I don't feel like writing, so...

Here are some bullet points to catch you guys up.

No new pictures, sorry. I've been too busy taking and editing pictures of other people's children!

Which is okay, because it means a bit of extra income, and being able to do what I love to do.

I've had lots of newborn shoots lately, which are the best.

The last shoot was with a little guy who was 4 weeks old who would make eye contact and smile at me for family pictures...are you kidding!? 

So, naturally, I felt the need to take 750 pictures of him during that shoot. It was a combo shoot at a special rate, with indoor (studio) and outdoor pictures all in one appointment, so it was justified. And really fun. And will be a beast to edit/sort through. But I can't wait!!

We are doing well! Finals are approaching and we are knee deep in the trenches of schoolwork. 

Nathan is getting more and more independent and is learning about consequences. Like when you get stuck between mom's sewing machine and the corner cabinet (it sits there b/c that cabinet is impossible to attach a baby lock to and he once spilled a 5 lb bag of flour all over everything in there...it's also impossible to get inside the cabinet to clean it out, unless you're Nathan's size...), mom and dad make you get out by yourself. He's attempted it less lately! Woo hoo!

Oh, don't pretend like we're cruel. We're not. He wasn't that stuck.

Anyway, 

We have exactly 10 school days left in the semester. WOW. I can't wait for it to be over!! A 3-semester-per-year schedule is beneficial for many reasons, but it stinks for many others. Like when all your friends are talking about summer trips, relaxing, etc. and we only get a six-week summer break, not 4 months like they get.

Our summer break is CHOCK FULL, by the way! I love it! The only bad thing about planning a schedule so full is that the break just flies by. We are planning a big trip to Kansas City to see my family (we only get out there once a year...), a day in Salt Lake after we fly back from KC, where we'll take Nathan to the SLC (Hogle) Zoo and do other fun things, drive from there to Gillette, WY to see Mitch's parents, and then eventually come back home. It means living out of the same suitcases for over a month, but we brave it every year and it's always worth it, so why should this year be any different? :o)

Mitch and I have also planned a couple planned mini-trips before the semester ends in two weeks! (Because I guess we're nutso. Or don't plan well. Probably both.)

Mine is for school; a day trip to Salt Lake City where we'll spend the day watching legislation happen at the state level (this Child and Family Advocacy class is a snore sometimes), and then one of the general authorities of our church will speak to our class personally about advocating for families and children(!!!!) This is a HUGE deal because we are a worldwide church with over 14 million members...and this leader is setting aside time to speak to just 30 of us for an hour!! Amazing.

And then there will totally be photo ops afterwards...you BET all my equipment is coming with me! If our teacher can't get a communication/newspaper student to come with us on the trip he is giving that assignment to me. Which is kind of nerve-wracking because they carry around the school's $10,000 lenses, and well, I don't. Oh well, it will still be very fun!

Mitch is planning an overnight scouting trip to scope out the hunting area he's chosen for this year. He's doing the bow hunting and rifle seasons, which he's really excited for. Bow hunting is the hardest, and all school/chore/work breaks around here involve him setting up his target in the backyard and shooting that bow! I don't know a ton of details about the trip, but I'm still trying to convince him not to go alone. It just freaks me out; there are way too many bears, moose, mountain lions, etc. out here for him to be wandering around alone. Oh, wifey anxiety.

Well, I have 1500 pictures sitting patiently, waiting to be edited. I invested in a few more fun camera toys before our KC trip (during which I have 12 shoots booked!), including a battery grip (to hold an extra battery so I don't have to stop and switch when one dies), another memory card (8 gig, 10 speed, we're happy!), and a new lens to allow me to zoom while still getting the blur of the wide aperture that I like. 

Well, that's about it!

Just for your viewing pleasure, here's another throwback to July 2011 and our chubby baby Nathan...man all these newborn shoots and seeing his old pictures make me baby hungry! 

Yes, we have a plan. No it does NOT involve YOU, OR me being pregnant RIGHT NOW. 

So everyone: practice some restraint! Hush and stop asking, it's actually really getting on my nerves!

Having fun in the hot tub at GG and Papa Dooley's house!

Putting on darling Converse shoes a friend gave us :o)

Testing out my newly-acquired backdrops

Learning to crawl!

Testing out my newly-acquired studio light kit (July was a big photography month for me last year, too!)

Thanks for sticking around this long!

Sorry for the brash statement up there about pregnancy. EVERYONE has been asking/hinting lately, and I just can't take it! My first delivery was not like most people's first; there was a good chance we could have lost Nathan and in the last few hours we didn't know if we'd bring home a baby or not. That led to Postpartum Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, which led to medication and counseling. Now I am peachy (probably 340 or so days out of the year, which is pretty darn good!), but I am also determined to finish school. With 2 semesters left (and 0 deferrals left), there's no time to take off for a baby. I can hold off a few more months to make it through my Bachelor's Degree.

For not feeling like writing I sure talked some ears (eyes?) off...guess no one expects any differently! I guess I'd always rather write than do homework!