Saturday, April 28, 2012

Sunday Snapshot {Volleyball}

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Today Ainsley's had her last volleyball tourney for the season.  What a great experience it has been for "The Pearl."  She has worked so hard, and improved so much..  Today she played out of her shoes!  We are so proud of her!  She and her buddy Hannah are the youngest on their team by 2-3 years!  Many of the teams they played were 13-14 year old girls that have been playing together for a few years.   Hannah and Ainsley played up the entire season!! It definitely motivated them to work hard!   We look forward to seeing what they can do next year!  Our first full season of volleyball was awesome!!!  I love being a volleyball Mom!  Way to go Ainsley!!!!  It was so fun to watch you dig down and play your best!!  "Side Out!"

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Head over to my friend Stef's to see what her blog pals are posting for Sunday Snapshot!




Ni Hao Yall



I took these photos with my Nikon D700.  I used my new lens for the first time, and I love it!  It is the Sigma 70-200 f2/8.

The first photo was shot 2500-ISO, Shutter 1/160 and aperture of 2.8.  No flash, Manual.
The D700 is known for being able to shoot at high ISO's..  I have never really tested that until today.  I was really pleased with how in focus the majority of my shots were!!  My ISO's today were from 2500-5000!  In-door gym with no natural light.  This is why I needed wanted this new lens!  It did not disappoint!




Wednesday, April 25, 2012

FINALLY!!!!!!

Yesterday was my birthday..  Thanks to my amazing husband and some really special friends and family it was a beautiful day!  There was one thing I wanted, a picture with my daughters!!!!  And, that is exactly what I got!!!!  This is honestly my first picture with all four of my blessings!  Thanks Jeff for taking this!  And thanks for my over the top gift (a new camera lens) , and for just getting me!  You are the best!!!!!

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I am also thrilled to have a cute picture of the four sisters!!!!  I love the colors and how happy they all look!  It helped to have their silly Daddy standing behind me!  

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The other amazing gift from yesterday, is that Ivy Joy is HOME!!!!!!!! What a blessing it has been to watch her heal!!  Thank you for all of your prayers for her healing!!!   She is such a little miracle!!





Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Curls!!!!!

It was picture day at dance yesterday!  Emme's sweet little group is dancing to "Animal Crackers" by Shirley Temple!  In honor of Shirley we got the curling iron out!!!  She sat there and let me curl her entire head!!! She definitely has more patience than her sisters for the "Mommy Salon"!!!!!!!  Anyway, she was absolutely precious in her curly doo and costume!  The recital is June 3rd, and she will be joining "The Middles" in their first recital too!  It should be a special day!!

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Sunday, April 22, 2012

A Mini Photo Shoot with Ruby!

I asked Ruby to help me with a homework assignment I have that's going to require a lot of time behind my camera this week..  She was gracious with her willingness to help me this afternoon!  I realized how much I have missed taking her picture.  The key is being able to get her to pause for the camera as she skips around..  Oh, and there is that occasional running cartwheel of her's that makes it challenging to pin her down too!!  She is BUSY!!

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This week's assignment is going to be challenging.  So I will be calling on my resident professional, Ainsley to help me!  I look forward to sharing some pictures of "The Pearl" soon!  She has been a busy girl!!



Friday, April 20, 2012

We Are Celebrating Over Here!!

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Without getting into all of the details let's just say Emme has been in control of potty training since we met her in China... (YES, she was potty trained when we met her!) Considering all of the changes she has had along with two big surgeries, we knew in her time she would be ready! I am proud to report that Miss Emme Jade has had a fantastic day!!!! And, today we celebrate our first full day since arriving home with no diapers or pull-ups! Tomorrow may be different, but today is a great big party over here!!!!! Emme we are so proud of you!!!

YIPPEE!!!!!!!!

Thursday, April 19, 2012

"A Good Good Day!"

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When Emme wakes up she will usually ask one of us? "Is this a Good Good day?" What she is really asking us is, "Do I get to go to school today?" I am not sure why, but this is how she refers to her pre-school! When we drive by it, she will say "Good Good Day!" When we pull onto the exit that takes us to school on Thursdays and Friday's she will light up, and squeal, "It's a Good Good day!" Her precious enthusiasm about most things is contagious! Life is truly "GOOD" when Emme Jade is a part of it...


On a separate note, I got a very sweet note from Emme's orphanage this week.. They wanted to know how she was doing. The nannies wanted us to know they miss her very much! I completely understand why they do.. It is a blessing that they loved her enough to let her go. We are so thankful for the caregivers that raised our sweet girl for three years! Their impact on her has made all the difference in her first eight months home! Here was their note to Emme, translated by our sweet friend, Jeanne in Yangzhou: "Emme, we wish you healthy forever!" We will continue to keep in touch with Yangzhou. And, you never know.. Perhaps one day we will get to go back and share our special "little bean" again with her first family! I hope so!



Tuesday, April 17, 2012

"The Little and The Middles!"



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Sunday, April 15, 2012

Sunday Snapshot: {The Arboretum}


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I am starting a new photography class this week with my friend and favorite photographer, Lisa! I am excited to get some fresh new ideas and to be challenged by her. I thought since I will be taking a lot of pictures in the next few weeks, this was a good time to join Stef's Sunday Snapshot! I am kicking it off with a few photos from the Arboretum yesterday. With our unseasonably warm Spring, everything is in bloom, including, Ruby's favorite "flower" the dandelion! After Emme's nap I took the three little girls for our annual dandelion picking! Ruby was so busy gathering her favorite "flower", that she barely posed for any photos! It was a beautiful afternoon with my little girls!

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My camera is the Nikon D700. I shot these photos with my Nikkor 50mm 1.4lens. My ISO setting was 200 and my aperture varied from 2.0 - 5.0. My shutter speed also varied 1/160 - 1/1600 depending on the shot.


Ni Hao Yall


Thursday, April 12, 2012

Easter Continued...

This was a very special Easter for our family. Having all of us together for the first time in years was such a blessing! So fun to have six little girls ages 12-3 all together for the very first time! It's times like this when you really miss not living closer to each other. Once a year just is not enough! The purpose of our re-union was to get my parents settled into their new home. They made a big move back to Minnesota from Texas.. Thankfully the weather was a welcome blessing for two people who have forgotten what it can be like to live here! My Mom hit the ground running to make their new place a home quickly. You would never guess she just turned 80! Thanks to extra help from Jeff and Mark, a lot was accomplished in just a few days!

We were able to add some fun to our agenda for the kids. It was a busy weekend!!

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Friday afternoon we hit the pool at Grandma and Grandpa's new place. Thankfully, we did not get kicked out on our first visit!!! :) A resident even went out of her way to compliment me on how well behaved our kids were!! I had to keep reminding my girls it was like being at the library with water!! I am pretty sure they will be popular or "un-forgettable" visitors at the Summit Place!

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Saturday morning, Becky and I took the girls to brunch with the bunny! The big girls were great helpers.. It was a fun event with face painting, coloring eggs, frosting cupcakes, a petting zoo, and a big easter egg hunt! Thankfully it was an indoor event on this rainy day. The girls had a great time... It did not take Emme Jade long to warm up to the Easter Bunny!
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The girls were so excited when Becky and I got our faces painted too!!!! I however picked my artwork.. Becky was brave enough to let Shaelee pick her's! :) We all agreed she was a pretty cute bunny! Rumor has it there was a "Becky Bunny" sighting at the Mall of America Saturday afternoon!


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Easter morning started early with an egg hunt at our house. It was really sweet to see all of the cousins together! We went to an awesome worship service at 9:30 and had a great brunch at the club late morning!

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All six cousins together with Grandpa and Grandma! This is the first
picture they have ever all been in together!

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Grandma and Grandpa!!! Welcome Home!

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Our Family!

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A very special moment between Father and Son!

So thankful for this time together! Thank you Mark and Becky for making the trip! We miss you already!

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Easter!

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I have many pictures from our special weekend with the Cousins, and the Grand Parents.. The kids just started back to school yesterday, and I am still catching up on things around here! My parents made it safely to Minnesota, and having all of us together for four days was wonderful! Lots of work and lots of play made it a very fun Easter! More soon!


Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Spring Break!

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We don't exactly have a tropical vacation planned this year.. (Much to the disappointment of a few kids around here...) But, we do have a busy and fun week ahead that involves all of my family being together for the first time in almost 5 years.. My Mom and Dad are moving back to MN after being gone for a very long time! So, we look forward to being together to get them settled!! The cousins will be here which will be so fun for us.. Six girls under 12 when we are all in the same room!! I hope to be back soon with some pictures of our crazy crew, and Emme's first Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday!

Until, then please keep checking in on Ivy Joy! She is making miraculous strides every day!

Happy Easter Week! We have so much to be thankful for!





Sunday, April 1, 2012

Georgia Grace - Part II

Orders will start getting placed at 10:00am today by Kristen.


Kristen has asked me to help her with another trunk show! They are launching Part II of "Playground Diaries" tomorrow! For those of you who ordered last time, thank you!! I know there were some hiccups with out of stocks, etc.. They are a new company, and people are starting to take notice of how cute their clothes are!!! So, if you want something from this line tomorrow, shop early! There are going to be 8 new pieces that coordinate with the 1st launch. Everything I received from Playground Diaries I is adorable!! This is Emme Jade in the "CeCe" dress which I love! It's pretty short on her, so we are using it as a super cute top!! In most cases I find the sizing for GG to be true to size. Emme wears size 2, Ruby wears size 5, and Sienna wears size 6.

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Here is a link to Georgia Grace's blog.. Their owner, has written about the launch, and what you can expect. They are going to offer monogramming if you are interested.. And, if you ordered last time, your shipping will be free!! They are telling you to expect 4 weeks delivery this time!


Here is the link to the Georgia Grace Website.. Some of the items are posted already... I think you are all going to want/"need" those Olivia Ruffle pink shorties!!!!!


If you have specific questions, reach out to Kristen Cook, the Trunk Keeper. You will need to email her directly at: kristen@georgiagracedesigns.com. To order, email her what you want, and she will connect with you for payment. Let me know if you have any questions, and I will do my best to help! You can also connect with Kristen Cook on Facebook!



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