Love My Baby!

Having quiet children has its advantages, most of the time. Aj is often so quiet that we have little scares and have to make sure he's still alive and ok, and often he's just sleeping or playing quietly in the next room. At this point I think we'd be happy if he'd just talk more so we knew that he was there. Of couse usually we're in the same room anyway, but when he's in his crib or playing in the living room while we're in the kitchen it would be nice to hear him once in while, just to remind us that he's there. Should I even think of complaining that he's so quiet? Probably not, but it's sometimes concerning. He does "talk" and seems to be on track with all his motor skills but we've recently decided we'd like to hear from him a little more. So, we tickle him, play with him, and talk to him even more than we were already doing, just to get him to giggle and talk to us. It's a lot of fun and who wouldn't love to just sit and play with such a cute baby? Aj also LOVES to be read to.

Oh, and he's sitting up now! We've been practicing and he's getting better at it each day. Yesterday, when we had photos taken at Penny's he sat for a couple of them. He'll sit for anywhere from a few seconds to a couple minutes before toppling over. Ut-oh! Baby goes boink! He loves it. He smiles and makes sounds and movements that obviously mean that he wants to sit back up and so we start again. He's such a fun little boy. He's been sitting up more straight since last Friday or Saturday, instead of sitting forward with his little hands by his feet. He's now able to hold a toy while sitting, at least for a few seconds at a time. He's growing up so quickly. I wish I could spend every moment of every day with him and his brothers.

Since I now have "so much extra time" I have been editing some photos. Here's one I did tonight. It was taken in March, either by Anna Freeby or by my putting the camera on the tripod that same evening. I turned the entire background black and enhanced the lighting and such a little bit in raw format. I think it turned out very nice.



If my family or friends want to download this one go ahead. Click on the photo and then right click on the larger view to save it. I think it would be a good one to frame. I wish Shaun was in it with us.

Shane and AJ- 8 Weeks

Oops! I somehow forgot to upload Shane's photo! Thanks, Kara! :) You probably can't see it -the first zit- but it's there under his lower lip.



Here's a couple more photos for your enjoyment. I love taking photos of my youngest subjects! Logan was at scouts tonight when I took the last picture, of Shane with AJ.

Welcoming Baby AJ

Guess what?! I had a baby today! Wahooooooo! And, I did it drug free! Yay me! That or I'm nuts...I haven't figured it out yet.

First...the labor and delivery story:

Yesterday was Shaun, my husband's, birthday. We thought it would be great to have the baby yesterday but that didn't quite happen. My friend, Heather, however did have her baby yesterday! We went out to dinner last night, in a near-blizzard, for Shaun's birthday and then to run a couple errands. The weather doesn't bother us. While it was windy the visibility was fine and it wasn't snowing very hard. The roads were alright too.

Shortly after arriving a Della Voce I started to have contractions. I'd had them very early Sunday morning as well so I wasn't about to get my hopes up, even if it was Shaun's birthday. Well, they were about 4-6 minutes apart for the next two hours and were seeming to be fairly strong. We had my bag in the car but I wasn't sure that this was the "real thing" so we ran a couple errands and then went home to see what happened. After walking on my Gazelle for about 15 minutes I noticed that the contractions had all but subsided. While running the errands and while at home the contractions were only about 10 minutes apart and were not as strong as they had been. I was exhausted so I decided to wait it out and try to sleep. That worked! I was able to get a few hours sleep while the contractions weren't strong and was able to get rested for today. However, I was awakened at 2:25 am with much stronger contractions.

That's when I decided that maybe, just maybe, this was the real thing. I wasn't able to go back to sleep because of the strength of the contractions so I went to the living room and played on my computer (checked email, Facebook, etc.). At around 3:30 I woke Shaun up, told him that my contractions were anywhere from 2-9 minutes apart and growing stronger. I hadn't really paid attention to the exact timing because some of the contractions were pretty weak. I asked Shaun to wake up and come to the living room with me to time my contractions and help me get through the stronger ones. Instead he went back to sleep... go figure! :)

I was able to get to about 5 am without waking my family up but at that point I knew that my contractions were more regular and strengthening. I was also paranoid that they would disappear again. It was time to go! I woke Shaun up again, twice, and woke the boys up. Slowly everyone got up and ready. I was already dressed, packed (cameras and computer and a couple other last minute items), and ready to roll. We left the house about 5:50, after figuring out the workings of the car seat. We hadn't put it in the car and hadn't even figured out how to release the seat from the base until then!

Arriving at the hospital at 5:55 am we came right up to the OB wing and checked in. I was immediately checked internally and found out I'd progressed from dilated to a two at yesterday afternoon's OB appt to dilated to a four at check in this morning with contractions every 3-5 minutes. Wahoooo! Dilated to a four means they consider you to be in active labor. I was so excited! And a bit terrified at the same time. I'd decided to go drug free and keep moving as much as I could. I'd decided this probably months ago and now it was time to see if I could handle it! We called my sister Betsy at 6:30 and she called our family, my boss, and a couple friends for us. We also called a local friend who was able to come watch the boys in the waiting room for us until AJ was born (kids must NOT be left unattended- according to at least five signs in the waiting room). We also called Anne, my friend and doula. Because of the hospital's current policy on visitors due to flu season only Shaun and Anne were allowed to be in the OB unit with me. The boys weren't allowed in and were not even allowed to see their baby brother except through the entrance door windows. That was really hard for me!

Anyway, so while we waited we walked. And walked. And walked. Ok, only three times around the small OB unit but it took a while because of the contractions and we took our time. Anne arrived about the time they needed to monitor me again and Shaun ate his breakfast while I and the baby were monitored. Then Shaun went out and hung out with the boys and his friend who was watching them. Anne and I walked, and walked, and walked (three times again). My contractions were again growing stronger but I was doing quite well. I also sat on the exercise ball a couple times for short periods. At the next check I was dilated to a seven! Wow! It was going fast and I was thrilled. My contractions were now every 4-6 minutes but no one seemed to be concerned since I was still progressing.

It was now time for the hot tub! I knew I wanted to spend some time in the hot tub because I'd done it when in labor with Logan. Again it worked for me. I was having VERY strong contractions and they got more and more frequent to the point where they were not really going away before rising in intensity again. After only 45 minutes I got out (very slowly because of the intense pain) and was checked again. I had quickly progressed to a nine!!! According to the nurse I was "pushy" even though I didn't think I was quite ready to push. She called the doctor and he was there maybe two minutes later. Wow! I guess I was doing this whether I was ready or not!

Here's me in labor when Shaun caught a quick picture...I think it was the only picture of me taken with my camera today! I was having a contraction but caught him!



After MAYBE 20 minutes of pushing (at very most) and after some very intense contractions and tons of pain...AJ was born! I couldn't believe I'd done it! I was soooo tired and weak. If I'd had to go through a longer delivery I don't know what would have happened. I questioned myself about being able to do this a couple times but of course it was too late by then. I was committed and my body knew it. And here he is...freshly delivered.



And here's the very proud daddy...acting all natural about holding his newest baby. He had been worried about having a baby but everything is sooo natural to him this time. I'm amazed!



AJ did also have his first "bath" today at the hospital and there are a few video clips of him right after delivery but I've not figured out how to do video on here since they changed things and I don't want to post them on YouTube so if you want to see them you'll have to visit me. Ha!

It's been a long day and even though the hardest part was done by 10 am I'm still awake and tired so I'm signing off now. Oh- the older boys got to quickly see their brother through the window and are thrilled. They then spent most of the day at our friends' home and then Shaun picked them up late this afternoon. He'll be working tomorrow and they'll be at school so I should get plenty of rest.

Good night! Don't forget to hug and kiss all your babies!

Honey I Shrunk the Kids!

My photography course instructor has now uploaded both the portraits assignment and the "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" assignment to the online class portfolio. You can see them here.

Our final assignment is entitled "blue". He's not given any guidelines as to what to do for the assignment other than to use the knowledge we've acquired over the past few months. I have a few ideas but would welcome many more. I need to take at least 25 good "blue" pictures. I hope to do so within the next couple days so that I can complete this course early. I'll easily end with an 'A' in this course.

In other semester news, I've just taken my final for my Personal Wellness course. I got a 'B' on the final and ended the class with an 'A'. Wahoooooo!

Baby Bellies

These are pictures of my friend Heather and I that we took a couple weeks ago. A couple people have asked to see them. There's a ton more but I only wanted to put a couple online. We're both due December 17th with boys. Her belly is sooo much cuter than mine! Mine is the one with the Mamma War Wounds. :)

Counting Down

Counting down to the end of the semester...turned in my second to last photo assignment yesterday, finished up two papers yesterday which I turned in tonight, gave my presentation tonight......found out more about my last photo assignment which I plan to do in the next couple evenings...one final will be taken Thursday along with turning in the last assignment for that class...will receive an email soon regarding the final for tonight's class (I don't plan to be there next week even if the baby hasn't arrived)...need to work more on my online course and complete all those little papers, notes, and the 40 pager...

Here's my latest photography class assignment- Portraits with natural lighting from a window. I needed to have 10 good pictures of my "subject" and Logan's turned out the best. This one was my favorite. I'm also uploading a picture of Shane that I really liked even though the lighting wasn't the best.




The next photo assignment is "blue." No instructions, use our imaginations and creativity, and see what we come up with. I've already thought of a few ideas. Any ideas you want to share with me? I need 25 different "blue" pictures and can use the word however I want to.

Postcard from Home

This was another assignment for my photo class. It was fun and actually fairly easy to do. I mIGHt do something similar for the baby announcement. This is one main picture with several other pictures used to cut out the letters. The second one is the one I was supposed to turn in for the class but I just realized I turned in the wrong one! Either one should be fine though. I'll probably email the second one to the instructor, just in case.

Demotivation

Ok, still no pictures from this weekend...We used Shaun's camera and I haven't uploaded the pictures he took of the boys on Halloween. I promise to do so soon...however that also means finding room on my completely filled hard drive. Ouch! I desparately need to get a new, much larger, hard drive. The problem I'm having with that, besides spending the money, is that I'm afraid to take care of installing it myself and I'm terrified that I won't have all the files from this one to put onto the new one. I also need to find my CD for Windows so that I have an operating system and do not need to purchase a new one. UGH!

My most recent photography assignment, due just moments ago, was to create a "demotivational poster." If you have seen motivational posters you can probably guess what this is. De-motivational posters can be found for sale or just for show online. The site my instructor sent us to was despair.com. Check it out and have a few good laughs! The assignment was to create one of our own using a photo we have taken and the photo editing software. As you will see at despair.com, some are really funny, and some are tacky. I chose the more tacky route. I couldn't help myself!

My friend Heather and I are both pregnant and due on the same day, with boys. Since I've already had Shaun and my kids in several of the photos I've turned in I thought it would be fun to have one with Heather and I. What better than a tacky demotivational poster? So, I came up with the idea on Friday and she and Jeff, her husband, agreed to be part of my project. They may regret it... I told them my idea and then yesterday, after the baby shower I did for Heather, we set to work. After several photos we came up with a good one for the composition and I had finally stopped having a laughing fit just long enough to get a good shot. It was truly funny seeing us there posed for this and I couldn't stop laughing.

I hope you like it! Tell me what you think. I wish I'd come up with something funnier for the caption but I ran out of time. You'll get the point.

First Day of School Photos

As you can see this is me, being a mom, taking pics of the boys before they head off to school on their first day. Nothing fancy happening here, but great memories to keep! That's why I got into photography in the first place. I wanted to capture my personal family memories and help friends and family to do the same. So, here's a couple cuties excited to go back to school!


Brothers!


Amigos!


Logan- 7 1/2 years old- 2nd grade. Is VERY happy he got the teacher he'd hoped for. Has one of his two girlfriends in his class and she sits right next to him. Is happy to know that seats are changed often. Is usually a teacher's pet because they all think he's so darn cute and sweet.


Shane- 12, nearly 13 years old- 7th grade. Middle Schooler! Can you believe it? I'm having a little bit of a hard time adjusting. His first day was great and he only needed help with his locker once. His second day wasn't quite as fun because he had to write three papers. Get used to it kiddo! He had at least one friend in each class and lunch with all of the 7th grade friends. (Two of his friends since infant/toddler ages are in 8th grade at the same school.) Also a teacher's favorite most of the time because of his stunning good looks and great personality. I might be a little biased too...


The middle schoolers are on their way.


Logan impatiently waiting the 30 minutes between bus pick ups. He also gets home about an hour later than Shane.


Logan and "Joe the bus driver" both wave good-bye to us as they head off to school. Joe drove the boys last year also and made a point to say 'hi' to Shane after school and wish him well at middle school. He's the type of guy feel you can trust to keep your kiddos safe on their journeys to and from school. The boys were very happy to see him!

I'll start my "school year" on Monday but don't expect any first day pictures. :)

This Evening's Adventures: For Celeste!

Shaun and the boys left for a scout camp out for Logan's pack at noon today so...Tonight I had my friend Celeste and her four daughters over for dinner (homemade BBQ grilled chicken pizza and brownies- no need to be too healthy!) and baby photos. It was lots of fun and they kept me awake and semi-energetic. Since I was still awake when they left a couple hours ago I decided to go ahead and process (edit and play with) the pictures of the baby. She's gorgeous and fun. Even though she wouldn't smile at me much we were able to get some great shots! I think she's around 3 months old now. Celeste and I have been trying for the past couple weeks to figure out a time to get together for this and tonight worked out quite well. Here are my favorites. I couldn't narrow it down any further. :)






The girls have nick-named the baby "hippo mouth."











This was the only kinda-belly shot that looked good. She's not a happy belly baby, yet.






This was the reaction we got most of the evening. She wasn't in the mood for this.









Something made her happy! Probably mommy making faces!







This is one of the most beautiful baby blessing gowns I've seen. I love the details and scalloped edging.




Oh my!





Blue-eyed baby.






She did this several times. I think this is what she thought of me! :)









You mean we're done? That's it! Yay! Now I can smile and be happy.

A few days on the Emerald Isle

Introduction: I've been hoping to blog daily while on my trip but the internet connection at our guesthouse has not been working properly. Today it's back up and running. I've been keeping a daily journal for part of my coursework, which is the same as I would have blogged, so now I'm uploading the past few days worth of journal entries. I'll also be loading pictures ...

March 14, 2009

I've been in Northern Ireland for more than two whole days now! I've tried to blog before now but the internet connection is very flaky, at best. Below is a quickly put together video of the pictures I took during the first two days. Later I'll add more and hopefully with more information. Enjoy!



…

The flight over was very long at about seven hours from Atlanta to Dublin, Ireland. It was fun, but long, and most of our group of 13 didn’t sleep very much. The Atlanta airport may be the largest I’ve been to and the plane we were on from there was definitely the largest I’ve set foot on. I think I figured out that we had at least 250 passengers. The best part of the flight was surely the announcement that we could now see the Ireland island ahead. We couldn’t wait! I thought I’d seen Ireland already but we must have been over other large islands instead.

As we got off the plane and wandered through the gate we found our way to the Immigration gates. We waited in the long lines to be accepted into Ireland. Once we were all actually in the country of Ireland we grabbed our luggage and met our driver, “Doc” William Doherty. Doc drove us the three hours to Derry, Northern Ireland, with a quick stop about half way for “tea and toast” which ended up being lunch for most of us. I think it hit a few of us that we had actually made it here around the time we arrived in Derry. Somehow crossing the river Foyle made it more real to me. The river Foyle divides the city of Derry from Londonderry, although, I think, part of Londonderry is on the Derry side of the river. I'm not sure about this. I'd have to look at the city map and see if it says. Not everyone calls part of the city Londonderry. Sometimes it's L'Derry and sometimes it's all considered to be Derry. That depends on who's talking.

A few other little things that I’ve noticed about the culture/city are as follows:

1. Craic=atmosphere or attitude. Therefore, if a pub has “good craic” they have a good atmosphere. I only have heard this used in a positive way so far.
2. People drive on the opposite side of the road. This means while riding around on the bus every car coming down the other lane looks like they will hit you head on.
3. While walking on the sidewalk you have to realize that the cars coming right at you on the road are closer than you think. They WILL hit you if you step off the curb. There is no shoulder. Also, when a car turns either right or left they are turning directly into the lane you want to cross. Don’t cross when cars are anywhere near. They won’t see you until they hit you! None of us have yet been hit but we’ve come close many times.
4. There is litter and old, dried, flattened gum EVERYWHERE! I soooo badly want to grab some grocery bags and dig the litter out of the fenced tree trunks and off the roads and sidewalks and in the brush. It’s gross! It’s everywhere!
5. I LOVE the Irish accent. Absolutely love it. Most of the time I can understand what is said but if the accent is very rough then it’s much harder. If we can’t understand someone we have learned to simply agree or dismiss what is said. Usually we ask what they are saying a couple times before acknowledging what is being said, even if we don’t actually get it. :)

There are other little idiosyncrasies that I’ve noticed but these are the few that I’ve been able to remember at the moment.
…
Once we arrived in Derry we settled into the “guest house, not a B&B” Clarence House at 15 Northland Road. Click here to see the website (which is admittedly outdated). Michael runs the house. It has been in his family for many years and he was raised here. Michael is quite the character. He is constantly joking around with us and has a wonderfully eccentric sense of humor. When he deals it out we have figured out how to take it (never seriously) and exactly how to whip out our responses. He loves joining in our conversations are starting them. He likes to be part of our group while we are here. He is also an amazing cook. I can’t wait to eat a traditional Irish dinner on St. Patrick’s Day! We’re having Irish Stew, of course. I’m sure I’ll blog more about the dinner after it’s happened.

The Clarence House is a cozy old home converted into the guest house. It’s certified guest house, not a bed and breakfast. B&Bs, as they seem to be called the most here, are a home that is lived in and has only spare bedrooms rented out. A guest house has much higher standards and this one has all rooms “en suite” meaning that each has its own bathroom. The décor is extremely Victorian. It does help with the cozy feel. Michael hopes to someday soon sell his guest house and move to a nearby town in Ireland. His asking price is $1.25 million pounds. In my opinion this is high but I don’t know the market for a guest house and don’t know what the area homes or guest houses sell or appraise for. If someone where to buy it the wiring and plumbing would need to be updated sometime in the near future. I’m sure there are other less apparent issues to deal with also. This would not be an inexpensive venture. For now it's a nice little, quaint guesthouse that I'd recommend to anyone. I really do feel at home here and Michael makes sure we are all taken well care of. He's a great guy.

After arriving at our cozy accommodations we settled in, showered, and napped. Other than two naps of less than an hour each I hadn’t slept in about 20 hours. I was bushed! Unfortunately I wasn’t able to sleep because of my excitement. I slept for maybe an hour before it was time to go to dinner with the group. Dinner was wonderful. We went to Flaming Jacks where I had a fabulous roast half duck dinner followed by a quick visit to a local pub. One of the guys from the group and I left the pub early because neither of us drink and we had been there long enough for our tastes.
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Friday morning started off with a yummy Irish breakfast, cooked by Michael of course. Then we registered at the Magee Campus of the University of Ulster (click here) and received our computer cards. After registering we went to the meeting room that we get to use for lectures and Terrie McCants (from K-State) lectured for a couple hours about the conflict and peace process in Northern Ireland. It was a most interesting lecture and we had great discussions, as always in Terrie’s classes (HI TERRIE!).

It is most interesting to me that some conflict resolution technique is rooted in Northern Ireland with the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement, which was put in place in April of 1998. I’ll try to remember to blog more about the lecture at a later time. We will have a couple more lectures by Terrie as well as lectures by professors here at University of Ulster and the Magee Campus.

Friday afternoon we toured the “Walled City” in Derry. It was built in the early 1700s. There are a few churches within the walls and many businesses. I’m not sure but I wouldn’t be surprised if there were also many residences. See the pictures in the video of the walls, the Saint Columbos Church, and much more.

Friday evening we ate at a great restaurant recommended by Michael. It’s called “Quay West” which when pronounced sounds like Key West or Kay West. Quay West is inside an old church and has great modern décor. This time I was smart and shared a meal of Tai Chicken (think about the taste of a spicy Indian curried chicken). YUM! I then retired early with Terrie to the Clarence House. I’m not much for pubs and partying. No surprise there, I’m sure! Terrie and I sat in the parlor chatting with Michael for a while that evening.
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Saturday morning we again had a great Irish breakfast. We then loaded onto the bus with Doc and drove to a few sites in nearby Ireland. First we went to the Beltney Circle of Stones (sp?), then to a nearby castle, then to the town of Donegal, IE. Donegal seems to be the best town for tourist shopping nearby. There were some great shops and restaurants and the perfect Irish Gift Shop. I was able to load up most of my gifts and souvenirs all in one store. I also got a cute black dress with a short white sweater for myself.

Once back in Derry we stopped in at the Beachhill Hotel. This hotel is famous for being the U.S. Navy and Marines headquarters during WWII. There were lots of pictures and artifacts on display. Presidents Clinton and Kennedy have also stayed at the hotel as well as other popular politicians of the U.S. and Ireland.

The evening was very relaxing with most of us grabbing dinner and then eating at a small Sushi Bar or at the Clarence House. A few of the group went out to a pubs. The rest of us stayed “home” and relaxed and wrote in our journals, which we are keeping for the course and for our future reference. Blogs do count as journals! Wahoo! I’d already planned to blog (if and when I have an internet connection) so this was perfect for me.

That brings us to right now. I am currently sitting in the parlor journaling all that you’ve read above and chatting with Michael and the two students who just arrived home from the pubs. It’s almost 11:00 pm here and 6:00 pm in Kansas. I hope to get this uploaded to my blog tomorrow but it will be a very busy day and time for blogging will only happen late at night and only if the internet connection is back up.

Good night!
…
Sunday

Today we were picked up early by Doc for an all day adventure! Terrie had the day planned to spend along the Northern Coast. It was fun for me to see the Atlantic Ocean and know that I had played in the same ocean as a child in North Carolina (and I think Virginia Beach and Myrtle Beach, not entirely sure, bad memory). The area that we traveled to was one of the most beautiful places on earth, literally. It’s touted as such by the locals and also on tv shows and in books, or so we were told. I believe it may actually be true. No photograph could possibly capture the beauty that you see and feel all around you while on the Northern Coast.

Unfortunately I forgotten to take the memory card for my camera out of my laptop. I had also forgotten to charge my camera batteries although I knew one would still be alright for a little while longer, perhaps not all day though. I was, and still am, very upset with myself for this. Today was the BEST day for photography that I’ve EVER experienced. The weather was perfect and the scenery will never be as breathtaking. I was very happy though to pose for a few pictures taken by friends and have been promised copies of their pictures. This of course means I won’t be able to sell the pictures as my own on my up-and-coming website. ARG! I really wanted to show my talent with these beautiful photos. Well, nothing could be done so I’ll be plugging in a battery and my memory card as soon as I’m done journaling. I am very thankful for those who offered to take pictures of me and to give me their pictures at a later time. I hope we can all swap CDs sometime soon after returning to the states.

The first place visited today was the Messendun Temple and a very old home from the 1700s. This site is along the coast and WOW! I couldn’t get enough of it. I would love to bring a bridal party here for a wedding shoot. Anyone up for a destination wedding? I can’t pay for it though so they would have to. It’s just that beautiful. It was so inspiring. I wanted to cry that I couldn’t take the beautiful surroundings into my photos and then have them forever. Again, I am very happy that I will receive friends’ photos but it just won’t be the same. Not this time. I hope and pray that one day I will be able to bring family members and friends here to all of the places we visited today and on previous days.

Next we visited a castle (or the ruins of a castle) again, I think, built in the 1700s. I’m not good at remembering specific facts about places we visit so I’ve bought a book on Irish sites and tourism. I also have information from a couple of the places we visited so that I can use them for scrapbooking or just tuck them away somewhere for future reference. The castle was situated on a cliff overlooking the Atlantic. It had crumbled over time but was still amazing to tour. You could still kind of see what some of the rooms may have been used for. There was also a short DVD to watch about the castle which was interesting.

After the castle ruins we went to the Giant’s Causeway. This is another amazingly breathtaking place. It is part of the National Trust which seems to be a lot like the National Forests in the states. We walked about six miles on the trails down the cliffs and to the beach (YES, the beach! Can't you just imagine the beauty? Think paradise!). The most amazing part to me is the basalt rock that has pushed its way up to the surface of the earth in hexagonal dikes (columns) all over this area. We were told that there are only four sites like this in the world! It was stunning. I actually understood what the dikes were and how they were formed thanks to my geology classes that I’m in this semester.

Corrymeela Reconciliation Center was our next stop. It’s a wonderful center for peace and reconciliation which runs mainly due to the numerous volunteers. The have about 300 volunteers through the year. It wasn’t too clear to me exactly what they do but I think this is mainly because they are the facilitators for many types of groups and families. Each individual, family, or group who visits the center for services needs different activities and courses for their conflict resolution and healing processes. This is a faith based center which is open to those of any and all faiths and also to those who do not identify with a faith. A couple of the girls from my class were very interested in coming back over the summer to volunteer.

We tried to go to a local humongous brewery near the causeway but it closed right as we got there. I didn’t mind not going but wasn’t happy with the customer service. The lady who went out to lock the doors right as we walked up to them said the last tour had already started a while ago and that the gift shop had closed one minute ago. One minute! That’s ridiculous! We weren’t very thrilled with this and won’t be going back.

The trip back to Derry went by fast but I think that’s mostly because I was able to take a little nap. I was very tired from all the walking we’d done and all the traveling. I’m also a bit medicated due to hurting my right leg a little. It’s doing much better now though. I think I just jammed my knee a bit and that it’s mostly worked itself out of it. I’m just guessing but the swelling in my knee has gone down and most of the time it doesn’t hurt as much as it did yesterday. It's just a bit sore and stiff.
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Monday

9 am local time; 4 am Kansas time. I think I’m still jetlagged. I could have slept a couple more hours this morning. The funny thing is that I haven’t been going out to the pubs like most of the group but I’m still just as tired as they are. Ugh!

Today is rainy and probably a little cooler than this weekend. We have had perfect weather so far so it was expected that we’d have some rain soon. Supposedly it rains a little each day here but thus far we’d only had a little sprinkling. I’m glad the rain waited until a day that we’re inside for the most part, at least until later this afternoon. Today we have a lecture at 10:15 then lunch then a lecture by a local professor or speaker. We’ll be hitting the course material hard over the next few days. Our “vacation” is over. Well, kinda. Tomorrow is a day off and we’ll be attending the parades and festivities of St. Patrick’s Day in real Irish style. We’ll then have a big Irish dinner at the guest house which will include Irish stew and salads, music, and Irish dancers. We’re looking forward to it.

Yesterday we could see Scotland from the Northern Coast. A few of us were really hoping to get a ferry to Scotland while we are here but it doesn’t look like we’ll have time to do so. Maybe sometime in the future I’ll be able to get my family here and do lots of touring and cross-country driving. I’d really like that. The country here is beautiful. The northern coast is my favorite part of the country so far. I couldn’t get enough of the ocean views. I really love being so near the sea. Breathtaking doesn’t even come near what I feel. I would love to live near the sea again some day. That’s probably just a dream but still will be a dream nonetheless.

Last night myself and four others attended a meeting at the next door Derry/Donegal Christian Fellowship Church. The meeting was a contemporary style and was very interesting and engaging. I love my own church meetings and the spirit felt at them but I can also feel the spirit in meetings such as this. I’ve been to quite a few contemporary meetings with small bands and worship music. I love the music and singing with the congregation. It’s a nice change of habit for me once in a while. The message shared was about repentance although the speaker, Phillip from Romania, seemed to talk about many topics and was very passionate about sharing his message. The meeting was much longer than we’d expected but it was very good.

After dinner we went to India House a very scrumptious Indian restaurant. It was just our small church group and we had wonderful conversations and enjoyed the food and the company. This is such an intensely spiritual group of young adults. I really enjoyed this time with them rather than participating in the time that most of the group spends at the pubs. One of them, Tolu, doesn’t drink. He will go out with the group but doesn’t enjoy the pub atmosphere as much as the others. It’s been nice to have someone with similar values in this area. Last night I wanted to talk to the two girls eating dinner with us about drinking but for some reason I didn’t. Maybe it wasn’t the right timing to do so or maybe I was liking the direction the conversations were already going. I hope that Tolu and I can sometime share with them the reasons we don’t drink. I don’t expect this to change their decision to drink but I think they will understand our choices not to.

It’s about time to go to class so I’m signing off for now. G’day!

Itinerary for the Week

This morning while the boys and Shaun were sledding at the snow dump in our circle, I was able to make a bunch of phone calls. I called all over the place trying to find fun activities that we could afford (dogsledding and the snowcoach-large SUV/tank looking thing- were quickly ruled out). Since we are mainly here to relax and get away for a while we also didn't want to keep too busy. We decided on one purposeful outing a day. We are also eating all of our dinners out, thanks to my generous father-in-law.

Here's the final plan we all agreed on:

Today- Shopping (great outlet malls)
Sunday- Church
Monday- Ice skating on the indoor rinks at Breckenridge (Shaun wanted a wall to hang on so outdoor skating may not happen at this point. We may go ice skating again a couple times during the week since we're nearby and it's cheap and the tiny Manhattan rink was torn down to rebuild a bigger and better rink and pavilion. Manhattan now has a small "pond" in the park that may or may not freeze over well enough for skating again.)
Tuesday- Indoor rock climbing at the Breckenridge Recreation Center. Again, another cheap activity that if we aren't too sore we may decide to do again while we're here.
Wednesday- Breckenridge Ski and Ride School (lessons for the entire family)- another gift from my father-in-law (he wants the boys to learn to ski).
Thursday- Afternoon Hot Chocolate (triple delight) Sleigh Ride-- I think this may be what we are most looking forward to, and our biggest expense. Dinner rates were out of the question! We will probably see a movie Thursday evening also.
Friday- Country Boy Mines tour. This is a one-hour tour of a Breckenridge area gold mine. Shaun may be the most excited about this. I knew he'd like my idea to do this and the boys are interested at this point but don't really know what to expect. They just hope to find some gold!
Saturday- Drive home.
Sunday- Rest. Or drive home if we need to due to weather on Saturday.
Monday- Back to work and school!

We do plan to do nothing most of the day everday! We also have the Indiana Jones movies to watch. Shaun got them all from Santa! Oh, and not to mention the two games we brought to play. So yeah, we'll stay busy but enjoy a lot of time together.

Since I didn't take any pictures today while shopping, I stole the SD card from Shaun's new camera which I talked him into buying yesterday. It's much smaller than mine and we can easily bring it to the ski hills with us. It's also really good quality for the price-- Gotta love the after Christmas sales!

Here's a couple of the pictures he shot today...




Me doing something online (no wireless means I sit directly in front of the TV so that I can plug into the modem) and a partial view of our circle and our mountain view.

Oh, by the way, if you click on any of my pictures you will see a much larger picture.

Time to hit the sack so I can keep up with the boys tomorrow! I also hope to read a lot, just for fun, and we'll be watching the first Indiana Jones movie tomorrow evening. Lots of fun in store!

Short Updates

1. I'm ready to go to Ireland! Ok, maybe not quite yet, but I did register and pay. I also received my passport, over Thanksgiving break. I am thrilled about this as I haven't ever needed a passport before now. Previously my short trips to Canada and Mexico, both just over the border while growing up, didn't require a passport. I also now have a passport card which will let me cross the borders without having the passport book. Of course that means getting my kids passports if I ever plan to bring them to Canada while visiting relatives in Minnesota. I'll probably do that at some point, just in case we get the chance.

2. I'll be photographing a wedding in late March! I'm very excited to do another wedding. The bride is a friend from church who has seen my photography over the past few years and knew she wanted me to be the photographer. We talked yesterday and it sounds great! Maybe I'll even get my website up and running before then. That's my goal. I'd like the wedding party and guests (and of course the bride and groom and their families) to have a way to directly order from me online but not have to go through another company's ordering process.

3. I have updated photos on Facebook so if you don't have a Facebook account, or if you're not yet my friend on Facebook, now might be the time to do so.

4. Christmas plans: We are hoping/tentatively planning to go to Colorado the day after Christmas, or possibly even Christmas Eve. You can go here to see more about our place in Colorado. I say "our" loosely as it actually belongs to my father-in-law's painting company.

5. Christmas cards: I hope to get these out on time this year. We'll see how that goes. I have the cards and evelopes and need to compile a list of addresses again. If I don't have your address please feel free to email it to me! If I do have it, you can email it to me too, just so that I have it in my email.

I think that's it for now! Take care and have a great holiday season.

My Weekend and Upcoming Week

Not too much fun to tell about, but I did spend two days in Lawrence at a mediation training on Thursday and Friday. It was about domestic violence and mediation. Many people will say that you can't mediate a case that involves DV but the group that sponsored the trainings did a good job of proving otherwise. The sponsoring group was the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence. Read their webpage for more information. They do A LOT of good stuff. These trainings really opened my eyes to the helping relationships and resources available to victims. I hope to never need to mediate such a case, but I feel that given the right training and tools, which I received last week, I could probably do so in the right situation. Obviously not every case can be mediated.

I got to see a couple friends Thurday and Friday, too. I stayed the night with Heather and Jeff on Thursday night after Heather and I enjoyed some yummy bbq ribs at a local bbq joint we'd never heard of but another friend had recommended to me. I'll definately have to go there again! Now I'm back to my normal life, if it can be called normal. :)

Saturday I was asked to take pictures of an extended family. Group pictures seem to be my specialty lately. I'm not sure how that happened. Below is one picture of some VERY cute little guys who happen to be my friend Mandi's little (or not so little) family. She couldn't be there because she was in Utah with her mom for General Conference (big church meeting that is broadcast worldwide twice a year) and a college reunion but I enjoyed catching up with her husband, Gene, and meeting his side of the family. *I'll have the CD to you soon! I'm ordering it tonight if my internet wants to cooperate.*



I have a family portrait session coming up in two weeks and another extended family session either Nov 1, Dec 5, or Dec 12 (depending on which weekend they can all be together). I also have a couple more families looking at dates in the next month or two. I absolutely love getting paid to do something I enjoy so much! The fact that they are willing to pay me makes it even more fun than me doing it just for fun.

Speaking of portraits, my friend Rik, who also does a lot of photography and has started his own side business as well (much more than I do) took pictures of us in August. Go here to see a few of those. I plan to order some soon. We are very happy with the results. It was a fun session and not even Shaun complained!

Well, I'm supposed to be doing homework and studying. Guess I should get back to that. Take care!

Storm Photos

Click each picture to see larger.












Shaun and I really enjoy Kansas storms and often take pictures when the time of day and weather allow. These pictures were taken May 25, 2008, in the early evening. It was the beginning of another beautiful Kansas storm!

(All photos copyrighted. May be reproduced with my written permission.)