Today I'm going to do something a little more personal and I think some random facts are a fun way to do just that. They are in no particular order either. 

~ Eating Peppermint Patties is a real treat

~ I have LOUD Snowshoe's Siamese cat named Zorro.

~ Praying is very important to me and I have developed an awesome system to record my requests. Just ask me more.

~ People watching is a hobby of mine, anywhere I go, I love watching others interact.

~ Growing up on a farm taught be about hard work, long hours and the peacefulness of rising early in the morning.

~ The library is a favorite place of mine. I LOVE reading. 

~ Someday I would love to visit Ireland.

~ A Lamborghini is my all time favorite car and I have loved them since I was a kid.

~ Every vacation we take always includes finding the best Hibachi Grill. 

~ Hiking is something I enjoy but the view at the top is always my favorite part. 

~ I don't like the cold but I enjoy ice skating.

~ Traveling is always better with snacks. Someday I'm taking my husband back to see the Grand Canyon. My favorite place ever.

~ Listening to podcasts, audio books or the news is preferred over music. 

~ I'm loyal through and through. I keep my friends close even when distance separates us. 

~ High heels are part of my DNA. Even though I'm tall, I still enjoy them.

~ Pier 1 is my favorite store.

~ Cinnamon is the candle scent I enjoy the most.

~ Chocolate Chip Cookies are the best. Soft ones though, I don't like them crunchy. 

~ Not all I eat is junk food though. I try and eat healthy most of the time.

~ When I was young my best friend called me Holly "Paper" Switzer because I collected pretty stationary. To this day I have a hard time passing up elegant stationary or journals. 

~ It's better monogrammed. 

~ I still date my husband after 11 years of marriage.

So...that is just a little bit about me. Thanks for reading!

Be sure to join our newsletter so you can be the first to know when we open enrollment for our spring portrait sessions. Spots are limited. 

I LOVE to read. I have a personal goal to read 15 minutes everyday. Last year I has the same goal and read over 7000 pages! In short, I didn't always get to bed as early as I thought I would, but it was worth it! For me as a pastor's wife and Mother, 15 minutes is do able. When I have more time that is great but when I don't, it's still pretty easy to reach my goal. I'm not a big fiction reading but I do like to read business books, biographies and autobiographies. 

With February being focused on LOVE I wanted to focus on some wonderful marriage related books I have read over the years. Being reminded of what we know we should be doing or learning something new that we can use in our marriages is so healthy. We need to keep working on our marriages to make them stronger.
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If you have never read The 5 Love Languages, put it on your to do list. 

How we express our love to our spouse is most often done the way we like to receive love. Discovering how we express and receive love is important to being able to describe our love to the one who means the most to us. We may also need to change how we show love to them so that they truly understand how much they mean to us.
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This book, Love & Respect, was a real eye opener to me. The way my husband needs respect was an aspect of our relationship I really under estimated. As I read the stories and explanations, I knew I had changes I needed to make. This is a very good book I think every couple should read.

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100 Prayers for Your Marriage. This one is meant to be used daily not so much as a sit-down-and-read-it-all kind of book. The prayers are short but powerful and thought provoking. I really love it because it's like a guide to praying for different areas of your marriage. I believe prayer is our most powerful weapon in preserving our marriages. 
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The 4 Seasons of Marriage. Not all of us are in the butterflies-in-our-stomach stage of marriage. We have grown together and life is moving on. But be on the watch for signs things might be wrong. This is a great book for couples who have been married for a while. 

As a pastor's wife, I've need marriages do well and I've seen them struggle. Often times, the advice given in these books is very helpful to engaged couples, newlyweds and seasoned couples. I hope you will invest in your marriage this month.

What other books have you read that really helped you? Comment below or on  Facebook or Instagram, I'd love to hear from you. 

Home Decor with a personal flare.

When we walked through our first home, the living room was my selling point. It was large enough for lots of friends to come hang out and the wall space was amazing. I could envision my images above the mantel. I said," That's where my canvas's are going." 

When we moved in, I hung our family images in a gallery. One short afternoon, we had spend capturing the exciting change in our life. A happy little 6 month old who made our lives so different and wonderful. The images reflected the fun we had. As I hung them, it brought back those wonderful memories and the truth, that he was already so much bigger than the day we took those images!! {sniff, sniff}

This is why I plan "wall art" images in my mind, every time I create images for my clients, whether they it's a portrait session or a wedding. Knowing that these images will be worthy of being turned into unique wall art in their homes. {I love my job!}

Many walls deserve large art too. The center image in this gallery is a 20x30. Wow, that sounds HUGE doesn't it!! when you see it in writing, but the reality is, it's not really as big as you think when you look at my mantle. 

This one was of a wedding and these are all the same size 16x24. A little bit smaller but I love the repeat effect, three images together gives.

I'm in LOVE with wall art. Are you? Comment below on how you have used it around your home and contact me to talk about creating images for your home. 

Keep smiling,
Holly