Welcome

Thanks so much for stopping by the new blog of Crista Acosta Photography. If you who are visiting for the first time, welcome! For those of you who have been here before, I appreciate you coming back and taking the time to keep up with my life and my work.

I'm a wife who is lucky enough to married to her best friend, a mom of a very active toddler, and a baby that is expected to arrive in the spring. They are my greatest loves, and the reason for all that I do. Somewhere along the way, I fell in love with photography too and this blog is a documentation of it all. If you're interest in poking around a bit, I'll share recent client work, studio news, and a bit (okay - A TON!) about my life and my family.

Thanks!

The Story of the Butterfly

When I updated the blog and got the new revamped logo, I promised to share the story of the Butterfly.  There are some people who have known me for years, and would know that I’ve always loved butterflies.  My first car was a 1972 purple VW Bug and the interior was covered in butterfly stickers.  It goes further than that though.

My Grandmother - who we always called Grandma Jones (though that wasn’t her real name) - was diagnosed with cancer before I was born.  She had been told that she had just a few years at the most, and that she would have to go through extensive chemotherapy in order to continue her life.  She began treatments, and suffered unhappily through the effects that the chemo had on her body.  Eleven years later, much longer than anyone had expected her to live, she had enough of the treatments and decided to fulfill her own personal dream.

She contacted her doctors and advised that she would no longer be pursuing treatment of any kind.  She then packed up all her belongings, and bought a house on Martha’s Vineyard by herself.  Within a few months, she acquired a puppy to keep her company.  He was appropriately named Shadow.  Grandma Jones and Shadow quickly became a part of the island community.  She lived in Vineyard Haven and spent a lot of her time reading unique finds from Bunches of Grapes bookstore.  She got to know the ferry captain by name.  Most of all though, despite all odds being against her, she thrived on the Island where she continued to live for 8 more years - the best years of her life.  She was independant, and she was happy.

Grandma Jones was a beacon of strength in the face of her illness, and most of all she pursued her dream although it defied all odds.

When she passed away, we all traveled to the Vineyard to pay our respects and watch over her burial in an island cemetery.  It was a warm spring day, and after the services I went outside at her house to stand on the porch looking into the woods behind the house when suddenly a butterfly flitted over and landed on my arm.  I knew in an instant that it was her, just stopping by, just making sure we were all okay. 

Since then, there have been too many times to count where in a moment of turmoil, or on the crux of a tough decision my thoughts have been interrupted by a lone butterfly flitting in front of my face.  The butterfly is about pursuing my dream, and believing - despite the odds.  It’s about listening to my her when she said “Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t”. 

Separation Anxiety

In general, L.A. is a pretty relaxed, easy going little dude and I thought we’d totally lucked out and sailed through without hitting the separation anxiety phase.  Wrong.  So, so wrong.  In the past week or so, his mom clinginess has increased and I attributed it to the molars that have been working their way in and making our lives miserable.  We’re now at the level of complete emotional breakdown if I walk out of his line of sight.  I’m talking tears, choking-can’t catch your breath-sobbing if I dare to use the restroom or try to retrieve something from another room. 

I’d be lying if I didn’t acknowledge the fact that I typically love his attachment to me.  There’s something so sweet about those big eyes that are always searching for me, for reassurance.  This, however - is a little overboard.  Any been there-done that-moms want to give me some insight as to how long this phase might last?

In other family news, both C and L.A. woke up this morning with coughs and scratchy throats.  Awesome.  All the wives out there, go ahead and give a sympathetic nod of the head… you know which one of my boys will need more attention this weekend.  ;)  I love you C!

10 on Tuesday

Ten things I’m loving right now.

1.  Watching the munchkin practicing his first steps.  He can go about 4 or 5 steps before he crashes.  Notice the tongue - it’s always out when he’s concentrating.

2.  In the past two days, I’ve already read Twilight, and I’m nearly done with New Moon by Stephanie Meyer.  The fact that I’ve been able to bury myself in reading is notable in and of itself.  Loving this series!

3.  Because of the way the holidays have fallen, I’ve gotten to spend tons of extra time with C and L.A. just lounging around the house in our sweats.  Here’s a random snapshot C took of the munchkin and I last weekend.  I edited this picture in an attempt to make myself look presentable, and it’s still rather scary… but it’s been a while since we’ve had a picture together.  So here I am in all my Saturday morning no makeup glory!

4.  Italian Wedding Soup.  For some reason, the combination of those little meatballs, spinach and tiny pasta have me seeing hearts dancing in my head.  Here’s a quick version of the recipe I’ve been using.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 pound ground turkey 
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
  • 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • 2 cups chopped spinach
  • 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped carrot
  • 1/2 medium onion finely chopped

DIRECTIONS

  1. In medium bowl, combine meat, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, basil and onion powder; shape into 3/4 inch balls.  An easy trick I’ve used is to make a long rope and then slice it up so that you can roll several meatballs at once.
  2. In large skillet with a bit of olive oil, brown meatballs and then set on a seperate plate to drain.
  3. In small pot, cook orzo until al dente.  Drain.
  4. In large saucepan, saute carrots and onion with a little olive oil.  Add broth and heat to boiling; stir in spinach and meatballs. Return to boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes or so.

I always cook the pasta seperately because otherwise it soaks up all the broth of the soup.  I usually add a scoop of orzo to the bowl and then top it off with a few ladles of soup.  Mmm… I can smell it right now.  A nice crusty bread goes fabulous with this meal.  I should have a picture here for you, but I don’t.

5.  Speaking of nice crusty bread, one of my greatest loves of late is this Garlic Infused Butter.  I’m all about a good garlic bread, and I swear if you can find this in your local store it will change your life (and possibly your pants size).  I use it mainly as a spread on a great multi-grain loaf, but you could use it for a thousand other things.  The credit for this find goes to my neighbor and good friend who introduced me to it. 

6.  These bright eyes. 

7.  My Uggs.  They’re ugly, yes, but they’re like pillows for my feet.  Absolutely a weekend wardrobe staple.

8.  Catching up on other photographer’s blogs.  There is an amazing amount of talent and inspiration out there.  If you’re interested in checking out some very cool things, here’s Jacob’s Sunrise and Sunsetseries, and amazingly moving slideshow of birth photography by Lyndsay, and my friend Jaidean’s blog who is an amazing photographer and her beautiful daughter was born the same day as L.A.

9.  My favorite sound at the moment is my two boys laughing hysterically together over something that I have no part of.  My heart swelled when I saw this.

10.  This really should be #1 on my list.  Since I’m over the holiday rush and in a bit of a lull until mid-January, I’ve been able to take TONS of pictures of my own family.  There is just no amount of value I could put on that. 

Naptime

It hasn’t been going so well lately.  We’re in the midst of popping some molars through, and despite the fact that his mood has been alright in general, naptime usually lasts about a half hour before L.A. wakes up crying and with this face pleading to be removed from the torture that is his crib.

He will however sleep for hours on our chest, on the couch.  This rendered C and I rather useless for hours at a time this long weekend.  Honestly?  I would have paid to press the pause button.  Rare is the time either of us just lounges for more than 5 minutes unless the boy is asleep, and then it’s out of sheer exhaustion.  More than that though, L.A. is very quickly outgrowing the sitting still and snuggling phase, so I’ll gladly hold onto these moments as long as they last. 

Twas the Night Before Christmas

I probably won’t have a chance to post tomorrow, so I’d like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry, and peaceful Christmas.  

I’d also like to recognize those people in my life with whom I couldn’t do without.  First and foremost, my husband - who doesn’t always get the credit he deserves.  You are my rock, and when I close my eyes at night, I could never imagine my life without you.  I am blessed to have you, and I appreciate everything that you do for our family, and for me.  Thank you.  My son - you are without question the light of my every day and the driving purpose behind all that I do.  In the past 13 months you have completely changed the way I look at life.  P2 - my unborn baby, thank you for reminding me to slow down.  This time flies too quickly, and with each little squirm and kick I’m reminded of how precious it all is.

I’m thankful today for my family, and my in-laws for welcoming me into the madness as one of their own.  For my friends - the ones I’ve known for years who can tell by the tone in my voice or the look on my face what is on my mind.  Thank you for understanding me.  For the friends I haven’t known that many years, I may as well have because you’re just as deep in my heart.  For the many friends I’ve met through various message boards, you’ve offered me so much sage advice and encouragement, I couldn’t possibly thank you enough.  

Lastly, to my clients - thank you for taking a leap of faith on me in 2008.  I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve had to spend time with so many beautiful families and capture your memories.  

May you all have a beautiful Christmas.  Much love from the Acosta Family to yours.

I suppose it could be far worse

The newest development of L.A.’s strange quirks has been his obsession with his little toothbrush.  If he catches glimpse of it, he immediately reaches out and says “Mom!” as in “Lady, give me that toothbrush”.  If I dare to hesitate for even a second, the “Mom” is repeated and quickly becomes louder and more intense. 

He also refuses any brushing assistance, because clearly at 13 months he can already do it on his own.  If I attempt to help, it’s made very clear VERY quickly how frustrating it is that his mom doesn’t understand his independence. 

The toothbrush is a bath time staple.  Who needs the 3 rubber duckies, squirting toys and bath cups when you have a toothbrush?  We haven’t reached the point of the toothbrush needing to come to bed yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it isn’t that far off.

20 Minutes

The time it took to get the munchkin stuffed into his snowsuit for a snow excursion that wound up lasting about 5 (maybe 10) minutes.  ;)   It was totally worth it though.  Surprisingly, despite being rendered mostly immobile, L.A. was pretty happy to be outside with the white stuff!

I think he was almost done at this point… 

“Mom?”

For months and months, L.A. babbled “Dadda Dadda” over and over.  I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to being a tad jealous at hearing him happily call out for C with no hint of my name on the horizon.

Oh how the tables have turned.  At the moment, both C and I are known as Mom in our house, but it’s always said as a question - “Mom?”.  Nine times out of ten though, he’s actually talking to C, so after “Mom?” I hear from the other room some version of the following - “I’m not your mom, I’m Dad”, “Not Mom, DAD!”, “Your mother is in the other room, but Dad is here”, and perhaps the funniest of all, a mutter of “I’m not answering until you say Dad” which is then met with a more insistent “Mom?”

One of these days he’ll get it right.  In the meantime, it’s nice to hear my name out of that little boy’s mouth, though I wouldn’t mind if he could call Dad in the middle of the night when he isn’t feeling well. 

New digs!

The end of the year has me ready for some promised changes around here. New logo, new blog look, fancy schmancy flash header at the top, all good things!

There is a story behind the new logo, and the butterfly in particular that I’ll share later in the week. For now though, L.A. wants you to know how he feels about the BIG pictures that will reside here!

He’s psyched!  Hope you guys like the changes, I’d love to hear your feedback!  :) 

Little Moments

In the midst of the chaos I’ve been complaining about, I’m trying to take comfort and solace in the small, fleeting moments.  This morning as C and I were getting ready for work, L.A. was standing in his crib dancing back and forth as he does most mornings.  I glanced into his room as I passed and saw his giant smile as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other joyfully.  I couldn’t help but go in and kiss him good morning. 

As I approached his crib, he reached out his hand and started rubbing my belly, something he’s been doing the past few days.  He looked up at me and smiled and said “Mama?” and I nodded my head and said “there’s a baby in Mama’s belly”. 

In a moment I hadn’t anticipated, he reached his little arms around my waist and gave my belly a hug while resting his head gently there.  Before backing up completely, he planted a nice sloppy kiss on my belly and then looked up at me with his sweet smiling face. 

My life may be crazy at the moment, but it sure is better than any life I could have dreamt. 

10 on Tue… eh, who’s counting?

I missed 10 on Tuesday, I’ve honestly been too busy to even cruise over here the past week or so.  So, here it is.

1.  ‘Tis the season - for me to be sa-wamped at my 9 to 5, thus interfering with my regular blogging.  The nerve!

2.  P2 is now officially rocking and rolling in there, which is still just as cool as it was the first time.

3.  L.A. still hasn’t taken any steps on his own, but he is now playing a game called “No Hands” where he’ll suddenly throw his hands above his head and stand there for all of 3 seconds before plopping down on his tush.  The excitement on his face in those 3 seconds though is enough to light up a room.  I’ll try to catch it on camera for you.

4.  Since most everyone has received our holiday cards at this point, I thought I’d share our 2008 Official Family Portrait here.  If you haven’t received your card yet, close your eyes. 

5.  Do you see that BOY in the picture above??  Where in the world did he come from? 

6.  I’ve been on a never ending, not so fruitful search for a maternity outfit for a little Holiday Party that C and I are going to this weekend and can’t find squat.  Everything is either in some crazy pattern or covered in bows.  I mean seriously, who would in the world would wear this?

7.  If the above dress is hanging in your closet, I’m sorry for calling you out, but that thing is awful. 

8.  L.A. has recently started to do things he knows he’s not supposed to do, like go near the cabinet where are cleaning supplies are and look up at me with his arm out towards it saying “Mama, dis?” to which I reply “No sweetie, not that”.  Repeat, over and over. 

9.  In regards to this game, C and I finally got around to baby proofing some cabinets last night.  As we were elbow deep in the baby proofing, I had a hilarious blog post half written, but promised C I would keep SOME things to just us.  Sorry.  ;P

10.  That’s all for now, I have work to do, PEOPLE! 

Funny how that works…

I had a bad day today.  It was all job related (my 9-5), but it was the kind of day that makes you want to hide under your desk and just wish it all away.  I went to pick up L.A. knowing that he would brighten my afternoon, only to have him throw a temper tantrum upon my arrival because he was having far too much fun playing to be bothered with going home.  Didn’t do much for the ego.  Came home, looked around and realized I could stand to put a little extra effort in around the house too.  

Dinner didn’t seem to cook fast enough, and L.A. was ready for bed.  Finally, we went upstairs and decided to forego bath time since we were so behind schedule.  He fought me all the way through getting changed, and I spilled milk all over my shirt making his bottle.  

Eventually, I sat him in my lap in the rocking chair and nuzzled down against his head as I pulled out the Belly Button Book (a new fave of both of ours).  As I turned the first page and breathed in the first bit of relaxation of the day, I felt a small little kick in my belly.  It’s been worrying me that I’ve only felt P2 moving a little here and there, and I stopped for a second not sure if I imagined it.  As I opened my mouth to start reading again, I felt another little kick.  

Once again, just when I need it, someone upstairs points out what’s really important.  

10 on Tuesday

1.  I’ve entered the phase of pregnancy induced insomnia, which for some reason seems to plague me longer and more intensely than most normal people.  As such I was awake last night from 1 to about 4:30 with a quick break in the middle. 

2.  The sweetest part about being on 3 1/2 hours of sleep today is that I have a huge presentation to give today to our senior management team and I look like I’ve been steamrolled by the train of death. 

3.  Yesterday the little guy had his 1 year checkup, and he had to have some blood work done.  Enter nursing student who emphasizes she’s “learning” and “a student” no less than 10 times in the first 2 minutes she’s in the room.  (We’ve had great luck with this type of situation lately).  

C was holding L.A. and I was trying my best to keep him distracted as she pricked his toe and got the blood she needed.  It was taking forever, and L.A. was getting more and more agitated, so I went across the room to get a toy from his diaper bag and on my way back I looked to see his little foot covered in smeared blood, and the nurse still trying to get more out.  (Who the heck invented those teeny tiny vials anyway??)

All of a sudden the room started spinning and the sound of a helicopter humming filled my ears.  I looked up at C and could feel the color draining from my face and in the distance heard him say “are you okay?” as I quickly sat down in a chair and put my head down.  After a minute or so it passed, and I went to stand up again, got another sight of his little bloody foot and almost fainted again. 

I’m praying that this queasy, wussy reaction is somehow pregnancy induced, otherwise I am totally screwed being the mom of a boy.

4.  A little bragging: We’re almost 100% done with Christmas shopping, with only 1 gift left to buy.  This is completely abnormal in our household and I’m on top of the world!

5.  I’m finishing up all my holiday print orders this week, and can’t wait to deliver them to clients.  They’ve been slowly trickling in, and there are some beautiful family portraits in my possession at the moment. 

6.  The fact that I’m on the decline of the holiday rush for the business means that you’ll be seeing lots more of my personal pictures, and I’ll be spending some time on fun stuff around here. 

7.  I’ve finally given into the hype and ordered all 4 books in the Twilight Series.  I’m hoping that I can snuggle up on the couch in these cold months and get through them. 

8.  This weekend I was able to wrangle my boys together for a family picture for our holiday card.  I’m not going to share it here yet, because there are several readers on my holiday card mailing list.

9.  When I uploaded said family picture, I was shocked to see a little boy sitting in my living room.  There was no baby to be seen, just a toddler through and through.

10.  In honor of that missing baby, I dug into the archives and pulled out this picture taken on my old point and shoot from about a year ago.  My sweet L.A., just fresh home from the hospital. 

Practice, practice, practice

Much of our free time these days is spent like this:

Walking laps around our house with the little guy.  He’s just so excited to be walking, notice the tongue… it’s always out like that in a combination of concentration and sheer joy.  It’s so much fun to see him developing so quickly, but any parent that has done this for 20 minutes straight knows that it’s a killer on your back to lean over and support a person who is all of 2 foot nothin’.  

Unfortunately, L.A. doesn’t really understand that and crumples on the floor in a fit of frustration when C or I need a break.  Despite the fact that he has at least 5 different types of “walking toys”, apparently none are as good as Mom or Dad’s hands.  How can you say no to that?

Just so that I can thoroughly embarrass my teenage son when he reads through these entries one day, how about Tongue Exhibit part 2?  Despite the fact that these pictures were taken in almost the same location, it should be noted that this was on lap 38 or so.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! 

 

Let them eat cake!

Going in for the kill.

Here are a few other pictures from the little dude’s day.

Look at him going in for the big smooch… that’s his cousin, and one of my favorite little girlies around.

L.A. and I at the end of the day.  Both of us were pretty tired by this point.

and lastly, the much alluded family shot courtesy of our friend and neighbor.  We actually had to call her to come over after the fact because I realized the whole day had gone by and we didn’t get one family picture.  Thank you E!

AJAXed with AWP