good to be nine

my sweet Tess, who is awfully uncomfortable with the attention that comes from having a birthday, didn't even want me to sing her happy birthday this morning in the car on the way to breakfast. i did it anyway, like any good parent would, watching her squirm in her seat while her face blushed. it was the smile, however, that made me believe it was ok to keep going.

my sweet Tess is always the first one to put her arms around you and tell you everything is going to be ok and what can i do to help. she lovingly helped me take care of my back wound each morning even though it sickened her.

my sweet Tess is a pleaser. she wants to make you happy, sometimes i fear to her detriment, but she gives freely and i love that about her. she'd offer to share her ice-cream if yours fell on the ground.

my sweet Tess can be grumpy, but she always knows to take some moments alone to calm down.

my sweet Tess is a visual learner and loves any and all creative projects. she's been learning to sew, draws, and been taking photos. i'm so grateful these are all things we have in common.

my sweet Tess is my little tom boy. instead of playing with dolls and small character toys she'd rather be outside moving. lately it's biking that she's been drawn too. she was just complaining to Adam how her brakes don't work and would you please fix the chain on the other one. Adam kept putting her off knowing in a few hours she's going to get a new one. turns out i made the right call. i can't wait to surprise her.

my sweet Tess loves being with you. she doesn't really mind what you do as long as you do it together.



my sweet Tess is nine today and i celebrate the beautiful girl that she is.

a fortune

fortune: you find beauty in ordinary things. do not lose this ability
(click on fortune to see photo of actual fortune)

I have never had a fortune feel like it was written solely for me until this fortune. I pulled it out of a cookie the night my friend Amy took me for sushi for my birthday. It was one of those reaffirming ah-ha moments where I realized finding beauty out of the ordinary is what I love to do. Watching life unfold around me and capturing those moments is the driving force behind my photography. The best part is, with my family, I will never run out of things to document.



case in point:
A few weeks ago I found Bella reading to Megan after school. It was her way of spending time with Megan and getting her reading done at the same time--so she says. I, for one, am grateful I heard mumbling down the hall and stumbled upon this scene. I know when they're older and Bella is busy with friends Megan will love having proof that Bella spent time with her. And of course the umbrella just makes it that much sweeter for me. The funny thing is I can totally see us talking about this photo in twenty years and Megan asking what she was doing with an umbrella. I'd like to think she was staging the scene, that she knew I would be coming with my camera, but using it so randomly is just Megan's way--a little bit quirky, a little bit loud.

I'm so grateful life is chock-full of stories like these to tell.

you find beauty in ordinary things. do not lose this ability
i pray i never will.

52 photo project | week 05 | water

52photosproject

first impressions

if we met on a park bench with the smell of lavender in the air, i'd tell you...
my name is amy gretchen and some friends call me g.
i'm a stay at home mom that has still not found a good relationship with laundry.
i can easily pass on dessert, but not french fries.
i love getting lost in a book and usually cry when the story is over.
i love handwritten letters, but i don't write in my journal as much as i would like.
i have three beautiful girls and don't long for a son.
i am spending less time than ever on the computer and find it agrees with me.
i delight in being on time.
i live close to the mountains, but don't use them like i should.
i dream of roaming the world with adam and my camera.
i have a random manner of speaking that is often mistaken for humor.
i don't mind being lost, it often brings the best discoveries.

if we met over hot cocoa in the dim light, I'd tell you...
i rarely regret what I do only what I don't do.
i know life can be hard, unfair at times, and it's my faith in Christ that keeps me whole.
i believe british films can mean the difference between a good day and a bad one.
my greatest fear is not being enough for those who are counting on me.
i am a product of all that i have been through.
i hate that i am constantly falling short of where i want to be.
i want to be seen--understood.
i am grateful for my right to choose for myself.
i take photographs to share with the world a piece of me.
i don't need a lot, but i do need love.

xo

rainy days

i love...
the smell
the rich colors
the feel on my face
dancing in
the pitter patter against my window
the drops on my windshield
the misty mountains
the way the drops gently linger on the grass & trees

52 photo project | week 04 | ray of light

[bella & whitney at nanas | may 2011]

"a simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it."-unknown

their joyous laughter
their good morning hugs
their thoughtful cards
their "i love yous"
their contagious smiles
their funny phrases
their goodnight kisses
their unconditional love are all pieces of light they share with me each day making my day that much brighter. The joy and richness they bring to my life are immeasurable and far beyond what I ever thought possible when I was innocently daydreaming with my friends over summer break.

Where light is you will find no darkness--my life is full of light. I am grateful to my four for making it so.

over the weekend

annual school art night: the girls got to showcase their many forms of art. It is always so enjoyable to walk through the halls and see what the kids have been working on all year.



project: I made this for my friends sister (she came up with the phrase) and then took photos of said sister Saturday. Enjoyable afternoon.



Soccer game: spent a windy morning at the park watching Megan. With comments like, is the game over yet, I'm thinking she's mentally come to the end of her season even though she still has one game left. She did get her first goal though.

12of12 | may

Is it just me or has blogger been unavailable since last night? Glad we're back on track. :)


[click here to enlarge]

01. Slept in til 7:30am. The surgery I had Wednesday took more of a toll on me then I thought. In fact this was the first 12of12 that I had a hard time doing—my camera is too heavy for my weak back.
02. This is one of my favorite flowering trees in my yard—I’m patiently waiting for it to bloom. Almost there.
03. Bella’s morning violin practice. Isn’t that lovely light at 7:30am?
04. Girls on their way to school
05. Tess reading with Megan before school
06. Had lunch with one of my favorite people, Eryn. Excited she’ll be in town for a few more months.
07. The weather has been so beautiful today. Enjoyed sometime outside waiting for my girls to walk home.
08. Girls enjoying a Creamie after school
09. Documenting the bandage that takes up half my back. I had a mole removed yesterday that was “severe atypical” and was on its way to being melanoma. If you haven’t been to the dermatologist lately make an appointment. Now.
10. On my nightstand
11. Tulips found on a walk in the avenues with Amy. Tulips are a novelty to me. Since it’s on the top of the deers “to eat list” no one in our neighborhood has them.
12. Watching the sun set over the capital. Unfortunately my battery died so my iphone had to take over.

So like I said, it was kind of a weird day for me not feeling 100%. I guess I just thought since the surgery was on my back i wouldn’t have any down time. Apparently I need to take some and give my body a break—I think I did way too much.

I hope your day was really great. With spring full bloom it must be nice getting outside, at least it was for me. If you played along add your link to mr. linky below. I’m looking forward to seeing spring from around the globe.

52 photo project | week 03 | i found it on the ground

I admittedly did cheat this week, I took this picture a long time ago, but I thought it was ok because I can say with certainty there is sidewalk chalk that has again weathered the winter months tucked away under the brush.

Seeing it now puts a smile to my face. This is proof that children are here, happily imagining, busily creating, getting lost exploring, and enjoying the outside world. I love it here.


go here to learn more about the 52 photo project

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just a quick reminder for those who are participating in the 12of12 challenge that tomorrow is the 12th.

glist

i'm grateful for...

-mothers day wild flowers found throughout my home
-adam's suggestion that i go to the dermatologist. i'm having surgery next week to remove more of my "atypical" mole & surrounding skin
-changes in our ward boundaries
-starting the morning off exercising with friends
-homemade hot cocoa on rainy spring days
-this app that helps me easily rent an audiobook from the library
-finding motivation
-personal revelation
-those who have reached out to me through email
-adam's knack for finding good music (digging iron by woodkid--prefer the gucci remix)
-getting some answers with tess' on again off again abdominal pain
-breakfast for dinner
-clean sheets
-bbc films
-handwritten notes
-promise of summer vacation (4 weeks)
-the kind of laughter that makes your abs hurt & eyes weepy
-late night confessions

0509

I would never have guess, I could never had known that saying yes to "hang out with a few co-workers" would have ever turned into the beginnings of my future life.



But there we were, after weeks of flirting and friendly banter, alone, making our way to his car to begin our first of all dates.

I can't say for certain what either of us were thinking when the evening was over, but it was the evening that began our courtship. We spent the majority of the night listening to Clannad while talking meaningfully about the life we had lived and shared intimate moments of who we were. I know I enjoyed his company and I was certain he enjoyed mine as we parted ways, but the thing that stands out to me the most now and did all those years ago was the ease in our togetherness, never forced or contrived, the conversation flowed.

Yesterday as Adam and I sat after church talking the hours away that I would normally be napping, I thought of that night, our very first date, sixteen years ago today that we spent together laughing and crying. There was a level of trust that had formed between us and a bond created that has never been broken. To this day it is not unheard of to find us together, deep in conversation, for hours at a time. In many ways our conversation has changed and in many way it is very much the same, but whether the topic of life, dreams, improvement, purpose, love, and happiness has caught our attention, it is very much us that brings us together.

"Ah, good conversation - there's nothing like it, is there? The air of ideas is the only air worth breathing." -Edith Wharton (Age of Innocence)

Sixteen years later and I wouldn't have it any other way.

The secret is not in your hand or your eye or your voice, he told me once. The secret is in your heart. Of course, he said, knowing that doesn't make it any easier.
-storypeople

52 photos | week 02 | color

52 photo project



Have i told you lately about my husbands obsession with urban living?

I don't know why it was such a surprise to me when he first expressed his desire to move downtown, we were very fond of living there when we were first married. Adam is not one for convention and the fact that everyone else with families are living in suburbia is just another reason to stay clear of it. Right now, I think he sees all the good stuff happening, the changes, the development, and he is so draw to the movement of a city. I loved it when we lived there and I don't have a problem with going back, but I'm not so sure about it now when I have three young girls. I don't know that I want to raise my children in the city, not that there is anything wrong with it either way. I suppose living in a home with a yard is all I know and I long to give my girls everything I had--again the exactly reason for a change he would say. I think I'd have to do more research, talk to people, families, who live there and assess. Chances are though, when we do move downtown, it will mostly likely be when Megan is out of the house.

At any rate, I do enjoy the city. Adam and I go quite often when we're out together or with the girls like we did the other night. We were actually there Friday night to see the film Certified Copy, which I must say produced more dialogue between the two of us then any one film has in ages. It's an artsy film, mostly subtitled, pretty slow, I mean it's basically two people meandering around a small village in Italy having a conversation, but it's packed with life, relationships and how we all see the world differently. We both found it quite interesting, and so, on our way home we discussed, and while we discussed we walked and then drove the city streets, and I couldn't help but enjoyed the array of lights surrounding us that only a city can provide.

A city is many things, but dull is not one of them. If you look you will see it's full of color.

fhe | downtown outing

I was out taking pictures for one of my favorite seniors yesterday and I had such a good time I suggested at dinner we all go back downtown and enjoy the sites, the excellent weather. It actually took no convincing at all--we've all been excited about finally being able to get out.





























We had the best time hanging out and roaming around, but really, how could we not? It's finally spring, we are all together enjoying temple square, talked with two missionaries (with delightful accents) who gave us a sound demonstration of the tabernacle, met a cute old man full of compliments, and we topped it all off with nielson's custard.

good times!