Run for Bun

One of our longtime family friends wife was killed in a cycling accident last fall.  To call it tragic doesn't even do it justice.  It was, and still is, life altering for many, many people.  It put a lot of things in perspective for me and literally changed the way I try to live my life each day.  And the way I try to treat other people.  I still think about Bunny and her husband Luke and the 2 little girls she left behind.  Often.  And wonder how he is.  And how he has the courage to keep on living each day.  It's a kind of courage I hope I never ever have to see if I possess.  I'm fine not knowing if I have it.  Because life without Mike......well, to me, that's not life at all.  That's hell.

Bunny's family and friends organized a 5K benefit walk/run in her behalf.  And are using the money to make a memorial or a trail to honor her.  It was an event we wouldn't miss.  So we packed up the kids, and the strollers, and the blankets, and the snacks.  And we walked, very slowly, a 5K.  And Luke was there.  With a brave face and a shattered life.  And I thought several prayers for him that day.  One of which was the continued courage to keep getting out of bed each day after the initial shock and numbness wore off and everyone else went on living their lives.  

It's frustrating that it sometimes takes events like these to shake us to the core and make us realize how fragile life is and how blessed we truly are.  

God bless Luke, his girls, and the rocky roads they have ahead.

Carseats.

We don't have many photos of Carter in his carseat.  A.) because I'm driving and taking pictures is discouraged  B.) because he's usually blue in the face from crying by the time we get anywhere that the only thing on our mind is to get him out.  Get him out.  Get him out.  And C.) he never ever ever ever ever stayed asleep in his car seat.  Not even when he was brand new.  The second the car stopped, he woke up.  And after the 2 week "grace period" of sleeping after a baby is born, he rarely, if ever fell asleep in the car anyway.  Maddening.

It's incredible how much "pain" one little seat can cause.  The amount of crying/screaming/hysteria that has resulted from being strapped down and facing backwards is alarming.  This was one of the last times he rode in the infant carseat.  Despite laws and safety concerns, I turned Carter around at 10 1/2 months because I just couldn't take it anymore.  I figured it was more of a hazard for me to drive with the anxiety induced from the screaming.  So we turned him around.  And then I could hand him dum dums and he could watch Baby Einstein over, and over, and over.  It revolutionized our "in the car" lives.  Literally.  I no longer get gut aches from the mere thought of even a 5 minute drive in the car.  Now we can go at least 30 min.  :)

I was putting him in the seat, and the light was beautiful, and the mood was right.  So pictures we took.

Entertained.

Mya is the best self-entertained 4 year old I've ever seen.  She doesn't need anyone.  She can just play and play and play all by herself.  She's creative.  She's inventive.  She talks to herself.  And she talks to her imaginary friend, Calicity.  Who is from Texas by the way.  Thankfully Calicity has never encouraged (or taken the fall for) being naughty.  She's just there.  And Mya has lots and lots of stories about her that are quite convincing.  

My helper.

I adore this phase of a baby's life.  Pure heaven.  Everything is new.  Everything is exciting.  And they're just happy to "be" and discover.  Fun, fun, fun.

The Kitchen Sink.

If there is one motherly task I don't think I will ever miss, it's bath time.  I hate bath time.  Hate it.  It's messy.  It hurts my back.  It feels long.  And tiresome.  And I'm usually not happy by the time it's all over for various reasons.  So when I have babies, I bathe them in the kitchen sink as long as possible.  Until they're big enough to try and dive out of the sink.  This was Carter's last bath in the kithen sink.  He was 9 1/2 months old.  It was a sad day for me.  He tried to climb out.  And he was wet.  And very slippery.  And very nearly did a head dive onto the tile floor.  Boo, boo, boo for bathtubs.  

Photography by Mya

Mya wanted to try her hand at the camera.  And since I don't usually get pictures of me with my kids, I let her.  She could barely hold the camera up (it's heavy).  And she was shooting wide open (harder to focus) in fully manual mode (which I obviously set).  Not too shabby!

Mya started preschool.

Once upon a time Mya started preschool.  And somewhere there are headshots of her but they're lost in the abyss of photos.  These are from her first day.  She was beyond excited and had no problem telling me goodbye.  And she still wakes up everyday and says "is it my preschool day?".  She hates Tuesday/Thursday when she doesn't get to go.

Jer and Ash

As I'm doing blog catch up, I realized I never blogged Jer and Ashley's wedding.  The quick version.  They got married over Memorial Day weekend at Millenial Falls in Draper.  Mark Longson (my brother-in-law and the father of one of Jeremy's really good friends) married them.  I had the lovely assignment to be the photographer (with one of Jer's good friends, Mike Cunningham, helping me out.  It's stressful to photograph a wedding.  It's even more stressful when it's family.  And even more stressful when your own kids are there and are supposed to participate in the wedding ceremony.  We made due with the given circumstances.  There was a little worry over possible rain, but things cleared up just in time, the ceremony went smoothly (minus Jaida falling apart during her walk down the aisle as the flower girl), and the reception was great afterward.  Ashley is perfect for Jeremy in every way I can think of.  Absolutely perfect.  And we love her.  Their wedding day in pictures (minus the other 1000 I took).

And a few Cunningham took.