Kara Elmore Photography

15 years ago ...

TONIGHT!  Was my first date with NATE!  WOW!  We were chatting downstairs as I put together someone's album (they'll be so happy!) and I realized the date!  I said "Nate - do you KNOW what today is???"  He's like "crap - what did I forget?"  I said "It was our FIRST DATE!"  We both had to count backwards and figure out how many years ago it was.

But I remembered it all VERY clearly!  As I went on and on about the details (imagine Alice in her fast talking voice all you cullen lovers!) I got more and more giddy!  Then I SHOT up and said "I'm going to BLOG about you!"  ohhhhhhh you should've seen his face.  He made the worst scrunched up face and said "nooo - please do NOT go blog about it.".  So I pretended to do something else -and snuck upstairs to go find pictures.  SADLY I don't know where they are.  Maybe at my parents home.  So as I looked through what I DID have - I got all "reminiscent" of my life and ended up scanning things that took back in time.  If you don't want to hear me mumble on - then click off now - because it's going to get detailed. :)

Back in 1993 I was SEVENTEEN (ohhhh 17 .. that's SUCH an amazing age - isn't it??  I wonder why?  ec.).  Nate was 18.  He had just graduated high school and was in college. Although taking a business class and a volleyball class doesn't REALLY constitute higher education.  He agreed - and the business class was dropped.  Our sisters knew each other - and he received my phone number.  To which I was HIGHLY aware of.  Weeks went by.  Jerk.  He didn't call me.  So ONE NIGHT - my sister was at my home and she CALLED him from my home (before caller ID - GENIUS!) and said "Nate - you haven't called my sister (jerk!) - and I know she's home.  Why don't you call her and ask her out?"

20 minutes later he called - I was giddy!  Giddy with GLEE.  Had NO idea what he looked like - but I was sure he was HOT!  We scheduled something for that weekend - to which I cancelled 2 days later because I went out with Greg Stewart. :)  Wanted to play hard to get with Nate.  We scheduled for the following week.

We doubled with his friend Paul - and my friend CHERIDAN!  Hi Cheridan!  We went to Olive Garden, Legacy (remember that movie???) and a HAUNTED HOUSE.  freeeeeeeeeaaaaaaky!  He picked me up in his GIRBAUD jeans - totally hot!  And this plaid shirt that I loved so much!  His smile was sooo .. oo I'm totally giddy writting this ... great!

During the movie I got a little "teary" (I know WEIRD for me!!) and I remember he leaned over and while holding out the edge of his cute plaid shirt he said "Do you need this?" with the MOST dashing smile.  Totally knocked me out and I was twitterpated!  Then during the haunted house the evil chain saw guy (who ALWAYS looks for people on their first date) cornered Cheridan and me.  And I remember Nate reaching in to "get" me.  ohh wow - this is even better WRITING IT!  I love it!

That night I was hooked.  I loved everything about him!  6 weeks later he told me he loved me.  And even though I was young - I knew I could not live with out him.  I knew that if I had traveled the world and seen everyone there was to see - I would still come back to find someone like him. And that's how I still feel.

So - 15 years later - we've been married for ... ooo how many years - let me count ... hold on...

Just a second - still counting ...

TWELVE years!

Awwwww he just walked up the stairs with a surprise for me.  A bowl of pudding.  He knows I love it.  He caught site of what I was writing and said "oh great - they think I'm a drop out!"  So in his defense - although he DID drop that "all important" business class - he then attended 8 more years of college. :)

I love him.  I love his intensity for life.  For our family.  For me.  If I had spent my life differently in my early 20's, traveling the world, going to school in Paris, etc. etc.  - I STILL would've come back to find someone like him.  To find HIM.  Because HE is who I love!

 

(Thank you Amy for our picture that I LOVE!)

And now - some reminiscing.  This is ME when I was 17.  2 weeks before meeting Nate.

 

Jamie Johnson, Kristin Hess, Jason Francis (the driver!) and me.  Homecoming Royalty.  1 week before Nate. ;)

 

And the night he PROPOSED - March 31, 1996.  Look at our HAIR!  And that's my brother, Chris -  with Heidi -  he dated her a bit back then.  Hi Heidi. :)  Ohhh - and my dog, Pugsley.  Nice plethera (brandy's word!) of light faded jeans.  Thank you gap.  They must've been on sale.

 

And some random  tea party with my dad and brother.  Nice.  See - fluffy head DOES look just like me!

 

And just in case you were worried that YOUR family photo was outdated ... take a lookie here.

 

Can you find me?  Keep looking - I know that shag carpet is getting quite high.  Time for a mowing.

Off to let Oscar outside to go POTTY.  Can I just put a diaper on him?? :)  Off to chat with Nate some more - reminisce.  See if he can remember as many details ...

Some unexpected news ...

I've been thinking about this post for a while - trying to put it off.  Lots of emotions are in my head.  So I decided to just GET it out there - possibly gaining some support while I'm at it.

I've always had this thing for NAMES.  Very specific about what I name my children.  It has to be after someone that meant a lot to me.  And I've always wanted to name a boy OSCAR.

Well - it looks like I might get my chance.

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INTRODUCING:

 

Ohhh I'm SOOO mean!!!  Did you think I was pregnant???  If you know my baby, you know she's making sure she doesn't have any younger siblings. :)  My sister just stopped by and I told her what I was posting.  She thought it was mean.  But then laughed.  So I figured it was OK.

 

Oscar is a little Shih Tzu - weighing in at 2.3 pounds.  We picked him up late Thursday night and love him already!  He's darling!  And so calm.  And surprisingly, my baby is SO mellow with him.  She says : "AHH AHH ... WAA WAA??"  Which is, "Oscar, water?"  As she bends down to SHOW him how to lick water out of his bowl.  Ohhh bless her.  She's VERY helpful.  We thought she'd beat the tar out of him like she does everyone else...  but no.  Go figure.  She's mean to humans - but great with dogs.  We thought this would help our boy with his anxiety - and it has.  We're so grateful for that.

And one last photo of fluffy head and me .... she loves to snuggle in for photos!  How could I resist?

Drum roll please ...

And the answers ARE:

Sorry it has taken me SO long to get this posted.  But I received MANY MANY more questions than I anticipated.  Most were emailed - and some were posted in the comments.  So I'm going to try and answer as many as I can.  I may have to do this in two parts though.  And some would have required a 4 page essay ... so I'm going to answer the ones that will make sense without you having to get your dictionary out.  :)

MY DISCLAIMER:  My answers are simply that,  my answers.  What is right for ME, may not be right for someone else.  You may ask another professional photographer, and they will give you a COMPLETELY different answer and will discredit what I have said.  :)  So - how I work things are becauuse I have figured out what works for me at this time.  I shoot differently than my father who trained me.  I shoot differently than my brother who I shoot with all the time.  It's just what works best for me.  So don't judge me. :)  Ok.  I'm sensitive. :)  I might cry if you push me too far.

Some Q I am combining, because I got quite a few of the same type ...

Q:  Regarding your use of natural light - when is the perfect time of day?

A: There is not a perfect time of day.  I'm not just saying that to give you a "soft" answer.  It's just the truth.  Lighting depends on where you are AND what time of year it is.  Where the sun falls.  There are certain locations that I only go to in October.  Because of where the light falls at 6:00 p.m.  Because I shoot ONLY natural light - I make sure to place the subject in a way that will allow for the light to filter in on the subject - in a way that I am hoping for.  I may only want one side of my subject to be lit - I may only want the back of the hair to shine - it just depends on what I'm going for in that particular piece of art.  And sometimes I realize that where we are is NOT working ... so I pack things up and try a new area.  You have to be willing to walk away.  :)  I'll go to a spot on Tuesday - and then walk by it on Wednesday at the same time and it looks different.  Some photographers avoid certain times of day.  I don't really avoid certain times.  If I don't know the lighting of an area - I won't go there as a surprise.  I'll go check it out to see where shadows fall and then make my decision of when I want to go there.

Q:  What camera do I recommend for someone not starting a business - but for someone who just wants to take snapshots.

A:  Ummm - wish I knew.  I only know the prof. cameras.  Anyone else??? :)

Q:  Your images are so clear, bright and sharp.  Why?  And do I need a better camera to get better results?

A:  It has to do with lighting and exposure - and of course camera equipment.  I make sure to have properly exposed images in the first place.  And I work REALLY REALLY hard to know how to get that.  I don't under expose an image in hopes to save it.  If it's too dark - it's too dark.  Don't save it.   If I had THE best Hasselblad camera in the world but didn't know how to use it, I would just have a REALLY expensive camera with a poor quality image because it was improperly exposed.  Getting a better camera doesn't necessarily mean a better image.  You have to know how to work your equipment in the first place to get good results.  However, having fabulous equipment DOES and WILL help when you know how to use what you have.

Q: Focal points - what do you use - one or all?

A: I use just one - using multiple points takes the average and divides it up among the points.  But I just use one because I know what I want in focus - just the subject.  I don't want to have that green leaf in the top left corner to have any type of impact on my image. 

Q:  Do you use a speedlite?  And how do you get enough light for inside shots?

A:  No.  I only  use natural light.  If you feel you do not have enough light in your home - keep searching.  You'll find it.  Open up blinds, doors, remove shades - there IS light - you just have to find it.   Some of my favorite images come from inside people's homes that are REALLY REALLY dark.  I've been known to take down LOTS and LOTS of things to let light in. :)

Q:  Do you shoot in Manual/AV?

A:  I shoot only in Manual.  It's the only way to have COMPLETE control over your image.  I know exactly how MUCH I want in focus - and I know how much light I want to come in.  I don't want a computer choosing that for me.  I also know what I want to do post processing to the image WHILE I'm taking it (I know - crazy brain of mine firing all the time!!) - so I factor that in while choosing exposure.

Q: Has having a blog helped your business:

A:  YES!  That's how I started.  And apparently, from what my clients have told me - they can tell my personality from my blog.  They feel like they KNOW me and want me to take their images because they understand who I am - what I like and how I relate to my subjects.  I personally feel like you need to CLICK with your photographer.  If you don't like them - ummmm - don't have them take your pictures.  If they don't have a personality that you get along with - chances are that will spill over into your images.  So I'm glad that my clients have been able to "know" me through reading about me. That was my whole purpose - to show people who I am so they will know me and understand me and my work.

Q:  Do you keep your shutter speed on a certain setting or are you constantly changing it?

A: I change it for nearly every single solitary image.  I'm constantly moving ALL the buttons - thinking about how fast that kid is in relations to my SS, and getting motion shots in focus.  You can't keep it in one spot unless you want half your images to be blurry and 1/4 of them to be in focus, and 1/8 of them to be ... bla. 

Q:  Which lens would you use to shoot someone like, say EDWARD?  (Bev - you ROCK!)

A:  hehehehehehe - insert evil laugh of the world RIGHT HERE.  With a little bit of GIDDINESS.  Oh my heavens - can you see me BLUSH???  I would use a prime lens.  I woudn't want anything to be distorted with him.  And I think I would shoot him in studio possibly.  Ohhh oops - I didn't mean for you to see my brain - that it has contemplated his photoshoot.  Which I'm proud to admit I've planned out the entire thing. :)  Oh - and even my outfit.

Q:  How do I work my digital camera?  I just got it and don't know where to start.

A:  That's like 4 hours right there. :)  The best thing I would say is to go back to where you bought it and find out when they offer classes.  Most likely they will - and attend it - and take notes.

Q:  What is your favorite lens?

A:  Well - today or yesterday - or tomorrow? :)  Different lenses give different looks.  And it depends on what the "feel" of the shoot lends itself to.  Oh - and what camera I'm using with it, too.  Because that makes a difference.  So - if I'm using my 30d, I would probably use my 17-40L.  It's my favorite one today.  And if I'm using the 5d with that same lens, I would need to check with my client to see if they like "funky" things.  Because using that lens with THAT camera you will see distortion.  My favorite - but something to point out to the client.  (full frame sensory).  I ADORE prime lenses  - that L series ... ooo LOVE THOSE!

Q:  What do you do when a child doesn't want to cooperate?

A:  I try to get them away from their parents because they're probably acting up.  I play with him/her and get them out of the spotlight. IF they continue on their rampage, I will give them a break and see if we can try it later.  Sometimes it's just too much for little ones and they need a break.

I KNOW there were a TON more - but this is a ton of reading for tonight.  I'm off to start Eclipse again...  Thank you again everyone for your questions!!!  I love you all.  You all make my day when I see a comment.  Even if I know you or not.  It kind of makes me feel like people ARE reading this.  That I'm not this crazy person just typing to herself.  :)  Well - I KNOW that I talk to myself AND answer my own questions (which is what Kate pointed out to me last night...) - but it's OK.  :)

MORE!!!

I need more questions!  Some of you have emailed me your photography questions - and some have posted in the comments.  But I need more!  It will not fill up the hour! ;)  As soon as I have MORE (hint hint hint!) then I will ANSWER them in the next post!  I know you're reading!  There were 112 people who looked at it last night ... you're out there ... but you're AFRAID to post.  WHY???

Will a picture entice you???

  

I LOVE this picture.  Total "outtake" - which are my favorites.  The "outtakes" become the treasures - the ones that SHOULD be the big family picture!

BTW - reading New Moon again (2nd time in 2.5 weeks).  And I'm proud to know I've recruited Kim to my new life of READING.  HI KIM!  I know you love me for it!!!  And I finally saw Pride and Prejudice.  Love Mr. Darcy! :)  I might start standing in line for Twilight Movie tickets ... you think?

If you could ask me any question...

WHAT WOULD IT BE?  (non-edward-related-of-course!)

I'll be speaking on photography in October and wanted to know what YOU would want to know from  me.  Ask me anything.  Email me - or post it in the comments.  The more the merrier! 

And if no one post a question - this poor group will be REALLY mad!!! :)

NEVER in a million years ...

... would you guess that this session lasted an ENTIRE 28 ... TWENTY EIGHT minutes!

Serious!  From the time I walked in the door, read twilight (no, just kidding), picked pears off their trees, fed myself some lunch, and packed my things up.

This baby was PERFECT!  Perfect in every way.  My new favorite.  Well - don't get offended anyone. :)  You know you're ALL my favorite in some special way.  But she is my favorite as of today.  And tomorrow. :)  Her name is what "fluffy head" was suppose to be.  What I tried to change it to 2 weeks later.  What I tried to change it to 2 months later.  What I tried to change it to 6 months later.  But alas, Nate wouldn't.  But that's OK.  At least I can live through her, now.  And shower her with pictures to show my love. :)

 

Look at her EYE LASHES!  Well - if I wasn't using TYPEPAD you'd be able to see her lashes that were LONGER than mine. 

 

Look at that skin - and the wrinkles.  Like a mini charpee (how do you spell that?)

 

This one is for her Aunts and Uncles who live away.  They need to see what she looks like.  She's a TOTAL tarbet baby.  But yet, I see Megan in her eye area.

This next one is my favorite.  I'm putting it on my website tonight.  I wish, like most of my images, that I had this for MY kids.  I love every single thing about this.  Their back door.  Their floor.  The memories for them of their first house together.  Wish I had that.  But... not enough to get pregnant right away. :)

 

I love everything about this family.  You know that.  I'm coming next month and we're going in the water. :)  And NICK and CHRIS - i AM your favorite! :)

See why I picked her?

Remember THIS outfit:

 

The winner of my CONTEST??  Well - I knew what she looked like so I was MORE giddy to choose her as the winner.  Funny enough - the pictures I chose to blog don't even show the outfit.  HA!  But trust me - it was gorgeous!  The close-ups were just WAY too beautiful to pass up!  Isn't she stunning?  Her eyes - her tossled hair - her freckles.  She's TOTALLY Ralph Lauren model.  And - you know I love that RAW type look.  And that is her!  I love her.  She knows that!

 

But THIS one - this is my ALL TIME FAVORITE of her!  She'll be on my website tonight. :)

 

Her mom and I chatted tonight about her resembling BELLA!  Ohhh bless us!  We can't get ANYTHING Edward related out of our minds! :)

I read Midnight Sun this week.  Totally cried.  Love him even more.  Love his perspective.  Love everything about him.  Started reading Twilight again last night.  HAHHA!  It's a good thing I'll be done by my next photo shoot.  Oh, wait.  No I won't.  But I'll focus on that newborn on Saturday, I PROMISE!

Off to eat some cookies.  You should too!

My week through pictures

I feel like a GIDDY teenager!  And NO I do NOT have wrinkles to say that I am OTHERWISE!  Sheesh! :)

Last week, I begged Brandy (with a Y!!!) to let me borrow Twilight.  Even though all the girls were swooning over it for the last year, I knew I wasn't much of a reader (ummm, I KNOW how to read, I just choose not to!) and I didn't think I'd even WANT to start this series.  Let alone finish it.  I even let them all TELL me what happens because I was THAT confident that I would NOT pick this book up.

But my curiosity got the better of me and I completed my mission in taking this book from Brandy. Even though she VERY reluctantly let me borrow it (I think she's on her 4th read through??).  That was Saturday afternoon.

By Sunday - I HAD to come home from church because the baby was OUT OF CONTROL.  Shoooooot - look, there's TWILIGHT.  Maybe I'll pick it up and READ IT!

This is how I felt:

 

Like a GIDDY teenager - as I chatted w/ April about EVERY scene of the book!  IMAGINE our long distance phone bills!  (it's a good thing Nate doesn't really read this - he'd think twice about why it would be double this month!)  We made ourselves feel better that it was like a BOOK CLUB.  Only ... a long distance one.  She lives near Stephenie Meyer, the author.  So, that was another justification.  Not sure how - but it was.  I felt like giggling with her about this book.  Every aspect of this book.  "And what about THIS part, and THIS part ... could you DIE???"  yes.  I AM like a valley girl.

That was Monday.

Tuesday came ...

 

And my heart was SOOO sad because Edward LEFT.  He left her in the RAIN in the FOREST!  And as she laid there on the forest floor, I CRIED.  I cried and cried and I cried.  I wanted him to come back for her (now - I KNEW that he would, because like I said above - I knew the entire story.  But that didn't stop me from living in the moment of these books!)  So my sadness spilled over into my photography.  Good thing I didn't have a real client that would've received extreme editorial pictures that mimiced my sadness. 

I slowed down through book 2 because I was SO upset that Jacob was there.  I pretended he was ugly.  But I knew he wasn't.  But I wanted him to be. :)  My other friend, Adie said she was TEAM JACOB.  I nearly fought her tooth and nail!  How could she betray our friendship like that!!?? :)

And then EDWARD RETURNED!!!!!!!! He could touch her cheek again.  Hold her tight and tossle his bronze hair (oh my heavens!!!)

And my joy turned to me SHOUTING OUT THE WINDOWS like this:

 

Without going into ALL the details of my feelings (but, if you've read it - YOU KNOW!) I finished book 4 last night.  7 days of ..... WOW to say the least.  #1 I'm proud I like to READ NOW!  #2, I'm VERY proud that it was THIS series of books that made me fall in love with it.  And #3, I'm VERY proud to know that I belong to the Edward/Bella club.  hmmm - not a REAL club, like some are.  But in MY world, I am. :)

I'm actually sad that it's over.  I LOVED reading it all so fast - to get the story - to find out what happened.  But now I'll have to read it again slow - to ENJOY IT!  This is my feeling at the moment:

And now, as I return to the computer (I've ignored it ALL week - that and the PHONE!- it was SO fun!!!) I decided to read Midnight Sun.  And my joy is again on. :) 

I ignored everything about my life for 1 whole week.  "ohhh, hi, you're home from school.  Oh, ok.  Ummmm - I'll help you in a minute (book still in hand).  Let me just finish this ONE page (maybe the next 40) and then I'll talk w/ you.".  And what about - "you need your diaper changed.  crap. (hahaha)  Do you think your older brother can do it while I read some more?  If not, can YOU hold the book for me while I read AND change you?".  My favorite:  "You're hungry?  What about another cheese string.  That's protein.  I *think* the cups are clean.  If not - use the hose.  It should be fine.  Ask a neighbor to turn it on for you.  I can't get my book wet".

You know what I mean, don't you?  You did the SAME THING!  Admit it!

A VERY special THANK YOU to Kelli of France Photography (my friend in NV!) for pictures 1 and 3.  Me with my girls.  She came up this weekend and took some family pics.  I am in LOVE w/ every single one of them.  I feel bad, I was quite specific of what I wanted.  I wanted to capture the FEEL of us in our home.  And she went above and beyond!  I love her!

The last picture is of my darling DARLING neice/niece (honestly, I have NO idea how to spell that!).  She's turning 8 and her eyes are piercingly beautiful.  ohhhh looky there - they're kind of GOLD!  hmmmmmmm .....

NOVEMBER 21 - here we COME!!!!!

And the winner is ...

This little thing!!!

 

AWWWWWW!  Isn't she DARLING?  Oh wait - she can't win.  That's NEPOTISM!  But this WAS Miss Fluffy Head's first day of preschool.  And OH how I WANT HER OUTFIT.

 

 

This was to mimic last year's first day of school shot.  And just so you don't think I favor her for pictures- I took my boy's pics too last week on HIS first day of school - and somehow can't find the images.  I KNOW they're on here.  I saw them yesterday.  But I think I put them in a SAFE folder to print ... which I'll never do because I never send my own pictures to print.  Just goes with the territory of being a photog, I guess! :)  But when I find them - I'm printing them!  His pictures are JUST as darling.  He felt so proud picking out his own outfit (that I pre-picked out!).

She loved school.  Giggled as she thought about her plaid outfit.  The polka dot shoes for the SECOND day of school almost won out today.  But her dad and I talked her into wearing this with "ohhh, just think of how DARLING you will be with your fluffy hair.  Mrs. Taylor will say "Wow - isn't she SO sweet!  And I LOVE your outfit and curls!"  So she went with it.  I picked her up today and said "Well ... how WAS IT? etc. etc. etc.  Then I said "See - I told you they would love your hair and outfit!"  (this is something I say to TALK her into letting me curl her hair again, which she's starting to refuse).  Her response to that?

"Welllllll - they DIDN'T say ANYTHING about my hair and outfit!!!!"

Crap.  Crap for me.  So I said "Yes.  They did.  I heard them.  They Loooooooooooove your fluffy hair (thus her nickname)."  She was Ok with that one.   WHEW!  I think I talked her into another day of rollers.

Now - on to the WINNER!  You guys are GREAT to send me pictures.  Thank you SO much for everyone's participation.  It was SO fun!!!  It was hard to choose.  I got some darling outfits - and ... some RISQUE ones LACEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  No, really - if there had been a category for "I've only purchased underwear and WHITE socks" - then she totally would have won! Next time - FOR SURE! :)  But it was THIS outfit that won it for me.  The funny thing - there wasn't a body in the pictures.  Just the outfit - laying on the carpet.  But kind of KARA style.   And I INSTANTLY imagined the photoshoot.  So - that's why she won.

 

We're doing her shoot next week and then we'll post some.  I think I'll have another contest in a bit.  I looked at my stats and I'm up to 50,000 some odd count.  WOW!!!!!!!!!!  So - what type of contest should I hold?

I'm going shopping tomorrow.  Nate will be responsible for the children.  Hmmmm.  That's quite a job, you think?  I'll take a picture of our THREE children before I leave.  I'll print the picture.  FRAME the picture where he can see so he'll remember there are THREE.  Then when I return from my STRESS filled day of shopping (because honestly, when the husband is in charge, do we EVER relax???) I will take another picture of the kids to see if they are ALL accounted for.  If you know my phone number, will you PLEASE call home and ask him where the children are???  Make sure they've been fed.

*crap*  now I'm all worked up. :)  Maybe some Prison Break will help. :)

Changing the Blog a Bit.

About a year ago, my friend April emailed me the link to my now favorite blog.  Honestly, I don't read that many blogs.  Too many to keep up with.  Thus, making me feel COMPLETELY inadequate every time I read someone's blog.  So I only frequent a few.  But this one quickly became my favorite.  I checked it all the time.  I wanted to know MORE about her life.  I wanted to know more about HER, her kids, who she was, what she thought.  I was hooked. 

www.nieniedialogues.blogspot.com

About 10 days ago, she was in a plane crash with her husband.  Everyone who reads her blog, everyone who knows her has been praying for her and donating money to their recovery fund.  Updates on Nie can be found at http://blog.cjanerun.com

I realized I had been so affected by her -  in a positive way!!  I didn't feel like I was competing (like I sometimes feel) - rather I felt like I was being inspired every time I read more.

When I started this blog 3 years ago, it was for my clients.  Here and there I give more and more information about my life - but nothing deep.  I'm not sure how deep I'll get, :)  But because of HER, I do want to share more of my life. 

I will be donating some of my last session to the Nie Nie recovery fund.  If you feel like you could donate something to them at this time in your life, there are links on those blogs.

Nie did a beautiful back to school table setting a few weeks ago.  She inspired me.  This is what I came up with last week (I'll post more about back to school later.)

Our 2008-2009 year theme will be The B's.  Be grateful, Be Smart, Be Clean, Be True, Be Humble, Be Prayerful.  The kids loved our Back to School night family home evening.  They got little presents to help them remember the B's.

SO - tell me what you want to see more of?  What do you want to know more about?  Do you want to see my self portrait of me attempting to curl my hair???  Nate called me Farrah! :)  Ohh and notice the laundry in the corner?  Yes - I'll be posting more REAL life things.

Now - go say a prayer for Nie, her husband, her kids and her family.  She would love it.  And she'll feel it.