"Trail Mix"

We just had Easter (probably like most of you) yesterday afternoon on Neil's mom's side. It was really nice. Lots of kiddos. I made fruit pizza which was too pretty not to take a picture of! I had a piece for breakfast this morning. Mmmmmm . . . (All the food and conversation was very good! Hope you all had nice Easter celebrations as well.)

---

Remember my face pain a week ago? It turned out to be a sinus infection! I have 2 or 3 more days left of my antibiotic. I feel sooooo much better. That was absolutely no fun at all (and very scary)!

---

Today I finally see a doctor for my back pain. I'm now seeing a neurosurgeon. Hopefully it will all go okay. I'm not really nervous because I don't think it's anything serious. I just want to get it fixed and the chiro isn't helping that area of my back at all which tells me it's not mechanical?? I'm just ready for today to be over with already. (I also have my "yearly". Blech.)

---

Last week was a really successful week for us with potty training. We went all week long wearing big girl undies with no training pants or the like! We either went bare booty or underwear. (Maia, not me! I always try to be clothed!) Night time is a bit harder, so we're wearing diapers to bed still. But I know we're on the right track because this is how it went down with Noah. Noah was trained when he was ready, and I think Maia is following in his same "I'll do it when I'm ready" pattern. Yayyyyyyyy!!! What will we do with all that extra diaper money?!

---

The kids got an Easter package in the mail from their cousins,
Ella and Adi. And guess what?! Mommy got a little treat, too, from Chel. It's the cutest little giftie ever and I can't wait to plant the seeds :c) Thank you, darlin'!

---

My weddings start back up in 3 weeks!

---

Remember how I said I wasn't going to do anymore weddings or else very little?! Well, I really do have a hard time saying no. I have nine. Totally better than 15+ which is what I did every year for a few years. But it's still too many. I really seriously am not taking any next year. (PLEASE hold me to this, friends!) Neil and I both decided last night that it would be a good idea. Now if you're a friend or someone who has lots of really different fun ideas, I might possibly be swayed. (hehe)

---

Next weekend I get to see Corie! She's coming home for her BABY SHOWER! Then 2 weeks after that I get to do her maternity photos!! (She'll be such a beautiful subject, too. Okay, so will Keith, her hubby, but I think Corie's going to be glowing a teeny-tiny bit more?)

---

Over the weekend I got my hair cut (only like a 1/2 inch) but I also got it colored and thinned out. I have soooooo much hair so thinning it out totally changed how it looks and feels. I love it. Noah told me I looked "pretty". If that doesn't make a mommy feel good, I'm not sure what else would! He's such a sweet boy.

---

Neil and I rented our first movie in probably 2 years . . . the Holiday. I remember Corie and Keith telling me about it a while back, so that was the one I chose. I can't wait to see it. The last time I saw a movie at the theater was with Alexis and Jamie. How long ago was that, girls?! Well over a year, wasn't it?

---

I was about to buy this chair last night, but then thought I'd ask your opinions on it. I always feel confident in my purchases when it comes to cameras or lenses or clothes or paint colors. But a desk chair which could change the way my back feels forever because I practically live in it, well, that's a different story! I tried out a whole bunch after my hair cut at Office Depot and Staples on Saturday. I definitely do not like the big frumpy cushy executive chairs because they are not made for sitting at a desk staring at a computer screen for hours on end kind-of-work. At least not for me and my back. I need high lumbar support big time. I hope this one will work. I want to order it online because it's free shipping and I have a $30 off coupon when ordering online. (at Staples) You can't beat that. Any suggestions or advice? Why am I so nervous about this purchase?

---

Oh, and I forgot to add that I hope to post an entry this week on something photography-related! Alexis's gizillion trillion questions to me when about to purchase her new (awesome DSLR Nikon) camera a while back stemmed an idea in my head to turn those questions and answers into an informative post for you. So look for that this week!!

Life, Death and Resurrection of Jesus

Happy Easter and God Bless!

Easter Ella

Look how darling my niece looked on Easter! (They live in OK so we didn't see them - boohoo!) I love love love this picture because, as we all know, little ones personalities can change by the day, and yesterday Ella did not want to have her picture taken. I just love it!

Happy Easter

Give, and it will be given to you.
-Jesus

Got Ears?

This is one of the pictures from a recent session. I just could not pass up posting it! This is Grace. Isn't she a doll? I feel like this picture is saying "Got Ears?" And I swear I can see her smile about to emerge. She is just a gorgeous little bunny. See more of my pics at my VWC blog. I hope to post more this week.

Good things, not-so-great things and very good things

So "what's up?", you ask. You know something is going on when Val doesn't post an entry for an entire day or when she doesn't comment on anyone elses!

Well, here's a synopsis.

Good things:

* Our septic is temporarily fixed. The roto guy was able to rooter it (is that a proper term?) 150 feet which is wayyyy further than anyone else has gotten recently. It solved our issues for now. Hopefully for a long time for the future owners, also. This sort of issue is very normal in an old part of a city like where we live. The roto guy said they replaced a tile system a block over and the sticker price on that was $2000. So if we were to do that, that's the sort of numbers we are looking at. Thank God we don't have to do that now.

* The basement no longer smells like ca-ca.

* While we have not sold our house, we have done some more things to spruce it up: new blinds in the living room (looks awesome!), a new ceiling light (which we have never had - again, looks great!), a new door mat at the back door (minor, but makes a world of difference!), and we put up an under-counter paper towel holder (chrome) and it looks so good!! It helps clear off counter space and just makes it look bigger, which is a big plus since we have very little to begin with.

* We met with our builer and finalized our house plans. (Oh that was fun!!) And now we wait for the bid, which should come back the end of this coming week.

* I finished one big wedding album, met with her and her mother (bride is from Atlanta), and she was so very happy with the results - it made my day yesterday. And, she is coming back home in June for a baby shower and she would like me to do maternity pics --- oooo, my fave!

* I have had 6 different photo shoots in the past week, and that is a lot for me. But, I had a blast at all of them and I can't wait to show off my sessions. I'll be posting today and the rest of the week at VWC. I am having more and more fun with my photography as I try new things!

All-in-all, things are looking up . . . except . . .

The not-so-good things:

* My bf's baby boy, Brodey, (2 months old) was put into the St. Louis Children's Hospital hospital for RSV. He spent 2 days there, but thank God he is doing better and is at home now. But please still keep him in your prayers as the recovery can take some time.

* We haven't had a single call in about a week. But, when we met with our builder yesterday, he gave us some great ideas to help us sell by ourselves. We really really need to sell ourselves to save us that realtor commission. Neil said if we went down too much more on our asking price, that we won't be able to have enough of a down payment on the new house. (Another good thing - the realtor we met with did tell us a) he was surprised it had not sold yet and b) that our price was good.)

* My aunt is in the hospital and is criticial. She had a brain aneurysm yesterday. She has made it through so far, which is a good sign (many don't even make it this far), but she is 77 yrs old. Her age is going against her big time. They are doing surgery (going in behind her ear) today. If she makes it through, she will be in ICU for a while and probably will be in the hospital a total of 3 weeks. What scares me is, her chances are slim. And, it worries me that this could be something genetic perhaps? My dad had a brain aneurysm when I was in 7th grade. He was in ICU for 2 weeks, but he made it through! So I am hopeful, but at the same time, my worries are high again. For many years every time I had a headache, I thought I was going to die. My fears are escalating again. The most important thing right now is for us to keep my Aunt (Barb) in our prayers. She needs them right now desperately.

On a very happy note . . .
Tomorrow is Easter! It's easy to get caught up in the material things with the holiday, just like with Christmas. I do it and I wish I didn't. It wasn't the Easter Bunny that died an rose again for us, it was God. My friend, Amanda, wrote about this a few days ago. We must must must remember why we even have this holiday. We wouldn't be here if it weren't for Him. We wouldn't be given the chance of everlasting life if it weren't for Him. Please remember what tomorrow is really about.

God Bless!