How to Tuesday: Sparkly Eyes from Under the Sycamore

Welcome to How To Tuesday, where I'll introduce you to some of my favorite DIY tips from all over the web. I have a folder bookmarked on my computer that's chock-full of fun stuff. I saved some of the ideas for inspiration and others because I just thought they were pretty or fun, and now I'm sharing them with you. Enter Under the Sycamore, the blog of Ashley Ann Photography. LOVE reading this blog, but that's beside the point. Today's tip is all about how to get sparkly eyes when you're playing photographer. I tried to use this tip in my photo session with Micah the other day, but she just won't stay still long enough for me to plan a shot, so I take what I can get.

I succeeded a little bit, right? The picture's not perfect, but her eyes DO have a bit of sparkle.

Anyway, last week, Ashley Ann posted a little DIY tutorial on a little vintage tin craft, but down at the bottom of the post, as a little side note, she threw in a photography tip that you must go read. If you want to know how to give your kids sparkly photo eyes, click through to read Ashley Ann's advice (you'll have to scroll to the bottom of the post to find the photo tip).

Happy shooting!

Until next time, grace and peace.

Happy Valentine's Day! Love, Micah

Micah told me she wanted to wish you all a Happy Valentine's Day, so, last week amid all the crazy, we scheduled a little photo shoot.

OK, so she didn't really tell me that. Her vocabulary consists of Mama, Dada, ba {which can mean book or ball}, baba {which means baby}, and plo {which is her beloved pillow pet}.

She looks like a sweet little angel, no?

Don't let her big blue eyes fool you. By the time it was all over, we both looked like this:

And on that note, the photo shoot ended :)

We wish you all a very Happy Valentine's Day and hope you get to spend it with the people you love the most!

Until next time, grace and peace.

Lunch, aka the Messiest Meal Ever

Welcome to our kitchen table. Micah has entered a lovely little independent stage of toddlerhood. She wants to do everything herself, including eating. For the most part, it's not a big deal, but today we had spaghetti for lunch, and I knew it was a disaster waiting to happen. So what did I do? Grabbed the camera and turned it into a photo op.

Go ahead, Micah. Shove it in. Why use a spoon when you've got 10 little fingers? She likes holding her spoon and will protest loudly if she's not given one. Sometimes she allows me to help her put food on the spoon and guide it to her mouth, but for the most part, she wants no assistance whatsoever. Inevitably, she gives up on the spoon and uses her hands; they're so much easier to control, you know.

We went straight from the highchair to the bathtub. Nothing a little soap can't fix. Yes, that is a ring of spaghetti sauce in the tub. No, it wasn't there before I bathed her.

All fresh and clean, ready for an afternoon full of play.

Until next time, grace and peace.