testing

oh, she's a rock star alright...at least in my world she is...

this is georgia

my new rock star friend

{come on look at her cowboy boots~she's totally cool}

who through blogging

I feel like I've known for a very long time

not forever though

as that's a very very long time

and how do we really know how long forever even is

?

{said once again in my craig ferguson accented voice}

so the story goes like this

~~

we've been blogging buds for quite some time now

the two of us

me and georgia

georgia and I

and

when I looked on the map and saw how close we live to one another

well I knew we needed to meet in person

so

I suggested the flea market that I go to during the summer

which ended up being perfect

as

she loves vintage and old even more than I do

if that's possible

~~

okay

maybe it's a tie who has the greater vintage love

but whatever

anyhow

we laughed

loved many of the same things

~she really loves vintage fabric anything

and

jewelry and owls

and

noticed how gorgeous these table cloths were all lined up by color~

shared a cinnamon roll

and

a basket of fries

{not at the same time silly}

got pushed over by gusts of wind

fell in love with many things we couldn't buy

and

smiled at ourselves for the things we did buy

~that green striped beach umbrella that georgia is standing under

now belongs to me...for a mere $10~

bicycles and things with wheels seemed to be the theme of the day

as they were everywhere

if we lived in the same town together

we might have gone home with this bike

so we could ride around together taking photos

with our feet kicked out in the wind

while we held on tight to our cowboy hats

and

while I sat in back pretending to help with the pedaling

hee hee

we both wanted these chairs

but neither of us had anywhere to put them

so we left them for some other lucky person to find

this great bike was marked $30 and was sold right behind our backs to a little boy for

10 bucks

and

then we both kicked ourselves

for missing out on that sale

here's georgia doing some serious looking

and

I think I heard her say to herself

"walk away from the wicker purse georgia"

~~

by the end of the day

having only seen a third of the booths

we were

windblown

a little sunburned

and

our feet and shoulders were sore

but

our hands were filled with purchases as we walked to our cars

~~

and

after five hours of being together

we knew a little bit more about each other

and

talked about how amazing our blogging tribe is

and

how it kind of blows your mind when you finally get to meet each other in person

and

how those who don't blog just don't "get it"

and

how we need to plan a big get-together for all of our blogging loves

like

you and you and you

{I think it might actually happen}

and

when we hugged good-bye

I knew it meant

"only until I see you again"

*

thanks georgia for all the fun and for all you blog loves

wherever georgia's name is highlighted

it' a different blog of hers each time

so check them all out

as she's a super cool vintage loving rhinestone wearing photographer rock star

who made sunday a day I won't forget

*

wow...

I think maybe working for the olympics makes my hubby look even more handsome

if that's possible

and

how lucky is he to have had a photo op with

michelle kwan

?

and

a little teaser

for tomorrow

~~

wait until you see the rock star I hung out with for hours on sunday

*

I was balanced all along and didn't even know it...

this family had

fun

written all over them

as soon as our eyes met

they did everything I asked and more

and

made me smile

during the entire shoot

the kids had their own little inside jokes

that only siblings share

and

mom and dad

played right along

acting like kids themselves when I threw out things like

"climb"

"lift"

and

"jump"

and

not once

while I was hanging onto tree branches for balance

and

climbing rocks myself

did they give me a look like

"wow, this chic is crazy...where did she come from ?"

~~

thanks to all of you who told me this would be a great shoot

as always

{158 photos later}

you were right

*

balancing...

wish me luck today

as

I have a photo shoot with a family of five adults

and

by now you know my true love is children

~~

the weather all week here has been brutally hot and filled with sun

and

today the clouds are rolling in and it's supposed to storm

right about the time I'll be unpacking my camera

~~

and

if I understood the mother correctly

they're all wearing matching clothes

~~

deep breathing and balancing

that's what I'm doing today

~~

how about you

are you balancing something in your life today

?

oh for the love of children...

I'm blessed to live in a lively neighborhood

where the three homes whose yards back up to us

have

a total of

9

kids

all under the age of

8

and

they all know that I'm

the girl with the camera

the chic with a lens addiction

the mom who doesn't have any littles at home anymore to photograph

so

they welcome me with open arms

to sit in their yards

and

click away at their beautiful children

~~

seriously

I'm so blessed

*

it's not so "baaaaad"

I want to hug all of you

I really do

~~

your support and loving words

while waiting for my biopsy reports

have lifted me higher than I ever could have imagined

~~

the results are in

and

only one was positive

yippee

so

on july 15th

I'll see my dermatologist again

to have the rest of those ugly and bad and mean cells removed from my chest

and

then I'm going to throw them on the floor and stomp on them with my feet

and

say

"take that"

~~

well

at least in my dream last night that's what happened

and

you were all there to drink margaritas with me afterwards

and

then we danced

*

it wouldn't have killed him...

a few weeks ago

our little town hosted an all day play day

there were bands

face painting

dunking tanks

fire engine rides

food

horse drawn carriage rides

and

fireworks at dusk

and

I had no intentions of going or being any part of it

except

they got me with

"the giant used book sale"

advertisement

after filling a bag full of books

I couldn't help but notice that I was swimming in a pool of beautiful children

~

they were everywhere

dancing

laughing

crying

waiting patiently in line to have a stranger paint a picture on their tender cheeks

and

I felt this energy wash over me

I grabbed my camera out of the car

and

started shooting like a maniac

one mother asked what the pictures were for

and

I told her that I'd be giving them to the editor of the local newspaper

~

another dad

{the one above}

asked if he could give me his email address and could I possibly send him a copy of the photos I had taken of him and his daughter

"why yes, of course and here's my business card"

I said with a big smile on my face

while my insides jumped up and down in a happy dance

and

later after he received 6 photos from me

he called me and thanked me and told me how I had made his day

and

could I send him my prices for a future photo shoot

after I got home

I burned 84 pictures onto a cd

and

monday morning after talking with the editor of the newspaper

I dropped my cd off to him

~~

he told me he had worked the event himself

and

had over 200 pictures he needed to go through that he had taken

but

that he would take a look at mine

~~

and

when the newspaper's thursday edition came out

the two page spread for the event was filled with photos

and

none of them were mine

~~

they all belonged to him

the editor

~~

and

now I'm just wondering

would it have killed him to use EVEN one of my photos

?

~~

I think not

~~

so it begins

my first rejection

but

I'm not one to be brought down easily

because I'm just not that way

~~

granted

I'm a tender hearted girl who cries easily because life is so beautiful

but

I also have the kind of spirit

that can be put in a ring with rocky for a good knock down drag out fight

~~

so excuse me

it's

time to put the boxing gloves on

and

my dukes up

and

start again back in my corner

*

because I just can't "not touch" for very long...

in order for this to make any sense....see the post below this one....

floating on life...

today

in my notes I found this

~~

"it's not what's happening around you that determines much

but what's happening inside you"

~~

I wonder who wrote it

~~~~~

last week I spent a tiny bit of one of my mornings at a little park that I love

~

there's not really much to the park

but

because it's on the lake

I love it

~

and

there's really not much of anything to photograph while I'm there

but

I always come home with pictures that surprise me a little

~

I thought the photos I took of the huge dead fish floating right in front of me

would be really neat

but

they were just plain awful

~

I thought the photos I took of the mossy green rocks that were almost glowing in the sunlight

would be really neat

but

they were almost too green

if that's even possible

~

and

then there was this photo

which made me sit up straight so that I could really look at it

so that I could really see it

and

I'm not sure what it did to me

inside

but it stirred up some feelings or emotions

and

something in me changed a little

~

I didn't edit it

and

someday I will

~

but for now

it speaks for itself

even though I'm still now quite so sure what it's saying

*

sometimes when you're not looking...

in the right light

at the right time

everything is extraordinary

~~

aaron rose

blessed...

and

when the man who is your father-in-law

has been part of your life since you started

dating his son

when you were 16 years old

and

has always made you feel like you were one of his own

well then

you

are doubly blessed

on father's day

~~

happy father's day

daddy dick

~~

we love you

we've got you on a pedestal...

wow

you were such a handsome

fun loving man

and

an amazing father

who did anything and everything for his girls

and

who am I kidding

?

you're still that same 

handsome 

fun loving

amazing father 

today

~~

happy father's day 

weekend

dad

~~

crazy baby love story...

my sister called on wednesday asking if I was lonely

and

even

when I told her I really wasn't

she asked if she could bring me 3 baby chipmunks who had lost their mother

of course I said 

yes

and

then I ran to the pharmacy and bought pedialyte 

~because a google search told me I would need that~ 

and 

a 1cc syringe which was impossible to find

but

which the pharmacist took out of her stash and gave to me 

after I told her my heart's always too big to say no

to anything baby

and

then she smiled and wished me luck

and

probably rolled her eyes at me after I left

once they arrived 

my sister left and took her kids to a movie

and

I was alone to feed three starving babies

which I did quite successfully if I must say so myself

but

when I realized that stimulating their genitals was not making them urinate

and

that if they didn't urinate

their bladders could rupture

~google search~

I was immediately on the road to our local humane society 

which takes in abandoned wildlife during the summer

yesterday 

my sister called again

telling me that a hard rain must have flushed out the nest 

and

that the REST of the litter

was scattered in her front yard looking near death due to a slight drowning

but 

were a little better now that she had warmed them under a heat lamp

and

could she bring this bunch to me and could I feed them and also take them to the

humane society

of course I said yes 

and

this time my sister and her kids

 got to see these little sweeties eat and come alive again

and

even though they had a few fleas that we killed in our bare hands

we really weren't phased

as we were just thrilled to hold these babies 

knowing that we were making a difference in their lives

at the humane society 

we were over the moon to learn that the first batch 

had been taken home by a volunteer to be fostered

and 

that this batch would also be placed in loving hands

that could take better care of them then I could

~~

the end

and i can hear a pin drop...

I'm alone

now that the kids are down south for their summer camp counselor jobs

and

john's on his second week at his new job

and

it feels a little odd

~~

not odd

 in a bad way 

~~

surprisingly

odd 

in a good way

like a 

"type of cleansing" 

way

~~

maybe we all need to be on our own every now and then 

to really appreciate the breathing bodies of our loved ones

~~

maybe we all need to eat our meals alone

to really appreciate an occasional burp at the dinner table

~~

maybe we all need to sleep in a bed where the sheets in the morning barely looked touched

to really appreciate messy wrinkled sheets from nights of togetherness

~~

maybe we all need to spend a day taking photos with nobody to share them with

to really appreciate opinions that differ from our own

~~

maybe you don't 

and

 I didn't think I did either

but I do

so I'm embracing this time of my life with everything I have

to really appreciate 

the woman and wife and mom that I am

and

the woman and wife and mom

I

am still becoming

*

a little bit of the sweet summer blues...

I'm not really a blueberry girl at all

as far as just grabbing a handful and eating them

but

a certain cake I make

which needs to be stacked high with fresh fruit as the topping

always includes blueberries

and

then I'm alright with them

~~

only because

I know they're good for me

~~

and

they look cool

you know what else they're good for

?

photography

~~

so

"what are you eating and shooting today" 

?

~~~~~~

of course if you live in the hills of kentucky it's more like

"what are you shooting and eating today"

with a wild turkey as a possible answer

~~

 hey

we used to live on the kentucky border and I love that state

the people

and

their accents

so I can say things like that

~~

can't I

?

not a happy camper...

sorry about the little peep show

but

 it's the only way I can show you why I didn't dance at my self induced pity party

yesterday

~~

let's go back a bit in time 

shall we

?

I was a sun worshiper for years and years

especially when we lived in st. louis and north carolina 

~~

okay

indiana, too

~~

in all of those states

we lived in pool and tennis community neighborhoods

where my days started and ended poolside

while my children

covered head to toe with sunscreen 

would play for hours

and

where I

believing I had a little super human in me

would only

apply sunscreen to my nose and the tips of my ears

and

then sit for hours and bake

because 

I thought a tan made me look sexy

~~

guess what

?

not so sexy after all

~~

at my dermatologist's office

yesterday morning

when I pointed out the two spots on my chest that seemed a little "strange"

I was instantly on my back while a needle was numbing my skin

so that biopsies could be taken

~~

as I laid there

I heard her say

results

basal cell

 surgery

clean margins

stitches

~~

and

then all of a sudden I was outside 

staring at the sun that I love

that I haven't worshiped for eight years

thinking 

"damn"

"why did I have to be so vain"

?

~~

so now I wait

for results

~~

and

while I wait

I'll act as a giant blogging billboard

which reads

~~

go out and buy yourself some 50 plus sunscreen today 

and 

apply it everywhere on your sweet little bodies

every time you leave the house

because 

tans come and go

but

scars last a lifetime

*