I do what I can.
Wolf's dirt hole
Derby Girls
early mornings
studio candids
Storytelling
06/24/2016
05/18/2014
10/12/2013
storytelling: little things in pictures
sparklers: not just for july
cutest buns in Florida
boys
03/18/2013
Storytelling
I hope your weekend was good. Hard to believe someone is turning one tomorrow.
02/26/2013
Being Real
Lots of good stuff today. I've been inspired by several things this week and wanted to share:
First - a huge THANK YOU to Rebecca Woolf who writes the blog, Girls Gone Child, for this post. In today's world of amazing mega mommy and DIY blogs and practically pornographic Pinterest crafts and the crazy that seems to be these women/mothers/bloggers/writers, etc. who seem to not only have it all, do it all, and be happy while doing it, well, it's beyond refreshing to see someone be totally honest and giving credit where credit is due. She's an amazing mom. She's a talented writer. She loves her kids and does cool stuff with them. She documents it. And she has HELP. I love that her blog is honest yet consistently upbeat.
In a similar vein, Kelle Hampton of Enjoying the Small Things posted a comment on one of her Instagram photos regarding the fact that what she photographs and shares are the best parts of the day, not the crappy ones and yes, those do exist. I know she takes a lot of heat for being overly rainbows and unicorns, but I have to admit, I really admire her for choosing happy. I also am happy that from time to time she will admit that things get a little rough and sometimes the small things are also messy and frustrating. Thanks Kelle!
And a special shoutout for keeping it REALLY real, we have the blog Raising Kvell (which is a new to me blog). My friend shared this post on Facebook, and I reshared it and then I noticed a few other friends of mine shared it from me and on and on. Obviously this hits home for a lot of people. Check it out and enjoy a good laugh.
And sometimes we still need a little fantasy in our days and I'm completely enamored with this photographic project being contributed to by a small group of photographers (most of whom I've been following on Instagram for a while, so this was exciting to see!) The blog You Are My Wild has been so inspiriational to me. I've noticed several people (bloggers mainly) have been making a point to do portraits of their children once a week for the year and it's been lovely to see. This beautiful series of photos has really made me want to bring my a-game to the pictures I take of my family and life. I definitely recommend you check it out when you get a chance.
Anyway, while I definitely err towards putting "the pretty" on my blog, because, as someone who tends to lean toward the melancholy, it's my way to pull out the happy and hold on to it. I write it to myself and whoever else wants to see and read it because it makes me happier. I do try to keep it real but I'm not going to overly document and carefully edit photographs of milk being spilled all over the cabinets and floor and the utter disaster that is laundry (every)day and how the school room gets trashed by a particularly artitistic three year old on a daily basis. There is definitely a time to admit that life is messy and hard but it's also nice to see that we can focus on the positive more often than not. I've read a lot of blogs and writing in my life and I've followed people before who wrote "very real" and yet each and every post was beginning to sound like a dumping ground for their negativity and those kinds of posts began to bring me down. And I don't have time for that. I'm pretty good at bringing myself down without help, so now, when I do have the chance to read my RSS stream, I happily check out the people who emphasize the positive - but can manage to keep it real, too.
We need the real. We need the pretty. It's yin and yang. We have no guarantees in life. No promises about tomorrow. I'm stating right here that I'm going to try to see the happy. "Be the change" if you will. If I don't I will bring myself down and that's not fair to myself or my family.
So, in the spirit of the happy - yesterday I got to spend some one on one time with Isla at a new park that opened up on the beach near our home. She was so totally free and happy and I could focus on her and it was fun to whip out my phone for a few candid shots. I had moments of "oh my God, this is too perfect. She is too perfectly perfect and I can't believe how fortunate I am right this very moment". And I know that's all we're given, this very moment. I have to believe that that is the most important thing.
She has obviously not lost the happy. :)
All images by iPhone
And here's just a few more of my little wild things.
02/15/2013
Favorites
What's your favorite thing? Right now? A book? A song? A piece of clothing? An old China cup? A verse or a phrase? A snack? Think about it for a second. It's important. It's something you'll remember long from now when it's no longer your favorite thing and something else (or elses) have come in and out of your life and knocked current favorite thing well off it's pedestal.
My children have favorite things right now. And it's so sweet to see this love, this kind of Velveteen Rabbit making it real love, that they impart on these things they love so much. I want to remember these things because someday too soon they will be forgotten.
Darth Vader Bear (DVB) is Ronan's best friend. He has been, actually, since he built him himself and put that little fabric heart inside his fluffy body. DVB has been wearing his Vader suit since we brought him home from Build A Bear back when Ronan was 2. Two people. He snuggles DVB every night. I love DVB.
Baby Mousy is Isla's unexpected best friend. He was given to me for free by the man who replaced my watch battery around Christmas. We got to chatting while he swapped the battery and he pulled Baby Mousy out of a jewelry case and gave it to me saying that he thought my daughter might like it. Well, like it, indeed! Baby Mousy hasn't left her side since she was discovered in Isla's stocking. It's all, "Baby Mousey this" and "Baby Mousy that" and "Baby Mousy wants cheese and a drink" and she fixes boo boos on Baby Mousy and Baby Mousy is getting a bit tattered already and loved and that must mean she's becoming real.
When I was a little girl I had a blanket I called "LaLa" and she was made for me when my mother was pregnant. She's now a pile of yarn, lovingly sewn into a pillowcase by my mother. I loved LaLa for years and years and years and I think my parents did, too. Except when I left her places and we had to go back for her or else endure the screaming of a six year old.
DVB is real. Baby Mousy is real. Of course.
11/05/2012
Storytelling
Some recaps.
*sorry mom
Halloween - The "Skull Ninja" and "Cinderella"
Marine Science Center visit for a wonderful birthday party. We got to watch a sea turtle receive surgery for wounds sustained from fishing line in his throat. :(
A beachy morning.
10/24/2012
Storytelling
- a march of little ladies in Virginia
- treats
- my littlest, getting so big
09/17/2012
Storytelling
The last couple weeks.
Ronan perfecting his "favorite trick"
Zoo facepainting
Signs of fall
Planting the fall garden
Beach clean up
No Solids Please!
Staying cool in the upper 80 degree weather (still feels like summer down here folks!)
Teething and working on our sitting skills
MAJOR bummer and not yet due for an upgrade. :(
Here's looking onward and upward for a nice Tuesday!
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