Merry Christmas

Our Christmas was quiet but wonderful. Austin had to work most of the time, so I spent a majority of the holiday with my parents and Chloe. I feel so incredibly blessed.

 I swear, this furry little one could fall asleep anywhere. Soooo cute!

-kel

that time we got engaged

This past weekend Austin and I celebrated knowing each other for 2 years AND he also proposed!! I'm still on cloud 9 (and constantly looking down at this gorgeous ring to remind myself this is real). 

How did I get so lucky? 

These are a few of the pictures some friends of ours took the night he proposed in St. Augustine, FL. A little blurry because it was dark and we couldn't sop smiling. 

The ring is so amazing. Not only did Austin pick it out himself, the middle diamond is from his Mom's ring.

Until later..... kel

links, links, links (all things halloween!)

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. So I figured a round up of halloween posts would be perfect!!

First up, all kinds of ways to decorate pumpkins.... glow in the dark, beach scenes, geometric, black and white, paint splatter, etc....

25 things you might not know about Hocus Pocus.

These 80's costumes are amazing!

Even though this isn't technically a halloween post, the inspiration is awesome and the pumpkins in the photo are amazing and extremely creative.

101 cheap costume ideas. 

Have you seen the photoshopped picture of Christina Ricci as Morticia Adams?  Awesome.

 Love this photo. 

And this pretty photo. 

our history

October is one of my favorite months. Ever. 

1- It feels like the real beginning of Fall 

2- It's my pup's birthday month

3- Halloween

4- Speaking of Halloween...I love it all the more now because it's when I met Austin.....

The funny thing is- Halloween isn't actually the first time our paths crossed.

The first time we met was actually several years ago when our mutual friends and the 2 of us went on a ski trip together. Our cabins were pretty far apart from each other, so we didn't see each other very much, however, we did hang out. He barely talked to me though, because I had a boyfriend at the time and according to him was "off limits". I thought he was rude since he barely acknowledged my presence.

But actually, our paths kind of crossed before even that. 

In the 70's both of our moms went to high school together- 492 miles away from where we all now currently live. Without knowing it until Austin and I were dating- it's kind of this amazing, awesome thing. Our families, both from Alabama, both Auburn fans, and both still intertwined by friends and family that know each other (without our having known). 

So Woodlawn, our Moms' high school is where our stories kind of began.

 And Woodlawn is the movie we went to see last week. 

 If you haven't seen it, go see it- it's such a touching and amazing story.


Yea, I know- a tangent. But sometimes it's amazing to see how close we've been this entire time. Some might say cosmic. Some might say fate. But any way you look at it- our relationship is amazing and Austin is the boy I've always prayed for.

nostalgically  yours,
kel

Montisano family

Typically I would never dream of posting photos that I hadn't gone over and edited and spent tons of time trying to perfect. BUT I still haven't been able to redownload my photo editing program since my computer bit the dust, and I'm frankly sick of waiting to post these photos. This family is one of my favorites both to hang out with and to photograph. So I figured for now.....I'll post them as is. Raw. Unedited.

 

 

Come back to see the edited versions later on!
xoxoxo
kel

Chloe turns 21!!!

Today my little pup turns 21 (3 in human years)!!!! 

Party on.

-kel

Post #101

I completely believe in celebrating even the small things. 

So while 101 posts may not seem like a lot, it's definitely a milestone for this blog- a blog I hoped would stick, but wasn't completely sure. It's gone through some transitions as I've tried to decide what I wanted it to be. 

I created this online space as a home for my photography, in hopes of making photography my second career. While I still wish for that (and maybe one day it will happen) right now I think I'm keeping this blog as more of a lifestyle blog.

 So for those of you that read this little blog of mine, thanks for sticking in with me. 

xoxoxo, kel

song #11// Indescribable

This came on my ipod tonight (yup that's right I said ipod- I played it old school today). Not to play puns with the song title, but listening to this song filled me with some kind of indescribable feeling of love and God's power. It also is one of my favorite Chris Tomlin songs. 

Hope you enjoy.

-kel

links, links, links v.18

This list of unintentional funny book titles. 

Leighton Meester is selling some of her things on ebay for an amazing cause. Here's why.

This tattoo and the reasoning behind it. So sweet.

This surfboard is pretty darn awesome.

I love these home decor ideas using branches.

Ok. I am absolutely in love with this dress.  

Handmade from reclaimed material bookshelf. Adore it.

When his owner gets mad at him, this dog turns on the apologetic charm. And it's the cutest thing ever.

1000 FREE prints - from your phone to your mailbox. And you have a year to use them up. Just use code "kstapleton8". Awesome sauce.

A new (to me) blog that I'm currently obsessing over.

Remember this oldish football commercial? It's still one of my all time favorites!

song #10// Wedding Bell Blues

Ever since I was little I have been in love with this song. Part of it is that I love oldies (thanks Mom and Dad) and part of it is that the song is so cute and catchy. Oh yea, and there was that episode of Designing Women where Charlene was getting married to Bill (who I thought was soooo dreamy) and she sang this song the night before the nuptials. 

Then, this summer I was rewatching Gilmore Girls (because that's how awesome I am) and they played this song in an episode. So of course I had to put those 5 minutes of the show on repeat and belt out the song every single time. Because why not?

What's a bit ironic, is that since I was little I've wanted a Bill that I could sing this too..... good thing it's short for William I guess.  **wink wink***

song #9// Uptown Funk

Okay, okay if you've been to a wedding, a party, or even just turned on a radio once and awhile you know this song. In fact, you're probably sick of this song. BUT last year the dance team I co-coach used this song for one of their dances and we're using it again this year for try outs. And guess what? Even after hearing it about 20 times a day, I still love it. It still makes me want to dance. And I absolutely love Bruno Mars (which isn't even his real name, by the way). 

So with all that being said, I couldn't not add this song to my soundtrack list!

asheville, nc

So, like my last post said, Austin and I went to Asheville this past weekend for my friend's awesome wedding. The city is absolutely amazing, with so much to do. 

We spent the day after the wedding with my friend Brian driving along the Blue Ridge Highway and hiking a bit. We got some amazing views and photos and just like the Floridians we are, we hiked in our flip flops. 

The day before the wedding Austin and I joined some of our new friends and visited the Biltmore Estate, gardens, and winery. It literally look over an hour to tour the house and I feel like we barely saw even half the rooms. And that library!!!!! I think I would be okay living there..... just sayin'

Cannot wait to go back!!!!

kel