90/365 - Frisbee

I love Spring. I love how everything is so colorful. I love that it stays light longer. I love that we can play outside after dinner. And I love that the kids can run around barefoot in shorts and a t-shirt.

Robert came over to play this afternoon and gave Ryan some tips on how to throw his frisbee.





ISO 2500, f/2.8, ss 1/640, 57 mm.

I figured I'd take advantage of the situation and shoot some action shots since I feel I still struggle in that area. It was getting dusky so I had to really crank up my ISO, and looking back now, I wonder if I shouldn't have raised it higher so I could increase my f stop? I feel like my action shots are ok, but I really want them to be crisp and sharp. Any suggestions on what could I do to make them better?

89/365 - Super Girl Rocks

Super Girl took a break from her crime fighting duties this afternoon to practice her guitar before her lesson tomorrow. She seems to enjoy it, and her teacher says she's doing really well.

88/365 - Rainy Day Beauty

After a week of sunshine and shorts, it rained pretty much most of the day. The flowers are very happy.

87/365 - Playground fun

My boy loves to play on the playground.

86/365 - She Did It!!!

Today we officially retired the training wheels from Randi's Tinkerbell bike!

85/365 - Going to the chapel...

Our friend Ashley married her best friend today, so we all got cleaned up and joined the celebration. Randi was excited to go because she loves weddings, however Ryan told us he did not want to go and after we convinced him to go, he told us in no uncertain terms that he was NOT going to dance. Well guess who had a great time, tore up the dance floor, and won over the hearts of all the ladies there?

Please excuse the quality of these photos. They were taken with Randi's P/S because I just couldn't bring myself to drag the big camera along this evening.







Click on picture below to go to a short video clip of the boy in action...

84/365 - If You Give a Pig a Party

We took the kids to see "If you give a pig a party" this evening in San Antonio. It was very cute and the kids really enjoyed it. I love sharing things like this with them and watching their faces light up with amazement and joy when the magic begins....

83/365 - Bluebonnets

To me, there's nothing that says "Texas" more than Bluebonnets. Last year our state was covered in them and they're already starting to bloom here in the neighborhood, so I'm hoping it'll be another good year for them.

82/365 - My Little Sunshine

Her bangs are growing out, her pants are all too short, she is reading everything in sight, she gets shy and silly when I ask her about boys, she loves horses, her favorite color is still pink, she is kind and sweet, and she is the light of my life.
She is my Sunshine.

81/365 - Ladybug

If ladybug lore is true, then Ryan is one lucky little boy because this ladybug crawled around on his hands and arm and shirt for quite some time before it flew away all on it's own. I loved watching his expressions and intensity as he studied the little creature, and I was amazed at how gentle he was with something so delicate and fragile.

80/365 - Spring has sprung

79/365 - The first day of Spring

We celebrated the first day of Spring by going to the nursery and buying some flowers for the yard. I picked out a pretty pink Hibiscus and some dark purple African daisy's to brighten things up. Randi chose some yellow mums, and Ryan found these little Impatients all on his own and just had to have them. He dug the hole and I helped him plant them, then he watered his plant and made sure he placed the ID stake in the mound he built so that everyone would know they were his flowers (notice the marker next to his foot that he used to write his name on the ID stake). I love my sweet, sensitive boy!
Happy Spring everyone!

78/365 - Full moon over El Cardon

Tonight, on this eve of the Super Harvest Moon, some of my mom's ashes were scattered into the ocean as the full moon rose into the night sky in El Cardon, Mexico... a place of great beauty, amazing peace and incredible memories. Now Mom will always be a part of a magical place that she loved so dearly.



This is the first time I've ever tried to take a picture of the moon. I don't have a tripod and when I went outside this evening, the sky was so cloudy I couldn't even find the moon. I was just about to give up and go inside when all of a sudden there was a break in the clouds and the moon shone through. I quickly took a picture and this is what I got. It could be better, but it could be worse. I'm just happy I got something to remember this special night by.

77/365 - Golf anyone?

Our friend Noah had his 7th birthday party at the Miniature Golf Course here in town. It was a beautiful day, and the kids had a blast playing golf and sharing fun times with good friends.

76/365 - The second best thing about camping

Is sleeping in your own bed when you get home!

75/365 - The best thing about camping...

Is taking a hot bath when you get home!

74/365 - By the river

We did a lot of fun things on our camping trip, but one of my favorite moments was this one. Ryan and I hiked up the river a little ways this morning and sat on a big rock and watched the water flow by. We listened to birds and talked about how beautiful our earth is and just spent some really good mother/son time together. It is moments like these that I'll cherish forever.

73/365 - Gone Camping

This time last year we took the kids on their first camping adventure. We had a good time, but it was pretty cushy camping in that there was running water at every camp site, a bathroom with hot showers, an indoor heated pool, etc. The kids did so well that this year we decided to try the real thing and took them out to Medina to rough it on the river. We joined our wonderful friends, the Ambrose's, and had a great time. I was a bit reluctant about going, and almost chickened out when the weather started turning as we were packing up to leave, but once we got there, it was like a little slice of heaven on earth. The campsite was beautiful, the weather was great, the company was fabulous, the food was amazing, and other than a slightly leaky air mattress, everything was perfect. The kids had a great time, and, I have to admit, so did I.

I have a bunch of pictures to sort through, but for now I wanted to share this one. I've been wanting to experiment with back lighting and as the first day was coming to a close, I looked up to see this and couldn't resist snapping a shot. Thank goodness my settings were close to being right because as soon as I took it, Ryan turned around and the moment was gone....so at least I have this picture to remember it by.

72/365 - A boy and his new toy

Ryan's friend, Robert, who lives a few doors down from us, came over this morning with a hand me down for his little buddy...a Nintendo DS lite. His timing was perfect because for the last few weeks Ryan has been patiently sitting next to Randi watching her play on her DS, so I've been thinking about getting him some sort of game system. I looked at Leapsters when I was at the store last week, but couldn't bring myself to buy one because I thought he might outgrow it too fast, and I wondered if he'd really use it, so I just put it on the back burner for the time being. So when Robert showed up with his today for Ryan, I was happy...and Ryan was thrilled beyond words. First, to have something so grown up and second, for it to come from his good friend who he adores. Robert said he didn't want anything for it; that's the kind of kid he is, but he's saving up for a laptop, so we made a donation to the cause in exchange and everyone is happy.

Even though there's an eight year age difference between the Robert and Ryan, they love to play with one another. Ryan looks up to Robert and likes that he'll play with his trains, trucks, Lego's and swords with him, and Robert is so sweet and patient with Ryan, always taking him under his wing, explaining how to do things like only an older boy can. Robert is like a big brother to him. And the best thing is, they never fight! If Ryan gets crabby, Robert knows enough to just roll his eyes and say he'll come back again on another day. The boys sat on the couch for over an hour this morning while Robert taught Ryan how to play a Lego's game on the DS. I love the look of concentration on both of their faces.



After Robert left, Randi & Ryan sent pictures back and forth to one another for quite a while. They were also writing their names and practicing letters, so even though it's a game, I think there's some educational value too....or at least I hope there is.



We're going camping tomorrow so excuse me if I'm MIA for a couple of days. And please say a prayer for me because I'm a hotel and hot shower kind of girl, so it's going to be a bit of a challenge. I keep trying to convince myself that it'll be worth it though because of all the wonderful pictures I'll be able to get. So I'll rejoin you in a couple of days with stories and photos from our wild adventure.

71/365 - It's grillin' time!

One of the things I really like about Spring & Summer is firing up the BBQ! Ryan wanted to help so Michael gave him his first barbequing lesson. I swear the boy is going to grow up to be a chef; he LOVES to cook! And the boys did a great job because the steaks came out excellent!

70/365 - Quiet ramblings...

I spent the day at my Mom's house, going through things, sorting, repacking things I want to save, letting go of the things I don't need to keep. I did a fair amount of crying. I ran into a beautiful woman who lost her father recently who shared some wonderful words of wisdom with me. We cried together. I'm sad today. My finger and wrist joints started aching really bad about 4 or 5 days ago. I've had to take aspirin the last two days just to get some relief. I made an appointment with the Doctor; I'm not worried but wonder if I should be? The kids went to Friday Night Fun at the gym with Michael tonight. The house is very quiet. I usually welcome time here alone because it gives me time to think and get things done, but tonight I keep wandering around, not sure what to do with myself, so I thought I'd come here and work on the project that's helped take me to another place for the last 70 days.

I couldn't bring myself to take a picture today, but I did find this photo earlier when I was going through things at Mom's house. It was taken at my Grandmother's memorial service about 15 years ago. My Mom didn't like her picture taken, but she was in rare form this day and smiled for several pictures. This is one of my favorite photos of the two of us together. It makes me happy and sad all at the same time...

69/365 - Down by the river

On the way home from guitar lessons this afternoon, we stopped at the river so the kids could throw some rocks and so I could take pictures. I think the kids are getting used to the photo routine because they actually co-operated a little. It was "free dress" day at school so of course Randi had to wear a dress and Ryan wanted to wear his favorite "mow mow" shirt.

68/365 - Itsy Bitsy Spider Boy

Ryan's class has been learning about a new nursery rhyme each day, and this was what he was wearing when I picked him up from school...I thought it was Rastafarian hair! Oops! He wasn't feeling the love when I asked him I could take his picture, so this was the best I could get out of him today.
I can't decide if I like this in color or B/W?

67/365 - Haircuts & Racecars

The boys went to get their hair cut today and then came home and played with the remote control race car. It was a male bonding kind of day.

66/365 - All Clean

Clean boy, clean edit.

65/365 - Another Snow Day

Our church brought in a truck load of snow for the kids to play on. Both of ours were so excited about it, however once they got there, Randi chickened out and decided just to watch. On the other hand, the little man couldn't wait to take on the hill and afterwards couldn't stop talking about how brave he was!



I'm not sure if I'm happy with Ryan's skin tones in these shots, but I can't seem to figure out how to fix them without making everything else wacky. Maybe they're ok and I'm just being picky, and I do have to remember it's the moment that counts and not all pictures have to be masterpieces.

64/365 - Sweet Rewards

Even though we knew better, Michael and I used to stay with our kids until they fell asleep at night. We didn't mind because it was something we could do for them, but it was also hard on us because it was time consuming and we'd often fall asleep with them, only to stagger out of their room an hour or two later. About six months ago we finally decided to change our routine and do what we should have done years ago. To help facilitate the transition I gave each of them a "special" glass jar and told them each night they went to bed, stayed in bed and fell asleep by themselves, they'd get a coin. But if they called out for us to come back to their room or if they got out of bed for any reason other than to use the bathroom, they'd loose a coin each time they did it. It worked like a charm and was so liberating. We still spend a good amount of time with them before bed, reading, tickling their backs, talking and telling stories, but now we leave when they're awake and let them put themselves to sleep.

Somewhere along the way, they started asking what they could do with their coins? I told them they were theirs to do whatever they wanted to with them since they earned them. So they both decided they wanted to buy candy with them. ARG! But a deal is a deal, so we took them out to dinner in Gruene and then to this cute store where they sell all kinds of candy. They have fudge and candy in bulk as well as current favorites, novelty and older brands of candy. If you look closely in one picture, you can see Valomilks and the corner of the Cup o Gold box which were two of my favorites when I was a kid. Before we left the house, each of the kids put their coins in a ziplock bag, which they proudly set on the dinner table while we ate and then carried over to the general store when we were finished. When it came time to pay, they took their candy and bag of coins to the counter and paid for their treats all by themselves. The sales girl was such a good sport and helped each of them count out their coins...and didn't even take all the quarters. During the whole process, I couldn't help but think that their Pops would have been very proud of them. He was a banker before becoming a businessman and even at a very early age, he instilled in me the value of earning and spending wisely. I hope I'm able to pass on to my children some of the same values my father taught me because they were good solid lessons that have served me well in my life.

63/365 - Ryan digs tractors

This afternoon Ryan came up to me and told me he was going to make a new friend and he was going to take his shovel and dig over to him so they could play together. I had no idea what he was talking about but was just glad that he was being so creative. A few minutes later when I went out the back door, this is what I saw...



The little tractor was clearing out muck from the bottom of the wash that runs behind our house. Ryan is fascinated with tractors, so he sat there and watched it work and moved some dirt of his own around for at least 30 minutes. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take my picture for the day, so I ran back inside and grabbed my camera to capture the cuteness.

62/365 - Ice Cream makes everything better!

My boy took a tumble at the playground today.
He was trying to go down the fireman pole and ended up falling sideways all the way to the ground. Thank goodness there was rubber padding to break his fall, but none the less, he cried and cried. I held him in my arms and soothed his tears while the rest of the world went on playing all around us. I felt SO bad for him but soaked in the moment knowing that I could hold him and comfort him and that in Mama's arms, everything would be alright. It's wonderful that for now I still have that magic. He has a little raspberry on his chin, but other than that, he's fine. A little ice cream always makes me feel better when my world is upside down, so we headed right over to DQ to cheer him up.

61/365 - Trains & Tracks

My 365 friend Misty inspired me to take some train pictures. I loved what she did with a railroad crossing photo, so I set out to see what I could find. I was amazed at how many cool things I saw when I took the time to look vs. just passing by like I normally do.

60/365 - Spring is in the air

Seeing everyone's recent beautiful flower pictures inspired me to go looking for something blooming around here. I don't have a macro but think I might like to get one. There wasn't a lot to choose from in the neighborhood, but I did find this Hybiscus and there was something about it that kept drawing me to it. Maybe because it reminded me of Hawaii or maybe it's the symbolism to me of a new flower and a fully open mature flower growing side by side next to a dying flower that touched me in some subtle way...