Does this look comfortable to you???

Does this look comfortable to you???

No, I don't think so. Normally shoes on the wrong feet tend to hurt your toes.

I know THIS doesn't look comfortable. My goodness...his "stuff" (as we call it) has got to be a jumbled mess in there. (Not too terrible-looking from the front. Wait until you see the back.)


If you are wondering if this kid of mine is standing OUTSIDE in the driveway with his pants pulled down, then you would be correct. Not enough light inside the house, and these images are something I plan to torture him with as he gets older. Like graduation. Or his wedding. You know...all those things us mothers out there have to keep to whip out at the perfect moment. You see...G-Man is really learning (by hit and miss) how to dress himself. That means everything. Shoes, socks, underwear, shirt and pants. The other day I picked him up from school with his socks upside down (the bottom part of your foot (gray part) was on top of his foot), the shoes on the wrong feet with the tongue of the shoe scrunched down to the toes (he slid his feet in, rather than un-doing the velcro), his underwear on funky, his pants on backwards (the fly and button in the back) and his shirt has been on backward a time or two also.

Guess he needs to work a little bit more on dressing himself.

Carving Pumpkins

Tonight we carved our 3 pumpkins for Halloween. G-Man kept saying "yuck" during the gutting process...and didn't want to touch the gunk. He's such a little prima-donna. But he HAD to wear his Spiderman costume.

After I gutted them all, we picked our templates and started poking holes. All the while I am wondering what ever happened to a sharpie and a steak knife that I used as a child.

Far less safer back then...but way more fun.

So we had templates...and special tools...and all was successful. I did my own (which G then proceeded to stab with every tool we had) and I think it turned out pretty well...except for the gaping wounds it now has.


Travis did his...and for G's I just used a pen and a child-proof knife. By that point...I was done. Over it. Finito.

That's the way it always is. Gung-ho...then bored...then hurried. G-Man was just playing swords with the tools, poking holes with everything imaginable, and wanting to take breaks to eat Halloween candy.

Oh well. It was fun. And I made Travis take pictures inside. I'm using a big-boy flash that my friend is loaning me for the wedding I have next weekend. Getting some practice in.

*I don't want to talk about it because my first wedding as a photographer is giving me hives*

Enjoy! This photo of the pumpkin really doesn't give justice to the 7 holes jabbed into the sides.

We're Baaaaaack!!!!

We are HOME! Thank goodness...because Lord am I pooped!

Plus, I have a TON to do. LAUNDRY, unpacking, editing photos I took of clients BEFORE I left on vacation, the 780+ images I TOOK on vacation, and get ready for work this week (plus a CRAZY weekend of clients and their October specials).

So who knows what blogging will be about this week. Probably a lot of client favorite photos...and some details about our trip.

But in a nutshell...it was FANTAST-A-GORIFIC! The weather was PERFECT!

G-Man loved Disney, he loved Gatorland, AND he loved the beach (but only while wearing clothes and NOT when I wanted him sandy/dirty/wet. Of course.

Thanks for the prayers for Vonna too! She is doing great...and will be staying with us for the next 6+ weeks to recover. I plan to post more on that...WITH images of her! :) I promise I won't be too graphic with scars and such. Or at least if I do...you'll have to click the link to get to them. It's amazing what doctors can do these days!

Praise God!

And we're off!!!!!

***Thanks again to everyone who prayed for Savonna. She is doing so well in fact, that we were persuaded (by her and all our family) to continue on with our vacation...so we're going to. We're just glad it happened YESTERDAY....and not NEXT week. Travis would have literally had a heart attack if we were all the way in Florida and got the call about the donor. I'd be rushing him to the airport to catch a plane and G-Man and myself would be driving all the way home by our lonesome. Again, we're thanking God it happened this week instead of next. God truly has a plan for us all!***

Well, vacation time has finally arrived and G-Man is BUSTING with excitement about going to "Disney Worrrrd".

He seems to think we'll see SHARKS! at Disney Worrrd and if we don't see the shark that is advertised on our "Disney Dream DVD" thingey they mailed to us...then we are in deep SH%T.

Not to mention we will all be 25 pounds heavier when we return. Including G-Man.

Went to Wal-Mart earlier this week and spent $250 freaking dollars on JUNK FOOD and things to amuse G on a 15+ hour trip to Florida.

I left them all in the bags and put them in our butler's pantry (mainly so we wouldn't eat them before vacation) and to get them out of my way. Well, he saw them and FREAKED OUT with excitement over the individual bags of CHEESE-ITS!, GOLDFISH!, DING DONGS!, CANDY!, DONUTS!, GRANOLA BARS!, and the numerous types of candy for each of us (Mike & Ike's for Travis, Sour Patch Kids for Me, and M&M's for G).

He then proceeded to bring each box of food to me (during one of our dinners) and show ME what HE found.

I think we'll be out of food by the time we hit Georgia.

Now all we need to do is not run out of gas on the way down there...since there's a shortage of gas in the south.

I obviously won't be blogging while I'm gone (unless Travis lets me "blog" on his new iPhone I finally let him buy). I however will try and "twitter" while I'm away from my ancient and so-not-cool cell phone. So you could probably find out some of my "adventures" while vacationing in Florida.

Here's our itinerary. Pray for no hurricanes!

Friday: Leave - drive straight through (yes...we are crazy)
Saturday: Arrive and possibly go to Gatorland.
Sunday: Magic Kingdom (I'm SO excited!!!!!)
Monday: Animal Kingdom
Tuesday: Drive to Ft. Myers where we've rented a condo RIGHT ON THE OCEAN!!!!
Wednesday: DO NOTHING BUT LAY AROUND AND SLEEP. SOAK UP SUN!
Thursday: Same as Wednesday. But possibly spend enormous amounts of $$ shopping! I love malls & outlets!
Friday: Same as Thursday...except leave Friday night to drive STRAIGHT THROUGH home.
Saturday: Arrive home extremely exhausted.
Sunday: Do Laundry. And edit 1500 photos from our trip.

Be prepared for the week we return...to be inundated with VACATION PICTURES! I'm ready....ARE YOU?!?!?!

What's a girl to do....

when you want to promote your fall special...and need some good pictures to advertise?!?!?!

Well, if you're me, you drag your son out on a photo shoot with promises and bribery of a new Power Ranger toy and M&M's.

A toy and M&M's is a small price for a handsome model. And luckily I have my own model to torture.

I picked him up from daycare the other day and told him we were "going home to take pictures!!!!!" He loves "looking through the hole" (aka looking through the camera viewing area) and then clicking pictures away. With a digital camera...why not? So he thought we were going home and he was going to get to take pictures.

WRONG.

It started going downhill when I got him home and told him to come here so we could change his clothes. Well, he was wearing his favorite Spiderman shirt and it wasn't coming off. He started whining.

"Do you want a new Power Ranger toy from Wal-Mart?!?!?!"

He started stripping his shirt off.

(Mother's are so smart)

So he's pumped and now thinks we're changing our clothes and going to Wal-Mart for a new Power Rangers toy. He's forgotten all about the "photo shoot" part.

So he's changed, and we head out back. Start snapping some away and he's happy. It's early yet. He's still asking for Wal-Mart every 20 seconds.

Finally it's time and I tell him to get in the car. He's thinks we're heading to Wal-Mart. We make a stop along the way at some tall grasses. I get him out and he's mad that we're not at Wal-Mart and getting his new toy.

"But honey...we have to take your picture first!"

"NOOOOOOOOO"

"Do you want a new Power Ranger toy?!?!?"

"YES!"

"Then we have to take your picture out here in the pretty grass! Look, I see a TIGER in the grass!!!! We better crouch down and hide!!!!"

So we hide from the tigers and I'm clicking away and he's mad he's traipsing through the tall grass and he's begging for Wal-Mart.

"Honey, if you're a good boy...we'll go to the corn fields and take more pictures and THEN we'll go to Wal-Mart."

"But I want to go to Wal-Mart now and get my toy."

"If you let mommy take your pictures here and at the corn fields....I'll buy you some M&M's too!!!!!"

"O-KKKKKKKAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!"

So, we head over to the corn fields and snap away and he's doing well and I'm talking about his new BLUE Power Ranger toy (all the while praying to God the blue toy is in stock or I'm SCREWED!)

After a very short time, he's had it. I know it...and I promised. So, I herd him to the car with the promise of going to Wal-Mart. But on the way to the car...there's the road with the orange line. I make him walk it and he's ever so p-o'd at me.

All in all, we made it to Wal-Mart. We got the BLUE Power Ranger toy...and we got M&M's. Not bad for a model's pay.

But I would rather ANY DAY OF THE WEEK take pictures of other people's kids. THEY listen to me. G-Man does not. I just kept thinking...remember all the times I tuned my mother out...especially when she was wielding a camera?!?!?!

Yes. My son has that mastered. P.S. Can you tell the photos of him whining...and then after me telling him about his toys & M&M's. Yeah. Kinda obvious. :)

E's Luau Party

My niece...E...just turned 2 last weekend. So therefore...we had a huge luau party in her honor. We all dressed up Hawaiin-like, ate Hawaiian food, and got soaked with water balloons and the sprinkler. Oh...and the kids all played games and dressed up silly with fun clothes.

I can't help but share the cuteness of E. I did her birthday invitations (what do you think?!?!) and the photos from that day of getting images for the invites were adorable too. So when the day finally came...we busted out the leis and it was cuteness personified.

G-Man loved playing with his cousin B...and couldn't help but share the love with him. B can get G-Man to do ANYTHING. G will follow him around and never tire of it. I'm thinking of asking B to come live with us. Make my life easier. ;)

So enjoy the images from the luau. I should have taken photos of the mosquitos that attacked us all evening. I scratched my legs all last week due to those little suckers..... And if you couldn't tell...I edited the invite a bit for the internet. My sister really doesn't live on 123 Main Street. ;)

My son cracks me up.

I'm sorry...but I have to post a little funny conversation my husband had with G-Man the other morning.

The other night I raided G-Man's goody bag from a birthday party and was eating some shock tarts. I didn't figure he'd like them (super-duper sour)...and since I love them...I would eat them myself. Good logic, right?

This is the perk of having a child go to birthday parties with goody bags and a child who enjoys trick or treating.

We get to eat their candy behind their back.

So I ate a few shock tarts while watching the Olympics and left a few of them on the side table (I only eat the red, purple, blue and green ones). The next morning, G-Man is watching Spiderman (his new obsession...and it has taken over the TMNT obsession) and he apparently found them on the table.

****

Travis came into the living room after getting ready to see G-Man leaning over the side of the couch, with his arm behind a picture frame that sits on the table.

"Whatcha doin' buddy?"

G snatches his arm back to his side and says "I found sooooommmmme-ting" in his sing-songey voice. And it's 'ting'...not 'thing'.

"What did you find?"

"Caaaaaaaaaaaan-deeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" again said in his sing-songey voice.

"Where is it?"

He reaches back behind the frame, yanks it out and AGAIN in his sing-songey voice says, "Taaaa-Daaaaa!!!!!"

Travis can't help but laugh. "Did you eat some of the candies already?"

"Yeah" he says kinda quietly.

"Are there any left?"

"Yeah."

Travis, figuring he's eaten 2 already...might as well eat the third one says, "Do you want to eat the last candy?"

G-Man pops up, shouts "Yeah!!!!!!" and then proceeds to tell Travis, "THANK YOU DADDY!!!!" real excited-ly and like he can't believe his luck that he gets to eat MORE CANDY in the morning and DIDN'T GET IN TROUBLE!

****

This was all before Travis noticed G hadn't even touched his cereal at the table. Oh well. He made him eat it...and it taught me to hide my evidence of candy-stealing.

I need to do better next time.

My son...

...the swearer.

It all started with the "it rhymed with sucker" incidence. That opened his eyes.

[Sidenote: he hasn't said it since that incident...or anything else until this next bit.]

Then it started back up again with the TMNT. As in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. AKA my archenemies.

Raphael.

Leonardo.

Donnatello.

Michaelangelo.

Those pesky turtles. Somehow G-Man has decided that the "turtles" are the best thing since sliced bread and I am forced to endure conversations revolving around Raf, Leo, Donny, Mikey, Splinter, Shredder and the Foot Ninjas.

Trust me when I tell you...the stupid animatronic turtles and real people in the movies dating back to 1990, 1991, 1993 and then the newer TMNT movie from 2007 with just the animation (WAY better to endure than the stupid mouth-moving to wrong words animatronic movies of the 90's movies).

We watch all the movies. And ALL the cartoons that are still on tv Saturday mornings. And we watch these over and over and over again.

It's not unheard of to hear "COWABUNGA" if you're in our household.

Well, back to my original thought. In one of the original 90's movies...the turtles say "DAMN!" or "DAMNIT" something like 3 times! Now, why would they do that? It's going to be kids to watch this. Why throw that in there?

Well, he's watch it and never say anything (not pick up on it?). Then he would softly repeat it after they said it. We'd tell him that that was a bad word and he wasn't allowed to say it. So not much happened.

Or so we thought.

The other day Travis got him up and was getting him ready for daycare. He always wants to wear his jammies to school and Travis told him he couldn't and that he was wearing these clothes he had gotten out for him.

"DAMNIT DADDY!!!!"

Travis swatted his butt and reminded him that he wasn't allowed to say that word. Even if he heard Mommy, Daddy or the Turtles say it....it was bad and he wasn't allowed to say it.

G-Man hung his head, mumbled "I Sorry Daddy", and that was that.

I was worried to death that he would cuss at Mamaw (my mom) this weekend while spending the night.

Luckily, that didn't happen. I wouldn't want to cause my mother to have a heart attack.

But then last night, we're getting ready for bed, got our jammies on, got our books out to read, and the boys informed me that it was "Daddy's Turn" to read and put him to bed so I kissed him and headed out the door. I had taken 2 steps out of his bedroom when I heard him say "DAMNIT".

For no reason at all. Not sure what brought it on. But Travis got on him again.

Explained him it was a bad word. He wasn't allowed to say it. He was being punished. He had to go to bed by himself and not read any books to him.

G-Man was laying in bed with his arms over his eyes, avoiding all eye contact and we left his room.

45 minutes later, we could still hear him upstairs through the monitor and he was talking and winding down.

"Daddy.....Daddy....", we'd hear him say. "I need a HUG!" He likes to request hugs, high-fives, drinks of water, etc. through the monitor to push back bedtime. Just like any other 3-year old.

So he went up there and kissed and hugged him and he finally went to bed.

Well, this morning, Travis got him up and got him ready for daycare.

"Daddy...."

"What buddy?"

"I promise I not say DAMNIT anymore." He of course said it in that pitiful tone he has.

His head was hung down and he apologized (without prompting and after he thought about it all night long, I'm sure) and gave Travis about a gazillion kisses this morning.

He is quite the ass-kisser when he needs to be.

So, we'll see how the non-cussing goes. I'm just glad it's Damnit and not the word that rhymes with SUCKER!

[Another sidenote: we have weeded the DAMNIT movie out of his collection until further notice. If we do cave in...I'm skipping the cussing parts.]