Tick-Tock

It never happened fast enough.  They kept saying, it will come around again next year.  But no.  I wanted it to stay today, in this moment, forever.  The warmth of those around you.  The unconditional love I always felt.  I feared the end of it all.    But then, the infamous scream, " SANTA'S COMING!!!"  Ok, so maybe we didn't scream that exact phrase, but we all know what runs through the mind of a six year old on Christmas Eve.  " SANTA'S COMING!!"  Sorry, couldn't resist.

These are the times we get to swoon over the love our family's give one another.  And yes, I did fear the end of Christmas Eve.  See, my family always celebrates on this particular night.  We sit around until the wee hours of the morning exchanging gifts with one another, then scurry off to bed in time for the big man in the red jacket to scale down the chimney.

And folks, the time is nearing.  Christmas time.  I, for one, cannot wait.  You see, I am a Christmas girl.  Born two weeks before Christmas (and yes, I will expect you all to remember that) I think I have earned my right to bask thoroughly in everything that screams Christmas Time!  Ornaments, little bells that jingle, extremely tacky Christmas sweaters (I have one that will take the cake!), big, beautiful glittery bows, Christmas carols, gifts stacked upon gifts, Christmas candy, glistening lights, and let's not forget the infamous tradition of driving around looking at how everyone else decorated for the Holiday.  I simply love this time of year.  There is something about this month in particular that brings out a special side in everyone.  One I wish we could keep around all year long. 

A lot has changed since I feared Christmas Eve ending.  I have welcomed many new editions into my family and no longer fear reaching the last package in my stack of gifts because I've learned as you get older life moves faster.  It moves faster than a blink of an eye and before I know it Christmas Eve will peak it's beautiful head out again!

And since everything's a little more interesting with pictures, here is one from my day after Thanksgiving session.  Two adorably-beautiful cousins!

ADDENDUM

I AM thankful
I LOVE the warm feeling of the sun in the springtime
I FEAR to never be good enough
I AM CRAZY about making others feel special
I WANT chocolate EVERY day
I HATE inconsiderate people
I ALWAYS CRY during worship songs at church
I THINK working out is a fad, but I've given into the fad
I AM SCARED of life changing
I HATE that my best friends all live in different states!- good vacations though
I LOVE sleeping under HEAVY blankets & loath the moment my alarm makes me get out
I MISS the times during childhood when I thought a nickle made me rich
I THINK I am spoken to through song lyrics
I HAVE the best brother you've ever seen- my friends have adopted him- and I'm OK with that
I NEED to eat more vegetables, but that's not fun
I AM not always tactful
I LOVE dancing in the car.  And that thoroughly embarasses Caleb
I HEART blog comments!

Door Number One

Go right or go left? Neither path seems clear, so I stay straight. There is no way to know when things will change, but they do. Abruptly. Life is no longer clear. I grasp for anything that feels familiar, but nothing is anymore. My life has been changed before my very eyes. At first I hate it, I loathe the fact that I no longer am in control. But slowly grace and forgiveness seem to work their way into the mix.

It seems as though curve balls are just an ornament in life. Without them we continue stumbling on the path we have chosen. Without them new doors are never allowed to make their way open. We are afraid of the splinter filled doors. We are afraid of the sounds the old creaky hinges will make. We just assume keep them nailed shut for fear of what lies behind each one.


It’s been almost a year. “We’ve decided to downsize our company.” The most dreadful words I could have imagined at that stage in life. A fairly ‘fresh’ graduate of Oklahoma State and the most recent member of the Unemployment Club. Blessing. Not exactly the word I would have used to describe my situation.


Almost one year later. Blessing: the kind that makes your heart jump out before you. Door number one: blessing. I was so afraid of what hid behind each one I could not bare the thought of letting go of my ‘comfortableness.’ Yes, my fear of the unknown still makes me want to grasp for the things that feel familiar, but I now know that whatever it is that hides behind each door will always turn out to be some sort of a blessing.


I have told many of you about my ‘door number one.’ But for those unaware, it consists of the thousands of images I poor myself over, the noise my camera makes every time I click the shutter, the story each one of my pictures tell – both to you as well the stories engraved in each frame, stories only I know. I am blessed. Blessed by my door number one.

Oklahoma City Photograhy Session- Family

I find it impossible to say that God doesn't have a sense of humor; after all, I think He made little boys just to keep moms on their toes!

I ran around Oklahoma City with these two Saturday morning and loved every second of it. We were under a bit of a time constraint considering Oklahoma State played at 2:30, but with the time I was given, I think we ended up with some great shots.

These two boys are, well…, ALL BOY! Jacob is the oldest and, like most children, thrives off of being outside on open ground and allowed to just RUN! Andrew, on the other hand, is at his prime doing whatever Jacob does. That, and doing the opposite of what you want him to do. Typical two year old.

Oh, and did I mention their mom, Courtney, makes some stellar cookies! I think if I spent more time around her I’d weigh 80 pounds more than I do right now. She is amazingly talented with the cookie icing. No seriously. I have trouble spreading the stuff right and she makes the most amazing designs you’ve seen. God-given talent. That’s what I call it.
All-around, this family is amazing.  They love one another with their souls... just another reason to make me love them more.