a thousand words

the secret

A few weeks ago, I had the good fortune of attending The Secret Workshop with Cheryl Muhr..
It was INCREDIBLE. I traveled to Austin and met my girls Heather & Jenny. The fun I had with them requires an entirely different post (with pictures... coming)! The workshop was informative, inspiring, confidence boosting, eye opening, and just plain fun. If there is anyone out there who wants to take their photography to the next level (especially business wise), I highly recommend Cheryl's gig.

One of the craziest parts of the two days was the free shoot. Picture 40 photographers roaming the city streets of austin all trying to photograph the same 10 kids. I felt like paparazzi! Even with those odds, I managed to catch some shots that make me happy.

to my mom (in africa)

mom,

you are far away this mother's day, but not for long.
we are counting down the seconds until you're back on this continent.
i can't wait for the kids to know their gramma sue again.
to know that she will give you ice cream if you just sing the "carvel" jingle.
to know that she falls asleep to the news almost every night.
to know that she is the best kiss-y monster in all the land.
my kids are lucky to have a grandma as wonderful as you.

and I am lucky to have a mom as wonderful as you.

I must have been 3(?) when this photo was taken.
I love so much about it.
It makes me remember how attached I was to you! Crying at the door when you would leave at night for homemaking or pta meetings.
I love my hand around your neck. My stella does the same thing to me.
I love the peek of the rings on your fingers. My hands are starting to look just like yours!

In preparation for a primary lesson I am giving tomorrow in church, I had reason to stop and think about the little things you did for david, brian, adam, cris, traci and I.
I am so grateful that you were able to stay home with us. I was one of the only kids at fox meadow school who could walk home during lunch and have a white paper plate of tuna fish sandwich and apple slices waiting for me.
I am so grateful you always gave us freedom to make our choices-- right or wrong.
I am grateful you lead by example with exercise and taking care of your body. There were many cold cold mornings when you were walking the track with Joan and Linda while we were in seminary.
I am grateful for your patience. I know I was a sassy tween, but you loved me right through it. :)
I am grateful you were and are always known as the easy person to be around. People feel comfortable around you. I strive to be that same way.

Dad often tells my Morgan how I am growing up to be just like you. I can not think of anything better.

I love you, ma!

xoxo
-elizabeth diane

finally, some pink

Little Miss D brings a welcomed splash of pink to the Dalton family! After three boys in a row, the Daltons were surprised with a baby girl. Just look at this sweet thing...

She was well worth the wait, I believe!

Two weeks old and as precious as can be. My job is the best.

This photo makes me giggle, it's almost as if she asserting her "girl power!" already. :)

Brynne, I hope we successfully froze your sweet little girl in time. More to come in slideshow form soon!

xo

Inside Idol

Last night I finally made it IN to the American Idol taping! Hooray!
It was so. much. fun.

If you've been reading the blog for the past few weeks, you know we were denied a few weeks ago. With priority "turnaway" tickets in hand, we bypassed a lot of waiting around yesterday. By "we" I mean myself, my husband, my brother-in-law and sister-in-law (nikki). Luckily, we were placed standing in "the pit". (boy I like the quotation marks today, don't I?) I was right on the outside edge, with Randy Jackson sitting about two arms lengths away from me.

Highlights for me:
-a handshake from Simon, and a few seconds later from Randy
-a serious hug from Paula (she really likes the fan attention, you can tell)
-Randy telling Morgan he was funny, after Morgan said Simon's critique was on the money
-seeing Rascal Flatts, Carly Smithson, and talking with Idol families
-chatting with Maria, winner of The Shot (a reality photography show that I LOVED!)
-one of the producers asking if we would surround David Archuleta and Jason Castro during a transition. um... yeah!!!! Because of this, we had our 2.3 seconds of fame on national television.

proof:

I enjoyed seeing how everything worked together like a well-oiled machine.

I was the guest blogger over at the Gillespie's blog today. Sara does the Idol recap each week, and she let me help out today. :) So, head on over THERE for lots more detail and a photo from me!!

And if that isn't enough for you... go check out Nikki's recap of the night too.

e, out! :D

look who's two!

our very own, charlotte blair!

we had a small celebration of cupcakes with the neighbors on the 3rd, Then a belated family party the next day.

we loved having darren & nikki (why aren't you in this photo?) over to help us eat filet mignon, corn on the cob, & birthday shortcake.

I threw up the trusty birthday banner and finally got to try my hand at tissue flowers. Super easy & an instant party!

Happy Birthday to Charlotte and my Dad (Blair). I love that they share the same birthday.

A few 2 year old things I never want to forget about my Char Char.

Your nicknames: Char, Charby, Charby Charby Goo Goos, littlest one, Googs.
Your words: too many to name. But, I especially love the way you say "Chew" for two.
Your favorite person on the planet: Daddy
Your favorite food: Waa Waa (translation: juice mixed with water), Pop! (translation: lolipop), Cheese
Your favorite game: Mommy calls... you run away laughing!
Your loves: "B" (blankie), and mom singing you "Lullaby"
Your fears: the garbage truck. You have a love/fear relationship with dogs of all sizes.

You laugh easily and love to be tickled. You know when the garage door goes up that your best friend is about to walk through the kitchen door. You try to sing "I am a Child of God", but only mommy knows what you are saying. You are horrible at sleeping in the car, but a champ in the port a crib. You require a good 12 hours of sleep each night. You know all your animal sounds, and love to read "Time for Bed" so you can buzz like a bee and meow like a cat. You think you are big like berk and stella-- always trying to ride their bikes and wear their clothes. Your snuggles (while sucking your thumb and holding "B") are our favorite time of day.

We love you, Charlotte, and are blessed to have you in our little family!

white to yellow

Berk is a student of Tae Kwon Do. There is a wonderful DoJang in the church across the street from Berk's school. His master is a 73 year old retiree that runs the program as a community service.

About 4 months ago, Berk started going to class twice a week. Tonight was Berk's first test-- the test to go from a white to a yellow belt.
He was a bit nervous.

But after a pep talk from Master Earl...

...Berk passed!

I only wish I could have seen berk's face as he faced the judges!

Berk has now informed me that he is learning THREE languages. English at home, Spanish at school and Korean at Tae Kwon Do.

Cheuk ka hamnida! Congratulations, son!

idol report

after...

a morning of prepping to leave the kids with the sitter (thanks, ani!)
an afternoon of driving to Los Angeles
3 hours standing in line
some schmoozing and pleading...

...there was NO LIVE IDOL for me!!!

Apparently, a load of VIPs and priority seating people decided to show up to the studio tonight.
This left about 75 of us sitting outside-- with wristbands and no seats.

don't worry about me though. I was able to enjoy a child-free dinner with my husband & spend some good time chatting with nikki & darren. we caught a glimpse of the big dog, randy, getting out of his pimped out mercedes. He flashed us a signature sideways peace sign, and I was happy.
{nikki and I with randy's ride}

Best of all, we'll have priority seats for a future show this season (I am thinking two weeks from now). No line waiting or guessing next time!

bee stings and big words

stella's vocabulary is ever changing and growing. much of the time, the things she says are funny simply because they don't make any sense. in the aftermath of a few injuries this week, she's amused me with her BIG words.

berk cut his head open on a fence at school on thursday. it was a bit traumatic (bleeding all over the playground with his friends watching-- poor guy), so I was babying him a bit. berk and I were snuggled up on the couch...
me: stella, will you turn on the TV for berk please?
stella with conviction: it will be my pleasure!!

stella stepped on a bee and was stung at the beach on friday. I was holding her on my beach chair and between sobs I heard her say:
i hate bees! this is HORRIBLE!

{photo note: snapped march '08 while playing peek-a-boo in bed}

I'm 13 again

Though I am quickly closing in on 30, I feel 13 years old tonight!
Let me explain...a while ago, I put my name on the OnCameraAudiences waiting list for American Idol. Tonight, I got the e-mail giving me options as to which taping I'd like to attend. I was able to get tickets to the LIVE performance taping on tuesday evening!!!!!!

I have been giddy all night. Two words: David Cook.
I am able to look beyond his comb over and see his incredible talent. I can't wait to see him live.

While on the topic of American Idol... if you are a fan (and who isn't watching? what else was on TV when american idol started this season?) you need to visit my friend Sara's blog. She does a great re-cap of AI each week. She's hilarious and I agree with most all of her musings.

Thanks for letting me gush share my excitement!
You better believe I'll be reporting back next wednesday.

following closely behind

I've said it before, but I'll say it again...
my kids LOVE their dad.

The almost 2 year old Charlotte loves Dad maybe a little too much-- crying as he leaves each day and insisting he help her with everything (more on this another day)!

It is incredible to watch Berk and Morgan together. Berk hangs on his Dad's every word & will follow him about anywhere. Morgan's enthusiasm for things is contagious, and Berk is easily excited by whatever Dad has up his sleeve.

As a pre-teen, Morgan was a skateboarder. He spent many afternoons grinding down the neighborhood curbs and getting into a bit of trouble. In a brilliant move, his mom & dad introduced him to golf. If I am not mistaken, they thought it would help reform him! Morgan fell in love with the sport and spent many many afternoons playing with his best friend, on his high school team, & with his father.

The Masters tournament brings out the golfer in Morgan every year. He is glued to the TV and usually dusts off the clubs for a trip to the driving range. This weekend, Morgan finally introduced Berk to golf.
(red eyes courtesy of the pool that afternoon)

Clubs were purchased and collared shirts put on.

Berk now officially knows more about the sport than I do. Morgan drew this out:

This is what Morgan had to say about it in his weekly e-mail to the grandparents:
"One of the more notable events that took place this weekend was me explaining to Berk how to play golf as we watched the Masters together. Oh man, it was great times. We got him some clubs down at Walmart and we pulled them out of the box and put them in the bag. I left the room for a moment and when I returned, I saw him standing there with the bag already on his back ready to go. I just about cried on the spot. Buff took some pictures. It caught me by complete surprise. It was the boost I needed this weekend. We played football, basketball, rode bikes, hit golf balls, and wrestled. I can see the challenge with Berk is going to get him to narrow down the sports he wants to play. He would do them all if he could."

I LOVE that Morgan and Berk have eachother.
I love that Morgan has his "boy" to introduce to the things he loves.
I am over the moon that Berk has Morgan to emulate and follow closely behind.