Fix-it-Friday's #99

Time for another round of Fix-it-Friday over at I Heart Faces! This week's photo is courtesy of Andrea Riley.

For my edit:

1. Spot Healing tool to clean up a couple of spots on her coat
2. Baby Powder Room from The Coffee Shop Blog to correct some of the red showing in her skin (from the lolly-pop) and to lighten under her eyes a bit
3. Eye Popper for Dark Eyes from My 4 Hens
4. Curly Sue action from My 4 Hens, adjusted the opacity a tad bit ;)

Spring is in the air!

Wow - I didn't mean to go so long between posts...I hope that's not something I repeat again anytime soon.

We've been so busy...between work & home, I'm having trouble keeping up! Rob & I both work full time jobs, plus I sell Thirty-One Gifts, and together we also run a lighting & DJ business. And, it's that time of year where the DJ business kicks into high gear (wedding season)....we had our first wedding of the season last weekend!

This week is the beginning of tot soccer & t-ball for our niece & nephew (3 & 4 year old league). Soccer has begun, t-ball starts tomorrow. Here are a few photos from their first night of soccer.

And I couldn't resist adding this photo of Adler sitting on the sidelines with my mom!

Fix-It-Friday's - #97 & #98

I love participating in Fix-It Friday's over at I Heart Faces! Unfortunately, I never got around to posting last week's Fix-It Friday image; so I'm posting both last week and this week right now.

5/13/11 - photo by: Angie Arthur Photography

For my edit: I used Pioneer Woman "Boost" action + My 4 Hens "Breezy" action @ 85% opacity.

5/6/11 - photo by: Susan Kelly

My edit 1 - Lightened to adjust exposure + PW "Bring Out the Eyes" + Coffee Shop Blog"Honey Retro".

My edit 2 - Lightened to adjust exposure + PW "Bring Out the Eyes" + My 4 Hens "Mood Ring" @ 80% with 50% toner adjustment.

I Heart Faces Photo Challenge | Motherhood

This week's photo challenge over at I Heart Faces is Mother's, since yesterday was Mother's Day. I've decided to enter a photo that I took of my sister-in-law, Laura, and my niece, Shelby.

Unfortunately, I have not been blessed with the chance to become a mother. My husband and I have spent nearly 8 years trying to start a family. We have been through fertility meds, 3 rounds of IVF, and a cancelled (much to our dismay) adoption during this very long and trying 8 years. I don't know if I'll ever have the chance to be a mom (other than to my 2 furbabies ie: dogs), but my awesome sister-in-law so generously allows me to experience the joys of motherhood through the tremendous amount of time I get to spend with Shelby.

And with that being said...I present to you: Laura & Shelby

And, a bit about Mother's Day...

I hope everyone took the time to thank their Mom this Mother's Day. I have a wonderful, beautiful, generous, loving, & FUN Mom that I am blessed to not only call "Mom" but friend too. Mom, I don't know what I'd do without you!! Love ya! ~K

Weekend recap

My plans of a nice, quiet weekend didn't turn out quite how I planned...I'm not complaining though, since my days were filled with fun & family!

Every weekend officially kicks off at 4:30 on Thursday afternoon for me since I don't work on Friday's. Thursday afternoon I got a call from my brother that they (his family & my parents) were on their way home from vacation a couple days early, due to the bad weather we've had in Southern IL (they were horseback riding in Shawnee National Forest)....so Thursday night I met all of them at our local small town bar for greasy cheeseburgers & beer (Mt. Dew for me). I was super excited to see my 3 year old niece, Shelby, who I hadn't seen in almost 2 weeks....and I'd like to believe that she was equally as excited! :)

Friday morning found me up & out early, hitting the streets of my small rural town for the "town wide garage sales" with my mom & niece. We did quite a bit of shopping, but the true winner was Shelby (3 yr old niece) who purchased EXACTLY what she announced that she was looking for before we even set out for the day (play horses, her newest addiction). We followed up our "garage saling" with a trip to the local recreation department to sign Shelby up for the 3-4 year old soccer league, lunch, and then out to my parents farm to relax awhile.

On Saturday I had more time with mom & Shelby as I tried out new camera equipment (pictures to follow), while Shelby played on her new scooter (garage sale purchase), followed by a dress up/fashion show (more garage sale purchases). I love practicing my photography techniques...and I must say, I have the best little model around! :)

Sunday I decided to make a family dinner...I opted for lasagna and tried out this new recipe, and although it wasn't "The World's Best Lasagna", it was pretty good...although not near as good as what my Mom usually makes! The best part about the meal was time spent with the family... Yes, maybe I had a little too much family time this weekend...but I loved every minute of it!