Summer 2

Today we did a little shopping and Rodolfo came along.  I bought some clothes and Georgia bought some green and yellow fingernail polish.  Here is the masterful creation we designed.  Georgia likes to call this look "combination".  Not only does she like polishes, but she also likes to wear two different shoes.  Lately she has been combining her Cinderella sparkling slipper with her silver flip flops.  I should get a picture the next time she does it.  I let her wear her shoe combinations around town.  Last Sunday she even wore it to church.  My mom used to let me and my sisters do the same thing.  We could dress ourselves in whatever we thought was pretty.  I remember my mother allowing Rebecca to wear her hair filled with hair clips, probably 10+.  My mom says it fosters creativity.  I think she is right!

Summer 1

Okay, so I've decided summer goes way too fast.  I looked on the calendar for August to figure out when pre-school starts and I realized that we only have 24 more days until my little baby girl begins school!!!  I know, I know, it is only pre-school, but hey-- that's a major step in a little one's life, and an even more major one in a stay-at-home mom's life.  Our days are about to be radically different and I'm feeling a little wistful.  This morning Gigi wanted to eat "al fresco" as she said so we went outdoors and ate breakfast on the backporch.  It was sheer bliss sitting out there, in the warm sun, drinking my tea, eating oatmeal and eggs and clicking our tea glasses saying "cheers".  After we ate Georgia said, "Mom, can we swing on the hammock."  "Sure!"  I said, enjoying the fun of it all.  We lay there together, swinging in the breeze and talking nonsense.  Actually I think we were playing Peter Pan.  I was Peter and she was Wendy and we were on the pirate ship.  As we were laying there, enjoying the morning, a thought occured to me--  I want to spend my last twenty-four days of summer with Gigi doing nothing but this, having fun, swinging in a hammock, swimming, doing all the summery things that make this time of year lazy and wonderful.  I want to be deliberately wild and childlike with my daughter before this moment in our lives transitions to school days, school days dear old golden rule days...  And so I ran inside, grabbed my camera and snapped her there, perched on the hammock, looking below for mermaids and Captian Hook.  I'm going to try to catch one shot a day to document our last twenty four days of this magical time of mother-child living.  It will be my ode to Georgia and my ode to summer.  Here we go!

warning:  the next 24 shots may simply be me and Gigi at the pool.  :):)

Swim Lessons

Georgia has now officially completed her first series of swimming lessons.  She took classes at the same place that I took lessons, Kimbell Pool.  The lessons were spread over a two week period.  It has been fun waking up every morning knowing that we are heading out to the pool.  This pool is by no means fancy.  It really looks just the same as it did 30 years ago when I took lessons-- no updates, just a place to splash and have fun.  Half of the pool is 3 feet deep, perfect for someone whose height is about 41 inches.  There is a section with a diving board and that area is 11 feet deep.  Georgia has yet to venture over there, but the other day after her lessons we stayed and I jumped off that diving board about 10 times.  I had a fabulous time and I think she did too!!  :)

Here are her classmates, Alina, Grace, Georgia & Jacqueline.  The little boy in the class, I think his name is Aidan, wasn't around for the photo.

Woo hoo!  Here she is stragling between the shallow and the deeper end.  She hasn't quite made the brave jump into the deeper water yet, but she will soon enough.  Kiss kiss you cutie pie!

Here's my girl with her new haircut.  Smashing, darling! :)

Tinkerbelle with scissors

Here is Gigi caught red-handed giving herself a haircut.  She said her "bangs were in the way" and decided to take matters into her own hands.  My mom was the one to discover the busy beautician cutting away.  Not only did she cut her bangs but a handful on each side of her head.  She even was sitting at her toy beauty salon while she cut!!  Silly, silly, silly girl.  Tomorrow we will go to the real beauty salon to see if we can repair the damage.  In a way, though, her very short bangs remind me of the pixie cuts of the sixties.  I kind of like it, she reminds me of tinkerbelle.  I think it could have looked much worse.  Good thing my mom caught her when she did!

Look at that handful!

Here she is posing for the camera.  She is not really cutting here.

I think she even relished the attention.

Wonder how long it will take them to grow back??

And here is the salon, where it all took place.

Photoshoot

Here is my beautiful cousin and her daughter.  I was able to shoot some photos of them while they were visiting in OKC.  I hear Mark is home from Iraq on furlough now.  I hope they are having a wonderful time with him!

Amy was my first maternity session and this was my very first belly shot.  I think it turned out beautifully!

Sophia handeled the itchy grass and many poses really well.  We shot for nearly two hours!!

Sweet Daughter

I have been taking so many client photos lately that I haven't stopped to take many photographs of Georgia.  The other day I decided enough was enough.  I grabbed my old Canon and set out to take pictures of my sweet girl.  Georgia loved the attention.  Here is a shot I captured right before she started posing.  Isn't she a doll?  I love you, I love you, I love you , I love you!  Here is what she told me yesterday:

Georgia:  Aw, I wish I could be a mommy!
Me:  Why?
Georgia:  Because mommies get to do FABULOUS things like make breakfast, iron clothes and scrub the floors.

And here she is doing her Zoolander look.  I have quite the little model.  She loves to pose and this is pure Georgia.  Silly, wonderful girl!

Revisiting Washington DC

 A couple of months ago I received an invitation to Ingrid's retirement party.  I was thrilled to recieve the invitation and immediately replied that I would attend.  I wanted to be present to thank this wonderful woman for her role in my life.  Ingrid is a landmark in my memory.  I see her as a combination of influential mentor-fairy godmother.  Twelve years ago when I worked as her intern at the Candian Embassy I knew very little about the task I had signed up for.  Oklahoma and DC are, suffice it to say, very different worlds.  She took me under her wing and taught me how to survive-- and she did it with warmth, candor and humor!  The trip was somewhat emotional for me because for the longest time I have wanted to return to DC and work.  I have always wondered why I had this experience.  Not much, besides my first job out of college working for the Senator, has related to political/diplomatic work.  It is like there is a disconnect between the life I lead and the life I almost lead and the gap between the two has always bothered me.  It was good to go, revisit, thank Ingrid for her kindness, and close the door on a chapter of my life that I have, until recently, not been able to close.

Ingrid and former interns.

Me and Rodolfo with the bouquet that we created as a special gift for Ingrid.

Here is my friend Jonathan whom I met all those years ago during my internship.  Luckily he still has the same phone number and we reconnected on this trip!  He took me and Rodolfo on a relaxing stroll around the capital (See the capitol building in the background).  Unlike myself, he never left DC!  Lucky fellow.

We also saw some Tibetian monks while on our trip.  I felt like this was a unique occurance.  How often does one see Tibetans of any kind hanging around on an American street corner?

Now this is a bike I could ride!  :)

And last but not least, some amazingly large hydrangeas that we came across while strolling through Georgetown.  Aren't they beautiful?!

Aunt Linda, Amy & Sophia visit OK!

Where did June go?  I can't believe I am now coming off of July 4th weekend.  Life has been packed to the max with activities-- travel, house renovations, photo shoots and baby showers.  One of the most memorable was a visit from Aunt Linda, Amy & Sophia.  We did all sorts of fun stuff like go to the zoo, visit a horse ranch, go swimming and TALK.  That's what girls like to do, you know???   I tortured Amy and my sisters by making them wake up very early and go out and shoot maternity shots.  More of those to come later.  Here are some from Aunt Linda's birthday party.  I'm so glad we were able to celebrate with her this year.  We talked about having a family-get-together next summer again, but instead of OK we are thinking along the lines of the beach.  Woo hoo!

the celebration

lighting the cake

aww... brother and sister!

two pregnant beauties, where is Rebecca!!!!

Georgia and Sophia.  These two cousins played, played and played.  Aren't their matching PJs cute?  Thanks Aunt Linda for the gift!  :)

We are so glad you guys came to visit us out here.  Come again soon!!