Big Moves - Spokane House Before & Afters

We've been totally MIA this summer! Exciting transitions and changes required us to focus on family and less on social media. :) I suppose that's a great thing. ;) Let's catch up! 

We moved! At the end of June we sold our Spokane house - Jorgensen Cottage - as we affectionately called it. It was a real diamond in the rough and sat on the market for nearly a year. Apparently no one was crazy enough to take it on. Hello, us. It was a true labor of love. (Mostly for Donald. Love you!) It was full of charm, cape cod 30s style but built in the 70s, and the backyard was a quarter of an acre dream on a private corner lot on the South Hill. So rare! 

The house sold in two days in a great sellers market. A week before closing, Donald was presented with an opportunity that could take us back to Tri-Cities, closer to family and long-time friends. We went for it!

THANK YOU to all of our awesome friends and clients who have made life in Spokane for the last four years wonderful! We will be back to visit very often. :) Please be in touch!

To our new and old friends and neighbors in Tri-Cities, hello! We're pumped to be here. I will keep offering my photography! SIGN UP here to receive my Tri-Cities newsletters for priority notification of mini sessions and special events. 

Enjoy some Before & Afters :)

BEFORE: Teeny tiny Marlow (wah!), overgrown bushes, old screen and railing. 

BEFORE: Teeny tiny Marlow (wah!), overgrown bushes, old screen and railing. 

AFTER: All trimmed up and clean. 

AFTER: All trimmed up and clean. 

BEFORE: OMG our red floors (bow chicka wow wow!) A room full of paneling, an unnecessary wall, old doors (4 in just this room alone). 

BEFORE: OMG our red floors (bow chicka wow wow!) A room full of paneling, an unnecessary wall, old doors (4 in just this room alone). 

AFTER: Fresh, clean white paint, new floors, painted trim, shiplap, new light fixtures, Table made by Donald. Breath of fresh air!

AFTER: Fresh, clean white paint, new floors, painted trim, shiplap, new light fixtures, Table made by Donald. Breath of fresh air!

BEFORE: Dining room fireplace so old it nearly fell down looking at it. 

BEFORE: Dining room fireplace so old it nearly fell down looking at it. 

AFTER: New mantle, painted fireplace, new tile, shiplap, floors.

AFTER: New mantle, painted fireplace, new tile, shiplap, floors.

BEFORE: Useless wall. 

BEFORE: Useless wall. 

AFTER: No more wall! New counters, backsplash, hardware, sink, lights, floors, shiplap. 

AFTER: No more wall! New counters, backsplash, hardware, sink, lights, floors, shiplap. 

AFTER: This became a favorite little nook in this house. Charming and old.

AFTER: This became a favorite little nook in this house. Charming and old.

BEFORE: Living room with original paint and carpet and widow treatments - oh my.

BEFORE: Living room with original paint and carpet and widow treatments - oh my.

AFTER: oh hello light! New floors, paint and window treatments. Donald build the bookshelves and floating ledges. Also my coveted pottery barn oversize couch. yeses.

AFTER: oh hello light! New floors, paint and window treatments. Donald build the bookshelves and floating ledges. Also my coveted pottery barn oversize couch. yeses.

AFTER: Donald painted the entertainment center/dresser for me and I found the vintage knobs. Donald also mounted our tv with hidden cords using a little bit of pvc pipe and a total of probably $15; cords go into one of the bottom drawers through the…

AFTER: Donald painted the entertainment center/dresser for me and I found the vintage knobs. Donald also mounted our tv with hidden cords using a little bit of pvc pipe and a total of probably $15; cords go into one of the bottom drawers through the back of the dresser. 

AFTER: One of my favorite transformations! Removed the old giant mirror, added white washed shiplap, painted the dank 70s tile white, painted the inside of the fireplace and hardware. 

AFTER: One of my favorite transformations! Removed the old giant mirror, added white washed shiplap, painted the dank 70s tile white, painted the inside of the fireplace and hardware. 

BEFORE: Dark yucky mud room. (hey red truck, we miss you)

BEFORE: Dark yucky mud room. (hey red truck, we miss you)

AFTER: Fresh, functional mud room! New floors, baseboards, shelves, paint, door.

AFTER: Fresh, functional mud room! New floors, baseboards, shelves, paint, door.

BEFORE: Master bedroom with popcorn ceilings, old carpet, original paint.

BEFORE: Master bedroom with popcorn ceilings, old carpet, original paint.

AFTER: New paint in farmhouse by benjamin moore, hardwood floors, bye bye popcorn ceilings, new doors and baseboard and closet doors. Below: Entry way. Guest bedroom. Backyard before & afters - Donald build the chicken coop, wood shed, and …

AFTER: New paint in farmhouse by benjamin moore, hardwood floors, bye bye popcorn ceilings, new doors and baseboard and closet doors. 

Below: Entry way. Guest bedroom. Backyard before & afters - Donald build the chicken coop, wood shed, and counter height garden bed. 

Easter 2016 | Family Photography | Spokane

I really just love Easter. Last year I missed Easter with Marlow while I was in New York spending it with my sister. It was so much fun to see how much the experience with her changes each year. How much longer she can sit through church. How much more she wants to lead us in prayer at every meal. How much she enjoys being with family. How much she enjoyed running after eggs and not just stopping at each one to eat whatever was inside before moving to the next.

Mostly I am just so thankful for Easter. Thankful that we get four days off to spend reflecting from Good Friday through after Easter. Thankful that the miracle of Easter never ceases to amaze me and bring me a new lessons each year. I'm not the greatest with words, but I will share this post by a friend titled Easter Sunday Faith in a Friday World which especially moved me this year. Wishing you hope this spring!

My Little Valentine and Her Valentines

This year Valentine cards were all about Marlow enjoying the process of making something for her friends. We opted for free downloadable Valentines thanks to Jones Design Company - yay! And Marlow loved hand painted the back of each card, asking "Who is this one for?!" and deciding what colors they would like. The exercise didn't last long, but we got all 27 of them done all while keeping princess gear in tact. Hope you all had a good Valentine's day!

37/52 Our Trip to Roche Harbor | San Juan

Thankful thankful thankful. That about sums up how I feel about having taken our VERY FIRST VACATION JUST THE THREE OF US (back in September)! Yep, just us since Marlow was born. I tell you what. It was 100% necessary and needed and worth it. We got to spend uninterrupted time just being together. Just typing that makes me want to cry. Not in between work and bedtime, not in between errands and play dates, nothing. Just hanging out and scouring beaches for shells and eating ice cream and going to the park. Take me back now. It was wonderful for rejuvenating us and for boosting our parenting confidence. That was what I wasn't expecting. I was totally expecting renewed sense of appreciate for each other, yes, but parenting? It was a rare, long stretch of time that we got to parent together, like at the same time, for a long time. We got in a groove. Marlow responded well. We didn't worry about potty training. We felt like rockstars. For like a minute, of course. ;) In the end, I can't wait to do this again and make a tradition out of it. Thank you to our aunt & uncle for lending us their beach rental for a getaway. As I approach a very, very busy season for our family, I will try with all my might to remember what this quiet time felt like and how much it is needed in our everyday life.

I tried, really, to remember to take photos, but I am truly not very good at remembering. Here is a little bit of our vacay:

28/52 | Painting with Juju

Here's a throw back "one-a-week" photo set from one of my mom's visits this summer.
I love that I caught them in this fun moment painting and giggling and learning how to draw smiley faces. My mom used to paint back in the day. She really is an artist and has a natural ability to draw. Growing up, she would always leave cute drawings and florals on notes to us. I hope Marlow always gets to create, paint, and do crafts with her juju. Mom is such a natural at bringing out children's creativity and letting them make "messes"— I have so many memories of getting free access to the kitchen to make any kind of crazy concoction I wanted! I'm so thankful that Marlow gets to experience the same joy...hopefully in mom's kitchen, not mine. ;) Just kidding. Kind of.

36/52 A morning with the Zanol boys | Tri-Cities |

When we moved to Spokane from Tri-Cities nearly 3 1/2 years ago now (wow time flies), we knew what we'd miss the most. Our friends. Friends like these with whom laughter is easy. Mornings are lazy. Pajamas are the dress code.

We visited the Zanols a couple weeks ago to see their new-to-them house. I decided to wear my camera around as we toured the property. This was the first part of our week-long vacation and I mostly intended on documenting it for ourselves. It turns out there were little moments and sights that ended up being so precious to all of us.

This is the house where Noah and Eli will grow up, will go from running around in capes to bringing friends over for camp outs and bon fires, where they'll take pictures with their prom dates on the grand staircase, where their parents will have put blood, sweat and tears into making it a home, where overgrown and neglected garden beds will bear fruit for years, where family memories will be made. 

In all of about 15 minutes of walking around and watching the kids come and go, we ended up with a sweet assortment of photos that capture a Saturday morning in the life of the Zanol boys during this season of their lives in their new house. Marlow obviously had a blast with her buds. I hope they are friends forever. Here's to more un-shoots. :)