A Holiday Birthday Party

These pictures are almost a month old now, but better late than never I suppose!

My nephew turned one right before Christmas so my sister decided to take advantage of the timing and threw a holiday themed birthday party for him back in December. (This is also when we took all of the twinkle light pictures in this earlier post.)

The kids all made Christmas ornaments as a craft activity. Sydney proudly hung her's from our tree once it dried.

Of course Kam was showered with gifts.

Which Sydney may or may not have understood were not hers. (I'll let you be the judge...)

Here, let me interpret some of the young ones' thoughts for you...

(I can do that you know. I'm kind of like the kid-whisperer. It's a gift.)

Kameron - "Yeah, that's right. It's a sweet ball pit. And it's mine. Find your own party woman!"

Kameron - "OMG! I've always wanted one of these! Totally RAD!!!" 
Sydney (now realizing the gifts are not in fact hers.) - "pshh. It's not that cool. Couldn't pay me to play with that toy. It's soooo last month."

Not to worry oh, present-envious-child-of-mine. Christmas is right around the corner.

And, of course there was cake.

Soon followed by cleanup.

What a cutie!

Hope everyone is enjoying our very late, very first, snow of the season. (Too bad it's much to cold to get out and enjoy it. Sydney is fascinated. Every time we go in or out she insists on scooping up a handful and showing it to everyone she can find! I think it's supposed to warm up a bit this weekend, so hopefully we can get outside tomorrow and play for a little while before it all melts away!)

Bumpdate: Week 27

Week 27 according to thebump.com:

How big is baby?:
Your baby's the size of an eggplant! At 13.6 to 14.8 inches and about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds, she's not just getting bigger, she's getting smarter.

Your baby at 27 weeks:
At 27 weeks, baby is breathing (it’s amniotic fluid, not air, but it still counts) and even showing brain activity. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle. The annoying symptoms you’ve been having probably aren’t going away, but at least you’ve probably found some ways to deal with them -- and hey, maybe you’re used to them right now. As you say goodbye to the second trimester, you can look forward to some pretty embarrassing stuff (like having to pee all the time -- and maybe even when you don’t mean to at all) that’s all par for the late-pregnancy course. It’s time to head down the home stretch. Are you ready?

Week 27 survey according to Me:

Symptoms: Well, I have to pee all the time and I get a few back aches, but I think that's about it. Things are pretty easy going right now. 

Maternity clothes?: Yes. I'm trying not to spend a lot of money on maternity clothes so I am basically wearing the same few outfits over and over again! My co-workers must be starting to think I'm pretty dirty. LOL!

Sleep?: I usually get up to use the bathroom once or twice a night, but otherwise I’m sleeping just fine! Starting to get a little bit more uncomfortable at night, sore hips, etc., but it's not too bad.

Movement?: Tons. Kicks, punches, rolls, flips…I’m feeling it all! (Even hiccups now!)

Food cravings?: Not really. The other day I did have a fruit craving. I ate a kiwi, pear, orange, and apple all within about 30 minutes. :)

Food aversions?: Nope.

What’s different this time?: Time is just flying by, I can't even keep track of what week I am without checking my weekly email updates.

Labor signs?: No, not yet.

I am loving: Spending one-on-one time with Sydney while I still can. Getting Sydney's new big girl room ready. Feeling/watching the baby roll, move, and have hiccups.

What I miss: Being able to sled, play golf, ride a four wheeler, etc. My work is having a bowling event next week. Not sure how well that's going to go. Pity the fool that gets stuck on my team!

What I’m looking forward to: The fact that this baby is going to join us in the Spring. Sydney was a late Fall baby, so I spent most of my time off with her cooped up in the house. This time we'll be able to get out of the house more and spend more time outdoors. Looking forward to walks, parks, backyard bbq's, and enjoying a glass of wine on my patio!

What I’m freaking out about: Not really freaking out, but hoping that labor and delivery goes smoothly again. I'm also a little worried about going into labor on my own. Not sure if I will recognize the signs, get to the hospital on time, etc. I was induced with Sydney, so, assuming labor happens without any help this time, it will all be new to me.

Project 52 - Week 1: Resolution

Another year, another project 52! This year I am taking the project 52 photo challenge over at my3boybarians.com. One photo assignment a week for the entire year!

Week 1 - Resolution:
I have a lot of resolutions for the coming year as far as photography goes, but one in particular is to get in front of the camera more often, whether that is by doing more selfie shots, group images, or just handing the camera over to my husband more often.

I have several reasons for wanting to do this:

1) I see self-portraits as another form of photographic art and I think it will really push me out of my comfort zone and challenge me in new ways. I was inspired by Ashley over at Ramblings and Photos and Elena at Selfie Magic to give this a try in 2012. I have shied away from taking many self portraits in the past, in part because I was afraid it would be seen as pointless or even vain, but I think that Elena hit the nail on the head as to how I feel when she explained that "self-portraiture is NOT about vanity, it is not embarrassing. It is a form of art, just like any other. It is challenging, but that's exactly why every self-respecting photographer should get decent at working the camera from the front...it's about the art of capturing a moment, or about the message, or about the creativity of the shot."

2) It will give me another excuse to buy the tripod I've been putting off getting.

3) And probably the most important....memories. I've expressed before, the many reasons that I love photography; it's an art, a creative outlet, something that forces me to see the beauty in everything, to become more aware and appreciative of the details of each day, and last but certainly not least, it's a way to preserve moments and memories. Whenever I'm asked the old "what would you grab if your house was on fire" question, one of my first thoughts is always, pictures. They are important. And so, I want to preserve more memories and moments for my kids that include me in them as well. While they won't be pulling out shoe boxes of photos like we did when we were kids, I want them to be able to pull out files, or memory cards, or albums that contain snapshots of our life together and my love for them. 

One week down, 51 more to go. Looking forward to an awesome 2012!

Memories, Dreams, and Reflections 2011

A brand new year. Time to reflect on the past and focus in on our hopes for the future.

Today I'm linking up with Ashley Sisk over at Ramblings and Photos to reflect on some of my favorite photos and memories from 2011. Here's the list for Memories, Dreams, and Reflections 2011:

1. Me
How my family sees me most of the time. This was one of the first shots I took with my brand new camera when I started my blog almost a year ago!

2. I Love You
Can't imagine my life without either of these two.

3. Still Laughing
We had a lot of rain this week and the field was a mud pit. My nephew tried to venture out and gather some paint balls, but only made it a few feet before getting stuck.

4. Winter Wonderland
I loved this day. Jon and I left Sydney with grandma for a few hours and got out of the house to just drive around exploring and taking photos. I definitely want to do this type of outing more often again this year!

5. Birthday
Paintball guns. Any young boy's birthday wish come true.

6. Friends
Well, brothers, but hopefully also friends, spending a day at the county fair.

7. I Was Inspired...
I took this picture as part of the MCP Project 52 that I participated in when I started this blog. Unfortunately I completely dropped it in August when I got hit with mono and morning sickness at the same time. I had a rough few months after that with my 1st trimester and barely touched my camera or blog, so I never really completed the year. This is still one of my favorite shots though! Maybe I'll try again for 2012!

8. Spring Fever
The first flowers of spring!

9. Travel or Vacation
Can I tell you how sad this one made me! I was searching through my photos trying to find some vacation pics and realized that for the first time ever, other than a few nearby camping trips, we didn't go anywhere last year!

10. Summer Days
Bikes and basketball.

11. A Day In My Life
Yep. This about sums it up.

12. All Smiles
Ice Cream. It makes me smile too.

13. Autumn Harvest
A shot from Kam's nine month photos.

14. Family
My family.

15. Celebrate!
Ringing in the new year with two of my favorite things, a cold beer, and a deck of cards.

16. Let's Do It Again...
We got stuck at home on a snow day last year. Just me and Sydney. No where to go, nothing to do, so we played and baked cookies! I love a good snow day when you can stay home and hunker down with the people you love!

17. I Miss You
Waiting in his usually spot for papa to come home.

18. Beautiful
Over the summer we took a trip to a small local zoo. The peacocks walked around freely and were stunningly beautiful!

19. Dress Up
Yeah. We were bored.

20. Macro
I don't have a macro lens (It's on my wish list!) but here's a close up of a coneflower from my yard that I love.

21. Holidays
Sydney's Christmas pictures.

22. My Favorite
Summertime Monday's with mommy. My favorite. I took off Monday's this past summer to spend time with Sydney. I loved it! Such a great way to spend some sweet summertime with my girl; parks, pools, sidewalk chalk, and picnics!

23. Don't Ever Change
Pretty Please?

24. Just Because...So There!
Some of my favorite pics...just because I like them.

25. Hopes and Dreams
Well obviously the most imediate thing I am looking forward to in 2012 is meeting our youngest girl and adjusting to life as a family of four. Beyond that, I hope to continue to expand and improve my photography skills, start working out again (hooray for my new double jogging stroller!), and take a fabulous vacation somewhere!

Happy New Year everyone! I would love to hear what are you looking forward to in 2012!