He is clearly seen.

This is working beautifully around here: MY JOB CHART

Set up chores, reading, practicing piano & softball – whatever your kids are into. Set it up for each child & they earn points. They earn points toward something! Our oldest wants some new piano books & our littlest wants cello lessons. It’s just working out so well here. The children earn points for everything that you add to their list and they can use them toward whatever they wish (after you save and give some away, of course). Teaches them responsibility and money management.

Give it a try!

It’s here! It’s here! Baseball and softball. I am blessed to have nephews and little girls who play ball. I love watching. So very much. The girls begin play next week………..my nephews have been playing for a few weeks now.

We figured out a way to turn the swingset into batting/pitching practice for the girls:

However, it must be turned back into a swingset for the little one:

We’ve got a southpaw pitcher and two right handed pitchers and an amazing left fielder (he made two great catches out there today):

My bro and Lu:

And some of the most gorgeous spectators:


These are the best days.

Have you ever known a woman that looks beautiful every time you see her? I mean even on a day that she thinks she looks horrible – you and everyone around you thinks she looks gorgeous?

Well I know a woman like that. She’s so pretty. She just is. I think, though, that her beautiful outer appearance is most certainly the inside coming out. Because she is one of the nicest people I know.

I had the chance to take pictures for her and her family again. And yes, her family is beautiful too.

Her three little girls are quite a joy. While I’m sure there is some bickering between them (as with all siblings), watching them makes me smile. I seriously sat here going through the photographs of them and could not stop giggling myself! Because those little girls giggle an awful lot. Isn’t that delightful? Little girls giggling. It’s the best. It really is.

I’ll begin showing you my favorite shot of the day:

Doesn’t it make you want to giggle right along with them?
Ok, how about these:


I photographed these giggly little girls two years ago and I think I asked them to tell secrets during that session. Yesterday, they kept asking me “can we tell secrets to each other?!!” For me, it was a sweet moment. They remembered the fun we had the first time we met for pictures. Really, for me, it does not get better than that.






And the last two. Mama and her three little birdies. See what I mean? Mama is beautiful and babies are too………

When I step back and look at the world, I see so many exciting things to do, love and experience. I love taking pictures and I love studying the Bible and I love being at my mom and dad’s house with my entire family and I love making crafts and I love reading and I love the ocean and I love camping and I love loud music.

However, after a long, long week (like this one) there is nothing that I love more than just being in my home with my peeps. What I love most in the world is being a wife to my hot hot hottie and a mama to my babies. No, I don’t care how old they are. They are my babes.

As I type this post, Dave is mowing the lawn (well, the dandelions), Livy is playing in the driveway in a big box that the new lawn mower came in and Makenna is practicing a new piano piece. The birds are chirping and our dogs are laying in the sun.

Essentially, I am in love with this moment.

I bought myself an apron this week. And I hung it on the inside of the pantry door. And I’m not bothered that I bought an apron. I made lunches this week with a white shirt on and got dirty. I needed an apron. There. That’s all. So, in this photograph you see what makes me happy. I was able to set out all of my family’s favorite things for the children to have when they got home from school. These are the good things. The best moments. Everyday moments. When we are together.

Dear Mak & Livy:

In 2007 I noticed something that has bothered me since. Over the last few weeks, it has gotten worse and I’m so very sad.

In little girls, I see such beauty, hope and promise. You are like shining stars, getting brighter and brighter by the day. However, this funky thing happens. I noticed it – with Mak – when she turned 10. The star begins to dim, which is crazy to me. It’s like I’m standing there watching a dying star.

The dimming I’m talking about is inner confidence. I saw the inside of my little girl – what once was uninhibited and strong suddenly begin to dim. Remember in the garden after that fateful moment when Adam and Eve decided to sin for the very first time? They suddenly noticed that they were naked and they became ashamed? It seems as though some kind of veil is lifted and girls realize this horrible reality: people are watching them – and most of them are not nice. They realize that everyone has something unkind to say. The worst part about the fact that people are watching them is that girls seem to care what these meanies think. And, UGH, it’s so maddening because it causes immense damage.

On at least seventy five occasions over the last three weeks I have said these words to you, Miss Mak: “Live for an audience of One.” Oh my goodness, when you block them all out, my sweet girl – that’s when the light will begin to shine brighter and brighter again. You’ll stop caring what the meanies think. Meanies sometimes act like friends – I think I have finally convinced you that they are not friends. Be nice to everyone, however, ignore mean comments. Someday, I pray you’ll call the meanies out for the mean things they say. Not in a mean way. Just ask this: “why do you say mean things like that?” I’d like to be there to hear the answer. Or the lack thereof.

Just yesterday you shared with me a dream that you have – one that I don’t think you’ve shared with anyone else. After you told me your dream, you said something like this: “oh, but I know that it’s impossible.”

I sat there stunned. Fuming. So incredibly angry I couldn’t even see straight. You knew it. I said nothing and just stared at you. You knew exactly what I was thinking. You began to back peddle. You began to back peddle because you knew what I was thinking by the way I just stared at you.

First I asked you if you really believe God. I guess I just didn’t understand how you could believe the God that we love and have such a defeatist attitude. In order to shock you, I told you that your thought process was from dark places. You did not like that much. You assured me that no way were your thoughts from that place.

And then I told you that you must just be lazy then. Because if you believe all things are possible with God, then you must just be afraid of working hard. The funny thing is that as I said it, I was laughing inside because that’s the furthest thing from the truth when it comes to you. I’ve never seen someone so committed to working hard – you never cut corners (ever).

Thankfully, the veil hasn’t been lifted from Livy yet. Now that I’ve seen the dimming first hand, I will be praying that it never happens to you, Lulu.

The way I see it as your mama, it is my responsibility to try to put an end to the madness. I plan to do everything I can to help you live by the words I’ve been screaming from the mountaintops “Live for an audience of One.”

I love you so much.
mama

This particular week has been full of one million emotions. At least one million. Maybe two.

It felt like this at times. Foggy, rainy.

The thing is, though, I have Jesus in my life. He’s not someone I just believe in. Really. He’s not. He’s the One I depend on. The One I trust. The One I know has my back………my good in mind. So, the week is ending like this. New growth. Amazing, beautiful, hopeful growth. In me and some people that I deeply love. Do you see it there in the photograph? The new growth. I see it. And it’s all God.