Monday, August 31, 2009

288 We did stuff ...

Instead of Breakfast with Mom we had "Memories with Mom" this year. I preferred it to washing down a Pop Tart with 3 ounces of OJ, but I did miss being able to see some of the other moms in the cafeteria. Katie's class made a little video of "Love You Forever" by Robert Munsch. I tear up everytime I hear or read that book, and this time was no different. I am still taking advantage of these years where Katie is not too embarrassed to have her Mom around.Connor is trying to figure out the potty. Moments after this picture was taken, I heard grunting in the living room. I popped him on the potty JUST in time (I know you wanted to know that). One problem, we threw away all the "boy adapters" that came with the potty when we bought them for Katie, so when he decided to go number one as well he created quite the puddle on the kitchen floor. Yeah, he insists on bringing the potty out of the actual bathroom, you got a problem with that??And Saturday night Katie spent the night at Mia's for her Seventh Birthday. I have no pictures, but I am told it was quite the party. The girls cranked up the Hannah and danced around in the dark with glow sticks. Apparently it was a Hannah Rave. Later in the night they were caught STUFFING BRAS! I am not even sure where they all came up with bras. The picture I saw of Katie looked like she had three boobs. Which is fine with me, boys tend to stay away from the girls with three boobs.
Sunday was the actual party at Chuck E Cheese, better known as Hell. I know, I know ... it is for the kids, but that place drives me crazy! It was Sunday evening and PACKED. We stood in line to get into CEC for about 20 minutes because a group that was coming out had all different numbers. They had to call a manager, and the one girl manning the door could not figure out how to let people in while keeping people in. Oh, how today's young people scare me! But the kids DID have fun, and Mia had a good birthday, so it was all worth it in the end.
We got Mia a Harukima fashion set. Which is essentially a dress form with a opening in the back, and you wrap fabric around and push it into the slot to create clothing. Katie has been asking for one forever, so I am pretty proud of her for picking it out for Mia. She did try to finagle her own set, but ended up putting it back for a mini water cooler (and then she drank about 6 cups of water when we got home). And while it was cute that the kids were caught "stuffing their bras" I am not sure how I feel about THIS being a birthday present for a 7 year old. Okay, I am sure how I feel about it. I don't like it. I don't want our girls growing up so fast. I don't want them to already be trying to force their bodies into a certain image. I want them to be KIDS! For just a little while longer at least.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

287 Love Thursday


Squeaking this one in under the wire. This week might be pushing the bounds of your imagination. Seconds before I took this picture there was a perfect heart in the clouds, but you can still make out the basic shape. I truly do find reminders EVERYWHERE that love is all around us, if you know how to open your eyes. You can't walk through life with your eyes closed to love. Well, you can, but I wouldn't recommend it!
Love Thursday is hosted by Karen at Chookooloonks. Stop in and also scroll through her comments and click on through to other images and words of love. And PLEASE, if you feel moved, SHARE your own bits of love. It doesn't have to be a picture. It can be a poem, a story, or a haiku.

Monday, August 24, 2009

286 Published and Painting

Well, I had a picture published in a book, and Katie was the one that was painting, but that seemed like a really long title.
Okay, so it isn't a book you can run out to the nearest B&N and grab with your latte, but you can head on over to Blurb and order a copy. I am going to copy and paste the description of the book from the Blurb site, it is so much clearer than any of my explanations!

"Picture Hope: An Invitation to the Journey" is a collaboration among Shutter Sisters and celebrates the start of Picture Hope – the grand prize winning photography assignment submitted by Jen Lemen and Stephanie Roberts in the "Name Your Dream Assignment" global photography competition sponsored by Lenovo and Microsoft. The book introduces the Shutter Sisters' vision and approach for "Picture Hope" and features an inspiring collection of visions of hope captured and shared by our extended community of Shutter Sisters.
All proceeds from the sale of this book will be used to compensate the individuals Jen Lemen and Stephanie Roberts feature in photographs, videos, and stories throughout the 12-month Picture Hope assignment. We sincerely thank you for your support and look forward to taking you on this journey with us. To follow the journey visit: http://www.shuttersisters.com/picturehope
Images in this book were graciously provided by the following Shutter Sisters: Tracey Clark, Karen Walrond, Kate Inglis, Sarah-Ji, Maile Wilson, Andrea Scher, Irene Nam, Paige Balcer, Julie Evans, Taheerah Davis-Zabate, Erin Casey Carmack, Liz Farina Markel, Sue Thompson, Rocio Alberich de Castro, Sandra Lundy, Heather W. Turner, Hilde Wegner, Kristin Zecchinelli, Chelsea Fisher, Carrie Jackson, Heather Plett, Daniele Giombi, Jen Farnam, Dawn Angileri, Summer Stetter, Brittany Sivyer, Tonya Doughty, Patience Salgado, Tracy Collins, Meredith Winn, Alison Fechtel, Kimberlee Kenner, Shelli Bond Pabis, Christine Sneddon, Ester Bartolomei, Kelly Sauer, Emma Biskupski, and Kate Albright.


If you love looking at beautiful pictures, most of the photographers listed above have blogs. Or you can check out the Shutter Sister Group on Flickr. I am so honored to have an image in this book!

Speaking of great photographers ... One of my very favorite artist/photographers is Linda Woods (check her blog out). I am lucky enough to also be friends with her, thanks to the power of the internet and Twitter. I could ramble on forever, but the gist of the story is that I sent Linda some thrift store patterns (they were stellar) and she sent me back a sweet Thank You note with one of her gorgeous images. Well, I couldn't just throw it in some plane Jane frame! And of course Katie couldn't allow me to break out the paints without her, so we collaborated on the frame. Katie picked out the colors, with just a little nudge from me. She did try to add in brown, but that just wouldn't do! And then Connor had to get in on the act. He painted a chalkboard with water, but hey! he was happy ... for a few minutes anyway.I did add in the circles, it is kind of a Linda Woods thing. I love how it all turned out!And then Katie had to steal my paints, canvas panels, and my easel. I mean ... she asked if she could paint, and I gave in. The first one she did totally on her own. You can tell by the way the background is bare canvas.The second one, I insisted on giving her a base color (that bare canvas gets me, it is the one thing I can't stand! anything else in art is totally fine, but leaving bare spots *shudder*). So, this is what she started with ... That is not a giant candy corn inthe middle - it is a pyramid. The white blob is a mummy, and the red sky is a sandstorm. Me thinks we watch too much Scooby Doo and the Brendan Frasier Mummy movies.And here is the finished product ... she took care of covering the background this time :)
Now I just need to find some time to escape to my craftroom! And I better hurry before Katie uses up all of my supplies!!

Saturday, August 22, 2009

285 SOOC - Random

I have no idea what this post is going to be about, but I am going to open my recent pics and find a good SOOC shot for you and then I will know what I want to say. Sound good? I hope so, 'cuz here I go ...
Ahhhh yes, swimming ... always a crowd favorite. Well, for the kids at least. Katie has really taken to the water this year. I just wish we had a REAL pool! Connor is just now starting to trust his floaties. This week is the first time he has let us let go of him without screaming. He has even "swam" about 5 feet. And an even bigger leap of faith was swimming to Katie! He does NOT trust his Sissy to keep him safe, but several times this week he has allowed her to touch him in the pool (although he still usually screams bloody murder). So, instead of taking the time to edit these pics right now, I will share the joy that they have found in the pool. I will jump right in and let go!

SOOC Saturday (or Sunday) is hosted by Melody at Slurping Life. Head on over to check out a few more people taking a break from photo editing.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

284 Half-hearted

Just a little reminder to LOVE with ALL OF YOUR HEART!
Happy Love Thursday!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

283 Kristin & Jason

I had the good fortune to be second shooter for Kristin and Jason's wedding on Saturday. They were such a cute couple. You could tell that Kristin is the life of the party. She absolutely lit up the room everytime she walked in ... not to mention how Jason's face would light up as well.
I was on Groom Duty, but I did manage to get a few pics of Kristin before the ceremony.

Jason with their daughter, the flower girl. Isn't she the sweetest Flower GirlAs you can tell, Kristin and Jason have a long and happy life ahead of them.

Congratulations!!

Just a few images from a wonderful night. Still working on the editing, but I wanted to share a few of my favorites.