soon there will be three.

I was absolutely honored to take this gorgeous mammas photograph! I've been patiently waiting for quite a while now....but finally Jillian and Jorge made a trip over here to Sarasota! We had such a lovely time. Jillian has been one of our best friends for many many years. I don't think I could express how excited I am that she's going to be a mamma. Next time we see them there will be three of them!

Jillian and Jorge: This is just a sneak peek guys. There are many more beautiful photos. I hope you enjoy them all :) Thank you guys!

questions. questions. questsions.

From our 5 year old:

"Why do you need a mommy and a daddy to make a baby?"

"How do babies grow inside of a mommy?"

"How do they actually get out of the vagina? It's so small!"

"Do babies poop out of the umbilical cord too?"

Can't forget these:

"Who made god?"

"Where did God come from?"

"What's beyond space? Are there people out there?"

"What holds up space?"

OH MY GOODNESS!!! How is a parent to answer all these questions? Shouldn't a 5 year old be thinking about other things?

There are so many other questions he asks that aren't as deep but just as perplexing to answer. I wish I could remember them all(I need to start writing some of these down). The questions never seem to stop. He still asks questions as his eyes are closing, drifting off to sleep!

Rest your mind little one - I don't think we'll ever have ALL the answers!

March 24

We're crazy.

We aren't denying it.

At least we have big hearts :)

...and a friend with a farm who will take these little ladies when they are all growed up!

county fair

I always look forward to the county fair every year. The rides, dirty feet, farm animals, carnies, people watching, fried veggies and elephant ears - brings back wonderful childhood memories!

Randy taught Kaiden where the best spot to sit on a roller coaster is. "Most people think the best spot is right up front, but they're all wrong. The BESTEST spot is alllll the way in the back - that's where you get thrown all around and have the most fun." He even got him to ride with no hands!

I can't believe they still have these rides. I love them when I was little. Too bad I'm over the high restriction.

Mr. Robot: "Little man, go play some carnival games and bring your prize over to show me. Hey Dad, looks like you already have a first class prize!! Way to go!! " Oh jeez. Being hit on by a robot?? I guess its better than the dirty old men at the bookstore.

fried veggies + elephant ear = big belly ache

So sad seeing these gorgeous animals locked up. The had a bigger area to play in off to the side of these cages. It was about sixteen feet high in a big circle. The conveniently placed the tiger pen right next to the piggie races. When the pigs came out to race the tigers jumped up, started mad pacing, and licking their chops. Being the smart woman that I am, I sat right between the tiger cage and the pigs. Those six tigers could have EASILY knocked over that pen and had some pork for dinner!

Kaiden and Randy won another goldfish. Surprisingly, he is still alive. We named him Sanchez. He has a little black mustache :)

This is Dumbo. She was really sweet and funny. She loved showing off and was even flirting with Randy! (Does it look like I have only one tooth in this picture? weird)

I think we spent a good 30 minutes at this ride! Its so much fun. Kaiden took this picture of Randy and I. We were so nervous leaving Kaiden at the bottom of the ride with the toothless carnie AND my camera. But K assured us everything was OK.

Just thought this was a funny picture. Everyone looks so into the pig races! Go piggies. GO!

frozen

I've never seen this clip before but I thought it was so awesome! I don't know if I would rather be a part of this or actually witness it. Enjoy!

other side of the tracks

Kaiden wanted to do some exploring yesterday so we went over to the railroad tracks. We headed the opposite way of the box cars and walked along the tracks. Its so much fun exploring different parts of Sarasota. We've found some of the neatest places that we feel are all our own.


Kaiden was in a very serious mood on our adventure and this photo captures that personality perfectly. I kept trying to lighten the mood to get some fun photos but he wasn't having it. He was on an exploring mission and nothing was going to stop him!

We found a trail that led to a swampy conservation area and an old railroad crossing sign. We also found where the railroad splits into two different tracks(to be explored another day).
Picked up lots of old pieces of broken glass, some old bullet casings, and broken pieces of track.

Here's the new do that Kaiden designed. He wanted a mohawk like his buddy Joshua but he added a neat line going through it. You can't see it in this photo because its growing out but it looked very cool, edgy, and definitely unique!

Looking back at these picture makes me feel kinda sad. My little baby is 5 years old and getting so so big! He's a little man with his own little attitude and ideas. He doesn't stop talking - EVER. I wish I could count how many questions he asks in a 30 minute time period. He's learning so much and become so independent. I love it but at the same time I wish I could just press pause for a just a while!

welcome to the fairy ball!

A tiny fairy hut. A soft blanket to snuggle. A little nut to lie down their weary heads.

The perfect size footbridge for little visitors.

Can't forget the fancy paintings for the fairy ball.

Come one.

Come all!!!

March 13

Kaiden: Me and the angels met in Egypt. We were inside a mummy when we met. I remember being in Egypt. That's why I want to be an archaeologist.

windows wide open

Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal visiting our front porch.
Cool cool breeze.
Smell of fresh cut grass.
Traveling ibis's in search of tasty treats.
Laundry on the line.Books piled high.
Coffee in hand.
Cozy little boy snuggled in my lap.

:: The start of a lovely day ::

Goodbye Ungo

We said goodbye to our most favorite mouse friend today. It was a sad day but a day that needed to come because Ungo had been really sick for quite some time.
If you can recall, Ungo is the mouse that was attacked by our other male mouse, Jack, and got really hurt and had to go to the vet for his many injuries. He had such a great spirit about him! He loved to lay his head on our palm as we pet his ears and head. He would talk softly in his little mouse voice when he was happy. Kaiden loved pushing him around in his trucks and making obsacle courses for him.

Ungo will be missed but we're glad he's not sick anymore. Kaiden knows that he found our bird, Bang Bang, up in Heaven and are playing in the forest together!

brother + sister = trouble

Venice Beach 03-08-08

baby Brandon

I finally got to meet little baby Brandon! He's such an easygoing, adorable, little man. I can't wait till Melissa and Mike move closer so we can see him more. Kaiden just adores him and so does Randy. He's one well loved little boy!

Are we going to be friends forever? Asked Piglet. Even longer, Pooh answered."

We received some terribly sad news today. It brought lots and lots of tears and more tears are sure to come. I don't think there is an easy way to break the news that your best friend is moving away. That's right - Sianna and Joshua are moving ::sniff sniff:: They are being evicted from their rental property due to their landlady going bankrupt and having to lose her house.

Joshua got the news first. His first reaction was "But mommy, I'm going to lose my BESTEST FRIEND!!!!" followed by hysterical sobbing. Amy called me in tears over Josh being so heart broken. I promised that we would come over first thing in the morning to let Josh know that he is definitely not losing his bestest friend.

After hearing what Amy went through I thought I would approach telling Kaiden in a different way while cuddling in bed.

Me: Kaiden, is Joshua your best friend?

Kaiden: Oh YEAH!

Me: Is Joshua ALWAYS going to be your best friend?

Kaiden: Duh Mom!

Me: I have something to tell you. Joshua and his family are having to move to a new house but we will be able to visit him all the time and he'll still be able to come over to our house all the time to play and you will definitely be able to still ride your bikes together.

Kaiden: But if they move it will take them hours and hours to get to our house! Are they moving tomorrow? They can't fit all their stuff in those SUV's! No, no, no.....Joshua and Sianna are coming to stay with us and Amy and Dave will move to a new house!!

After a bit more conversation and thinking this whole thing out in his little mind Kaiden got MAD. And I mean REALLY MAD. He insisted on knowing whythe landlady needed her house back.

Kaiden: Joshua and I are going to get the BIG ax out of the shed and slice that ladies tires to shreds, pull out all her hair, and then we're going to dump her in the trashcan!!!!!!!

The scheming didn't end there! I let him go on and on about what he wanted to say and do to the landlady. He was just venting how mad and hurt he's feeling. But just when I was about to go out the door and gave a kiss goodnight the tears started. Oh the heartbreak! It makes me tear up just thinking of it! I'm sure we've all been there!

I haven't heard how poor Sianna has taken the news. She's older and understands things a bit better but it doesn't make it any easier. This is the second time this has happened to this poor family. Just as you think you are settled for a while and find someplace you truly love to live it gets torn out from under you - twice. My heart goes out to them!

March 3

We haven't been to the library in about 6 months all because of a $30 late fee that I really, really didn't want to pay. I finally broke down and paid it yesterday and I'm so glad I did. I forgot how much we truly love the library.

We found a nice sunny corner, cozied up, and read our pile of books. What a lovely, quiet, peaceful, and relaxing afternoon.

Meet Lexi, Samantha, Raven, and Johnna - BFF! These girls were so full of energy and personality. Like I said in the previous post, the shoot was an adventure - strange rashes, falling out of train cars, attacked by sea gulls, and even charged by an angry bull! It was my first time photographying so many girls at one time so it was deinately a learning experience :)