Happy Mother’s Day To All ~ 34 Free Mother’s Day Subway Art Printables

Tags

holiday, DIY, Pinterest, Easy, Free, Freebie, Printable, Art, Feature, Printables, free printables, Subway Art, Decor, Spruce Up, Digital, Copy, Cheap, Inexpensive, Today's Fabulous Finds, Re-Do, Mother's Day, A Night Owl, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, Lovely Living, My Computer Is My Canvas, The Spotted Olive, Boutique Cafe, Gael’s Crafty Treasures

You may or may not know this but, … I am obsessed with subway art.

1. It’s so easy to create.
2. There are so many people who know how to make it that are a bazillion times more creative than I am.
3. It’s easy to find it for free and print it from my home computer making it a very inexpensive way to spruce up any area of my home.

In honor of Mother’s Day tomorrow, I thought I would post a special edition featuring all the adorable Mother’s Day themed subway art I found on Pinterest. I went looking for some to print out for my side table and had a really hard time choosing just one to print. Which one is your favorite?

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Via “A Night Owl”. Click the image to be taken to the website so you can download this free image. She also has this print in other color schemes!

Via “Lovely Living”. Click the image to be taken to her website where she has this in a couple other colors.

I believe the originating artist has a watermark at the bottom of this print.

Via “My Computer Is My Canvas”.

Via “The Spotted Olive”.

Via “Boutique Cafe”.

Via “Gael’s Crafty Treasures”. She has another color scheme on her website.

Via “Today’s Fabulous Finds”. She has lots of other color schemes on her website!

Via “I Should Be Mopping The Floor”.

A NOTE: I try to give credit and link back to the artwork creator when I can find where it originated from. Sometimes when I find things I like on Pinterest, it is difficult to find where it originated from. If I don’t have the originating artist or website linked to the image or noted below the image, that means I couldn’t find it. If it belongs to you or you know who it belongs to, please let me know so that I can give proper credit and link back to them. Thank you for your help.

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3. Weekly Photo Challenge: From Above

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Ainsley, ava, Challenge, children, Daughters, dog, enzo, Food, From Above, Grapes, Gumbo, Home, Patio, Photo, Photography, postaday, Snack, The Daily Post, titus, Weekly, Yard

This week’s photo challenge is From Above. For these challenges, I’m going to start going through my old Instagram photos and then possibly add more new ones. Enjoy.

This is our old yard in the rain. I miss this house. It’s where I brought my first daughter home to.

My 2 favorite animals.

One of my favorite snacks.

My favorite meal (DUH).

My 2 favorite times of the day.

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15 Easy Mother’s Day Gifts For Under $25

Tags

Alert, Art, B-Inspired Mama, Bare Book, Bonsai, Book, Bookmark, Candy, children, Coco Stine Designs, Collage, Coupon, craft, Day2Day Super Mom, DIY, Etsy, Free, garden, Gardenia, Grandma, Grandmom, Grandmother, Handprint, Herb, Homemade, Hot, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, Jar, Jar. Flower, Just Deanna, Kids, Love Bug Living, Martha Stewart, Mason, Mom, Mother, Notepad, Notepaper, Oven Mitt, Photo, Pinterest, Pot Holder, Printable, Questionnaire, She Always Loved Larking, Shutterfly, Simply Kierste, Sonshine Classical Academy, Subway, The Crafty Chicks, The Creative Homemaker, The Dating Divas, The Special Mom’s World, Tree, Under $25, Vase

Mother’s Day is coming up so it’s time to make a list. I am a new mother so I haven’t had the pleasure of getting any special gifts from the minis yet. I already know that the really special ones to me will be the ones they make themselves. You know the ones with painted hand prints and foot prints along with special poems that instantly make you cry. My oldest mini just turned 2 years old the other day and I feel like the time has just flown by. Some of the things I want to remember are …

• How her little hands feel wrapped around my finger or holding my hand.
• The way she cuddles with me when she’s watching her favorite cartoons.
• The silly games we play right before she goes to bed.
• The sound of her giggles.
• Her smile when she sees me walk into the room to pick her up after a day at school.

As much as I hope I never forget these things, I know the memories will fade. I can’t wait until they are old enough to enjoy making crafts and Mother’s Day gifts for me to help me remember those things.

I’ve compiled a list of some easy Mother’s Day gifts for your minis to their mommies and grandmas (because grandmas are mommies too).

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1.  I love this bookmark by Love Bug Living. It’s very simple to make and has pictures of the minis on it so you can enjoy looking at them every time you open your book.

Mother’s Day Mod Podge Photo Bookmarks by Love Bug Living. Click the image for her tutorial on how to make them.

2.   This is another easy photo project that can include the minis. Make letters out of poster board and spell out “Mommy” or “Love” (the “Love” one can be given to grandma) and take a photo of each mini holding a letter and then put it in a collage photo frame.

3.   You’re always looking for a scrap of paper to jot notes down on. What mom couldn’t use this adorable personalized notepaper by Simply Kierste. The minis artwork is proudly displayed at the bottom which gives it a personal touch.

Personalized notepaper by Simply Kierste. Click the image for her tutorial on how to make them.

4.   This homemade candy jar was so cute I couldn’t pass it up. One of these days, I am making this for sure.

Candy jar by The Creative Homemaker. Click the image to be taken to her photo tutorial on how to make it.

5.   This hand print flower vase made from a mason jar is right up my alley. These are the kinds of gifts I’d love to receive … so I can have something to remind me how tiny those little hands were. Plus, it’s re-purposing!

Hand print mason jar flower vase by The Special Mom’s World. Click on the image to be taken to her tutorial on how to make it.

6.   These DIY hand print oven glove or pot holders are the cutest and look incredibly easy for the minis to help with.

Hand print pot holder by She Always Loved Larking. Click the image to get to her DIY tutorial.

Hand print oven mitt by Sonshine Classical Academy. Click on the image to be taken to her DIY tutorial.

7.   This is another photo gift that should be pretty easy to create with the minis for grandma that I think is timeless.

4 generations of photos in photos.

8.   You should know by know that I am obsessed with subway art. So, I love this subway art created especially for grandma with all the grand-minis names and birth dates on it created by Coco Stine Designs. The original Pinterest pin that I found this from said it cost $18 for her to customize this for you.

Personalize-able “Grandkids” subway art by Coco Stine Designs. Click on the image to be taken to her Etsy ad.

9.   I’m grouping the next 3 gifts together because they are slightly different but very similar. Kids really do say the darnedest things. I think it would be fun to let the minis fill these out every year and keep them in a safe place to be made into a book (maybe have a special binder they can go into for safekeeping so mom can look back at them over the years). Best of all they are free to print out!

Mother’s Day newspaper printable by Martha Stewart. Click the image to be taken to the free downloadable printable.

Mother’s Day printable questionnaire by B-Inspired Mama. Click on the image to download this free printable.

Mom & Grandma Mother’s Day questionnaire printables by The Crafty Chicks. Click the image to download these free printables.

10.   Here’s another freebie for the minis. All you have to do is print out this adorable coupon book. I think any mom would really enjoy the rewards she gets from this set.

Free printable Mother’s Day coupon book by I Should Be Mopping The Floor. Click the image for the downloadable printables and a tutorial on how to put it all together.

11.   This is something I’ll be purchasing myself very soon. She started with what’s called Bare Books. They are all under $3. Then handed them over to the minis to draw in and decorate for grandma. You could also give one to mom.

Bare Books Mother’s Day book of artwork by Just Deanna. Click the image for a better explanation of what she did and the link to the website where she got them.

12.   I am a huge fan of Shutterfly. I use these books as “yearbooks” and make one every year for their birthdays and for dad for Father’s Day. They would also make great Mother’s Day gifts for mom or grandma. They start at under $20 for a certain amount of pages. The price goes up if you add pages, want a larger sized book, or want it to have a hardcover. Especially around whatever holiday is coming up (i.e. Christmas, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day), I can usually find a 30% discount code somewhere online by just Googling “shutterfly discount code”. If you don’t add any of the free borders, page ribbons, or sticker embellishments, they have a “storybook” feature that allows you to drop the photos onto the page and it arranges everything for you and takes almost no time to finish. However, I tend to spend a lot of time (sometimes 1-2 months) on mine adding all the fluff to each page. I also scan in the girls artwork over the year and add those. In the future I plan to add awards and report cards also. Everyone always loves them.

Mother’s Day photo book by Shutterfly.

13.  This one is for the husbands and again is totally free and can be printed at home. They are meant to be filled out by the DH’s and secretly slipped into mom’s favorite magazine or book for her to discover that day or even at later dates. This is so cute and such a great idea so husbands can contribute to making mom feel special too.

Hot Mom Alert free printables from the husband brought to you by The Dating Divas. Click on the image for the free downloadable printables.

14.   If you want to go for flowers, I personally prefer a plant that I can keep growing and it lasts longer than just a vase of cut flowers. Also, my favorite scent in the whole wide world is Gardenias. The fragrance is strong and carries all through the house. These cute Gardenia Bonsai Trees are under $25! Or, you could always order the seeds for around $1 a package if you just do a Google search.

Gardenia Bonsai Tree. Click the image to be taken to the website where you can purchase it.

15.   This is another good one for the husbands. It’ll give them a chance to use all those wonderful building skills that only they can contribute with … Did you see what I just did there? I’m betting they will have most of the items it takes to make this herb garden in the garage somewhere collecting dust. This is something I would personally love to receive.

Mason jar herb garden by Day2Day Super Mom. Click the image for her DIY tutorial.

And there you have it … easy peasy, right!

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Homemade Hummingbird Nectar

Tags

Amazon, Bird, DIY, Feeder, Food, Homemade, Hummingbird, Nectar, recipe

My hummingbirds are back! I love watching them from the wall of windows we have  in our living room. I have their feeder hanging on the back patio so I can see them  when they come to eat several times a day. I have to fill the feeder at least once a day because they come by so often. Below is a very easy nectar recipe I use and apparently, they love it.

1. Combine one part plain white table sugar (DO NOT USE SUGAR SUBSTITUTES, BROWN SUGAR, HONEY, OR ANY OTHER KIND OF SUGAR OR SUGAR PRODUCT) and four parts water.
2. Slowly heat the solution for 1-2 minutes to help the sugar dissolve and slow fermentation.
3. Allow the solution to cool completely before filling feeders.

Nectar Recipe Tips

• The ratio of sugar and water can be slightly adjusted, but a solution that is too sweet will be difficult for the birds to digest and one that does not contain enough sugar will not be suitable to attract hummingbirds. The 4:1 water to sugar ratio most closely approximates the sucrose levels in natural nectar.
• Unused nectar can be stored for up to one week in the refrigerator. You want your birds to have the freshest possible nectar so don’t make more than you will use in a week.
• Hummingbirds are attracted to bright colors. Most feeders have a bright red base to help with the attraction. You can add a couple of drops of red food coloring to your nectar to help as well, but it isn’t necessary if you don’t have any handy. Some red dyes in the 1970′s were found to be toxic and were subsequently banned from food products (remember the ban of red M & M’s). Today, red dyes found in food coloring and commercial hummingbird nectar are safe for both human and animal consumption.
• Commercial hummingbird nectars boast added flavors, and vitamins. However, these are not necessary for the birds.

Perky Pet Hummingbird Pinch Waist Glass Bird Feeder, Price: $9.98

Perky Pet Hummingbird Glass Best Bird Feeder, Price: $15.60

Best-1 32oz. Hummingbird Feeder, Price: $14.06

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Guest Blogger: Mckenzie Hillam’s Don’t Risk Disease; Keep Your Dog Flea & Tick Free

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enzo, titus, dog, Blog, Blogger, Cocker, Spaniel, Blogging, Pet, Home, Motherhood, Guest, Preventive Pest Control, Mckenzie Hillam, Yorkie, Yorkshire, Terrier, Puppy, Cat, Kitty, Flea, Tick, Pest

I’d like to welcome Mckenzie Hillam to what I hope will be the first of many guest posts on A Real Housewife In Houston. She is a freelance writer who is interested in many different topics, including home and garden. She currently works for companies like Preventive Pest Control and has submitted an informative article about the importance of keeping your dog or cat flea and tick free.  She has been kind enough to share the following article she recently completed. If you have fur-babies like me, I hope you will find it as informative as I did.

Don’t Risk Disease; Keep Your Dog Flea & Tick Free

No one would consciously risk letting fleas or ticks into their house. But when you aren’t being vigilant about your dog’s health, then you may be welcoming more than just your dog into the house. Risk for Your Dog: Ticks and fleas are nothing new for the dog. These parasites have likely waged war against our loyal friends since we first domesticated them. But despite the long relationship, fleas are no better for our pets than bed bugs are for us! There are several risks for our pets from fleas and ticks. Fleas, for example, can cause irritating rashes, especially if your pet is allergic to them. They also can give your poor dog tapeworm, and puppies can easily become anemic. Ticks can transfer a number of diseases to your pet, including Lyme disease. Risk for Yourself: If your dog is flea-ridden and tick-infested, it’s likely that a few of these pests can hop onto you. While it’s rare for people to “have fleas,” these pests will still try to take a morsel of you once and awhile. When your house is infested, a common sign is flea bites on your legs. They love to nibble at your ankles when your pet is overcrowded. Fleas can also give people diseases, such as cat scratch fever, flea borne spotted fever, and flea borne typhus. Ticks are no better. Depending on the type, ticks can cause serious harm to you as well as your pet. As mentioned earlier, your pet can contract Lyme disease from ticks. Here’s more bad news: so can you. The American dog tick, for example, spreads the Rocky Mountain spotted fever and ehrlichiosis among people.

Prevention Is Better than Extermination

Well, if you don’t want your dog bringing the flea and ticks inside, it’s better to prevent now than to call pest control later. Collars and spot treatments are the most convenient way to keep your dog pest-free.

• Collars:
  • A flea or tick collar is a simple way to prevent (or even treat) infestations. It does this by emitting a “gas” that repels the pests. It helps prevent ticks more than fleas because it’s located around the neck (where ticks are most likely to be found). Collars also last for months.

• Spot Treatments:
  • Spot treatments are very effective by killing and preventing ticks and flea infestations. By applying some between your dog’s shoulders, the substance is spread through the dog’s skin oils. After it’s applied, the fleas or ticks that bite the dog will die. Some treatments prevent fleas from maturing and reproducing.

Make it a Habit

Remember to regularly check your dog (or cat) for ticks and fleas, and be sure to use the collar or spot treatment. These preventive measures will keep your home safe from infestations, and your pet happily itch-free. 

700 Louisiana, Suite 3950 Houston, TX 77034, (713) 946-9202

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April’s Winner Announcement & May’s Giveaway Announcement

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1", advertising, American Express, AmEx, eGift Card, Facebook, Fan, Free, Freebie, Gift, Giveaway, Google, Instagram, Like, marketing, Media, Money, Pin, Pinterest, Share, Social, social-media, Tweet, Twitter, Viral, YouTube

As I expected, April’s giveaway didn’t go so well. I have no winner to announce. Maybe the prize wasn’t enticing enough? Ok, I’m rolling the cash I offered last month into this month’s giveaway to give you a $50 American Express eGift Card!

This is how it will work …

1. Click on the image below (a new window will open to a third party site so please allow for pop-ups).
2. You will have 10 chances to enter, some options allow you to enter everyday!
3. DONE!

I will announce the winner on the first day of the following month. A new giveaway will be posted the first week of every month.

PLEASE TAKE ONE SECOND TO VOTE FOR ME!!! All you need to do is click on the banner in the sidebar to the right to register a vote for me! You can vote one time every 24 hours from every computer and cell phone! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! I really appreciate your support!

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May Subway Art

Tags

A Night Owl, Art, Birthday, Cheap, Cinco De Mayo, CM2, Copy, Decor, Digital, DIY, Easy, Eye Candy Event Details, Feature, Free, free printables, Freebie, holiday, Inexpensive, Memorial Day, Monthly, Mother's Day, Pinterest, Printable, Printables, Re-Do, Spruce Up, Subway Art, Today's Fabulous Finds

It’s May, and here in Texas that means it’s about to get really stinkin hot! I don’t know about you, but we Texans celebrate Cinco de’ Mayo (May 5th) … actually, it’s just an excuse to throw a party. Of course, Mother’s Day is on May 12th this year. When I went looking for Mother’s Day subway art, I had a really hard time deciding which one I liked enough to print for this year. So I’ve decided I’m going to do a special edition of all the adorable art I found for Mother’s Day. Let me know if you have something you’d like me to include. I’ll be posting it the day before Mother’s Day (May 11th) and will link back when I get it up so it will be easy for you to find. I’ve also got 2 birthday’s in our family this month … my daughter’s on the 6th (she’ll be 2), and my husband on the 24th. I found some really cute birthday art for that to include this month. And finally, Memorial Day is on the 27th.

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Via “CM2”. Click the image to be taken to the website so you can download this free image. She also has it in another color scheme!

Via “Eye Candy Event Details”. Click the image to be taken to the website so you can download this free image.

Via “A Night Owl”. Click the image to be taken to the website so you can download this free image. She also has this print in other color schemes!

Via “Today’s Fabulous Finds”. Click the image to be taken to the website so you can download this free image. She also has lots of different color schemes of the same print!

Via “Eye Candy Event Details”. Click the image to be taken to the website so you can download this free image.

PLEASE TAKE ONE SECOND TO VOTE FOR ME!!! All you need to do is click on the banner in the sidebar to the right to register a vote for me! You can vote one time every 24 hours from every computer and cell phone! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! I really appreciate your support!

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May Guest Blogger Tease

Tags

Blog, Blogger, Blogging, Cat, Cocker, dog, enzo, Flea, Guest, Home, Kitty, Mckenzie Hillam, Motherhood, Pet, Preventive Pest Control, Puppy, Spaniel, Terrier, Tick, titus, Yorkie, Yorkshire

It’s almost May already … where the Hell did April go?!? Since I announced my first Guest Blogger in March, I also posted a “Help Wanted” article asking for more help in that department. I’ve had some pretty good response from it and am happy to introduce next month’s guest blogger to you.

If you’ve followed this blog, you may know that I’ve got 2 4-legged family members, Enzo (a Cocker Spaniel) & Titus (a Yorkie). Before we had babies, they were our babies. I feel a little guilty admitting that they don’t get nearly as much attention as they used to or that I’d like to give them, but I do have 2 human babies in diapers that take all of any extra attention. As the girls get older and are more independent  I am hoping we will get to give the boys more of the attention they used to get and maybe even a little extra from the girls. But for now, neither of them seem very willing to get close to the girls for fear of getting their hair yanked at.

With that said, making sure they are healthy so that they can make it through this stage of puppy-hair-pulling to a better time when the girls will love them as much as we do and want to cuddle with them is a pretty big priority for us. My guest blogger for the month of May is Mckenzie Hillam. She is a freelance writer who is interested in many different topics, including home and garden. She currently works for companies like Preventive Pest Control and has submitted an informative article about the importance of keeping your dog or cat flea and tick free.

Pet owners often forget that where your pet goes, the fleas and ticks follow. In your car, inside your house, on your couch or even in your bed! Life is messy, we could all share simple tips to make is seem less chaotic I think.

So, if you have fur-babies like we do, I hope you will come back next Monday and check out her ideas.

Don’t forget to find me on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Until next time, this has been a real housewife in Houston moment.

Recipe Share: Homemade Sweet Potato Baby Food

Tags

Ainsley, Baby, Baby Food, Bake, Breast Milk, Easy, Food, Formula, Homemade, homemade baby food, how to make homemade baby food, Steak, Steam, Sweet Potato, vegetarian, Wal-Mart, Wholesome, Yam

Thanks for checking out the 4th installment of my “How to Make Homemade Baby Food Series”, Sweet Potato Baby Food. This one is pretty easy and can be done while you are making your own dinner of Baked Sweet Potato and Grilled Steaks. YUM!

Ingredients:

• 2 or 3 Medium Sized Sweet Potatoes
• 1 – 3 ounces Formula or Breast Milk
• 1 teaspoon of Rice Cereal

Directions:

1. Wash and poke holes in sweet potato with fork then wrap sweet potatoes in tin foil – do not peel for baking (you can also do this in the microwave – only use plastic wrap and cook for 8 minutes on high or until tender … I recommend that you can skip the plastic wrap and simply wet the sweet potatoes and move to #2!).
2. Place in a 400 degree oven and bake for 30-60 minutes or until soft.
3. Wait about an hour after baking to remove the foil so that the sweet potato is fully cooled. This makes it easier to peel them. You should be able to very easily pull the skin off the sweet potato.
4. Break of chunks and place them in the your food processor.
5. Turn your food processor on low. The sweet potatoes should be liquified enough when they are completely pureed but if they aren’t, slowly add formula or breast milk an ounce at a time until you are satisfied with the consistency. You want it to be very smooth (with no chunks, because your baby probably doesn’t have teeth yet so she won’t be able to chew any chunks … you don’t want this to be a choking hazard), but not runny.
6. Freeze this mixture. I use ice trays because each ice cube hole is about an ounce, which will make measuring out your baby’s food later much easier. Spoon the food into each ice cube hole of the tray.
7. Place your tray into the freezer for at least 3 hours or until completely frozen through.
8. After your baby food is frozen, you can then remove it from the trays by the cube and store it in the freezer in storage bowls or (I use) a large 40 gallon zip lock bag.
9. When you are ready to use the baby food, just remove a cube (or 2, depending on how much you are feeding your baby) and place it in a feeding bowl, nuke it for about 30 seconds and VOILA, it’s that easy! Here is where I like to add a teaspoon of rice cereal per cube of sweet potato (it’s important to add it after you nuke it … for some reason it messes up the consistency if you try to add it before you microwave it) because I like it to be a little pastier.

OR

1. Peel washed and cleansed sweet potatoes and cut into small chunks.
   
2. Place chunks into a pan with just enough water to slightly cover potato.
3. “Steam” boil until tender, be sure to check on the water level.
4. Reserve any left over water to use for thinning out the sweet potatoes.
5. Place your cooked chunks in the your food processor.
6. Turn your food processor on low. The sweet potatoes should be liquefied enough when they are completely pureed but if they aren’t  slowly add, the reserve liquid left over from steaming them, formula, or breast milk an ounce at a time until you are satisfied with the consistency. You want it to be very smooth (with no chunks, because your baby probably doesn’t have teeth yet so she won’t be able to chew any chunks … you don’t want this to be a choking hazard), but not runny.
7. Freeze this mixture. I use ice trays because each ice cube hole is about an ounce, which will make measuring out your baby’s food later much easier. Spoon the food into each ice cube hole of the tray.
8. Place your tray into the freezer for at least 3 hours or until completely frozen through.
9. After your baby food is frozen, you can then remove it from the trays by the cube and store it in the freezer in storage bowls or (I use) a large 40 gallon zip lock bag.
10. When you are ready to use the baby food, just remove a cube (or 2, depending on how much you are feeding your baby) and place it in a feeding bowl, nuke it for about 30 seconds and VOILA, it’s that easy! Here is where I like to add a teaspoon of rice cereal per cube of sweet potato (it’s important to add it after you nuke it … for some reason it messes up the consistency if you try to add it before you microwave it) because I like it to be a little pastier.

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2. Weekly Photo Challenge: Up

Tags

ava, Baby, Challenge, Flower, infant, nature, outdoors, Photo, Photography, plants, postaday, The Daily Post, Up, Weekly

This week’s photo challenge is Up.

I am in the process of making Ava’s photo year book for her birthday gift in a couple of weeks. One of her favorite things to do right now is to go in the backyard and pick wild flowers. As most 2 year olds are, it’s difficult to get her to sit still or pose for a photo. So my personal challenge this week was to get a few good shots of her picking flowers. I finally figured out I had to get a few steps ahead of her and lay on the ground especially when she’s actually picking the flowers, because she’s actually looking at the ground. So here are my favorite shots looking UP. Enjoy!

Don’t forget to find me on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Until next time, this has been a real housewife in Houston moment.