Thank you to self-timers!

This year, despite my photo nightmare I shared before, we did get some cute family pictures. As I have mentioned before I no longer go to photo studios, so we have become a stick the camera on our tripod and set the timer kind of photographers. We've been lucky enough so far that our kids are mesmerized by the flashing timer that they actually sit still long enough to be in the shot. So here are our updated family pictures, as of Easter!

Sometimes it takes several attempts to get us all in, here is our first attempt:

Okay now we got it...

Easter Tradition

One tradition that we do that I just love is every Easter we all get new church clothes. Most years it's pretty fun picking out the girls' dresses and coordinating, colors or patterns. The last 2 years have been different though. We have been fortunate enough to have a woman my mom knows supply us with clothes for the Princess. Usually in the lot of clothes we get there is always some beautiful fancy dress. So this year, the only dress I had to buy was The Comedians. Which turned out to be really good considering it crept up on me and the Princesses party was the Saturday before Easter and I didn't have anything for the next day.

So, while I was playing Princess my wonderful husband did some shopping. This may sound weird for some husbands but mine, loves to shop. I don't know how readily he will admit that though, so it's good I did for him! Anyway, he went out and bought me my entire Easter wardrobe! He did great with style and size! I did end up wearing an older shirt I had, but not because his wasn't cute, it was more of a finally balancing the checkbook thing!

So thank you Babe! You always do great, and I owe my cute fashions to you!

Easter morning

Reflections

As I was looking at this picture and thinking about what to write, I wanted to find a poem about reflection and children. Then I remembered a poem my Aunt had written for my daughter when she was born. As I read this peom I realized something, which I have known but often need to be reminded of. This is not my daughter that I am raising but God's. I need to reflect on that a lot and remember there is a bigger plan here then just mine all the time.

Little hands so sweet and small. Are the wonder of us all.

Sent from Heaven, just this day. Your Beauty and innocence are a welcome ray.

Eden Belle the name you bare, into our hands with loving care.

Thank you, thank you, Father we pray.

Help us send this child back someday.

Give us wisdom to lead and guide, to give her strength to turn the tide.

Within her heart her beauty will come, touching all and lifting some.

Give her courage to hold onto the rod.

Let her be known as a daughter of God.

From Great Great Aunt Peggy Watanuki

3.27.07

Princess Party

Ever since my oldest turned 3 and has been obsessed with princesses I have dreamed about having an ALL OUT Princess party. So year after year, we tried but it just seemed to fall short of what I really wanted to do. So this year with a birthday coming up for the Princess I decided it was time, to pull out all the stops and plan this party.

1. I started with the invitations. I did them myself (since I have to keep making things to put on DCinks website).

2. We made the cake. I am so glad that this picture hides ALOT of mistakes, because this cake had a lot of them, but at 11pm the night before, anything goes!

3. The morning of we woke up and started decorating. We hung the streamers, made the throne, and made the balloon pathway up to the house.

4. With the decorations in place we just needed our costumes. The girls of course have tons of dress-up and as I went to my closet to see what I should where, I happened to see my PROM DRESS, perfect, I threw it on and the first mom that arrived helped me zip it up!

5. As the party began we heard a knock on the door and to all the girls surprise (and mine) our Fairy Godmother had arrived. (my mom, showed up FULLY decked out, waving her wand and everything!) It was so fun.

6. We of course played games, kiss the frog, and some others. Ate ice cream and just played. I have to say everything went great!

5 and FABULOUS!

Here's my new 5 year old!

Photo Session

I promised myself that I was going to be more positive in general, so I will attempt telling this story without being too negative....
Taking pictures of my kids is the biggest NIGHTMARE! (already I have lost the positive battle). I recently updated our bathroom, paint, flowers, vinyl lettering, the whole works. Since it's the girls bathroom it's of course a princess theme. I bought a white frame that would be just perfect with a picture of my 3 girls playing dress-up.
I tried making it fun, telling them to put on any dress-up they wanted. Then I had them sit down and I started shooting photos. No one was looking at me, or if they were it was a funny, silly, or sassy face. The Happy One was crying a majority of the time, while our Comedian is picking her nose!
I figured that out of the 20 pictures I took at least 1 would turn out? Nope, not one. I'll let you see a few examples of what I am talking about...

I came up with a list of possible problems, that I can hopefully avoid next time.

1-Don't do this at 5pm when everyone just wants to eat.

2-Blow every one's nose BEFORE so there will be nothing good in there to snack on, because like problem #1 it was dinner time.

3-Get rid of any mental picture of how I want the picture to turn out, and just shoot & print!