This one's gotta make you giggle. His mom sure did! I guess the family pictures were taking a bit too long...this little guy just couldn't wait any longer.

You just never know when I'll snap a photo. I have a feeling he may hate me when he's a teenager and this one gets pulled out. But for now, it's pretty darn cute.

It was busy at the studio last weekend...here's a sample.

My boy has become quite the golfer. He loves it. His golf league is over now for the summer and he passed to make his way up to the birdie level for next year. Yesteday we went to the driving range so he could hit a bucket a balls and he was nailing them. 150...175...even 200 yards drives. and they were straight. A tip that didn't come from me! Between lessons, tips from his grandpa (an awesome golfer) and a few from me (very much an amatuer), none from his dad (a non-existant golfer) he is learning well. And it's a sport he can play his whole life, a great thing about golf. So I'll probably take him back out today so he can crack out another bucket of balls. If he hits them at all like he did yesterday, we may have another Tiger on our hands!

Well, almost! :)

The national archery tournament has been in town all week. People from all over the U.S. are here competing for the top prize of $12,000. My husband and I took part in a small part and shot a tournament called the Whitetail Classic. It was 3 hours of shooting at 3D targets. In other words, fake animals. The closer you are to hitting the vitals, the more points you get. I only lost 3 arrows. Yes, lost them. Completely shot over the animal/target. I asked if you could get a point for effort but no luck. Anyway, it was a lot of fun to be hanging out with my better half, asking for pointers all along the route. And it was fun to see these guys seriously shooting with their top notch gear and matching shirts. Most of them were very friendly and seemed to be loving our town.

I learned a ton doing this little shoot. Like how not to shoot over the target and shooting the bear in the arm will not save your life. It was fun and I'd do it again. This time bringing some extra arrows with me.

The senior photo sessions have begun! I spent a couple of hours with Cassie yesterday and we had a blast! Here's just a sample...we took lots of pictures but look at how photogenic she is. How could I help myself?! So, my senior season has begun and I'm geared up and ready to roll...

My Wordless Wednesday picture...

once in awhile they all DO get along!

The other night, my hubby and I just happened to come across this show on the travel channel. They were talking about the greatest hot dog joints in the U.S. Chicago was one of the highlights with a little spot called SuperDawg. It's been in business for over 40 years and the hot dogs looked awesome. They piled on toppings that we never would have thought of. MMMMMM...it made us hungry. I mentioned that it would be fun to make those at home. So....after a day at the lake, we stopped at the store, picked up the best dogs we could find with toppings to boot. We grilled out and piled 'em up. Not quite like the SuperDawg joint but pretty darn close. There is nothing like a good chili cheese dog to make you feel like you have to run an extra 5 miles to burn it off! Not very healthy but they were so goooooood. A perfect summertime supper I think, one we can enjoy every once in awhile. I think the next time we go to Chicago, we may have to check this hot dog place out. Afterall, they were our inspiration this weekend to the makings of a dog-gone good meal!

I call this the sweet spot. It's right across the street from my house--my studio--and where I take kids, seniors, families, whoever I have for pictures. If it's a nice day, we always head to the sweet spot. What I love about it is that it's about half a mile of options. Everyday I go there, there is something new that has sprouted. Or some new grass. There's trees and cool wheat-looking grass. It's just helps create these great relaxed pictures. And of course I love the obvious trail. Trails always lead to something and in this case it leads to the lake, a park and a campground. People love it. I can use it all year round too. The fall is beautiful back here and the winter looks even better. And the other reason why I love it? No one else comes here. I am the only photograher back here, the only one so close to this trail. I like to keep it a secret. It's my own little haven. So now you know what and where the sweet spot is. I think I was meant to live in this house. Otherwise I would never know just how sweet this spot is.

Can't believe the 4th is over already! Our party was a hit and everyone had a blast (no pun intended) :) With 20 friends over, we had more food than we could eat and enough fireworks to keep the neighbors up late. They understand though. Since we live outside of city limits, it is legal to shoot fireworks at our house so for the past 7 years, we have held the tradition of having the 4th of July party. Same friends come out and we just have fun. One thing has changed throughout the years though...the kids are getting older and it gets, well, less chaotic every year. They can light their own fireworks, they can get their own food, they don't spill, etc. One year, they will get old enough where they won't even want to stay home on the 4th. Gosh, I guess that's why we don't mind stock piling up on the fireworks because one day, we won't get to watch them have so much 4th of July fun.

www.godtube.com

If you haven't visited this site before, do it now. I just did. The videos gave me goosebumps and reminded me of things I forget about. I'm putting it on my son's computer so he'll get the goosebumps too. With all the icky sites out there, this one rocks! It's one of those sites that does something to you. Then again, maybe it's not the site but God working in the awesome way He does, through this site. Hope you get the goosebumps too.

A few photos of the lake...and my son fishing in it.

Sorry I don't have a photo for this. Try and picture it in your mind although it may not have quite the same effect. Anyway, my 8yr. old daughter has been having some trouble with the putting her head under the water and she said maybe it would help if she had a nose plug.

So we went to WalMart and got a pack complete with ear plugs, nose plug and goggles. We were getting ready to go to the pool and she came out all smiles, "I'm all set!"

All I could do was laugh...she had the ear plugs individually stuck into each nostril. She totally thought those were the nose plugs! It was hilarious! When I corrected it, she just giggled and said, "Oh, I didn't know! Oops!" And off to the pool we went.

Needless to say, I threw the "ear" plugs away after being shoved in her nose. I'm just glad we caught it BEFORE we got into the water!

So the 4th is in two days, we're having about 20 people to our house for our annual 4th of July party, and I'm not prepared for it. Yesterday, the kids and I spent the afternoon at the pool swimming and me getting too much sun (ouch!) and put off the grocery shopping until last night. Which really worked out better because then my hubby could come along and help stock us up. We are in charge of the burgers and brats and grilling them so today the fridge is full of meat, ready for Friday. After the shopping, we decided to be adventureous and hit the firework stand. We stocked up on smoke balls, artillary shells, tanks, firecrackers and roman candles and a bunch of other stuff I don't even know what they do. My hubby is like a kid in the firework shop. He said his brother used to love shooting off fireworks and I think it's true for him too. It really turns out to be a fun-filled night with our friends. And it's nice the 4th falls on a Friday this year! Although, I am running a road race Sat. morning about a half hour from home so I'll be up early...I figure by the time I get home, everyone else will still be asleep! They won't even know I'm gone. So the 4th should be a good one this year, spent with people we care about, lots of good food, fireworks and a road race to boot!

The best thing about my business is meeting all kinds of people. I have met and befriended people I never would have if it weren't for my camera.

There are so many personalities and everyone wants a different style of photos...casual, fun, posed, natural, traditional...one thing I totally enjoy is the challenge of capturing the exact picture each person is looking for. I try and capture the personality of each person, whether they are a child or adult. It's fun. Once I start looking through the eyepiece, I see things that I wouldn't see normally. And I snap away, capturing pictures that truly represent each person. People ask me how do I do that and actually, it is what my business is all about. People having fun. Once they're relaxed, I can get any photo I want from them. I don't know what I would do without my camera.

Last week we decided to "upgrade" our tv. Five years ago we bought a 48" big screen but only a few months later, the flat ones came out. Darn technology, just can't keep up. We had this big box that took up a lot of room. But we used it and enjoyed it for 5 years. But lately we had been itching for the new flat tv's that took up less space and had a better picture. So I thought I would try and sell the old one on a whim last week, not really expecting to sell it right away. I put it in the local paper and kind of forgot about it. A few people called, one couple came to look at it. Then this young college guy came over, bought it on the spot, hauled the thing up the stairs and away it went. Enter the new flat screen. The color is amazing, the screen size is a little smaller, 42", but it's just so compact. We're a little slow on the technology thing, but this one stays, no matter what new and improved TV comes out next.

We did it! My son and I took the Bowhunters Safety Education Class yesterday and we passed the test! Yes, I said test. Something I haven't done in 15 years so I was nervous. The class was ALL DAY...7 a.m.-5 p.m. I listened intently, taking notes in every chapter. (I wish I would have been so diligent like that when I was in college!) Anyhoo, it was so cool to be taking it with my boy. We had a good time. It was a long day, but we had a lunch break and met up with the rest of the family for food. That was a nice break. We were sweating bullets when they handed out the test...turned out to be much easier than anticipated. Must have been all those scratch notes I was taking. (Again, wish I would have been more like that in college, but mug nights were much more important then...hehe!) So after 10 hours of learning all about bowhunting, we passed, got the cards and now we are able to apply for game tags. My hubby was pretty excited about it. He loves teaching us, coaching us. We celebrated by relaxing over a bonfire and made plans for future trips. I have to tell you, I am pretty excited to go deer hunting. My son is not quite strong enough yet but he will be by next year. I really think the best part about this is that it's growing in to a family sport for us. We'll be able to experience the wilderness as a family and have so much fun doing it. And that's what's most important.

I hate conflict. I will do anything to avoid it. I just like everyone to be happy and get along. Sometimes I find myself agreeing to something, or not saying anything at all, even though inside I disagree. I'm just not good at dealing with conflict. But something has come up today with my husband that I feel pretty strongly about. He doesn't know anything about it yet. I'm debating whether to even bring it up at all or if I should just let it go. If I do decide to bring it up, I know it can't be right when he comes home from work, from experience, that is just not a good time. It's on my mind hard right now, talk about it, possibly bringing up a conflict or avoid the conflict altogether and not say anything. I prefer the latter but then I risk feeling resentment towards him and towards myself. That's not good either. To be honest, I struggle with maintaining that balance between knowing when to speak up and when not to. It all comes down to just wanting to make everyone happy. If only I had a little more confidence. So, I said a little prayer, asking for the right thing to do, the right words to say.

Help me to deal with conflict!

We were on a Tiger Woods high and hit the golf course yesterday. My son loves the game and lessons are really helping him. I, on the other hand, could use some of those lessons. Only 3 balls lost in the water and some pretty good shots were hit. Tiger would be impressed.

Pictures tell a thousand words...and more.

Vacation 2008 was, to say the least, awesome. And I fell in love...

...with the mountains. And the cabin life. I loved waking up every morning to deer in the backyard, the view of the majestic mountains and billions of trees, the crisp air at 6300 feet, the silence, sitting on the deck and watching the sky for endless miles, feeling so close to God, telling the kids how all these awesome mountains, valleys and streams were not man-made but created by God, being able to tell they understood that, feeling like we were tucked away in our own little corner of the world, the fireplace burning every night, a tv with only 3 channels and no one caring. Ahhhhh. It was refreshing and the memories taken from that vacation are priceless. We have decided that someday...someday...we want a cabin of our own. Someday.

We packed in a lot of stuff in a week...Mount Rushmore, Reptile Gardens (twice), Bear Country, 4 soccer games (2 goals scored), Spearfish Canyon, Custer State Park, Keystone, hiking up the mountain in our backyard and seeing what was over the ridge, 1 half marathon, and lots of quality family time hanging out at the cabin.

The race was a great experience. I loved the whole atmosphere. It was an early morning for us, 6:30 am drop off at the busses but no one complained. I rode up to the start line with a gal from Harrisburg and we instantly hit it off. That's what I love about these things...thousands of people and there's always someone new to meet. It was a beautiful morning but coooolllllddddd. The first 5 miles were awesome, although my toes were still numb from waiting for the race to begin! Then I kind of hit that "wall" and thought on no, the altitude is going to bother me. I just kept going through mile 6 and I felt great again. I saw the mile 11 sign coming up and I thought, wow that was quick! But my balloon quickly deflated when a race worker came running up with a mile 10 marker to replace it. No way, it was only mile 10. But I kept going, soaking in the beautiful surroundings. The last few miles were long, I was getting anxious for the finish line because I didn't know where I was going to end, who would be there, how many people would be there watching, etc. As I got closer, I checked my watch. I really wanted to come in at 2 hours but I knew it would be tough with the terrain, altitude and not really getting in a good run in 3 days before. The finish line was so exciting....hundreds of people clapping, cheering and there was my family, standing there, cheering with the rest of the crowd. I ran faster and finished in 1:55:54.

I then celebrated with an icy Coke and a couple of beers. :)

So now we're back in the real world, hubby is back to work, kids are back to summer acitivites and still relishing in the memories of the mountains. I seriously could live in the mountains and be very content with it. I just hope soon I'll be content again with living in the plains and the wind. Sigh. It was a great trip and we'll go back again sometime for another round.