Fridays with Fin :: Rosy Cheeks

Did you know that I originally was going to name my design business "Rosy Cheeks Design"... but then I thought the terms "cheeks" could be misinterpreted, so I scratched it and went with the VERY creative name nellie*design! :) Anyway! I'm starting with this today to lead into some pretty great shots of Fin from Christmas with the Leis side of the fam...

Those bad boys {cheeks, not the actual boys} are NOT photoshopped my friends! This was about 1 hour after bedtime, of a very exhausted Finley, after a serious sugar high! He comes by those cheeks honestly though, we can't fault him! Both Matthew AND me have very good blood flow to the cheeks!

Anyway, I didn't mean for this entire post to be about our family's rosy cheeks, I swear. We hope you had a very merry Christmas! We sure did... {and a big thanks to my neice, courtney, for letting me rip these from her facebook page, 'cause I was a horrible mama and didn't take a single photo!?}

Here's Finley opening one of many "Thomas" themed toys...

Here's where the sugar high all began... who decided to give this kid a cupcake at 8pm?

The sugar high setting in and the cheeks getting rosier!

Getting the ride of his life on Uncle Ken...

Cousins. Only 3 months a part. This is a keeper for their wedding slideshows...

Hope your holiday season was a blessed one and we wish you a Happy New Year!!

On to the next Holiday... Valentine's Day!

Let's not wait a moment longer to get ready for the next holiday, hey? Especially for those of you who didn't get your holiday cards out in time... just send out a Valentines Photo Card and pretend like it was planned! :P Take a peek at my new collection of cute, sweet, girly, lovey-dovey and fun Valentine's Day Photo Cards...

Hearts, hearts and more hearts! Click here to order these printable "Happy Love Day" photo cards!

I'm lovin' on navy & pink these days! Click here to order one of these two diagonal stripe valentine designs...

Are you obsessed with the chevron pattern, like I am? Click here to order this fun Zig Zag V-day card...

Sweet and simple, send your love with an adorable photo and bold statement! Click here to order this Kisses Valentine.

Polka dots, hearts, pinks, reds... what more could you ask for in a Valentine? Click here to order your own Happy Heart Day card.

And some more chevron... the pattern is too hot right now NOT to send out a card with it on! Click here to order one of these XOXO Valentine's Photo Cards. 

And don't forget about my adorable return address photo labels! These would be the perfect finishing touch on the envelopes of your Valentine's Cards! Click here to order...

Haven't quite found what you're looking for to express your love this Valentines Day? Let me design something completely custom, just for you! Click here to order...

I look forward to seeing the photos of your adorable family and customizing your Valentine's Day Photo cards!

Fridays with Fin :: Family Photo Shoot

We recently had our family photos taken by the lovely Jenny Duffy, of Jenny Duffy Photography. I was worried about our photos this year because my previous photographer and friend, Tracie, of {tsj} photography, had gotten up and moved on me! She had taken every photo of Fin since he was in the womb! So what was a girl to do... well, one of my amazing neighbors {I live on a really great block with lots of young mamas} offered to have a "photography party" when her talented sis-in-law, Jenny, was going to be in town, for all the families on the block. How awesome is that! We even got a little "froupon" {friend + groupon} rate, as we signed up for a time slot on the weekend.

Our shoot didn't start out with a "happy Fin" {check out the scowl on the pics to the left}, but somehow Jenny managed to capture our family beautifully...

I am always amazed by good photographers who can pull off shooting gorgeous pics of a TODDLER!! That is some serious hard work, and Jenny wowed us with her skillz! We loved how our family photos turned out in front of our house...

We had to pull out all the tricks with Fin to make him happy for the camera. We started with his tricycle... The pic on the right is my absolute favorite! He may look a little "cheesy" but that is my Finny to a T! Thanks for capturing, Jenny! :) {Yes, Scott, aka my biggest Fridays with Fin Fan, these are the pics of Matthew and me frolicking lovingly in front of your house!}

Next, we got out the wagon! I love the idea of a non-portrait shoot. This is real life. Mom and dad doing all we can to put a smile on our kid's face! ;)

The wagon proved to be pure success... These next pics are my "second favorites"!

 Love that boy and his rosy cheeks!

A little game of "on your marks, get set, go!" helped bring on some smiles too!

Love my family... AND the baby girl growing in my belly... {yes, as a woman, I had to put that in so you'd not judge the "pooch" too much!}

 All boy...

What a great experience we had with our new photographer! I wish she lived closer to us {she's in Michigan}. We might have to see if we can work out another photography party for next year! ;) Check out her blog, too. She writes about her family, her beautiful faith and the photos she takes!

Merry Christmas everyone! Here's our holiday card we sent out this year, two of my favorite photos...

More! Free Printable Holiday Gift Tags

I told you I'd be back with some more... here's my gift tags from this post, in gray and red! CLICK HERE to download.

And some more... Holiday Photo Cards

I've been loving all the custom orders for holiday photo cards this year! Click here to order your own custom design to express your style and send something in the mail that's completely unique! Or, check out some of the custom creations I came up with for some of my fun clients and contact me to order one of the designs below for $13!

All photos and names have been changed from the original orders to not spoil anyone's fun of sending out a completely unique holiday card this year! So, if you recognize a face above, this is NOT their holiday card and those are NOT their names! :P 

You've still got time to order, and remember, I can print for you! Don't think you're going to "get it together" before the holiday... Let me custom design a "New Year's" card! :) {We've all been there!}

Fridays with Fin :: Christmas Tree Hunting

Over Thanksgiving weekend we headed "up north" to Green Bay, WI to celebrate the holiday with my family and do a little Christmas Tree hunting! We found a magical tree farm with tractor ride, tree lined hills and a golden retriever, appropriately named "Holly", to greet us as we arrived! The only thing missing was white snow!

Here's Fin, bundled in his GB Packers gear {when in Rome...}, appeasing mommy with a photoshoot...

And here's Fender, making a move on Holly... a little grumpy when denied.

We found our trees... Of course, I didn't take a formal picture of either our family or my parent's tree, but did snap a pic of their names! Each tree on the farm was named. We got a kick out of some of the names and were happy to take "Doug" and "Ted" home! Too bad Fin's little Charlie Brown tree wasn't for sale.

My boys...

Fin soaked up every second with Grandma and Grandpa Joe {"ja-joe"}...

But a weekend with family and tree hunting made for a very tired toddler and puppy... but a very quiet ride home!

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Happy Weekend! :)