Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Our Family Grew....A Lot.

This will be a quick one. We currently have all five of my little brothers and sisters staying with us. We'll be granted temporary custody soon. It's surreal. They're happy, they're safe, they're loved and well taken care of with us. Blogging Monday may not happen as often as I'd like. 

Prayers are appreciated!

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

I Want To Be A Sap

Whilst editing a recent engagement session, I stumbled upon this lovely image.

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"He has made everything beautiful in it's time..." Ecclesiastes 3:11. When I saw that frame, this verse came to mind immediately. When I saw that frame I felt hopeful. Hopeful that my mother will survive her life, that my brothers and sisters will come out on the other side, healed, and that I will somehow remain soft. I fear the "hardness" that often overtakes people when their lives change, when their realities shatter. I still cry during sappy movies. I want to stay a softy, I want to be a sap. Forever.

Monday, July 18, 2011

He.

These past five days have been a whirlwind. My mother is in the process of moving 6,000 square feet of home furnishings from storage in the desert, up to storage in Big Bear. The divorce is ugly. It's uglier than anything I've ever seen, and I'm stuck right in the middle of it, mediating my (at times) childish parents. (Sorry mom and dad). As a result of this, I've had my five brothers and sisters staying with me for five days. The house is a mess, a complete disaster. The food is quickly diminishing, there is a TV blaring constantly, and the complaining never ceases. It's a clash of parenting styles like you wouldn't believe. I swear these kids are going to hate me and Scott by the time they go home. You see, we have rules, and a set bedtime, and we make them drink freshly juiced apples in the morning (poor things). Yesterday I came down with a high fever, a 24 hour bug that confined me to bed. A train had come into my house, and hit me. Bad timing. 

Through all of this, one thing has remained the "constant", the unwavering pillar of "No, you won't do that, say that, wear that, watch that in my house". My Hubby is one tough cookie.

He's strong. He let's me lean on him when life is tough, and I'm a mess. The messiness has been prevailing lately.  

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He is warm and hysterical. He's quirky when he's uncomfortable and on occasion, let's me dress him. 

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He lights my fire, everyday.

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At the end of it all, he takes me by the hand all reassures me that it will all be OK. I couldn't be more grateful for him, for the man he is, for the father he is and for every moment we spend together as a family. 

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Monday, July 11, 2011

Afternoons...

Hello, Blogging Monday. I've made it here successfully, and I've even brought a photograph. Our afternoons usually look like this....

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I love my kiddo's faces in these images. Aden's eyes are fixed upon Daddy. He anxiously awaits his return to Daddy's arms, the safe place. Ava, on the other hand, is completely oblivious to any danger she may face as she soars through the air. She's a wild one, not a care in the world. 

Right now there is an apple pie in our toaster oven {yes, toaster over}, and a pot of vegan chili is on it's way. I may burn the house down if I don't close the computer....

Monday, July 4, 2011

"My Mommy Cuts My Hair" Hair.

It's 4th of July. 7:33am. I've had about two sips of coffee and my blessed children are pounding native drum beats against the walls with their tiny hands. Just thought you should know.

Yesterday was a monumental day. A day that happens once every three months. It should happen more often, but the sheer misery of it keeps me from getting it done. Yesterday, I cut Aden's hair. I know this may not be a big deal for the rest of you Mommies and your children without sensory issues, but for us, it's a nightmare. I have to warn Aden for a week before we actually get down to it. The day of, he gets a warning every hour, then every 30 minutes, then every fifteen....you get the picture. Aden wants his shirt off during a haircut so that it won't get dirty, but he refuses to wear a towel around his shoulders. The spray bottle, a strangle sound next to his ears, the falling snips of baby blond hair onto his soft, pale skin, it's his own personal version of hell. There he sits, on the bathroom counter (yes, like a 2 year old), and the screaming commences. We've tried suckers, TV, computer, conversation, bribery of all things amazing and even iPhone privileges during the big event, but to no avail. The kid can't cope. He screams, cries, wiggles, throws my makeup brushes and bottles of lotion off of the counter, the boogers come, he spits all over the mirror, and eventually sits somewhat still and makes Jabba The Hut noises until we're done. Tongue out, scrunched up face, the works. For 10 minutes. 
"Blllllleeeeeeeeeeeeeeegggggghhhhhhhhhh!!!!!"
"Blllllleeeeeeegggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!"
I don't tell him, "no".  He's never in trouble for his terrible haircut behavior. I let him completely destroy my bathroom so that we can have a four year old with choppy "my mommy cuts my hair" hair. After I brush him off and he hops down, he's gone. A screaming flash, flying through the house, uncontrollably. No destination, no purpose, just pent up anger that can only be released by running like a banchie. Eventually, he tires, and comes to me to talk about it. At this point, he falls into my arms and wails about how sad he is, how he hates haircuts, and how his back is itchy. After a long, warm shower, he emerges, renewed. My boy has returned! 

Praise God. 

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Shame On Me

Well hello, my lonely blog. My, how I've missed you. How I've thought about you, and your emptiness. How I've dreamt of all that you once were, all that you could be. In my bad blogger/professional photographer brain, a post is not a post without a picture. With blogger, you have to upload your images to an outside source (IE Photobucket), resize, HTML it out, and then upload it. That's just ridiculous to me. Shame on you, Blogger, for not making this easier on exhausted Mommas such as myself, and shame on me for letting it get the best of me. I also haven't been posting here very often (IE: at all) because I've been writing blog posts to each of my children of a secret blog for them to read someday (insert Disney villain laugh here....bwahahahaha!). This past weekend I decided that Monday mornings are the new weekly blogging day. Every Monday, I'll set my alarm 30 minutes earlier to quietly document my family's week. I'll find a quiet spot, make a fresh cup of soul filling coffee and write. 

Well, today is Tuesday....le sigh. Blogging Monday starts next week I suppose.....

Here are a few major points to touch on since I've been gone:
1. My body is a royal mess
2. Scott has joined me in my business
3. Aden has no para-ed at preschool
4. Ava is still throwing fits (naturally)

1. While I was dancing about on the salt flats in a ball gown and fighting 16,000 photographers for a sandwich and sea salt chips, my body was silently falling apart. Upon returning from WPPI, I began nearly passing out. My heart would just slow down, it was bizarre. I would lose my vision and hearing. I also began to suffering from terrible aches and pains throughout my entire body. I'm not a wimp, I've birthed two babies (e-hem, one almost without an epidural) so when I say I was in pain, I mean that I would wake up and my feet would ache on the floor. My hair even hurt. It was terrible. My skin also reverted into it's pre-pubescent state, leaving me with huge pimples and a large amount of embarrassment. After a 3 week stint with a heart monitor, stress tests, an echocardiogram, and every blood test imaginable, they gave me the news. I have a heart condition. It's a mild one though so no worries. Vasso Depressor Syncope. Apparently, my blood pressure drops and the majority of blood pools in my legs, my leg veins are weak, and can't get enough blood to my brain, and then my brain starves. No biggie. If I do faint, then gravity helps my brains receive the blood it needs and we're all good. I'm also allergic to all dairy, red meat, almonds, egg whites and oats. That would explain the pimples and body aches. Now I drink liquid iron, liquid B12 and take more vitamins than I can typically manage, drink a ton of water, sleep more, and I'm supposed to do squats for my leg veins....but I'm lazy so my veins are still out of shape and my butt still jiggles when I walk.....

2. Scott has officially joined the Katie McGihon Photography family! The search for an associate photographer was a ridiculous one, I had no idea that he was interested and it's been incredible shooting with him. This past weekend we shot our 6th wedding together. We're currently rebranding and building an entirely new site that reflects this huge change in our business. We're hoping to relaunch in about 4 weeks. This year, I've officially hit my biggest business goal. In January, I told myself that I wanted to book 15 weddings. Then, I told myself that I'd secretly settle for 7 or 8. On Friday, we signed our 16th contract, and it's only June. I'm overwhelmed, excited, blessed, thankful, shocked and so ready to love each and every one of these couples. We've shot 6 weddings in the last 7 weeks, and we're exhausted in the most amazing way. Jesus rocks.

3. Aden is officially without a shadow at preschool, for now. They're observing him, and trying to get an idea of how he will do amongst his peers without additional help. I'm excited and freaked out. His first day in his new (large) class was great. He knows many of the children in that class from his old one. The second day was a different story. His teachers said that he did very well, but he was totally overwhelmed by the amount of children in the lunch area and the deafening noise that so many children can make. I carried my big, crying little boy out to the parking lot like a rescue team member, holding him tight, telling him that he would be home soon and he would be OK. Most of the time, he is amazing, but occasionally, he is another child. It's like the Autism Aliens come, invade his body, and reek havoc on my poor son. I pulled a little table into a quite corner of the house, turned off every light,  every radio, every television, and put Ava in from of the computer so that he would sit. It was sensory overload to the max at school. Once all was calm and quiet, he was himself again. Hopefully lunchtime won't always be that traumatic.

4. Ava is still throwing fits. She is still amazing and feisty and so beautiful and smart and I could just go on and on about her! She is starting ballet on Wednesday...we'll see how this goes. She loves her new class, and her friends (Lola, Aubry and Sydney) are with her this coming year again. Girls rule. Scott is in San Francisco playing in the California State Ametuer Championship. Anytime Ava is in trouble, she sobs, "I miss DADDDDDDDDDDYYYYYY! I want my DDAAAADDDDDDDDDDDYYYY!" It's quite funny, and quite sad. I like to think that she would wail the same things about me if I were away. One can dream.


Tuesday, March 8, 2011

The Funny Things He Says

Aden calls tears "cry drops". 

He calls roller coasters "coller roasters".

I dig him.

That's all.