We went to the park

We love winters in Central Florida because they are so mild.  And this winter has been an exceptionally mild one indeed.  We usually hit up our favorite park by the river quite a bit, but because of our recent move, the dumplings have spent more time playing in the cul-de-sac than at the park.

So when I told them the other day that we were going to head to our favorite park, they lit up!  As we were driving along the river and the park was in sight, they gleefully exclaimed from the back of the van "We missed you!!!!"  Hilarious.  But true.

I always bring my camera to the park, ever since those photography classes I took last summer.  So snapping a few shots of the dumplings was to be expected.  What I wasn't expecting, however, was the early winter sunset.  I just forgot that it sets so early now.  So this was a total plus.

They chased dragon flies and rolled around on the ground while the heron on the dock posed for me.  Of course, when I wanted to snap them having fun, they were done.

I think we need to get back to the park some more.  Sorry new cul-de-sac.  I do love you, just not at this time of day.  I hear the river calling my name.

 

Morning sunshine

Throughout the day, our new kitchen gets a tremendous amount of natural light streaming in.  That's due in large part to a huge, south facing bay window.  Although this bay window doesn't overlook our front yard, like our old house, I love to sit in front of it at the kitchen table and look out as the sun rises.

This week Madeline spent battling a cold.  On this particular morning, I let her watch some TV while I had my coffee.  

I just love capturing sun flare of any kind.  However,controlled sun flare had been alluding me, until now.  I love that rich blue stream and how it looks like it's falling right on Madeline in these images.

Eventually she turned the tube off and decided to work on a "States" puzzle.

She's finally feeling (mostly) better, though her nose is still runny.  Thankfully she hasn't passed this on to me or Patrick.  Caleb was the one who actually gave her the cold, but he, fortunately, wasn't sick for very long at all.

All of this meant that we were in pretty good shape to help Caleb celebrate his birthday this weekend.  I still can't believe he's 8 years old.  It seems like just the other day we were celebrating his first birthday home with us.  It's hard to believe that first birthday home was 5 years ago.  5 years ago!!! Wow. Anyway, I still have to download the photos I snapped of our celebration.  So you'll have to check back for that.  Until then, I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend!

For more great photos, visit Stefanie and Rebecca's blogs.

 

Wishing you a Merry Christmas!

{front}

{back}

With packing up and moving this past month and a half, I had a sneaking suspicion that I wouldn't have enough time to take the dumplings out for a quick photo shoot for our Christmas card this year.  Well, my suspicion was correct; time was not on my side.  But I didn't want that to keep me from sending out cards this year.  The end result? A simple card with images from one of our summer shoots when I was practicing my homework for Ashley Ann's Snapshops class.  I love this series because it truly embodies my photography style.  No fancy clothes.  No dramatic location.  Just every day play clothes, our (old house) front yard, and the playground.

This year Gina taught me that the most important moments in our lives are the ordinary ones, and if you take the time to embrace them, they can make your heart swell.  Ashley Ann's class taught me how to stop and recognize them and to try to capture them in a way that's not so ordinary.  This year has been one of tremendous growth for me, both spiritually and "photographically."  (I can't say professionally because I'm not a professional photographer! lol)  And, well, I'm grateful to the Lord for this growth.

I'm thankful for His birth many moons ago, and I'm thankful for the chance to celebrate His birthday with the family He has so graciously blessed me with.  May your Christmas be filled with lots of love and laughter.  And would you please continue to keep Will and the kids in your prayers. This is their first Christmas without Gina, and her 34th birthday, which would have been on Dec 30th, will also be celebrated without her.

Merry Christmas, from our family to yours!!!!

Way to go, Team Gina!!!

Last week, 80 plus members of  Team Gina came out to the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure to celebrate Gina and the amazing woman she was.  The race began at 8:00, but we all met up at 7:00am because it can take a while to gather that many people together.  Thankfully, the sun chose to show itself at sunrise because it was a chilly start to the morning!  Okay, maybe the mid 50s isn't chilly for most, but it sure is in our neck of the woods.  It was the coldest morning to date this fall.

Unfortunately, I couldn't take any shots while I was walking because I had to push Madeline in the stroller.  Last year, my sister and Andy took turns pushing both Madeline and Leah in their strollers.  However, Andy carried Josh in his arms because he's bigger now (and they only have one stroller.)  So that left me pushing Madeline the entire walk.

And unfortunately, this was the best Team Gina shot I could get.  I didn't have time to move all the extra strollers out of the shot before the group decided the previous photographer's shot was enough. So everyone started dispersing.

Will and the kids had special shirts made.  Will's said "My wife", and the kid's shirts naturally said "My mommy."

I'm not gonna lie.  It hurt to do that walk without Gina.  My heart was heavy, and no doubt, I was not the only one.  This entire month has been difficult.  She is missed by so many people.  Will and the kids are doing as well as they can.  They are all in counseling, and they now have a nanny living with them, who has been a tremendous help.

We all hung around for a little bit, enjoying the breakfast foods provided, including cupcakes as the evidence below demonstrates.

And this is what happens to your tutu when you sit in your stroller for the entire walk.

Here's a closeup of the back of Lexi's shirt.

Not only did my sister Deb make the girls tutus for the walk, but she also made some for the both of us.

Like last year, I also took a photo of the POPS girls.  Debbie (middle) and Donna (right) also worked with Gina and my sister at the same pediatric outpatient surgery clinic.  It breaks my heart that Gina is not in this photo.

Most of the team headed home after the race, but the POPS peeps headed into Brighthouse Stadium to see all the fun freebies folks were giving away...stickers, pens, paper, cups, scarves, etc.

Then I figured it was about high time I embraced the camera.  That's me on the right with my twin sis on the left.

I love this shot of Madeline with a pen and pad in her hand, sporting her bunched up tutu and the "leggings" I made her. This girl loves to write. So very Madeline, indeed.  And yep, you read that right.  My sister made the girls' tutus, and I made leggings to go underneath.  Since these "leggings" were my first attempt at sewing with knits, I went with an easy interlock, which you're not supposed to use for pants.  And I already knew that, but I wanted "easy".  So I did it anyway.  Well, they don't have as much stretch as leggings typically do.  So they're more like "skinny" knit pants.  But hey, I'm pretty proud of myself for figuring out how to add those cute ruffles on the bottom.  I had to whip out my walking foot for these pants, especially the ruffles.  Knits are not like wovens at all. They are very different.  But I'm eager and willing to learn.  Anyway, I can't wait to make more knit garments because knits are just so comfy to wear.

Well, our little crew finally decided to pack it up and head back to Deb and Andy's place.  The kids played together for a little bit before we headed back home.

It was great to see my sister, Andy, and Leah.  And it was great to see a lot of Team Gina members come out and show their love and support for Gina, her family, and breast cancer research.  I sure do hope a cure can be found soon.  So many ladies are being diagnosed these days and earlier too.  Cancer is a truly horrible disease.  And despite all the ups and downs during Gina's journey, she was like a bright shining star, always full of encouragement.  And it is the goal of her foundation, the Gina McReynolds Foundation, to provide encouragement to other families who also find themselves battling this awful disease.

We love you Gina, Will and family.  We hold you close to our hearts and will continue to lift you up in prayer.

Roy's surprise birthday party {Part 4}

Yes, if you can believe it, I still have more photos to share from our trip to Connecticut.  Remember back in Part 1 when I shared that we helped two special people celebrate their birthdays?  First up was our niece, Lydia.  Second up was Patrick's Uncle Roy.  He turned 80 years old and his wife, Betty, threw him a surprise birthday party.  Over 50 people came out for the big event.  

Betty and Roy spend part of the year in Connecticut and the other part in Florida.  When they are in Connecticut, they stay at this lovely little cottage in Wallingford.  This place is gorgeous!  What a setting!  Betty took Roy to Mystic the day before (surprisingly, we did not run into them!) while Karen, their daughter, and sons, Rick, Allen, and Chris prepared for the big shin dig.  They all made amazing food, and others did also, including Ron, Betsy, and Michele.

The cottage is situated at the top of a hill.  It's so idyllic, a perfect location to snap a few photos.  The family photo below just makes me laugh.  I totally did not coordinate our clothes, yet somehow this is what we ended up wearing that day. lol.  Too bad Madeline is also sporting those grouchy furrowed eyebrows.  And well, the top half of Patrick's head blends in with the blown out sky.  Um, not quite the wall hanging family photo.  Oh well.

We did manage a few others.

Here's Patrick with his sister, Michele.

Down at the bottom of the hill is a little pond.  So very pretty.

Madeline was fascinated with all the leaves on the ground, and Lydia's red sparkle shoes.

This day could not have been scripted any better.  It was such a New England fall day- a coolness in the air, leaves changing, listening to football on our phones while the kids tossed the football around on the hill.

Madeline broke out in an impromptu rendition of her ballet number from her spring recital.

And she ran away from my camera every chance she got.

Either that or she just did her own thing, like trying to take her shirt off.  Nice.  First the pants, now the shirt.

Football is well loved and played in this family.  All three of Betty and Roy's boys, Rick, Allen, and Chris, played college ball. And now Allen's son, Eric, is playing too.  The littles had so much fun chasing after him and the ball.  Eric was so great with them.

Well, as you can see I spent most of my time behind the camera capturing images of the kids.  Lydia doesn't get to see her cousins too often.  So I really wanted to capture the fun they were having together that day.  Such wonderful memories were made.  Thanks Betty, Karen, Rick, Allen, and Chris for putting together an amazing party.  It's one day we will never forget.