Ruby and Tootsie

There isn't much that Ruby will eat these past couple of weeks. Being sick has really had its toll on her appetite. My little piggy has been turning her nose up to everything ... everything except tootsie pops. Nutritious I know! But she loves them.

And if they can get her to smile, then I am all for it. Tootsie pops for breakfast it is! I miss my happy little lady.

I was surprised when I saw that she could fit the entire sucker in her mouth. Such a cutie! Oh and don't try taking it away before she is finished ... you will pay for it!

fix it friday #45

It's Friday! I wish that I was super excited about the great things I had going on this weekend, but I'm not. My husband is out of town and my kids are STILL getting over being sick. I hope I survive.

Anyway, here is my fix this week.

Original

Such a cute girl! I love her expression. And I love the beautiful sky behind her.

my edit

Here are my steps (as best as I can remember them!):

• Cropped the image to a 5X7 with 300 ppi
• I lightened the shadows by 65%
• Use the clone tool set at 30% opacity under her eyes and then set it to 50% to work on her elbows.
• Dodged the whites of her eyes just a little
• Created 2 adjustment layers. I set the bottom one on screen (very low opacity) and the top one set on softlight (around 25-50% opacity)
• Then lighted the photo some using a levels adjustment.
• I then worked with the reds in the hue/saturation to take out some of the red in her skin.
• Then I ran Coffee Shops Perfect Portrait (to give it a slight color pop and to smooth out her skin)
• Then I ran Coffee Shops Tea Party action (with the color pop set very low and the hazy turned off)
• And last but not least I sharpened it!

I am sure this is not the most effective way to edit a photo - but it worked for me, and I really like the way it turned out!

i heart faces - "Hands on Fun"

Every once in a while i heart faces likes to shake things up a bit ... this is one of those times. The focus this week is on the hands.

My girl has become quite the daddy's girl lately. She can't get enough of him ... and who could blame her, he is pretty great. Every time she needs me she starts off by saying "Daddy - err mommy!" They certainly have a special bond. One that I am grateful for.

sickies

We have been battling sickness this week here at our house. Poor Collin has croup and nearly lost his voice. He has been talking so sweetly and quietly. I think he is almost over it. Which is good. However, Ruby got sick yesterday with something else (I'll spare the details) ... and I haven't been feeling 100% either. It has been a long week. Full of napping, crying, and whining. I can't blame them.

So today while Sophie and Logan went to church the "sickies" stayed home. We napped, and fed ourselves goldfish. It was nice.

Ruby loves sitting on the couch ... until she decided she wants the camera.

"Hey mom, give me that. I want that"

I even had Collin try to persuade her with the goldfish to sit back down (so I could take more pics), but she was not having it. She wanted that camera.

I hope this week is better. I hope Sophie escapes the "yuck" in the air and remains healthy. I hate when my kids are sick.

fix it friday #44

I haven't participated in fix it friday over at i heart faces in a long time ... life gets busy. But I thought I would today. After all, it is always fun to work with a photo that someone else took.

original

my edit

I love the way it turned out. After lightening up the shadows I used CofeeShops "sun kissed" action followed up with "little perk". I just recently figured out how to install actions ... took me forever ... and I LOVE them.

from across the room

At 14 1/2 months Ruby has taken the leap. She is walking around like a little drunk sailor ... a cute one. This wasn't a milestone I was really looking forward to, but now that it has happened I love it. I love watching her progress each day. I love how happy she gets to be walking. I love how happy Sophie and Collin get to see her grow up.

The Month of Love

Happy Valentines Day!

I am so grateful for my 4 valentines. They make me smile everyday and bring so much joy to my life. Love you Logan, Sophie, Collin, and Ruby!

xoxoxo

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Update on our Valentines (for my memory):

Valentines was perfect this year. We had a nice quiet evening at home. We fed the kids an early dinner, put them in their pajamas, and put on a movie. Logan and I then sat down to a romantic dinner for two. We had new york steak and cheese fondue. Yummy! It was fun eating just the two of us ... but the meal did end with 2 kids at our table snacking on our fondue bread! After the kids were in bed we exchanged gifts and sat down to watch a fun movie about love called Paper Heart. It was a perfect evening. Love you babe!