Trail Mix - and tons and tons of Trix

Neil was gone this week traveling to Atlanta, and anytime he is gone, I really don't get much accomplished, hence why I haven't posted. I've also been spending a ton of time in the car driving back and forth to town where my chiropractor is. I'm not sure how much longer I can do that because I'm spending an extra $100 a month just on gas, not to mention the actual cost of my visits. I love my doc and I love seeing Beth 2-3 times a week, but but but . . . I don't know. It's just a ton of driving.

But I'm not posting to complain but to post some happy trail mix bits about my past week. It's definitely been a good week. Let's start with last weekend . . .

It was warm. Very warm. The nicest day we had seen so far this year. (Today it snowed!) We bought a new outdoor table to go with the outdoor chairs we had purchased last year, so we set all that out while Noah "raked" the yard, as you can see here,

and the little miss was on the lookout for bugs. She's so into bugs right now!

Frankie really enjoyed the weekend, too. And aren't her pearly whites beautiful?! We had her teeth cleaned professionally a few weeks ago for the first time ever and they look so good and I know she feels sooooo much better. See how perty?

I think I have mentioned before that my parents are looking to sell their house and buy a new one. Well, they've been getting their house ready for about a year now. Suddenly a (perfect) house just came along and mom went alone to check it out. She loved it. So the kids and I went with her to see it again the first of the week. I loved it, too. The kids adored it. It seemed too perfect for them but there was a lot of "buts" and "ifs" involved. However, dad agreed to see it near the end of the week and THAT NIGHT he just threw out an offer and the people TOOK IT! Today they signed some papers and in less than 2 weeks, they can move in! I'm sooooo happy and excited for them!! I just can't explain how happy I am for them. The deserve it so so much. Congrats mom and dad!

On the way to see the new house that day I drove into this. While it didn't amount to anything bad, it sure was a pretty picture I couldn't keep from taking.
If you didn't know what Illinois looked like, well, there you have it!

Thursday the kids and I made brownies for daddy's return home. Brownies are his favorite and the kids (and myself) love licking the bowls!

Friday night we drove up to Peoria, IL to visit two pairs of great friends of ours, Kristin & Chris and Andrea & Rusty. To make a long long story short, Andrea, Rusty and their family are moving sometime soon to El Paso, TX. We don't want them to go, but well, what can we do but be super happy for them because it's a really good move for their family. So we went up to visit them just in case their move is soon and we don't see them again for a long while (*sob*). We had homemade yummy pizza, salad, dessert and wine :c) Kristin, Rusty, Neil and I went to grade school through high school together and then Rusty, Neil and I went on to college together. Rusty and Andrea started dating and she and I became super great friends. Then Rus and Andrea moved to P-town and she and Kristin got to be good friends. Anyway, it's all so very cool. It's been an incredible blessing having Andrea in my life. I can't imagine her not in it. And then Kristin, well, I think it says a lot that after what seems like a gizillion years, we're still the best of friends. So here we are, Kristin, Andrea and I.
Kristin has a boy, Jackson, who just turned a year and has another baby on the way. Andrea has a girl, Audrie, who is 3 and Anderson who is 6 months. And you all know who belongs to me! We had such a great time Friday night.

Then Saturday evening I set up my backdrop and lights for my shoot with Corie on Sunday. Well, the kids wanted to help with that. Maia put on her ballerina tutu and the kids actually wanted me to take some pictures. They didn't have to twist my arm or anything either!

So the shoot with Corie and Keith went so fabulously perfect. I've had the pleasure of taking pictures of both of them many a times, so this was just another very fun time for me with a couple of my favorite two people, plus this time, one more (!) because of the bun in her oven! :c) We had such a fun maternity session because of Keith making us constantly laugh. I've only had a couple minutes to peek at the pictures and then allow you have a peek, too. Isn't Corie beautiful!?

The ice cream pose is one of my favorite ideas ever! I wish I could patent it . . . hehe. I love how it turned out but if I were to do it again, I'd put her in a color because the white on white really fades into each other but I still really love the concept and how it turned out.

Thanks, Cor, for such a great day and for coming back up from St. Louis for ME!!

Once my lights and backdrops were put up, I helped hubby unload the groceries which he and the kids got while I did the shoot with C & K. Noah wanted the "Trix" opened, so I opened them for him. A few minutes later I hear "oh-oh" and a huge spill. I turn around and see this. It absolutely could be worse. It was a great week, spilled trix and all :c)

My obsession, revealed.

** new ** Oops, I forgot to put the Kurt Cobain one, so I added it at the end :c) (Sorry.)

I think I have mentioned before how I like paper-y items such as catalogs and magazines and how I like to keep stuff such as those? (Remember this post?) Well, if you didn't believe me then, you are bound to believe me now. Here is real-life raw proof.

My mom and dad are getting ready to put their house on the market (-- something I'm really really excited about for them!) and while cleaning out my old bedroom closet at their house, my mom found some things she thought I'd want. Old magazines that I had kept -- from 17+ years ago. (Oh man, this really shows my age.)

I was ecstatic when she brought them over because I remember thinking at the time of keeping them, that perhaps they will be worth holding onto a few years from now. Even if they aren't worth anything now, they're worth the memory of actually reading them and especially my memories of what I really loved back during this time.

Neil thought I was insane (and still does) for the excitement I showed as I pulled these out of the bag going down memory lane. But that's one of the reasons why he loves me -- I'm just really goofy like that. So here they are . . . some beloved magazines from my early teen years.

This one here is the 2nd Seventeen magazine I ever bought. I was 13 years old. I remember buying my very first Seventeen when it came out with it's August back-to-school issue (remember those, girls, how thick they were?!). I didn't keep the Aug one, I'm not sure why, but I did keep this one probably because it's pretty. (*rolling my eyes*)
Now I should win some reward for this one. I have now been a huge (purchasing) fan of J Crew clothes for 17 years! This was my first J Crew magazine that I ever received.
I remember one of my bff's (Kristin) and I drooling over some of their clothes as freshman in high school and finally getting the okay from our moms that we could order a t-shirt and boxer shorts. I bought these Christmas boxers and the orange polka dot boxers. I can't remember the ones K bought. K, refresh my memory! (And do you have that picture of us in our J Crew garb looking oh-so-teen?!)
As you will shortly see I was a huuuuuge 90210 fan, especially in the beginning. And while Luke Perry was my favorite, I did have a tiny crush on Jason. I was also a huge Sassy magazine fan, a 'zine no longer in publication, hence all the Sassy magazines you will see. One reason I loved that magazine was because it was so different. Sassy was one of the first teen fashion 'zines to use celebrities on their covers. They always had the coolest covers and those seemed to be the ones I chose to keep. I did like Johnny Depp (this was during his phase of 21 Jump Street and after his movie that I loved, Cry-Baby) and Christian Slater (remember Pump Up the Volume??) but I was only a somewhat-fan of Nirvana (I only really liked the song, "Smells Like Teen Spirit"), so I'm not sure why I kept this Sassy of Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, but nevertheless, I did, and well, I'm kinda curious now if this one is worth anything because I'd totally be willing to sell it! (Anyone?!) I'm just in awe that I even kept it. For those of you who may not be in the "know" of Kurt, he died of a drug overdose in the 90's and was married (married, right?) to Courtney.






Speaking of Sassy, has anyone read this book? I just came across it and now must read it. I'm hoping there are other late Sassy lovers out there who will share in my new-found must-have must-read joy. How cool is this?!

And who didn't love Tom?! This was around the time of A Few Good Men (awesome movie) and Far and Away (great romance that he starred in with his then wife, Nicole . . . or is this when they met?). I just loved Tom . . . however now? . . . not so much. Eww.

But Milla I have loved since day one. She starred in one of my very favorite movies of all time Return to the Blue Lagoon (Kristin and I watched this dozen of times together) and was on tons of teen mags in my teen years. I loved her name so much that it has always been on my "favorihttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifte names list" and while Neil totally vetoed it when we were picking girl names, he didn't veto Maia. See the similarity?! :c) Now Milla Jovovich is a mommy herself. I think it's so awesome.

So, there you have it: my obsession with magazines starting at a very young age and my bad habit of keeping things such as them in boxes in my closets . . . revealed. I do think it maybe tells something about me that I never realized at the time. My love of graphic design, photography, and well, okay fine, . . . really cute guys :c)

Special-day Day

Today is Neil's mom's birthday . . . a.k.a. "O'ma" to my kids :c) Happy Birthday, O'ma! We hope you have a super-duper-duper day! We love you tons! :c)



Today is also my very good friend, Rusty's, 32nd birthday!!

Rusty, I know you guys are making some huge huge changes in your life, but I have a feeling it's just a new big thing in your big book of life and adventures. I wish you the best times, which I know you will get as you tend to make the very most of every single moment in your life. Good luck with everything . We'll miss you. And Happy Birthday! Love to you, Andrea, A & A.

It's also, if I am remembering correctly, KP's daughter's birthday. Happy Birthday, Miss Ava!!
(Is she 3 already?!)

And finally, I just missed one of my dearest friends son's first birthday . . . Jackson. KDL, I hope you have a really great party on Saturday! I can't wait to see the pictures from your NEW CAMERA! Happy 1st Birthday, sweet Jackson!

Thursday's Thoughts

I'm feeling better about NILMDTS. I've been pretty overwhelmed by the thought that my first time could really be at any time. I'm not sure how I will react when I do my first one, nor do I probably really know what to expect. Sure, I've seen some really graphic pictures, ones you could never ever even fathom imagining, but I still know it's nothing like being there in person with the parents who are in such immense grief. The emotions for all will be unbearable. But I'm ready. And that is partly due because of you guys with your overwhelming support. I've received a lot of emails and it's been so heart-warming. (Thank you.)

I think I've been prepared in a lot of ways for this. One, I know a little bit of what the grief and sorrow is like knowing that you lost your child who you will never get to share moments with ever. I lost three babies in utero, and no, it's not anything like having lost a child who you once held in your arms, but I've been through many of the emotions and all (or most of) the same questions, and so I hope just because of that, I can use what I've experienced as a way of helping the parents cope and as a way to do a better job at doing what I came for.

I've also been prepared through Alexis. And she talked to me last night about this in an extensive amount. She has been there. And as I told her, I know this is one of the reasons why God is having me do this. Because I personally know someone, one of my best friends, who has lost a child and who wishes she had had those pictures taken of sweet Allison. Because I have seen what she has gone through in preparing for Allison's problems before she was even born, to what she experienced in her short few months of life. Also because I held Allison in my arms once and I was there at the funeral, to see her one last time and tell her goodbye. (I know that Allison knows she has changed many peoples lives, like my own.) I didn't want to do that and it was hard doing it, but sometimes you just have to suck it up and go above and beyond for others. Wouldn't you hope they'd do it for you?

So Alexis, she will be my guidepost during this time. She's definitely going to get a call when I'm on the way to the hospital. (Thank you, already.)

To turn this into a Life is Good, I'm So Happy post, I have two cool things to also share.

One is this. I have a good friend down in Florida who makes really awesome handmade jewelry. Check this out, it's so beautiful and made entirely with love. (These are some of my favorites.)


And guess what?! Chel is giving it away!!! Go to A Gracious Home and sign up and you could win a really beautiful piece which is featured on the site. (I signed up!)

She also has a store called "Created by Chel", which I hope you will check out. She really does has some amazing pieces. She is so talented. One day I hope we can exchange services! (hint, hint!)

My other bit of excitement, well it is for me, anyways, is that I accepted one more wedding for 2008. I couldn't help it. I made an oathe to myself that I would not accept anymore for 2008, but, but, but, well, I guess I'm weak. I gave in. Only because this wedding is a dream wedding for me, oh, and because the bride begged (how can you turn down that kind of ego-booster?!).

Most dream weddings for me take place either in a great big city or on the ocean. I've had the chance to do both of them. One of my favorite dream weddings out of my 5 years shooting was Kristin and Chris's wedding down at Ft. Myers Beach, Florida. Everything about it was perfect. A gorgeous October day, only close family and friends (I was honored to have been included in the "close friends" category!), beautiful subjects, not to mention down-to-earth fun subjects (!), and so my imagination just went wild!

My second dream wedding was in Chicago, Johanna and Jason's. It was a dream wedding for me because, again, I had gorgeous subjects with great personalities with the desire to have fun and do un-traditional poses! It was also a dream wedding for me because the reception took place in a 1700-acre amazing arboretum. They had a trolley for the wedding party and we went all over the arboretum taking pictures. Then the reception itself was one out of Martha Stewart Weddings. No joke. It was fabulous. I want to shoot it again! ;)

So, that said, I think I may get my third dream wedding. After the pleaing (haha), she told me where it was, and I didn't hesitate. Forget the oathe!

The wedding is in St. Louis at the St. Nicholaus Greek Orthodox Church! It's a beautiful church! And I've shot a Greek Orthodox wedding before and the ceremonies are just amazing. Long, but absolutely worth it! Here's a picture. Can you say to-die-for?!

And then the reception is at the St. Louis Renaissance Grand Hotel Crystal Ballroom! Check this place out!

The bride agreed to have all the pictures taken before the wedding which also means, we have complete freedom to do some outdoor pictures . . . downtown! You know how old and beautiful downtown St. Louis is?! (Corie does!) I am just so so excited! Helps give me the fuel power to get the 4 wedding albums that I need to have done before Christmas.

So you made it to the bottom of my Thursday's Thoughts! Yay, you! Yay, me! Yay, everyone! Time to do more of what I'm doing in the Wordless Wednesday post below. Thank goodness for coffee . . . and you all . . . to keep me going! Thanks for reading ;c)

Happy Birthday, K!

It was Kristin's birthday yesterday! Happy 31st birthday, K!!! I hope it was FABULOUSLY fabulous! :c)

Kristin is a grade school friend whom I first met in 7th grade. Her nickname was the "Ice Queen" because well, I think the title speaks volumes (she will even admit to being called this!). In 7th grade when she came to our little po-dunk school from South Carolina, she was the coolest kid in school. She and her brother had the neatest (very) southern accents and she got the cutest boy in our class, Paul. And, Paul's locker was right next to mine. Kristin was a bit snooty and rarely ever talked to me (she knows this now, too . . . I remind her of it quite often!), but, well, things just worked out and by our freshman year in high school we were the bestest of friends. I should dig up some old dorky photos of us, but, well, Val just doesn't have the time right now. But I do have some more recent ones that I will share below.

So, K . . . well, she is just another amazing friend. She knows absolutely everything there is to know about me and yet still loves me! She never gives up on me, is always one of the most supportive souls, loves to hand-write things (like I do!) and those things I just love that about her. She also is one of my two Indigo Girl loving friends (Jennifer Jayne is the other!). K and I can bolt out all the IG tunes, and even though we all know she is the best singer ever (she really is) and I am the worse (I really am), she is the only friend I feel comfortable singing with. (Awww . . . don't you feel special, k?) She knows how to turn my negative thoughts into positive ones and I really admire her for this. She looks at life in a way that I wish I could do better at. She has been through some crappy times, yet still looks to the future as just that . . . a great future. She has a wonderful hubby that takes care of her the way she deserves to be taken care of, and she now has a gorgeous little peach - Jackson - just born in January and is an extraordinary mommy to him. She's just one of those people you wish you had as a friend, and luckily, I DO.

Happy Birthday, Dearie!

I don't know if any of you remember me posting this picture (below left) of me drawing a heart in the sand or not (on my VWC blog), but someone asked to see the results of that prepping of a photo, so here it is below. Kristin and her hubby Chris in Florida on their wedding day!

Jack

I had the wonderful chance Tuesday to see the most adorable baby, Jack. He is to die for. I just wanted to eat him up! He has the cutest button nose, the prettiest complexion, beautiful blue eyes, and such soft blondish-brown hair. He has the best temperment, too. I can already tell he is going to be such pure joy for Kristin and Chris. Of course in my short visit, I had to shoot some pictures of this little guy. I only had my camera out about 15 minutes and shot about 80 pictures. Kristin would not allow me to shoot many of her, but here are a few favorites of the newest person in my life to brag a little about, Jackson Louis. I am such a proud "Auntie"!

Introducing Jackson Louis in his 2nd day of life. . .

This is his grandma holding him in these pictures. I love this one because of her hand being in the shot. So timeless . . .

And . . .Macarthur! He needs some TLC right now.

A new little blessing

Baby is here!

After about 20 hours of hard labor, HE is here!

Baby got stuck - his head first - then when his head came out, his shoulders got stuck. They gave her the option of using forceps on him, a c-section, or to keep on trying. Good ol' determinted Kristin kept on trying. He finally made his wonderful appearance this morning!

JACKSON LOUIS L. was 8lbs 10 oz and 20-1/2 inches long! BIG BOY!!

She is doing quite well despite all her tearing - 3rd degree, it sounds like. Just very very tired. Planning on going up to see her tomorrow night!

SO EXCITING!

Welcome to the world baby Jack!!!!

Is baby L here yet?

I don't know because they haven't called me yet! I'm dying to know! Hoping and praying that everyone is healthy and doing ok. CALL ME K!

(I'll update you all when I hear from them!)

Good thoughts for Kristin

Kristin and her hubby, Chris, back in Aug - just starting to show!

My very dear friend, Kristin, is about to have her baby! She has been admitted and now we just wait for the arrival of baby L (sex unknown)! I am so excited! My plan is to go up tomorrow night to see very new and fresh baby K and take some of his/her very first portraits! This is so exciting!!!

Thoughts and prayers go out to you, K!


Flashback time! While looking through my pictures of her, I found these from her wedding, which I shot, in Florida 2 years ago. What a beautiful couple, eh? And what a beautiful state . . . hehehehe :)