There's quite a few exciting things happening!!

Yes, I’ve been away from blogging for quite a while, but I really have a great excuse! Remember how we were in the process of purchasing our first home? Well, here it is!

We closed on this charming, 1937 country home on Thursday, May 5^th. We were beside ourselves with joy and this overwhelming feeling of being blessed. The house is 30 minutes from the rental home, yet closer to everything important! Moving is quite a process… especially when you had things stored at your parents’ home on top of all that needed to be moved from our rental house (oh, and let’s not forget packing up my classroom!). The house and moving process would not have been possible without our family! God is so good!

So we closed on the house May 5^th and guess what blessing we received on May 6^th? The gift of expecting a baby! Yay! Again, joy flooded our hearts as we were able to share this news with family in our new home. How perfect… more to come on how we shared the news later! Here is a photo of our sweet baby at 13 weeks and one of me at 17 weeks. We are now almost 19 weeks along and can’t wait to meet our little boy (yes, a boy!) in January!

While in the midst of organizing things in our new home and feeling giddy over the fact that there’s a baby growing in me, we have been busy with Taflan Pictures as well. Meeting clients, shooting weddings, maternity sessions, and senior sessions have kept us (especially Matt) constantly at the computer editing after a day of work. We have also tackled a couple projects around the house and are in the middle of a couple more! We finished the chicken coop and all it needs is a coat of paint, the washer and dryer have been set up and operating in the laundry room in the shed, and we are in the middle of building custom desks for our little office. We also have a new front door sitting in the dining room waiting to be put on, and should I even mention what the future nursery looks like? It’s shocking…yikes!

Those are just a few of the things keeping us Taflans busy. It’s crazy to look back to May and see all that has taken place since then in just a few short months. We are so thankful and continue walking in faith that God will continue to provide and care for us as He has done so faithfully in the past.

~Spring Happenings~

Seeds have been planted, chickens are fully feathered, the sun is gradually warming up our days and my break is drawing to a close. We have truly enjoyed experiencing the season here in NC. It's so beautiful to see the new life springing up everywhere we go. Here's some of what's been happening around the Taflan household...

I planted some seeds for our future garden a few weeks ago. They're growing a bit too quick for me because we have yet to get a piece of yard ready for them to grow! Squash, cucumber, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, and green beans are some of what's been planted. I sure hope they make it! Herbs are next.

Haven't they grown? Oh, and notice how there's a white one in the mix? Yep, she surprised us and ended up being an Americauna, not a Buff Orpington like we had thought. She'll lay greenish blue eggs... interesting, right? The Ladies eagerly await the completion of their coop that Matthew has been constructing. It's going to be great when they have a place of their own...outside...where they can roam free and use the bathroom wherever they'd like, as opposed to taking up half our sunroom! Would you believe that Matt is building a coop large enough for more than just our 6 chickens? You know what that means... either he's quite taken with the Ladies or he's planning on being greedy for eggs! We'll try to make it through this year with our 6 and see what happens next spring. So far they've been healthy and entertaining to watch :)


This is the lovely wind chime we have enjoyed hearing on these windy, spring days. I would like to find a smaller one for the other side of the house. The first time we really heard it ring we both had the same thoughts... it just makes our place feel more like home.


We've done some traveling lately too. Here's Matthew in Barbados... yes, he went on an amazing Silver Seas cruise without me for an entire week! Of course, it was all business related as he filmed different events and photographed for work. We missed each other a great deal and he certainly wished I could've been there too. Next time maybe?


The day after Matthew arrived back from the islands, I caught a flight with my mom and youngest sis to NYC for a few days. Here we are on the double decker tour bus as we learned about Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Harlem. We were able to see How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying starring Daniel Radcliffe and Chicago with Christie Brinkley on Broadway. Great memories!

Coming up we have Easter with the family, Matthew's birthday, and hopefully more time to spend outdoors working on projects and enjoying the warmth!

Oh,

P.S. We just may be closing on our first house this coming week! We're staying prayerful - details to come!

Meet the Ladies...

Introducing our newest feathered friends...

Meet:
Lucy
Ethel
Laverne
Shirley
Lizzie (after Sanford & Son's, "You hear that Elizabeth? I'm coming to join you!) and...
June (after June Cleaver, of course!)

Friends already - just few days old

They look alike!

Almost 2 weeks old - taken while I was cleaning our their cage today. Pardon the chicken rear, she's shy ;)

We brought home 5 on Thursday the 24th and they were so cute! Unfortunately, we lost one this past Tuesday night due to what I believe was a respiratory infection. She was clicking quite a bit while breathing and was so lethargic! That brought us down to four little chicks and the man at the feed store replaced the previous chick with not one, but two buff orpingtons free of charge! We now have 6... oh my. I am learning that raising chickens is a bit more complicated than I originally thought, especially after reading things online about all that can go wrong! We're hoping the rest of the chicks don't come down with anything and stay their healthy, little peeping selves.

I'll be honest, I can't tell some of them apart. Actually, when I introduced the two new ones into the cage with the others, I lost track of who was new! There are two that are easy to tell apart, aside from the black one, but that's it. I'm hoping as they grow they'll have some more distinguishing features because I want to make sure each chick gets the right name. Matthew is ready for their production of yummy, brown eggs, so he's having to work on his patience. We're having fun with them, learning as we go!