day 5

a 30-some degree day AND blessed with this beauty?!  that just doesn't happen!  usually the bitter cold has to kick in before we get those colors and clarity.  but ahhhh - ak is not disappointing this winter.

day 4

a mere four days in, and i'm resorting to the fruit phone.  i think because i was completely humbled last year, brought to my knees by the (now) Über-sweet baby tess, i've learned there's no room for pride.  there's no reason to hide behind a pinterest-laden world - i've always wanted my blog to be real, speak the truth and nothin but the truth.  sheesh.  i'm really building this up more than it really is…

on saturday, i received a text from my man, asking for a salon update.  i had been there less than an hour, and already, i was getting the ol "check-in" text.

this.
was my response.

day 3

can't get enough of her beauty.  alaska grabbed me at a very young age.  all our trips from minnesota to alaska for christmases & thanksgivings.  skiing alyeska in the winter and hiking flattop in the summer; i always knew i'd find my way back.

day 2

i promise they won't all be dog pictures.  it's kinda like when you bring your new, fresh-smelling baby home.  you take, like, 200 pictures of the same pose, same smile, but still, can't get enough!  that's where i'm at.  having a single-digit week-old little dude is a lot like having an infant.  (and, i can say that because i've done both!)  you're in the nap, feeding, pooping time-suck.  but oh - how cute and wittle.    

BUSTER.

i can't believe i'm doing this (day 1)

seems incredibly silly AND unrealistic, but after talking with one of my photog friends, we agreed to do a 365-day "challenge" - where you document something about every day for a year.  she is a momma of four, so it's equally ridiculous (ok, MORE ridiculous!) for her to attempt.  but what we thought, we could hold each other accountable.  oh, and i put challenge in quotes because i can't say it will be a struggle for me to pick up my camera every day - but, getting them onto my mac is where the biggest challenge may arise.  

i like the entire idea of this.  

i like the dedication.  i know i'm gonna love looking back.  mostly though, it gets me to my blog, without the pressure of needing a few hours to write a bunch, edit & upload a bunch.  right now, i just want to be able to touch the smooth keys on a regular basis.

like most things (and most women) i am making a few exceptions to this challenge.  while i may shoot every day, i'm not sure if i can post every day.  i'll likely be doing several posts in a sitting, keeping the words down and the focus on pictures.  ahhh, see?!  it all loops around - i don't think i'll ever grow out of loving a story chock-full of pictures!  the other exception that we agreed to was the occasional phone picture.  i want to avoid that desperately, but there are those rare moments when i grab my phone before the moment passes.  so...

here we go!

  

day 1

we have a new addition to our family.  bella is more excited about her evening carrots than she is having to share her bed with this intruder, this stranger.

[update]

it pains me, practically daily, when another one passes that i don't have the time (or stamina) to sit down and spill my thoughts.  i know there's a few of you who read and enjoy my blog, but i have to selfishly say i mostly do this for me.  i don't always get a word in when i'm surrounded by my loving extroverts so i rely on the ol' trusty blog to help me work through my whirlwind of thoughts.

it's been weeks since my last post.  i don't need to apologize or say i've been busy.  that's a given.  actually, you'll never find me apologizing because the only person i'm hurting by the lack of posts is myself.

i have been increasingly busy, but what does that actually mean?  everyone is busy.  everyone is going.  work, school, partners, children times two and three, groceries, bills, vacations, hobbies - we're all filling our lives to the tippy-top with activities that keep us from any down time.

this past week, i finally finished sewing projects that i began this spring.  yep, nearly nine months ago.  instead of focusing on how long it took to complete, i'm focusing on the wonderful feeling of having a sparse sewing table - one that i can actually see the bare surface!

also this past month, i launched my super-official Facebook photography page.  i was dragging my feet because my webpage is not a-go, just yet, but i figured why not?!

i'm having a blast doing something just for me.  my first full day of shooting, i couldn't wipe the smile off my face.  i love capturing people and landscapes and all that falls between the two subjects.  check me out!  you don't have to have a Facebook page to view:

https://www.facebook.com/naturalphotographyak

i've gone on-location, visited lovely people in the hospital.  i've gone to homes and even - drumroll, please! - used my studio.  feels so surreal to finally have that space to myself.  i really could not be happier.  well, no - i could if i was shooting more - but there are not enough hours and days in the week!  dearest husband is still working 6 days a week and that leaves me one measly day.  you can imagine that he actually wants to see me too, not just the other half of me he sees in our children!

balance.

it's such an act, at times!

bless him and our children for allowing me to be me.  it's amazing how a few hours away give me the boost and recharge to be a better mama and wifey.  it doesn't take much.  it's funny though; i miss them like crazy when i see other people's tiny humans.  i giggle thinking, my dylan does that exact same nose wrinkle or oh, she's a little cranky like tess used to be.  tess.  tessie baby.

my chubby little sweet pea is approaching the 9-month birthday.  here, it crawled along those first few months, and now, it's just flying by.  she's so damn cute and squishy.  she's squeezing into 18-month clothes.  ugh, i hate to even write that!  her wrists barely push through the arm holes!  her cheeks are in the stretch mark zone, i'm sure.  she has 4 teeth, and she's crawling all over the place.  every day, the kids and i joke that we lose her in the house.  where my other two were like puppy dogs on my heels, she feels free to roam about.  and, she's fast!  just tonight, i was ducking in and out of rooms and hallways, trying to find her.  (i did.)  she eats everything and a lot of it, but i think that goes without saying…  she pulls herself up, stands at the sofa or against the mirror in her bedroom.  dare i say she'll be walking soon?

need for a transition?  i guess this is a lousy one, but -

we take the good with the bad.  always.  that's life.

my momma.  {i think it's no coincidence that i'm choosing tonight to catch up on my blog.}  she goes in for her final surgery in the morning.  reconstruction.  new boobies!  (she'll likely not appreciate that last remark, but hey, who doesn't like boobies?!)  love you, wittle momma.

she couldn't have had a better cancer experience, really.  her initial surgery was long but was a success. her labs came back clear or negative - or actually, POSITIVE! - because the surgeons removed all traces of nasty cells.  she didn't have to do radiation or chemo, and she even tested negative for the breast cancer gene.  truly, a miracle in my eyes!  i am so proud of her.  she was diligent with physical therapy.  i could see great physical changes that were making her happy, as well.  so, one more surgery, and we'll put this cancer behind us.

yes, we were blessed with tess anne, but other than that, i'm ready to say so long, farewell to 2013!

i found these sweet thangs, snoozing nose-to-nose in a very rare moment.  happened to have my camera at arms reach and was able to fire off a shot - waking him no-less, but anything for the perfect little keepsake.

the flats.

palmer hay flats, stretch as far as you can see, in both directions.

what a great new trail to explore.

took advantage on a wednesday evening, shortly before sunset.

one of the last great summer nights.