Hissyfits Photography Blog

I have been up to my eyeballs {literally} in packing and am having a tough time keeping up with everything!! Here is a peek at the party and HOPEFULLY the blog post will come soon!!

Click on the photo to watch a video!! I must give credit where credit is due and the video was all my husband!! I do the photography, he does the videography!!!

Wow. So time is FLYING.  I know, I know :: I say that ALL the time. I sound like a broken record. But it is. Like at warp speed. My days are spent chasing after littles and packing when I can. I have barely been on the computer lately and it shows. I am so.far.behind. I mean SOOOOOO far behind. Here are a few images for now…

This was taken in August of 2010. Baby was seven weeks old. One of her first trips to the splash park. We laid her on a blanket inside the gate right beside us. We were the only ones there and she relaxed while the big kids ran wild.

Fast forward nine months and she IS one of the big kids. Sigh. Big, big sigh.

Notice the big bruise and scrape? I debated on Photoshopping them out but decided not to. This is what happens when you are too big for your britches and constantly on the go! You wipe out when you are learning to walk, a lot.

I have soooo many sweet splash park shots. Far more than I have time to touch up. Here is the straight out of the camera shot of the above though. Isn’t it amazing what Photoshop can do? Pretty dramatic, huh? AMAZING program I tell ya, AH-MAAAA-ZING!

The bigs were there too. But we were with friends and they were busy. Busy, busy, busy. He has a whole post coming up. I would say soon, but we shall see!! The photos have been taken but they have yet to make it from my camera on to the computer.

And this one?

Well, she is something else. She may quite possibly hate this photo someday, but I love it. This is the Gentry we see ALL day long. She isn’t the same at school or around others, but this is her. SO her.

And a couple more of little bit because she is so flippin’ cute if I do say so myself! She was stuck on the step so she was a captive  subject!!

I wish she had a little bit of personality! HA!! She is a pistol. I am quite certain she has far more of her sister’s personality than her brother’s…

I am loving the timelessness of the black and whites right now…

I couldn’t agree more.

And with that, we are moving :: HOME. In July.

I have written and rewritten this post in my mind a hundred times it seems – each time with a different perspective. As the days have turned into weeks and the weeks into months and those months now into years {four years and nine months to be exact}, I have changed. Life has changed. What I would have written even a year ago would be completely different than what will spill out of me tonight. And when I say, “spill out of me,” I mean just that. I am writing from my heart and instead of carefully filtering my words, I am simply sharing a little piece of me…

We trekked out here with a chubby cheeked, red headed little boy just 8 days shy of turning two and a pudgy baby girl only eight weeks new. The years have turned that baby faced toddler into a tall, lean first grader, armed with a thirst for knowledge. Those same years have turned that eight week old baby girl into a kindergartner who is cautiously finding her way in this big wide world. And still those same years have blessed us with another child to love.

And then there is “us.” There is nothing like packing up all of your worldly belongings and moving hundreds of miles from everything that defines you with only your spouse to depend upon. There is something so real and so extremely binding when you have only each other to turn to in a place so far from home. Chris has been my rock through the many ups and downs I have experienced out here and I could not ask for a better partner in life. I am so, so lucky to call him mine…

When we arrived on our doorstep that dark fall night in 2006, I was emotionally exhausted. As my fingers tap across the keys of the keyboard, I find myself once again in that same place. Yet different. Tears fall freely. They have been for weeks now. Tears fell freely for weeks leading up to our move out here. And weeks after. Our stay here has never been permanent. It has always been simply “a chapter” in the story of us. I was good with that. If we don’t stay too long then we won’t have the chance to get attached – that has always been my thought process.  I thought everything would be perfect if we could move back before the kids got involved in school and started to settle.  Easier said than done. Easier said than done. And while I can confidently say that I will never grow attached to the extreme heat, the lack of true seasons, the dust, the critters and many other things, my heart will once again break as we close the door on this chapter.

Five years ago I would have never predicted that. Today it consumes me. Let me first say that I am beyond thrilled to be moving home. Please please please don’t think I am not. I have dreamt of this day for years. But I think I must first work through wrapping up our life here, literally and figuratively. I cannot wait to get back and get settled. We have so much time to make up for and so many memories to create! My heart bursts at the thought of all of the fun that awaits us! Yet I would be lying if I said that it isn’t going to be hard. How can it not? Five years is a lot of life lived out here. The  majority of our life as a family. Birthdays. Holidays. Bedtimes. Firsts. Births. Many, many milestones. The lucky thing is those are all memories and nothing tangible. They can, and will, be taken with me. It’s the friends that I can’t load up and haul across the country. It is the friendships that carried me through many sad days that I will miss. The friends. Both mine and the kids’. Friends that I never expected to make, let alone love. Friends that have shared in so many of our memories here. Friends that have witnessed me at my worst and appreciated me at my best. Real friends. Lifelong friends.

But I will get through it. It will be a change, but it is one I have been ready for for a really long time. While we have been able to do a lot of neat things out here, we have missed out on so much more back home. There are many, many things I desperately want for my kids. Things that both Chris and I had growing up. Grandparents close. Cousins. Sleepovers with those grandparents and cousins. Family get togethers. Barbeques. K-State football games. Jumping in leaf piles. Making snow angels. Chasing fireflies. Making wishes on dandelions. Small town county fairs. “Real” pumpkin patches. Bonfires. Tree houses. Tire swings. The list goes on. And on. And we have a whole lot of family and just as many of those real, lifelong friends anxiously awaiting our return – and that makes me smile from the inside out.

As much heartache as I have endured over the last five years and the many, many days I was beyond homesick and cried countless tears, I don’t regret our decision to move out here. I truly don’t. If hind sight were 20/20, we probably wouldn’t have, yet at the same time I am not filled with even an ounce of regret. Does that make sense at all? I have learned so much about myself and have come to appreciate life all the more across the miles. Sometimes it takes having your world totally rocked to realize what is truly important. There are a lot of things I no longer take for granted and I will return to the sunflower state ready to embrace them all!

And so with that, I close. I have a sneaking suspicion that these next few weeks will be a blur. There is a party to get ready for. There are photos to edit. There is packing to be done. And there are playdates to be had. As each day draws to a close and brings us one day closer to home, I pray that my sadness about saying goodbye somehow lessens, even if just a bit…

I took these photos two years ago but I find them fitting for this post!

Just a couple that I edited last night! I am working my way through a ton of images from the splash park but thought I would go ahead and post these!!

We checked out library books last week. Huntler got seven, Gentry got five. He had his all read within about 18 hours. ALL.SEVEN. Luckily he likes to reread! I snapped this from his doorway last Thursday night – he was reading to himself and didn’t even know I was there…

And WHY would one ever sleep in their bed when they have a trundle? The kids had lots of sleepovers last week {meaning Gentry sleeps in Huntler’s room!} and the trundle was left out!

And Friday night was family movie night complete with nachos on the family room floor! Nanny McPhee Returns was the flick. REALLY wishing I would have set the timer on this one and ran and sat in my spot! We would have all been lined up on the floor! Darned hind sight is always 20/20!!

More as I get through them!!

Here they are :: more of the everyday moments that make up my days.

Huntler on the iPhone. Probably studying the Titanic or something. Okay, so maybe not, but maybe! He loves to learn and never tires of soaking up bits of knowledge and sharing them. For instance, did you know that the Titanic sank on April 15, 1912  at approximately 2:20 AM? And that Arizona became a state on February 14, 1912. And that my friends is almost two months exactly before the Titanic sank. Just sayin’. This was information I did not know until he told me. I consider myself smart – I graduated from college with the highest of honors. But this one? He has surpassed me and he isn’t even in first grade yet. Sigh.

Bike riding. He’s not ready to part with the training wheels just yet. But they are getting higher and higher and he is learning to balance and not rely on them quite so heavily. I think he could totally do it, but he simply isn’t ready. It will come…and then I’ll wish them back on.

Love him. LOVE HIM.

Looking down…

Jammies for hours. Or all day. Oreos and Otter Pops for breakfast. Yes, it’s true.

My obsession with photographing her in the bathtub hasn’t faded…

I almost didn’t share this one because I felt like it wasn’t sharp enough…

Yet this one was tack sharp and I purposefully softened it in Photoshop? I have issues. Clearly.

Adore.

Rare is the moment where this happens. So rare that I had to document it. I want to remember her heavy little body as it melts into mine. We had been at the splash park all morning and she fell asleep on the way home. I managed to get her out of her seat, into the house, up the stairs and back down for her nap. And we even made a quick stop for a photo in there!!

Breakfast.

The hooligans. I am sure someone out there is cringing at the sight of this but my kids jump on the beds ALL the time. They always have.

And yes, they fall. That is what happened just seconds before I snapped this one. Gentry was way back in the space between the bed and wall. It was, well, hilarious as you can see!

One of the kids actually took this one! I love it!

And more bed jumping. Trundle jumping actually. Even baby gets in on that action!

Chores. I love all the action in this shot.

And I love it when they don’t know I am taking their picture…

And disregard our missing bed skirt. The kids were a wee bit too hard on it. It got cut twice. We could live with that. But they like to climb up on our bed right next to the nightstand shown here and after three years, the bed skirt could take no more. It ripped. Badly. And isn’t fixable. I couldn’t take any more of the sagging, ripped look so I yanked it out and tossed it one day!

The girls watching a giggling baby on YouTube.

In my last post I mentioned our trek to the Grand Canyon. We drove a long way for a super short amount of actual canyon viewing {once you’ve seen it, you’ve pretty much seen it!!}, but I also had big plans to do a photo shoot for the girls’ birthday invitation while we were up in the mountains. The temps where we live are well over 100 already and let me just say that I don’t do heat. At all. I would much rather spend hours driving to a cooler climate than wipe dripping sweat off my neck while shooting. And if I am hot and miserable, we know that my subjects {the girls} must be every bit as hot and miserable as well!!

It’s a  great plan if all goes accordingly, but how often does that actually happen? As much as I like control, some things just can’t be controlled. Such as the wind. And let me just say it blew and blew and blew that day! And as much as I tried not to stress, I did. Like to the point of fighting tears. My big plans just weren’t going to happen. The location I REALLY wanted was being used for an art festival so we had to find someplace else. A park. It worked, but it didn’t have much to offer. Except lots of wind because it wasn’t sheltered in amongst the buildings!!

I’ll start with my least favorite….it IS cute, but something about it just seems off to me? I am sure I am probably being extremely critical of my own work, but I am being honest!

Another one that is off…

I shot both the one above and below wide open at 1.4. With backlight. I don’t use either one frequently – or ever. I am challenging myself though to work on both!! Shooting wide open will be easier than backlight. Yes, I live in the valley of the sun, but finding the “optimal” light when it is still 110 at dark {okay, that might be a slight exaggeration, but you get the idea!} isn’t something I plan to do! Just.keeping.it.real.

I LOVE this next one! Also shot at 1.4 but it is MUCH better!

I just realized as I was loading this image in that the vertical and square ones won’t be centered on this post!! I got in a hurry and forgot a step! Oh well!! I don’t have the time or energy to redo them!!

The rest of these I took closer to home. We headed out early Memorial Day morning so I could have my second chance and let me just say, I am SO glad we did!! We managed to beat the heat and I got some definite keepers – especially considering I had absolutely NOTHING to work with of Gentry girl. She LOVES to be in front of the camera but she totally turns on the fake smile. I can usually get some genuine grins out of her, but the day we were in the mountains I was already frustrated and off my game!!

A real smile. Daddy was sticking his tongue out at her just behind me! Works every time!

And more of “baby” Brighton.

Out of all the images of Brighton, this is my favorite. This is her. So her.

Are her bloomers not the cutest EVER? LOVE them. LOVE LOVE LOVE them. You can find them here. My aunt has a store and she made them for me!! Well, for Brighton to be exact! Anyway, when I started thinking ahead to outfits I knew that I HAD to have a tutu and coordinating bloomers! Here is the great part – while she has an actual store, she also ships so even those of us who live far, far away can purchase her pieces!  And her prices are great. Go see for yourself!!! Or if you have something else in mind, send her a message!

I am sure you are oogling over the headbands, right?  They are AMAZING. Even better than I had imagined. THAT good peeps – THAT good. They are custom pieces from Chelsea Ann at Itty Bitty Birdy. She rocked them – out of the park. Check out her work – you’ll love it!

{Gentry’s dress is from The Children’s Place this past spring and Brighton’s shirt was a lucky find at Target! The tutu is from Hannah’s Tutus on Etsy.}

I have been wanting to get out with just Huntler for a really long time now. It still hasn’t happened. And now that it is really hot, I don’t foresee it happening anytime super soon! But I did capture a few of him that I just love!

He used to have the straightest little teeth EVER. His two top ones are loose now and separating. I smile every time I see his gappy toothed little grin!

Random moment I was lucky enough to freeze. Adore.

Retro chic.

*****

And a few “Everyday Moments”  from the same day!! I am once again behind…clearly finding time to edit and blog during the summer is much harder than during the school  year. And even then it was hard!!!

These first two were taken by one of the kids…

Okay! On that note I haven’t even uploaded anything I have taken since last Tuesday! Yikes! Time to get that done and maybe I can get some editing done tonight!!!

I am following this post up with another one today {at some point!}, but wanted to keep the other one separate, so here are just a couple of photos for now!

Last weekend {Memorial Day weekend} we loaded up for a LONG day trip to the Grand Canyon. We had been once before, but that was before we even moved here and Huntler was just a tiny little bug and I was pregnant with Gentry!! We have been talking and talking about going again but something else always seems to come up. The story of life, right? Anyway, we made a point to get up there over the long weekend! Us and hundreds of other people that is!! Luckily it is HUGE and there is plenty of room for everyone!

Family snap. I turned my camera baby over to a total stranger. It is my most beloved possession but I have learned to trust others or I am NEVER going to be in any family photos! While I would have loved to perfectly position everyone and have the person taking the said photos shoot off about 50 frames, that’s not realistic. So I told them to take two or three and chose the best one to share!!

And one of just the kids. Harsh shadows, squinty eyes and all!

And that’s it for now!! More coming soon!!

So in my last post I mentioned that Brighton is learning to walk. Much to my disbelief, she is. Huntler and Gentry were both thirteen months when they started so it seems a bit crazy to see Brighton just stand up and start walking!! Now, she isn’t “all over” yet, but she is most definitely learning. We are talking far more than 2 to 4 steps but not walking across a room just yet!! And she is determined. Unless she is in a huge hurry, when she falls, she stands back up and tries again!

We went outside a couple of nights ago so I could attempt to get some decent photos of her!

I have a TON of these with such cute expressions, but unfortunately I don’t have a ton of time!!! Yesterday I bought her shoes. Two pair.

This little guy is something else. He was showing us many tricks…

And she graduated from preschool yesterday. Sigh.

Hip hip hooray!! After getting way behind, and by that I mean WAAAAYYYYYY behind, I mounted a come back and somehow managed to get caught up! Just in time for summer! I haven’t yet figured out if that will allow me more or less time on the computer. Actually, at this point Gentry hasn’t even finished school yet. Just Huntler. So next week is “technically” our first full week of summer I guess! Maybe then I’ll know!

Whew!! It’s late. My back hurts from sitting in the computer chair {obviously it isn’t ergonomically correct}. But I am CAUGHT UP! And I am so excited I am not even saving this post for tomorrow! I am trudging ahead and getting ‘er done tonight.

Sooo….backing up just a bit. I posted a couple of images from Mother’s Day weekend but as I was sifting through and deleting some, I found a couple more I want to include in our book at the end of the year so I thought I would share them here as well!

Sweet “Hunter” as his certificate says. We get that often. Often. The “l” is easy to overlook apparently. Probably because “Huntler” isn’t exactly common!! Anyway, this was after his last soccer game. I can’t get over how RED his cheeks are in this shot. Holy heat wave. Thank goodness that was his last game because let me just tell you it has only gotten warmer down here in the valley of the sun. He was sooooo proud of his stuff! And we are so proud of him! This is the first sport we have ever really participated in and it was good for him. I think we are going to give basketball a whirl next!!

The inside of my Mother’s Day card. Priceless. Way better than my gift  - an uber cute turquoise purse I picked out myself and gave Chris to wrap for me! Yes, that’s how we do things around here! Huntler decided to get artsy. He drew a little picture of himself saying “Hi Mom.” The heart says “Happy Mother’s Day” all smashed up. And a happy face. Gentry actually gets to take credit for the happy faces. She ALWAYS signs her name with one. Cards. School papers. Sunday School. The funny thing? I always sign my name with one too. Even in emails. Always. But I don’t think she got that from me. Gentry wrote Brighton’s name for her this year! And I should add that this is like the only time Huntler has ever signed his name with one!!

Self portrait. Flipped the old dial to “auto” and started snapping. Ended up with my mouth in focus instead of my eyes, but those are the breaks with auto.  Seeings how I adore this image of me and my middle, I am totally fine with overlooking the slight focus issue.

Camera shy? I think not. The headband and clips are all from Itty Bitty Birdy {whom I HIGHLY recommend if you read a couple of posts or so ago}! I am waiting on custom pieces to match the girls’ birthday outfits as I type!!! EEEEKK!! So excited!! And did I just mention birthday outfits? Why yes, yes, I did. Brighton will be eleven months old this week. ELEVEN. The joint party is next month. More on that soon since I am FINALLY caught up!

This one deserves to be printed large in my opinion. It is SO her.

Several months ago I took a photo of the kids on the end of our bed like this. This attempt was a little more challenging. Baby has developed a mind of her own in recent months and this didn’t really fit into her plans as you can see.

Canvas worthy baby buns. No need to explain.

I am soooooooo excited I managed to capture this face!! We saw it often there for a few days but she has since moved on to bigger and better {nearly walking} and this has become old news. And I only took this last weekend.

And some of the whole fam that night on the patio!

Last day of kindergarten. I cannot believe he will be in FIRST GRADE next year.

Not sure what she was thinking about {obviously}, but this was too cute!

Girlfriend LOVES Elmo.

All of the rest are from yesterday {Sunday}. We had watermelon for lunch and let Brighton feed herself. You can imagine. I was wanting an excuse to give her a sink bath anyway. However, with the paparazzi in my way, I didn’t get many shots in!

And then a little fun on the Slip n Slide!

And then a baby girl soooo tired she couldn’t keep her head up for supper. I’d say that is a sign of a pretty darn good day!

And with that, my friends, I am caught up!! Now to dive into some serious party planning and summer loving!

I AM still shooting for myself almost everyday and love it. LOVE IT. Here we are mid-May and I can with 110% honesty say that this has by far been THE single best photography based decision I have EVER made. I look at these images and fight tears at the simple memories I have been so lucky to capture. The everyday moments with dirty faces and toys everywhere. Not that I don’t love the images I capture at our “shoots,” but there is something so raw about capturing life as it unfolds, bed head and all. Have I shot something EVERY single day? Nope. But I have hit most of them and for that I am beyond grateful.

So here is a hodge podge of the last few weeks! I am so far behind!! BUT – some of these are from just over the weekend so I am mounting my come back!

Tears came quickly after this shot…

Sunflare streaming into the playroom…

Brighton is obsessed with the stairs! She zooms for them at warp speed. It was getting to be too much for me to try to get her every.single.time while trying to fix a meal or whatever, so we had to start trusting the big kids to help. They fight over who gets to get her!!!

First swim 2011…

First swim ever…

She LOVED it.

Reflections…

Dream a little dream…

My crazy little baby!!

Mother’s Day gift from my favorite almost kindergarten girl…

Last soccer game. We survived the season. But as the temp creeps up into the “way too hots,” I was glad to see it come to an end for this year!