Joy

If my world were to cave in tomorrow, I would look back on all the pleasures, excitements and worthwhilenesses I have been lucky enough to have had. Not the sadness ....... but the joy of everything else. It will have been enough. 
Audrey Hepburn 
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/sadness.html#GKDoYpHe717y3vY1.99

    I have been going through a bit of a rough patch lately. So rough, actually, that I didn't feel like picking up my camera. As a matter of fact, some days I felt so bad I contemplated tossing it into the trash.  Who am I to think that I can be a photographer?

    But then the baby came over. He has a way of putting things in perspective.

    I resolved to take his picture before he left. 

Shall we say he was less than enthusiastic?

At times he feigned disinterest.

But he loves to be in the spotlight.

Finally I was able to get this one!

    It's hard for me to explain, but somehow this small step forward in my attitude has to do with the fact that it is my own child's 24th birthday. 

    Happy birthday, Darling.

    Love,

    Mom

Girl, look at that body!

  

Photographing the baby is harder than it looks.

Sometimes I think I need a baby wrangler.

   

   

   I let him play with a shoe lace in an effort to hold his attention.

   

Still, he tends to wander off in pursuit of other interests.

   

But when he comes back around the results are rewarding.

Push Up!

    Grand Baby came over today! We had a wonderful time.

    First we played in the sandbox.

    Then we blew bubbles. He belly-laughed as the dog tried to catch them in her mouth!

    He was offered pizza but preferred an orange.

    Later we stood in front of the mirror and brushed his hair. He loves that.

    After a while he grew sleepy. Waving goodbye, he was buckled into his car seat. Sweet dreams, Grand Baby. I sure am tired!

Smile!

    I have been thinking a lot lately about buying some portrait studio equipment. Strobes and backdrops and such. Not so much for human portraits. For my dog.

    This will come as no surprise to those who know me well. I am the one who had to stop myself just short of telling my grandson "Good dog!" today when he obeyed a command. 

    Correction. He didn't obey a command. He he did what I told him ;)

    I am also the grandma who has seriously considered clicker training my only grandchild.

    Speaking of clicker training, Kira and I have been working on "stay." Kira will do anything if I have the clicker and some cheese. She will stay several seconds now. It seems like a long time to her, but to me it felt as if I had to take this photo very quickly.

    Since I don't have any nice studio stuff yet I rigged up some things and took this (quick) shot last week. It's not perfect, but I like it.

I'm babysitting lol

    Last night I had my first babysitting job since the 9th grade. I think it went pretty well. His name is Jacob. He cries sometimes but all babies do that. He pees a lot. He's pretty cool. The parents were nice. Jobs like this don't pay much but they let me eat anything I wanted and they have a nice TV. It was okay. I'll probably do it again if they ask me.

    Click to hear Jake talk.