A look through my viewfinder...

I've reached 100

2008-06-18T21:28:00.003-04:00

This is my 100th post! Yay!

Anyway...I am back from San Diego. Landed Tuesday night around 7 pm local time and was home around 8:30. Glad to be back, did not miss the heat though.

Here is a recap:

Ended up staying at our friends' house for the remainder of the trip. Kinda hard with all of us in one small room. Especially with kids who generally wake around 4-5 am. Better than at a house that could have been broken into, though!

On Friday went to Legoland. It was okay. Not a lot of rides. And not too much that Grace could do. The best thing happened though. Waiting in line, we were approached by a family and they asked if we were in line to buy tickets. Said yes. They said they had a free ticket we could have. Awesome, since adult tickets were $70. Still waiting in line, were approached by a mom and her kids. She asked if we were in line to buy tickets. Again, said yes. She had coupons that would allow her to get us in as her guests, since she had season passes. Score. Can you believe that? It really was great when you consider that we arrived there just after 10 am and left around 1 pm. Headed to Balboa Park, to take Frankin to the Air and Space Museum. Grace was sleeping when we got there, so I stayed in the car with her and napped as well. About an hour later, she woke up. Then drove to another part of Balboa Park and went to the Museum of Photographic Arts. Very small museum, but some amazing photographs of India. And one really great image of Georgia O'Keefe. Then walked to the fountain at the one end of the park and back to the car. After Balboa Park, headed to La Jolla (pronounced La Hoya) to see the Children's Pool at La Jolla Cove. It is a small area of the public beach that was intended for small children and their families, donated to La Jolla in 1934. Well, the harbor seals have taken over. Now the water and the sand in the small cove are considered toxic to the public. It was really neat to see the seals just hanging out. Apparently, there are some people that feel the seals should not be there and want the beach back. They have been clubbing and shooting the seals. There is an organization that is helping to keep the seals there. I made a donation and Franklin got a shirt and Grace got a harbor seal stuffed animal. Funny thing about the stuffed seal though, she wanted to cut the whiskers off and pull out its "nails". So much for my little animal lover!! Then headed to our rental house. It was that night/morning that we had the attempted break-in. Seriously, who has that happen on vacation. Well, we found out that the area where we were renting was full of drug addicts and has lots of break-ins. Great, wish that someone had told us.

Saturday morning after packing everything up, went back to the same Denny's as Friday morning. After breakfast went to the Ocean Beach police station, which oddly enough is at the beach, to get a copy of the police report in order to get a refund on the rental house. Then headed to the zoo. It was nice. Kinda crowded. The kids liked petting the goats, and looking at the reptiles. There were two otters that were completely into letting me take pictures of them. Loved it. Saw some monkeys, apes, etc. Headed to lunch. Great food. After lunch the kids were pretty tired, so we headed back to our friends house. Franklin was asleep in the car, I didn't want to move him-didn't want him to wake up, so again I stayed in the car while he slept. Just put the seat back and slept myself. Thank goodness that California has virtually no humidity and was in the low 70's. Could you imagine trying to sleep in your car here? No way. After Franklin woke up, the kids played. We then headed to downtown San Diego to go to the Maritime Museum. There was a exhibition of Edward Steichen photos that I wanted to see there. The paid admission for the Maritime Museum included 3 other boats and a Russian submarine that you can tour. After touring the photo exhibition, we headed to the other boats and the sub. The sub is not easy to get through. It was interesting seeing everything labeled in Russian. One of the ships was the Star of India. It was built in 1863. A very pretty ship. Very elegant. Then it was off to dinner at the Elephant & Castle. Watched the US Open finish up while eating dinner. The kids did well considering how long dinner took. It also helped that I had packed some yarn and noodles for them to construct necklaces out of! Then back home and off to bed.

Sunday morning the guys left for the US Open. The kids and I joined our friend and her kid at Sea World. We saw the Penguins and rode one Elmo ride before eating lunch. Her daughter would not eat her lunch so we left. Grace feel asleep on the way back to their house, so I left her with our friend. I took Franklin to a free museum in their town that had about 30 retired Marine fighter jets and helicopters. One of the helicopters there was used during the evacuation of Siagon during the Vietnam War and was the one to rescue the Ambassador. That one was open and Franklin and I were able to go inside and learn more about it. Like that the cockpit was painted a matte black paint so that the enemy could not see them coming. We got to see a Corsair-one of Franklin's favorite planes. Franklin wanted his picture taken in front of each plane. It was really cute. After seeing the planes, it was off to the gift shop. I let him pick some planes and then he saw a bomber jacket. It was really cute. So I let him get it. He was so proud of it that he wanted to wear it right away. I let him. He calls himself Pilot Franklin! After naps, my friend and I wanted to take the kids to the mall for dinner. This particular mall was 30 minutes away. As soon as we got there, the guys called to say that they were back at the stadium from the open (were they had to catch the shuttle) and wanted to get together for dinner. They were not willing to drive the 30 minutes to meet us, so we turned around and headed back to meet them for dinner. After dinner, it was off to bed.

Monday morning we went to see the USS Midway, an aircraft carrier. They give you headphones and a receiver for an audio tour. Franklin wasn't old enough to have his own, so I let him use the headphones from mine and kept the receiver around my neck. It proved to be a great way for him to not run ahead of me! After doing the tour, Franklin went on a flight simulator and I took Grace for a snack. At about noonish or so I was done with the aircraft carrier. Took the kids back to La Jolla to go to the beach. They loved splashing around in the water and looking for rocks. The water was not too cold. Got some great photos of them splashing around in the Pacific Ocean. Tried to take them back to the seal beach but were not able to find parking. Headed back to our friends house. Let the kids play. I packed everything up. Off to bed.

Tuesday morning got the car packed up and were on the road by 6:50 am CA time. Took the kids for pancakes on the way to the airport. Good thing because we would not be able to get off the plane in Denver, and there was no food available for purchase. I had bought a hot dog and yogurt right before getting on the plane for the kids. They ate that while waiting for the rest of the people to get on the plane in Denver. I am so glad that I bought that food for them.

Glad to be home. I will try and post some photos from the trip later today. I got home just in time for my period to start. TMI, I know. But how much would it have sucked for it to have started on the plane.

Enjoy the rainy, drizzily day.

Cathy

good intentions...bad things

2008-06-14T08:42:00.003-04:00

I had good intentions of posting today all about Legoland and including some pics. But alas, that is not what I can post about right now.

It is 5:30 am here in Ocean Beach, California. I have been up for about an hour now. Why...did the kids wake up? No. Someone was trying to break into the house that we are renting. The person(s) were outside the bedroom window. Tried to tell myself that it was an animal-maybe a mountain lion. It sounded large. There was more rustling. Thought that maybe it was a bum trying to find a spot to sleep. Then came some banging. I told Filic to call the police. He went into the front room and called. But they heard him and started to throw rocks at the window. At which point I went into the front room. Then the person(s) was on the roof. Ran towards the front of the house, circled around. And then ran towards the back of the house and away by the time that the police showed up. Needless to say, I could not go back to sleep. I am in the midst of getting all of our things packed up. The plan is to either find a hotel that has a room available (the US Open is in town, so there are not many hotels in the area with availabilty) or stay with our friends here (but they only have one guest room and two other people staying with them). There is no way to stay here. The person(s) who were here, are angry now. I fear for our safety. Thankfully, the kids slept through the whole thing. That is the last thing that I need, them being afraid to sleep. I have already started to pack things up. I want to be out of here as soon as possible.

Heading to the zoo today. And maybe Sea World. The rumor is that there is an opportunity to feed the emperor penguins at one of these locations if you answer the trivia question correctly. I really want to win!!! Who knows what else will be in store for today.

Stay tuned for the next chapter of Ocean Beach Vacation...

Cathy

greetings from san diego

2008-06-13T12:51:00.000-04:00

What a long day we had yesterday. We were out of the house headed to the airport by 8:30 am FL time. We got our luggage and car seats checked in and then headed over to the I mall. I had a bracelet from the lucky jeans store that just broke last weekend that I needed to take back. When it came time to get on the plane, we were some of the last ones and no one was willing to move so we could sit together. Thank goodness franklin had a seat of his own. We finally were able to get two seats together for franklin and I. Grace was with filic about 10 rows up. She was screaming, so I went and got her. So for take off I had both kids and did until franklin had to go to the bathroom. Franklin did really well on the flight. He watched the shows that I had put on my ipod. He colored. Had a snack. He fell asleep right before we landed, which was a blessing because there was quite a bit of turbulance. We switched planes in denver. And finally got to san diego 7:30 FL time. Grace and I grabbed the bags and her carseat while the two men went to take care of the rental car. I must have appeared like a damsel in distress because every man that saw me with the stroller, bags and car seat wanted to help out. I would decline politefully, and tell them that this is nothing. I would tell them that I usually have two kids and two car seats!

Once we were all at the rental car agency we headed to ocean beach to drop off our bags and then it was off to dinner. After dinner we picked up some milk etc. By the time we got the kids to bed it was midnight FL time. And surprising they were well behaved.

They were up at 4 am CA time today. We went for breakfast at Denny's and then took them to the beach. We are in the car almost to legoland right now and the two kids are asleep and have been for awhile. I have never been to legoland, but evetone says that it is amzing and a must see. I will let you know.

For now, I leave you. I will try to update my blog often. By the way, I am typing this post out on my cell phone!

I don't want to pack

2008-06-11T20:33:00.002-04:00

I so don't want to pack for San Diego. I have the kids mostly packed at this point. I have their back packs for the plane mostly packed as well. I am finishing the laundry and then I will be able to finish gathering what I need. The problem is that I am tired, and want to just veg out in front of the tv watching Two and a half Men.

I heard the funniest/oddest version of Bad Day by Daniel Powter. I heard this on the XM kids channel, it was Alvin and the Chipmunks singing it!! How odd. The kids thought it was hilarious though. I was playing it up and trying to sing like one of the chipmunks myself. And dancing around. They love it when I do this.

Speaking of music there are several songs that I am addicted to right now. They are:

Into the Mystic by Van Morrison
Trouble by Dave Matthews Band
My Girl by The Temptations
Beautiful Day by U2
there are some more, but the titles escape me right now.

There is a country song that I love right now too. It is:

Just got started loving you by James Otto

It is almost 9, I need to get my suitcase packed so I can get to bed. I may end up staying up pretty late tonight.

I hope you all have a great weekend. I will try to post something from San Diego.

Cathy

I am so

2008-06-10T20:07:00.002-04:00

exhausted! I have been volunteering at my friend Jessi's church and their Vacation Bible School program this week. I volunteer so that both Franklin and Grace are able to attend. We did this for the week last summer too. Her church does such a great job. I always loved VBS when I was a kid. Because I spent the majority of the summer with my grandparents on the other coast I was able to do two different VBS weeks. Loved it! Anyway, I was under the impression that I was just going to be an extra body in one of the rooms. Not the case. I am leading the talks, activities in the theatre. After the opening ceremonies each morning, the groups rotate stations. The station where I am is called Cinema. We show a short video (5-7 minutes) that is part of a series, it picks up each day where the previous day left off. Then I talk about the video and get the kids to talk/think about the message. We do an experiment or a game and then it is usually time for them to rotate to the next station. My last group leaves the room at 11:30. I go and pick up Franklin and Grace from their teachers and head home.

I am just exhausted. I am leaving for San Diego on Thursday morning for 6 days. The kids are really excited to go on a plane. I am dreading the packing that I have to do tomorrow afternoon. Blah.

I will write more tomorrow. Right now, it is off to bed for me.

Good night,
Cathy

I've been a busy little bee

2008-06-07T06:59:00.003-04:00

We were in need of a enclosure for our trash cans to keep the racoons out.
Here is the area that I started with. I had to remove two star jasmine plants.
I even dug up the roots.

Here are two of the posts that I put in. I used a post hole digger to
dig 2 foot holes for the 4 x 4's.

Here are the 4 4x4's in the ground and the first lattice nailed in.

Here is everything almost done. Both lattice's are up on the sides. I built the front part
on the driveway and moved it over. I need to finish the front and install the hinges. I also
need to trim the top foot or so off the lattice on the sides. I am going to borrow my friends
jigsaw today to get that finished.

I am feeling great about myself that I was able to build this. And I did it while watching 3 kids! I only ended up with one blister. The only other time I built something was a dog house. I was about 13 or 14 at the time, and my mom and I decided to try and build a dog house. Needless to say, my dad rebuilt the dog house. Well, my Dad saw this last night and was really impressed with my work. And to think that I did it all by myself without the input of anyone!

Here is a picture of the wood all piled up before I started:

Here is a picture of Franklin with the wood:

He was very excited about this project. A very big helper. That hammer that you see in the
picture is plastic. But he ran right inside and brought it out because he wanted to help. After
this was taken he lost the hammer and we still can not find it!

take a look at this

2008-06-06T06:29:00.002-04:00

here is the website for this retreat: www.creativephotographyretreat.com

My friend Kim is going to the one in CA in August. But there is another one in Conneticut in October, that I think I will try and go to. The courses they are offering sound fun. I love to learn new things.

Cathy

why God created children

2008-06-04T09:47:00.000-04:00

WHY GOD CREATED CHILDREN
(AND IN THE PROCESS GRANDCHILDREN)

To those of us who have children in our lives, whether they are our own,
grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or students...
here is something to make you chuckle.

Whenever your children are out of control,
you can take comfort from the thought that even God's omnipotence
did not extend to His own children.

After creating heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve.
And the first thing he said was "DON'T!"
"Don't what?" Adam replied.
"Don't eat the forbidden fruit." God said.
"Forbidden fruit? We have forbidden fruit? Hey Eve..we have forbidden fruit!!!!!"
"No Way!"
"Yes, way!"
"Do NOT eat the fruit!" said God.
"Why"
"Because I am your Father and I said so!" God replied, wondering why He hadn't stopped creation after making elephants. A few minutes later, God saw His children having an apple break and He was ticked!
"Didn't I tell you not to eat the fruit?" God asked.
"Uh huh," Adam replied.
"Then why did you?" said the Father.
"I don't know," said Eve.
"She started it!" Adam said
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"DID NOT!"
Having had it with the two of them,
God's punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own. Thus the pattern was set and it has never changed.

BUT THERE IS REASSURANCE IN THE STORY!
If you have persistently and lovingly tried to give children wisdom and they haven't taken it, don't be hard on yourself. If God had trouble raising children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you?

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT!
1. You spend the first two years of their life teaching them to walk and talk. Then you spend the next sixteen telling them to sit down and shut up.
2. Grandchildren are God's reward for not killing your own children.
3. Mothers of teens now know why some animals eat their young.
4. Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have saidin the first place.
5. The main purpose of holding children's parties is to remind yourself that there are children more awful than your own.
6. We childproofed our homes, but they are still getting in.
7. Just when you redecorate their room into a nice TV room, they show up with boxes, suitcases and large dogs, to move back home.

ADVICE FOR THE DAY:
Be nice to your kids. They will choose your nursing home one day.

AND FINALLY: IF YOU HAVE A LOT OF TENSION AND YOU GET A HEADACHE, DO WHAT IT SAYS ON THE ASPIRIN BOTTLE: "TAKE TWO ASPIRIN" AND "KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN!!!!

What is love...

2008-06-03T14:00:00.000-04:00

What is Love?

A group of professional people posted this question to a group of 4 to 8 year olds. What does love mean?"
The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think.

When my grandma got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandpa does it for her now all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love. Rebecca- age 8

When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouths. Billy- age 4

Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving Cologne and they go out and smell each other. Kari- age 5

Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French Fries without making them give you any of theirs. Chrissy- age 6

Love is what makes you smile when you're tired. Terri- age 4

Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK. Danny- age 7

Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My mommy and daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss. Emily- age 8

Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen. Bobby-age 7

If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate. Nikka- age 6

Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday. Noelle- age 7

Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well. Tommy- age 6

During my piano recital, I was on stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore. Cindy- age 8

My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night. Clare- age 6

Love is when mommy gives daddy the best piece of chicken. Elaine- age 5

Love is when mommy sees daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford. Chris- age 7

Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day. Mary Ann- age 4

You really shouldn't say "I LOVE YOU" unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget. Jessica- age 8

And the winner was a 4 year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly man who had just lost his wife. When the child saw the man cry, the little boy went over into the man's yard and climbed on top of the man's lap and just sat there. When the boy's mother asked him what he'd said to the neighbor, the little boy said, "Nothing, I just helped him cry."

can you guess who this is

2008-06-03T13:00:00.000-04:00

Can you imagine working for a company that has a little more than
500 employees and has the following statistics:

29 have been accused of spousal abuse

7 have been arrested for fraud

19 have been accused of writing bad checks

117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses

3 have done time for assault

71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit

14 have been arrested on drug-related charges

8 have been arrested for shoplifting

21 are currently defendants in lawsuits

84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year

Can you guess which organization this is?

Give up yet?

It's the 535 members of the United States Congress.

The same group that cranksout hundreds of new laws each
year designed to keep the rest of us in line.

photo prenuer

2008-06-03T07:10:00.002-04:00

If you are at all interested in the business side of photography, you have to check out this blog.

http://blogs.photopreneur.com/

There are great articles about niche markets. I have learned a lot from this site. Sadly, I have not put any of it to use yet. I will though. Right now, too much information is not a bad thing.

Cathy

Iraq

2008-06-03T06:51:00.003-04:00

Most of you who know me well, know that I am pretty liberal when it comes to politics. And how I feel about the war in Iraq. My older brother is going over to Iraq for two years. He is in Jacksonville right now for 3 weeks for the first part of his training. He will be home for July and August and then leaves again September 1st for a month of training. He will be home one day and then is deployed on October 1st.

I am in denial right now. I don't know anyone else who has a close family member over there. I was able to shut myself off about the war and not really think about it everyday. But all that is changing. My brother has a little girl, named Samantha who is only a year old. She won't even remember him by the time he comes home. I am helping him to find a good day care for her, so that I can be on the list to pick her up. I told him that I would take pictures of her all the time and email them to him so that he knows how she is growing and changing. Plus, this is how I am dealing with the situation. I have found the one small thing to focus on.

I can't even begin to imagine how I will feel come October. For now, I am just going to find Samantha a great day care, have some family/generational photos done and pray. I am going to ask all of you to pray for my brother, Eric, to keep him safe.

Cathy

Yankee or Dixie

2008-06-02T21:34:00.002-04:00

Go to this site and see if you are a Yankee or a Dixie. I am 48% Yankee. Interesting to me considering that I was born in the South. It was Jacksonville, however. Even though most people don't consider Florida the South.

http://www.angelfire.com/ak2/intelligencerreport/yankee_dixie_quiz.html

Have fun and post your results....

Cathy

Before I was a Mom...

2008-06-02T20:35:00.003-04:00

Before I was a Mom -

I slept as late as I wanted and never worried about how late I got into bed
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.
I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Spit on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
And I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom -
I never held down a screaming child
So that doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom -
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom -
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was ok.
I had never known the warmth,
The joy,
The love,
The heartache,
The wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.

beauty

2008-05-28T07:18:00.002-04:00

I took this photo back in April and just finally got around to posting it here on my blog. I had a few hours between commitments one Friday while at MCC and went out to the island and had a yummy seafood lunch and then found a place to shoot. This is my most favorite place to shoot locally.

Sex and the City

2008-05-28T06:50:00.002-04:00

I bought this issue of EntertainmentWeekly at Publix on Sunday and devoured it. I am a huge Sex and the City fan and can't wait to see the movie on Friday. In fact, I am going to see it on Friday and on Sunday. I have two groups of friends that want to see it. When SATC was on, I lived for Sunday nights. And this was before tivo. I would get the house clean and the laundry done in order to sit down and enjoy 30 minutes of SATC before the next work week began.

Only two more days!

Cathy

foto flot

2008-05-27T21:16:00.002-04:00

This is the coolest concept. They print your photo and then adhere it to a peice of plexi glass and you hang it with magnets or display it on a stand. Here is the website www.fotoflot.com It is a little pricey but when you factor in the cost of professional framing, it really is cheaper. I really like the look of these.

I bet my friend Nikki can come up with a way to do this way cheap! So my challenge to you Nikki is to see if you CAN do it cheaper.

Have a great Monday night,
Cathy

hard work

2008-05-26T07:45:00.004-04:00

I spent Saturday and Sunday evenings working in my pool cage. For those who have been here you know what a job that can be. It was in need of weeding and trimming. I let the kids play in the pool while I trimmed trees and plants. I even took out a bird of paradise that was hitting the top of our screen cage. Franklin was watching this and said "Mommy, you are stronger than Daddy" and I said, "yes I am, and you remember that!" Had to stop on Saturday evening to feed the kids dinner. Sunday evening after dinner we did the same thing, pool for the kids and more trimming and taking out of things for me. I took out the two cactus plants that I have wanted out since we moved in. I took out the mother in law plants as well. The pool cage looks so different now.

here is me with one of the piles of clippings that I accumulated!

here is me with dirt between my eyes, Filic took my picture before telling me it was there.

Nice, right?

Hope you are having a nice memorial day.

Cathy

You don't see this everyday

2008-05-23T16:28:00.003-04:00

I was driving home last night and saw these two on their way to the gas station. I had to follow them and take a picture of the "bike" they had built. The seat is an old office chair. They added a two-stroke engine from a motorized scooter so that they don't have to pedal. And they think that they are the two coolest guys in the world!

Enjoy,
Cathy

Something old, something new

2008-05-23T16:07:00.004-04:00

Something old, something new. That is what this post is about. Last week on Wednesday night I was heading to my Grandmother's birthday celebration at my parents house in Venice. Filic was golfing. I stopped at the gas station and filled up. Franklin was upset because I would not get him something to eat from the gas station. (This is not something that I do by the way, no idea why he even asked.) I proceeded to my parents house. The kids were screaming like you can't even imagine. The noise level was out of control. Well, I am embarassed to say this but I ended up on a concrete header in a ditch. And I wasn't even a quater of a mile from my parents house. I couldn't open my door. The kids were screaming, they were terrified. Thank god for Britax carseats, that are also installed properly. I think that I blacked out during the crash. I finally got a hold of my parents and they came to help me. They helped get the kids out of the car and then I was able to crawl out of the car through their door. Someone called 911 and cops showed up along with an ambulance and a firetruck. Franklin liked seeing all of the flashing lights. He got to see the inside of an ambulance. We were all fine. Had to call a tow truck to pull the van off the concrete header. Filic left golf and got there right before the tow truck driver started to pull the car out of the ditch and off the header. We had it towed to my dad's friends shop. Luckily one of our good friends let me use their Volvo convertible so I could still shuttle Franklin and Grace to their last days of school and then Nature camp. Anyways, the van was in bad shape. We finally heard on Tuesday that it was going to cost ALOT to fix. ALOT. I managed to damage almost everything.

Which leads me to something new. I got a new van. A 2008 Odyssey with a DVD player and Navigation system. It is a bronze/gold color. The kids are loving the DVD player. (we had just had a DVD system put in my old van. The ones in the head rests. They are being put in Filic's car right now). I am loving the Navigation system and the rear view camera. The new van only had 3 miles on it when I received it last night. My old van was a 2005 but there are so many differences with this 2008. I am loving it.

Here is a picture of my old van, all smashed up:

doesn't look too bad, does it. thank goodness for safe cars.

Here is a side by side of my old van and new one:

Hope everyone is doing well.

Cathy

it has started...

2008-04-09T07:12:00.002-04:00

Grace is into Disney Princesses. While we were on vacation for Spring Break, she was able to get a toy. She wanted a Ariel Barbie. She liked it and wanted to carry it around. On Saturday the kids and Filic watched The Little Mermaid for the first time. (a lot of skipping over the Ursala and eel scenes) Now all she wants to watch is The Little Mermaid, which she calls the Princess movie. She wants to sit in her chair that has a mermaid painted on it. She takes Ariel everywhere we go. Yesterday while I was getting her ready for school, she said she wanted princess hair. So I twisted it and put a clip in it. She normally screams when I try and do anything to her hair.

My life will be all about princesses from now on, I predict. But you know what, I am okay with that. I was into princesses way back when. I had to use my imagination to "be" Cinderella - my personal favorite. There were no dolls, dress up clothes etc.

Who is your favorite Disney princess?

Have a magical day,

Cathy

Spoiled

2008-04-09T07:01:00.003-04:00

We are definately spoiled here at my house. Our tivo recorder has all of the kids favorite shows and lots of them. When they wake up before the rest of the world, I can put on something they like. Until today. Direct tv upgraded our tivo/reciever box yesterday afternoon. I explained to the kids that they had to watch live tv this morning. Franklin is okay with it, but Grace does not understand why Diego isn't on at this hour!

this is what our new one looks like

Filic and I spent over an hour last night programming in all of the kids shows and ours too. In this day and age, shouldn't there be a way for them to transfer all of that information over. Plus, I can't even remember all of the shows that we have set to record. I am just happy that we own our old box and will be able to hook it up to another tv and watch/record all of the stuff from it. There is one series in particular that I really want to watch. It was on the Ovation channel a few weeks ago, it is called The Genius of Photography. It is all about some of the most famous photographers and how photography has changed the world and our lives. It is very reminesicent of my History of Photography class from last semester.

I am sure if I sat down and really thought about it, there are many more ways that we are spoiled. But I don't want to put myself in a bad mood this early into my day!

Cathy

Assignment

2008-03-29T08:58:00.004-04:00

At school right now we are doing some studio shooting and advertising shots. We are working in teams. Last week my team had to shoot glass. We used a bottle of Stetson Country mens' cologne. After taking numerous shots of just the bottle, I had an idea to spice things up and challenge ourselves. The incentive is that the "winning" team each week will have their image blown up and hung in the wall. The winner will be decided by the class as a whole. I personally want to win every week.

The photo that is below is a combination of two shots. I really love the way this came out. Here is our ad campain for Stetson Country:

Isn't this a great image...I think so.

Cathy

Photo shoot

2008-03-29T08:40:00.004-04:00

At the end of February I did a photo shoot of my neices and nephew who were visiting from New Jersey. The first night that I did the shoot it was in my side yard. The pictures came out great and you would never have guessed that it was my side yard. The second time was an impromtu shoot at Selby Gardens. We went there for the kids to run around and enjoy the gardens but ever the photographer, I just had to take some photos!

Here are some of my favorite shots...

Erin, at Selby Gardens

Erin and Haysie, my side yard

Gavin, my side yard.

Kelli with her girls, my side yard

Erin, Haysie and Gavin, Selby Gardens

I hope that you are all enjoying the great Spring weather.

Cathy

Wednesday morning rambling

2008-03-12T07:32:00.003-04:00

It's Wednesday morning and I just feel like rambling...

I am loving Daylight Savings Time. Franklin woke up at 7:11 this morning. There is just something about being woken up after 7 that makes you feel more rested even if you aren't.

Have you ever had one of those days when you are feeling thinner and think that you must have lost some weight? I had that feeling this morning. I should have just went with it. But instead I stepped on the scale to check. I mean really. How can you feel and look thinner and not have this amazing number looking back at you from the scale?

It's my spring break, and you know that I am an adult since I am just doing the same thing that I do every other week. I never did that Daytona crazy Spring Break thing. And I am glad about that. The footage on Mtv looks crazy.

I have a new show that I am addicted to...Your Mama Don't Dance. It is on Lifetime on Friday nights. The dancers are really talented and I just love the concept that their dance partners have to be one of their parents who have no dancing background. How would you feel if you thought that you were auditioning for a dance show and they said they had a partner for you and the curtain came up and it were one of your parents?

Another show I am loving...America's Best Dance Crew on Mtv. I have no idea what day it is on. It is winding down now and it is just the top 3 or 4 teams, but they rock. There is so much talent out there.

I got addicted to these shows while I have been uber sick these past two weeks and watching a lot of tv. I also watched a lot of infomercials. I so want the H20 mop. It seems so cool. And the Tobi steamer. There were some other products that I thought were amazing but they didn't have the lasting impression that these two did. Does anyone have these or know of anyone who has them? I would love to know how they really work.

Has anyone seen the "I'm fucking Matt Damon" video by Sarah Silverman or Jimmy Kimmel's response "I'm Fucking Ben Affleck" on YouTube? They are so funny. I suggest that you check them out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnVJZkDuVBM is the link for the Matt Damon video. And here is the link for the Ben Affleck video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIQrBouWRiE&feature=related

If I had your email address then you have already gotten the link to this video. This man was on Oprah and I found his message very heartwarming. Check it out here: http://video.stumbleupon.com/#p=ithct48cqw

Okay that is a lot of rambling. I have to finish my cereal and get the kids ready to leave soon.
Have a great Wednesday.

My baby is 2 now

2008-03-11T21:03:00.002-04:00

Last Monday, my sweet baby Grace turned 2. We celebrated by having pancakes shaped liked butterflies with purple sprinkles and a picnic with both Mommy and Daddy at Selby Gardens.

Here is a look at Grace over the past two years:

On the day she was born, just moments after being born

How sweet does she look? One of my favorite photos.

Grace at age 1

Grace at age 1 3/4, just days before her 2nd

birthday. I love this photo of her. I took

it in our front yard one night before dinner.

On her 2nd birthday, at Selby Gardens

playing in the banyans.

I must say that now that she is officially two, my what an attitude she has. I know, I know, its the phase, the terrible twos. But she is much worse than Franklin was at his worst. She is very stubborn.

Filic was able to get her weaned off the bottles cold turkey while I was sick two weeks ago. I am very proud of him. She acts completely different for him. We did it before her second birthday. yeah!

Cathy

I was tagged...

2008-03-06T20:24:00.003-05:00

I've been tagged...by Karen who was tagged by Jocie...who was tagged by Kim B...and I can't keep up with the train that led to that so here goes...

Here's what I have to do:
* Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
* Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.

Random facts about me:

1. I climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia
2. I love the show Little House on the Prairie
3. I love Jeeps and going off roadin' in them
4. I trained for the rodeo - barrel racing
5. A slice of New York City pizza is my favorite food
6. I can't ride a bike well
7. I love cereal...I have several, several boxes open at one time

Bonus from Filic: I don't sleep with a top sheet, and it drives him flippin' crazy!

Okay, so all my blogging friends have already been tagged, this is the end of the line for me.

Cathy

AMOB in Ellenton

2008-02-20T06:48:00.010-05:00

We took the kids to the Anna Maria Oyster Bar in Ellenton last night. They do this really cool thing where they measure the kids to see how much to charge them. It is a penny an inch - really! This is awesome when they don't end up eating their dinner. The margarita's were only $2.50! So I had to have one.

Here are some pictures of some of the kids getting measured:

Erin - 50 inches

Hayley - 43 inches

Franklin - 39 inches

Grace - 31 inches

For our appetizer, we had Calamari. The kids wanted me to take a picture of it. Here it is:

I ordered a pasta alfredo for my dinner. And it came out in a frying pan. Seriously. Here it is:

Here are some other pictures that I took last night:

Erin, I love this photo

Hayley

The kids all playing after dinner

After Franklin's field trip today to the farm, we are heading to Disney for the rest of the week. I will try and post from there.

Cathy

I am soooo excited!

2008-02-19T06:53:00.002-05:00

My sister-in-law Kelli and her family are coming today. She isn't really my sister-in-law. Her husband is Filic's cousin and in Asian culture cousins are like brothers/sisters. So instead of explaining all of this, we just call each other sisters-in-law. We could be sisters though. We get along great.

Anyway, she is flying in today from New Jersey. Grace and I are going to pick them up in Tampa. Tomorrow we are heading to Disney with them. Her daughters haven't been to Disney since 2003, and Filic and went with them. Their son hasn't been yet. They are so excited. I am excited to go with them again. Most of you know that I love Disney.

Franklin is so excited to see Gavin, his cousin. And vice versa. They haven't seen each other in a long time. At one point the wind was blowing yesterday and Franklin asked me if that meant Gavin's plane was landing. How cute. All day yesterday he asked when he would be here. Already this morning he is asking when I am going to leave to get them. I am glad that he is so excited. I am just hoping that they get along.

She loves

2008-02-19T06:48:00.002-05:00

Grace just loves her older brother. She calls him "gao gao" which is Mandarin Chinese for older brother. He calls her "mei mei" which is little sister. The first thing she says in the morning is "where is gao gao"

Here are some pictures of her trying to give him a kiss on Sunday.

How cute!

the misadventures of me

2008-02-19T06:33:00.003-05:00

Last week was an odd week for me. It seemed like a lot was going wrong. Let me explain...

One night I was making the kids chocolate milk (I make it at night since they wake up before the sun) and went to grab the large can of Ovaltine out of the pantry. Apparently the lid was not on properly because it came off and Ovaltine went everywhere. I was cleaning it up and trying to keep Grace out of it. So then I put the Ovaltine in the kids cups and manage to knock one of them over and onto the floor. Spill number two. Clean that one up. Filic told me I needed to put myself in timeout. I aggreed.

Friday comes. I am watching my friends dog Baily and guinea pig Tootsie. No problems. Well, I have to watch my parents dog Penny starting Friday. As it turns out, Bailey does not like other dogs at all. So I put Bailey in my bedroom. Penny then starts to bark/bother Tootsie. So Penny goes in the bathroom. Since this is no way to live for the weekend I decide to take Penny and stay in Venice at my parents house. Saturday morning comes.... I take the dog out and go back inside. Realize that I left my clothes in the car. I shut the door and go to get them. Well, my parents have a door that locks itself (a security measure!) and I am locked out. My wallet, cell phone, everything are inside-with the dog. I walk around the house to see if another door is unlocked. No. Then walk around and look at all of the windows. All locked. It has been about twenty minutes. I decide to check the windows again. There is a window unlocked. Unfortunately is it five feet off the ground. Did I mention that I am in my pajamas. So I hoist myself up and I am trying to get through the window. I have to move things out of the way as I do this, because I don't want to break anything. Finally back in the house. I quickly get dressed and go in search of coffee. I had to work on Saturday too. It was my last day at K2. All I could think about as I was breaking and entering my parents house was the cops showing up and seeing me. I even had a conversation in my head about what I would say if it happened. ( crazy, I know!) I would tell them that I lived there as a kid and that if they just let me get inside I would show them all of my childhood pictures and my wallet that are inside. Luckily I did not have to have that conversation. But let me just say that I am not that flexible. I could never be a cat burgler.

(And by the way, this is the second time I have typed this post this morning. I accidently erased it the first time I typed it out)

I had taken a picture of the Ovaltine spill but I can't seem to find it. And I couldn't take a picture of me breaking and entering because, alas my camera was inside too!

Cathy

Ni-hao

2008-02-14T17:12:00.002-05:00

Ni-hao is Mandarin Chinese for Hello. Ni-hao Kai-lan is a new show on Nick Jr that teaches children two Chinese words a show. My kids LOVE this show. So far they have learned how to say up and down, red and green and wait. I have been learning these words as well. I think that this is a great show.

I am really happy that Nick Jr has included a Chinese speaking character into their programming.

Cathy

want to be a part of my mafia?

2008-02-14T17:01:00.006-05:00

I am talking about Cashmere Mafia, the new show on ABC. I am loving it. It has Lucy Liu in it, I think she is really pretty-love her freckles. This show has fashion cool women and it takes place in NYC, what more do you need?!

It's on Wednesday nights. Give it a try, you might like it. You can also watch the past episodes on abc.com

Cathy

Palm Ball

2008-02-11T06:41:00.000-05:00

On Saturday night we went to the Palm Ball. It was a black tie event to benefit the Sarasota Conservation Foundation.(they purchase land to make into parks, etc) We were invited by our dear friends Chopper and Krista. The weather was beautiful. I was worried because it was looking pretty grey all day.

I spent the first part of Saturday looking for a dress. I bought three dresses for this event. The third one was it. (I should mention that we had to wear green or blue) The dress was comfortable, sexy and elegant. Things you would never think of when it comes to a formal dress. Had my hair straightened (sp?) because I didn't want to deal with doing my hair.

When it came time to get dressed, Filic could not find the studs for his shirt. We haven't been to a black tie event since we moved in to this house. We looked everywhere. (I am thinking that may have ended up in the safe deposit box with my jewelry) We ended up running into the tux store at the mall to buy a new set of cufflinks and studs. While going through Dillards to get to the tux store, I passed two young girls. When they saw me, they gasped and said "She is so beautiful". I made sure to smile at them. That was me when I was a little girl. I loved to see women all dressed up, looking beautiful and glamorous. I would dream of the day when I could be that glamorous. It made my night.

The food was excellent. For apps they had baby lamb shanks, chicken with dates on a skewer, caviar, and shrimp. A very cool app that they had was this: nozzarella and a tomato on a small dropper filled with balsamic vinegar. You were to put the mozzarella and tomato in your mouth and then squeeze the balsamic vinegar into your mouth. Very cool and tasty! For dinner we had salad with goat cheese, candied walnuts, etc. The most tender tenderloin in this amazing sauce. Filic loved the way the veggies were presented. They cut baskets out of a zucchini and placed carrots and wax beans into the "basket". He asked why I don't serve him his veggies like that.

The band was awesome. It was a latin band that sang in Spanish. They played trumpets, bongos, and the coolest blue bass I have ever seen. It was music that you wanted to dance to. Filic and I were just going with the music, people were starring at us. We weren't sure if it was because that thought we were excellent dancers or the worst dancers they had ever seen! Either way, we had a great time. We talked about taking lessons so we know what to do. My problem is that I want to lead. (it's a control issue with me!) I actually took ballroom dancing lessons in high school, and I loved it.

Overall, it was a great evening. We really had a nice time. I am sure that I went into way more detail than you care to read, but I had to write it down so that when I go to do a layout for it, I will remember everything!!

Sadly, we didn't take any pictures of the two of us at the event. So here we are in our kitchen!!

And I love this look on Filic. In his tux at the end of the evening, with his bow tie untied.

Cathy

A pain in the neck, literally

2008-02-08T06:58:00.000-05:00

I have had the worst neck pain this week. So bad in fact, that I thought it was a disc problem and I was going to need surgery again. I could not move. Saw my doc on Tuesday. She is great. After her exam, she thinks it is muscular and sent me for a nueromuscular massage. If you have never had a nueromuscular massage, let me tell you, it is like no other massage you have ever had. This is not the relaxing massage you get at a spa. This hurts. Good news is that I can move my neck more than before I went in. I am very tender from the massage. I am taking steriods and muscle relaxers to get my neck back to being normal-well normal for me anyway. I am not allowed to pick up the kids, etc.

This consists of me sleeping in my neck brace, which is as comfortable as it sounds. My friend Jessi stopped by Wednesday night to drop something off and saw me in my neck brace. She said to me "I thought that you were feeling better" I looked at her and said-"I am". She had never seen me in my brace.

So as I type this, my neck is starting to feel better. I am not going to start over doing it. The house can get cleaned another day. I just want to make sure that my neck is healing.

Because I love you all so much, here is a picture I took of myself this morning in my brace.

Grace started school!

2008-02-08T06:45:00.000-05:00

My "baby Grace", as we call her, started school this week. She goes two days a week-Tuesday and Thrusday. She is loving it already. She has the staff of the entire school in her charms. They all were checking in on her, making sure that she was transitioning okay. I am talking Principal, Franklin's teacher, other teachers. How do I know this, because they all came to tell me while I was waiting to pick her up on Tuesday. I was able to peek into her room as they were finishing their lunches. It was so cute to see all the kids sitting at the table eating. It was like a dinner party for toddlers. The teacher was singing and using props. So cute. There was no crying on Tuesday. I thought there may be a little yesterday, but there was none again. I have been told to bring several changes of clothes for her though, as she really likes to play in the sink. She soaked herself twice yesterday. She tells me more about her day at school than Franklin ever has. She is growing up. Loves school. It is obvious that she was more than ready to start. I think she would be happy going 5 days a week, but there was no opening for that.

Here are some pictures. The first is her walking on the sidewalk and the second is of her in her classroom.

never been this close

2008-02-01T07:07:00.000-05:00

I have never been this close to Amoxicillin before. I am allergic to Penecillin. Grace is taking her first antibiotic, and it is Amoxicillian. I was a little put off by the smell at first. I had heard that it smells like bubblegum, this does not. Grace does not seem to mind the smell or the taste. She takes it with no problem. This stuff is very viscous. I don't have a problem taking any medicines or swallowing anything, but I think that this would be hard for me.

Maybe this is my kryptonite (sp?)!

Have a great Friday.

Cathy

I am getting a new toy

2008-01-27T07:54:00.000-05:00

So, my digital SLR has been acting up lately. I have taken it in for cleaning and a check-up. I was going to take it back in to see what, if anything needed to be repaired. Then I remembered that this camera was made in 2002. I have taken probably 20,000 photos with it since then. They are only good for so many photos. Seriously. I started looking into new digital SLR's and decided to go with Nikon because the lenses from my Fuji would fit. I bought the Nikon D 40x. I ordered it from NY and it should be here soon. I can't wait to play with it. I love getting a new camera and learning all there is about it.

I will keep my Fuji for now. I am really bad about getting rid of things. I get really attached. I have recorded so many memories with my Fuji, I can't just get rid of it. I still have every camera that I have ever owned. And I still go back to them. I will always continue to shoot film. A lot of people think that film cameras are passe. Not me. I am nostalgic. I love the smell when you open a new roll of film, and the excitement when you get to see the results after you get the roll developed. I will always shoot black and white and develop it in the darkroom.

I will post when my new toy arrives.

Cathy

Beauty to me is

2008-01-27T07:38:00.000-05:00

Here is the zed card that I created for Beauty. I abandoned the cupcake idea. It just wasn't my best work. The tulip photo I did a week ago in my back area. The lighting was perfect. The sun was at the perfect angle. The maternity shot I did over a year ago on Nokomis Beach. The night photo was done in NY about 6 months ago. If you are interested in knowing how I did the night photo, ask me and I will give you the instructions.

Oh, I created my "logo" using Adobe Illustrator. I had never used Illustrator before Friday. I only spent a few minutes creating this logo. I am in LOVE with Illustrator. I can't wait to have some time to play with it more and see what I can create.

Cathy

my little Emperor

2008-01-17T07:05:00.000-05:00

So the conversation went a little like this, just moments ago...

Franklin: "Mom, I want to get dressed."
Me: "okay, are you going to wear the new shark shirt that Aunt Kel sent?"
Franklin: "Yeah, and I need you to get me some spiderman underwear and some shorts
and some socks."
Me: "You have to wear pants today."
Franklin: "And don't forget to pack my lunch. I want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich
a cheese stick, spiderman fruit snack and a juice box."

I haven't even finished my first cup of coffee and I am being ordered around by my little Emperor. The moment he came into this world, I knew that he was a little Emperor. I want to encourage his independence, but I think that this is a bit much.

Why he feels the need to tell me what he wants for lunch everyday, I don't understand. It is the SAME thing EVERYDAY. I swear. No variation. Oh wait, I did add the cheese stick and he LOVES it. He is my kid who doesn't really try new things.

When I turned on the computer today, I had some other ideas in mind for my post today. I don't remember what they were! I will post some pictures later. I am off to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Manic Monday

2008-01-14T15:30:00.000-05:00

Went up to MCC today to do my first task as Art Club President-layout a student art book. This was supposed to have been done last year and wasn't. We have the money to produce an art book from the student art show last year and don't want to lose it. So I stepped in. (I know what some of you are thinking) I did not realize how much work goes into laying out an art book or any book for that matter. I was thankful that I only had 22 or 23 peices to work with. I have some art books that have several hundred peices shown. I also had to come up with what the inside flaps would say, etc. I have to say that I got it done. I left it as is for now. I will look at it again on Friday when I am up there for my class, so that I have a fresh perspective. Then I will order it. I look at it this way, I got to "practice" on last year's book before making this years book! The student show is in April and I will be making another book from that show.

Made lasagna for Filic tonight, per Franklin's request. Wasn't really paying attention to what I was doing. I was multitasking, as I always do, when I realized that I forgot to put the cheese between all the layers. I loaded the top up with cheese in hopes that it will melt down into the rest. I was thinking ahead and trying to get dinner in the oven while Grace is sleeping and Franklin was having some quiet time. I guess that is what I get right! I even decided what I am making for dinner tomorrow night. I am really trying to get better about that. I usually decide last minute what I am going to make.

Grace starts gymnastics tomorrow morning. She will be with the sibling of one of Franklin's classmates. We decided to sign them up together in order to give them some time with other kids. Franklin and his classmate (don't want to use her name here, for safety) take gymnastics together on Wednesday afternoons. I bought her a gymnastics leotard, and can't wait to take a picture of her in it. She is really into jumping and doing summersaults so I think that she will enjoy this. I guess I will know tomorrow.

I still haven't shot anything for my photography assignment. I will probably try to go out and shoot later today or maybe tomorrow.

Hope you are all having a great Monday,
Cathy

Something to Inspire you

2008-01-13T09:32:00.000-05:00

This is one of my favorite photographs. I took this in 2005 when we took an Alaskan cruise. I love the blues. This glacier was huge - I mean the size of Vermont huge! I zoomed in on a small portion of the glacier that I thought was interesting. I used a 150-500mm lens. This was taken on a small sea plane.

By focusing on such a small portion of this glacier, I was able to show the detail in it. Sometimes it is better to focus in on something and take in the details of it. You should not always try to get everything in. When I photograph babies, I like to take pictures of thier ears, toes, fingers, hands. When I photograph older children, I like to get a shot of just their eyes.

Try doing this the next time you are taking a picture.

Cathy

rambing and a challenge

2008-01-12T18:50:00.000-05:00

So for weeks now I was thinking that my hair was really greasy. I just thought it was because of the heat and how much I had been sweating (tmi, I know). I just realized tonight that I have been using my Kerastase conditioner as my before blow drying creme. I had this "aha" moment when I grabbed my new bottle of Kerastase shampoo, I use the pink line. I looked and saw there was not another conditioner. This made me check elsewhere. That is when I picked up the bottle I had been using and read it a bit more carefully this time. It was the conditioner. I then looked for the before blow drying creme and found it. The bottle is a different color, but it is the same size, style, has a pump, etc. My hair is much lighter tonight and looks much better. I can't believe that I did that. Tonight my hair looks like it does when I come home from the salon. It even feels like it. I love the way my hair looks and feels after leaving the salon. Who doesn't.

My first assignment for my photography class is to photograph Beauty. I have been thinking all day about what I find beautiful. For me it is not the clouds, the sunset or nature. I find beauty in newborn babies(the first few weeks) and the female form-the curves, the perfection of it. I am not sure what I am going to photograph. I have a week to do it. I will not let myself photograph my kids (or my friends kids), anything at my house or near it. I make myself go out and shoot. I challenge myself. I have an understanding with my professor - per my instructions- he won't accept these images from me. He knows and I know too that I am more talented than that. I use this to push myself. I want to learn as much as I can and grow as a photographer. This class is more to learn how to promote myself and commercial photography. After our mid-terms we will form corporations and do some mock advertising. Coming up with the concept, photographing the product, etc. This is the part that I am going to hate. When I walked into class on Friday, I looked around to size up the "Competition". They are a bunch of slackers, etc. I am not sure when the last time some of the showered. The girl sitting next to me has a ring through her nose like a bull. I am not going to enjoy working with any of them.

On a happy note. I am going to be the President of the Art Club at MCC. I am going to be organizing monthly art submissions to encourage a healthy competition among the students. I am going to organize field trips to local museums. I have known that I was going to be the President since the middle of December and have been thinking about what I want to do. The Art Club has been dormant for as long as I can remember. We have money from the state that we can use to publish a yearly art book. This is an excellent opportunity to get the students who want to be artists exposure. So from now on you can all call me "Madame President"! I always knew when I was a little girl that I was going to be President one day-so okay it not the President of the USA, but I will take it! ha ha.

So here is my challenge to all of you. Go out this week and photograph Beauty - as you see it. I want to see what you find beautiful. I hope that this inspires you to be creative. I will have a RAK for the person that sends me their Beauty photograph first. So get out there and shoot!

Have a great weekend,
Cathy

2008-01-11T06:38:00.000-05:00

I know that it has been awhile and that my faithful blog readers are begging for a new post. I don't have any photos to inspire you with today.

I wanted to talk about my evening last night. Filic went out with the guys. So after I got the kids to bed, I was able to enjoy my nice quiet house. This is something that I love, just listening to nothing. I watched some tv, but wasn't that into it. I surfed the net, yet again was not that into it. I decided to wash my face and exfoliate. I love to use beauty products. I started using Arbonne products at the beginning of December and I am loving them. My skin has never looked so amazing. I have tried other things over the years and they work for a week or so. But it has been a good month now that I have been using the Arbonne and my skin still feels like it did the first time that I used it. Plus I love the packaging. It appeals to me. I will take a picture of it today.

When I put Franklin to bed last night he asked me to read him 'Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel'. He got that book for Christmas. I had never read it. I really liked that story. I thanked Franklin for picking that book. Lately he has been into Richard Scarry books and they take a good half hour to read, if you read all the small comments. I loved the illustrations in the book. I loved the concept of the story. I have been wanting to write a children's book for some time now. I found someone to illustrate it for me. You are probably thinking, "why doesn't she illustrate it herself?", well if any of you have ever drawn a stick figure-that is about my level of drawing skills! ( I am doomed for next semester when I have to take drawing classes) Reading Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel reminded me of the kind of book I want to write. My stories are based on a character that I came up with for Franklin one night. He loved them so much that it became a nightly thing for us.

I am starting my new class today, it is a digital photography class. It is concerned more with commercial work than portaits. I will post the work I do. It is a long class though. Four hours on a Friday-intense. And for those of you who know me well, I am the classic "Lisa Simpson" student. I have to get an A, it has to be the best, etc!! I guess that it will help that the professor and I are friends. I am so excited that I get to study under my mentor. It really is a dream come true. He pushes me to try new things and is constantly teaching me something new. I love that. I love to learn new things. I will let you know how class goes today. I feel like a kid. My stomach is full of butterflies. I am always nervous the first day. Which is crazy at this point in my life and since I know the professor!!

I know that I have rambled on today, but it was good to just "talk" to you all. I will post some pics later today. Have a great Friday.

Cathy

My babies are growing up...

2007-12-19T07:17:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it, both of my babies are growing up so fast. On Monday night I set up the twin size mattress and boxspring in Franklin's room and moved the toddler bed into Grace's room.

I did not intend for Grace to start sleeping in the toddler bed that night, but she had other ideas!

Franklin was very excited to have a BIG boy bed. You should have seen the look of happiness on his face. He went to sleep just fine. He did wake up in the middle of the night saying he wanted his old bed back. But when he woke up on Tuesday morning, the first thing he said to me was "Mommy, I love me new bed!"

Grace climbed right into the toddler bed and wanted to go to sleep. We told her that she had to stay in the bed or we would put her in the crib-which is still in her room. She went right to sleep and did not wake up at all during the night. When she woke up on Tuesday morning, she called for me and still did not get out of the bed until I told her it was okay!

Naps yesterday were another story. It took Grace a long time to go to sleep and when she woke up, Filic went in to get her and there were several books in her bed, several pairs of shoes, several baby dolls and she was wearing shoes! How funny is that. Franklin didn't nap, but stayed in his room.

Here are some pictures of their beds:

Grace's bed, complete with her dolls and Mickey

Franklin's bed with his 4 blankets and several animals which always change!

not a good start

2007-12-14T06:53:00.000-05:00

So my kids wake up pretty early and my saving grace is coffee. I make them some chocolate milk and then make my coffee. Well this morning I must have been pretty out of it because I forgot to put the coffee pot in the coffee maker. What a mess I had to deal with. And it delayed my first cup of coffee!

It's mornings like these when I wonder what is in store for the rest of my day. I am hoping that it will be an isolated incident.

a mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee

2007-12-11T06:15:00.000-05:00

The Mayonnaise Jar and 2 Cups of Coffee

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 Hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, without word, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and Favorite passions - - things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else -- the small stuff. "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So... Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play With your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. "Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked". It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

At the holidays life always seem to get really busy and crazy for all of us and I wanted to post this for us all to remember what is really important. I am already starting to think about my New Year's Resolutions, and one of them is going to be to spend more time with friends. I want to continue to cultivate the friendships that I have made and not neglect them. A friend of mine called last week and asked me to look at my calendar and find two hours so that we can both go to a coffee shop and catch up over the phone. She lives in North Carolina and we don't get to talk without the kids interrupting very often. I thought that this was a great idea. We are calling it a date, and acting like it is. You would never leave a date waiting at a coffee shop, right?

I hope that you are all getting everything you want accomplished for the holidays. Just remember to take time to spend with friends and family to just talk and hang out. Because not everything has to be about presents, cookies, etc.

Have a great Tuesday,
Cathy

Pictures from Thanksgiving

2007-12-04T07:03:00.000-05:00

Make a slide show, scrapbook, or ecard

Here are some pictures from our Thanksgiving trip to Virginia. I will post the pictures that I did later this week. These are of the kids and family.

Hope everyone is having a great Tuesday.

Cathy

what did you do this week?

2007-10-27T06:36:00.000-04:00

I had another busy week. What is funny is that I used to think that my life was busy pre kids, marriage, everything. That was nothing compared to now!

I finally counted it up and I spend 5 hours a week just taking Franklin to and from school. Which also means that poor Grace spends 5 hours a week in her car seat. I would do so much with that extra 5 hours a week. I had been considering a different preschool for Grace but then I thought, "what are you crazy" THe last thing that I need is to drive to two different schools each day or several days a week. I would have to start living out of my car, although sometimes it feels like it!

My class was great on Monday, I had a test and I feel pretty confident that I did well. I was worried because I didn't get a chance to study over the weekend, but I spent about an hour or so before the test going over everything. I missed a lecture because of the sinus infection that I had. This is crucial because the class only meets once a week for 3 hours and is strictly a lecture class. I tried to get notes from the person that sits next to me and she had only written down three things! Filic was great on Monday night. He decided us out for dinner in celebration of my test. We explained to the kids that mommy had a test at school and they were excited too!

Tuesday night I had an alone night. I just needed to get out of the house and do nothing. Went and saw the movie 'No Reservations' at the dollar theatre. It was a good movie. It was great to just sit there and be by myself, which is something that I need sometimes.

Wednesday, Filic and I ended up having an impromtu date. We were driving back from the library with the kids and they were just being very LOUD and we looked at each other and said "date night". We went to Sangria's for dinner which is on Main Street. It is a tapas place, the food is delicious and the red Sangria is soooo yummy! They give you lots of fruit which I love. (we went to Sangria's the night of my photo exhibit opening) Then it was off to the movies to see 'Across the Universe'. It is a movie about the vietnam war, people protesting it, life in general in the late 60's and 70's but it is a musical of sorts. All the music is Beatles songs performed by the cast. All of whom have amazing voices. Filic is a huge Beatles fan and he thought that they did a great job with the music. I loved the music. I will be downloading the soundtrack from iTunes soon.

Thursday, Franklin said he wasn't feeling well. I took his temp and he had a very low grade fever. He stayed home, which he did not want to do. I decided that it would be a great time to give him something that he had been really wanting. The Little Einstiens Pat Pat Rocket. I have been trying to get the toy for him for about a month now and it is always sold out. By some odd chance I called the Target on University and they had two on Monday. I was thrilled. I put it in my closet for just the right time. He was so excited to get it. He shared with Grace, which made me proud. I had an eye appointment on Thursday and got new glasses. I love the way they look on me and I can see so much more now! It's great. Went to a first anniversary party. YUMMY food! There were fresh french fries, filet and mini portabello kabobs, a bruchetta with a sweet pea mash on top, and more. And the cake was great too.

Friday I worked. Filic took Grace to Jungle Gardens for the first time. He said that she wasn't that into it. He wanted to take her for a Daddy and Daughter day. She doesn't get a lot of one on one time that doesn't involve an errand of some sort. I guess she is fine just hanging out with us. Friday was a busy day at K2. Lots of inventory came in and needed to be entered. I literally spent all day entering inventory, pricing it and getting it onto pegs or into trays for Karen to put out. I have some paper cuts but the new stuff is great.

The kids woke up at 6:10 this morning. I have a lot to do today. The list is a page long. Filic and Franklin have soccer today. Grace and I are going to run errands and clean the house.

I hope that everyone is enjoying the cooler weather and has a great weekend. Let me know what you did this week.

Cathy

What are you?

2007-10-23T06:54:00.000-04:00

I found the link to this fun and very short quiz on my friend Jocie's blog. I love dessert and had to know what I would be!

You Are Cheesecake

Rich, sweet, and simply perfect.
You're not boring - you're just the best!

What Dessert Are You Most Like?

It's been awhile, but a lot has been going on!

2007-10-17T07:05:00.000-04:00

I realize that I have been a bad blogger lately. Haven't posted something new in a very long time. A lot has been happening here though.

I have been fighting the cold that has been going around for almost three weeks. Found out on Sunday after spending 6 hours in the ER that I have an acute sinus infection. This is my first sinus infection and it sucks. Thanks so much to my dear friend Jessi and her amazing hubby Dana for not only watching my kids but driving me to the ER. I am so blessed to have her in my life. She is truly a wonderful friend.

My house was infested with Carribean Crazy Ants. I had never even heard of these before. But for whatever reason, they really liked my clean laundry. With being sick I had a ton of folded laundry in my bedroom in baskets that I just couldn't get put away and they LOVED it. Right before leaving for our Club Med getaway ( and I am talking about the morning we left) is when I realized they were in all of my clean laundry. I had to buy clothes when I got to Club Med. Thank goodness there was a Marshall's and a Target very close by! We had the pest control guy come while we were gone and were lucky enough to come home to a lot of dead ants.

I have had a lot of laundry to do! Had to rewash all of the clothes that were infested. But since I have been battling this sinus infection I couldn't get all the laundry folded and it had been piling up. Finally yesterday I sat the kids up with a "picnic lunch"(I let them eat on the floor in the living room while they watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse) and folded about 15 loads of laundry. The bed in my guestroom was fully covered in folded clothes. Then came putting everything away, for the kids anyway. Was too tired last night to get to my laundry, but will be doing it first thing today before more crazy ants decided to invade!!

My computer deleted the images off of my cameras memory card before I had a chance to uplaod them. And they were the most amazing photos. I was able to find a computer repair person to do a data recovery for me. But the most amazing part was that he came to the house to pick up my memory card and then brought it back to me at K2 while I was working there on Saturday. And he was able to recover all the images!!! YAY!!! I was so thrilled.

While heading to the pharmacy on Monday to drop off my prescriptions I got a flat tire on Clark Road. What is worse is that I could see the tire repair place from where I was sitting, I just couldn't get the car there. I called AAA to come and tow the car. I figure I pay for the service, may as well use it. They showed up within 20 minutes and towed the car. Had my friend Jen come by and pick up Grace for me so she didn't have to sit with me at the tire place. The tire place was great, they got me out of there in just over an hour. I was pleased about that.

So, after all of that, I am sitting here blogging to you all. Still fighting my sinus infection. But just happy to be alive. Becacuse no matter how bad the past few weeks have been for me, it is nothing compared to the lives of a lot of people in the world. I have to remind myself of that a lot. But I figure that the world, God(s) won't give me more than they think I can handle, right.

I hope that everyone in doing great and I can't wait to hear from you.

look at this

2007-09-27T06:36:00.000-04:00

I found this photo this morning on the website http://wvs.topleftpixel.com/07/09/26/ they have a section called the Daily Dose and they feature a photo everyday. I love this photo. The people all dressed up, holding umbrellas, the rain falling. I feel as though I am there which makes it an excellent photo.

Cheers,

Cathy

this is a test

2007-09-27T06:26:00.000-04:00

I was forwarded a link to take this test, and thought it was really cute. I am sure that I have seen it before and done the test before but when you are awake at 5:45 am you need cute emails and tests like these to keep you sane!

Here is the link: http://memoriter.net/flash/test.html

I think that it will put a smile on your face. I hope that everyone is still asleep this morning and has a great day.

Cathy

Today is the day!!!!!

2007-09-25T06:41:00.000-04:00

I am so excited, the butterflies in my stomache are all aflutter! Spent last night doing some pampering to insure that I would look radient in all the photos that are going to be taken of me today. I honestly feel as though I am getting ready for my wedding all over again. After I drop Franklin off at school this morning I am off to the salon to have my hair colored, cut and styled and a mani/pedi.

The kids did not seem to know what an important day today is for mommy. They woke up at 5:45 this morning. I am a bit tired to say the least. Franklin has a big day today, his first field trip! I have his school shirt sitting here on my lap, ready for him to wear today. They are taking the kids to the fire station. All the children in his class are obsessed with firetrucks and emergencies and play pretend emergency several times a week. Gracie is going to her first story time at the library today with Flannery. I think that she will really enjoy it, today's theme is "farms" and she loves animals especially cows!

So I am enjoying my coffee this morning and blogging to you all to calm my nerves. I don't think that I will have too much time this morning to focus on them. I have to pack Franklin's lunch, set out their clothes for tonight, prepare snacks and goody bags for them for tonight, make sure I have everything I need for tonight, make sure I know what Filic is wearing for tonight and that it is ironed, write my speech (uuugghhh!!), etc. Yet I can't seem to tear myself away from this post. I think that I am delaying!! haha

Have a great day everyone. I think that I will!! (wink, wink)
I hope to post some photos tomorrow of the excitement that will ensue.

Cheers,
Cathy

Suprise for me!!

2007-09-22T07:02:00.000-04:00

You will never guess what I had to deal with today at 6 am. The kids have been wanting to "help" around the house a lot lately and I have been letting them if I have time to "fix" it. Well, this morning at 6 am I was getting ready to do some more laundry. I opened the washer to put the last load in the dryer and found that a pull-up had been put in the washer as well. AARRGGHH! So I had to shake out all the clothes and wipe out the washer. Thank goodness for the front loading washer because I can see myself climbing in the top loader! Nice visual, right. If you have never had to do this, it is not fun. The pull-up explodes and the gel gets everywhere. As I am writing this I am rewashing that load of laundry. It definitely needed it after all that. In the last few weeks many of Franklin's cars have gone through the laundry courtesy of Grace. She is fascinated with putting things in the washer. I guess that from now on I will have to check what is actually in the washer before I start it!

Today I start my first day back to work. I haven't had a job outside the house since 2002. I am working part-time at K2. I am so excited to start. I trained all day on Tuesday and loved it. So if you are free today at any point come in and say "hi" to me.

Have a great Saturday,
Cathy

Book Club anyone?

2007-09-18T06:41:00.000-04:00

I was talking to a friend last night and we both had the idea to start a book club. Is anyone interested?

I just finished the book Veil of Roses by Laura Fitzgerald and LOVED it! I highly reccomend it. I read it in a day and a half, which says a lot considering I have Franklin and Grace! I took every moment I could to read that is how awesome this book is.

The other books that I have read lately are:

The Sleeping Beauty Proposal by Sarah Strohmeyer

The Cinderella Pact by Sarah Strohmeyer

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

The Devil in the Junior League by Linda Francis Lee

The Russian Concubine by Kate Furnivall

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

What books have you read lately?

Have a great Tuesday,
Cathy

You are invited and I am in awe

2007-09-12T13:31:00.000-04:00

Here is the invite to the opening reception for my photography exhibition. I am so excited that we are getting closer the "the day". I feel like I am counting down for my wedding all over again!

I spent yesterday shopping at International Mall in Tampa for a new dress and shoes for the occasion. Went to a lot of stores before I found the one. I knew it was the one as soon as I put it on. Oh, and it is about two sizes smaller than I would have thought I needed, you gotta love that! Found a few pairs of shoes that would have looked great with the dress, one of which had a $1300 price tag! No thanks. Can you imagine spending that much on just one pair of shoes. Wish that I had taken a picture of me wearing them, just so I could post it here. Maybe the next time that I make it up there I will try them on again just to show you all. The pair of shoes that I picked are just perfect for the dress and they are comfortable too. (I was really happy about that!) Now I just need to figure out what to do about my hair and accessories and I will be all set.

I am in awe because I just found out that the school is keeping all four of my images on permanent display because the President of MCC loves them and wants them to inspire other students. Can you believe that? This just keep getting better!

Hope that everyone is having a great day!

Cathy

he asked for what

2007-09-04T12:25:00.000-04:00

Franklin was sitting in the tub last night with Grace and asked why we only have 2 kids. I wasn't sure what he meant by it so I asked him if he meant why we don't have 3 kids or more and he said that is what he was thinking. He then asked if we could have another baby. He said that he would like a brother. I asked him would it be okay if it turned out to be a baby girl, he said yes and that he would name her Gracie, too. He then said that maybe an older brother would be nice.

I have no idea where this came from. I was very shocked to be receiving these questions from my 3 year old.

Anybody else get odd questions from their kids this weekend?

Cathy

Hot or Not

2007-08-31T14:00:00.000-04:00

Did anyone watch the Teen Choice Awards last Sunday? I didn't but wish that I had. Jessica Alba won the award for Female Hottie and gave a very cool acceptance speech. Here it is:

“I would like to dedicate this award to a young man who has been on my mind for the last 19 years: Ross. Ross didn't love me. I was pigeon-toed, I had a sway back, I was slightly cross-eyed, buck-toothed, I sucked my thumb. Look at me now, Ross! Look at me now!"

That is totally me. I was a very big geek in school, and no one ever thought I was pretty or fun to be around. I am so glad to know that she can stand up there and say something that I have always dreamed of saying. Kudos to Jessica Alba.

By the way, I am still a big geek! I am just comfortable with it now and accept who I am. Here's to anyone that was treated poorly by classmates!!

Happy Friday,
Cathy

Halley Came to Jackson

2007-08-29T11:07:00.001-04:00

I love this song by Mary Chapin Carpenter, Halley Came to Jackson. Everytime that I hear it, I think of what it must have been like in 1910 and seeing the comet and what people must have thought it was. I am sure it was beautiful and amazing thing to witness.

Here are the lyrics:

Late one night when the wind was
brought the baby to the window sill
To see a bit of heaven shoot across the sky
The one and only time Daddy saw it fly
It came from the east just as bright as a torch
The neighbors had a party on their porch
Daddy rocked the baby, Mother said "amen"
When Halley came to visit in nineteen ten

Now back then Jackson was a real small town
And it's not every night a comet comes around
It was almost eighty years since its last time through
So I bet your mother would've said "amen" too
As its tail stretched out like a stardust streak
The papers wrote about it every day for a week
They wondered where it's going and where it's been
When Halley came to Jackson in 1910

Now Daddy told the baby sleeping in his arms
To dream a little dream of a comet's charms
And he made a little wish as she slept so sound
In nineteen eighty-six that wish came 'round
It came from the east, just as bright as a torch
She saw it in the sky from her daddy's porch
As heavenly sent as it was back then
When Halley came to Jackson in nineteen ten
Late one night when the wind was still

I hope that I will get to see it when it comes again in 2061!

Cathy

Has anyone...

2007-08-28T10:19:00.000-04:00

watched the series 'Big Love' on HBO?
had a odd allergic reaction?
had to fly with just the clothes they had on?
sat somewhere all day doing nothing, yet knowing they had to be there?
experienced Newark at 6a.m on a Friday morning?
attended a wedding having only been invited 30 minutes before the ceremony?
had something named after them for all the world to see?
felt a sense of accomplishment that overwhelms you?
wanted to live somewhere else?
met someone on a plane that you will remain friends with for a long time?
been so embarrassed that you whole body aches?
been asked to photograph an event only days before the event?
watched Kimora:life in the fab lane?

It has been a very interesting time for me since my last post. Franklin started at his new school and is loving every minute of it. He is the "shining star" today, which means that he gets to be the line leader and gets to bring in something to show and share. He is so proud about being the shining star today. I kept with the theme and made french toast sprinkled with powered sugar for breakfast. He decided to take his new Clifford book and his Megladon tooth as his show and share items. He is so cute and sweet. I can't believe that he is 3 already. It seems like just yesterday he was born and I was holding him in my arms for the first time. He is a big boy now and does not like to be called a baby. He has learned to peddle his tricycles and rides all over the house. Grace is still the same. She is jealous that Franklin goes to school.

I hope that everyone has a great Tuesday.

Cathy

What's a Southern girl to do

2007-08-06T20:10:00.000-04:00

when she has a stressful day? Well, this Southern girl makes fresh peach cobbler. And that is just what I did this evening. Had a lot to deal with today. I am enjoying a nice big piece of my peach cobbler and some milk right now, and it is yummy and I am starting to feel better already.

Here is a picture of the peach cobbler I made this evening:

On a lighter note I had a great time playing with the kids in the hose tonight. Really brought me back to my childhood.

Hope everyone has a great evening,

Cathy

I love this place...

2007-08-02T06:59:00.000-04:00

My favorite place to be, other than with my kids and husband, is New York. I love all the lights, sounds, people, things to do, etc. I took this picture from the steps of the New York Public Library main location at 5th Avenue and 42nd Street. The red streaks that you see in the photo are cars. This is a long exposure, that is how you only see the lights of the cars and not the cars themselves. I love to do this kind of night photography.

Have a great day,
Cathy

Stop Breast Cancer for Life

2007-07-31T22:55:00.000-04:00

Every 2.5 minutes a woman is diagnosed with Breast Cancer. Help to make a difference in the lives of those who are affected by Breast Cancer. Please check out this link http://www.lifetimetv.com/breastcancer/petition/signpetition.php and sign the Brest Cancer Patient Protection Act petition. This is a bill that is going to be voted on in Congress that would make it mandatory for women to have a 48 hour hospital stay after a masectomy. A lot of times women are discharged only hours after this serious surgery.

My grandmother had breast cancer twice and finally had a masectomy several years ago. This is something that is very important to me and I hope that you will take the time to check out the site, learn more and sign the petition.

Remember to do your self exams, early detection is key.

Have a wonderful night,

Cathy

Survey says...

2007-07-30T19:58:00.000-04:00

1. Your entire family has gone away for the weekend. The house is all yours. What are the first three things you do?
Take a shower, enjoy a cup of coffee and read

2. Your bankbook is looking healthy, you have a four-day weekend ahead. What sounds good?
jet off to New York

3. What do you do while waiting in the doctors office?
When the kids are with me, entertain them. When I go by myself, read a book or magazine

4. Would you rather spend an afternoon alone in a book store, a mall, napping in the hammock?
Either napping in a hammock or alone in a book store

5. You have an unexpected 48 hour stay in the hospital. You're coherent and not in pain. How do you spend the time? Reading? Channel Surfing? Laptop surfing? Calling your friends to come visit? Ringing for a nurse every five minutes? Sleeping?
Sleeping, reading, laptop surfing

6. You have a nine hour trans-continental flight. Get excited about finishing a hot novel? Watch the in-flight movies? Become best friends with the stranger seated next to you? Take three valium and sleep the time away?
Read, chat with the person next to me, watch the movie and then I would take the valium
and sleep.

7. You have a seven hour layover in Chicago O'Hare Airport. Do you wear down your cellphone battery calling friends? Read a book? People watch? Shop every store in the airport? Take a taxi and see the city?
My first instinct is to see the city, but I would probably do all of the things listed. I am so
non-commital tonight!!!

8. What do you do when you're bored stiff?
I don't really get the opportunity to get bored these days.

9. Work first, play later? OR Play while you can, the work will still be there when you get home?
I am a work first, play later kind of person.

10. List three times that you are easily bored.
Listening to someone try and make me feel the way they do about something, watching
the movie Borat (hated the movie, want the 90 minutes of my life back) and I can't think
of a third one.

Thanks Nikki and Kim for posting this survey. I really enjoyed reading your answers. It's always fun to get to know more about your friends.

Have a great evening,
Cathy

What a Great day!!!

2007-07-30T08:52:00.000-04:00

I am home alone! The house is silent. This is so awesome. Filic took the kids to Tampa today to give me the day off to relax and enjoy the quiet house. This is the best gift. I haven't had the house to myself in a very long time. I am enjoying my coffee, took an uninterrupted shower, and I am going to read.

I hope that you all get a chance to relax today.

Cathy

a little bit about me...

2007-07-29T11:55:00.000-04:00

I found this suvey online and thought that it would be fun to post and get to know more about me!

* . . About You . . *

Eye Color:: Brown

Hair Color:: Brownish!

Height:: 5'7"

Favorite Color:: blue, light purple

Favorite Band:: too many to list

Favorite Movie:: Dirty Dancing

Favorite Show:: Ugly Betty

Your Car:: Honda Odyssey

Your Hometown::Jacksonville

Your Present Town:: Sarasota

Your Crushes First Name:: Tyler

Your Style:: Trendy

* . . Have You Ever . . *

Sat on your rooftop?:no

Kissed someone in the rain?: yes

Danced in a public place?: yes

Smiled for no reason?: yes

Laughed so hard you cried?: yes

Written a song?: yes

Sang to someone for no reason?: I sing to my kids all the time

Performed on a stage?: yes

Talked to someone you don't know?: yes

Gone out of your way to befriend someone?: yes

Made out in a theatre?: yes

Gone roller skating since 8th grade?: yes

Been in love?: yes

* . . Who was the last person to . . *

Say HI to you?: Franklin

Tell you, I love you?: Filic

Kiss you?: Filic

Hug you?: Grace

Tell you BYE?: Filic

Write you a note?:

Take your photo?: Filic

Call your cell phone?: Jessi

Buy you something?: ME!

Go with you to the movies?: Filic

Sing to you?: Franklin

Write a poem about you?: it has been a really long time since that happened - a lifetime ago

Text message you?: Becky

Touch you?: Franklin

* . . What's the last . . *

Time you laughed?: this morning

Time you cried?: a few weeks ago

Movie you watched?: Evan Almighty

Joke you told?: no idea

Song you've sang?: Rockstar

Time you've looked at the clock?: few minutes ago

Drink you've had?: coke

Number you've dialed?: Jessi, yesterday

Book you've read?: The Cinderella Pact by Sarah Strohmeyer

Food you've eaten?: pizza

Flavor of gum chewed?: spearmint

Shoes you've worn?: converse

Store you've been in?: publix

Thing you've said?: yes you can have a fruit snack

* . . Can You . . *

Write with both hands?: no

Whistle?: barely

Blow a bubble?: yes

Roll your tounge in a circle?: yes

Cross your eyes?: yes

Touch your tounge to your nose?: no

Dance?: yes

Stay up a whole night without sleep?: yes, its called parenting!

Speak a different language?: eine bisen

Impersonate someone?: not really

Prank call people?: no

Make a card pyramid?: never tried to

Cook anything? yes

* . . Finish The Line . . *

If i were a ...: asleep right now I would be very happy!

I wish ...: I were in New York right now

So many people don't know that ...: couldn't think of anything!

I am ...: very happy with my life

My heart is ...: with my husband and my kids

I would like to see all of your answers to these questions!

Have a great Sunday,
Cathy

Feeling of Accomplishment

2007-07-25T07:30:00.000-04:00

Last night Filic took the kids to the park so that I could get some stuff done around the house. It is amazing what you can do in just 1 1/2 hours with no interruptions! I was able to listen to MY music, and loud, such a treat. I moped the majority of the house, cleaned the bathrooms, cleaned Franklin's room, folded several loads of laundry, cleaned the kitchen, etc.

I love the feeling of getting things accomplished at the end of the day. I am a list maker and love to cross things off of my list. I know that most days that I get a lot done, but last night I really felt great about all the I had accomplished. Plus, I was dancing to the music so I was getting a workout in too!

Hope you all have a great day,
Cathy

Franklin's 3!

2007-07-23T20:09:00.000-04:00

Three years ago today was one of the most memorable and best days of my life. My little guy was born at 2:17 pm, he weighed 7lbs 9 oz and was 21 inches long. Today he is about 27 lbs and about 37 inches.

To celebrate his birthday we started off at Dunkin Donuts for a donut with sprinkles for breakfast-one of his favorite things, he doesn't get it that often though. He had some friends over for lunch, swimming and cupcakes. Had his grandparents over for dinner and more cupcakes!! What an exciting day, isn't it great to be three.

Here are some photos of him:

His actual birthday!

His first birthday, unsure of the cake.

His 2nd birthday out by the pool.

Here he is today, 3 years old.

Time has flown in the last three years. I can't believe it has been three years, he is still my little "bubby" (nickname I gave him moments after being born). I hope that he keeps his wonderful spirit, sense of humor and wonder with people and the world.

Have a great day, and have a peice of cake or something sweet in honor of his birthday!!

Love,

Cathy

Personal DNA

2007-07-18T07:50:00.000-04:00

Attentive Creator

My friend Jessi, gave me the link to this website www.personaldna.com where you answer 11 pages of questions about yourself and then you get your very own dna map according to your personality traits. Very fun. I think mine was pretty accurate. It will all depend on how honest you are with yourself!!!

Hope that everyone is having a great Wednesday morning. I will post some pictures of my Hershey Park, Sesame Place trip soon.

Cathy

It doesn't take much to excite me

2007-06-26T11:12:00.000-04:00

My new washer and dryer were just delivered! My washer decided to go on strike last Sunday night during a marathon laundry session, mid-cycle. So I spent two hours at the laundromat last Sunday night finishing the laundry. There were three more trips back to the laundromat in the week that followed. I was amazed at the quickness of going to the laundromat, I could get all the laundry washed, dried and folded in under 2 hours, and get to read a book while doing it!!! I never realized how much laundry we create in just a few days until I was loading it up and feeding the machines with quaters.

I am already washing a load of laundry and am amazed at how quiet it is. We chose the Whirlpool Duet machines. Here are some pictures:

Where the old washer and dryer were.

Side view of new washer and dryer.

Front view of new washer and dryer.

Happy laundry day to everyone!!

Cathy

Jessi's challenge

2007-06-26T11:09:00.001-04:00

Jessi challenged us to do a layout with an "imperfect" photo, one that is blurry or just not the greatest but still captures a wonderful memory. Check out her blog to see the layouts that other people did, http://www.scrappinmountainmama.blogspot.com/

Here is the LO that I did for the challenge:

who loves it when...

2007-06-20T14:45:00.000-04:00

the ups driver arrives with something for you? I do, I do! The UPS driver just delivered two packages for me. One was Filic's Father's Day gift, a little late I know. But I did order it in time, hey I am reaching here! The second package was for me, just new checks but I am excited nonetheless. I actully love my new checks, they have penguins on them. What else would they have on them? It makes me want to sit down and pay a bill, what am I saying!

Hope you are having a great day,
Cathy

Brush with Greatness

2007-06-15T08:41:00.000-04:00

I am in awe. Today one of my photographs was being stored next to a Picasso! Can you believe that? I am going to have a photography show at MCC Bradenton in September, and I have spent the week preparing and printing my images. The images that I selected were printed

33 1/2 inches by 24 inches, by the time they are matted and framed they will be about 4 feet by 3 feet. They are being stored in the framing room where there is also a Picasso waiting to be framed. So I am going to remember this moment forever...my work next to a Picasso.

As far as the show goes, I am on cloud nine. I keep jumping up and down with excitement. This is something that I have wanted for a long time and it is coming true. I will let everyone know what the dates are as soon as I know. There will be a opening night and you will all be invited.

Have a great Friday,

Cathy

Enjoy the photos below....

This is one of my photos with the Picasso near it.

This is me holding the Picasso.

Interview with God

2007-06-13T06:00:00.000-04:00

My photography professor showed me this website today. It is a slide show of amazing images, nice instrumental music and a narrative essay. I found it very moving and also very thought provoking. If you have a minute, it is worth the time to watch it. Here is the link:

http://www.theinterviewwithgod.com/

I hope that you are all happy with your lives thus far. Here is to a happy and healthy rest of the week.

Cathy

How many American Icons have you seen?

2007-06-12T14:30:00.000-04:00

I was on fodors.com today and read an article about American Icons and how people travel to Europe and other places and never see the amazing places we have here in the United States.

Here is their top then list:

Grand Canyon
The Everglades
The Golden Gate Bridge
Graceland
Mount Rushmore
Disneyland
The Arch in St.Louis
The Empire State Building
The Mall in DC
Yosemite

Here are their runner-ups:

The head waters of the Mississippi River
Taos Pueblo - Taos, NM
Glacier National Park - West Glacier, Montana
Atlantic City Boardwalk
The Great Dismal Swamp (southeastern Virginia, northeastern North Carolina)
Arches National Park - Moab, Utah
The Corn Palace - Mitchell, South Dakota
The Badlands - southwestern South Dakota
St. Augustine's Alligator Farm
Death Valley - eastern California
Chesapeke Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Sunset Celebration in Mallory Square - Key West, Florida

I am lucky enough to have been to a number of the places in these two lists. I agree with a lot of these places but think that there are a lot of amazing places that were left off. For example:

Statue of Liberty
Smithsonian
Disney World
Pacific Ocean
Yellowstone

What would you add to this list?

Here's to all of your summer travels!
Cathy

Last photography assignment

2007-06-11T22:07:00.001-04:00

I had the wonderful opportunity to take a photography class the past six weeks at MCC with Professor Drew Webster. I finished my last assignment today in the old building. Come this fall they art department is going to be in a brand new building. I was able to take a tour of the building a few weeks ago and it is going to be amazing. I can't wait to take some more classes.

I was at school almost all day today. Here are the pictures for my last assignment. These were taken here in Sarasota around 301 and University Park.

This is an infared photo. I did this using a #87 filter. I love the glow that living things take on with infared photography.

This image was turned sepia to give it a nostalgic feel.

I hope that everyone had a great Monday.

Cathy

Latest photography assignment and Challenge

2007-06-11T06:50:00.000-04:00

Here is the photography assignment that I did last week. Grace had been sick, so I did not get a chance to get out and shoot what I had planned. Instead I was forced to get creative with everyday things and use photoshop. I manipulated the original color of these images and put four images together to do a color study in the style of Andy Warhol. Hope you have fun looking at these images.

This is image 1, these are pods that children can walk along at Potter park. Their original color is blue and then of course the mulch is brown!

This is also at Potter Park. This is one of the ways that kids can climb up onto one of the peices of equipment. This goes to show you that there are things that you come across in your daily life than can be turned into art.

This is at Epcot in the UK. The original color of this phone booth was red. How fun would it be if phone booths really looked like this. Maybe more people would want to use them!

This is at Animal Kingdom. In the Dino World area, there is a Apatosaurus bridge that you walk across to get to where you can dig for dinosaur bones. I loved the look of it and thought it would be a great picture for Franklin's room. After changing the color, I like it even more!

Lets see what items in your daily life you can turn into art. I will give you a week to take some pictures, manipulate them and either email them to me or post them on your blog and leave me a comment. I will have a prize for the winner, so get out there and get creative!

Have a great Monday!

Cathy

K2 Challenge

2007-06-10T23:26:00.000-04:00

This is the first time that I have been able to complete a layout for K2's weekly challenge. This weeks challenge was to use fabric on your layout. I have been wanting to do a layout about Franklin and his weebie for quite some time now. This was the perfect excuse for me to get it done.

Here are the pictures from the layout:

The paper I used is Cherry Arte Burnish Starry Night. The pins are Heidi Grace, the button is Foof-a-la, the journaling spot is a Karen Russel Narratives sticker, and the ribbon is from my stash. The letters that spell 'weebie" are thickers.

This is a close-up of the words that I put on the left side of the layout.

This is a close-up of the piece of Franklin's weebie that I cut apart for this layout, the Karen Russell journaling spot, and also the Heidi Grace pins.

This is a close-up of the thickers.

Nikki, I hope that you notice that it is before midnight, 11:37 pm to be exact. What a great challenge this week. You can check out Nikki's blog at: http://www.nikkicleary.blogspot.com/

Take care,

Cathy

Orlando Trip

2007-06-10T22:00:00.000-04:00

We went to Orlando for a few days at the end of May as part of Filic's 40th Birthday celebration. He doesn't turn 40 until July but he has the Florida Resident pass to Disney so he is unable to go during June, July and August. We stayed at a really great townhouse that was four bedrooms and had a 2.5 acre pool complete with waterslide and lazy river that the kids loved. Here is the link for the resort if anyone will be in Orlando and needing a great place to stay: http://www.resorttownhouse.com/page/page/2853623.htm

Here are some pictures from the trip:

This was at the Believe Show at Sea World. This was our first time taking the kids there. I haven't been there since I was Franklin's age!

Filic and Franklin on the only ride that Franklin was tall enough to ride in the kids area of Sea World.

Grace and Franklin playing on a slide in the playground area of Sea World.

Filic enjoying the waterslide at the resort we stayed at!

Here are Grace and I enjoying the lazy river!

Cathy

Firsts

2007-04-29T21:02:00.000-04:00

As a mom I get to experience lots of firsts. On Saturday night Grace and I had a first, her first pig tails! I was pretty excited to put her hair up and she actually did not try and take them out. I thought that she looked quite adorable. Franklin kept telling me that she looked like a girl! How cute.

They are both growing up so fast. It's hard to believe all of the firsts that I have already witnessed and all of the ones yet to come. I love all of the firsts that I get to be there for, those are the moments that make this hard job called motherhood even more rewarding.

I hope that you all had a great weekend and that you have a great week and get to experience some firsts of your own.

Here is a picture of Grace's first pig tails!

It's been a bit since my last post

2007-04-26T20:19:00.000-04:00

I feel so guilty for not posting in a week. A lot has been going on. I did make it out to Myakka last week and the pictures are amazing. I was inspired by Clyde Butcher. I tried to see things the way he does. He is famous for photographing the Real Florida, like Myakka. I can't wait until I can get the negatives scanned next week and posted on the blog so that you all can see them.

I have managed to hurt myself on a daily basis it seems this week. First I cut my hand open with a bread knife. Then I went to the dentist for a toothache and ended up with a filling for no reason. I have sealants on my back teeth from when I was a kid and they thought my tooth was cracked so they had to drill into the tooth to check. No crack, but had to put a filling in the tooth. Sliced three toes open today trying to move an entertainment center by myself. I have decided no more cleaning up around the house for the next several days. Maybe then I can avoid some more injuires!

Filic is leaving town tomorrow for Las Vegas. He won't be home until Monday night. I am trying to figure out what I am going to do with the kids this weekend. I will probably just stay close to home and do a lot of playing in the front yard. If anyone wants to get together, just email me.

I hope you are all having a great week and have a great weekend.

New Inspiration...

2007-04-19T08:25:00.000-04:00

So yesterday I spent the afternoon with my old photography professor, Drew to learn how to use a twin lens medium format camera. It is completely manual. After a brief demonstration, we headed outside and I gave it a shot (literally). I took some pictures of Drew while we were chatting because I like to take natural photos, not posed ones. Then it was off to the dark room to develop the film. Mind you, I haven't done this since I first found out I was pregnant with Franklin. Actually, that is one of the ways I knew I was pregnant. I was developing film one day and was blown away by the smell of the chemicals. It had never bothered me before. Anyway, it took me a bit to get back into the hang of it but I managed to get the film developed. The shots I took were actually good. I had not planned on getting anything good from this since it was my test roll to learn how to use the camera and try developing the film. I am thrilled that it came so easy to me.

This morning I am off to Myakka State Park to shoot some more film. I have found a new inspiration in this camera and can't wait to see what comes of it.

Here are some pictures of what the camera looks like and a picture of the contact sheet I made of the roll I shot yesterday.

My favorite shot is on the bottom left of his hands.

Have a great day, and take some pictures!

Cathy

Natural Highs

2007-04-13T07:09:00.000-04:00

I received this list in an email from a friend, read through it and see if any of these give you a "natural high". I have added some of my own thoughts in parentheses.

Falling in love
Laughing so hard your face hurts
A hot shower
No lines at Publix
A special glance
Getting mail (or email!)
Taking a drive on a pretty road
Hearing your favorite song on the radio
Lying in bed and listening to the rain outside
Hot towels fresh out of the dryer
Chocolate, vanilla or strawberry milkshakes
A bubble bath
Giggling
A good conversation
The beach
Finding a $20 bill in your coat from last winter (or your jeans from last week!)
Laughing at yourself
Looking into someones eyes and knowing they love you
Running through sprinklers
Laughing for absolutely no reason at all
Having someone tell you you are beautiful
Laughing at an inside joke with friends
Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you
Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep
Your first kiss, either the very first one or the first one with a new partner
Making new friends or spending time with old ones
Playing with a new puppy
Having someone play with your hair
Sweet dreams
Hot Chocolate
Road trip with friends
Swinging on swings
Making eye contact with a cute stranger
Making chocolate chip cookies
Holding hands with someone you care about
Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change
Watching the expression on someones face as they open a much desired present from you
Watching the sunrise
Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day
Knowing that somebody misses you
Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply
Knowing you have done the right thing no matter what other people think

So here is my challenge for today and this weekend, let's add to this list.

Here is what I would add:

The smell of a newborn baby
Seeing your baby for the very first time
A good cup of coffee
Having someone admire something you have made
Having your child tell you they love you

I am anxious to see what all of you will add to this list.
Cathy

Happy Birthday, Kelli!

2007-04-10T20:35:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday to Kelli! Today is my "sister" Kelli's birthday. We are not related by blood but we are sisters all the same. She is the person that I love to hang out with, is the person I turn to when things are not that great and also the person that I turn to when something awesome happens to me. I am bummed that I can not be there to help her celebrate tonight, but I know that the next time we get together that we will make up for it.

Kel, you are my rock. I am so lucky to have you in my life. I love you. I hope that you get a chance to make a wish tonight and that it comes true. Happy Birthday.

Love,
Cathy

This is a picture of the two of us in New York City at our favorite sushi place, Haru.

Buttons galore!

2007-04-07T12:49:00.000-04:00

Whenever I scrapbook with Nikki at K2, I am envious of her button collection. I had been looking all over town to find some buttons to start my collection, and was not happy with what was out there. I decided to try eBay, and I found the best deal ever.

The seller said that there were about 800 buttons in assorted colors. I paid $11 with shipping. The buttons arrived last night and my nieces Maya (she is 9) and Nina, and I decided to make predictions and then count the buttons together to give my younger niece, Nina (she is 6) some extra credit for her math packet. We found out there were 1,257 buttons in the bag! We could not believe the number of buttons we were looking at. Nina asked if she could keep some buttons as her "prize" for helping to count. I was more than happy to give up a few. Nina decided to make a bracelet out of her new buttons. Here are some pictures of the buttons, Nina's bracelet and Nina.

Today Franklin came up to me and asked to play the button game again. He had watched us counting the buttons last night and was fascinated by the whole thing. We let him play with a handful of buttons and he sorted them by size and then sorted them by color. Who knew a bag of buttons would provide such entertainment for three children!

I am already planning out some pages in my head to start using all of these buttons. If anyone is in need of some buttons, just let me know!

Inspired by Nikki

2007-04-05T21:23:00.000-04:00

This is a LO that I created about a thank you note from my good friend Nikki. I loved how she used a lacy doily to give it a homemade, old-fashion feel. I was cleaning up my desk in my scrapbooking area and came across the note the other day and reread it. At that point I knew that I did not want to lose it again. I was immediately inspired to create a LO around it.

I had been wanting to do something with this paper from K2, and knew this was it. I cut the woman out of the paper, because it was too busy otherwise. I doodled in two of the corners and added the thank you note.

Thanks for being such a great friend Nikki. And thanks for sending such great notes!

Tattoo???

2007-04-05T20:46:00.000-04:00

Yes, that is right, I said tattoo. On Monday night, Filic and I had a meeting to go to and the kids went to our friends house to play with their kids. When we picked them up, Franklin had this huge dragon temporary tattoo on his tummy. I thought it would be at least a few more years before I had to deal with the whole temporary tattoo thing. Here is another "first" to add to his list.

I ran over to K2 to buy the new extreme boy papers and embellishments to do a LO on him and his "first" tattoo. I can't wait to see how it turns out.

Enjoy the photos of him.

Bunny

2007-03-28T09:04:00.000-04:00

We have a pet...a calico bunny! The kids are loving the bunny. We named him Sydney. On the way home from the pet store Franklin told me that he wanted the bunny to play trucks with him, play outside with him and watch tv with him. I tried to tell him that the bunny can't play trucks, but could watch him play trucks.

Here are some pictures of our new bunny.

Last ones!!!

2007-03-27T21:37:00.000-04:00

These are the last layouts, I promise!!

Layouts Part 2

2007-03-27T21:34:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I am new to this and did not know how many images you could add in one post, so here are some more.

Layouts

2007-03-27T21:31:00.000-04:00

Here are some of the layouts that I did at K2 this past weekend. A couple of these I did earlier that week, but I really liked them, so I wanted to post them as well.

Enjoy!

Okay, so I am really going to try to blog this time!

2007-03-25T22:49:00.000-04:00

I signed up for this blog so long ago now, that I pretty much forgot about it. But I was cleaning out my favorites and found the link to it. I have made some changes and am really going to try and have a blog this time.

This weekend I was at my LSS for their 'Spring Fling Crop'. I was there from 3:30 pm to 2:00 am on Friday and then was back again on Saturday at 11 am and stayed until 9 pm. I had a great time and actually got some pages done. I am really happy with they way my LO's turned out. I took my time and really made sure that the LO's were just as I wanted them. Along with some help from the more talented scrappers seated near me! You know it was a good time considering I lost my voice!

My hubby was awesome, taking the kids both days for me. I really appreciated that. In fact, I came home on Friday night/Saturday morning to "turndown service" He had my bed all ready for me, complete with a mint and a love note. What a wonderful way to end an evening with your girlfriends. He took me out for pancakes on Saturday morning to prepare for the long day ahead of me. How cute is that.

I am going to take some photos of the LO's I did this weekend and post them here tomorrow.

I hope that everyone enjoys their spring break. Have a great Monday!

My first entry

2006-06-27T21:04:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone. I am not really sure why I have a blog. I was posting on Jocie's blog and I guess that I signed up for my own blog somehow!

Things are good here. We have family visiting us from Virginia. Filic's brother and his family. My neices Maya, 9 and Nina, 5 are spending a lot of time playing with Franklin and he is loving it. He loves to chase them around and jump on the mattress that is on the floor with them. I am not sure how he will take it when they have to go home on Sunday. Grace is doing great. She is gaining weight and getting more social everyday. She, too, is enjoying the visit with her cousins. They love to enertain her. My sister-in-law Beth loves to hold and sunggle Grace and she is just eating it up. She loves to be held and will let just about anyone hold her.

I was in New Jersey this past weekend visiting with my sister-in-law Kelli and her family. We had a great time. Grace was an angel o the plane rides and in general. Although I have to say that 'girls weekend' sure has changed! I wouldn't have it any other way.

So I guess I will use this blog to keep everyone up to speed with what I am up to. I will post when I can. Have a great day.