The Calm Before The Storm.

I've been feeling really inspired lately. I got the chance to see a friend whom I haven't seen in about six years. We played in the Shasta Youth Symphony together before she moved away to pursue a career in music. She came back last weekend and performed as the viola soloist with the Shasta Symphony and blew me out of my chair. It kinda sparked that fire up in me again to play like I used to.
As far as makeup goes I've been able to do a couple professional gigs a month which is another great creative outlet for me. I love to do bridal makeup but the picture below is inspired by the great model Twiggy. Lyn was so perfect for this look and it was so fun to try and re-create something so timeless. I hope that I can continue to do things outside of being a homemaker. I value the time I have away to explore other things about me that I might not have known about if I hadn't taken the time to find it. Nothing is worse then sacrificing the very thing that makes you... well; you.

"As time goes by..."

Okay, so I know this is a song about two people in love but as I'm listening to Jimmy Durantes recording of this classic love song I can't help but think about this past year and all of the change it has brought. (And if you don't know which song I'm talking about go rent the movie "Sleepless in Seattle") Particularly our ten fingered, ten toed, tooth grinning, almost walking, brown haired, hazel eyed, chit chatter I'd like to call my son. He is one and that is crazy. It's hard to think that a year ago today Daniel and I were three days into being new parents. 

I have to give a big shout out to Daniel. For the first two weeks solid he was taking care of both of us and for that babe, you are the most amazing, patient, wonderful, husband EVER. He never complained once shuttling the baby back and forth to me seeing as I had an extremely hard time doing anything while I was healing from the surgery. I didn't change a single diaper for the first two weeks!! I couldn't use my stomach muscles to get out of bed in the middle of the night so I'd have to wake up Daniel just to use the bathroom. He was so natural at being a father it was ridiculous. It seemed he was never clueless about anything to do with the baby and if he was it never lasted. I will never forget how amazing it was to watch him in action those first couple weeks. 

And to see how far we've come as a little family is wonderful. I am so very thankful for everything in my life. I feel so blessed to have the men in my life that I do! Happy Birthday my son, I am so very proud of you. 

Gallagher Christmas Shoot!

Tis' the season to be jolly, fa lalalala, lalalala!!

Happy Hallow-thanks-mas.

That's what happens when you don't blog in the fall -- you end up having a funny title because so much happens this time of year. Well we've been enjoying all the firsts with baby Daniel, clearly as you can see here by his first Halloween. He was Rambo for part of the night and a bunny for the rest of it. I'm sure you can figure out which parent had their influence on costumes. :) 

Then there was Thanksgiving. We had three all together which was a lot of fun. And when I say "fun" I mean "turkey". But Thanksgiving has always been my absolutely favorite holiday, even more so than Christmas. It's a time to reflect on how much we are truly blessed in this life, a time give, a time to eat yummy food, a time before everyone starts to commercialize Christmas and definitely a time before people stomp walmart clerks to death to get a good deal on a flat screen. Makes me sick just thinking about it. Anyways, it was great to spend time with family and friends and that's exactly what we did. 

And now it's December. We just celebrated Daniel's 27th birthday (crazy) and we are loving our nice little twelve foot christmas tree we had plucked out of the Lassen National Forest yesterday with other friends. You just can't beat a ten dollar 12 foot Christmas tree!! And of course it's been fun to decorate the house with all the appropriate decor. We had the huge honor of our friends Lyn and Jesse hook us up with a photo shoot which I will soon post pictures of. Until then, hope you have a very merry christmas. 

-mg