New Seasons in Life

I am closing this blog...not like taking it off the internet for ever closing...I am just not going to be writing here anymore.  I started this blog to keep family up to date on things going on in our life since we were planning on not living near them for many, many years.  But those planned changed.  I have changed.  A new season in life has begun for me.  I will still be blogging, but more on that in a minute.

Because of this blog, I found my voice.  I wanted you to hear me.  A sweet friend of mine told me that reading my blog was like I was talking to her.  That was the biggest complement I could have gotten.  I wanted to write so that it felt like I was actually talking to you.  Many of you got to know me and my husband and my children because of this blog.

Also, because of this blog, I found photography.  I started out wanting to learn my camera just to put better pictures on here, so you felt like you were there in the moment with us.  I hope I was able to do that.  I look back on these pictures and feel like I am taken back to that moment, but it is easier for me, because I lived that moment.

Over the past 6 years, I have studied photography and my camera.  I know my camera inside and out and what it can do and what I can push it to do.  I have also spent the last 3 years studying business, specifically the business of photography.  I could have started my business so many times, but I am glad I didn't.  I had this idea of what I should be doing as a photographer and I tried to force myself into that bubble, but to be honest there are a lot of photographers out there doing the exact same thing.  It can be discouraging, because they are fantastic at what they do.  But not until recently, did I start embracing my voice as a photographer.  I have been refining it.  I will always be learning.  You can never know everything...everything is always changing.  I tell my daughters that if you want to be good at something, never stop learning.  Because I am confident in my photography voice, I know feel like I can offer that to other people.  If you have followed me on this blog or instagram, you will know that I enjoy the little things my kids do.  Those little moments are ones I will value as they get older.  It is fun to look back at pictures of the girls as littles and see the same expressions in their faces today.  

I want to offer my services as a photographer to people that want those moment captured....the unposed...life as it is happening.  The term is called documentary.  So, I am calling myself a family documentary photographer.  

Inviting someone into your life to photograph those moments can be intimidating, because to most people I will be a stranger.  Because of that I am making a conscience effort to allow people to get to know me on my website.  It is set up in a blog like fashion.  I will be letting people see apart of me and my family.  I want people to feel like they know me, so they feel a little more comfortable with me.  If you want to keep following me, you can follow me at Sarah M Turner Photography . 

I will keep this blog open for awhile.  My instagram feed will still come here, because I know I have family that checks out those photos that do not have instagram.  I also have one more story to tell, but it is a long one and I will need to write it out and refine it before I post it here.  It is a cool story and hopefully, you will be able to see God in it and not me.  

I will leave you with a little of Sutton's birthday morning (and then cake in the evening).  Yes, we had homemade pizza for breakfast.  She designed her own cake, and she held the most confidence that I could create it...don't look too closely.  :)

Little Girl. Big Dress. Bigger Dreams.

 She is 5 years old, 6 soon, and she has been planning her wedding since she was 2.  Seriously.  She may or may not have made a few little boys promise they will marry her when she is older. 

So, we had a little fun with my wedding dress.  Maybe one of these days way down the road, when she does get married, these photographs will be fun to look back on.

 The culling process was so difficult, but I made it through.  There are several images that are similar, but who cares.   But each of her little expressions were captured...these are so her faces!

 

 

 

 

This is her favorite images! haha 

 

 

Kitchen Sink Spaghetti Sauce

 My favorite food is spaghetti.  If you have read this blog for any amount of time, you will know this.  I am certain I have shared the story of me eating spaghetti every week night of my freshman year of college.  I have 3 friends that will testify to that.  I also ate it every night of my sophmore year.  It was cheap and easy.  I could spend $5 and eat all week.  My old roommates can testify to that.  

Now, I don't eat it every night anymore, because I have grown up, my grocery budget is bigger and I am not certain my husband or kids would go for it.  Until...this week...

When we changed the way we ate (cutting out processed food and grains and dairy), I tossed out my jarred pasta sauce and didn't think I would be able to eat spaghetti again.  I tried making my own sauce and it was nothing compared to my Prego I always bought.  So, I gave up.  

A friend of mine posted a picture of her homemade sauce on Instagram, and I spoke to her about it.  She told me what she put in it and that she didn't measure.

That was my style.  I don't measure unless I am baking. 

So, I used her guidelines and made my own.  It was so, so, so yummy.  However, my version was still missing something.  I still preferred it over store bought and truthfully, I thought it was the best ever.

I added a few more ingredients and well...my husband and kids have been asking for spaghetti every night.  Win for me!!

I thought I would share with you my recipe, because it is that good. THIS recipe is the best ever.

Please keep in mind that I do not measure.  The measurements are all rough measurements.  If this makes you really nervous, have someone else do this for you.  Not measuring makes my husband nervous, so I know there are people out there that can't handle it.  And it is ok. :)

Also, there is only one brand of pasta our family can eat without our stomachs killing us.  It is an Italian brand and more than likely is processed differently than the other brand we have in the store.  I can only find it at one store.  If I remember next time, I will post the brand name.  It is nice to have for those very rare occasions we eat pasta.

Kitchen Sink Spaghetti Sauce

2 cans (15oz) of diced tomatoes-organic

2 cans (15oz) tomato sauce- organic

1 can (6oz) tomato paste- organic

*A handful of fresh chopped tomatoes or cherry tomatoes

1 onion, chopped

1-2 tbsp minced garlic

2-3 carrots, chopped

1-2 zucchini, chopped

a handle full of fresh spinach

a pitted date or two

half a handful of chopped mushrooms

1/3 bell pepper, chopped

1-2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

a dash of red pepper flakes

**1 tsp oregano (dried)

**1 tbsp Italian seasoning

1-2 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1-2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

 1/2 c water if needed

*You do not have to add these, but fresh tomatoes elevate the flavor.

**If you have fresh herbs like oregano, basil, etc, use them.  Your measurements will be different than if they were dried.  I would just add a few leaves of each herb.

Now, here is the easy part.  Do you have a slow cooker?  Throw it all in and turn on low.  Let it cook for 6-8 hours.  Before you are ready to serve, puree the sauce together.  This is the only way I will eat it and probably my kids too.  Most of the ingredients above, I do not like on their own.

If you do not want to wait all day, which it fine, you can easily cook this over the stove top.  But, I would saute the chopped onion, minced garlic, mushrooms and tomato paste until tender and then add the rest of the ingredients.  Bring it to a slow boil, turn the heat to low, cover and cook for 1-2 hours stirring occasionally.

I do not have the patience to do that and prefer to throw it all in my trusty slow cooker.

After I puree the sauce,  I brown some meat and throw it in.

This makes A LOT of sauce.  You can half the recipe if you want or can it.  If I ever get over my fear of canning, I will do that next time.  I probably won't ever have to though, because we seriously could eat this every night!

This is the littlest in our garden full of future spaghetti sauce.

Filling Shoes

I have big shoes to fill...literally...I have BIG feet.

My youngest reached into the dark recesses of my closet and found my high heels.  I only wear flip flops, ballet flats or barefoot.  She told me she wanted to wear the shoes princesses wear..."you know the things that are pointy and have the thing on the bottom", she gets her big words from me.  :)

All little girls do this.  I did this.  And I am pretty certain my brothers pulled out my mom's shoes too.  

I could totally get really deep with this about how we try to fill our parents shoes and so on and so on, but my little munchkins are around me asking questions.  It is near impossible to think deep when they are playing 20 questions, so I will leave you with picture of 3 of my girls with my hardly-ever-worn high heels.

Why do I not wear them?
I am 5'11, and I am afraid of heights.

Who would have thought my most tom boy of girls could rock these high heels like a pro!

More Pics of Campbell

 Because who doesn't want to see more pictures of this cute munchkin?

The top was photographed by me.  

The bottom two were taken by her "best friend sister" Sutton Grace.

Blessed Assurance

 Sometimes an old hymn says it all.

 

 

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!

Heir of salvation, purchase of God,

Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

 

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

 

Perfect submission, perfect delight,

Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;

Angels, descending, bring from above

Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

 

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

 

Perfect submission, all is at rest,

I in my Savior am happy and blest,

Watching and waiting, looking above.

Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

Campbell's Curl

She is my only one with curly hair.

She has a love hate relationship with it.  I am certain this relationship will be around her entire life.

I love her hair whether it is bed head or done "just right' or wet.  

There is this one curl that sticks out and you can't help be need to touch it.

P.S. You'll see more pictures of this little lady because she is the only one of my girls that still thinks hanging out with mommy is cool.  And she likes to look at the back of the camera at herself (that may be the actual reason). :)