here & there. a saturday post!

happy saturday! && a rainy one!
i am currently in the middle of a challenge. 
learn your camera & start shooting in manual.
i am not much of a 'read the directions' type of girl. i've always just 'figured it out' on my own. while i think this is a very great skill to have, it DEFINITELY pays to read the instruction manual on some things. like DSLR cameras for example. honestly, when i first got my camera, i DID try to read the manual. but it was sooooo much jibberish & too much for my amateur photographer brain to take in. so i opted for my normal route, and figured it out on my own, learning tricks here and there from other bloggers, pinterest, etc. and using photoshop to edit things in ways i didn't know how to capture. all good news.
i LOVE photography. i always have. that's one of the MANY reasons i love to blog! getting to take pictures of beautiful things, people, details. capturing moments and have somewhere that's special to me to share them! it's time to step up my game & take it to the next level. hence... this challenge. i am not only going to try and decipher my manual, but also am doing the Shoot in Manual from Chimpsey, online lessons... and then hopefully graduate to some real life photo classes. pre-tty excited about it.

with all this being said... some photos from here & there, all shot in manual, natural light, no flash.
enjoy friends!
sometimes you can't post just one...

man candy.

yea, you read it right.
can we please just take a second to acknowledge the man candy that i like to call husband...
swoon.
i'm pretty sure i posted this picture last summer when i originally took it, but let's just be honest... you're not mad about having to see it a second time around.
what a cutie. and he's alllll mine. lucky me.

ps... it's the weekend again! happy friday! it keeps showing up quicker & quicker these days! NOT mad about it. what are YOUR plans?

an outfit post.

neutral color palette. delicious. lately i am looooving the white & cream mash up. i think it's just lovely. wanna hear the best part? this entire outfit, aside from shoes & headband, was thrifted.
truth.
this vintage white skirt & lace top that i love were both goodwill finds!
ring// platos closet
headband// handcrafted by my sweet mom
necklace// gifted by the MIL
boots// forever 21

happy thursday y'all!

the romeos maternity shoot.

recently, i had the privilege of taking some maternity photos for our friends the Romeos. it seems like yesterday that i took their announcement photos. we got them done just in time too! because baby romeo came a week early... as predicted by me might i add :)

 i am so so excited for this new adventure in their lives, and i feel so blessed to know them & be able to share life with the two, and now three of them! One thing i know... little romepup will be LOVED by amaaaazing parents :)
it was a wiiiindddyyyyyyy day! but we managaged to get some beautiful pics :) enjoy!

tuesday thoughts.

tuesdays are typically my least favorite day of the week. theres not necessarily anything bad about them, they are just usually rushed. i have trouble getting things done, or really even started for that matter when i know i'm on a time crunch. not to mention, they follow monday, which is one of my favorite days of the week ((i know, i know... i differ from majority of the working world on this one)) but for me, it's pretty much like an extra day in my weekend. come june though, my entire schedule will change AKA clear... and truth be told... i'm not mad about it.
 
 
i can't wait for picnics & sunbathing. bare feet & early dinners. soccer games & swimming pools. the sun pouring in my window && the smell of fresh cut grass. having endless amounts of time to love on my husband, or spend some QT with my bests. i am excited for change & new directions. i am thankful for seasons! both in the weather && in life! to know that they will ALWAYS change, that we are never stuck in the same one for too long. God is so good in that way. He knows JUST how long we should be in a specific time or "season of life"-- and i am thankful for that.


anyway, yesterday SUCKED. woke up to a gorgeous man, went for a little jog, and then layed out alllllll afternoon :))
 a little father//son love sesh.
 harlow's first time in a hammock.
 she loved it.
 fresh faced & freckled.
happy tuesday y'all!
it's the last one in march 2012, so i'm willing it to be wonderful!
xoxoxo
hillary

a glimpse into our weekend.

well hey!
we had some fun around here this past weekend. spent time with friends, & ate... alot, which always makes for a good time in my book. anywayyy... mark's girlfriend emma was in town and it was SO great getting to know and spend time with her! she, like me, comes from a family of 5 kids, which now means TWO of my friends (abby also :)) know how AWESOME it is to be part of a huge family. && did i mention that we LOVE her?? well, we do. good job mark.
 lovelovelove.

we had a triple date night with our favorite romeo's, which turned out to be their LAST night as just the two of them, because they had their baby the next day!!! woohoo!! aaaand we got coldstone, deeeelish. i could seriously have ice cream every night of my liiife.

oh, and then the next day we ate some more hahaha! i am not ashamed :) we made a delicious breakfast & i got a cuuuute picture of the lovebirds so that we could make mark's presence known in our house ha! (he is currently our roomie, so it's only fair to add him into the mix of photos up around the house :))
and as usual, we had some cuuuute puppies hanging around.

&& then emma treated us to her delicious "smash burgers" they were SO good, and i tried a pinterest recipe for "smashed potatos" found HERE.
 aaaaand i love this picture because i feel like it's a smiley face :)

now we're back to monday & i officially LOVE my husband more than i even thought i could. why you ask? no reason. i just do. he is such an incredible man and after 8 years of "dating" -- almost two of those being married-- i still look at him & think, "wow, is he seriously mine?" eeeeep! thank you, thank you Lord for blessing me with him. i am the luckiest girl in the world.
(oh, and yes i am retainer face in this picture. nbd.)
happy monday!