Super Mario Bros II

I finally got around to doing the "professional" photos of Cameron in his costume. I remember a time when I could stick him in spot, and he would just sit there until I told him to move. Not anymore! He will not sit still for anything, and the madder I get, the more he thinks it is a game. GRRRR! As a result, a lot of the images were out of focus, the the focus just feel somewhere else other than his face. Still, I think they are really cute (mommy goggles on, of course!)
I also did a couple of him without the accessories. I like these so much I think I will use them as his four year old portraits!
And finally, I have to show off my four year old's skills with a camera:-) After we were done shooting him, I asked if he would like to try taking a picture of me. I don't think he has ever taken a picture of anything before, so this was a first. I showed him how to hold the camera and look in the little window. And this is what we got! Check out the focus and composition! Yup, I'm a PROUD mommy:-)

Itsa me! Mario!

For Halloween this year, Cameron wanted to be Super Mario! This was by far the easiest costume I have put together, and the cheapest. I carved some custom Mario pumpkins, too, but we were so busy that we never got to set them out. So next year we will probably carve some more to go along with the theme. I use Styrofoam pumpkins every year, so that I don't have to worry about all my hard work rotting away!

Here is cute Cameron as Super Mario!!
I was really sad that we missed our Ward Trunk-or-Treat this year. We spent a long time preparing for it, but we did not expect them to have it in the middle of the day! That is okay, though, since we still got to take Cameron trick-or-treating. We also got to go to quite a few Halloween parties, including some for work, with a friend, and one that my bro Matt and his wife Christina planned. It was all a lot of fun, but now I am tired!

Four Years Old!

My baby just turned four! How did that happen? I must have blinked somewhere in there, dang it!

On Cameron's birthday we surprised him with a balloon bouquet, with a GIANT balloon. His eyes lit up when I walked in the door holding them. He LOVES balloons:-) We let him open one present (we saved the rest for his party). It was a brand new sword! Up until now he has been playing with homemade cardboard and ducttape creations. Although they looked alright, they tended to fall apart quickly. We wanted one that would last a while longer. We got him a plastic sword in just his size, and it even makes cool sword sounds!

Last Saturday we had a Super Mario themed party for him. He loves anything Mario, and was so excited about his "Mario Party". We were planning to hold the party outside, but it was cold and windy and was threatening rain. It was a little crowded in our apartment, but the kids had a lot of fun.

Cameron had a little melt down at one point, and had to take a little time out, but he perked right back up when it was time to open presents! His favorites were the new Mario toys - two RC MarioKart toys, and a Mario and Yoshi action figure. He also likes his new Nerf guns! Typical little boy, LOL.

After presents we busted open a big pinata. Well, I shouldn't say busted. This one had strings attached to the bottom. Each kid takes turn pulling on the strings. Most will just pull out, but only one actually opened it. The kids loved it. Finally it was time to sing Happy Birthday and eat cake! I made Mario Mushroom cupcakes! Most were red, but we had one "one-up" mushroom for Cameron:-)
"Uncle" Clin showed up dressed like Mario! What a treat for this birthday boy!
It was a great party. I am excited to see what this next year will bring for us. Cameron is learning and growing every day, and it is so fun to watch all of his changes!

What's Keeping Us Busy

The trouble with being a grown-up is that time goes by way too fast. When I was a kid, it seemed like days would last weeks. Not it is the other way around. How did that happen? We have been so bus lately, and it seems there is never enough time in the day to get things done. But here is a little update to let you you know what has been going on.

Cameron is doing VERY well with the potty training. He is almost completely day trained, and often stays dry through the night. He still has some trouble with poopoo, but we are getting there. I am most excited because I know we have purchased our last pack of diapers! Well, at least until the next baby comes along, LOL.

Cameron has taken a liking to the scriptures! The other night I was reading in the Book of Mormon, and he came in the room and wanted me to read to him, so I did. We read about Lehi's dream, which he LOVED! He won't stop talking about it now! He is always talking about how Lehi was lost, but found the tree with the fruit that make him happy. He talks about the big building with the bad people inside that laugh at the good people. And he talks about holding on tight to the iron rod. We are very excited that he wants to be involved with religion and scriptures. He loves going to church and learning about Jesus. I hope that this will be a continuing trend!

Recently Cameron and I made a trip up to Idaho to visit my sister, Jenny and her family. Jenny is due with a little girl (Jessica) in September, and I was able to do her maternity photos. They turned out great! I did her hair and make-up, and then we went out to our grandma's farm where Jenny boards her horses. We did photos all around the barn, adn I even had her get on a horse! It was a lot of fun:-) You can check out some of my favorite images on my photo blog.

We are continuing to work very hard. School will be back in session soon, which means I am in full working mode. Long hours, long drives, lots of kids! This season I am a head photographer, which I think will be really nice. I like to be in charge. We have lots of new people to wrok with, but we still have lots of really good people here from previous seasons. it is really nice to be bale to work with so many good people.

Meanwhile, I continue to work hard to get my photography career going. There have been plenty of setbacks, but also many moments where I see my hard work paying off. I have done several photoshoots this past month, and I have more planned. Nothing excites me more than being able to capture memories for other people:-)

Craig is working hard as well. He is still working two jobs, but he is currently looking for something that will pay a little more and be a little bit more of what he wants to do. He has sacrificed quite a bit, and I love him for it. But it will be nice to get my husband back:-)

Well, that about covers it for now. I think the next few months are going to be even busier for us, but heopfully I will be able to find the time to hop on here now and then.

Fun on the Fourth

Independence Day was a rousing success this year. On July 3rd we went to Eagle Mountain golf course to watch the firework show. It was great! We had really good seats, too, right in front of the pond. Cameron was really nervous about the fireworks at first. Well, okay, he was terrified. But after a few minutes he calmed down and started to enjoy them, and imitated the BOOM sound, followed by the SWIIIISSSHHH of the firecrackers. It was pretty funny listening to him. The fireworks themselves were great, possibly one of the best shows I have seen in a long time.

The next day, July 4th, we took Cameron to see Wall-E. Craig and I LOVED it. I would go so far as to say it is one of Pixar's best! Cameron liked some parts, but he grew restless sitting in the theater. He is used to being able to run around and act out all the parts while watching movies. In the evening, Melanie and Mathis invited us to spend time with them and their extended family. It was Mathis's grandpa's birthday:-) We had a fun b-b-que, with fresh homemade ice cream for dessert. Yum! Cameron and Aubrey had a lot of fun chasing each other around the year. Aubrey kept tackling Cameron, and there was nothing he could do about it because he couldn't run away because his pants kept falling down! Actually, he thought it was so funny that his pants kept falling down, and would run around the yard until they did. What a nut! LOL

Later we did some of the little fireworks. They lit off a lot of smoke bombs. The sulfur triggered a major migraine that lasted a couple of days. Bleh. Cameron LOVED the snaps, those tiny paper tissues filled with gun powder that you throw on the ground to make them snap. He wanted to do them again and again! He also enjoyed the sparklers, and pretended they were magic wands (like Harry Potter, of course). All was fun and games until he put his hand in the wrong place. His sparkler had just burned out, and he tried switching it to the other hand, but grabbed it a little too high. He was pretty badly burned, with two angry blisters on his hand. I wanted to cry, too whenever I looked at him. I could tell he was in a lot of pain. The sad part is that we were RIGHT THERE! Craig was hovering over him the whole time, but it happened so fast we couldn't even stop it.

Well, aside from that one incident, it was a very nice holiday. We really enjoyed spending time together as a family, and with other family members as well. We are so busy these days that time together is a rare and valued treat:-)

Guess who's wearing Big Boy Pants?

Cameron is!!!! After what seems like AGES, he is finally starting to show some real interest in the potty. I was starting to worry it might never happen! I thought for sure I would have the only kid in college still wearing diapers, LOL. All his younger cousins are either potty training or are already potty trained.

Cameron has good incentive to use the potty now. We promised that if he used the potty all the time we would get him a special RC Mario Kart toy. He's VERY excited about it:-) Every time he puts his peepee in the potty he gets to put a marble in a jar. When the jar is all full, he gets the toy!

So far he is doing very well. He has had a few accidents, but for the most part he has been very good. He loves wearing his Big Boy Underpants, especially the ones with Elmo. We are hoping to have him fully day trained within the month. Wish us luck!

Meuller Park Canyon

Our ward recently had a B-B-Que up at Mueller Park Canyon. We have never been there before, and we were surprised by how close it was to our house - maybe about a 10-15 minute drive. It was GORGEOUS there. I would love to do some photoshoots up there. Any takers?

I took tons of photos while we were there. Some of my favorites you can see on my photo blog. But here are some cute ones of Cameron and Craig.


This is sooo Cameron! He is really big into swords. This one is just cardboard wrapped in duct tape, but I know he will be using the real things someday. He's going to be a sword master:-)

Cameron and Trains

Yesterday I met with the Utah 2Ps Photography Group. We went to Ogden Union Station, a fantastic place for a photo shoot! I had to bring Cameron along because he is crazy about trains (duh, he's a boy!). He loved it! He's never been on a train, or even really up close to them, so this was a real treat. The train as really old and rusty, but the kids didn't seem to mind. Admittedly, I am a little afraid of trains myself (too much Fried Green Tomatoes!), but this one was pretty dang cool. Here are a few of my favorites. There are LOTS more on my photo blog.

A Visit to the Zoo

Cameron and I went to the zoo today with our Playgroup. The weather was PERFECT! Such a gorgeous day! Of course, everyone else wanted to be out enjoying the day as well, so it was really crowded, but not too bad. The biggest down side was when everyone wanted to see the same animal, but people kept hogging the prime spots and WOULDN'T MOVE, so that others couldn't see anything at all. C'mon people. Use your common sense. If you know the place is crowded, get in, take a couple pictures, and move out so that others can enjoy it, too. Sorry, pet peeve.

Cameron's favorite were the elephants, of course. He has liked elephants ever since we can remember. He also liked riding the train, even though it was way too short a ride, and went too fast to really see anything.

Here are some of my favorite shots of the day:-) If you want to see photos of the animals, head over to my Photo Blog.

On the train. I asked him to make a happy face:-)

Cameron really liked the playground. He lives for slides!
Cameron and his friend Ethan racing up the tower.
Scared face. Not very scary, but definitely very cute!
Wow! Look! A picture with me in it! On rare occasions I find myself in front of the camera. What a weird place to be! LOL