a bag of chips

Happy Friday!

and a photo of my kids.  Have a great weekend!

A good-night's sleep.

I was watching television this morning before getting the kids up (a total novelty, by the way), and along came a commercial for a sleep aid.  The opening shot is of a delicately sleeping couple - unrumpled, lacy, coiffed, arm-in-arm, mouths closed and slightly smiling, seemingly silent.  And then the "voice" announces, "This good-night's sleep brought to you by (insert sleep aid brand name here)." 

I'm sorry, but the couple in this commercial are obviously having their first big night together, fearful that the other might wake up and see EXACTLY what the real "me" really looks like during sleep, which means neither of them is really sleeping.  And they obviously don't have children.

The scene brought to us by (insert sleep aid brand name here) does NOT look like a good-night's sleep in my bed.  I dare that camera crew to venture into my bedroom at about 1:00 AM to view what a real person's good-night's sleep looks like:  two people, barely discernable under the piles of blankets, one in the middle of the bed and the other usually far off to one side; he is lying on his back, loudly snoring, oblivious to light, noise, time of night; she is on her side with earplugs in her ears and a pillow over her head to block out ambient light and any noises that manage to get past the earplugs; he is dressed in boxers and socks; she is in full sweats and socks and usually also has a pillow stuffed somewhere along her person.  Sometimes he drools, sometime she drools. 

THIS good-night's sleep brought to you by sheer exhaustion.

Some recent layouts.

Here are some of my most recent layouts.  Enjoy!

TOOTY TOOT TOOT!

I got an email from Scrapbook Trends magazine for one of my layouts featured here on my blog in a previous post.  YAY!  This is also a great magazine - see for yourself here.  My layout will be in their June issue in their article "Kids Say the Funniest Things".  Yahooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

One more...

...from yesterday. 

(Click on image for larger view.  Really.  You've just got to.)

I love these kids.

Take a look at these pictures.  Aren't these kids adorable?  I took these today for my friend Kelly.  Her kids have graced my blog before and are featured many times in my portfolio.  Robbie is two, and Miss Katie is four months old. 

(Camera stats:  Canon 300D, natural light, indoors, AV mode.  400 ISO.  85mm 1.8 lens set at 2.2 or 28-105mm lens at 3.5.  Edited in PSE 3.0)

The cutest thing.

This is my baby.  And my baby is pushing her baby in a stroller.  She takes strolling with her baby very seriously.  It's really the cutest thing.

Whenever Makena sees two of anything (two flowers, two cars, two babies, etc.) she says "Baby Mommy".  One is always the baby and the other is always the mommy.  She started doing this at about 18 months old with her legs after baths and during diaper changes.  One leg was baby, the other, mommy.  It's really the cutest thing.

She's all girl.  She loves her baby and she loves to give her baby bottles and to tell me when her baby is tired or sad or hungry.  When Aidan is in school, she likes to put her baby in Aidan's chair while she's eating.  It's really the cutest thing.

Makena is also all girl in that she's always changing her mind.  She'll ask for music and then when I turn it on, "No music, Mama!" in her just-for-me whiney voice.  She's tell me she's all done with her bottle, hand it to me and then cry because I took it away.  Yes, even this is the cutest thing.

She's also saying "I love you" and "you're welcome" and "bless you", usually without being asked to.  She is much better at saying good-bye to new faces than hello, and she gives the best little bear hugs.  She's really the cutest thing.

A little levity.

The husband had just finished reading a new book,'YOU CAN BE THE MAN OF YOUR HOUSE'. He stormed into the kitchen and walked directly up to his wife.

Pointing a finger in her face, he said sternly, "From now on, YOU need to know that I AM the MAN of this house, and my word is law! You will prepare me a gourmet meal tonight, and when I'm finished eating my meal, you will serve me a sumptuous dessert afterward.Then, after dinner, you are going to draw me a bath so I can relax. You will wash my back and towel me dry and bring me my robe. Then you will massage my feet and hands. Then after that's done, guess who's going to dress me and comb my hair?"

His wife replied, "The f**king funeral director would be my guess."

(I saw this on another blog site and I deemed it good enough to copy and share with you.)

(You're welcome.)

A worthy cause.

I was contacted by our adoption guru about donating a photo shoot for an upcoming dinner and auction benefiting crisis pregnancy centers.  I will be providing the display pictured below for bidders to view prior to the auction.  This is the first time I've done anything like this and I'm hoping that this event will be good exposure for me and help grow my business, even if it's just a little bit. 

It's also the first time I've done anything like this display.  It's very plain and simple (which is very much like me) and I wanted it that way.  I don't want frills and stuff to detract attention from the photos. It will be printed on a sheet of white photo paper which I will attach to foamcore.  Any feedback on it would be mucho appreciated. 

She's a stinker.

And she's not afraid to show it.