Chubby Thighs & a Few Photography Tips

I'm not a professional photographer. FAR from it. I do, though, love taking pictures of my son and am a proud "mamarazzi". Through the world of Instagram and Facebook, there are several tips I've learned along the way to take better phone pictures of littles (and big people, too!).

 

Please excuse the blurriness & graininess of these photos; my iPhone photos always upload blurry to the blog :(. Anyone else have this problem? Help! 

 

Anyway, here are three easy photog tips!

1. Capture the un-posed moments.

This is simple and most people already do this. But in the world of social media, it's easy to get caught up in achieving that perfect, preplanned moment. Inevitably, the best pictures are always the ones you stumble upon by surprise.

 

2. Get on their level.



When we first had Bear, I took every picture from my level. It was always a birds eye view of our Little Man and as I look back, I realize how much better the pictures could've been if I would've taken them from different angles. Luckily I had a pretty cute subject so they still came out okay :). Now, I love getting at Bear's eye-level and capturing moments from his perspective.

3. Find the light.

Any professional photographer will tell you that lighting is the most crucial part of a good photo. We like to take pictures outside because natural lighting seems to work best for camera phones, plus there are lots of distractions for busy toddlers! Bear will stop to look at trucks driving by, airplanes flying over, and of course to pick up sticks and leaves. It also helps to find shady areas because the pictures always seem to come out better and it protects little one's skin.

 

 

We also edit all photos prior to posting on Instagram or Facebook in the Afterlight app. It's a lifesaver! So many great features and filters; it's definitely a mamarazzi's best friend.

Hope you'll find at least one of these tips helpful for your everyday picture-taking! Do you have any secrets to taking great phone pictures? Please share!

Bear's Easter Basket

It's Bear's second Easter (insert waterworks here) and I can't believe it. We had our first egg hunt this morning in our neighborhood and Bear was more interested in picking up leaves than eggs, as expected :). He didn't cry when placed on the Easter bunny's lap, though, and that was a big surprise! Our baby boy is growing up too fast.

 

Apparently our neighborhood Easter Bunny just came from the gym. Bunny's gotta stay in shape, too!

 

 You mean there's candy in these things?!

 

 

 

And now for the basket! It was fun putting together a little basket for Bear this year since he'll actually be able to enjoy the contents. We mostly did inexpensive things since those are inevitably always his favorite.

 

 

basket from Pocketbaby

The contents: a few shirts for spring, sidewalk egg-shaped chalk, Mickey stickers, a turtle that grows in the water (? will let you know how this turns out), bubbles, books, a Mickey ball, crayon carrier, and a little candy

shirts: Target (stripes), Macy's (red), stickers/turtle/egg chalk/bunny book/ball: Dollar Tree, bubbles/If Big Can..I Can book: HEB, Noisy Farm book: Homegoods, crayon roll-up: Peyton's Lane

I can't wait to use this crayon carrier from our friends at Peyton's Lane; it's perfect for restaurants, travel, and all those crayons floating around in the diaper bag. Bear's is the Anchor's Away design, but she has all kinds of different colors and fabrics!

 

 

What are your favorite Easter Basket fillers? Would love to get some ideas for next year when Bear will really understand!

 

 Have a great weekend!

What Did Bear Wear?

Our style has been pretty casual as the weather warms up in Houston, and we're not complaining. We love spring here in Spring! :)

I try to put Bear in outfits that will be comfy for playing outside, hats to protect his face from the sun, and shoes that can handle a little mud. He's all boy and I do LOTS of laundry. Wouldn't have it any other way!

A few looks from the past two weeks:

 

 

romper:Old Navy (gift from Grandma Candy), hat:Baby Gap, shoes:TOMS

hat:Janie & Jack, shirt:Carter's, suspenders:Target, shoes:Saltwater Sandals via Amazon, cut-offs:Crazy 8 (jeans that we chopped!)

 

And another look...minus the shoes, plus the chocolate cake.

shirt:Polo via Homegoods, shorts:Target

Local Cutie shirt:Carter's, cut-offs:Children's Place (chopped jeans), moccs:Deerie Handmade on Etsy, hat:Children's Place

shirt/hat:Janie & Jack, shorts:Polo via Homegoods, shoes:Target

And a couple Mommy & Mini styles!

on me: shirt:Anthro, jeans/shoes:Homegoods, necklace:Charming Charlie
on Bear: shirt:Joe Fresh for JC Penney, jeans:Levi's via Dillard's, belt purchased from a local vendor (wish I could remember the name! It has "Bear Clayton" stamped on the back)

Super casual caps & cut-offs!

My cut-offs are Lauren Conrad for Kohl's. On Bear: shirt/hat:Baby Gap

 

 

Does your style change as the weather warms up? Do you go for more casual looks, too? I find that when we can't layer, our style naturally gravitates toward casual cotton tees & denim shorts.

We spent a chunk of last night in the ER...Bear fell on a drill bit in the garage and sliced his hand up pretty good. Luckily they were able to glue shut the big cuts and he handled it like a little champ. Mommy & Daddy feel terrible but lesson learned...no man cave for Bear 'til he's much older!

Hope you're having a great week!
xoxo

Hello!

Hi there!

Hope you had an amazing weekend! Ours was pretty busy; Zach's Mom came in town and we spent the weekend having a booth at the Art & Wine Festival in Old Town Spring. Logs 'n Lace has been super busy lately! We'll be taking a bit of a break over the next few weeks to enjoy Easter festivities with our little man. Which, of course, I'm ridiculously excited about. Just ordered the last Easter basket goody tonight & I can't wait to do a post soon on what all will be inside Bear's basket!

 

 

 

Heading to the fest this morning.
A little too much leopard? No such thing.

Nautical Bear

 

 

I have so many posts in the arsenal, just waiting to be composed. So many pictures and thoughts I want to share! Hopefully there will be some long naptimes this week and I can get busy :). Until then, this is all we've got. Have a great week!

Why I'm Not Anti-Selfie

I'll admit, there was a time when I was anti-selfie. The people, mostly teenage girls, that flooded my Facebook feed with an out-stretched arm and duck-lips kind of turned me off to the whole idea. I vowed never to post something so self-righteous (gasp!) and stick with staying mostly behind the camera rather than in front of it. That is, after all, the safest place. Right?

As time went on and selfies began popping up everywhere, I started to actually enjoy seeing them. It was as if they each told a story; I could see something in the eyes of my friend or even a stranger that told me about where they've been and the courage they have. Yes, courage. Not shallowness, narcissism, or insecurity and a need for compliments as so many in society (myself previously included) falsely judge.

There really is beauty in the bravery of putting oneself out there. There's something really special in showing that despite your own flaws and imperfections, you love yourself enough to say, "Hello, world. This is me today."

We have no idea what triggers each person's desire to take a personal head shot. Maybe Susie took a selfie because she just made an A in a class she thought she was going to fail. Maybe Marsha took a selfie because the guy bagging her groceries told her she was pretty and she hadn't heard those words in over a year. Maybe Brittany took a selfie because she fixed her hair for the first time in two weeks (new mom problems. go ahead and judge).

 

Whatever the reason, I applaud those willing to show the world their face from the front seat of their car, in the bathroom mirror, or wherever they so desire. Because people are beautiful and so are their stories.

 

 

 Chubby baby cheeks in a selfie? Even better.

baby-sleeping-in-the-back-seat-selfie

 

Bear is unimpressed with selfies. Mickey Mouse is more important.

 

 

 

What is your take on Oxford's Word of the Year for 2013? Yes, it was selfie.

Yay? Nay? In moderation (a selfie a day turns people away)? Would love to hear your opinion!

A Simple, "Clean" Housewarming Gift

We have some really fantastic friends that recently bought the most beautiful home (congratulations, Cody & Alexis!). We got to visit them today and finally took over their housewarming gift. We wanted to give them something practical yet pretty, and this is what we came up with!

 

 

Bath & Body Works soaps in bright colors, paired with our favorite all purpose cleaner, all placed in a large glass chalkboard canister. We found the jar at Home Goods and fell in love. There are so many purposes for a jar this size with a label. Here are just a few we thought of:

-cookies with "chocolate chip", "peanut butter", etc. on the label
-cotton swabs & balls in the bathroom
-change collector on the bedroom bookshelf with "keep the change" on the label
-pretty, bright fruits like oranges and bananas

-headbands in a baby girl's room, bow ties in a baby boy's room

-small favors at a party with "take one" on the label
-mail collector for an office with "you've got mail" on the label

 

 

There are endless possibilities for a jar like this...already have it on my to-do list for this week to run back and grab one (or two!) for our house. :)

What is your go-to housewarming gift? Do tell!

Happy Sunday Funday!

 

Bear's Favorite Books

Bear is more and more interested in books all the time. I would get frustrated when he was just a few months old because I'd try to read to him and he wasn't very into it. Then, when he learned to crawl and discovered movement, he didn't want to sit still to read much either. But the last few months he has become a little bookworm. I'll walk in a room to find him sitting on the floor, turning pages of one of his many books (his grandma is an English teacher! We have a library). This makes my heart very, very happy.

Here are a list of some of Bear's favorites. All of them are hardback with hard pages because chubby fingers can rip paper pages like no other!

 

 

Brown Bear Brown Bear, What do you see?

 

 This is our go-to bedtime book. Just last night Bear cried when we had to put the book down for bedtime. The bright colored pictures seem to really pop against the white pages and keep his attention.

Where is Baby's Belly Button?

 

Every page in this book has a flap to lift, so it keeps Bear entertained while we read the story. The pictures are really cute and this is a series, so there are others we need to add to the collection! This was also one of the first books Bear really started to sit down and look at.

 

 

Doggies

 

"Doggies" has numbers and counting, which Bear likes, and he loves dogs so it's a win/win. Plus, the dogs make barking noises and he laughs when Zach and I try and sound like 18 different dogs. Come to think of it, we do sound pretty ridiculous.

 

The Foot Book

 

This was the first book that Bear really got interested in. I think the rhyming caught his attention. And of course Dr. Seuss' amazing artwork!

 

 

The Berenstain Bears' Home Sweet Tree

 

This is, hands down, Bear's favorite. Most likely because there are about 15 flaps to lift on every single page. And it's a HUGE book. He'll sit on the floor of the playroom for 10+ minutes at a time (that's an eternity for a toddler!) just looking at and playing with this book. His Nana gave it to him and we are so thankful she did! It's a great one.

 

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What are some of your favorite books for toddlers? We are always on the hunt for new favorites! I want to put several new books in Bear's Easter basket, too.

Happy Hump Day!