Young House Love

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Maternity Portraits In Front Of The Christmas Tree

Before we took down the holiday decorations, we decided to snap a couple better-late-than-never seasonal pictures, since this will likely be the last time we can take a photo like this in front of the tree.

Christmas Bump

Kinda crazy to think that this was our last Christmas with just one little one (well, two including Burger – and about 30 if you count all of Sherry’s ceramic animals). What’s even crazier is that Clara stood still enough for this long of an exposure! If you want to take a photo like this, our tips are: use a tripod, lower the lights in the room so the tree glows, and use a long exposure and stand as still as possible. The results are so cool!

Christmas Belly 2

What did you guys wrap and unwrap this year? Do you do big gift exchanges with your other half, or just little fun things that you’ve been eying? Sherry and I like to keep it pretty low key, but we love hearing about giant surprises (were there any bows on any cars in any driveways?) and little thoughtful things alike.

Update: You can check out all of our favorite holiday decor finds here – many of which are under $15! 

Comments

  1. KiTX says

    I definitely teared up at the last pics, and Clara is just getting more fun and more adorable by the day. Oh, Petersiks, you just bowl me over with overall warmth.

    I have to brag on my husband this year. My best friend has lived in my favorite city (NYC) for 3 years now, but I’ve been in graduate school or pregnant that entire time (mainly graduate school, only one pregnancy and one baby!). We do smaller gifts for one another, so his gift to me was a gift card to the Modern in MoMA- and when I looked confused, his parents gave me their gift of airline giftcards to supplement my flights to/from New York. He coordinated the whole gift between his parents and my best friend (who picked the restaurant). I am the luckiest. =)

    Reply

  2. Lee says

    Those belly shots in front of the tree!!!! So precious!!! Best part of this post!! haha.

    Hubby got me these beautiful glass lamps that I was pretty excited about :D

    For my hubby’s present this year I decided to finish his Man Cave for him! I wrapped a paint brush, the paint for his wall, his special order manly blinds, special photos he LOVES from racing and framed them, pics from our trip to NY and a few second hand furniture pieces that will go in his room. He loved it! :)

    Can’t wait to see the Cottage Pics!!

    Reply

  3. Sophie says

    I got a late Christmas present on New Year’s Eve in the form of a guy I’ve been seeing asking me to officially be his girlfriend.
    My very first boyfriend at the age of 21… I’ve made it. Best holiday season EVER!

    Reply

  4. Ellie says

    Thank you for sharing this lovely post with your readers. It brings back many memories of when my two daughters were little girls, and how the smallest things would thrill them no end. Our older daughter has her first apartment out of college, so although she stayed over Christmas Eve, on Christmas night, for the first time, she packed up her presents and her dad drove her back home (fortunately only 30 minutes away, but still…). I didn’t cry at her college graduation, but I did then—that whole “how fast they grow up thing” will catch you off-guard sometimes. It’s great to see you and John enjoying Clara (and Burger, and the new little one-on-the-way)—also a nice vicarious thrill for me—because these moments are fleet, though sweet. Happy new year to you all!

    Reply

  5. Julianne says

    Some beautiful pics & memories! I especially love the thought that goes into the special little gifts that you & Sherry exchange with one another. Those are the most meaningful regardless of the price. My husband is always thrilled with golf lesson from a PGA teacher, so it makes my gift giving easy. Every time he’s like a giddy little school girl, so it’s a no-brainier for me ;0).

    Reply

  6. Kala says

    I had the same cinderella mice too and still love seeing them on my parent’s tree when I come home for the holidays…”Gus Gus”

    Glad your family had a wonderful Christmas!

    Reply

  8. EvY says

    We got my mom her 4th grandkid for Christmas. Ultrasound photo in a picture frame wrapped up caused some crying (and not just from my mom).

    Reply

  9. Shannon says

    We like to keep things low key, but this year, my husband and I splurged a little! Together in the past 5 months, we’ve lost 75 pounds, so we treated ourselves to a shopping spree!

    Our 6 year old daughter has declared herself a book worm, so she got lots of books. She was so happy!!

    Reply

  10. Julie says

    I don’t remember when I stopped believing in Santa Claus, but I do remember at some point realizing that Santa wrapped my gifts in the exact same wrapping paper my parents had. That really gave it away for me. lol

    Happy Holidays!

    Reply

  13. carrie says

    my parents totally made us do the “wait at the top of the steps thing” too! When we (me + 2 sibs) were little, they’d tell us they were checking to see if santa came, which i’m pretty sure was code for “let me get the video camera.” The worst part is that they continued the tradition through college! During those years they’d drag us out of bed only to make us wait at the top of the steps while they made coffee, let the dog out….. Oh it was torture!

    Reply

  14. Evie says

    This post of Clara got me a little misty-eyed. I reminded me of our daughter, so many years ago. The last picture of Sheri and Clara is precious. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply

  15. Emily says

    So glad to hear that y’all had a great Christmas. Gotta love the “bump” with the Christmas tree!
    I was so lucky to get your book for Christmas, I had been hinting that I REALLY wanted it and was beyond excited to open it(: I literally had tears running down my face when I saw it. Then my mom opened the book AND.IT.WAS.SIGNED. Seriously didn’t know it was possible to be that excited. Thanks so much!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh Emily, you’re so sweet! You’re getting me all misty over here. I’m so glad that you were so excited about it, and hope you love reading it!

      xo
      s

  19. rachel says

    Oh, I just adore hearing about your family’s Christmas and everyone else’s.

    Christmas was extra fun this year with our 14-month-old daughter. Santa brought her a pink/white/blue Little Tikes cozy coupe that she just loves to hop in and out of. He also brought her a GIANT, and by giant I mean 56″, stuffed dog that we had spotted earlier in December at TJ Maxx. The thing was $60 and totally unnecessary, and probably just as much for me as her given the smile it brings to my face, but she just loves to climb on her doggie.

    I love the suggestion to frame your tree/bump pic and bring it out every year as a Christmas decoration. We started doing that last year (our daughter’s first Christmas and have officially declared it a tradition. It will be so fun to bring out a box full of Christmas-related family photos every year and to add to our collection. So inexpensive too, and they hardly take up any storage space :)

    Hubby and I agreed not to exchange gifts this year. Were actually at the airport now, en route to NYC for the first time ever and thought it would be more fun to spend a little $ on each other there. Now here’s hoping for no more flight delays!

    P.S. another Gus Gus ornament owner here. He’s the best!

    Reply

  20. Lindsay says

    Where did you buy that box of all the different Disney princesses? Sleeping Beauty is my favorite of all time and I NEVER see her in a blue dress!!

    Reply

  21. Paula M. says

    I can be a hard-boiled broad in some areas of my life, but the photo of Clara hugging the family heirloom mice and, even more so, the photos of Sherry, and of Sherry and Clara, zoom right to the heart! So sweet!

    (And beautifully composed, too, I might add, with the reflected tree and the combination of the lighting, and the light and dark tones. Really lovely photos, in more ways than one.)

    What fabulous photographic memories you’ve captured for yourselves.

    Reply

  22. Morgan Lewis says

    What a fun Christmas! I love the joy on her face when she sees the cubby yall made. So sweet!
    I got my hubs a driving range net for the backyard (he’s in heaven) and he got me FOLDING RayBans! Who knew there was such a thing!? My first pair of > $20 sunnies. Wee! Happy New Year, Petersiks!

    Reply

  24. Elise says

    I have to laugh sometimes because our lives seem so often to run parallel with each other, building play kitchens for Christmas at the same time, announcing pregnancies at nearly the same time, and the list goes on. I don’t usually bother to comment about it because it probably happens a lot to other people too, but I just posted about our Christmas traditions, including how we take a “stop on the stairs right before you open presents” photo and also the new jammies for Christmas. Clara and my oldest daughter both own the same pink santa pjs apparently. :-) You can see the Christmas stairs photos here, if you’d like: http://bobbleheadbaby.com/?p=3260 I sure am enjoying adding a new photo to the collection each year. Trying to figure out how we’ll keep Baby #3 from tumbling down the stairs next year! Are you going to have Clara hold her brother? Love your blog and wish I’d thought to take the pregnant silhouette photo too, but we already took our tree down. Oh well! Happy New Year!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      So funny about those similarities! We’re living parallel lives! As for Clara holding her brother, I think we’ll have to see how it goes. He should be around 7 months old at Christmas, and Clara will be 4.5 years old, so I think she might be able to… although maybe that’s wishful thinking?!

      xo
      s

  27. corinne a. says

    GORGEOUS photos of you and your belly (and Clara) in front of the tree! I always have a long reading list, and my husband got me several books, including Jenny Lawson’s book, which has been on my list for awhile now. I read it in about 4 days (I have kids, so this is like the equivalent of 24 hours) and it was hilarious!

    Reply

  28. ashlyn says

    John! Have you tried ginger beer? It’s a non-alcoholic brewed drink– like ginger ale but with more kick. Thought you might like it if you haven’t already tried it. :)

    Reply

  29. Sara says

    We had the same thing happen regarding Santa. Our son started saying Santa was going to bring him a scooter & a Barbie house. He even asked the big guy for them when we went to see him. We also thought he would forget about it, but he didn’t, so Santa delivered. He got a scooter and we used an old bookcase to make a “residence” as my hubs was calling it. My cousin even made some superhero peg dolls to go inside, along with the dinosaurs that like to lay in bed! Kids are not as forgetful as we would hope sometimes! Ha.

    Reply

  30. Tara says

    This was an adorable post. Christmas is such unadulterated awesomeness when the kids are little!

    I see you scored some Fentiman’s Curiosity Cola! It’s the best, but be warned! I accidentally dropped a bottle of it on my foot this morning (it apparently was stuck to my bottle of maple syrup…don’t judge!) and I almost had to make a trip to the emergency room. So be careful! ;)

    Reply

  32. coasterkim says

    Oh my gosh, I had those same Cinderella mice ornaments! I think I still do. If I remember correctly, the chubby one was Gus Gus. I don’t remember the other one’s name.

    Reply

  33. Tiffany says

    Love love love the long exposure pics – very sweet. Pics like these make me miss my kiddos being little – but there is a lot to be said for being a grandmother. :D

    And yes – normally we keep it pretty low key here too. However – this year was special – we celebrated our 20th Christmas together…and in keeping with our love of the 80’s – I bought my hubby a 1983 Porsche 928s…straight out of Risky Business. Total project car – and he is in love. :D

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Woah! Congrats on your 20th Christmas together! That sounds like a project John’s dad would flip over (he once had an old project Porche that hardly ran but he loved that thing).

      xo
      s

  34. mary says

    my twin sister and i had the same mice! i have jaq, and she has gus. jaq currently hangs on the knob of a kitchen cabinet year round because i can’t bear to take him down!

    Reply

  35. Bailey says

    My family had that same tradition of taking a photo on the stairs on Christmas morning before “releasing the hounds” and letting us run at the tree! There were four of us kids in our pictures… maybe someday YOU guys will have four little ones in your Christmas morning picture too?!? ;) Your tree looks impeccable – perfectly shaped! The two photos at the very end are absolutely magical – I hope those get printed/framed/treated as seasonal decorations in future years! Can’t wait to read the Cabin Crashing post :)

    Bailey

    Reply

  36. Lisa E says

    Oh my goodness Clara is so adorable. She is probably so appreciative of everything because of your wise teachings and how you stay humble, not materialistic. Children learn so much by watching and it is a reflection of what a wonderful job you are both doing. All of he pictures of Clara are precious in their own way. That pic of her on the stairs filled with excitement/anticipation…so cute! Like so many others agree, the silhouettes in front of the tree are amazing. You are a special family and I thank you for being you and doing what you do. Happy New Year and I can’t wait to “meet” baby Barnacle, via your blog of course. God bless.

    Reply

  37. rachael says

    I love the pictures at the end of the bump and Clara. Very cute. Question….is that $135 doll a doll you play with? Or is it like a collectible thing?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      On sale it was $95 and then we had a gift card so it was only like $60 for us, but I think it’s like those other expensive dolls that kids go crazy for. What are they called? Oh, American Girl Dolls! They sell outfits and beds/cars/furniture/props for them and stuff, and kids usually only get one since they’re expensive, but over the years they get some outfits and change them and play with them. I never had one growing up, but some of my friends were completely obsessed with Felicity or Samantha. Haha!

      xo
      s

    • rachael says

      We don’t have American Girl Dolls here in Canada but I do remember having a porcelain doll when I was a girl but I couldn’t play with her. She sat on a shelf. I thought Clara’s might’ve been the same thing as that. I think we’re lucky, our 3.5 year old doesn’t even like dolls!!

  38. Chloe Crabtree says

    I have the little Gus and Jacque ornaments from when my daughter was little. We had our first grandchild (a girl) this past year, and I look forward to magical Christmases like the one you shared with your little Clara!

    Reply

  39. Tammy Terrio Wallace says

    Looks like you all had a memorable Christmas! I adore the baby bump photos in front of the tree. It’s also the first time I saw your updated kitchen and I LOVE it!
    Great work as always guys. I look forward what you’ll bring to us in 2014!

    Reply

  40. Sarah says

    I loved your tree pictures! They are very sweet.
    This year was my husband and I’s first married Christmas and his gifts were so thoughtful. First he got me an ornament to remember our honeymoon that said “Just Maui’d 2013”. He also got me your book and contacted you to sign it. Thank you so much! I was very surprised and excited by that thoughtful touch.

    Reply

  41. Jenny says

    Clara is so sweet!! And this post totally made me miss Christmas! I love that you guys don’t do crazy gifts for each other but are able to find something meaningful in less extravagant ways. I hope you guys post where that log cabin is – we’ve been looking for a some place to get away and that looks perfect!

    I’m too embarrassed to list all of my gifts this year – I was spoiled!!

    Reply

  42. haley says

    Spaghetti hair!!! Oh man, that name is hilarious.

    I loooove love love the bump picture with Clara!

    I love hearing what people get for Christmas. We stayed pretty mellow with our gift giving so our ‘big’ item between the two of us was a universal remote

    Reply

  43. Leah says

    I loved how you said Clara woke up ten minutes into sleeping! My oldest daughter is 28 months, and sadly got a yucky case of croup late Christmas Eve night/early Christmas morning. But she was sooo excited for Christmas. At 4:45 am, after being up multiple times to treat croup attacks, she woke up on her own, stood up in her crib and excitedly rasped “I done sleeping! Time for stockings!!!” I said “no way, sick girl!” and made her go back to bed (her croup was doing better), but she sat in there for an hour reading her Christmas books and chattering about stockings and presents and trees! And… of course she was so sick and exhausted when morning finally did roll around that she made it through two, melted down, and had to go back to bed! Poor girl!!!

    Reply

  44. Isabella says

    I don’t really celebrate Christmas but I got a belated additional birthday present on the 20-somethingth of December from the hubster. A new shiny MacBook Pro.

    I also bought myself a Kreg Jig, some bone cookie cutters (so I can make dog treats in dog shapes) and a label maker. What can I say? This girl likes to do home-related tasks. To be fair, I was in the states for my holiday/vacation (you won’t believe how much cheaper everything is there compared to here)!

    I love the photo of Clara touching bump with Christmas Tree Silhouette. So sweet. It’s definitely a keeper/one to display.

    P.s. I just realised that you don’t have a favicon for your site. I always thought/assumed it was the YHL love heart. You should get on that. Then I would feel like I contributed to your blog (other than my gazillion clicks/page loads from the UAE). Haha!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw thanks Isabella! You’re so sweet! We actually do have a sideways heart as our favicon, but it’s quirky (we see it on Firefox but not always on other browsers). No idea why it plays us like that. Haha! Anyone have any favicon tips for why it would only load sometimes?

      xo
      s

  46. Kristen says

    While the photo of the bump was fabulous and Clara’s doll was precious…first things first…JAQ AND GUS GUS!! I had them too, and now I must find out if they still exist!! Kindred spirits I tell ya!

    Glad you all had a wonderful Christmas :)

    Reply

  47. Tami B. says

    Oh, how I loved this post! I cried, laughed and smiled all at the same time. My kids are all grown up now, and my heart ached remembering our own Christmas mornings when they were wee ones. Thank you for sharing your Christmas with us. And by the way, I think Sherry is having a boy. :)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw, thanks Tami! And yes, it is a boy! We found out about a month ago – it was such an exciting moment! Clara is thrilled too, which is very sweet to see.

      xo
      s

  48. Laura says

    Hello,

    What settings did you use on your camera to get those pictures? I’ve tried a couple of different ones but mine never leave the subject looking like that!

    I have photography envy currently.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw thanks Laura! Ok, so the lights were off, the tree was plugged in, and the camera was on a tripod since it was a long exposure. The ISO was at 100, and the f-stop was 4.2, and the shutter speed was 1.6.

      xo
      s

      xo
      s

  49. Christine says

    My hubby and I prefer to stay rather low-key for Christmas, do stockings and then spend what we would budget for gifts on our house instead (we bought our first home, a condo, earlier this year). This Christmas I was surprised to find small butterfly wall decals I had been wanting desperately bad to finish off our small bathroom facelift in my stocking…best gift and relatively inexpensive. I think it’s the small things that count :) Thanks for keeping up all updated! I just ordered your book and can’t wait to read it for inspiration!!!

    Reply

  50. karin caffi says

    great pictures!! can you tell me where the cabin is located….we love log cabins and spend several weekends a year in the mountains in rented log cabins. This one looked fabulous! we live in mclean, so if you traveled 45 minutes west….were you near Charlottesville? thank you and as always i look forward to seeing your posts!! karin

    Reply

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