Author Archives: jo anne

picnic in the park

April 21, 2012

This beautiful weather gets me thinking of a fun day in the park and what better way to do that than with a picnic.

We are planning a preppy picnic photoshoot soon at a local golf course.

Enjoy this inspiration from

Martha Stewart Weddings

and enjoy your Spring weather!

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brother sister photoshoot

April 13, 2012

Ashley and Matt are an adorable brother and sister duo! Matt just turned 11 and Ashley is 9 with a birthday very soon. I was excited to photograph them for their annual birthday portraints last week.

We used the whole park, running and jumping climbing trees, lying in the grass – they were up to it all.

They were so much fun to work with, and today I wanted to share just a few of our images from our shoot.

Pagette

Find Pagette Callender Photography on facebook!!

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Recently I was speaking with a friend who has a three year old and a three month old. Over the course of the conversation we covered it all–sleep, lack of sleep, adjustment of her three year old to the new baby, marriage, laundry, running errands with two kids and guidance techniques. Three guesses as to what we spent the most amount of time talking about…exercise. She was upset because she hasn’t been able to find time to exercise and I was trying to normalize her life for her–of course you don’t have the time…you have two small kiddos…you’re successful if you are brushing your teeth every day.

If you have been the mother to a three month old, you’re probably not surprised. Three months seems to be this magic age where you’re baby should be sleeping through the night, eating only every four hours and you should have your body back. Of course, if you have been the mother to a three month old, you know that three months is really the age at which things are just kicking into gear. You’re baby is just know learning the difference between days and nights, hence their appetite is adjusting and you have less time to exercise because you have either returned to your job outside of the home or are redefining your job inside the home.

The conversation my friend and I were having turned to self care. She was saying that exercise is her self care. I was saying that if you are feeling guilty about not doing the thing you do to care for yourself, its not self care. Self care is defined on Wikipedia as, “personal health maintenance. It is any activity of an individual, family or community, with the intention of improving or restoring health, or treating or preventing disease.” Exercise easily fits into this definition, I see that. What I am suggesting is that if you have set up your self care as an activity that is (a) hard to find the time and place to do it and/or (b) you are going to feel guilty about not completing it than it is not really self care.

Lets think of self care as a spectrum. Realistically, most parents to two small children are going to be hard pressed to find the time to exercise. What if self care was more fluid…what if we allowed our idea of self care to change as our life changes? On some days I have the time to exercise so I do that as self care. On other days, the only time I have is around midnight…the kids are asleep, the laundry folded and the last dish washed, I’ve time spent with my husband and it’s too late for me to want to go to the gym…so my self care is watching an episode of the Housewives of Where ever. It’s an activity to restore health because I get to unplug and be mindless for an hour. Sometimes that is the best thing I can do for my self. Self care is about being compassionate to yourself. Treating yourself with love and respect. The last thing any of us need is something else to feel guilty about.

So, lets widen our idea of self care and allow ourselves to find peace in a variety of activities. Redefine your definition of self care so that you are not feeling guilty if you do not have the time or energy to do a complete workout. Think of “self care” as your tool box and add many different types of tools to the tool box: exercise, music, reading, shopping, Housewives, laughing, etc.

More other self care tool is Pinterest. Here is one of my latest finds on Pinterest that says it all.

follow oh goodie designs + style.inspired on Pintrest!!

Have a happy week!

Janel Perez, M.S., L.P.C

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making substitutions

April 10, 2012

Hi everyone. Hoping yall all had a wonderful, relaxing Easter. We had such a nice day I was sad to see it end!

Today I am baking and I was thinking of what I could share with you all. Then I thought of substitutions that I like and those I don’t like as much. These are just my opinions and what I have found to work for me, where I live.

I started substituting yoghurt for oil about 6 months ago and never went back. Usually a non-fat, organic Greek yogurt – same amount as oil. I’ve also used an organic, vanilla yogurt and it worked just as well. And even in a chocolate cake – it didn’t make it taste vanilla-y. I love how yoghurt makes a cake turn out – more moist (moister? Is that a word?) and a bit springier. I never ever use oil anymore. Don’t ask me how this effects the nutritional numbers because I don’t know – but I know it makes them better and not worse.

Some people substitute applesauce for oil. I’ve tried that too. I didn’t like it as much. Actually I didn’t like it at all. I could taste the apple (not my favorite fruit). I didn’t find the texture the same and certainly not better than a cake made with oil. Maybe in a fall-flavored cake like spice or pumpkin it wouldn’t bother me, but in a normal vanilla or chocolate cake it is definitely not my choice. I guess you could try half applesauce and half oil, but why? That’s seems too complicated for my simple tastes.

Especially now that I’m in love with yogurt! We even use it in place of sour cream (the Greek kind – not the vanilla flavored).

Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Happy Tuesday everyone. Enjoy every minute!

peace – Tammy

Find Tammy of

~bon bon~

on facebook and her new website

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Easter Egg Hunt

April 7, 2012

I hope everyone is enjoying their Easter holiday!

Here is our Easter Egg Hunt as seen on 20Best Twenty.

This inspiration is full of last minute ideas to get your hopping on your way.

An Easter egg hunt is always fun for the kiddos. I loved hunting and seeking eggs as a child and I love the family time it allowed us to have.

These simple ideas and menu won’t add to the stress of preparation.

I used these cute scapbook embellishments from Martha Stewart Crafts at Michael’s to make my cake and cupcake topppers.

I didn’t have time to print and punch and I thought this gave a more interesting 3-D look and fit with my theme and colors very nicely.

and I love the cake stands by CookieCraft! They are amazing!

I downloaded our cute Egg Hunt banner by Harper Gray and strung it from the tree.

I love making Easter baskets for my children so I whipped this one up quickly with a little hot glue and artificial flowers and ribbon I had on hand.

Our family tradition as a child was always my grandmothers Angel Food Cake. Now that she is gone, I always try to include it in family festivities.

I topped it off with more scapbook flowers and a metallic cake banner from Cookie Craft.

For sweet treats, I used powdered sugar donut holes for “bunny tails” and I did labor a little over the chocolate covered Oreos.

this was my first attempt at these cookies. i have made molded candies in the past, but you can see where i didnt distribute the candy coating evenly in the one cookie. oops.

I also used molded sugar cubes from Austin Sugar Works for toppers. I love how it looked and will do this again!

My favorite fruit dip ever is so simple to make. Here is what you need:

1 block of cream cheese

1 tub of whip topping

1 small jar of marshmallow creme

Mix it all together at room temperature and dig in. Fresh strawberries and marshamallows on a stick are it’s perfect mate.

An easy flower arrangement was made by dying eggs, unboiled, cleaning out the inside, making a hole in the top of the egg and placing a snip of hydrangea in the hole. I used a ceramic egg crate found at Target.

We use confetti eggs to hunt because it’s always fun to crack those on unassuming heads when it’s all over.

My daughter Emilea has too much fun with our borrowed bunny friend, Thumper. I almost could not return it to the pet store because she was so in love.

Here’s hoping everyone a wonderful Easter!

Thanks to Pagette Callender Photography for her patience, time and great pictures!!

Posted in a cup of Jo, celebrations, DIY, easter, family, graphic suites, harper gray, living, style, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Springtime in Texas

April 6, 2012

I love spring in Texas. Specifically, I love spring wildflowers, and thanks to our winter rain, this year’s bluebonnet season is better than ever!

Last week, I had the pleasure of doing a bluebonnets photo shoot with Joanne’s kids, Lilly, Billy, and Emilea, and her sister’s kids, Tommy and Charlie. All the kids were so energetic; they made the shoot a ton of fun. The little boys just wanted to run and play and the girls had very specific ideas about how they wanted to pose!

(I even managed to coax a few smiles out of sweet Billy –even when he had to pose with his sisters.)

I loved that Lilly chose her cute orange dress for the shoot– the color was such a beautiful contrast with all the whites and blues.

Thanks to Joanne and Janel for allowing me the opportunity to photograph their precious kids before JoAnne and her family move to Corpus Christi.

Maybe next time we can do a beach shoot!!

Pagette

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bird’s nest cupcakes

April 5, 2012

Just in the nick of time, here’s a quick and easy idea for an adorable Easter dessert. Even the kids could help with this one!
You’ll need:
Store-bought iced cupcakes (regular or mini-size)

1 Sugar Sheet (in a bright color)

Jelly Beans (in assorted bright colors)

Scissors

Spoon

1. Cut a 1″ wide strip of the sugar sheet with your scissors. From that strip, cut really thin strips (1/16″ – 1/8″ wide). These will make up the “sticks” for your nest.

2. Use a spoon to scoop out a rounded section of icing in the center of your cupcake. This is going to make a nice little hole in which your nest will rest.
3. Scatter your sugar strips randomly to cover the hole in the icing top. Make your nest. Keep adding strips until a nice bed of “sticks” has been made and the hole in your icing has been disguised.

4. Place a few jelly beans in your nest to act as eggs.

5. Eat the entire thing, even the nest!

Join CookieCraft on facebook as they are always cooking up something fun!

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Easter Egg Nest

April 5, 2012

I love the way these eggs are displayed over at

One Charming Party

Such a cute idea!

See more Great Easter ideas on their site!

You’ll be glad you hopped by!!

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Play Ball!

April 5, 2012

It was the opening day for baseball yesterday and if you lived in my house, you’d know that. There was a spring in my husbands step, a song in his voice and a brightness to his smile. Baseball is a refuge for him. A story rich in historical context and full of promise for the future. What does the season hold, who is playing where and who are the young prospects to watch are just a few of the topics of conversation around our house now and for the rest of the season.

I enjoy watching baseball, also. I will admit to you that i will “feel bad” for a player who makes a mistake during a game. If a pitcher chokes, a batter under pressure strikes out or an outfielder misses a catch, I feel sad for them. I imagined that player feeling bad, also…distracted maybe. I will voice this during games and my husband will begin a conversation about victory and defeat. His responses range from challenging me to not feel sad for the players who made the mistake, but admiration for the skill of the opposing player. So, if a pitcher chokes it might be because he allowed himself to feel the pressure of the opposing batter. If a batter strikes out, it’s because the pitcher is talented and if an outfielder misses a catch, perhaps its due to the batter knowing where to hit the ball so that it couldn’t be caught easily.

I’ve related these feelings to my husband regarding our kiddos. When they are old enough to play sports I want it to be a fulfilling experience for them. My husband once suggested that playing sports is where children learn how to deal with frustration and how to be motivated by losing.

Motivated by losing. I had to sit with that thought for awhile. It became a metaphor for life for me. How many times have I thought to make a change and then became distracted/overwhelmed/sad/felt bad/whatever word you want to use when I didn’t see immediate results. An athlete will not be successful if they are thinking of mistakes in their past and can become anxious if thinking of the future…just like us non-athletes.

Its the power of NOW. This phrase has almost become invisible due to overuse and misunderstanding. Sure, its true that we need to live in the moment just like its true that worrying empties today of its promise. Utilizing the power of NOW does not mean immediate gratification. It does mean allowing yourself to listen to yourself and go after what you want. It means working hard toward a goal and not getting distracted by the anxiety of the “what-if’s” of the future or “if only’s” of the past.

In this way we can strive to be like a professional ball player. Set your goal, go after what you want and stay in the NOW. Let go of mistakes, make adjustments as needed and keep your eye on the ball. Learn to deal with frustrations rather than letting frustrations own you. If you’ve been unsuccessful in the past, be motivated by that to get back in the game, step up to the plate and knock it out of the park.

Let’s Play Ball!

Janel Perez, M.S., L.P.C.

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