ROTC Ball

Saturday night was the annual ROTC military ball at the high school. G's brother went...I have yet to hear how the night was. Gotta get the scoop on that one.

I got a call late Friday afternoon asking if I could do some photos of another couple going to the ball. Anyone who knows me knows I can't turn down a photo shoot. So I worked our schedules around a 30 minute photo shoot at the Jernigan House Saturday afternoon. G was on night shift, so he had to wake up early to watch Trent while I raced to the bed and breakfast for a few quick shots. I wish I had more time, but I did what I could and was pretty pleased with the outcome.

Here are a few shots from Saturday:

Damage.

The word of the day yesterday: damage. Trent kept walking around saying, "I hate damage". While we don't like him to use the word "hate"....we felt the same way.

Here are some photos I took at G's parents' place yesterday:

Busy Day.

I knew today would be a busy day. I just thought I would be busy cleaning my house. Well, I did lots of cleaning today, but not at my house.

I slept late this morning...trying to catch up on sleep lost at the convention. :) It was raining/storming and I just enjoyed the extra snooze. When I checked my messages I had lots of frantic messages about something being wrong at G's parents' house. G was gone and as soon as he came in I had him check his messages...revealing that a tornado had touched down at his parents' house. His dad was very emotional so we expected the worst.

Luckily no one was hurt and the house wasn't too severely damaged. There was some structure and roof damage but the important thing is no one was hurt. It was AMAZING how much damage could be done in 30 seconds (in a bad/cool sort of way). Trees had been pulled up like weeds....literally pulled straight up out of the ground. Debris was everywhere. Just hearing G's dad talk about seeing the tornado and the tin flying everywhere gave me chills.

A work crew was working on the road at their house and had to brave the storm in their trucks...one of which was literally picked up by the wind. These guys got a photo of the twister and I've heard it resembles the tornado in "The Wizard of Oz".

The craziest thing was the news crews. They are so violating and the helicopters circled for hours. I spoke with a guy from one of the crews and told him we were beyond ready for them to leave....and did my best to keep them off the property. So while you will see some of the damage on the news...you won't see it all. But I borrowed Mom's camera and took several photos. You'll see those tomorrow.

So an adventurous day it was. I am exhausted. G was supposed to work tonight, but he called in. He said that going back to work is going to feel like a vacation. :) (And when I post tomorrow you'll understand even more why he's so tired.)

I promised a give-away for today, but I'm just too tired to photograph the goodies. Keep checking back....it's going to be cool! See you tomorrow!

Ramblings....

A few things going on:

1. Leaving tomorrow for a 2-day adventure....away from the boys. Going to Mount Olive College to take some photos at a women's convention. Should be interesting. I'll post details when I return. I think I'll leave the laptop home this time since I'm caught up on photo orders. So if you need me....call me.

2. I'm officially without a toenail on my big toe....left foot. Wore flip-flops yesterday and Trent stepped into my toe....resulting in a very painful toenail removal. Who'da thought a toenail could hurt so bad. Yes, I'm a big baby.

3. I got a new cell phone today (same number as before). I've had my old phone for FOUR YEARS. Seriously....it was past time to get a new one. It has all kinds of fancy functions that I'll probably never use, but at least I won't get laughed at because my phone is a dinosaur. The dude was telling about all these ringtones I could have, but I can't stand ringtones...much less my phone ringing....so I know I won't use that function. I keep my phone on vibrate....can't stand startling noises.

4. Thinking about doing a giveaway on my blog Friday....make sure you check back. I'm offering a new product in the photography line....hint, hint.

5. We've been doing all kinds of home improvement projects this week. I got a wild hair Sunday and decided to paint my kitchen. It was after church, but probably not the most restful activity I could have chosen. My kitchen used to be teal/brown....now it's mostly blue. I want to get a BIG black frame and frame one of my favorite photos for my wall.

6. This one deserves it's own number even though it falls under #5. You know how you used to walk in my side door and there were cabinets in front of you? Well....they're no longer there. Yep...another wild hair. I wanted a place to sit....somewhere to keep shoes, etc. So the bench that used to be on my front porch (the one G built) is going to go on the side porch....where the cabinets used to be. I'm hoping G got those hints I've been dropping about wanting a sitting area on the sunporch....couch, chair, table, etc. :) Yes...I'm crazy! :)

7. Trent got 5 shots last Friday. Poor child has a HUGE bruise on his little thigh. He rarely goes to the doctor and he's proclaimed that he is NEVER going back. Hate to break it to him, but he has to get round 2 of the hepatitis shot in December. He has a whole new (dis)respect for doctors...hahaha! But we've told him these shots were his ticket to school and boyhood, so he's somewhat ok with it.

8. Did you know that there have been music artists in the past with similar names: Walter St. Clair and Gary St. Clair. How odd is that?? Freaky, huh??

9. I love the show Hell's Kitchen. They could have picked a much nicer name...one I could at least say in front of my child....but it's such a fun show.

10. American Idol is going off which means I need to get up and finish cleaning/packing (during HK's commercials, of course!).

Five Favorite Photos

Five of my favorite photos from last week:

I did a bridal portrait shoot yesterday and the bride's daughter came along. I think I had just as much fun taking picture of her as I did the bride. :) This is my all-time favorite!!

Another sweet photo!

This was a fun picture I took at the park. It's Trent swinging if you can't tell. :)

I had to spend about 6 hours in Edenton on Friday, so I took advantage of the time and took a few photos. This was my favorite. These are the rocking chairs on the porch of the Barker House.

And this photo isn't the greatest as far as quality. I had my flash off, so it's a little blury. But if you knew how often G's brother (Corey) kissed his mom you would understand why this is such a rare and priceless photo. :) It was Senior night at HCHS....Corey's last night in a baseball uniform. Sniff! Sniff! :)

Fat Baby Bindi.

Ok...I have some odd dreams, but last night's beats all.

A little background info: Everyone around me is having babies right now. I think it's God's way of testing/torturing me during these years of celibacy. So I hold babies and I can feel the fever coming on....the baby fever. And the fact that I'm knocking on 30's door isn't even funny (I'll be 28 in Sept). G is pretty set on waiting a year or two after we're married before having a youngin'. Torture, plain torture.

More background: As much as I LOVE having a son, I've always wanted to know what it was like to have a girl. I would be perfectly happy with a house full of boys, but I would be tickled pink (hehehe!) if I had a girl one day.

So last night I dream that I'm going in the hospital (in Greenville) to have a baby...and once again I don't know what I'm having. In the dream I REALLY want a girl. As it turns out, I have twins. I have a girl and a boy. Well, the girl is just plain ugly. And fat. The biggest and ugliest baby I have ever seen in my life. She's so ugly that when it comes time to name her I say, "Just name her Bindi.". Bindi? Like the crocodile hunter's kid??? What kind of name is Bindi?? Not only that, but in this dream I had decided to have my baby in Greenville because I thought it would be much nicer than Ahoskie. Well, it wasn't. The floor was nasty and the bed was SO uncomfortable. I was so frustrated with all of it that I went to sit out in the hall until they could get me a better room (What is this? The Hilton?). A mean ol' nurse runs me back into my dreadful room where I finally see my baby boy. And he's just perfect. He's not fat and far from ugly. But after my disappointment with the girl and the hotel...I mean, hospital....I decide to name him......



.....Bindi. Yes, two kids with the same name.

And that's when I wake up. THANK GOODNESS! But the lesson learned: Be careful what you wish for. You may get what you want....but it may be fat and ugly. And the things you may not wish for? Well, they may be perfect in every way. :)

The Girls.

Last night we had Olivia and Elysa over for a couple of hours. They are staying with my parents this week and I figured everyone could use a change in scenery. We played PlayDoh and Hi-Ho-Cherry-O and lots of other fun stuff.

I've learned that the key to having multiple kids in the house without going too crazy is to keep them BUSY! Once they stopped one activity we moved right into the next or they'd go crazy...and so would I!

I've also learned that you have to pair kids up with other kids they play well with. Trent and Elysa are too much alike...so I have to pair Olivia and Trent together. Then I have to explain to Olivia that she is in charge of making sure Trent doesn't get in trouble (this helps control the unending giggles, too). :)

However, this leaves Elysa needing a playmate. Really all she needs is someone to talk to. That girl is the storyteller. She'll follow you around for hours telling little stories....things she thinks/dreams about.

Things I learned from Elysa:

-She had to go pick strawberries today (well, yesterday...you get the point)....but what she really wanted to do was go on an airplane ride. I know I just had this puzzled look on my face because we had to bribe her with strawberry picking to get her to come to Nana and Papa's. So I question her a little about this airplane ride...knowing my parents wouldn't even THINK of taking them on a trip like that!! Then I remembered....this is Miss Storyteller. EVERYTHING becomes a tale of adventure.

-Elysa wants 8 horses when she grows up. And they'll have a horse race. Then she asks me if airplanes race. Huh? Oh...yeah....airplanes. Gotcha.

-She knows who she wants to marry already. His name is Aaron (sp?). She's dead-set on this and I don't see anything changing her mind....except maybe an airplane ride. Ha!

-PlayDoh colors should be mixed. One solid color is no fun. (Hence the big ball of mixed PlayDoh that is now in a Ziploc bag.) I do like the way it looks. :)

So see..she'll tell you something.

Olivia.....she's the knowledgeable one. She has this insane fascination with bugs. She tells me that she likes raising bugs...feeding them and making sure they're still breathing. So she spent a good amount of time reading one of Trent's bug books. She did mention that they were going to bring their bug collection to my house, but Nana wouldn't let them. THANKS, Nana!!! :) Olivia is also very serious and a germ-a-phobic...hahaha! You just have to know her. Needless to say....those two girls make an interesting pair. We had great fun!

This is Elysa and her turtle. She also made her turtle a pond...and a cake....and I'm not sure what the other thing was but it was made with LOTS of colors.

Yum! PlayDoh bread!

Yes, he sticks his tongue out when he's concentrating.

This was my turtle. Ain't he cute?