Happy Graduatioin Goose

My blogging time has taken a serious hit! 

I have to say though, even though it's taken me forever to get this on here....

Goose, you look good in a cap and gown!

Every parent yearns for the best for their children. 

So, while today is a great day for Kelson,

It's a GRAND day for dad and I.

When I look at these pictures I see a little boy. 

I see a child that was always so easy to get along with.

A little mischief in his nature, but good clear through to the center of his heart.

And I see a child, a boy, a man, who has always cared greatly about people!

I have always had a passion for Psychology.

Never suspected someone else would too.

And it fits him. He is calm, he is practical, and he has a way with people.

It is in his nature to care.

Kelson, you are going to bring a lot of good to the world!

You already have!!!

And you are going to be a great help to many people!

Kelson did his practicum with the head start kids. 

They LOVED him!

His professors and the people he worked with LOVED him!

And as for the course of study,
Well, he was raised with CRAZY people,
So he understands the subject well! Lol!!!

Finally, I'm going to get free therapy! Hahahahaha

No matter what you do Goose....

You have the will, the brain, the brawn, and the dedication to succeed!

You've always been a winner in my book.

You always will be!

When you put your mind to anything, you go after it with all of your heart.

You know how to stay the course.

You know how to sacrifice.

Dr. Garza was Kelson's Proffesor.
She oversaw all of his Practicum and Cap Stone work.
Her compliments to Kelson only reinforces my words here.

In the middle of all of this dedication, Kelson found another heart like his!

Jacque, you are a mirror image of Goose. 

So tickled to have you in our family!

So, with love and pride and everything a mother can feel for her child,

I complement you today. 

I love you Kelson. You have always been a light in my life!

You bring something to our family no other person could.

So it is with everything in life.
People love you where ever you go.
Someday you can explain to me how it is all of your
psych friends are girls????
Leave it to you to surround yourself with all the cute girls.
(Psych friends and Dr. Garza)

It was a great day!

We walked to our usual photo spot.

Kelson is not the first graduate in this family

And he won't be the last.

I have amazing children!

And they have cute and amazing children.

Happy Day!

Marie and Lyle, Happy to have found you.

One great thing is that all my kids are best friends with each other.

As a mom, I was blessed with the best when it comes to my family.

We love you Goose!

And we are so proud of you!

You will forever be my source of JOY in this life.
I'm going to miss you when you go away to grad school,
But I'm going to continue to sit back and watch you do great things with your life!
I count myself lucky to have the priviledge of being your mom!
Happy Graduation son.
I love you.
Madre

A Day for Mother's

As Craig laid down to sleep tonight(the night before Mother's Day) he said "Well, I hope tomorrow is good for you." I responded with "It will be, no matter what happens good or bad."
I am not so naive as to believe that just because it is Mother's Day my children will miraculously arise with a smile and happily get dressed, folding their pajamas and putting them away as they go. No, tomorrow will hold the same redundant reminders to hurry up, get dressed, brush your teeth, be nice, get your shoes on, why are you not dressed yet!?!, that doesn't match run change, hurry and eat, it's time to go, it's time to GO! oh man, we should be leaving right now, get your shoes on!!!
No, Mother's Day is just as busy(or even more so) as any other day, and there in lies the beauty of this celebration. It is a great opportunity to BE a Mom on Mother's Day. The difference of the day will be shown in the extra smiles, the extra tight hugs and the extra "I love you's" given by the receivers of those many redundant reminders.
Which brings me to the point of this blog entry. If anyone can relate to the above listed expressions it is Mom. I only have to herd half as many little ones as she did and it is quite the job.
Since my day will be a busy one too, I wanted to take a moment tonight(with all my kids in bed) to wish you a Happy Mother's Day Mom! You are bright and colorful as the flag that honors the day you were born. You have given your life to the service and care of your family, just as the many soldiers that gave their lives for the freedom of our country. You stand, unwavering, when all you hold dear is challenged by opposition. Thank you for teaching me, loving me, and supporting me along this life's journey. It is a privilege to claim you as my Mother! I love you! Happy Mother's Day!!!!
Love,
Emy

Happy Birthday Emy

My life is anything but dull right now. My days fly by faster than a speeding bullet. I have had no time to blog unless I get up at unearthly hours. And I miss blogging. I love blogging. The culprit that has been steeling my time, is my photography. I'm  not complaining. I never tire of looking through the lens of a camera and pushing my shutter button. My Nikon is my best friend! 

I have been busy..... busy with cute Seniors graduating and wanting pictures and announcements, busy with photography classes, and busy as can be editing, editing, editing. If I'm not editing pictures, I'm editing my life. There in lies much symbolism. 

Man with a drill says I spend more time with my computer than I do with him. Well, he's a busy guy too and so that's not hard to do. I decided I spent the first fifty years of my life raising a family, now I'm going to spend the next fifty years taking pictures of them and everything else in life I can capture in a frame. I love framing life's precious moments. 

I have a goal ..... some day I'm going to die and I want to live my life so that people will say at least four things about me; A- She was crazy hahaha, crazy in love with life! B- She was deeply spiritual and a good friend to all. C- She devoted her entire life to being a good mother and grandmother! And D- She was a fantastic photographer. Emphasis on the word fantastic. Wow, I got a long ways to go!

As I am consumed with taking lots of pictures, I realize I really need to point the camera more often at the adults in my family. Inevitably someone has a birthday or an anniversary and I can't find a current picture. 

So it is with Em. She had a birthday and this morning I got up early just to try and find one picture of this cute girl with no one else in it and it took me forever. 

I was so happy to find the following photos. The last one I think I've posted before, but I love it. It is symbolic of my darling daughter and her way of being.  I'll come back to that.

The first three photos were taken when my mom died. Looking at these pictures made me cry. I miss my mom. I miss everything about her, and most of all I miss the daily trips up this familiar walk and into that familiar door. I miss her constancy. She was always there, in the same place, with the same questions, and with that same unwavering love and adoration for her children.

I wanted to take some photos of her home after she passed away. I was hoping to capture her spirit in them. Somehow I want to keep her with me forever. This home of hers is nearly 120 years old. My dad was born here. I wanted to remember just how it looked, just how it felt. That day I somehow got lucky and had Emilyn with me. How I got her all to myself is unbeknown to me, but wow, am I ever glad. And I've got to figure out how to do that again. Hahaha

Emilyn is my oldest. She is warm like the sun at the golden hour. You'll understand that term if you are a photographer. She is everything good. Really, if I had to choose one word to describe this girl, it would be the word, "Goodness." Through and through, I am here to say!

Besides being good in a million different ways and at a million different things, she is supremely lovable.

That's because Emilyn's ultimate trait in how she behaves towards mankind.... well, everyone comes first with Em, leaving herself dead last. If you have a need, this girl will be there to meet it. And without complaint I might add. She's always got a smile, no matter how much people demand of her. She really is one of the most giving people I know!

And that brings me to the last picture here. I love this picture of Emy. Her sweet soul shines through in it. I love the light in her, the light on her. And I think it gives air to a unique quality she possesses. There is something about Em's nature. When it comes to being complicated, you will not find anything descriptive about this word inside this beautiful girl. She is everything opposite of complicated. By inherent nature, this girl is Easy. She is SIMPLE, and oh how I love this about her. And that's it, simple goodness is what you see and simple goodness is what you get with this darling girl. Every inch of her.

I love you Emy! You are always a wonderful example to me and my life is always improved by being with you. I appreciate the spiritual force you are for good and I love spending time with you, it's easy and uncomplicated, undemanding in every way and always I am filled with light and joy by being with you. Thank you for always being a great help to me! Thanks for being easy on me, for always seeing the best in me. I appreciate that with you. You look for the best in me, you some how find it and you always remind me it's there. Thank you! I'm so proud of you. I love you! Everyone does. So glad you're a Crow! And I'm lucky, or blessed, you name it, to be able to call you my daughter. That always brings me so much joy! It's a joy to be your mom! Hugs Sweety Pea! I love you!!!

Happy Birthday! XOXOXO