Butterfly Kisses Photography

Happy Mother's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Mon, 13 May 2013 02:02:00 +0000

Blessing all Mother's today!

Hopeful

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 02:58:00 +0000

It's been a long spring, that hasn't really been spring. We get a taste and then winter returns. It's been hot, cold, cool, warm and freezing...all in a span of weeks, sometimes days! Not to mention wet. I've never seen the ponds, rivers and lakes so high...not that I'm complaining about that, because last years drought was really bad, but geez, can we warm up and dry out for a bit? The flowers are just about done blooming and yet we are still getting down to freezing some nights. I guess Mother Nature is just testing us this year!

We usually take an after dinner drive down the back country roads. Tonight we went in search of the "right" yellow flowered landscape picture. I've got the picture in my head, now I've just got to find what I see in my head...before the yellow fields disappear! But tonight, we found something else. Peacocks! We heard them before we saw them.

They are really used by farmers as early warning signals!

We only saw 3, but it sounded like there were more.

I had not been down this road before, so I loved finding the old barns...although around here, there's an old barn on every country road!

The cows wanted a snack!

Faith

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 18:34:00 +0000

It's been a tough week for most people. From tragedy in Boston to disbelief in West, Texas. We (hopefully) turn to our faith as we struggle to understand why. As children, we are (hopefully) shielded from some of the wrong in the world, but it tends to hit home when something hurts you. We had an incident last Sunday. I had no clue. I went to bed and our 12 year old came and woke me and asked me to come to his room. Not having any clue, I went with him, where he promptly burst into tears, telling me he wanted to move and he did not like it here. Talk about coming out of left field! This sweet, tender hearted child was struggling with a problem and kept it in all day because he didn't want to ruin "our" day. My heart just broke for him.

He cries silent tears. He always has. He crashed his bike years ago and scraped his body from left eye to right hip on the pavement...HORRIBLE road rash...and not a tear. I cried for him and even told him it was ok to cry and yet no tears. So as big croc tears fell onto my leg, I ached to know what had hurt him so bad. After 30 minutes he explained how his friend had betrayed his trust. And he was so terrified that kids would find out and tease him. My poor baby. Friend betrayal is so tough for a 12 year old...or anyone for that matter. But after getting him calmed down and a guarantee that no one would know, he finally fell back asleep. Of course that meant that daddy and I were WIDE awake and ANGRY! (Parents were contacted and punishment received.)

Unfortunately after hearing back from 1 parent the next day, what he said turned out to be true...I was hoping just a cruel joke. He is over it and back to his sweet self. He is not ready to forgive, which I understand, but I know he will eventually. He is not one to hold a grudge. I just hate that it was a lesson he eventually had to learn...much sooner than I expected. As I posted on his facebook page, "Jesus knows you're strong." He will overcome and be stronger for it.

Life lessons

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 12:01:00 +0000

The dishes may not be done and the beds not made, but someday, none of that will matter. If I've learned anything in the past few weeks, it's to appreciate the time you're given, because it truly is a gift. Don't take it for granted. Get out and enjoy life and your loved ones.

Mysterious ways

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 18:16:00 +0000

I learned a lot at my weekend away...the one I didn't want to go on. And I discovered that I probably would not have had the same experience had I been excited to go. So there was a plan...a plan I did not know about, because God works in mysterious ways. I am now equipped to be a better wife, mother and Christian. I will treasure the time spent with my table ladies and remember that we all put our big girl panties on and supported each other those 3 days. I am thankful that God hit the reset button for us...when we didn't even know we needed it. We will be better parents and a better couple for it.

DeColores

Lessons in Life

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:01:00 +0000

It was supposed to be a weekend to get things done. I was leaving on a trip on Tuesday. He was going to a Men's church weekend, which he didn't want to go on, but was going because I wanted to go. I was going to get my errands done, get church work done, etc, etc, etc. And.then.he.left.

It's not like we've not been apart before. We have. A lot. I take the kids and go away for the weekend often. But this was different. He had left...without a kiss, without a hug, without an I love you. He.was.just.gone. Never before have I experienced ANYTHING like this before. No contact for 4 days. My head knew he was coming back, but my heart said "he's gone". And this is what it feels like.

Honestly, it was one of the hardest weekends I've ever spent. It wasn't supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be no big deal. Apparently, God had other plans. It was MY lesson for the weekend. Take the time. Appreciate each other, for it can all be gone in a split second. It was eye opening.

He came home Sunday evening thinking no one probably even missed him. And the first thing out of punk #2's mouth was "mommy's been crying all weekend". Thanks kid. But honestly, it's probably the best thing that's happened to us. We spend a lot of time together. Especially the last 7+ years of being self-employed. But this was/is different. He was upset that I had been so upset all weekend. (Which I knew he would be, but you can't tell the heart anything!:) He's totally changed, and yet, totally the same guy.

The hardest thing I had to do was get on that bus a day after he came home. I wanted more time. But that's just not how the schedule works. (And remember, it was supposed to be no big deal...boy was it a big deal!) But now that we're home, the kids are away for spring break and we can just be. We still have to work and go our separate ways for a few hours, but we come home and just be. My weekend getaway starts Thursday and I hope/pray for peace that I can get through the no contact issue I seem to have. I know I can do it, but does my heart? I don't know how/why we got so lucky so many years ago, but I'll always Thank God for giving me him!

Gosh will I always treasure this picture!

Grateful

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 13:11:00 +0000

It's been a long time since I've actually worked a "full" week...and to be honest, I only worked a full day on Tuesday and Thursday. But for someone that hasn't worked 8 hours (or so) in almost 10 years...oh and add in the time change...it pretty much kicked me in the rear! But...I am working at 2 places that do so much good, that I was able to suck it up and be grateful that I can do what I am doing.

Proof that there IS beauty in plain ol' weeds! :)

Black and white

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 12:39:00 +0000

I love a good black and white. I like to study them and see if I can duplicate the settings when I see a good one. (It never comes out the same though...) But that's because every picture is different. Different lighting, different settings, etc. And I prefer to do a black and white on a single subject vs 2 of them. It's more dramatic when it's just a single subject. But I was playing around and thought I'd share a few examples.

This is my favorite. I think because of the lightness.

A little darker and a little different color.

This one is definitely not my favorite...but...there's something about it that I like. It seems to have a 40-50's type style. Again, if it was just a picture of Maison, sorta smiling, it would be more dramatic. Sometimes it's tough to decide.

Boring

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 04:19:00 +0000

Honestly, I'm tired of boring, winter pictures...and kids that need haircuts! And kids that don't smile on command...or do dishes...or clean their rooms...wait, what was I talking about? Oh yeah, boring winter pictures. Come on spring, grace us with your presence!

Play time

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 22:38:00 +0000

I am so ready for winter to be over...as I'm sure many are! And I really need to figure out why some browsers are showing a black background on this site and some are not...I guess I need to add it to my list of "things to do"! Along with updating more often, taking more pictures, etc. On top of that, I've just taken my 5th (I think) part-time job!

A few weeks ago, I took the dog to the park. We had had a taste spring and the weather was glorious. And I knew it would be wet down there and since it was so warm, I figured she'd enjoy getting muddy and I could still hose her off and get her dry before it cooled off again. I was not wrong!

I was testing my manual settings to make sure I could "freeze" the mud/water drops.

What?

Shake, shake, shake your booty!

"What do you mean you don't want to get muddy?!"

"Seriously?!"

She's so expressive...and happy! "Did someone say mud?!

Hope

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Last week was a bad week...sorta. We lost 2 accounts. 1 big one and one smaller one. I was shocked by the 1st one because last month everything was great. But it turns out there's a lot of internal issues and it was beyond our control...and I know it was not our fault. We weren't happy about it, but I'm not going to cry about it, because I know something better is around the corner. The second account I was glad to see go. We've tried to help them, offering them a discount because everyone is struggling and even offering to do service for free. All it would have taken was a phone call. It made no difference that we just reduced our pricing twice in the last 8 months or that we've done the service for free for almost 2 years...apparently the "new" trustee's know better. We're done with getting walked on. You get what you pay for and if you can't afford it, you don't need it. It would have been nice to know they were taking bids though, especially after reducing our prices on our own 6 months ago. There's a reason, I know it. All in God's time.

I happened to be in town last week and noticed these blooming. It gave me hope that spring's right around the corner!

Witnessing

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:24:00 +0000

I am Blessed. Blessed with 2 kids that have love and compassion in their hearts. And they both continue to amaze me. Sunday we were in church. I had to operate the video screen because the eldest was away. As I was heading back, I took our offering out of my pocket and was trying to hand it to Hunter. He, for some reason, was pulling all his money out of his pocket. (I just saw a bunch of ones.) Not thinking anything of it, I went to the back and sat down. When the ushers were called forward, Hunter went up to help. As they were looking for 1 additional usher, Hunter pulled all his Valentine's money ($9) from his grandma out of his pocket and tossed it in the plate. Afterwards, when he was walking back, he reached into his other pocket and found 2 more quarters and put them in there also. We were stunned.

So after church, the 2 of us were heading out of town and I asked him why he put all his money in there, because it would have been ok to just put a few dollars in there. I was not prepared for the answer. He said, "The church needs it more." How many kids put ALL THEIR MONEY in the church offering plate?! Because the church needs it more? Thank you God for these 2 gems. They may test my patience from time to time, but they melt my heart all the time!

As we were heading out of town, we noticed the clouds and how cool they looked, so I found a spot to pull over for a picture. He said they looked "animated". Animated?! I think they looked like angel clouds. The picture does not do it justice, but the edges were rolled and they reminded me of heaven and the "picture" I have in my head of Angels standing on the clouds looking down at us. I just thanked God for all my blessings.

Little girls

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 01:01:00 +0000

I was able to spend a few hours with this one last week. It sure made my crappy week much better! She's been sick and yet you would never know it!

She's definitely a pistol and always on the go!

My favorite.

Snowy day, pt 3

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 12:00:00 +0000

It took a while, but I finally got a few good birdy pictures...and a dog. :)

This snow day was the next day and totally unexpected. It showed almost 2 inches in about 45 minutes. It was literally raining snow!

She just wanted someone to play with her! There were no takers. :)

The snow made the cardinals pop!

It was gone by mid morning and I'm hoping for the year!

Snowy day, pt 2

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 12:00:00 +0000

I love this barn. I've photographed it in the sunshine, rain, fog and now snow. I love it in all seasons!

More double sunflare.

Garrison creek... kids favorite fishing hole!

These barns just touch my heart.

Bugscuffle Road...no joke. :) 1 lane bridge over the creek. I had to stop quick, get out...it was icy...go to the back of the car to take the picture, and then navigate back to the car before the car behind me caught up. Hence the reason I wasn't in the center of the bridge.

I really enjoyed my morning with the punk. I learn a lot from him! :)

Snowy Day, pt 1

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 02:26:00 +0000

A few weeks ago we had a snow day. It wasn't much (and definitely not enough to sled on), but it was enough to close schools with fears of icy roads. I decided to take a early morning ride and as I got about a mile down the road, I received a text from punk #2 as to where I was going and could he come. I told him what I was doing and he said he wanted to go take pictures with me...well, how could I say no to that?! So we spent 2 hours riding around listening to Mike Rayson on the radio...it was a good God day! :)

It was still quite early!

Ditch jumping and snowy feet for this picture.

Photo buddy!

I love these guys. Unfortunately we forgot snacks for them, so they were not happy...but they sure are cute!

I love some good sunflare!

I love this old house. It looks run down (and it is), but it's still lived in! Amazing! (Notice the grand kids bike on the front porch!)

Resolutions

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 13:14:00 +0000

I don't make resolutions. Period. I used to, but then decided it was just too much pressure and I would become disappointed with myself when I broke them...because you know it happened. Every.single.year. I finally decided to take the pressure off and "make goals" each year. Some years I meet them and some years I don't. But I can continue to work on them, even if I haven't finished them.

Last year my goal was to organize my pictures, because I have A LOT of them. I haven't finished working on it, but I keep plugging away and I will eventually finish. With no pressure. So this year my goal is to continue to keep working away and maybe, just maybe, it'll happen.

I did make 1 resolution this year that I am going to work hard at keeping. And that is to get in more pictures. I'm not comfortable doing it. I like being the one in control. (Go figure :) But in organizing my pictures, I have noticed that my kids won't have many with me in them. Kinda like how I say I don't have many pictures of my parents. My youngest gave me a beautiful picture frame for Christmas and said he wanted a picture of the 2 of us in it. So he started bugging me for the picture. (Leave it to a 12 year old to make sure you keep your promises!) I still "set up" the shot...right lighting, right angle, etc...He didn't care. Turns out, these are some of my favorites!

Testing the light...lovely

Love!

Love more! :)

Get in pictures with your kids! They love you for who you are, not for what you think you look like! You won't regret it years from now when you're looking back.

Countryside

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:39:00 +0000

We took a drive one day to get a few snowy landscape pictures. Boy, I DO NOT miss all this snow! I'll take our 1 or 2 "days" of snow anyway!

Locke 4...great fishing spot and a nice walk along the canal (about 2 miles) to the town park.

I caught this as we drove by, so we had to turn around for a picture. (That happens a lot when we're driving around.) :)

Our typical drive down to Amish country for cheese and spices! Apparently it's a popular store with the "locals" too! :)

Memories

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 14:24:00 +0000

We visited my husbands hometown over the holidays. I spent 3 of my high school years there and it was nice to visit and get some winter pictures...and KNOW we were leaving the snow/cold a few days later.

Sleeping little town

Many nights spent hanging out at the library. I wonder if my kids will ever know what a "card catalog" is?! This building has probably tripled in size in the last 20+ years!

I will always be grateful for what I found in this church. It's not "us" anymore, but it started our journey and I will be grateful for where we have landed.

Sunshine

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 14:25:00 +0000

After 10+ days of rain, the sun finally came out! I made good use of a few minutes and bribed a punk to fulfill my need to snap a picture!

It was worth it! :)

Sweetness

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:39:00 +0000

I didn't take a lot of pictures over the holidays, but I did snap a sweet picture of my niece and my youngest looking at a book. Great-grandma always sent my boys books for Christmas. I really loved that she would do that, especially since the kids get so many toys. So in honor of grandma, I gave my niece books for Christmas. I hope she comes to love books as much as we all do.

Spring?

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 23:56:00 +0000

I was beginning to think winter had abruptly ended. It's been rainy, humid and 70+ degrees...IN JANUARY! The windows have been open and the house aired out...nighttime walks and peepers chirping in the darkness. I will miss it as the cold weather returns...but know spring is a few short weeks away. Thank you God for our little taste of spring.

Christmas memorial

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 02:52:00 +0000

Life has been crazy the last 2+ weeks. We all had to stop though and take pause when the Connecticut shootings happened. We all hugged our children and cried many tears. We pray for the families as they struggle to get through this Christmas season and we paid tribute to the 26 following our Christmas Eve Candlelight service.

The clouds cleared and the moon shone bright.

We lit and released 28 balloons. 26 for Connecticut, 1 for 2 local missing children and 1 for children of violent crimes. It was a fitting tribute to our service.

Each name was read and the church bell rung as each balloon lifted off.

It was an amazing sight as they all floated away.

Wisdom

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Sun, 09 Dec 2012 04:08:00 +0000

Every day I thank God for these beautiful children. They continue to amaze me, shock me and usually make me laugh. They're not afraid to volunteer when something needs to be done...even if it means getting up at 4:00 a.m., after a late night band competition, to help cook breakfast at the church. They make me proud.

This one asked me if I had made my New Year's resolution yet? What?! Seriously? I'm still trying to complete THIS YEARS resolution! Geez! Plus I still have another 3 1/2 weeks! Curious now, I asked him if he had one. Of course he said yes. (This ought to be good.) He says "I'm going to work and earn $5 each month and donate it." WHAT?! Oh my, sometimes they do render me speechless! Is he really only 12?!

Differences

noreply@blogger.com (Butterfly Kisses Photography) — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 13:10:00 +0000

I posted this photo recently...it's pretty, but maybe there's something missing...

And then I had a conversation with a fellow church member with "ideas". He calls me "cheesehead", which makes me laugh. I pray for him because he's a Steeler's fan. ;) All that matters "to me" is the score of Super Bowl XLV! Anyway, after our bantering, we get down to chatting about "how" to mass market certain photos. We're working on a project and we will see what happens. But taking that picture, I added something...

Quite a difference. We'll see what comes of it. I am going to matte/frame it either way. :)