Day 92. Birthdays.

We all still get together for birthday celebrations in my family.  :)  April holds TWO:  my dad and my sister.  So, we all got together at my brother and sister-in-law's house for some fun.  This is one of their doggies, Linkin.  Isn't he so pretty?

My neice, trying on her new shoes from Mammaw.

My dad, reading one of his cards.

Me and the birthday girl, wearin' our shades!  :)  (Side note:  that red cup on the rail behind us... later, spilled down the back of my dress when the wind knocked it down.  CHILLY!)

My goofy husband, cracking me up, as he often does.  I'm trying to take his picture, and he's making faces at me.  I'm saying, "STOP flaring your nose!"

Now, I'm taking more drastic measures!

And now, he can't help but crack up, because he loves me.  :)

Mmmmmm.  Some of my sister's confections!  This was SO yummy.  I wish I had a piece RIGHT NOW!

My sister's birthday cake.  I made my dad's requested dessert, banana pudding.  I did NOT post a picture of it, because the bananas on top turned an icky color, and looked gross.  It tasted good, though!  :)

My brother, drinking his coffee.

Their other dog, Shelby.  My husband wants to keep her!  :)

My dad and my uncle.  I never used to think they looked alike when I was little.  I'm thinking I was wrong.  :)

Day 91. Engagement Session

I met this sweet couple this weekend, to take their engagement photos.  We had a fun time.  :)

Day 90. Soccer.

How cute is this?  I've had the pleasure of photographing a couple of soccer teams this season.  It's fun, and a new experience.  The wind was blowing SO hard that day!  I love the way some of the girls "dressed up" their uniforms with orange hair ribbons.  How cute is that?  :)

Day 89. Being Me, Part 2.

After yesterday's entry, I feel as though I probably sounded a bit like a crazy person.  Oh well, who am I kidding?  Today only confirmed the craziness that is my life.

I should have probably been more specific in my terminology, in that while my personality does not do well with too much structure and/or routine, I DO need organization.  I like plans.  I may not do the same thing on the same day every week, but I do like things to go a certain way... another way that I've had to retrain my process of thinking.

After posting the picture of the papers stacked on my dining room table yesterday, I was feeling rather guilty that it had gotten so out of hand.  Today was the only day this week, that I planned to be home most of the day, so I wanted to tackle that chore, as well as fold and put away the ginormous basket of socks and underwear that has been gawking at me at the end of my hallway.  (I do DO housechores.  I just don't like them!)

In my mind, I had a plan.  I got my boys up and off to school.  I was going to catch up on a few photography business chores, and then I planned to tackle the house chores I needed to accomplish.  As is life, I received a phone call in reference to my dog's checkup earlier this week.  "Mrs. Ketteman, we are sorry to inform you that Mandy has whipworms."

"WHAAAAAT??????"

The rest is kind of a blur to me.  I am still getting over the shock of it.  You see, I am a very conscientious pet owner.  I believe that if you're going to own a pet, you need to be prepared to be a responsible one.  That means annual checkups, proper care, vaccinations, etc.  I BATHE my dogs weekly, for heaven's sake!  I don't want icky dogs, especially around my children!  We do the whole "kit and caboodle," from flea treatments to heartworm preventatives.  Apparently, whipworms are the worm-exception to what the medicine will prevent.

So, here I am again... planning to get housechores completed for the day, and my plan is interrupted.  See?  This is where it comes in handy to be flexible!  I had to go out back and get yet another doggie-doo sample (from my OTHER dog) to be tested, to see if she is also infected with the nasty bug.  Then, I had to drive to the vet office, pick up the medicine, and to the pet store to get canned dog food (smells like vomit, for real), because the medicine gets sprinkled on the food.

You see that it is clearly marked, as to not confuse my children with something THEY may want to eat in the fridge.  Ick.

Mandy seems to be completely unaffected by the ordeal.  She's perfectly content at this time, resting calmly at my feet as I type.

On a happier note, I took more pics of my irises today.  I don't know why, but I'm drawn to them.

Could this possibly be a yellow one?

Now, maybe I have time to fold some socks????

Day 88. Being Me.

This is my dining room.  Nice, huh?  Lovely.  Warm.  Homey.  Cozy.  That table just makes you want to cook something and set out beautiful dishes to serve it on.  Riiiiiiiiigggghhhht!  :)

Have you ever met those women who just seem to have everything together?  As soon as you read that line, a name AND an annoyingly perfect face popped into your head.  We all have that person.  I'm NOT that person.  But do you know what I've discovered?... neither is "THAT" person!

I've been a wife for thirteen years.  I've been a mother for ten.  I've been ALIVE for thirty-three.  The older I become, the more I realize that I canNOT force myself to become something I am not.  Period.  Do I have room to grow?  Absolutely!  Can I improve?  Oh, I assure you!  But I can't change those aspects about my personality, no matter HOW hard I try, that are just WHO I am.  (Yes, this is leading up to the clutter-filled dining room table.)

For years, I have tried to fit a pre-determined mold.  I thought when I stayed home with my kids, it was my job and my duty, to have the house spic-n-span clean daily, gourmet food on the table for dinner every night, laundry finished every week and neatly folded and put away in everyone's drawers.  Not only did I think this was an accurate picture, I actually believed I could and WOULD achieve it!  Why not?  I would have so much time to kill!  How much time could one, little baby possibly occupy?  Once again, I say... Riiiiiigggghhhhht!

If this is your gift, I commend you for it.  But I would dare say that most of us are more like myself... in that, we try and try and TRY to fit into what we "think" we should be, as opposed to embracing who God actually made us to be.

Am I the most unorganized person I've ever met?  Nope.  Am I the neatest?  Nope, not that either.  BUT I am working really, REALLY hard to accept who I am, just as I am.  That dining room table haunts me, and I assure you it's not the worst spot in my house.  My pride would not allow me to take a picture of the clutter filled corner of my basement.  Or the laundry room.  Or my bedroom.  But you know, it's all relative.  What one person considers a disaster, another may only consider a bit of clutter.  The dining room table gets cleaned off fairly consistently.  The school papers pile up.  Children's books get placed after reading at bedtime and the dog leashes are often tossed after my hubby or I have taken them running (yes, I'm running (kind of), but that's a story for another day).  And if we're expecting guests, or planning a special occasion, I'll run around like a chicken with my head cut off, getting everything in order again.  It stays that way for about a week, and it all starts to pile around me once more.  Why?  BECAUSE LIFE HAPPENS!  Nothing frustrates me MORE than to do work that will only get UNDONE as soon as I've finished it.  Oh, I'm just getting on a role now, folks!

Here's the deal... It is NOT my nature to be structured, organized, and routine.  For heaven sakes, I don't even wash my hair, my body, and my face in the same order during my shower every morning!  I do my best to keep up with the important things.  Have I mentioned I have three children?  Have I mentioned that life happens?  God graced me with a husband who was specifically designed to find my quirks endearing.  Some of the things I dislike the most about myself, are the same reasons he finds me lovable.  He has a very real perspective on priorities.  I am blessed that he does not have unrealistic expectations of my role in our family.  He knows I do my best.  I love him with all of my heart, and I make sure he has fresh iced tea in the fridge when he comes home from work (most of the time!).  I make dinner for my family every evening (even if we have to push the papers from the kitchen table to the dining room table).  I carpool my children back and forth to school, and I help them with their homework.  Everyone's soap, shampoo, and toothbrush magically gets replaced when it runs out.  Pantries are miraculously filled with food.  I do laundry religiously (don't ask me about how often it gets put away) and my children are, more often than not, clean, fed, and happy.  :)

My point is, SO WHAT if the dust bunnies in my bedroom are a little out of control?  And why do I feel it necessary to make excuses for it to ANYONE?  I think the world would be a happier place if we all worried less about what everyone else was doing and/or accomplishing, and concerned ourselves more with our own selves and families... how we can grow, how we can learn...

Being real isn't being weak.  It's being honest.  Showing others your true colors, whether it be a weakness or a strength, is just telling the truth.  So, why do we worry about it so much?  I teach my children to worry about what God's opinion is of them, not the people around them.  Why should I be any different?

Day 87. Random.

I decided it was time to take the Easter decorations off the fridge.  I like to decorate the fridge with seasonal artwork that the kids have made.  It's a fun way to "organize" what goes up and what comes down.  These were our selections from the Easter collection this year.  :)  I don't get much from my oldest anymore, so I will treasure this phase for as long as it lasts with the other two! 

BTW, take a look at the yellow chick on the far left corner.  Those are my youngest's handprints for wings.  How adorable is that????  And the brown finger painting on the pink paper... that was supposed to be an Easter bunny painting.  My son decided it should be a CHOCOLATE bunny instead.  It works!

I had errands to run all day.  First on the list, was the little dog's annual vet checkup.  Poor baby had to get stuck four times!  Three shots.  One blood test.  All to keep her healthy for the year.  But now, she's all caught up, and I had to buy a little treat to cheer her up.  I bought her and her sister matching collars.  :)  Here they are, sitting in the yard, trying very hard to sit still even though they are concentrating intently on the neighbors next door... bounce, bounce, bouncing up and down on their trampoline, their little heads making quick appearances over the fence.  I suppose you can imagine why they might be intrigued. 

Aren't they just darling?  Don't mind the big streaks of dampness down their backs.  They had just gotten their flea treatments.  My oldest told me that would look gross in a picture, and I swore to him that it wouldn't show up too badly.  Guess he was right.  Ick.  That stuff is NASTY!

Don't hate me because I'm beautiful...

...or because I did this on the back porch!!!!  (She's lucky she's cute!  Just sayin'!... the little one would NEVER be so unfeminine!)

This was the other treat I brought home for the girls.  It doesn't seem fair that Ellie gets treats when Mandy was the one with the vet visit, HOWEVER if I don't treat them both... well, we all know what would happen!  Big Bully Ellie would steal it all from Mandy.  So, I gave one to each of them.  And what happened?  Ellie ditched hers, just so she could steal Mandy's anyway.  Sheesh.

And when they claim they're "tough" dog toys, don't believe it!  If it's made of fabric at all, you've wasted your money.  I don't know when I'm going to learn!  Mandy could have played with one of these for MONTHS... back in the day before Ellie was around.  Oh well, I guess we'll keep her anyway!  (And when Ellie's put away in her kennel, I'll let Mandy have it all to herself!  HA!  She's a big girl, and she has earned that privilege!)

Day 86. Caterpillar.

This is the furry, little friend who greeted us this morning.  He was just casually hanging out on the side of the garage door.

My youngest son was so excited!  He is studying caterpillars in his class, so he asked if we could take our friend to school today.  I obliged, as long as we could bring him home at the end of the day, and put him back in the environment he belongs!  :)

The only container we could find was the empty English muffin box on the counter from this morning's breakfast.  Hey, it worked!

I had to get a few snapshots before we let him go free.  If his colors are this beautiful as a caterpillar, I wonder what kind of butterfly he'll be!

My son named him "Green Leaf."

We put him in the plants underneath our tree.  I thought it was a little nicer than his garage home.  He even  had some raindrops to drink from.  :)

He was telling us goodbye, and thanked us for the fun day.

We told him it was our pleasure, and my son gave him one last "pet" goodbye.