Moving...

I've only been working on this new blog for about 2 months...changing themes, uploading pics, losing too many files to talk about, but here it is...the new blog. I love it :) Easy to upload, easy to customize, just easy.

So...if you read this, will you follow me here?? I hope so!!

http://tflophotography.com/blog/

Soon

Soon, our lives will be filled with lunch boxes and pack backs. School uniforms and gym day. Music and Daisy troop. Soon, I'll be driving my Big wee one to school and walking from my office to pick her up. I'm sure we'll do cool things, like grab a cool drink at her favorite coffee shop and have a cupcake. We'll celebrate her cool new life as a Kindergartener. We'll talk about all the crazy things that kids talk about at 5, but we'll keep it in check and talk about Santa as well.

Soon, our days will be filled with running from one activity to another, to running home for dinner and a bath. Soon, we'll start the adventure of tons of birthday parties and possibly sleep-overs (sooooo not ready for that! well, I'm not at least).

Soon, her chore chart will be filled up and she'll be helping her little sister adjust to everyday preschool. Soon, her sister will miss her and wonder why she can't play with her every.single.moment of her free time.

Soon, this mommy will cry (like I'm not already right!?!) and wonder, "Where the heck did time go?" I remember, so vividly, being pregnant with her and riding the elevator up to our apartment in our first home, thinking I was in labor. I remember holding her and sleeping with her. I remember her first steps and the first time she drew a picture (it looked just like Shrek).

Soon, all of these BIG changes will happen.

But for now, I have 10 more days of my 5 year old being just a 5 year old enjoying the last days of summer.

Summer is..

having a delicious ice cream cone after dinner. Having it match the pink in your shirt ads to the yumminess :)

Cousins 'n Stuff

This past weekend, my cousins came in from CT to share in remembering their father, my uncle and a very special man! My Uncle Jay passed away after a very difficult battle with cancer (for the past 3 years), and though it was so sad and emotional, I love these guys and love to spend any time I can with them...which isn't much.

If you knew my uncle, you know that these boys are spitting

images of him! I also noticed how much they look like my mom.

Super tall studs! They are "lowering" to my level :) kind of...hehe!Little wee one and "Cousin" had a special connection. She's been talking about him EVERYDAY since they left. She really misses him!Group shot of the fun people :)

Though we are all heartbroken that my uncle passed (that post to come later), I am filled with love that my cousins are apart of my life...our lives.

Woops

Ok, so I already missed a day in my post a day...

I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure these days are FLYING BY! Honestly, wasn't it just May yesterday and now it's almost time for school to start??

After bath this evening I made Big wee one try on her school uniforms for me. I can't wait to wash them and iron them and make them fresh and "new". The school she's attending in the fall is a Catholic school and she's pretty excited! I'm pretty excited. And nervous. I'll cry, no doubt.

I'll post those pictures tomorrow, and maybe you can help Big wee one decide what she should wear on her first day (it's a toss up between jumper and skort).

While taking her pictures, a little tiny Little wee one as

ked me to take her picture. I know, I know...I couldn't believe it either, so I asked her if she really wanted me to and she said, "Yes, Momma"

Here is that picture. Love those big blue eyes, even in black and white! :)

Got your back.

I can't believe that Big wee one is starting kindergarten at the end of the month. I mean really...she can't be school age already!

Though, to me in this picture, she looks much older than her wise beyond her 5.5 year old self. She's always got her sister's back, and on the occasion when she doesn't, believe me she hears it from me. I'm trying to teach her that no matter what Little wee one is her sister and they have to stay tight.

My goal this week is to blog once a day...here goes :)

Hanging around my side of town.

Recently a friend of mine met the girls and I downtown for a nice morning of walking around, stopping at the candy store, getting a glass of iced tea from my favorite coffee joint and ribs from the farmers' market. We probably spent 3-4 hours just chit-chatting, letting the girls play and enjoying the simple things that our quaint little town offers.

We have been trying to enjoy the relaxing summer days, even though we've been pretty busy. Enjoy your special moments :)

My babies.

Are growing up and I need to deal with it. I can't though. Makes my eyes swell up with tears every time I think about Big wee one going to kindergarten and Little wee one just getting bigger.
I've never felt love the way I do when I look at this face. So beautiful and funny and goofy, and moody and angry and fiesty and happy...everything that I am and then some! A mix of two people who love her more than words can describe.And then we threw in this one. Sweet and gentle, a loner and a silly girl. Not anything like her big sister...a country baby born in the heat of summer who loves a hug and her baby dolls. Who has fought a lot from the time she was born with her funky foot to her ridiculous allergies and asthma now. Both equally make me angry and in love in the same sweep of a second.

Both are super funny and super emotional. One gets angry and stomps her feet, the other gets sad and slumps her shoulders over. But really...do they have to grow up? Do they have to be ok with writing their name and reading books? Coloring pages and drawing pictures? Catching bugs and growing flowers?

I can't take it. My babies, my sweet little angel faces. Now one has purple "highlights" and talks about going to school every.single.day. We go over her schedule countless times a day, with what we will be doing and who we will see...if we will go to a store or have a "stay home day". The other just goes with the flow, no real need for a schedule, just happy to keep on keeping on.

One loves ketchup, the other mustard. One LOVES every fruit or vegetable you put in front of her the other is a "meat-atarian".

Both are super excited about summer and want to go camping, watch fireworks, eat hotdogs and play in our neighbor's pool. Both love to play with our family friends and watch tv when they first wake up in the morning. Both love to be outside and wait for Daddy to open the garage door to pool out various riding toys...though only one rides, the other just carries her "super high bouncy ball" around.
When I get home, I'm going to hug these wee ones...tight! See, I'm heading to the US Virgin Islands for a trip by myself. Celebrating love and photographing my first wedding, but thinking about them and my man the whole time! Go hug your wee ones!

Shattered...

My big toe :(
and it hurts...will post pics soon. For now I'll waddle around in my new snazzy boot!
What's been going on with you?

She's a graduate!

A year of learning, making new friends, exploring all kinds of cool stuff, and growing taller and stronger...our big girl graduated preschool. And yes folks, I shed some tears. When I put her in the car in the morning to bring her to her last day of school, when I took her to wally-world to pick out her bestie a necklace to remember her by and when she walked past us during her ceremony...tears during all of those events.
I just cannot believe that she'll be in kindergarten next year. I mean really, where did the time go? It seems like just yesterday we were just moving to Chambersburg!
Oh well, she growing up and there isn't much I can do to stop her, so instead, I'll just be uber proud!
My big girl, posing before we left.

A pic with the daddio.and one with the momma (me) :) And the ceremony begins...she would not make eye contact. She was on a mission. A mission to the stage without cracking a smile or moving her eyes away from her goal!Opening "hello's", she listening and her little friend A-man is smirking. Hehe...too cute!OH! Do you see that, we made eye contact. Still no smile. She cracks me up!Saying the pledge, and how appropriate that it's Memorial Day weekend and their ceremony was "Red, White & Blue" themed. I know I'm biased, she is my off-spring and all, but she sure looks adorable in her floppy graduation hat and double wrapped necklaces. Girls got style!Just singing. I'm pretty sure my eyelashes where stuck to my eyelid, from being wet and smashed up against the camera. I teared up through this WHOLE program. I'm a sap!Big wee one and her friend A-man. They are going to get married. I knew she had a little crush on him all year, though she never fully admitted it, she would get really angry if we asked her about it (guilty as charged!). We found out the truth though, A-man told his mom he was going to marry Big wee one....hehehe, he's a cutie! She does want to have a play-date this summer, so I'm sure this won't be the last that we see of first crush (oiy! already?!).This ABC chant/song was really cute! They are all gearing up for, "GIMME-A""C-We're CREATIVE"Did I mention that the little cutie right behind Big wee one in the red shirt is her bestie? They have on matching "best friend" necklaces that we had to get on the way to school. Every school day they brought each other a little gift (a barbie outfit from their stash, a little tiny hairbrush, a little stone or gem from a broken ring, a ribbon...anything they thought the other might like) and exchanged them. That was one of her highlights from the day, to show me what her best friend brought her that day.The official graduation moment. Big wee one really enjoyed Mrs. W and being in her class. Not a true smile, but she is looking my way :)We are so proud of you Big wee one! You've learned SO MUCH! Counting by 5's, reading, writing, and you are so creative. You exploded this year with knowledge and willingness to learn. We have loved watching you become this indepent and smart big sister. Thank you for being you, we LOVE YOU!

*yes, I know there aren't any pics of Little wee one in this post, or the last few for that matter, that child will.not.let.me.take.her.picture. I will do my best to get one of her and share it soon!*

Cause I... I will Survive.

I hope anyway. These kids are going a-wall and I am running on very little sleep...makes for really FUN days. HA! So much to catch you up on...like the one below who can ride her bike without training wheels now, and can only take a bath with her goggles on. Because, you know, she's gotta get ready for swimming and all :)
She's a dork. She get's it from me.

I do plan on updating the 'ol blog soon...in the meantime, have you checked out T. Flo's page (I've heard she's a really cool chick!) ;-)

CA-RAZY!

The last two weeks have flown by. We've been so busy, between lacrosse games, photo-shoots, work, soccer games and life in general...I cannot wait for the weekend! I plan on getting my garden ready for planting and going to the annual MOMS Club Mother's Day brunch. I also plan on watching Big wee one ride her bike...WITHOUT TRAINING WHEELS (if you are a friend on facebook, you know this already). We're getting ready for summer....YEAAAAA!!
Peace my peeps...
t.flo

Birthday Dinner

Prepared by yours truly! I keep saying, "I'm going to make this again, tonight!"...I haven't yet, but I will!! It was soooo good! You can find the recipe here, and if you check out that site, I'm also going to make the BBQ sauce. If you are a friend of mine, you might just get some (it will go well with my new grill...THANKS MOM & DAD!)

Those flowers are from my bestie in tejas...soooo pretty and sunny and fresh :)

10 on Tuesday: Another Year Older

Yup...the BIG 3-0 is headed my way! Tomorrow, I will wake up ready to start a new decade of my life. Am I nervous you ask? Anxious? Worried??

No, not nervous...anxious, not really...worried, a bit. I mean not worried, WORRIED, but worried, that my body is going to change. Sure that's silly you think, but I don't want wrinkles and I already have to photoshop my crow's feet out of my pictures and I've been feeling so unhealthy lately! I need to incorporate some excercise into my daily routine, I just can't seem to find the time to do it. Ok, enough complaining about feeling, BLAH!! Tomorrow is my birthday and I'm going to relish in my last few hours of my 20's.

Let's review the last year of T. Flo's 20's :)

1. I work for the Downtown Business Council of Chambersburg and LOVE it! I love working with the folks that I work with, making the connections I make and putting myself out there for the better of the community. Work is good...really busy at times, not so much at other times, but great!
2. This past year, my dad opened his winery and in the beginning I didn't want any parts of it. I didn't think we could work well together (my dad and I), and I didn't want to put any stresses on him or me. Well, that went the total opposite. I actually don't mind working with my dad at all. I think I had to prove to him (in the beginning) that I do actually know what I'm talking about, I do know a lot of people that can point him in the right direction, and that as long as he could deal with my sometimes crazy time-schedule we would be ok. And we are! I do all of his PR work for him, set up parties and events, and do all of the graphic design work for the labels and advertising. I love public speaking and don't mind putting myself out there for the wine shop. I think he appreciates that. I also think I probably drive him crazy with my time-schedule, but he understands that I am only one person wearing a lot of different hats (at times).
3. My girls have changed so much this past year! Big wee one is so silly and caring, and I've really seen her blossom this year. She makes me smile all the time and she's such a great big sister! Little wee one, has always been the sweet and silly one, but the later half of the year she busted out a new 3.5 year old sassy attitude. It can get a little ridiculous at times, and her "wanting" me all the time is outrageous, but I do remember Big wee one going through the same.exact.thing. I'm sure she'll grow out of it soon. Right?? :-/
4. I took a road trip to TX with just the girls and survived! They were actually so good in the car, especially since I couldn't get the DVD player to work (most of the time). Remember those days traveling back in the day without a DVD player?! I do...I survived and so did they :) It was the ULTIMATE girl bonding trip! For rizzle!
5. This year, my marriage went through some trials and tribulations and I'm happy to report to the haters that they can hate on. We will conquer! Marriage is hard and communication is KEY. So, to Paul...sorry dude, you have to deal with my Tina-isms for the REST.OF.YO.LIFE.
6. This year I've discovered who my true friends are and how supportive family can and cannot be. I've weeded out those that I don't want in my life and tried to keep the negativity at bay. I can't deal with negativity, really I can't. I need to be happy and when I'm having a hard day, I need to be alone.
7. I took my love of photography and BLEW it UP! As in, I took it to the next level and couldn't be more excited about the road it's driving on. I was thrilled to go to an amazing workshop recently and am hoping to attend another one this summer. I've learned so much and have been so blessed to have wonderful clients that are not only amazing, but BEAUTIFUL.
8. I've gone from blonde to brown and I like it!
9. My love for cooking is still going strong. I would like to start a recipe club and have said it a couple of times, I just need to actually do it. I planted a garden last summer and plan on doing it again this summer. I loved having the fresh veggies right outside my door for the picking :)
10. This year, and the rest of the 30's I plan on following my dreams and letting my heart lead the way. I'm going to work on my "filter" more, but not let it limit me as a person. I'm going to keep surrounding myself with great family and friends and my crazy husband and keep laughing.

See you on the flip-side 3-0...hit me with your best shot...FIRE AWAY!

She KICKED...

the ball and LIKED it!! This past week, Big wee one had her first soccer game and practice. We were lucky to even get the game in, since there were storms before the game, while we waited in the car and then it started back up again right after the game. I was praying that the weather would clear out for the 20 minutes of game time that we needed, especially since the game had already been cancelled once for bad weather.
Big wee one was definitely timid for the first 5 minutes or so. She's not one of those kids that can just walk up and be fine, she needs to be guided a bit. I walked her up to her coaches (she was crying) and introduced her and said she needed a few minutes to adjust and then...she was fine! (phewwww!!)
In the picture below, she was excitedly telling her coaches what she wanted to name the team. They all got to help pick the team name, and we had talked about it at dinner earlier in the week. Being as girly as she is, and knowing that she is the only girl on the team (of 5 players total), I started throwing boyish team names at her and she really liked the name, "T-Rex's"...so they are the Purple T-Rex's.

They play 6 minute quarters, 3 players at a time for each team and she got to be one of the first to play. *Insert nervous, anxious, excited Mommy here* Praying that she doesn't run off crying, or that she just stands there (which she did until we yelled RUN and then she did), or that she gets hurt and ruins her idea of a good time.

Luckily, after the initial stand there with a "What's everyone doing?" look on her face she went for it! *Instert beaming "that's my girl" Mommy here* I couldn't believe how well she did! She's never played an organize sport before, and had never practiced with her team, but she did awesome! She actually kicked the ball and blocked and ran after it and put herself out there!

This is the stance that Little wee one took while watching her big sister!

She had two assists and only one bump in the nose that she fought off the tears for. I did my best to avoid eye contact at that time, if she saw me she'd cry (you mom's know how that goes!)...her coach asked her if she was ok, and she just rubbed her nose and said yes. (another phewwww!!)

Super star Big wee one ended up with 2 assists and some great plays! Paul and I were sooooo proud of her and just beamed. We took the girls for pizza at a yummy local joint after the game to celebrate! She's excited to play again, and I'm excited that she loves it so much!

Life {in general}

As been insanely crazy lately. Paul is gone every evening till about 7 pm with practice and later when he has games (which is 2-3 times a week). I don't mind, it gives me a little extra time to work on this or edit these, but those sessions end up going until midnight.

I was thrilled last Saturday to hit the local college with a friend and do some playing with our cameras...I love this image that I got:

After we talked photoshop for awhile, I picked up the wee ones and we hit the road to visit some of our favorite friends! The girls had a blast and the boys drove Little wee one crazy...felt like old times (hehe!)The moms even got to go have mexican by ourselves!! It was a great visit, but a scary ride home...dark mountain roads SCARE me, and for some reason Big wee one would fall asleep and then wake up crying, and then go to sleep, I think she was uncomfortable.

Soon, some of our weeknights will also be filled with this Big wee one being a soccer SUPA STAR! She is SO excited!!

She's been practicing and telling us how fast she is and how "awesome" she's going to be. I don't know if I'll be able to stand how stinking cute she is in that uniform that is tooooo big, her shorts can't even stay up. When she saw the uniform she said, "OOOOOooooo, PURPLE IS MY 2nd FAVORITE COLOR!!" *melting* She's also the only girl on the team!

It's great that the weather is so beautiful, but it makes my allergy sufferers, really suffer! Little wee one has had days where she can barely open her severly swollen eyes, her whole body is itchy (she says), and she can't stop sneezing. I took her to the dr. yesterday and we are now mixing a nice cocktail of meds to help soothe her miserable allergies...poor thing. I just about cried (and I'm tearing up now), when I had to wake her up yesterday and her eyes couldn't open! She was telling me (while pointing to her eye), "this eye doesn't want to open Mommy"...I know you can't understand how sweet and pathetic that sounded, but believe me it was so sweeeeet and soooo pathetic, I just curled her up and my lap and rubbed her back! Poor, sweet thing.

To sum things up, life is good. My big 3-0 is coming up and I am excited for what the 30s will bring me...I've gotta feelin' (ooooohhhhoooooo, sing with me!!) that 30 will be a good year.

xo-T.flo

Flashback Friday

Tomorrow afternoon, the girls and I are heading to visit our friends :) One of Big wee one's favorite friends and Little wee one loves them as well. I'm excited to catch up with the mom and just let the kids go crazy for a bit...see you soon friends!

Itchy, sneezy, sniffly, watery, red eyes.

This girl is struggling :( Poor thing...born with allergies that attack her big giant blue eyes.

She gets the worst sneezes and coughing from the drainage, and there isn't much we can do besides keep her filled with claritin. In a couple of weeks, it will pass and she'll be so much happier! But just so you know, this is what our house has been like the last week or so :( BOOOOO!

Here she is in May of '08...very unhappy toddler, boy oh boy is she cute though! WOW...she was a freaking adorable little munchkin (and yes I am biased) :)

Hope your allergies are making you suffer!
Till the sniffles and sneezes stop!
~T. Flo