Happy Birthday To My Sons

Today was an absolutely gorgeous day! So we reveled in the loveliness and were out and about! It was an even lovlier day because my dear sweet niece was here with my mother in law visiting for the weekend.  It's always great to see them!

This weekend my sons Marshall, and Keegan turned 4 years old.  Hard to believe that the boys are now 4, it seems like just yesterday they were born.  There has been so much they have gone through, that our family has gone through in the past 4 years. Keegan has fought cancer (Neuroblastoma) since he was just 3 months old.  Thankfully, he is now doing very well and goes for his cancer scans every 6 months now.  That is a huge accomplishment.  Marshall hasn't had a seizure, or seizure meds for a year now which is also really amazing. I am very proud of my young boys. They are doing very well in preschool and are quite the imaginative and amazing little big guys!

Marshall and Keegan...
THEN and NOW!

Oh how time has flown, how much
the boys and I have grown.  I was a mere 24
and a half years old when they were born.
Here Marshall throws an arm around his "little"
brother (by two whole minutes).  So proud of
these adorable and amazing boys!!

Marshall and Keegan at 2 weeks old.  So tiny.  So cute. 
So new.  So innocent and sweet. Hard to believe that they
are now 4, and wild and amazing spectacular normal
little boys that sometimes make me want to
pull out my hair for completely new reasons (not just
because they won't sleep through the night or I am
trying to figure out how to juggle twin new borns,
you know like in the "old days" back when they were
babies!)

My niece is growing up so much too! She is now 9 months old and is just about ready to take off walking with no help. Another 3 months and we'll be celebrating her first birthday! Holy wow, that came quick! She's quite the charachter though that's for sure. 

There is 5 years between my daughter Kamilah and my niece Faith.  Watching those two interact is quite hilarious and makes me glad that I am done having children.  Kams would not handle having a much younger brother or sister (and neither would my sons)!

Two little Princesses! My niece Faith who is 9 months old. 
And my very own little Princess Kamilah
who is 5 and a half years old.

The boys had an amazing 4th birthday (well I think it was amazing anyway, whether anyone else does doesn't matter).  The boys wanted a Captain America/Spiderman theme, soooo that's what we did.  I made their cakes, and for the first time in my life made home made fondant, infact it's the first time I have EVER worked with fondant.  I don't think they turned out too awful for it being my first time ever using the stuff.  The boys were happy with them so that is all that matters. I loooove making cakes, it's very calming to decorate a cake (and to edit photos). 

Shirts that I made for the boys to wear for their birthday party!
Total cost?  Two whopping dollars.  Found the shirts
at the Dollar Tree for a $1 a piece (Duh..redundant..)
and I already had the felt at home. 

Keegan's Spiderman cake! Keegan's smiles was so huge, he
loved his "spidey" cake.  This was the first one I put the
fondant on, sooo I wish I had done a few things
a little differently, like covering the card board with
fondant too...but....eh you live you learn.  It still came out ok.

Marshall's Captain America themed cake, he was THRILLED
to see his cake.  The smile on his face was WONDERFUL!

Keegan (AKA Spiderman) Kamilah (AKA Spider Girl) and Marshall
AKA (Captain America) all ready for the birthday party
fit for SUPER HEROES!

It looks like Keegan is praying that Marshall won't
strangle him.  This is what happens when I ask
the boys to stand together for a picture.  HA!

This cool photo was snapped while Marshall was
participating in a party game. He had just thrown
his pom pom ball at the "spider web" target.

My mother in law and niece came for the weekend since the boys had their party on Saturday.  So today since the weather was so nice we went out for lunch (an early Mother's Day celebration since my Mother in Law will be out of town and I'll be working on Mother's Day so we just went out early).  We took the boys to the store to spend some of their birthday money.  Spoiled little boys!! They got lots of OUTSIDE toys to play with (now we have to wait for our yard to get dry enough, and the weather to STAY warm enough to be able to PLAY outside!) We then took the kids to the park to play and to snap a few photos when they were least expecting it.  Faith was just not feeling the photo groove today.

Keegan had fun sitting on this stone wall over looking
the lake.  He really wasn't even aware Mommy was taking his
picture.  He was too busy watching an older gentleman
who was fishing with his young grandaughters at the lakes
edge.  Keegan informed me that he would like to go
fishing very soon.

Keegan intently staring at the gentleman fishing.  He thought
that fishing was absolutely fascinating.

Keegan informing me "That old man caught a fish Mommy"
(WHY my children insist upon pointing out someones age,
I am not sure! It is certainly not something
that I encourage them to do!)

My sweet little girl, can't believe she'll be 6 in September!

Kams kept seeing how much closer she could get to
the edge of the lake while  I kept reminding her how
muddy it was and how easily she could fall in!

This is a toy motorcycle that Keegan got for his birthday
from his other Grandma.  It's his favorite toy now. 
He carried that motorcycle with him everywhere
today, and I managed to snap this cool pic of it.

A few weeks ago we had so much rain that our yard was completely flooded.  I would say we had a good 6" or so of water in our yard.  We live near a small creek and it definetely flash flooded.  That's the first time that has happened since we lived here.  All of the kids outside toys floated off and we still are hunting down a few of them!

Have still been visiting the dogs out at the shelter, something I will continue to do! I love going out there and helping the dogs as much as I can. Mainly I just photograph them and post them to the shelter facebook page I run as a volunteer effort for the shelter. 

 

Recently I was contacted by a concerned citizen about a 12 year old blind poodle that was being posted on a local email group called FreeCycle. The dog was "free" to a good home. Poor baby was scheduled to be euthenized if no one helped her. I couldn't let her die. So I emailed the gentleman, and well, Susie Q is sitting safe in a foster home until she is either adopted by someone who can handle her special need (blindness) or she'll hang out at the foster home. I fostered her for a few hours and photographed her before she moved on with her transport. She was a DOLL! For being blind and 12 years old she has a LOT of life left in her!! She could still hear VERY well, and has a sniffer that works very well. So glad that I was able to help this sweet girl in atleast a small way! She has since been groomed and looks much more comfortable than she did before she was groomed, she's doing very well!

Also found out tonight that a dog that was adopted from the local shelter back in August will be in a local college musical! How gosh darn cool is that? Our local shelter helped a pup have a chance at an acting career. Wishing you the best Lilly and I hope your performance is awesome! Don't forget to send us a PAWTOGRAPH!

This week is a brilliant week to get out and get some photos in before the weather gets cold again, I mean after all this Missouri weather is practically giving me whip lash! Apparently some forecasts for our area are calling for more snow (ridiculous)!!

Happy sun and fun filled days, and don't forget to always bring that camera along!

Mahala

A St. Bernard Moment

Recently I had the oppurtunity to meet and photograph a gorgeous senior St. Bernard, named Dopey.  He was such a handsome guy, and very well behaved. 

He absolutely loved Beggin' Strips, and if you gave him some of those bacon flavored treats he was your best friend, you were "in" you are awesome.  I love this dog, we share a love of bacon, how can you not love that?

So Dopey, (who is anything BUT Dopey) hammed it up for me during his little photo shoot.  For being 10 and a half years old, he showed us just how much "pup" he still has in him. Never judge a dog by his age!

Thanks Dopey for being a fun dog to photograph! It isn't every day you get to photograph a St. Bernard. Normally, I would try to get more fun action shots, but Dopey has kind of a special situation going on right now.  Due to medical situations in his family that are beyond anyones control, sweet Dopey is looking for a Fur Ever home to call his own for the remainder of his years. 

Look how well he sits?  (He's intently watching a "Beggin' Strip"

Yep, I got to witness a "Bethoven" moment, with
the big St Bernard slobber head shake.  I think
that movie MAY have over exagerated JUST
a little. 

Look at that beautiful boy!

Big beautiful face!

 



Back To The Shelter

Every Friday I get the oppurtunity to head out to the local animal shelter and photograph the dogs that are there looking for Fur Ever homes.  Some of these dogs are reunited with their families (I love it when that happens!)  Some are sent to the HOUNDS Training Program, which has saved the lives of several dogs.  Very thankful for that program.  Several dogs are sent to rescue groups, which we are FUR EVER  grateful for! They really help keep our shelter numbers down or dogs would be dying.  Also, many dogs are adopted! We love our adopters and our fosters!

It's not always easy getting shelter dogs pictures taken.  They don't want to sit pretty, they want to RUN and PLAY, which those are great shots to get.  We want to see them running and playing and having a fantastic time.  People want to see happy playful dogs.  However, those aren't exactly the type of photos the rescue groups are looking for, though it is good to send some of those too.  They need photos that show the side of the dog, photos that show how big the dog is, photos that show the face of the dog, and any unusual markings a dog may have, or any injuries or abuse a dog has, while still making the dog look good.  Not always easy! I've showed in a previous post the conditions I get to photography in, and the before/after of a shelter photo. 

I love taking head shots of the dogs, generally when photographing a shelter dog I try to get multiple shots of the dog, some times that happens, sometimes it doesn't.  I only have 2 hours to get photos of the dogs, once a week.  Sometimes, there are a lot of dogs! It also can get confusing because volunteers are walking the dogs, and they will put a dog up before I've photographed (that generally happens while I'm photographing another dog)  So it's important to always walk through the shelter and make sure I have everyone! Below are some heads shots of dogs I have taken, trying to show their eyes, and facial espressions or unique markings. 



















I put the head shot in a collage with a body shot so rescue groups and potential adopters can see how big the dog is, and see it from a side view, which is important. 









I still have a LOT to learn about photographing shelter dogs, but believe me it's come a VERY long way! Photography is always a learning experience.  You never TRULY get things perfect, you are always learning new ways to do things.

Mahala

Meet Dopey, the St. Bernard

Over the weekend I had the extreme privledge of meeting a very handsome senior St. Bernard, named Dopey.  Yes, when I meet and photograph a dog, I call it a privledge.  Why? Because meeting a dog, and the dog deciding you are it's friend, IS a privledge.  I get to do this  quite often! Volunteering at the animal shelter I get to meet so many amazing dogs, and help them find homes through my photography, and I LOVE it. 

My passion is pet photography.  However, in the area where we live....people haven't quite caught on to that idea.  We're still working on getting people to be even more responsible pet owners and spay and neuter their pets, and get them vaccinated, and micro chipping them, and getting them off the leash and out of the pen all day and into the home.  Don't get me wrong, there are a LOT of amazing pet owners where I live, a LOT, but for every good pet owner....there are those that could be doing better.  I think that happens everywhere though!

The awesome St. Bernard I met this weekend, through reasons completely NOT his fault, or that of his family, is looking for a new home.  There is a big illness in the family, and after 10 and a half years...Dopey is in search of a new home.  Do not think that this family has just decided this willy nilly, no.  It literally breaks their hearts to be doing this.  They are not ditching him at the shelter.  They are not just giving him away to anyone.  They are going about this cautiously so as to assure their beloved Dopey gets a good Fur Ever home to live the remainder of his years.

Though his name is Dopey, don't let it fool you, he is far from Dopey! He is one smart and handsome guy!

He's developing a bit of arthritis now as the years have gone by.  Mornings make him a bit stuff (hey after 28 years of my own life I can totally understand that! I wake up a bit stuff most mornings myself!)

He still has plenty of life in him, and plenty of love.  While photographing him this weekend he showed me how playful he is! Give this guy a Beggin' Strip and you got a puppy on your hands again!

Before I left I was given a big ol' sloppy St. Bernard kiss from my chin to my forehead.  Dogs are the best kissers you know ;)  Hahaha! I just gave Dopey a big ol' hug around the neck and thanked him for being such a great dog to photograph. I even snapped a picture of the infamous "St. Bernard head shake"  (Remember the movie Beethoven?  Oh yes, you know what I'm talking about!!)









Mahala

Happy Birthday Boys

This time 4 years ago I was very pregnant with my two wonderful little boys, Marshall and Keegan.  At that time I didn't know what our future was going to be, I had no idea we would have a child diagnosed with Neuroblastoma (A type of Childhood Cancer) Keegan was just 3 months old at diagnosis. I didn't know Marshall would be diagnosed with a complex partial seizure disorder.  All I knew, was that I was about to have 2 beautiful baby boys in my arms and I couldn't wait!

They've come such a long way in 4 years.  Keegan has been kicking Neuroblastoma's butt all OVER the place and I couldn't be more proud of him.  He is your typical normal 4 year old boy now! He still goes for scans on a regular basis though, however as of March he no longer has to go for scans every 3 months, he now gets to go every 6 months which is absolutley wonderful.  The things this boy has been through since he was 2 months old, is incredible.  He never complains.  He goes about his busy boy business, and always has!

Marshall has been doing so good with his seizures, he hasn't had a seizure in over a year now, and he hasn't been on his seizure meds for over a year either! We're very proud of him! He's doing so well, and is so funny and goofy.  I couldn't ask for better sons! Marshall approaches life with the same love and extreme enthusiasm as his twin brother. They may be twins, but they are certainly NOT the same little boy.  They are very different, and very individual children and I love the sweet boys they are growing up to be. 

Below is a few photos from their photo shoot! They were a load of energy and fun for their birthday photos! My little super heroes!! My awesome Captain America, Marshall, and my awesome Spiderman Keegan!  Happy 4th birthday boys!