Grayson’s 15 Month Photos

It has been quite a while since I’ve taken any pictures of my son, Grayson, with my good DSLR camera instead of just my iPhone, so I decided that since he had just turned 15 months a week before, I’d take some photos of him at the park.

He started walking only a few short weeks ago, so he got to show off his new skill to some of the joggers on the path!  Of course he smiled his shy smile at every single person who passed by, as he always does.

It can be pretty hard to get good pictures of a fast moving baby, so I found this awesome stump for him to sit on.

After a few minutes he had had enough sitting and wanted to walk around again.

And since I don’t have many pictures of Grayson and me together, I attempted a selfie of us with my super heavy camera.  Let me tell you, that is no easy task!  And when I saw the result, I couldn’t help but laugh at Grayson’s fish face.

And in case any of you thought my photos always come out of my camera with perfect lighting, coloring, and blemish free, here is an example of why photographers charge what they do. The picture on the left is straight out of my camera, and the picture on the right is after 45 minutes of editing. I always spend this amount of time on each and every photo I provide for my clients. Just remember that even though it may seem like a lot of money just for pictures, you don’t know just how much time the photographer is spending on editing your photos. It’s not just the hour or two they spend with you during the session, it’s countless hours in front of the computer making sure each and every photo is perfect.

 

Smokey House Rehab: The Finished Product!!!!!

After over a YEAR of procrastinating working on this house, I am happy to announce that it is finally FINISHED!!!!!!!  Between getting married and having a baby, this home rehab was really put on the back burner, but I’m so glad that it’s complete and ready to be put on the market!

It was quite a project, from all the trash we had to remove to the smoke damage that permeated the very bones of the house, there was so much to do!  If you are a new reader, or you need a refresher on what this house looked like when we started, I thought I’d show you some before and after pictures.  The transformation is amazing to say the least!

The Living Room:

Before

After

We removed the stinky, smoke filled carpet and replaced it with pretty laminate flooring.  We also painted all the trim and the fireplace with at LEAST two coats of white paint.  In some cases it took priming and then painting two coats to cover the yellow stained trim.  Steve painted the ceiling, and we hired a painter to paint all the walls in the house since some were several feet high.  We also replaced all the light fixtures in the house, including the outdoor lights.

The Kitchen:

Before

After

Before

After

At first we tried to salvage the white cabinets by scrubbing them with a bleach and water mixture.  While it looked like we were making some great progress and were really getting them clean, once the painter painted the kitchen, we realized that there was no way we’d be able to keep the existing cabinetry.  Against the white paint, the cabinets were quite yellow.  I’m so glad we replaced them, though, because the new cabinets and counters are beautiful!  We also installed brand new stainless steel appliances.  The stove still even has the protective blue plastic covering the stainless steel.

That vinyl floor was awful, and the new tile floor is beautiful and modern.

The Entryway:

Before

After

Unfortunately I didn’t take a picture of the entryway before we ripped up the flooring, but you get the idea.

The Hallway:

Before

After

Ugh! That yellowed trim around the door still haunts me!

The Hall Bathroom:

Before

After

This bathroom probably required the least amount of work.  Don’t get me wrong, it was still grody, but compared to the rest of the house, I feel like it cleaned up pretty well with not as much effort.  We removed the vinyl and replaced it with tile, cleaned up the cabinets and counter and replaced the hardware, painted the walls, and of course CLEANED!!!

The Master Bedroom:

Before

After

The Master Bathroom:

Before

After

We basically did the same thing here that we did on the hall bathroom, but on a larger scale.

The 2nd Bedroom:

Before

After

The 3rd Bedroom:

Before

After

The bedrooms were pretty straight forward.  Clear out all the junk, rip out the carpet, paint the walls, ceiling, and doors, and replace the baseboards and the window screens.

The Bonus Room:

Before

After

This room above the garage (for any repair work call the expert garage door repair and installation in Arlington Heights who are the best in this field) could either be used as a bonus room or as a 4th bedroom.  It has an attached bathroom and closet.

The Backyard:

Before

After

There were two huge cedar trees that had to be cut down, and the lawn had to be completely dug up and replanted, since it was basically just overgrown weeds and vines.

The Front:

Before

After

We got rid of the vines hanging down from the roof, removed all the bushes, replanted the grass, and repainted the garage doors and front door.  Look at that curb appeal!

I can’t believe it’s finally done!!!  Thank you, Jesus!!!

Baby Bentley

Now, before you get all excited….No, I did not have my baby!  This post is about another beautiful bundle of joy that came into the world on February 16th.  Meet Baby Bentley!!

At 7 lbs, 12 oz I don’t think he could be much cuter.  Look at that cute little button nose, and precious little lips!  Bentley’s parents were in a couples’ Bible study with Steve and me, and they have become dear friends.

This picture of Melanie and me was taken at her baby shower about 5 weeks ago.  Hard to believe in just about 10 weeks or so, my belly will be as big as her’s is in this picture!  I’m already starting to feel pretty uncomfortable, and I know it’s not going to be getting better any time soon.  But I’m just looking forward to the day I get to meet my son, and it makes everything completely worth it.

Steve came with me to visit Melanie, her husband Alex, and baby Bentley, and he got to practice holding a newborn.  It was so fun to see him with that tiny baby in his arms.  Afterward, he said he was really glad he came with me because it made him more excited for the day when our baby comes in about 3 months.  He’s going to be such a great daddy!

Ahh!!!  I can’t wait until I get to hold my baby in my arms!!  May 26th is just around the corner, and I’m hoping the time flies by.  In the mean time, I’ll just have to get my baby fix by holding Bentley.  Thank you so much, Melanie and Alex, for letting us be a part of the first couple days of your precious son’s life.  We love you guys!