1st World Mom Problems

Is it too much to ask to get four kids who are all at least a decade old to allow their mom to get a decent picture?  I would love a special, hang on the wall, love it, treasure of the four of them.  However, our only opportunity to take pictures is on Sunday afternoon - the only time the four of them are all free at once which is why I did not hire a pro.  I don't want to take a Sunday away from anyone.

I warned them a week in advance.  We face a deadline on Savannah's senior ad soon, and I want one good picture of the four of them for the ad. I searched through our pictures and found some oldies but goodies.  However, I really want this particular picture to look like they do now - Julia minus the glasses especially.  So, I coordinated clothes for them that weren't too matchy matchy.  A great coupon, a little borrowing amongst the family, and we got that together.  I hurried them along, and off we started on a journey to some great shots, at least I hoped and prayed.

1st problem: a bike race - I failed to check the course of this big event in town, and yeah, our first choice photo location was off limits.  Not only that I had to drive miles and miles out of my way to choose a different path - ugh.

2nd problem: a meltdown - tired from a sleepover, one child complained of illness - there were tears and some sleeping during the drive - oh great, can we say red eyes?

3rd problem - a nose bleed from one child as we journeyed on - really?  

4th problem - 2nd choice location was windy, so we had to adjust and re-adjust

My goal - classy, candid, pictures to capture the personality of the family and each individual kid.

Did I succeed?  These will suffice.  I still wish I could have a pro get a good group shot.

What I love - I felt like this is the best I've done with coordinating the clothes- simple without making them look like I am trying to turn them into quadruplets.  The colors are rich.

What I don't love - the lighting.  Some are too dark. Zach's need of a haircut.  He will only let my sister cut his hair, so I am out of luck on keeping that neat and trim.

Why did I choose to share these?  I will share in the notes after each picture.

They look like they like each other, and nobody has a grimace.

I love Wyatt's smile in this one, and everybody else looks pretty good.

rich color, interesting lighting

nice expressions, cool lighting

nicely posed, close together

I love pictures of people laughing! - love them!  By Savannah's choice this is the one going in her ad. I am a little concerned that Julia looks like her nose is missing, but Savannah insists that nobody will notice.

I love how everyone looks in this photo.  I just wish Savannah was looking up. This is my first choice for the ad because I love all of their expressions.  I know Savannah is looking down, but the page is full of beautiful photographs taken of her over the years, and I think this captures their personalities both as individuals and in relation to each other.

I love that Savannah and Wyatt are holding hands.

candid

more laughter

maybe the best shot all day

I have already forgotten what made them laugh. I think I might still want a pro to capture them together and get individual pictures of Wyatt and Julia.

Remember that clicking on the pictures allows you to see them bigger.

Jack- O- Lantern Specatular

I think I saw this event advertised for the first time last year.  Friends went and loved it.  I thought it would be fun but could not work it into the schedule or finances or both last year.  This year I decided that we might forgo our annual pumpkin patch visit and do this instead.

I loved it.  I can't even really describe it.  It's incredible artistry and so much to see.  I definitely want to do it again.

The kids loved it too.

If you are local, don't miss it.  This last pumpkin with the image of Tara from Gone With the Wind was my favorite.  The picture does not do the detail justice.

Good news

God gifted Savannah with an amazing mind. She does not take this for granted, so she works very hard for her grades. We stressed her out last year when we paid for an expensive prep course for the PSAT. She felt stressed on multiple levels. The course increased her workload to an overbearing amount. Savannah felt that if she did not succeed in getting a good PSAT score, the course would have been a waste of money.
To be a National Merit Semi-finalist, a student has to score in the top 1% on this test. Scholarships are pretty much guaranteed. To be a National Merit Commended Scholar, a student has to be in the top 5%.  We learned in May that Savvy scored in the top 2%. I had mixed feelings. Commended scholar is amazing, but she was as close as she could get to semi-finalist without making the cut. This requires more work on her part to bring in the scholarship dollars she needs. Savannah has applied for one scholarship that requires her to be a commended scholar.

I got nervous a few weeks ago when the semi-finalists were announced, but there was no word on commended scholars. We got official word today that Savannah is indeed a commended scholar. I am really proud of her, and I posted the news on my Facebook page. Immediately afterward, it occurred to me that this is an example of sharing something on social media that I would share with very few people if not for that billboard we call social media. I almost went back to remove it, but it is good news, and I think of how hard Savannah has worked. She has endured and fought through much more than I have ever shared. Sometimes life just keeps pushing you down, and every once in a while you get a blessing. I did not tag my beautiful, hard-working daughter as she would not want the attention, but a kudos to her every now and then seems right.
The Holy Spirit grabbed hold of this girl a long time ago, and she would say all the good in her comes straight from God.

This official word came to us on my mom's birthday. I have missed her more this year on her birthday than on any of the others. She would have had this news on her FB page before me. I know because I used to avoid sharing things like this, but she always shared. Cancer sucks!
Savannah posted these lyrics on social media yesterday. They are a fitting tribute to my mom on her birthday:

Though I know I'll never lose affection

For people and things that went before

I know I'll often stop and think about them

In my life I love you more

In my life I love you more. -the Beatles

Pictures

As usual I did not buy school pictures.  When I saw them, however, I regretted my choice as both Wyatt and Julia took really good pictures this year.

I opted to take the two of them out for their annual "school" picture.  I wish I could afford a good photographer as I am rarely satisfied with my work, but I only need one good one, right?

one of my two favorites of Julia

I really like this one.

my favorite of Wyatt

another of my two favorites

I don't usually like photos of people laying on the ground, but this was a natural pose for Wyatt.  He did this himself, and I actually like the result.  Wyatt was not exactly a willing participant, so I am happy to have one good image.

Color Run -Night Version

I am sure you have likely heard of the Color Run.  It's a 5k where colored corn meal is thrown at you at various points during the race so that you end the race covered in fun colors.  It's basically a fun party billed as the Happiest 5K on the planet.

My brother, Joshua, wanted to pull a team together for the The Color Run - Night when he learned it was coming to our area.  We failed to get the minimum of four required, but Andy, Joshua and I participated in this fun 5k that is actually a bit short of the full length of a 5K.

Andy ran the race.  Joshua and I walked.

getting ready to get our green on

The after party
The run ends with a fun dance party where the powder is thrown on the crowd.

It was a fun time, but would I do it again?  I would, but only with a good coupon.  I ran into friends who got great deals on this.  Zachary and Julia wanted to do it, but I could not afford it for them to.  Had I known we would be facing such pricey van repairs, I would not have done this because those repairs cancelled any hope we had of getting a vacation trip in next summer.  On the other hand, I may have had the whole family do it in lieu of vacation.  I definitely would only do this again with a group of people.  I have found that for walkers like myself, running events are much more fun when you can share the time with friends.  It was cool spending an hour walking and chatting with my youngest sibling though.  He's a great guy, and pretty much everyone in the family would do anything for him.

Speaking of the van, it should be running like a dream don't ya think? Yeah, not so.  Sigh.

Perspective

On Wednesday afternoon I noticed a knocking sound in the van.  It sounded like I had my own percussionist putting on a performance for me.  I determined to find the cause on my own. After some internet cruising, I determined that it might be a belt or a loose screw.  I lifted the head, and sure enough, the belt was frayed.  Andy determined it to be the serpentine belt, and another internet search revealed the price to run around $200.

Just two weeks ago, you might recall, I had $820 in repairs done on the van.  I was upset about this additional repair, but it felt better knowing the price prior to seeing the mechanic.  So I went after work on Thursday to have the belt replaced.  While there I learned that we needed new gasket covers and that it could not wait, another $491.  We decided not to take care of that repair that day as there wasn't time.  Before I left they discovered another $200 in necessary work.  I was so frustrated.  The grand total landed somewhere around $1700 in two weeks.  Every attempt I make at getting an emergency fund going is met with some kind of emergency that blows the fund and the deposits for months and sometimes years into the future.

So I came home and gathered the younger kids and Andy to attend the middle school family picnic, but I can't say I left in a jolly mood ready for fun.  I did, however, calm down once I ran into several friends at the picnic.  It was nice to hang out and just enjoy their company.

Then I came home and heard about the Oregon shootings, and you know $1700 in van repairs seems really insignificant when several families prepare to bury their children or parents over a totally senseless  crime: not to mention the number of people traumatized by witnessing the crime or those left fighting for their lives and facing long recoveries from the injuries.

Out of the mouths of babes

A day or two ago, Julia expressed this sentiment:

I hope that boys don't like me when I get older.  They seem like such a hassle.

Like any good mom would, I confirmed that her theory is correct.

I know.  I know.  We will barely blink before she changes that tune.