Our trip to Disneyland! {Picture overload!}

Disneyland was something David I had planned for years! We waited and waited until we felt the kids were old enough to not be completely exhausted by the place, and truly enjoy it's magical experience. So, for Bradley's 5th birthday, we went. March is a very busy month for us every year. It's starts with David's birthday, then it's mine, and the day after mine is Bradley's! We also celebrate our wedding anniversary on the 17th and a few other family member's birthdays as well. It's ALWAYS crazy this month! 

So, after our 4 hour drive to Anaheim, the kids were restless and we were all very hungry. We checked into our hotel room, unloaded our bags, put everything away, and left for dinner. After dinner (at yummy California Pizza kitchen, mmm) we stopped at The Cheesecake Factory for my favorite vanilla bean cheesecake. We all got our own since everyone was celebrating a birthday (David, me, Bradley, and my mom, who's birthday is tomorrow!) and headed back to the room. I'm pretty sure that cheesecake is made of nothing but the finest, sweetest sugar because after bath and settling down, this is what happened to the kids:

12:05a.m.

As you can see, they were VERY much full of energy.

Just so you know how funny this picture is, we booked a family room. Two queen beds, for the adults, and bunk beds for the kids. The bunk beds went unused and the babies slept with Gran Gran :)

We planned to get up at 7am, make breakfast, and be on our way to Disneyland.

.......

We woke up at 9am.

It's OK though, we needed the sleep after that first night! On the bus to Disneyland!

We're HERE!

Moco? Or no moco?

Happy St.Patrick's Day! Today is mine and David's fourth wedding anniversary. We didn't have anything special planned and usually don't since everyone is usually celebrating the holiday and we don't want to have to battle the crowds. Instead we planned to stay home, make dinner, the usual thing. 

Except today must have been a little too boring for Abigail. At almost 4pm, she came to me and said, "Mom, I moco in my nose." Moco is the Spanish word for booger in case you didn't know ;) 

I got tissue, and told her to blow. Abigal-  "It no working!"

I looked inside her little nose, and found something that looked glittery and pink. Oh great... a Barbie shoe.

David came home and we headed out to children's urgent care. Four hours later... there was nothing in her nose. If there was, it's gone. What I saw when looking into her nose, was an inflamed spot that she's either been picking, or she did have something in her nose that irritated it. But now, it's gone. 

I pretty much felt like an idiot walking out of the urgent care. Oh well. After Abigail and her $30,000 penny a year and a half ago, it's better safe than sorry. Thank goodness it wasn't anything more!

Waiting to be called back.

Tomorrow we have a big day. I'm shooting my first official wedding with David by my side on Saturday. I'm super excited and nervous. Really hoping that the rain that's scheduled for the day will miraculously disappear!  

I don't think I've laughed and cried so hard at the same time....ever!

Sometimes, when it's really quiet and I get the chance to read without interruptions, I like to read other blogs. Mostly about photography, surrogacy, cooking. Sometimes a mix of all the above!

I followed a link to one that I haven't seen before. But the name of who it belonged to automatically called me in. Gary Fong. If you've never heard the name, he's a very successful photographer, writer and photography accessory creator. I have one of his diffusers for my camera around here somewhere...

{Gary Fong}

{Gary Fong Store}

Anyhow, the blog I was reading tonight was the story and updates of Melissa and Gary's journey through infertility. It's moving. They both have amazing personalities and it shines through, but what I watched tonight.... ugh.... I had to share. My heart is overjoyed with happiness for them (and I don't even know them! Haha!). I don't know any of the heartaches and disappointments that come with struggling with infertility. I can only imagine what it is like. It's something that I wish deserving families didn't have to struggle with everyday. 

It's when those struggles turn into something absolutely amazing afterwards. In the end, it's worth all the bad times, the good, the tears, the joys, the doctor visits, the failed attempts of pregnancy. Everything. This confirms it :) Click on the link below and watch the video on their blog:

{Melissa has a surprise for Gary...}

P.S. He's very expressive with his emotions, you may want to turn your volume down ;)

Photos of the kids

I very rarely get good photos of my own monster children, so I'm super excited about this! Maybe someday they'll get use to me being their personal paparazzi. These were taken over a month ago, but I'm just now getting the chance to post them. I love the little brats!

Ring around the rosies...

Have you ever played Ring around the rosies... with peacocks?! Yeah, me either. But Abigail has. I almost fell over laughing! It was definitely fun to watch :)

One of these days I'll get a good, smiling photo of both of them! Until then, I'll have to treasure their goofy, smudged face, messy hair photos.

The Girls

If you've ever been to Hart Park in Bakersfield, you know that peacocks are in plenty. There's TONS of them, and if you feel them, it's like they come out of the trees, from the river, behind the buildings... everywhere. We love to feed them, they're less aggressive than the killer "durkeys" (I'll take a picture of one of those someday. Ugly little things, look like they're a good mix between a duck and a turkey, hence the "durkey").

The Boys

I absolutely love these birds! So much color, sooooo many feathers!

I thought this guy was going to eat me, see his face in the first one? He lost interest I guess :) Good thing too, I really don't want to be eaten by a peacock!

I understand what you're saying, but your attitude SUCKS!

     It goes without question that my passion and love in life is photography. I love learning all there is to know, I love the sound of the click of the shutter, adjusting the exposure, fine tuning the ISO and all the many settings. It all makes my mind go crazy and my heart beat faster! I'm obviously not the only person who gets this kind of rush from capturing a photo. You're probably well aware of the deep saturation of photographers all around you!

     There's just one thing that gets to me. Everyone loves holding on to memories. One of the easiest ways to do so is to take a picture or a video. So naturally people own a camera. I can't think of a single person who doesn't have some sort of camera! A big complaint I see from several of the photographers I talk with is, "They asked 'Your pictures are so great, what kind of camera do you own?!' Haha!". These photographers get upset because they feel the person suspects that the camera is doing all the work and not the person behind it. A common response I see is "They don't ask the baker what kind of oven she uses when they taste her amazing goodies! They want to know the recipe!" Well no, but why can't we be honest with people? Not everyone is a Pro. Not everyone knows that a camera can be adjusted to do exactly what you tell it too. Not everyone knows that it take a lot of work and learning to get to the point of taking fantastic photographs.

     So really? Why can't we just be honest? Instead of being so cocky and expecting everyone to praise you, instead of your awesome camera (lets face it, if it wasn't awesome, you wouldn't be in the position of taking those fantastic photos!), just be honest. Did you know a kind nudge with a little knowledge is SO much more powerful than a slap across the face and a cold shoulder?!

     I don't know where I would be without the many wonderful people who helped guide me in the right direction. Who inspired me to find my style and fall more in love with photography. Each and every person who took the time to educate me instead of turning away from me, made a HUGE impact in where I am today. I wish I could sit down and thank each and everyone of them for all that they've done for me. We all start somewhere, and that somewhere I'm sure we all took less than awesome photographs. Ugh, I can't believe my eyes when I look through some of the things I took a WEEK ago!

     That's pretty much all I wanted to say. It's so discouraging to see so many very talented photographers with with noses turned up. It's a shame that their attitudes hinder their talents. Stop to take a look around people, be thankful for where you are, and pull your head out of your butts. It's not as if the person is out to offend you by asking. They ask because they want to capture amazing photos as well! Maybe a little bit of guidance from you could help them in finding a camera that would work for them. Possibly moving in the same direction as you (who knows! maybe they idolize your work!) or possibly saving them $100's when they learn that they don't want to learn the technique!

    Since I haven't been on this in a good long time, it's time to share some photos. This is why I love photography. My bug loves to cook. Anytime I ask him if he wants to help in the kitchen, he jumps at the opportunity. The food doesn't always turn out right, but I couldn't care less. The fact that I get to hold on to these moments and cherish his passion for cooking, makes it perfect it it's own way. I couldn't ask for a better kitchen helper!

     If we don't take the time to remember where we come from, we get lost in where we're going...