My Week 33

May 15th was a quiet Sunday at home. Sugar Bear has been wanting me to teach her to knit, and while I can absolutely knit, I have never really taught anyone to knit, especially a 6 year old. I do not have the proper tools, but gave Sugar a little lesson anyhow. She is VERY excited to hear that she will be learning to knit at her new school next fall! WOO HOO! (I'm off the hook.)

May 16th I captured a flower Sugar Bear gave me. Much like many children, she loves to give me things she finds in nature. She knows not to pick things without asking, and she is about 99% reliable on that. :) This little flower she found growing wild outside her Dance School. She asked....I let her....and then she gave it to me. ♥

May 17th was THE.BEST.DAY.EVER! This was the wondrous day when I was minding my own business having lunch with some friends, and the Charter School called me and told me that Sugar Bear had made it into the first grade class for next year. It was GLORIOUS! Still walking on cloud nine about it. :) Sugar is pretty pleased as well.

May 18th we celebrated with a McDonald's Happy Meal. Seriously.....she never gets a Happy Meal. I'm not a fan of them, but she ADORES Zoobles, so I couldn't resist getting her one. :) She had the cheeseburger, apples, and milk. :)

May 19th was a beautiful day. We enjoyed some time outside with the bunnies in the evening. They are getting so big....and fluffy! (Autumn....you know you want one!)

May 20th brought back the rain. It has been the rainiest spring EVER! seriously.......sigh. rain, rain, go away!

May 21st marked Sugar Bear's first attendance of a baby shower. A week before the event, she accidentally referred to it as the "baby wash". It was at that time that I wondered if she had any clue what a baby shower was. :) It was so wonderful to see my cousin's wife all glowing with that momma-to-be love. ♥

Almost all caught up on this project. I have been insanely busy, but so very glad to be on my last week of work before the summer break! Yea ME!

My Week 32

May 8th was Mother's Day....and as a present to myself, I took some quick portraits of Sugar Bear in a dress I recently made her, and managed to capture one of my favorite photos of her yet. ♥

May 9th marked the first day of swimming lessons at school. What a cool opportunity. Sugar Bear loved getting to swim with all her classmates. This photo is hazy because it is FREEZING (in the 40's) outside and the pool is heated. Poor Kiddos were Popsicles, but they loved it.

May 10th was another day of swimming. Sugar Bear really took to the water, and remembered most of what she had learned last summer. I'm very proud of her.

May 11th I took some photos again for a local physical therapy office. This is something I really enjoy doing and hope to get more work like this.

May 12th found me aiming the camera at myself, trying to get a sun flare shot. I eventually got a pretty nice flare, but I rather liked this shot.

May 13th was the last day of swimming lessons for Sugar, and they got to do some free play. I adore this shot of Sugar Monkey doing a canon ball. ♥ Good times!

May 14th was a relaxing stay home sort of day. We spent a good deal of time outside even thought is was drizzly. Tiny is really shedding, and we brushed and brushed and brushed her. This was the first time Sugar Bear really felt comfortable brushing her. Tiny is maturing and isn't as jumpy these days. It is nice.

Looking back over this week....I can't help but feel so completely blessed. What a beautiful life I have.......I'm one lucky lady. Life is good!

52 Weeks of ME- Week Twenty-two

Theme of the week:

Message/little reminders

Going into this week, I hadn't really settled on an idea for this theme. Several ideas had passed through my mind, and I was excited to pick one. Then....quite suddenly, on Wednesday, another idea popped into my head. You see.....I had been neglectful. Very neglectful. I simply let too much time pass between trips to the dentist....and I'm paying for it now. My teeth really took a down turn when I was pregnant with Sugar Bear, and after getting them all fixed up....I ignored the dentist for FOUR years. :(

yup.......BAD COREY, indeed. So this week....I had some painful dental work done, and I want to remember this. I want to have a reminder of what can happen if I continue to ignore my cleanings. While I take Sugar Bear every 6 months faithfully, I just can't seem to do the same for myself. It is ridiculous, and needs to stop. So here is my photo reminder of why I need to take better care of ME!

Be sure to head on over to visit Jessie and Cara to see all the fabulous ladies taking part in this cool project.

Doing this....doing That

-Sugar Bear and I attended her first "baby wash"......I mean "baby shower". tee hee

-Attended Sugar Bear's "Family Math Night" at her school. Super fun. Sugar won a door prize. It MADE.HER.DAY!

-Taken about 3568971 pictures. Edited.....3.

-Been working on Sugar Bear's "memory book" for her school. This is a HUGE job, and might send me over the edge.

-There had been 457 meetings at work lately. I only have 1.5 more weeks until summer break....I.CAN.MAKE.IT!

-Attended a VIP lunch at Sugar Bear's school. Super fun.

-I've had TWO dental appointments for myself. I've been a bad girl....and I'm paying for it now. :(

-I went to a super fun birthday get together for two of my friends. It was AWESOME. I brought my Just Dance Wii game. HILARIOUSLY FUN! Didn't get home until 3:30am. I still haven't caught up on my sleep.

-Been making super yummy yogurt and fruit parfaits all week. We can't eat enough of them.

-Found out that I'm allergic to Mango Sap. Who knew that it has some of the same properties as Poison Ivy??? I had some really sexy, itchy lips for a week. nice.

-Been spending a little too much time on "Goodreads" and "Pinterest". Fun....but a time suck.

-Playing with baby bunnies, and trying to sell them. Don't want to see them go....but I know it will be a good thing. They are eating us out of house and home.

-I was hired to take MORE pictures for a local physical therapy place. I did that....and got them edited and deliver. whew.....fun....but I'm so busy right now.

Just wanted to drop a quick post to remind myself why I haven't been bloggin' much lately. I'm crazy busy....and tired all the time. BUT....there is an end in sight.

52 Weeks of ME- Week Twenty-one

Theme of the week:

Catch Light

I looked forward to grabbing a shot this week. I love to get good catch lights when I take portraits, but I had never tried to intentionally tried to get catch lights in shots of myself. I intended on giving this week some good thought and effort, but instead (like so many other weeks), I just nabbed this shot today on the fly. While it really doesn't showcase catch lights, I did get them in my eyes.

I like this shot as I feel that I look content....at easy....relaxed, and believe me...it's good to be feeling like that these days. I'm so ready for summer, and less time at work. I'm ready to close out this school year, and to look forward to some perfect summer days with my Sugar Bear.

Life is good.

Be sure to head on over to visit Jessie and Cara to see all the fabulous ladies taking part in this cool project.

EYE see you!

This girl is the BEST. I'm the luckiest lady in the land. ♥

WE came THISSSSSSSSS close...

...to kissing a frog!

But our dreams came true before the lips connected!

Today, I was minding my own business, riding shot gun in my friend's car on our way back from lunch at the sushi joint, when my phone rang out. Recently, I had been making an effort to ignore my phone when I'm hanging with some folks. I'm getting pretty tired of people not being fully present with each other, but that's an entirely different post. This time, being that Sugar Bear wasn't with me, I took a quick glance to see if it might be about her. It wasn't.....and I didn't really recognize that number but something told me, "ANSWER IT!" and I did.

Oh my heavens....what a surprise it was. :) The charter school was calling me to tell me that Sugar Bear has worked her into a real....and true....and awesome spot in their school for next fall. WOO HOO....I just broke down in tears. I'm so excited to have a direction set for next school year. I'm thrilled for a new beginning, and for the possibilities.

Sugar Bear did a little dance when I told her she was in. She is most excited because she will beginning learning to knit next year at school. How cool is THAT? :)

I want to thank each and every single one of you that sent good thoughts, and/or prayers our way. I am so very blessed to have such wonderful support.

Sugar Bear is just glad she didn't have to kiss that frog. :) tee hee

LIFE IS GOOD!

A Lunch-y sort of DRESS!

Goodness knows I LOVE TO SEW! and boy howdy, do I love to sew for my girl. She inspires me so much. How can I not want to drape this beauty in pretty colors every single day?

It's a darn good thing I've got connections! :) Jessica, from Happy Together, did it again. She lured me into this really FABULOUS thing called, TEST SEWING! There really isn't a better gig out there. Jessica does all sort of crazy planning, designing, making, and making again, then she just asks me if I want to test sew one of her patterns.....all non-challant and everything, and I loudly scream, YES! And this is born....

The Out for Lunch Dress is Adorable with a capital AWEEEEEEEEEEEE! (that a high pitched squeal.)

I just grabbed some fabric from my stash.....yes, my stash is embarrassingly large....and I thre this together. The pattern is so easy and fun. I may have been seen with a goofy grin plastered to my face for an entire week after making this dress. Then it was back for a week after I took the pictures of Miss Sugar Bear in it. :) :) :)

We love it! ♥ and it's comfy, too.

Girly......fun.........sassy........well, perfect, really.

Yes, I'm tooting my own horn here. I did good, don't you think? Okay...So Jessica is the genius, but I rocked this sewing job, yes? (girls got a right to feel a little proud now and again.)

I made a fun hair pretty to match. It was the first time I've made this particular fabric flower. I only burned my finger TWICE with the hot glue. I'm awesome like that. :)

Love the buttons. ♥

But honestly......this dress could be made out of a burlap sack, and some mud, and this girl would make it shine. ♥

If you'd like to win a copy of this fun pattern, please head on over to Jessica's blog to enter to win one. :) How fun is that?

Thanks, Jessica! You rock the lunch-y dress party!

My Week 31

May 1st was quite literally the PERFECT day. It was sunny, and delightful, and we had NO obligations. Couldn't think of a better day. We caught a frog and everything. It doesn't get much better than that. :)

May 2nd was the beginning of an interesting week. Sugar's daycare provider was away on vacation, so we had a lot of juggling to do each afternoon. Monday, she got to come to work with mom. It was fun. Sugar Bear is the queen of the shredding machine. Gotta love child labor. ♥

May 3rd was Teacher Appreciate Tea at Sugar's School. It was a lovely event. Made me really sad that her school is closing. :(

May 4th was a pretty regular day. Lately, our days always end up out in the yard with our bunnies! ♥

May 5th The Hubby made spaghetti.......YUM!

May 6th I made a super duper yummy ham and broccoli braid. I could have ate the whole thing.

May 7th I was trying to embrace the beauty of the rain, and rain, and rain we've been getting. Gosh I love water droplets, orb......and puddles. :)

I want to thank everyone who sent good thoughts, wishes and prayers our way for Sugar's schooling. It worked. Her name was chosen out of the hat FIRST. She is officially second on the wait list, due to this being the second round of enrollment, but it was the BEST outcome we could have hoped for in these circumstances. Now we just need to hope that if it is meant to be......it will happen. I've heard rumor of a possible two slots opening up before the fall, so keep your fingers crossed for us. :)

52 Weeks of ME- Week Twenty

Theme for the week:

Flare

Okay...so I love a sun flare as much as the next guy, but wow...it is hard to get one of yourself. I took like a bazillion....and this one was my favorite. I think it didn't help that the sky was hazy and the sun wasn't as low as I'd have liked. It was definitely a learning experience.

Be sure to head on over to visit Jessie and Cara to see all the fabulous ladies taking part in this cool project.

A giggling Good time!

"Do you have any idea how lucky you are, Sugar Bear? Most children don't have LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of baby bunnies to play with each day." ~The Hubby





Oh....I think she knows! ♥



It is written all over her beautiful face.




It's erupting from her laughing lips.




It's taking over her entire soul.




She is lucky, and she knows it. She doesn't waste it. She cherishes it.




It's hard not to be uncontrollably joyful when you have two fat and sassy little bunnies squirming around in your sweatshirt.



It overcomes you....and infects those around you.



Until they can hardly imagine being anywhere else than right there....right then...capturing these real...true...amazing moments.





♥ Life is Good! We are Living and Loving Every Minute of it! ♥

We have a Wish

and if you are the wishing/praying/sending of good thoughts sort of person...we could sure use some right now.



There is something I just don't understand. How exactly, as a Nation, can we appear to be completely and utterly ignoring the importance of a good education? How are we allowing our Nation's schools to be suffering so? I don't know what it's like in your neck of the woods, but in ours.....we are hurting. Our schools system is completely falling apart, and failing our kids. Teachers are up against a rock and a hard place, and they are doing the best that they can with large class sizes, old materials, facilities that are ancient, and unhealthy, and State and Federal demands that go against what is best for the children. They are forced to teach to the test, and it isn't working.

I can't really complain about the education Sugar Bear has received her first year in this system, but I can speak to the potential that isn't there. Her teacher has done a wonderful job of helping her stay motivated, and encouraging growth. She has even received some special services in advanced reading and math. I simply can not feel disappointed in what she has received, but I can be sad about what she hasn't. Physical education but once a week.....no formal music lessons. It only gets worse as the grades go up. In our district.....no more band, or choir.....shop, art, drama, and so on. It is all gone...or going. Next year, they must cut over $2 million dollars, so they are closing Sugar's school of 360 kids and merging them with another that already has 450 pupils. The school will be over crowded. 15 years ago, there were 5 elementary schools in our district, now there will be 2. They are also going from 5 days of instruction to 4 next year. I know we aren't the only State in this situation, and it is breaking my heart.

As I have discussed before, Sugar Bear is quite shy when it comes to people. While I had hoped that she would have outgrown some of it by now, she is, in fact, getting worse. It took her SEVEN months in kindergarten to raise her hand at circle time. I can guarantee that she knows the answer 9 out of 10 times, but she just won't talk in class. Up until a week ago...she had never initiated a conversation with her teacher or another child in class. She has definitely been making strides in the past month. Finally starting to feel a bit "at home" in her class, and now....she is facing a new school....LOTS more students.....and so many more changes for next year. This worrisome heart can't take it. I don't want my daughter to get lost in the shuffle....to be one of many. I want her to be known....guided....and appreciated for the amazing person she is. Her personality makes her a prime candidate for going unnoticed.

I will not stand by and let this beautiful soul go unnoticed!!!




So we have a wish, a hope, a dream, my dear friends. There is a Waldorf inspired charter school in our area that would be perfect for my Sugar Bear. While it isn't free of problems, it is certainly much more suited to Sugar's personality, and mine, really. I have attended an orientation, and will, today(Tuesday), be entered into a lottery to find out where we will be placed on the waiting list. YES...I said waiting list. However, if she is placed 1,2, or 3 on the list, she could likely have a spot next fall. There are no guarantees, but it is our wish. We want a chance. I believe, in my heart of hearts, that it would be a good move for us. There are at least 5 kiddos already in the class that she knows from Dance, and summer playgroup. It will be a change...but hopefully something she can ease into pretty painlessly. She would have relatively the same kids in her class through 8th grade. She will be known by all the staff in the school, and many of the families. She will not be lost....she will be found, and tended to. She will be nurtured, cultivated, and guided.

So, I'm here, today asking for you to hope, pray, and wish with us.



We just want a chance to thrive. Is that so much to ask?

Who She Is

Recently, I spent some time looking back in this ol' blog's archives, and couldn't help but notice how much I used to WRITE. Boy did I write. I'm so very glad I did. Reading the old posts is like a gift to myself. A gift that I could only imagine when I wrote them. They give me small glimpses into our past, and for a mama with a pretty forgetful memory, it is truly priceless.

One post, in particular "spoke to me" this week. I wrote that post almost FOUR years ago. Sugar Bear was only 2 and a half at the time, and if you think I'm smitten with my girl NOW....you should have seen me than (and I know some of you did). I had a full-on CRUSH on my precious little honey, and I wasn't afraid to admit it. :)

In that post, I discussed my feelings about Sugar Bear growing up....and the change that might come to her personality and our relationship. It is hard things to think about, but I think I reflected my feelings pretty well. One thing I did that I am truly grateful for is the fact that I listed out a few personality traits that I felt accurately described my Sugar Bear at the time. Here is the list:

funny
smart
dramatic
caring
giving
people shy
talkative
pouty
adventuresome

Scanning that list today, I see that some four years later, things have quite nearly stayed the same as much as they have changed. Sugar Bear is no longer:

Dramatic
Talkative
Pouty

But she is still is:

Funny
Smart
Caring
Giving
People Shy
Adventuresome

She is also:

Mindful (Attentive; heedful)
Responsible
Easy Going

As I sit here contemplating my dearest Sugar Bear, and trying to pinpoint traits that describe her, I get lost in the many facets of who she is. She really is quite nearly a completely different child in certain situations. I think her kindergarten teacher would be so surprised to hear me describing Sugar as funny, and adventuresome. In school she is shy and mindful. She hesitates, and goes with the flow, often letting others choose for her. With me, she is confident, and exuberant. She takes charge, yet she does often look to me for approval. People have said that she lives to please me. This messes with a mama's emotions. While it has aided in easily raising this girl up so far, it worries me. I want her to make her own decisions, and stand by HER thoughts and beliefs. She is just so compliant, and easy to be with. It is hard to encourage her to be different.

Writing this post has sparked an idea that I want to pursue. I will be asking several folks who are important in Sugar Bear's life to pick 5 words that describe her. It will be fun to see what they come up with, and to compare them to who I see her to be. I'll be sure to share the results when I get them.

In the mean time, I am committing to MORE writing. All too often, I only carve out enough time to throw some pictures up on the blog, and call it good. Reading my older posts really reminded me how important it is to document the who, the when, the where and the why of our everyday goings on. I don't ever want to forget WHO my girl was, is, and will be....

and how I feel about that. It's the feelings I don't want to forget.

52 Weeks of ME- Week Nineteen

Theme for the week:

Ground Level

I really wish the weather would have cooperated for me this week. I had a fun idea, but alas....the rain just kept it from happening. Well.....the rain...and a crazy busy schedule. I can't wait until summer so I'll have more time to create my photo. Not only will be it light outside longer....I only work ONE.DAY.A.WEEK!!!! Yippie! okay......but that isn't for a few more weeks.

I grabbed this shot late yesterday. I had a jammie day. I love jammie days.

Be sure to head on over to visit Jessie and Cara to see all the fabulous ladies taking part in this cool project.

OH how I torture her.....

tee hee....okay...okay...so it isn't THAT bad!

I think she loves it as much as I do. ♥ I still like the one in my banner best. It was a spontaneous moment captured perfectly forever. These....are just a recreation. But oh my....look how much she has grown.

The second photo is my submission for Fabulous Friday, as it is my favorite photo I took this week.

My Week 30

April 24th was Easter Sunday.....and somehow (I do know how) I deleted all the photos I took of Sugar Bear with her Easter Basket, and during her egg hunt. Yup....lovely, but surprisingly....I've handled it fairly well. They are gone, and that's all there is to it. I have the memories in my head, and that will have to do. Happily, I do still have the photos I took my Sugar Bear and her cousins in their new hot tub on Easter afternoon. They had a blast, and it was wonderful to capture some shots of the joy.

April 25th found me accidentally trying to starve myself. Seriously, folks....feeding myself and my family has become such a hardship lately. Yes, we can afford the food.....I just can't find the time to shop for it....or produce a nice dinner. I'm so very tired by the time I get home, I can hardly find the motivation to cook. I do get a second wind about 10pm each night...but it does me no good. Dinner is FAR over by then. This shot was taken of my Arby's roastbeef sandwich at lunch time. I had forgotten to bring a lunch to work......yet again. sigh....

April 26th was full of meetings and workshops. This particular day was a beginning of a "planning process" for our 2011-2012 work year. It is a very worth while process, but it can be a bit daunting, and I don't really do my best thinking in the afternoon. I grabbed this shot during a break. I was in great need of a H2O pick me up.

April 27th rained....yet again....and I just didn't find anything inspiring in that day what so ever. I was busy with both work, and preparing for the carnival at Sugar' school. It wasn't until I got home at the end of my day that I realized I hadn't nabbed a shot for the day. So Ivy posed for me, and we called it good.

April 28th made me smile. Ages ago, The Hubby had taken apart an old pair of binoculars, and given Sugar Bear the prisims and the eye pieces to experiment with. Sugar wanted to take one of the eye pieces to school for show and tell, so she did. That night on the way home, I kept cracking up when she put it up to her eye. I just had to get a shot of it. tee hee...silly girl.

April 29th finally arrived. The day we'd been looking forward to. School Carnival night. A great time was had by all, and Sugar Bear just loved the big slide. :)

April 30th was a quite Saturday at home. I love those. I know the baby bunnies show up often lately, but seriously, our life really seems to revolve around the bunnies, and our pup. ♥ This is Sugar and Moe. She is convinced that Moe is a boy and that he loves her so much that he wants to marry her. What a goonie girl she is. Gosh I love her.....and apparently....so does Moe.

Favorite Portraits

I ran across a portrait photo contest the other day, and wanted to enter, but man oh man....picking two favorite portraits has been hard. I take wayyyyyyyyyyyyy too many photos folks. WAY.TOO.MANY!!! So, I just picked one each from two of my most favorite photo shoots yet.

Jessica and Craig's wedding challenged me like NO other. I like to think I rose to the occasion. If you want to see more, go HERE and HERE.

The photo shoot back in 2008 with my friend and her senior son was HUGE for me. It really set me in a different direction. If you want to see more of these, go HERE and HERE.

Favorite Feet

Sugar's will always be my favorite feet! Gosh I love her monkey toes! ♥