Growing Up

It's kind of sad how fast babies grow up.



Today is his 4 month birthday, can you believe it?



He is starting to smile and coo



and blow spit bubbles. Everyone is trying to help him say "Mama"



Except me. I'm trying for "Mema". :) Sorry, Karen. I'm sure he'll say "Mama" first, I just want "Mema" to be second, or third after "Dada" would be fine too!

Prom and Photo Shoot w/ Amber

Jared went to Prom this past Saturday.



The line was so long for pics that he didn't want to wait, so we took pictures in the park yesterday.



They both looked great, and I think their outfits matched really well.


Saturday afternoon Amber told me that she'd like to have a photo shoot. I asked who she was going to have do it, and she asked me to.

So this is my first real photo shoot with a person other than Aiden.













She is so beautiful that she makes my photography look great! :)

At the Park

The kids and I went to the park yesterday first thing. Sometimes if I get started with my day I get de-railed and we don't get to do the fun stuff - so before chores, before schoolwork, before showers (I really wished for a hat!), we set off for the park.

My friend Lisa brought her kids, and she and I visited while pushing kids on swings. :) (Thanks for going Lee! It was great fun!)

Emily took along her homework, because she detests working on it late into the afternoon.



Michael loves sliding! It is his favorite part of playing in the park.



Matt likes it all! (Those kids aren't with us.) So he goes wherever he is inspired at the moment. :)



The sunshine felt so good! And just hangin' out was a wonderful change of pace!

AND, when I was returning Lisa's little boy's socks that he had forgotten on the playground, I saw a Graco Entertainer (like this one) sitting in a driveway that was labeled to be picked up by a thrift store. I asked if I could have it and the owner said YES! Score! I have been looking for one for Aiden as I've been consignment and thrift shopping without any success. Don't you just love moments like that?!

Then there was playing in the dirt planting some onions, spinach, and peas.

And except for Michael throwing a rock through the living room window, yesterday was terrific!

Today has been rainy. Thunder and rain. I loved it! But I *am* hoping for some sunshine tomorrow. :)

Glad that is over!

I always look forward to the photo contest for the challenge and for a theme to watch for for the month, but after I've submitted an entry, it is very nice to just sit back and be glad it is DONE! Do you know what I mean? It is the same way with any project, I suppose.

So let me update you on what has been happening this month other than my DAFFODILS (not gladiolus like the package said!!) finally bloomed after 6 years! Every year they only get the leaves, but I have never ever seen even one blossom from them. I'm starting to be convinced that they like the attention I've been giving them, so they are showing off for me. Remember this pic?



That was my "gladiolus" that I spoke of in this post.

This is them after two months of taking pictures of them:



I wasn't sure if it was a Daffodil or not, because the center was full of lots of little petals like a mum, but my Aunt Melva told me that it is a *Double* Daffodil, and sure enough, after looking it up, that is what it was (Thanks, Mev! :)


I'm telling you, plants know! So this year I'm going to do lots of photo shoots in my garden! If I can get those tomatoes and green beans to show off, I will be a happy woman! ;)


I've kissed and snuggled baby Aiden. I've kissed and snuggled my kids. I've taken my mom to the ER. Yeah, she fell and thought she broke her hip. She still isn't feeling better 10 days later. I should have done more laundry, but we did wash the walls in the living room, dining room, and kitchen during spring break.

All of my guinea pigs died over the winter. Elmo was the last to go about a week ago. They were about 4 years old, born on my birthday and becoming my babies when their mommy died of a prolapsed uterus on the day they were born. I fed them formula and raised them into upstanding guinea pigs, never biting anyone. I am thinking of getting some more from my friend.

We have started "reading scriptures" more regularly. Only instead of reading the actual scriptures, I've been telling Old Testament Bible Stories to my kids. We are going to talk about Ester tonight.

I love those stories! I think the fiery furnace story is my favorite this go-round. I love that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego had the faith to stick to their principles (not worshiping King Nebuchadnezzar's golden idol, but only praying to God) even when their lives were at stake. King Nebuchadnezzar was going to give them one more chance to worship his idol, and if they didn't he'd have them thrown into the furnace that was hot enough to kill a man just by opening the door. This is what they said, (Daniel 3:16-18 New International Version)

"Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

The "but if not" is the clincher for me. It is easy to serve God when you think that all will be well, but in this story, even if God didn't save them from the furnace they knew that they would be safe with Him in heaven. I have much to learn from their example.

Since the snow is gone (It snowed 5 inches on Easter!!), we have gotten outside more. Yesterday was such a warm day that we went for a walk and played outside a lot of the day. We just can't seem to get enough of the warmth!! Here is a pic from when we took our walk.



And these I took when we got home:

This one is a little purple flower in the grass (is it a Violet??):



And this was a close up of lilac leaves:



I've also been worrying, but I can't talk about why right now. I'll tell you when I can, but just keep us in your prayers, will you?

I think that is about it for last week and the week before. I hope all is going well with you. If you are on my sidebar, I'm following your blogs regularly, though I should comment more often and not lurk as much as I do. If your blog is *not* on my sidebar, it is because 1) you don't have a blog or 2) you don't comment and let me know you're there. Speak up! :)

"Green World" Entry

Raspberry Leaves Soaking in the Sunshine


When it was all said and done, this one was my favorite pic for the "Green World" Photo Contest at GardeningGoneWild.com. I love the backlighting, which reveals all of the range of greens and makes the leaves seem to glow from within. (for an enlarged version, click here.)

Thanks so much for your advice and support. I always feel badly for not being able to choose all of your favorites, but I'm so glad that you tell me the ones that *you* like. It means a lot. <3

Have a great day!

My days

I've had lots of days with this little guy this week:



His Sunday babysitter was out of town last week, so he got to hang out with Grandma on Saturday *and* Sunday. :)

Then, Josh and Karen came down Sunday night and hung out with us until Wednesday. There was lots of bonding time between the kids and Aiden.

One day while Josh and Karen had run to pick up Jared and Amber from school, Aiden woke up from his nap and was super fussy. At the same time, I was feeding Michael. (If you remember, Michael is g-tube fed for the most part, which adds a little complexity to our lives.) I had Michael hold his tube for a minute while I made Aiden a bottle.

I was faced with the fact that I could not hold Aiden and feed him, while at the same time feeding Michael. Then inspiration struck:



Michael loved feeding Baby Aiden, Aiden was happy, and I had one spare hand. What a deal! (Btw, just ignore that load of clean laundry which I hadn't yet folded that the kidlets are laying on, ok? ;)

Aiden came over again to play today, but all hands were on deck, so there was always someone to help out (thanks, everyone!). This afternoon I got to go play with my friend, and Emily got to play with her friend. Our play was shopping, and our friends were mother and daughter (thanks for going with us, April & Sara!). So while we were gone, Steve and the kids got their chance to hang out with Baby Aiden for awhile. Thank goodness for my good family!

Later this evening I got a brillant idea and played around with mirrors and my camera. This is what that looked like:









What can I say, I am easily entertained! :)

Aiden is back at home. Kids are tucked in bed. My house is so quiet. My bed is so inviting. My eyelids are drooping.

But I'm looking forward to what tomorrow may bring. I hope that it is wonderful for you too. <3

Whittling it down

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Have I ever mentioned that I take forever making decisions? Oh, yeah, I probably didn't need to, huh? ;)

Adding a little more complexity

As if my decision wasn't hard enough, I went out again this morning and took some more pics!

Hmmmm, let's see. Let's name these:

7.

8.

9.

10.

Added to these. Hmmmmmm...... Any comments?

Decisions, decisions.

Still stewing about the contest. I'm going out today once the sunshine gets here and take some pics from the vegetable garden. I'm looking forward to seeing how the strawberries and raspberries will compare to the other pics.

Here are my thoughs on the pics: (by the way, #4 lovers, take a look at (A) that I added yesterday and tell me which you prefer out of the two, would you?)

1 - while I love it, I feel that there is too much brown in it. It doesn't reflect "Green World" as much as it should.

2 - I really like #2 a lot, but as I look at it I notice that a lot of the picture isn't as sharp and crisp as I'd like.

3 - I love this one. I love the luminous quality of it. It reflects the theme with its variations of all of the greens. It is a keeper!

4 - This is one that makes me feel snug as a bug on a foliage rug... but I see some flaws in it: the trailer that you can see in between the stems, too much bokah (did I spell that right?) in front - I did crop a lot out, but this is one I'm not sure about....

A - This one was added yesterday. It took the place of #4 in my mind. What about you #4 lovers? Do you like this one as well? (If you are up for the question, why or why not?)

B & C is basically the same pic w/ more or less leaves showing.. I like B better than C, because it seems more concise, but I'm not sure how well I like it for the theme......

5 - This one I like, but I don't know that I'm in love with gladiolus leaves. This one is nice, and it does have lots of greens in it, including the closest bud to us is still a yellow green. Maybe I'll leave it up to choose from....

6 - This one I am definately unsure of (have you ever heard such a definate maybe in your life?!) I love the texture of the Maple's buds, but I'm not sure that it works with the theme as well...

In the running

It is that time again: time to choose another pic to submit to Gardening Gone Wild's Photo Contest.

This month's theme is "Green World"; Rob Cardillo is the judge this month and here is what he's looking for:

"I’m looking for images where the color green steps up and takes the spotlight for a change. And let’s be ecumenical by celebrating green’s infinite range of personalities. That means we’ll include bluish, yellowish, grayish, golden and silvery greens in the mix. You can enter landscapes, flowers, foliage, bark, buds, berries, fruits and even green roots if you got ‘em."

And here are the pics I'm considering:

1)

2)

3)

4)

(Two new ones added 4/15:)

A.

B.

C.

5)

6)

Post which is your favorite of these in the comments, would you? And if you decide to enter a photo too, let me know so I can see it, okay? :)