3.31.2009

Good Bye March-

And hello April! I am so excited to welcome this month, not only because it's my birthday month (hint, hint) but because it means Spring is officially here. (Okay, I know officially it was in March, but now it really feels Spring-y.) Granted, it's not that unusual to have a little flurry or even a snowstorm at some point in April, but still, things are greening up, it smells like dirt, and I don't (usually) have to bundle Nora up to within an inch of her life to go outside. In fact, we took a nice walk with Barkley tonight and I made a delicious lasagna that I pretended was Spring-like by adding zucchini. Yes, I'm original.
Speaking of original, a couple nights ago while I was relaxing at the laundromat (yes, I really do love going there) Shane and Nora were at home having a bit of fun.
Apparently Nora really wanted to wear her baby in a backpack like Shane and I wear her in our Ergo, so Shane fashioned a little carrier for her.
And yes, that's one of Barkley's leashes. Ingenious, I say.
I thought I might throw in this picture to finish up this little post. Yet another example of what a special, special girl we have.

3.29.2009

A Sweet Treat

Last weekend Shane and I took Nora out to a local farm for Maine Maple Sunday. Each year, maple sugar houses around the state open their doors to the public so that everyone can see how they go about making maple syrup. We met Tara, Josh, Kalen and Wylie at a local farm to test out their syrup and have a little fun.
Unfortunately, unlike the farm we visited last year, this year's farm only had one activity- watching sap being boiled. While interesting to a newcomer, this is kind of boring for anyone who has already seen it. Also, the kids weren't all that interested, because, let's face it, it was basically just a vat of boiling liquid.
We were hoping there would be some trails to walk or animals to pet like last year, but there wasn't. No big deal, though, we could make our own fun. We did some running! So exciting! At least it was until Nora started getting a little cold. Notice her huddling in the bottom right of the next picture.
And a close-up of the poor freezing girl.
So we headed inside, where the real excitement was- free coloring books and ice cream samples!
The kids definitely enjoyed this portion of the day.
Nora couldn't seem to figure out why her foot had ice cream on it.
Here Nora and Shane relaxed and ate their ice cream. I can just imagine him singing to her: "My buddy! My buddy! Wherever she goes, I go, too. My buddy, my buddy! My buddy and me!" (If you don't know the commercial it came from, just ignore me.)
Finally, a nice little image to leave you with for now. She's just gorgeous, isn't she. A real special little girl.

3.21.2009

Over the last few days

We recently got to go over to Camella's house to play for the afternoon. It's finally warm enough to really start some work on the farm, so Camella's parents have plenty of work to do, never mind the fact that they also have a new baby! Nora, Camella and I spent the morning digging and playing in the greenhouse, which was a balmy 60 degrees or so. Lovely!
The two girls have been getting along so great lately. There have been no instances of biting or hitting as of late, and they even hug and hold hands on their own occasionally.
We got a little fancy this morning after heading over to the dollar store for some elastics. Nora calls these her 'pony hair'.
I know I said I would post pictures from our VT trip, and I will, as soon as we get our computer back from the 'cleaners'. Have a great weekend, everyone!

3.14.2009

The Wedding: A Quick Post

I know how crazy it must seem for me to be posting twice in less than a month, but it's a bit easier when all the photos are already on my computer and edited. The following is just a smattering of photos from the wedding that I thought you might all like to see. Enjoy!
(Special thanks to Hayley for being my photography partner!)

3.12.2009

After being nagged by my husband repeatedly, I figured it wouldn't hurt to throw a few pictures up here. I finished editing the wedding pictures and sent them on their way on Wednesday. I feel great about finishing them, but now need to find a new photography project. I have nothing on my schedule until June! Enough of my babbling, though, and on to the real reason you all read this- Nora! Here she is modeling the mitts and hat that Kate, a friend and the first bride I 'officially' photographed, knitted for us.
The morning after the wedding Nora rooted around in my bag, found these and spent the next twenty minutes or so playing dress up.
A few days later, (who knows what day, it was so long ago!) Nora and I decided to do some baking for Shane, who had missed out on his yearly birthday cake since his actual birthday had fallen so close to Thanksgiving and at that point we were stuffed full of junk.
We made a delicious, gluten-free chocolate cake drizzled with homemade caramel sauce and filled with vanilla buttercream.
We had to stop for a tea break halfway through, using our favorite tea cup, of course.
Later in the week, we drove to Camella's house for some visiting and playtime.
Nora found this homemade crown hanging around and wore it for the afternoon. I think we're going to have to make Camella another one, though, because it didn't fare very well in the end.
Here we have my favorite part of that afternoon- the new baby! Camella has a new baby sister, with a sweet name: Anna!
The girls had a great time 'playing' with Anna. Camella is already a fabulous big sister, often giving her new sister kisses and worrying about her. Nora was a big fan, too, and was surprisingly very gentle and sweet with her. (And no, it didn't make me want another one now, as sweet as she was.)
Most recently (well, about a week ago) Melissa, who I went to high school with, brought her son Wes over for a visit. It was great to catch up, seeing as neither of us could remember the last time we had seen each other. Wes is so sweet, and though Nora is a little taller, Wes has almost got her beat in the weight category. There's a reason we call her our munchkin!
Well, stay tuned everyone. I've got more pictures to post in the next few days from our recent weekend in Vermont and of course, the wedding!

3.04.2009

I'm feeling guilty-

As well I should be! I haven't been a very good blogger lately, but I promise I have a good excuse. A little less than two weeks ago I photographed my first wedding. It was both exciting and nerve-wracking, but I was lucky enough to have Hayley as my sidekick. Between the two of us we took a little over twelve hundred pictures. It was a beautiful, perfect day, and everything went so smoothly. I found by the end of the day that I wasn't a bit nervous and had really enjoyed myself. I went home and fell into a deep, satisfied sleep. Then I woke up. To twelve hundred pictures. I quickly realized that the work of a wedding photographer has just barely started when the wedding ends. I have to go through every single picture, critique it to decide if it makes the cut, and if it does, begin the editing process. This seemed absolutely overwhelming at first, but I've quickly found a rhythm, and actually find myself nearing the end of the editing process and enjoying it! The pictures will be done just after the two week mark (and only because we're going away for the weekend.) So tell me, everyone, is two and a half weeks too long to wait for wedding pictures? Obviously I can't help it this time, but for future weddings, I would love your input.As a result of all this wedding business, photos of Nora have kind of fallen to the wayside. Well, actually I do have a few I would love to share with you, but they're still on the camera because I have no more room. My computer is full! I have a lot of off loading (is that a word?) of pictures to do before I can upload any more. By the way, any techies (again, is that a word?) want to stop by my house and clean out my hard drive? I'd be very much obliged. Until that happens, or I figure out how to do it myself, this blog will be sadly lacking in photos of Nora. Try not to cry. They'll come, eventually, and when they do they'll be glorious.