Righteous Lou

Christmas 2011 Highlights Part 3

2012-01-03T21:42:00.000-05:00

Truly the Best Christmas Pageant Ever was put on by Anders, Willem, and their cousins. But, trying to get a group shot of all those boys (in near darkness) was next to impossible.

We sang a lot of songs played by Rooney and Big Boy. It made me miss my guitar; I haven't played regularly in years, but one of my goals for 2012 is to get my guitar shipped out here so I can sing with my boys.

Will Will is taking after his uncles; he spent so much time strumming the guitar that he developed blisters. A true sign of dedication!

My mom and I always perform "The Cherry Tree Carol."

Indigo Girls, eat your heart out:)

Christmas 2011 Highlights Part 2

2012-01-03T21:20:00.001-05:00

Other festivities included a trip to the Griswald's of Grandview Hill. Check out those 50,000 twinkling lights!

My inlaw's family Christmas Party which included a grand total of 24 cousins and is always orchestrated by the tireless Karen was another highlight. Christmas crackers (which hold paper crowns and corny jokes) are a long-standing tradition.

Crabfest 2011 where Rooney (as usual) told some tall tales and we ate insane amounts of shrimp, chowder, and you guessed it...crab.

My dad has a thing for remote-control gadets at Christmas; this year was all about that little yellow helicopter. They are trickier to pilot than you might think. Willem held the record for the longest flight time. Just look at his concentration.

Christmas 2011 Highlights: Part 1

2012-01-02T12:26:00.000-05:00

We spent 18 fun-filled days in Utah over the holidays. A few highlights:
I celebrated my 36 birthday with a coconut cupcake party and lots of love from Anders.

Big Boy gave the boys a concert.

Willem turned the Christmas tree lights on every morning.

We made and ate a gingerbread house.

We had a cookie decorating party with cousins:

LRA

2011-12-01T12:43:00.000-05:00

I had such an amazing time at the Literacy Research Conference in Jacksonville, FL. My roommates and I even made time for a quick trip to the beach. My wind-swept hair looks awesome.

Halloween 2011

2011-11-03T15:42:00.000-04:00

This Halloween, the boys begged me to do something other than just don my trusty old black witch hat. So, I painted my face green. Yes, the creativity is just flowing around here. But, they loved it. Kids are so easy to please at ages 3 and 6.

I kept telling Willem that he was "the cutest skeleton I've ever seen!" But, he was adamant that we take him seriously as a "scary" skeleton. A few of his uh, "scarier" poses:

And Anders went as a ninja that was so super stealth that I only managed to get one, slightly-blurry photograph of him the whole night.

We went to our neighborhood party and were totally put to shame by our friends Bill & Kelly. For not only did they dress their children up (as Snow White and the Prince), THEY also dressed up (as the Evil Queen and her henchmen). To top things off, they also had the GRANDPARENTS dress up (as Beauty and the Beast). It was one big Disney production, I tell you. I'm always so incredulous when parents are able to execute the thematic family costume. It seems really complicated. Maybe if I start planning now, I can come up with something by next year? Oh, and if any of you have any ideas of how to get my husband to participate, please let me know.

October & Midterms

2011-10-23T21:29:00.000-04:00

It is October and for me that means...midterms. Lots of papers to write, projects to complete, books to read, and world-problems to be solved. It can be exhausting! For some reason, semester numero tres seems to be kicking my can. Might be that more is expected of me. I can no longer rely on "I'm only a first year student." Dang.

Anyway. Here are a few things we've been doing this month: there was the superhero day at Willem's preschool:

Willem

Willem in motion

Willem's good friend, Cal. Love the boxers.

One of Willem's amazing teachers, Ms. B.

Willem's other teacher, the beloved Mr. J.

We also attended the last day of fall soccer and it was freezing. As evidence, I present to you one adorable baby ready for the iditarod...

Of course, Anders is impervious to the cold.

We've also been taking lots of walks to see all the Halloween decorations folks put out (pics forthcoming). I don't think anybody does Halloween quite like Athens.

I tell you, it takes a lot of energy to keep up with these wild little munchkins!

Hermeneutics Timeline

2011-10-11T15:29:00.004-04:00

Hermenuetics on Dipity.

Saturday at the Park

2011-09-25T16:36:00.000-04:00

Even though I spend a great deal of time with my head buried in books, I do like to venture out with the boys on the weekends. It makes me feel like I'm a good mom which is a very important thing to feel:). Also, it can be fun (occasionally). WOW park is always a favorite. After about 30 minutes of playing tag, I decided I needed a break and tried to take a couple of photos of these little rascals.

Looking forward to

2011-09-24T19:53:00.000-04:00

the end of mosquito season!!

Settling in

2011-09-09T11:41:00.004-04:00

I wrote that last post--the I can't go on, I'll go on--post almost two weeks ago. Oh, what a difference two weeks can make. Not that I'm sailing through, but the last week has definitely felt more manageable. I've been walking to school and I think that has helped my mood and energy levels considerably. I listen to my ipod, breathe in the fresh air, and feel pretty energized when I get to class.

I'm constantly having to remind myself that it's okay to take a (short) break from thinking about school. We spent all last night at Anders' soccer game. I sat on the quilt on the sidelines and ate grapes and kiwis and yelled helpful hints to Anders about the game (i.e. go get the ball! your goal is in the other direction), while KJ wrangled with Willem. Sitting under the pink clouds getting entirely worked up about something other than school felt so good.

And now a few highlights from the last two weeks:

Anders was awarded Student of the Month.

After school we went to Hodgsons (2 blocks from our house) for $1 ice cream cones (the last great deal in America).

Everyday, (and sometimes twice a day) KJ makes juice with the boys. He's got them trained: Willem knows which setting to put the juicer on for each individual fruit:

The apple-carrot-orange-kiwi is particularly good.

The boys think their juice mustaches are awesome.

Well, we're all caught up now:) I will try to post every week (rain or shine, happy or not).

I can't go on. I'll go on.

2011-08-29T08:08:00.000-04:00

The last four days have been one of those periods where I'm feel like I just can't do it all. I feel overwhelmed, exhausted, discouraged...It doesn't help that I've got a nasty bug--the kind that flattens you and takes away your will to live. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed, take a couple of Nyquil, and sleep it off. Not really an option, but let's just say that I didn't leave the house this weekend.

This morning just as I was beginning to feel like maybe I could go on--Willem vomited all over me/my bed/himself as we were getting ready for preschool--so rather than a few hours of uninterrupted work, there was the work of stripping the bed, 4 loads of laundry, another bath, another shower, and new clothes for all involved. And, then the rest of the day tending to my sick and grumpy little boy.

Later, I found Willem eating a bowl of peanut butter on my freshly washed sheets on my bed. Seriously, not 10 minutes had passed since I put those crisp white sheets on my bed--and already smeared peanut butter. And, let's not forget the nighttime bath--(if you're counting, this is bath #3 for Willem). Willem begged for a glass of water, so I obliged. 30 seconds later, he somehow managed to drop the glass onto the side of the bathtub, shattering it into a million little pieces (an apt metaphor for my state of mind right now). I think it took me a good hour to get rid of all the tiny shards of glass all over the bathroom floor and bathtub. And, now it' 9:06 pm. The boys are still wrestling with each other in their bedroom. I'm going to call it a night, and pray for a better tomorrow...

A More Deliberate Life

2011-08-23T21:55:00.001-04:00

Last Sunday KJ and I watched Into the Silence, which is a surprisingly long film about monks who take a vow of silence. After watching it (and by watching I mean that I saw the first 30 minutes then fell asleep) KJ suggested that I try to lead a "more contemplative, deliberate, and slower life." I didn't really know what he meant. I mean, I'm not a monk. I've got 2 energetic young boys to mother, a PhD program to complete, and a photography obsession to feed, so there aren't a lot of slow moments in my life. So I asked my darling husband, "How, exactly, do I do that?" Here was his advice:

"Cut the carrots."
"Relax a little each day."
"Don't be such a spaz."

Upon further reflection, I had to admit that there are times when I walk aimlessly around the house trying to remember what I was doing and what I need to be doing. I also am easily distracted and take on far too many projects which require me to push myself until I collapse. I guess what I'm saying is there might be some room in my life for a little more deliberate action.

What does that mean in concrete, day-to-day terms? I made a list of a few things I could do:
1. Take a few minutes (10-15) to meditate each day.
2. Listen to music while I wash the dishes (contemplatively).
3. Only check my email in the morning and evening (impossible? possibly).

I think that's good enough for now, don't you?

p.s. If taking pictures of butterflies isn't contemplative, I don't know what is.

A New School Year

2011-08-14T21:23:00.000-04:00

It feels strange to be in school with the weather so hot and muggy. I keep holding my breath for cool nights--and last night I felt a tiny drop in the temperature as if Georgia is thinking about cooling off but isn't quite ready just yet.

Anders has had an interesting first week of first grade. His new thing is to just make-up stories, so you're never really sure what is real and what isn't. For example, his anecdotes from day 1 included: a boy throwing up in his class, everyone going to time out in the Principal's office and getting 8 shots in their eyeball for punishment, no recess, and winning all the games during art class. Hmm. Might be a few tall tales in there.

Will Will starts preschool tomorrow. We attended his open house on Friday and he fell in love with Ms. Mishka, the class mouse, and the rice box.

His little class is full of art and color and just feels like a really wonderfully creative place to play and learn.

And me? Well, I've hired a new babysitter, organized my binders for each of my classes, completed all my paperwork for the year, and now I'm all worn out and classes don't even begin until next Tuesday. Yikes. Guess I need to pace myself, or start implementing my daily nap routine again. Wish me luck...

Storyboarding

2011-08-13T18:05:00.003-04:00

Guess what I did today? I learned how to make storyboards (i.e. collages) in Photoshop. I knew you'd be proud. And all it took was watching four different video tutorials, checking my Scott Kelby book about a hundred times, and experimenting with about 40 templates before I got the hang of it. So, yea. It's pretty easy.

There may be a good chance that I've become addicted to Photoshop. I'd rather Photoshop than eat (good!). But, I'd also rather Photoshop than exert any physical movement (bad!). In any case, once school starts on Tuesday (eek), I'll have to cut back on the amount of time I spend obsessively tweaking my images. Except, of course, for the Kelby Photoshop workshop I'll be attending in Atlanta. A whole day of just pointing and clicking all to myself? Heaven.

These boys are not only totally adorable...

2011-08-07T21:55:00.001-04:00

They also happen to be the best cousins my boys could ever hope for.

I think Lori said it had been twelve years since their last family pictures, so they were definitely overdue for a session. I was happy to oblige, and after Matt fended off the heat-packing security agent demanding a permit from us, we were good to go and got some great images.

See more from their session here.

A Public Service Announcement:

2011-08-06T15:55:00.000-04:00

Don't mess with Phoebe, okay? Whew. Glad we got that straightened out.

Go here to see all of the pictures from my session with Phoebe and her subjects.

There's No Place Like Home

2011-08-02T21:24:00.001-04:00

Even though I love Utah with all my heart, and had a magical July visiting friends and family, it is good to be home. I have fallen into an easy schedule--catching up on bills, sleep, cleaning, and photo editing. Yes, I took a good 1000+ photos (of some of my favorite people in the world) that are now in the process of being edited and uploaded and delivered to their rightful owners. One of my favorites is that darling Leah Bluette pictured above. Lots more of the colorful Schutz' to come...in the meantime, you can always check out their session from last summer here.

Hello Today

2011-07-26T12:24:00.000-04:00

We are missing our KJ big time. Yes, it's fun to spend a month out West, but a month apart from our KJ is starting to take its toll (most significantly on my back which hasn't been rubbed in weeks and is feeling all kinds of tense).

Zippity Do Da

2011-07-22T10:00:00.000-04:00

One of the highlights of summering in Utah (as I like to call it) is spending time with my friends and their children. It's so much fun to see the next generation playing together. Last night, we drove up Provo Canyon to spend the evening at J's cabin. Within minutes of our arrival, the kids had spied the neighbor's nifty zip-line and spent the remaining hours of daylight creating various ways to come down the zipline (twisting, backwards, etc.). They also hunted for peacock feathers, looked for treasures, and dined on the most delicious s'more bars. When we arrived home (at almost 10pm), Anders marched down to his basement room and said, "Good night, Mom. I'm going to sleep." 12 hours later and he is still in dreamland (a first). Easiest tuck in ever.

Happy 37th to KJ

2011-07-19T09:54:00.001-04:00

Look! Willem is so happy it's your birthday he could practically burst!

Anders plays it a little more cool. Hey, he's 6.

Happy Birthday to KJ!

As Anders puts it, Daddy is my heart heart. Yep. It's true. He's pretty awesome.

Among the many reasons that I love this guy:

1. He thinks I’m a really good mom and tells me so all the time.

2. He is an amazing masseuse. As in the best I’ve ever had. I get back/foot/neck massages on an almost-daily basis.

3. Also, he has pretty incredible chiropractic skills. Need an adjustment? Done and done.

4. He’s the funniest person I know.

5. He laughs at my pretty pathetic attempts at humor (I keep a list of the jokes I come up with. It’s pretty short).

6. He adores his boys and is an awesome dad.

7. He listens to me talk endlessly about education.

8. He makes great book recommendations

9. He is an avid fan of music and movies and keeps me in the loop.

10. He’s almost impossible to offend.

11. He’s becoming much more social in his advanced age which is a happy surprise.

12. He knows when to say “I’m sorry.”

13. He thinks I’m sexy. Yes. Love is blind.

14. He always gives me his honest opinion.

15. He doesn’t sugar coat anything.

16. So when he says something is good (a photograph I took, a meal I cooked, an article I wrote), I know it’s good.

17. He reminds me to slow down. To cut the carrots and to relax.

18. He understands and encourages me not too feel guilty when I feel like I don’t do enough.

19. He thinks I’m amazing and tells me so on a regular basis.

20. He encourages napping.

21. He has a beautiful mind.

22. He likes to talk about the big ideas—philosophy, religion, politics, etc.

23. He is a great travel partner.

24. He tells the best ghost stories.

25. He can also generate some pretty awesome song lyrics.

26. He makes the best eggs and homemade pasta.

27. I mentioned he was hilarious, didn’t I?

28. His packing skills are unparalleled. Every move we’ve made (7 and counting) he has packed our belongings in the most organized and systematic manner—as if he is playing (and winning) a larger-than-life game of tetris.

29. He’s super strong. He can move anything (even me).

30. He looks scary, but has a tender heart.

31. He’s one of the few people I know who looks good in a Mohawk.

32. He introduced me to Prezi.

33. He likes to buy me new camera lenses.

34. His teeth are practically perfect in every way.

35. Our combined DNA strands spit out some pretty awesome boys.

36. I think he’s terribly handsome.

37. He’s somebody I want to grow old with.

Themes emerging from our Utah vacation

2011-07-17T00:20:00.000-04:00

Smiley Face Sugar Cookies from Provo Bakery. World's best sugar cookie. I promise.

Hundreds of games of Candyland with Nana & Dukey. Current champ? Anders, of course.

A re-obsession with Cars: those merchandising guys in Hollywood totally know what they're doing.

The Borg Mini Reunion: 2011 edition

2011-07-12T17:38:00.001-04:00

Rachel, Becca, Me, & Jennie

Every summer, my friends and I try to have some sort of mini-reunion with. This year we stayed up at Deer Valley and spent the day shopping, eating, and crafting. These photos were taken at about 9pm and it was getting dark, so they're a little noisy, but I don't care! I'm happy to have documented the memory of the good time we had. Stories were shared. Hearts were gladdened. Spirits were lifted.

I don't know if that's actually true or, not, but I do know that I love these girls!

Rachel, Becca, Heimme, & Jennie

Anders' Commentary on Cars 2

2011-07-07T22:06:00.000-04:00

The Rockets' Red Glare

2011-07-07T19:50:00.000-04:00

We have arrived in our lovely deseret (also known as Utah). The last five days have been full of family parties, visits with friends, fireworks, corn on the cob, watermelon, and lots of treats. It's so nice to think that we still have a full three weeks of activities to come. Now, if I can just get another shipment of NZT, I'll be able to handle it all:)

Uncle Rooney shows Anders his sparkler routine.

It's so happy spending the 4th with our Nana and Dukey.

I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy. . .

Class C fireworks were legalized this year in Utah. So, we took full advantage. The rockets' red glare was proof of the patriotism on Grandview Hill.

A shout out to Show for lighting and setting off all of the explosives (with nary an injury).

Magical Folly Beach

2011-07-01T08:31:00.001-04:00

When our good friends Ms. Nikolina & Co. invited us to join them at a beach house just outside Charleston, SC, we jumped at the chance. I had not yet experienced the beaches in the South, but I was smitten by Folly's white sandy beaches and warm crystal-clear water. Really and truly one of the most beautiful beaches I've been to.

Our beach house had a pink flamingo theme. And by theme I mean that almost every square inch was decorated with pink flamingos. Even the pillars on the garage:

The front yard boasted one of the largest pink flamingos I've ever seen. It was actually a major photo opp. for people walking by.

The boys' room looked (and after a few hours smelled) like the inside of a ship.

When Anders saw this picture, he said, "Look Mom! Willem is flying." Yes, that's how excited Will Will gets when he sees the ocean.

Keith and Willem do a little body surfing.

Anders and Robert digging for treasure.

Willem found a friend, also named Robert, within about 10 minutes of arriving at the beach and the two were inseparable for the rest of the day.

I actually got my picture taken, too. Ms. Nikolina insisted on documenting my presence as we walked out to look at the marshes.

Such a delightful trip (even if I was a little worn out after several weeks of traveling).

Thanks to Ms. N & co. for the memories.

I Heart NYC

2011-06-29T15:35:00.000-04:00

Just three very short days after returning from our Epic East Coast Adventure, I flew to NYC for a conference/girl's week with Rachel and Jennie. It was such fun to shop, eat, and see the sights with two of my very favorite people in the whole world. We stayed in Soho and spent lots of time trekking around the neighborhoods of lower Manhattan.

Highlights:

Music and flowers in Washington Park.

Tiramisu gelato at Ferrara's in Little Italy.

Thrift store and other shopping.

The most amazing macroons at Financieer.

A subway ride (via the scenic route) to Brooklyn for a spectacular view of the city skyline.

Guava Limeade and roasted corn at Havana Cubano.

A viewing of the very happy new Woody Allen film, Midnight in Paris. And lots of other stuff not pictured....

This NYC trip is becoming a biennial tradition that I totally love.

Washington DC

2011-06-27T22:11:00.000-04:00

We made a 2-day pit stop on our way to New York to stay with our good friends, J, D, & B. They were pretty incredible hosts: the four of us travel kind of heavy, if you know what I mean. But, they showed us around the city, put us up in their "garden court" level (that's what they used to call basements in Boston), and even had fresh flowers waiting for us. Pink peonies: be still my beating heart. Maybe my all-time favorite flower ever.

We spent a whole day walking up and down the mall, but I think the highlight of the day for the boys was actually riding on the Metro (and maybe the escalators for D).

Our hosts in the sculpture garden.

I couldn't get over this metal sculptural tree, Graft by Roxy Paine.

Willem and D could have stayed here and fed ducks all day.

For a few of the 32 hours that we spent in the car, we read (and completed), Kate DiCamillo's lovely novel The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, which is about the journey of a bunny rabbit named Edward. Anders & Willem loved hearing this book read aloud. And then we spotted this guy. Totally felt like Edward had joined us for the day.

Yes, I know that there are postcards with better pictures of The Washington Monument, but I had to take my own.

This is Anders' go-to pose when you try to take a picture of him. I guess we need to lay off showing him all those old Nixon clips.

On our way to the Natural History Museum...

Where we saw all sorts of creatures great and small.

Anders lounging in a dinosaur bone.

More Nixon at the National Gallery.

KJ in the Multiverse (a light sculpture created by Leo Villareal ).

New York

2011-06-22T19:32:00.001-04:00

No we are not jumping for joy that our little family reunion has come to an end. The family is just celebrating the fact that I was finally able to figure out a way to take family portrait with me in the photo--a task which involved a mini-van, the self-timer, and a very quick scramble by yours truly to find my spot before the timer went off. It was not an easy feat, my friends, but it's been a decade or so since our last attempt at a portrait, and I was determined. Actually, the picture turned out much better than some professional photos we've had taken. Go figure.

The trip to my parent's place in Afton, NY included riding on tractors, watching trains, petting calves, riding tractors, feeding horses, fishing in the Knight-house pond, hunting for rabbits, spotting skunks, and other country-bumpkin activities.

The view of the house from the river.

They keep all the corn for the cows in this cool "corn crib."

Our neighbor, Earl, loved showing us around on his various tractors.

Here come Anders, Willem, & Earl.

Nothing says country like shirtless boys driving tractors.

Brady caught a ton of fish. I was hoping to have some sort of fish fry...

But I was informed that this was a "catch and release" operation.

Uncle Rooney was instrumental in baiting and catching the fish.

Anders in a contemplative moment. (Actually, I think he was just bit by a mosquito the size of Delaware).

The rabbit trap that the boys set up. Apparently, the rabbit had to eat the carrots and then jump into the box. As you might imagine, the endeavor proved unsuccessful.

Playing tag while eating an apple. Probably not that great of an idea...

A sulky baby.

I had the brilliant idea of holding a family race. Any ideas who came in dead last? Anyone? Anyone?
Yea. It was me.

One of the many things I love about my brother, Rooney, is that he's always happy to have his picture taken.

Three very happy, very dirty little boys.

Our Epic East Coast Road Trip

2011-06-12T20:50:00.022-04:00

And, we're back.

Yep. 2500+ miles, two weeks, over 40 hours in the car and we are finally back to home sweet home.

Our trip took us first to Washington DC, then to upstate New York where we stayed at a 200-year old farmhouse (The Josiah Stowell house) that my parents have lovingly and painstakingly restored. It just so happens that KJ's roommate from college, Jeremy, has recently moved just a couple of green valleys over from my parents' place, so we went and spent a day with him at his lovely farm. Jeremy has such an interesting life; he does some seriously secret computer sleuthing from his home. His wife, Amy, is a bookbinder. In the past year that they've lived on their farm, they've adopted two horses, a donkey, a cat. And, they've planted a big old garden including dozens of blueberry and blackberry bushes. I hope to make it back to their place next summer for the first harvest. Oh, and Jeremy is also a very talented photographer and insisted upon snapping a few family photos. Of course, I obliged. I'm always happy to have documentation that, you know, I exist.

Here we are with George in the background. If you squint, you can see King Wremy in the barn.

Anders loved feeding George.

More hay for George! This guy isn't going to be hungry any time soon.

Spending time in those beautiful little villages in New York reminded me of how much I used to yearn for a big old farmhouse, and lots of land, and a yellow pony. It was a dream I dreamed for a very long time. But, as I get older, I try to spend less time yearning for what I don't have and more time enjoying what I do have. Besides, in just a few short days I get to go to one of my very favorite cities in the world--NYC for a English Education conference/girl's weekend. Yes, this is the glamorous life of a graduate student. Everyone should be so lucky.

Willem at 3

2011-05-28T10:04:00.000-04:00

If you know Willem, you know that he is really "Will Will". And really those are all the words you need to describe this persistent, intense, and spirited little boy with an iron will! I know these qualities will serve him well in life; but they can sometimes be a little frustrating to deal with on a daily basis. Of course, being the patient and loving mother I am, I rarely get frustrated, (ha!). But even when I do it's hard to stay mad at Will Will for long, since several times a day he'll turn to me and say with total sincerity, "Mommy . . . I love you."

Yep, Will Will's got impeccable timing. He knows just when to turn on the charm (at preschool, for example), or when we're out shopping. Sometimes he'll even break out his "Mommy . .. I love you" and people always look at me all delighted thinking they've stumbled upon one of those rare moms who have actually trained her children to behave perfectly all of the time. And I just smile and enjoy it because I know what I have to contend with when I get home.

Happy Birthday, Will Will!

We love you!

Otter Pops

2011-05-22T16:42:00.000-04:00

Is there anything quite as exciting as busting out the first Otter Pops of the season?

Utah Sessions

2011-05-09T22:19:00.003-04:00

Friends,

I’ll be spending most of July in Utah (the boys and I can’t wait!) and while I’m there, I’ve decided to offer a limited number of photography sessions.

We’ve had two family portraits taken (with a third scheduled for this summer) and I can tell you that those family photos are among my most prized possessions. I love the tradition of getting yearly portraits done . . . and I think you should love the tradition, too. :)

Anders at 6

2011-05-06T19:45:00.025-04:00

Dear Anders,

At 6, you are still my beautiful boy. Like Samson, you love your hair long. Little girls on your soccer team try to hold your hand on the field, but you are oblivious to the attention.

This year, you painted a self-portrait in art. Rather than calling it "Anders", or "self-portrait," (much too pedestrian, really), you entitled it "A Person of Joy." And that is just what you are.

You get so excited about the most interesting things. When your dad taught you how to do 2-digit addition, you started jumping up and down as if you'd won the lottery. And you thought that learning your multiplication tables was the highlight of the month of April. Now, you stay up late working on your own little invented math problems. Who knew that numbers could be so thrilling?

There were some bumps along the road, this year, too. Even though you loved school, a full day of kindergarten wore you right out. And there was the time around November when you suddenly started to hate school. We finally figured out that you were just stressed out about your "informational genre paper" on Penguins. No doubt about it, bubby, those research papers are tough! But, we talked it through and since then you've been a happy camper. You love your teacher, and she loves you right back.

Your heart is still super tender. You still cry easily when you get embarrassed or when you think someone else's feelings have been hurt. The highs are high, but the lows are low. You come from a long line of relatives whose emotions run deep and wide. And I wouldn't have you any other way. When I see quiet children who aren't anxious to share a joke or tell a story, or make up a game, I think how lucky I am to have you. I'm so happy I get to be your mama. And you're so happy you get to be my son. We're a good fit, you and I.

Some nights after I've tucked you in, you come back into my room and say, "Mom. Let's talk." Sometimes I make you go right back to your room. But sometimes I say "okay" and we talk about things like our spirits, or space, or how the world began, or why some people have broken hearts. I like talking to you because you ask hard questions that make me think. Sometimes I don't know the answer to them, but you're okay with that because you're happy to generate theories of your own.

I could go on forever about how much I love you, but I'm pretty sure that you know that I love you no matter what. Happy Birthday, sweet boy.

I'm kind of in love with this photograph

2011-05-01T21:27:00.001-04:00

Is that weird? I hope not. See more of the session here.

Easter Parade

2011-04-23T20:44:00.000-04:00

It almost rained on our parade this morning. But, happily, the drizzle ended and the neighborhood egg hunt was on!

Even though there were 2000 eggs to find, these kids snatched them up in just a few minutes. Never underestimate the motivating power of candy!

Whenever Willem found an egg, he gave us the old thumbs up.

Love these boys.

This weekend

2011-04-17T22:38:00.001-04:00

was filled with soccer games, frolicking in fields of daisies, and an amazing brunch at 5 and 10 with my friends Doug and Nikolina.

It felt nice to take a couple days off from reading and writing school stuff.

Now, I'm rested (and my house is clean), so I'm going to hit the books hard tomorrow. Only three more weeks until the end of the semester. Yahoo!

My latest photography sessions here.

And, Utah friends, get ready.

I'll be offering a few photography sessions in the lovely Deseret this July.

Details coming soon!

Security 1, this is security 2. The eagle has landed.

2011-04-11T12:04:00.000-04:00

A Favorite from my session with Nicole . . .

2011-04-03T22:58:00.000-04:00

This session was so much fun--beautiful light, beautiful weather, beautiful people! One of my very favorite shots (and more to come next week)--

Dear Dogwood, Thank you for making our morning walks spectacular. Love, LJ

2011-04-02T07:52:00.001-04:00

Spring Break (and I'm still here)

2011-03-27T20:00:00.002-04:00

Our one and only glorious azalea.

Not much time for blogging lately. Not much time for anything other than the basics (sleep, eat, drink, tend to children, read, write, repeat). However, I did manage to break away from school for some good, old fun over spring break: we took the boys to Chuck E. Cheeses, planted flowers and shrubs in our yard, and spent a lot of time chilling in the front yard. I also wrote one of my two 20+ page papers due next month. Even though it will need some polishing; just having those 20 pages filled with semi-coherent writing feels really great and is a huge relief. I ain't gonna lie; the hardest part about this program (so far) has been adapting to the academic discourse--scholarly writing doesn't come super easily to me and I like having my voice so I'm still trying a figure out a way to effectively meld the two. Anyway, I also found out (officially) that I'll be presenting at the College of English Education conference in the Bronx in June. I'm so excited to get back to NYC; ah, to think that one of my favorite cities is one that doesn't sleep. Kind of ironic given how much I almost constantly yearn for shut-eye right now.

I've been remembering my word for the year: discipline. And, I've come to realize that I need to think about discipline in different ways--not just the 14 hour go at maximum speed. I also have to practice discipline in pacing myself, in not saying "yes" to every opportunity that comes my way, in getting to bed early, in writing hard for a couple of hours and then disciplining myself to "shut off" from school and engage with my boys. That's the problem with me. When I dive in, I dive in with my whole heart and I'm learning that discipline for me might be taking it down a couple of notches, so I don't have a nervous breakdown before I'm 36, you know? I have been pretty good about disciplining myself to write. Dr. K gave me some good advice about writing--put in a good 2 hours a day and then call it good.

And did I tell you I've been hired to photograph all the faculty in my department? I'm having such a good time capturing all of them. You can see a full session with one of my favorite profs over on my photography site. And, here are a couple more faves:

Oh, and did I mention the Wisteria is blooming? And the Dogwood, Daffodils, and Azaleas? Spring in the south is so so beautiful.

Hellebore Festival

2011-03-06T16:39:00.000-05:00

It seems that our vomiting fest 2011 has finally ended, so we took the opportunity to get out and get some fresh air. The Hellebore Festival is held at Picadilly Farms about 10 miles from Athens. It was all very lovely, but after about an hour, we were all tuckered out. This virus has really kicked our collective behinds. I was hoping that this giant Camellia blossom would detract from my puffy, no-make-up face and the dark circles under my eyes, but I'm not so sure how successful I was.

Shiny Happy People

2011-02-28T19:16:00.001-05:00

Lots of fun pictures this weekend including a mini-shoot of this lovely lady; she'll be giving some of these to her husband for his birthday. I hope he loves them as much as I do. Personally, I think she looks radiant!

And here she is with her granddaughter. Yes, you heard me correctly folks. She has four grandkids. Talk about a hip Nana!

And some favorites of my boys:

p.s. Willem's new army crew cut is courtesy of KJ; I seriously feel the need to salute him every time he walks by.

Until he makes this face and then I just want to bite his little nose right off.

Latest Newborn Session

2011-02-21T19:07:00.000-05:00

Here!

Spring in February

2011-02-21T18:25:00.000-05:00

Another week of highs and lows. Monday-Thursday are insanely busy for me. There are books and articles to be read and lots of writing. I had to practice some meditation a few nights to get myself calmed down.

But I find reprieve on the weekends which for me start on Thursday at 5pm when my last class of the week ends. On Fridays KJ is off of work. Our schedule is completely unstructured. KJ told me on our walk yesterday, "I wish every day was the weekend." But, I told him I didn't. I think I enjoy the weekend so much more because I have worked so hard during the week. I enjoy the time I spend with the boys and the luxury of playing out in the front yard everyday. There were times (aka all last year) when I wasn't working where another day with 14 hours to fill became monotonous. So, this variety is a good fit for me, I think. Opposition in all things, right?

Onto our Saturday. In the morning I took Willem to his gymnastics class. It's seriously so entertaining to watch all of these little 2 1/2 year olds on the balance beam and bars. They won't let the parents come out on the floor (we wouldn't want to break the concentration of the toddlers), so pictures have to be taken from the stands. Here's Will Will on the bars.

We spent the rest of our Saturday working in our yard--planting more seeds: carrots, dill, lettuces, cilantro, and some nasturtiams. The peas we planted last week are already sprouting and I am so excited! Only 70 more days until home-grown produce! The boys rode their hot wheels, played with bubbles and side-walk chalk and basked in the 70+ degree weather. I played around with my shutter speed to try and capture motion:

Feel dizzy yet?

Later, I took Anders out to scout for some cool photo locations. Then we went to Yofuria for a little fro-yo.I love having one-on-one play dates with my boys on Saturdays. It's just nice to chill and not worry about them fighting or arguing over something. They are almost always perfectly behaved and we just have a good time talking about whatever it is they want to talk about. It's something I want to continue to do for as long as they're willing to hang out with me. Gosh I love these boys.

Here's to another productive week!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T09:43:00.000-05:00

Hope your day is full of sweetness and love.

Black-eyed Baby

2011-02-11T21:04:00.003-05:00

Some pictures of my little Will Will with his black eye (too much jumping on the bed, but don't tell my mom)!

Zephyr's newborn session here.

I've been thinking a lot about work-life balance (I've been feeling a bit unbalanced the past week or so) and I love this post from Ali Edwards.

I totally agree that there might not be such a thing as work-life balance. You must be present when you are with your children and present when you are with your partner and present when you're doing your work. Then you will achieve peace. Now, if I can do all of that, I will be good as GOLD.

In other news, I learned to play cricket in my globalization class last night and . . . .*censored by KJ**.

We like to keep things interesting in this neck of the woods.

The Boys

2011-02-05T20:03:00.001-05:00

Our Weekend

2011-01-30T20:59:00.000-05:00

involved a short-lived Mohawk, multiple games of soccer in the front yard (it was 68 degrees on Saturday), a picnic (outside!), a pretend camp out in our living room (complete with a blanket tent and s'mores) and taking lots of photos. I also spent several hours worrying about my globalization paper due next week. Luckily, I have KJ here to talk me back down to reality. Whew.

See my very first newborn session here!

Blue & Nubby

2011-01-27T11:42:00.000-05:00

I'm exploring hue and texture here.
I might have to move my blog wholesale over to Lindy Louise.
We'll see!

Oh Snap!

2011-01-23T21:21:00.000-05:00

I'm starting a new weekly post called

"Oh Snap! Photo Tips and Tricks"

over on my photography blog.

Check it out here

Atlanta Aquarium

2011-01-16T12:26:00.002-05:00

We also went to the Atlanta Aquarium for the first time while my mom was here. It really is an amazingly well-designed space: very interactive for the kids and pretty awe-inspiring for the adults (tanks the length of football fields accompanying by swelling orchestral music). Photography was pretty tricky--low light plus shooting through thick/rounded glass, but at least I have some memories of our trip.

Willem was totally smitten with the penguins (actually I think the feeling was mutual).

While oogling this giant crab we started talking to a young boy (maybe 10) about how good those crab looked. Suddenly his grandmother broke in, "WHO FED YOU CRAB?" "My mom" he said.
Then my mom chimed in, "I think it's delicious."
Then the grandmother got really angry, "Not if you're JEWISH it's not!" And then her grandson said, "I'm not Jewish." And his grandma was all, "Oh yes you are." And he was all, "No, I'm not."
And then we decided that was a good time to check out the next exhibit.

First Semester Wrap-Up

2011-01-15T21:17:00.001-05:00

Me and Will Will comfortably resting in the mouth of a giant whale at the Atlanta Aquarium.

It's really unbelievable to me that I've already completed the first semester of my doctoral program. Wow. It's been a wild ride and I feel badly that I haven't been better about documenting my thoughts about school. So, I've cobbled together a few random thoughts/notes from some emails and my "research journal." I want to have some documentation of my first semester--if only so that I can look back in a couple of ~~years~~ months and have a good laugh.

September
Did you ever get the feeling that you needed to take a year off to read/get caught up on everything going on in the field/ and then come back to graduate school? That's kind of how I'm feeling right now. It's like, "Dang. I don't know anything!" There are hundreds of books and articles to read, conferences to write proposals for, data to analyze. It's hard to figure out how to best use of my time . . . I'm sure I'll get there but as for now it's informational overload! Still, I'm thrilled to be here at UGA. The professors are great and very supportive and most of the people I've met seem pretty cool and down-to-earth. Plus Athens=Amazing. I'd be happy to stay here forever.

October
I'm doing well. I feel like I've settled into a groove and honestly feel like I'm getting amazing guidance/support/mentoring from the best names in the field. My mentor, Dr. X, is immensely helpful teaching me about how to become a researcher and how to navigate the profession. I've started a small research project that will look at doctoral students' mentorship experiences here at UGA. Happily, the Associated Dean of the College is really interested in this project and has lent me the support of her evaluation team to design and disseminate surveys, etc. It feels really good to have at least started a small project that seems relevant to other people. My actual classes are a mixed bag; I'm not terribly crazy about my qualitative methods. The subject matter, an examination of the theoretical and philosophical traditions of the 20th century that have shaped educational theory is fascinating, but the professor's teaching style is a straight up lecture/PowerPoint presentation for 3 hours. It requires several diet cokes to stay awake!! I'm also taking a literacy for young children course, but it's online and, again, I'm finding that I'm not terribly crazy about the professors pedagogical methods.r?

November

School has been crazy busy, and even though I'm usually pretty organized, I'm pretty overwhelmed (in a wonderful/challenging/exciting way)! I'm still plugging away on my research project on how doctoral students are mentored. I'm also starting to work on some proposals for upcoming conferences in New York and Chicago. I head to Orlando for the NCTE (National Conference for Teachers of English) in a couple of weeks. I'll be rooming with my former mentor teacher from Boston (who is now a prof. at UT, Austin), so it should be a fairly good time. It's so fun working with famous (in my field) people--I'm happy to hang on their coattails and follow them around like an over eager puppy dog.

December

This semester has been intense. But, I've learned so much and I feel like I kind of have my mind wrapped around the things I need to do and think about in order to be successful in grad. school.

January

After a month-long break I'm ready to get going again. I'm excited about the courses I'm taking: Popular Culture, a course on Vygotsky called "Seminar on Thought and Language" and a class in the Grady School of Journalism called "The Logics of Globalization" which looks at media through an international/theoretical "prism." It's interesting comparing the dynamics between doctoral-level courses in different schools--there is definitely a different vibe in the Grady school. There seems to be more posturing/sarcasm/political jargon /celebrity references but I suppose that is to be expected. It remind me that I definitely belong in the department of Language & Literacy--they are *my* people.

Boys' Room Makeover

2011-01-15T20:50:00.000-05:00

Yet another project my mom and I tackled over the break was the boys' room. I'm pretty happy with the way it's coming together considering:
1. We're renting this place and we're honoring the landlord's request that we keep the bedrooms white
2. We're on a pretty limited budget.
3. Their room is tiny and not exactly light-filled.

Here's what I spent:
Race Car Poster..................................................$20
Sun and Owl Wall hangings from Darlybird...........$36
Alphabet from Darlybird.......................................$15
Curtains (made me with fabric from IKEA)...........$10
Wooden letters (sponsored by Pat).......................$20
Scrapbooking paper to cover wooden letters........$10
Vintage school house painting (sponsored by Pat)..$25
_____________________________________________________________
Grand Total ............$136

I'm not totally finished; I still want to get a map for the wall next to Anders' bed and maybe hang a few of his own creations, but at least the room is presentable. It's pretty easy to drop a small fortune on decorating your house. But, a hundred bucks or so to make the boys room NOT look like the state penitentiary? Totally a *good thing*.

Before

After

Snopocalypse 2011 (and my mom's visit)

2011-01-13T09:49:00.092-05:00

Maybe you've heard the news that Georgia has been buried by the storm of the century. Everything (schools, restaurants, the gas stations, and most tragically Old Navy) have been closed for the past 5 days. I have cabin fever big time, but it does give me time to update my blog on my mom's visit. Oh, we had such a good time. KJ was off in Los Angeles presenting at the annual MLA conference, so my mom got me all to herself. We stayed up late talking and rose early each day (at her command) to begin the day's projects.

I inherited my Grandma's (Stella) teacup collection when she passed away several years ago. But in one of our moves, the teacup shelf somehow was stolen/disappeared. I've been searching for a just-right replacement for years. I spotted this little plate/tea cup shelf a few weeks ago and I was oh-so-happy to find it still waiting for me at A Weekend Affair (still not sure about the name of that place--is it like we're having an affair with the antiques or going there is as pleasurable as an affair, or what?) Anyway, here's the shelf before.

And after filled with all my lovelies:

It's hanging above my dining room table in my little yellow kitchen and it makes me happy every time I look at it.

Now, onto the curtains. I wanted something colorful, but didn't want them to look too homemade or like I'd ordered them from the Kountry Kousins Kurtains catalog. I had bought some colorful fabric and a little rickrack a few months ago and figured I whip these babies up in just a few hours (it took me 8 hours--dang, those ruffles are tricky)! So, I was relieved when KJ got home and told me, "I like those kitchen curtains. Really cool. Are they from Anthropologie?" Is there a greater compliment for a hand-made project? I think not.

Now, here's a question to ponder: is it possible that a penchant for turquoise rickrack runs in my DNA? Because my mom bought me that cute little apple dish towel below in Utah long before she knew that I had bought fabric with turquoise rickrack for the trim. And we all know how I like to coordinate my dish towels and curtains.

Anyway my kitchen now looks much cheerier. And if you know me well, you know that my kitchen always looks this clean (ha!).

Athen's Itinerary

2011-01-03T22:25:00.001-05:00

Downtown Athens. Image via Road Hug USA

It's 10:17pm and I've just finished painting the boys' room. I've been wanting to paint it ever since we moved in; it was a pretty depressing jail-cell gray, but I needed the impetus of my mom's arrival (tomorrow) to actually motivate me to finish the project. So, the room is freshly painted (a cottage white) and our itinerary is all set. I designed it to maximize fun and minimize work/cooking/cleaning. No bakery will go unvisited! No boutique unperused!

Day 1

Atlanta Aquarium

Gallery 63/Gift Fair

Dekalb Farmer's Market for lunch

Evening: 2nd Christmas!

Day 2

-Ike & Jane's for breakfast.

Go to Antique shop on Milledge, Home Place, and Suka in Five Points. Go to Weekend Affair.

-Restore 532 Barber Street

-Potter's Thrift Store 434 Prince Avenue

Lunch @ White Tiger Gourmet in the Boulevard district

Afternoon: Projects (decorating boys' room)

Evening: Cali n Titos for dinner

Walking Tour of Campus

Hodgson's for ice cream cones

Day 3:

-Make kitchen curtains

-Treehouse Toy Store

Dinner @ 5 & 10 (babysitter for boys)

Day 4:

Lunch @ Taqueria El Sol De Zacatecaz

*More projects:

Day 5:

Gymnopedie or Foundry Park Inn for brunch

Visit Memorial Park

Drive to quaint Madison

Day 6:

Downtown:

Lunch @ DePalma's

Shop/browse boutiques on West Clayton:

*Helix, Minx, Aogra, Toula's, Frontier, Menagerie

Dinner @ Thai Spoon

Congratulating Yourself

2011-01-03T22:17:00.000-05:00

I spent the first day of 2011 at a pretty intense yoga workshop called "Radiant Heart." The goal of the workshop was to solidify our intentions for the year and to tap into the boundless life force in all of us. Our teacher, Shannon, taught us some really interesting principals. The one that sticks out for me most is that surrendering will help us dedicate ourselves to the hard work of daily practice. That's a tough one for me and one that I obviously need to work on getting my mind around in the upcoming year. Lots of pearls of wisdom in the class. And, a few funny things, too. For example, Shannon told us to "Congratulate yourself. . . on being you." Maybe that will become my new mantra. It makes me smile every time I say it. So, go ahead. Congratulate yourself on being you.
Happy 2011!

*The photography giveaway is still underway! Go here to enter!*

An Announcement and a Giveaway!

2011-01-01T16:13:00.000-05:00

In case you hadn't noticed that little button over on my sidebar, I've been working on a new photography website and to celebrate I’m giving away a photography package worth $200! Go here to enter: Good luck and Happy New Year!!

My Word of the Year

2010-12-31T15:14:00.001-05:00

Remember how I have the tradition (well I've done it once) of picking a word for my upcoming year? A word to inspire and motivate and guide me? Well, last year, if you remember, my word was Energy, and boy am I feeling energetic. Really. I analyzed how and what I spent my time on and made some pretty big changes. I cut out television completely. I carefully cleaned out my Google Reader and I learned the joys and energy-giving properties of a daily nap. I mean, I've been napping semi-regularly since the boys came along. But, and this is important, I no longer feel GUILTY about taking a nap. See, I always kind of beat myself up internally if I took a nap. Like, what's wrong with me? Why don't have I more energy? I should be able to go from sun up to sun down with vim and vigor! But, then I found out that my ridiculously productive advisor has been religiously napping from 11-12noon daily for the past 30 years or so. He swears it's the secret to his success. Instead of slogging through those late afternoon hours, he's busily working on some new project or other, completely refreshed from his siesta. Because I pretty much copy whatever my advisor does, I now schedule a nap in everyday if I can and feel really great about it. It's fabulous. Highly recommended, dear reader. Highly recommended!

For 2011 the word I've chosen is . . .

D I S C I P L I N E

If there is one thing I admire in others that I lack, it's discipline. You know, those sickies who get up every morning at 5:30am to go running, or manage to turn down dessert after every meal, or write for hours every single day no matter what? Not that any of those things are my to-do list, but if they were I'd have a heck of a hard-time getting any of them done more than once or twice a year. In reality, I just want to be more disciplined about cleaning up the kitchen after every meal, getting to a yoga class on a regular basis, and going on a weekly date night with KJ. Stuff like that. So, that's my word. Hopefully next year I'll be all hard core and disciplined. That would be awesome.

A few more Christmas Pictures

2010-12-29T22:06:00.000-05:00

This year was not only the year of the Hot Wheel, but also the year of snowman. Willem is obsessed: he's watched the old school Frosty movie countless times; we read Lois Ehlert's delightful Snowballs every night, and we ate a bunch of these little rice krispy guys (made with those fabulous and I'm certain all-natural gingerbread-flavored marshmallows).

Also, just so you you know, my children occasionally wear shirts. For example when we go out to dinner or when my mom visits.

Willem was also obsessed with our Christmas tree. Every morning he'd run into the family room, turn on the Christmas tree lights and gasp as if seeing it anew, "Mom! Look! It's a Christmas tree! It's beautiful!" Of course his reverence for this thing of beauty did not prevent him from breaking many of the ornaments.

Nikolina sent us the most lovely package full of treats. Among my favorites was this cute little tin full of milk chocolate bars.

We've had so much time off (it's been 19 days since I finished the semester)! And at times, I haven't quite known what to do with myself/the boys. We've spent a lot of time watching great old movies: there have been multiple viewings of "Mary Poppins", "Home Alone", and "9." I read a great literary thriller called Codex, and we've taken lots of long walks. Here's KJ on the way to one of our "nature adventures."

And some frosted window panes.

Christmas 2010: The Year of the Hot Wheel

2010-12-25T21:10:00.000-05:00

Wrapping Presents

2010-12-25T20:58:00.000-05:00

Christmas Hue & Texture

2010-12-25T20:48:00.003-05:00

Marta Locklear (a photographer I adore) has issued a weekly photography challenge and I've been playing along. This week the challenge was to capture the hues and textures of your Christmas. Here we go:

More Christmas Festivities

2010-12-17T22:23:00.002-05:00

Last weekend was the coldest weekend in the history of Georgia. I don't know if that's really true or not, but it could be because the high hovered around 20 degrees and that is just not supposed to happen in the South. Thankfully, we had some friends come for the weekend and they proved to be a delightful distraction from the inevitable cabin fever. Many dozens of cookies were baked (this gingerbread recipe from ourbestbites.com was a clear favorite), decorated, and devoured. Crafts were completed (note that Maren makes pipe-cleaner snowflakes that would put Martha to shame) and pillow forts built.

Another Year Older (and hoping a bit wiser)

2010-12-17T21:49:00.001-05:00

My front porch this year; we're going with a minimalist approach

Yes, it's true, another year has passed and I feel compelled to reflect a bit upon my 34th year. Oh the last few years. They have been a roller-coaster. One year ago I found out that I had been accepted to the Language & Literacy doctoral program and I spent the next several months agonizing over whether I'd made the right decision to go. I was filled (as usual) with so many "what ifs". And I drove myself (and my husband) slightly insane with my wonderings: Will I like it? Will I be any good at it? What if I hate it? What if it's overwhelming? What if I get stressed out?

As with all things (and it seems like I'm having to learn this lesson over and over and over) everything turned out just fine. We packed up and moved our stuff (for the 3rd time in 2 years!) to lovely Athens. And yes, our house is tiny, but we love our neighborhood. I love my program. And my advisor. It is hard work and I'm busy but it's all good. Better, really, than I had imagined (because I tend to imagine/worry about the worst). I think, no, I know for sure that I've spent way too much of my life waiting for certain things to happen in order to allow myself to be fully content and happy. I think that the past few years have cured me of that terrible disease; I can be happy now. Right now. Right here. And I am.

Merry & Bright

2010-12-09T16:06:00.001-05:00

Last night we kicked off the Christmas Holidays with a family viewing of the classic A Christmas Story accompanied by several dozen Candy Cane Joe Joe's (the Trader Joe version of Oreos--only way better). While we'll never get rich leading the academic life, we do appreciate having an entire month off of work/school to do stuff like put up Christmas decorations. You don't want to know how long it took me (or how many trips I had to make to Joann's) to make this "Merry and Bright" garland, but I love the way it turned out.

The boys and I made (and ate) our gingerbread house/chalet.

And, I whipped up some granola for neighbor/favorite professor gifts.

Fa la la la la . . .

Some Random Fall Shots

2010-12-05T18:33:00.001-05:00

A Ginko tree in our neighborhood

I guess I never got around to posting some of these shots I took last month; I figured I better get them up before I start posting my Christmas photos. Fall in Athens is ridiculously beautiful. Saturated colors; deep blue skies; perfect weather. I kind of thought that after moving from Boston, we'd never get that glorious fall experience again. But I think that Athens gives New England a run for its money in terms of awe-inspiring foliage.

This is the felt birthday crown I made for Anders' 5th birthday--back in May. I guess I never posted a picture because when I mentioned it to my mom she told me she'd never seen it. There you go, patter!

All three cute boys heading out for a walk.

We've got a Pecan Tree in our front yard and we actually harvested a few; unfortunately, a lot of the nuts dropped early (if you're a Pecan expert, help me out)!

This is "Goku Spawn." I came home one day to find that KJ had created a Goku costume for Anders entirely out of computer paper. Pretty impressive!

'Tis the Season

2010-11-30T08:28:00.000-05:00

I officially started listening to Christmas music this week. I've got my Roches mixed CD (thank you Ms. Nikolina) on permanent repeat.
A little taste of their awesome harmonies:

Thanksgiving at Nikolina's | Athens, Georgia Photographer

2010-11-26T11:50:00.002-05:00

As I watched Ms. Nikolina at work in the kitchen preparing our Thanksgiving Feast, I kept thinking she is like a Russian Nigella Lawson. The woman deserves her own cooking show. Seriously.

The Menu

1. Porcini Mushroom Turkey with Mushroom Gravy

2. Three-Mushroom Dressing with Prosciutto

3. Roasted Cranberry Sauce with Herbed Candied Walnuts

4. Smashed Rutabagas with Ginger-Roasted Pears

5. Iron-Skillet Succotash

6. Sauteed Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Ham

7. Pumpkin Pie

8. Golden brown Butter and Pecan Praline Tart

The kitchen assistants:

Brussels sprouts fresh off the stalk; I've never seen them sold this way.

The meal was immediately followed by this:

And this:

And a little of this:

(That's Doug's daughter, Kat, with her boyfriend, Shane)

I'm so thankful that Nikolina invited our family to her home for Thanksgiving; the food was divine, the children played happily together for hours, several of us got a nap in, and I got to catch up with my dear friend.

As we drove home from Ms. Nikolina's later that night, KJ begin a game of "I'm thankful for . . . ."

He started off with "I'm grateful for my family."

I added, "I'm grateful for my family, too."

And Anders finished it up with, "I'm grateful for poop."

Oh, the humor of a 5 year-old boy.

But, we kept the game going, and eventually Anders moved on to other things he's grateful for . . . "The army of the United States of America (?). . . my mom, my dad, my baby brother, my brain, my nana, my dukey, Jesus."

This year I've got so much to be grateful for, including but not limited to:

-my KJ and his great support and confidence in me, plus all of the sacrifices he makes (including a lengthy commute to his job) so that I can get my PhD

-my beautiful boys

-my brilliant advisor at UGA who is incredibly kind and supportive and just generally awesome

-living in Athens

-my parents who have supported me in whatever crazy dreams I had (including marrying a poet/English professor/traveling around the world/and changing my major to philosophy)

-books, travel, good friends, and Diet Coke.

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Allison | Athens, Georgia Photography

2010-11-24T17:01:00.002-05:00

I'm just back from Orlando where I attended the NCTE (Nat'l Conference of Teachers of English) Convention. It was an inspiring trip--full of amazing sessions, cool people, little food, and lots of ideas; my brain feels like it might explode! But, the best part of my trip was that I got to share a room with my good friend, Allison. Allison was my mentor teacher while I interned at Dorchester High in Boston Public Schools. She is now a professor of Language and Literacy at The University of Texas, Austin, but most importantly---she is going to be a mama in a few months! I asked her if she wanted a few belly pics for posterity and she agreed. So, early one morning before our sessions started, we snapped a few pictures in our hotel room, and then ventured out into the hotel courtyard. Allison was such a good sport and positively glowing. I can't wait to meet her new baby boy!

A Weekend with Friends

2010-11-16T19:02:00.002-05:00

As you might imagine, I've been kind of busy and have been slacking on the blogging front. However, I have been documenting all of the fun we've been having this fall. So, here's a little taste of our very busy and very enjoyable weekend:

First, our friends Maren, Jonah, and Lucas, drove out from Augusta to spend the day with us. Anders and Jonah were so excited to see each other and were pretty much inseparable the entire day. We spent the morning at the World of Wonder playground.

Then we headed over to our favorite neighborhood restaurant, Cali-N-Titos for some grub. The great thing about Cali-N-Titos is that it's all outdoors so Maren and I got to sit and chat while the boys played.

That's Maren and Lucas above. Maren is from Germany and always looks very chic with her sleek bob and European sunglasses.

Of course we ordered the chips and avocado pico.

Then the boys played on the outdoor playground and I tried to grab a few shots.

Oh those boys are cute.

And Anders snapped this one of Maren and I. Not too shabby.

Later that night, we headed over to Anders' friend's "Disco" (yes, you read that correctly) Birthday Party held here:

I witnessed some pretty awesome moves.

After the party, the boys and I headed next door to Big City Bread Cafe for some cookies and hot chocolate.

So cozy, pretty, and peaceful (until Willem thew a tantrum).
I'm totally loving fall in the South.

Lauren & Family

2010-11-14T22:09:00.000-05:00

Lauren and her family live on the most beautiful farm outside of town. Oh my goodness. It's an amazing piece of land. They have chickens and a garden and everything. Really cool. Her little girl is in Anders' class; can you tell that she loves animals and wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up?

Halloween 2010

2010-11-01T20:28:00.002-04:00

A quick post just so my parents don't disown me!

This Halloween Anders was a "Bumblebee Transformer/Ninja" and Willem was a pirate. (I was a friendly witch).

We celebrated at a neighborhood party.

I brought these little mummy veggie hotdogs. Anders thought they were hysterical and ate about 4 of them.

I am just now recovering from the sugar-induced coma that came about after gorging on way too much candy.

Hope you had a Happy Halloween!

The boys | Athens Georgia Photographer

2010-10-17T22:25:00.001-04:00

After seeing all of the photo shoots I've been doing lately, Anders insisted that he and Willem have a little session of their very own. He spent several days telling me about all the outfits he would wear and the different locations we could go to. Here are the results.

Drum roll please . . . . . . .

Oh well.

It was worth a try.

Bathing Beauty | Athens Georgia Childrens Photographer

2010-10-17T22:14:00.000-04:00

Willem | Athens Georgia Family Photographer

2010-10-17T22:04:00.001-04:00

I mentioned Will Will had a sweet tooth, right?

Right.

Bill & Kelly | Athens Georgia Photography

2010-10-17T12:47:00.002-04:00

My latest session was with Bill & Kelly. You wouldn't know it, but Kelly is due to have a baby boy in January! Aren't they an adorable family?

Did you notice little V's tights? They're called "bear bottoms." Love it.

It's Gourd Season

2010-10-15T21:02:00.000-04:00

The weather here? Glorious. Just ridiculously so. I couldn't make any of us stay inside so I declared a "Fun Friday" and let Anders stay home from school; we made letter pancakes for breakfast, spent $5 at the dollar store for some Halloween crafting supplies, ate grilled hotdogs and hamburgers for lunch, and then came home and starting decorating.I tried to document our day so that I when the boys complain that we "never do anything fun" I can refer them to this post.

KJ created our milk jug ghosts.

Chelsea | Athens Georgia Senior Photographer

2010-10-10T22:59:00.002-04:00

I'm fairly certain that I somehow managed to hire the world's most beautiful babysitter. Meet Chelsea, the lovely young lady who takes really great care of my boys a couple of times a week. (And, yes, Anders & Willem are in love).

Yung & John | Athens GA Family Photographer

2010-10-02T22:05:00.002-04:00

I just finished a photo session with my friends Yung & John. It was a pleasure capturing these two and their strong bond. Yung is absolutely beautiful--we even had another photographer who walked by and told me I had a great "model"! Yung, I hope you love these as much as I do.

Yogis

2010-09-21T15:24:00.000-04:00

K has started up a yoga routine. Every Wednesday night, he's off to our neighborhood yoga center. When he gets home, he shows off all of his moves. Then we all try to copy him with varying degrees of success. Willem definitely has the most skills of anyone in the family right now.

Go, Will Will, Go!

World of Wonder

2010-09-18T18:50:00.000-04:00

World of Wonder is such a great playground. It's just a few minutes from our house and always provides a nice way to spend the afternoon. Unfortunately, the sun was pretty high in the sky, so the light wasn't great for taking pictures, but it's all about preserving the memories, right?

This is my new favorite shot of Willem.

He just kind of melts my heart on a daily basis.

Oconee Forest, Athens

2010-09-10T09:14:00.000-04:00

On Monday we spent a good junk of our afternoon in the Oconee Forest. They have these little "fitness" centers along the trails, so as you can see, we also put the kids through a pretty rigorous workout. I told K that having Anders and Willem is like having two rowdy dogs; you've got to take them out and run them everyday!

This Week . . .

2010-09-05T20:50:00.001-04:00

Our hibiscus are blooming. The humidity has broken and I can feel fall in the air; cool nights and mornings are finally here.

Anders was awarded the student of the month for "being kind."

Our new friends, Yung, and John came over. John is in Anders' kindergarten class and has only been in America since August 7th. Last week at parent's night, his mom, Yung asked, "Who is Anders' mom? John is always talking about Anders so we need to get them together." So we did. It turns out that Yung is a visiting professor in my dept. at UGA this year! What a happy connection.

Yung made us Ho-Dduk which is a special treat from South Korea. "I know Americans like sweet stuff" Yung told me, and she was right; the kids and Keith and I loved these pancakes that are filled with cinnamon-sugar and nuts. They kind of taste like a cinnamon-sugar donut. Yum.

K finished putting away his books in our new IKEA Expedit bookshelves.

I got my haircut.

Still trying to decide if I want to keep it short or grow it out.

Read lots of articles, wrote a couple of papers, and went to a rousing talk by Deborah Ball from the University of Michigan.

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone

2010-08-22T09:21:00.000-04:00

This first week of graduate school has been accompanied by epic, apocalyptic rainstorms. The kind where you think, "wow. good thing my house is built upon a rock." But yesterday evening, the clouds cleared for an hour or so and we took it as an opportunity to get out of the house. Sure, there were throngs of mosquitoes, mud everywhere, and sticky skin, but we got rid of our cabin fever. Oh, and though I'm slightly overwhelmed with school, I'm going to try (on the wise counsel of mle) to continue to keep up with my other hobbies. I'm pretty sure school could swallow me up, so hopefully the camera will keep me both present and grounded. After looking at these pictures I realized that they captured a lot of the emotions I experienced my first week . . . for example, I kind of felt like Anders on the monkey bars. Just "Close your eyes, hang on and go for it."

I was on my toes a lot (a 9 year break from school will do that to you).

I had to carefully balance all of my duties, time, and energy.

I kind of felt like slapping a couple of people in the face.


I cried a lot.

Just kidding about the crying part.
But not the hitting part.

Darlybird Give Away

2010-08-20T09:13:00.001-04:00

Happy 4th Birthday, Darlybird!

To celebrate, Rachel is giving away four $50 gift certificates.
Woo-hoo.

Head on over to Darlybird

for a chance to win.

More Colour Lovers: I can't quit.

2010-08-12T21:41:00.000-04:00

Had to show you my latest palette. I'm obsessed.

Oh, and look at all the patterns I created with it:

Yes, I know.
I need to get a life.
I'm working on it.

Colour Lover

2010-08-12T21:01:00.000-04:00

I'm so in love with Colour Lovers. I have spent the better part of the evening creating palettes and patterns and colors. Oh my. Totally inspiring. And to think I only discovered it today! I could have spent years wasting time over there. A shame, really.

Here's one of the palettes I created:

Plus some of my absolute favorites created by others:

You can also turn your palettes into patterns like this:

Then you can turn those into fabric/wall hangings, you name it. etc. It's perfect for fulfilling that secret wish we all have of being fabric designers.

Which palette do you like best, for say, a new logo?

Anna

2010-08-12T12:51:00.000-04:00

Some more shots of the adorable, Anna.

Let Them Eat Cupcakes

2010-08-10T06:00:00.000-04:00

So while I was in Utah last month, I ate well. Too well. One of my very favorite over-indulgences was a cupcake (or 6) from the new bakery, Cupcake Chic. I've eaten cupcakes from coast-to-coast and I can honestly say that their Coconut Cupcake is the best cupcake I've had the pleasure of eating. First of all, just the heft of it is impressive. The cake is dense and moist but not overly sweet. And the coconut frosting? Divine. Immediately after taking my first bite, I thought of Rachel and of our quest to find the best cupcake in New York last summer, so I called her (while licking the cupcake frosting from my fingers) and said, "You must get to Cupcake Chic now!" She loved them, too. And she thought they'd be great models for her adorable cupcake liners. So we set up a little photo shoot. Don't they look delish?

You can buy the cupcake liners

(I refuse to bake cupcakes in anything less!)

at Darlybird.

Anders' Bedtime Schedule

2010-08-09T16:21:00.000-04:00

Here's the routine I was talking about in the previous post. We actually made both a morning and bedtime routine since we all (ahem) have a little problem getting going in the morning.

I should add that Anders and I worked on these together (with the understanding that he had to be in bed by 7pm). I asked him what he wanted to do and in what order. And lest you think I'm totally insane, I don't always put my kids to bed at 7pm. This summer it was more like 9pm. But, as they explained at the Kindergarten orientation, 5 year-olds need 11 hours of sleep. So if they have to get up at 6:30am, they ideally should be asleep at 7:30pm.

We'll see how long we can keep up this level of organization!

And so it begins

2010-08-09T09:48:00.000-04:00

Anders looks pretty bright-eyed and bushy-haired for 7:15am. Willem, on the other hand, has inherited my tendency to puff up significantly overnight.

Willem and I dropped Anders off this morning for his very first day of Kindergarten. It's definitely a watershed moment--sending my first born off to a full day (yes, 7 hours!) of school. But, I really do feel like he is in the best possible hands. As most of you know, I researched for months to find the best possible school for Anders and I think I've found a really amazing place in his elementary school.

Last week, at Back to School night, for example, they hosted a huge pot-luck for all the families. Everyone brought a dish and since the community is so diverse it was a big like being at a really good, international Chuck-o-rama. Maybe I should have left that comparison out. But, really, it was a sight to see hundreds of people from all over the world sitting down to dinner together. Of course, since it is the South, people are incredibly hospitable and friendly. We left feeling like we were part of a community which is pretty amazing after only one night.

The school also held a Kindergarten orientation for new parents to the school. To give you a sense of the kind of place it is:

When it was time to get started, one of the speakers, Mimi, rang a nice sounding chime and then explained, "Parents. This is a tool we use here to signal to the children that we are about to make a transition. We like to use this rather than yelling or raising our voices."

I had to laugh because it totally reminded me of that teacher on Beavis and Butthead who on the first day of class says, "Discover your seats, children."

But, really, I love their philosophy of responsive teaching.

I found it very reassuring to hear the principal of the school talk about what it was like going through Kindergarten with her son last year. She talked about the transitions he went through and gave us tips for making sure our kids didn't get overly tired including making a chart for the bed-time routine (which we subsequently have done; it seems to be working really well). Then the librarian, Mr. P, (who just won the Georgia Exemplary Library Award) told us about all the exciting plans he has in store for the year, including the theme of the year "Superheroes", a story-book parade through the neighborhood (in place of dressing up for Halloween, the students dress up as story-book characters), Dr. Seuss day and on and on.

So, you can see why I feel like Anders is in good hands.

p.s. Georgia starts school in the middle of the "dog days" of summer because it is too hot and humid to do anything but stay inside an air-conditioned building! Really. It's 100 degrees with 87% humidity today. School lets out in May when the weather is much more conducive to things like breathing.

The Smallest Wallpaper Job in the World!

2010-08-04T18:56:00.001-04:00

Okay, so I'm back in Athens and am finally settling back in after our epic 5 week trip to Utah. I can't believe that it takes me an entire week to acclimate back to my old (new) surroundings, but it does. I took over 1000 photos while on our vacation and I need to sift through and process them, but in the mean time here's a little snippet of my day.

Since we're renting our little house here in Athens, I've been trying to brainstorm inexpensive and non-permanent ways to make it look and feel like home. So when I saw this idea to spruce up your medicine cabinet in a magazine I thought I'd give it a go.

Here's the medicine cabinet before. Could it get any more depressing?

And here it is after:

Maybe the best part? The grand total cost of this project was $0.59! Totally in our budget.

Darlygirls | Athens Georgia Photographer

2010-07-25T14:38:00.001-04:00

Rachel is one of my dearest friends on God's green earth. We get each other on a soul level, which I've discovered is a rare gift. I'm so grateful for our friendship and for the chance to capture some happy memories of her and her darling girls.