First Day *sniff*sniff*

We finally hit the BIG First day around here. She woke up at 6:20AM and wanted to know if it was time to go to school! Um...NO! So the waiting began, which resulted in asking every 5 minutes, "How much longer, mom?" I told her "after lunch", so she asked (at 9:30am) if she could eat her lunch! I tried explaining to her that even though you "eat" your lunch, it won't make it time for school until it's "time for school". (such a tough concept!) So she opted for her 2nd breakfast at 9:30 instead! And since it was such a big day, and I felt obliged to document the day, I started taking pictures. Obviously she was NOT on board for that activity. (notice the stink face?)



So I had to bring out the big kids' scrapbooks and show her pictures of them on their first days of school. She got a big kick out of seeing them "little"! She cooperated with me until we got to the school. And it wasn't like I was the only mom taking photos....I was just the only one pointing it in her direction!



She was REALLY excited to get in the school, right up until she realized that the parents were saying goodbye, and she would have to do the same. That's when she panicked. So rather than cause a meltdown (and seeing the sweet teacher with the responsibility of 25 kids), I opted to follow her in the classroom. Which actually turned out to be nice (for me). I now know all 24 kids in her class. Know the routine of the class, and also the rules of the classroom (which will help me to reinforce them at home) and not to mention I had the opportunity to take pictures during her first day! (Totally NOT complaining about that one!)



It was also really nice to see how she reacts in a new environment, and get the insight to see what causes her to meltdown. Her teacher was very aware of her sensitivity and worked really well with her. (even among all the chaos of 14 boys....YES FOURTEEN!!) I'm super excited to see how she blossoms and grows this year. Just needs to get over the hurdle of a new environment and people, and she'll be doing GREAT! (At least that's my hope!)Crossing our fingers for a successful "drop-off" today!

Starting over

After not seeing one of these hanging on my fridge for almost 5 years, it is once again time to familiarize myself with the year-round schedule!



I've had a wonderful 5 years to not deal with year-round school, so even though it is still "summer" around here, and my garden has only produced ONE red pepper, ONE tomato, and only a handful of cherry tomatoes (still waiting for the bees to pollinate my cucumbers and zuchinni's) it is indeed "back-to-school" time around here!



Since kindergarten starts a week after the upper grades, the kids get to meet their teachers one-on-one and do some assesment testing. She was SO excited to meet her teacher, and especially loved the one-on-one time. We'll see how she does with a classroom full of ENERGY! (and for once, it's not only hers!)



I'm SUPER impressed with her teacher, and think she will be a great fit for her! Now cross your fingers that we don't have a repeat of her first preschool year, otherwise I might have to get paid to be there every day!

My {Model}

I took my oldest daughter on a "photo walk" way back in JUNE! (Yes I'm just getting around to blogging these!) She was SUPER excited to be a model for a group of photographers for a few hours! What she discovered, is that she doesn't like to be told to "smile" by 20 people all at once!

But when she gets in her grove...there is just NO stopping her! Have I mentioned how much I LOVE to photograph this cutie! (Ya, I think I've mentioned it a few times!)

These were not only taken for the photowalk, but also to commemorate her sweet 16! We still have a few locations to go try out, but as it always goes, personal sessions seem to take a backseat somedays!

The {cursed} house

I went with some friends, to a location that was rumored to be "haunted". When we arrived, it looked scary enough, so we opted to shoot outside in the lovely overgrown yard, with weeds as tall as I am! Eventually we built up our bravery and ventured inside. It was a bit dissapointing. Not one hint of "haunted-ness"!! But the wallpaper was AWESOME, the exposed brick, to die for! But then there was the lovely SMELL, and the instant headache we all seemed to get at the same time. We grabbed a few shots inside, and then headed back out. We had been joking just moments before about staying in the walked on areas of the yard, and low and behold, who knew that there really would be a "cursed" plank of wood with a rusty ol' nail sticking out, which quite unfortunately was stepped on. And now all of us KNOW to not wear flip flops (even leather ones) on ANY photo shoot! Needless to say, we ended our adventure in the ER and one tetnus shot later. I'm not so sure the house was "haunted" but it certainly is "cursed"!

Here are a few of my shots.





And this has got to be THE BIGGEST dandelion I have EVER seen! It was at least 3 inches in diameter! And So dang beautiful!

Summer Mischief

Just one for now.
Love this shot.
She looks like she is really contemplating TROUBLE!
Just glad she wasn't aiming it at ME!

She's OFFICIAL!!!

Having already gone through this lovely passage of parenthood, I was completely prepared for the second teenager to begin driving. We learned from our mistakes with the oldest, and determined to not make them again. We signed her up to take a drivers training class (through the school) with classroom work (ya, tried the on-line classes....bogus. Well I shouldn't say total bogus, the info was good, just the particular teenager was the problem...not wanting to DO the bookwork!)

We even made sure she had LOTS of driving time. (Yes, it was SCARY sometimes!) Yes, I still love her....but had you asked me right after, my answer might have been different! (well maybe I would still LOVE her, but I was having a hard time "liking" her at that moment!)

She passed her class, and we scheduled the road test with the DMV after all her drives were complete.

When we arrived, We pulled up to the test area. I got out, walked over to the door to knock. The tester guy opened the door, and then I hear the window go down behind me, and I hear her say (in a panicked voice), "mom, I can't get the key out!!!". And I calmy reply, "Honey, you need to put the car in "park"!" "Ohhhhh", was her reply. And the kind gentleman that was going to have the enourmous priveledge of administering her road test, just said, "Oh, boy....gonna be a fun one!" Then he just giggled (as did I) and we finished up the paperwork and then they were off. (crossing my fingers...NO really....that she doesn't have another "blonde moment"!



When they returned, he told me that she indeed kept the "blond moments" to a minimum and recognized her mistakes before he even pointed them out. So she did GREAT!



And even though she was only marked down 7 points (you can miss up to 30 points....however I don't think I want THAT driver anywhere near me!!) I would still stay off the sidewalks for a bit, and if you see a cute blonde in the car that looks like she's having a "moment"....give her LOTS of room!

New Toy = New Joy

The hubby gave me the go-ahead to order a new camera, and I didn't hesitate for one second, and had it within the week! I anxiously awaited for my FAVORITE brown truck and driver. I even met him on the porch. Brought a smile to his face!



Once I opened the box, and took a little look at this beauty, I knew I'd have a bit of reading to do before I would know what all the buttons did!


But I didn't wait long. Carissa and I went on a little adventure in the field by our house. We discovered grasshoppers. (I refused to get close enough to get a shot, cause those are right up there on my "favorites" list with spiders and snakes!) We also discovered that the weeds are "scratchy" and we should have worn pants! She even showed me her pile of rocks that she's been "working" on for a couple of weeks now!