Friday, November 28, 2008

Another Thanksgiving in the books!

We now have enough left-overs
in the fridge to last us the weekend!
I'm trying to think of creative ways
to serve turkey for the next two
nights without us getting sick of it!
My absolute favorite left-over is
turkey sandwhiches on white bread
with mayo, salt and pepper!
Yumm!


We had pumpkin pie and
Georgia style pecan pie for
dessert.
Bren actually wanted pumpkin pie for breakfast
this morning.
And I, in a midnight madness sleep deprived haze,
thankfully gave her a nice thick slice
complete with a small mountain
of redi-whip.
I was happy to get out of scrambling eggs
or making french toast for her this morning.
That girl loves her french toast!


It was so great to not have dish duty!!
The kids all pitched in and got the job done painlessly.
We all settled in to a turkey induced coma
soon after sunset.
David and I turned in extra early so we could
hit the stores at the ungodly hour of 3am!
We were tenth in line at the NEX on base
and got everything on our list
within 30 minutes!
It was very well run.
They opened the doors at 4:00 so we could get in out of the cold
and wait the remaining hour inside.
I passed the time reading New Moon
the second in the Twilight series,
so the two hours we spent in line
flew for me.
They gave out tickets for the limited items
and served free coffee, hot chocolate
and spiced tea.
They also handed out coffee mugs full of holiday treats
for us crazy deal seekers.
Everyone was polite and cheerful
despite the early hour.
I bet Walmart didn't wait on their
door buster customers with such attention
to our comfort.
And so, after one sacrificial morning,
I'm happy to say that we are just about done
with our Christmas shopping
and were able to save a good chunk of money
along with all the other crazies!
Now to get them all wrapped!




Thursday, November 27, 2008

Gobble, Gobble!!!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my
Friends and Family
across this great world of ours!!
We woke this morning to
gorgeous snow-capped mountains,
just another reminder of
all we have to be thankful for.
My family is gathered in little clusters
all over the east coast
and Florida panhandle.
Some are celebrating at well decorated tables
full of all the traditions of the holiday,
others are celebrating beside hospital beds
but one theme binds us all.
Our love.
No matter how far the Navy sends us from all of you,
you will always be in our hearts and thoughts
on special holidays like this one.
And I'm thankful for you all!!
My own little cluster will celebrate
with turkey and all the trimmings
at about 3pm today
followed by lots of football
and decorating the house
for Christmas.
I'll take photos all day
and post them over the weekend.
For now, here's what David and I did all day yesterday....
He's shipping out soon and wont be home until
just before Christmas
so we had to get a jump on the shopping.
Unfortunately,
we were slowed down by
Black Friday!
Almost everything we planned to get
is not out on the floor yet,
but we were assured that we could get our desired item
bright and early on Friday morning....
as long as we got in line by 3am
and got a ticket for our item.
ug!
So, we are gonna try.
Bleary-eyed and pumped up with coffee,
and freezing in line at 3 am on Friday
is where we'll be
because we are insane!
Here's some photos from our mostly fruitless trip.....


At least we got Bren almost done!!!




See these crazy people in line already?
This is Wednesday at about 4:30 pm!




And here we are this morning
watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!




And Bren passing time while she watches
me work in the kitchen.




I hope you all are gathered around
a table full of loved ones
today!!

I leave you with a tradition in my family.
Ever since I was about 10,
my parents would ask me to quote
this verse that I had memorized
at the Thanksgiving table.
It's been a few years since I've quoted it
for their ears to hear,
but I think of it every year
and I'm sure they do too!

Psalms 100:

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
Serve the LORD with gladness:
come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the LORD he is God:
it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
and into his courts with praise:
be thankful unto him,and bless his name.
For the LORD is good;
his mercy is everlasting;
and his truth endureth to all generations.








Monday, November 24, 2008

Wooooot!!!


So, if you signed up for Kid Trends Weekly
when I posted the link last week,
You got this surprise in your inbox
yesterday!
I was so excited
when Jillian asked me to do a cover
for their e-zine!!
Over the past year I have watched
and cheered as
some of my favorite
super talented photographers
have had their photos featured on the cover
of this widely distributed e-zine.
I never dreamed I'd get my chance too!
In speaking with Jillian
about how excited I was over this,
she said that it is her experience
that even the most accomplished
photographers count this as an honor
and add it to their portfolios.
Thanks, blog readers, for sharing
in my little burst of
"Holy Cow! Bren and I are on the cover of Kid Trends!?!"
The dress Bren has on
and is still available on her website!!

Friday, November 21, 2008

When in Rome.......

Do as the Romans do, right?
Well, when in Washington,
put up your Christmas lights
before any sane southerner would even
dream of pulling out the Christmas storage bins.
I get it though.
The weather here can turn on a dime
and when it does,
it's all over for roof climbing and
light hanging.
So, we followed suit
and started decking our halls
this week!


We haven't done anything inside yet,
except run our fireplace to take the chill out of the room.
But a glowing fireplace always makes me
feel all warm and holiday-ish, so to me
it's sorta like a Christmas decoration.
We'll start working indoors
this weekend after Thanksgiving.
Michael and David worked outside
adorning every possible area with
white lights.
Our neighbors have cornered the market
on flashing, chasing, colored lights
that are synchronized to music,
so we thought,
"why even try?"
ya know?
I love the elegant simplicity of all white lights though
and thankfully,
so does David, so there are no
"my way"/"your way" arguements over how we decorate.




They climbed on the roof
and got the job done pretty quickly.
They told me that the view from way up there
is completely different and
utterly awe-inspiring.
They think I should go up there
and see it for myself.
As much as I love beauty,
I also know that my knees melt when
I'm navigating unprotected heights,
and having just dealt with
a bone crushing injury,
I can't even imagine risking
it again.
So, I'll just take their word for it.



Here is our work in progress
glowing at night.
And yes, that is my crazy daughter silloutted in the window!
She got talked into checking out that fabulous view
that I'm too chicken to see!
We've still got a few things to do around the top floor windows
{and by "we", I mean David and Michael}
but it looks pretty good so far, huh?
Anyone else out there crazy enough to
put up their decorations
the week before Thanksgiving?






Wednesday, November 19, 2008

ummmmmmmmmmm......................

I don't even know what to say.
I was there at the innocent inception of this painting,
but I didn't see it coming.
David and I were helping in Bren's class
last Friday.
During center time,
Bren made a b-line for the art center.
There she began her symetry painting.
I was gabbing with the teacher
about how I was happy she was going to do some
colorful painting because there is a wall
in my kitchen that I would like to use to feature
some of my kid's artwork in frames.
Words I wish I could pop back in my mouth right now!
I watched as Bren plopped some colorful paint lines
onto one side of the white paper.
Blue, yellow, red...
this was going to look amazing on my wall!
It looked almost like three people,
and when she folded the paper in half
there would be six....
one for each person in her family.
Perfect!
But then,
she folded the unpainted side of the paper
over the painted side to make a symetrical print.
And that's when I saw it!
Somehow, her adorable, creative painting
no longer looked like six people.
Her masterpiece hung to dry in the classroom
until Monday afternoon when it came home
in Bren's backpack.
Bren proudly handed it to me
and with much fan-faire,
I ohhhed and ahhhed over her color choices
while David and both of my sons
could hardly breathe from laughing so hard!


So, now
I have six colorful and surprisingly anatomically correct,
penis's
that I'm expected to frame and hang in my kitchen!
sigh.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Seventeen Years Ago Today......

I became a mommy!!!
Our oldest son, Zach
is 17 years old today!


Since I was just 17 last year
{I was, really. Just ask my dad!}
I have absolutely no idea
how I ended up with a 17 year old of my own!
You know how in the movies,
they always show a mom or dad
having flash backs of when their teenager
or adult child
was just a little kid?
Like when a kid is getting his driver's license
they'll show the dad having flash backs of teaching his
son how to ride his first bike,
or on her daughter's wedding day,
the mom will have flash backs
of her little girl playing dress up when she was 4 or 5?

Well, I've been having those alot lately.



I keep seeing this vivacious little boy
with blonde hair, daring green eyes
and the greatest belly laugh you ever heard!
He's running, laughing, jumping
busy with little boy things,
hardly noticing me at all.
He'll run through the room
and as soon as I
reach out to pull him on to my lap,
he's gone.

And I miss him.



Those same daring green eyes
look back at me now through bangs that cover
way too much of his handsome face.
He's almost 8 inches taller than me now
and way too big for my lap.
True to his Scott-Irish heritage,
He's always been full of fire
and fight.
He entered this world, wide-eyed and curious
and he's been trying to take over the throne
ever since!
He's a very head strong and opinionated kid.
He's right.
Always.
No black or white.
Ever.



But lately, I've seen a little hint of change.
A new maturity in him that
manifests itself in a slight concession of pride.
A little bend in opinion.
A willing glimpse into another's perspective.
Perhaps a spark of compromise.
I see it glimmer and it grows.
The gift of Zach in my life has taught me
determination, patience, selflessness,
endurance, reliance on God
and the importance of grace.
He's brought such joy to his Father and I
and we are immensely proud of him!
Standing on the traditional threshold of childhood,
peering into the vastness of adulthood,
Zach has an exciting year of change and growth ahead of him.
We are excited to see what this last 365 day journey toward
a great milestone
will hold for our tenacious young warrior!


Monday, November 17, 2008

A soul satisfying view!

No matter how hard I try,
I will never be able to do this view
justice with my camera lens!

It's like a different light show
from God that takes our breath away every night!
I've been known to call home when I'm out
and about at sundown and the mountains are in view
just to remind whoever is
home to look out the window and
see it for themselves!


There are lots of things I'd change about
the house we live in, and honestly
about life in general right now,
but this view is not one of them!



Every time I see it,
it's like a reminder to me that God
specifically designed his creation
for our pleasure.
I am reminded of his vast love for me
and the fact that he knows me so well.
He knew I would need this view.
He knew I would need the comfort it gives me
knowing that even when things aren't
exactly as I'd like them,
He's still there.
He's still King
and I'm still his daughter.
You know, that's just like my God!
It's just like him to quiet my anxious heart
with something that speaks to my soul.
He knows I love beauty,
and beauty he has given me....
times a million!
When I stand at the window
or on the deck, as I do several times a day,
it's almost as if he created this view
specifically for me
and just me.
That is how personal it feels!
He's doing the same for you.
Look around today and
see if you can spot his
soul-satisfying gifts
created especially for you
and just you!





Wednesday, November 12, 2008

The rookie season comes to a close.....

Last Saturday marked the final game
for the ponytail posse!

Bren had so much fun this season
and made lots of new friends.

She learned alot about the game of soccer.
She scored five total goals this season.


We are so proud of her progress
and can't wait until next season!



Tonight we'll have an end of season
team party at a pizza place.




David is making a slideshow of all the
photos I took during the season.

And, as a team gift to the coach,
I got one of those frames that you can sign.



I picked out three photos to put in the
frame and we'll have the girls
sign it for him.



I think he's going to love it!!




He is such an awesome coach and
poured alot of time and energy into
these girls!


See ya next year, Ponytail Posse!!!
***
In other news:
There is a big surprise coming on November 23rd!!!!
But, in order to see it, you must sign up
for this e-zine.
Just follow the link and make sure you
check the box for kid trends ages 5-9.
You will receive this fun e-zine in your e-mail inbox each week.
Its full of unique gifts and fun finds for the kids in your life.
There's also an incredible give-a-way
that will be announced any day now.
It's for a $250 Daisy Rock Guitar, so make sure
you get in on that!!
And watch out for the issue coming on
November 23rd!!!!!





Monday, November 10, 2008

My Daddy is a Hero!

HAPPY VETERAN'S DAY!!!
I thought I'd put this up tonight because
there's no school tomorrow and we are
sleeping in!!!
{woot!}
Bren learned this chorus in music class at school this month,
and she's been singing it around the house for weeks!
On Friday her school had an assembly for Veteran's Day.
The verses of this song were sung by young soloists
and all of the students sung this chorus in unison.
It was so beautiful!
And so, here's Bren
and her Veteran's Day tribute
with special dedication to her own hero, her Daddy!
She says:
"I love my daddy, he's a hero and he's on the Abraham Lincoln."
{ Turn my music player off before hitting play}





Fall Faves

The prints from the Fall social are in!

I'm busy packing them up in gift bags

to deliver to the school on Wednesday.


Here are some of my fave's from the night!


















I feel like I've been editing all weekend!

I can't wait to post more photos from the newborn session.

I have some great ones of big sister Mattie too!

I've also got a video I'm going to try to post tomorrow

in honor of Veteran's Day,
but for now, here's a photo I took on Friday
at the Veteran's Day assembly that
Bren's school held.


I distracted myself as much as I could
by fiddling with the settings on my camera
and trying to look all involved in my shutter speed selection
so I would not give in to the tears that were welling up in my eyes.
It started when the 4th graders sang the military medley
and all of the service members stood when they heard their song.
I saw a few grandpas stand with pride gleaming in their eyes,
and I felt my face getting hot.
But, it was all I could do to maintain control of myself when a few
young soloist sang the verse of a beautiful song
called "I'll Always Be An American"
and the rest of the school kids joined in the chorus.
There is just something about a choir of 300 elementary school kids
singing a touching song about American heros.
The tears fell anyway,
but not in the all-encompassing,
public image threatening way
that they would have fallen
if I didn't have a diversion in my hands.
Have a happy Monday, my friends,
and give a nod, a smile and a thank you to a military person
if you happen upon one this week!






Friday, November 7, 2008

Swoon!!!!

Oh my goodness!
I just love it when a plan comes together!
I've been wanting to do a newborn shoot
like this for about a year.
I was so excited when my friend
Jessica gave birth last Wednesday.
I got them into my studio as quickly as I could!
The session lasted a little over five hours with lots
of comfort (and social) breaks.
I shot both baby Calton and his big sister
Mattie.
There were over 350 photos to go through
this morning.
I decided to sneak peak just a few
for Mom and Dad who I know are anxious to see them!
I haven't even gotten to Mattie's solo
portraits yet!
A complete lack
of decisiveness follows:














Sigh!!!
Can you pick a favorite??


This last one I call, "The Womb".
I love how it turned out,
but next time I'll try it on a colored backdrop
and see what I get.
So, I've got my baby fix now until my little Nephew is born in March!!