CHANTINGS FROM THE UNDERBRUSH

Happy Holidays Everyone :D

2011-12-24T12:53:00.000-06:00

My kids are still hilarious....

2011-10-13T14:14:00.001-05:00

when I remember what they say. The other night we went to my cousins volleyball game and when we said bye to my uncle, Archer said "bye you little poop fart!" and hasn't stopped using the phrase "poop fart" since.

i mean....AWWWW.

2011-05-23T13:47:00.000-05:00

i picked up my camera again...and it felt amazing.

2011-04-29T21:26:00.009-05:00

Photos like these force me to pretend I've got something in my eye.

This kid. It's like he went from a baby to a kid over night. Grew out of all his clothes and started talking like he's 13...and I'm all "excuse me sir..? If you're going to talk like an adult, maybe pooping on a toilet like an adult would also be nice, mmkay?"
Punk...its the word that best describes the phase Trae is in these days. Or maybe motor mouth. Despite his constant questions, he blows me away sometimes with the kinds of questions he asks. It definitely makes me reflect, because they are quite profound questions from a 4 year old.
My beautiful girl...man is she like me. I notice that more now than ever. This photo made me gasp a little when I first previewed it...not your "typical" wall photo, but it's likely the one i'll choose. That dimple makes me want to cry.
He's almost as tall as me now, and he can pick me up. He's become such a guy...less sensitive, more protective. I don't know why, but it breaks my heart when my boy tries to "protect" me...I guess its what boys do?
I look at them and can't believe how fast they've become KIDS.

Easter 2011

2011-04-28T14:01:00.007-05:00

2011-03-05T13:57:00.002-06:00

My friend graciously revamped my couch cushions for me this week. The cushions on this couch were held on my zippers, and the leather was torn on the sides from people (ahem, children) pulling on them when they were trying to get out of the couch. I've had this fabric for awhile, and pulled it out the other day when I was looking for inspiration :) I love the new look! THANK YOU, WOMAN! YOU POSITIVELY ROCK! ;)

our new ride

2011-03-05T13:55:00.000-06:00

2011-02-27T19:16:00.002-06:00

We took the kids bowling with friends this weekend for the first time. Epic fun, epic cute on the tiny bowling shoes.
I have this really cool gig this week helping a lady decorate her house...which is huge and awesome, just needs some decor :) A dream job for me....to bad there isn't really a market. I'm stoked though, because it's SO.MUCH.FUN!
I also have this new job gig...thats not really new, since I've re-applied at the group home I used to work at. I had originally wanted a job where I could dress pretty and get a discount on things, but this pays more and I get to observe psychological disorder, which is really interesting to me...I'm just waiting on the background check.
I haven't done anything with my camera for a loooong time. Sad face.
The insurance company is taking their sweet time with the van...we still haven't gotten word on whether its going to be totaled or not. Very frustrating, but my mom has been gracious enough to let us use her van for over a week while we wait (not so) patiently for them to get their act together.
Bellin Run...can't wait. I'm running with my friend Tanya for sure...should feel pretty accomplished after, since I've always hated running. It's growing on me...but still not my preferred form of exercise.
Sky Diving. For my birthday. It's my golden one. With my friend Tanya who also has a June birthday. CANNOT WAIT>>>>really hoping I don't die or pee...ahahahaha. I crack myself up.

2011-02-21T22:04:00.002-06:00

Yesterday after church and on our way to my Dad's 49th birthday party, we had an accident. We were driving through an uncontrolled intersection and were broadsided by a dude in a car. I was reading a text on my phone, and then BAM we were hit on my side. I guess I grabbed Jason's leg, but I don't remember it...I just remember looking at him and seeing his head slam into the window, and hearing a thunk. Not so awesome when it's his head cracking against the window. His nose bled instantly...the kids were pretty upset to see their dad with blood leaking out of his face. I turned around and asked if everyone was alright...they all had stunned looks on their faces and eyes as big as saucers. Jason got out to make sure the other guy was ok...and I got out in my Sunday best and walked around in the snow trying to absorb what happened and then called 911. The kids were all crying, and I was trying to calm them down as I talked to the chic from 911, who kept asking me where we were. Well, for one thing...I always thought they could pinpoint us, and for another...I was trying to calm down the kids and get their coats zipped because there were huge fluffy slush flakes coming down on us. Squad cars showed up...a total of 6 I think. Then a fire truck. I think maybe 2 first responders...and then the ambulance for Jason. He eventually opted not to use it..they took his vitals and his blood pressure was elevated. Go figure. The guy that hit us, Donald...came towards the kids and I and looked like he wanted to throw up seeing all the kids pile out of the van. I was getting worked up because there was lots of fluid leaking from under the van...and I wanted everyone out in case it was anything that could explode. Jason said they were fine, and I insisted that the get out. Please.Get.Them.Out.NOW...this is not hard!! So out they came and sat on a wooden plank flower bed thing. They all had tears streaming down their cheeks, all very quietly though. You'd think they would be loud because of all the commotion of the squad cars and fire truck....but they just watched their dad bleed from his nose and mouth and cried. Archer was shivering and I was so sad about that. I kissed them all and asked if they were okay. They all said yes, and then I told them everything was going to be okay, grandpa is coming for us. Donald came up and I wanted to hug him. He looked so scared that he hit a van full of children. He asked me if they were all okay, and I said yes. He asked again, and I said "yes, definitely." He asked them each one by one if they were okay...are you sure you're all okay? I asked what about you, are you okay? He said yes, shook up but not hurt. They towed the van and Don's car...they were out of commission, so to speak. The kids sat in a squad car and talked with a very nice cop while Jason was in the ambulance getting checked over. They invited me in to warm up...I didn't feel very cold, but I went in anyway to make sure he was okay. The tow truck left. The fire truck too. Don must've had a ride show up. Squads left, all but the one where all the kids were keeping warm. The officer loaded all our things into the ambulance so they didn't get wet, and said he had another call. He carried Archer to me in the ambulance and loaded the kids in one by one. We all sat in there to keep warm until our ride showed up. All the people who showed up were very nice...we need to write a letter of thanks.

My parents and Nikki and Tony showed up to haul us all to my parents for the birthday party. It was such a weird feeling all day...I was trying to remember just how it all happened. Jason said later that he remembered every detail like he was watching himself bleed into the snow and watching himself talk to Don. I couldn't remember details...just the general jist of what happened. It dawned on me that our vacation fund, to be used for a trip to New York in April would now be used responsibly to buy a new vehicle. It's okay...at least we're all okay.

We took my parents van home...Archer said "don't cwash, Dad!" and "don't have a axinent...don't crash cars" all the way home. They made sure we wore our seat belts.

We are waiting for the insurance company to give us the verdict on whether they're totaling our van or not. It sounds likely, but for now I'm stressing over all the unknowns. Hopefully we'll know more tomorrow...but we're definitely not buying another white van.

Children's Museum

2011-02-07T17:57:00.003-06:00

2011-01-25T16:16:00.000-06:00

Missing these little cuties:)

2011-01-22T21:15:00.005-06:00

Animal lover.
Loving Ana's smile here...and who lets their kids hang out in their underwear all day, anyway?
Beautiful Olive

Beautiful Ana

Rednecks

2011-01-17T09:25:00.003-06:00

The theme for my parents Employee Appreciation Banquet was redneck....so this is us doing our best impersonations :)

Trae's 4th Birthday...

2011-01-12T15:59:00.007-06:00

a 22 Jason had when he was a kid...

2010-12-28T16:49:00.001-06:00

We had a great holiday...hope everyone else did as well!

Thank goodness for camera phones :)

2010-12-20T08:14:00.002-06:00

Archer and my niece, Anya. The adults and older kids were playing Would You Rather, so they made their own fun by throwing all the newspaper for starting fires around the living room. HUGE mess!
Trae and his new BB gun from grandma and grandpa. :)

pssst...

2010-12-13T13:26:00.000-06:00

Theres some picture previews here for anyone looking ;)

A little harsh? I think yes...

2010-12-09T14:38:00.000-06:00

2010-12-06T08:37:00.001-06:00

I photographed this beautiful family on Saturday, you can find more photos HERE, but I just loved this one!

2010-12-02T08:53:00.003-06:00

2010-12-01T09:01:00.002-06:00

Life is flying by with nothing really exciting to report. I took 2 classes that are pretty demanding this term, so it feels like I can't keep up...but 7 more weeks and hopefully I'll have some lighter classes so I can catch my breath.

We had a great Thanksgiving, and I took my camera but didn't even get it out. Jason hunted, but didn't take anything. He and the kids enjoyed themselves anyway, and I hear thats all that matters :)

We get to see Nate, Marsha, and the girls come New Years, so we're looking forward to that. I love this time of year...but I really don't like driving in bad weather. I know it's WI and this is what it does in WI, but I just dread the winter months every year because I get so stressed out driving in it, and also, I spend months freezing my butt off.

That about all for now...hope everyone had great holidays!

2010-11-24T07:42:00.004-06:00

2010-11-22T17:29:00.003-06:00

You'd think the broad who runs this blog would update this thing already...GOSH!

Well, she'd like me to tell you that besides being sick and having her kids sick...she also hasn't used her camera in ages because she'd then have to edit said photos and she already has a BIG batch of photos waiting to be edited. Stop holding your breath now...she can't be held responsible for deaths occurring while people hold their breath and wait for updates. Although on second thought...she's not arrogant enough to think people even care if she updates her (lackluster) blog, besides her little sister...so this ones for you, Roy.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-30T20:27:00.000-05:00

Wishing for this weather again...

2010-10-28T07:44:00.008-05:00

I never blogged this day we took the kids to the park, and found it on my camera today :)

2010-10-27T08:10:00.002-05:00

Subject I like the least and why? "Math, case I need a ceclater." I HATE math...so I feel his pain. Apparently he rushes through his work and makes lots of mistakes, but knows how to correct them....without a calculator.

When Trae was born:

2010-10-13T07:17:00.004-05:00

Elliot and Brookelyn had to keep their eyes shut until we got the baby...(he must've been in the nursery or somewhere when they first got up there?) then we video taped their reaction to him :) Thought they were so little and adorable waiting to meet their brother, and decided to share.

30 minute salvage yard shoot...with the camera timer for the family shots:)

2010-10-06T09:38:00.014-05:00

father and son? i think yes...
I love this of Elliot, and plan to print it and hang it on the wall...
not as crazy about these of the other kids for the wall.
but they are cute for an album or collage :)

...and one of these will also be printed for the wall, which is your favorite?

Better late than never?

2010-09-30T08:57:00.006-05:00

Brookelyn had a blast with Rochelle and Adriana at convention...we were quite entertained by them as well :)

He turned 2 and it's like a switch flipped...

2010-09-30T08:36:00.005-05:00

Brotha from anotha Motha

2010-09-27T11:33:00.005-05:00

Unnamed and Hurley
Would it make you laugh hysterically if we named him Mullet, or would you be mad?
You could say Hurley's a little jealous...

Trying to get them to cooperate for the photo...all Hurley was interested in was sniffing his butt :p

Archer and Brookelyn's Birthday Bash :)

2010-09-13T11:25:00.066-05:00

I spent 5 hours on this cake, gravity was not nice. (although, it was supposed to be crooked and leaning...it wasn't supposed to look like he was falling off the cake. I improvised and made his hat so it looked somewhat intentional :) )
sugar...(these were the favors...simple and sweet. pun!)

sugar....
and more sugar!
birthday puppy :)
Speedy (how original!)
loving his ride on the tortoise.
approximately 70 years old!
peeking to see what animals were in the trailer...
a miniature horse!

clown...
baby clown...
he was fine until we totally squeezed his real nose off with the foam clown nose.
meanies.
clown action
i owe these guys, but especially Casey...who is my brother-in-law. I literally choked on my soda when Misty, my sister...his wife, said "you look like an Urkel clown or something..." when he walked out of the bathroom. Thanks dude :)
Then I suggested he juggle on this thing, thinking he would tell me he has limits...but he went for it!
face painting.

Kelbert family photo card.

sharing
zoey

Elliot trying to make Archer sit still to have his face painted.

2010-09-09T11:39:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday beautiful girl!

2010-09-09T11:21:00.004-05:00

*blink*

it's my birthday and i'll wear pajamas all day if i want to...

happy birthday baby

Busy Boys~

2010-09-02T14:32:00.023-05:00

sleepy boys after Anya's birthday party...

Archer refuses naps, so he usually konks out between 3 and 5pm.
This reminded me of the comic where the baby always lays in the sunbeam.
We had fly trap thingys on the window...of course Trae leaned on that exact spot with his hair.
amazingly disgusting shot.
left-over residue after pulling the strip off. poor guy was whimpering :(
we had to buzz the sticky junk out, but the residue wouldn't come off his skin.
we tried nail polish remover, alcohol, and peanut butter. a baby wipe finally got it.
Another nap...he fell asleep in the clean clothes waiting to be folded on our bed.

another nap at snack time.

and another angelic sleeping boy :)

Kick off the School Year 2010/2011

2010-09-01T08:07:00.027-05:00

Hugs. Missed the one of him hugging his sister...
but got this one of them posing together :)
Elliot my 3rd grader (!) and Brookelyn my 1st grader.
Bummed that Trae was visiting at grandma's house and missed all the action...and is missing from this photo.
Posing brothers.
The he-cats came by to see the kids off to school.

Archer was very proud of his rock...so proud in fact, that he whipped it into the ditched 2 seconds after this photo was snapped.
Brookelyn will miss her brother...and he'll miss her.
They were SO excited....poor Archer wanted to get on the bus too.
...but he was a good sport and waved.
and waved.
and then got a little sad.
so he waved some more.
and then felt very jipped. The end.

2010-08-30T09:02:00.002-05:00

Sorry, your browser does not support iframes.

Please give this a listen...my favorites are "Morton the Caterpillar" and "Nothing" but none of them make me want to slit my own throat like most typical kids songs do. Click on the "our cause" link for more information. Visit Pacing The Panic Room to read about the Little Buddy and put a face to the cause. The whole album will cost you as much as 2 soy lattes, and make such a difference for the Littlest Buddy and his family. Thanks ;)

he was sitting on the stoop watching the kids play :)

2010-08-26T12:07:00.006-05:00

Diaper Man

2010-08-25T07:31:00.007-05:00

He reminded me of the Huggies baby...although we did not buy Huggies this time and opted for a much cheaper Parents Choice brand this time, which incidentally come in gaudy peach/pink. Jason asked why I bought pink diapers for our son. As far as I can tell, they were aiming for orange and unisex, as there is no indication on the box that I can see that there are boy and girl specific boxes. They work fairly decent, but if we miss a wet diaper until it's re-wetted, they usually leak.

"mom...ten you take a pitcher of us?"

2010-08-24T14:06:00.004-05:00

2010-08-23T21:02:00.013-05:00

Mom and Dad are to busy doing yard work to entertain you...the older kids are watching a DVD. Hurley is the only play mate left.
Lightbulb!
gather weed clippings...
chase Hurley down....and drop them all in the process.
Go back for more...
try to keep up as Hurley dodges...
then finally gives in and lets you win the game.
giggle hysterically...over and over again!

*this was SO cute I actually got off the mower to grab the camera. They are so sweet together :)

Grandpa & Grandma's 50th wedding anniversary

2010-08-19T09:59:00.012-05:00

The whole gang (minus Casey, who had to work) Sorry mom, this was the only not blurry photo...

Splash!

2010-08-19T09:29:00.013-05:00

August Days~ Wautoma, Wi (this post is screwy...i have no clue)

2010-08-19T08:42:00.022-05:00

tired and happy :)

Who could resist a game of kornhole jr? win a prize every time...The kids fed Llama's.

K
issTrae milked a goat...Brookelyn politely declined, like 24 times...the lady thought it was a experience not to be passed up!
He loved the root beer bear....

Poor Anya got lost in the jump house...so Auntie Amber crawled in to rescue her. Through tunnels and around a zillion kids...:)
FREE horse rides! Archer wasn't to sure...
Brookelyn and Trae loved it!

2010-08-19T08:29:00.004-05:00

He held onto it from the van to the house...during a diaper change, and into bed :)
uh-oh...he did this when i was switching the laundry the other day...

2010-08-12T10:34:00.004-05:00

I don't know about you, but this seems to be the way the living room looks when the kids are awake. I wait until the kids are all sound asleep and pick the house up so it's all ready for the next morning. This happens 2.2 seconds after ready, set, go! The vacuum usually stays curled up in the hall, but some how ended up in there this morning...
They say 3rd times a charm, right? Right?

This arrangement was broken the second time a few weeks ago. I gave up briefly, and then decided to use my very last ball jar to reincarnate it once again. At least I know I can get them from St. Vincents really cheap if I ever need to replenish my stock.

...all by my-sel-e-elf, i did it all by my-self.

2010-08-11T13:44:00.006-05:00

EAA...I chose the photos I thought were relevant. I wasn't there, and either Jason or Kim was the photog :)

2010-08-09T16:06:00.013-05:00

2010-08-02T23:56:00.003-05:00

I snapped these at a friends wedding recently. I miss shooting weddings, and had a blast playing with all their pretty wedding things :) Congratulations again, guys!

Under Grundies*

2010-07-29T10:23:00.006-05:00

He loves to wear underwear..in this case, his dad's discarded duds from this morning that he found laying conveniently...on the floor directly in front of the shower.
...as long as I just stand here, they fit!
Irresistible grundy of the decade....if you think this kind of post is cruel, you might not want to to read my blog anymore. Just sayin' :)

*To embarrass myself a little here...under grundies came from when we were little and playing in the bath. Someone was always stealing our under grundies (underwear...which was our wash cloth) so we had to scrub them out. I could tell you who was the biggest under grundy strealing culprit, but then I'd have to shoot you.

Green-ish Brown Female Sheep...

2010-07-28T18:13:00.004-05:00

Bathroom Re-vamp

2010-07-28T11:14:00.006-05:00

If I weren't so lazy, I'd look for a before photo for you...we took the bath from a deep brown to "brick dust" in about 2 hours. I'm totally a red person, so naturally I love it. I'm also a HUGE fan of changing things up, so anything is better than what it was.

The statue was a Goodwill find a few years ago and has traveled around our home as we've redecorated different spaces. The pictures were a steal this winter, so now they've all come together and made this :)

2010-07-28T10:37:00.007-05:00

Archer loves to wrestle and be tickled :)

^^^^*photo credit Traeman 111^^^^^
Brookelyn stayed with my mom a few nights last week, so the boy sand I had a wrestle fest and watched the movie UP.

He loves to tease her...

2010-07-27T07:30:00.001-05:00

she eggs him on, because she loves it :)

He chose his own outfit.

2010-07-24T07:20:00.002-05:00

I have no clue where this shirt came from, but in any case it's Archers. The pants are part of a Doctor costume, and are Brookelyn's. He insisted on wearing them to Grandma's when we went later that night :)

Sour Face

2010-07-22T11:16:00.005-05:00

Archer loves to taste lemon, but then he shakes his head "no" like crazy as his face distorts and his body quivers :)
Trae hates lemons....he ended up yanking his underwear up to his face to wipe the juice off...which was totally hilarious.

Brookelyn can't be bothered with making faces over a little lemon...

Elliot rarely tries them, but wanted to take a photo eating a lemon this day, so we did.

Timer Shots: July 2010 family Photo

2010-07-19T22:37:00.008-05:00

My favorite, aside from Jason's head being cut off...which is what you get when you press the shutter and have 10 seconds to assume the position. Perhaps I'll frame it anyway.

I love it.

2010-07-19T14:41:00.003-05:00

I love how they both clench their teeth when they're really intense about something...like hugs and wrestling.

(macro photography tips welcomed :))

2010-07-17T23:13:00.001-05:00

My parents took the kids over night so we went tubing. Had a total blast :)

watermelon: a summer staple.

2010-07-14T15:14:00.010-05:00

Take #210...he finally looks AT the camera.

2010-07-12T09:01:00.019-05:00

I remember this building from when I was a little girl...It stands behind my Grandpa's old shop, my Dad has now moved his business just to the right of where it was when my Grandpa owned it.

2010-07-10T17:00:00.011-05:00

We started with this...BIBBITY BOBBITY BOO!!!
Wait, what? That's not going to work...(for one thing the umbrella is broken...and WAY to small)
Brookelyn painted this pot for Mother's Day...so I let her pick out a flower to put in it.

String of elephants for some added flair...
Monkey chime for some music...
We settled on this...
I like it.
I love it!

fireworkths

2010-07-09T14:53:00.043-05:00

This photo creeps me out...reminds me of evil clowns or puppets...or something.

Just love his expression here...
Man it's hard to take a decent photograph in the dark...despite the obvious 1/2 dark 1/2 light face, I think he's cute :)

Brothers
SPARKLER PARTY!!! They do look joyful...
I feel like a series of these firework shots would look awesome in the right room...they remind me of jelly fish.
Archie Karl
The Bug
P Diddy @ thebomb.com (that's Latin for my dad rocks the house, yo!)
Traeman
Love this one...
Special sister in special glasses...they make the fireworks look like a rainbow.
Erica Lynn, medicine woman.
Nikki was very amused...and then she noticed I was trying to photograph, so she entices her to begin the dance again.
...the medicine woman obliges....
Mid-hop, she realizes the dance is being documented.

Oh right, like we sat around pretending to "smoke" the sparklers...they're our party horns. Sheesh :)

Stay tuned for tomorrow, when I post some firework pictures :)

(finally) All Caught Up!

2010-07-05T22:53:00.015-05:00

It's a hard job being a boy.
A few from the Fox Valley Children's Museum...a 2 person job ;)

Helping Erica with the garbage...photo is a little blurry because I literally sprinted for the camera, which was in the van, fired it up and shot just as they were
Just peed.
My sister made me do it.
Didn't realize there was more than one until I brought the pictures up on my computer...pretty rad shot.
Roy in her bucket.
Thought it was cute that they had the same expression.
Our demolished coil spring.

2010-07-02T09:13:00.046-05:00

A few weeks back, when we were up at Jason's parents, Joy invited Brookelyn out for a horse back riding lesson. Brookelyn just loves horses, and had an amazing experience.

Sad, I think...after taking her new friend back out to pasture.

I was shocked she agreed to help clean his hoofs out...because she was given the choice :)

my friend + my son = irresistible

2010-06-29T12:40:00.003-05:00

SCORE :)

2010-06-28T13:11:00.003-05:00

(I hope to find paint that will work to cover that gold :P)

Yesterday we were driving down our road and noticed the neighbors a mile or so up had a wood burning fireplace sitting out in anticipation for the garbage truck this morning. We drive past and on our way back out, I made Jason stop in spite of being headed for supper at my parents. We talked to the couple and they replaced this one with one big enough to heat their (very large) home. They said we could have it, and despite offering them something, they let us have it FREE. I insisted we go home for the trailer quick and grab it before supper, feeling like it would be gone if we waited...so thats what we did. On our way back towards their house, we were following a truck with the tail gate down, and I commented that they were probably going for it. Well...the slowed and drove on by, and we pulled up. They turned around and came back, asking if we were taking everything...and we said yes. Then they asked if we had talked to the owners, almost as if they thought we hadn't, that they would and then we'd have to forfeit our find. They were bummed, and we were sorry...but not sorry enough to offer them half :) So..we'll have nice cozy and CHEAPER than propane heat this winter. Bet that sounds great to everyone right about now as we all sit sweltering ;)

Le' Pool

2010-06-28T09:44:00.020-05:00

Aaron took Elliot off the low dive, and came back to report. I didn't realize Elliot was a strong enough swimmer for that, but Aaron said "He did FINE!!" so I agreed to let him jump off the high dive if he wanted. He did, twice...and did excellent. He's afraid of heights, so I was really proud of him! (don't ask me about the underline, I have NO clue)

Elliot after his high dive "canon ball"...I'd say he's pretty pleased with himself :)
little brother was pretty proud of him as well :)

The 9th child was asleep behind the orange stroller on the left because her mom rocks and can get her to sleep at a pool :)

Chippewa Falls Children's Museum

2010-06-25T10:56:00.020-05:00

the coloring in this photo is GROSS...had to reset my white balance, but still a cute (if somewhat blurry) picture of her :)
you had to aim the water at this spiral thing and make it turn :)
Archer & Emma are pretty good friends until she takes his truck...then she gets her poor cheeks pinched.
they're getting married someday :)

2010-06-24T10:19:00.002-05:00

I spent last week with my friend Kelsie, and her 5 children...the kids all got along fantastically (aside from a little cheek pinching episodes, ahem...Archer) I have LOTS of pictures to post, but summer is SO busy that I'm having a hard time finding time to do it :)

2010-06-10T11:12:00.002-05:00

Last night Brookelyn woke up in the night. Somehow she knew I was sleeping on the couch. The short story is that I haven't been able to sleep until 3 am, and my couch feels so comfy while I lay awake for an hour after that waiting for my mind to shut off. Jason's out of town, in case you thought I was avoiding him. So, somehow she walked right to the couch, even though I'm typically in my bed for after hour requests and "i'm scareds." She walked up to me in the dark, put her face about 4 inches from mine, and whispered "mom! I lost a tooth!" I was confused, and asking questions like "well did you swallow it? and where is it?" She giggled with her face still next to mine and said "I just pushed my tongue against it when I'm sleeping and it came out. I didn't even know it was coming out...it wasn't loose! And now I can't find it!" She pointed to the place in her mouth where the tooth came out, but it was very dark and she was still within inches of my face, so I couldn't focus on it anyway. (I was also preoccupied with trying not to inhale her breath, in case she'd slept long enough for "morning breath") It was odd that the tooth just popped out in her sleep, odd that it didn't bleed, odd the it came out without really being loose. She told me goodnight and went back to her room, only to come back a minute later and just stand looking at me. I asked what was up...no answer. Again, what do you need? No answer. Finally I asked if she wanted to lay by me, and she shook her head. (for some reason she goes mute on me every now and again, it's usually when she's sad about something.) We finally slept, and this morning when I woke up I was wondering if the tooth thing had actually happened or I had just dreamt it, so I asked if she really lost a tooth in her sleep last night. SHe said "No..." and so then it was confirmed that I am losing it...but then she giggled and said "I thought I did, but I guess I didn't!" and ran off. She must have very real dreams that she remembers...like her mother. :)

current science projects:

2010-06-09T20:50:00.003-05:00

lily pads

cattails

Elliot's really into growing things lately, so we got him some kits for his birthday to grow cattails and lily pads for the pond, and also some sea monkeys. Today was day 5, feeding day for the little guys. In his haste to feed them, he dumped in the whole packet of food at once. I'm afraid the poor guys were OD'd on food :( He wants replacements...so my question is: What do you do with these things/how long do they live/etc. before I commit to them once and for all?

2010-06-09T20:46:00.001-05:00

I bought this from the 2nd hand shop recently thinking it was very chic...that is, until Jason pointed out the it's a golf ball ...with a tee...and a golf club handle.

2010-06-09T20:10:00.003-05:00

She walked up and said "like my outfit!?"

I said yes, and reached for my camera, and she pulled the hat off and said "no, I look dumb." I told her she looked SO cute, but I still feel sad she's approaching the age where how you look matters...

Today we had a family come over for a possible daycare gig of the cutest little girl. Anyway, as we were talking, I asked how they put her to sleep, and mentioned that I rocked all my kids to sleep. About 2 hours later, Brookelyn came up apprehensively...like she had something to ask, but didn't know how. Then she said "Mom....? Um, why did you tell those people you rock us to sleep?" I started to laugh, and then she started giggling. The more she laughed, the more I laughed...the more she laughed. I told her I said I rocked all my kids, but she swears I said I rock them all to sleep...

We sang a hymn before bed, and Elliot had quite the vibrato going on...and when the song ended, Brookelyn said "mom, guess what? When, um, Elliot sings the Pledge of Allegiance, he sings it opera." Of course Elliot was embarrassed and denied it, but he also had this confused look. I could tell he was thinking "we don't even sing the Pledge of Allegiance..." so I said "Do you mean the Star Spangled Banner?" She did, and then she was like "Elliot, you sing opera..." and he disagreed, and she was all flabbergasted, and said giggling "Elliot, you were just doing it when we sang the hymn...." Totally like, ahem...her mother. If it's obvious you were doing something, who am I to let you get away with saying you weren't? :)

Food coloring....

2010-06-07T19:54:00.003-05:00

..it washes off bodies much nicer than it comes out of frieze carpet.

playing in puddles~

2010-06-07T00:20:00.006-05:00

Dad's sneakers.

2010-06-04T06:00:00.004-05:00

Happy 8th.

2010-06-03T21:00:00.017-05:00

He fell asleep in meeting...and wasn't thrilled to wake up and blow out candles.

...that last candle reserved for Grace, or maybe Allison.

Me: i think it's a ball! Elliot: No, don't think so... Me: "Yeah!! A ball!" Elliot" "Nuh-uh, mom..."

My dad passed down hs very first gun that he received when he was 12 to Elliot. After presentng Elliot wth the 22, he asked "is 8 old enough for a 22...?" :)

Most random post ever...

2010-06-02T09:58:00.012-05:00

The other day I left the house running on the flowers for about 15 minutes because as I've said, we transplanted them. I had to drag the hose up through the garden, so of course when I was done, I had to walk back down the slope with the hose so it didn't ruin all the flowers. (if you care to, it's the right hand side slope next to the house in the picture) Well, imagine that it was a slippery mud slope after all that water! I lost a flip flop when I finally stopped at the bottom and luckily saw the hole where it went in and was able to stick my hand down in and retrieve it. Jason was less than impressed with the mud, and my hysteric laughter when I came in the house to tell him the story. Anyone know how hard it is to photograph your own feet with a 50mm lens?
I took this photo after seeing these 2 reading together...running for my camera....slowing and quietly opening the window and screen, and firing it off before Archer bolted. Our deck is constantly a mess, but we do use it a lot. We put it on towards the end of last summer, so we are really going to get our use out of it this year :)

I sleep like this when I'm really exhausted :)

Apparently, summer is exhausting for the little guy...

More decor~

2010-06-01T21:41:00.008-05:00

I loved the touch of the Namibian toys...my parents brought these back from their African safari. I especially love that they went to support the very poor families over there, and they aren't something made from a mold.

Landscaping progress~

2010-06-01T12:17:00.001-05:00

all we need is mulch ;)

more favorites~

2010-05-31T22:55:00.047-05:00

perhaps a tie for favorite of the whole entire weekend with the Ana and Olive shoot-from-the-hip photo....a framer.

i love when my older kids educate my younger kids.

our family...May 2010

compliments of Marsha :)

just awesome

man on a mission

Olive

they were SO stoked to see a pig

sleeping brute.

chasing

this one reminds me of E.T. phone home for some reason...

playing ball with daddy.

something about kids eating ice cream is just plain cute. or eating in general.

tired out.

hugs for cousins

sharing

perfect

lashes

kisses all around

Ahem...theres a very small chance I was making weird faces and even weirder noises to make her giggle.

Me helping Brookelyn smile for the camera...

The Little Sis graduates~

2010-05-28T22:05:00.002-05:00

Congrats kid, you made it!

a few favorites~

2010-05-27T13:43:00.012-05:00

I just loved this shot...favorite from the weekend perhaps. I thought they looked so cute doing their own thing, but next to each other. My camera was sitting on my lap, and I wanted to see what it would look like to just shoot it from the angle of the camera, and this was the result of just tripping the shutter. Sometimes being a little carefree and not controlling the shot pays off, because I loved it :)
Archer was making his annoyance with Jason known...fake mad :)
hugs for cousins :)
Olive
Brookelyn has this new thing where she pretends she doesn't want us to take her picture, but then just keeps saying "you can't take it!" so of course we try...fun little game :)
Elliot showing Ana animals at the zoo.
Kids are darn cute when they eat.
Loved this one of Trae.

2010-05-26T14:59:00.003-05:00

We had fun riding on this 4 wheeler up at Jason's parents...maybe some more appropriate attire for the next time. :)
We've been spiffying up our flower beds with this borrowed tractor...the boys beg me all day for a ride. They can't seem to comprehend the not knowing how to drive it/not about to learn with 2 toddlers in tow thing.

We have zillions of pictures from Aaron's graduation weekend, and since flower bed updates are boring, i'll be posting a few at a time as I get the time to edit and upload them. Jason's grandpa passed away yesterday, so it's a sad time for us...and I have my finals this week, which means a 7-9 page paper yet to go. (I finished up a 5 page one yesterday) so if I don't post, you know why :)

In Memoriam~

2010-05-25T10:12:00.010-05:00

It was Jason's sister's birthday on Sunday, so we gathered together to plant a cherry tree in remembrance of her short life.

When you are a photographer of certain events, you are like an on looker, removed from the emotion, but drawn in by it. As I stood below, watching the scene unfold, it made me sad that she wasn't there to celebrate with us her baby brothers graduation. Then I thought about all we missed by not knowing her. Heather, you are remembered and loved.

For Lana...and others without Facebook~ A little more decor

2010-05-20T10:46:00.011-05:00

Fabric that will eventually turn into pillows and curtains.
a pillow I made...

which doesn't go on this couch, but happened to be there for this picture.
a few accents...
and an arrangement I made.

On the Runway~

2010-05-18T22:42:00.003-05:00

(I love the gun laying on the floor, and the rolled up carpet runway)

Play Date

2010-05-17T07:33:00.019-05:00

I had a play date with one of my best friends yesterday...she's awesome because she has no kids, but chooses to hang out with my and my whole troop of them on a pretty regular basis :)
So we raced to see who could get the highest...
and tried to fly the stupid dragon kite which never really flew successfully and when we got all nice and sweaty we decided it wasn't worth it.
Elliot had the touch, apparetnly.
Archer is at that really cute age where he never stops moving and rarely moves at a walking pace, choosing rather to run or gallop everywhere. He had fun exploring the park and kept pretty entertained just looking at things.
Something came over me that I couldn't control :)
Brooka-pie. She's our monkey and kept saying "mom, watch!!" over and over and over again. I do like to watch her though, because I loved monkey bars when I was little. Now, my hands blister at the thought of them.
Jason also flew the kite. Actually, I did run about 3 miles and successfully fly the thing for a few minutes, but it didn't dawn on him to use the camera in his hands to get a picture, and I couldn't get it up in the air again after that :)
Trae just loves under ducks...he was a big ball of giggles in anticipation of it as I was walking over to push him :)
Who could resist this one even though it's blurry? Trae was saying and doing all these things while we were at the park that made me remember what it was like to be his age. He'd say "here I go jumping off!" and you could tell he was trying to work up the courage, but I remember that and I knew it would be a bit before he was sure enough to actually jump.

As for the rest of our weekend, Jason fished on Saturday...taking Trae and Brookelyn in the morning and Elliot in the afternoon. They take the canoe down the river, and it's convenient for us to meet them a few hours later with the truck or gator to pick them up again. Trae caught the biggest fish in the morning, Elliot in the afternoon. Backing up...I got some time with my friend Sam, and helped her paint her kitchen and steam clean the (awesome) barn boards in her house so it's ready for them to move into in a few weeks. We also managed to mow the yard and get some stuff burned up. I love being out in the yard getting it all spiffy (which lasts like 4 seconds...) but when we came in last night, my eyes were on fire and my head was so stuffy and pounding that I had to go directly to bed. The kids are all wiped out as well...allergies make Archer and Brookelyn's asthma act up, so they have croupy coughs that just don't let up. Trae has a crazy runny nose and watery eyes...and Elliot's already making plans for when he gets what they have and can stay home from school!

Creative Nook

2010-05-14T15:13:00.007-05:00

Everyone who knows me, knows I rally for the Arts in my house. I love that my kids love to be creative and though we don't do a lot of crafty projects, they always have paper and crayons handy and draw and write nearly every night. I wanted to create a nook where they could sit and create things (the popular thing is pictures for grandma and grandpa) so I took a vintage table and chairs set I found at the thrift store, and paired it with a vintage chalkboard/magnet board, also from a thrift shop. I intend to get magnetic letters and chalk as well. An old fruit box (purchased guess where?) to store all the supplies and we have a cozy little art corner. It fits in just behind the couch and bar stools, and is really the only place it would work. I've been eyeballing the perfect spot for some time now, and i'm sure the kids will enjoy it :) Throwing around ideas for some type of drying area up above on the wall...we'll see what we end up going with...ideas?

The Little Brothers

2010-05-14T10:09:00.005-05:00

Watching Bob the Builder...

Trae and Archer get along mostly great...Archer usually puts of with Trae's sleeping in until about 30 minutes past the time he himself wakes up. When he can no longer stand it (I hate to watch people sleep as well...so yeah Mom-1 ) he climbs up on the bed and tackles him and mauls him until Trae finally gives in and gets up to play. The other day, Trae came up to me and said "Mom...? Archer pinched me, so I hit him." I told him that he should come get me instead of hitting, and he said again "Wewww Mo-ommm, he pinch me fowst!" Archer is much more aggressive in the sense that he loves to wrestle and instigate, so this morning he was trying to budge Trae out from under the water in the shower. Trae says in this nice friendly voice "we were being fwends, wemembo?"

2010-05-13T12:31:00.003-05:00

We're in the process of giving our house the flair we (ahem...I) want. This is just a sneak peak of whats to come (theres a few more pictures of the whole room up on facebook). I've got fabric on order for curtains and pillows to tie the look together. I've always loved contemporary flair with a bit of old world charm, so I'm always mixing old pieces into my decor. I'd really like a bench for in front of the window since the little guys love to watch for big brother and sister or daddy to return home from their days away. The other night, Jason was adorable. He came home and I was crawling the internet yet again looking for the perfect fabric. I showed him some favorites, and when I turned to gauge his opinion, he was sitting with his legs crossed and hands propped on top of his knees...he smiled and said "this is how I feel when you make me look at fabric..." so he's leaving the fabric choosing to me :) I'll post the complete looks as we get the room finished, as well as all the cute little additions to the kids rooms :)

Mother's Day

2010-05-11T09:37:00.011-05:00

Jason snapped a few photos of the kids and I.

It was an awesome Mothers Day. We went to church in the morning, where we meet in a home. Just as we were singing our last hymn, I felt a very odd sensation, and realized Trae, who was asleep in my lap, was peeing all down my legs. We got dried off anyway, and I carried him to the van wrapped in a towel because he's so body conscious these days and didn't want people to see him in a diaper. We drove home for a shower quick before going to Mom and Dad's and having a delicious breakfast spread. My mom went above the call of duty as usual, and made biscuits and gravy, eggs, waffles, bacon, sausage, fresh cantelope, strawberries, and pineapple. We were all so stuffed after brunch, that we waited to delve into the ice cream cake a few hours later. We had a gospel meeting int the afternoon, and then Jason treated us to Chipotle. I love Chipotle and rarely will you see leftover food when we go there, but I had over half of my chicken burrito left and enjoyed it for breakfast the next morning. :) We came home and did the photo shoot, and then Jason supervised a magnet painting adventure while I worked on a paper. My family was awesome to me on Mother's Day :)
Brookelyn painted this flower pot in school and rushed to wake me up on Sunday morning as soon as she woke up to give it to me. After supper, her and I went into the store and chose this orchid.

fishing from weeks ago~

2010-05-06T09:21:00.025-05:00

What is it with this pose?
My, what big lips you have...
Trae trying to heft the huge sucker for a picture...

rides with grandma and grandpa

I like this one...would be better touched up a bit in photoshop :)

I love this stance...not sure what inspired it, but when I go through images and see things like this, it makes me smile because I've forgotten all about him doing that....but there was a reason for the picture :)
They forced me to touch the fish I reeled in...right after this I decided to throw it behind me into the water like a garter. Well, not sure what happened but the poor thing landed in front of me...but swam away like nobody's business when we got him to the water,
ugly suckers, they are.

Trying to reel a big one!
I love Brookelyn's pose in this picture...she looks like a trucker :) I also like pictures with all my people in on place ;)
You can tell Trae loves touching fish!
Brookelyn's a total tomboy with a flair for fashion...sorta like her mom used to be :)

must have been the first catch of the night....

2010-04-26T11:19:00.002-05:00

(please click to enlarge)

Baby's daddy tagged along for the shoot this week...It was awesome to meet you Scott, and I think the love you two have for this little guy echos in the photos. Enjoy!

2010-04-23T06:58:00.005-05:00

For those of you who don't read my photography blog, I wanted to post these because they are my favorite pictures from my shoot on Saturday. I'm throwing together a special for May to get the season off the ground, so stay tuned for details on that :)

2010-04-22T13:53:00.001-05:00

18 weeks~

2010-04-22T10:15:00.003-05:00

(click to enlarge)

Elizabeth is a girl that lived a few blocks away from me when I was a little girl. I can remember always being so jealous of this really life like baby doll that she had, and thought it was so awesome how her parents let her have a car seat strapped into the car for her baby for when they went places. I reconnected with her on Facebook after not being in touch since high school. Soon after, I learned that she was expecting, so I approached her to see if she would be interesting in documenting the pregnancy, and viola...here we are. She is so beautiful, and I've had so much fun shooting with her. She leaves a few hours away, so we are going to try for every 2 weeks if we can. Look forward to another shoot coming soon, where she reveals baby's gender :)

2010-04-21T08:08:00.002-05:00

I decided to actually write something besides a caption to a picture! Hold your applause until the end, I have no idea if it'll be worth it when it's all said and done ;) I think it's been awhile since I did an update on the kids, but we all know the second I type it all up, they'll be out if that stage and on to the next.

Elliot: Elliot is a typical almost 8 year old. He still loves hunting and fishing and pretty much anything his dad does. He's not crazy about school...hmmm, that could come from either of his parents :) He loves Hurley, and lets him in his bed when no ones looking.

Brookelyn: LOVES LOVES LOVES school...and her teacher is "amazed by her reading and writing ability." She counts down weekend days until she can go back to school. The other day, she accidentally called me Ms. Sannes (her teachers name) and then giggled and said "oops, I called Ms. Sannes mom the other day...she just laughed!" She is also a fan of the puppy, and does the best job of watching him and taking him out before he has accidents. She is really into fashion lately, and loves skirts and legging lately. Sometimes she doesn't match, but I let her if it's doable because I don't want to influence her creativity with clothing. I gave her a pedicure the other day, that was really fun and I was reminded of what our future looks like when the boys are all off hunting with their dad. :)

Trae: Trae loves to sleep late...I wish he'd teach the to his little brother :) He's starting to use big words that sometimes take me a second to realize what he's saying and then make me laugh because they are such grown up words for a little guy. He's been taking Archer for rides on the Gator (power wheels) and loves to hear stories. (incidentally, they like Jason's stories way better than mine, so thats become Jason and the kid's ritual before bed) Trae prefers no clothes, and walks around the yard naked a lot, despite my demands for him to put clothes on. Good thing he plays in the backyard I guess :) Two weeks ago, he decided to flush a dixie cup (plastic variety) down my parents toilet. A few days later our master bathroom toilet became clogged and we've had to unclog it many times since. Who'd have thought kids would just keep dumping in a toilet, despite begging from their mom to PLEASE NOT USE MY TOILET!!! because then it has to sit all day for dad to come home and plunge it. (what? one of the MANY reasons I got married...not so into poop water splashing on or near me) Anyhow, we (I) finally asked really nicely (demanded) he take it off and get it fixed already, because I was sick of having to walk through the cold house in the night to use the other bathroom, and hello...these kids WILL NOT stop pooping in it and...gross...So last night the toilet came off and we discovered Trae (I know because I wiped his butt and flushed and thats when the toilet clogged) had flushed one of those little tiny souvenir coffee mugs down the toilet. Flushes like a charm, now who's coming over for coffee?

Archer: Archer's new thing is standing next to me pointing in random directions to which room the desired snack/toy/person he is wanting is in and saying "dthat!" He loves to play outside, even if we are having one of those 50 degrees below zero summer days that we have here in Wisconsin. He usually chooses to play in the sandbox, and then stands there shoving his face full of sand, which results in lots of poop and gritty diapers. (we had his iron and lead drawn last week at his well child visit, haven't heard back from his ped with results yet) He is 27 pounds and 33 inches...and is part monkey. He loves showers and baths, and is a big time instigator, and teases everyone.

Thats about all folks...:)

This is amazing, will you participate?

2010-04-20T11:04:00.002-05:00

Go watch the trailer HERE...what an awesome and worth project. I haven't had a lot of time to think about what I might document on 10*10*10, but I feel like it's a worthwhile cause. Thanks to Ryan at Pacing the Panic Room for the information. He a much better writer than I, so you can go visit there to see what he has written about it.