My First Photo Shoot...

A couple of months ago, my friend Lindsey gave me the greatest compliment and honor thus far since I've started getting more into photography.  I was so flattered, but also hesitant when she asked me to take her pregnancy pictures.  I know how special those pictures are for people and so I definitely wanted to do a good job for her.  It was also my first "photo shoot" so it was a big deal for me, too!

I was definitely so so nervous that day, but it was a lot of fun to do!  It was also great and helpful to work with a friend and get encouragement - Lindsey was a great model!  I've been meaning to post my pictures over the last couple of months, but I've just been a little slow (surprise, surprise, right?).  So tonight, here they are!  

Before I go though, I just wanted to say thank you to Lindsey for giving me the opportunity to have my first "photoshoot" and allowing me to share some pictures with all of you.  Though I know I still have A LOT to learn, it was great experience for me and so much fun to do!  Hopefully, I might have more "photo shoots" to share with all of you in the future, too!

p.s.  I put "photoshoots" in quotes b/c I'm not crazy enough to consider myself a professional - "photo shoot" is another word for "amateur shoot"  ... hahaha

Have a wonderful evening, everyone!

Recapping the Holidays

Hello and Happy New Year!


I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday season.  I definitely did.  This year, I got to go back to KC and spend an entire week with family.  It was so nice to be back in Liberty and stay for longer than just a day or two.  We got in just in time too - as we pulled into the driveway on Christmas Eve, it started sleeting and then the snow fell until the next morning, which means...we had a white Christmas!!  woohoo!  Now, I was very curious how Lucy would handle the snow - she was rescued in East Texas and then brought to Dallas so I doubt she ever saw snow.  Well, it turns out she LOVED it!!  I took her out that next morning and she just ran and ran and played and loved it all.  At one point she would throw her head in the snow then try to lick the snow off her nose.  It was too cute.  Truman was also very curious about this snow stuff so I let him out on the front porch to see what he would do.  He was a little hesitant at first, but he was very very intrigued.  I think he really liked it because the rest of the week when I would head toward the door to take Lucy out, Truman would be there waiting to go outside, too...haha.  As for Baloo, he had no desire to be outside. Instead, he spent his time inside and staying warm while also snooping for any people food that might have fallen on the floor.


We didn't  have too many things planned over the break, but it was just nice to relax and spend time with those I don't see often.  Anne's mom and my mom also threw an engagement party for Dom and Anne on New Year's Eve, which was a lot of fun.  We had a chance to meet more of Anne's family and I have to say I love them.  They are a fun family with a great sense of humor.


I thought I'd share with you some pictures of our time with family this Christmas.  


I hope all of you also had a Merry, Merry Christmas and fantastic start to the new year! 

The weekend before Christmas and before we headed back to KC, we went down to Granbury to have a mini-Christmas with Adam's family.  It was a fun time, however, it also wasn't the same without Nick and Laura, who were spending the holiday in Cape Cod, MA.  The picture above is of Helen's dog, Charlie, or as he was called that night, Santa Charlie.

This lady is Helen Kramer, an incredible woman who raised five incredible men.

This is of Adam and Luke and Kaela's dog, Julian.  Julian often stays at our place when her mom and dad are out of town.  She's crazy, but also so sweet.

This is of Kaela and Luke.  We were at their new house in Granbury - it was so homey and cozy!  

Here are the Mr. and Mrs. Kramer of Plano, TX.  They will be welcoming a little Kramer boy here in just a few more weeks!

This is of Dom and Anne at my parent's house on Christmas Eve.  It was time to open presents!

This picture here is of Grandma Hogan.  We left Dallas early on Christmas Eve so that we could stop by Bartlesville and pick her up.  She braved the trip to KC even though we had to go a little out of our way due to the weather - better than getting stuck in an ice storm though...

It's VERY hard to get a picture of my mom and when I do, it's usually because she doesn't know.  She was pretty happy with one of her gifts as you can see above.

I'm not quite sure what Adam's expression is saying here.  Maybe he is in awe of all the Christmas gifts..hahaha.  Whatever it is, my dad seems to be looking at the same thing.

Meet my Uncle Jimmy (or Uncle J, as I like to call him).  He came up to KC to spend a few days with us and to take Grandma (on the right) back to Oklahoma.  I don't get to see Uncle J or Grandma too often so when I do, I always enjoy visiting with them.


Alright --- NOW, for all the PET pictures!!  As most of you know, I have two cats and a dog, and yes, they all rode in the car to KC for Christmas.  Dom and Anne also have two cats, but no dog.  Their cats' names are Toaster and Trudy (yes, you read that right -- Toaster).  Then, of course, we have our family cat, Miss Shirley-o.  She is by far the oldest of the bunch and all the pets (even Lucy) respect her, even though she is also by far the smallest of the bunch!  So at one point this week, we had all four cats and Lucy staying at my parent's house.  I'm sure some of you are thinking that's crazy, but they actually all got along pretty well or minded their own business.  Because I'm such a pet lover, I couldn't not share pictures of all of them.  I'm also including a sequence of photos I took of Lucy running in the snow.  I can't say it enough - she just looooved it.  We need snow in Dallas for her to play in!!  That, and boy do I miss the days of sledding...

Miss Shirley-o.  I can't believe she is 17 years old now.  She is small, but fiesty.  However, I will say she has mellowed out in the last few years.  All five of the other pets definitely respected Miss Shirley since it was her house an' all.

Miss Trudy just kickin' it.  She's quite shy.  In fact, I think she stayed with us last Thanksgiving, but I never did see her.  She's making strides every time she comes to town.

Toaster, or as I call him, The Toast, really needs no introduction.  He's quite a big boy (you should see his paws), but acts like a little baby.  I woke up one morning thinking I heard a baby crying upstairs, but alas, it was The Toast.

Mr. Truman-o, the nosey, just had to go outside and explore the snow.  I didn't expect him to go under the bushes that our near our front porch, so when he did, I thought "uh oh, how will I get him out now?"  My second thought was, "I better not let Adam know he got under those bushes" -- I could already hear his reaction..."Why did you let him under there?!"...haha.  As you can see though, a few minutes later, he came out of the bushes without my coaxing.

I had to include this one.  This is Truman's window when we come to visit.  This is the window he always looks forward to looking out.  It's the front window in my mom's formal dining room.  Whenever Truman comes to KC, he claims that dining room as his.  If I can't find him in the house, he's either, a) got locked in the basement, b) got locked in the garage, or c) is sitting looking out his window.

Here's one of Mr. B and Truman taking an afternoon nap together.  I didn't get a solo pic of Mr. Baloo on this trip since he's not a huge fan of having his picture taken.  Since he was a good boy on the ride up (he hates traveling), I thought the least I could do is spare him of all my picture taking.

As you can tell, Lucy Bear had a good ol' time playin' in the snow!

Now, very last, but never least, I must add one more note to my post.  Not only was Christmas significant for the obvious reason, but also because it is my little cousin, Sofia's birthday!  Yes, Sofie was actually born on Christmas morning and is thus a Christmas baby.  On the Saturday after Christmas, we all got together to have a little cake and celebration as she turned the big 02 (2 years old)!  Here she is with her Uncle Vince at the party:

Good night!!  Have a wonderful week!!

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...

Oh, how I love this time of the year!

There's something so special and indescribable about the holiday season. It's about family, friends, giving, kindness, and celebration for many of the religions around the world. Granted, I try to keep those things as my priority throughout the year and not just the holiday season, but there's just something a little different this time of year; something I just can't put into words.

One of my most favorite traditions that go along with Christmas is the tree. It's one of those things I just love because it reminds me of many good memories as a kid and something I looked forward to every year. I'm as enthusiastic about it now as I was then! So tonight, I thought I'd share with all of you our beautiful tree this year...

Oh, I apologize in advance for the quality of some photos. I don't like to use my flash a lot, so some pictures may not be as sharp as normal.

Here she is in all her glory! Since I was a little kid, my family always had a real tree. My dad was never big on the fake trees -- of course, there's nothing wrong with a fake tree (as I know a lot of people who have one). For me personally though, I've just always loved having a real tree. I think probably because it does bring back such fond Christmas memories from childhood. I also just love the smell of a fresh tree, even the sap that goes along with it. The first couple of years that Adam and I lived in an apartment, I didn't think we were allowed to have a real tree so I went with the fake one. Last year though, when I realized we didn't have to have a fake tree, I was on a mission to get a real one! Fortunately, Adam was onboard, so off we went to Home Depot, now our favorite one-stop Christmas tree store. They have so many wonderful trees! I still get so excited about it all. I always try to find one similar to what we had when I was growing up -- my dad was always a fan of the Charlie Brown-like trees, the ones that were kind of scrawny and not as full. That's a little harder to find these days, but I do still get the same type of tree each year (now I know you are starting to probably think, "wow, who knew someone could spend so much time talking about a tree").Oh, when I'm passionate though, I can go on and on...haha.

Ok, I'm going off topic. Now, a lot of the trees I see now are so beautifully decorated with matching ornaments, beautiful tinsel, very Martha Stewart (Adam doesn't have real strong opinions about the tree so he kind of lets me do my thing). I'm a fan of all kinds of Christmas trees, but for me, I'm very old school on my decorating. I've tried to take on the same traditions that we had growing up -- I must admit I can't wait to carry on this tradition one day when I have a family. I looove the big, old-fashioned Christmas bulbs -- they are similar to the ones my dad and Adam's mom say they had when growing up. They also always remind me of the movie, A Christmas Story, because that tree had the same kind of lights on it. I am a huge fan of colored lights so I make sure to buy plenty...haha. Anyhow, yes, I wrap those lights around the tree myself (granted, sometimes I end up doing it a couple of times before I get it right)! I also love the garland and have to have that on there. Now, the ornaments -- that is what makes the tree special. The ornaments have meaning. The regular bulb ornaments we got because it was just tradition - I've never had a Christmas tree without bulb ornaments and neither has Adam. The candy canes, another tradition. Then we have the more personal ornaments; Over the years, I've gotten these from friends/family that I've always kept and each year when I put them on my tree, I think of the person who was kind enough to give me the ornament or a memory that I have associated with it.

I thought I'd go ahead and share a few:

As you all know, I'm a BIG fan of pandas. Last year, my friend, Lindsey, gave me, Po, the Kung Fu panda ornament.  I just love it and to be honest, when Christmas season is over, I don't actually put him away with the other decorations. Instead I move him from the tree to the bookshelf where we put a lot of our other trinkets and figurines. Po always looks good hangin' on the tree though.

This was given to me from my good high school, cross country friend and her mom. It's one of my favorite ornaments because it brings back so many good memories of my cross country days in high school and of the time I spent with their family. They were always so kind to me and were always so encouraging, particularly when I may not have been running as well as I wanted. I just love the message too -- "Believe." It's simple and yet so significant. One of my favorite quotes from my cross country days was "God gave me the ability. The rest is up to me. Believe, Believe, Believe." That's one quote that I've carried with me through the years. Sometimes I know I lose sight of it, but I try to remind myself of it as I continue to build more confidence. I'm so fond of the family that gave me this ornament and as you can tell by the date on there, 10 years later (I still can't believe it) I still have it with me and on my Christmas tree every year.

This ornament here brings me back to my first Christmas in Columbus. My wonderful cousin, Joli, came down one weekend so we could do some Christmas shopping and one of the stores where we shopped, had a bunch of these cute teddy bear ornaments. I remember we bought quite a few of them to give at Christmas and then we both got one (actually a few) for ourselves, too. I'll admit that I had a hard time adjusting to things in Columbus for a long time -- it was hard to not see my family often. However, when I look back at my time there, I do miss it and the memories there. I sometimes wish that I would have given it more of a chance, but at the same time, I know that I can't look back and always second guess. In the end, things have worked out probably the way they should have. That weekend with my cousin though, was such a fun time and I love that I have this teddy bear to remind me of that weekend.

This little snowman here is also tied to our time in Columbus. During our first year there, Adam and I weren't able to go home for Thanksgiving so instead my mom and his mom flew out for the weekend before to have a mini Thanksgiving with us. It was a lot of fun and of course my mom being my mom, she had to bring something -- which were these little snowman ornaments. I have to say, they are pretty cute little guys, aren't they? That was also a really fun weekend - it was the first time that both Adam's mom and my mom traveled together and they had a great time, as did we. These little snowmen will always remind me of that visit.

This pretty pine cone ornament is from my cousin, Joli. The year after I left Ohio, I spent Christmas at my Grandma's and Joli wasn't able to be there so she sent Christmas ornaments for everyone.  Isn't it pretty?! I just had to show this one because I love it.

Ok, hang in there - I'm getting to the end now. This beautiful star ornament came from another high school cross country friend. I'll admit I don't know if I remember exactly when she gave it to me - I think maybe my senior year - but it's so sparkly and pretty. It also shares the honor of tree topper with one other new ornament that was added this year (next picture). Though my friend and I lost touch over the last few years, this past year I was able to get back in contact with her because of Facebook. It's funny too because the other day she and I were just talking about this star ornament and one that I gave her. I still can't believe that my senior year of high school was 10 years ago...where does the time go?? I'm guessing that's a question I will ask many more times throughout life.

Remember that other tree topper I mentioned above? Here it is! I just ordered this one a couple of weeks ago and was so excited when it came in. It just didn't seem right that the Kramer/Hogan household didn't have some sort of tribute to their alma matar and home state :o)

This guy I had to include because it's from the set of Rudolph ornaments we bought last year, I think? Adam is a huge fan of the Rudolph characters so these are his to put up every year :o)

Christmas Vay-caaation, Christmas Vay-caation. It's a little hard to see here, but from my first two words, I think you might figure out what it is -- a Griswold Christmas ornament! Last year, my cousin and his girlfriend bought Christmas Vacation (since it's almost impossible to rent this time of year) for all of us to watch and this ornament came with the DVD. I usually have to watch that movie at least once during Christmas season (along with While You Were Sleeping, Elf, and White Christmas) I just had to include it on here because almost everyone knows that movie. I think it's safe to say it's a classic.

Well, I could probably go on more, but I don't want to lose my readers! Seriously though, all of these decorations mean a lot to me. And though I may not be in touch with some of the people as much anymore, I hope that they at least know I do think of them still and every time I put the ornament they gave me on the tree.

I'm so grateful for the wonderful people who are in my life and for those of you who follow along on here, I hope you know that. My family and my friends are my life and mean the world to me. I know I am not without my flaws, but I so appreciate that my real friends and family accept me as I am (though I do strive to continue growing and work on my weaknesses).

To all of you, I hope you have a VERY MERRY Christmas and a great start to the New Year!

I am going to leave you with one just a couple more pictures tonight, just because I thought it was cute.

Merry Christmas again from all of us!

love, julie, adam, baloo, truman, and lucy

As I was taking photos for this post, Truman came walking over and looked like he was checking out all the presents.




Just a few minutes later, he moved from snooping on presents to kickin' it on the TV stand near the tree (there's a reason why we call him 'cool kid'. He just looked too cute that I had to put him on here :o). Mr. Truman-o just loves the Christmas tree (as does Baloo -- we can't keep him away from that water).

Congratulations in Order!

Some exciting news this past weekend.  I know it's been awhile since I've posted and tonight I thought the best way for me to come back was to share some WONDERFUL news with all of you.


What is it you may wonder?  I know some of you have ideas in your mind...


Well, on Saturday night, my brother, Dom, called to tell me that he and his girlfriend, Anne, were engaged!  Yay!  He popped the question during a weekend trip to Minneapolis.

As most of you know from my previous post, I am quite fond of Anne, as is my entire family.  She's always so incredibly sweet and polite, but she also has one bad a. fun side, too :o).  I'm so very excited for the both of them.  They just complement each other so well.  They are also still often mistaken for being in their early teens (sorry, Dom and Anne, I couldn't not throw that in there).


I'm so happy that my little brother has found someone with whom he wants to share his life. I have to admit too, that Anne is a pretty luck duck herself :o).


Congratulations, Dom and Anne!!  I dedicate tonight's post to you both!