Pixie Pie’s second Valentine’s Day. We had a beautiful time. 
$4.00 – $4.00, Jump up and down, another $4.00, yes, YES, $4.00…oooooohhhhhh, they are all $4.00. WEeeeeee. LUCKY DAY! We spent the first half of the day being lucky in love. Then the second half of the day making lovies for our lovies. 
Pixie received her very first Valentine from a boy. From her special boyfriend, Blaze. She talked about it all day. 
Look at how little she was last Valentine’s Day. 
My big blue-eyed purdy gurl.
A reflection of a piggie, piggie. 
Blaze, will you accept this rose?
The “Love you” heart we made last V-Day on the mirror in her nursery is still somewhat there. She’s added her own love touch to it. 
Oh, how much has changed in just one year. I love every second of it.
A couple of days before, Jason and I headed out for an “adult night” with the family. A special dinner at Vittoria’s. It was de-lish. And look what showed up on my doorstep from the hubs. MMMmmmm….chocolate covered strawberries, my fave. I think I ate all twelve on Valentine’s Day. That’s what they were for, right?!
She’s still a big baby!
Love the reflection in the glasses. Pixie is laying on my lap as I’m laying on the floor taking this photo. She’s such a love bug. 
And then she crawled on my back and thought it was just HILARIOUS.
I love this capture. This is SO her and her silly personality. I love you, Pixie Jo. SO SO MUCH!
Got candy?
Our yearly tradition. Year two. White Castles. Would you like the “Group Hug Special?” Yes, please. And a chocolate covered cheesecake on a stick. Yes and yes.
Ootay, ootay. EEenuf ov dis walentinz daa stuff already. I am thwrew!
XoXo.
Charli. 9 Months Big.
Blue, blue, blue eyes! And she’s even standing! Such a little doll baby! Mommy can’t resist playing dress up with this princess. Ugg boots, pearl necklaces, stylish sweaters, and even a pea coat. What’s next?!
Amanda and Michael. Maternity.
Well, really just Amanda, maternity. But Michael did have SOME involvement. 🙂
You may recognize this soon-to-be Momma from the Lifetime show “One Born Every Minute“. Yep, she’s the starring labor and delivery nurse. And pretty soon, she’ll be on the other side of the hospital bed. How exciting!
My fave. LOVE!
Woody is ready for Brynleigh to arrive. With big kisses and all!
Amanda is an avid scrapbooker. It was only fitting to use her scrapping stickers to spell her baby girl’s name on her belly. 
Michael was singing, “Baby got back” to Brynleigh. It was quite hilarious!
I’ll be seeing you REAL soon. Can’t wait to snuggle with that precious little newborn! XoXo.
Stella Bleu. 9 Months Big.
Stella’s Mommy and Pixie’s Mommy have something in common. Night owls who love to keep Mommy from getting more than a couple of hours of sleep.
Erin and I have had several chats about our restless babies. It’s a great feeling to know there are Mommy’s out there going through some of the same situations. A breath of fresh air, really.
Sleep deprivation is all worth it… LOOK AT THIS BEAUTIFUL GIRL! (I’m typing this as my little one is crying and doesn’t wanna go down for her nap. Wah Wah.)
How pretty princess is this nursery?! Just perfect for Stella Bleu. Love the name!
Eden. 6 Months Big.
And she knows how to spell her name! GENIUS!
I love her and her little toes. She is full of funny faces. This girl knows how to make everyone smile!
I’ll see you in three months, little blue eyed girl!
Drumroll, please! Best of 2011…
With 547 votes, in FIRST PLACE is Delaney and her tea set!
She sure did put up a fierce fight! Delaney was our Best of 2010 winner! Two years in a row!!!! She sure did want that title again!
Enjoy your free session and disc of images. You guys surely deserve it!
In a VERY close second place, with 542 votes, is Avery, Melissa and Ryan! A special gift for you… a $75 print credit for your very close second place win. Thank you so much for all your efforts! SERIOUSLY, you guys ROCK! (I am aware this is a different photo. I was asked to remove the photo on the railroad tracks as this was dangerous. So here is another beautiful photo of this awesome family.)
In third place is Miss Mansfield. She loves a good running! (Or maybe her mother does so she can win a free session. :)) You are BEAUTIFUL, Ashley. Inside and out!
In fourth place, these two adorable little boys. How perfect is this?!
Thank you everyone for your tremendous support with voting and “liking” Crystal Jo Foto. Looking back at these photos really makes me feel successful and proud of the imagery produced. I know how important these are to the folks in them. Memories that will last forever. I am forever grateful to be such a big part of making them possible. Thank you all for the Best 2011. I’m looking forward to many more happy, successful years!
You are ALL winners in my heart!
Here are the other photos I’ve selected as my favorites of 2011. In no particular order…
One Year in a Flash.
I guess I’ve delayed writing this post as I’m kind of in denial my baby girl has passed the one year mark. That’s right. She’s ONE.
It’s hard to sit here and try to put together words to describe this love. The feeling I have for this little girl. Words that are worthy enough. One year now separates us from the beautiful day Pixie was born. One Year. The BEST year.
With one year comes an overwhelming sense of emotion. Gratitude. Happiness. Bittersweet emotions. Being a mother is the greatest honor in the whole wide world. It’s the biggest joy I have ever EVER known. Watching her grow, watching her smile, watching her little personality shine. It’s amazing. I live for it. Everyday. There’s nothing else on this planet I’d rather be doing, but raising my little girl. Holding her and nurturing her. Watching her bloom.
With birthday’s come celebrations. I was wondering if I’d hold it together. I did. Her party was a bit of a whirlwind. A bit? Who am I kidding. Just like the theme, One Year in a Flash, it went by IN A FLASH. Thankfully, it was VERY well documented by my two great photo friends and my little sister. If you’d like to watch the video slideshow, click HERE.
The picture perfect start to a picture perfect party is a picture perfect invitation. I custom designed these tri-fold invites in photoshop and ordered them on pearl paper from my photo lab.
Mary Anne of Contemporary Catering by Mary Anne did such a GRAND job on the food and presentation. We spent months and months planning the look, feel and taste of Pixie’s special party. It couldn’t have been more perfect. My mother moved to North Carolina in August. She’s ALWAYS been there for me when planning any event. It was SUPER hard for me to do this without her. (I know you couldn’t be there Momma Mia. You were there in spirit but we missed your VERY MUCH.) Mary Anne, thank you so much for all of your hard work and love for my little girl. Without you, this party would have been sloppy joes and lunchmeat. It really was amazing. THANKS TO YOU!
Birthday girl. She LOVED all of the attention!
It’s amazing to watch her look at the world with such wonder and excitement.
I call Pixie “Birdie”. Mary Anne and I found this birdhouse that was the perfect centerpiece for the food. She also found the adorable Birdie perched on the house. 
Birdie’s Birdhouse and yummy fruit waffles. Mmm. 
Smaller birdhouses adorned the other tables.
The theme? One Year in a Flash. Photos. Fun. Lollipops. Vintage cameras. Santa Clause. Happiness. Red and white. Polka Dots. Birdhouses. Love. Candy Canes. Snowflakes. Celebration. All of the above.
Photos hung with twine to pull in the brown accent color of the birdhouses and high chair.
The party was held at a friends condo clubhouse. (Thank you Bob, Jenny and Eli!!!) It was the perfect place! Here’s a shot of the dessert table, gift table where the time capsule was and the photo boards. 
Jason was on the search for vintage cameras. All over town. He found some REALLY cool ones from used camera stores and thrifting. They were placed sporadically throughout the food/drinks/gift tables.
I love her shy little smirk here. She looks so happy. So happy. And look at that crazy wispy hair. Makes my heart warm.
I wanted to tie in the photo theme with the food place cards. I took photos of Pixie with her chalkboard and wrote each food item on the board. Three candy canes acted as a little photo stand for each food card.
Pixie, of course, loved posing and modeling for these! This one was one of my favorites. She’s peeking over…. “c’mon, haf sum of Pixie’s popcorn!”
Jason even found a red vintage camera!
Organizing and choosing photos for the slideshow and photo boards was a hefty two day task. I took over three THOUSAND pictures of her in eleven months. That may be a little crazy. I call it love. Aunt Cinni and MaMa helped me make the banners with a fancy cricket. It was so much fun being so crafty. Thank you, Monaghans!
My cousin, Ashley, made her camera onesie and adorable leggings with the Santa fur. She’s sooo talented! Etsy peeps made the headband and ruffle butt.
She is showing off her new skill. Walking. About 4 steps. Love that ruffle butt!
See the red OSU/bear stocking? On Christmas morning last year, the nurses brought Pixie Jo into the hospital room snuggled inside this stocking. It’s very near and dear to my heart. While getting the Christmas decorations out of the tote, I pulled this stocking out and smiled. I took a huge sniff to see if I could smell her newborn smell. Nah, it smelled of basement mold and plastic tote. Doesn’t matter. The memories of her sweet little smell will last forever.
Pixie’s Time Capsule. She will open it on her 18th birthday. We asked everyone to bring something that represents today.
People thought of some REALLY cool ideas…
An iPhone full of photos and music (and a charger so she can turn it on when she is 18). A McDonald’s toy. An angrybird. Adele CD. Glamour, hair and gossip magazines. Newspaper articles about the Buckeyes. Scrapbooks full of items of today including the latest fashion and music. Receipts for common purchases such as gas, stamps, a bottle of Iced Tea and highlighters. Photos of Pixie. Photos of Mommy and Daddy. Crazy photos of Mommy when she was in college and high school…that Mommy may not even be willing to share with her 18 year old. 🙂 A twinkie (they say they last forever, we will know in 17 years). Fashionable high heels. Letters written to Pix (it’s killing me not to open these!). And videos. I think she will really appreciate opening this on December 23, 2028. That seems like forever from now, but with how fast her first year flew by in playing with her toys, I’m sure it will be here before we know it.
Happy Birfinday to me. And my crazy hair! (How freaking cute is this little photographer?!!)
Reading “Birdie’s Big Girl Shoes”. The Seese’s got Birdie a pair of big girl shoes (for the time capsule), the book, a pair of little girl shoes and a photo of birdie lined up next to all of my shoes. REALLY COOL GIFT!
Tank yew for mii hanmayd birfinday kard, Gavin!
Carmel Apple Pie Shooters. Da bomb diggity.
Struttin’ her stuff in her Santa diaper and elf feet.
Blowing out the first birthday candle.
Num. Num.
Bittersweet. But mostly sweet.
I am 1!
Here Daddee. Yew haf sum kayk.
Elf piggies.
Hi Friends.
I found this idea on Pinterest. Cut an invitation and put it in an ornament. We made one for Fiona’s First Birthday and she reciprocated the lovely gift. 🙂
A very special visitor came to wish Pixie a Happy Birthday. She was not very thrilled to see him!
Santa (Jason’s Dad, “Poo Paw”) was a crowd favorite! He gave the kids tins of cookies. And the older kids, too.
The littles were quite funny to watch. Some loved him. Some, not so much.
Pixie’s Peppermint Cosmo’s. De-lish!
Presents! We are still opening one toy a day. It’s been a month since her party. Spoiled girl!
Grandfather and Nannie found a vintage camera with the Christmas scene inside. It is so magical. Each side is different when you look through. It plays music and lights up. They even had the top engraved with a special message to the birthday girl. A gift she will have and love forever.
My ONE YEAR OLD daughter has REAL Ugg’s. Not look-a-likes. Not “designer inspired” like her Momma’s. Real ones. She’s ONE. Do I sound jealous much?!
Her twin cousins can’t get enough of Pixie. It’s just adorable.
Pixie’s Paparazzi….
(Thank you, Berta, Light Girl and Auntie Mo, for making this SO PICTURE PERFECT. LOVE YOU SO MUCH!)
Big news! Roberta (fabulous second shooter for Crystal Jo Foto) is expecting her first born this spring!! 
Look at that cute little baby bump! So excited for you, Roberta and Steve. You are going to be the best parents!!!
And a special note from Pixie..
Thanks for making my birthday picture perfect!!
Robert. 6 Months Big.
And he was SO blessed to have family travel to visit from Brazil and Florida. What a great gift!
That last photo…Awkward Family Photo. Duh.
Josephine. Newborn.
Born December 5th, 2011. Weighing 7 pounds, 11 ounces and 20 inches long.
Precious. Just precious. Look at this little reindeer….
Her daddy bought her this special rosary that a friend made with dried flowers. Dawwwww!
Congrats, new parents! She really is such a gem!
Tyler and Erica. Engaged.
Engaged and REALLY IN LOVE!
These two met at a billiard hall. OH SUH-WHEET. Let’s do your engagement sesh here!
This is MY FAVE. LOVE IT!
AND, SECOND FAVE. Reflection. Reflection. Reflection. Reflection. Super cool.
A little rooftop romance.
I just love the wispy happiness in this one.
I won’t tell you where these photographs were taken because Tyler in a Michigan Alum and he may just be in trouble. Hint Hint.
Erica is a teacher. This is SO fitting. Participants Needed for their 7/7/12 wedding! I am oh-so lucky to be one of those participants! Thank you, Erica and Tyler, for inviting me to be such a big part of your wedding day. I’m SUPER excited!
Some fun facts about these pretty people…
Erica – I’m an “out of work” band director (working retail at the moment) with a bachelors and a masters degree in music education. When I am teaching, I’m a workaholic–I’ll do anything for my students’ success! I have a huge travel bug and have been to Europe three times. I love playing pool–my dad taught me many years ago and Tyler and I still love to play. I also love to cook–it’s very cathartic for me. I’ll send goodies to work with Tyler every so often. I’m pretty sure my cupcakes are the reason he got his promotion!
Tyler – Extremely strict work ethic, University of Michigan degree, love to shoot pool and play darts, the only time I lost to Erica in pool was when I threw the game either to get her phone number when we first met or to keep it interesting when we play best of three games.
When and where is your wedding?
July 7th, 2012 at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Columbus, Ohio
How did you meet?
Erica – Funny story…I had a friend who was pretty shy when it came to men, so she asked me to help her out. I played “wingman” for her on Halloween night, started playing pool with a couple guys, talking to them, trying to get her to keep conversations with them. It just kind of turned out that Tyler and I got to talking, and at the end of the night he asked for my number! The best part, he was so nervous that he ran around the bar to ask someone for a pencil. When he came back, I reminded him he could have put my number straight into his phone. So adorable!
Tyler – We met playing pool at a pub on Halloween 2009. Erica was playing “wingman” for her friend. She actually was trying to hook her friend up with me, but ended up giving me her number at the end of the night. (Great friend huh)
Tell us about your proposal!
Erica – Tyler got us second row seats to see a Cirque Du Soleil show (really they were like front row with how the seats were laid out). I am a HUGE fan of Cirque, so I knew it was going to be a great time. I actually was chosen to be part of the show (I had to make slightly inappropriate flirtatious gestures at a member of the cast) and as I came back to my seat I was grinning from ear to ear. At the end of the show, paper butterflies fell from the ceiling, which is especially meaningful to me, as my late grandma LOVED butterflies. We went back to our apartment, Tyler drew a bath and I grabbed a bottle of wine. When I got back into the bedroom, he proposed. I really have no idea what he said, besides something like “I saw how happy you were tonight, and I want to spend the rest of my life seeing you that happy and making you that happy”. Of course that probably isn’t even close, but it was sweet! And of course he got me the most beautiful ring, including his late uncle’s diamond. I am honored to wear his memory on my finger every day!
Tyler – I was actually not originally planning to ask Erica to marry me the day that ended up asking her. I had bought us tickets to Cirque du Soleil front row for the Ovo show. Erica ended up getting selected from the audience to participate in the show. When the show was finished I realized we had such a great time that there was only one way the day could be any better. When we got home I asked Erica to pour us some wine while I drew a bath. When she came into the bedroom I dropped to one knee, explained how much she meant to me and how much I loved her and asked her to marry me.
What makes you guys unique?
Erica – Hmm. I suppose maybe because I’m a musician and he’s an engineer we’re unique. Very right-brain/left-brain. We have so many similar interests, but when it comes down to it, our professions are extremely different. We balance each other out really well!
Tyler – We are unique because we never get tired of each other. If Erica was the only other person I spent time with I would be completely fine with that.
How did you find Crystal Jo?
Erica – We found her to be wonderful!! All kidding aside, Crystal Jo was the photographer for a close family friend’s wedding. We not only loved the pictures, but heard wonderful things from them about how great she was and what fun they had! We can’t wait for her to shoot our wedding!
Tyler – We found Crystal Jo through word of mouth. She had done such a fantastic job with a friend of ours wedding that we knew she was the right choice for us as well.