Come on, Irene...

So recently the area we live in has experienced several natural disasters. We missed one of them while we were on our cruise. (An earthquake that was 5.8 on the scale.) The second was the infamous Irene. She wasn't the kind of lady you want to mess with. Kind of like Tirzah...I can totally see there being a hurricane Tirzah.

Most of the city we live in lost power (about 75% was the number I heard...we were one of the very grateful and lucky ones who never actually lost our power. I am still doing a happy dance over that.) and there were trees down on houses and roads all over the city as well. I heard of several deaths in the area, too. So much damage was done, and so many people are hurting.

We were really blessed to not be effected at all, other than the have to eat Burger King for dinner. (The only open restaurant Billy could find during the hurricane) We even got to sit at home together all day and just enjoy each other's company. After the week away from the hooligans, I was both grateful for that, and reminded of how easily they wear a person out. The kids kept reporting to me that it was still "wind-in and rainin outside", and that the trees "leaf-es" were going to blow off.

I hope that everyone reading this is safe, as well as their property. I am continually thankful for all of the people we know coming through the storm with no physical harm. There are trees to deal with, and houses to patch up, food gone bad in not-so-cold-anymore refrigerators, but those are things we can deal with. We've been blessed, so we can in turn bless others. Come on over if you need a hot shower, some A/C, and an outlet or two!

The first shot is for Sweet Shot, Second is for Pulling My Mask Off, Third is for Communal Global.

Free is Fun

Recently I was contacted by Canvas Pictures to do a review of their canvases. They offered me a free 8x10 canvas in return for writing about it when I received it. Um, heck yes.

So I was a little skeptical at first. I mean, free? This can't be but so good. But I got it in the mail a few days ago and it's safe to say that it's something I would have paid for.

I love canvases, and have been wanting to put one of these awesome TTD shots taken by my friend Rebecca (of RT Armstrong photography) onto a canvas. This one is great quality and is doing a good job making our mantel/headboard look spiffy.

So not sure how I am as a salesman, (I failed as a jewelry salesman at Macy's back in college) but I definitely recommend checking out Canvas Pictures. I'm a pretty happy customer, and I am a pretty picky girl. ;)

The last shot is for I Heart Faces

Home Again, Home Again

We're finally back home after our very much anticipated, and thoroughly enjoyed, vacay to the Bahamas. I'm so sad to not wake up to this view, but so glad to be back with my hooligans.

We stopped at two different islands on the trip, and had one "fun day" at sea where we could just lay around (aka sunburn our Caucasian behinds) on the deck by the pool. We were kind of attempting to outrun Irene on the trip back, and are hoping the islands we were just able to enjoy (and the states) don't see much damage!

We really did have a fabulous time. We both agreed one of our favorite days of the cruise was our shore excursion to Atlantis in Nassau. They have a water park and more pools than I could manage to get my toes in, as well as gorgeous beaches. And also an aquarium with sharks, as well as other various creatures my hubby ate while we were gone.

Speaking of eating, I think one of our other favorite things was THE FOOD. Billy was in heaven, and I'm pretty sure he managed to get his money's worth out of that buffet by the pool.

And also make me kind of jealous drinking fruity stuff that BabyB3 is not allowed to ingest. Thank goodness for endless Sprite Zero for the preggo...oh, and unlimited cheesecake. That's always nice. It was an awesome trip, but we are glad to be back home and able to kiss those kiddos. How was your week?

Check out more shots at Scavenger Hunt Sunday.

The last shot is for The Paper Mama.

Characteristically Random

This week, I am going to be purposefully MIA. We are finally going on our much awaited cruise...our delayed 6th anniversary trip that we have looked forward to all summer. So the ol' blog will be uncharacteristically quiet, and this post will be characteristically rambly and random.

While we're gone this coming week I'll officially reach the halfway point in this pregnancy...20 weeks! I cannot believe how fast it's flying by. That's both exciting and scary. (3 kids...I'm already exhausted thinking about it!) At this point BabyB3 is doing great, and has me eating caramel rice cakes topped with PB and honey constantly. Cravings are so weird, and God has been so good giving us this third blessing.

Everyone has said they'd love to see the "finished product", so I finally took some pictures of the mantel we put up in our room. It was great to have it all finished and done before we head out this weekend. I love how it looks! Hoping to find some cool Bahamian nicknacks to decorate it with while on our trip.

I am still able to run with this baby...SO thrilled about that. I love to read while I run on the treadmill, (yes...it took some practice, but great for passing the time. Can't even count the times people have stopped me mid run and asked "how do you DO that???") and just recently finished up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Thought it was pretty good. Any good treadmill-reading suggestions for me that you've enjoyed recently?

I'm definitely going to be missing the kiddos while I'm gone this week. I told someone recently it takes me 5 minutes away to miss them, and 5 minutes back with them to remember why I wanted a break to begin with. I can't win. ;) I do know this break is going to be good for us, but they're just so darn cute. Even with their new habit of climbing the banister.

I should probably be packing, and instead I'm writing this (it's Friday night). Which means I've pretty much avoided actually putting my clothes into my suitcase for as long as humanly possible. I should probably go get on that. Hope y'all have a great week; catch ya when we get back!

Check out more shots at Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Ordinary

Nothing to exciting to report around here. It's been an ordinary kind of week. I'm really glad though. I'm not the type of person who likes being crazy busy. The busier I am the grumpier I tend to get...I think part of that is the introvert in me who desperately needs time to process and just be. I'm a homebody, and love to be able to have free time to just stay home and play with my kids.

Yeah, that picture above is definitely a picture of what our type of "relaxing" looks like. Merrick doesn't relax, and Tirzah follows his example, but it's normal and ordinary for us. So I'll take it. It always makes for great photo opportunities...and I've been glad to have more of a chance for "fun" photography lately. I love doing client work, but when I'm really busy with that I do miss capturing my own kiddos. (They may enjoy the break, but such is life with a photog for a mommy.)

This laid back week has been great for some "I'm gonna miss you" time, too. Billy and I are going to be on a cruise next week, and whenever I think about it (thrilled as I am) I know I'm going to be seriously missing some hooligans. I know, as usual they will be too busy having fun to do much mommy-missing. I'm looking forward to having some kiddo-free time too, especially one last time before a third one is here climbing the banister right along with the other two.

Check out more Ordinary Moments at You Capture.

Back to Sodor Shopping

We don't go "back to school" yet, since our house is still pretty young. (Our oldest is just going to be 4 this fall) So official school will wait a year or so.

We did however go shopping for a few new additions to the Thomas the Train collection. (Hence the title...if you know anything about Thomas you know he lives on Sodor, as Merrick has made sure I'm aware) Billy and the kids grandma actually did the shopping while I was shooting a wedding last night.

They have gone everywhere with us the last few days: the gym, church, the library, to bed at night, etc. I might as well have two other children named James and Gordon (the trains in the pictures) because they even eat meals with us. At least they are a bit more quiet than the two other children I have.

The first shot is for Trendy Treehouse, and the second is for Sweet Shot.

Earliest

All the hooligans (this one included) have been very active before and after they are born. I've been able to feel this one kicking since about 10 weeks. (My doctor doesn't believe me, but I think by third time around I'd know what it is.)

This one has been a hard kicker, too. At 18 weeks Billy has already been able to feel it kick his hand sitting on my belly. (The earliest of the 3) It also likes to kick anything that is on my belly, as if to say "get off me". Not sure what it's personality will be, but so far BabyB3 seems to fit in just fine around here.

The last shot is for Macro Monday.

Not ready yet...

Not ready for summer to be over, that is. I go to the store and see "Back to School" everything, and even though I'm not in school (and the kids are too young) it still makes me a little hit depressed.

Thankfully I can remind myself of that fact and walk through Target without having some kind of attack. But I still am relishing these warm days and lazy afternoons with the hooligans. Especially since I know next summer will be much busier with a small baby.

I am also still looking forward to one last summer "fling" when Billy and I go on our cruise in a little over a week. As much as I'll miss them, I'm thrilled to be going on our first trip together post-honeymoon without the kids. (Well, one will be going in my belly, but at least that one only is demanding in the way of cravings at this point)

I am a summer girl, and the thought of the long chilly winter makes me kind of gloomy. But at the same time I am looking forward to meeting BabyB3 this winter, so that's a definite bright spot right around the new year. :) For now, I'm just going to soak up as much vitamin D as I can before time to break out my long underwear.

The last shot is my pick for Paper Heart Camera

Spiderman and the Independent Princess

My kiddos occasionally go through a phase where they like to dress up. They got some outfits from one of my sisters last Christmas, and occasionally pull them out and get silly. Spiderman here does exactly what you see in exhibit A: growl and yell and leap from tall buildings that are technically coffee tables where I'm trying to work.

The Princess does a lot of what you see in exhibit B, be dramatic and whine. Although yesterday the Princess said to me (in a low, growly voice) "I'm a pwincess!". Beware Prince Charming...this is a live one. She may be slaying dragons herself. ;)

They usually end up fighting when they dress up. Ok, that's normal whether they're dressed up or not. But Spiderman tends to chase the Princess a little too much, and well, like I said...she isn't your typical damsel in distress. She fights back. (I'm not-so-secretly proud of her spirited attitude, but it needs to be...contained a bit?)

I'm glad they have fun dressing up, I have a lot of memories of that as a kid and how fun "pretend" is. If I could just get them to somehow incorporate "pretend to get along for 5 minutes" into their story line...

Check out more shots at YouCapture. 

The last shot is for Texture Thursday.

Not your average...

...headboard. But I am SO excited about this piece of "junk" we found at a local consignment shop. I posted about it earlier, and how we've been fixing it up. Billy finished painting it yesterday afternoon, and we put it up in our room last night. I am very excited about the different look it gives to our room, as opposed to the traditional headboard we had before.

Also, again, I'd like to take this moment to thank Pinterest for giving me ideas when I am suffering from preggo brain and can barely remember my name much less come up with cute decorating ideas for our home. All the ideas on there, everything from recipes to home projects, are so much fun to look over and fantasize about one day actually accomplishing.

Fixing it up has been somewhat of a chore. It's huge, and weighs a ton, and was covered in chipping paint that we wanted to kind of salvage because we liked the look of it. It's been residing everywhere from my living room to the back deck during the process. One afternoon it was on the deck and it started to rain. I was home alone at the time, and my pregnant self had to drag it into the house. Not a pretty sight.

But now it's finished and has found a new home in my room. (I'll put up some pics of that at some point later too...it was in the process while I was writing this) Now I probably need to find another project for Billy to work on really quick before he gets tired of all this crafty stuff I've been forcing him to do lately.

The first shot is for Perceptive Perspectives, and the last is for Sweet Shot.

A Gift

As our Wildman gets older, and we get to know him better, we are realizing a little bit more about who he is. He's a high energy, inquisitive, possibly ADHD, a little OCD, guy who is full of life and questions. He is, and always has been, a lot like his daddy, who was recently diagnosed with ADHD. Merrick seems like he's a good candidate for the same. ;) And knowing what I know about my husband, we actually see it as a gift.

Sounds a bit funny maybe, since ADHD (or any label for that matter) is often seen as a negative. But after watching how Billy's mind works, if that's what we're dealing with in Merrick, he's got a lot of great qualities to offer that some people may not necessarily have when they don't have ADHD to work with.

We know that learning as much about him (and whatever it is that makes him up) as possible is best for him and us. He's a little young for us to know for sure if it's ADHD, but we met with a lady over the weekend who said a lot of things that made a lot of sense in relation to our bundle of energy. We're looking forward to getting to know Wild even better.

The last shot is my pick for Paper Heart Camera.

Future Vegan?

I got to do a session with a little guy yesterday at the park. He's turning one this coming week, and his mom contacted me to have some one year pictures taken for his birthday party.

She was in a big hurry to get them finished before his party, which had snuck up on her. The first birthday tends to do that, looking back on it. You turn around and all of a sudden your baby is turning one...where did the year go? Seems like the story of my life...so I totally sympathized with her.

He was a trooper, only giving me a few glares when we first started shooting. But he quickly got comfortable crawling and cruising like a pro and eating everything (and yes, I mean everything) he could get his fingers on. Sticks, rocks, seeds, leaves, grass, dirt...I think his mom may have a vegan on her hands. He seems partial to salads. ;)

It was fun to do a session like this, which I hadn't done in a little bit for all the weddings and summer busy-ness. Kids are so easy to shoot, in my opinion. (Some people think it's really tough, but I think it's just what I'm used to) No shyness or camera-phobia yet...they are totally themselves. (I have a panic attack in front of a camera, which is why it's usually pointed the other direction.) Hope this little guy has a great first birthday; I'm glad we got to hang out for a bit.

The last shot is my pick for The Paper Mama

Junk Junkies

Since our move into our new place, we've been investing some of that time we were spending driving around the state like lunatics in projects around the house. I'm a self proclaimed tight wad, so we've found a lot of our materials at Goodwill, Craigslist, and junk stores.

One of our favorite stores had this old mantle that we kept eyeing when we were there. Finally, after thinking it was going to be snatched by someone else, we had some cash that tight wad Barron was willing to part with and bought it.

Admittedly it needs some work, but that's half the fun. We are going to use it as a headboard for our bed, and I can't wait to see the finished product. (If you haven't already GET A Pinterest account. Lots of inspiration over there. I waste many a nap time getting ideas for the house.)

I really like buying old junk and re-doing it. I guess it makes it more personal, and I love the unique look it gives to a house. It's stuff we've worked on together and invested in, so it makes it home. Kinda reminds me of how God feels about us...someone else might see us as Craigslist material, but He's just dying to get His hands dirty fixing us up to be what He knows is just under the surface.

Check out more shots at YouCapture.
The last shot is for Texture Thursday.

Shooting Heads

Late week I was asked by a friend of my husband (they used to work together) to take headshots for him. I was a bit panicked. I'm used to shooting drooling babies and giggly brides, not trendy guys who are working on their modeling portfolio. But I was flattered that he asked me...and was thinking it would be great for my portfolio.

It was actually really interesting shooting a guy...the posing and expressions are totally different from when you're shooting a female. Girls are pretty easy to shoot if you ask me...they want to look pretty. Being a girl I guess I know what poses would make me feel comfortable and attractive, but with a guy I wasn't exactly sure what would be weird or not ok. I did figure no pooched lips or flowers, however. ;)

He brought along a guy friend of his who is really interested in the fashion industry, so he was a great help with posing ideas and seeing things that I might have missed if I was just on my own. He knew way more about what to look for in a modeling portfolio, and had a lot of insight with the styling of the shoot.

I am really glad to have had the chance to do this type of shoot, even though I was reeediculously anxious about it. (I talk a lot when I'm nervous, which makes no sense because I'm a total introvert. I also make stupid jokes when I'm nervous. Thankfully people are kind enough to laugh.) I think the shots turned out great, and am looking forward to saying "I shot him first" when he's a famous Armani model. ;)

The last shot is my pick for Sweet Shot Tuesday