Soooooo.....I'm actually putting it out there.

I remember when I was in high school, I really loved to write.

I actually didn't mind essays and reflective papers....I dare say I even enjoyed them.

One day, a certain English teacher pulled me aside and told me I had a great talent, and that my writing was actually good. I walked away with this feeling of immense pride, but almost felt embarrassed because I suddenly realized that I was quite shy when it came to actually discussing my writing.

Fast forward to now, and that is exactly where I sit with my enjoyment for photography. It was intriguing when we got our first "fancy" camera, and even more fascinating to me as the years went by and I starting learning more and enjoying it more. Then, I ventured outside of taking pictures of my own family, to taking pictures of our friends' families, and so on. However, I still remained to have the same hesitation with photography as I did with writing...secretly loving it, but hesitant to share it with others.

I started thinking- what would I say to Bella or Tyler if they came to me and told me about some hobby or sport or talent that they were really excited about? I would encourage it of course! I would tell them to pursue it and see where it went!

And as I began to pursue this hobby of mine, I have discovered that I love using that creative side of my brain. I love that I can be a good wife and mom to my family, a good nurse at work, and a good friend- but also have a creative and outlet that is just for me.

And I'm excited to use my hobby to bless others!

So, I've started my own photography blog to help me in "putting it out there". I still feel like that young girl in high school who would rather keep this to myself out of fear that I won't be good enough, or that a compliment might just embarrass me. Not to mention the fact that I loooove the work of some local photographers around here...I've even been a client of such rock-star photographers....heaven forbid they see my humble little blog! It's like I'm a freshman walking into Varsity tryouts.

So here I go. I'm trying out.

Even if I do just get stuck on the freshman team.

Wish me luck!

www.briandersonphotos.com

I'm Back!

Sorry for the time between posts- it's been a busy time around the Anderson household. We recently went to visit my parents in San Diego {our home away from home it seems}, and had such a good time relaxing and spoiling the kids with fun things to do. We were pretty shut in from the bad weather the first day, so we had to be creative with our activities.

Grandma and Bella spent some time making delicious cookies for everyone...but I think Bella had more fun just rubbing her hands in the piles of flour :-)

Isn't this the cutest picture of Bella with Grandma and Papa? Such genuine laughter, it cracks me up.

Finally it cleared, and we decided to head out for some fun activities-

We spent some time in La Jolla, and took the kids to see Seal Beach and the aquarium.

Yes, those are seals laying around- Bella thought it was cool, but Ty was less enthused. Go figure.

The best part about hanging around Grandma and Papa's house is getting to see the kids wrestle, snuggle and play with them. It just warms my heart!!

One of the highlights of the trip was getting to see my adorably pregnant cousin Lindsay, and take her out for some fun maternity shopping! It's a tradition among the women in our family, that whoever is pregnant- we spoil them by taking them out for a maternity shopping spree followed by going out for food! Lindsay looked gorgeous in everything she tried on, and it was so fun for me to share this moment with her because we have been so extremely close since the time we were little toddlers running around together. I can't wait to do your maternity pictures Linds!! :-)

Is that a little baby bump I see?! :-)

And lastly, I'll leave you with a pretty picture I took of my parents one evening.

Thanks mom and dad for everything! We love you so much.

A Date With My Daughter

Every now and then, it's good for Bella and I to get away for some "girl time".

She is quickly becoming this little girl who is growing up too fast. I still see her as my baby...my first-born.....my sweet tiny Bella. But with each day, she is changing.

So we left the boys at home, got dressed up in a beautiful princess dress {not me- mind you. Just her} and went out for an evening together to see Disney on Ice.

Since John and I have taken Bella to these types of shows before, I knew what was about to happen. She would see all the bags of cotton candy, tall Disney cups of snow cones, see the sparkly wands and featured trinkets, and beg for all of them. Whoever puts together these events know exactly what they are doing. What parent wouldn't feel terrible saying 'no'? So this time, I was prepared. I packed us a bag of candy at home and we ate a big dinner so that she would {hopefully} be full. As we left, John reminded me to "stay strong" when Bella sees all the souvenirs.

But I'm weak.

We headed to our seats, and Bella spotted a sparkly Ariel wand that lit up and played music. She jumped and begged....what could I do? A girl has to have a sparkly wand, right?!

So now she does :-)

We enjoyed watching performances by Ariel, Tinkerbell, The Lion King and Cars, while munching on our candy and playing with her new wand.

Despite having her own seat, she spent most of the performance on my lap, snuggling with me and gasping and smiling at me when a new character came out onto the ice.

But I wouldn't have it any other way.

I Have Inspiring Friends :-)

This morning I was able to help enjoy and celebrate the talents of two inspiring women.

I started the morning by attending church at Scottsdale Bible North, where my close friend Amanda attends. I've mentioned her before on this blog- but to brag even further, she is a multi-taleneted, multi-faceted woman in so many ways. One of her passions {and greatest talents!} is for singing. The last time she performed a solo at her church, I had to go out of town. So this time I didn't want to miss it! Well, she was fabulous. She has heart and passion in her voice, and she led a beautiful worship song for everyone to enjoy. I could never get up on stage and sing {plus, you wouldn't want me to. Trust me} So thank you Amanda for inviting me to come this morning, and I was so proud of how beautifully you did!

Then after watching Amanda, I rushed back to the house so John and I could pack up the kids and head out to the Rock N' Roll Marathon to cheer on our friend Christy! Christy and John have known each other since grade school, and her husband was one of John's best friends' growing up. I met Christy in college, and she is just the sweetest thing :-) Her and I were pregnant together {delivered only a few weeks apart} with our boys Tyler and Oliver...and then Christy welcomed another son just 18 months later, Wesley.

YES- that's right...she has a 7 month old, and she ran a half-marathon today! Puts me to shame, let me tell you. So John helped me plot out the marathon map, and we timed it perfectly because we were able to stop and see her at two viewing points during the race.

That arm you see above is me trying to point out Christy for the camera. She is the one in long black pants and a light pink tank top. It is so crowded there, and hard to take a picture of a moving target- but we did our best.

Yay! Thumbs up for Christy!! You looked great out there and we were so excited to cheer you on!!

There is something about seeing runners nearing the finish line that actually gets me choked up. It's such an amazing accomplishment- and I was truly inspired to see her out there doing something so awesome.

Congrats girls! I am so proud of you both!!

Robin Hood?

I am so confused.

Last night I took Bella out for a special mother/daughter date to see Disney On Ice {I'll post about that later}, and when I reached into my wallet to pay for parking at the arena, I noticed some cash in my wallet. Figuring it was my wonderful husband who must have put some extra cash in my wallet- I didn't think anything of it.

When I got home later in the evening, I thanked him for putting cash in there- but he said he hadn't! "What the heck?" I thought.

So I opened my wallet, and counted what was in there......and I KNOW I did not put that there myself. I can count the number of times I have gotten cash out of the ATM in the past few months, on one hand. I rarely ever carry cash....unless we are on vacation, or I'm going somewhere where I know I'll need it. Without disclosing the amount that I found in there....I can say that I definitely did not take out any cash in that amount recently.

I racked my brain thinking about where I had been this past week....but everywhere I went, I've left my purse in the car because I didn't need it. And really, I've barely left the house this week because I have been so busy with the kids and editing photos. I thought maybe it was Emily {since she still owes me money....*ahem*}, but she swears it wasn't her. And I believe her, because if it was her, she would definitely take the credit :-)

So where did this come from? Am I losing my mind?

What's next? Will I find jewels under my pillow or a new car in my garage??

I just had to share this story because I'm totally perplexed, and I'm getting quite the kick out of the thought of some modern-day Robin Hood secretly handing out money to people.

Thoughts???!!

Full Plate.

You know how sometimes you are really hungry, and you go somewhere to eat and fill up your plate? I mean really fill up your plate. Everything at the buffet or on the menu looks so good when you are starving. About halfway through your meal, you realize that your eyes were bigger than your stomach, and your plate was WAY too full.

That's how I have been feeling lately. Not full of food....but full of things to do. Chores, tasks, projects, ideas, work, commitments, blah blah blah....

There are so many things I am excited about, my problem is taking one step at a time. I need to be better bout setting boundaries with my time so that I'm not spending too much time doing one thing- and not enough on the other. Anyhow- that's the reason I have been slacking in the blogging department lately. I have so much to document to remember, but every time I sit down at the computer, I get sidetracked by other ideas and chores to be done!

My Goal: Baby Steps.

Tomorrow, I will spend more time outside with the kids, and enjoy the beautiful weather in January here in Scottsdale :-) Have friends over, watch some football, relax.

Come Monday, a fresh new week is given to me- and I plan to conquer it!!

Lots more to come, so stay tuned. Have a great weekend!

And what's a post without a picture? Cousins {and apparently twins today} Bella & Marley enjoy their Saturday together. Love it!

Our Own Team Yellow!

We proudly supported Uncle O'Neal and SunShine last night- and we represented them well! We love you guys!

Wait....What? ...WHAT??!

I know what you're thinking.

You should have seen the faces in our house when we saw SunShine and O'Neal "leave".

As their family, we thought we had some idea......but did we?

Will they be able to lose more weight than the blue team and stay in the house??

Just keep watching, and keep cheering for Team Yellow!!

Tonight Is The Night!

Tune in tonight on NBC for the season premiere of the Biggest Loser Season 9!

SunShine {Sunny} and O'Neal will be the fabulous people you see in bright yellow, and trust me- they are amazing. Since tonight is the premiere and all of the couples will be featured- they may not get a whole lot of screen time right away...but you will easily still fall in love with them.

We love you guys and we are SO proud of you! Go Uncle O'Neal and Sunny!!....