Day 56

It went from snowing on Tuesday to being 60 degrees today! Needless to say, we played outside after school. I got a few funny pictures of Dominicle-pickle which I'm going to post on Elusive Tranquility later, but this sweet shot begged to be the picture of the day today.



Thanks for looking!

Day 55

Jenny looked so pretty today... she just had this glow about her. Earlier this week she wrote a letter to me and Curtis detailing all the ways she is grateful for us. I really feel so lucky to be her mom and her friend. She is my little angel on earth!



Thanks for looking!

Day 54

Today was Anna's MRI and ultrasound. She did so well and was very brave. It is a difficult task to watch your child put to sleep with general anesthesia and even more difficult waiting. I took this picture in the main hallway of the hospital while Anna was getting her procedures done.



Thanks for looking!

day 53

We did a quick trip to our neighborhood library this afternoon. Dominic is such a good reader, I haven't been able to find anything this boy can't read. I love watching him sitting with a pile of books reading.



Thanks for looking!

Day 52

The kids and I went out to run errands this afternoon, and I took the opportunity to grab some pictures of Jenny. This was my favorite today. I still can't believe that she'll be moving away this fall. I love her so much!



Thanks for looking!

Day 51

Dominic loves styling his hair into a faux-hawk and insisted that I make this the photo of the day. He also requested that I make his hair green, so I gave the cross-processing look a try. I think he'll be pleased.



Thanks for looking!

Day 50

Anna was home sick today. We had a rough night and I knew something was wrong so I took her to the pediatrician this morning. She has strep throat. While I was there, I told them about Anna's upcoming MRI and abdominal ultrasound (Tuesday) which is happening because of her abnormal blood test and bone scan results from our visit with the endocrinologist in December. I guess I'm a little more worried than I thought because our sweet nurse practitioner gave me a pep talk, then got tears in her eyes. That, of course, made me teary too.

So what better picture to take today than of all the medications Anna is currently taking. Ridiculous isn't it? The first four are daily, the last three because she's currently sick.

~Risperdal for rage and aggression due to autism.
~Lexapro for anxiety due to autism.
~Miralax for constipation due to hypotonia.
~Melatonin at night to help her get to sleep and stay asleep due to being neurologically unique.
~Omnicef for the strep throat.
~Mucinex for congestion.
~Motrin for fever.

And you know what? This child is an angel about taking her meds. She never complains even though some of them are terribly bitter. I am tired, worried, on seizure-watch, and so so so proud of her.



Thanks for looking.

Day 49

Coffee. I love coffee. Extra bold and black please. My current fave is Starbucks Sumatra. Mmmmmm...

A line from Dale Cooper on Twin Peaks that sums it up nicely (yes, I am that old):
"I like my coffee as black as midnight on a moonless night."



Thanks for looking!

Day 48

It was such a beautiful day here today! The sun was out and we played outside all afternoon after school. I love this shot of Dominic... he is just too stinkin' cute!



Thanks for looking!

Day 47

Dominic is getting to be so patient with me when I get my camera out... I swear he can't take a bad picture! I love how his blue eyes and red shirt pop in this picture.



Thanks for looking!

Day 46

Anna and I went to the rec center this afternoon and played some ping-pong. We were taking a break, sitting on the floor, and looking out the window. When I glanced over and saw this expression on her face, I was so grateful that I brought along my camera... and I wondered what she was thinking about. I just love how the light played across her face.



Thanks for looking!

Day 45

This photo is for my husband, Curtis. We are overcoming a challenging time in our marriage and have renewed our commitment to each other and to our marriage and family. This kiss represents focusing on the simplest thing... love.

If we have that... we have everything. Happy Valentine's Day, sweetheart. I love you.



Thanks for looking!

Day 44

Just hanging out with Anna, playing this afternoon. She is such a light in my life.



Thanks for looking!

Day 43

Busy day so you're stuck with the cat again. Sorry!



Thanks for looking!

Day 42

It is unusually chilly here this week and we actually saw a little sleet in the air. I couldn't think of a better picture to take than that of our fireplace.



Thanks for looking!

Day 41

I have always admired the self-portrait mirror shot... I'm not quite sure I pulled it off, but I like the effect a lot.



Thanks for looking!

Day 40

A chilly, but sunny day... playing outside in a neighbor's backyard. Dominic is looking up adoringly at Annie, the neighbor friend, who was his first love 2 summers ago. I remember him solemnly asking her to be his girlfriend when he was four and she was eight. He would walk her home after she played at our house. How cute!!! I think he still likes her, don't you?



Thanks for looking!

Day 39

I love People magazine. I can't quite bring myself to purchase a subscription or buy them frequently, but Curtis will often pick one up for me when he runs to the store. It's one of my true pleasures in life, getting to sit down and lazily leaf through a new edition.



Thanks for looking!

Day 38

It was such a busy weekend. I vowed to take a picture earlier in the day so that I wasn't scratching my head after the kids were asleep wondering what in the world to shoot... ha. Luckily I caught Dominic still awake after I put Anna to bed. He was laying on my mom's shoulder (have I mentioned lately how blessed I am to have my mom? gosh I love her!) and looked up at me with his oh-so-sweet eyes. How lucky am I???



Thanks for looking!

Day 37

This year I wanted to be that mom. The one who did something a little extra for the Valentines for the class parties... not like every previous year where I sent in a lame Dollar Store box of valentine cards hastily scribbled out the night before. The kids worked on writing the names on the cards (Anna managed one or two, Dominic did almost all of his) while my mom and I finished them up. I used the collaboration charity kit called One Love (created to raise money for Haiti) to create homemade name tags for the gift bags which we filled up with good candy. I used a little girl with brown hair for Anna's tags and a little boy with blonde hair for Dominic's tags. My mom did the ribbon. There are 41 bags in all.

This year, I am that mom. :)



Thanks for looking!

Day 36

In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I got a picture of Jenny and Chris holding hands.

Simple. Beautiful. Love.



Thanks for looking!

Day 35

Okay... I made it 35 days before running out of ideas or inspiration. Not bad! Desperate for something to shoot, I decided to try experimenting with my depth of focus and emptied out the contents of my purse. Let's see... a wallet, keys, sunglasses, planner, flash drive, Purell, Listerine breath spray, lip glosses, and my treasured Vera Wang Princess (love love love this perfume!!!) perfumed cream in a jeweled heart.



Thanks for looking!

Day 34

We had a spontaneous family dinner that was just lovely. The kids were well-behaved, everyone talked and ate. After dinner we listened to Tik Tok, Anna's current favorite song, and she had so much fun dancing. What a nice evening. This is a picture of Jenny watching her sister dance.



Thanks for looking!

Day 33

After school, Anna, Dominic, and I lined up all the stuffed animals on the kitchen table so they could be the zoo, then put the little animals on a small table in the living room to be a petting zoo. We then got a few baby dolls and had them go to the zoo. I had cut up some cucumbers and apples, so we had something to feed the baby animals in the petting zoo. It was a lot of fun! I think it was because I had put in some mommy time that I was able to get this picture later this evening. Can you see his expression? "Not another picture?!" Dominic is such a good sport though.



Thanks for looking!

Day 32

My mom has always loved knick-knacks. When I was a kid, she used to have so many that she organized them by season and rotated them throughout the year. She has since pared down her collection quite a bit. This glass piano was her mother's and she used to sit and stare at it as a child, trying to play its tiny keys. When her mother passed away, her sister ended up with the piano. Then one Christmas, it was given as a gift from sister to sister. My mother has cherished it ever since and it has joined other musical items since my mom is such a music-lover. I love thinking that someday my grandchildren will read this story.



Thanks for looking!