Recital Pix

Saturday night was Clara's very first ever ballet recital! It was sweeter than there are words to express. Clara danced her little heart out and LOVED being the center of attention. She twirled and arabesqued around the stage. She was just smiling from ear to ear. I think it is a night that none in our family will ever forget. I would say it was just magical seeing my baby girl up there doing her thing!

Sad News

When we got home from Clara's ballet recital tonight there was a message from Soleil's family. Little Soleil decided her fight was over and it was time to leave them today. She lived for exactly one week and one day. Her family was so blessed to have had a week with her in their arms. It was more than they had expected. I had so hoped that the journey with her would be longer...that they would have had more time to create more memories, to take more pictures, to snuggle her more and to just relish her time here on earth. I know that her family is missing her so tonight and is going through such a sad time without her. I feel so blessed to have been a part of that journey with that little angel. To have been able to capture her while still in the womb and then again in her first hour of life. Her mommy and daddy are amazingly sweet people. And I know that that baby girl changed their lives forever. As she did mine. So pray for Soleil's family tonight as they say goodbye and let go of this little princess. This precious baby girl who came in like a whirlwind and forever altered their hearts for the better. Goodbye sweet Soleil.

Praises

Baby girl delivered VERY quickly Friday afternoon. Minutes after they called me actually. She was in a hurry! And she was born alive and alert and fiesty. Her vitals were quite strong. So strong in fact that they were talking about taking her home Saturday or Sunday. She has several of the birth defects that go hand in hand with trisomy 13. She has a cleft palette and a spot on her scalp where her skull did not fully close. Nothing exposed...just no hair or anything growing there. She has extra fingers and extra toes. But despite all of that she was just beautiful. And a big baby too! 6 lbs, 1 ounce. She was wide awake and staring in to everyone's eyes who held her. And when she was in her mother's arms it was like watching this incredible dance. She would settle right down and just gaze at her mother like she had known her forever and yet wanted to study her every detail. And watching her mom and dad watch her... it was magical. They smiled over her and stroked her tiny, chubby cheeks. They marvelled over her generous amount of dark hair. They thrilled as she grasped onto their fingers with her tiny hands and mom kissed her tiny toes. And she made the sweetest little baby noises and cried when she was cold and nodded off to sleep when she was warm and snuggled. God is so good. That not only did they get to meet her and look into those dark eyes of hers for a bit, they actually were talking about having her at home for a time with them. That family has been on my mind so much on this day, Mother's Day. What a wonderful Mother's Day gift...to have that sweet, sweet time with your baby girl.

The other family that I worked with this past week was also on my mind. The one who lost their baby in that horrible car accident. Oh, my heart has broken for her over and over again today. Today of all days must have been so very difficult for her. I woke up amidst all manner of celebration this morning. The kids were so excited about their cards and gifts they had for me. Their chatter filled the house and I could not help but stop and count my blessings right then. That other young mom woke up to a quiet house. A silence that penetrates to the soul. When there should have been the sound of crying and cooing and the feeling of a warm bundle in your arms and at your breast. But all of that is lost to her now. Those feelings and dreams laid to rest with her sweet baby boy.

It's been an interesting journey for me today, reflecting on these moms and how one was left with a broken heart and empty arms, and the other with the gift of time with a child they know will most likely not be with them for long. I had to look at my own three children so differently today. And just lift up sincerest thanks and praises. Thank you Lord for bestowing upon me this title of Mother. Thank you for entrusting three precious little souls to my care. Thank you Lord for these other mothers who crossed paths with mine this week and who opened my eyes to just how fortunate and blessed I truly am. Comfort those mothers Lord. And give them strength for the days ahead and healing for hearts broken to pieces. May they know your presence and peace as they walk through this valley. Amen.

Early Arrival

I just got a call that one of the Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep babies is arriving ahead of schedule. Baby Soleil was scheduled to be induced next Tuesday, but mom just called and said they are making her go to the hospital now. So...sometime later today that sweet family will get to meet their baby girl for the first time. PRAY for this family. That they would be given a little time with their daughter before she passes on. She has trisomy 13 and they have no idea at this point how involved her anomalies will be. They have been preparing for the worst. So just pray that they will get to share at least a little time with her. That they can look into her little eyes and feel her tiny grasp on their fingers. They also have two little boys who will need a lot of prayer as they will have a difficult time understanding why their baby sister will not be coming home with them. Lord, gather this couple up in your comfort and love. Give them strength and courage in this situation and walk them through this as only You can. Bless this family through this experience Lord and draw them ever closer to you. Amen

A Week In Review

WOW! This week has flown by for us! Lots and lots going on around here. Where to start?

First of all...allergies have been TERRIBLE this week! UGGGH! My eyes have been so itchy and irritated and red and swollen. NOT a pretty picture. People keep looking at me with alarm and asking if I've been crying. It has looked that bad many a day. I'm completely eye drop dependent right now and have been wearing my glasses a LOT. That and just staying inside! I have found that to be the greatest aid. Just hibernating and not setting foot outside unless I have to.

Monday I had a bazillion errands to run. I had to get a bunch of copies of an order form for dance studio pics and a few other supplies to make that run smoothly. Then I had a return a Target. Then I did my step class at the gym. It was majorly hard for some reason. Maybe just the whole Monday thing. When Karen asked if we were ready for our peak track I immediately thought to myself "you mean that wasn't it?". Anyway, I survived. Then I had to drop off Clara's VBS registration at St. Andrews. She would KILL me if I missed getting that in and they got full. Then I had to meet Angelica at the tennis court and we hit balls for an hour, at which point I was SO beyond exhausted and ready to drop! Then before I could blink it was time to take Clara to ballet in full costume no less, so they could be checked for outfits. Then as soon as that was over I grabbed my little tutu clad ballerina and dashed off to Coronado to pick up Max at his track meet...only the meet wasn't AT Coronado. It was back over at Wilson, from where I had just practically come from. I finally tracked down my oldest and flew home, picked up Ben and Oscar and deposited all three kids and dog at Chris's moms house as I had a dinner meeting to attend with Chris at Wildflower. When that was over we picked up three exhausted kids, tucked them all into bed and collapsed ourselves! WHEW! That was Monday.

On Tuesday I spent the entire day getting ready to do the pictures for Clara's ballet studio. Lots of final minute preparations. Lists upon lists running through my head. So afraid I was going to forget something or screw something up. On top of taking the pictures it was also Clara's picture day with her group. Now, of course,I had already done her pictures here at home the way I wanted them. But I still wanted her there for her group picture. So in addition to all the craziness with getting this pictures of the masses stuff down, I had my own bouncing ballerina to tend to! That said, pictures went great and I crawled back in the door around 8 p.m. I was very thrilled with the pictures. They look pretty good...at least on the computer!

Wednesday was NOT fun. I had all pictures ready to upload and sat down first thing to get started on it. I had a sense of panic over it all come over me first thing. Such a strong sense that I bailed out of our final bible study get together, thanking God every second that it wasn't at MY house this time. I did not even get dressed. I drove the kids to school in my whale pajamas and uncombed bed head and came back and got to work in just that state of fashion. I stayed in said whale pajamas until 2:20 that afternoon, at which point I forced myself into the shower and some clean clothes. Mostly because I had to get back into the car and go pick up the kids. Time flies when you are completely frustrated beyond belief!!!! I was using an ordering system for the first time that's made for processing groups of pics like dance and sports. And I will just say here...that it was not an easy task. I REPEATEDLY called the customer support line. I don't even know how many times. That in and of itself was VERY frustrating because I kept getting a recording that said "Due to the high volume of calls, your wait time could exceed 10 minutes." And I'm like... are you kidding?! And NO. They weren't kidding. It was a LOT of waiting on that day. And I would finally get through and get my question answered...only to have another one within like, oh, thirty seconds. Talk about a test of my patience. I knew I was in trouble when the customer support gal told me that the system wasn't very user friendly! And I was like, NO CRAP! Anyway. AFter MANY hours of frustration and aggravation I managed to get the order uploaded. Now l am just hoping that I actually did that right! We will see soon enough!

Thursday was a quiet day for me. I had a nice 6 mile run on the treadmill. I had planned to go 8, but my left knee thought that was not a great idea, so six was the stop point for us. Then I got a slideshow built, got another order processed and cleaned my bathroom! I also had a return at Ross, so I tackled that and then it was time to pick up Jackie and head back to the ballet studio for round two! And it went great. Effortless. NO problems at all! The biggest success of that whole thing was that I had the night's pictures all edited, and processed and transmitted by 10:45 p.m.! Hallelujah! Talk about a relief!

Now it is Friday and I am about to drop off kiddos, then head straight to the tennis court for my Friday morning tennis lesson with George! Then I have to volunteer in Clara's class today. NO idea what that will hold for me. Sometimes it's mundane things like paper cutting and pencil sharpening. But sometimes it involves lots of green paint or paper mache' and gallons of sticky starch! Who knows! Guess I will find out soon enough!

That's our week...in a nutshell!

Costume Check

Yesterday was full costume check day at ballet practice. All of the girls were so precious in their little pink tutus! They looked like little china dolls dancing and twirling around out there. It was fantastic! This is Clara dancing to Edelweiss, one of her three pieces for the recital. So cute these girls are. Clara is the one on the very end, front row on the right.

My Little Ballerina Girl

I took this this weekend. Recital is just around the corner now! They look so sweet in their little tutus and their dance is beyond precious! I can't wait to see my baby girl on the stage! They are dancing to Edelweiss and when I watch them it brings tears to my eyes. My Clara is such a ballerina girl anyway. She is forever dancing and twirling. Such a treat to watch her spinning and twirling, lost in her own little ballerina world! Only another couple of weeks until showtime!

Blessings

I met my baby from yesterday again today. This time in his mommy and daddy's arms. I have to say that that young couple was the most amazing couple I have ever met. The strength they showed. And the love for that baby. I thought of all the things that I thought that I would be feeling if I were them. Anger and hostility and frustration over my situation. A thirst for revenge. But what I saw in this young mother was simple strength. And peace. And gratefulness for the kindness of people who just want to help. This poor mom had two broken legs...casted all the way up to her hips. And her right arm was also broken and casted all the way up to the shoulder. And she was bruised and sore every where else. Yet she cradled that baby so gently and spoke to him and told him how very much she loved him and told him how beautiful he was and as she cried over him she told him how she never ever wanted to have to let him go. And that she just wanted him to know that she wished this never had happened. She kissed his little fingers and marveled over how much hair he had. She caressed his little face and adjusted his little blanket. She held him close and treasured her moments there with her son, knowing it was the last time she would ever hold him or see him or touch him. Dad just smiled over him and brushed his little cheek. He worried over his brave wife and the two of them just got lost in the beauty of this baby boy that they would never get to raise. I just stood there and took it all in. Capturing those moments for them as best I could. I cried today when I walked out of there. I don't ever do that. Never have really shed a tear yet through all of these countless babies. But as I talked with this sweet couple my heart just broke and the more I knew of them and their story the more the tears built up just crying for release. I found out today that this couple had just left their OB for a checkup when the accident occurred. Mom told me they had heard his little heartbeat and everything was just perfect. They were on their way to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for antibiotics because she had tested positive for group B strep. And they had already stopped her labor once a few weeks prior...and they were preparing for a possible early delivery. But everything was so good and baby's heartbeat had been so strong and so clear. Then her voice got quiet and she said she wished she had just delivered him then...because at least they might still have him. But then she gathered herself up and told me that that was just "what could have been" thinking and that she tried to stay away from that right now. And I marveled at her strength and my heart broke into a million pieces for her. I then asked her if she had had a c-section. One of the nurses I work with at another hospital assured me that she would have...that there was no way she would have labored and done a vaginal delivery with two broken legs and all the injuries that she had. That that would have been unbelievably barbaric. And then that mom told me that no...she had delivered him. Naturally at that. That woman...with two severely broken legs and a broken arm and even more....a heart broken beyond belief, labored into the wee hours of the morning and brought forth that little boy with no pain medication for the birth pains. Even knowing he was already gone, she went through with it and toughed it out and was wide awake and alert so that she could hold that baby to her breast in those first moments he was in this world. I was in awe of this woman and her strength today. It kind of puts my life into a whole new perspective. The things that I stress over and worry about...they seem so insignificant after meeting this family. The problems that I might or might not face tomorrow are NOTHING compared to the road ahead for these two parents. The blessings were all mine today as I was in the presence of this amazing couple. Oh Lord, Hold them so close to you. Cover them with your wings and comfort them as they walk this road. May they know your love and peace and presence in these days to come. And may you grant them a supernatural strength to face the challenges that lie ahead. Amen

Beautiful

Today I photographed a baby for Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep. He was SO beautiful. Breathtaking almost. I was so nervous because I had to go to the funeral home to do this and it has been over a week already. This little baby was killed in utero at 35 weeks when his parents were involved in a car accident. Another vehicle was trying to evade an officer in a traffic stop and hit them head on at high speed. It was a terrible accident. So much was going through my head. I had no idea what to expect. And then I walked into that room and there was that precious little angel all bundled up in a sweet blue blanket. He wore little denim overalls and a baby blue knitted cap with a pom pom on top. He was just a precious little sight. And I was just struck again by how tragic this whole situation was and by just how horrific this must be for his parents. To know that their precious little one, just weeks away from meeting him for the first time, was snatched right out of their lives in one single tragic moment. The consequence of the actions of a criminal. Unknown to them...yet now forever locked into their memories because of the loss they suffered at his hands. I was told that the mom has two broken femurs from the accident, several broken ribs and extensive internal bruising. And while the pain must be so intense, I am certain that her pain in her legs and ribs and body is NOTHING compared to the pain in her heart. As I looked at that precious little boy today I thought how sad it was that those parents never heard him cry or take even his first breath. They never saw him smile or heard him coo. That mom will never hear his gurgly baby sounds or know what it feels like to have him suckle at her breast. Her arms must ache so with the emptiness knowing that they cannot be filled now with her first child, her son. Oh, this mom is in all of my thoughts and prayers tonight. Her road to recovery is so long ahead of her. She will have to relearn to walk again. Most likely, she will never be the same again. That one fateful moment changed her life in more ways than we can ever comprehend. Tomorrow I will go across town and meet mom at her bedside while she holds her son once more...for the last time. She will hold him in her arms and try to memorize what the weight of him in her arms feels like. She will look at his precious face and try to memorize every single detail of it. She will kiss his little toes, because that is what I am told she had been dreaming of doing. And she will say her last goodbyes. And I have the honor of being there. The honor of capturing those last fleeting moments of togetherness before they have to surrender his little body. Pray for this family. For strength and healing. And pray for me too. That I can do this right. That I can capture the memories that they are so desperate to preserve.

Rough Days

Rough days happening here. So much just piling up on me at once. Lots to get done and stay on top of. And the more I try to stay on top of it, the farther behind I seem to fall. When it rains, it pours! I have more NoW I Lay Me Down to Sleep babies this week than I can shake a stick at. One tomorrow that I am finding particularly bothersome. I have to go to a funeral home here in Tucson and do a session for a baby that passed away in an accident over a week ago. That's a really long time, you know. So I am having a bit of anxiety over this one as it is SO far outside of what the "norm" is for these sessions... if there could ever be a norm in this realm of photography?. I learned today that Arizona is NOT an embalming state...they just don't do it. So. Just for the record...if I die here suddenly, then cremate me quickly. Do not keep me on ice for a week or two. And don't bury me either. Just throw me in the fiery furnace and set me on the mantle! And so... on that cheerful note...

My son is so unhappy at school and it is breaking my heart into a million pieces. He is such a bright kid and a sweet kid and a trusting little soul. But middle school is such a cruel time and he has become quite the target. Kids can be so mean. And he has managed to hold it all together so beautifully this year. Until now and it is all coming to a head and I see how unhappy and how sad and downtrodden he is and I just hurt for him all over. Unfortunately, Chris and I do not agree on how to handle the situation. The mom in me wants to protect him so much. To bring him back home again and just work with him at home like we did his first three and a half years of school. I want to protect and nurture that sweet, sweet side of him and protect his gentle spirit and just keep him safe. I'm fine too with enrolling him in Pusch Ridge Christian Academy. A smaller, gentler environment with Christ at the center of each and every day. I have pushed for that one more than a time or two now. Chris will hear none of it. He says Max is going to that school and that is all there is to it. That he was also picked on as a kid and turned out just fine. That he will toughen up and get through it. We are at a great impasse. I stand by the fact that our Max is just different. He is not like other kids and we have suspected that from his earliest days. I have no idea how we will solve this. But for now, my heart is just breaking for my son.

What else? Well. To take some of the sting out of life and relieve some of the pressure building and the upset in my stomach I ran today. I turned my music up LOUD and just let it roar through my headphones. I ran 8 miles. That is a first in a LONG time. The phone just rang and rang...but I didn't know it because I had the music so loud. And I was glad of that. In addition to adding an additional mile to my previous limit of seven miles, I also ran the majority of those miles a good bit faster than normal. I generally run a 10 minute mile. Today I ran 8:57 minute miles. Eight of them at that. So that was no small accomplishment. Did it clear my head? Some. Did it help my heart? Not as much as I would have hoped. Mostly I was just tired at the end. As I sit here at 6:00 p.m. I could really quite easily crawl into bed and call it a night. Yeah. I'm tired.

My kids continue to reinact the World Wars amongst themselves. It seems as though they are constantly at each other's throat. They cannot seem to find it in their power to be even remotely nice to one another. This is really grating on my nerves and the discord really is the prevalent theme here lately. All three of them are currently grounded. From everything. They are spending lots of time in their rooms...ALONE, since they cannot seem to be able to stay in the same room with another sibling without major fights erupting. Clara is sporting a beautiful rug burn on her chin as a result of her most recent run-in with Ben. She was annoying him... go figure. So naturally, the obvious solution to annoying little sisters is to trip them and send them sprawling, face first across the carpet. NOT!!! So we have some things to work on with these three kids of ours. Some days this parenting stuff is so overwhelming that I just have to question God's wisdom in even giving us these kids in the first place! I just have to wonder...am I being punished for something in my life that I have these three children who seem to completely hate each other? Or am I to learn some huge lesson in all of this (and I am obviously NOT getting it as this just keeps continuing on and on and on and on), or does God really think that I can somehow steer these unruly children into some semblance of a productive adult life? I tell you...kids should come with an instruction manual. There should be a trouble shooting page. "If your child is misfunctioning, press the reset button for 3 seconds and then reboot." But alas...no reset button. No manual. Nothing. Oh well.

That's about enough complaining and griping today. Tomorrow is a new day! Thank goodness!

Happenings Around Here

Where to begin? Well. For starters, Clara has been sick and running a fever for 6 days now. We headed in to see the doctor on Tuesday when I first discovered the 102 degree fever... but they had no answers. Didn't think it was allergies. Strep test was negative and the long strep test also came back negative. That said, still, as of today, continues to run a fever. So whether or not she heads to school tomorrow remains to be seen.

I have been playing tennis...though not so much as my hand has developed a lovely pain in it that radiates from my pinky finger all the way down the side of my hand every time my racquet connects with the ball. One might think that given the pain symptoms that I might stop playing for a bit...yeah. One might think that. But no. Game on.

I have picked up my running again. This morning, since we could not go to church with our sick little princess, I ran 7 miles on the treadmill. It was a lovely time to visit with and contemplate on the pain in my feet. No idea what that is all about. I did buy some new running shoes today in hopes of helping with some of that. Perhaps it is just a need for some new, fresh cushioning! I figure that I can alternate my running days with my tennis days to more evenly spread out all my aching and throbbing body parts!

Speaking of my aching and throbbing body parts... FINALLY, it seems that I have my aching shoulder under control again. I had a bit of neck tightness this week...but not one second of that crazy shoulder pain that I had for that couple of months. It seems the new massage chair has really been key in turning all that nasty business around! (Thank you Mary for introducing me to that little jewel!)

What else? School is winding down here. Only 4 weeks to go. And that means that WE are winding UP for our big summer camping trip to Zion, Bryce and the North Rim! Hooray! We are all very excited and Chris mentions constantly how much he needs a BIG vacation!

Ooooh! Speaking of BIG vacations... Chris told me that the next Breast Cancer think tank thingy, the one we went to Hawaii in January for; the next one is going to be in ...... COSTA RICA!!!! Oh yeah! Sign me up baby! It's funny. Rarely am I inspired to travel. I LOVE being right here at home in Tucson. But now and again a destination of great interest crosses my path and I find myself mentally packing my suitcases and camera gear! Can you imagine the pictures in Costa Rica? My camera finger gets itchy just thinking about it!

And then that brings me to the camera finger. It's going to get quite busy here very shortly as I am doing the pictures for Clara's ballet studio in another week or so. That should be great fun with all these little glamour girls in their precious tutus! I imagine that when that one is all said and done that I too, will be more than ready for a REAL vacation away! Of course... I will still have my camera firmly in hand! The places we are going are like a photographer's heaven to be sure!

That's about all that is happening around here. Pretty boring stuff as I look over it! But hey! I guess that's life in the Robert's house these days!

Outside with Clara

I have had my eye on a spot here close to the house for a time now and have been wondering how it would photograph. On Friday, I finally got the chance to find out! Clara helped me out (she's so very sweet that way) and jumped into this precious little white dress for me. We gave her curls (her favorite!) and headed out for a test shoot! I'm fairly pleased with the results! Definitely a place to keep in mind!

Mac Misery

Okay...not to sound redundant...but I just don't love this Mac! The newest development? I have no slideshow tool now. And I HAVE to have that one. I HAVE to build those for my NILMDTS families. Chris assures me that there are a couple of options for building slideshows here on my computer...but after taking a look himself last night...there is NOT! And even though this new computer has the same version of Photoshop Elements as my other computer...which, incidentally is what I build my slideshows through...apparently the Mac version does NOT have slideshow capabilities. GRRRRRRR. But my beef with this piece of technology does NOT stop there. I recall specifically asking Chris if this new and improved big computer was going to fit okay into my computer armoire...recently purchased this past year to the tune of $1500 or so. And he says "Yes...of course!" So last night, I get out my measuring tape because my eyes just cast doubt when I look at the size of this computer screen verses the hole it is supposed to fit into. And the verdict? Unless you can cut nearly two inches off of the sides of this computer...it WON'T fit. Ain't gonna happen. Oh...it will sit on the desk all right and the doors will close...but it won't fit into the cubby it is supposed to fit in and by having it sit forward of that cubby I will lose all access to four drawers that are to either side of that space. Not to mention that my screen will be like SO up close and totally right in my face! And so...my Mac misery continues. One day I know that I will love this thing...or at least be able to accomplish something at it without feeling the urge to snatch it up and smash it through the window! But for today...I'm not feeling the love!

Have I mentioned....?

Have I mentioned here lately in the last 24 hours how much I HATE this stupid Mac computer? I mean...it's a nice big, pretty screen and all. Incredible really. But a real pain in the butt. It seems that each and every 24 hour period brings on a new and improved reason to just totally hate this stupid computer! I don't recall any period in my life when I was so perpetually aggravated with anything. Chris keeps telling me it's so simple...which does NOT help or increase my love for this piece of technology. GRRRRRRRR!!!!!!! It's NOT simple. It's NOT easy. It's NOT intuitive...and I really have NO idea why I ever agreed to purchase this thing. My life was ticking along just great not so long ago with my other computer. No problems. No real frustrations. Just hopped on there and did what I had to do and that was it. But those days are just gone. Now every single time I sit down at this I just want to smash it. Basically. So...that's my life currently, in a nutshell. Perpetually aggravated and frustrated. The end.

Beware of the Triangles

So...I have been waiting for 3 days for Chris to get back into town because I am experiencing (yet again) some new and improved problem with this Mac of mine. I can't get my pictures to "Proof" so that I can post them for a client. I talked to him over the phone about it and he said he would look at it when he got home. SO... he got home! I bring him before this stupid computer and show him how my "proof" action is just totally not there....and he totally clicks on this one tiny triangle and it's... DONE! I was SO mad. The conversation went like this:

T- "Why couldn't you have just told me to do that over the phone 3 days ago?"
C- "You said there was nothing on the right side of the screen"
T- "There WASN'T anything on the right side of the screen."
C- "Yes there was...that little triangle"
T- " Hellloooo! I have never before had to click on any little triangle. It's always been obvious."
C- "It was obvious just then."
T- "To WHO???!!!"
C- "Well, duh! Everyone!"
T-"If it was that obvious, then you should have been able to walk me through it on the phone."
C-" If you had told me what was on the screen, I could have."
T-" There WASN'T anything on the screen."
C-"The triangle."
T- "Of course...the triangle. How silly of me!"
C-"It was right there in front of you!"
T- "GGGGRRRRRRRRR! I hate this Mac"

TRAUMA

I have to say that this has been a traumatic week for me. Yep. I had to go bathing suit shopping and it really, really, really, really, REALLY sucked! I HATE to bathing suit shop and only do it when I absolutely HAVE to! I bought my last suit three years ago. And I really like it a lot and it looks decent enough. However, I have noticed here lately that if I wear it and sit in the sun, then there are several places UNDER my suit that are getting burned. So I am thinking that maybe the fabric is getting a little bit worn and/or stressed. It looks okay to me...but the water blisters on my boob kind of made me think I really need to take action on this one. So off to the mall I went. I looked...and I looked...and I looked some more. To NO avail. Bathing suits are just yucky and when I put them on they just get yuckier! I also noticed the disturbing trend of "much less costs MUCH more"! It seemed the less fabric involved in the making of the suit, the more expensive the suit was. What is UP with that? I mean...I was holding all of three square inches of material in my hand with a couple of strings hanging off of it and the price tag was OUTRAGEOUS!!! WHO designs these bathing suit contraptions anyway? So I decided I had had enough suit saga for one day and left the mall so that I could shop for this next suit of mine from the catalog in the comfort of my own home. WELL! Again...who the heck designs these things? Flipping through the catalogs was really no easier. For one...I would like to see one of these suits on a human who actually consumed some food sometime in this past month or two. I mean... how in the WORLD would I even begin to GUESS what this same suit might look like if you stretched it out and increased it's size the 10 times you would need to in order for it to fit me?! GRRRRRRR! Show me that suit on a regular lady...you know. One who has had three or four kids. And has the real life hips to show it. And the belly pooch and the back fat. THEN I might start to get a picture of what that might look like in real life on me! No such luck. And so I am sitting here tonight with my scissors and my Land's End catalog cutting out tops and bottoms of suits so that I can envision that whole mix and match package thing. Kind of like a really depressing paper dolls session...minus the fat lady of course! Alaska always starts to look more appealing to me at times like this. I bet they don't even SELL bathing suits in Alaska! Well...that's enough for now! Back to my bathing suit shopping!

Pictures for YOU, Daddy!

OK Dad! Here are the pictures of the new abode on it's first maiden voyage! Enjoy! The weather was exceedingly glorious and the landscape was just breathtaking with all the beautiful yellow and purple blooms everywhere! The lake was just so pretty there against that amazing backdrop! I SO enjoyed walking about and just soaking it all in. Summer will be on us here before we know it, so I made a special point to really enjoy those couple of days outside in the spring air and the burst of color that surrounded us! We all had a blast and our first trip in the new rig was a huge success!

Success....somewhat

I FINALLY successfully posted a gallery online tonight. It only took like, forever, to accomplish that task that used to take me only a couple of minutes. But now, it is done and I THINK I might be able to even do it again. Maybe. And that's a really good thing as I have two shoots coming up later this week and Chris is going out of town. So being able to navigate this infernal computer system is getting more paramount by the day! And so now, because I really REALLY NEED to be able to do it...I won't be able to. Nope. Not for anything. And I will stew and scream and rant and holler and just be generally pissed off at technology and the idiot who designed this stupid mac system in the first place until Chris gets home and can bail me out! Just a preview of my upcoming weekend and first part of next week! So, on that note...Wish me luck!

FRUSTRATION!!!

Ugggh! I am MAXED out on frustration right about now! I have a new Mac computer. A neccesary evil for this business of mine. It LOOKS pretty enough. It's big and beautiful and has an AMAZING picture display. Very, very snazzy. Also a very, VERY BIG pain in the butt. I am running between the two computers right now and I am going crazy. It is taking forever to get everything that I have and need from the other computer onto this one! And I don't really realize that I need it until like, the second I need it! GRRRRRRR!!!! So then I end up just majorly mad at this thing and the whole process and have to wait a whole day or two until Chris can get a chance to download what I need. Then once it is all downloaded I need him to go in and further set it up the way I need it. It's making me CRAZY I tell you! Not to mention that everything is backwards on the Mac and there is no right click on the mouse and I can't just ctrl-C things and paste them where I want them. It's back to the BASICS and I am NOT having any fun at all with it. So there. The end.

This One is For You, Dad!