total bday weekend...my journey with Crohns treatment week 5

Ok.. so is this not totally katy ro? Who created this diva? She had a blast at a classmates princess party at the mall... where each little girl was treated like a princess. She got her hair done..nails and make up done...drank lemonade out of china tea cups and at cupcakes on there little thones. It was sooooo stinkin cute. I just remember being this girly... where'd she get it from??

So this is my 5th week since being diagnosed with Crohns disease. Since i've not been blogging much I'll update you. Lab results, biopsies and colonoscopy confirmed that I have the auto immune disease called crohns. Its a disease where my over active immune system attacks my digestive tract...causing serious inflammation, bleeding, ulcers and degeneration. The disease can also attack other areas.. in my case it is also attacking my joints in the form of swelling, pain and bruising...and my skin...in the form of plaque psoriasis. I know those who have followed me for the last year know that i've been doing my best to change my lifestyle...IE: exercise, eating habits...unknowing what what ailing me. There isn't a cure for this disease... the goal is to achieve remission thru treatments.. and keep a lifestyle that prevents flareups. The first treatment regimen for me has been highdose steriods. I have a love hate relationship with
prednisone... although I haven't had abdominal pain or problems since week 3 (praise the lord).. the side effects are not pretty. Some side effects I have been experiencing are ... mood swings, extreme night sweats, increased appetite, swelling of my face and feet, sleeplessness, palpitations, hot flashes...did I mention mood swings...dry skin...mood swings... and most recently i've noticed the skin on my feet is so paper thin that i have tear and stretch marks on the tops of them... freaky!! Anyway.. this is supposed to be my last week on the roids... I started 10mg of prednisone yesterday.. and Im disappointed that i've started to feel pain and swelling in my joints again. I've also started an oral medication called Lialda..which is supposed to take over the steroids.. but I don't think this is going to work since im feeling the flair up again.

The next step for me if the Liada doesn't control this.. remecade (IV infusions) or Humara (weekly self injections)... people.. I can't even put a contact in my eye without wincing. Anyone have experience with this please speak up.. I'd love to hear your feedback.

Wacky Weekends

Untitled-1, originally uploaded by RGonzalezPHOTOGRAPHY.

Mornings are pretty early for me right now.. still adjusting to getting up at 6am everymorning to get Max ready and off to school. The plus side to this is the little bit of quiet lull time between when Max leaves for school and when the girls get up. Coffee, email, SHOWER.... did I mention ...SHOWER?? This morning I got Katy up with me and we made homemade gingerbread cookies for her preschool class. The house smells devine....much like its occupated by a mother who normally does these kinds of things.. LOL!! (IE: baking at 6am in the morning) .. no seriously I've really enjoyed spending that one on one time with Katy. She has really started to become my big helper.

This weekend is a full one... two photoshoots each day this weekend.. including a trip to NJ (for photos)...its a long day in the car (10 hours) but I will be nice to change the scenery a bit. AND I get to meet a blogging friend Danielle and her sweet family on the way home!!

Day 3 on Max's new meds... doing better with the side effects. No belly pain and yesterday he ate more than he did the first day. Still positive words back from his teacher.. and he is still very excited to return to school. Slightly agitated around 4-6.. not half as bad as he was the first day.

off to get Katy dressed.. hugs everyone!

Max and ADHD

Wow its been a long time since I paid my own blog a visit! We've been pretty busy at the gonzadino house of craziness. Since I've blogged last we've moved to a new home in Winchester city, Max changed schools, I've been diagnosed with Crohns Disease and my photog. business is booming!

I've previously mentioned struggles with my 5 year old son Max. God bless him he was cursed with the family's ADHD predisposition. For years I've been struggling to help him with diet changes, positive discipline methods... routine stability... and sometimes just plain ignoring the behavior. I didn't realize how much he struggled with this until family intervened and I could see him in a social setting with his other peers. It was then pretty obvious that no amount of preservative and dye removal from his diet..vitamin B... or encouragement was going to help this child who clearly has a chemical imbalance. I've struggled with the idea of giving my child an adhd medication. Knowing that doing so would pretty much be a school age commitment.. as I too was on ADHD meds for most of my young life. (but as a child with a diagnosed adhd chemical imbalance.. meds were the right answer for me and I believe I survived the rigors of school, home and social aspects of life because of the meds that were prescribed for my childhood adhd)

I agree that many children are thrown onto the medications because it seems like the simplest and easiest answer to handling an overactive or unruly child. When many times the best course of action should have been..diet, routine, environment or parenting changes. I can honestly say that i've done my best over the last 36 months in all aspects and attempts and improving Max's quality of life outside of medicinal changes. With that said....

After many days of Max being singled out at school.. and the obvious and difficult frustrations Max is facing at home we have finally decided to proceed with Medicinal treatments. Max started an ADHD medication called Vyvanse yesterday and before the teacher even had a chance to read my letter to her informing her of the new treatment plan for Max.. I received a phone call from a VERY pleased teacher about how well Max was doing at school yesterday!! She stated that he was calmer, organized, followed directions easily and quickly (in the past its taken us up to 10 times more often than not to get Max to do Simple tasks such as put your shoes on or brush your teeth) Max came home from school a little irritable.. and with a belly ache (poss. side effect of meds) but overall happier about school and excited to return the next day. (never has he wanted to be at school until now).

this morning he woke up quickly and eager to get ready to start his day... in the past it was a battle to get him moving and out of bed. Over all I'm seeing very positive results!!! I am a tad concerned about the immediate side effects:

late afternoon crankiness
stomach upset
NO appetite
tough time going to bed

Hopefully we can work thru these. Anyone else have experiences with a young child being treated with meds for ADHD?

wrapping up the summer

I met Max's teacher yesterday... its so odd being in a public school again for the first time since i graduated high school... well... really exploring the school. The walls smell of fresh paint and the teachers have colorful media all over the rooms. Max's classroom has 20 students with a teacher and aide. Mrs. Costello is her name and she is super bubbly and sweet like imagine all kindergarten teachers should be. After some thought I think that this year will be okay for letting him ride on the bus. The bus driver keeps all the smaller students in the front.. .and the afternoon dismissal is all kindergarten students. It will ultimately work out better than trying to juggle drop offs and pick up with both Max and Katy being in school. Next week is Katy's turn to meet her teacher at first Presbyterian weekday school...Katy will be attending class 3 half days a week. Her BFF Hannah will be in her class also...im so excited for her. She also talks constantly about her ballet class coming up.

This upcoming weekend is a REALLY busy one for the r.gonzalez photos... I am full all weekend.. plus really looking forward to baby Saturday at my parents... i get to see my nephew who's been with this mom for the last 6 weeks. Yay!! Hugs everyone!

Meeting the teacher

Did I mention that my baby boy starts kindergarten this week?? I know!!! Today we get to meet his teacher... Mrs. Costello. I am so excited for him... I can tell they are so ready to be rid of me. A parent at church mentioned how well my kids did after being left. Perhaps its the genetics working..but my kids never have had separation issues... well maybe a little when Max was small.. but for the most part they like to push me out the door. Grateful and Sad all at the same time.

Well off to run some errand's... hugs everyone... I need to catch up soon on all of your blogs.

catching up

Its been a pretty productive week... getting the house put back together, catching up on laundry (the story of my life) and getting the kids ready for school next week. Monday we meet with Max's teacher and see his new school. Katy starts school the first week in September and ballet the second week in September. My work schedule is booking up fast also.. so its going to be interesting trying to balance my schedule...definitely no complaints tho!!

Next week I start my CA baby boutique project... www.gennysue.com is sending me inventory and has asked me to photograph babies and children wearing her clothing line. Very exciting. So September 2-3 I will be doing some rockabilly type urban baby shots in downtown Winchester... let me know if you are interested in signing up to have your baby model..and earn free Genny Sue clothes. r.gonzalezphotos@yahoo.com .

awsome couple of days...play area police

The last couple of Days have gone by really fast! Andy and I were looking at each other at dinner tonight trying to figure out why the days are suddenly flying by so fast. We had a great couple of days tho... Max woke up yesterday and decided what we were doing. "Mommy, I want to go see the caves!" ... so we packed up the kids and drove to Shenandoah caverns. Totally a touristy thing to do but we had a blast. Everything about the trip was fascinating to Max...and Katy made best friends with the tour guide and had a questions for everything. (she is going to love school!)

Today was mostly errand running..my photoshoot was moved up to later in the month so we spent another day together as a family. We had a few things to do in leesburg ... then headed to Dulles Town center to let the kids go bananas in the play area. It was a great alternative to melting in the heat...bleh... glad the whole summer hasn't been like this. There was a little boy about 2 in the play area that was running around pushing, pulling, slapping and hitting the other children. I had my eye on him and couldn't see a parental intervention at anytime. This went on for about 25 minutes. Finally this little kid tried to forcefully shove an older boy off the playset stairs and I jumped up to stop him. Again no parent around to intervene. I gently grabbed the little boy from running away and asked him where his mommy was. My husband... of course...Cop Andy from the other side of the play area...yelled.. "where is the parent for this child!!!???" And still we had to get her attention... I mean common! Anyway... she scooped up her little boy and marched over to my husband and demanded to know what the problem was. Andy explained that she needed to be watching her son who has been running circles around the play area for the last 30 mins assaulting every child he came in contact with. Of course she defended and denied everything we were telling her. Are we the bad guys now for standing up to this little kid?? I saw at least 10 different children cry because of this and NO ONE was speaking up. What are parents afraid of??????? Okay, I know that this is typical 2s behavior.. but this is why your supposed to be there to parent your child... not give them the freedom of say a 5 year old. Anyway... off my soap box.

dog days of summer...sex ed in elementary school?!?

(the photo is of a client gift I made for someone this past weekend...its a flower pot pen holder... the flowers are all pens...she asked on facebook how to keep people in her office from stealing her pens)

So its been pretty hot and muggy these days. I've been trying to keep the kids inside when it that hot out. We emerge from the den around 5ish and go to bed a tad later...to beat the heat. Tho I know come the winter months I'll be longing for some sweat.

Lucy is walking half the time now... I tried to get a video of it this afternoon but it isn't working.. so I'll get another one tomorrow. They are such awkward drunk looking little creatures when they just start walking. I love it!

Max will be going to the brand new elementary school right around the corner from us. Close enough that in a few years he can ride his bike to school. I have been contemplating letting him ride the bus to school...I've heard such horror stories of what the kids talk about on the bus...what kids learn from each other. I'm just not ready for that level of unsupervised growing up. Plus Katy will be going to preschool 3x a week so it may just be easier to drive Max to school on the way to drop katy off... rather than be late dropping katy off to wait for Max's bus.

Okay so don't get me wrong..I don't need a dose of... your kid is going to hear it anyway.. so why shelter him from it. But...5??? We live in such a mixed society of parenting that its not uncommon in some households for the parents to throw the f-bomb around like its nothing. Or to use fowl and derogatory terms for body parts... not to mention the topic of sex... oh no...don't get me started on that. Whatever, talk like that in front of your kids... but then they get on the bus and teach my children how to talk like that too. So now I have to unteach your nasty bad habits to my child. (okay getting off my soap box) Late elementary school kids are having sex these days... WHAT?!?!? Not to mention the fact..well maybe rumor... we'll have to see... about the school sex ed program not requiring permission slips anymore. Hmm... not good in my book. More reasons to make $$ and put my child in a private school..where parents have more of a hand in what our children are and are not being taught. I'd be all about home schooling... but I'm not :) its not my cup of tea... and I think that my children would certainly benefit more from a scholastic institution... i just don't have a structured bone in my body.

Anyway, off to catch up on some ghost hunters... night everyone!

generations of women

I had a great time in suffolk this weekend...I met a new friend and was welcomed into the home of a fantastically loving family.(I don't have permission to show the family photos here...otherwise I would ) Katy was with me as my assistant...lol. We had a fun girls day and she also made a new friend. After our suffolk photoshoot we headed to Dumfries VA to meet up with an old high school friend. I offered a free photo shoot and print credit to people who refer weddings.. and so I have her to thank for one of my october weddings coming up. She gifted the photoshoot to her parents. Oh my goodness.. so much fun!!! I am still working on those..hopefully will be done by tomorrow. Anyway...off to do some laundry. HUGS everyone...I miss hearing from you all!

(just a sneak peek...more later)

courtesy of Kathleen

My cousin in law Kathleen felt me growing weak to my laundry and sent me this... lol... hope you appreciate it too :)

"Warshing" Clothes Recipe..........

Never thought of a "washer" in this light before..what a blessing!

"Warshing Clothes Recipe" -- imagine having a recipe for this ! ! ! Years ago an Alabama grandmother gave the new bride the following recipe: this is an exact copy as written and found in an old scrapbook - with spelling errors and all.

WARSHING CLOTHES

Build fire in backyard to heat kettle of rain water..

Set tubs so smoke wont blow in eyes if wind is pert.

Shave one hole cake of lie soap in boilin water.

Sort things, make 3 piles 1 pile white, 1 pile colored, 1 pile work britches and rags.

To make starch, stir flour in cool water to smooth, then thin down with boiling water. Take white things, rub dirty spots on board, scrub hard, and boil, then rub colored don't boil just wrench and starch.

Take things out of kettle with broom stick handle, then wrench, and starch.

Hang old rags on fence.

Spread tea towels on grass.

Pore wrench water in flower bed..

Scrub porch with hot soapy water.

Turn tubs upside down.

Go put on clean dress, smooth hair with hair combs..

Brew cup of tea, sit and rock a spell and count your blessings. ================================================

Paste this over your washer and dryer Next time when you think things are bleak, read it again, kiss that washing machine and dryer, and give thanks.. First thing each morning you should run and hug your washer and dryer, also your toilet---those two-holers used to get mighty cold and also smelly ! For you non-southerners - wrench means, rinse ;) AND WE THOUGHT WE HAVE IT ROUGH

getting geared up

People mention to me that its Friday... I feel the excitement for others as I know its break from the work monotony that consumes them thru out the week. I'm lucky that I even know what day it is. Andy has got my old PDA charged up from when I worked as a paramedic. Since being a photographer requires that you actually know what day it is... I've surrounded myself with reminders, calenders, books... email notifications... Im doing my best to stay on top of it.

My mom called me this afternoon and told me that Lucy must be walking by baby Saturdays...which is tomorrow... I sent Lucy the memo... and shes walking now. WEIRD!! Max is a little speed demon on his bicycle... and I think that Katy at the ripe old age of 3 is PMSing. Good grief...can we talk more about the drama?!?! On a lighter note...here is a picture of our little princess in her favorite outfit EVER. Any doubt what her favorite color is??

Anyway... I've got get back to my milk and brownie! Goodnight!

getting excited about school

I can't believe that the kids only have 4 more weeks until school starts. Oh my goodness what am I going to do with all that free time??? HA! Well, I'd like to say I'd catch up on things around the house and complete some business tasks BUT.. I've thought that in the past and ended up doing everything but :) I truthfully see myself spending more one on one time with Lucy. I think I'll be overwhelmed with the quiet noise.... and will compensate by making more noise...lol.

Im new to this public school parent thing...aren't they suppost to send some sort of supply list? I haven't seen anything yet. Katy Ro will also be starting ballet in september... she has been talking non-stop about this since we mentioned it a few months ago. She is also really excited about being in preschool with her..."favorite girl" Hannah.

Looking forward to baby weekend this week.... HUGS!

"Dont yell at me, Im just a kid"

(this is a photo I took yesterday of my close friends sweet girls)

So its been a tough couple of days... I think a compilation of cabin fever, no structure and colds. My patience has been questionable. I try not yell... once that approach is put in motion...it seems to all landslide. Its like... they have ear plugs in... I could be standing right in front of them saying there names and they completely ignore me. ArG... Katy called me out when she told me "Mommy, don't yell at me, Im just a kid"... wow that was way bigger than her years. Definatly put me in check for the rest of the day.


We went to story time at the library today with the girls..Andy and Max had a boys day. I think it was due... Max tends to act out if he goes to long without some intense one on one... thinking of it... I tend to act out too when I don't get enough one one one :). At the library today Lucy took her first couple of steps....YAH LUCY!!!

busy busy busy

So I got a phone call from my mom tonight "BECKY, YOUR GRANDMOTHER AND I ARE GOING THRU BLOG WITH DRAWL... ITS BEEN OVER 4 DAYS!!!" lol, sorry mom.. I've been sucked into the addictive world of facebook networking! Oh my goodness!! Get me out of the zone. For those that think I've died... I also blogging daily "Here" and my fan page is "Here". The networking on facebook is incredible!! I'm suddenly in regular contact with people whom I haven't spoken with in YEARS... and I may never have again if it weren't for "friend me". So, so cool... and I can randomly chat with my family...IE my auntie and I don't have to pick up the phone. Which by the way is damn near impossible these days. My children are gluttons for torturing me while I'm on the phone. From a recent and totally random personal poll... this kind of parent torture is more common than I thought.

So now for your regular update... Lucy is not walking yet.. in fact shes an expert speed crawler. I don't think she'll ever need to walk if she can get anywhere at light speed by crawling. She speaks regularly in baby sign language... did I mention that I recommend this to ANYONE!!! Its saved me a lot of un-nessesary tantrums figuring out what she wants...because she can...(that's tantrums from both of us)

Katy is quickly becoming queen of the house... need to nip that one in the bud. Not sure how I'm feeling the dominant personality is here to say...hmm I wonder where she gets that from???..lol. She insists on wearing her "birthday dress" and dress up clothes everywhere...I let her. I have to throw in my .2 by forcing her to wear the matching converse hightops. Girls are really a lot of drama... its definitely a different challenge...but equal to having boy.

Speaking of Boy, Max is growing up so quickly these days. Showing a lot of interest in playing with the older neighborhood boys. He desperately wants to keep up. Two weeks ago we took the training wheels off of his bicycle and he started practicing to ride like one of the "big boys". Frustrated easily, Max threw his bike down (several times) and gave it a break for a while. Today he asked to put his sneakers and helmet on and give it another try. Got on his bicycle and rode it like a pro. I'm so proud of him. I recall learning to ride my bike the same way... just got on it and went. We have decided to let Max go to kindergarten this year... we'll give it a shot...I'm sure he'll do just fine.

Andy is doing well also, its nice not to have to worry about the house. He's keeping busy tinkering with his car and playing computer games.

My photography business is growing very quickly... it amazing how much improvement 7 months will give to someones skill. Here is a photo taken when I just got started.

to this:

Im loving it!! Im already starting to book up for next month. God does answer prayers doesn't he??

never a dull moment

Other than whats on my schedule for photos... the only real set in stone plans we have for the week are library day and baby saturdays. It never fails that when we are ready to head out the door...some force of nature changes things for us. Today it would be fevers. Or fever...(katy ro) everyone else just has runny noses. Can't they create bubble suits for kids to prevent the spread of childhood BLech! Probably not, and I think I might get in some trouble if I wrap my kids in syran wrap.

I have found that over the course of 5 years... well... since I started having children my own immune system has become rock solid. I used to get some wicked disgusting colds that would last over a week. Now I get maybe a few hours of symptoms...then fatigue for a day or so. Not terrible at all... ... i guess it part of my superhero mom abilities.

We are getting better with the nudity in my house. I think the kids are starting to "get it" that they can't walk around outside naked anymore. And I'm sure I've got the message through about not answering the door when someone knocks... oooh...that one was scary.

Lucy is on "mama" strike. Oh oh ... i have to post a video of her signing now... super cute... I would recommend it to anyone life has been so much easier since she can tell me what she wants. Anyway, back to "mama" strike... she is refusing to say mama... she keeps calling me daddy...what the heck?? Why does he get all the credit? Anyway... I really need to get cleaning, my house is a disaster as usual. toodles!

a week in review...baby bird...preschool

This weeks sum up... first off... happy belated 4th of July everyone! We spent our 4th with Andy's friends... the kids had a blast and we really had a lot of fun... the kids were totally wiped out by the end of the day. The host had tons for the kids to do... swimming, trampoline, 4 wheelers, volleyball... etc, etc. After dark they had a pretty decent home fireworks show and the kids got to use sparklers... fun fun!!

This little bird was found in our yard a few weeks ago... he was much smaller and I really worried that he would be eaten by a neighborhood cat, hit by a car or simply die from not having his mommy and being away from the nest. I had not seem him since that day... an yesterday he came hopping into our garage while Andy and I were outside. He looks like hes been taken care of... still not convinced that the mother was still around I went inside and got him some night crawlers from the refriderator. We fed him a few and Andy insisted that the mother was flying around keeping an eye on him... Whatever....no way. But sure enough... I saw a few other robins in the area and sat and watched. This sweet baby bird...peeped and another bird was digging around frantically looking for bugs... the baby was watching her from about 25 feet away... they chirped back and forth and met in my front yard where she fed the baby and then flew off. WOW.. thats amazing that even tho the baby has not been in the next for atleast 2 weeks that I know of.. she has still managed to take care of him... go mommy bird!

Lucy is soooo close to walking... and is starting to prefer being on her feet over crawling. Any day now, sweet girl!!

Letting the kids really enjoy their childhood...

Max is missing school...asks me about his friends daily and wonders when hes going back. I have been having some battles figuring out if he is ready for kindergarden. Some people say to hold him back if I have any doubts.. some suggest that I should let him try it out and if Its not working for him then I should hold him back..Im still not sure... and the fall is coming fast. Another reason for letting him go forward is Katy is looking forward to preschool and its just too expensive to have both of them in preschool. Does anyone have some helpful advice??

My first graduation portraits

My first graduation portraits, originally uploaded by RGonzalezPHOTOGRAPHY.

I am so excited to say that my photography business is taking off. I really can't thank everyone enough for your support especially my mother and grandmother. LOL... I sound like Im doing a speech for an oscar award. I have been posting a lot these days on facebook for a change of scenery. If you are interested in visiting me there I am at

www.facebook.com/rebekahgonzalez

my fan page... yes folks I've started a fan page..lol.. it has worked wonders with local networking and getting the word out.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/RGonzalez-Photography/215467805334

Im really impressed with the amount of feedback about the extended nursing. Leave it to my mom to give the view from the other side :) I kind of agree...don't think that I would personally be comfortable nursing a toddler in public... the gawks and glares would detract from what ever moment I was having with my child. I know that right now I don't really nurse lucy in public anymore anyway because she doesn't want any sort of fabic in her face... Im more on the modest side of public nursing so... I could avoid the flashing session and she would rather not over heat under a blanket. Plus we are really not nursing during the day anyway. Now... don't get me wrong... I wouldn't judge another mother... infact I would applaud her. But I haven't quite reached bare all boob nazi status.. .almost there... not quite yet. 2 more babies... (lol... my mom just fell out of her chair... just kidding mom! ;)

So this sweet girl in the photograph is Casey... I met her at the park.. well actually Max and Katy befriended her and she played with them for over an hour. I asked he if she would model for some graduation photos (more portfolio work) and she agreed. They turned out really fun... they are here. She is awesome with my kids and seems really excited about babysitting. So my plan is to utilize her when Andy is working so that I can schedule more photoshoots and not worry about what to do with the children. Plus im sure the kids can use a few hours every now and then away from me...lol. We'll see what happens when she goes back to school :)

Anyway, off to get somemore chocolate cake from the kitchen...mmmmm.

Thanks for the imput!

Thanks for the input everyone... it seems that most mama's here are going or have gone thru something similar.

Its really a rather gross day today... I have a laundry list of things that need to get done, to include finding the motivation to get this stuff done. I'm letting the kids vegetate in front of the TV while I do... well... absolutely nothing. Hey, I'm entitled every now and then :)

I made Jam for the first time this week... Fresh picked strawberries, some frozen blueberries and black berries... organic raw sugar... and lemon juice. No pectin in this recipe so it was a little loose... but soooooo delicious. We put it on our pancakes yesterday instead of syrup... mmm mmm mm.

Max and Katy have been spending a lot of time playing with Lucy these days. Its really cute and they are very good with her. Katy got VERY jealous yesterday when Max told her that he wanted to play with Lucy without her :( ... didn't see this one coming.

I guess I should probably get something productive done now.

come see some of my recent projects at http://www.rgonzalezphotos.com/ I would love your feedback and suggestions.

They Killed Jim AGAIN!!!!!!

Okay so I've not been totally honest about my obsession with Jennifer Love Hewitts Friday show "Ghost Whisperer" ... anyone follow the show?? I am really upset that they killed off Jim AGAIN!!!!!!!!! WHAAAAA???? Darn TIVO.... It cut me off at the end when he tells her that It was an embolism and that he wanted her to remember him right as he is now.... so... blast... I've been trying to find an online version of the show so I can see her reaction at the end... Oh, its a problem.. I know.

The kids and I had a great day today... we met some new friends at the pool between thunderstorms and Max is learning how to ride his bike without training wheels. He is really doing a good job! He frustrates really easily tho.. I have never seen this side of him with any regularity until now. Every time he makes a mistake he gets off of his bike... throws it to the ground... throws his helmet off and storms into the house. Wowza... some drama I'd say. Poor kid is so hard on himself sometimes... and it seems that the more praise we give him... the harder he is on himself when he does make a mistake. I don't want to say that we should stop praising him .. but maybe make it more so that this accomplishment of learning to ride the bicycle is self full filling and not for us.

So I have some good news... I may have booked my first wedding for October... Yaaaah!!! ...and I have started getting bookings for baby and family portraits. Word of mouth is such an amazing thing isn't it??? Whodathunk 5 years ago that this career path was even in my future. Now to get bundleboo back on the right track.

(the above photo recently won a contest challenge on Digital Grin... this was taken at my parents house before doing a 4 generation of men photo for my family. In my grandfathers glasses you can see my father and brother... 3 generations. It was a surprise capture.. I did not notice it until later)

new queen of the castle

I have to say that I love love love this photo of katy ro... probably one of my favorites. The kids and I are really trying to find ways to keep busy with the weather being much warmer. We spend most of the day outside. Max is out of preschool now, so Katy is missing alot of her one on one time. I've really noticed that she is acting out for attention a lot more. Wow, girls are so much different with there emotional needs than little boys are. Its easy to fall into a disciplinary pattern of treating all equal... I cannot do a lot of the same discipline measures with katy that I do with Max... Katy takes even a raised voice... like the threat of death. Yet it seems that although she is almost 2 years younger than max... she is developmentally his rival. Not to say that Max is behind in anyway.. I just wonder if girls are farther ahead than boys are.

I am getting ready to head out for a christening photo shoot and an antique shop... I am nervous and excited. I have so many fun ideas... just hoping that they come out well. Keep your fingers crossed. Thank you to this sweet mama for giving me the opportunity!!!