I don't often blog about what I'm doing outside our girl's lives.
Mainly because most of my time is spent with our girls. It's my job, and I take it very seriously.
However, that doesn't mean that all of my time is spent with them. That wouldn't be good for any of us!
I have the most incredible husband who's supported my love of photography for many years now. He'll pull over on the side of a random country road to let me get some pictures. He'll sit with me for hours while I edit. He'll drag everyone out to the front yard and jump up and down to get the girls to smile. And he'll spend whole days, from the time the girls wake up until they go to bed, being mommy and daddy.
That love has grown a little over the years and has become more than just a hobby.
It might be once a month. Sometimes twice. It's always on a Saturday. And it involves long, exhausting, joyful days of celebration.
And it's spent not only with a very talented lady but an incredible friend.
I've learned more from Allison while actually doing something I love than I could ever learn reading a book or studying a technique. I could quote you terms or explain how something should be done.
But doing it is a whole different ball of yarn!
I'm pretty honored to be second shooting weddings with Allison. Honored and humbled and nervous and probably a little giddy at times! When I told her I'd do it (ok, when I begged her to let me do one with her just for fun), I had no idea we'd be where we are today...with weddings not only booked out a year in advance on her calendar but now on mine too as her second shooter.
I am so thankful for each opportunity I have to shoot with Allison. I am thankful for my dedicated, fully present husband who is the most amazing daddy to our girls. I am thankful for Allison's friendship and her willingness to share her talent with others. I am thankful. God is good. All the time.
And so is His timing.
While the goal of a second shooter is to stay out of the photographer line of vision, it's pretty much impossible and other times purposeful to end up in a few (when you have your camera pointed straight at her and her's straight at you!)!
Here's a fun post Allison did that I think you might enjoy...
Ode to Second Shooters
Saturday, July 23
Tuesday, July 19
Marbles
No. I haven't lost them.
Yet.
Not all of them at least.
Addie was given the Hungry Hungry Hippo game for her birthday from one of her great-aunts. Fun game.
20 marbles.
We currently own 14 of the original 20 marbles.
I have always kept the game put up when Addie wasn't playing it so the baby girls wouldn't swallow any marbles.
This morning I found a bunch of the marbles loose in Addie's closet.
The following {paraphrased} conversation ensued.
Me: Why are the marbles in your closet?
Addie: I needed the {play kitchen} pot they were in.
Me: Why are they all over the place?
Addie: Because I spit them in there.
Let me pause here and say that even at age 3, Addie still puts everything in her mouth. it makes me cringe for health reason as much as it makes me crazy for safety reason!
But back to the back and forth.
Me: I need you to help me pick them up so your baby sisters won't swallow them. {as i start picking them up quickly and counting as i go. 12 of the 14.}. We're missing 2 Addie, where are they?
Addie: What would happen if my baby sisters swallowed them?
Me: well, they'd have to go to the doctor and maybe the hospital. it could make them very sick.
Addie: oh, then we could ride in an ambulance. that would be great fun!
Me: {getting suspicious}
Addie: but i would miss you mommy. would you ride with me?
Me: no, that would not be great fun. yes, i would ride with you. now help me find the marbles.
Addie: I swallowed them.
Me: {calmly} you swallowed them? {quickly running through my head the size of the marbles. the fact that they are round not jagged. whether or not they could block something. who to call.}
I grab my phone and call Diane. Her kids are 7 and 9. I figured she'd probably dealt with something like this and could talk me through some options because at that point I was {calmly still} starting to panic!
Addie: who are you calling mommy? {starting to panic herself}.
Me: {talking to diane. thinking through the best options}. did you swallow the marbles? you must tell me the truth!
Addie: no, mommy. i didn't swallow the marbles. {tears starting to flow}
Me: are you sure? are you telling me the truth?
Addie: i didn't swallow them mommy.
Me: {searching behind/between her close door}
Finding the other 2 marbles.
And having a very long timeout in her room alone and an even longer talk about being truthful, how to honor God and Mommy with her words, and why this could have been much worse!
And then I walked in the kitchen to find Audrey Kate had opened the cabinet and had her arm in the cat food container and was chomping on a handful!
Yet.
Not all of them at least.
Addie was given the Hungry Hungry Hippo game for her birthday from one of her great-aunts. Fun game.
20 marbles.
We currently own 14 of the original 20 marbles.
I have always kept the game put up when Addie wasn't playing it so the baby girls wouldn't swallow any marbles.
This morning I found a bunch of the marbles loose in Addie's closet.
Me: Why are the marbles in your closet?
Addie: I needed the {play kitchen} pot they were in.
Me: Why are they all over the place?
Addie: Because I spit them in there.
Let me pause here and say that even at age 3, Addie still puts everything in her mouth. it makes me cringe for health reason as much as it makes me crazy for safety reason!
But back to the back and forth.
Me: I need you to help me pick them up so your baby sisters won't swallow them. {as i start picking them up quickly and counting as i go. 12 of the 14.}. We're missing 2 Addie, where are they?
Addie: What would happen if my baby sisters swallowed them?
Me: well, they'd have to go to the doctor and maybe the hospital. it could make them very sick.
Addie: oh, then we could ride in an ambulance. that would be great fun!
Me: {getting suspicious}
Addie: but i would miss you mommy. would you ride with me?
Me: no, that would not be great fun. yes, i would ride with you. now help me find the marbles.
Addie: I swallowed them.
Me: {calmly} you swallowed them? {quickly running through my head the size of the marbles. the fact that they are round not jagged. whether or not they could block something. who to call.}
I grab my phone and call Diane. Her kids are 7 and 9. I figured she'd probably dealt with something like this and could talk me through some options because at that point I was {calmly still} starting to panic!
Addie: who are you calling mommy? {starting to panic herself}.
Me: {talking to diane. thinking through the best options}. did you swallow the marbles? you must tell me the truth!
Addie: no, mommy. i didn't swallow the marbles. {tears starting to flow}
Me: are you sure? are you telling me the truth?
Addie: i didn't swallow them mommy.
Me: {searching behind/between her close door}
Finding the other 2 marbles.
And having a very long timeout in her room alone and an even longer talk about being truthful, how to honor God and Mommy with her words, and why this could have been much worse!
And then I walked in the kitchen to find Audrey Kate had opened the cabinet and had her arm in the cat food container and was chomping on a handful!
Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.
Colossians 3:20
III John 1:4
Monday, July 18
Go Baby Go!
a few days ago, the girls and i went to a local skating rink that has a toddler time/day each week.
i had absolutely no idea what to expect. i was told to bring a ride on toy for addie and that a friend with a little boy the twin's age was bringing a walker for him, that there were bounce houses and a snack.
that's it.
and on top of that i was with some new friends, so i wasn't sure how much trade off there might be (like when i have to run go grab one baby girl when the other is going in the opposite direction/change a diaper/take addie to the potty/breathe/whatever...that someone would keep an eye out for the other kiddo/s).
when we showed up, addie had a complete blast! she loved playing with her sweet friend, riding her tricycle and jumping in the bounce house.
i didn't get a single picture of that because my 2 eyes, 2 arms, 2 legs and one body was going in 3 different directions {almost} every second i was there!
but in the few seconds {98 to be exact} when i knew where the other 2 girls were, i grabbed these videos!
i had absolutely no idea what to expect. i was told to bring a ride on toy for addie and that a friend with a little boy the twin's age was bringing a walker for him, that there were bounce houses and a snack.
that's it.
and on top of that i was with some new friends, so i wasn't sure how much trade off there might be (like when i have to run go grab one baby girl when the other is going in the opposite direction/change a diaper/take addie to the potty/breathe/whatever...that someone would keep an eye out for the other kiddo/s).
when we showed up, addie had a complete blast! she loved playing with her sweet friend, riding her tricycle and jumping in the bounce house.
i didn't get a single picture of that because my 2 eyes, 2 arms, 2 legs and one body was going in 3 different directions {almost} every second i was there!
but in the few seconds {98 to be exact} when i knew where the other 2 girls were, i grabbed these videos!
Audrey Kate
(i do believe we have a bit of a social butterfly on our hands...HEY!)
Audrey Kate
(whoa! ohhhh! whoa!)
Anne Perry
(i do believe her top got a little ahead of her bottom!)
Anne Perry
(much more stable and {even a bit over} confident!)
both little girls
oh gracious lands! when did they get so big?!?!?!?
Saturday, July 16
Highlands: Favorites
the photographer in me wants perfect pictures.
but the mother in me wants perfect memories!
i think we have a lot of perfect memories from this wonderful trip!
perfect or not, these are a few of my favorite pictures of our girls.
anne perry smiles. curls. happy eyes.
addie's sun hat.
beautiful colors.
be-stickered legs.
i think out of all the pictures from this week, these next two are in my top five.
necklaces. suitcase. porch slats. crazy sunlight.
audrey kate peering out.
audrey kate peering out.
glancing over her shoulder like she's debating whether she wants to go or not.
looking so big but still such a baby!
looking so big but still such a baby!
and addie begging for me to take her picture.
thank you nana for inviting us to your beautiful retreat in the mountains, feeding us such delicious food, and letting our girls completely take over your downstairs! thank you rierie for braving the trip up us. and thank you gramma and papa al for spending time with all of us! and most importantly, thank all of you for loving our girls!
Thursday, July 14
Highlands: the 4th of July
ok. so only 2 more highlands posts to go!
we chose the 4th of july weekend for several reasons, one of which was the small town 4th of july celebrations!
we started the morning with a trip to the creek (again) with just Addie, Paul and me. she had so much fun (again) jumping around and playing with just us; and i got to grab a few of these flower shots! we {forgot} to bring her a change of clothes, so we just stripped her down and put her in her carseat wrapped in a towel!
after showers and little girl morning naps, we headed to see the birds of prey from the Balsam Mountain Trust Nature Center. Addie was mesmerized, but the little girls not so much. so paul strolled them around until we all piled in the car and drove {more than} a few blocks to the 4th of July picnic. there was a fire truck with the ladder fully extended that spewed water from the fire hose all over the field for the kids to run and play in at the end of the picnic after the medical helicopter took off and did a fly over!
but before all of that, addie jumped inside the firetruck and didn't want anyone else to get in!
so we pulled her out and grabbed some lunch with Nana, Rie Rie, Gramma, Daddy, and the baby sisters.
picture attempt of all 3 girls #1:
picture attempt of all 3 girls #2:
perfect picture: fail.
perfect memory: success!
there were so many things to watch!
i love how very different yet so similar these little girls are.
then it started to rain right before the helicopter took off, so paul loaded up the babies while Addie and I stood and watched it take off and do a fly over. wow! (sorry, no pictures. the camera was staying dry in the car too!).
then we headed home for naps.
after naps, gramma and papa al came over with the yummiest home smoked pulled pork bbq ever, and we had delicious cold salads and grilled corn on the cob and divine peach/blueberry cobbler and ice cream made by my aunt/nana. then a few of us and Addie went to hear the patriotic program (complete with a bagpipe) at the local church but headed home early to wait for the fireworks.
we put the (completely exhausted) little girls to bed and watched the fireworks with an excited Addie, who's emotions ranged from utter amazement to complete bury-your-head-cover-your-ears fear! it was sprinkling again, so i didn't take a single fireworks picture either {sad!}.
barring the limited number of pictures i took, it was a wonderful day of celebrating our country and the men and women fighting for our freedom, all while being surrounded by wonderful family!
we chose the 4th of july weekend for several reasons, one of which was the small town 4th of july celebrations!
we started the morning with a trip to the creek (again) with just Addie, Paul and me. she had so much fun (again) jumping around and playing with just us; and i got to grab a few of these flower shots! we {forgot} to bring her a change of clothes, so we just stripped her down and put her in her carseat wrapped in a towel!
after showers and little girl morning naps, we headed to see the birds of prey from the Balsam Mountain Trust Nature Center. Addie was mesmerized, but the little girls not so much. so paul strolled them around until we all piled in the car and drove {more than} a few blocks to the 4th of July picnic. there was a fire truck with the ladder fully extended that spewed water from the fire hose all over the field for the kids to run and play in at the end of the picnic after the medical helicopter took off and did a fly over!
but before all of that, addie jumped inside the firetruck and didn't want anyone else to get in!
picture attempt of all 3 girls #1:
perfect memory: success!
there were so many things to watch!
then we headed home for naps.
after naps, gramma and papa al came over with the yummiest home smoked pulled pork bbq ever, and we had delicious cold salads and grilled corn on the cob and divine peach/blueberry cobbler and ice cream made by my aunt/nana. then a few of us and Addie went to hear the patriotic program (complete with a bagpipe) at the local church but headed home early to wait for the fireworks.
we put the (completely exhausted) little girls to bed and watched the fireworks with an excited Addie, who's emotions ranged from utter amazement to complete bury-your-head-cover-your-ears fear! it was sprinkling again, so i didn't take a single fireworks picture either {sad!}.
barring the limited number of pictures i took, it was a wonderful day of celebrating our country and the men and women fighting for our freedom, all while being surrounded by wonderful family!
Wednesday, July 13
Highlands: the Waterfall
paul's mom, aka gramma & margaret, also has a house in Highlands. so the girls and i spent a morning with her and started with a beautiful waterfall!
now, i can wear one baby; but there is no way i can wear and/or carry two babies totaling close to 50lbs together (down steep, slippery steps), and this {short} trek to the waterfall was no place for a stroller! so anne perry (who's a bit of a mama's girl right now) was on my back and gramma strapped audrey kate to her back in a second baby ergo and off we went!
and as we walked down, this was our first view. beautiful, but...
we rounded the corner to this:
if you look closely, you can see a wooden fence behind the falls. we were able to walk down there and addie found this. she was much more excited about it than this picture shows, but i still thought she was cute {grin}
there are many words that could describe a waterfall, but about all i could think of was...
wow.
now, don't get me wrong, addie loved that waterfall and talked about it for days; but she had more fun splashing in the tiny creek that ran down the walkway!
jumping. hopping. swinging. stepping.
and smiling :)
thank you for taking us to this beautiful waterfall gramma! we can't wait to go back when we visit in the fall!
now, i can wear one baby; but there is no way i can wear and/or carry two babies totaling close to 50lbs together (down steep, slippery steps), and this {short} trek to the waterfall was no place for a stroller! so anne perry (who's a bit of a mama's girl right now) was on my back and gramma strapped audrey kate to her back in a second baby ergo and off we went!
(now that is one impressive gramma, don't you think!?!)!
wow.
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