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All clear! And in other news…
John got the go-ahead from his surgeon today and he’s going back to work tommorrow. Yippppeeeeee! I think we are both very, very happy about that. Very. He’s also allowed to drive again. The doctor took out the staples today and the incision is healing up nicely (it looks bad still, but healing well). Still only very short days at work, no trials, no bending, lifting, or twisting. But it’s progress. Here’s how it’s looking today without staples (warning: still way gross- but very colorful!)
John had a very big day today- going out for the whole morning. A haircut, a haircut for me, a visit to the doctor, a trip to the pharmacy (all by himself!) for some Darvocet. Vicodin, Percoset, Darvocet…take your pick. We got em all. I think he’s all kinds of worn out. I spent part of the night scrubbing off all the adhesive residue on his back from the bandages. yeah, that was fun.
So with John heading to work for a while in the morning, Jack, Patrick & Timmy going to school I will have the whole house to myself for the first time in over a week. I am going to just sit and listen to the quiet. For 15 minutes anyway. Then there is lots of stuff to do, as always. But I can’t wait. Sad, that I’m so excited about that, huh?
Did you hear about Patrick Swayze? He has pancreatic cancer. I don’t know why, but this news is making me very sad. I guess cause I grew up with his movies and I always liked him. Ya know…"no one puts baby in the corner". I hope he makes it.
I think I need to mention that I don’t really care for the age of 8. The mouths on them sometimes are just unbeliveable. And not in a good way. In the way you just want to bang their heads together. You know what I’m talking about. And I think they must be bi-polar. All lovey and happy and good and then the next second…eyerolling, attitude filled, know everything, fresh mouthed, tvinduceddeafness, scutches! I think they need to be outside. Maybe permanently.
Looks like Timmy (almost) officially has low muscle tone. He failed his OT evaluation miserably and now has a PT evaluation next weekend. I still don’t know exactly how he did on the speech part (the therapist said he was borderline). It’s gonna be a while until we have definite results and move on to the CPSE meeting. But he is still as super cute and lovey and smart as always! My oldest friend Ivy came by for dinner tonight (thanks, I) and asked if she could keep him. Sorry, but him I can’t do without. What other 3 year old says "i love you sooooo much mommy" out of nowhere? I could just sqeeeeeeze him til he pops! We stopped by my favorite staircase/alleyway while running to the deli yesterday afternoon. He wasn’t in a good mood at all until I started calling him "timmyboo cranky pants". Then it was funny. For a while anyway.
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little bundle of goodness (aka “the gup baby”)
Oh my god! Not only does this little family have the BEST story ever, but the baby is just scrumptious! Had the best time shooting them this morning. I have about a thousand favorite pictures from this session, so just be forewarned…there are lots below.
Ok, for the short version of the BEST story (being told with permission)…I met the mom in my scrapbook class where a few of the moms in the class were expecting. Everyone was discussing when they were due. When C said she was due in February, I said something like "wow, you could never even tell you are pregnant". That’s cause she wasn’t. Well, not directly. They had a lot of trouble holding on to a pregnancy after many tries, so they decided to find a surrogate. The baby is all theirs, the surrogate was their "oven" for 9 months and did a fabulous job cooking up this little muffin. Here comes one of my favorite parts…when the two families (the parents and the surrogate) were looking at eachother’s profiles and trying to see if it would be a match, do you know what the one standout feature was? They were both scrapbookers! And that kinda sealed the deal. So 9+ months later, the Gup family has a wonderful little baby girl thanks in no small part to their wonderful surrogate. They were even able to make it in time for the birth in a neighboring state and have been with their baby since the moment she was born. How fabulous is that??!! Best story, right?! I don’t think I have ever seen two happier parents. Ever. All the work and expense (both monetarily and emotionally) they put into this baby has paid off a zillion fold. They are just on cloud 9. It was so wonderful to see and I hope I did that love some justice!
Caught a little baby grin.
This is right around the time daddy got peed on. Sorry, J. But on the up side, he is a doctor and has seen a LOT worse!
The original baby. Sophie is the sweetest dog ever. So, so well behaved. And a love.
When awake, she LOATHED the chair. I mean this poor girl was screaming her little head off. She was pissed!! But sleeping, it was all good.
The sign just about sums her story up.
Ok, so she hated the squishy warm chair, but loved the cold, hard platter. Huh.
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“the coo family”
Had a really fun, spirited shoot on Sunday for the "coo" family. The mom works with my best friend and I went to high school with the dad. I know he was not too pleased with having to do the shoot, but really, none of the husbands are. The list of husbands that hate me is so long now that there is a waiting list to get on the list! Nah, really he didn’t hate me (just my camera) and was a good sport for the whole thing. But I think he left skid marks running down to the basement to play the Wii when he was done.
The kids were great. So funny how the son looks like the mom and the daughter like the dad. The boy did everything I asked of him and I think he had some fun (especially the jumping parts). I hope so cause I’m shooting his communion next month! And the little girl- what a pip! She did great and I just worked around her. There was really no sitting with her-she had her own agenda and most of it contained food- so there are snacks in a few of the pictures! Loved the dress up shots too- so fun and girly.
Here are a few of my favorites. Especially love the raspberry from the little girl with the spit literally flying!
And the boy doing his own flying. Some good height there- hope he plays basketball! 
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handsome men & nervous breakdowns
Took the boys and the camera out today for a little practice. Playing with some new settings on the camera, as well as some new stuff in photoshop. And there wasn’t even any complaining! That never happens. I think they took some pity on me cause it hasn’t been pretty around here and they know I am a mommy on the edge of a breakdown!
Tried some shots with some texture again. What do you think? It’s supposed to look kinda old fashioned. Not sure if it’s working though.
They do remind me of that show "Carnivale". I miss that show- I really loved it. And I’m still waiting for some closure since they left off right in the middle of the thing. 
The boys are getting so big. It’s really crazy how fast it’s happening. Soccer season starts soon along with baseball. We’re gonna be very busy. Jack has decided to drop the cello- he’s honestly not enjoying it at all. We discussed it and while I don’t want him to be a quitter, it’s just not the right match for him. So no more cello (which is really okay with me cause lugging that thing is just a big ol pain in the ass since I end up carrying it- along with Timmy- most days on the way home from school). Other than that, they are doing fantastic. Math State testing this week so lots of pressure, but they have been getting in the 90’s on their math tests, so they should be okay.I just have to make sure to get my butt out of bed early for the next few days.
The patient is behaving himself (for the most part) and I think he is really done with the whole recovery thing. God knows I am. I have discovered a newfound respect for all the single mommies out there. Doing everything is hard hard work. I’m exhausted. Now if he would just STOP ASKING if he’s being a good patient every 15 minutes… Maybe he needs a sticker chart. At least I no longer have to be nurse nancy as the bandages are off now. Follow up visit with the doctor on Wednesday– hopefully he will get clearance to go back to work. Please.
A thank you to everyone who has called, come by, dropped off gifts, gift cards, food, etc. You guys all rock!. My friend Jen had perfect timing earlier this week and got me a gift certificate to my favorite sushi place (that was for giving her the crib and firehouse for her kids). Yum. If I could have sushi every night, I think I really would.
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something pretty…
Ok, so after the ugly posts with staples and bruises and hospitals, I have something oh so pretty to share today (yeah, I can hear you saying "thank god, no more gore"). Here are some pictures of the ever beautiful Miss G. I had previously shot her Christening, but mom wanted another quick session for some possible thank you cards and some portraits for framing. Hope I got those. She is a super photogenic baby (even with some spit bubbles- so cute!) and was so good. By the end I think we had exhausted her, as her little eyes were just about rolling back in her head she was soooo tired. Just loved the gown and the bonnet. Classic beauty. 
