vintage

Last week

one of my friends and I

got to dress up in vintage dresses

(she's on the left in a 60's shift, and I'm on the left in a 40's dress)

and model them

for a presentation about fashion through the decades.

Such fun!

friends' family photos

About two years ago, I took family photos for some good friends to use for their Christmas card. It was my first ever photoshoot with anyone other than my family. Since then they have been among my warmest supporters. Earlier this autumn I had the honor of once again photographing their beautiful family. The following are a few of my favorite shots.

Jeff and Katie's reception

After their wedding, Jeff and Katie had a beautiful outdoor reception. There was a bountiful dessert buffet, wedding cake, dancing, and no rain!

cutting the cake

(they were sweet to each other;

I think the only bit of misplaced icing was a tiny dab on Jeff's nose.)

They toasted with Mountain Dew, Jeff's beverage of choice.

Little Man got to escort the bride to the dance floor.

lovely couple

Little Man loved blowing bubbles at the reception. I thought he looked like quite a dashing little gentleman in the vest I made for him (even better, he acted like one!).

It was such a beautiful, joyful day. As I said before, I was thrilled and honored be be able to be part of it and hope that it was just the first of many, many beautiful days Jeff and Katie share.

Katie's bridal portraits

Please bear with me as I indulge in a few days of somewhat belated wedding photos from my friend Katie's wedding on June 18. Today I'm going to share some of the bridal portraits we squeezed in at the very end of the day. I was going to share only one or two, but Katie is such a graceful and beautiful subject with such control over what she looks like that I manage to get tons of good photos in just minutes, resulting in far to many favorites to choose just two.

It was a windy day, and after battling the gusts for a while we decided instead to embrace it and make the most of some wind-blown veil shots.

I don't think there's anything quite like helping to capture and document a friends' joy on her wedding day. I feel so honored to have been included!

bridal shower-the games and gifts

I can't rally take credit for the games since my mom and the bride-to-be's sister planned them, but since they were part of the bridal shower experience, I thought I'd tell about them anyway.

The first game was a bridal shower bingo game. There were the usual numbered squares as well as a numbered list of things about the bride, the groom, and the couple. For example, under Katie's name were things like "has a named car," "was born in [our town]," "is the youngest in her family." Under Jeff's name were things like "loves Mountain Dew" and "owns a business." Under Both were things like "has blue eyes," "loves to farm," "was born in the 80's," and "is a teacher." The goal was to find another guest who had one of those things in common with Katie, Jeff, or Both, and get them to sign the numbered square corresponding to the number of the item in the list. The first three people to finish won small prizes.

The second game was a simple word game: How many words can my make from the letters in "Katie Loves Jeff" in three minutes.

For the third game, 17 different herbs and spices were placed in unmarked, numbered jars. The jars were passed around, and the guests teamed up in groups of two to see how many they could correctly identify by smell, look, and even taste (watch out for the chili powder!) without the telltale labels. We actually had one team who correctly identified all 17!

After the games was present time! Jeff and Katie received many kind gifts, and they loved the calligraphy I made for them. Even though I wasn't surprised that they liked it, I still find myself glad and relieved.

(Isn't she cute!?!) Of course we had to make a rehearsal "bouquet" from the bows and all the gifts.

I had such a good time coordinating, planning, and making this bridal shower happen for sweet and special Katie. I enjoyed planning the decorations, making the food, interacting with the guests... It was so worth the achy feet and back at the end of the day.

history

some friendships bloom overnight

and others grow over a long, long time

both are special

yet there's something

extra nice

about the ones

with history

two chubby one-year-olds

play on the floor

look up startled as camera captures the moment

two growing three-year-olds

play in the yard

wear matching clothes

color together

argue about song lyrics during a nap

share a favorite color of red

celebrate birthdays

four days apart

with pink play-doh and popcorn ball favors

two newly-turned four-year-olds

chant rhythmic cadence in chorus

wrap up in blankets to play lovely brides

make glorious mud pies

and sample the dirt

(it tasted like chocolate)

help to plant bulbs

share trips to the store

learn to marvel at their differences

two eager eight-year-olds

meet once again

chatter as if no time had passed

string daisy chains

mournfully part

become consistent pen palls

two girlish eleven-year-olds

make a club house

hike to delightful picnics spots on nearby high hills

have frequent sleep-overs

enact elaborate make-believe tales

chatter and grow

two young teenagers

span the long miles

with pages of writing

year after year

rejoicing when meeting

mourning when parting

always picking up where they had left off

two eighteen-year-old young women

talk on the phone for hours and hours

marvel again

at the similarities in heart

the continuing growth

and God's work in their hearts

laugh as they share the new favorite colors

of sage green and brown

one of them marries the man of her dreams

and the other rejoices as her maid-of-honor

two twenty-three-year-old women

meet once again

revisit old memories

take plenty of pictures

one of them marries the man of her dreams

and the previously-wedded one rejoices

with flute-song joy at her friend's wedding

I feel thanks too deep to express

for God's gift to me of this friend

and for the strong

life-long

friendship we share

i am also grateful for all that Benjamin

and my parents gave

to make it possible for me to share

in the celebration of her wedding day

it was beautiful in every way

Thoughtful

I have a dear friend who lives in Oregon. Our birthdays are only three days apart, and we have been friends since before we could walk. We have so many sweet memories of our growing-up years. She was even able to come and be the maid of honor for my wedding.

Well, last Saturday (my actual birthday) I was taking some trash out late in the evening when I found a package on my side doorstep. It was a thoughtful package from my dear friend.

A sweet card, magnetic notepads, lightly scented green candles, homemade biscotti in a special "i love cookies bag, Good Earth Chai tea, a giant bar of chocolate...all packaged in a charming tin. She managed to include some of my favorite things. It reminded me just how delightful being friends can be--not because of the things (as nice as they are) but because of the thought and care that she put into it all to let me know she cares about me.

Concerning farmer's market, flowers, friendships, and fluting

This past week has been crazy. I've been restless and rather emotional. I am "blaming" my hormones for this since I'm getting close to Brother's due date. Only I'm not really blaming them because I still want to take responsibility for my choices and actions; knowing that the the hormones are there and active, though, sure helps me understand myself. On Thursday I cleaned, sorted, and tidied until I exhausted myself, and since then I've been unmotivated, unmethodical, and tired. So I'm going to present you with a rambling, unmethodical post in keeping with my general weirdness. At least I got all the topics to alliterate. ; )

Yesterday was fun. Benjamin had the whole day off of work, and we enjoyed sleeping in and spending all day together as a family. We went to the farmer's market in the morning. I was thrilled to find an amazing price on echinacea and thyme plants ($2.50 for both of them!), and we also bought some apricots. At a produce stand down the road we bought luscious peaches and tomatoes, and at a yard sale recommended by a friend, we found

some cute little boy clothes for both Little Man and Brother. We ate lunch with a friend, and spent the afternoon and evening resting and relaxing. It was a marvelous day.

On Wednesday some of the ladies from church had a special little prayer meeting to pray for me and another mother whose baby is also due in August. It was an encouraging, uplifting time. I was encouraged to be full of God's peace and joy as I have my baby and as I adjust to having two little boys instead of just one. One of the ladies who came brought these these brilliant orangy-red sunflowers for me. Aren't they pretty? I put them in a dramatic green heirloom vase that seldom has something bold enough to balance it.

In February we started attending a new church. It was a hard and overwhelming change. I've adjusted now, though, and am excited about the number of new friendships opening up to me. However, as I develop new friendships perplexing questions come up. Questions about old friendships. Are they truly worthwhile, uplifting, and satisfying? Should they stay the same?Should I boldly confront troubling issues in them or should I merely put in a word here and there? What does God think? Questions about new friendships. Which ones should I cultivate? Which people will be good close friends, and which will be good acquaintance friends? Earlier this evening I was all worked up and worried about all these questions. Now I feel more peaceful. I have prayed for wisdom, and I trust that God will give it.

Last week I got to play the first movement of Telemann's first cannonic sonata as a duet with my flute student. I was so excited; I've been wanting to play these sonatas for a long time, and now I have someone to play them with. Speaking of flute music, I think I'll go play my flute for a while. Fluting seems to unwind me and helps me regain my equilibrium.