Sepia

Entering another of Aurora's contests...
One of these days I'll actually write.
Promise:)

Black and White.

I am entering a contest,

which I know I am up against amazing photographers,
but what the hey.
I'll still enter:)

Eyes.

Can two girls have eyes that are more stunning?
I think not...


p.s. I have been feeling the itch to write again, so be prepared. It's coming...

Favorite Picture.

I have been following my lovely Best Friend's Photo Blog.

She is the bomb diggity. No Joke.
She gives out assignments,
and her assignment this week was to pick one of my favorite pictures.
Because I am a rebel...
I am choosing two.
One from a couple months back and one from this past week.

From This Week

From Several Weeks Ago.

To Be Quite Honest...
I am not sure that these are my ALL time favorites,
BUT
if I think about it too hard, my head would explode!

Cute...

I am entering a contest, and the challenge is CUTE...

I have no children,
except all of my friend's kids,
who I am second mama to.

I decided on a picture of a
little one I am a second mama to.

I also chose one photo of my kitten
because she is most definitely CUTE!

Enjoy!

Go here to check out some more pictures...

3 Little Monkeys...

Here's a sneak peak into the photo shoot I did today!

Repost for My Daddies...

I wrote these last father's day, but I felt compelled to repost them this father's day.
Happy Father's Day!
I love you!

Dear Daddy (Cooper),

You are the daddy that has known me the longest. You were the first man to hold me in your arms and the first to whisper I love you. Some of my fondest memories in my childhood are those of you tucking me in, tickling me until I cried, bouncing me on your knee, laughing with you until my belly hurts, hugs where I thought I was going to explode from your love for me, and watching you watch me. You have watched me grow up, and you continue to watch me grow.

You have always been the one to challenge me...You push me towards greater things, accomplishing things greater than myself. You challenge me to step down when I get too high strong. You challenge me to give my best in all that I do...never half doing anything. You challenge me to persevere even when it hurts, hang tight when the waves of life are crashing around.

You've always believed in me. Believed I was capable of more than I often thought myself to be capable of. Applauded when I accomplished something, and say," I knew you'd do it." You caught me when I have fallen under the weight and pressures of this world, and you have had great mercy and kindness for me in the midst of those times.

Most importantly, you've given me Jesus. You have followed the Lord with great integrity. Being similar in personality and character traits, you have helped me see the Lord's hand in shaping me and molding in those areas where you have already seen the Lord shape you.

You showed me how a man should love a woman, so I could know how to choose this for a husband. You love mom passionately, deeply, and without swaying. Your marriage is an example of a marriage done God's way. It is one to be treasured and thankful for.

You will be the grand-daddy to my babies, and I am so thankful for this. You are the best grand-daddy, and I know this because I know how much you love me, my sister, my brother, Brian, and the grand-daughter that is here already. You have a generous heart that hurts when you can't give more. Thank you for all that you have given for us. Thank you for all your sacrifice. You have always given us the best, and led us along a road of excellence. I love you to the moon and back, and I am eternally thankful that my earthly daddy is such an example of my heavenly daddy.

<3 Daddy (Dean), Marriage is a blessing for many reasons, and one of those reasons is you. I get another daddy in my life. Thank you for welcoming me into your family with open arms... Your first daughter (a whole new ball game;). Thank you for raising Brian so well. He is the incredible man that he is because of you. You two really are two peas in a pod. I love seeing you together. One of the reasons I fell in love with Brian was because I watched his interaction with you. You two have an incredible relationship. You are a man of great character and perseverance. You show me how to make lemonade out of lemons. You a very humble man, and you are always quick to recognize your own weaknesses and lean more heavily into Jesus when you see them. You are a servant, giving all that you have to those around you. I know that the Lord is molding you and shaping you, and daily, you are becoming more like your savior. I always look forward to your arms when I arrive in LA. You always give me a warm, long hug and a bit wet kiss on my cheek, when I arrive. I love how your face lights up when we walk in the door. It makes me feel special. I love that you always have a project waiting for Brian because he gets excited about doing projects with you. Thank you for all that you do and all that you are. I love you, and I am so thankful that I am blessed to have you as my second daddy. Love.

Favorite Photos...

Ok... I had a homework assignment from:

My assignment was to post my
all time favorite photos
that I have ever taken.
So Here they are!

To be Quite Honest, I am not sure which of my photos are my all time favorites,
but these were the first to come to mind.

Without a doubt, this is one of my all time favorites.
When I take photos, I love to capture someone's eyes...
to capture their essence.
A person's eyes speak volumes.
In someway, it seems to be a window into their soul.

She most definitely has gorgeous eyes...

I chose this second picture because it is timeless to me.
I love it when I take a picture that you cannot tell when it was taken or where.
A picture that transports you to a memory in your past.
Also, I have been falling in love with the heart of little boys,
and I feel this photo captures the essence of boyhood.
I am secretly asking the Lord that we get a little boy first...
shhhhh!
Don't tell!

I chose this last picture...
Well, not because it is an amazing picture.
It really isn't.
I titled this picture BUTT PUMPKIN.
I feel that this picture captures a bit of who I am.
I love finding the humor in life.
Laughing at life...the little details of life,
so I love capturing the funniness of life in my photos.


Which one is your favorite?

Fun Weekend...

Here's a piece of our fun 3 day weekend.

To Be Seen...

^{Last Saturday, my husband and I decided to go take a walk on the beach.
Spend some time connecting...
We threw some slippers on and headed out the door.
We got about half a mile from our house,
when Brian said, "I just saw a baby bird in the middle of the road."
Me, being the observant wife I am, said,
"I just saw some rocks in the middle of the road...are you sure?"
After going not more than...well I would give you a measurement,
but honestly, I have no concept of space.}

^{So....After going a short distance, we decided to turn back and investigate.}

<sup>Sure enough, there she was.
Truth is that I have no idea if it was a he or she, but we always referred to it as a she...
Tucked up in a little poof ball.
Smack in the middle of the street.
There was a mama bird and another baby bird right next to her.
They had been hit by cars.

Now, let me preface all of this by saying...In general, I am not a big fan of birds.
They freak me out.
They make me have nightmares but this bird.
There was something different about this little puff ball.
We knew if we just left her...
She was bound to be hit by a car...she was not about to move.

We snatched her up.
She sat in the front seat with me...
I had her in a cloth, and she climbed out and perched herself on my hand.
She just wanted to be held.</sup>

Brian is a softy when it comes to stuff like this.
God really has done a miracle in his heart.
He has developed a father's heart.
Although he is not yet a father physically speaking, he is.
I have never seen any other man quite like Brian and his father's heart.
There is just something different about him...something that seeps out of him.
The look in his eyes when that part of his heart is fired up.

Nonetheless, we took the bird in and proceeded to care for it
until we got a hold of the wildlife rescue.

Brian even went worm hunting and attempted to feed the bird...
By this time, the bird acquired a name...
Her name became "Pip."
Pip did not want to eat....
she wanted to sleep.
She'd puff up, close her eyes, and protest taking any food.
Everything we read told us not to hold the bird,
BUT
this bird refused not to be held.
We'd take her out of the cage with a towel, and she'd fly off the towel onto our hands.
She wanted us to hold her.
On Sunday, the wildlife rescue called us back.
By this time, we had found that she could now fly quite well.
Since she could fly, they advised us to take her to the area we found her and let her go.

Above is a picture of her on the branch, I placed her on.
She had already flown back to me once, but this time she was ready to go.

God has been speaking to my heart through our "Pip."
I believe this little poof ball was directly from the Lord to speak to our little family.

Have you ever felt unseen?
I believe every person (especially women) have a deep need and desire to be SEEN.

It is a multi-faceted desire. It is the desire for someone to see you literally...
like the "Hello, I am here....(wave, wave, wave) right in front of you! See me!"
kind of see.
There is a desire for a woman's beauty to be seen.
This is a very intimate desire, and it is often the one that causes women to hide.
It is a desire that causes deep wounds when searched out to be fulfilled in the wrong places.

There is a desire to be seen and known.
Has anyone ever looked at you...like realllllly looked at you,
and seen you...
seen your heart.
known your heart....really known you.
This desire often leaves a woman feeling lonely...
Again, she often looks in all the wrong places to fill that void.

As I have been thinking about our little Pip...
I have realized that I am SEEN by God.
He has seen me.
He knows me.
He looks at me in that way that pierces my heart.

When we were driving along that Saturday afternoon,
Brian saw this little tiny bird...
Puffed up.
Hiding.
Scared.
The bird literally looked like a stone in the road,
yet
Brian saw her.
He saw her and had to stop.

Sometimes I feel like that little bird.
Stuck in the middle of the road.
Cars zooming over me, nearly missing me.
Scared.
Alone.
Feeling Unseen...
Unknown...
Overlooked...

Hiding...
We all hide in different ways...
In so many ways being afraid to REALLY be seen.
We hide behind the image we create for ourselves.
We hide behind what people think about us.
We hide by controlling our lives.
We hide behind anything that gives us some sense of security...
It's false security.

God calls him self...El Roi...The God who Sees
This name was first used in Genesis 16, when Hagar is running.
She had just been rejected by Sarah and was running from her circumstances.
I am sure she felt very alone.
Very confused by her circumstances...

But God looked for her and found her...
He found her in the wilderness.
He identifies himself here as El Roi...
The God who sees us.

The God who sees us and wants us.
He goes out of his way...
Just as we went out of our way
to make sure we are cared for.
Provided for...

He sees me.
He knows all of my hurt.

My circumstances have blinded me for so long from this truth.
They have left me saying,
"Where are you God? Why can't you see me? Why have we been overlooked?"

The reality is that he does see me.
He sees me when no one else can find me.
He finds me when I can't quite find myself
and then gently helps me to find myself again.

If this bird was seen by us...was cared for enough to be taken in and nurtured by us...
How much more does My God care for me?
How much more will he provide every good thing for me?

He has not forgotten us.
We are not abandoned.
We are seen and known by the Living God.

⁶Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies^a]">[a]? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. ⁷Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Luke 12:5-7

Right now, I am inviting the Lord to SEE me...
to really SEE me.
I don't want to hide behind my false securities.
They leave me empty and lonely.
I am convinced that when I grab a hold of this truth.
I will be forever changed because...

When you know you are seen by the God of the universe,
nothing else matters.
We have no reason to fret.
No reason to be insecure.
He sees me.
He knows my every need.
I can rest in this.

Homework...

I had homework...
From HER

My assignment:
Take a picture of myself.

Completed...

I have come to the conclusion that
I am better at taking pictures of others ;)

Nonetheless, here they are...

Confession: I prefer black and whites of me...
WHY? well, they are just more forgiving :p

Monterey...

This year we celebrated our 4th year of marriage. I still can't believe that we have been married for four, yet in the same way, it seems longer.
He is the love of my life, and there is no one else I would rather do life with.

We went to Monterey for 4 days.

We went to Bubba Gump's.
It's a fun atmosphere.
I was able to eat about 2 things on the menu...I am allergic to shell fish :)

We were blessed with some free tickets to the Monterey Bay Aquarium,
so we popped in several times.
We took a behind the scenes tour that was neat.
We got to feed some of the fish in the largest tank.

Jellyfish freak me out.
I once got stung by a Portugese man of War....
Story for another day.
Ask me if you want a laugh!

Julia Pfeiffer Waterfall...
Breathtaking

We camped the first night at Plasket Creek.
We Figured out the tent after wrestling with it a bit.
It was a tent straight out of the movie "Parent Trap"
Brian used it when he was younger,
and we loved camping with it.

In this picture...we both yelled POSE! when the light began flashing...
Interestingly enough, we both ended up with similar "poses"
We look like we are going to war.
Not sure how much damage I could do with a broom...

Beautiful Poppies.

Note the "Parent Trap" tent.

Brian has some Mad jumping skills!