Luke's Birthday Pictures + Toby Mac = A Rockin' Video

Here's a little video I put together using Luke's Birthday pictures. Enjoy!

Most of these pictures are also posted on my photography blog.

L-DAWG'S BDAY!

It's Luke's 9th birthday today so I thought it was a good day to see if I still remembered how to log in to this blog...it took three tries. :) Luke's "birthday shoot" is planned for this weekend...but I've got a few pictures to share from this past weekend, and a few from, ahem...June. (Hanging my head in shame.)

Love this kid.


Luke's sport of choice right now is soccer.

The sunset was amazing this past Saturday so I MADE him play with me. :)



And a few from June...fresh pictures coming soon. :)






Happy Birthday buddy!

PICTURE DAY 2010

It was picture day at school today. Every year I get more and more lax. At 8:00 last night we were going through the closets looking for something to wear. The boys shocked me with their choices...especially Luke. He usually throws a fit if he has to wear anything with a collar to school. And then this morning I was scrambling to fill out three order forms...yes I do buy some...smallest package available...just to get that class picture! I did actually have a tad bit of foresight and got Luke's haircut on Monday. Being able to see his eyes is beneficial for pictures.

So here we are before school...as usual, I took my own. The clock is ticking on how much longer Ben is going to let me get away with this!







Personal victory here...blogging the day of taking these pictures. I might say I'm on to something, but I know better. Now come January, I might actually mean that!

OH THE CUTENESS!

A few weeks ago, Grace and I, along with some of her friends, traveled up to Los Angeles to the American Girl Store. Marketing genius. That's what I think. Grace was classic as she stepped foot in the door. It was one of those "You had me at 'Hello'" moments. And it went uphill from there. Seriously. This place is unbelievable. I think us moms had just as much fun as the girls.

I've held off on this post because I still have more pictures to go through, but the reality is that it's not going to happen for awhile. So I thought I'd share what I've got so far, so it's not a total loss of blogable moments.

Speaking of blog-worthy moments, I must get to my pictures of our little detour to the Sprinkles cupcake store in Beverly Hills...you know, THE Sprinkles Cupcake store...but that's for another day. :) On to the American Girl madness...I mean splendour!






Our little Kit look-a-likes.



Yes, the dolls ate lunch too. :)






Such a fun day!

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

Summer is gone and once again we find ourselves starting another school year. I think the saying goes, "the days are long and the years are fast", but I'm thinking it should be, "the days are fast and the years are even faster."

The biggest change this year is that Ben makes the trip across the street and has officially started middle school. How can I possibly be old enough to have a kid that needs a locker, a p.e. uniform, and a scientific calculator. (All of which are a VERY big deal to him, I might add.) So far Ben's reports have included talk of lockers, how funny his science teacher is when he talks about "potty breaks", and that he needs a bigger lunch. Great stuff.

Here's the big 6th grader...excited as ever for pictures. :)







Luke started 3rd grade and is pretty pumped about being able to play on "the big field". I'm pretty sure he and his friends are tearing it up already.







And then there's Grace. 2nd grade this year. Really? It's still sinking in. She's loving hanging with her friends again, but is extremely exhausted so far. (Read overly dramatic and cranky.) Her drama today was that she has too big of a dent in her finger from ALLLLLLLLLL the writing she's doing. I try not to laugh. She's as spunky as ever.





Chipped nail polish and all.


This picture cracks me up because it shows the personality of my kids...just by their shoes. No explanation needed.



And lastly...one of me and the kids...thanks Ruben for throwing me in a photo every now and then. :) They looked thrilled, don't ya think?

ANYONE THERE?

Well, summer vacation is about done and we're riding that last wave of summer fun this week. At the beginning of the summer I was concerned that it was going to go by slow since all we really had planned was one week of camping. Boy was I wrong. I should know better. The last time I remember time going slow was the first 5 months of my pregnancies. Spare me the memories.

Since I haven't posted here in over a month I'm guessing my handful of faithful readers have discovered that I've been busy. Busy is good. I wasn't created to be lazy. (This is what I tell myself when I'm seeing the wee hours of the morning and the crazy late hours at night.) If you haven't found me on facebook, I do make regular brief appearances there...it fits my life better right now. Come find me if you miss me. :) I desperately miss this blog, it is after all the only family documenting I'm doing. Oh memories, please live strong in my mind!

Couple of things, I'm giving my first beginner's photography class this Thursday, August 26, and I have one spot left. Email me if you want more details. Second, if you have been contemplating a photo session for this fall, call or email me soon. I'm not scheduling shoots for December (unless you have a baby) and I only have a few openings left.

I don't remember the last time I made a post without a picture. It doesn't feel right. But, I'm going to release myself from the guilt and just do it this time. Come back soon...I promise to update next week with "first day of school" pictures!

BUILD-A-BEAR

This place is a marketing gold mine for little girls, and as a HUGE lover of stuffed animals, Grace was melting into the floor just staring at all the "darling" (her words)options. The smart folks at Build-a-Bear sent us a postcard good for a free animal...and it was only good July 16-18. Ummm...let's see..."MUST COME ON BIRTHDAY"...is basically what it screamed! This certainly wasn't her first time here, and now that she's a veteran, she knew exactly what to do and basically let me follow around...mesmerized since this was MY first visit.

I did a little photo-journaling. :)


And then a few outside where the light is better. :) This is where I embrace Ben's nickname for me, Light-chaser.



She's in love.