SPOT'S 2ND VISIT

Luke's Class Pet, Spot, had his second stay with us. This stay was pretty easy and carefree (which means this Momma forgot we had brought him home and didn't remember until two days before he was due to be returned to class).

While Spot was with us this time, Luke, Grey and Marc made him a dog house out of Legos.

He also joined Luke out of the deck for some leaf jumping fun. First, they had to build the pile.

Then the jumping commenced.

I hope Spot enjoys the time he spends with Luke.

BATH TIME WATER FUN

One evening, during bath time, while the boys were "rinsing", I was in the bedroom folding laundry. I could hear a LOT of splashing and laughing going on so I went to investigate. The boys were cracking themselves up by pouring cups of water on their heads. Of course I had to get my camera.

Needless to say, a LOT of that water ended up on the floor.

SHARING

This is the epitome of "Sharing"...

I had been working in the kitchen, and when I walked out into the living room, this is what I saw. The boys had made themselves "beds", using laundry baskets, at either end of the rug, and were sharing the blanket.

Pretty ingenious.

LEAVES

Even though I think it's freezing outside (my blood must get thinner and thinner every year), the boys see sunshine so they want to go out and play. I told them they had to stay on the deck, so I went and got their bikes and a rake. I wanted to get some shots of them jumping in the leaves. I raked all the leaves from all over the deck down to the far end. And jumping ensued...

Then they had fun riding their bikes through the leaves. Not sure how he sees where he's going.

Then I told them to lay down and make leaf angels.

Eventually, with snot covering their upper lips, they realized it was freezing and came back inside.

HALLOWEEN 2011

This past weekend was Halloween, and our neighborhood had their annual Halloween Hayride. This year, we decided to go as Smurfs. Here are the littlest Smurfs.

ALL week prior, every day, I explained to both boys, that in order to get candy, they would have to put their costumes on, including the hat, and KEEP IT ON!

Just love their little tails, or as Grey called it, "his poop".

Loved the tails so much, I just had to get a shot of Papa Smurf and the Little Smurfs walking away from me, showing them off.

The Family shot... Papa Smurf, Little Smurf 2, Little Smurf 1, & Smurfette.

Can you tell that it is Absolutely Freezing? Luckily the rain stopped that had poured all day, but being that we were all gathering down at the beach, the wind was relentless... BURRRR!

The boys with their Batman friend Leo

Papa Smurf and Smurfette. Isn't my husband just the absolute best? In all the years we've been dressing up, he has never even balked at what I cooked up for him to wear.

Because of his beard, everyone thought he was Santa Claus, but he set them all straight. He would turn around and say... "but I have a tail!"

We invited one of Luke's classmates, Lucas Keller, and his family to come and join in on the holiday festivities. Here's Little Smurf 1 with a Spider.

Rather than riding on any of the Hay trailers, and Totally freezing our A**es off, we followed along in the comfort and warmth of the truck. Every time we would stop, and I would open the back door, little Porkchop would be standing there, holding his little Pumpkin Bucket, ready to get out. It was just too freaking cute. It's a memory I will always cherish.

The boys did pretty good at remembering to say "Trick or Treat" and "Thank You". They did so well, had so much fun, and kept their hats on the WHOLE time. Therefore, they got Lots of Candy.

The following morning, I realized I had forgotten to get a full shot of my costume. So I got dressed up again so Marc could take one.

And one of the funniest things of the entire night, was how many compliments we got on how cute our little "GIRL" Smurf was.

Do the golden curls really make him look like a girl? Maybe so, but he's just too cute, and as long as he has those curls, he's still my Baby.

UNASSUMING...

Can you recall, if a Simple Everyday Item has ever changed your life? We've all had those "Single Moments" that changed our lives... our Wedding Day, the Birth of our First Child, the Loss of a Loved One.

But what about an everyday item like a piece of Paper? A Simple, Single sheet of 8.5x11 Paper...

This is Mine. This is what Changed my Life! So Unassuming.

Back in March of this year, Luke's pre-school sent home this Order Form for the upcoming School Pictures. I don't recall how long it sat on my kitchen counter before I actually looked at it, but I do remember the day that I finally did. It was Thursday, March 24th, 2011.

Not really reading it, I filled out the information needed for the order. Then, when I went back to double check everything, I noticed that the person, who would be taking the pictures, had a website. Since I was all about craft and photography blogs at the time, I immediately got my laptop and went to her site. I was Blown away and Very Excited. This photographer's work was Amazing and So Beautiful, AND she was from right here in Central Virginia. I think that was what Excited me the most. Of all the blogs I follow (both Craft and Photography), they all seem to originate from out west. Up to that point, I had yet to find anyone on this side of the country. So when I saw she was right here, in my little town, well I just couldn't contain myself. I immediately sent her an email. Here's an excerpt from that first correspondence...

I don't mean to freak you out, but I can't even begin to express to you how Excited I am to find someone, with your talents, local. Your photography is INCREDIBLE. Most of the photography blogs I follow are located on the west coast. SOO excited to have found you!!

Amazingly, she wasn't Freaked out, and she responded...

You have totally made my day! I am sick in bed right now, but will write you back...

From that point on, and over the last seven months, Denise Feagans has become a Mentor and a Friend. She is just such an Inspiration. Not only is her work Incredible, she is also a Mother of Five (4 boys and 1 girl, ranging in age from 5-17), and her Faith in God is Strong. She has been there to answer every crazy question I've had. She met with me when I first got Photoshop and showed me some basics, and she even allowed me to tag along with her on one of her shoots. I will Never be able to Express or put into words, the amount of Gratitude I have for her Kindness and Support. Through her Help and Guidance, which has been Immeasurable, I have been able to start making a Dream of mine come True. Thank You Denise.

Who would have ever thought, that a Single Sheet of 8.5X11 white paper, could change one's life? That Single Sheet of paper found me a new Friend and started me on a journey that is hopefully leading me down a road to a new career as a Portrait Photographer.

So Unassuming...

Be sure to visit Denise's site, to see for yourself, what I am talking about.

NEW SAINTS ATTIRE

The boys are starting to outgrow (or have already outgrown) their Saints attire from last year. So rather than ordering over priced NFL merchandise (which I'm sure Marc will still do), I made them these shirts.

They wore them this past Sunday to help cheer the New Orleans Saints on to a 62-7 Victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

LIKE BROTHER LIKE BROTHER

Remember all my previous posts (I think there have been three) about all the weird places Luke has fallen asleep - floor, under couch, standing up at end of chaise? Well, now Grey is being a copy cat.

Found him like this when I went in to wake him from his nap. Love how it looks like the crayons are coming out of his mouth. Was he just playing so hard, that mid play, he collapsed right in that spot from exhaustion? LOL!

APPLE HARVEST FESTIVAL @ GRAVES MOUNTAIN

Last Sunday, before we did the Pumpkin Drilling, we went to the Apple Harvest Festival at Graves Mountain. This festival is in a little town called Syria, and is just a little over an hour away. The weather that day was absolutely Beautiful

The drive there was Breathtaking. You're coming into the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, so the rolling hills covered in bright fall foliage is a feast for the eyes.


Our main purpose for this little Family Excursion, was to help support our friend, John Higginbotham. John is the founder of a little private Christian school, Cornerstone Christian School, and they were having a Fund Raiser... The First Annual Great Duck Race. The race was to take place in the little creek that runs in front of Graves Mountain Lodge.

This is the "Little" Creek. Due to all the recent rain the area had received, the "Little" Creek, was running more like a "Little" River. Improvising was in order.

Using some chicken wire and broom sticks (or whatever they could find), John and some of the parents were trying to create a catch-all running across the width of the creek, to catch the race participants as the crossed the finish line (there wasn't really a finish line). Marc was kind enough to go to the opposite side of the creek and help John out by holding that side of the catch-all. That's John standing in the middle of the creek.

Mind you, it was still pretty chilly that day, and the water was freezing. John is in there in sweat pants and rubber boots. One guy was in there bare-footed and in shorts. And then, at one point, on our side of the creek, another guy jumped in in his blue jeans and leather loafers. All to try to keep the ducks from continuing on down the creek. They were not completely successful, but there effort was commendable.

These are the Ducks who were not sponsored for the race. I'm sure they're glad that didn't have to make that cold treacherous swim.

The race participants were released up stream, and slowly made their way to the finish line. I was able to catch the leaders.

Here's John announcing the winners. Unfortunately, we were not one of them.

After the Great Duck Race, we went to find something to eat, and then walked around for a little while before heading home. As we were leaving, we happened upon this photo opportunity...

How fitting for Porkchop to be the face of a Pig. LOL :)

Before we left, we made sure to fill up a bag with these...

Yummy Fugi Apples.

It's a wonderful little festival, and we will definitely be going back next year.