Speak

I am so unmotivated today. The weather is kind of dreary; thankfully it's not raining, but I sure could use a big shot of vitamin D from the sun. It is no where to be found.

It looks like we most likely won't make it to the big pumpkin patch this year. The weather just isn't cooperating. I do plan on trying out the local YMCA "pumpkin patch" but I have no idea what it looks like or if I will be able to get any good pics of the kids. If all else fails, I'll just plop them down in my own back yard mud pit and place our 6 little pumpkins around them and snap away. Surely I can get something decent from it.

{yes I know; mismatched shoes, pajama top, camo bottoms...my kids will never have fashion sense.}

Baby Port has been so incredibly cute lately. He is a particular little guy - always running behind us to close doors and drawers. If I do manage to get something closed before he swoops in, he will often reopen the drawer or door and close it again himself.

Just to make sure it's done right I guess.

The other day he was trying to get something out of the pantry and another item fell off the shelf. He actually stopped what he was doing and picked up the dropped item and returned it to the correct shelf. He also threw away his trash the other day all on his own. I didn't even know he knew what the trash can was for!

He has realized that when I put him in his high chair for lunch, nap time is sure to follow. So now he won't sit for lunch at all. He pretty much won't eat anything during the day unless it is in a ziploc bag. And his favorite thing is to take food outside. I have had to wash dirt off of so much food lately...ick. Today he stuck a drooled on hand in the sand box and then proceeded to eat some cheerios he had in a bag outside with him. He winced and shuddered at every sandy, crunchy bite, but just kept on eating. I wiped down his hands, but not before he ate a significant amount of sand.

{That would be a banana and some cheese there on the deck}

He loves the cat and does anything he possibly can to be around her. And when she is meowing and ripping up my window screens, it delights him to no end.

{Can you see his smile in the window reflection?}

For a couple of months now I have been getting increasingly worried about his lack of speech. After speaking about it to a friend, I decided I would watch it for another month or two and then if he didn't start talking more I would make an appointment with his pediatrician. Last week he wanted to go outside. As with anything he wants, instead of saying any actual words, he will shriek to get me to do stuff. He wants in the refrigerator; shriek!! He wants in the pantry; shriek!! You get the idea. I have been trying to teach him the sign for "open" so he can at least communicate with us a little more civilly.

So he was standing at the back door shrieking and I was signing "open. open. open." and saying it each time. He got excited and started bouncing and smiling, but still shrieking. After doing this over and over, I could tell he was getting impatient. Suddenly, he took 2 steps toward me and said, "OUT SIDE!"

Someone has been holding out on me...

Since then he has been speaking a lot more. It's still pretty garbled and random. But if something sounds even remotely close to something I recognize, I praise him and repeat the word louder and clearer. Hopefully it will encourage him to speak more.

Now, if we could only get the older one to speak less. heh

Speaking of, Kiddo showed me the cutest drawing the other day. I just had to share it.
They are pirate crabs. They are dressed for Halloween. lol!

Today Kiddo was walking around the house, singing a song...
"I love Uncle Wes,
I love Uncle Wes,
I looooove Uncle Wes

Uncle Wes is my name,
Uncle Wes is my name,
Uncle Weeeeeeeeesssss!"

Out of the mouths of babes...

Until,
D :)

Perfectly Clear

We get so spoiled by having nice weather for a few days that a day like today really messes things up. After a gorgeous weekend of 70s temps and clear skies, my boys have quickly grown accustom to running around in the back yard for hours. Little Port especially, was none too pleased when he got up this morning and put on his shoes, only to not be allowed outside in the 54 degree rainy day.

My back yard is once again a babbling brook in one area, mud pit in the other.

At least my garden will like it. I hope. I am afraid it may be too cold on days like this.

The Kiddo and I duked it out today in a terrible battle that just came out of nowhere. My usually completely UN-picky boy demanded that I cut his grilled cheese sandwich into the shape of a football.

Seriously. I have never done anything like that beyond "triangle" or "rectangle". Fancy sandwich cutting is just not my thing. I don't even cut the crusts off.

Anyway - after acquiring a more proper request, I cut one half (it had already been cut into triangles) into a football shape, the best way I could. I thought I did a pretty good job, personally. But I guess it wasn't enough for His Highness, because he quite emphatically crossed his arms, declared my carving skills inadequate and refused to eat his sandwich.

And in all my parenting glory I promptly took away his lunch and sent him to his room.

And thus the battle began.

I don't really know where this little attitude has come from. He not only pitches fits now, he screams and tries to think of names to call me, "You're a BIG,... a Big...You ARE A....You are SUCH a...uh....!!!!"

Thankfully, he hasn't thought of anything yet.

But he still gets in trouble for the fit and the screaming. And it sucks that I have to scream over him just to get him to hear me. And of course, my screaming scares the baby who follows us everywhere and knows how to open closed doors. And when I scare the baby it makes me even more angry.

Spiraling down, down, down...

I pulled the Batman Costume out of his room and it is sitting on the counter in the kitchen now. He's been warned that more of this behavior will result in a return of the costume and us rsvp-ing "no" to the party we were planning to attend. I sincerely hope it doesn't come to that, but I really am out of currency here. I've taken away video games for a week, he lost computer time today, and there really isn't much left that will give me immediate improvement.

And now the rainy, cold day makes it all that much harder because there is no where to go and nothing to do. Kiddo has been running from the dining room to the living room and jumping over a baby toy as a hurdle. He's going to break something, either in the house or on himself, but I haven't stopped him because he needs to blow off that energy.

I foresee several around-the-house races in my immediate future. We all need to run a little.

I have chili on the stove bubbling away, pumpkin muffins on the roster for later and hopefully a back rub coming from my better half (thus the pumpkin muffins... ;-) ).

wishing for that sunny day of not too long ago...

Until,
D :)

PS. Hop on over to Musing Mommies if you are interested in our latest giveaway and a blog post challenge! We really appreciate any and all participation!

Thump Thump

Today has turned into one of those absolutely fabulous days. It's the kind that the temperature is just cold enough that it makes me want to sit directly in the sun. And when I do, I soak up all that good warmth and I am not bothered by the heat. Because just when I think the heat of the sun is too much, the cool wind blows and cools me down again.

And I continue the relaxing dance; warm up, cool down, warm up, cool down. I turn my face to the sun and close my eyes, imagining my happy place. For me it is always the beach. I hear the waves crash against the shore, I hear the wind and the birds, and I see the world in that blue water and sky hazed over by the orange and white light from burnt out retinas. I miss the days of soaking up the sun; not a care in the world.

My imagination vacation is interrupted by squeals and cries of "Mommy watch this!". I open my eyes to see my boys playing in the yard, enjoying the beautiful day despite the mud and nastiness still on the ground from the morning rains. The potted plants on the deck are water logged, the grass in the open part of the yard is too high and the fire ants are on track to take over the world. But for a brief moment, the stress and the emotional discord and the discipline problems all melt away as I watch my babies.

They are my sun and my cool breezes. They are my blue skies and crashing waves. They are the warmth that radiates over my skin and fills my heart.

If only there could be days like this all year long. If only, I could always remember this feeling.

Until,
D :)

You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch

I WILL blog this week, and not just on Friday!

So I've mentioned that we are having discipline problems with Kiddo. From what I can tell, it's pretty typical of being 5 and being extremely bored. I've been trying to figure out his currency; that is, whatever it is that he holds valuable, and use it to bargain for good behavior. It used to be really easy with him. I could take away toys or video games and he would straighten right up. But now it seems that while taking away those things upsets him, it does nothing to correct the behavior. After a few minutes he is back to being naughty and he adds sad and angry on top of it because of the lost privileges.

So the other day in desperation I had an epiphany. He loves any kind of event - someone coming to town, some sort of celebration... and he has really been looking forward to the holiday season. His Rain Man like calendar brain reminds him daily that Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas are all coming up soon and he is very excited. He is already talking about Santa and he's written a Christmas list. He studies the Part City Halloween costume book for hours, dreaming of all the costumes he can wear and he tells Hubby and I what we can dress up as too. He is a nut about these things.

So he was being particularly difficult and it occurred to me that he would do practically anything to ensure he gets to wear a Batman costume in a couple of weeks and go trick-or-treating. So in the midst of one of his fits, I told him if he didn't straighten up I was going to take away the holidays.

Starting with Halloween.

You. would. not. believe. how much nicer that afternoon was.

I still have to remind him from time to time that Halloween can go away if he gets out of line, but I have to say he has been much easier to handle lately. And now that I have actually purchased the Batman costume, and it sits in plain view in his room, he has an even more present reminder. (and, what ever happened to homemade costumes?!? Seriously, $20 was a lot to cough up for that thing!)

We shall see how far this ride will take me. I am enjoying it so far. ;-)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A little Kiddo-speak before I wrap it up...

In the car on the way to the store, Kiddo asked me how many zeros were in 1 million. Then he told me that 10 million was the last number. I told him that wasn't the case and that numbers can go on forever, and then I gave him some examples. He was blown away! lol! After discussing the number of zeros in 1 trillion and 1 billion, he says,

"Wow! Your cool mom brain is AMAZING!"

That one cracked me up!

Until,
D :)

Remember Me This Way

Hello Company Girls and Readers who haven't dropped me from their feed... I know, this blogging once a week thing isn't working for you. It's not working for me either. I really, really, really will try to get back going with this. No excuses, I should be able to do something a few days a week.

*sigh*

So last weekend was a total blast! I had a family session on Saturday morning. I pulled into the park that we were meeting at and couldn't believe my eyes! I have never seen so many people there! There was a horse show happening on one side and some sort of physical fitness training thing on the other. I couldn't even drive down the main road properly because of all the cars parked on the sides. And of course, I forgot to bring my client's phone number with me. So I called Hubby and asked him to look it up, got a hold of her and we eventually found each other. The park was so full of people there was just no way we were going to be able to do a proper session, so we decided to move to another park down the road.

On the way there, I got turned around while they were following me, and then they missed a turn when I was following them, but we finally made it to the park. After that the session went well, except for the part when the 2 year old almost fell in the creek!

I got home just in time for Hubby to leave for a project of his own. I fed the kids, put the baby down for a nap, scarfed some food down for myself, took a shower, got the baby up, repacked my gear and then when Hubby pulled in I took off again for a wedding.

I left a little bit later than I had planned and of course, being late I got behind all the slow people and caught all the lights. I had to stop for gas and a big Dr. Pepper, and when I got out of my car at the gas station I realized that my black pin stripe slacks were actually navy blue. doh! So much for my professional, all black photographer ensemble. I got back on the road and called Hubby when I got on the freeway to make sure the baby wasn't still freaking out from my departure. After I hung up, I zoned out for a few minutes (actually about 15 minutes) before coming to and realized I wasn't even supposed to be on the freeway!!! ACK!

So I drove 15 minutes out of my way. *sigh*

Thankfully, I pad my time enough that even with all the hangups I was only about 3 minutes late. Thank goodness. I called Allen (the photographer I work with) on my cell to find out exactly where he was.

Allen: Hello?
Me: Hey Allen it's Dawn
A: Oh hey Dawn!
Me: Hey! So where are you?
{long pause}
A: uh, well I am at the zoo with the kids.
Me: ha ha! No really, where are you?
A: I am at the zoo with the kids.
{kids screaming in the background}
Me: *blink* *blink* {brain trying to process information.}
{really long pause}
Me: Oh ALLEN!!! I am so sorry! I dialed the wrong Allen on my phone!!

The Allen I called was a friend's husband, and unfortunate recipient of many an unintentional phone call from me.

Sorry Allen.

A quick call to the right Allen confirmed I was indeed in the right place and at the right time (thank goodness) and so I gathered my things and headed to the ceremony site.

The wedding was a blast. The people were sweet and friendly and so much fun and the location was gorgeous!

While everyone was eating dinner, Allen, the wedding coordinators, the DJ and I gathered in the dancing room (it was separate from the dining area) to eat and sit for a minute. I had recognized the DJ from some events we had at the country club I worked at long ago (before kids). We were all eating at a table and the coordinators and DJ were discussing other events and other coordinators - apparently they all knew each other and worked together frequently. I usually don't talk much in settings like these, but I was curious so when the conversation lulled I asked if any of them had worked at the country club recently.

The coordinators both replied "no". The DJ said, "Dawn Fry!!"

lol

I had to laugh. "You remember my name?"

Shaking his head, "Dawn Fry!"

The coordinators: "Who is Dawn Fry?"

uh, that would be me.

We all talked for a minute or two after that about what I did in my past life and they asked me what I was doing now. I couldn't believe the DJ remembered my name. Suddenly it was time to get back to work.

A little later I got to thinking that I didn't ask him why he remembered me exactly. I mean it could have been because I was mean or because I really sucked. So when we had a moment, I walked over to his table and asked him.

"No, no," he said. "You didn't suck. I worked with Sloane a few times after you left." (Sloane was a girl who was brought on while I was there, then took over the department when I departed)

Smiling, he said, "And well, she was no Dawn Fry!"

I guess I can take that as a compliment. ;-)

******************************

At times I wonder if my contribution to the lives of the people I come across is a good one or a bad one. Sometimes I definitely know the answer. Other times, like in the case of the country club job, I felt like I was doing a good job and being nice to people, but it ended so badly that even though I feel like I did a good job, I still kind of wonder. But, getting that reaction from the DJ made me feel better about my time there.

I just hope that I make as good an impression on people in my life now. Though, if I think about it, I am not the same person I was then.

I guess only time will tell. Perhaps someday I will have another chance to ask someone how they remember me.

It kind of makes me sad that people only really express how they felt about someone at their funeral. If only we were so forthcoming with our feelings about our friends, family and even acquaintances when they are with us and can hear those good words, maybe so many of us wouldn't be living with depression and self esteem issues and the like.

So, tell someone how you feel about them this week. Even if it's a coworker, an acquaintance or someone you just met. Give them honest feedback - I think good or bad (as long as you are tactful), it just might make someone feel better about themselves.

I want to know how I come across; what it's like to know Dawn Fry. I want to know if I'm weird or witchy or sweet. I want to know if people actually value my opinion or if they think I am blowing smoke.

I want to know who the person in the mirror is to the world around me.

I think it would be interesting at the very least.

Thanks for stopping by!

Until,
D :)

Chilly Down

Greetings Company Girls and Beloved Regulars!

Thankfully today did not start as early as the last 2 Friday mornings, but after a week of pretty consistent 7:15 wake ups, this morning's 6:15 was kind of a shock. I believe I have a lightning/thunder storm to blame; a couple of the cracks of thunder were loud enough to shake the house.

So *yawn* forgive me if I am dragging a little.

How was your week? Mine was alright. I have been a bit on the emotional side of things this week, what with the hormone surge and whatnot. And the Kiddo and I have been duke-ing it out on a daily basis, so my brain and my sanity are about gone.

I am so looking forward to the weekend though - I have a holiday family session to shoot in the morning and a wedding tomorrow evening. It should be absolutely gorgeous, fall like weather and I am stoked to be out in it all day!

After this morning's rain it has been cold, cold all day here, so I am fighting the urge to bake and cook. Haha! Well, I guess I am not fighting it too hard - I have red beans cooking in the crock pot and fresh pumpkin roasting in the oven to make a pumpkin puree. I am dreaming and drooling over all the pumpkin goodies I will be able to make. mmmmmmm! I have to say it is so very nice though to be able to run the oven for a few hours and still keep the house cool by just cracking a couple of windows. YAY!

Well the baby started off the day by falling into the coffee table and busting either his upper lip or gums (he won't let me get in there to look) so I have his and my bloody jammies to deal with. He is totally fine - only cried for a minute at most; but he looked pretty funny until the swelling went down. And since I have a load of cloth diapers in the wash I better get them finished up so I can get the jammies in there before the stain sets.

Ah the joys of motherhood!

I hope you have a wonderful week! Thanks for stopping by.

Until,
D :)

Same Direction

I love my garden.

While it might not be the most successful thing I've done, it does produce a little and more than anything I truly enjoy working in it. I love the smells, the sights, the dirt under my nails; it is one of the few things I don't mind getting all dirty and sweaty for. It is fascinating to me; the process of planting seeds, watching and encouraging the plants to grow; the bearing of "fruit". The stages of it bring me joy and wonder, heartache and elation.

I've been considering purchasing some fruit trees; specifically apple and pear, because those are 2 of the primary fruits we eat. I would love to cut that expense out of our monthly food budget for some of the year. But I hesitate to spend the precious $30+ for each tree because I know that it will take several years of cultivating and caring and tending before I ever see fruit. And when that finally happens I will have invested way more than the initial $30.

I have to remind myself that what I get out of the things I grow goes well beyond the fruit produced. It is an outlet, a sanctuary for me to relax, spend time in nature, explore, get outside (or inside if needed) my head for a while, and a way for me to just be myself. The garden doesn't expect me to be "on" or be fun or be intelligent. It just needs me - as I am. I try to do the best I can with it and my limited knowledge and it rewards my efforts with beautiful flowers and fuel for my kitchen.

~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~

Many days I am not the parent I want to be. This stage we are in (please God, let it only be a stage) is something I don't feel I am able to really handle. I yell way more than I like. I am easily angered, easily frustrated. It seems all the endless and unwavering patience I once had just flew out the window, taking my sanity with it. I get so. very. angry. at Kiddo. He fools me with his intelligent conversation and amazing brain and I all to often forget he is just a little kid. And we (Kiddo and I) are both caught in the middle of wanting him to be bigger than he is and we both are irritated that he is still so immature at times. His frustration and completely irrational reactions to things fluster and anger me. I don't know how to get him to understand anything anymore because he either won't listen or he gets it in his head that he doesn't understand and then nothing I say can change his mind.

I am not a yeller normally. If an adult angers me, I am much more likely to go away silently or to cry. Or both. I do not confront. I do not yell. I get sad and depressed and sometimes I might confide in a good friend and be angry in the conversation, but I rarely show that anger to the offender.

With Kiddo, it's different. I don't know what it is about him that makes me react the way I do.

And I can see how unfair it is sometimes. I can see that I favor the baby right now. But that is more about the baby's age than anything else. He is just...well.

easier. For now.

And after a particularly intense moment, I feel awful. Terribly, terribly awful. I never want to yell or raise my voice in such a way. I don't want to make him cry with my words and my actions.

I don't want to scare him.

I don't want him to be afraid of me.

Sure, I know there is a healthy dose of "fear" when it comes to your parents. But somehow in the last 6 months or so we have transitioned from a fear that comes from knowing that mom and dad are the leaders and they can take the fun things away if I screw up... to a fear of, oh crap I screwed up and now she's going to scream at me again.

I am kind of out of leverage here. I can take away the video games and it doesn't really seem to bother him. Instead he drives me insane about it by asking every five minutes what day it is and what day he is going to get them back. Or worse, he will remind me every five minutes what day it is and what day he will get them back. The boy is a human calendar.

Taking away toys is tricky. One, he has so many that missing one really isn't a problem. Two, most likely the toy in question is one that the baby wants, and taking it away causes me problems with him. Time outs don't seem to work anymore.

And it's not that Kiddo is a bad kid. Quite the contrary - he is pretty amazing most of the time. He is smart and clever and funny. His eyes light up when he knows he is being listened to. He talks constantly. And I am serious about that - he does not stop talking ever. He even talks in his sleep. But he really is fun to be around and so very often I am amazed at how wonderful he is. It makes me ache that I can't do more for him. The guilt is almost too much to bear.

But I think with basic discipline, the majority of our issues lie in the fact that we don't do anything.

We, well he, Kiddo, is bored out of his sweet little mind.

He is a social butterfly. He loves being around people and kids and he loves being out of the house.

But with the baby and my work and the nap schedule, I can only do so much.

Never mind the fact that I am totally opposite. Given the opportunity, I could stay in my house for days at a time. I like being home. I am comfortable here.

But Kiddo, staying home is just not his thing. And he needs to be around other kids. He needs to talk and run and play and do something active. I want so badly to put him in something like a sport or karate; I know he would love it and thrive in the activity. I wish we could send him to school.

But of course, it isn't going to happen.

It's going to be a long year.

***~***~***~***~***~***~***

I discovered today that something is eating my lettuce plant babies in my garden. I am pretty sure it is slugs.

So I am tossing down coffee grounds and oats and anything else I can come up with to deter or kill them. I am replanting seeds and pruning and digging in the dirt. It is messy, it is tiring and it is sometimes painful (like when I step on the rake - cartoon style). Sometimes I look at my garden and sheer joy and satisfaction comes over me. Sometimes I look at it and discover something chewed on or dying and it makes me cry. Sometimes I see a pest and I get so angry that it is nothing for me to squish it between my fingers.

But I know if I keep pressing on, working through the sickness and battling the bugs and nurturing and talking to the plants I will create something beautiful. I will help to cultivate something wonderful and life sustaining and fragrant. Along the way I will get frustrated and things will get messy, but in the end it will all be worth it. The investment, be it financial, emotional or physical is an investment in the future.

Perhaps motherhood and gardening are not so different.

Until,
D

Sweet Thing

When I was growing up we had a number of pets; cats, dogs, birds, rabbits... One of the dogs we had was a little terrier mix we named TJ.

One of the things TJ loved was my dad's coffee.

I know it sounds funny, but he did! Every day my dad would take a cup of coffee in the car with him on the way to work. He would drink all but the last swallow and leave the cup in the car while he worked. When he came home in the evenings, TJ would bolt to the door and sit up for his coffee. My dad would hold down his cup and let him lick the left over coffee from the bottom.

The dog looked forward to this every day. If by some chance my dad forgot to leave some in the cup, or didn't have coffee that morning, TJ would sulk for a little while.

So here I am, 20+ years later, and I have my own little guy that likes to finish the last drops of my coffee in the morning. He will stand in front of me and paw at the desk trying to grab my coffee cup. When I oblige his request, he will stick his tongue in my cup and try to lick as much of the coffee out of it as he can. And he is every bit, if not more cute than TJ ever was.
Sometimes I let him take my cup completely. I just can't resist him.

Until,
D :)

Yes, We Have No Bananas

(that song is one of Kiddo's favorites!)

I am getting so lax about blogging lately. I really need to set aside time to do it. Right now though, things are so busy in the photography department - I just don't have much time to do anything else. And, with the weather being as nice as it's been (pre torrential rain), I've been opting to spend more time outside in the garden or playing in the back yard with the boys. I think it just might be a good thing.

Over the weekend Port decided to say his first real word consistently. "yes!" I don't really count the whole "mama, dada" stuff because I think most of the time it's just babbling. He does on occasion say other words, but this weekend's yesses were appropriately placed, perfectly clear and Ed McMahon emphatic. Most of the time they even included the appropriate head shake.

It's super cute - and Lordy I hope it is a gateway to him speaking more. We are all about tired of the non verbal Port and the shrieking. I taught him the ASL sign for "more" a while back, just so he would stop the screaming some of the time. He signs "more" now when he wants us to read a book again or if he wants more drink or food.

So here's to hoping he starts adding new words. It's about time.

Until,
D :)

3 AM

Oh good grief I haven't blogged all week!!! Mercy! Well, actually, I started a couple of posts, but never finished them. Perhaps I shall get to that today.

Welcome Company Girls and Beloved Regulars! Today I will be serving hot coffee all day long - if you happened to check out the post at Musing Mommies, you'll know that I have been up since 3:53am, thanks to a cranky baby who decided that was the perfect time to get up. ugh. It is only 1:30 now and I am ready for bed. The baby is napping - I know, I should be too, but I drank too much caffeine to sleep now - though I am in kind of a frantic haze (if that makes any sense whatsoever).

Anywho - things around here, despite the early rising (2 Fridays in a ROW!!!), are actually going great! I am almost completely booked for the holiday season, and this week, a fabulous opportunity to possibly assist in shooting 2 destination weddings dropped in my lap. Can I get a woo-hoo?!? It is not definite yet, but I could possibly be shooting in Fredricksburg and Marathon this month with my fabulous wedding photographer friend Allen. I am stoked! It is such a great opportunity - lots of time in the car to pick his brain -haha! And, I am shooting another wedding with him in a couple of weeks. I am so excited about that too!

I even have a Houston weekend of sessions booked this season as well. Business is AWESOME.

So, I am still working on those adorable twin newborn images and planting my fall garden and chasing after the boys...the house may never look decent again (sorry Hubby). But it is all good, right?

In some sad news, I found out this week that one of my past clients had a tragedy in her family. Her 21 year old son was in a terrible car accident. Even though the doctors said he most likely wouldn't survive, he managed to make it despite a multitude of complications from his injuries for over a month. However, last week he succumbed to a blood clot in his brain. It is such a sad, terrible thing and my heart is just breaking for this family. A friend of the family (and a mutual friend of ours) contacted me regarding the portraits I took of them 3 years ago. I was thankfully able to find their images (thank goodness I saved them!) and make some prints for her to give to the family. Please keep them in your prayers during this trying time.

I hope you all are having a great Fall so far - he holidays are right around the corner! Thanks for stopping by!

Until,
D :)