Dawn Dorathy

New Videos

2010-10-14T11:06:00.000-04:00

I handed Owen a wooden spoon to play with while I fed him, and made dinner. I turned around and found that he had made a huge mess- he must have wiped the food from his bib onto his face.

Leif singing ABCs to Owen right before naptime. (which is why Leif doesn't have pants on!)

Family Photos!

2010-07-23T15:26:00.001-04:00

Sherry stopped by for a visit today, and took some great family photos. We love her and we love her work. Thanks Sherry! (I'll be uploading more pictures as I get time to edit them.)

Owen's Movie

2010-07-13T21:23:00.005-04:00

Family of Four

2010-07-08T20:59:00.009-04:00

We knew that some day this would happen. We knew it would be crazy and exhausting and wonderful, and it is. We are a family of four.

There were many things I hoped for as I prepared for Owen's arrival, but there have been so many blessings above and beyond what I could have hoped for. Where do I even start?
I guess I'll start with Leif. I had a lot of anxiety about Owen's delivery because of Leif. What do we do with Leif? We don't have family in town, and Leif had never stayed overnight with friends. I was so worried that he would be traumatized by our sudden disappearance, seeing me in labor, etc, etc. Our good friends Mark and Donna-Marie (who live only 5 minutes away!) offered for us to drop Leif off at their house whenever I went into labor. DM watched Leif several times while I was pregnant so that I could get the nursery ready and rest, and Leif is great friends with their kids Will & Gwennan.
The day I delivered Owen, I dropped Leif off in the afternoon to go to a doctor's appointment, and ended up starting labor on my way home from the appointment, so Leif just stayed. Leif enjoyed the Rothnie house so much that DM had to bribe him to leave by sending him with his favorite toy! She also watched him every Monday & Wednesday of June! I was able to catch up on rest & housework- what an amazing blessing. (Of course now Leif wants to live at their house!)
My dad flew down as soon as I was in labor and helped out with Leif while we were in the hospital. What he didn't know was that we were naming Owen after him- I waited until he was in the hospital holding Owen. I said to him, "Dad, meet Owen Warren." Then we both cried.

My mom came down once we were home with Owen. I knew that she would be helpful. I didn't realize just how helpful she'd be. She had my house sparkling clean- she did my laundry, she helped me with the baby, she was amazing. What I enjoyed more than all that she did for me was her companionship. It was hard to let her go home.

Jen Greenwald has come over several times to help with the baby and help clean up the house. She and Ben babysat the two boys last weekend so that Charles and I could get out for a date night.

My in-laws came for a visit. They always help with food and house projects and had some good times with Leif and Owen.

My dad and Patricia came for another visit because Patricia wasn't able to come the weekend Owen was born, and she wanted to see him while he was still so little.
Several friends brought us dinners. We have been showered with blessings.

My delivery this time was much easier on my body, and I had much more strength and energy much earlier on than I did with Leif.
On top of that, Leif has welcomed Owen so well, and is gentle with him and so helpful. (most of the time!- he IS only 2!) He calls Owen "his baby" and kisses him all of the time!

I am starting to really enjoy my days with the two boys, especially if I time nap time correctly! We're learning how to get out with the two boys, and even enjoying ourselves sometimes!

Overall, these first 2 months have gone better than I could have hoped, and I am so thankful to everyone who gave so generously of their time and attention to make it so much easier for us.

Owen's Story

2010-07-07T15:24:00.010-04:00

Owen Warren Spoelstra
was born on Thursday, May 13, 2010, at 10:40pm. He weighed 8lbs 10oz, and was 21.5 inches long.

Here is his story...

We found out that we were pregnant mid-September. I didn’t suspect I was pregnant until I started feeling nauseous and having strange cravings. I took two pregnancy tests and finally scheduled an appointment. The midwife was able to confirm the pregnancy, but we were unable to find a heartbeat, and suspected a miscarriage. That was September 29th, our 7th anniversary. A very long four days later we went in for a hi-res ultrasound, and were able to hear Owen’s heartbeat!
My pregnancy with Owen was fairly similar to my pregnancy with Leif, except I was craving chocolate. So, I figured I was carrying a girl, or a little boy with a sweet tooth!
In early January we went in for our 20 week ultrasound and found out we were having a boy. I was excited that we could finally name Owen, and start preparing for his arrival. More than that, I had a great excitement about having brothers. Leif had entered a wonderful boy-stage of loving trucks, trains, and airplanes, and was so excited about driving around and shopping at Home Depot. It was exciting to think of having another little boy on the way.
Leif came with me to almost all of my doctor’s appointments, and started looking forward to several things. When we would turn down the road to the doctors office, he would say, “Baby Owen heartbeat” because each time we would get to hear the heartbeat. As I would check in at the desk, he would start saying, “Mommy potty. Mommy potty in cup.” (Yes, Leif, mommy has to go pee in a cup again.) And then, of course, there was the lone fish in the waiting room. We had to go sit by him, and Leif would always insist that there were two fish. The fish sat in the upper back part of the tank, staring at his reflection, which I suppose Leif thought was the second fish. As we left from our appointment, we would always go back past the fish and say, “Bye fish, see you soon!”

Throughout this pregnancy, I had hoped to deliver early. Leif was eight days early, and was over 9lbs. So, I hoped if I delivered earlier, the baby would be smaller, and I might have an easier recovery.
At 37 weeks, I thought that was a good possibility. I was already 4 cm! Thirteen days later, 8 days before my due date (same as Leif), labor finally started. Just as each pregnancy is different, each labor is different. With Leif, labor was fairly textbook with labor pains like clockwork. With Owen, labor pains were irregular, and often painful contractions were followed by barely painful ones.
Still, the doctors had warned me that this labor would be quick, so we made the decision to head to the hospital. On our way, a few strong contractions convinced me that this was real labor, although shortly before reaching the hospital I had a lull in contractions, which was good because Charles missed the hospital exit and we were able to laugh about it!
Labor began at 5pm, and Owen was born at 10:40pm, with the cord wrapped three times around his neck. Apparently that is really unusual, but fortunately, the midwife said that the cord was not tight, and she was able to cut it free. Charles and I both laughed when we looked at Owen. It was like we were brought back 2 years to Leif being handed to us- they looked identical!
Owen needed to be taken to a transitional nursery shortly after delivery because they were concerned about fluid in his lungs. Thankfully, he was only there for a few hours and they released him to the regular nursery. The next day, Leif came to meet his little brother, and the following day, we drove home with Leif and Owen, our two miracles. We are so blessed!

Owen Warren Spoelstra

2010-05-13T22:40:00.000-04:00

Leif's new construction sandbox!

2010-04-13T20:47:00.002-04:00

We got Leif this construction sandbox, and he's really loving it. Oh, and he also loves wearing his helmet outside- he probably thinks it's like a construction hard hat.

Easter photos

2010-04-13T20:38:00.005-04:00

We took some family Easter photos in front of the cherry tree this year.
Even Gordy got to come out on the porch for a few pictures with Leif. He was not terribly cooperative, but you can't expect much from a bunny.

Two means trouble

2010-03-26T15:25:00.006-04:00

Leif is two. I love this age- he is talkative, wild, loud, willful, and often finds ways to get into trouble that I never would have suspected. I came back to my office chair the other morning and found it suspiciously wet. I knew Leif had done it, but I had no idea how, until I caught him doing this:

February pictures

2010-02-19T14:11:00.014-05:00

Just thought I'd add some pictures to my blog, since February has been fairly eventful. Leif got his first professional haircut. So far it had just been mommy-cuts, but as his hair gets longer and thicker, I thought I'd bring him somewhere and try it out. She cut way more than I was expecting, but it's already growing out, so we'll be okay! She gave him a lollipop and he sat quietly enjoying his sugar for the entire haircut. Now that I know that trick, I may cut his hair myself next time!

We took Leif's 2 year pictures in the studio.

I'm going to do some

outdoor pictures when his hair grows out a little

more. Can't believe he'll be 2 years old in just a few weeks!

We also took Leif's pictures in his halloween costume. He was so sick this past Halloween, that we didn't even dress him up, let alone take any pictures! So, we figured, better late than never!

My little dancer!

Also, we had a decent snow storm- probably got about 4 inches, which is quite a lot for us.

Our backyard the morning after the snow storm:

Baby Boy!

2010-01-05T17:11:00.004-05:00

We went to our 20 week ultrasound today and found out that we were going to have another boy! We're very excited! We got a decent profile picture, and one that I love of his legs...which looks like he's already been working out in there!

Family Photos Fall 09

2009-11-18T10:22:00.002-05:00

We went to McFarland Farm this past weekend and took some fall photos of the family.

Leif videos- Oct 09

2009-11-02T21:08:00.003-05:00

This first video is really short, but I only had 6 seconds left

on my video camera. Leif was dipping his garlic butter noodles

into his Chai Tea, and seemed to really like it!

This video is perhaps a little long, but Leif was not feeling well,

and we let him sit and watch a Veggie Tales video while we

were getting breakfast ready. He would clap every time they

would sing, and Charles had to capture it:

We're Pregnant!

2009-10-24T11:34:00.004-04:00

We found out on Saturday, Sept 26th, that we were pregnant! My body was showing signs that I might be miscarrying, so we got into the Dr's office on Sept 29th to try to get some answers. Ultrasound confirmed pregnancy, but could not find a heartbeat. The midwife estimated the pregnancy at about 3 weeks, and prepared me for a possible miscarriage. She also ordered hormone tests which were inconclusive, and the Dr. sent me for a hi-res ultrasound on Friday, October 2nd.

I sat in the waiting room for the ultrasound shaking, because I knew that this would confirm the pregnancy one way or the other. I lay patiently while the ultrasound tech began her exam, and waited as long as I could stand it (probably 2 min) and finally asked her if she could see anything. She said, "Oh, yea, I have a heartbeat and everything". And we got to see our little baby's heart beating away, it's little body moving with each beat. The tech estimated that I was 7 weeks pregnant and set the due date for May 21st. She also told us that at this stage the baby didn't have clearly defined limbs yet, and looked more like a seahorse. So, we've been calling baby #2 "baby seahorse". Even Leif knows that Baby Seahorse is in mommy's belly.

Carrolton Sprint Triathlon

2009-07-19T13:27:00.011-04:00

Charles competed in the Carrolton Sprint Triathlon this past weekend. He finished 8th in his age group and 36th overall.

Total time- 1:11:41

The best part of it was that we have great friends who live in Carrolton, so we stayed overnight with them, and hung out with them after the race. Eric took Leif on his first boat ride. The boys, Andrew & Nathan, loved playing with Leif, and he LOVED playing with them! We may have to make this a yearly tradition!

Leif's latest videos

2009-07-16T17:07:00.003-04:00

Leif has been really enjoying kissing us lately. It's delightful!

Sometimes he will come over to us and just plant a wet one

on our lips. This particular afternoon, he just wanted kiss

after kiss, so I grabbed the video camera:

Leif and Charles have this howling thing they do. I only

caught the end of their playing, but you get the idea:

Callaway Gardens Sprint Triathlon

2009-07-07T15:36:00.020-04:00

For my blog about my first triathlon, I was going to recount all of the arduous details of the previous day- like how before we even left our house Charles tried to pull the car into the garage with his bike already on roof with Leif in his carseat pointing at the ceiling say "Wow-wow-wow", and the hours of traffic we sat in because of the car fire in front of us, the mix-up with room assignments that took us forever to get settled once we arrived at Callaway. But, while the day before the triathlon seemed more like an endurance-sport then the actual event itself, it's not all that interesting to hear all of the details.

Along with the amazing pictures by the beautiful and talented

Sheryl Duckett I will try to briefly describe each of the three events:

The swim. I trained for 12 weeks, working to perfect my swim strokes, to increase my speed and endurance in the water.

The actual event of a group swim is more like water wrestling, interrupted by some brief doggie-paddle.

For me, it was also The Great Apology.

Picture 150 women in their 30s hitting and kicking each other in the water, and with their only remaining breath trying to apologize constantly. There has to be a better way to prepare for this section, but I don't know what it is.

I'm sorry! (There, I said it again)

The ride. I did pretty well in the biking section, so a brief description of this section, could be summarized by, "ON YOUR LEFT!"(the polite way to pass), which I said so much, I finally abbreviated to "LEFT!".

(Transitioning from biking to running.)

The run. I knew the run would be my hardest section. I was tired from the swim & bike, my legs felt like rubber, and the sun was starting to feel REALLY hot. On top of that, a lot of competitors were walking by this point, (at least the ones I was passing) which actually drains a lot of psychological energy.

My mind was saying, 'let's just walk now', but one of the things I learned in my weeks of training was to honestly assess my body, and not listen to my mind.

My body was okay, and I pushed through, and was able to sprint the final section which was a downhill to the finish line, which in my head sounded a little like this- "I'm sprinting to the finish! I'm sprinting to the finish! I'm sprinting to the finish! Holy Crap, there's still a long way to the finish!

I'm sprinting to the finish! I'm still sprinting to the finish! I'm sprinting to the finish!" My final lesson learned was that I need to cool down after an event like this. I stopped short as soon as I crossed the finish line, and thought I was going to die. But, I didn't.

Here are our results:

Charles- Race Rank- 6th in age group/ 50th overall

Race Time- 49:28

Swim (.25m): 31st/ 8:40min/ speed 1.7

Bike (9 m): 2nd/ 21:37/ speed 25

Run (2 m): 15th/ 14:53/ speed 7:27

Dawn- Race Rank- 19th in age group/ 444th overall

Race Time- 1:02:44

Swim (.25 m): 14th/ 9:30 min/ speed: 1.6

Bike (9 m): 16th/ 27:54 min/ speed 19.4

Run (2 m): 23rd/ 19:02 min/ speed 9:31

Leif Watering Flowers

2009-06-29T15:54:00.005-04:00

Last week I purchased some flowers to plant around the

house. As I was driving them home, I thought- do I really

want more responsibility? Then I thought that I would

teach Leif about caring for things starting with watering

the flowers each day. It has been a great experience.

Broken Tooth

2009-06-28T13:43:00.004-04:00

I took this portrait of Leif early in his 15th month. I was inspired by a local photographer to use his quilt as a backdrop, which is a little distracting because it's patchwork. But, I still love this photo, and his beautiful smile. I especially love it because it is one of the last images with his perfect little front teeth.

Unfortunately, this past weekend Leif chipped his front tooth. We're actually not exactly sure when it happened. As far as we can tell, he was crawling in the house pushing a large ball, and he must have had his weight on the ball and it slipped out from underneath him. He must have hit his mouth on the threshold piece between 2 rooms, or maybe his teeth hit together. I was nearby, and picked him up because he cried, and he was holding his mouth, but would not let me see it. There was no blood and he stopped crying, so I let him keep playing. A little while later, he was walking around and playing with his front teeth with his tongue, and when he pulled his tongue back, I caught sight of his broken tooth.

When it happened, I was hoping that we would be able to rebuild his tooth, and move on, but it seems as though we will have to get used to his broken tooth smile, at least for the next few years. According to the dentist, if we rebuild the tooth, it will inevitably chip off again and again taking more of the enamel from the baby tooth and eventually the tooth will die. In fact, the tooth may die just from this trauma, so at this point, I'm just hoping he'll be able to keep his tooth, and we can all rejoice in 5 years or so when he gets his normal adult front tooth!

Exciting Day!

2009-05-30T16:56:00.007-04:00

Today was an exciting day.

This morning I ran my first 5k. In fact, as far as I know, this is the first time in my life I've run over 3 miles. I've been training for a Sprint Triathlon for the last 8 weeks, but also I've started a new asthma treatment, which has really seemed to improve my ability. My lungs actually work when I push them! Charles has been encouraging me to try this treatment for years...glad I finally did!

Charles pushed Leif (and Curious George) in his jog stroller beside me.

The race went through beautiful Lullwater Park on Emory University Campus. It was beautiful, but hilly. I heard a man at the end say he ran it (3.2 miles) in the same time he usually runs 4 miles on a flat course.

We ran passed the lake during the race and then looped around and finished with the lake in view.

Leif was sad that he couldn't go swimming in the lake with the geese, and tried several times to pull us into the water with him.

I placed 3rd in my age group and came home with a medal!

Then, in the afternoon, Leif and Charles were playing in his play yard, and Leif decided to let go and walk! Here are a few videos of him walking:

We shot a few more videos after church Sunday:

Family Photos by Sherry

2009-04-17T20:36:00.006-04:00

Sherry Duckett came over for dinner last week and we ran outside and took a few family photos. I wanted a new photo for our website, and figured we'd get something in the few minutes we spent outside. In about 20 minutes, Sherry shot over 400 images, and they were amazing! Here are some of my favorites. Thanks Sherry!

And, I'm embarrassed to say that I didn't really work on an Easter picture this year. I mean, I'm a professional photographer, I own a BUNNY, and I have an adorable baby- what's my problem? I don't know. But, I did shoot a short bunny/baby session, and this is what I got. Cute, but not all that I was hoping it would be.

Driveway Buggy

2009-03-16T20:14:00.002-04:00

The rains cleared yesterday afternoon, so we brought Leif outside in his buggy. Charles got the idea to let the buggy go down the driveway on its own, and Leif seemed to enjoy that.

Happy 1st Birthday!

2009-03-06T11:43:00.011-05:00

It's hard to believe, but my little guy is one years old! Incredibly, Leif seems to have grown up a lot in the last few weeks, even in the last few days. He's chattering more, smiling and interacting more, waving at people, and cars, and trees and stuffed animals. He has not looked like a baby for a few months now, but he is really looking more and more like a little boy. What a difference a year makes!

My dad and Patricia flew down for Leif's birthday weekend.
We took Leif on a hike for his birthday.

On Saturday, we had a few friends over for some swingset time, sock puppet making and cupcakes! It was such a good time. And, it was good to celebrate- a really good year. I imagined that having a baby would be incredibly difficult all day, every day. There have definitely been incredibly difficult times this year, especially at the beginning, but there have been many restful, delightful days. I feel so privileged to have a son as beautiful and wonderful as Leif. He is truly, truly a joy.

Pushing the Walker

2009-03-03T21:44:00.002-05:00

I remember when Erika gave me this walker. I was still pregnant. And she said to me, I know it seems like a long way off, but he will be playing with this in no time. And, sure enough, it does seem like no time at all, and he's already pushing the walker around.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-06T20:47:00.005-05:00

Videos

2009-01-27T19:00:00.002-05:00

I have a few new videos of Leif to share. Here is a video of Charles and Leif playing with Leif's stuffed animal moose. I love Leif's laugh:

And this video is from Sope Creek. We walked there with the baby, and then let him do a little walking of his own.

Leif Crawling

2009-01-07T11:02:00.002-05:00

I know I've got all of December to update, but this is breaking news and I thought I'd get it out there in a timely manner! Leif is finally crawling- well, not perfectly, but he is finally putting one hand in front of the other and making forward progress. I know I should be worried about all of the things he's going to get into now that he's more mobile, but honestly, he's 10 months old, it's time to crawl! Here he is:

2008-12-08T15:20:00.009-05:00

I'm really behind with posts...again. So, I'll try to catch up with a few pictures and this video. My Dad & Patricia came for a visit in November and set up Leif's swingset. Leif has really been enjoying it, when it's not too cold out.

He gets a kick out of it when we swing next to him.

While checking out at Kroger the other day, the cashier gave Leif a balloon. Leif was soooooo excited about that balloon!

October NJ Trip

2008-11-06T20:06:00.007-05:00

While home in NJ for Nana's funeral, I spent some time photographing my beautiful neice Ava. Leif of course had to get in a few pictures. It's so cute that they are both sitting now. Ava is 7 weeks younger than Leif.

We also got to spend some time enjoying the beautiful NJ fall weather. We went for a hike with Charles' brother Jon and his family, my Dad and Patricia, and Gordon and Bear.

Rosemary Monaco 1930-2008

2008-10-29T15:26:00.010-04:00

Rosemary was everything you could expect of an Italian lady from NJ- independent, feisty, vain, irresistible. For as long as I can remember, she was always out, or on her way out- playing golf or tennis, bowling, bingo, traveling the world with her girlfriends, or walking the NJ boardwalk. She always had a radio playing, or the TV on (or both) and had cookies in the freezer that she was ready to defrost and serve with tea (or powdered milk!).
She was mom, sister, aunt, wife, but most importantly, she was my Nana. She was the one who I HAD to sit next to at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. She was always breaking the rules. She would let me sip her coffee, chew gum, and fiddle around on the piano, instead of doing my piano lessons! When she would babysit, she would let me stay up past my bedtime cuddling on the couch watching Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy, and she’d get me to bed just before my parents came home. Or, if she insisted on putting me to bed, I would get her to stay in my bedroom by asking her stories about her childhood, or her siblings, or whatever I could think to ask her about. Before I was 21, she would order “herself” a glass of wine for me.

When Nana was first sick, she had a tenacious desire for life. This enabled her to fight through several terrible bouts of pneumonia, rehabilitating even her ability to feed herself, and re-learning how to walk several times. And like the true survivor that she was, she was out playing golf again. I remember one day talking to her on the phone. She said to me “I hope it rains tomorrow so that I don’t go play golf. I’m not feeling very well.” I think she ended up in the hospital with pneumonia a day or two later. She lived her life to the full, even when it was risky for her health. Because she fought to live, she was able to meet my son Leif this past May.
I believe that God puts grandparents in our lives to demonstrate His unconditional love. Nana was unconditionally loving towards me- I didn’t have to do anything to earn her love, she loved me simply because I was her granddaughter. I remember surprising her with a visit one time. She opened her door and was so excited to see me. She said to me, "At first I couldn’t figure out if it was really you, or if I thought it was you because I wanted to see you so badly".

This has been a big year for me. In March, I became a mom. Now in October, I lay down my title as granddaughter, and pass that on to the next generation. My son is now “grandson”, my mom is now his “Nana”. It’s funny, I think that being a granddaughter was probably one of my favorite roles that I will ever play in life. Although, I think being “mom” might rival that enjoyment.

Leif- Seven Months Old

2008-10-05T16:44:00.004-04:00

It's hard to believe that Leif is already 7 months old. I remember thinking around this time last year that I would have a baby who could already sit- and then the thought flew out of my head about as fast as it came in because I think I couldn't handle it. And right on queue, all of a sudden Leif can sit on his own. He was balancing on my lap, and could even sit in a booster seat, but now, he can do it all on his own. Not well- he topples over very easily still, but I know it won't be long before he'll be pulling himself into a sitting position. Crazy!

NJ- September 2008

2008-10-01T20:59:00.017-04:00

Leif and I flew up to NJ to visit family for 8 days. We went up as a family in May, but Charles' next planned visit is Christmas, and that was just too long for me to be away. I felt a little crazy traveling with a baby alone, and honestly the day before I left for the trip, if I didn't have a flight reservation, I probably would have chickened out altogether. Charles was able to escort me all the way to the gate. (which really helped- getting a baby, a stroller, a car seat, a car seat base, a carry on bag, etc, thru security was a daunting task) Many people must have been praying for me because on the flight up I sat next to the nicest woman, who didn't mind that Leif wanted to chew on her purse strap and grab at her colorful scarf. Also, my child who never ever falls asleep in our arms, slept on my lap for the last hour of the flight.

We made it to NJ in time for my niece Hailey's 3rd birthday party. It was great to arrive in NJ and see all of my close family the first day there. Leif was amazing our entire trip. He was very flexible- eating and sleeping in strange places without much struggle.
Heather and I met took the 3 kids (2 babies and a toddler!) up to my dad's place in NY state for the weekend. My dad and Patricia drove up to meet us. But, Heather and I arrived several hours before them and had some kid drama along the way.

When we arrived at the house, we couldn't get the heat to turn on. It was 60 degrees in the house, so we had all the kids bundled up, babies jumping in their jumpers while we carried all of the pack and plays, bags, etc. into the house. I reached my dad to ask him about the heat, and he says "I think I know what you can do. Go downstairs and-" his cell phone cut out. So, Heather finally got in touch with Pete who remembered a reset button downstairs and that worked to get the heat going. Saturday morning I did Hailey's 3 year pictures while Dad and Patricia watched the babies. And apparently they had so much fun doing that, they offered to watch all three kids so that Heather and I could go out to dinner together.

My mom and I got to go shopping together- and Leif was the beneficiary! He got an adorable outfit from Baby Gap for this winter, and two hats from Old Navy. Fun shopping with Nana!

We also got to visit with Leif's boy cousins Andy and Sammy. Leif really enjoyed watching them! And they were very good with him.

I got a chance to visit with my Nana who is very sick. It was a really hard visit. She has a tracheotomy, and was on a ventilator so she wasn't able to talk at all, although she tried. I cried a lot and told her as much as I could think to tell her about Leif and all of the wonderful things he is doing these days. It was really good, but the next day I felt as though I had run a marathon.
When it was time to return home, I was very torn. Spending time with my family is so wonderful, especially now to see Leif with his cousins. But, I was very ready to be back home with Charles (just wishing home was closer). Again, we had a wonderful experience flying home- the plane with only 3/4 full, so they gave Leif a seat next to me, so I was able to bring his carseat, and he slept thru take off. Flying into Atlanta was wonderful- and reminded me of all of the times I visited Charles when we were dating- he even had a bouquet of flowers for me.

Vail Colorado- August 2008

2008-09-18T16:14:00.020-04:00

Charles, Leif and I joined Mari Ann and Gordon (Charles' parents- aka MyMy and Papa) in Vail, Colorado for vacation in August. Other than our trip to NJ in May, this was Leif's first official vacation. Although, as far as he was concerned life was pretty normal- Eat, Play, Sleep, Repeat- with a few twists- lots of elevator rides and eating on benches outside and in gondolas. Unfortunately, the altitude really seemed to bother him and he was fussy the first few days. In fact, the altitude bothered me too and I had headaches and vertigo for my first few days. So, I understood his struggle. I also must have been allergic to something out there and thought I had a head cold for most of the trip. I figured it was allergies because as soon as we started our travels home, my sinuses cleared. Go figure.
Other than that, it was a beautiful week. Even the hotel room had a beautiful creek flowing past, and I spent a lot of time out on our balcony just listening and watching. It was in the 70s and low 80s all week, so that was a gorgeous break from August in Atlanta!

On our way out to Vail, we stopped in Georgetown to visit with our friends Jaimee and Sam, and their new baby Eli. I can't believe I forgot to take pictures of them, but it was just a busy day traveling and I forgot. Here are a few pictures of the town of Georgetown. The street view was taken by Mari Ann.

Here are some pictures from the Betty Ford Botanical Gardens. Many of the images were taken by Charles, including the hummingbird. We found out that hummingbirds are a pretty common site in Colorado.

We'd often see 2 or 3 darting in and out, up and over trees and bushes, hovering close by and then darting away again. I told Charles they reminded me of cartoon characters, they were so fast.

On Monday, Gordon, Charles and I bought lift tickets and rented downhill bikes and descended the mountain several times. It was a blast. Unfortunately, Gordon took a fall on a tight switchback on a trail ironically called "Lion Down". However, he was a good sport and walked away with a few bruises and a good story to tell about it. As you can see, the mountain was gorgeous!

Charles spent much of his week biking- on the road and in the mountains. Here are some of his pictures:

He biked one day up to Lost Lake.

He left me a message saying that later in the day we could probably drive the rental SUV up to the lake.

However, after biking it, he realized that the trail could not be driven up. But, in the meantime, I had told Mari Ann and Gordon about it. So that afternoon, we all piled into the car thinking that we were going to Lost Lake. Charles was driving and was trying to explain that he was just going to take us up in the mountains but that we couldn't go to Lost Lake. I guess we were all a little distracted because we each individually asked if we were going to the lake. Charles was so flustered explaining it that he finally announced- "WE'RE NOT GOING TO A LAKE! DOES EVERYONE UNDERSTAND THAT?" So we finally understood, and settled in to explore the mountains.

As we drove, we passed the part where Charles had biked to, and continued on the mountain road. We started seeing signs for Piney Lake Lodge. So, we followed the signs and ironically ended up at a gorgeous lake- not Lost Lake, but Piney Lake- which had a lodge and canoe rentals, and a hiking path.

Unfortunately, we were too late to canoe, but Charles and I went for a little hike in the "wilderness" which they were kind enough to label for us, and Mymy and Papa took Leif to see the horses (although I think he slept thru that part!).

On Friday, Charles and I climbed Vail Mt. Well, Charles climbed the whole Mt- 3,000 ft, and then descended to meet me at the gondola, and then together we climbed the final 1,000 ft to the summit.

It was a 5 mile traverse, which climbed gradually, and would have been a breeze, except that it started at 10,000 ft, so my lungs felt like they had brain freeze for most of the climb. We took it gradually, which had its benefits- there was a gorgeous view for the entire ride. Most of the time we had a 180 panorama, and occasionally we would ride through a section of aspens or pine trees which was equally stunning.

At the summit, we ate our celebratory peanut butter & jelly sandwiches.

I fed a group of birds some of breadcrumbs out of my hands- they were amazingly brave!

Leif Says Mama

2008-09-14T21:46:00.004-04:00

Well, I'm way behind with posts, and still need to write about our trip to Vail, Colorado, but right now I'm in NJ visiting family. Leif and I came up for a little visit because I couldn't wait until Christmas to see everyone. So this weekend, Heather and I packed up Leif, Hailey and Ava and headed up to my Dad's house in the Adirondacks and met Dad and Patricia up there. It was quite the baby weekend, but it was a blast.
Yesterday as I was changing Leif's diaper, he started saying "Mama"! It's adorable, although he often says it when he's complaining, like tonight when I laid him down to sleep, he didn't cry he just said "Mama" about 50 times in a row sounding really sad. My heart! It's harder than when he screams! But it was sweet, he woke up from his nap saying "Mama" and I was like, "Mama's coming". Very sweet. Next we'll work on "Dadda".
So here's a video of us on our drive home from the Adirondacks today. It was time for Leif and Ava to eat and so we were looking for the next rest area to feed them. Leif was complaining to me and doing sit ups trying to get out of his car seat, and saying Mama quite a lot!

Callaway Gardens

2008-08-18T11:18:00.006-04:00

Leif naps every morning. Let me revise that statement...Leif is supposed to nap every morning. When we're home, he has it pretty much down. I put him in his crib around 9:30 and he usually sleeps until around 11:30 when he eats. When we're out and about, it's a different story. He takes little cat naps and then wakes up to observe the world. He's just at that age now- looking around is just too tempting, even if he's tired (or hungry for that matter).
So, we skipped church yesterday to go on a family outing to Callaway Gardens. I've lived in Georgia for almost 7 years now, Charles has lived here for about 17, and neither of us have bothered to take the trip to the Gardens. It is about a 2 hour drive, so we packed up and got in the car right around Leif's nap time, and I thought he'd knock right out and get his 2 hour morning nap in. However, I started getting suspicious that he was still awake back there, but couldn't see from the front seat. So instead of risking waking him up, I got the bright idea to shoot a video of him and then look at it to see if he was awake....this is what I saw:

I guess it would be a little surprising to be staring into space and have a video camera appear!

Our time at Callaway was pretty disappointing. It was drizzling when we got there, but we set up our bikes and put Leif in his all-weather bike trailer (it has a plastic cover for rain) and set out to ride the paved bike trail. The rain let up and the trail was beautiful and smooth. Well, at least that's how it started out. The trail got bumpier and bumpier as we went and Charles ended up having to go a snails pace to protect poor Leif from being shaken too much. We were pretty disappointed that the trail wasn't maintained better.
We got back to the car and were about to walk the grounds and try to see some of the exhibits when we started hearing thunder and sirens. So, we packed up quickly and got into the car just in time for a massive thunder storm to roll through. I guess next time we will have to pay more attention to the weather forecast before we drive 4 hours for an outdoor adventure.

Bike Helmet

2008-08-15T14:05:00.001-04:00

The baby just got his first bike helmet (for when he's in the bike trailer) and a new exersaucer. I shot a short video of him in his exersaucer trying on the helmet for the first time.

Jumpster

2008-08-13T17:09:00.002-04:00

It took Leif a few times, but he's finally getting the hang of his jumpster. Of course he's only a few inches and a few pounds away from outgrowing it, so enjoy it while you can, kid!

A visit from MyMy

2008-08-08T21:37:00.011-04:00

Charles' mom "MyMy" came down for a visit this past week. I got a fleeting taste of the glorious world of grandparents. I would feed the baby and then hand him off for fun with MyMy. I got so much work done this week! And, we enjoyed visiting with her, although now I have to break my Dunkin Donuts decaf & donut addiction. (or at least the donut part of that equation)

While Mymy was here, she offered to watch the baby so that Charles and I could go ride on his morning off. So, I got to take my new road bike out on the road for the first time. I thought that I would be afraid of the vehicles as they passed, but honestly, it was pretty exhilarating to have them whizzing by. When we got back from the ride, we handed Mari Ann the camera and had her take a few action shots. Good job Mymy! Babysitter and photographer!

Baby and Me!

2008-08-01T21:18:00.003-04:00

I have been begging Charles to do a photo shoot of Leif and I for about 2 months now. We finally took the time to take the pictures the other day! I have the most adorable baby in the world.

4 1/2 month photo shoot

2008-07-30T20:53:00.002-04:00

I took Leif to the Johnson's house to do a photo shoot. I was looking to photograph him outside by a pool and also wanted to photograph him with his bath towel wrapped around him, and their house was a great location. Their guest room has a gorgeous antique bath tub.

This is probably my favorite picture that I have taken of Leif so far.

Attempted Roll

2008-07-27T09:30:00.004-04:00

I was really sure Leif was going to roll the other day. I was so sure I ran to get our video camera and would not have been surprised to find him on his belly when I returned. Well, he never did roll, not yet anyway, but he did some of his other baby tricks for the camera- sorry for the sloppy video-editing, I don't know much about it, I just knew it needed to be cut down a little.

NJ Visit

2008-07-18T13:35:00.012-04:00

Charles and Leif and I took our first trip as a family up to NJ. Our parents all came down at Leif's birth, but had not seen him since then. Our brothers and their families had never met Leif- and I got to meet my new niece Ava. My Nana, who has been in and out of the hospital and rehab also got to meet Leif for the first time.
Overall, the trip was mostly a time to spend time with our families. We also traveled up to Boston for the weekend to attend a wedding, and got to visit with a few friends from college. Charles missed our typical vacation adventures, and I pretty much felt that traveling with a baby was enough adventure for right now.

Leif with his boy cousins, all dressed up for the wedding.

We visited Mikako, a high school friend of Charles'. She had a gorgeous view of the NYC skyline off of her balcony.

Nana with all of her grandkids.

Beautiful Ava.

Leif and Ava hanging out on the couch looking like old people.

Leif deciding that Ava looked edible.

Leif with his girl cousins- Hailey and Ava.

Leif hanging out with Grami and PopPop.

Do you see a common denominator in these pictures? Oh, why not? He's so cute!

Resemblance?

2008-07-08T18:11:00.014-04:00

The big question we get with Leif is- so who does he look like? Or people will just say "He looks just like you" and just as many will say "He looks just like Charles". All that means is that he's a good mix. While we were home in NJ I got a baby picture of me, and forgot to get a baby picture of Charles, but hopefully I'll get one soon. Here's me, I think about 2 weeks old, compared to a picture of Leif at one month.

We went for Leif's 4 month check up and immunizations yesterday. He is 18 lbs 8 oz, and 27 inches long. Basically, he's the size of your average 7 month old. The doctor just told me to remind people of how old he is, because they will expect him to be developmentally further than he is. Other than that, the doctor says he looks great, and gave the go-ahead for riding in the bike trailer on smooth pavement. We're pretty excited about that!
The doctor also explained that his stomach isn't nearly as large as it appears, his muscles just aren't developed enough to hold it in...exactly what's wrong with my stomach!

And here is a family photo that Sherry Duckett took a few Sundays ago. Thanks Sherry!

Yard Rabbits

2008-06-24T15:14:00.006-04:00

We live in a Beatrix Potter world. We have our house rabbit, Gordy, but we also have lots of yard bunnies. On any given morning, there are two to three bunnies eating our front lawn. The other evening I went out and did some portraits. They are pretty brave bunnies, apparently, because they let me get pretty close. Although, I do know how to approach a rabbit- walk slowly and quietly towards them while looking in another direction. I don't see you, you don't see me, sort of thing...seems to work!

And here is a picture of Leif and I. He fell asleep playing in his playpen the other day and I picked him up to put him in his crib, and I had a little trouble putting him down because he cuddled in so nicely.

Chatter

2008-06-18T13:32:00.002-04:00

Leif has been quite talkative lately. He babbles and laughs and babbles some more. The other day he woke up on our drive home and was talking away and continued to talk when we got into the house.

Thumb Sucking

2008-06-10T20:46:00.005-04:00

As I was trying to wake Leif this morning, he got his thumb in his mouth trying to stay asleep. Today was really the first day that he really got a good hold of his thumb- he's been sucking his knuckles, his palm and his fingers, but today, I think he finally figured it out. I caught him this afternoon practicing the skill...

Leif's New "Do"

2008-06-09T20:17:00.003-04:00

So, Leif has a new hairdo. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...my little mohawk baby...

Swimming

2008-06-09T19:46:00.009-04:00

We took the baby swimming for the first time this weekend! We went over to the Johnson's salt water pool, and Nathan, Joshua and Callie gave Leif a warm (but loud) introduction to swimming. Leif did pretty well- he seemed to just be taking everything in as we held him in the water. After a while he started fussing, which turned into screaming, which turned very quickly into a nap. Apparently swimming took a lot of energy. (Thanks for the cool swimwear Aunt Sheryl & Uncle Dave!)

DM & Gwennan

2008-06-09T15:06:00.006-04:00

Donna Marie and Gwennan are both looking exceptionally cute these days- DM expecting, and Gwennan is just Gwennan! So, I took them out for a photoshoot last Friday. Here are a few of my favorites:

Laughing for the Ladies

2008-06-02T14:54:00.004-04:00

This weekend was DM's baby shower. Erika hosted it at her beautiful house. I brought along the baby in his Hawaiian party shirt. He cooed and laughed for the ladies and DM shot this video.
His laughing was also quite disruptive in church this week. I fed him in a little room at the back of the sanctuary and then left him in there playing with a mobile. I joined the service (Charles was teaching) and left the back door open a crack so that I could hear if he cried. He was laughing and squealing so loud that most of the church (all 20 of them) turned around at some point laughing. The funny thing is, there aren't even batteries in the mobile, but he could kick the side of the bassinet and make the mobile shake, which just cracks him up. I love that he's so happy playing alone.

Memorial Day Bike Ride

2008-05-30T11:30:00.008-04:00

Charles and I biked 22 miles of the Silver Comet Trial on Memorial Day. We towed Leif in his bike trailer, and he did really well. He slept for most of the ride, but woke up a few times and just looked around. He's a little young to put in a bike trailer, and Charles & I both worried about him so much during the ride, and the day after, that we think we probably won't ride with him again for another few months.

His face got all dirty even though it was just a paved path. You have to make this picture bigger to see the dirt- it's very cute. He was happy despite the dirt!

Memorial Day Weekend Wedding

2008-05-30T09:14:00.015-04:00

Charles performed his first wedding this past weekend. When he was ordained he said he probably wouldn't do weddings or funerals, and in the last two months, he's spoken at one funeral and performed a wedding. He did a great job and put together a beautiful ceremony. It was a little weird for me at first (I've been to so many weddings as a photographer) to hear Charles starting the ceremony. It was almost like, what is he doing up there? But then after I adjusted, he did a really wonderful job.

At the reception we met a really great couple- "Pug" the husband, had been mayor of Roswell for 40 years, and Sandra runs the cultural center in Roswell. They were really great to talk to, and Sandra got some cuddle time in with Leif, who was a total sweetheart to her. Speaking of Leif, he did wonderfully. He fell asleep just before the bridal party entered the ceremony, and he slept through most of the live salsa band at the reception (until they started whooping, which really was loud).

First Kiss

Announcing as husband & wife

Beautiful Bride

Leif all dressed up in wedding attire- he was ridiculously cute.

Smiling, Sleeping, etc

2008-05-19T17:12:00.008-04:00

I shot this video a few days ago to try to capture how smiley and cute Leif is right after he's eaten when I'm changing his diaper. He's so sweet.

I finally got to photograph Leif sleeping naked. I tried this one other time with terrible results. The secret was to put him to sleep in just his diaper in a fleece blanket and then slip him out of it once he was really asleep. Also, I used the space heater to make the studio area nice and cozy so that he stayed asleep. I'm quite proud to say that I didn't even get peed on this time! Isn't he beautiful?

I also photographed Leif awake trying to capture a smile, but I think I'm going to have to get Charles' help with that. He smiles really big when I talk to him, but by the time I get the camera up, it's faded. So, I think we'll need to double team him to get that one. I did get a really cute picture of him trying to get my finger into his mouth.

The First Seven Weeks Slideshow

2008-05-16T19:20:00.004-04:00

I initially created this slideshow to send to my Nana who is in and out of the hospital in north jersey. She has only seen a few pictures of Leif, and never any videos, so I thought it would be fun to put a few of our videos on DVD for her. Of course it turned into a bigger project than I meant for it to, but now I'm very happy to have this compiled. These pictures and videos cover Leif's first seven weeks.
In exciting baby news, Leif slept through the night 2 nights now. Wednesday night he slept from 11- 8! And last night he slept from 11:30-6:30, not quite as long of a stretch, but we'll take it. He has learned to suck his fingers, and I think when he starts to wake up during the night he has been soothing himself back to sleep with those wonderful portable pacifiers...his hands!

Mother's Day Mountain Biking

2008-05-12T09:53:00.006-04:00

I asked Charles to watch Leif while I went for a pedicure for my mother's day present. I also asked if he would take some studio pictures of me with the baby. All of these things will happen, but yesterday I decided it was time to break out the new mountain bike and give it a go. I demoed this bike when I was at least 7 months pregnant, and I really liked it, as much as I could like any bike at that point. So, we got it as my "mom" gift, so it's appropriate that I try it out for the first time on my first mother's day. Biking was about as hard as I thought it would be. I was quite good at mt. biking when I got pregnant, so I finally had that "just like riding a bike" feeling. It all came back to me pretty well, at least in principle. My legs are not as strong as they need to be (although they should be in pretty good shape after lugging around that big baby!) and my lungs are not used to being pushed, so it was hard, but my balance was good and my courage (which makes all the difference) was pretty much back. I remembered how well a mt. bike can climb over huge-looking roots, and this bike is especially amazing because it's a 29er and takes roots and bumps amazingly well. I can't wait to get back into great shape and see what this 29er really can do! Charles took the baby for a jog on the greenway while I rode the trail, and then I fed the baby while Charles rode the trail. It worked out really well.

Two Months Old

2008-05-08T16:57:00.005-04:00

Well, it's hard to believe, but Leif is 2 months old already! We took him in for his 2 month appointment and he weighs 15 lbs 6 oz, and is 25 inches long. He's doing lots of great baby things these days. He smiles and coos and is very playful right after he's eaten. I have to shoot video while I change his diaper one of these days- he's downright funny. We blow his belly and kiss his cheeks and he laughs and looks at us with his great bright eyes.
Yesterday when I was changing him he was doing his regular "ahhs" and "oos" and all of a sudden he says "hi", in a kind of singsong way. I look down at him and he did it again- and then went back to his regular noises. Charles asked if that could count as his first word, and I said, sure, why not, even though he probably won't say it again for a while. He's also getting his "l's" down- the other day he was crying and instead of his regular "waaa" or "aaaah", he was going "laah, laahhh". It was very cute.
He also seems very determined to suck his hand or fingers or thumb. He will spend a lot of time when he's getting sleepy trying to get something to stay in his mouth. It's very cute. We've even tried to help him get a hold on his thumb, but he doesn't get that we're helping and pushes against us.

He got his immunizations on Tuesday and has pretty much needed tylenol since then. At first it was because he seemed very uncomfortable and was crying uncontrollably, but then last night I let it wear off and he was running a fever. This afternoon he felt warm to me as well (we were out without a thermometer) so I gave him some more because I was pretty sure he had a little fever. Hopefully by tomorrow the symptoms should all fade away. It's been sad to see him not feeling himself.
I took these sleeping pictures this past Monday, and not without incident. Our carpet and the blanket he was laying on got peed on, and so did my leg, and Leif's chest. That ended the little sleeping-naked photo session. I didn't get any full body shots that I liked, so we will attempt the dangerous feat at least one more time soon. He's got so many great rolls to show off.

Out & About

2008-05-05T21:51:00.008-04:00

Now that I'm starting to feel better, and getting a little more sleep, Charles and I are getting out with the baby.

We went for a walk with the baby bjorn, jogging by the Chattahoochie, and today we climbed Kennesaw Mt. We finally got our jog stroller/bike trailer. It's amazing. We're very excited to be so mobile with the baby.

Smiles

2008-04-30T17:11:00.003-04:00

We have a smiler. It started about a week ago, I was singing something stupid to the baby while I changed him and I looked down and he was smiling at me. And I was like, hmm, I was being sort of funny, and he smiled. Next day he was smiling more and even sort of giggling. So I shot a little video (which I'll upload soon) and got this picture. Hopefully will catch a bigger smile "on film" soon with Charles' help.

Ava Rose

2008-04-28T14:43:00.003-04:00

My brother Peter and his wife Heather just had their second little girl, Ava Rose! Rose is after our grandmother Rosemary. They had to perform an emergency C-section, but Heather & Ava are doing fine now.
Ava was born at 10:36am. She weighs 6 lbs 10 oz, and is 20 1/2 inches long. Heather says that Ava resembles her sister Hailey a little, but that she actually looks a little bit like Leif. Here is the first picture I've received.

Bath Time

2008-04-17T20:57:00.002-04:00

Leif is still very unpredictable with his baths. Sometimes he screams from the moment he hits the water until long after we have him dry and dressed. Other times he takes his bath with a quiet kind of curiousity. Usually by the end he loses patience and starts to cry, and fortunately, he was quite good during this bath.

Baby Blue

2008-04-13T18:06:00.009-04:00

Had the baby in the studio again this week- it's a great wake time activity for both of us. He seems to love staring into the studio lights...but honestly, sometimes he doesn't love anything. He just screams.

This collage is to commemorate my favorite newborn outfit that he just outgrew. It's the outfit that he wore home from the hospital. It's funny how attached I got to that little outfit. He looked so cute in it.

Sleepy

2008-04-07T14:02:00.003-04:00

Well we can't get him to fall asleep in the studio, but he falls asleep everywhere else....
Asleep while burping....

Asleep in his chair....

Smiling while asleep...

Asleep in his crib...

Now we just need to get him to sleep longer!

Leif- One Month Photos

2008-04-06T15:03:00.006-04:00

This was a big weekend. No, he's not sleeping through the night or anything. Friday, I tried on a 0-3 month layette and it fit Leif. So far he's only been in newborn sizes. It sort of freaked me out that soon we would be retiring these adorable newborn outfits that I've grown attached to- in fact, he looked like a different child altogether in new clothing! So, I said to Charles that it was time to set up the studio before our child grows up much more. So, Saturday afternoon we threw out the schedule and put our kid in front of the lights.

The flash lasted for a few pictures when Charles decided that a stationary light would not bother the baby as much- everyone else's kids get their brains flashed out, but not ours...okay, we'll work to change that! Anyway, so we set up the umbrella with a work light from Home Depot and we had gorgeous lighting. Not only that, but Leif enjoyed looking at the light, which kept him wide-eyed and looking in the right direction for the whole shoot. I have to say that Charles and I were both surprised at the pictures- I mean, we know the kid is cute, but he looks super cute in these...don't you think? The studio is still set up, so I think there will be more to come in the following week(s).

Oh, and today Leif is one month old. This morning, I finally cut his hair- don't worry grandparents, you wouldn't even notice it. His hair in back is just getting a little too long and it was starting to look like a mullet. Actually, the final straw came when Todd Babb said that he was a Georgia boy, so a little mullet was okay...and I was like- I'm cutting his hair the first chance I get!

Bunny Meets the Baby

2008-04-03T18:18:00.002-04:00

Today Gordy was playing on Leif's activity mat, so I put Leif down there to see if the rabbit would approach him. Gordy's been a little distant these days, but lately he's getting closer and closer, and today he was pretty curious. Unfortunately, my camera ran out of memory before the whole interaction was done, but you get the idea...

Belly Time

2008-03-28T10:41:00.002-04:00

Leif is strong, especially when he's hungry. He throws his head, arms and legs all around. So, we're trying to develop that strength by giving him a little time on his belly every morning. His cousin Hailey was confidently holding her head up for minutes by the time she was one month, so it's never too early I guess. Here he is at 3 weeks-

Leif Gordon is Born!

2008-03-17T19:43:00.005-04:00

Leif Gordon Spoelstra was born at 9:30pm on March 6, 2008!
He weighed 9 lbs 3 oz and was 20 1/2 inches long.
More pictures to come!

Last of the maternity photos...

2008-02-23T16:28:00.004-05:00

We finally took my final maternity photos. I told Charles that after this, I don't really want a camera pointed at me. And hopefully, there won't be much more time before we're taking lots of baby pictures! Yesterday was 37 weeks, so we are full term and ready anytime the baby decides he's ready.

ATM Fiasco

2008-02-04T13:43:00.000-05:00

I went to make an ATM deposit the other day. My car, at least the passenger seat, is a little more crowded these days because I carry a running list of my errands, a snack or two, a water bottle and sometimes a thermos full of hot tea, baby coupons, etc. So I pull up to the ATM and stick my business card into the card slot. I reach down to get the deposit envelope and I can’t find my business card. Now, you have an advantage because I’ve already told you that I put my card into the ATM, but somehow I didn’t realize that. So, I look at the deposit envelope and don’t see the card, I open my purse and don’t see the card, I feel my seat under my legs thinking I might have dropped it, and I still can’t find the card. I start going through all of my various items on my passenger seat, and the car behind me starts beeping. (even in Georgia we have impatient motorists) So I think, I should pull away and get out of the car so that I can find my card which I must have dropped. Luckily, before pulling away, I looked up at the ATM screen, which was asking me, “Do you need more time?”. I hit yes, and saw it was asking for my pin. Oh, right, I already put the card into the ATM, that’s why I couldn’t find it.

So, I enter my pin, and I was so flustered that I accidentally hit “Press Here When Complete” in Spanish. So I had to do the whole deposit in Spanish. Luckily, I do enough deposits that somehow I made it through and think I correctly deposited the money.

I tell Charles this story and he says, why didn’t you hit cancel? And I was like, how could I find cancel in Spanish? And he tells me there’s a cancel button on the pin pad…So we’ll have to blame this one on baby brain- or maybe exhaustion…something must be to blame, right?

Snow in Georgia?

2008-01-20T18:39:00.000-05:00

Like many of my neighbors, I had to go outside yesterday and document proof that my house had actually experienced snow. It is such an abnormality for Georgia, to get snow that actually sticks (at least to the grass) and is not just a passing flurry that sends everyone into a panic emptying grocery stores of bottled water and bread. I was at a store Thursday when the first flurries started and the girl at the register said- I've never seen snow before, I lived in California, and then here. So I told her she should take a break and step outside because it might not last very long. Charles acted surprised that I was so delighted to see an actual snow storm in Georgia. He says to me, there was a huge snow storm in like '91 or '92. And I said, yes Charles, that was over 15 years ago!

Christmas 2007

2008-01-17T15:05:00.000-05:00

For the first time in 2 years, we made it home for Christmas this year. We spent almost two weeks visiting with friends and family. For the first time in ages our time in New Jersey was actually relaxing. (boring if you ask Charles) Usually we're only up for a few days so we have a different person to see every few hours. This time, I actually read a book- it was luxurious! (I usually listen to books on tape while I work or drive) The only sad part about being gone so long was that we had to leave Gordy home alone for such a long time. We got back and he's been super affectionate.

I was totally spoiled because Christmas is of course the 25th, my baby shower was on the 27th, and my 29th birthday was on the 29th! So, I had several days of spoiling in a row. It was very nice! We drove home with a car mostly full of baby loot and the in-laws are driving down in March with several boxes that we couldn't fit in the car! We all wore name tags at the baby shower because we were mixing families and friends who didn't know each other. I figured everyone should know who I was, so I gave my belly a name tag instead.

We spent Christmas Eve at my mom's house. Hailey, the only child for only a little longer was the star of the party. She is truly delightful. My Nana was able to come out of rehab to join us, and I think one dose of Hailey does more for her soul than all of her weeks of rehab combined. As a side note, she is now back at home, walking mostly without her walker, and enjoying having her own space.

Christmas morning we went to Pete and Heather's. We found out that they are expecting another girl in May! It has been really fun being pregnant at the same time as Heather, especially visiting each other and laughing as our bellies grow!

Hailey helped everyone open presents and had Disney stickers for everyone- my Dad and Pete seemed to get a few more than most of us!

Christmas afternoon we spent at my Dad and Tricia's house. We all took turns putting on Christmas hats and getting our picture taken in front of the tree.
My favorite time with Hailey & Heather was the time we spent working on a project we got for Hailey for Christmas. It's a wooden sign with the letters of her name on it. Heather and I painted the sign, and the wooden flowers for the sides, and we let Hailey paint each of the letters of her name. She was very decisive- we'd say, what letter do you want to paint, and she'd pick a letter and we'd ask her what color she wanted it, and without hesitation, she'd ask for a color. Heather still had to finish painting each of the letters for her, but overall , for a 2 year old she did a really good job. It wasn't until the very last letter, when Heather and I were barely paying attention to her that she starting diverting from the original plan. We're painting quietly and she says, "Don't worry mommy, it washes off." So we look over to find that she is no longer painting her letter, she's painting her hand. I thought that phrase was so funny, I thought I'd try to catch her saying it on film, but as you will see our attempts to drag it out of her again were unsuccessful. Play Video

Charles got some plastic surgery for Christmas...okay, not really for Christmas, but close enough. We were cleaning up from my baby shower and he smashed his forehead on the corner of the mantelpiece giving him a half inch split right above his eyebrow. We stopped the bleeding, so we both decided we'd just butterfly it together and Charles would just deal with a scar. We figured if we went to the emergency room we'd waste time and money and he'd end up with a scar anyway because they would just throw in a few stitches. So on my way to the store I called my mom because I was feeling guilty about the whole decision. As it turned out, Rich's good friend is a plastic surgeon. So Rich called him and on a Sunday morning this man opened up his office and stitched Charles up for no charge. Amazing right? We call it miraculous. The best part was that I asked to watch and he let me do the last stitch. Charles said when he realized what was going on his whole body got hot, and he says it was the only stitch that actually hurt. I guess I could believe it because I left the needle in longer than the doctor trying to figure out how to unlock the scissors and grab it on the other side. It was my first attempt at stitching skin, so I guess that's a good excuse. The Dr. said now that I knew how easy stitches were I could do that at home too. Charles said I missed my calling! I've since realized that a lot of the photoshop work I do is really similar to plastic surgery, or maybe I should say, is catered to the plastic surgery generation- no faults, no wrinkles, just perfection. As I've retouched my own face, I've often though, I wish I could photoshop in the morning instead of putting on my makeup- it's so much more precise.

Merry Christmas

2007-12-25T15:02:00.000-05:00

In case we missed anyone, here is our Christmas card. We got the idea for a photo collage card from the Greenwalds. Thanks for the inspiration!

Midtown Ladies Christmas Brunch

2007-12-04T15:50:00.000-05:00

Last year, Jen Greenwald started a great tradition- a ladies Christmas brunch and ornament exchange. Jen is an amazing cook, and I think spent 2 days cooking for this year. It was an delicious meal and a fun ornament exchange. Erika Johnson hosted it at her amazing new house.

A Month of Visits

2007-11-26T15:08:00.001-05:00

Well, by the end of this month, all of our parents will have visited. Charles' parents drove down at the beginning of November. They were able to join us at our ultrasound and see little baby Spoelstra move around in there. They also joined us for the annual Grace Ministries banquet, and church and life group and many a breakfast, lunch and dinner. Charles' dad fixed up our pantry with an impressive lighting system that turns on when the door is opened and turns off when it closes. Once the pantry had light in it, we needed to spruce it up a little, so he put flooring down and I gave the walls a quick coat of paint. Mari Ann and I did a little shopping for the baby.
My Dad and Patricia joined us for the Thanksgiving weekend. I have to say that I can't remember a stretch of days where I have eaten so much or so well! Between Thanksgiving leftovers and several great restuarant choices, we all had our fill. Last Christmas when they visited, we went to Waffle House for Christmas morning breakfast. So, in keeping with the tradition, we visited Waffle House for Thanksgiving morning brunch, and we liked it so much, we took them there again Sunday morning before they caught their flight! We took them antique shopping in Roswell. Dad and Charles spent much of the weekend doing house projects, which was wonderful! They even put a new ceiling fan and light in the baby's room. Dad said it was great knowing he was doing something for his grandson. We think it was great too! Patricia helped me put up the Christmas tree, which was so nice because Charles really doesn't like doing, so I usually end up doing alone. The weekend was enjoyable, but went by much too quickly.
Mom and Rich came to visit the last weekend of November. The weather was actually much nicer than it's been most of the month, so that was very nice. We gave them a tour of Atlanta, visiting the High Museum (great exhibit, btw- Harry Callahan- thru 12/9), visiting a few of our favorite restaurants- Surin & Waffle House, and painted pottery. Unfortunately they were only here from Friday to Sunday, so the visit was packed full and way too short, but it was nice for my mom to finally see my house and meet Gordy. I have a feeling that there will be many more visits once the baby comes!

Weddings

2007-11-26T09:40:00.004-05:00

It's really cool that I was a high school English teacher for 2 years, because I developed a few lasting friendships with a few of my students and I've gotten to photograph a few of their weddings. This past month Brandon and Emily got married- I taught Brandon for 2 years, and actually photographed he and Emily because they were high school sweethearts. When Brandon contacted me years later to tell me he was getting married, I told him that he and Emily must have been really mature in high school, because no one I would have chosen to date then would have lasted! Of course, if Charles would have dated me then (he was 27, I was 17) I would have taken him, but I bet my parents wouldn't have liked him as much at that point.

It's A BOY!!!!!!

2007-11-02T21:51:00.000-04:00

We got our first look at our beautiful little boy today. He was quite active, flipping around entirely in the course of the ultrasound. He was not very shy about his boy-hood, so we got an easy confirmation of his gender. (Being discreet parents, we are keeping those pictures off of the internet!) Here are a few of our favorite stills from the ultrasound. I think he has the most beautiful profile that I have ever seen. We went out for sushi and a mountain bike ride to celebrate. It was a good day!
To see Leif's website go to: Leif Gordon
or click the Leif Gordon link at the side of this page.

Happy Halloween

2007-11-01T14:23:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we hosted our 3rd annual neighborhood Halloween Photo Shoot. My costume was a jack-o-lantern, with my belly providing a nice pumpkin shape. Thanks to DM for the idea and artwork. Here are my favorites from this year:

Roadtrip Adventures

2007-10-16T20:18:00.000-04:00

This past week Charles and I drove up to New Jersey. The "reason" for the trip was that Charles was invited to teach a GMI 3-day conference at a church in Ocean County (central Jersey). We then took a week to visit with our families in North Jersey, which we have not done since last winter. It was very very good to see everyone, and it was fun to show off my little belly. I let my moms spoil me as much as they wanted from maternity clothes to a massage and pedicure. You know, sometimes you just have to accept the love! And I loved every moment of it.
I got to go for a nice morning walk on the beach while Charles surfed. I got to attend my favorite Grace Ministries conference so far. I got to go out for ice cream with my brother and his wife Heather and my neice Hailey. Heather is due with their second in May (only 7 weeks after me!) and so it was very fun to talk with her about all of that. I got to spend time with my grandmother who is recovering after another episode of pnuemonia. I spent severel days with my mom and had some great conversation.

Here are some pictures of Hailey. I got my camera out and right away she tried to smile. So, to relax her, I asked her to make silly faces for me. She looked even more like my brother with all of the faces she made!

Our drive home was quite the adventure. Our first stop was VA Beach to see my childhood quasi-sister Karen and her family. We went to the beach and did some pictures of them.

Sunday, we headed a little out of our way to visit with Charles' childhood quasi-brother Jonathan and his family. We had to take a picture for the cover of Grace Ministries brochure and Jonathan turned out to be our perfect model. We also took a few family pictures of them.

Oh, and new in baby news...the baby has been kicking quite stronger these days, and last night for the first time I felt the kicking with my hand on my stomach. So I called Charles over and he too got kicked. It was very exciting.

Anniversary

2007-10-02T18:58:00.000-04:00

This weekend we celebrated our 5th anniversary. We went for a mountain bike ride in the morning, and tried to get sushi for lunch (the baby must love sushi, because I crave it all of the time), but couldn't find any sushi restaurants open, so we ended up at Waffle House (just a little step down). At night we went to the Shakespeare Tavern for dinner and a play. We had our studio set up from a shoot in the afternoon, so I got Charles to pose for a few pictures with me, and also try to record my little belly. It doesn't show very well right now- just give me a little time, I'm working on it.

The Outer Banks

2007-09-11T22:25:00.000-04:00

We returned from Steamboat Friday evening, and left for North Carolina's Outer Banks Saturday evening. Charles' parents, his brother and sister in law and their boys invited us to join them for a week at the beach. Andy and Sammy are 7 and 4, and all boy. When we arrived they ran around the house, almost too excited to give us the tour they were trying to take us on. They ran, they swam, they jumped, they wrestled, and in between, they were bored.

The week was beautiful, and for me, pretty relaxing. I could go to the beach if I felt up to it, or I could stay back at the house and read. I often climbed up to the widow's walk and laid in the sun and breeze reading. Charles and Jon got up every morning and surfed together. Charles and I agreed that I wouldn't surf (although I might have if the waves had been really small) because I almost always end up with a concussion or a black eye, and we decided to keep me safe this summer since my body's already busy with the baby. The waves were "epic" nearly every morning, and so intense that Charles actually injured himself twice, but of course kept surfing. Sorry no surfing pictures. Pregnant photographers just don't work at 6 am.

We celebrated Sammy's 4th birthday while we were there, and Susan had the idea to eat his birthday cake on the beach. So while she prepared it, we all went for a walk down the beach. Sammy ran ahead and in the distance he cried out "look a hole". In an instant he had jumped and disappeared. We all expected him to climb out at any moment, but he didn't. When we finally reached him, he was beaming up at us from the bottom of a narrow 10 foot hole. Jon climbed down a little and dragged him out warning Andy (who listened) not to jump down into it. Sammy of course, elated from the whole event, turns right around and jumps back in. Poor Andy was so upset that he listened and therefore missed out on the fun, Jon let him jump in once before he and Charles filled the hole up, until it was about a 4 foot hole and let the boys jump in over and over and over and over.

Ocracoke Lighthouse, the oldest active lighthouse in North Carolina.

Summer in Steamboat

2007-09-11T22:11:00.001-04:00

Well, I guess this was the summer of traveling for us. First California, and then Steamboat, Colorado. Charles' parents have a timeshare there and invited us to join them for a week. Charles immediately began training to climb Steamboat Mountain on his mountain bike- climbing Kennesaw 4 times each visit, riding more and more each week.

On the other hand, I was climbing my own baby mountain. In my last post, I optimistically wrote that the nausea had gone away early. Well, that's the funny thing about being pregnant, you never know when you're going to feel what. The week before Steamboat (week 9 of my pregnancy) the worst wave of nausea hit. Charles said it was nerves about the upcoming trip. My friends who had been pregnant before informed me that this sort of heavy nausea was normal and was a sign that the baby was doing really well. Hmm. Good for the baby.

So, while I would say Steamboat was very beautiful in the summer time, and Charles would say it was everything he had dreamed it could be, I really was just trying to make it day to day. I wished it was a few weeks later, when I knew my symptoms would start to pass, but it wasn't. Everyone was great and mostly adapted to my schedule. We'd go out for lunches and mostly ate dinners in the condo, because the evening was the hardest time of day for me.

I actually got to mountain bike three days, all very easy abbreviated rides compared to what I was doing in Georgia, but nevertheless very enjoyable. Between the pregnancy exhaustion and the altitude, I wasn't up for much. Charles on the other hand, mountain biked every day, sometimes early in the morning and then again in the afternoon with his dad and me. He climbed to the top of the chairlift the first day (2180 ft.) and then to the top of Mt. Werner twice (3472 ft). In 5 days, he climbed 11, 614 ft, over 60 miles of riding. He took most of the mountain pictures of the aspens and mountain flowers.

My favorite day in Steamboat was our last. We went out for a delicious lunch next to Steamboat river, and watched people tubing down. So, Charles, his dad and I decided to rent tubes and go for a ride. It's my new favorite pregnancy sport. You lay there and get cooled by the river and warmed by the sun. It was an hour from the drop point to the pick up point and there were little rapids and slow sections- just so much fun. I enjoyed laying on my stomach watching the fish swim away from my shadow. If only the Chattahoochee wasn't so nasty, I'd want to go tubing all of the time.

Dependant's Day

2007-08-06T11:10:00.000-04:00

July 4, we planned to climb Stone Mountain with Bevin and Zellyn and watch fireworks explode above us and below us from the mountain top. We went last year in the midst of lightning storms and God's light show was much better than the short set of fireworks that the mountain set off before canceling the main event. We did go to Stone Mountain, and it was a great evening and a great fireworks show, however, we were a little distracted.

That morning I had taken a preganancy test, and surprisingly it came up positive. At that point I had absolutely no symptoms, so I was pretty shocked. I carried the test down to show Charles (who had the day off from work) and he saw me holding it and said "we're pregnant, aren't we?" and I said "Happy Dependant's Day".

So now, I am 9 weeks pregnant. We've been to the doctor and got to see our little baby in an ultrasound, and watch his/her little heart beat. I'm tired and not sleeping well right now. But, for a few weeks I was pretty nauseous and most of that seems to be gone- pretty early, so I'm really thankful for that.

The first ultrasound has an arrow pointing at a little lighter area which is the baby's heart. The second ultrasound has little points where they measured the length of the baby.
Our due date is March 14, 2008.
Baby has already been surfing and mountain biking, although everything is done with a lot more caution these days, and a lot slower because I have less energy! This week we told the grandparents and rest of the family and most of our friends, which has been very fun and encouraging.

Laguna Beach

2007-07-22T16:10:00.000-04:00

The final destination of our trip was Laguna Beach, which is about an hour south of Los Angeles. We got to stay in at the home of one of Charles' college buddies who was away on family vacation that week. We were sad not to spend time with him and meet his family, but it was kind of a dream to have a beach house to ourselves for the week.

The house was adorable. Like many of the houses in Laguna Beach, they had their own botanical garden in the front yard, and beautifully groomed fruit trees in the back yard. One day after dinner Charles walked over to a tree and reached up to touch a ripe looking plum. The plum basically fell into his hand and we ate it- I'm telling you- we were in paradise.

One of my favorite parts of our stay there was their golden retriever Genevieve ("G") & cat Topanga. It felt so homey having a very affectionate dog, and pretty likable cat. (I don't typically like cats)

The house was literally 2 blocks from the main street of Laguna, packed with cute shops, restaurants and art galleries. About a block and a half further and you were ocean side at a nice little (at least it was little when we were there) reef break. Charles surfed every day that we were in Laguna, getting up before the sun (and before me) and heading down the street. I surfed 2 days, not as comfortable surfing over rocks as he is.

This is one of the tide pools in Laguna Beach. The panorama is the view of the beach from the Brooks Street access (which is where we surfed).

The gratuitous self portrait beach picture is from the northern end of Laguna Beach.

Charles has another college friend who lives across the street from where we stayed, but unfortunately he was away in Iraq for most of the summer, so we spent a little time with his wife Sarah and newly adopted daughter Cora. Check out Cora's faux shoes in this picture. Every time we saw her she had on a different pair that color coordinated with her outfits. We're hoping to visit Laguna Beach again sometime soon in order to actually visit with Charles' friends (at least that will be the excuse we use)

We spent several days with Roger, who fits right in to the laid back southern California lifestyle. He and Charles even got to surf together one morning. We brought Roger to a barbecue at Sarah's house, and afterwards they were talking about fixing him up with a friend of theirs from church. What can we say, he's a likable guy.

We also got to visit with my high school friend Dave, who somehow escaped without getting his picture taken. I'm not sure how I allowed that to happen. The only thing I can think of is that he visited both days after we had been biking in the Canyons and I was way too tired to think about a camera. It was great to catch up with him and remember why we had been such good friends.
Speaking about biking- Charles and I got to bike two days in Laguna Beach, both times we were able to ride from the house through the streets to the Canyon. Our first ride was a brutal climb up Laguna Canyon Road. We had to hike much of the climb up the sandy steep canyon road. The only redemptive fact of that climb was that we had a view of the ocean the entire time and a nice cool ocean breeze. When we were almost up the climb, Charles shocked me when he said we had to find another way to get down because this way was too steep to descend. I thought I was just struggling, but we spoke to bikers in town and they said that even the locals don't go that way because the climb is impossible. That made us feel better.

Our second ride was much longer. We started almost ocean side, and climbed on the streets up to 1000ft above sea level. Again, we had many views of the ocean as we climbed. Then we descended a really steep windy bumpy canyon road, which I tumbled down ending up underneath my bike. I was soaking wet from the climb, and then tumbled in dust, and by the time we finished our ride, we had to scrub my back with washcloth to get the dirt off it was so caked on. One guy we passed on our ride thought I had intentionally rolled in the dirt as a means of sunscreen. Hmm...right. We descended down to 200ft above sea level, and then climbed back up the other side. Altogether we probably climbed a total of 1800ft.

When we returned to Atlanta, all we could talk about for days was how we could get back to Laguna Beach, to visit, to live in a shack, whatever- just how can we get back to Paradise? Is it wrong to want to live somewhere just because it's beautiful? My heart longs to be by the ocean, but who knows if we will ever be able to.

Big Sur

2007-07-21T10:49:00.000-04:00

After Napa Valley, we stayed in Santa Cruz so that we could start our journey down Big Sur in the morning. We found a very inexpensive family run National 9 Motel, where we found out what you get when you find a cheap hotel in California- beds that are more like wooden slabs than mattresses, and a shower that only dribbles out when you make it comfortably luke warm. Luckily, Charles and I would rather sacrifice comfort to save some money, so we'd probably both choose to stay there again.
This road sign showed us that we were already at the Pacific Coast of California. I had never been to California, and had only been to the Pacific ocean in Costa Rica. I thought that I would be disoriented with the ocean to my west, but for some reason (possibly all of these landlocked year in Atlanta) it made sense to me. My grandmother who lives at the Jersey shore visited California a few years ago and was always saying, then we went up to LA and down to San Francisco, because her body is accustomed to using the Atlantic Ocean to tell direction.

We had been told that you should really allow two days to drive Big Sur, if we were to really enjoy all of the views. We didn't want to spend the money to stay in one of the few very expensive coast-side hotels, so we decided to just start early and end late. Initially we stopped at every pull off, taking pictures and taking our time absorbing the views. Then at one of the stops Charles took this picture of me and we decided to take a picture of ourselves using the tripod. As soon as I started to close the car door, I sensed a problem and didn't push it shut all of the way. I grabbed at the door and yelled to Charles- you grabbed a car key, right? The car locked all of its door when you turned the ignition off, so here we were, pulled over to a look out spot somewhere in the middle of Big Sur locked out of our car. I got on the phone with AAA and started trying to flag people down, which wasn't easy at a small overlook because we didn't look stuck. Finally a refrigerator repair man turned around and pulled over and he and Charles managed to yank my partially closed door open and use some of the metal rods he had in his truck to press the unlock button. We never did take that picture of the two of us.
After that adventure, I strapped my keys to one hip and my phone to the other. It was to hard to trust that we would remember that the crazy rental car worked in reverse. Once on our way again, we passed a mile marker and realized that we had only gone about 70 miles in 4 hours, and had over 300 to go, so we needed to make better time. So we started doing what we called high speed landscape photography. The person in the passenger seat would roll down their window and shoot whenever the landscape looked good and the driver would call out things like "tree, tree, CLEARING!, guardrail, road sign, tree, hill, CLEARING!" so that the photographer would get the clearest shot possible. Then if the passenger thought that the area was nice enough, they would tell the driver to stop at the next overlook, and would trade roles. It was quite fun, and saved a lot of time stopping, although we ended up with quite a few guardrails and blurry trees in the foreground despite the drivers best efforts. This is an example of a high speed landscape photograph. (we're thinking about starting a new genre) Photographs- 35 mph or faster.
In retrospect, it might have been nice if we had taken more time absorbing the amazing beauty of the coast, but spending just the short time that we did observing it makes it seem more like an unobtainable mysterious place that I fell in love with. I think the most stunning part about the coast, being from the east coast, was how uninhabited and wild the coast still seemed. Show me one part of the Jersey shore that doesn't have paid access to the public beach, etc. The other aspect (as you can see from these pictures) is the steep cliffs that ran along most of the northern coast.

Napa Valley

2007-06-24T17:41:00.000-04:00

Sunday we traveled up to visit Charles' college friend Jim, who is a wine chemist in Napa Valley. Jim was the expert tour guide taking us to the best places to eat and driving us to the prettiest views in the area. He gave us mostly a driving tour of the area, stopping at the Beringer Vineyard for some wine tasting.

There Jim introduced us to the great dessert wine called Nightingale. It tastes like Creme Brulee (one of my favorite desserts), and Jim got us a bottle.

Napa Valley is an unusually beautiful place. In one direction you'll see lush greenery, and in the other, rugged desert terrain. The grapevines are all planted in rows as in this picture. It is a well-groomed beauty. Much like the Redwoods, and now the rest of California, I fell in love with the trees.

Later in the day, we met up with Charles' other college friends Kristof and Jennifer. They have two beautiful little girls- this is their oldest Pella running around. Kristof is a wine maker, and his he named his first wine Pella Wine.
This was our ideal way to see the best of an area in one day. We didn't want to see the places that all of the tourists go, we wanted to see the places that the locals loved.
Jennifer wrote a great short story called "Things That Make Your Heart Beat Faster" which was published in the 2001 Best American Mystery Stories about her short spell as a cop in Wine Country.

Redwood Wedding

2007-06-23T14:12:00.000-04:00

Saturday, June 22nd dawned cold and clear in San Francisco. We should know, we were wide awake for it, our bodies thinking it was more like 9am. We traveled to San Fran to photograph a destination wedding in the Portola Redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The drive from the hotel was an hour of winding mountain roads with amazing views, and lots of prayers like 'God, please don't let me throw up on the bride'.
The ceremony itself was beautiful. Barry Grecu was the minister, and the alter was a wood platform surrounded by a semi-circle of Redwoods. What more could you ask for? It was humorous because periodically during the ceremony hikers would come past talking loudly until they saw the ceremony and silenced their party until they were past. One family even sat down in the back and watched the whole thing.
So this is how we ended up in California for a week. I had never been to the west coast, so when we got this wedding, I begged Charles to take a week off from work so that we could drive down the coast. We both have friends around the LA area, so it didn't take much begging.

May 2007

2007-06-19T21:45:00.000-04:00

What happens when I get busy is that all of this great blog-worthy stuff piles up and when I do get a second to blog, it is too much to get together. So this will be a very abbreviated version of my May. I know you've missed seeing pictures of our loveable fun-bun, so here he is cuddling with his favorite metal bunny, the Bowflex.

Early in the month we held a fund raiser at Midtown for Lisa Martin who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. She is now in remission. Click on "Updates on Lisa" in my Links section to read her story. Kevin Lawson & James Templeton of Red Letter Agent performed.

Charles finally got his new mountain bike, and we've biked at least twice each week since then. I got thrown pretty badly on the expert section of Big Creek, on a not-so-expert turn. The trails have been exceptionally dusty lately and my back wheel slid out and somehow my handlebars spun around and I launched onto a dusty rocky trail. Charles' mother was visiting and taking a walk while we rode, and I felt bad arriving back to the car with blood running down from my knee to my sock. It's been a long time since I've had a bad fall, and hopefully it will be a good long time before I fall like that again.

We did a lot of riding with Bevin and Zellyn.

This past Saturday Charles and I went up to Ft. Yargo and on our drive, we passed the strangest people. I'm giving this Certified Turd Herder a free advertisement here for his shameless advertising on his own vehicle. Make sure you take a good look at this one. I zoomed in for you so that you could read his title on his rear window.

Then we got onto the highway and spotted this motorcyclist with a little white dog with sunglasses out for a Saturday ride.

John Mark Zook was born, and DM and I went down for a visit.

We photographed a wedding for a former student, Annie.

We also photographed a wedding in Tampa for a former doctor of mine. She was married in a beautiful botanical garden in St. Petersburg, and had a reception cruise on Tampa Bay.

We had Brooke (also a former student) & her daughter over for a little modelling session.

Yellow River Game Park

2007-04-27T23:22:00.000-04:00

For my first week back into heavy wedding season, I did a lot of playing. We went mountain biking on Sunday and Thursday, and
would have probably gone Tuesday morning, except we had a job. Wednesday I accompanied DM on a shopping trip to the mall- she needed me to keep her company. And today I went to the Yellow River Game Park with DM, Gwennan, Shauna,
Ian & Bevin. I couldn't pass up the offer to hang out with the girls, and Ian, of course.

It was a pretty cool park, with deer who were so tame they would walk into the middle of a group of 20 screaming school kids to eat. I guess the animals get used to the idea of noise and wildness and eating. The whole thing was very exciting for Gwennan, while Ian was a little less sure at first. Eventually, Ian figured out the whole feeding the animals idea and would retreive a carrot and bring to the animal of his choice, or in some cases, the animal who chose him.
There were black bears who lounged around with their mouths open trying to catch food if you should happen to throw it close enough. Some of them were apparently bottle fed, so they were very accustomed to humans. There was a de-skunked skunk (one of the animals I used to beg my parent to buy for me), there were peacocks, tons of goats, donkeys, cows, sheep, ducks, rabbits, roosters, hens, chicks, a cougar, geese, chipmunks and squirrels. I think of all of the animals, the squirrels were the most persistent. The goats probably would have beat them out, but most of them were behind fences.

And in the end, we all felt a little like Gwennan.

Mythbusting at 4am

2007-04-23T20:13:00.000-04:00

Let's start with the good news: Charles and I are photographing a wedding in the Redwoods in Northern California in June, and then driving down the coast for a week, eventually visiting friends around the LA area. Charles has a friend who is a wine tester in wine country, so we're hoping to contact him and swing by on our way down the coast. I have never been to California, so I'm really really excited about our trip. I've always had the feeling that if I were to visit California, I'd never want to leave, so we're testing that theory.

The bad news: Someone (not mentioning any names here) told me that when they were up at 3am one morning, the flight they were trying to purchase dropped $100 in price. Then at 4am, it dropped again. So, being the frugal person I am, I set my alarm for 3:45 am last Thursday night and thought that I was going to partake in this midnight secret and find all sorts of deals. Well, at 4am, I watched the flight I was hoping to take disappear, so things do change in the middle of the night. And after searching every airline website I knew of or could find, I watched the price increase $20. So, at 4:30, I crawled into bed waking Charles, who didn't fall back to sleep, but tossed and turned until about 5:30, when he just decided to get up for the day, and I was finally able to go back to sleep.

So, I spoke with this person over the weekend, and mentioned my failed attempt to get a deal, and he said that he woke in the night feeling all of this hostility towards himself. Hmm, what could have caused that? I think the funniest part of the whole sad incident is that Gordy lives in the office by the computer, so I kept him awake while I was in there, and at 9am, when he's normally roaming the house and getting in all sorts of trouble, he was sound asleep. Even the rabbit was tired.

Saturday we photographed a wedding for a Jewish couple. One of my other brides said she wished she could have some of the Jewish traditions at her wedding because they were so fun. I agree, Jewish weddings are just fun. It was a really long day, we started preparing around 11am, left home around 12:30pm, and didn't get back home until 1am. I think the only reason we got home then was because the band was only contracted until 12 am so we headed out when they started packing up. I think the wedding guests would have partied most of the night.

Needless to say, we're tired today, really really tired.

Easter

2007-04-09T17:44:00.000-04:00

So Gordy the Easter Bunny spent Easter alone. I did allow him free reign of the office, so when we got home he was cuddling with the Bowflex letting the heating vent blow in his face...something he really seems to like whether it's air conditioning or heat.

Ben & Jen invited us to join them for Easter dinner, and it was quite a dinner. Ham with little cloves stuck in the sides basted with pure sugar every 10 minutes, sautéed green beans, baked carrots, corn pudding, potato casserole, crescent rolls- what a meal! I brought a blueberry pie for dessert with homemade crust and everything. It was so much fun to join the Greenwalds for the holiday- Ben and Charles (Jen correctly observed) are like brothers. They were college roommates and graduate school housemates. The same video game mesmerized them for most of the afternoon-you can see the family resemblance in their mouths when they are sitting in front of the screen.

Ben played with our camera and took some fine art photos of things like his shoe, a pillow on the couch and the Masters on TV. He also took some portraits while we sat around talking, which are quite good.

Dupont Forest Bike Trip

2007-04-05T17:15:00.000-04:00

Charles had Thursday and Friday off this week, so we drove to North Carolina to go biking. Unfortunately, living in 80 degree sunny Atlanta, we forgot to check the weather report. So, we crossed the NC border mid afternoon Thursday and the skies opened up their fury on us. Tempted to turn and drive home in defeat, we decided we would just bike in the rain. That was until we reached the park and opened the doors and discovered that it was about 40 degrees. Hmm, mountains do that sometimes, don't they? Anyway, we had only packed tank tops and shorts to ride in, and Charles didn't even pack pants for the trip, so we found a local bike shop and spent money we don't have on winter biking gear.
So, we went out to dinner in our warm bike gear, since we didn't have anything else warm enough and stayed in a hotel praying that the weather would warm and clear for Friday.

Friday dawned cold and gloomy, but no rain, so we ventured our ride in our new warm gear. Very out of character, I begged that we start with a climb so that I could stop shivering.The first section was a grueling climb up to slick rock, which is just open faced rock. It’s easier than gravel or dirt in that you have a lot more traction. It’s more difficult because your bike takes all of the impact of all of the small (or large) ripples in the surface, and if you fall, you are going to be really bruised. Some sections were so steep I can’t believe I did them, but I survived.

At this overlook, you could see out almost in all directions.

After going up to the slick rock and down the other side, we had to do a stream crossing. Here’s me trying to will myself across the stream with my face. Basically, the rocks in the stream were covered with moss and it felt like ice skating without blades. And the current is making you and your bike slowly drift closer and closer to the rapids. Charles had to put the camera down and help me across the last few feet of the stream or I would have lost my bike. On the way back we ran into a group of about 20 guys crossing the stream in their socks, which sticks to the moss and gives traction. So the way back was much easier.

We did another climb which took us to a lookout high above Bridal Veil Falls, and then rode the decent and ate lunch at the foot of the falls.

Near the falls was a stable with horses.

The way back was all single track in the woods- fun fast ups and downs. Overall, we rode from about 10am-4pm, and then drove 3 1/2 hours home. Saturday morning I hosted a brunch so by that afternoon I felt like I had been run over by a truck.

Spring Fever

2007-03-31T17:09:00.000-04:00

So…spring fever is here…at least according to Gordy. As the weather started getting warmer, Gordy started to change. He stopped coming when we called to put him in his cage, he started gnawing at the hard plastic around his play area so that in less than a week he could go in and out freely. One day when I hadn’t yet covered his play area (three feet of hard plastic that he can leap out of and chew through) he launched himself a good foot above the gate in the wrong direction, hit the wall and fell back in. So, why is my rabbit trying to escape? Zellyn said the phrase “crazy as a March hare” and I think I understand. He’s gnawing on everything including the wall near the front door, I guess he figures if he gets through he’ll be outside.

Anyway, other than bunny news, I have had a few weeks with very little work. I am trying to make our front yard look a little less chaotic, which takes a lot of doing. But it has been really nice to be outside instead of in front of the computer.

We’re preparing for several weddings this spring. This is a new lighting technique that Charles discovered. Basically, it’s bringing a studio light outdoors, so you have gorgeously lit subjects in gorgeous outdoor settings. Gorgeous, don’t you think? This girl was my doctor, but now she is doing her own practice and we’re shooting their wedding in a butterfly garden in St. Petersburg, FL. I’m terrified of butterflies so you can stop thinking how beautiful that sounds and feel sorry for me. I just have to learn how to not gasp when I see a butterfly, and I think we’ll be okay.

Squirrel Thief

2007-03-08T15:29:00.000-05:00

So this squirrel climbed the side of my house to get to my birdfeeder today. Out the kitchen window I saw him hanging upsidedown from the hanger so that he could get his whole little nose into the feeder. So, instead of scaring him away I ran for my camera. However, when I stuck my head out the door he lept to the deck railing and ran away. I thought this was a cool picture of his speed in motion. I've chased him away before and he reminds me of that first chase scene in the new James Bond because he bounds from the feeder to the ground, to the bench, to the railing, to a tree. But I'm not stupid enough to follow.

Update on Charles...I spoke to Charles on Monday when he arrived at the Jungle villa where the retreat was to begin. These are pictures from the website: junglevilla.com. They apparently had a really hairy drive up the coast, on a half paved, half dirt road. In the middle of one of the paved sections the road had washed out, so a narrow one lane bridge was buit there. So Charles said you're driving like 60 mph and all of a sudden the road disappears. He said 9 people had died there since New Years.

He called this afternoon and said that he's been getting up at 5am, walking 20minutes to the ocean, surfing an hour and then hiking back up to the villa. Tuesday they went zip lining from platform to platform in the rain forest, Wednesday they went sea kayaking, and today they went river rafting, and swam at the foot of a waterfall. He found some locals who are going to take him mountain biking on Saturday. Sounds like he's having a really rough time down there in paradise.

Pura Vida

2007-03-02T13:09:00.001-05:00

Charles (isn't this such a cute shot of him?) is off to Costa Rica for 10 days. He's going on an Operation Freedom trip with Tom Grady and about 15 other men. They're staying in Quepos at a Jungle Villa, going sea kayaking, ziplining through the rain forest and tons of other fun adventure things. He headed out today, which is 3 days early so that he can surf for a few days. After all of our traveling these past two months, I don't envy him going on another trip, but dropping him off this morning I did get a little twinge of, hey, he gets to go on this cool trip without me.

We left for the airport at 6:30am, didn't turn on the radio to see what was going on, and ended up sitting in 2 1/2 hours of the parking lot on 75 S from that terrible bus accident. So, despite our efforts to get Charles to the airport 3 hours early, he was only a little over an hour early, but still had time to buy breakfast and a Spanish dictionary before boarding.

I'm tracking his flight on Delta.com and it looks like he's arriving 20 minutes ahead of schedule, which is good because he's got a connecting hopper flight out to the coast that leaves only 55 minutes after his anticipated arrival. So hopefully I should hear from him this afternoon, and then not much more for most of the trip, but I'll update as I have news.

Mari Ann and Bear are visiting until Tuesday, which is really nice. Gordy and Bear are still adjusting to each other. Half the time they ignore each other, and then other times Bear will startle Gordy and he'll go skidding away renewing Bear's interest in him. I had them both out on the deck this morning and I was petting Bear as he sunbathed, so Gordy kept coming over to check him out while he was laying down. One time Gordy put his front paws on Bear's chest and hopped on him to get past. Neither animal seemed to think this was strange, but I did. Of course, they are pretty well adjusted- as I write they are both sleeping down in the living room-Bear on top of the couch and Gordy underneath.

Bunny Birthday

2007-03-02T13:01:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I'm not crazy...it's just the rabbit's first approximate birthday, can't we put hats on? ...and make carrot cake cupcakes (which he liked btw)

President's Weekend Getaway

2007-02-22T15:21:00.000-05:00

This weekend, we traveled up to my dad’s cabin in upstate NY. Dad and Patricia, my brother Pete, his wife Heather, his daughter Hailey, Patricia’s daughter’s Kim and Sheryl and their husbands Mike and Dave all joined us. It was quite a full house, and it was a blast.

The Adirondacks got 37 inches of snow last week, so it truly was a winter wonderland up there. Saturday, we hung out at the house, and went snowmobiling.

Hailey was the star of the weekend. Being the only child, everywhere she turned she had admirers…which she loved. She was adorable out in the snow. My Dad turned a snow mound into a slide for her and sat her at the top. She would slide down laughing and at the bottom she’d say “more, more”. He pulled her in a sled on a path around the house and she sat there like a little princess. He dug a tunnel through one of the snow mounds and helped her crawl through.

Sunday, we drove 2 hours north to Whiteface Mountain and went snowboarding. Initially, the conditions seemed like they would be typical icy disappointing East coast boarding. Steep, icy, crowded. After lunch however, we took some of the local’s advice and went to the summit and rode the first black diamond. It was mostly untouched powder, a little steep and full of moguls, but really fun. So, we rode that, and I had my first real experience with moguls that was not entirely unsuccessful. Skiers like to ride between the moguls, but I found that if I used the powder on top of the moguls to turn in, it was really quite fun.
Needless to say, by the time we finally made it back to Atlanta Monday night, we were exhausted! I told Charles when we’re old we’ll take vacations where you sit on your butt and come home feeling refreshed, but for now, we take adventure vacations that you feel like you have to get home from to recover.

Bunny Valentine

2007-02-14T10:31:00.000-05:00

Well, I can't say that Gordy enjoyed taking these pictures. I thought maybe he would eat the candies, and therefore I could get him to sit still a little longer. But, this is the only picture where he actually sat in the middle of the candies and looked up before hopping away. Oh well, Happy Valentine's Day.

Body For Life

2007-02-10T18:31:00.000-05:00

So, beginning the first week in January, our "New Years Resolution" you might say, Charles and I started doing the Body For Life program. It is a 12 week program that determines diet and daily activity. The diet is basically 6 small meals consisting either of a protein shake, or a handfull of protein and a handfull of carbs each. Throw in 2-3 fruits and vegetables, and one day off per week.
The exercise alternates: Monday 1hr Upperbody workout, Tuesday 20 min Cardio, Wednesday 45 min Legs and Abs workout, Thursday Cardio, Friday Upperbody, Saturday Cardio, Sunday Lay around and Eat whatever. The following week, you do 2 Legs and Abs days, and 1 Upperbody, etc.

We did 4 solid weeks before our snowboarding vacation, and it may have been the reason that even after being sick, I felt stronger than ever snowboarding. However, being sick and on vacation, we both let the diet go that week, and now this week Charles has been sick, and I still feel worn out, so I only worked out one day!

So right now, I'm doing an upperbody plus lowerbody workout to try to make up for it. And I'm posting this blog to try to encourage myself to get back to it. I guess we'll get back to it next week and consider it week 5 with a small gap in the middle.

Why are we doing it? Well, it's not to lose weight, but to hopefully bulk up a little. I'm strong, but I don't look strong, so I'd like to maybe change that a little. Plus, honestly, it feels good to work out. Our first week, we totally pigged out on our day off, and I felt like crap. I couldn't wait to get back to the diet, and mostly we stick to it even on days off, but will maybe throw in a dessert or a few extra empty carbs.

Of course Gordy is involved. The bowflex is probably his favorite playground, so when we work out, he usually comes and sits underneath it. Or if we're really lucky, he'll climb up on it and lick our foreheads while we're trying to do leg curls.

To get more details, go to www.bodyforlife.com, and check out the exercise demo guy. He's my favorite. I let him lift and lift while I work out. It encourages me.

Extreme Conditions

2007-02-06T23:11:00.000-05:00

Well, I was hoping to snowboard Wednesday thru Friday, but Wednesday I was still getting used to solids and walking around. My head cold was still just as strong as ever, but I knew it wasn't going away in a hurry.

Thursday was my first day back snowboarding in two years, and even after being sick I still felt really strong and natural when I got out there. The only really odd thing was that I was super dizzy. I think it was the pressure in my head from my head cold plus the altitude, plus the shortness of breath from the cold air and exertion. It was a little scary at first, but it sort of added to the whole boarding experience. Conditions were beautiful- powdery and soft. Charles swore that I was boarding better than I ever have before, but he also said that two years ago too.
Mari Ann, whose knees were bothering her too much to ski, went dog sledding Thursday. She of course loved the dogs and they loved her.

Friday is when things really got extreme. Charles woke me up around 8 and asked if I wanted to join him. Then he mentioned that it was 8 below on the mountain, so I figured I would wait until mid-morning. When I joined him around 10:30, it had “warmed” to 6 below, snowing heavily with 40 mile an hour winds at the top of the mountain. Needless to say, at the top, there was no visibility. The winds were blowing uphill, cross hill, whichever way it felt like. We headed for the trees for cover, but in the open areas, you had to feel what to do, because you couldn’t see what the terrain below you looked like or tell how fast you were going. The trees were dangerous too because they sometimes formed wind tunnels. To be honest about it, I was dressed so warm and it took so much energy to board, I was hot most of the day. Every once in a while on the lift, the wind would find a gap between my goggles and my helmet, or my thumb, separate from the hand warmers would freeze up. But overall, I have to say that I was mostly too hot, rather than too cold that day.

I realized that when I was boarding, I thought of myself as a little kid playing in the snow. I'd think, I'm a 28 year old woman...and then I'd think, that can't be, I wouldn't feel like this. Of course until I'd fall or when I'd wake up stiff the next morning. Then I felt my age.

I’m really thankful that we had the opportunity to go to Steamboat. I feel like I am privileged just to have those 2 days of amazing boarding this year. But, it was still really hard to be sick for most of a vacation that I’ve been looking forward to for the past 6 months.

Pedialyte Pop for Dinner

2007-01-30T20:22:00.001-05:00

Well, I didn't really think it could get much worse. But, I guess on the plane I caught some sort of 24 hour stomach bug. So I woke up Monday morning thinking I was just feeling out of it from the head cold, and tried to eat some breakfast and almost passed out. After that all of the tell-tale stomach flu manifestations took hold and I was miserable. We thought that I might have altitude sickness, so Charles dragged me (literally crying) to the local urgent care. There, I spent $428 to find out that my chest xray looked fine, I didn't have the flu, and my oxygen level was better than the doctor's who lives here. So, she sent me home (still crying) telling me to drink plenty of fluids and get some rest. Great. Last night I had a high fever which finally dropped after crawling into a luke warm bath, and I woke up this morning with mostly just a head cold again. Isn't vacation great?
Charles dad got the flu this morning, and tonight Charles and his mom decided to go out and have a really great dinner before they too catch the bug. But, for me, it's a blue pedialyte pop for dinner, and maybe an orange one for dessert.