Perfection

Last night, after dinner, Ty was carving a pumpkin and Ladybug was watching/assisting. Brian was downstairs working on the last bit of plumbing for the basement and I was waiting for chocolate chip cookies to come out of the oven. It was a great scene because I can't tell you the last time we had an evening with NOTHING TO DO! It was sort of Norman Rockwell-ish.

So, Ty and Ladybug were bantering back and forth in a brother/sister fun kind of way, teasing and such. I wasn't paying too much attention until I heard Ty say, "Well that is because YOU are the PERFECT child."

And then I snorted. Out loud. By accident. Because, let me tell you people, neither of my children are perfect. Nor should they be. But I still love them beyond reason anyway. And LB laughed too because she knows she is not perfect.

So, to add to the conversation, I teasingly said, "Yeah, Ty, you are more perfect than LB."

And a huge grin spread across his face. LB stared at me in shock and said, "HHHHHEEEEEEYYYY!" in a voice that only a 10 year old girl can use.

Ty thought for a minute, looked right at me and with much drama and inflection announced, "I am SO glad that FINALLY someone admitted that OUT LOUD!"

It was good times, people. Good times.

Speaking of good times, this was taken....guess where? Yup, Deep Creek. Pretty, huh?

Happy Saturday...love you all! Have a fun and safe Halloween! Boo! (Did I scare ya?) :0)

Yeah, My Job is Rough...

Seriously people, my job is tough. I don't how much longer I can stand it. Going out to take pictures (#1 favorite thing), edit the pictures (#2 favorite thing) and then teach others how do it well (#3 favorite thing). I may have to retire soon.

Here are some more from my consulting job at Deep Creek Lake, Maryland:









Please head over to Nine Acres Photography to read more about my Photography Consulting and my Photo Editing Business.

Happy Friday, Y'all!

Ipod Worries

These images have absolutely nothing to do with the post, as usual. But, you know I can't post without pictures, so please enjoy the serenity and tranquility before reading my rant that follows.

Deep Creek Lake Consulting Job...September 2009



I was supervising a sunset shoot along Deep Creek Lake. Here is my student working on a cover shot for a magazine. We were so lucky to have good weather at the time. It is so unpredictable there with the mountains and such. I had a blast!




The next morning, my student and I got up before dawn and went to a location for a sunrise shot. Here I grabbed a picture of her working as the sun turned the sky into pastels. And what was the scene she was photographing? See below:




Okay, enough with the pretty, happy stuff...

My son saved up for over a year to buy himself an Ipod Touch. I wasn't thrilled with the idea of him having one, as it is just another electronic gadget to suck all of the brain power out of his head like a hungry alien. But, he saved for it, worked for it, and so he bought it.

Brian and I put down some ground rules for the Ipod. 1. Just because he bought it does not mean we can not take it away. 2. It is a privilege, not a right. 3. Only parent-approved content will be allowed (music, games, apps, etc.) 4. The Ipod will only be played at a decent decible level. 5. The Ipod will NOT be attached to you 24/7 while you hear the world muffled through earphones.

So far, I think we have been pretty good about sticking to the rules and monitoring the content that goes on his Ipod. I can't lie, it is very difficult and time consuming keeping up with all of that stuff. There are times, though that Ty has used the computer and I haven't checked out what he is doing. It is not that I don't care, it is just that I have 18 million other things, as every parent does, to do and I run out of time to keep 100% vigilent with the rules.

So, while driving with Ty the other day, he asked me if he could hook up his Ipod to the stereo. I at first wanted to say, "No way, Jose!" I don't like his style of music for the most part...Seether, Godsmack...all heavy stuff that is just not for me. But then my little mother's intution screamed in my head, "Say yes! You can hear the kind of stuff he is listening to!" So, I listened to my gut feeling and I gave him permission. Good thing I did. This is the song that came on:

Dream Evil The Chosen Ones Lyrics:
We are the chosen ones, we sacrifice our blood,
We kill for honour
We are the holy ones, our armour stained with blood,
We killed the dragon

In glory we return, our destination's end,
We slayed the dragon
No more living in fear it's time to raise our king,
We made it happen, we're the chosen ones

We are the chosen ones, we sacrifice our blood,
We kill for honour
We are the holy ones, our armour stained with blood,
We killed the dragon,
We're the chosen ones

Riding through thunder and lighting once again,
We slayed the beast, we brought an end
Now we have left the kingdom of the damned,
Heroes of the day, Legends forever

We are the chosen ones, we sacrifice our blood,
We kill for honor
We are the holy ones our armor stained with blood,
We killed the dragon
We're the chosen ones

It seems to me like a journey without end,
So many years, too many battles
We've finally arrived, now we're standing at the gates,
Heroes of the day, legends forever

In glory we return, our destination's end,
We slayed the dragon
No more living in fear it's time to raise our king,
We made it happen we're the chosen ones!

We are the chosen ones, we sacrifice our blood,
We kill for honor
We are the holy ones our armor stained with blood,
We killed the dragon
In glory we return, our destination's end,
We slayed the dragon
No more living in fear, it's time to raise our king,
We made it happen, we're the chosen ones

We are the chosen ones, we sacrifice our blood,
We kill for honour
We are the holy ones, our armour stained with blood,
We killed the dragon

Uhhhh...yeah. That ain't happening. I immediately asked him if he knew the words to the song and he said he didn't. I asked him why he liked the song and of course, it had to do with the beat and the guitar, etc. It had nothing to do with the message.

But still.

I will not have this crap piped directly into my son's ears and brain. So, off the Ipod it is coming and I just became a little more vigilant about watching what is on this machine. And the next time he asks to play his Ipod on the stereo? You bet my answer will be yes!

Weigh In: Overprotective or Justified?

Wordless Wednesday- A Breath of Fresh Air

I could so go back there right now...
Deep Creek Lake, MD
Sept. 2009

Fostering Classes

As many of you know, Brian and I have started our Fostering Parent Training Classes. We did a dual session on Saturday for 6 hours and we have classes twice a week until the 24th of November to achieve our mandated 30 hours of training.


The classes are interesting, especially since two of the three trainers are foster (and eventually adoptive) parents themselves. One of those two was also a social worker in the system who is now retired. The third is a social worker currently working for the county. They are a wealth of knowledge about emotional and legal issues surrounding the foster children and the foster families.

I was surprised to know that foster families can be many different make-ups. For instance, single males, single females, older people whose children are grown and gone, couples, and relatives of the children are all welcome to become foster families as long as they meet the criteria of the government. For some reason, I was thinking most foster families are married couples, but I found I was very mistaken. I guess the reason I thought that was because I know 3 foster families and all three of the families I know are married couples.


The process of being evaluated for becoming a foster parent feels very intrusive and personal. We have to be willing to share details of our lives that normally we would keep private. That has been one hurdle to overcome emotionally. There is no privacy when it comes to the screening for sure. I understand why they must do that, but it is very uncomfortable. It feels like they are reading a biography of your life and then evalutation whether you are good enough. It is not that at all...it is just they are making sure a) that you are stable and able to accept these emotionally needy children, and b) making sure that they know enough about your family to make sure they can best match a child to your living situation.

As we move through the classes I am excited to learn more about the legal end of things. I would like to know how the whole system works and what our specific role in all of it is. As much as I hate to lose the time with my own kids to go to these classes, I know it is beneficial and helpful in the long run.

These images were taken in September at Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. I went on a two day consulting job there last month and had the opportunity to shoot a sunrise from one of the rental properties the reality agency I was working for managed. I don't have a whole lot of pictures from that job, as I was obviously busy teaching the student on her camera and helping her. But, I was able to grab a few such as the second one I took at a local water fall in the early morning.

Weigh In: What are your thoughts about the government knowing every detail of your life when applying to become a foster parent? Would you be willing to tell the government every intimate detail of your existence since birth?

A Girl's Day Out

What a busy weekend! After going to the theatre in Baltimore Friday night, fostering classes all day Saturday, traveling 5 hours to Virginia Saturday night, shopping for the girls and the NASCAR race for the boys yesterday, we are finally on our 5 hour trip back to Maryland today.

Shopping yesterday with my mom and Ladybug was both relaxing and exhausting. We were able to hit the mall with our feet running. We grabbed some much needed pants for my growing boy (who now is taller than my mom). We picked up a few Christmas gifts and a pair of moccasins for LB. We accomplished all of this in about 4 hours. The rest of the day was spent relaxing back at my mom's house.

The boys had a rockin' good time at the Martinsville Race. Ty had his first taste of the big boy's race. He has been to a Nationwide race before, but never a Sprint Cup race. They had good seats besides the fact that it was VERY windy and cold.

This week will be just as busy with something every night. Soccer on Monday and Wednesday...Fostering classes Tuesday and Thursday. We are also preparing to get twin toddlers for a week long respite placement this coming weekend. *breathe* I know we will get through it all, but I really thought this fall would be quiet. Boy was I wrong! I am happy for it all, though.

Hugs to all!

This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime� 6.5 or higher is required.

The Breakfast of Champions

This was Ty's breakfast at Grandma's house this morning. It wasn't the only food he had of course. We are all about well rounded meals, so of course he had a bowl of Lucky Charms, bacon, and a doughnut. I don't even bother to fight it. Apparently at Grandma's I am over ruled. Actually, to be more accurate, I am never even consulted!

It doesn't matter, though because he will be with Brian all day at the NASCAR race. His father will have to deal with the sugar rush and the subsequent crash. As I am typing my mom is packing him Rice Krispie Treats for the trip. *sigh*

I, on the other hand, will spend a quiet, peaceful day with my mother and Ladybug. Ahhh...the joys of a girls day out!

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

If I Were a Rich Man

Hey you all! I am just popping in to tell you that Brian and I had an excellent time last night going to the amazing Hippodrome theatre in downtown Baltimore last night. We went to see the first show in our season tickets, Fiddler on the Roof starring Topol. Topol was the original actor who played the father. He is on his farewell tour and he was fabulous!

Brian only dozed off once. Yeah, he doesn't do so well in musicals. I immediately woke him up and he said he ended up liking it. I did have to explain the metaphor of the fiddler on the roof to him though. It was great to spend the evening with him all dressed up and fancy. We don't get to do that very often.

We started our fostering classes today, but more on that later. Have a fabulous Saturday night!

This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime� 6.5 or higher is required.

Jeans, Jeans, They are Good for the Heart

The other day I was listening to a radio show (actually, I wake up to a radio alarm, so I hear the radio every morning) and they said the average person owns 8 pairs of jeans. "Hmmmm," I thought. "I wonder how many pairs of jeans I own?"


I certainly do not own 8 pairs of jeans. Who needs EIGHT pairs? "Not me," I said.

Since I have lost 25lbs, I gave away all of my "too big" jeans to Goodwill, like a responsible citizen should. I remember thinking, "Holy cow! I am going to have to run around naked 'cuz I have no pants to wear!" I dropped down 2 full sizes in my waist, so a belt wasn't even helping.


Well, somewhere along the way I must have found a few pairs of jeans here and a few pairs of jeans there that fit nicely. To be exact, I recall, now, being thrilled at finding some Levis at Kohls and some other excellent denim at Old Navy.

When I counted my jeans, guess how many I had?

Eight.

Apparently, I am pretty average.

And I certainly do NOT need to go out and buy any more jeans for the winter.

Weigh In: Go count your jeans. How many do YOU have?

P.S. All the above images were taken with my Lens Baby at Longwood Gardens.

P.P.S. I will not post this weekend as we are going to the Hippodrome to see Fiddler on the Roof tonight, starting Fostering Classes tomorrow (all day), and going to the Martinsville NASCAR Race on Sunday! If I get time, maybe I will do a mobile post. Would you like that?

See you on Monday (or sooner if I can blog on the road!)

What I LOVE About Autumn...And What I Don't

What I love about fall (my back yard):



And what I don't:



Are you having the mass invasion of ladybugs that I am? Ladybugs hold a special piece of my heart because of my daughter, Ladybug. But, come on! When we enter the house we are accosted my kamikaze attack beetles! Ya'll know that ladybugs are really beetles, right? *ick* When we walk, it crunches. They have never been this bad before. I have hundreds in my skylights. From where are the little buggers coming in?

Did I already say "ick?"

Happy Anniversary!

I had the strangest dream last night. I was in New Jersey (?I don't know anyone in New Jersey) with Brian and the kids at some guy's house who had a petting zoo in his garage. There was a piglet there who could jump and it totally freaked me out. There was a mean puppy there who would bite and grip like a Rottweiler. There were really bizarre games and contests, including one where you had to shove 3lbs. of buttons (of all things) into a body orifice that I would rather not specify. STRANGE STUFF.


So then, all the people disappear, the crowds go away and it is just the house owner (who was apparently friends with Brian, but I didn't know him), his wife, me, Brian, and our kids left. All of a sudden the wife pulls out some marijuana and takes a drag, right in the same room where my kids are lying down. She hands it to Brian. I keep thinking, "There is no way he is going to do that," and I keep waiting for him to tell her off and grab the kids and me to leave. But he doesn't. He smokes the marijuana. In front of our kids!

So then I get furious, march out of the room to go outside and find an address so I can call a taxi. I can't find an address, so I start searching this guy's house for mail so I can find an address. In the meantime, Brian comes out and wants to know what I am doing and I tell him. He gets angry that I am leaving and tells me he is going to go get drunk. I get angrier and frantically search for mail. And then I wake up.

I am known for my crazy dreams, but this one was BIZARRE! Brian doesn't smoke, do drugs, or drink. He would never leave me and the kids abandoned somewhere. He would have stomped out of the house as soon as he saw anyone doing anything illegal. He is an awesome father and husband who always thinks of us first.

The only thing I can think of is that I was watching Jon and Kate Plus 8 before I fell asleep and I kept thinking...what a jerk that man is. He has left his children high and dry while he lives in the fast lane traipsing all over the country with his girlfriend, partying his butt off. (I can't stand Kate either, but the show is like a train wreck that you can't turn away from!) So, I guess I could blame my horrible dream on that.

In truth, today is the day that I married Brian 14 years ago. What a great ride it has been. I started dating him in January 1994. We were engaged in October of 1994. We married in October1995. We had Ty in March of 1997 and Ladybug in June of 1999. We have been happy all along the way and I still get butterflies in my stomach when he walks into the room. I love him with every fiber of my being and always will. As many, many people have told me before, I am the luckiest wife in the world! And I believe it.

Happy Anniversary, Brian! xoxo


P.S. All of the above pictures were taken with my LensBaby at Longwood Gardens.

Where Oh Where Has My Time Gone?

Have you ever had one of those days when you sit down to type a blog post and all of your great ideas just swim out of your head? During the last couple of days I have been thinking, "Oh, that would make a great blog post." Or, "Hey, I have to remember that to tell all of my blog friends."


The only problem is that I sat down to type this amazing blog post and *nothing.* Even my father-in-law has noticed. He called this past weekend and said, "You know, your blog has been slacking lately."


Yeah, I know. *sigh* I wish I was some superwoman who could fit all I want to do, like to do, and have to do into each 24 hour period. I just can't seem to get it together. Right now, as I type, I have business emails to attend to... laundry that needs to be rewashed because I forgot about it and now it has been sitting in the washing machine for over 24 hours...a $200 laminator to return to the store because it is a piece of crap...pictures begging to be taken off my camera and edited...and the list goes on. I can't figure out what I am doing to fill up the time so that none of this is getting done.

I think there must be some cruel monster out there that's soul purpose is to eat time. It just disappears! Oh, to learn how to survive on no sleep. Now that could be a solution...never sleep!

Is anyone else in this same boat right now or am I the only one in a time funk? I think it is only going to get worse with the holidays coming and our fostering classes starting.

I don't blame you if you ditch me and don't come back. I just wrote an entire post about absolutely nothing at all. A long one at that. Well, hopefully the photography will make up for it.

I will be around to everyone's blog in the next couple of days if it kills me!

xoxo,

Checking In...

I am not dead, nor have I fallen off the Earth. I will be *hopefully* posting tomorrow!


Miss you all!

Busy As A...

The kids are off school today, so I am looking forward to spending some quality time with them. It is supposed to be a rainy day, so maybe we will hit the mall to do a bit of shopping and then maybe a movie. I haven't spent the day with them like that since school started again. That is just too darn long.



We got confirmation that all of our paperwork is in and being processed for Fostering. The basement construction is coming along slowly, but surely, and our classes start on the 24th. It will be a hectic month for sure, but it will be well worth it in the end.

I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend! Don't forget to check out my photo on Indie Ink today!

Link Love and Shameless Self Promotion

Hey y'all. Just a couple of quick pictures, some link love and shameless self promotion today.


First off, congratulations to my dear friend and former photography student, Dawn, for her recent recognition for her photograph, Spectrum. Aminus3, the photo blog Forum we both use for our daily photo blog, gave her the Spotlight image award for October 12th. Congrats, my friend. Stop in, see her excellent photo and say hi!

Secondly, I am proud to announce that one of my photographs, Water Lily, will be featured on the amazing website, Indie Ink, tomorrow October 16th in the Images section! I am thrilled to have my work featured here in the company of all of the other excellent writers and artists. If you are a creative writer or a photographer and would like to submit your work, I highly encourage you to do so. Please check it out!

Also, I would like to announce that I have released the Simple Smooches latest card set...Limited Edition Christmas Riddles lunch box card set. There are only 9 sets left available and there will not be a second printing...so get them while you can. If there are any left, they will disappear on November 30 and not be available again until next year. You can get more information or buy them at Nine Acres Designs Etsy shop.

The last class of Get Off the Green Square has started and man, are there some talented beginners out there this time around! To see some of my student's first week of work, keep heading over to Nine Acres Photography to see what they are up to. Speaking of Nine Acres Photography, I am now offering private consulting for those who still want to Get Off the Green Square, but couldn't take the class. I teach photography and Photoshop, so if you are interested and want more information, please use the contact button above. I am now also offering photography services for those of you who have Etsy shops. If you want excellent photos to show off your wares, I can take the web images for you and get your shop looking better than ever. Contact me for more info.

It feels good to be back into the posting groove again. Thanks for hanging in there with me during this busy/exciting/scary time in my life. You all rock. But then, I always tell you that, so you should know by now ;0)

xoxo,

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like.... Fall

This past weekend, Brian, the kids, and I went to Brian's uncle's farm to help out with Octoberfest. Russell, Brian's uncle and Mike, Brian's cousin, run a farm and nursery in Perry Hall, Maryland called Chapel Hills Farm and Nursery. Every weekend in October they have a fall festival with hayrides, games, a petting zoo, food, live music, etc. I worked the duckpond game and Brian drove the tractor for the spooky haunted tractor rides. Ty worked in Brian's mom's snowball stand, and Ladybug helped run errands, filling in where needed.

As a thank you, Russell (who gave us our beautiful Clydesdale, J.C.) gave the kids these GIGANTIC pumpkins. The one in the flower bed weighs between 100-150 pounds! It took two men to load it into the truck and two of us to unload it. The kids wanted to know if they could carve the other two. LOL! I told them they had to get smaller ones...the amount of pulp we would scoop out of those would fill two trashbags!

As an additional thank you, Russell is also giving us two goats. One is a boy, which Ladybug named Shadow. One is a girl, who Ty named Flappy. They will be coming here to live very soon. The kids are thrilled. Me? Not so happy about the mess, but they will be working goats, earning their keep by eating the thorny underbrush around our farm. So, I am secretly happy to have them coming. Shhhh...don't tell anyone.

Weigh In: How is it beginning to look/feel like autumn at your house?