I'm here, I'm here!

We have been so busy lately! It seems we take full advantage of the lazy days of summer and I have nothing to really blog about. Then the school year starts and all of a sudden we are balancing dance (Maddi loves it still!), soccer (Maddi love it, too!), school and everything in between. We also got some news a week or so ago that we are still trying to process. More on that later...

My new obsession

These storyboards are fun to make! Here is a simple one I made for Allie's room.

I stink at surprises

I was going to sneak the girls away and take their pictures for Kevin for Father's Day...because he would never expect THAT from ME. But anyways. Then I decided against it because it is just easier to have him there with me when I try to shoot the girls. And I am SO glad I took him, because I was able to get this shot.



And this is a cute one of the girls (and Allie DOES still have her feet...Flickr is going wonky lately when I upload).



Is Allie not just the cutest little turkey EVER??!! Look at her looking so adoringly at her big sister! Seeing them together makes me want to get pregnant again yesterday, just so I can have a house full of kids looking at each other as if they hung the moon. But I won't. Because I still have not caught up on my sleep.

Life has been BUSY!

But never too busy to make my kids endure the camera. They'll thank me for it eventually.

Ahhh...the signs of summer

You know summer is on your doorstep when you are able to snack on nice, fresh strawberries. Allie is a fan.

Seniors '09!

I had the pleasure of meeting Victoria on Friday for my very first senior shoot! She was a trooper...a lot of girls would have been freaked out by the 163 mph winds.

By the way...geese are evil. I'm just sayin'.

Baby H sneak peek!

Ahhhh...such a happy girl!!!! Loved it!

It is practically state law here in Texas...

You have to do pictures in bluebonnets. And while I am not too pleased with how the photos went...I'm not willing to do them again. They are done for this year, and perhaps next year Allie will show her face.





Really...this is the best one of the two of them together. it's almost becoming funny how they never, ever cooperate. Almost. But not quite.

If one is to gain 60+ pounds during pregnancy...

You would think she would end up with this...

Love me some black and white!

I took some pictures of Allie the other night (just before the extreme meltdown as documented in the post below) and they were perfect for some high key conversions. Love it. Love love it.

I call this series...

"Teething Sucks for Everyone"

No, she isn't crying in pain while I snap away...she is simply throwing a doozie of a tantrum. Her fuse is a bit short when those teeth try to come in. It really does suck for everyone within earshot of her.







Dang...even throwing a fit she is CRAZY cute!

I have a phobia...

No, no...it's not my phobia of milk. Although that one is pretty bad. I have a phobia of germaphobes.

We are a family of hand washers. After we play outside, before we eat, before I prepare a meal, after we go potty...we wash our hands. No big. I wipe off my counters as needed. I don't pick my teeth after cleaning the potty. I would like to believe I take reasonable precautions.

There are just a few things that I do not bring into this house. One would be any product that has "anti bacterial" on the label. There are places where anti bacterial has its place. A doctor scrubbing up for surgery? Yeah! Bring it on! Wiping down my counters, walls, floors, sinks and/or my kids after someone sneezes at a playdate? Not so much. You know why? Because that person more than likely sneezed for one of a few reasons...he has/is coming down with/is getting over a cold or the flu, perhaps. Or he lives in Texas, where almost no one escapes allergies. Do you know what causes the common cold or the flu? A virus. No amount of removing any bacteria from your person or surfaces in your home is going to kill that virus. And when you use these products, you are more than likely just pissing off any bacteria present without effectively killing it. Pop quiz...you know what happens when you piss off a bacteria without killing it? It gives you the big ole' middle finger and mutates because you hurt its feelings. Nice. That (along with the over-prescribing of antibiotics that doctors give to get rid of neurotic mothers who demand that something must be done to get rid of Jonny's cold...but that is a whole other can of worms) leads to the resistance of antibiotics that would otherwise do their jobs. Yipee!

We have an immune system for a reason. It works very simply: Body is exposed to germ. Body recognizes that bug is bad. Body produces antibodies to kick germ's butt. Body then remembers said germ for future reference. Next time that germ enters your body, your immune system says "Hey! I defeated you once, I will defeat you again!" And chances are, you will not get as sick as before or you will not get sick at all. Voila. Foolproof? Nope. We'll all get sick from time to time (Hello?! Three of the four of us just got over the flu). But it is basic biology that you have to get sick sometimes in order to be healthy. As I said before...I take precautions. I don't let my kids lick the carts at Wal Mart. However, I do not freak out if Maddi's friends at Mother's Day Out or our playgroup show up with a runny nose or a little cough. I don't WANT them to be uncomfortable or sick. I like to sleep at night with the best of them. But I do not expect any parent to quarantine their child because they might or might not pass on the common cold. And you know... Maddi has had maybe a third of the runny noses or coughs this year. She didn't get sick and run fever for the first time until she was 18 months old. This is the first time Allie has had a fever...at 15 months. Because I let their immune systems take care of things.

Blah. I know what you are thinking. "Dang Lyndsey...why the soapbox?"

Eh. No biggie. I just witnessed a mom go all freaky deaky on her kid at Chick Fil A today. And the following self righteous conversation she had with her girlfriend following the incident made me roll my eyes. Her bubble kid is in for it when she comes into contact with her first germ.

Have I hyped this up, enough?

Maddi and I finally got to get a start on her pictures today. She had the flu, then we had days and days of flippin' insane winds and then Allie and I got the flu. But today was PERFECT and I was bound and determined to get out there and at least get started. I still have to do my main ideas I had planned, but I am happy so far.







This is my favorite so far...ha ha ha! Typical Maddi.

It's here, it's here!

Maddi's birthday outfit is HERE!!!!! But the poor thing has the flu. So I have. To. Wait. Right? I have to wait? Because it would not be good parenting to drag her hither, tither and yon for my own selfish agenda...right?

Although...I have stated in the past that I have never claimed to be mother of the year...

Nah. I won't. But I am dying. Just sayin'.

Waiting...waiting...waiting...

I am not so patiently waiting for Maddi's birthday dress to get here so I can get her pictures done. I have some CUTE ideas in mind...hopefully they will be better executed than my horrible attempt at getting pictures of the girls and I last week. I won't even go into that debacle. It was awful.

Anyways...how cute is THIS?! I think it is my favorite birthday outfit to date.

Look at these chompers!

Even though each tooth she gets is a true test of mommy's patience...even though every tooth she gets seemingly keeps her up for nights on end, resulting in bad night habits that must be broken later...even though the other night she decided to experiment with how hard she could wrap those sweet little teeth around a piece of mommy's shoulder...

Gah...does she really only have FOUR? We have a long way to go.

Lollipop lollipop

Yeah, yeah, yeah...second kid syndrome. I never would have dreamed of giving Maddi a lollipop at 14 months old. BUT...it let me get some pictures. So...whatever works. Dum Dums are the size of your fingernail anyways.





And I keep going back to these pictures in Photoshop...they need something. But I'm not sure what. Maybe the crop is weird...? I dunno. More saturation? Ugh...no one cares about this crap but me...I'll shut up now.

Ahh...memories

Here is my very first blog. I am actually still slightly taumatized from this morning.

After looking at other people's blogs, I have discovered that you can tell a lot by a person just by what they choose to tell the world. ]Here's the most important thing you need to know about me : I hate milk. And not just 'Oh, I don't care for milk. None for me, thanks'. No, mine is a genuine disgust. I don't even like to touch the carton (It makes my hand stink..is this just me?) Some might think it's a little over the top...I prefer to think it's quirky.

This is why it is so scary when I realize I have lost a sippy cup. For the past few days, I have realized that Maddi's blue sippy cup is MIA. I just knew that it was in some dark corner of the house, growing more and more putrid by the minute.

Well, as I open the car door to put Maddi in her carseat this morning, I am knocked over by the smell that wafts out. THERE is the sippy! Half under the front seat. With the lid unscrewed JUST ENOUGH to allow some leakage I am faced with a dilemma. This morning I want a Whataburger taquito more than anything. My car smells like the depths of Hell. And yes, my Hell smells like rotten milk. After an internal battle, my desire for a taquito wins. I roll down all the windows and hit the road. After all, it's just down the street.

As I'm driving, Maddi is protesting the windows being down. I'm trying to repress my gag reflex and I go the wrong way. Waxahachie is not a big town by far, but I manage to take the longest route possible. My brain was clouded with milk fumes. I gag some more...I'm stopped at stop light after stop light, which leaves no air flow...stagnant milk air. I gag again and accidentally turn into Taco Bell. I curse. Then I remember I'm not supposed to curse in front of the baby. Because even though she has no interest in repeating anything we say thus far, she would choose the word "SHIT" to begin her vocabulary with.

I finally get the cursed taquito, which I have no appetite for any longer.

So, out in my garage is a car I cannot sit in anymore. It either has to be detailed or sold. The offending cup has been brought into the house, but I gag everytime I see it. So, I put a dishtowel over it and Kevin can deal with it when he gets home.

I *puffy heart* newborns!

Because who DOESN'T love a one week old baby in all their squishy, wrinkly goodness! Baby T was so alert! He was checking everything out...or maybe just keeping an eye on the crazy lady with the flash-y thing. Who knows. I was just thrilled that I had a baby boy who didn't tinkle on my stuff.

Whew! The tall one is feeling MUCH better!

And my little dumpling...


I'm pretty sure she thinks if she is not looking directly AT me, I can't see her pulling out her bow.

Happy New Year...or something like that...

Well, we rang in the new year with the dreaded stomach bug. It started with Allie, who thankfully just had a very mild version. So mild, in fact, that we took her over to my sister's house for New Years dinner on Thursday. By Friday night, Maddi and I were very, very sick. I haven't been sick like that since I was a kid...seriously. I never, ever get what the kids have. I called my sister that night, and all five of them were in the same boat. Sorry sis. We're recovering...and it wouldn't be true Lyndsey style if I didn't get at least one picture. Maddi is still feeling a little puny, if you can't tell.

Can't we just take a bath, Mom?

Do we have to do pictures in the tub all the time?

Yes, yes you do. Now stop complaining and be cute.