The First Snow

It happened. The flakes were ginormous for awhile. It was beautiful.  It doesn't feel festive to me until it blankets us. I love it!
I embrace the seasons. Living in good ole' Indiana, you basically have to for sanity's sake. The first snow is just as wonderful as the first Spring bud.
The little women got off the bus. Had a snack. And were back outside before I could say, "Please where socks!". (They did have them on, thank goodness!) For some strange reason, socks have become optional all year round. Hhmm?

Lillie had piano practice. The snow had accumulated by that time. As we were leaving Lillie told Ms. Kathy that, "people who don't have enough food will now have snow to eat." Oh Golly!!!!!
Ms. Kathy said, "yuck, you don't know what kind of varmit stuff is in it. Don't eat it!"

Ms. Kathy doesn't know the Grismore Girls well enough. Snow eating is a must:)

Happy Tuesday!

Autumn

Wanna Be A Baller........

Shot caller......20 inch blades on the......... ok. Too far. Sorry! If you didn't catch it, these are lyrics to a song. Maybe if I were to sing them to you? Probably not, I am sure you enjoy your ear drums!

Anyway, Ainzli started her basketball league last night. They will be practicing once a week. With games once a week. She is so excited and she has been practicing a lot. Shannon is the assistant coach for her team this year. He is just as excited as she is. I really believe he is more excited than she is. He is definitely goofy that way. 

Here they are. Doing a project together this summer. Father and Daughter.

Father and Daughter.
Father and Daughter.
I am so blessed to have a man who is a Father to his Daughter.


Autumn:)

Raising A Reader

This post is courtesy of my husband. He called me a bibliophage last night.
I love to read. I have always liked reading. Not always loved.
I want my girls to have a "want" for reading. Last year in second grade Ainzli had to log 250 minutes of independent reading each month. Seemed overwhelming at first. Turns out it got me motivated to make sure the girls read something everyday. I read to them when they were little. I still read to Lillie. Sometimes Ainzli and I will read together. I don't do the everyday reading by requirement. I do it by being sneaky, or at least I try most of the time. I am hoping they don't realize what I am doing. Then before they know it, they will have a longing to read.

Another motivator. Ainzli is reading the Harry Potter series. I am reading them with her. With this series I am comfortable with her reading the book first. Then I read it. Other books I am not sure about, I will read first. Her and I are enjoying it. We keep each other motivated and have fun doing it. This is also another way for me to check her comprehension. Or for her to check mine!:)

Side Note: At Parent/Teacher conference for Ainzi this fall her teacher gave me a whole bunch of "stuff" to keep the learning going on at home. One quote in a pamphlet really caught my eye. "In third grade kids are still learning to read. Fourth grade they are reading to learn."

Have a great weekend.

Autumn:)

A Little Plea

 

I bought this on the clearance shelf at TJ Maxx. I picked it up. I put it down. I picked it up. I put it down. I felt like if I bought it that would be an admission. Then I started talking to a fellow shopper. Like I always do.
I showed it to her.
She smiled.
I bought it.

This is a plea to my husband and little women.

Amen!



Autumn:)

Mr. & Mrs. C.

I photographed a wedding exactly a month ago. I enjoyed Sarah and Travis. They are young. They are both very sweet people. And mostly, he loves her. I am not talking "newly married" love. I am talking he looks at her and he glows. It is heart warming. How truly blessed they are to have real love.

All of my favorites from this day were candids.
Journalistically, this wedding was a dream shoot.

Congratulations Sarah and Travis.

Autumn:)

A Tooth & A Birthday

She had been hysterical about it more than once. I do believe that we had threatened to hold her down once. Maybe twice. I can't decide if that is funny or just plain mean. It was so completely loose that it would lay forward and backward too easily. And then to top it all off, on Thursday she bumped it and it turned sideways!

But now it is out. Shannon pulled it Thursday evening. It was emotional (for her and her Daddy), but she realized that it really doesn't hurt. And she ate like she had a tape worm this weekend. It had been hindering her food intake.

Shannon and I have succumbed to the fact that our baby just lost her first tooth.

WTC! (What the Crap)

I am telling you what. Life is laying it on thick. I can wear my daughters shoes. My baby just lost her first tooth. And it's my birthday. But you know what, life is good. So "thick" is right where I want to be.

By the way, funny side note. This little ladies plan is to keep all of her teeth. She wants to put them all under her pillow at once. Really? She is very sure of that decision. She told me that she doesn't want the tooth fairy to have her teeth yet. Ok. Sounds good to me.

__________________________________________

Today is my birthday. Just another day. That is what my father-in-law says. I suppose. Although it is special when your daughters are sitting at breakfast and they break out their own rendition of Happy Birthday. That doesn't happen everyday!

You know that practice shot you take to check the lighting, focus, self timer stuff. 
Shannon jumped in on it. 
He makes me smile.

Thank you to my family for wanting, even suggesting this shot! 

 

Here's to a good book, coffee, and reading in my bed all morning. It's my birthday. And it's the small pleasures that mean so much.


Autumn:)

Yes. Let's Monkey Around!

It had been too long. I had not seen and/or really spent time with my sister and her yayhoos in awhile. So we met about half way and had a good evening. All together. Fun. Fun.

Monkey Joe's is an indoor inflatable bounce house heaven. Yep. Sure is!

He knows that I like to take a lot of pictures. 

He was so in the groove of being a model this evening.

He kept getting really close and smiling.

I so love this little man.

I love a good action shot.

I am not very good at them. 

I was able to freeze this moment.

Priceless! 

I just like this picture.

You know that whole thing, "a picture says a thousand words.?"

What is little Miss Avelyn thinking?

I can only imagine! 

Miss Avelyn.

She is the baby of our family.

She will be 3 in a month.

Much love, little Miss:)

Happy Friday!

Autumn:)

The Ducks Butt

Ms. Lillie has always been a good sleeper. She was sleeping through the night by 2 months. Awesome! 

Every since she started to sprout hair,  she would wake up with this little patch in the back that would be matted. Lightly matted, but still, matted. 

It has not stopped. 6 years later and she still manages to wake up with a "ducks butt."

Over the years we have named it. 

It is just one of those things. She does not wake up with it everyday anymore. Although, the days she does have it she does not complain about being tired. Hmm:)

 Breakfast this morning.

Cinnamon toast.

Milk. 

A good nights sleep.

The side view.

That is some serious protrusion.

The funny thing is,

The front will look perfectly manicured. 

Then she turns around and 

BAM!

Happy Wednesday.
I hope you got a "Ducks Butt" nights sleep!

Autumn:)

P.S. Sorry for the insane amount of grammatical errors in yesterdays post. I suppose my passion overtook my brain. :)

An Arrival

Yesterday was trash day. Not too much excitement there. I know. I was gathering up all of the trash throughout the house. I was heading toward the garage and noticed all of my shoes were somewhere else. Ainzli's little (or not so little) slip on sandals were right there. "Slip them on?", I thought. No. Surely not.
Yes. My foot slid in. All too easily for my likings.

 An Arrival:

Wearing your daughters shoes.

I started thinking. I started to feel sort of "odd". My mind started rolling Out Of Control. All of a sudden I saw her at 25 years old. With a job. An apartment in some city. Me not seeing her everyday. Talking to her on the phone and her telling me all of her big plans.......... Woooooow. Slow down Mommy. She is, in reality, still only 9.

I hope all of her dreams come true. Well of course I do! The thing is.......she is needing me less. I suppose in the things that are important when they are smaller. The things I think I am good at. You know. Bathing. Feeding. Brushing her hair...... stuff like that.
We are beginning our climb into the area when what she will need from me will be "other things". Emotional guidance. Good advice. An uncondemning shoulder to cry on. I just don't know if I will be good at this. I will do my best. I hope that I have started down the path of giving her, "her roots and wings." 

I believe, "so far so good!"

Honestly, it is awesome to be able to raise a carefree child. She is not a worrier. Thank goodness. She is not a complainer. She very easily could be. She is not a score keeper. Unlike her momma.
This could all change. We are entering some very exciting years in her life.
I pray that if they do elude her for a brief time, they return to her. 

 Here  she is with our neighbor, Nolan. 

She is awesome with little people.

Ainzli and Stella.

 They have quite a connection.

 She can definitely make people smile.

It is one of her many gifts.

I realize that this was all over the map. I apologize for that. But maybe. Just maybe. You are raising a girl. That you wonder about some of this. You worry about this stuff. Gosh, I wish I didn't so much. Just know that there is one other momma out here who does the same.

I will do my best.
I will do what I feel is right.
I will succeed.
I will fail.
I will do what a good momma does.
I will love.
I will love with such fury that my fears will have nowhere to land for long.

Autumn:)

Lindzi & Kyle

The proposal. The excitement. The planning. The "big day" date........
The engagement pictures.
What an exciting time in someones life. It makes it all the better when you know and love that someone. Lindzi is my cousin. The "Z" in Ainzli's name was thought of through Lindzi's name. LOVE IT! You want to know something funny. I cannot remember her mom before Lindzi arrived. To my credit our family is huge:) Sorry, Mary. I still love ya!

Lindzi asked me to capture her and Kyle. What fun! I am more than honored to be apart of their memories.

Congratulations Lindzi and Kyle. May God bless you more than you can imagine.

XOXO!

Autumn