Hissyfits Photography Blog

There are lots of really cool aspects to photography…that is why I simply adore it! No matter how long you have been at it or how much you know, you can seriously always learn and find new things to try!! The possibilities are endless! I love that about it…how I can learn and improve every single day. That although I may conquer aspects of it, I will never truly conquer all of it.

A couple of days ago my friend Kamee posted a shot that totally inspired me. It was of her daughter…but just one side of her sweet face. Something about it totally grabbed me and I of course had to experiment on one of my own little models! This isn’t quite what I was after, but it will definitely work for a first attempt! We’ll try it again sometime when tummies are full and models are more patient.

And here is the original…

I am working on a few posts for this week…I am going to attempt to post more than once!! Jeepers time has really gotten away from me lately! But for now enjoy this!!

Miss me? It seems I have been MIA for a week! Goodness, where does the time go?! Seriously? It seems as though the days are just flying by and leaving me behind, standing in the dust!! Oh how I wish I could slow the hands of time, if even just a bit!

Things here are good!! It is hot of course, but that goes without saying considering we live in the desert! Have I mentioned yet today how much I can’t wait to move back to Kansas? This just isn’t my cup of tea…at all!

So what in the world have I been up to? Why editing pics and party planning of course!! I am in full candy swing around here and LOVING it! This is by far the most elaborate party I have planned for either one of my kiddos! Every last little detail has been thought out and it is, quite simply, going to be over the top fun! And if it isn’t fun, well, then the cuteness factor will totally outweigh that! But who doesn’t have fun at a party with candy EVERYWHERE?! Seriously?

I am sure many of you were wondering what in the world I was thinking months ago when I started working so far ahead. Heck, I may have even wondered that very same thing! But, when planning something as detail oriented as this, you just have to. Otherwise lots of my little projects simply wouldn’t get done! And no one wants that, now do they?!

So…I’ll give ya a little run down on what is on my mind today and share some pics here and there of my weekend projects!

1. This is Huntler’s last week of school. CRAZY. My little guy will be officially done with his first year of preschool as of Thursday. We are still debating on what to do this summer. His school offers two week sessions throughout the summer months and we can pick and choose which sessions we want to put him in, if any. I am just worried he will be bored out of his mind here all day, every day. Plus, there is the whole fighting drama that I deal with most days and I am just not quite sure I am up for that all day, every day, all summer long! We’ll see! The jury is still out on that one!

2. I am still working out like a crazy girl! Remember that post where I wanted all your advice on the Spanx and what I should do about cramming myself into that black dress I hadn’t worn since before I got pregnant with Huntler? Well, a few days before that post I started working out and I have been hard at it ever since. I have missed very few days and the more into my routine I get, the less I miss. I even worked out all weekend because I felt guilty when I didn’t? Insane, I know. BUT…when you can tell you are losing weight and feeling better, all the sweat and pain are worth it. I am down to 123.5 from 131.5 and feeling great! I would really like to get to 120…but I don’t know how realistic that is. Maybe by the end of the summer? At this point I don’t seem to be losing much. But I am okay with that too. It is really about making lifestyle changes and getting healthier as well as teaching our kids healthy habits. And as of yesterday, I even have Chris on the bandwagon! Of course, he is turning it into a competition as to who can burn the most calories, but whatever works!! And I tried on the black dress over the weekend…fits perfectly! Although, I could still benefit from the Spanx to firm up my not so firm body!

3. I ordered this today. I am making {or possibly buying knowing my baking skills…or lack thereof!} cupcakes for the party and am going to jazz this baby up with ribbon and paper and make it pop for Gentry’s party!! I first saw it here and then here. I tried Michael’s armed with my 40% off coupon but couldn’t even find a spot for it…same with JoAnn’s. So, I just ordered it online. That is easier anyway! I love this kind of fun stuff!!

4. Here is a shot of our pantry yesterday. The picture is pretty much straight out of the camera and has a horrific tint to it because of the incandescent lighting and the lack of natural light in this part of our house. Just ignore that and look at all the lollipop fun! The bottom three shelves on the back wall are loaded up with candy and decor! You are looking at HOURS and HOURS of work right there! This stuff is taking over our house! We have been buying a bag of candy each time to go to Sam’s to avoid having to buy a whole ton the week of!! Seems to be working out well! The kids have pretty much forgotten all about it and never even mess around with my stuff and I have exerted way more self control that I ever thought possible and leave it alone!

You might also notice all my galvanized buckets. I LOVE those things and have quite the collection!

5. We had a super uneventful weekend. It is times like this weekend that I realize just how alone we really are out here. I told Chris that the happiest times I have ever had here are when we have company…cookouts on the patio, swims, smores, road trips, yummy food, fun stuff. The rest of the time {which is most of the time} it seems as though we do just enough to get by. Sad, but true.

6. I am SO not a cook. Or a baker. Never have been, never will be. I prefer simple, easy meals and desserts. I made this DELICIOUS dessert last summer for the first time and we LOVE it! I just made more last week and had Chris buy the stuff to make it again this week! {Yes, he even does 99% of our grocery shopping…I don’t like that part of meal preparation either!!} The good thing is, you can buy low fat everything so that makes it just a little better for ya! I took one to a playdate last week and the moms LOVED it! Super easy…try it and let me know if you love it too!

7. I was feeling inspired to make some bright, cheery little letter blocks for Gentry’s bash. Something like this. However, I was struggling with what to have them spell out since I have another sign in the works and also a banner. So…I did a little searching and found this bit of creative fun!! Totally combines my crafty side with my love of photography! My blocks have been painted but that is it so far!

8. So the blocks started me on a mission! See these clothes pins? I bought them last year and stashed them away, completely forgotten! That was until I was digging out the blocks and I came across them! They were plain jane wood until I took some bright paint, glitter, patterned paper and mod podge to them!! LOVE LOVE LOVE them!! A lot!! And that piece of candy attached to the blue one? Found that on Etsy…it was also plain jane MDF and I jazzed it up! I actually ordered a whole bunch of them in different shapes and sizes!! Super fun, friends, super fun! I am going to matte a couple of pictures on cardstock and use these as little picture holders!

9. If you are having a “sweet” bash anytime in the future or are looking for some candy-ish scrapbooking supplies, Colorbok has a whole line of fabulous papers and embellishments out right now. Check out the packaging…it is almost too cute to rip into!! I found mine at JoAnn’s and if you time it right you can get it 40% off! I just picked up a couple more things over the weekend that were on sale!!

10. Are you keeping up with the Jon and Kate drama? I watched the season premier last night. It was so, so sad. I just sat there watching and thinking about how sad it truly is. There is so much anger on both sides. I am so, so truly blessed to have such an amazing marriage. I can’t even fathom the turmoil they are dealing with right now.

11. Keeping in line with reality TV…what about The Bachelorette? I haven’t had a chance to watch last night’s episode yet but will soon! My gut instinct is Jake, the pilot. We’ll see how far he makes it!

12. I need your help. I am getting ready to start designing Gentry’s invites and am needing some input on the wording. All I really know at this point is that somewhere it will say, “Don’t Miss a Lick.” That’s all I’ve got. So hit me with your best wording ideas…anything to do with candy or sweetness. I’m game!

13. If you aren’t going to do your own invites, I made a new Etsy friend who has a cute little shop! And she happens to live in Arizona too! Her stuff is darling…check it out!

14. Now back to my darling stuff! Can I say that? That I think my stuff is darling? I think I can… Oh, and if you notice the little black dots on the piece of candy in the first one, that is glitter. I had about 6 colors out and of course they got mixed together! It isn’t nearly as noticeable in real life!!

After I made those two clothes pin picture holders, I wanted more! Of course, I couldn’t find the jumbo clothes pins, so I had to “settle” for something different. {I am 99% sure I bought those clothes pins on super sale at the end of last summer…they must have been seasonal.} And although I thought I was “settling” for these, I LOVE THEM!! I may just have to go get some more to have on hand! They too were just plain wood and I painted, glittered and embellished them! If I had the time to have an Etsy shop, it would be SO fun! All sorts of party decor! But, I don’t. So instead I’ll just dream! And by the way, I found these at Michael’s in the summer craft area…not with the dowels and other wood where you would think they would be!! {Hope you don’t mind me always babbling about where I find things…I just like to share because I cannot tell you how many times I have read blogs and wondered “Where did they find that?”}

15. And then I made a frame. I have like four more of these to go!! This one is my least favorite weekend creation, but it will work!

16. Anyone now planning a colorful candy bash?! Share your ideas with me if you are!! I also happen to have a give away in the works for sometime in June that will give you the chance to win some of your very own candy fun!! Stay tuned!!

17. I want this picture, bad. I absolutely LOVE Sheye and her photography {I took her two workshops last year}. Did I mention yet that I also absolutely love this picture?! So sweet!

Alright, I think that is it for my random babbling tonight!! I should get ready for bed…the only downside to this new workout obsession I have is that it is zapping all my energy!! I must not be doing something right…still trying to figure it all out!

Don’t forget to share any of your wording ideas with me! Or anything else you can think of!! I am all for suggestions!!

Happy day friends!!

For months now Huntler has been on this kick where he talks about camping out constantly! I honestly have no clue where he came up with this great idea of his {as he would say}, but to say that he has had his heart set on it for weeks upon weeks is not an understatement!! So, a few weeks ago we broke down and went to Cabela’s and bought a tent. That was a Friday night…the plan was for the boys to camp out the next night. Well, something crazy happened with the weather down here and it was only in the 50’s that night with a breeze {which is down right frigid to us Arizonians!!} and so the campout didn’t take place in the traditional sense. The tent was still set up, just in our family room! But Chris and Huntler still slept in it! Gentry and I were smart…we slept in the comforts of our beds!

Well, this past Saturday Chris pulled the beloved tent back out and set it up. No worries about it being too cold now considering it has been well over 100 for days on end and still in the 90’s at 9:00 PM. I am remembering once again just how much I hate this heat!! The sad thing is it is still technically spring! Yikes!! We are in for another long, hot summer! But such is life! At least we have the comforts of air conditioning and don’t have to get out too awfully much!

So anyway, Chris set the tent up and the kids were on cloud nine! Not only was Grandma here for a few days to spoil them rotten; they also got to campout in the back yard! It just doesn’t get much better than swimming, yummy food, campouts, smores and visits from Grandma when  you are four!

Here we are before dinner! I had to snap this one before we ate so that we had enough light. It was quite the ordeal! We set up the tripod and I had PLANNED to use the remote but it wasn’t working. Not sure if the battery was dead or if I needed to do something with my camera to sync them up. {I still haven’t figured that out but need to!} So, we got everyone situated and then I would pop up and push the button and then run back and snuggle in with the fam! It did make the kids laugh though so it might have actually been better than the remote!

Anyone out there use their tripod or remote much? These weren’t very clear and I was just wondering if anyone had any tips for me?

For those of you who know anything about photography, I had to have the ISO cranked because I had the aperature set at 6.3. Anyway, the images were noisy so I just went with it! I used some different editing techniques than normal to add even more grain and give them that  old school feel! LOVE the way they turned out!!

Here is just a snapshot of Gentry girl being silly and peeking out of the tent!

And for the grand finale of a WONDERFUL day…smores!! Huntler was so darned excited about making smores that he could hardly contain himself!! He had the graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate all spread out on the pool deck ready to go! And as a little sidenote…chocolate gets really soft, really fast when placed on the ground when it has been 105+ degrees out! Just in case you didn’t already know that! {And because I had to use my flash on these, they were pretty harsh so I converted them to black and white and added that same grain!! Totally screams dirty campout to me!!}

And my absolute fave from this series…I just love this one! His pursed lips, the crumbs on his face, the marshmallow stuck to his finger, how in focus the smore is! Just a fun shot!

And in case you are wondering, we all four slept in the tent!! It was slightly on the HOT side when we first laid down, but as the night went on, it got better!! I am SOOO not an outdoorsy kind of girl, but this was right up my alley! It doesn’t get much better than camping out 15 feet from your back door so you can go in and use the bathroom at any time you please! That is my kind of roughing it!

I am in the process of sorting through and editing some of the hundreds of images I snapped this weekend. When I came to this one I had to stop the sifting and start editing right away! You may have noticed my obsession with foot shots by  now. Well, I also have one for little booties. And little booties that are halfway hanging out of super cute swimsuits are even more irresistable. Now, if only I looked half this cute in my suit!!

This is the song that played six years ago today as we stood at the front of the church before our family and friends and lit a unity candle. It is this same song that brings a smile to my face each time I hear it…taking me back in time to the day I married the love of my life. It is also the song that is playing over and over again in the background as I type this entry tonight. Six years. In some ways it seems like a lifetime ago and in others like just yesterday. I so clearly remember the days leading up to our wedding and the days after, but just as with any couple, so, so much has changed in those same six years and bits and pieces have faded with the hands of time.

I look back at pictures and see how young we were. How excited. How happy. How invincible. We had the whole world at our fingertips and were just waiting to see where it would take us. {I can assure you that neither one of us saw us way out here in the desert!} What an amazing time in our lives. Life was easy. We were living on love.

From time to time I will catch myself taking a trip down memory lane…pulling out our wedding album and sifting through all of the images on the computer. Sometimes I’ll giggle to myself when I see how much we have changed, how much we’ve grown. Other times I’ll cry. Cry because I’m happy, cry because I’m sad. {Mostly because I’m happy!}

You see, I’m a lucky one. Despite the fact that I have these horrific nightmares from time to time that tell me otherwise, I KNOW beyond a shadow of a doubt that my husband loves me with every fiber of his being. I know that whether I succeed or fail, he loves me. Through my ups and downs, he loves me. Make up or no make up, he loves me. He loves me. And we are living on love.

Our honeymoon in Kauai…my all time favorite place, ever!! {Other than Kansas of course!!}

In Maui with Huntler, September 2005. Was Huntler not the cutest little guy ever? I think we need another baby! {And on a totally random note, I just realized I am wearing the exact same shirt in both pictures! Too funny…I no longer have it so you won’t be seeing it again!!}

Bringing home Gentry, July 2006.

Looking back at these pictures, those moments seem like a lifetime ago. Sweet Huntler will be FIVE in just a few months and our baby girl is rapidly approaching three and wants the whole world to know. Where oh where does the time go? I remember both of those days perfectly…the beach and the day we brought Gentry home. Tears are beginning to fall again as I realize just how quickly time does pass…

For the first time in forever, Chris and I went out to dinner Friday night. His mom was here and stayed with the kids and we went out for a quiet, relaxing dinner, alone. It was so nice to sit together and have an entire conversation without being interrupted. It was nice to give all of me to him for once. But it was quiet. Maybe a little too quiet? And even though we were only gone two and a half hours, we missed the kids! Nope…no big trips without the kidlets in our future!!

Okay, so I am not overly thrilled about being on the other side of the camera, but I want my kids to have memories of me too! To look back and know that I was in fact everywhere they were, I just happened to be taking the pictures! Anyway, I had Chris’ mom take this one while I was waiting on Chris to finish getting ready that night and I really like it. {Yes, I was in fact waiting on him, note that!} I was loving my sassy little outfit and wanted to share it! And, I also want to remember how skinny and cute I felt that night so I am going to print this and tape it to my elliptical as I increase my workout times this week to keep me motivated!! {My bag, shoes and earrings are all from Target. The jeans are from Kohl’s and the jacket is from Forever 21. Just in case anyone sees anything there they are loving!! I always want to know where people find their fun goodies!}

And here we are now…six years later. Six years wiser. Six years older. Six years happier. Six years. And STILL living on love.

Honey, if you are reading this, I love you with every bit of who I am. I am so blessed that our paths crossed and we found our way to each other. I know without a shadow of a doubt there is no one I would rather be on this journey we call life with. You are the best dad to our kids they could ever ask for. And you are the most wonderful partner in life that I could ever ask for. Here is to the rest of our “Happily Ever After.” I love you.

Quite simply, in a nutshell, THIS is one reason why I cannot wait to return to Kansas. See these little people? All four of them each out in la la land and blissfully unaware of the others? These two are the only two cousins Huntler and Gentry have for the time being and forseeable future! TWO cousins. It seems absolutely absurd to me considering I grew up with a whole slew of cousins right around my age and lots more that came along later on, but so it is. Because we were all in the same town and so close in age, I have countless wonderful childhood memories with the aforementioned cousins. Sleepovers. Playing Racko and Bingo and winning gag gifts. Riding the four wheeler. Pallets on the living room floor with a quarter for the first one asleep. Holidays. Birthday parties. High school. You name it, my cousins were around!

I know for a matter of fact we will never live in the same town as my sis and her family. It just isn’t realistic for Chris’ job. BUT…that doesn’t mean that once we make it back to Kansas our kids won’t be seeing these two all the time! I want so desperately for them to have the memories that I have. For them to one day twenty five years from now to be sitting at their own computer writing about campouts in Grandma and Papa’s living room and bike rides to the park. I want for them to remember Easter Egg hunts and fireworks shows with their cousins nearby. It is something I think about, a lot.

{And please excuse how horrible this picture is…it has issues I am quite aware of but I like it anyway!!}

Before I introduce sweet Trig and Taverli, I’ll let you meet my sis first. She will probably kill me for posting these, but since I am states away, I am willing to take that chance!!

This is Natalie. We are 18 months apart. I am older. She is funnier. She is actually down right hilarious if you want to know the truth! She is the mama to my favorite niece and nephew and she also just happens to be my favorite, and only, sister! I’ll take ya back in time 20-some years…

I love this next picture…her cute smile, my adoring little look. And of course our Dad whipping up something tasty behind us. I had so much fun looking back through some of these old images tonight. Remembering years gone by. Remembering the people that shaped me into the person I am today and the people I miss with all my heart and then some. I LOVE how one simple image can trigger such powerful memories and emotion. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing and the thousands and thousands {and thousands more} of pictures we have will one day be priceless to our kids. They won’t care about white balance or aperature or any of that mumbo jumbo, just the moments. When I look at this picture below of my YOUNG Dad and baby sis, the only important thing there is the moment that was captured. {But it is fun to see the blue cabinets and ancient mixer in the midst of it!!}

Now, I look like a total {and I mean TOTAL!} goober in this one, but Nat looks darling, don’t ya think? I see SO many of her characteristics in Gentry as well as her daughter Taverli. It’s funny how much one of my kiddos favors her as a baby!

Here we are at a high school Homecoming dance. I have always treasured this picture for some reason. The lighting or something totally grabs me! Of course, it wasn’t taken on a digital camera and you can totally tell, but it is the memory that counts anyway, right?!

And I just think this is a super cute pic of her and our brother, Garrett. And speaking of Garrett…Are there any SWEET, adorable single girls in their early 20’s back in Kansas looking to meet a great guy?! He has a college degree AND a job!! And if Nat doesn’t kill me first, he is going to!!

So that was then…man was life ever simple back in the day!! Homework and “Dragging Main” were the only things to worry about! My how things change!! My how things change…

Fast forward a few years and meet Trig and Taverli. These pictures were taken, ahem, at Christmas and I am just now editing most of them and blogging them. If it makes me look any better, we JUST got our Christmas decor put away like two weeks ago. It has been sitting around the guest room collecting dust since November. I can’t believe I am even confessing that, but it is the truth. I have no excuse whatsoever about just now getting to the pictures other than I simply put it off. There were SO many to sort through after Christmas it was slightly overwhelming to say the least. And then I would forget about it. And then I would remember again but still not do it!! But Chris’ mom arrived today and is here for a few days and I am on a mission to get through some of my own images and get an order placed so I can have some new prints!!

First of all, meet Trig. He had just turned 6 when these were taken but is now 6 1/2. He is a STAR student and reading at the third grade level!! And comprehending it all too! Taking pictures of him is like taking pictures of Huntler…a TOTAL challenge. He wasn’t so much in the mood and getting him to act natural was HARD. Just like Huntler. So, you’ll notice there aren’t a whole ton of him, but the ones I did get are pretty cute! And his mama and my mom are going to love them!

Such a handsome little fella he is!! I remember like it was yesterday going to the hospital when he was born. He was several weeks early and just the tiniest little thing!! It is SO hard to believe he is six already. Time just FLIES. It really just flies. I don’t think I could pick a favorite out of these if I had to! I love them all and for different reasons!! I’ll be anxious to see what my sis thinks!

And then came Taverli. Much like Gentry, she is the wild one in their family. The one who knows how to push everyone’s buttons and drive you absolutely crazy, but then smiles and it all fades away. She and Gentry could really get into some mischief I do believe!! Two little fire cracker girls with wild personalities just screams chaos!!

And she, like Gentry, couldn’t get enough of the camera. I could have shot pictures of her ALL day long. This girl LOVES getting dolled up and working it in front of the camera! Just take a look yourself…

I keep coming back to this next one. There is something about it I simply adore!! It feels almost magical…

And this next one too…biting her lip!! EEEKKKK!!! So, so sweet!

Talk about cute, hunh?!! I can’t wait for our next trip back so I can get them in front of the camera again! I have some fun cousin shots in mind that I really want to see become a reality!

And one last one…a little sibling love!

We miss you Trig and Tavi…LOTS!! And we can’t wait to get back home so we can have sleepovers and ride bikes and tear up Grandma and Papa’s house with you!!

Meet adorable Abby. And of course her fabulous parents too, Bob and Lacy. They are from Kansas…Back Where I Come From. You can bet that they are “good people”…the kind I could sit and chat with for hours about nothing and everything all at the same time. The kind of people who adore their beautiful baby girl and want nothing but the best for her. The kind of people who miss the green grass and connectedness we find back home in Kansas. The kind of people who look forward to the day when they too are able to pack up their small family and head east, to where we will always consider home.

Saturday I was lucky enough to have my first “official” shoot with this family. Because I share just about everything, I’ll go ahead and fess up to the fact that I was a little on the nervous side when Lacy first contacted me! Not in my ability to forever freeze moments in their lives, but simply because this was the first time I had a “scheduled appointment” with someone I wasn’t already friends with! We all know I take thousands and thousands of pictures of my own family, but there is just a different feeling when you are shooting for someone else. I can’t really explain it…

As Lacy and I exchanged emails back and forth, we shared cell numbers. When she saw the area code for mine, she wrote back wondering if we were from the Kansas City area {we are keeping our Kansas numbers!!}. Crazy enough, she and her husband are also from Kansas and grew up just an hour away from Kansas City! What a small, small world it is! Bob even had a teacher who lived in my home town and commuted back and forth to work where he attended high school! In the days leading up to the shoot, I felt myself begin to relax a little…

I had an absolutely wonderful time! Abby was the cutest little thing and smiled away for me! She was about the easiest little person I have ever taken pictures of! In fact, I was having so much fun and taking so many that I filled up my entire memory card! OOPS! I’m going to have to invest in another one of those before too long!!

I love the connections I captured in these next few! A doting daddy and his little princess and a beautiful mama and her darling girl! As my kids are getting older, I guess I had forgotten how much pure love babies this age have. They are so happy and cheery and full of absolute adoration for those they love the most, their mama and daddy!

And then it was time for an outfit change!! What is better than a cute babe in a tutu and fun little headband?! {For some reason several of these images are losing some of their quality when uploaded to the web…the coloring is off a bit and they don’t appear quite like they do on the computer.}

I love her bright eyes and little crossed feet in this one!! You can just feel her happiness!

This next one is the first one of the batch that I edited. I can’t put my finger on it, but something about it just drew me in and caught my eye. And even after editing all of these and looking through the folder several times, it is still my personal fave!! Love the bright eyes and the pursed lips. Such a sweet, real, expression!

Thank you Bob and Lacy for meeting up with me! It was wonderful to meet some fellow Kansans and I truly had a great time hanging out and capturing some images of darling Abby and your family! You two are such a sweet couple and the love you have for Abby is evident! She is such one lucky little girl! I hope your first Mother’s Day was a great one!!

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn’t worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn’t want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn’t stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn’t know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body.
I didn’t know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn’t know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn’t know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn’t know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom .

Thank you Huntler and Gentry for being the best, sweetest little ones a mama could ever dream of! I love you two more than you can even begin to fathom and what you each bring to my life is simply immeasurable. Thanks for making me smile when I really want to cry. Thanks for reminding me of what is truly important in life. Thanks for giving me the strength to carry on out here, a million miles from where my heart longs to be,  on the days I really need it. Although I am the mom, you two have taught me more about myself and life than I can even begin to put into words. For that I thank you. {Here is the link to my post on Mother’s Day last year!}

And so I want to wish my own mom a wonderful, wonderful day. Thank you for listening to me whine, gripe and complain about life in the desert EVERY SINGLE DAY. Thanks for making me feel that despite the miles, it is all going to be okay. Thanks for letting me call to share my ups and downs, my failures and successes. Thanks for the love and thanks for the support. Thank you for being you. Happy Mother’s Day!

I LOVE this picture. I love the composition. I love the editing. I love the way I feel like I am in a different era when I look at it. Heck, I even love what my kids are wearing! What I don’t love however is the fact that their feet disappeared into the grass! I didn’t notice it at the moment {it was hot, they were done} but the night I took these I laid in bed wondering about this very thing…”Did their feet vanish into the overgrown grass?” And sure enough they did! Darn!!

Lucky for me, I did every single last item of laundry yesterday so the coordinating clothes are clean. AND it just so happens that this is my favorite place to shoot AND super close to my house so we can load up and head back over to try it again! I’m going to have to find somewhere where the grass is a bit shorter though…I don’t think that a golf course would take too kindly to me cutting their grass with scissors!

I was trying to think of something I could stand them on…the only thing that comes to mind is books but that might actually be kinda cool! So, I am going to have to try to sweet talk Chris into heading out with me again soon…he has to be my positioner because by the time I get the kids where I want them and scoot back to shoot, they have totally and completely moved on and I get frazzled!

Once I get “the shot” though {feet included!}, you can bet it is going to get printed and printed LARGE!! I absolutely adore this one! Okay…thanks for listening to my babble!

This morning Huntler’s class held a Mother’s Day tea. To be perfectly honest…I was totally excited! Something fun, something different, something to get dressed up for and look forward to! After several disappointments last week, it was nice knowing that we had something fun on the agenda!

So dressed in cute sundresses and sandals, Gentry and I loaded up and headed off to meet Huntler and the rest of his friends for tea this morning! The “tea” was actually your choice of  milk or juice, but you get the idea! When we arrived the room was divided up into three stations…one for getting your hair styled, one for getting  your nails painted and one for getting a book read to you…all by your preschooler!

We started off at the salon! Huntler desperately wanted to paint my nails, but that was the hit of the morning so we had to wait until there was a free chair. And so he attempted to do my hair instead. My hair is pretty short and SUPER thick so the whole rubber band thing just wasn’t going to work. He did adorn me with a couple of barrettes though! We then wandered around while we waited to do my nails. There was quite the variety of colors but luckily Huntler went with a sparkly light pink so the fact that it is all over doesn’t show! To be honest though, he did a REALLY good job!! And he was so proud of himself! Of course we can’t be near a bottle of nail polish without sending Gentry into a girly tizzy. I literally looked away for like 30 seconds and my friend Lindsey commented that Gentry was right at home. I looked down to see her painting her nails!! Little stinker!! Had she not been wearing a super cute Gymboree dress I probably wouldn’t have even cared, but she was and I did! I managed to pry her away to go read books but not before she managed to get some on her dress. Nothing major and it was the same light pink that is on my fingernails now, but it was there nonetheless. I reminded myself that it IS just a dress and isn’t that big of a deal. But I would be lying if I said I didn’t come home and use nail polish remover on it and already have it soaking in the washing machine downstairs!! I think we are good…seems to have come out just fine!

And here we are this morning…thanks for taking our picture Lindsey!! If I knew how to Photoshop in faces that would be perfect!! But instead I picked the overall best one and Gentry is being silly. But that is totally her personality so it works!!

After everyone finished up at the stations we had cookies and juice and just sat and visited! As the kids finished up they all started playing! It was really fun and quite apparent that his teacher was really trying to make it a special morning.

We also received a special little book. One of the pages has a list of questions and then his teacher wrote out the kids’ answers next to them. Here are a few of Huntler’s:

Mom’s favorite color? Blue  {I think he went with HIS favorite color!!}

What does Mom like to do? She likes to eat. {Thanks buddy!!}

Where does Mom work? In the upstairs office.

Mom’s favorite food? She likes potatoes.

What color is Mom’s hair? No.

Why Mommy loves me? I give her hugs.

Mom looks funny when? She hops! {I am sure I do but I don’t ever really hop?!}

My Mom’s the best because? Because I love her!

Thanks for the fun morning Huntler!! I had a wonderful time having my  hair and nails done by you and then reading stories and eating cookies!! I hope you had as much fun as I did!! I love you little man!! And you too sister bear!