Little Mister McB

meet Little Mister McB.

who truly is a gift from above.
he is a miracle baby in every sense of the word,
and boy am i glad i get to know him!

my camera could not get enough of those
bright, blue eyes and that toothy smile.

his eyes are really that blue!

and, here's the happy family. Daddy McB is one of our dearest college friends & we love his wife as well. you cannot deny the adorable-ness of their offspring, eh?! they have done good.

we walked up to the park with the fantastic fountain for some fun water shots. and, of course, a little spray in the face!

enjoy! & if you are interested in me adding artistic text and meaningful messages to your own family photos, give me a holler!

grace & peace,
julie

blogworthy: slumber party

a few weeks ago, this is what i found on "the nightly check"... you know, you tuck the kids, go downstairs, work or clean or relax, and go back up later to make sure they are o.k.

well, on this night i tucked the kids & came down to work back to back w/the hubby. it sounded like a construction zone above us, so i knew this was gonna be good.

all 3 kids share a room & the really amazing thing about it is that pumpkin-poos sleeps through everything while the 2 big kids go nuts. (see pumpkin-poo's hand in the very right side of the photo above?! so funny.)

here is a close up of sunshine girl. nice feet in the face (almost!)

here is a close up of my favorite little mister. see his dragonfly above the bed? we created 2 more shadow boxes of dead bugs he had cared for last week. so cool. think cicadas, beetles, and grasshoppers!

and, here is pumpkin-poos, totally passed out & content.

oh, the joys of kids!

grace & peace,
julie

my ballerina girl

pumpkin-poos, my ballerina girl,
looking out our front porch window for doggies walking by

she grabs her pretend pup & shoots me her deep, dark eyes
{oh, how i love this shot!}

she sweetly adores her pup, dreaming of a real one someday

{art available here}
and, here is her big sis ballerina, all dressed up
& ready to wave her magic wand!

grace & peace,
julie

more anniversary love

recently a customer asked me if i could personalize this print for her anniversary, so i decided to create one for me too! you too could get one now available for a small fee for the personalization. just contact me if you are interested!

i am also trying to edit the million of pics i have shot this summer! so much good stuff to show you. coming soon i hope! (unless i melt in this midwest heat :)

grace & peace,
julie

14 years & they lived happily ever after.

{click on images so that you can view them larger}

today marks the day i blissfully married my best beloved! we were 23 & 21 at the time (yes, I am the older woman), he still in college & breaking all chinese traditions marrying me, oh-so-young & in love!

14 years later, sam, you remain my best beloved & my best friend in all the world. your love, gentleness, kindness & compassion amaze me daily as you totally display the fruit of the Spirit in our home.

i decided to create some artwork to commemorate the occasion. these pieces will give you a sneak peek into a whole new concept i have for my business: taking people's photographic memories & creating them into a work of art. a timeless treasure.

i have created it in 2 ways:
1. julie style (ie: antique & textured)

(ok, might i just add right here that our first major fight was while registering for the wedding: i wanted cream towels & he wanted bright white. i wanted a decorative shower curtain & he wanted a plain white shower liner! the fight went much deeper than that, but i seriously looked at him & thought who are you? i thought he liked what i liked. boy, was i wrong!)

the small box shows our names & wedding date, as well as my vows to him. (we each wrote our own personal vows). the dark green was our wedding color & the script text in the background on the green side is the vows once again.

{photo of us today by hopskip photography}

2. sam style (clean & contemporary)

(did i mention we are opposites?!) sam could design any of my book covers in 3 colors: black, white & red. minimalism at its best. so, this one's for you babe.

it reads yesterday & today you will always have my heart.

2 great concepts for either a memorable wedding gift or anniversary gift!

contact me if you are interested. oh, these would be 10x20 canvases.

grace & peace,
julie

Behind the Scenes: Wisdom

PROVERBS 9:9-10
Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still;
teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

in our home, we talk a lot about the difference between knowledge and wisdom. you can know you should do something (or not do it), but unless you follow through with the right choices, you are not living in wisdom. wisdom takes the knowledge you have been given and puts it into action.

i love how Proverbs 9:10 expresses that it is the fear of the Lord that is the beginning of wisdom (or what i like to think of as true wisdom for your eternal life). when we fear him and have a holy respect and reverence for His presence, we will more likely chose to act in a wise way and lead lives guided by wisdom, as opposed to simple selfish and temporary desires.

{book image from the scholastic books website}

now, i know the "owl thing" may be oh-so-last year, but i don't really care. it is the perfect image to go with wisdom. plus, currently in our home we are surrounded by owls. from my son's passion for reading the guardian of ga'hoole series in which he is being challenged with knowing real truth (as opposed to what others just tell you) & true bravery, courage, and loyalty to

pumpkin-poo's new bedding (from december when she moved in with big brother & big sister), owls are now a part of our life.

now that i knew i wanted to visually illustrate this verse for our home and my children, how on earth would i photograph an owl?!

i was also inspired by one of my favorite photographers and this gorgeous photograph, which i emailed her to ask how on earth she got such an awesome shot. she replied quickly, basically saying, "it's dead." (she shot it at a natural history museum!)

i knew exactly what nature center i would go to, so we took a family field trip to chicago & i was able to photograph the owl (above). (i do not know what type of owl it is off hand, but if you ask my son, he is sure to tell you.)

the art is available in my shop!

art prints, metallic cafe mounts, and canvases
are available in either sepia or black & white.

may you live in wisdom!

grace & peace,
julie

GIVEAWAY!

my new friend, jill savage, was gracious enough to do a mini interview with me about choosing to be a stay at home mommy, being willing to live with "less", and work from home.

for all of you mommies out there, get in touch with her blog & her ministry Hearts at Home. i have attended 2 conferences now & read jill's book Real Moms Real Jesus (very practical & encouraging! you WILL relate big time!) she is one amazing woman & someone you will want to be "mentored" by!

she is also doing a giveaway, of any print of your choice from my shop!

hurry & enter the contest at her blog!

contest ends friday at noon!

OH & here's a little secret, between now & friday, i am also offering in my shop FREE shipping on any purchase! in the etsy checkout, just enter the coupon code JILLFREESHIP

thanks & i hope you win!

grace & peace,
julie

BIG NEWS! Partnership with Beechdale Frames

hi there, i just wanted to officially announce to the world my partnership with Beechdale Frames, in which they are framing my 8x10 & 12x18 prints in gorgeous espresso frames for sale on a wholesale basis.

So, if you are a retailer looking for some inspirational art for your shop, please go take a peek at my new goodies!

They are carrying 30 of my designs, in both size options & i must say ... seeing my art in the 12x18 size makes me want to do them even larger (kind of like my 16x20 canvases!)

oh, how i love them.

i was also completely humbled and surprised when they sent me my very own catalog! wow. i hope God blesses their heart & their desire to get God's Word out into homes in new & beautiful ways.

they are currently (& i mean TODAY) at the International Christian Retail Show (otherwise known in the biz as ICRS) debuting my line & low & behold, they won an award for the look of the booth! another little surprise which is so fun & humbling. (oh & it has been so fun to have some of my fellow tyndale workers stop by & see my art!)

in the midst of all of this, i just keep thinking of a portion of my own life verse out of ephesians which ends with the fact that God is able to do above & beyond all we can ask or imagine. so true. He is so gracious to me. thanks be to my God & all glory to HIM!

grace & peace,
julie

first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes . . .

just over a year ago now,
i had the joy of shooting my cousin's wedding {see the pics here}

a couple weeks ago i had the new joy of
shooting them expecting their first baby boy together!

what a beautiful mama!

a simple, quick spur of the moment shoot in my aunt's backyard.

i gave the little one this print, as it is true: every good & perfect gift does come from above.

lots more to share down the pipe. i have been having a great summer with the kids & taking lots of photos. i am also working on new art ideas as well as designing my own website. the balance of work & play has proven to be a struggle lately in my heart, but i am choosing play since they will only be little once & here in illinois, we only have so many days of sunshine!

ok, should be sleeping... just wanted to get these pics up before she pops & has the baby!

grace & peace,
julie