all things me

I AM … procrastinating

I WANT… to go home and start enjoying my three day holiday weekend

I HAVE … a great life

I KEEP … a constant supply of Dr. Pepper chapstick with me at all times

I WISH I COULD … live without any responsibilities just for one day… or, maybe a week.

I HATE … close-mindedness

I FEAR … failing – at work, starting my photography business, getting published, as a wife, someday as a mom

I HEAR … incredibly well - I’m constantly telling Ryan his phone is ringing. Or telling Holly a vehicle with sirens is coming

I DON’T THINK … it’s bad for you

I REGRET … nothing. Period.

I LOVE … my husband

I AM NOT … an alien

I DANCE … remarkably well given my clumsiness

I SING … all the time and if you turn up the radio I just sing louder. J Right Ryan?

I NEVER … say never

I RARELY … write for fun anymore (but I can give you the top ten reasons to save for retirement in seven sentences or less)

I CRY WHEN I WATCH … Extreme Make Over Home Edition – some of the people on that show have the most amazing life stories!

I AM NOT ALWAYS … logical. Sometimes I think with my heart too much.

I HATE THAT … I have so much work to do and no motivation to do it

I’M CONFUSED ABOUT … what to do when I grow up

I NEED … something to eat; my tummy is verrrry rumbly.

I SHOULD … go for a run tonight

I MISS … riding horses

I HOPE... many things. The day I stop hoping is the day I stop living.

Little C

Canon James was born Thursday, August 21^st. Ryan and I went to meet the little guy and congratulate the new parents after work. He is absolutely perfect. He weighed in at just over 8lbs and was 21 inches long. The last newborn I held was little Kaitlyn – a three pound difference. Canon seemed more like a two month old to me. He was so adorable as drifted between sleepiness and being wide awake.

Stefany looked amazing for being in labor just five hours before and running on no sleep. She was so happy it was practically seeping from her pores. Jason is a very proud dad and very attentive. Everyone went home this weekend. It sounds like they’re adjusting pretty well. I’m anxious to call but wanted to make sure they had time to get settled first. Even more anxious to visit again soon. :-)

forever the optimist

This made me giggle today....

Twix optimist and pessimist
The difference is droll:
The optimist sees the doughnut,
The pessimist, the hole.

-McLandburgh Wilson

I heart the State Fair

Mmmmm.... the smell of sugar and vats of grease. Must be State Fair time. I'm not sure why I like the State Fair so much. I suppose it brings back fond memories of my time spent at the County fair in my youth. Or... maybe it's the funnel cakes, mini-doughnuts and deep fat fried everything. I love the crowds of people and mullet counting. The livestock shows are interesting. Seeing the big boar, bull and ram is always a fun time. But most importantly it provides a great outlet to take photos.

Bobbier and I at the ISU booth. Go Cyclones! Ryan didn't want to be seen with us after getting our hats... lucky for him it was toward the end of the day.


The Budweiser Clydsdale hitch. Once upon a time I wrote an article about a former driver of the Budweiser team. With names like Duke and John, these big boys are oh-so-pretty when they're all dressed up.
The cattle barn where we saw "Tiny" - the big bull of the year.

Adam and his new best friends. He's decided to raise sheep... in his apartment.

Harness collars on display in the horse barns.

Mmmm..... ym.

The Budweiser tent where the pretty ponies stay.

Ryan willingly jumped behind this scene for a photo.

Bobbier riding a wave at the BP tent.

Ahhh, it was a great day!

summer night

It was a gorgeous summer night, and I couldn’t resist spending it outside. I did a little work in my garden. This year was my first attempt at growing anything and so far my little garden has impressed me. My Roma tomatoes have been doing really well. I could pick a hefty handful every night. My one and only green pepper looks a little deflated… but I’m confident he’ll fill out. I have a second green pepper plant with several blooms but no vegetables yet. The same is true of my cucumbers. This late in the year I’m not sure I’ll get anything off them but we’ll see.

And of course Gus and I played a long game of fetch. I discovered the only way he’d sit still long enough to get a decent picture was if I was holding his tennis ball. It was a little tricky to hit the shutter release while holding a double-ended tennis ball and balancing my camera. But I managed. I have so much fun playing with that dog. He’s so full of energy and just ecstatic to have someone to play with. Not to mention he’s always tripping over his own feet or getting sump pump water up his nose – something to make me laugh at him. The neighbors probably think I’m one of those crazies who talk to their pets but I don’t care. Gus and I, we have fun. Every time I tell myself I’m going to play with him every night. If only life didn’t get in the way.

thought for the day

“Hope” is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul –

And sings the tune without the words,

And never stops – at all.

-Emily Dickinson

Today’s daily quote brought to you by my Franklin Covey planner.

Everyone loves a parade

We decided to put the engine in the neighboring town’s parade. After a good wash and wax, the truck was nice and shiny. Ryan’s sister, brother-in-law and their two boys came up to help throw candy. They brought three buckets of water balloons.

I walked the parade route taking pictures. It was just a short jaunt down Main Street, and there were two announcing stands so no matter where you sat you could hear the description of the entry.

Afterward we had lunch at a local church stand. Gotta love beef burgers and coleslaw homemade by some little old church ladies. And of course the carnival staples – cotton candy, corn dogs, caramel apples and funnel cakes. I considered it training for the Iowa State Fair starting this Thursday!

hay and dirt

Ryan and I went to a rodeo in a near by town Friday night. As we were watching Ryan asked me if I missed it. Not rodeo, but horses in general. I do. I actually miss bailing hay in 100 degree weather, mucking stalls and tending to puss oozing wounds. “Some day” he told me. Some day we’ll have an acreage. Some day we’ll have a barn and a couple horses.

Back to the rodeo. It was a lot of fun. The lighting was perfect as the saddle bronc and bareback events started. By the time the calf roping started there wasn’t much light to work with. The photo that’s mostly out of focus is my favorite. I know how I did it, and I wish I could say it was skill. While keeping my focus on the cowboys, I had to follow them with my camera while the shutter was open. I have to chalk that one up to sheer luck this time.

After the rodeo we walked through the midway. The man working the balloon game intrigued me. He just looks… interesting. Like he has a million stories to tell. Kind of reminds me of one of those wrinkly dogs. Ferris wheels are always so pretty at night. Slow your shutter speed way down and they look like UFOs.

motivation

Congrats on winning the ‘most motivated’ award at basketball camp, Jacob! I’m proud of you.

Off to see the wizard

For the past few weeks I have been salivating over a photography seminar in Kansas City. I stumbled across Jasmine Star’s blog many, many months ago. I’ve been a daily reader/obsessed fan ever since. A few weeks ago Jasmine announced she would be joining David Jay, world renowned wedding photographer, on a nation-wide road trip. It’s called the Free to Succeed tour. They are stopping in several cities to give people some tips to help start – or grow – a photography business.

Since my photography business is more of a hobby at this point, my ‘photography fund’ is sitting at a big fat zero. So I batted back and forth. To go, or not to go. After much deliberation I decided to go, and I’m making my sister come with me.

Hopefully learning from these two photography wizards will be a turning point. Up until now I’ve struggled with whether or not I should actually pursue turning my hobby into an official side business. So I guess this is my test… we’ll see what happens after I follow the yellow brick road (also known as I-35) to the Emerald City.