My Favorite Photos of the Season

My girlies on the first day of school. Its photos like this one that makes me remember, amist all the "I need this," and "I want that," and discipline and reminding, etc., etc., that I have three really great, really smart, really beautiful girls. I love being their momma.

This photo was taken on Jacklyn's Pre-K class trip to the Pumpkin Patch. I love that every one of her smiles completely consumes her face. She is so charismatic. People adore her, and of course, she thrives on the attention.

To me, this photo perfectly portrays Elizabeth's personality and outlook on life. An extreme optimist and overachiever, she has that classic type-A personality. She is the spittin' image of David in both her appearance and personality. She is funny and quirky and has a sharp wit and tongue, but loves the land and the animals as if it was born into her. She is introspective and thrives on affection and praises.

Rhian. My BIG girl Rhian. She has grown up so much in the last year. She and I now wear the same size shoe--unbelievable. I often feel that I am too hard on her, mostly because of her laid-back, "I don't care," personality. Its often a battle to get her to accept responsibility, but she has such a sweet, care-taker spirit. She will make a really good mom or teacher someday.










My life is so blessed by my girls. They frustrate and stress me out, but at the same time bring unspeakable joy and happiness to every day. I love the fact that I have three really fun sidekicks!

The Photo Shoot that Wouldn't Be...

Every year, I attempt the impossible--to get all three girls neatly dressed up, all sitting still, and smiling simulaneously at a camera held by a poor, sweet, unsuspecting photographer. The girls are beautfully photogenic, and I always know the effort was worth it when I have 200 (yes, 200!) glossy Christmas photo-cards in my hands.

This year, I got even more ambitious. David and I have been married for 10 years now, and have had NO formal photos taken of us together since our wedding--let alone FAMILY photos! So, I decided the time had come.

I found dresses for the girls, and matching shirts for David and me, and set up an appointment with local, photographer-extraordainer Vicki Madden to not only take our photos--but take them OUTSIDE! Vicki has a really great, casual style, capturing candid, walking-through-fields--stomping through creeks kind of photos.

HOWEVER--we had to reschedule our original, October appointment (something about David needing a new hat), and on the afternoon of our long-awaited, November photo-shoot, it started pouring rain outside. POURING!!! I did my best not to cry, and while I was finishing prettying-up the girls, David and Vicki set about a new plan--we would shoot in the barn.

Vicki did a lovely job. And as she snapped a few last shots of the girls, I whipped out my iPhone and snapped a few of Vicki!

As you can see--the girls were having a wonderful time, and were pretty good sports the entire time, even with flash-battery trouble, getting horses to stand still, Jacklyn's three potty breaks, and Rhian's near-hypothermia dramatics.

What resulted were beautiful, although very posed, photos of the girls. David and I, however, look really, dreadfully horrible. Yikes! I was wearing the WRONG thing--it made me look 30 pounds heavier. My new, lighter hair color looked really brassy. David looked tortured and held his head in a way to give him double-chins.

Needless to say, David, Vicki, and I are all saying, "We'll try again in the spring, when things are green, and its not raining." We'll stomp through creeks, and walk through fields, and climb on hay bales, and we will have lovely, candid photos.

But--we do have beautiful photos of the girls for the Christmas cards.

Wild One

Have you ever heard the song by Faith Hill, "Wild One"?

I'm afraid that song was written about Jacklyn. Try as we may, that child has a wild streak in her that opposes all godly influence. Blame it on being the youngest, blame it on being pretty and naturally charming--but the kid has got it--whatever "it" is...

"She's a wild one
With an angel's face
She's a woman-child
In a state of grace
When she was 3 years old on her daddy's knee
He said you can be anything you want to be
She's a wild one
Runnin' free"

Right now, she's three years old on her daddy's knee, and she is hearing his constant reassurance that she can absolutely conquer the world...and she whole-heartedly believes it. This little girl is a heart-melter--and will be completely unstoppable.

So...the time has come

It is amazing that I have not blogged since January. Maybe I was too busy. Maybe I lost the inspiration to write. Maybe Facebook is just easier. But, I visited my neglected blog yesterday, and was stunned that the last time I wrote was January...January...that's a long time! So, I figure the time has come...

I, of course, first updated the look of my blog, as it was stuck in winter...

Then, I had to decide what to write about...because there are sooooo many things to share since January.

So here is what I decided to write---Ready???? I am happy. Very happy. Busy, stressed, and never quite content, but at the same time, happy. I love and enjoy my life, and the people in it.

I AM HAPPY.

So Many Great Photos to Share

When I get a batch of photos back from a photographer, I have a really hard time deciding upon the perfect one. And even when I have selected a photo, for say, a Christmas card--the second I click "Print," I suddenly experience panic. What if I chose the wrong one? Should I send different cards to different groups of people on my list? I know, I'm completely neurotic. Basically, I want to send a Christmas photo album to every person on my list...therefore, I would never have to pick only one photo, and they could select the one they love the most.

So--in light of the fact that I could only pick one photo for my Christmas card this year, here are all of the great photos that I loved from my friend Jessica Nicolai's photo shoot with the girls.

I know I've said this before, but I will probably continue saying it over and over and over again--I'm pretty sure I have the most beautiful daughters on the planet (but then, remember the bias...)!

I Heart Photos...

I love photos. I love that they make memories as real as the day they happened. I love that not only are events or time periods captured in one still moment, but that personalities are captured. I love that every photo of my daughters reminds me of how they encountered the world.

For example, I will always remember that in the photo above, Jacklyn's M&M that we used to bribe her to sit still never actually made it to her mouth, but was melted all over her hands...making for one of my favorite photos of the entire shoot.

Jacklyn is sooooo funny right now. She is almost three, and talks extremely well, and is very observant and quick-witted. She understands jokes and makes up funny stories. Not a day goes by that I don't laugh out loud at her unique way of phrasing things. She loves horses, loves to pretend-play rodeos, won't go anywhere without her over-sized stuffed chicken "Chicky-Baby," and loves to tromp up to the barn with her pants tucked into her boots. She is a snuggler, and earns her nickname "Monkey," by clinging to me at every available opportunity.

Elizabeth is my overachiever. She is incredibly smart, and likes everything just so. She loves schedules and has an amazing sense of time. While very, very stubborn (everything has to be her idea), she is eager to please and loves hugs and praises. She currently is obsessed with cleaning the bathroom counter because she knows that I will make a big deal about it.

She is doing extremely well in Kindergarten. She is definitely an out-spoken leader, and wants to read--and according to her, she's not being taught fast enough. Often very aware of her beauty and ability to persuade, she is likely to be an unstoppable force as a career woman. She wants to be a teacher, or a cowgirl, or both, when she grows up.

Rhian is amazingly resilient. She has been through so much, but yet continues become stronger. She is doing well in school--Her favorite subjects are science and grammar. While she usually says that she wants to be a teacher or audiologist, she is currently trying to find professions in which she does not have to attend college. I however, have informed her that she must attend college no matter what, and then she can start her singing career!

She started Bowring 4-H this year, and will show her Angus calf, "Otis," at the 4-H Spring Show in March. She has a fashion sense all of her own--I'm not sure how to describe it--but she would definitely consider my style, and clothing choices for her, too preppy. She is often messy, and her room is in a constant state of disarray...But she is a great helper around the house. She loves to help me cook and it is her responsibility to unload clean dishes from the dishwasher. She wants to learn to sew, and loves scrapbooking and card making.

One thing that I have learned from photos--Don't blink. I am constantly amazed at how quickly the girls grow and change. I just hope that I take advantage of every moment I have with them, because they will be grown before I know it.

Mission "Pee in Potty" Accomplished!

Rhian peed in the potty! Normally, I am only this excited about pee when Jacklyn goes in the toliet!

Rhian said, "Mom! I've gotta pee! Like right now!" I said, "Okay, I'll call the nurse." She said, "I'm gonna pee the bed!"

So I jumped up and started pulling cords and moving her as quickly as possible. She got a little dizzy, and I got a little worried. But on very wobbly legs, the nurse and I managed to get her to the restroom in time.

On the way back to bed, she decided she wanted to change into her new pajamas, which was no small feat considering all the cords she has on her. But they were able to take a few of the cords off, and change the IV covers to smaller ones, giving her a little more mobility.

The nurse brought the BladderScan in, and she had 14 ml left! That is nothing! Praise the Lord! (by comparison, the scans last night said she had 145ml and 130ml--not so good) You should have seen the smile of relief on Rhian's face to know that she did not have to have another cath!

She wants to get up and walk to the playroom, but I told her it would have to be after lunch. I'm a little afraid of her wearing herself out! She was really wobbly and weak earlier. But I will let her later...

She just said to me, "I feel like a little old lady."

When I laughed and asked why, she said, "Because I can't walk very good..."

"Well," I said, "You can't walk very WELL."

"Yeah, whatever, WELL..." Back to being Rhian...

Then she said, "I am so glad that I went pee!"

"Me too..."