THE PETERSENS

{ J } Family/Maternity Photo Session

Veronique — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 18:30:46 +0000

I was excited to shoot my 2nd maternity session this past month for some dear friends of ours. The difference between my first one and this one was the involvement of small children. It is no easy feat to get two small kids to look at the camera at the same time and then actually smile. Hopefully next time I will be better prepared!

Otherwise, the shoot was a ton of fun. I always love taking pictures at Joyner…the barns with their cool wood textures, the stone wall, the tall grass fields, and big trees. Joyner has it all. It also helps that this family is absolutely adorable and sweet together! Here’s a peek at some of the photos…

Elena 3-Month-Old Photo Session

Veronique — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 00:52:04 +0000

Do you remember this sweet girl as a 2-week-old?
Well, now she is so much bigger! I got the chance to take her 3-month-old pictures and let me tell you, this sweet baby girl has captured my heart. She has crazy hair, kissable cheeks, endless baby rolls, big and captivating eyes and a fun, laidback personality. It is amazing how quickly newborns grow and change into interactive little people.

Tyler+Laura Engagement Session

Veronique — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 18:59:35 +0000

I had the awesome honor of taking engagement pictures for this sweet couple. They are from our church and Ben and I have watched their relationship grown from friendship to love in the past few months. It’s a beautiful thing! We are excited to watch them get hitched this summer.

On another note, this is the first engagement shoot I have done on my own and it had its challenges! Here are five things I learned:
1.) Shooting on “P” was really restricting. After this shoot, I moved onto shooting on “Av.”
2.) I had never shot on the seminary campus before, so I felt really uncomfortable there. Next time if I know that I’m shooting in a new location, I will make sure to scope it out first.
3.) Don’t run away from the light! Photography is all about light, right? Well, as a newbie, I’m pretty scared of it. I went for shaded locations, but could have really turned out with some gorgeous pictures if I hadn’t been such a scaredy-cat!
4.) Directing people and getting them to feel comfortable in front of the camera (so that more natural, unposed shots can be captured) is not an easy thing. My photography friend, K, is so gifted at this. I, on the other hand, have a lot of growing to do.
5.) Don’t rush!!!! When looking through my images after uploading them, I found many of my pictures could have been better if I had taken the time to frame well at the shoot. My subjects can wait while I adjust my settings–I do not need to feel rushed!

Well, that’s about it. Wanna see some of the pictures now?

Meal Plan 6/6/10-6/12/10

Veronique — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 18:43:58 +0000

Sunday
Breakfast: Cereal and Bananas
Lunch: At the Thompsons
Dinner: At Subway
Snack: Pretzels

Monday
Breakfast: Homemade English Muffin Toasting Bread with Homemade Strawberry Jam
Lunch: Cajun Rice with Steamed Broccoli and Grapes
Dinner: Parisienne Chicken with White Rice and Garden Salad
Snack: Veggie Chips

Tuesday
Breakfast: Cereal and Applesauce
Lunch: Cheese and Black Bean Quesadillas; Grapes
Dinner: Beef and Yellow Squash Stirfry with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Animal Crackers

Wednesday
Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs and Toast on Homemade Wheat Bread; Yogurt
Lunch: Pizza, Green Snap Peas and Grapes
Dinner: Baked Nachos with Tortilla Chips and Green Snap Peas
Snack: Apple Slices with Peanut Butter

Thursday
Breakfast: Cinnamon-Raisin Biscuits and Bananas
Lunch: Grilled Cheese, Carrot Sticks and Yogurt Smoothies
Dinner: Chicken, Zucchini and Noodle Soup with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Plums and Pretzels

Friday
Breakfast: Cereal and Fresh Peach Slices
Lunch: Black Bean Enchiladas
Dinner: Roast Chicken, Rosemary Baby Red Potatoes, Green Beans and Brown Rice
Snack: Granola Bars

Saturday
Breakfast: Strawberry Scones
Lunch: GRAND ASIA MARKET
Dinner: Chicken and Celery Soup with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Bananas with Peanut Butter and Raisins

Meal Plan May 30th-June 5th

Veronique — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 01:36:02 +0000

It was so refreshing to have a long weekend! I feel ready for the busy week we have ahead of us. It is during our busiest weeks when I feel like my meal planning is of utmost necessity. Otherwise, it is way too easy to grab a $5 Caesars Pizza or go out to eat…neither of those things are very friendly to our budget! So, here is what we will be feasting on this week…

Sunday
Breakfast: Baked Oatmeal and Yogurt
Lunch: RED ROBIN (with my birthday burger coupon and a giftcard)
Dinner: Cereal and Grapes (yes, this is what we ate…I had a photo shoot that evening!)
Snack: Bananas and Pretzels

Monday
Breakfast: Leftover Baked Oatmeal
Lunch: Spinach, Pinto Bean and Cheese Quesadillas
Dinner: Grilled Garlic & Herb Chicken, Italian-Marinated Zucchini and Yellow Squash Slices with Saffron Rice
Snack: Pretzels with Peanut Butter and Grapes

Tuesday
Breakfast: Whole-Wheat Pancakes (from Joy of Cooking) and Fresh Peach Slices
Lunch: Noodle Soup with Leftover Chicken and Green Onions with Steamed Baby Carrots
Dinner: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Steamed Cheesy Broccoli
Snack: Veggie Puffs and Applesauce

Wednesday
Breakfast: Cereal and Bananas
Lunch: Frozen Pizza, Garden Salad and Grapes
Dinner: Beef and Pineapple Stirfry with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Homemade Banana Bread

Thursday
Breakfast: Homemade English Muffin Toast with Homemade Strawberry Jam
Lunch: Zucchini Quiche and Fresh Peach Slices
Dinner: Chicken Cambodian Salad with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Oatmeal Squares and Yogurt

Friday
Breakfast: Strawberry Scones
Lunch: Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Tortilla Chips and Apple Slices
Dinner: Double-Crust Bean Pie (I never made this last week) with Sauteed Yellow Squash and Zucchini
Snack: Cheese Cubes and Applesauce

Saturday
Breakfast: Homemade Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting
Lunch: Leftovers
Dinner: Leftovers
Snack: Veggie Puffs and Yogurt

No links again this week because my husband needs to use the laptop for work stuff. Maybe one day we will have our own laptops to work on!

Strawberry Pickin’

Veronique — Thu, 27 May 2010 18:47:28 +0000

My sweet friend, Autumn, and I went strawberry pickin’ today with the kiddos. We did the same last year, but Elena wasn’t here yet and Caleb was still itty-bitty. So, it felt pretty different this year, but a good different. That was not the only thing that was different though…THIS YEAR, there was a “special” visitor at the strawberry farm. THIS YEAR, there was a TURKEY. Yes, a turkey. An honest-to-goodness, real, live, gobblin’, trottin’ turkey. Oh my. And, you know what???? It followed us. It stalked us. It scared us. People, my dear children were frightened out of their little MINDS. Poor things. I think JL will be okay (we have actually laughed quite a lot about the turkey since this morning), but little Caleb was pretty traumatized.

So, I am thinking that this particular memory goes in that category of “so-extremely-scary-at-the-time-but-so-completely-hilarious-later”. What do you think, Autumn? Well, besides a few shed tears and some elevated heart rates this morning, my birthday has been off to a great start so far! Thank you, dear friend. I love you! Can’t wait to continue our tradition of strawberry pickin’ next year…just maybe at different, turkey-free farm.

Weekly Meal Plan 5/23-5/29

Veronique — Tue, 25 May 2010 17:51:40 +0000

Since it’s my birthday this week, I’m really not doing much cooking. But, here is our meal plan anyway!

Sunday
Breakfast: Cereal and Grapes
Lunch: LAS MARGARITAS
Dinner: Houstons’ Goodbye Party
Snack: Oatmeal Squares and Yogurt

Monday
Breakfast: Cereal
Lunch: Pizza and Sugar Snap Peas
Dinner: Leftovers
Snack: Bananas

Tuesday
Breakfast: Homemade Banana Bread and Cereal
Lunch: Spinach, Pinto Bean and Cheese Quesadillas and Yogurt
Dinner: Sweet and Sour Chicken with Jasmine White Rice and Steamed Broccoli
Snack: Veggie Puffs and Fig Newtons

Wednesday
Breakfast: Baked Oatmeal
Lunch: Grilled Cheese on Homemade Wheat Bread and Apple Slices
Dinner with Community Group: Garlic-Cheddar Biscuits
Snack: Bananas with Peanut Butter and Raisins

Thursday
Breakfast: Strawberry Scones
Lunch: Noodle Soup with Meatballs
Dinner: OLIVE Garden with Ben…Date Night!
Snack: Pretzels with Cheese Cubes

Friday
Breakfast: Cereal and Applesauce
Lunch: PB&Js one Homemade Wheat Bread with Baby Carrots
Dinner: Double-Crust Bean Pie and Green Beans
Snack: Yogurt and Crackers

Saturday
Breakfast: Sunshine Toast
Lunch: Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Brown-Sugar Glazed Carrots
Dinner: Leftovers
Snack: Dry Cereal and Raisins

I {heart} Video iChat

Veronique — Sat, 22 May 2010 01:21:22 +0000

What we do over Ben’s lunch break at work…

Wake Forest Fellowship

Veronique — Wed, 19 May 2010 18:54:35 +0000

The two WF community groups combined one Wednesday for a fellowship. Here are a few pictures of some of the sweet kids who live here in Wake Forest!

My Mom and Brother Come to Visit

Veronique — Wed, 19 May 2010 18:01:05 +0000

A couple days after our friends, Pete and Jess Melling, left us to go back to Minnesota, my mom and brother came to visit. They stayed for about a week and in that time, we…
…ate really good Khmer food…
…played outside…
…read lots of books…
…went shopping…
…watched a really badly-made movie…
…played Nertz with Tyler and Laura…
…visited “our” house on State Street…
…hung out with Autumn and Elena…
…and stayed up way too late probably every single night!

It was worth the lack of sleep though. I only get to see my family once or twice a year. We had a great time! Love you, Mommy and Jonathan. Thanks for visiting!