Happy 1st Birthday Smooch!

One year ago today, my niece Lola was born.  She was and still is the grooviest chick in town.  She never ceases to inspire me.  I cannot believe one year has passed. . . and that Lola now is walking, dancing, squealing and saying uh-oh and bye-bye.  Lo even has a baby cousin, Doss, that she love to pat and kiss.  She is the best and will always be my little Smooch.

my muse at 5 months

Look at this little precious thing!  She's my niece Lola, and my muse.  Inspiring! That is what she is!  I'm obsessed. . . she is just too much.  and when she looks at me like this--well it just makes sense.  Can't wait for her to teach her cousin how to be as cool as she is!  

one punk posy. . . on the way?!?

So, most of you know that I love Etsy. . . I hope to put momoFandango on Etsy someday. . . someday when I have more time.  haha.  Well, the idea of more time continues to evade me. . . and the weeks keep slipping by.  I called Amy and Clay today b/c we looked up and a week had gone by without seeing Lola or Clay and Amy.  Mind you, we literally live 5 minutes from each other!  SO CLOSE--and generally we spend lots of time together, so when a whole week slips by I sort of freak out.  Especially with a birthday just passing by, and our 2nd wedding anniversary coming up tomorrow.  It seems like just yesterday we were rocking out at Perini Ranch for our wedding celebration. What a great party that was!

Anyway, time is slipping by, and these days that is, at once, a good and a scary thing. . . you may have heard on the Hola Lola blog that Ben and I are expecting our first baby!!!!!  December is my due date, and as time slips by, I'm both excited and freaked out.  We still don't know the sex of the baby, and struggle with whether we will find out or not. . . so as of right now I'm searching for items and see the coolest things for boys and girls. . . hence the groovy cards in the pictures above.  Whether we will need the princess or the lamb card remains to be seen, but I sure love everything One Punk Posy (found on Etsy) is doing.  Check out the take on Victorian children coupled with oversized, realistic insects.  How Groove-a-lish! 

So, there you go--who knows if little Miss Lola will have a boy or a girl cousin in December.  No matter the case, our baby is sure lucky to have such a cool chick as a not only and cousin but a neighbor and a friend.  They are going to be such good friends!

Now I would be remiss if I didn't mention that I'm not the only one on the Magill side of the family expecting--Matt and Megan my brother and sister-in-law in NYC are expecting a baby girl in September, and Erin, Ben's first cousin, and Steve Babcock, who also live SO close to us, and who we get to spend lots of great time with, are expecting a little boy in October (who will be big brother to little Callie Ruth, another precious little one that we love and have such a good time with).  So there is lots of fun going on in Big D, and to come for the Magill fam, too, especially with our other nephew, Charlie Magill (Wes and Karen's little boy), who lives in Oklahoma and will be the eldest of the Magill cousins.

We feel so lucky to have all the family we have and to have the precious cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents who will all play a role in raising our child too.  We even think Lola and the baby will hopefully go to the same day care, and potentially the same school someday--wouldn't that be amazing?  They will just miss being in the same class. . . but when I grew up, my best friend was my cousin who was in one grade ahead of me.  I hope that can be the case for my baby, and Lola too.  We plan on keeping the family ties strong and important, so that there is a family loyalty and stability to draw strength from, no matter what. . . boy or girl, hard times, and good times, come what may--we love our family and hope for the same for generations to come.

HolaLola

So my sister-in-law, Amy, (the sassy one in the top photo-uh-matching her momo blanket!) has started an amazingly insightful and achingly hilarious blog called "Hola Lola".  Check it out by clicking on the title of this post.  She is sharing her experience as a new mom (see her daughter, sweet Lola in the bottom photo, chilling at Ben's birthday party--what a fab baby!), and as a new working mom.  She is tackling her feelings, struggles, joys, and learnings with a sincere, and  loving irreverence that will make you laugh and cry at once.  I have been out of inspiration. . .or back in the mode of running the fast race, that my blog took a back seat. . . but as when I started this thing, Amy has once again spurred me onward!  A double dose of good luck for me!

Enter: my muse and a long lost love

My Sister-in-Law, Amy, recently gave me a very special gift; rediscovery.  She asked me to dig out my old manual camera and use it to record the goings-on surrounding the birth of her daughter (my niece), Lola Ruth.  I had not used it since college when I took the most magical class that was all about black and white photography and development.  Over time, as with lots of my other loves, photography has fallen by the wayside in this fast pace life that eats at all time-consuming, wonderful things I once loved to do.  It is all about capturing the moment you are watching, but at the same time it is an expression. . . a point of view. . . I love how it makes you really look at every moment.  So, here is a little compilation of what I captured.  I had such great time and although some of it is a little rusty, I think you can see how much this little one is loved and just how special she is  . . . what a gift my sister-in-law and brother have given this whole family with Lola's birth--but especially me, to be able to be the one to peer into each moment through my lens.

Sweet Lola's nursery

So the newest completed momoFandango nursery just happens to be for my favorite niece, Lola.  She is spunky and groovalicious, and I think her nursery fits her.