oh the places we go....october

complete and utter ramblings of a strung out woman

angel tree....what an awesome idea!  give gifts to kids who have parents in prison.  they must have it hard and the tag from the angel tree instructions says that they wouldn't have a christmas if it weren't for us giving.  so i took a tag off the tree and it was from patricia who was 12 years old and asked for a bible and a concordance.  not an ipod, not a toy...a bible.  amazing.  puts things in perspective.  know what else puts things in perspective?  when i think the date to hand in the gifts is on dec 9th when it is actually dec 4th and on dec 5th, i realize this and have no gift yet.  i was racked with guilt and sadness and my stomach was in knots...little patricia is going to have no christmas because i am a freaking bonehead.  luckily there were other boneheads that forgot too so i rushed out and got little patricia her gifts.

facebook.....lordy lordy i have a love.hate relationship with it.  i love hearing updates on friends and family and it has connected me with so many people i wouldn't ordinarily see or be in contact with.  plus, it is a means of communication for me and friends.  BUT, i feel like i get sucked into a trap....the trap of who is better than me...at mothering, at wifedom, at being a human being.  i compare myself to everyone and leave facebook daily thinking i suck at life.  my fault completely, but a trap i fall into and i want to leave facebook behind.

clothes....just to tell everyone i know who has seen me multiple times in the last few months, yes....i do know i wear the same black yoga pants pretty much every day (i have multiple pairs).  it is because i no longer fit in my jeans and pants (they fall off my flat butt) and i refuse to buy any that are my current size because my current size will be bigger come the holidays.  i have a weakness for holiday cookies....i admit it.  give me some snowball cookies and i have ZERO self control.  i don't even remember eating them or who i am afterwards.  it is a sin...literally, it is called gluttony and admit fully to it.

age....when the heck did i get to be 34?  how in the world did that possibly happen?  and how in the world did it become uncool to dance the night away to 'footloose' at a wedding?  34 years old.  the sad part is, when i see old people try to do stuff they can't do anymore because of their oldness, i realize that is me!  i laugh when chad tries to fit into tiny hiding places when we play hide and seek with the kids, but really...in my head, i still feel 18 years old too!  i just need to embrace the wrinkles, the mom jeans, the awkward dancing....all of it.

evolution....i don't believe in it.  call me crazy.  evolutionists say that we came from a big bang in space.  by chance.  a tiny single cell organism came to be human beings over millions of years.  that would mean there is no creator.  matter must be eternal.  there is not purpose to life, only coincidences.  i just can't buy into that.  i believe there is a creator, and that is God.  i believe God does have a purpose for my life, for every one's life.  i believe that He gave us His only Son to die on the cross for our sins and that leads us to heaven to be with God and Jesus.  I believe that God protected eli when i was pregnant and almost lost him.  i believe that God wants to me to be home with my children even if that means being poor.  i believe that i want His plan for my life because He sees all and knows all and knows what is best for me.  i believe i was created and knit together in my mother's womb for a purpose, not by chance, not by coincidence and not my mistake.  call me crazy.

ok, enough of my ramblings....

Photography: The Mazurick Family

My parents have WONDERFUL friends and one of the many are the Traub's.  They are the kind of people that would drop anything and everything to come help if you said you needed something.  Their daughter, Kelly and her family just moved to the area and asked me to photograph them so naturally I was delighted to oblige!  Their two children were most happy frolicking in the grass, throwing leaves, admiring the animals and loving the outdoors.  Mazurick family, hope you enjoy the preview! Hope to see you again soon!

Photography: Declan

I have a 5 year old and a 2.5 year old, so I know what it is like to run around after them.  But it is different when a child has just turned 1 year old and walking/running is your newest skill!  Declan was curious and fast so I had to be on my toes.  But seriously...his face loves the camera.  Not only is he handsome, he smiles at my camera as if it was at his mama.  Hope you enjoy your preview, O'Connor family!

5 years flies by

Photography: The Ratcliffe Family

I met this woman almost 3 years ago.  We dropped our firstborn boys off in their preschool for the first time and we wept and stayed outside the classroom for while...  We also would come early to pick up our sons and peep through the crack in the door to see how they were doing....can you imagine walking into the building and seeing two moms, side by side, peering into the crack of a door while holding our squirming daughters?  Felt a little a crazy, but we didn't care.  Fast forward to now and Jen and I still talk and laugh about those days.  Now our boys run into class, sometimes together and love each other and their friends.  Jen is an amazing mother and wife (and decorator!), but she is one of the most modest and humble people I have ever known.  And if you know me, I love to laugh and boy, does she make me laugh!  Jen, you are truly a friend that I can see growing old with, laughing together and supporting one another.  I hope you enjoy these photos!  P.S.  Your family ROCKS!  Love each and every one of them!

So it started with these two crazy kids....

...plus this superhero loving boy...

...plus this rough and tumble girl...

...plus this constantly happy cutie...

...and you get this amazing family.