Christmas Decorating. In November.

I am one of those "crazies" that decorates for Christmas well before Thanksgiving.

On facebook, I have discovered that for some people, this is an unheard of practice :-(

I say, pish posh to them. I love Christmas and I don't think its ever too early to decorate!

Here is why I decorate so early....

1. I start decorating for Fall in August because by August, I am done with the hot summer and and ready to move on to some Fall colors and scents. So...by November, I have seen my Fall decor for 3 months. I am ready for a change.

2. My kids do a lot of waiting through out the year - They wait months to see their grandparents. They wait weeks at a time to see their Daddy. They wait a year for Christmas. So to me, if I can make Christmas come two weeks earlier than the rest of the world, I will. They get it that much quicker. And it lasts that much longer! Its a win/win.

3. I don't skip over Thanksgiving like some people believe, but for us, Thanksgiving just isn't a big hoopla. We are going to gather with some of our church friends and have a big feast at one of their homes. I am really looking forward to it! This is happening the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving itself, B will be packing to leave for another long trip and I am thinking we may just go out to eat as a little family for a good home cooked meal - maybe Cracker Barrel. B won't be home again until well into December, so at least he will have a little taste of some of our Christmas decorations before he leaves for a portion of the Christmas season.

4. Putting up Christmas decorations take a lot of time. Its a big deal. So, I would rather look at them for as long as possible. Plus, we go home to Atlanta for the last 10 days of December, so we don't get to enjoy our tree then....see why it makes sense to put it up 10 days sooner than everyone else?

5. Most of all, I LOVE CHRISTMAS! I love Christmas so very much. Its in my blood. My mom already has two trees up. My youngest sister already has her tree up. And my cousin fully expects to be fully decorated (inside and out) by this weekend. Its just what we do.

Call me crazy.

It probably wouldn't be the first time. ;-)

So, if you are not completely against the fact that today is November 15th, and I am done decorating my house for Christmas, please feel free to enjoy some pictures from our evening.

As always, I feel the need to capture every moments for our family in Atlanta and for my husband who is out of town once again. He has missed 5 straight years of tree decorating - I am beginning to think he is doing this on purpose!

Happy Halloween!

My kids decided they wanted to go to a Fall Festival instead of trick-or-treating for Halloween. We still got them costumes and had a ton of fun, but we headed over to a great celebration on-post at the chapel of food, crafts, games, prizes and candy. The kids had a ball, but of course when we were done, we walked across the street and let them trick-or-treat up and down one block.

The baby slept in the stroller. The kids ran. D tripped, C got scared of some people scaring older kids. Then we loaded up and headed back home.

A good time was had by all :-)

Here are a few pictures of the kids all dolled up for the fun filled evening before we left the house...

My littlest man is now on the verge of sitting unassisted!

My three crazy loves :-)

And this picture (though not that great of a "quality" picture) just makes my heart jump for joy. I have the best daughter in the whole world. I couldn't be more proud of how she relates to her brothers...

5 1/2

I took my big girl out this evening to the path in our neighborhood to snap a few pictures. I've been so busy photographing my friends lately, that I haven't taken too many pictures of my own kiddos.

Well, turns out she was in a goofy mood.

First click play on the video and then as you're listening to the song, scroll down and check out the pictures. I was listening to this song as I uploaded and quickly edited these.

My eyes are wet from crying...

I wish I could just freeze time.

Sweet girl, Please. Stop. Growing.

Its just too much fun!!

I know I have been passionate about many things in my adult years (and probably way before that!) Cloth diapers, car seat safety, and Chalean Extreme are all things that easily come to mind :-)

But this is the first time my passion has turned into extra money for me and my family! My photography business is taking off way faster that I had imagined [runs around the room jumping up and down]. I am completely booked for sessions up into December!

I am still in awe of this. Mostly because I am very critical of my work. Even though I know photography is an art and I can do it however I want to do it, I still wonder if I am "good enough" to be charging "real money" for it. But then I remember that people can choose to use me - or not to use me.

In the meantime I have been having so much fun taking pictures every day. I am also learning more ways to edit and change their look a bit. I am still discovering what I like, what I don't like, and the limits of my equipment - my camera...thats the only "equipment" I have haha! I am also discovering what "equipment" I'd like to invest in as I begin to make money.

First on my agenda is a speedlight - basically a flash. Its way different than the one that is already attached to my camera. I despise using the one that pops up on my camera. It provides unnatural, ultra bright, straight-on blinding light. YUCK!

My super sweet neighbor offered to let me borrow her Nikon speedlight to try out for a few days. It was love at first *flash.* :-)

I took these pictures in low light inside my home - well, and my friend's home. These pictures are not edited lighting-wise in anyway. Check out the awesome soft light!

I think I now need a speed light :-)

My friend's dog

My own little model...

Don't mind her huge bruise. She slipped in the rain last night outside :-(

And then there is the editing fun!! So many ways to play with the same pictures...it goes WAY beyond color vs. black and white. Check out some shots of my littlest model. Naked on our kitchen floor :-)

And my sweet birthday boy...

Also wanted to mention, for what its worth....

I listened to Christmas songs the whole time I was creating this post. I love Christmas. Even in October.

Six Months Old

My sweet little baby turns 6 months old next week.

I can't believe he's already been here for 6 months.

I mean, he still seems so new. He is still very young. He still isn't eating any solids...only breastmilk - and only from the breast. He is still waking up regularly at night. But he does sleep in his own bed. And he can roll back and forth all over the place. He likes to hold toys. He loves to be held and to wrap his arms around the back of my neck and touch my hair. He LOVES to be worn in a baby carrier. He finally tolerates his infant car seat and rides in relative silence. He loves his paci and any small blanket type "lovey" that he can grab and cling to. He also loves his brother and sister.

The Lord has blessed me greatly with Nathan...my baby boy.

To reminisce, I dug out an older picture my husband took just moments after N was born. Its one of my very favorites!

And then here he was just this afternoon. Making one of his favorite faces :-)

Battles and Dreams

I have to apologize for my lack of writing lately. Its not that I haven't had things to write about or that I haven't had the time. Its just that I have been pouring myself into other things.

D is turning into more and more of a handful everyday. He is driving me nuts.

Actually, that may even be an understatement.

When I walk in his room late at night to check to make sure he is asleep, I sometimes wonder if I even hugged and kissed him that day. It seems that from the minute he gets out of bed in the morning until the time his eyes finally close at night, all we do is battle. He argues, questions, and disobeys, and I correct and simply try not to lose my cool. Seriously, the battle begins when I tell him to go potty after he strips off his clothes upon waking up. And it ends after he comes out of his room at night for the 50th time. This is just a trying time for us. Its also very good birth control.

C is busy at school all day, but comes home every afternoon cranky and tried. She begins whining on the way home from the bus stop. It is inevitable that she will throw herself on the couch upset about something I did or didn't do within minutes of walking in the door. Eight hours is a long day for a 5 year old 5 days a week. She hasn't adjusted yet. I'm not sure how long its going to take.

And then there is the baby. Who does not sleep.

Well, thats not fair.

He does sleep some...just not much. Every night there is some sort of battle. Last night it was a 2:30am 30 minute scream-fest. There is more to it than me just letting him scream. But thats the gist of it in a nutshell. He just isn't a good sleeper. Or eater for that matter. I think they are related...

And then there is my photography.

Or I could call it my therapy.

Its all I want to do right now. I have had a huge interest in photography since I had my first child and I bought my camera. I have always been one to swoon over beautiful portraits. Occasionally I come across a photographer whose website with pictures flashing up and beautiful music playing nearly brings me to tears.

I have an appreciation for it.

It reaches me at an emotional level like that.

I guess its always been a dream hidden deep within my heart to be able to take beautiful pictures like that.

It feels a bit surreal to actually be jumping in the photography world by starting my own business. I am so very excited and so very scared all at the same time. I am happy with the pictures I am taking, but I can't help but to wish they were even better. I guess there is always room for improvement. I am learning new things every day. I am loving it really.

The Lord has blessed me greatly by placing several wonderful photographer friends in my life who have inspired me, helped me, guided me, and taught me many things. I always want to give credit where credit is due.

If it hadn't been for Katie at Katie Snyder Photography, Callie at Achor and Eden, Sarah at Sarah Spencer Photography and my friend, Elizabeth, I don't think I would be doing this today. These ladies have given me a great example of how to build a business and pursue my dreams. They answer questions and offer encouragement when I doubt myself. I truly thank God for placing the right people in my life over the last 5 years.

If you're still reading, thank you. I have gotten off to rambling I think...I promise, I will create a more exciting blog entry again in the near future.

For now, I will just leave you with a photograph and my new photography blog address...Randilynnphotography.blogspot.com. (Its not fancy yet, but at least it exists now, haha!) Happy Wednesday my friends!

They're Here!

My parents came up to visit us this past week. We wasted no time packing our schedule full of activities. We ran errands, planned a birthday party, went to the mall, visited the pumpkin farm, watched C cheer, had a birthday party, cleaned, and then shopped some more.

I just wanted to share a couple of my very favorite moments from the last few days...

Thanks for coming Omi and Opa!!