Hissyfits Photography Blog » 2008

Mar

21

2008

HoLlYWoOd!!!

So this morning while getting ready for the day I was thinking about Little Miss Gentry and all her sunglasses…I then got to thinking about this particular picture of me when I was a tot! Anyway, I hopped on the computer this evening and found it and had to share! Now though, I HAVE to find sister some of those HUGE plain ‘ole white shades and do a photo shoot! I mean, don’t ya think?! I saw some online at Baby Gap….I better check them out a little more and see if they will do the job!!

My parents used to call me Hollywood when I was glamming it up in my shades…I find that both Chris and I refer to Gentry as Hollywood too! Not all the time, but on occasion! Anyway, I thought it might be fun to share these two images and give my parents a little trip down memory lane!

Love you!

(This is my second post today, so be sure to scroll down!)

Like mother…

Like daughter…

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Mar

20

2008

SpRiNg HaS SpRuNg!

So the big day is here…the F*I*R*S*T day of spring 2008! For us out here in the desert, it has felt like spring for several weeks now, but today makes it official I guess! I guess that really only means that instead of highs in the mid-80s, over the next few weeks, the temperatures will climb to the mid-90s. Not so nice, but a part of life we have come to know…not love…but know, down here in Arizona!

Anyway, I had the fun idea to host a playdate for our playgroup to welcome in the first day of spring! We had snacks and a craft and a truly wonderful time! I am generally a total stress case when it comes to these things, but I did 99% of the work last night and although I was still running behind this morning, I managed to get it all pulled together! (with a little help cutting bananas and taking care of the finishing touches!!)

I decided to post some pics so those of you who weren’t able to make it (most of you reading this blog!!) can see what you missed out on! Although Arizona is not “home” and never will be, I will not walk away here the same person as I was when I moved here. I talk so often about missing home and how I can’t wait for the day we pack up and return to Kansas, but truth be told, I have met an amazing group of mama’s out here and I am going to miss them like crazy when we head back! However…that is no where in the near future, so we won’t dwell on that! But seriously, girls, you know who you are and I am so blessed to have found you and this group and I cherish each and every one of you! It seems as though we are meeting new mom’s at each event and I am looking forward to developing even stronger friendships with them too!!

I know…I am sentimental! But really, the first day of spring seems like the PERFECT time to think about what you have to be grateful for and all of those budding friendships!

Continuing along the sentimental note, Miss Gentry is 20 months today. TWENTY MONTHS! Can you believe that?! What happened to that tiny little nugget we brought home from the hospital! It is like I blink and she grows up on me! I just went and peeped in on her…she is trying to fall asleep in Huntler’s bed again! That girl LOVES her bubba’s bed! We seriously need to be thinking about getting her some mattresses and making the big move!

Anyway, she talks like she is three years old. We ask her something and she replies with her oh-so sassy response of, “What?” She gets that from Huntler…thanks buddy! Some of the other things that absolutely CRACK us up these days are, “Hey Buddy.” She says this ALL the time! “Hey Buddy. Hey Buddy.” And today at lunch as Chris was leaving she said, “Daddy I coming.” The last few days she has been really big on that one…”I coming. Coming. Coming Mommy.” TOO FUNNY! And last but not least on my list of Gentry-isms is that every woman over 50 years old is “Gwamma.” We were in Target the other day and she was saying, “Hi Gwamma” to everyone! One lady ate it up and said, “Why yes, I am a grandma” and then chatted with us for a few minutes!

I can’t imagine what we ever did before we had Huntler and Gentry. Although I know our lives weren’t boring, they had to have been! I mean, really!! We sure didn’t host playdates or spend mornings and evenings at the park! There weren’t mountains of laundry to do or mega-piles of toys to pick up. There weren’t crumbs and food all over the floor or sweet grubby prints on all the doors to clean. I mean seriously, WHAT in the world did we do?!

Oh yeah…that was back when my silverware was all lined up in the drawer and there was never a speck of dust or dirt ANYWHERE in my house!! If only you could see us now…

My first ever attempt at a Jello mold! They turned out pretty darn cute if I do say so myself! I was beginning to have my doubts because the first batch was a mess, but it must have been something about the blue jello, because the rest of them turned out perfect!

e="color:rgb(51,204,0);">I also whipped up these little cuties! My original plan was to make Rice-Krispy treat nests, but that was a mess! After I could tell that was so NOT going to work, I decided on these cupcakes that I stuck Peeps and jelly beans on! F*U*N!

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Mar

19

2008

NoT A LoT To BlOG AbOuT!

WHEW! So it has been a few days since I have blogged! I have started a couple of different entries, but quite frankly they were boring as I just haven’t had a lot to say lately!!

Anyway, we have had a SUPER busy week around here…and the rest of the week will be the same! Monday we had a St. Patty’s Day party with our playgroup, Tuesday we ran errands, this morning we had a birthday party, tomorrow we are having a playdate over here and Friday we plan to hit a spring training baseball game! So…WHEW! Then there is the dying of the Easter Eggs on Saturday and the big hunt Sunday morning!

I am supposed to be cleaning for our big event here tomorrow, you can tell I am procrastinating! The theme of our playdate tomorrow is “Rockin’ Robin” and we are having crafts and treats to welcome in spring! I am really looking forward to it!

Hmmm…what else??? I honestly just don’t know a darned thing this week! So, I guess I will get back to dusting (I am so not really that much of a clean freak anymore, but the dust in our office is two inches thick and it is the first room you see when you walk in!!) in preparation for our fun with friends tomorrow!

However, I can’t leave you without any pics! These are from Friday…the kids and I hung out on the front porch forever and I snapped these while we were out there! Notice the scrapes all over Huntler’s face…he fell in the gravel and got into a fight with a bush when we were taking pics at the flower patch Thursday night! I thought about editing them out, but 1.) I just don’t have time today and 2.) That is how he looked! They are long gone and he is back to his cute little self these days!

Happy Wednesday faithful followers!

I have been leaving her hair in these little “knots” lately! Super cute! They remind me of a little ballerina! Too bad Gentry is anything but graceful!! (That is one trait my poor baby inherited from me I am afraid!!!) And yes, the glasses match the outfit…darned that Gymboree for having to have accessories that match EVERY line they come out with!!

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Mar

16

2008

ThE FlOwEr PaTcH BoY!

First of all, do the words flower patch and boy even belong in the same sentence?!! Oh well, who cares! It is what it is…Huntler in the purple flowers and loving every minute of it!

Unlike his dear sis, Huntler absolutely LOVED our visits to the purple flowers! Don’t let Gentry’s smiles fool ya…she was happy for a few moments, but then hated being stuffed in the midst of flowers taller than she was!

Anyway, back to the little man! He LOVED it! He ever-so-willingly did everything I told him! I LOVE this group of images because they are of him being totally and completely natural! Anyone who has ever tried to take a picture (any kind – snapshot or professional) can probably agree with the fact that this is the age where the obnoxious side comes out and the fake personality takes hold. YUCK! Who wants a bunch of cheesy pics?! I, for one, do not!

Anyway, putting a boy in his element…outside, albeit in flowers…provided me with the perfect setting! Huntler was so intrigued by not only the flowers, but also the ants and bees we encountered! He had a ball!

These are also from our second two trips to the patch! (See the below post if you are totally confused!)

This face C*R*A*C*K*S me up!

I have NO idea what he is doing???

This is one of my favorites of him! I managed to get eye contact but it is still natural! It was luck, I tell ya!

These next three are also favorites! He was SO intense! That is one thing about Huntler in ANYTHING he does, it is ALWAYS intense!

A little vintage appeal! I think it works well with this shot?!!

And these next two are exactly why we have very few shots of the kids together! I mean, really now! For some odd reason Huntler forgot to swallow and was wiping drool off his face – Gentry was oblivious!

We tried out another flower patch, but I like the purple patch MUCH better!

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Mar

16

2008

ThE FlOwEr PaTcH GiRl! (Part II)

I know you have all been anxiously awaiting this post of TONS of new pics! Sitting on pins and needles and checking in every five minutes I am betting! HA HA! Well, never fear because they are finally ready to be shared with the rest of the world!! Or at least my family and a few friends who keep tabs on us and check my blog!! These are from our second two trips to the flower patch!

Yes…second two trips! We went three times…the second time was a bust. This first image is the ONLY one I have of missy worth sharing!

The third time we struck gold though!! I am still convinced that I would like to go back again, but when I look at this last batch of pictures I captured while we were there, they are honestly pretty darn perfect if I do say so myself! I am sure a professional would find “issues,” but as the mom of this beautiful little blue eyed girl, I am pleased!!

I took lots of pictures of Huntler as well, which I will be posting soon! Don’t think I have forgotten about him – I just pick one child to start my editing with! So, once I get this post published and some more laundry going, I’ll be ready to start editing on the little man and hopefully post again later today! Remember…there is only one of me and I am a wife, mom, housekeeper, maid, chauffeur, etc… as well, so I can’t promise it will be right away!!

I am bummed that these images are so “little!” As I was editing them and when they are full screen on my computer, the color is just amazing!! I learned a little trick to make eyes sparkle, so that is fun too! You just can’t really tell on here! BUMMER!

Hope all is well with my faithful bloggers! And remember to leave me comments! Hint, hint! Aren’t I subtle?!!

I really like this one!

This is also a fave of mine…for those of you who know the “real” Gentry, this is her! Cute (yet ornery!) smile and SO MUCH attitude!

HMMM….

Daddy and His Girl!

My Sweet Little Family! (the color was WAY off in this one so I converted it to a more vintage look!!)

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Mar

15

2008

SiX On SatURdaY!I

Hi ya’ll! Here it is Saturday again already and time for round #2 of random tidbits of me! Are ya ready?!

I pretty much ONLY listen to country music. On the radio it is ALL country ALL the time. However, on iTunes, I tend to broaden my horizons a bit more and listen to all sorts of tunes!
I can’t walk in heels. Yeah, so they aren’t practical for a mom anyway (well, maybe if you are Katie Holmes, but NOT me!), but even if they were, I seriously can NOT walk in them! I didn’t even wear them in my wedding!
I am obsessed with TomKat. For those of you who aren’t, that would be Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes…and sweet little Suri too! I have been a Katie fan since Dawson’s Creek and am still absolutely intrigued by her!! We are so close in age yet our lives are on COMPLETELY opposite ends of the spectrum! Just makes you think! Not that I would trade my life for, oh, ANYTHING in the world…I am pretty darn blessed if I do say so myself!
I L*O*V*E color! I like to wear bright clothes, shoes, jewelry, etc… I also love color in our home! A room is not complete around here unless it has a couple of coats of paint on it!! It doesn’t necessarily have to be candy apple red to make a HUGE difference, pale yellow can be just as effective!
I can vividly remember the night Chris and I got engaged…but can he?!! (I just say that because we watched Amnesia last night and it makes you stop and think about what you can really remember!!) Maybe this will rile him up and I’ll get him to post a comment!! Love you sweetie! Anyway, I can’t exactly remember the DATE, but all of the details are super clear! We spent the afternoon roaming around at The Plaza in KC. It was COLD and rainy…a dreary November day! We window shopped and popped into a few stores and genuinely had a nice time! Chris kept asking if I wanted to go into the jewelry stores…I kept declining! Who knows why, but I did! So then we went to this rotating restaurant for dinner…that was fun! It was on top of a hotel and you could see for what seemed like miles! Chris ate swordfish…I must have had my good ‘ole standby of chicken! It was really cool! After that it was to the movie theatre to see “Sweet Home Alabama.” I DISTINCTLY remember as we walked out I said, ”Doesn’t that movie make you just want to get married?!” My loving fiance-to-be says, “Not especially.” Nice, hunh?! So as we are walking back to his truck, Chris says, “Let’s take a carriage ride.” I had always wanted to do this, but it was SO cold…and expensive! I thought he was being spontaneous, but later found out that the ENTIRE day was carefully planned out and calculated! For some reason he was not wearing his coat, so I said that we needed to trek back to his truck to get his coat before we went. Well, I played right into his little plan because my ring was in his coat pocket which was in his truck! So, we get his coat and head back to the carriage rides! While in the midst of our carriage ride, he gets down on one knee and proposes. As much as I wanted to remember everything he said, it was (and still is!) all a blur! I mean, HELLO, he is proposing, how am I supposed to remember everything he is saying?! I was in shock!! That was nearly 5 1/2 years ago…and here we are two kids and states away later!
I LOVE Etsy! Almost as much as my family – well, not THAT much!! For those of you who don’t know, Etsy is a big online store where you can buy and sell all things homemade! Here are a couple of sets of prints I am currently lusting after for my laundry room! What set do you like best? (The walls are a light blue, happy blue, and the shelves and frame we already have are distressed white!)

I don’t know how to get pictures over here, so click on each link!!

Here is the first set…

And here is the second…

I hope you enjoy!!

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Mar

14

2008

SwEEt LiTTle GEnTrY GiRl!

So I have spent Gentry’s entire naptime today researching Photoshop…reading tidbits and tips on how to transform me into a photo guru! Although it all starts with a decent shot, Photoshop can TOTALLY make an image! If only I could just wake up tomorrow morning KNOWING it all and not have to spend HOURS upon HOURS learning it!! Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?!!

Needless to say, my eyes are bleary and tired from staring at the screen forever! BUT…I could not leave you without a photo on this post! Here is one from our photo shoot in the flowers last night! This was our third trip to this little oasis…but not the last one! I am sure that Chris is sick and tired of me dragging him out, but hey, these wild flowers only bloom for just a tiny little window of time..by golly we are taking advantage of it!! (He has to go in order to make Gentry smile and stick her in the flowers so I can be ready to roll with the camera!!)

I did some editing on this one…I tried to make her eyes sparkle a little more and some other adjustments…But I still have a lot to learn! I am learning that less is more…it is subtle changes that can make a huge difference! Unless you are intentionally going for vintage or a pop of color! So, maybe some of the images I have been sharing are a little “over-Photoshopped?” It is all a matter of opinion I guess!

Anyway…here is something to hold you over until my next post! There are MANY more darling images of our flower patch kids that I am dying to share…but only after a little Photoshop!

Check back tomorrow for my Six on Saturday!

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Mar

13

2008

ToILet PaPErINg ToDdlEr!

Well, we had a first around here this afternoon! I am sure it is not a last either! Huntler is completely potty trained these days…he wears undies to bed and out in public and is perfectly capable of hopping up on the potty and taking care of business on his own (well, he still needs me for #2, but I’ll spare you the details on that one!). So, when he rushed off to potty this afternoon I thought little about it. Nor did I think twice when Gentry ran after him. That is common practice around here! She is his little shadow.

So, they both went to the bathroom and came back a few minutes later and I was OBLIVIOUS to what had taken place just down the hall! Well, that was up until I went in to get a kleenex and discovered that a brand new roll of toilet paper was torn into too many pieces to count and covering the floor!! As I surveyed the mess, I realized that although there was a TON of TP on the ground, there wasn’t enough to comprise an entire roll. So, I open up the lid and see the rest of the mess stopping up the toilet. NICE. Before panicking and rushing off to get the trusty plunger out of the garage, I flushed a couple of times and somehow managed to get the paper moving and out of the way! WHEW!!

Now…who is the toilet paper bandit you might be wondering??? All bets are on one blonde haired blue eyed angel baby! She is quite fascinated with TP and never fails to lend her helping little hand to bubba when he is pottying. He seems to have perfected tearing off one little square, while on the other hand Gentry pulls and yanks until she can rip a piece off…the bigger the better!

Stay tuned for more adventures in craziness! I am sure it is just a matter of time before someone does something else that wrecks havoc!!

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Mar

12

2008

JuSt BeCAuSE!

So here it is, 1:30 in the afternoon and all is quiet!! Huntler is awake and playing Buckaroo – he gave up naps sometime ago – but Gentry is passed out in her crib. The TV is off, there is no song blasting across the computer…it is simply peaceful! Although I love the chaos of our lives and wouldn’t know what to do with myself if it were actually quiet on a normal basis around here, a few moments of peace now and then do my mind wonders!!

I don’t have any new pics…but give me a break, I just added brand spankin’ new ones last night! So I guess I’ll just babble for a bit! I seem to be good at that!!

First of all…is anyone out there watching Oprah’s Big Give?? AWESOME show! There have only been two episodes so far, but each time I have been totally inspired! Not to mention, crying my eyes out! It is so amazing to see people doing good for complete strangers, ya know?! It REALLY makes me stop and think about me and my life and just puts things into perspective. I KNOW there are things I could do to brighten the life of someone else, I just have to figure out what it is and how to do it. And of course, who to do it for!! :)

Second of all…I am SO not liking the time change! Out here in AZ I seem to be stuck in some time warp because the time just doesn’t change like it does every where else?! What is up with that anyway?! So, instead of being just an hour earlier than all our KS friends and family, we are now TWO hours earlier! That is a LOT! Just think, when your kids are getting up, we are still passed out cold in bed! When you are eating lunch, I am just getting breakfast cleaned up! When you are going to bed, we are just getting the kids ready for baths! Crazy! However, it DOES have its advantages, right Lisa?! I mean, it can be 11:00 p.m. there and only 9:00 p.m. here…still plenty early to call and chat!! That is a perk for sure!!

Third on my list of ramblings…Huntler told me I looked handsome today! I was pulling his shorts on and he was standing there and for some odd reason felt the need to rub my hair, which of course caught Gentry’s eye and she came RUNNING to “rub” my hair as well! Huntler is gentle…only he caused me to have a wicked case of static. Gentry is down right ornery and was pulling! Anyway, while Huntler was so affectionately rubbing my hair (which I hate by the way…I don’t mind him playing with it or even touching it, but don’t rub it like I am some kind of animal!), he told me I looked handsome today! I know this was a compliment, but it was funny!

And speaking of hair…I had the two best hair days I have had in AGES Monday and Tuesday. Today, not so much, but earlier this week, yes! Anyway, while we were minding our own business yesterday at Target picking out Easter Egg dye and some essentials, I was approached by this woman that LOVED my hair cut! Ok…so this TOTALLY made my day since I was feeling like my hair actually looked halfway decent! I whipped out my cell and gave her the name of number of my stylist…she was going to try to get in this week. However, when I tried explaining where the salon was, she was totally lost!!

Oh yeah, the new series of The Bachelor starts Monday!! How did I about forget to mention that?!! I have watched all but Season I and love it! Yes, it gets a little catty and dramatic, but that is what makes it so darn funny! This past Monday (as in two days ago!) there was a “Where Are They Now” episode and it really brought home the fact that I am getting old! Some of the people were from 4 and 5 years ago! That’s crazy!!!

Okay…there is enough random babble for a Wednesday! Remember to comment…if you didn’t notice, I added a “Live Feed Tracker” at the bottom so I can see who (well, kind of…but not really!!!) is keeping up with us! And LOTS of you are! YEAH! I love that! So don’t be afraid to comment (you don’t have to have a Blogger account…you can do it under “Anonymous” but make sure you sign your name at the end of your comment so I can tell who it is from!!)

Ta Ta For Now!!

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Mar

12

2008

FLoWeR PaTCh KiDS!

So while driving home yesterday I happened by some pretty purple wildflowers and I IMMEDIATELY thought, “I HAVE to take pictures in those flowers!” So, tonight we drug the kids out!! Although I am not totally happy with what I got, I did managed to get a couple of good ones! The great thing is, this touch of country is super close so I can load up the munchkins and haul them back whenever I want! And I am planning on doing just that tomorrow!

I thought it would be so perfect to have the sun setting in the background…but I couldn’t quite manage to get that to work for me!! Go figure! Oh well!

(By the way, I didn’t do any Photoshop work on any of these…I am waiting until we go back and I have more to choose from before I spend hours editing!!)

I *L*O*V*E* THIS ONE!!!!!!!! It is a keeper for sure!! If you can’t tell, Huntler loves his lil’ sis!

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