I'm Gonna Watch You Shine, Gonna Watch You Grow...

I'm not going to apologize for it. I never tire of it. It always makes me happy. Photographing my children and seeing their incredible spirits shine...one of my greatest pleasures in life.

Summertime, And the Livin' Is Easy...

Four kids, five towels, two swim-diapers, three bottles of sunscreen, two kick boards, one summer pass and an amazingly, cool mom equals: SUMMER!!!! Lovin' it at the pool just hours after school is out!

What Time Is It? Summertime, It's Our Vacation...

Who doesn't get giddy inside on the last day of school? I'll tell you--me! Not the young, kid-me, the new and (I wouldn't say improved) older, mom-me! I LOVE summer--love everything about it (even the heat!) But, I have to say, as this school year ground to a close, I was trying to soak up the silent beauty of my "quiet" time every remaining afternoon while Fynn took a nap. Don't get me wrong--I adore those 4 little people of mine. But all day, every day?? Still adore them, but want to sometimes gently boot-kick them when we are all together for long periods of time (that sentiment can also include my feeling towards my fifth, 'though somewhat larger, child as well!) As I waited in the hall of Legacy Elementary, last minutes ticking by before the kids were set free, it definitely felt like the calm before the storm. Electric energy popping, the principal comes over the loud speaker wishing them well, BOOM! Doors fly open, "Summertime" from High School Musical blares through the loudspeakers, and kids are running down the halls and out the doors, papers in hands flying all over the place. Amazing sight to see how fast those hallways liquidated children! Pretty cool...and here's to the hot! Bring on 'da Summertime! (P.S., Dane's teacher was MIA, so this was the best we could do to remember Ms. Winward, Connor and Miss Hinckley, and Natasha and Mr. Barlow!)

Sing Us A Song, You're the Piano [Wo]man, Sing Us A Song Tonight...

I could see feet and ankles running back and forth...back and forth...back and, oh! Did somebody just fall down? Who was it? Oh...green sneakers kid. And here I sit, minute after minute, hour after hour, day after day...I'm dying! These scales are killing me, I hate this song! I'm never gonna get it right: A, C, E, D, E, B, no make that B flat...ugh! Why can't I just go out and play with the other kids? Who needs to learn to play the piano anyway? When am I EVER going to need to know this in life? I remember it well, my little self practicing on the old player piano in the basement of the Orem house I grew up in. Wish I would have practiced a little harder...wish I would have stuck with it. I can't even play the hymns without serious mistakes! Ah, the 20/20 vision of adulthood. And, in tradition of all good Mormon parents everywhere, I'm "making" my own little people embark on the musical instrument mastery program. Tonight marked the end of two years of piano for Natasha. She did a beautiful job, even if the piano book flew off it's perch and into her lap mid-song! She continued on like a professional performer. Bless her...maybe we'll get a musician yet!

Splish, Splash, I Was Takin' A Bath...,

Dane. Fynnley. Bubbles. Bath Water. You do the math....

Rock-A-Bye, Baby...

Realizing that pregnancy could possibly encompass the one time during a woman's life that she feels the most unattractive, I begged Lindsay to let me photograph her "for posterity"! You see, I have been on the other side of her current condition four times now, and also realize that I treasure those few pictures I had taken of me while very pregnant. It's a feat we, as women, should rightfully acknowledge as the incredible miracle it is to bring life to this earth. I'm so excited for Nathan and Lindsay to meet their first little one! It was a pleasure to photograph my sweet sister-in-law and I had a ball throwing her a shower to celebrate the imminent arrival of baby Hyrum...

Hit Me With Your Best Shot!

What could possibly be cuter than a handful of 5-year-old fellas playing their first t-ball game? I'm pretty sure none of them understood the rules other than whack that ball off that black thing as hard as you can--or, for most of them, just whack that black thing as hard as you can! It was hilarious to watch them each take a turn, and then run the bases. And, as for our little Dane, he chose to run the arc of the painted soccer field between the bases instead of running in a straight line from one base to the next. I think the boys enjoyed knocking off each other's hats more than the actual playing of the game, but for a first attempt, the season kicked off with a pretty good time for everyone involved!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fuh-un...

You're moving where? And why? And when are you coming back? I loved growing up surrounded by my cousins. I am number three (but first female!) of forty-something grandchildren on the Wakefield side. I loved our huge family gatherings and always felt there were an awful lot of people in the world who cared about me and would watch out for me as I grew up. I adored spending summer vacation time with my closest cousin, Regi. We had a lot great moments together (Reg, remember choreographing the ultimate dance to "The Jazz Singer" title track and swimming at the Bubble?) Even though now we don't see each other as often as I wish, every time I talk to Regina, it's as if we were never apart. I'm so grateful to be part of such a wonderful extended family and always wanted that experience for my own children. We have cherished the last three years in Utah, having the opportunity to spend time with our loved ones; and we were pretty sad to hear that our beloved cousins are leaving us to move to the great state of Texas! Although we wish them the best in their new adventure, we will really miss them! Sunday dinner at Grammy's and Grandpa Bar's, and birthday parties, and celebrations will just not be the same without them. We love you and will greatly miss you, Mark, Mindy, Cali, Kensi and Luke!!

Someday My Prince Will Come...

Deep down, every girl believes herself to be a princess. And if she doesn't, she should! How many days did I dream of the Prince Charming that would someday come my way? Would he be tall, would he be strong? Would he be blonde like Belle's prince or dark like Snow White's? Or would he be able to fight the nasty dragons of life just like Aurora's brave prince? I'm confidant, 'though still so small, my sweetest, little princess will ponder over her prince just as I did mine. And I can't wait to meet him! Okay, maybe I can...she's still awfully little! And I find it hysterical that Fynn arrived at Grammy's Sunday dinner dressed as her favorite princess whom she dubbed "Sleeping Nudie"! Love you, my tiny royal!

Mother, I Love You. Mother, I Do...

I think Mother's Day should be celebrated on March 4. That's the day I really became a mother, so, May 10 is sort of random, isn't it? But that first Mother's Day, I'll never forget. Shayne (fulfilling his new fatherly duty to offer a meaningful gift to his wife on her first Mother's Day) passed with flying colors! He managed to take our 2-month-old baby, coat her tiny feet in blue paint and press them onto red construction paper. He then wrote a little poem as if from her and framed it for me. That is a precious keepsake to me (even thought I was thinking, 'Construction paper? Couldn't he find any lovely, linen paper for such a gift??') Nonetheless, by its imperfection, it became perfect. Several Mother's Day gifts have come my way since that day. I have loved them all equally. And to this day, nothing brings me to tears faster than the simple words written by my child's hand. Natasha's beautiful tribute given to me this year had me blubbering by the second line. And I thought Dane's hand-painted flower pot worthy of serious artistic recognition. Maybe it's a gene given to women, turned on through the right of birth. So, guilt-infusing church talks aside, I love celebrating motherhood and being reminded for a consecrated moment of just what is truly important to me in my life--Natasha, Connor, Dane, Fynn. I adore you! Here's to many, many more Mother's Days spent in your presence...

Dance To The Beat That We Love Best...Living in the Wild, Wild West!

Three first placings, one second (docked because our girls were "too good" the judges said. Huh?), Judges Choice for Pro-Team Lyrical, Best Technique for Company Jazz and High Point for Company Jazz--what a way to end the competition season! I was thrilled for Tash and her team! They danced incredibly well and in sync--better than I think I've ever seen them do it before. It smelled like victory, it tasted like victory--I'm pretty sure it was VICTORY! Tash adores her team and her fantastic coach, Amber Strong. I love you, my tiny dancer!

Life Is A Highway, I Wanna Ride It All Night Long...

I had a knot in my stomach. I was worried, and couldn't believe that I was! It's just a block of wood, some paint and some decals--what's the big deal? It was Friday night, the evening before the Pinewood and I was working myself into a dither. Shayne and Connor (albeit at a few moments coercibly) had worked hard on Connor's Pinewood Derby car. It began with Shayne showing me a picture on the Internet of a Formula One car and telling me that he was going to cut that car out of the simple block of wood he held in his hands. 'Yeah, right!' was my gut reaction. An hour later, I stood corrected. He had done a beautiful job of cutting out a very cool car shape! I was impressed. Then came the pilgrimage to a couple of craft stores to find just the right details to add to the wood, the whole night spent trying to get a hold of the guy in charge of weighing the cars to see if our's was under the weight limit, and several sessions of our little family members rolling the car back and forth to each other on our wood floor to see if it traveled in a straight line. All of this led to Friday night, and the stomach knot...okay, what? What parent wouldn't want to see their child win after all that work? At last, Saturday arrived and we showed up at the church ready to race. Connor's car was a teeny bit under the weight limit, but nothing we could do about that then. We waited through several heats for Connor's turn to come. I anxiously watched as he handed his car up to the track. It was placed, ready, set, go...! It came in third. Oh. No. Not so good. Let's try it again. On your mark, get set, go...! Came in second. Hmm. Came in third again. At this point, I'm thinking, 'Oh, well.' I look over and know what my son's face will look like before I even focus on it. He has tears in his eyes and is trying very hard to pull himself together. Shayne and I reassure him that it doesn't matter and that he has the coolest looking car there. Ah, another one of those moments in life. We wait out the end of the races to see who the winners are, then go off for a hot dog and some chips to round out the event. By the time we get home, Connor has moved on. But I'm hanging on to this car, 'cause I think it's a winner anyway!