kcreatives newborn : baby oliver

posted in: kcreatives photography, newborn | 0

Baby Oliver

Valentine’s Day is for rolls of soft baby skin – isn’t it?  I had the wonderful privilege of visiting a sweet girlfriend a few weeks ago in North Carolina and loving on her new little valentine in her life.

Newborn session

When you are over due with your baby and the weather report shows ice in the forecast, especially in the south, you may start to get a little anxious.  And I don’t know if it was the ice or the cookies that made the little one decide to come – but one thing I do know, baby Oliver came, and is safe, and warm, and loved, and adorable.

Baby Oliver

And let me hand it to you newborn photographers: y’all amaze me.  Baby Oliver was nice and asleep until his momma took his clothes off – he was having none of it.  But, I’ve also come to learn that it isn’t good to stress the parents out… Just be patient, go with what you get, plan for a long time (which I didn’t have), and love on the parents.  They are the ones who have a newborn.  And relationships are vital, pictures are extra!

Baby Oliver

Mom and Dad of baby Oliver – I love yall.  Yall are dear to me.  And I can’t wait to see yall in the Spring!

Sundays in the South : Link Love

Southern States Link Love

Since I’ve lived all around the South my entire life, I thought I would share with you just a few of my favorite places in each of the states I’ve lived in.  This will definitely give you the travel bug – and I hope you can live it out to the fullest!  Enjoy the Around-the-South tour and dream on this Sunday – that God would enable you to see more of the world He created!

Florida: The Sunshine State

Hontoon Island was a relatively new find for me.  Traveled there last year.  Your littles will love the little ferry ride over to the island.  There are also good hiking and biking trails – but most of these trails aren’t conducive to strollers.  Moss abounds!

If you are looking for a hole in the wall seafood restaurant – you need to come here. My Dad has ties to the owners and I love their fried grouper sandwich.

The best chicken and yellow rice and cuban bread – EVER.  My first trip I remember to this Florida (chain) but staple, was in high school with my Spanish class after going to the Salvadore Dali museum.  A must EAT!

And one of my favorite places in the city that I being an adult in – and one that I love and could retire in forever because I love it so – Barnacle Bills.  Only thing you ever need to get there is the Datil Shrimp.  Enough said.

I attended this private school most of my schooling years (except for half a year).  I loved the principal then and my teachers.  Some of the ministries I got to be a part of and friendships made still impact my life today.

The college I went to was in the heart of St. Augustine.  College for me turned out to be different than I though mostly because we had no football team.

North Carolina: The Tarheel State

Durham landmark

Oh, this could be a while.  I love it here and consider it home more than any other place I’ve lived.  Its where I fell in love with the Word, ministry, college students, the ocean, my husband, and where I became a momma for the first time.

Guglhupfs – best pancakes hands down.

Ketchie Creek Bakery – 5 flavor pound cake – need I say more?

I went to seminary here.  The first time I saw the campus I knew I was going to love it there.  Arrived on campus 4 months after my initial introduction.

I fell in love with missions, college students, and brooklyn tab while doing ministry at The Summit.

Had my first road trip with my husband and our first random stop was to one of the older cities.  Loved it.

Kentucky: The Bluegrass State

Louisville Zoo

I wasn’t here for a long time, and the seminary I worked for became home – and I loved the ability I had at the time to travel all the time and see people and things that I never would have otherwise.

Where I fell in love with Meditteranean food.

Where I grew to love this ministry and all that is stands for.  And Dr. Mohler spoke in our Sunday School this morning – and this ministry will have such a vital role in the church in the coming years (maybe even more so than before).  Owen and Courtney – you and your teams have my prayers as they always have!

And how I fell in love with gospel centered preaching was by listening mostly to this man at this church.

Arkansas:  The Natural State

Hot Chocolate

I was here the briefest and made some really sweet friends.  It is also where I fell in love with my second little boy!

ARWB – thank you Stephanie and Debbie and all of you other bloggers.  Yall were a great community!  Hopefully we will have that in GA soon!

Georgia: The Peach State

Georgia Aquarium

I’m growing to love this state more and more.  I’ve always had ties to this state and now my husband and boys are here.  Lovely combination

This is the church we get to be a part of.  Thankful for faithful preaching each week.

This is the bestest place in the state for me.  I’ve been going here since I was a kid and get to go with my family in 2 weeks.

And then the islands and Savannah – get me to the ocean!

There you have it.  If you have lived in one of these states – what are your favorite things to do, see, eat?  Help me out!

Taste of Charlotte: Red Rocks

posted in: food, restaurants | 1

Nestled in the South Park neighborhood of the Queen City, NC’s largest city, sits Red Rocks Cafe Bar & Bakery.  I would just call it good food.

A friend and I decided to meet up there on my recent overnight trip to Charlotte.  We were anticipating a long wait, but got in there and were the next ones to be seated.  Perfect!

So many delicious finds on the menu: appetizers (including parmesan potato cakes), salads (including my dinner of a large Greek salad with salmon), steaks, pasta, fish, sandwiches: if you are hungry – they have something to fill your tummy.

Our waitress was friendly and attentive.  We were told her we were in a hurry and she was on top of things.  We placed our order, specifically under-cooking our salmon – and probably 8 minutes later, both of our meals were on our table.  My friend was gracious enough to let me snap a few photos, then we dug in.

The salmon was perfectly cooked: slightly crispy on the outside, slightly underdone on the inside.  The result: smooth, moist salmon full of flavor.  The dill sauce on my friend’s salmon was lemony and seasoned perfectly.  Not too much, not too little dill.

Then came the Oreo cheesecake.  Usually, you can’t go wrong with splitting cheesecake.  My only fault for the whole evening was I thought the cheesecake needed some more sugar, because it tasted too cream cheese, the perfect balance wasn’t there.  But, the chocolate sauce and oreos improved it 100%

Ambiance: check.  Wait staff: check.  Price: 10-20$ per entree.  Parking: no problem.  Food: double check.

Wilmington Getaway: Stemmerman’s Inn

posted in: Uncategorized | 2

Back in the summer I went on a photo shoot with a friend and we got invited to an event at 128 South, it was fabulous.  128 South is a hall/room/venue attached to the Stemmerman’s Inn.  For the same price you can get a medium-grade hotel room, you can stay in a unique loft-style, kitchenette including, brick-exposed, unique room with a view of the Cape Fear and a little porch.  Now, granted, it was 35 degrees or cooler when I went, but hey, what’s a girl gonna do.  I gotta get my river fix!

These may not be usual “inn” pictures that you will find in most reviews, but what I care about are the details.  This green vase was my favorite part of the main floor, and I stared at it every time I went by.  The bathroom was the bathroom: with a white pedastal sink to go with the old-inn feel.  The kitchenette was well stocked with everything you might need for a cozy dinner for 1 or 2 when dining at the little cafe type table in the eat-in kitchen.  If seated at the table, you can gaze out the floor to ceiling windows that overlook the porch and look out onto the Cape Fear.  The sunset was amazing last night.

If you make your way up the L-white spindle staircase, you will find a huge, welcoming king size bed.  Again, I loved the simplicity of the headboard.  There was a small open closet, a flat screen (with cable), and a night stand with lamp.  That was all, oh, and a small dresser.  So.  Simple.  I LOVED it.

This room (#7) also came with everything you might find in a generic hotel room and even a washer and dryer.  How’s that for handy?

The staff was courteous and gave me plenty of options for dinner (The Stemmerman is within walking distance to restaurants of any ethnicity and price-range).  It was quieter than I thought it was going to be, too (which I was very glad). 

Check-in time is 3pm, check out time is 11am and there is parking (street parking you have to pay for in Wilmington, so I was thankful for their free lot). 

I would go here again in a heartbeat.  May make it a yearly birthday tradition.  Downtown Wilmington (when not tourist season) is fabulous, because of its history, fashion, and beautiful churches (not to mention great food).

So, if you get a chance, go.  Stay.  Love the Stemmerman as much as I did.  Fall in love with the details.