birthday girl

this past week i got to spend some time with a birthday girl to be.

here she is....meet 'H'.






now don't let these first two fool you, she's not camera shy, i just happen to like the innocence in these shots! :)

in fact this soon to be seven year old is an old pro at having her picture taken.

here are a few of my favorites from the morning....







she wasn't too fond of the spiders we found, but soon fell in love with all the little creatures on the backs of the leaves!



'H' it was wonderful meeting you & your mom. hope seven turns out to be a fantastic year!

summer history lesson 101

school is technically out for the summer. but at our house, we're still having weekly lessons.

some of those are to practice all the wonderful things mrs. r & mrs. u taught my little guy this year. other lessons deal with a different kind of education.

this past week, it was a personal history lesson for my guy, my niece, and my nephew. for me, it was a journey back into childhood.

we rode a few miles north & west of home until we arrived here:



this is where my great grandparents lived and raised 8 children..... on a farmer's salary no less!

while i never knew either mamie or papa, my grandfather and great aunts & uncles often told stories from their childhoods. my great aunt carolyn is one of the last 2 siblings living and she took us on a little tour as she shared her memories.




some i remembered and recalled for a new generation ...like how my grandfather crashed a motorcycle in the front yard & broke his leg.

other memories were shared with me for the first time... the icy christmas morning that my dad brought my mom to meet the family and how all the small pines were covered and bent.

i wasn't really sure how the kids would respond to all of this, but later that night and the next day, all three of them chattered away about "the old house".

there's no way they or i can truly know all of our family's history that happened here, but at least now it is a part of their memory too.

here's a few more of mamie & papa's place:

total cuteness

how cute is he?!



but don't be deceived...... this three-year-old might look calm right now, but once he gets moving, best put on your running shoes! :)

or be prepared to throw the golf balls up the pipe thousands of times!




just ask cutie #2 - she knows.







being the big sister means keeping up with him, keeping him out of the good stuff and yes, even sharing the m&ms!







but despite all this work, how can you not help but love that face!!







thanks "k", "l", "r", and little man "a"!!!

cowboy "c"

i came home this evening exhausted, but full of smiles. :)


this little guy kept me running for almost 2 hours on a HOT afternoon in early june.



as soon as he'd shown me all of his race cars, he found his cowboy hat and then HAD to put on his boots! we were off outside to find where cowboys lived and kept their horses.



(the horses are behind this door, just in case you're wondering!)



but pretty soon, that cowboy had to come out of his boots and play in the sand! (yes - i got to get dirty too!)



finally, he was so hot, he just HAD to jump in and splash around a bit! ( i had to admit, i was steaming at this point too. so, knowing i could get some cool shots if i were lower, i walked right in and joined little "c" in the pool - a first for this photographer, but probably not a last!



"l,r, and c" - thanks for the dip! hope these will tide you over until i get your gallery up!



p.s. - for all the rest of you waiting on your galleries to go up, my "other" job really slows down next week, so check back after wednesday!

enjoy the weekend everybody! - s

the birthday boy & the groom

while yesterday, june 2, 2007 was "a" & "j" ' s wedding day, it was also this little guy's first birthday!



he's not a local, but he's got TONS of relatives in the area and came to town for his uncle's graduation & nuptials.

you'd never know they were related, would you?



the shirt & hat he's wearing belonged to his grandpa, a cowboy from white horse, south dakota. his grandpa, robby tom, was wearing it when he first came to see his newest grandson. sadly, robby tom died last november.

now, every year, on his birthday, "h" will get his picture made in the hat & shirt as a way to honor him.



and lastly, a few more from the wedding.....

tying the knot

ok - i don't do weddings. at least not really. every now & again though, there's an exception.

this weekend was one.



there was this brand spankin' new naval academy graduate...




and his beautiful bride






who opted for a very small family wedding at the lake.



seeing as how i've known both of them since they were infants, actually changed the groom's diapers, and consider his older sister to be my sister, well....... today i did a wedding.

it was short, simple, but very, very sweet!

here's a sneak peek to tide everybody over until i can get ALL of the shots processed. [ remember i do this job PART-TIME :) !! ]


the bride and her youngest brother....



"G", "A", "J", and "A"..... ham it up for the camera



the "golden child" gets a little sibling love



a few of the b&g







and lastly, i couldn't decide whether i preferred the happy couple in color or bnw.....





congratulations a & j.... may your life together be blessed beyond measure!

station #2...

i grew up in a very small town in piedmont north carolina called...



it was a safe place where my mom let us ride our bikes all over without fear or worry of anything, except childhood mischief.

we spent summers at the town pool, visited noah's dime store for chocolate covered peanuts, and bought 3 hamburgers or 4 hot dogs for a dollar at the dairy bar.

landis is still a small town, but as is the case with most towns, changes have taken place. many of them are for good - good of the people and the town. i guess it's called progress.

yesterday afternoon, i got to photograph progress.

the town was awarded a grant from the federal government to renovate their municipal facilities - mainly the fire department. they also were able to purchase a new fire truck to provide better service to residents.



lots of important political folks showed up - senators, mayors, alderman, state representatives, etc.










while it was wonderful to see all of them and document what they helped accomplish for this little town, my attention kept coming back to a certain group of men and women...

the volunteer firefighters and their families.
























without them, that new building and that new truck don't mean much.

their time and selflessness bring it to life.
they bring life and help to those they serve.

and they do it out of the goodness of their hearts.



people like them are the reason that this small town is still a nice place to raise a family.

so, on behalf of all the moms and all the bike riding kids out there and any potential future firefighters...



- thanks guys! enjoy your new place!