able to get together for this holiday, and we had a great time eating, catching up and playing lots of wii.

Matt and I have so much to be thankful for. We have a beautiful warm home, cars that are in good working order, knowledge of the gospel, jobs, fun and cuddly pets, and a wonderful Son who we love very much.
We are so thankful for our family. We are blessed that we live close to our parents and siblings, and that we can travel easily to the rest of our loved ones.
We are also so thankful for our friends. We have the best in the world, seriously.
We hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
In other news, I put the tree up this year a little earlier than I usually do in hopes that the "wow" factor would fade by the time Sam is crawling. Here are some pictures of his first view of the Christmas tree!
He likes it, but luckily isn't too interested in anything that isn't one of his dogs :)

Practice better make perfect

I have been practicing my photography skills in low light situations for the last week. (hence the overload in Sam shots) I have relied fully on natural lighting up until this point, but now that it gets dark at 3pm and outdoor sessions are less likely to happen due to weather, I need to work on indoor/darker situations.

Of course my favorite model is Mr. Sam. How could I not love this masterpiece!? Those elbow dimples, that lumpy bum and that Buddha belly. He is the epitome of perfection :)Matt will hate me for pointing this out, but even his ears are adorable. Those lashes! I covet them.So, although I have a lot to learn, and probably a few things to master, I think these "practice" shots turned out OK.
Now, to answer Laurels question, I do not have a waterproof camera. But I do have a trick that I have been attempting.
Try putting an aquarium or vase in the water with your camera inside, and viola! Instant underwater shots. I have not been able to get "great" quality pictures this way, but you should try it at home too :)

rain, rain go away.

Dear Washington,

Oh how I love you on a sunny summer day. Your beautiful lakes and awesome hiking trails become a craving for me from June to September.

But here we are in November. Rainy, windy and cold. Today you are not my favorite State.

There is a new dog park that I want to explore. There are outdoor pictures waiting to be taken. There is a baby who is beyond bored of being inside.

And then there is me. Its noon and I am still in my pajamas.

Days like this drown my motivation to do anything but nap or eat, two things not included on my to do list.

So I blame you Washington, for the fact that I am wasting time on my computer blogging instead of cleaning house, organizing junk or working on my editing. I'm telling Matthew on you.

-Holly

Pictures from the week

I caught this shot while driving through Snohomish the other day.It was one of those times where I HAD to pull over and get a picture. It was so beautiful. You cant see it, but it was hailing to the right of the shot, and a wonderful sunset to the left. I wish I would have thought to take a panoramic, but I was too worried about getting hit on the side of the road. Great picture though, right?

Speaking of good pictures, check these out. I have been trying over and over again to perfect this idea, (underwater pictures) but I just cant get it right. I think that my bathroom is too dark, and my Son is too active. Oh well. They are still worth a thousand words if you ask me.

Oh, how I love those dark eyes. They are the exact color of 70% cocoa dark chocolate. We've compared.

Oh yes, and this one. Sam loves watching daddy cook in the kitchen. Hopefully the Aprecio genes will be passed on, and Sam will be as good a chef as his dad and grandpa.Speaking of passing down skills, Sam has shown a lot of interest in Jiu-Jitsu. Here he is wrestling with his buddy Eli. The game would have gone on longer, but Eli soon realized he had an advantage on Sam.
Teeth.

6 Months

Sam is 6 months! Its hard to believe, but boy is he showing it. He is learning to crawl, he can sit up on his own, he puts his own binky in and his appetite has grown about as much as he has. He will eat anything that you give him, and he doesn't mind new flavors. He has even started using a sippy cup, and loves his apple juice.

Sammy got his first tooth on Sunday, and his second is following close behind. He is sleeping better at night, but we still struggle with bed time.

He is as happy as can be. People comment all the time that they have never seen a happier child. We cant agree more. He is so much fun.Sam weighs 16.8lbs and is 28.5 inches long. He is in the 32% for weight, and 97th% for heightHe is babbling non stop now, and his laugh is the best sound in the world (and heard often). He loves the dogs, his family and his toys. He still doesn't really like the bath, but his eczema may make it uncomfortable for him.We saw a dermatologist today regarding his eczema, and we are going to try a new routine. She didn't seem very concerned about him, and gave me tons of new information regarding this condition. Hopefully his skin will clear up soon.

We are loving our time with Sam, and although we love this stage, we are excited to see what he will do next!

Happy Halloween