Baby Grace

As soon as I saw her, I burst with a “Oh! How precious!” Little Grace is almost 8 months old and is incredibly adorable. Her little curls bounced as her mom carried her downstairs. She was very friendly and smiley….and then, after a few minutes, in typical baby fashion, she decided that she would make us work for smiles–but we got some! Grace is full of personality!

Thank you for letting me capture these few moments with your treasured baby girl! Many blessings to you all!

Special Delivery!

For more, click HERE for the slideshow!!

Looka Me!

I knew this week we’d give it a try. Last night, Vaden sat in his Chic-Fil-A high chair while his Grandma and I ate and I thought, maybe tomorrow will be the day.

So today, after a nice long walk this morning with our friends Jessica and Andrew, I got out the high chair and decided to give rice cereal a go. We already had some my mom had given us. I thought I would just see if he would like it or not. So here we go.

Not only did he open his mouth for each bite, he tried to grab the spoon from me and bounced up and down with excitement. He LOVED it.

“I love this chair. I will bang on my tray!”

Yummy spoon!

After a bite, I like to suck on my fingers.

Vaden is 6 months old!

So we made it 6 months as parents. And we love it! Vaden has been such a joy. Thankfully, he is still sleeping through the night. He rolls over both ways now, he grabs at everything, he squeals with delight when I get him from the crib, and he remembered how to blow raspberries after a brief respite. (For a little while it seemed he forgot how and would purse his lips, then sorta hold his breath, turning red in the face and sound like he was choking instead.) He loves his daddy and watches him walk throughout the house. He loves to grab his hair. And mine. And yes, his eyes look like they’re turning brown.

Vaden has been on several little outings in his short life– to the movies, concerts, Wilmington (twice), Asheville, Charlotte, the Wake Forest Fourth of July Parade, and of, course, many a store with Mama!
Here he is, weighing in at almost 20 lbs. (19lbs. 13 oz) and 27 inches long. We are going to need a new carseat sooner than we thought. Hah!

And, of course, I have a slideshow HERE!

Randy Jenny Slideshow!

Just got this great slideshow software and thought we’d make a cool one of Randy & Jenny!

Check it out HERE.

Happy Birthday Mimi!

Today is my Mom’s birthday. She’s almost over the hill, and yet she’s got 5 kids under 5 to keep her busy! She’s been asking herself every day, “Why am I in this season of life all over again? I am too old for this!” And then one of these littles pops over to her lap and says, ” I love you, Mama,” and its all clear again. These babies needed a family. A mom to love them and clean their booboos.

I love you, Mom. Happy Birthday!

I had a shoot this morning, so Mimi kept Vaden on her birthday for me. This is what I found when I got there to pick him up. Good thing I don’t wear much lipstick. Or these would never come off. Permanent evidence of how much I clobber him with kisses.

Historic Downtown Wake Forest Criterium

Some of you are probably wondering why Melissa would shoot a random sports event, which is a valid observation. In fact it was me, Randy (the eternal sports addict), who shot this event. I really had great time at this event. It made me quite reminiscent of my days in the saddle, maybe one day I’ll get back on the bike?

Wheels in, Wheels out!

The Ref kept everything on the up an up.

For a slideshow of all the action you can click here.

Family: The Kranz Krew.

The Kranz Family is an amazing family I have known for years now. Jerry & Cindy met in the Marines years ago, and are still just as in love as when they met, and I might even venture to say, they love each other more now. When I met them, I was in middle school and they had three kids,  Jeffrey, Timmy, and Joey. Now, I guess it’s been over a decade, and Timmy is now Tim, and Joey, Joe. And they have added to that number: Melanie, Tommy, Sammy, Andy, Jesse, and Julie. This family has a wonderful air about them. They are compassionate, they are giving, they help each other out. And they are chock full of talent! Jeffrey, a sophomore at  Tennessee Temple, is not only an incredible artist, he loves to do improv! Randy & I went to see him perform Saturday night at Comedy Worx in Raleigh. Tim as you will see, plays the drums, and Joey, the guitar. Melanie plays the piano and Tommy the clarinet. The rest, I am sure will find their own niches as they grow into their unique personality. We had a blast shooting this crowd (thanks for coming along Amber!) and can’t wait to post a few from the shoot!

***Updated to add: Click HERE for a slideshow***

Where the trees stand still.

Today I have been thinking a lot. About a lot of things. I feel like I have been trying to catch up on life lately. I had about 10 pages left in Nicomachean Ethics when my dear friend Esther called. She is living in Kona, Hawaii for another 11 days before she heads to Cambodia and Thailand until December. She is doing primary health care there, and hopes to eventually do midwifery there. I love Esther. She was my doula! I knew this might be one of the last chances to talk with her before she heads overseas, so I jumped at the phone. ( I had the ringer on!) We talked, we encouraged each other, we even vented a little. Esther is at a place in her life where she is feeling a little overwhelmed. She is growing weary of being on the move a lot. She is wanting to settle down a bit– and I so remember when I felt the same way. (Heck, I feel that way now sometimes!) It reminded me of a Bebo Norman song called “Where the Trees Stand Still.” In thinking about it, I remembered my old blog. Can’t believe how longs it’s been. It was a journal of sorts for me at the time.

Anyway, I thought about how many times I think of things to blog about here, but I don’t. I think of books I want to read, but I don’t. I think of photos I want to take, and I don’t. “Why not?” you ask. Good question. I let myself get too busy–or rather too distracted. So, now I am going to make a calendar of things to do and when to keep myself better organized. Especially now that I am only taking one class. (Though I am thinking of taking more next semester. Like full-time. So I can graduate a year from now.) Now is the time to get organized!!

To close, here’s a great quote from Nicomachean Ethics:

“[People] suppose that living well and doing well are the same as being happy. But they disagree about what happiness is, and the many do not give the same answer as the wise. For the many think it is something obvious and evident–for instance, pleasure, wealth, or honor. Some take it to be one thing, others another. Indeed, the same person often changes his mind; for when he has fallen ill, he thinks happiness is health, and when he has fallen into poverty, he thinks it is wealth.”

An interlude with a gift shop granny.

I know they have to have some magnets around here somewhere.

“I wanna see that baby.” Her determined tone of voice snapped me out of my “where on earth could they be” mission just in time to see Randy twist the stroller around to face her. A little elderly woman with a name badge on. If I hadn’t been so engrossed in finding a cheap souvenir, I might have noticed her name.

“Oh, isn’t he precious. Oh, you’re so cute, yes you are. Oh, are you gonna talk to me? I have lots to talk about, yes I do.”

I joined them and noticed that Vaden’s little ball cap is now too small. Wow. He is growing so fast. I pull the hat off and smile at my baby.

“Put his hat back on,” she tells me, “I want her to see him with the hat. “Look at this baby,” she tells her co-worker, who gives a small nod and smile mosies on. “Ok, you can take it off.”

Really? Great, since I am his mother and all, I appreciate your permission.

“Oh, I love you. I love you so much. Yes, I do. I just want to kiss you. I want to kiss you on the mouth.” Please don’t, I thought. Randy tried to smile, but his stance tensed up, prepared to push the stroller away if she dared close in on him. Ellie chuckled in disbelief. Did she really just say that? Who says that? Ever? To anyone?

“Do you have any maps?” Randy diverts her attention. Phew, that was close.

“I can’t believe she said she loved him. Really? You love him?” Randy questioned still within earshot of the lady.

“Maybe after you reach a certain age you just love all babies.” I thought. I didn’t understand it myself, but I was more disturbed by the “I want to kiss you on the mouth” comment than the “I love you.” W.E.I.R.D.

We made it out without contact, and finally found an Old Salem magnet. Victory! On the way to Charlotte Tuesday, we stopped in Old Salem, since Randy had never been and Ellie didn’t remember going. It was a slight detour, but it was a nice day so we thought we’d stretch our legs and walk in the 89 degree heat of old buildings and cobbled sidewalks. With a stroller. Full of Vaden. I was going to have to feed him anyway, so the stop was worth it, despite the heat. And the adoring fan.

I mean who could resist this little man?

And finally a photo of us! This is the bridge from the visitor center to Old Salem proper. Thanks Ellie!

I have the best sister. (This is her. Not me.)

Charlotte, Free to Succeed Tour

What a whirlwind of a midweek-weekend. That’s how it felt at least. I crammed to finish my 250 pages of reading and write a one page review for the class I am taking a day early so we could head out early Tuesday morning to Charlotte… we: Me, Randy, Vaden, and my sister Ellie. She was so kind to come along and be our babysitter for Vaden while we attended the Free to Succeed Tour with David Jay.

What a great seminar. We had a blast meeting other photographers (like Kevin Milz, Sara and Melanie from Whitebox, Andrew Bryant, Courtney from Always Autumn Studios, and the Beautiful Mess crew) and getting great tips from David Jay on how to make the most of this photography business. Oh, and his sweet girlfriend, Allie, who is doing some great work with notforsalecampaign.org.