A Few More Pics from the Weekend

What a Great Weekend!

All of the sports reprints are FINALLY FINISHED!!!!!! :0)

Well, I did get some shopping done on Friday and had a bite out. I didn't realize how long it's been since I've clothes shopped (somewhere other than Goodwill, anyway *sheepish grin*). I am WAY out of touch with the latest--and by latest I mean within 3 years--fashions. I mean, I'm still wearing pants that are not low waisted or cropped or anything. What a nerd I am.
Anyhoo, got that all taken care of: low rise capris; cropped, colorful denims, layered tanks....yeh, I'm back in style. I hope none of that stuff goes back OUT of style in the next 3 years, 'cause that seems to be my average time between REAL clothes shopping trips. You know, I mean besides Walmart and the Re-run shops, HAHA!

FF to Saturday. I had to deliver Bridal portrait proofs and belatedly realized I was missing some. Scramble, scramble, scramble to get them printed and delivered. From there, it was on to cleaning my house---at least enough that I wouldn't be embarassed for the dogsitter to see it while I was gone. Packed for the weekend (in a papersack, actually, no lie!) and headed off to the Beach house.

Mom and Dad were there waiting, refreshingly cool beverages in hand. Melissa and the kids arrived shortly thereafter, and we enjoyed an evening of conversation and laughter, while the kids swam in the river.

Fathers Day was filled with cooking and eating and swimming and tree climbing (I can still climb with the best of 'em) and swimming and fishing and watermelon consumption and gift opening and laughter. It was a great day. I may come back to it in more detail in a later blog
( I'm too beat for details right now---I was up at 4:30AM this morning driving back from the beach for my 8:00AM root canal appointment. Oh joy.) In the meantime, here's a few images from the weekend:



IS there anything more fun than catching bubbles? I don't know what it would be!


Dad opening gifts with Q's help


The Walkman Cometh!


A really good one of Mom


I have more, but I'm too tired to post them. I'll try to catch up tomorrow. Goodnight all!

It's been a whirlwind week of researching, ordering and familiarizing myself with new equipment,finalizing trip details and paperwork and printing sports reprints and portrait proofs (I'm up to my ears in them!!). The sports stuff is almost done and so are the bridal proofs.

Tomorrow will consist of more portrait proofs, delivery of proof books, equipment testing, vet appointment and the thorough cleaning of this filthy, scary house. I'm supposed to do a little shopping and then grab a bite with a friend, later tomorrow evening. We'll see if that happens or not---it's going to be a full day!

Here're a few shots taken with my new camera the past couple of days.



Note the new outbuilding :0)


Oh, yeh my tooth still hurts (that was just for you, Melissa!HAHAHA!)

Well, Friday evening the tooth went full-blown abscess despite the prescribed antibiotics 6pm Friday to 6am Saturday morning it was very, very bad. Saturday was spent in a combo of napping, working and eating soft,soft foods. By that evening, I was feeling considerably better and had actually accomplished a good bit of work,too.

As an early b-day treat, a friend took me out to my new favorite restaurant--Milano's. Excellent Italian food(nice, soft eggplant parmigiano) and good wine,too. A glass of Pino Gris finished off the evening nicely.

Sunday morning at breakfast, I received a call from Em. She and her fam were in town and invited me over to their in-laws to pick up my b-day gift. We spent an hour or two talking with the adults and playing with the boys. The boys are SO adorable: W is just talking up a storm and Q is still just smart as a tack. They were both cracking me up with their antics. They're such good kids--and getting SO big (small tear in my eye). I let Q open and present my gift to me: a bracelet, picture frame and wallet, all fashioned after the style of "the islands" and in my favorite color. Very thoughtful gifts, indeed. It was good to see everyone!

On the way home, I got a call from a customer and realized I owed her some sports images. She HAD to have them delivered by 5pm. SO. That took care of the afternoon! But, I got them finished in plenty of time. I took the dogs out for a romp in the field and did some more work, online.

This morning, I called the St Lucian Embassy, in D.C. to get a few passport questions answered and then proceeded to work online and field various birthday well-wishing phone calls. That's one of the great things about a b-day; all of the nice calls and emails from friends and fam--THANKS EVERYONE! :0)

I met for coffee and a Q&A session with my St Lucia bride and then headed over to the dentist to make an appointment for the morrow.

The rest of today has just been a blur of internet research, ordering supplies, walking dogs, cropping images, etc. And feeling very,very old. Birthdays, after 30, just seem less exciting somehow.*sigh*

Oh, big news: I got my mega-enormous-top-of-the-line-professional-digital-camera on Friday! I am, quite frankly, a little scared of her at this point. But I am slowly getting to know her and make her my good friend. I must learn her personality and capabilities inside and out before I head off to my big island wedding adventure.

Yes, we shall become very close, she and I. ;0)

Alright, I've got some more work to do before I hit the old sackaroo. 'night all!

Crazy busy day

Whew. I am one tired gal.

The day began with my usual coffee and a little something to eat (and a toothache).
I checked my Ebay bids, blog and email and caught up on the news. From there I washed clothes and prepared to run my errands, which included getting a cashier's check. I ended up on the phone arguing with the bank and emailing and calling the guy in Chicago I'm trying to buy a camera from (and I still had a toothache). Mom and Dad, bless their hearts, came to my rescue (again) and finally got it all straight for me. The check was overnighted and the camera will be her tomorrow.WHOOHOO!
I tanned again and went to the dump and worked on digital images. Then I loaded up my car with all my gear and prepared to head over to my on-location bridal portrait session--and I still had a toothache. So. I stopped what I was doing and called a dentist. And then another. And then another...13 more times! NO ONE would see me! Not one dentist's office would give me an appointment for tomorrow. Most said it would be at least a week. I'm in PAIN, folks. I kinda thought that might take priority as it very obviously indicates an infection. So, in desperation, I'm heading to the M.D. in the morning and begging for antibiotics to kill what is obviously the beginning of an abcess. I'm hoping this will catch it soon enough to stave off the 3-day pain-fest which normally accompanies an abcessed tooth. God help the poor M.D. if he doesn't give me the meds. I'm kidding (well, kinda).

Anyhoo, it was sunny with ominous clouds rolling in when I left home for the session. As I was pulling into the session location, the heavens opened up and it poured. The poor bride-to-be had just had her hair and makeup all professionally fixed--so we just sat there in our cars. Eventually we made it into the house and did an almost 2 hour session. I just finished downloading the images and they're great.I'm very pleased with them.

On the way home I stopped at the drugstore and picked up some toothache meds and then went for a long walk with the dogs. They have played, non-stop, since I got home this evening. They're good dogs.

Alrighty, folks I'm heading off to the sack very shortly. Goodnight all!

Quickie

Alright, it's late and I've another busy day tomorrow, so it's gonna be a quickie:

Good Stuff:
Finally feeling a little better
My new outbuilding arrived
Tons of business stuff to keep me busy
Started going to the tanning booth
Started back working-out
St. Lucia prep progressing fairly smooth
Parental visit over the weekend--very enjoyable
Savannah's ballet performance in the "Petrushka" was just splendid
Austin played a most impressive game on Sat.
Long motorcycle ride with a friend on Sunday
Enjoyable dinner out with Melissa
I've lost 12lbs!!!!!!!!!!!

Not-as-Good Stuff:
Toothache that must be remedied SOON!
Hilda seems to have taken about 3 steps backwards in her house training
Having a hard time finding time to organize all my junk to get it into the outbuilding
Tons of sports images to get printed and delivered to impatient parents
The ticks are out in force in my work-out area
The humidity (the "curse of summertime" as I like to call it) is back
I need to lose another 20 lbs in the next 2 weeks(I know, I know, it ain'ta gonna happen)

So, there you have it. I could write about all of these things in a lot more detail(especially the work-related stuff), but I'm bushed.
Hope everyone is well. Goodnight! :0)

An Eventful Weekend

A special thanks to all who prayed for my unspoken request. It has been answered with a resounding "Yes!" All is well. Praise God from whom all blessing s flow.


Friday found me running around like a madwoman trying to get all of my errands run before I was due at the baseball field at 4:45pm. I got most everything accomplished (except hauling trash and cleaning my car). I was at the team shoot for 5 hours and shot two teams worth of posed and action shots and collected a very healthy amount of dough for my trouble.YESSS!

Saturday, I was packed and on the road by 12:30. It was a long trip and I was tired. When I made it to the farm, I tried to lay down for a few minutes but little Hilda has decided she's a watchdog now and barks furiously at any little noise. I didn't get much sleep Friday night for that very reason--she kept waking up and seeing her reflection in the mirror and ruffing viciously at that strange dog who had slipped in whilst she slept. I couldn't be mad because it was just so ridiculously funny.

Anyhoo, I walked the dogs and then headed over to Em's for babysitting detail. The boys were very excited and energetic and cute! The Dude was racing around getting together all the bits and pieces of his Hulk Hogan costume and enlisted me to inscribe "the Hulkster" on a torn t-shirt and do-rag.Then he headed out to the big 80's party. W had a bad runny nose and was a bit grumpy, but was really very well-behaved despite not feeling great.Many cars and choo-choo's traveled the "beltway" that night. And Q was a little ball of energy, swinging and kicking the ball around and laughing hysterically because I called Stella "Pootus". He informed me on Monday that she was called that because she was "full of poots, ha!ha!ha!". What a comedian! :0) They were both incredibly well-behaved and fun to babysit. I camped out on the couch with the baby monitor until the next morning.

I went back to the farm and took care of the dogs and laid down for a little while. Later, I walked the dogs and set up a portrait session at my friend J's house for that evening. It's about an hour's drive to the beach house, where Mom and Dad have been working tirelessly this past week to get things all fixed up. And wow does it show! The place looks great! I don't know why I didn't think to take some pics of it(Duh!).

I got the dogs settled in and chatted with Mom and Dad for a bit, then headed over to J's. Mom came along,too to see the kids and J's flower garden. The garden was absolutely beautiful! Her whole yard is just a sea of roses and various other multi-hued perennials and cultivated greenery. Just lovely! It was really nice to see her and her fam. The kids are growing like weeds and little A.G. is so cute and just hilarious--she's one of those kids that keeps you guessing as to what she might say next. Little A was in a very good mood and smiled and laughed right on cue for the camera. She was adorable in her little pink, smocked dress. The pictures are awesome! I can't wait to post them! (I have to show them to J first--it's only fair!).

Dad had the grill fired up when we arrived back at the beach house and steaks and baked potato and corn were on the table soon after we arrived. I can't begin to describe the joy that was that steak. I bow in reverence to both the butcher dept. at Hall's grocery and my Dad's abilities on the grill. Can I get uh Amen, people?

The next morning I awoke early with a nasty sore throat and watched the sunrise with Mom.
It was gorgeous coming up over the water.


As the day progressed I became more and more ill. Em and her crew arrived around 1pm and the boys headed straight to the water. Q is quite the little fish! We grilled hot dogs and burgers and by 3;30 we had crabs on the table and the picking began. MMMMM! Mom's shell pile was, of course, 3 times the size of everyone else's by the time the feasting was winding down. I think Mom and Dad both really enjoyed their anniversary feast (the only thing that could have made it better was if Mel and her gang could've been there.) :0)

By 5pm I was camped out on a blanket in the yard with a fever and aches and chills and runny nose, etc. Em and the Dude and Q did some fishing and W played in the sand and in the yard. W's very independent and fearless--he would head right out into the yard towards the beach without a second thought! I even fetched him out of the neighbors yard at one point. He's such a character! :0)


When Em and the boys left, I slept for a while and then sat down and had a long conversation with Dad about business prospects. I will save the contents of that discussion for another blog, but suffice it to say that I believe there are some big, exciting changes in the future for me and my business. ;-)

I didn't sleep well that night and woke up the next morning with all the same symptoms and completely congested,too. Mom and Dad headed back to the farm and I stayed one more night to get over the worst part of "the sick" before I drove home. I pretty much just slept that whole day.

Feeling better today (finally!) and thank goodness, because I have a ton of work to accomplish.
I still have my cigarette-and-whiskey voice(always makes me want to break out my guitar and belt out some old blues ballads) and my 3-pack-a-day laugh, but the fever's gone and I'm on the mend in general.

The dogs have worn themselves completely out playing tug-of-war with Hilda's collar (note to self: buy new collar for Hilda) and are curled up together in the floor. They're very cute.

Alright, I'm all blogged out and have things to do in the real world(as opposed to the world of blog, where I've spent the last hour!).