Senior Pics... Relived...

... 9 years later!

My best friend, Jen, recently got a new DSLR camera... and since our annual buddy buddy birthday celebration was coming up... it seemed like a great time to get out there (sans kids!) and teach her what little I know, and learn a few things myself! We started out with some Chinese food... then made our way to town for a little photo shoot between the two of us!

It ended up "raining on our parade"... but we made the best of it, and had a HOOT! Lots of laughing, lots of silly faces and poses, and lots of camera adjusting, re-adjusting, and adjusting some more!

We came back to our place for some yummy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie and ice cream... then laughed a bit more as we looked through the results! Here are a small sampling...

First up... me. Huh huh hum... just a little reminder, before we start, that I like being BEHIND the camera... BEHIND the camera folks!! :) Being in front of the camera has become harder and harder as each passing year goes by, so this is an attempt to break out of my mold and remind myself to "smile with my eyes, smile with my eyes!"

So, without further ado...

I've never had a picture of me behind the camera before (minus the pic I took of myself in the mirror the day before I went into labor with Larren!!) and I think these are quite fun! :)

Momma and the littlest Kreiser ... who is steadily growing right along... as is evident in this pic!

And this one too...

My crazy double jointed arms... that kept me from making cheerleading try outs in the 4th grade. The judge panel people kept asking me why I couldn't keep my arms straight, and I was shocked to find out that I wasn't. So... there ya have it, I'll try harder to keep my arms normal next time!

Thanks again for taking these Jen! Next photo shoot I'll practice my smiling a bit more and whip out my "model poses" instead of my "hunter" ones!! :)

And moving right along to the lovely Miss. J.

Ahhh... feels MUCH better to be in my "comfy spot" again... BEHIND the lens! It's those dark eye circles, I tell ya... every picture I see of myself is a harsh, harsh reminder!

ANYHOW!!!

The classic "me taking her pic as she was taking mine"...

Did I mention it was raining? Yeah... there was a light drizzle goin' on!

Which is evident here both in the marks on Jen's shirt... and the drops in the background. Seemed like an okay thing at the time... but I am now paying for it with a cold, sore throat, and ear ache as a reminder!!

 I learned that I need to "broaden my style", that taking pics of my kids simple isn't challenging me enough, and that I have TONS more to learn! 

All in all though... a fun (and memorable!) evening indeed!

Belated Birthday Parcel Party

Last week Alia received a very exciting belated birthday parcel from Auntie Erin and Uncle Josh! When I opened up the mail compartment, and she caught a glimpse of the box, her little eyes just sparkled and she asked "Is THAT for me?!?!" You can only imagine the squeals and skipping when I answered "yes!"

I carried the box most of the short walk home, but she wanted to take the finishing leg and take it across the thresh hold!

All hands were on deck when it came to ripping into the box...

... unless little sister was distracted long enough with packing tape! Alia's played this "distraction game" before, can ya tell?! :) 

A special birthday card for Alia...

... AND a little love note for Larren! SO SWEET!

It was an opening frenzy, I tell ya! (And Erin and Josh... what a special little touch to wrap everything! It made the excitement level that much higher!!)

And when all was said and done, she sure hit the birthday parcel jackpot!

Books, socks, puffy stickers, jewelry, nail polish, an Etch-a-sketch, and some hair pretties!

"Ahh... here we go... Mommy's lens is useful for something after all!" :)

The instant her necklace was on and her hair clip secured, she grabbed some paper towels and made her way to the verandah! It was T(oe) time!

Little sister had never had her toe nails painted yet, and figured what better time than now?

She tried her hardest to sit ever so still...

but that bottle of sweet, colorful, creamy nail polish about turned her first pedicure SOUTH... in. a. hurry.

It may not be the prettiest, but we had one little Larren feeling mighty fine with her new look...

... and one very happy Alia, with all her new treasures!

Way to make the WHOLE HOUSE feel extra loved Erin and Josh! It was a huge blessing indeed! Thank you again!!! :)

Mighty Neighborly

Not a neighbor goes past that doesn't get a BIG HEARTY wave from our one year old!

Sometimes we don't even notice when someone is driving down our road, but Larren doesn't miss 'em for anything! Whether she's eating a meal, playing in the play box, splashing around in the water, or about to take a turn down our slide... she stops to wave!

Add a loud "bboowwww" (bye!) in there, and it's a sure fire recipe for friendliness!

Birthday Boy

Today, is my handsome hubby's 27th birthday...

... but our celebrations happened a day early this time around! 

Jon had plans to get his restricted gun licence (it's kinda like concealed carrier in the States, but not... cause Canada is a PEACE LOVING country and will allow no such thing!) today, then tonight he and some friends from Jer and Joe's church are out shooting skeet and eating meat until their hearts content! 

All in all... a very fitting evening for the birthday boy!

SO... last night our little family did our best to let Daddy know how much we loved him!

We made him his favorite supper - farmers sausage, perogies, grilled red peppers, and green beans. Though, I gotta be honest, cause the pictures don't lie...

I asked HIM to grill on his BIG DAY.

(The carabiner on the back of Larren's shirt is compliments of big sister... apparently it's how we roll these days!)

I know, I know... I still feel bad... but at the rate supper was going I would have been standing at that grill all night!! So Jonathan happily obliged with kiddos in tow!

Alia just HAD to put balloons somewhere, so we decorated Jon's chair with his favorite colors and a little medical tape for added flair!

After supper the girls took Daddy on a treasure hunt for his birthday gift.

Upstairs they went... with lots of "Nope, not here(s)" and then I finally heard Alia say, "Let's just go look in the bath tub." The novelty of the hunt must have been wearing off! :)

GASP! Low and behold, it was there!

Since I'm too cheap to wrap such a big gift in nice wrapping paper, when I know Jon won't care... we were left with only ONE gift bag (large enough) in our stash. A pretty ole' flowery one! :)

And as you can imagine, the girls were ever so curious as to see what Daddy was getting! I knew Alia would try her hardest... but still wasn't convinced she could keep a secret, so the only tip off I gave her was "a tool!" 

And because Daddy is so smart, he knew what "tool" it was even before he opened the case!

Though I think he was quite surprised! A Snap On cordless impact has been on his Christmas list for several, several years! 

The chitlins are never too young to get a proper lesson on how to use such fang findangled things!

Alia was impressed with the power. a.k.a. How loud and fast she could make it spin when she pushed the button!

And if big sister gets to play with it, than little sister will be by her side faster than you can say little Miss. Mechanic!

After another mini lesson for the little one, she was ready for a turn...

We couldn't get a clear reading as to Larren's evaluation of the power...

... she was just in pure shock that the thing could actually talk!! :)

After our little tool school, we zipped to town to OFFICIALLY register Jon's old '47 Chevy as his daily driver (a long awaited day for him!) and went to our favorite hang out spot for ice cream!

Once again, I'm so blessed that I get to "do life" with this amazing man... and am wishing him another year of soul deep smiles, fresh revelation, new experiences, safety (I'm a mom... it's ever on my mind now!), and blessings as he blesses others.

Happy Birthday, my love!