I’m surfacing from the land of the overwhelmed to bring back my 5 on Friday blog post. I stopped this when I went to Australia and I realize now that I miss it, and I know you love to hear about the randomness of my life. ha! So here you go – lots to update you all on!

1. I am officially 20 weeks pregnant this week! I cant believe I’m half way there…it’s so surreal sometimes. I have started to feel pretty frequent movement over the past few days, and it brings a smile to my face every time. We get to have our big ultrasound on December 18th, and I cant wait to find out if it’s a boy or a girl!!!!!

2. Dave’s office and Detterline Orthodontics are FINALLY finished with all of the ‘to do’s’. All of the renovations, software integration, billing/patient information transfers, staff hiring and training, etc. has all been completed. Now we’re moving on to the light at the end of the tunnel and steaming straight ahead into running the business day to day. Owning our own businesses has been a dream come true for both of us, but admittedly there are days where everything we have to do is so overwhelming. There is so much about running a business that you dont know until you’re in the mix of it all! It’s been a fun ride though, and we’ve worked so hard that it’s very rewarding to see patients happy and a well running office. I know 2010 will bring so many great things for his office as well.

3. The HOLIDAYS ARE HERE!!!!! Well almost, but since it’s so insanely cold out right now I’m going to call them officially here. We’ve done a bit of shopping, and I’m quietly ignoring the fact that the bulk is still left to do. This weekend I hope to address our Christmas cards and bake some cookies – and the tree is up and beautiful! We’re going to try to wait to find out the gender of our baby until Christmas morning(have the ultrasound tech write it down instead of telling us in person)…if we can get Dave to not sneak and open the envelope beforehand!

4. I’m helping my grandfather write his memoirs of his time spent in the US Navy before/during the Korean War and the 50 years afterwards. It’s been so interesting to read about his experiences, perspectives, and stories. Makes me once again so thankful for our men and women in the armed forces…thoughts and prayers to you all this holiday season.

5. After much deliberation, I’m getting my hair cut tomorrow. With all of the prenatal vitamins I’ve been taking, my hair has grown like a weed and is now at the middle of my back. I actually love having long hair, but sadly for me I was blessed with thin hair…so right now it looks sort of haphazard. I think I’m going to get 3 inches cut off and for the first time in 10 years I’m NOT going to get highlights or lowlights! I’m sure I will regret that in 2 days when I realize my roots are boring dark blonde (lovingly referred to by society as ‘dishwater’ – thank you)…but I figure I should try to space out the chemical intake for baby’s sake. (I got more than a fair dose of chemicals ripping up and replacing the carpet in the dental office!)

Have a great weekend everyone!!!!!

This weekend I met up with the nicest family who’s baby girl Callie melted my heart instantly! She was the happiest, most peaceful baby and being around her just made me smile. Her big blue eyes are gorgeous and she definitely has her daddy wrapped around her finger! Their sweet southern personalities made the time pass by so quickly – and we got so many gorgeous photos in front of the last of the beautiful fall leaves. They were so fun to photograph – enjoy these sneak peeks!

Our last night in North Carolina was spent photographing a gorgeous family during yummy sunset late summer light. The children and parents were so adorable and we all had a blast photographing them against the sun, sand and waves. I also love their outfits and their color combinations….so perfect!!

Enjoy these sneak peeks!!

I’m still down here in the Outer Banks having a BALL!!!! Amber Scruggs of Little Moon Photography hosted an incredible weekend full of awesome times and photo (and non photo) fun. She organized a newborn session this morning for our workshop and we had a blast meeting little miss Sophie and her beautiful big sister. They were both so adorable – check them out below!!

This weekend I met up with a gorgeous mama and her stunningly adorable little boy Marino. I instantly fell in love with his little curls, sweet personality, and heartbreaking smile…he is seriously SO CUTE!!!!! I met this awesome mom a while ago through theknot.com when we were both planning our weddings, and I’m so lucky that I am now living close to so many of those ladies. It was awesome to finally meet in person a boy I’ve seen in pictures for so long, and it was my honor to take his photos! He spoiled me as this was my first client session in Maryland – and the first at my studio in Adamstown Maryland! I just love the natural indoor light we have going on and the endless options available outside in the fields and forest.

Thanks for spending your morning with me and I loved working with you guys!!! Enjoy these sneak peeks!