An unlikely pair.

After church yesterday, we were driving on the official Cincinnati Festival hunt (Catholic Church festivals are legit around these parts, perfect fun for a small budget) and as we were waiting at a stop light, an interesting looking couple holding hands (and looking very much in love for that matter) crossed in front of our car.

As they were crossing I looked at the Hubster and remarked that this couple seemed like an unlikely pair. And they did. The girl was BEAU-TIFUL, dressed to the nines in a flowing Maxi, adorable shoes, and literally the most perfect accessories I have ever seen in my life. Her hair and makeup were flawless, and she was just glowing radiance.

The guy not so much. He had a long stringy mullet, was wearing an airbrushed wolf shirt and Pajama pants. Needless to say, they were a little mis-matched.So when I said those words out loud, my expectation was for my husband to agree. I mean PJs and Evening gown! Come on!

Instead, he looked at me mouth agape. Like I had just sprouted two heads. And he uttered the words I least expected to hear.

" Jess I can't believe you would say something so racist"

After a double- no TRIPLE take at the couple, I realized what he was talking about. They were a mixed couple.And I didn't even notice. But my words, my completely innocent words were taken to a horrible, ugly place, even though my intentions weren't anywhere near racial.

Sigh. In one breath I'm happy. Happy that I married someone who cares enough about me and my face (so I don't get punched for saying something stupid), and sad, that such an innocent statement could be turned into something so awful.

For the record, I am not racist, but if I see you out in Pajamas an an airbrushed wolf shirt, I may double take...especially if you're holding hands with someone way out of your league.

I'm nothing if honest.

Picnics, Spiddles, and dirt...OH MY!

Those are straight up happiness spiddles. Try not to melt. 

Ohio weather has really been courting us hard this late spring. Diving in for that first smooch, holding the door open, the whole nine yards. And although this unseasonable warmth  is  putting a damper on my razor budget since we're starting this whole summer thing earlier,  I'm totally rocking the whole forgive and forget mentality, bucking up and doing my female shaving duties without complaint, because this weather gets the little guys out of our house and into the world. Summer is in the business of making little boys smile. And today was no exception.

Here in Ohio, sunny days usually follow the same protocol, sleeping in tad later than usual oh that air conditioning makes me SWOON, followed by a quick breakfast/ sunscreen application (which usually results in me tasting Coppertone for the rest of the day), then heading outside for hardcore playtime only to be stopped by lunch, which this particular day was sponsored by Ronald McDonald himself, then to continue the afternoon/evening with more play.

And the grand finale, is that after a quick dinner, bath and minimal protest, the boys are off to dreamland only to be awakened by the next morning's sunny day to start it all over again.

It's 100% summer bliss at it's finest.

Bravo Ohio. It looks like you've outdone yourself once again.

Praying and hydrating. Multi-tasking is a very important part of  busy sunny day plans.

Speaking of unnecessary photography,

I was named one of the 30  Mommies to follow on DisneyBaby.com!
Check it out by CLICKING HERE (hint; slide 21 my guys are riding a vacuum, um I mean "spaceship")!!!!!

Happy weekend ya'll!

Popcorn and buddies, need I say more?

Outside.

Becoming a work from home blogger is a hustle, and I haven't even been down in the deepest trenches yet. I still have so much to learn, I still need to be the proverbial "freshman" and work my way up the ranks. I need to learn from everyone who has taken their precious time to mentor me, and I need to value it, bottle it up and bathe in it until I understand who I am and where I'm going.. Knowledge is power, and I'm so thirsty to learn.

But as thirsty as I am, I have to remember why in the world I'm type- type- typing away, and that is so one day, I can officially wear the name tag of professional blogger. It's a tough road, and I'm still on the starting line, and although I would be completely content being in front of the computer 24/7, I have to remember that these moments with my boys are the best moments, and working and becoming successful is never going to be as sweet as the bobbly steps and the first discoveries full of excitement for my little ones.

So today I put down the computer, turned off the phone, and took a break from the hustle.

Today we went outside.

And The InstaGRAMMY goes to... my top 4 Instagram Apps.

It's no secret. Instagram is my most favorite form of social media. Sorry blog, I love you lots, but there is nothing like the warm and fuzzies you get from looking at Filtered photos of other people's kids and lives.

You just can't beat Instagram.

But the biggest faux pas you can make on Instagram, is having bad photos. I'm not talking about pictures that are distasteful (those get the boot from Instagram), I'm talking about pictures with weird coloring (usually too dark), grainy focus and just plain bad. Instagram pictures should be like the Senior picture portion of the yearbook. Clear, colorful (unless you're going for an artsy black and white vibe) and just plain better than any other pictures. You want them to look like a postcard, all dolled up and ready to be sent around the world. Okay maybe that sounds a bit too radical, but I told you...I adore Instagram.

Enter the best thing to happen to Instagram since the Walden filter...extra Apps.

These Apps are designed to spruce up every photo with extra filters, totally rad borders, awesome fonts (to type into photos and really neat features to professionalize your photos.

Since I'm the go big or go home type, I wanted to host the first annual InstaGRAMMYs, where I myself nominate my top 4 Instagram Apps imagine me in a ball gown , (okay truth... I'm in sweatpants, but just imagine) holding a golden camera trophy for the winners. 

So without further adieu.



Best Doodle Award:  A beautiful Mess. 

This App is the cutest thing to happen since sliced bread. For only .99 you can have a ton of neat borders, colorful customized text,doodles and awesome phrases. The masterminds behind the blog A beautiful Mess have created graphic design  genius. In fact, all day yesterday, Instagram was flooded with #abeautifulmess upon it's new release. Needless to say it did not disappoint.

Pros: This App is super cute for dolling up your pictures, there are tons of options. The pre-made doodles are AMAZING.
Cons: Some of the cutest doodles, phrases and borders are not included in the original .99 and cost extra. When you type your own phrase, many of the fonts don't show up as well, and the bolder fonts are an added in App cost.

Best App for writing my own phrases:  Over

This App is awesome, and it completely steps in where other apps fall short. A little more expensive 1.99 this App offers tons of fonts with endless color choices. There are many bold font choices as well as lighter fonts to choose from, but I felt like the included fonts were perfect for my needs and I did not need to purchase the in App extra fonts.

Pros: This is my go to App when writing my own phrases on a picture.
Cons: Over is a little more expensive, and and extra fonts do have an extra cost. The fonts are only 2 dimensional, and cannot be adjusted to appear multi-dimensional.

Best Cutout borders: Afterlight

After being introduced to this App via my Instagram, I immediately fell in love. This is my go to App when it comes to quirky and unique cut-out borders. Priced at .99, this app adds a fun feel to any photo. It takes me back to a simpler time when I would cut out heart shaped pictures of Justin Timberlake. Now there's an App that traces a perfect heart border around the pictures of my newest little crushes (my kids).

Pros: There are endless border possibilities, Shapes, Letters and endless cropping and focusing abilities. Afterlight also offers an array of editing tools.
Cons: I was not impressed with their filters, although they have many to choose from, they seemed to all look the same. Though this may just be an operator error, since I'm in no way a professional photographer. Also Afterlight also does not include collage options.

Best all around editing & collage options :     Photogene 2

This is the big daddy of all Instagram Apps and priced at 1.05 it should be. This is my go to for awesome filters, photo editing and creating picture collages. It is my most used App, and I love it. Photogene 2 is my number one choice for making Iphone pictures look professional.

Pros: Need I say more about the editing possibilities and the filters. Seriously. Photogene 2 is for the professional photographer posers (a.k.a me).
Cons: The Cost. Spending anything over .99 on an App makes me itchy and twitchy. Even if it's worth it.

So those are the InstaGrammys for spring of 2013. I hope that you learned more about theses Apps, and less about my apparent photo App hoarding problem.

Enjoy your Apps and happy Instagramming!





^^^ You'll notice that the sitting baby overtakes my photos at this point. The mobile 3 year old has learned how to dive and duck. Hopefully we will see a "sitting still" App in the near future.