In case you’re just joining us, my little sister recently got married.  After being so pleased with her prom photos {done by me}, she gave me the choice of being in the wedding or photographing it.  For the experience and as a gift {that would save her tons} I chose the photography.  The hair and makeup were a given.

For those of you who have been hanging around fo a while, I’m sure you’ve started wondering whether or not I’m going to share these wedding photos at all.  I decided to use them to keep you company while I’m out of town visiting family in Nebraska.  Lilie Jo and I will be gone for a whole week.  I’m sure Billy will be a bit relieved to clear out some of the estrogen in the house.

For today, I’m going to share photos from the bride’s side of the wedding.  Then next week, the fellas, the whole party and the couple.  That’s four days of posting, so I’ll start today, just to keep from making you wait any longer.

What do you think?!  Isn’t she gorgeous?!  Now, keep in mind: this was my first time photographing a wedding.  It was definitely a bigger job than I expected.

To see more of the wedding, check out the Facebook page.

My favorite {and most faithful} hair client visited the other day.  My little sister, Ariel, has always had long hair.  She’s never been allowed to cut it more than the occasional trim.  The shortest it has ever been was still about half way down her back.

But then she grew up, moved out, and got married.  So before she even got all the way home from her honeymoon, she stopped in to change that.

We colored over all of her blond streaks and added some violet to the very front.  These photos {not the subject} are terrible, and I apologize.  The sun was going down and we were using her phone camera.  The purple really shows up more than it appears, here.

Her hair is so soft and healthy after getting rid of all that baggage she’s been carrying around for years.  She looks like a whole new woman ready to start this new life with her husband.

This is the first time in almost 20 years that my hair is longer than hers.  It was just such a huge change, I couldn’t not share it.

Hey, Darlin! Aren’t these photos fabulous?  I’d like to thank my amazing friend, Laura, for letting me use these.  See more of her/our adventures through her lens on Instagram @parttimegypsie

We started harvesting squash, from our garden, a couple weeks ago and just harvested our first batch of green beans earlier this week.  We have quite a few tomatoes on their way to being ripe, too.

We had some company from our home town and spent some of the day lounging and the rest walking in the woods and eating great food.

One of Billy and I’s favorite things is having friends over for dinner.  Its something we actually do quite often for a few reasons, number one being that its nice to share the cost, every now and then.  But I just feel like if I can serve someone a healthy and delicious meal, then I’ve done something to have a hand in their care.

Does that make sense?  As I get older, I feel an overwhelming need to physically take care of those I care about.

Anyway, we had just picked our first batch of green beans and decided to pair those with some fresh squash and spice them with herbs from the patio garden.  All together, I added two large squash, several green beans, fresh thyme, basil and oregano and then I threw in some celery salt and black pepper.  We paired this dish with a choice of black bean and cumin burgers or garlic and mozzarella burgers.

It was delicious.  I actually had it again just last night, though this time I boiled the veggies {same spices, though}.

Have you prepared any fresh-from-the-garden foods, yet, this summer??  What’s your favorite recipe, so far?

p.s. See all those weeds in that garden? Don’t judge me.  I admitted from the get-go that weeding gardens is, by far, not my favorite thing to do.

My weekend was busy, nonstop and lightening speed.  My baby sister isn’t that annoying little tattle-tale following me and my cousin around, anymore.  She’s a confident, beautiful, happy, young woman.  Her wedding day was perfect and dream-like–everything she dreamed, I hope.  I’m so happy for her and incredibly ecstatic about this brother-in-law that already felt like a brother.

I just have these two photos, from the wedding, to share for now, but I can’t wait to show you more.  I’m still recuperating.  Wedding photography is more physical than I realized.  Don’t judge me for complaining about how sore I am from running, kneeling, standing, climbing and swimming.  It was more than worth it, though.

How was your weekend?

{photo by Billy Jarboe}

Happy Friday, friends!

What. A. Week.  ’TGIF’ has never meant so much.  My baby girl comes back home, today.  I can’t wait to have her perfect little body wrapped around mine.  Oh, I’ve missed her so.

This weekend promises to be nothing less than exciting, too.  My little sister’s wedding has finally come.  I’m responsible for the hair, makeup, the flower girl, a groomsman and photography.  Possibly even a little decor, too? *shew wee* I imagine if there’s an after party, I won’t be at it.  I hope to use the rehearsal, tonight, to do my own little rehearsal shoot.

Hope your weekend is nothing short of amazing! Plans??

My little garden has brought me so much joy, already.  I tried for an herb garden last year, but it just wasn’t in the cards, apparently.  Most of my seeds just didn’t start.  This year, however, we had more time to plan ahead and prepare.  Of course, Pinterest helped.

In my patio garden, I have some basil, oregano, strawberries, tomatoes, thyme, lavender,citronella and a patch of wild flowers.  I wanted something clever and cute to mark the plants.  Not because I forget which is which, but just to let others know and to add a little more pizazz, I guess.

I grabbed some spoons from a thrift store, pulled out my Mod Podge and got to work.  In no time at all, really, these babies were in the ground.

To get rid of the crisp clean white paper, I soaked it in some water and coffee grounds for a day.  Then, I simply drew out the labels, tore them out and Mod Podged them to the spoons.  I then covered them in a couple more layers of Mod Podge to seal and protect the paper labels.  We’ve had several rains since I installed the spoons and they are still holding up strongly.

 Do you have anything growing this year?

What’s cookin’, good lookin’?  A strawberry blackberry crisp, I hope.

This is a new recipe I’ve learned this summer.  Its great for breakfast an anytime snacks and easy to change for different tastes.  One lasts our family about a day and a half.  They’re small and simple.  This one I’m showing {photos} you here, is a double recipe, though.  Normally, I make it in a smaller dish, like a bread or meatloaf pan.

Filling: The night before, I cut up and mixed my fruit together with a generous amount of sugar.  I add a splash of lemon juice, for extra flavor and tartness. I cover and put it in the refrigerator. {if you use canned fruit, skip to the next step}

Topping: The next morning, I spray my baking dish to avoid sticking and then threw in my berry mixture.  Then I mix together one cup oats, one cup flour, one cup brown sugar and a hand full of nuts {I’ve been using almonds, so far}.  Add about 1/2 a cup of butter and mix until its a thick and even clumpy mixture.

Spread the topping over your berry/fruit mixture and then sprinkle with some fresh mint {or dried} on top and throw it in the oven at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes {or until browning and bubbling}.

How easy was that?  I bet after one time, you won’t even need a recipe to follow.  Its so easy, so tasty and oh-so-perfect for summer.

Also, get creative with your fruit.  Maybe some peaches?  Also, throw some ice cream next to this bad boy. You won’t regret it.

Side note: its healthier and easier than pie.  Now, if that doesn’t get you cooking, I don’t know what will.

Hey, darlin’! Have the lazy days of summer kicked in for you just yet?  If so, I have the perfect solution to perk you up.  Well, your skin, at least.  I have put together and gifted several jars of coffee and cocoa facial scrub, lately, and everyone has loved it.

I use organic coffee and coconut oil.  I melt down the honey and the coconut oil before mixing into the dry ingredients.  I go between almond and rum extract/flavor to add to the scent {as if coffee isn’t enough}.

Now let’s break down why this scrub is good for your skin.

• coffee - caffeine reduces redness and inflammation {evens skin tone}
• cocoa – more antioxidants than red wine or green tea {more interesting info about cocoa}
• honey – antioxidant; keeps skin hydrated and fresh; protects skin from sun; treats acne; absorbs impurities {my favorite home skin care ingredient}
• coconut oil – smoothes and moisturizes; protects from microbial infection; contains vitamin E and protein {good for skin whether applied internally or externally}

A few tips for the coffee cocoa facial scrub, before I set you free, though.  You don’t have to use any extract of flavor to adjust the scent.  Either way, you’re going to smell coffee.  That was perfectly fine with me.  Also, I didn’t restrict the scrub to just my face. I really love this stuff.

When it comes to your coffee grounds, I would suggest using no courser than what you get already ground.  Depending on how fine/course you want your scrub, you can grind it down to espresso and still get good results.  Also, if your scrub hardens, you can warm it up and/or add a small amount of milk and stir.  I suggest using a batch within about two weeks {longer if you store it in the refrigerator}.

There you go, darlin’.  Let me know how it goes!

Hey, there, darlin!  I’ve been trying out a new brand of shampoo and conditioner.  I have seen the brand before and was a bit curious.  The last time I was at Sally’s for some nail polish, I decided to see what was on sale.  We were low on shampoo and conditioner anyway, and I don’t mind some of Sally’s brands.