"Today's best is tomorrow's starting point"

Josh and I had the awesome opportunity to be a part of a mentoring relationship with another ministry couple. This couple has kids who are grown, grandkids and have been in the heart of ministry for many years. They've 'been there, done that', so to say. They most definitely do not have a 'been there, done that' type of attitude, but because of their experiences prove to be a wonderful couple for mentoring us 'young bucks' in the ministry. We tried to meet as often as possible..which usually turned out to be monthly, until they felt a call to move out of our area. We miss this relationship for sure, but know that this is what needed to happen.

During one of our times together, John (the husband of this couple), talked about how today's best should be tomorrow's starting point. At first this didn't 'click' with me..but he explained. He used an example of his time as a teacher. I don't remember the exact specifics, but it had something to do with a project that he would have his class do. He did this project every year and each year, while explaining the project to his class, he would display the BEST projects from the previous class. Last years best projects became the starting point for the following year...and he would find that the results of this project would get better and better and better every single year.

I'm sure that this concept can be applied in many ways in each of our lives. I think of it often in my daily work as a stay at home mom and 'housewife'. A big part of my job here is keeping up with the daily household chores, and in the end, making a place of 'en gedi' for my family, especially my husband. He works VERY hard all day and the least I can do is make his return into his home each day a time of refreshment and relaxation, rather than a time of unorganized chaos. (with four kids, he usually comes home to 'organized chaos'...but there's just not much we can do about that!).

I have a very bad habit of spending a day cleaning and organizing...and instead of going on the "today's best/tomorrow's starting point" idea, I will sit around the next day thinking "the house is clean, so today I can sit back and relax". But see..what happens when I do this, is that the very next day I am back at catching up and cleaning and organizing like a crazy woman. The day's when I take to heart making today's best tomorrow's start things go MUCH more smoothly. If today, I build on the work I did yesterday, then I actually end up doing far less work in the long run.

A practical example: If yesterday I cleaned the bathroom so it's all sparkly and clean and then tomorrow ignore it completely (because I just cleaned it yesterday)...the following day I will be back on my hands and knees scrubbing the pee (yes PEE) that is on the back of the toilet and sometimes the floor from my 3 young boys. BUT...if I clean the bathroom one day and then the next day take the time to just wipe down the toilet (taking less than a minute) then I will save myself MUCH work.

...or better yet! When the bathroom only needs a little wipe down then I can have the kids take part in this as well. It is hard and overwhelming (and downright disgusting) for a 5 year old to try to clean a bathroom that hasn't been cleaned in a week.

I encourage you, to take this concept and run with it, in whatever area of your life that seems appropriate. And for me, I assure you, keeping with this idea ends up allowing me more time to sit, relax and enjoy my time at home with my kids!

Emma's 1st Birthday!

We had the privilege of being able to spend the day with some of our favorite friends and their little girl on her first birthday! We arrived late on Friday night, but had lots of time to play and snuggle on Saturday while mom and dad prepared for the party.

The party was celebrated with many of Emma's friends and family. It is clear that she is very loved by many people! It was a perfect party for a one year old. Guests both old and young enjoyed the day with yummy appetizers and being able to help participate in the opening of the presents as well as blowing out the candles. Not to mention..being able to share the yummy lady bug cake that Emma didn't want anything to do with!

Our time with Ken and Erica always seems so short...especially compared to years ago (before any of us had kids), when we spent most of our waking moments together. It is SO good that we have been able to keep this relationship going over the years, even if our time together is short.

No matter what, Josh and I are so happy to be able to be a part of Emma's life and loved being able to spend this special day with her!

Of course, pictures...(as usual, there are more on my website)

The kindergarten years.

This is my third year with a half day kindergartener. We know this drill. We like this drill...for the most part. Luke missed the kindergarten age cutoff last year by a month. It was the same for Jessalyn (because of their October birthdays). It's a good thing really, especially for Luke. He's a boy, he needed the extra year...mostly to get his reactions under control and to assure us that he wouldn't beat the other children when he didn't win or when things didn't go his way. Yes, this is Luke's personality and we have been struggling with him for years trying to help him with his anger issues. I have read and re-read books on strong willed children and they help. They really do.

Although Luke still has his moments (daily)..he is MUCH better. People look at him and can't quite believe that we had so much trouble with him. I am glad. He is really the sweetest kid and lately, out of all of my kids, seems to be the easiest to handle.

Having an extra year before kindergarten was a big deal for him. It helped in many ways. His first instinct is not to tackle someone when he doesn't get his way anymore. This will probably benefit him while he is at school:) He was also VERY comfortable with the transition to going to school. He couldn't wait and now ranks up there with Jessalyn and Ethan as actual "school goers" and he feels like a big kid. This is cool.

It helps that all three of my kids have had the same kindergarten teacher. After Jessalyn's year with this teacher, we decided that I would request her again for Ethan. Having him comfortable with her from his daily interactions with her classroom and her while picking up Jessalyn and various other activities that we participated in was a big deal for him and his first day and year of school. We requested her again for Luke and this transition seemed to go just as smoothly as it did with Ethan. We'll see...hopefully in two years she will still be there as a kindergarten teacher and hopefully I will get what I want again in requesting her for Owen. I would love for all four of my kids to start their schooling "career" with her.

Of course, the kindergarten year doesn't come without that extra trip to the school each day. Having to drop off the big kids in the morning and then Luke in the middle of the day, then heading back up at the end...along side of whatever other trips we have to make in a day (sports, groceries etc)...it makes for many trips out the door. I don't mind this as much now when the weather is nice, but when it comes time for boots, and hats and mittens and snowpants.....and fifty feet of snow to walk through and brushing (shoveling) off the car and scraping the ice. Yeah...this is NOT fun. The middle of the day drop off also seems to make the day go by super fast. I feel like we just get back and get settled..and get into a project and then its time to head out again. I suppose this year I only have one other kid to tow around..and no baby. This will make it easier.

But...overall, Luke is enjoying school very much. I haven't heard any reports of his temper causing a problem, and honestly, at school I don't expect it to. We'll see!

Love this boy.

Its funny how the act of taking a picture with a camera tends to 'lock' a moment into my mind. Maybe that is why I do it so often? I mean, obviously, the moment is 'locked' into place with a picture and when everyone looks at a picture they are reminded of the moment by what they see on the picture in front of them. For me its more than that though...when I look at a picture I not only am reminded of the moment that was captured, but I can also, most of the time, remember actually clicking the shutter release button. Even in pictures taken many many years ago. I guess, by looking at a picture I can imagine myself in the moment by thinking about how and what I was doing when I snapped it. Maybe it is this way for everyone? I don't know. But, for me, it keeps me snapping away at milestones big and small!

For example...I was inspired this morning to take a few pictures of Ethan before school. Why? It wasn't the first day (we've already done all of those pictures)...it is a normal Wednesday morning. The 'get out the door' routine went smoothly today (it's hit or miss)...and the kids were at school on time...which in Jessalyn world means way early.

I guess lately, Ethan has been seeming so old to me! I took notice of this today as he took a shower completely by himself...and as far as I could tell, got out of the shower and was actually pretty clean. As I watched him brush his teeth and comb the hair that he is insisting on growing long, I felt like I needed to capture this 'moment' in my mind..which translates into 'on film' (or pixels!).

So, while Jessalyn sits in the car stressing that we might not get to school at exactly 8:25 (the announcements don't start and they are not "late" until 8:40), I took the opportunity to stop Ethan at the door and snap a few memories. He was fairly cooperative...probably because he knew he was making his sister squirm in the car...because he is a pesky little brother.



...and for the record, we were...as usual...at school with plenty of time to spare.

Buddies

A relationship like none other for this group of boys. They met when Daniel and Ethan were only a year old...then each of them got new little brothers...followed by one more brother for each of them! Karole-Ann and I like to coordinate our baby making (not really!).

These six boys spent much time together when they lived here in Meredith but a few years ago they moved away:( It was sad for all of us...but especially sad for the boys. But this move didn't affect their relationship at all. Even after all the time spent with friends at school or church..when asked about best buddies (while school and Church friends are listed too) Daniel, Andrew and Sammy are always number 1 on the list from my boys.

We were fortunate to spend much time with them this summer at camp and soulfest and then more camp. The sight of them running across the field to each other when we arrive is priceless...and then they are off and playing as if there was no time missed in between.

Although the boys spend much time all together, they do tend to pair off by age...Daniel and Ethan, Andrew and Luke and Sam and Owen. Its interesting to see the similar personalities of each of these pairs!

It has been fun to see them grow up....all six of them loving Jesus! I pray that each and every one of them will continue to hold each other accountable as they get older.

Karole-Ann and I had this idea of a little photo shoot with the boys. We came armed with denim and white t-shirts...going for a 'stand by me' type look. We prepped them...warning them that this occasion was going to happen and with the help of Cindy who was armed with brand new silly bands as a reward we were able to get them to cooperate. They actually seemed to enjoy themselves..while watching friend Brandon be silly behind the camera! We worked quickly..while battling the sun that kept creeping out from behind the clouds making our lives difficult.

When I look at these pictures from a photography perspective I can find myself frustrated by the details...ultimately, it was not the perfect time of day for this location. But! I still LOVE them..because we really did capture the personalities of the boys here and their friendships for sure. Just getting them all in one place at the same time was considered a victory...and then to get a few cute pictures of this special relationship is even better!

All of the 'keepers' are in an album on my website...but I will post a few of my faves here.















I couldn't decide which of these I like better of Sam and Owen!

Yes? No?

Does this sort of idea work? I think I like it:) Josh thought the black and white was too "ghostly". I could drop the opacity even more on the b+w...or raise it more. Also...maybe a different font color for her name?

Anyway...just looking for opinions:)

An 'everyday' photography tip.

I have learned 98% of what I know about photography (which...admittedly is probably only 10% of what I NEED to know) from reading photography websites, forums and blogs. (the other 2% came from the one photography book that I read.) I am constantly amazed and grateful for those professional photographers who share their knowledge with people like me!

I figured, that I would try to share some of what I know with all of you! Again, this is not to say that I don't have more to learn...I will forever be learning the art of photography!

So...for my first 'everyday photography tip'....and remember, all photography rules are made to be broken, but some of these tips and rules are generally best to stick with..here ya go...

I could call these "EPT's"..but then that makes me think of "early pregnancy test" instead of "everyday photography tip"...so I won't do that.

Or maybe I will.

When taking a picture of a person's face while focusing on good eye contact, try to get at an angle with your subject so that the whites of their eyes shows on BOTH sides of the iris...on both eyes. This might involve having the subject move their head just a tiny bit, or sometimes their head can stay in the same place but you just need to move a little bit and have their eyes follow you.

Breaking this rule is very common...and it doesn't make for a TERRIBLE picture. I have many "keepers" that do not show both sides of the whites of the eyes...but when comparing them to a photo that keeps this rule in mind there is a significant difference as to how much I like the picture! I think you will find the same.

I have an example...with the pictures I took recently of Kenzi...


There are a few differences in these two pictures..mostly, her angle towards the better lighting in #2 is better as far as her eyes go. I still very much like the first photo and considered it a keeper (and if I remember correctly, mom considered this one a keeper too!) but in comparing the two, my eye is definitely more drawn to the 2nd photo. In looking at many pictures, on my site as well as other, I have found this to be consistent in that, in a portrait type photo, I prefer the ones where you can see each side of the whites of the eyes!

Again, this does not mean that every photo that do not follow this 'rule' must be tossed...its just a little tip to some better eye contact!

So, while photographing for someone else, snapping a pic of your friend, or even trying to get a self portrait with your cell phone in the bathroom mirror...this little tip is one that is easily accomplished and can make for a much more engaging photo in the end!