FullofGracenBlessingsinAbundance

Lotsa Work done...Lots to still do..

2012-02-12T20:56:00.000-08:00

In order for our house to pass reinspection, we offered to pay for all the items on the appraisal inspection list while the seller paid to have some things on the inspection list taken care of. This was definately a joint effort on both our parts. He had a radon system installed. He paid for 2 or 3 electric baseboards to be installed in the 2nd floor because of nonfunctioning heat upstairs. He also paid to have the chimney's repaired in order for us to be able to use BOTH fireplaces! :) That's ALOT and it's expensive! We, in turn agreed to paint and scrape all exterior windows, trim, doors, garage door, etc (and let me tell you it was FREEZING!) We also had to paint living room ceiling due to water stains, hire an electrician to come and rip out old hanging electrical in basement, disconnect an electric chair with live wiring and outlets wrapped around them (not sure what in the world they were thinking on that one!) replace almost the entire wall in the basement bathroom, rip up tile and replace flooring in master bedroom in the basement, paint stairs going to 2nd floor, install flooring in foyer and upstairs bedroom. His was more costly but little work to him, ours was less costly but lots of work for us. In the end, we all pulled together and got it done fairly quickly considering the circumstances! After 2 weeks of submitting paperwork, we believe we are ready to close on the house. If the bank clears us, we may even be able to close this week! :) Yay!!! :) As soon as we close, we will set an appt for the assessor to come and reassess our home, then Bob will build a wall upstairs and I will finish all the painting so we can move in almost right away! :) Praying, Praying, Praying!!! :)

The girls' bedroom before and during :)

2012-02-12T20:45:00.000-08:00

The girls' room was white walls and light green panelling. I decided to keep with the color scheme..It would have been fine to have left it, but I found out thru our West Ave house, if you are going to change it, change it when it's emptier, not fully furnished. So for the cost of one gallon of regular paint, and one gallon (with lots extra if I want to paint any accessories) of discounted lavender paint I changed it up..For the better and best :)

After- A room fit for two princesses :)

2012-02-12T20:39:00.000-08:00

I must admit..I am proud of this room.. I put my heart into the girls' room and seeing their faces light up and their fingers touch "their" princess and hear their squeals of delight makes it all worth the work! :) Since the girls have half light green panelling, to save myself the hassle of painting and priming the panelling, I opted to "almost match" the color and changed the girls' regular walls from white to a light sage green. Then I found dark lavender paint on clearance because it was a mistint and grabbed it because I thought it would stand out better than pink (and I believe it was a good choice!) I drew a sketch of the mural on a piece of paper, but I didn't draw anything out on the walls. I just grabbed my paint and paintbrush and started painting. The door had no design to look at, at all..It was merely from my mind (including the unicorn!) It was daring, I know...I could have really botched it, but...I didn't! :) It turned out perfect for our two little princesses :) I love the mural, I love the curly attached C's on the door for "Cassandra and Christiana" I love the unicorn..I love the scripture (which you will see in a minute) I just love it all and would have DREAMED of having a room like this! :) The girls will have pink sheer curtains for the windows and all brown wood furniture..It will be a beautiful room for our two beautiful girls and I can't wait to show it to you when it's all set up! :) And it can't get much more feminine with light green, pink and lavender for the colors! :)

Words for little Girls to live by...

2012-02-12T20:30:00.000-08:00

First of all, I apologize for the blurriness of the top photo. I didn't realize it was blurry till just now and I don't want to wait till later to post this so it will have to do :) I decided I wanted to post/paint scripture on the wall. I pondered what verse would be appropriate for two little girls who someday would grow up to be 2 big girls, then two teens, later two young women, and possibly spouses and/or mothers someday. It didn't take me long to decide I wanted to write the scripture that speaks about the fruit of the spirit. God calls us to have these attributes, to work towards these attributes and when I read them they are so appropriate for all ages and stages of feminine life. So I grabbed my brush and paint and set to work. The words are a little crooked and a little uneven but it just adds to the character of them :) If my girls can grow up with a constant reminder that they are to show love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self control, maybe it will come just a little easier for them and I will have helped them on their journey to becoming Godly women :)

Up the Stairs and in the Upper Foyer, Before and Mostly After!

2012-02-12T20:19:00.000-08:00

As per the appraiser, we had to put flooring in on the stairs and in the foyer (as well as MANY other things!) I decided to paint the stairs. They were painted before but some boards had been replaced and had no paint, and all the rest were old and had worn off paint. The color I chose wasn't really what I had envisioned to be honest but I figured out how to spice up the steps (you won't see those pics yet, because I'm not finished with them yet!) I bought this awesome bird stencil and I will put one going the opposite way down the whole staircase. I can't wait to see how it turns out! :) The flooring in the foyer looks really nice and coordinates very well with the coloring going up the stairs on the panelling and even with the stairwell "fence"..The colors are very calming, very peaceful..Just pretty.

Before and After- the ?? Room

2012-02-12T20:07:00.000-08:00

This started out being the girls' room but I changed my mind. First of all we are hoping to put a room addition on the house and the entrance will be thru this room which will absolutely NOT work. So I moved them into the bigger bedroom. Then this was supposed to be the makeshift TV room so that I could have a pretty formal living room till the addition was put on. I was informed this afternoon that this room is way too small and will not work. So the pretty formal living room will have to wait till AFTER the addition and the TV room will be where the formal living room will be. Can I insert a grr here? ;) I understand, I really do, but I just don't want have to move in then re-move back in again shortly. I feel like I will be in limbo until the addition goes up. I am thankful for this little room and will squish my pretty velvet couch and loveseat in here and enjoy curling up and reading books in here it just feels like I won't really be able to decorate till everythings' done. I was also told the gun cabinets will have to go in here too until we can make sure our bedroom basement doesn't have too much moisture. How lovely, right?!?! I will figure it out, I usually do! :) In the meantime, the only thing I asked is that the piano go into the front room now. That's where it will be and that's where I want it to be put so it won't be moved and will have it's place right away! Samuel keeps asking me about piano lessons and I want him to be able to take them and be able to practice easily! There's a girl in our church who only charges 15.00 per lesson so as soon as we are settled in, We will start weekly lessons for him and hopefully later on for the girls :) Oh, and I forgot to mention..I painted it from that 60's bright mint green to brown. It reminds me of a small version of our living room, so even though it's tiny, it's homey and cozy to me :)

Before and After Upstairs Room

2012-02-12T19:52:00.000-08:00

This is the room that will be split with a wall to make two rooms. Wayne wanted the traditional type room, Samantha took the long room. Both rooms needed flooring but we could only do one room for the time being because there is a kitchen on Wayne's side of the room with old linoleum tiles and we can't pull any of that out till we close. We opted for brown (NOT Black! :) ) I let the teens pick whatever color they wanted for their rooms. They both chose different shades of blue. What's cool is that the blue and brown go Very Well Together :) I bought the paint, they had to paint the themselves. Samantha finished her side but Wayne only got to do part of his for now. He will finish his side (most likely with help) as soon as we close! :)

After (Mostly)

2012-02-12T19:45:00.000-08:00

Wayne's room is at a standstill right now. We can't finish it till we close because we have to rip out the kitchen upstairs and the flooring before he can finish. This is the color his room WILL be though when it's done :) Samantha wanted to paint a design on her wall and came up with a blow away dandelion plant design she found online. It looks pretty cool. I helped her draw the basic design and she painted it. Can't wait to see her room when she moves in :)

Before and After Master Bedroom in Basement

2012-02-12T19:38:00.000-08:00

This isn't actually the final product- We actually put rugs down here on top of the paint (the paint wasn't adhering well to the concrete patch we put on prior to priming and painting floor so we had to put rugs down) I will post pics hopefully tomorrow, it looks really nice considering it was pieced together. In order to do the floor, Bob rented a machine that pulls up tile. Even with the machine it took HOURS to get all the asbestos tile up. Then we put concrete patch on (big mistake, but we thought we were doing the right thing) after that dried, we primed floor. When that was dry we painted one coat, then after that, another coat. It looked really nice but where the patch was the paint didn't stick. You would walk over it and it would pull up. It was very frustrating. We ended up putting a couple of smaller rugs we got off craigslist and FREE Carpet that was thrown away and put in the dumpster at Bob's hotel from when they put in new carpeting after the lower floor was flooded. He got permission to bring it home, we STUFFED it in our van and now our room looks beautiful..Can't wait to show you! :)

Before and After Basement Bathroom (will be Master Bathroom)

2012-02-12T19:21:00.000-08:00

Updates on the house

2012-01-20T05:32:00.000-08:00

We are moving forward! YAY! Financing is in place. Sellers have an appt to get a radon system put in on Monday. Electric baseboards have been replaced upstairs so we have full heat in the house now, and the chimney repair work has been paid for even though they are waiting for the temps to break a little to finish the work. We now have keys so we can get work down also there (sellers agreed to do the things listed there-we agreed to do painting, scraping, flooring, and electrical) Yesterday I went by myself to work (Bob was at work, and Samantha held down the fort at home) and got the living room ceiling painted, the stairs to the second floor painted, some outdoor windows scraped, and some painting done in the downstairs bathroom. Got lots done and accomplished, it felt good!! :) We are on our way!!! YAY!!! Hopefully in a month we will be HOME FOR GOOD! :)

A few rooms, lots of plans!

2012-01-20T05:25:00.000-08:00

The top room is a small bedroom. Cassandra and Christiana will share the bedroom. It has panelling and just as soon as we close I will be painting it. I'm thinking light lavender with pink sheer curtains, OR 2 walls light lavender and 2 walls light pink with white sheer curtains..I haven't decided yet.. Any suggestions?? They will have the bunkbeds. There is a ton of furniture in the house, although the executor is coming to pick up some of it, i don't know if he is picking all of it up. I am crossing my fingers they leave a few certain things..One of which is an antique vanity with a circle mirror. It would look SO beautiful in the girls' room, and they would LOVE it, now AND when they are older! On Sunday or Monday, if it's still here, I will be dancing a little jig ;) The green walled room will be the "TV room" for now. We would like to add a room to the side of the house over the garage, but I don't know how long it will take to get done (and realistically if we will be able to afford it) so until then, the TV room will be the place everyone congregates to watch movies and such. Later on we will use it differently, but for now it will be a great hangout room! :) We technically could have made it a bedroom, but there were a few reasons why we didn't. First of all the house is small, with small rooms. It won't feel so small if we have a couple of living spaces instead of just a living room and a large kitchen. We will have a few places to spread ourselves out and spend time as a family. That's the biggest reason. A small reason is that one of the big kids would have had to have the downstairs room, and they ALWAYS trash their rooms, no matter how often I remind them to clean it. I would rather "hide" their mess upstairs then have it privy to people (including myself who is downstairs all the time- it would drive me insane!!) The one configuration I'm trying to figure out, is I'm thinking maybe I should change the rooms and make the green room the girls room and the brown room the TV room for temporarily until the new room is built. Here is the reasoning. There is a door leading out to what will be the new room above the garage already there. If the brown room is made the girls' room we will have to walk thru their bedroom everytime we want to enter the family room. If the girls' room was the green room then it won't ever interrupt them and light green walls wouldn't need painted for now, I would just use light pink sheers for the time being..hmmm....I think it's a good idea, now if I can coerce my hubby into using the smaller room as the TV room temporarily I will be all set....hmm...

The bottom room is the downstairs bathroom. It needs work and updating (yes, that is ducktape holding the counter together) but it is functional and that's what most important! :)

Kitchen and Formal Living Room

2012-01-20T05:01:00.000-08:00

The kitchen is HUGE, HUGE, HUGE, and will double as a dining room since it has a dining area. It won't have the ambiance of a formal dining room, but that's okay. It will still look pretty :) The front room when you walk in will be the formal living room with my victorian style furniture and decorations..It will be the perfect place for entertaining company or sitting by the fire reading a book. I'm pretty
excited about it :) I am going to be painting the panelling (like my sister did at her house) but can't until we close on the house :P It will be done the day after we close on the house you can bet! :)

Samuel's room and the upstairs bathroom

2012-01-20T04:51:00.000-08:00

Samuel's room is unique. I can stand up thru the middle because I am short. Bob can't even stand all the way up in there. It's a perfect place for a play room, and a perfect room for a shorter 6 yr old. It even has a crooked slanted door! :) I would have LOVED to have a room like this when I was a kid, and he is SO EXCITED to have his very own room since he has always shared with Cassandra! :) It will take some creativity to make it work, but it will work, and it will be his own space :) The three oldest ones will have their own bathroom (which btw is the prettiest bathroom in the house!) and Shower! :)

Samantha and Wayne's Room

2012-01-20T04:48:00.000-08:00

Samantha's and Wayne's room will actually be the most work. We are tearing out an upstairs kitchen, putting up a wall and doors, and laying new flooring in the whole thing. One room will be more square, the other will be longer and more narrow. Neither will be huge, but then none of the kids' rooms are huge (but they are THEIR OWN) If you think about it, Samantha has plans to get an apt. in June, and Wayne hopes to go into the military and get on his own just as soon as he graduates in 3 yrs so they really don't need huge rooms (besides, they are clutter bugs and big rooms are just more room to throw your stuff around) I'm wavering between a dark brown almost stone looking tile, or black tile since they will be teen rooms and they can get a cool colored throw rug for the floor. They will each be painting their rooms whatever color they want (except black!) and black tile may look cool with colored walls. The other side of it is, I love the brown marble looking tile so much more, and then it will look much nicer after they leave and the rooms are up for grabs..I'm really undecided..do black because it's cool for the kids, or do brown because I like it and it will look nice later- What would YOU do??

Laundry Side of Basement and 2 car garage

2012-01-20T04:39:00.000-08:00

The top photo shows the "basement" side of the basement, including what will be the laundry area. The bottom is the 2 car garage that Bob has laid claim to for small part garage, big part woodworking shop. As you can see, the house needs gone thru and cleaned out everywhere. The executor of the estate is coming out this Saturday to pick up some things, and whatever is left will be taken care of by us, either used, donated to other flood families, donated to Salvation Army or garbaged (which I don't believe will be very much even though it looks cluttered, there are alot of usable things here) We are sort of hoping they leave the riding mower for us (especially Wayne so he won't have to push mow the huge yard! ;)

Our Master Bedroom!

2012-01-20T04:32:00.000-08:00

There used to be a family room and a half bath down in half of the basement. There was water damage prior to some foundation being replaced. Bob took one look at it and said- This will be OUR room. It's HUGE, It will be GORGEOUS- when its done. It needs alot of work!! The biggest thing is the flooring has to ripped out and new flooring needs put in. It's a must, not an option. We even have a large stone fireplace in it. The half bath is right outside the doors to the bedroom, on the laundry room side of the basement. It also needs alot of work, but the sink works for sure (I haven't tested the toilet yet, it needs cleaned, bigtime) Who would have thought we would move into a smaller house but have a bigger, fancier bedroom and a bathroom too! :) I had originally thought it was so big it would be perfect to make into two rooms for Samantha and Wayne but Bob saw the fireplace and remembered that Samantha and Wayne won't be living with us MUCH longer, so he claimed it (with no argument by me for sure) ;)

Welcome to Gatorland :)

2012-01-16T19:24:00.000-08:00

Our last stop in Florida was Gatorland, and it was my favorite thing that we did of all! It was super cool, lots to see and just a great place to visit (and we all thought so!) :) Hope you enjoy all the pictures! :)

Lots of Gators EVERYWHERE, of All Shapes and Sizes

2012-01-16T19:22:00.000-08:00

Loved the posted warning sign- Trespassers WILL be eaten :)

Alligators Everywhere!!

2012-01-16T19:20:00.000-08:00

Brave BlackBird

2012-01-16T19:18:00.000-08:00

While I was taking a picture of Mr. O this blackbird literally landed on me, his claws scratched me and then he flew off. Scared me and almost made me jump in with the unsuspecting crocodile- but then again, I thought better than to find myself face to face with this guy who survived a fire, I personally would rather survive myself so I opted to stay "on deck" :)

It's amazing how brave we are when we know it isn't real!

2012-01-16T19:14:00.000-08:00

I'd NEVER in a million years do this to a real one! :P

As close to dinosaurs as you get

2012-01-16T19:13:00.000-08:00

It was evident, seeing the alligators and crocodiles up close, how much they resemble dinosaurs..In fact, I bet that prehistoric alligators and crocs looked alot like this, but were much larger and as the areas where they originally lived shrunk, they did too (sort of like goldfish- their size is often dependant on the size of their bowl/tank/home..

Tropical Colors of the Feathered Kind

2012-01-16T19:10:00.000-08:00

Gatorland didn't just have alligators and crocodiles...They had tropical birds, an inside bird aviary where you could go inside and hold the birds, and an abundance of other wildlife that roamed around freely! It was truly awesome to see and experience. If you are ever in Florida, I strongly suggest you go here. It is an amazing experience!

Birds EVERYWHERE

2012-01-16T19:06:00.000-08:00

There were birds Everywhere, of many types! They weren't hardly scared at all, and would walk along almost beside you without flinching! Thank goodness the bird on the top didn't think Christiana looked that tasty. Or maybe he knew she was an alligator and might eat him instead! ;)

Turn that frown upside down..

2012-01-16T19:03:00.000-08:00

It was cool to see serious faced Wayne's scowl lines soften into a smile as he held birds in the bird aviary. I enjoyed it alot..

Courage

2012-01-16T19:00:00.000-08:00

Cassandra wanted to hold the parakeets so much, but she would jump everytime they came near her..at first..But by the end when we were just about to leave, she got up the gumption to be like her big brothers and hold one too, and that girl just gleamed with pride :)

Bird whisperer ;)

2012-01-16T18:57:00.000-08:00

No, not really, but he took holding the birds very seriously! He was so proud of himself that he had multiple birds landing on him and staying there (although the birdseed on the stick helped them stick around too but we won't tell him that ;) )

Gator wrestling at it's best!

2012-01-16T18:53:00.000-08:00

No this gator was NOT tame. He snapped at the guy a couple of times and almost got his fingers once..It was pretty amazing, especially when he showed us that gators have little strength if placed in certain positions!

Did you know that if a gator is forced upside down he falls asleep?

2012-01-16T18:50:00.000-08:00

It's true! The guy pushed him back over again and gator was back to normal and ready to play again ;)

Swamp Walk

2012-01-16T18:47:00.000-08:00

My most favorite part of Gatorland :)

Lots to See...Amazing Nature!

2012-01-16T18:45:00.000-08:00

Me and my Boy..

2012-01-16T18:43:00.000-08:00

Samuel and my favorite part of gatorland was the florida swamps..We could have hung out there for a long time exploring, but others in our family thought it boring and wanted to go back almost as quickly as we went out there. It was So COOL, walking thru a real swamp, seeing the towering trees, being surrounded by murky water filled with vegetation..We grabbed a few pictures so we could remember how much we enjoyed it together, me and my boy :)

Have you ever seen an Emu?

2012-01-16T18:38:00.000-08:00

Their feathers look so soft..I wanted to reach down and touch them so bad (they were laying down right below a wood fence I was standing next to and I could have almost reached them but that large beak kept my fingers on the other side of the fence! :)

Big Ones!

2012-01-16T18:32:00.000-08:00

There were massive alligators and crocs there, including the bottom one who was a Dog Eater that was so aggressive he had his own place away from the other gators! That bird sure had guts! ;)

Alligators and Snakes up close and personal

2012-01-16T18:30:00.000-08:00

The kids (even though it doesn't show) were a little disappointed- The lady plopped the gator and snake down, snapped the picture and took them right off their laps again (even though there was no one in line) The kids were really hoping to be able to "see" them longer and better (and Samuel was REALLY bummed to have only been able to touch the tip of it's tail but she rushed them in and wouldn't let them change seats. All in all they enjoyed touching the critters, it just wasn't long enough for them!! :)

Last Night..

2012-01-16T18:27:00.000-08:00

As with every vacation, this one had to end as well, but we are so thankful to have been given such a wonderful opportunity- Thank you Orlando, for a great time, and we hope to see you again someday! :)

The only Christmas pictures I got.

2011-12-30T11:35:00.000-08:00

This year I've nothing for Christmas day pictures. No, not one. Do you know how disappointing that is, especially since Christmas was on SUNDAY this year!!! It's really disappointing..As well...it's just as well. This year has been out of the ordinary for many reasons, so it's seem to follow suit that Christmas would be the same.. We got up, opened gifts, got dressed for church service, came home and made a full Christmas meal for a family who have been living in a hotel since the flood over 3 months ago, came home then made OUR Christmas dinner. Read the Christmas story, and then crashed and burned. I was exhausted! Next year I will have to make up for it.. In the meantime, even though I've no time to give all details about the day, all in all it was a good day, and good Christmas!

Making Breakfast :)

2011-12-30T11:27:00.000-08:00

The "best commercial gift"

2011-12-30T11:25:00.000-08:00

I say the best commercial gift, because the best gift of all is Jesus.. I saved this from the flood. It was in the basement, and I had enough forethought to put it upstairs before the flood. Then it went from our flood ridden home, to some friends' garage so that it could be stored out of sight, up until a Christmas Party at their home, where the husband brought it magically out of hiding and hid it in the back of my van under a tarp :) I bought it for 15.00 off of Craigslist almost a year ago. I bought the stainless steel pots and pans at target at the after christmas sales last yr for like 6 dollars or something, and I had bought the potholders/aprons at a craft show about a yr ago and had them put away (it also came with a dolly apron, a child apron, and an adult apron, which I converted to a child sized aprton) The only "money" I had to put into the gift this Christmas was a small bucket of food and a chef hat/apron for Samuel so he could play as well that I got from the craft store buy one get one free! So for about 15.00 I had the most beautiful set that I've ever seen and would have LOVED to have received as a kid.. It sure was a hit for mama and kiddos! :)

Cantrell Clan on Christmas Eve (some of them at least!)

2011-12-30T10:57:00.000-08:00

People, Lots of People

2011-12-30T10:45:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve was held at the parsonage this year.. Here are just a few family faces that could be seen..

Church Christmas Play

2011-12-30T10:41:00.000-08:00

Our church had a children's Christmas Play..It was Wonderful, albeit long (a whole hour and those kids had to sit still and memorize that much!) Cassandra was an angel in the angel choir :) Samuel's nerves got the best of him so he refused to be in the play, HOWEVER he learned joy to the world with the bells, and before he had time to get nervous he was ushered up front to ring his bells for over 250 people!!! He did AMAZING and I was SO PROUD of BOTH of them! Cassandra was up there singing and she sat so well for so long, I was absolutely impressed! :) I know next yr that girl will be able to have a small speaking part, she did awesome and hopefully Samuel's nerves won't get the best of him, and he will be able to be in it too :)

Visit with Santa

2011-12-30T10:36:00.000-08:00

The good thing about the mall santa- he is the same one that has been at the mall since Samuel was born. The bad thing about visiting the mall santa- the photography company who has taken over (it's a different one now) charge you to take pictures with them..You aren't allowed to take pictures of your own kids sitting on Santa's lap without the purchase of a picture. So I bought the cheapest picture I could get (because I just couldn't resist seeing as I have pictures every single year of my kids with Santa and its awesome to be able to see how much they have grown!!!) and then snapped a few before the glaring photographer stared me away (there were other people in line waiting)..Grr...I don't like how commercialized everything is these days...I fall into the same category, because I gave in and BOUGHT the picture, but I still don't like it.

Christmas Belle..

2011-12-30T10:31:00.000-08:00

Christiana reminds me of what Disney's Belle would have looked like when she was little :)

I love that expressive face!

2011-12-30T10:29:00.000-08:00

Chummy :)

2011-12-30T10:23:00.000-08:00

Boy Buddy :)

2011-12-30T10:22:00.000-08:00

The girls' buddy Dylan! They love their "little brother" even though he also won't be here much longer. With us moving to Vestal, we have to start over in more ways than one..Dylan lives too far away to continue coming for daycare. It's sad and we will miss him, but I hope that we can keep in touch and set up playdates with Dylan once in a while also! :)

Christmas Photos :)

2011-12-30T10:17:00.000-08:00

While she was here, I took some pictures of Little Samantha..Here are a few of my favorites :)

Friends Forever (hopefully)

2011-12-30T10:15:00.000-08:00

Little Samantha came for a Christmas visit . The girls' had a blast seeing their old friend.. Unfortunately, due to distance we can't see little Samantha much anymore, and can't take care of her either, but hopefully we will still be able to arrange playdates so that the girls' best girl friend won't become a thing of the past! They miss her but I understand how hard it is distance wise, wear and tear on the car, and gas wise! No matter the distance though, we will always love Little Samantha!

Christmas Sparkle..

2011-12-30T10:08:00.000-08:00

2011-12-30T10:07:00.000-08:00

I see the moon and the moon sees me...God bless the moon and God bless me... :) I always loved that little "diddy" and when I look at this picture it reminds me of it!

Baker in Training..

2011-12-30T10:05:00.000-08:00

Christiana loves to help in the kitchen! She always wants to help (even when I'm in a rush, and not really needing any!) She is a natural and will take after her father I am sure! (with a little help from her mama too :) )

Our annual Santa Poppy Visit..

2011-12-30T10:03:00.000-08:00

Every year we are invited to the annual foster care Christmas Party that my parents are involved with. Almost every year we go, and this year was no exception. The kids love munching on goodies, going bowling, and seeing poppy dressed as Santa (although it took a few minutes for Christiana to figure out who this Santa was and she was a little weird at first ;) It's a great visit for the kids and the grandparents :)

For those who didn't get a Christmas Card..

2011-12-30T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am very sorry..I just didn't have it in me to mail many cards this year..I hope that you had a wonderful Christmas and your New Year is filled with Blessings!! :)

Who took my Baby and Gave me This Little Girl??

2011-12-30T09:57:00.000-08:00

I would say give her back, but I sure do love the little girl she has become so I think I'll keep her ;)

Sweet as sugar

2011-12-30T09:55:00.000-08:00

Sisters :)

2011-12-30T09:54:00.000-08:00

Full Of Beautiful Character :)

2011-12-30T09:48:00.000-08:00

Pretty Lil' Miss

2011-12-30T09:46:00.000-08:00

Free Fun :)

2011-12-30T09:45:00.000-08:00

One perk of Bob working at an upscale hotel- I get to make decorations for his buffets and the restaurant on occasion. I buy the supplies, but get reimbursed. I get to make pretty arrangements, then see them at his hotel! :) The only thing that would be better about the deal is that I'm always told I'll get a free meal with my husband at the hotel for compensation, but it never happens, so he still owes me like 3 meals and he had better pay up sometime!! ;)

A Wonderful Gift..

2011-12-30T09:40:00.000-08:00

A lovely friend arranged for our family to get handmade quilts from her church quilting group Scraps to Wraps. She brought each of us a lovely quilt (although Bob and mine was loveliest of all!) :) The kids love their special quilts, but more importantly they have helped tremendously keeping us warm. We've been keeping the heat off in the house, using only heat from the fireplace at night. Having warm quilts on the bed really help keep us toasty (and they are beautiful cozy!) :)

Samantha and Wayne with their new quilts..

2011-12-30T09:36:00.000-08:00

By the Glow of Christmas Tree..

2011-12-24T19:56:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve is a tradition upon itself..Christmas Eve we always get together on the Cantrell side to celebrate Christmas...Different locations (this year was our home, but most likely won't be again) but same people, same craziness, same munching on yummy goodies..Christmas Eve is always reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" (used to Mary Englebreit style, but since our book was flooded, it is now Jan Brett Style) Christmas Eve is always getting the littles to bed later than I want, and staying up till midnight to finish last minute wrapping and gift preparation for Christmas Day by glow of Christmas tree..Christmas Eve is doing this to the music of my husband's snores...

The best tradition of all is reflecting on the Peace of the Season, among the busyness of the day..Pondering the PeaceGiver's Birth...Praying your Christmas is filled with the Peace of Jesus.. Merry Christmas to you.

Home Sweet Home..A Wonderful Christmas Present in a small package

2011-12-20T20:48:00.000-08:00

Today we went househunting. Today we hunted down a house and we are good hunters :) We've been househunting for months now, have put offers on a few properties, none of which have panned out. Last weekend we were intending on putting an offer on another home, but when we got the figures together our monthly mortgage would have been OVER 1000.00 a month, something realistically we could not afford. Plain and Simple.

We had to start gameplan two. Look at a whole other set of homes in a different pricerange. Our home on West Ave was a blessing (and a Hud Foreclosure) so we got an outlandish price for it. We've been trying to stay in the Owego/Apalachin area really hard but just couldn't find anything within our price range (that hadn't flooded)

The homes that WERE in our price range were smaller, in somewhat questionable neighborhoods. It was difficult at first to change pricegears..I had to be reminded more than once that we need to live within our means, that's just life. The last thing we need is to get into a home that isn't in our pricerange and then have it foreclosed on, like so many other people.

We found not one, but two homes today in our search. One was beautiful, spacious and updated, with a fully fenced in (small) yard but a very busy neighborhood (not a bad one, just house to house on top of each other)..The other was an estate that needs a little work, but has great bones/potential, and is in a beautiful area, and has a HUGE yard (.6 acres, bigger than our other yard even!!)

We liked the first, but we loved the second. Both of us. It's the first time (and we've looked at literally 30 plus houses) we've both had that instant, we love this place attitude since West Avenue.

Reality- it will take work to get it to accomodate our large family, However we are absolutely up for the challenge and believe that it will be amazing! :)

Reality- It is much smaller than our old house, However we need to live within our means, and have enough yard to add on if it truly was a necessity (which I don't believe it is)

Reality- It's going to be tough making the kids change schools midyear, but we all have to make concessions, and as awful as it is for them, it must be done, especially since there was NOTHING in our school district appropriate for us.

Reality, I love the fact that we have not one but TWO fireplaces in our home (we've gotten to really appreciate fireplaces thanks to the fireplace here at the parsonage. I also love the fact that it's located on a quiet street of well maintained homes, surrounded by the woods of Vestal. And, of course, I love the YARD!!! We even have a CREEK down the ways a bit. How cool is That?!?! :)

Reality, I love our new Cozy home (and I mean it when I say Cozy!) and am so thankful that God has given us a new place to hang our hats, a new place to be our home!

Please Pray..

2011-12-15T10:33:00.000-08:00

Do not be deceived by these smiling faces..Not all of the people in this house are of the same mindset..Please pray for us..Satan is trying very hard to get into our family and cause terrible havok. That's all I will say about that, but Please, Please pray for our family..We need it.

I heard rumors of Snow..

2011-12-07T05:27:00.000-08:00

Are you ready?? We are bundled and ready, but our fridge is not! I don't think less than a half a gallon of milk and less than a half a loaf of bread is going to cut it, so off to the grocery store we go this morning! :) Stay Warm! :)

Popping by to say hi :)

2011-12-06T08:15:00.000-08:00

Feeling better..Sorry for the sob story earlier..It's been an interesting journey, no journey would be complete without some tears, right?! Refocusing on the blessings now.. I just want you to know that I appreciate you hanging in there in the highs and lows, not just the highs. Hope you are well and thanks for plugging away with me as I work on bringing the joy back :)

" My brothers, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have it's perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." James 1: 2-4

2011-12-02T13:25:00.000-08:00

I've decided to write a short novella. I
will be posting chapter by chapter on a regular basis... It's going to be a
fiction story based on truth, although that seems rather besides the point! :) I
hope you decide to join me on this new journey. I don't know how good it will
be, but I am looking forward to this exciting new venture :) The blog address is http://washedawaywithgrace.blogspot.com/
:)

Silent Reflection

2011-12-02T13:12:00.001-08:00

Chapter 1: Silent Reflection

Elizabeth walked into the kitchen, set up the coffee pot and made sure that the orange light was switched on before walking over and plopping down onto the loveseat to wait those long 5 minutes until the smell of fresh brewed coffee would waft thru the air bringing her back to her feet. It was quiet in the house and she enjoyed the few moments of solitude. This was the only time she ever had to herself as of late. Having five children plus doing daycare cut the "her" time down to practically nothing, especially considering two of her kids were teenagers. Used to be, even with a full house, the kids would go to bed at a reasonable time but now that they were older, bedtimes were pretty much non-existent.

Being able to enjoy even just a few minutes of peace and quiet to sip her coffee and reflect on the past, while pondering the future. What a past to reflect on and a future to ponder…To even delve into any of it this morning would be pointless. There was little time today. Her little daycare boy would be dropped off in 10 minutes or less and so much had happened in her life that ten minutes wasn't nearly enough to even start any type of thought processes. This morning she would utter a prayer asking for God to direct her day and keep her family safe and that would be enough.

She pulled herself up off of the blue and white checked plaid loveseat back into the kitchen. She pulled her special mug out of the cupboard and set it on the counter. She always used that mug. Her husband, although always portraying himself as a hard-nosed, unemotional man on very rare occasion would allow himself to slip-up and show the tiny sliver of the sensitive side he had. This mug was one of those slip-ups, a Mother's Day gift given to her after the death of their premature daughter Grace That tan oversized mug with flowers scattered randomly around it, the little angel girl flying in the corner and the words "There's an angel watching over you" meant more to her than many of her "pretties". . Even when she had little time for reflection, holding that mug to her lips each morning when her day began was like giving her daughter a kiss on the cheek and accepting a kiss from her angel girl in return. Every day she used that mug was a daily reminder of the baby girl that her husband lovingly referred to as Gracie. The mug was 8 years old; her daughter Grace would have been Eight and a half years old had she survived. Her mug was so very important to her that her hubby went back for it after the other most devastating thing of her life had occurred… The flood…

From the other room she heard the sound of her littlest blessing stirring. It was going to be a long day if she woke up already. Elizabeth breathed a silent wish that her little daughter would continue to slumber. She saw the headlights of her daycare dad's truck pulling into the drive, yellow beams of bright light breaking thru the dark. "Hmm… It will be a miracle if she stays asleep now, guess we will see soon enough!" Elizabeth murmured to herself.

Elizabeth went from sipping to gulping her cup of coffee down. She didn't want to share this moment of reflection, especially considering she didn't believe she would have time for anything but an uttered prayer this morning and God had provided much more after all. Didn't he always?? There were times that she would forget, but mornings like this would bring her mind around how wonderful her Heavenly Father truly was. Even in the midst of a hurried morning, He provided ample time for her to reflect and ponder after all!

Failure..

2011-11-29T19:06:00.001-08:00

Struggling with Depression...Wading knee deep thru it just as I waded thru muddy waters to get into my home to survey the damage almost 3 months ago..Yes I know God loves His children, Yes I know it could be worse. Yes I know I should be focusing on the Blessings and Praising Him for what He has done, rather than what weighs in the balance. Yes I know this and much more..Yet here I sit..Feeling alone..Feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders..Struggling to stay afloat...No wonder I feel disconnected..I can't even connect with myself right now.

Happy Thanksgiving..

2011-11-23T17:59:00.000-08:00

Praying You and Your Family have a Blessed Thanksgiving....

Finally...Pictures :)

2011-11-11T04:05:00.000-08:00

It took a while, but I can put photos from my camera on here now- :) I don't have near as many as I usually do, because unfortunately as the flood took many things, it also took my desire to capture the beauty of everything around me temporarily. I know that this too will cease, but I guess it hasn't been on the top of my list of priorities..Living is. It is nice though to be able to see a REAL picture on here though :) Hope you are well, and thank you for the notes saying that you are still reading :) They meant alot to me!

Testing, Testing..

2011-11-11T03:51:00.001-08:00

2011-11-07T07:18:00.000-08:00

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim

Because it was grassy and wanted
wear,

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden
black.

Oh, I marked the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads
on to way

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a
wood, and I,

I took the one less traveled by,And that has made all the
difference

Robert Frost

Offers in an Uncertain Time..

2011-10-24T05:43:00.000-07:00

We've been working with a Realtor to come up with a "backup plan"..If the West Ave house is deemed a total loss, we need to get the ball rolling immediately in order to have another home in place as soon as possible. If the Insurance Company Requires us to rebuild we need to be able to get out of a contract as easily and affordably as possible. We are still looking at another 2 weeks most likely till we get an answer for our flood insurance, but we are putting in an offer on a home that would be a great "backup" plan..We had put an offer on another home, but we were flat out refused (which was probably a blessing in disguise because it needed quite a bit of work and had a bad mold problem in the house) This home would fit our needs perfectly..It's about a block from the school (same school district we were in, just different Elementary School) only a few miles from our church, only 15 min or less from my sister (which to me is a perk) isn't in a flood plain or recvd water, is big enough for our family, has a large backyard (not as large as our other yard, but in comparison to all the small yards we've seen thus far, it's good sized) and is within our price range. It is a 2 family which will have to be converted to a single family..Praying our West Ave Home has answers soon, and to be honest, praying our offer gets accepted and we can buy this home (I am very scared to move back to West Ave, but will have no other choice if insurance says we must rebuild) So, there's the scoop on what's happening in our neck of the woods (if anyone still reads this besides my sister) Hope all is well in your neck of the woods too!

Autumn has arrived in all it's glory..

2011-10-16T19:22:00.000-07:00

Do you know how hard it is not to be able to put my good camera photos on here?? Don't get me wrong, I am very thankful I can post pictures from my cellphone, but I'm greedy and wish I could post my good camera pictures, the quality pales in comparison..Tonight I will count my blessings I have a computer to use and a cellphone with photo capability :)

Autumn has arrived dressed in her best this year..Maybe it's from all the rain we've had, maybe God wants to show us beauty in a time of confusion, to remind us that we are His creation, He is in control of all that happens, that there is a season for everything, and if he can make all the trees so beautiful, than how much more can He do in our lives, if we let him..

I am truly in awe this year of the colors..They seem to be brighter, more vivid, and more eye-catching than I can remember in a while! Maybe it's because I've been looking at dull gray colors for so long, but I tend to believe that God has sent the gorgeous array of colors to give me (and others in a similar boat) hope for the future..The gray is temporary, it won't be long till things start looking up and we can acknowledge better his blessings..

Today I am thankful for..Beautiful leaves on trees, everywhere I look.. Living in a home that isn't ours but is on loan to us for a few more months while we sort out our lives (and our future plans) Thankful my children are adjusting *Finally* to Sunday School and Children's Church and I've been able to enjoy Sunday School and Sermons (which ironically have been dealing with the institute of marriage) sitting next to my husband, my love.. Thankful to be able to share conversations with him about both.. Thankful to see God planting a mustard seed in Wayne's life, and praying for Samantha to find her mustard seed soon.. Thankful for a sister who is a sounding board, parents who are supportive in the best ways they can be, and brothers who although we live very different lives, we are still interwoven as family..Thankful for my Heavenly Father who has seen fit to draw me closer to Him even more now than ever as I have to accept His shoulders to carry the burdens I tend to want to try to lug around by myself..Thankful we resold the house on land contract to a family who are excited to rebuild a shell of a house and make it their own, and even gave us a small down pymt we weren't anticipating which will cover the mortgage each month, halleuiah! (which unfortunately will be used to pay for sewer charges from the previous land contract people who turned ugly after the flood, but at least we have it, when before we didn't.) Thankful for the generous people who have offered us beds, dressers, even a chest freezer, for FREE after we lost so much after the flood. Thankful to see God at Work, in the hundreds of volunteers in our area who are pushing up the sleeves and helping cleanout and tear out walls and floors, for no money, just out of the kindness of their heart..People coming even from other states to help- It's simply breathtaking to see so many people showing love for strangers..So Very Thankful for All of My Blessings In Abundance Today...

Still Swimming...

2011-10-07T12:56:00.000-07:00

I can't use pictures from my good camera as of yet, but I figured out how to put pics from my cellphone on the computer and then use them here.. These were 3 days after the flood..Can you imagine what it looked like the day of the flood? I took very very few pictures of the devastation, I was too busy living it..

We still play the waiting the game..It's exactly 1 month since the flooding started..My old van (Bob's van) was totalled from the flood, but we had enough from the insurance to buy a "new" van, a 96 mercury villager with 99k miles and impeccably maintained, with records to prove it and an interior that puts my new van to shame (my van became a hauling truck during this flood mess) It even has a moonroof,on a van of all things! (one of these days Bob and I will have to break that in) ;)

The people that bought our house on land contract have until Sunday to decide if they want to commit with us to work together to get Temple Street up and running again.. We've offered to defer pymts, help pay for some supplies over there, etc, but we feel like it isn't our total responsibility to pay for EVERY SINGLE THING. I went over the other day, and they STRIPPED the WHOLE first floor. All upper kitchen cabinets, all vanities in the bathroom, EVERYTHING is gone. The excuse was that moisture warped them all, but I personally think they are being dishonest because just 48 hrs before he told me he was taking them down because there was no match for the lower cabinets,and I asked him to please please please not take the upper cabinets out if they weren't intending on staying..Stories changed drastically in a matter of hours.. I don't get a good feeling at all, but what do you do? We don't know..I strongly feel I should take out a small loan to get the house up and running, even if we turn around and sell it, or rent it temporarily, I think it would be wiser than letting it foreclose or go to waste..It will take roughly 10000 to get the very basics done,and 20000 to get it fully restored.. If we could get a loan for 10000 then at least we could make up a little of the money we've lost on it..

That's a small scoop, there is far more in the works, but I just don't have the time for now..I will try and post again soon..Sorry it's sporadic at best..I feel like I've been down so much and I don't want to drag others down with me..Believe me, there's LOTS to be thankful for, a beautiful home to stay in, a good van for Bob, 3 days on Sunshine and more in the forecast, and so much more, but I'm a dweller, it's easier to say we should cast our cares, than to actually do it! I'm trying though, I really am...:)

Little time..

2011-09-21T06:13:00.000-07:00

I sit here on an old laptop I bought for 10.00 at Salvation Army for my son Samuel to play learning games on..Yes, you read correctly, something that was so frivolous has all of a sudden become something of great necessity..Necessity for keeping in touch with insurance companies, utility companies, mortgage companies, and keeping people updated on our whereabouts...Sometime, when I have more time, I will record exactly what happened, however here's as much scoop as I can record for now..
1am sept 8th, never slept, up all night watching and waiting...noticed 2 men pointing in our backyard who were walking past..Looked out the window to see that the house behind us was completely encircled with a huge pool of water, and half our yard was already filling...Ran upstairs to grab the family and suitcase I packed..left 2 dogs with food/water on first floor (stupid) and 2 cats locked in upstairs bathroom. Flew out of the house and loaded the kids and 1 dog (who is destructive when left alone) into his kennel and into the van, just as police was pulling up to have us evac. Were supposed to go 2 Bobs work, but all roads were impassable (and it wouldn't have done any good because they flooded and were evacuated as well) went to a shelter I heard about from a friend on facebook that was just opening up in Owego. On the way we had to cross floodwaters that were above the bottom hood of the van- Bob's van didn't make it. Had to be pushed out of the water and up onto a nearby neighbors land..I hit the gas and prayed we would make it. We did. Bob drove Samanthas car up and over into the grass so her car was also saved..Stayed in a shelter 3 plus days, with no electricity, no shower..thankfully the building had a daycare in it, so we had some food. Found out after our house flooded a foot inside the first fl and completely filled the basement..Everything we stored in top shelves, and even some we brought upstairs was ruined..Two days in Bob and the teens went to rescue our dogs..Found a rowboat, and rescued the dogs by boat. Teens opened the bathroom door and my cat got out while no one noticed, and thankfully after a huge search and a day later a very thin Mooch came out of hiding....Sister got a hold of me and even though bridges were out by her house, a very long way around was found, so we packed up and inundated her home for I think 4 days but I can't even remember anymore.. Dogs were on tieouts in yard, cats resided on a side porch, and we stayed in a warm lit home for the first time in what felt like an eternity..When we went to inspect the house's damage we found that the back foundation was completely gone with the exception of a corner stone on one side and the garage on the other side..Other foundation was separating from the ground and some was cracked. Our pastor was driving by and set up time and people from church the next day, rented a uhaul trailer and brought a few pickup trucks. A few dear friends from our old church came and helped out all morning (I still don't know what I would have done without you!) clearing out as much rubbish and salvaging as much on the first fl. as we could.. By the time most of the first fl was done, the ceiling was separating from the walls in Christiana's back room, and cracks were coming out in the walls in the dining room, not to mention, the back of the house was leaning down and it looked really unsafe..Bob showed up around 5:15PM long enough to kick everyone out of the house because he said it was too dangerous to work any longer (could say something right now, but I will choose to hold my tongue) Our pastor and church also graciously offered up the parsonage house for us to stay in temporarily until we figure out what will be happening with our house..Our old house on Temple Street we sold on land contract, we weren't required flood insurance, and we have a sinking feeling the people who bought it will be walking away from it.. which will leave us with 2 homes that are in really bad shape (temple street f looded 3 ft into the f irst fl)

The good news is, my family was spared, down to the dogs and cats, God's provided a beautiful home to stay in, A wonderful family who showed what being family is all about- allowing us the comfort and relief after a very traumatic and devastating experience..not to mention a wonderful church family who are willing to roll up their sleeves and help as best they can, and stability for my children in the midst of chaos..

The bad news is, we lost a vehicle, lost our house, may be stuck with another mess of a house and 2 mortgages, and I lost almost all income into the home because I did daycare out of my home.. I'm learning to take each day at a time..Each day is a gift, and if nothing else, this experience is drawing me closer to my Lord, He sure does have strong arms, and there's nothing better than being encircled by my Heavenly Father's Hug when the tears won't stop falling...

Scaered...

2011-09-07T18:44:00.000-07:00

It's been raining and pouring so much the old man can't keep snoring thru it...So much that schools were in lockdown and kids were only allowed to leave if a parent could pick them up.. So much that the buses couldn't get thru the flooded streets..So much that there still may be children at the school having an impromptu sleepover..The creek is swelling over it's bank not far from our home..Streets are flooded everywhere, and according to predictions, the floodstage is supposed to crest HIGHER than the big flood of 06. In 06 our home had almost 2 1/2 feet of water in the basement. If things go accoarding to predictions, it may come close to the first floor. We've not evacuated yet..Bob said that we must wait till the very end to do so.. We spent the evening, picking up tools canned goods, and other items of importance off the lower parts of the basement and moving them to higher parts of the basement..The piles of bins must stay where they are, We've no room upstairs for the many bins that I have, so I can only pray that if we become flooded, we can wash the clothes that are binned up down there (I really contemplated bringing as many bins as possible upstairs, but I really don't know where I could put them and be able to still walk) Suka's kennel is temporarily placed in the dining room, and I will be "sleeping" on the couch tonight, for my baby girl sleeps on the first floor and I WILL NOT be upstairs sleeping during this mess. Praying for my home and family, praying for my local extended family (bil, sister, and their kiddos, mom, dad, their kiddos), praying for friends that have already evacuated their homes, and those that might have to, and praying for my mom and dads church that was hit TERRIBLY HARD in the flood of 06'. It's pretty scary here, and I must admit, I'm a little freaked out....I'm glad that God is Good, and He loves me and my family...With Him all is Possible, and He will Sustain us..Now, if only I can feel a little Peace, I only need a little ;)

PenPals :)

2011-08-29T04:14:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my Sister, Samuel has a penpal :) They will be writing letters back and forth at least once a month, but I bet even more than that! :) He is very excited to have a new friend thru the mail and the great part for me, is that it's a no pressure way of him making a friend..He often thinks people are looking at him funny, or whatnot, so he is super excited to be making a new friend, who will be his friend regardless :) I love seeing the excitement shine out of his eyes, and he already has his first letter in the mail to his new friend :) Now...if only I could find a penpal- I haven't gotten a written letter from anyone in at least a year! lol ;)

Princess See Princess Do :)

2011-08-25T04:52:00.000-07:00

Christiana took one look at Samantha's beautiful butterfly tutu dress with matching shoes and pretty hairties and decided she needed to change so she could match her best friend. How ironic is it that I could dress them almost identical..In fact, we went out in public and I had someone ask me if they were twins because with the exception of the hair they looked alot alike :) And, Best Princesses not only stick together, but also must be photographed together for all posterity, correct?? Correct! :)

Two Butterfly Princesses :)

2011-08-25T04:48:00.000-07:00

Bestest Buddies Ever :)

2011-08-25T04:46:00.000-07:00

Look Who is Three (well..Almost..)

2011-08-25T04:44:00.000-07:00

This is one of the little girls I take care of every day..She is more like my unofficially part-time adopted daughter ;) I can say that because her mom is a jewel who appreciates her daughter being treated like one of the family so I know she won't be offended :) In any case, she will be 3 on Sunday..Last year I did birthday pictures for her special day as mom doesn't have much time to go get her pictures done. She came all dolled up yesterday and although I hadn't planned any photo shoot, I guess I had picture taking on the brain from the day before so I thought- WOW, PERFECT! :) I grabbed my camera and starting shooting :) I burned a CD for mom and gave it to her yesterday so that she can develop some pics of her beautiful little girl who is looking awfully grown up these days :) NOTE TO SELF- maybe I ought to do my own children's pictures for the wall next! :)

Curlie Cues :)

2011-08-25T04:39:00.000-07:00

Pixie By a Tree :)

2011-08-25T04:34:00.000-07:00

Family Photo Shoot :)

2011-08-24T05:04:00.000-07:00

Here are my favorites, I hope you enjoy them :) I stayed up into the late hrs last night cropping, then saving them on CD so that Bob could take their pictures in today to work. There were like 50 good pics :) I was pleased, not bad for an amateur right?!?! ;)

It starts with two... :)

2011-08-24T05:00:00.000-07:00

So, I think my first photo shoot turned out well..I hope they like them and appreciate them not just because they were free, but also because they like them..I really enjoyed myself, it was lots of fun- there were only two stress factors- First, this place was photographers heaven therefore there were engagement photographers with their big lenses, tripods, etc, trying to get photographs (and although the photographer was nice enough, the couple, well they could have had lessons in politeness-HOLY COW, you should have seen them- they acted as though they owned the area and were asking people to leave and move as not to interfere with their shots! Yes, I know they were paying big bucks most likely, however, there is a manner and a demeanor people could have)

In any case, although I have a lovely camera, it felt so small in comparison to the swarms of photographers over there! There were at least 3 of them not including me, in a small area!!! That tends to be a little nervewracking, and I did my best to bide my time in various differing locations so as not to interfere with the professional photographers photoshoots.. It worked out fine, but just took a little creativity is all, but that's what photography is all about, right? :)

The second stress factor, even though it isn't totally reflective in the pictures was the littlest boy. STUBBORN was an understatement..We call Christiana alligator, but this one was a crocodile! :) He squirmed out of his parents arms every time we took a pic (or just tried to) He would yell NO! He wanted NOTHING to do with getting his picture taken- I was very glad to have brought a few things JUST in case he was a squirmer- that helped :)

Neither issue was a big deal, we worked through both fairly easily which was good- so I was really pleased for my very first time of doing a photo shoot :) I could do this again sometime, I really enjoyed it! :)

Family Photos :)

2011-08-24T04:47:00.000-07:00

Mommy and Children

2011-08-24T04:43:00.000-07:00

Dad and Son

2011-08-24T04:42:00.000-07:00

Daddy's lil' girl

2011-08-24T04:40:00.000-07:00

Brother and Sister

2011-08-24T04:19:00.000-07:00

It was really hard to get the little boy to sit down, let alone sit still, but we managed to capture a few :) (the bottom one I threw in for kicks just because I love the sister's face) :)

Easy Cheesy :)

2011-08-24T04:17:00.000-07:00

This little girl was easy as pie. You could tell she loved getting her picture taken :)

Runaway Rascal..

2011-08-24T04:08:00.000-07:00

You would never guess this little boy was a runaway rascal- I got some nice shots of him, but didn't think it possible, he was stubborn as all get out and didn't want to sit for ANYTHING..I brought a mini football, a jingle bell, but he finally subsided a little when I brought out my frog..His dad is a cook and apparently he likes the taste of frogs legs ;)

Going to be an Interesting Day..

2011-08-23T05:13:00.000-07:00

After daycare today, I am heading to Binghamton to photograph a family in a nonprofessional photo shoot.. Bob has a cook at his work, who he offered for me to take their family picture. I am not getting paid, but Bob said that after I am done he and I will have dinner at his hotel together, so I suppose I'm getting paid in food, although my waistline would have rather had the money ;) My intent is to do their family photo, plus a variety of extra poses, then tonight I will burn a CD for them and they can develop them at will. I am excited, but also nervous a little..I am not even close to a professional photographer and have never claimed to be so I hope they turn out nice..I guess I need to remember that I need to do my best, but it isn't like I'm getting paid for my services so all photos will be "a gift" rather than a disgruntled client, does this make sense? In any case...I just hope they like them...

Ballerina Baby

2011-08-18T10:43:00.000-07:00

I've been working on some new babies since we had a break in the heat (I have to bake them in the oven, so when it's been so hot the last thing I wanted to do was turn on the oven) This is my Ballerina Baby, I just finished her last night. She is a full sculpt baby which means she has all her baby parts in clay (which also means she's not poseable) I made her a little tutu to cover her baby parts and a tulle headband just because it's cute :) Isn't She Sweet??? :)

Closeups :)

2011-08-18T10:37:00.000-07:00

More and More :)

2011-08-18T10:34:00.000-07:00