Hug Your Babies

So it has been a very long time since I last updated this blog, over a year to be exact.  Mainly because life has been so busy that I haven’t found the time to write.  But tonight as both of my kids are tucked safely in their beds, I can’t quit thinking about those 26 families in CT who would give anything to tuck their loved one into bed.  

I had asked my husband if he felt that this shooting had received more news coverage than the others, because to me this felt differently.  He said he didn’t think so but maybe it was just so new.  I don’t know why it feels differently than Columbine or VTech or any other shootings, maybe it is because now I have kids and they change you in so many ways.  I can remember watching the coverage of the Columbine shooting, I was a senior in high school, I remember the fear/horror that I felt then.  But still this is different.  Maybe it is because I have friends and family members who are teachers and I know they would do anything in their power to protect “their kids”.  I can’t even imagine what it would be like to be a parent of one of the victims or even worse the shooter.  

I think that every parent fears loosing a child.  I have thought how would you go on if your child was killed by an act like this, but after this school shooting I thought what if your child was the shooter.  I think that we need to face it, most of the parents of the school shooters are not monsters, they are in fact very good people.  I can only imagine the huge amount of guilt that would come with that.  

My mom and I were talking tonight about how one of the victim’s father was getting a lot of flack for praying for the shooter.  We were talking about how that shows what amazing character this man has.  It is a true testament of oneself in how you react in times like these.  I was very lucky that my parents taught me kindness and empathy, I can only hope that I pass that along to my children.  

I am a very strong believer that everything happens for a reason...but I am having a very hard time seeing it in this tragedy.   I pray that all those families find peace in their hearts and minds knowing that their angels are in heaven watching over them.

Hug your babies a little longer and be grateful for all time you have with them.

Another Successful Weekend in Marietta

 So we chalk up another successful weekend in Marietta!

We celebrated my Mom’s 50^th birthday on Saturday night, at Over the Moon Pizzeria on Front Street in Marietta.  They  have a back party room called The Dark Side of the Moon.  It was perfect!  Moon Mullen and his wife Claire were AWESOME, they made sure we were taken care of all night long. 

www.moonpizza.net

Aside from all the amazing food, my favorite part was the cake.  It is so funny how much my family loves cake.   We always get our cakes from Cindy Mallahan at The Village Cakery in Vincent.

www.villagecakery.com

  

Sometimes I think that some of the family members only come because we are having “a Cindy Cake” AKA “the Cake Lady Cake”.  She does an amazing job, and lately I have been requesting some cakes that I think would be a challenge.  For her though, it is probably nothing. When I ice a cake it looks like a 3-year-old did it, it would totally make me start a food fight out of frustration.  One of the funniest things of the night was when my cousin Anna(sorry Anna, but it was too funny) ran up to the food table like it was on fire.  I asked her what was the matter, she said I have to get a piece of the chocolate because there are raspberries in the middle.  LOL  That is what A Cindy Cake does to this family.  And Everyone was so eager to feed Camryn cake, I am surprised that she 1. Slept through the night and 2. Didn’t have a stomach ache.  She is definitely related she loves it too.

Thanks to everyone who helped get ready and made food for Mom’s party.  She said it was the best party and even better to not have been in charge, as we all know she is the party planner.  

Sunday Adam and Gina Prunty brought Carson for his 6 months photos.  He is so cute and he did such a great job.  We really got some great images, I know they will have a hard time choosing, because it was difficult for me to narrow down from the images I had.  I just want to thank them for giving me the opportunity to do something that I love and capture images that they will love and look back on for many years to come.

So as we got back settled into Columbus Camryn scooted around the floor playing with her toys and she pulled herself up from a seated position to standing using the toy.  This is a first because she has only done that for us by hold our hands.  She will be walking before we know it.  It is time to really baby proof.  I can’t believe that our baby is growing up so fast.  As I was looking at my old baby photos that my aunts sent up to me, there is one where I am crying and I felt like I was looking at a picture of Camryn crying.  We look identical.  CRAZY!  I can’t believe that I almost forgot my favorite part of the weekend.  Sunday evening Aunt Nae and I were sitting eating our Chipotle and Cam was sitting in her high chair, I was giving her bites of rice and guacamole, and she FINALLY said Mamama.  She has been saying Dada since she started putting sounds together, so I have been waiting months for her to say Mama. 

What a great end to a GREAT Weekend!   

Fun Packed Weekend!

So this past weekend was a big one.  We went back to Marietta for some big events.  WE stayed a couple nights at Todd and Shawndra's, it was fun to hang out with them.  They have inspired me to really get my butt in gear and work out.  They have been doing bootcamps for the past few weeks, so proud of them.  Camryn took her first sink bath, she loved it. 
Friday we went to a funeral of a young man we grew up with, it is always so sad when someone so young is taken from this world.
Saturday was a day of Joy!  Camryn was baptized and she did wonderful.  She really wanted to dive right into the baptismal font.  We were so honored to have Abby and Aaron as her Godparents.  Thank you to Aunt Shelley for taking the photos for the event.  They are wonderful all 450+ of them, not bad for a 30 minute or so thing.  :)  We felt Famous like the paparazzi was there.  I am so much more comfortable on the other side of the camera.

After that we went to the mall to get her gift from Aunt Abby, getting her ears pierced.  She was such a trooper.  She cried for only a little bit, now she has mini bling in her ears.  :)  She loves jewelry, we are really in trouble.
Later that night we all gathered at Mom and Dad's for Pizza night.  Pizza night is special to all of us because it is a pizza recipe from Nanny Pam (my mom's "mum"), she was from England.  Anyway Nanny used to watch all the kids while we were growing up and every Friday she made homemade pizza for us for lunch.  She made everyone their favorite.  It is funny the things we remember from our past.  The thing that stands out the most about my special pizza was that it was made without cheese because I was allergic to milk.  I remember that it would have little sausages, which as I grew older I realized they were just sausage links cut into pieces, but I thought they were the coolest because no chain pizza shop has sausage like that.  She would always use scissors to cut up our pizza into bite-size pieces.
Other things I remember about Nanny Pam's
1. We spent the whole summer outside
2. We would flip our Big Wheels up-side-down and pretend that if we turned the wheel with the petal we were making ice cream.
3. While playing baseball with all the other kids, you were not allowed to bat if you didn't play in the field. 
4. The big jar of bubble gum
5. At snack time she would dump a bunch of different chips in a big bowel and we would all sit around the table and pass the bowel around.
6. At lunch time Nanny would pass out our plates like she was dealing a deck of cards. Each sandwich again was done to the liking of the child, no crust, cut into triangles, cut into squares.
7. Kool-aid
8. Swinging on the porch swing

One of the best things about getting together with family is the children.  My cousin's kids are the cutest.  Every time Julie just makes my jaw drop with the things she says.  She is 6 going on 20.  We were sitting on the bed talking about her upcoming trip to Disney and my mom said that she wanted to go with them.  Julie said, not missing a beat,  I could take you in my backpack because their isn't room in my suit case because Nana is going in there.  Then my cousin Anna told Julie that she wanted to go too.  Julie said, I guess you could go in my purse.  We were all laughing, she came back in the room and said, there would only be room in her purse if she took her makeup out.  My goodness that girl is hilarious.  Before she left she made mom sign a contract about their next big day.  They have great adventures, but for the next big day she already had everything listed that she wanted to do.
1. knitt
2. sew
3. paint on big paper

Camryn is going to have so much fun on her Big Days with Yaya! She is going to have so many great memories, because we have so many wonderful people in our lives and we thank God everyday for that.

Music is the soundtrack to our lives!

I sit at my desk at work with my iPod playing a genius shuffle and I am always inspired to write, it just never what I should be writing at work.  When I was little I always thought that I wanted to write songs, not because someone famous would sing them, but because it is amazing how words in a song can touch your life.  For a short time in high school I took guitar lessons and tried to write music, that I am not very good at.  Although I do remember writing a song that my friends and I would sing in the basement bedroom of my house on Lindsey Ave.

It is just amazing how a song can take you back to a certain place and time.  Here are some of the ones that get me.
James Taylor or John Denver -- takes me back to the little blue house across the street from my grandparents on the farm.  We had a record player in a big entertainment center with two glass doors where the player set.
Locomotion -- a little red tape that Nanny Pam bought me that I would play in the brown tape player...can't remember the brand.
Mariah Carey -- my very first CD I got for Christmas.
New Kids on the Block -- I remember my twin cousins who lived up the hill from us.  They would come over and they knew the dances to all the songs.  I thought they were so cool, I would never dance in front of anyone.  HAHA
Texas Tornado by Tracy Lawrence -- this is the song that I feel in love with country music.  I remember listening to this song on the way to and from school when I would ride to Parkersburg Catholic with the Ts.  Also when I first met Billy I thought maybe this could be our song, because he loved it too.  Well then he said it reminded him of his old girlfriends, so NO it was not our song :).
Alanis Morrisett (her whole CD) -- also another one of Billy's favorites.  He told me that he used to listen to this on his walkman when he would get ready for basketball games.  Ok maybe I made that part up because I think that is hilarious that he even owned her CD.   But I remember riding out to a fishing tournament with Sara Colvin, I got so extremely sun burned that I had to miss school.
Kenny Chesney (All his songs) -- I would have to say he is my all time favorite artist.  His Be As You Are CD made me want to move to the Caribbean, but I was always too scared to take the leap.  Every CD has songs that hit my heart.

There are so many more songs that I could list, but frankly I can't remember them, but when I hear it on the radio or on my iPod it does take me back.

It is amazing how when a song is added to visuals it makes it so much better.  You think about movies and TV shows, the music helps set the mood.  When I prepare a slide show for a client I rack my brain looking for the perfect song to go with their images. 

Needless to say, I wouldn't want to think what this world would be like without music.

WISP!!!!

This past weekend I was reminded again just how lucky I am to have such an amazing family.  A family that loves you unconditionally, who love to laugh and have a good time, and care about your well-being. 

Billy, Cam, and I walked to see an amazing waterfall.  We went with my grandfather, mother, aunt, cousin and her husband.  The beauty of nature, with the snow on the tree branches, is just breath taking.  I have to say though that the most amazing sight was the half frozen waterfall.  The image will speak for itself.  

Taking deep breaths of the fresh cold air brings clarity to the brain.  We walked a trail where some pretty significant historical figures camped in the 1800s.  The little history lesson made me think, these trips are history in the making. 

As we sat in the hot tub that night talking about how many years we had been going on this trip every MLK weekend, I hoped that we would continue the tradition for many more years.  Now we are the first ones to have a great-grandchild, which I hope will change soon.  Hint, Hint, John and Rachel and Sarah and Dave!  It is fun to think that one day there will be many little ones running around and learning how to ski and snowboard and jumping from the hot tub to the snow and back in the hot tub again.  We are all too old and too smart for that J.  Heading down to the tube park for the last session of the night, because that is for sure when the lanes are the fastest, which means that you will probably get yelled at for hitting the barrier.  All the fond memories we have made and will make; all of us under one roof, meals big enough to feed 15 + people and no worries for three straight days. 

Life is not about the amount of money we have or the number of possession, it is about the experiences and the people who are part of them.  I couldn’t be more excited that I will get to teach Camryn about life and give her the experiences that will help mold her into a wonderful and respectful person.  I have great role models and teachers in my parents and extended family.  But with every person you cross in life there is a potential lesson to be learned, I have learned many lessons, the good and the bad. 

Looking forward to many more experiences in this crazzzy thing we call LIFE!        

Just help somebody if you can

Tomorrow my dad will save someone's life. 

He is a bone marrow match for a 32-year-old man he doesn’t know and on December 9^th he will give this guy a chance for a new life.  I learned that my Mom and Dad both joined the registry 15 years ago.  Now I have always known that they are caring people, but I didn’t really didn’t know their magnitude until now. 

My parents have always taught us to do the right thing even if it isn’t popular.  A line I have heard so many times “no matter how bad you have it, there is always someone who is worse off than you are.”  This is so true, no matter how bad my day is, when I wish that I could just catch a break, I think about those words.  Now it doesn’t mean that I am all cheery again, thinking that my life is grand, it just makes me appreciate the things I do have and like most things “this too shall pass.”

My dad is my hero and I hope that in my life I can be as GOOD as he is.  He is honest and caring and will do anything for anyone without expecting anything in return.  He works his tail off.  He is a farmer, a father, a husband, a friend, a water man, and a township clerk, among other things.  I asked him one day why he works so much and he said that he works as the water man and the clerk so that he can pay the bills and that affords him the time to do the farming, which is what he really loves.  I understand what he means, his passion to grow food that feeds people.  It is pretty amazing when you think about what goes into farming and how it isn’t easy.  I could kill a fake plant, let alone really living ones, so I admire that about him.  I took that for granted growing up, probably because when I was little I had to work on the farm and I hated it. 

I have very good memories about my dad.  One memory popped up the other day when Camryn started reaching for me (which any parent knows that feeling when your baby reaches for you.) I am so glad that I don’t have to leave her at the sitter in the morning.  I don’t know what I would do if she was crying and didn’t want to stay. It made me think about when I was in Montessori and my dad was dropping me off, I didn’t want to go in, so I clung onto his leg and cried.  He took me back to Nanny Pam's and told me that I had to take a nap for the rest of the afternoon.  I was ok with that, as long as I didn’t have to stay at school.  Oh what I am in store for with Camryn, it is a little scary and exciting.  I can’t wait for this summer when Camryn gets to ride on the tractor with Dad, just like I did when I was little.  Maybe she will get the passion for growing things, that for some reason has skipped over me.   

So now my Dad is giving someone else the gift that his family has been waiting and praying for.  WOW how amazing is that! How amazing is he?  I just hope that we can be the good role models for Cam like my parents were for me.      

You never know when just a smile could change someone's life, and help somebody if you can!

For Better or Worse

As I said before my mind likes to skip around a lot, so before I get started I have to say that I love the Genius Playlist feature on my iPhone, IT ROCKS!


Ok so last week I went down to check out a venue where I photographed a wedding on Saturday.  The wedding was at night and so I wanted to see about getting the city scape in the background, night photography can be tricky.  But anyway it got me thinking about the vows you take as a married couple and how sometimes it can be easy to forget them. 


I take you to be my wedded husband. To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, 'till death do us part. And hereto I pledge you my faithfulness.


These are not just words, there is so much meaning behind them.  I have to say this is one part of the wedding that can always make me cry, the other is when the bride is walking down the isle and the groom sees her for the 1st time.  When a loving couple looks into each other's eyes and they say these words, in which ever variation they have chosen, it gets me every time.  Luckily I have a camera in front of my face so I can hide my tears until I get to the back of the church/venue to wipe my eyes.


Once the honeymoon is over and the newness of being a newlywed wears off, it is easy to get caught up in the mundane motions of life.  You may even take the other person for granted, just always expect that they will be there.  You shouldn't though, take that person for granted.  You never know when your last day with him or her will be. 


For my "day job" I work for disability and when I first started I was on the phone with a claimant and she was talking to me about her daily activities.  She had really bad arthritis or neuropathy in her hands, I can't really remember, but what she told me I will never forget.  She said that her husband helps her with the things she can't do by herself.  She gave the example that he will cut her food up so she can eat, he will help her with brushing her hair, ect.  All of these were really sweet, but when she told me that he will paint her toenails and fingernails for her, that really got me.  She said that she was so lucky to be married to her soul mate, and I thought she is so lucky that she has someone who loves her enough to paint her toes. 


I believe in soul mates, I also believe that our souls have multiple lives on this earth and that we make pacts with other souls to be part of their life the next time.  I have to say that I am lucky that I married my soul mate.  Billy and I dated in high school.  I was 16 and he was only 14, I know I was robbing the cradle.  We had a connection from the very first time we hung out together.  I spilled a diet Dr. Pepper on his white North Carolina jersey, he didn't get mad at me.  And for those who know Billy, he hates when things get spilled and back then he loved his jerseys. :)  I am a little impatient so I made the first move.  I called him to ask him out on a date.  When I called he told me he was just picking up the phone to call me, I didn't really believe him, but 13 years later this still rings true, lol no pun intended.  A couple times a week I will call him and and he will say that he just was dialing my number. 


I realized that I am pretty lucky because when I told Billy about the claimant at work he said that if I ever couldn't do anything for myself he would help me.  He would paint my toenails if I needed him to. He said it so matter of fact, like DUH, of course I would do that for you.  I heard a song the other day and one line talked about when we are old and we don't die the grey out of our hair any more, we can sit in our matching Cracker Barrel chairs and reminisce on the life we've had.  How great it is to have a love for each other that lasts that long.  And how amazing that songs and music are the sounds tracks to our lives. 


For Better or Worse till Death do us Part!