31/365: First Run Back Sunshine

About a month ago our dog Ben was attacked by another dog while out running with my husband.  The other dog came running out of it's garage when they ran past and ripped into Ben's neck/shoulder area ripping a nice silver dollar size hole in him.  Now after a few weeks of recovery and a lovely bath (aka warm shower in our master bathroom), Ben finally was taken out again for a run today.  All went well although they did have to turn around and take a detour when my husband noticed an unleashed dog just sitting in a yard staring them down.  No need to put Ben in anymore dangerous situations. 

You can just see a little scar where they stitched him up amidst all the shaved hair.

30/365: Sunday Self-Portrait Sunshine

I enlisted a little help this week in trying to get my self-portrait.  McGee and I had fun making faces at the mirror together while I snapped away.

Then I did the unthinkable...I trusted my beloved camera into the hands of my 4 year old...and he rocked it!  Here I am, SOOC (straight-out-of-camera), which means no editing done, this is just how my 4 year old took it.  Guess we may have to make this photography thing a family business. :)

Sunday Self-Portrait Sunshine:

29/365: The Cross Jesus Died on Sunshine

I love when children are able to use their imagination, the world where anything is possible and no limits are set.  Thoughts and ideas are not kept in a box and all that has been learned can be used and expressed any way they want. 

While shooting a Valentine Mini-Session in my home today, my husband was trying to keep our kids busy playing in the other room when suddenly McGee (my 4yo) came up to me and shoved his recent thistle block creation in my face and said, "Look mom, the cross that Jesus died on."  I turned and quickly snapped a pic before he ran off to create some more.

Later in the day he and I were talking about it and he said, "I know it's sad Jesus had to die on that cross for our sins, but I'm so glad he came out of that grave and rose again!"

The Cross Jesus Died on Sunshine:

28/365: "To Do List" Sunshine

There are always things to be done around the house, so many things, but today I was able to finally cross a few of them off my "To Do" list!

"To Do List" Sunshine:

#1 - Need to straighten and re-tape the picture that his slipped down in the frame and is showing the image behind it at the top.

#2 - Wash the chandelier glass.

#3 - Dust and get rid of cobwebs in chandelier and replace the 3 burned out bulbs.

#4 - Finish culling and editing recent couples session images.

#5 - Turn this pile of papers into my very organized filing system for my business.

27/365: Little Robin Hoods Sunshine

Most little boys love action figures and superheroes so it's no surprise my 4 year old does as well, but how many do you know that can shoot a bow and arrow as well as their favorite hero Robin Hood and take their little friend's on a forest adventure?

Robin Hoods Sunshine:

26/365: Comfort Sunshine

Hello my name is Mindy and I'm an emotional eater.

After finding out last night that a dear friend's 2 1/2 yr. old daughter was diagnosed with Leukemia, chocolate chip cookies seemed to be in order to go along with my wadded up tissues and country music.

Brooklyn Erika was born just a few weeks before my Miss Em and they're both vivacious blonde haired, blue-eyed delights.  Miss Brooklyn and her brother and sister were actually my first ever attempt at a "photo session" and Brooklyn was my first photo posting on my photography blog.  The road ahead is unknown and our God is good and mighty to save, but I was in need of a little comfort today so instead of choosing a healthier coping mechanism such as exercising, I turned to good 'ole chocolate.  What do you turn to for comfort?

25/365: Chipped Tooth Sunshine

We were out enjoying another day of beautiful sunshine today when Miss Em fell on her bike and hit her mouth on the pavement.  It wasn't until later while changing her for nap that I discovered she had chipped her front tooth a tiny bit.  She seems so proud of him saying, "See Myles, look at my tooth!" and running her tongue all along it.

Chipped Tooth Sunshine:

24/365: Foggy Morning Sunshine

We have been enjoying some lovely foggy mornings lately, followed by beautiful afternoon sunshine.  I myself love stormy, foggy, wet weather, although as a natural light photographer I've realized poor weather is not usually my friend.  This foggy weather by morning and afternoons full of sun have been truly delightful to me though, giving me a little taste of winter weather without the long-term affects of housebound children.

Foggy Morning Sunshine:

Afternoon Races Sunshine:

23/365: Sunday Self-Portrait

This is literally the ONLY picture I took today not related to afternoon photo session of an adorable couple.  Honestly, before I left for the shoot I remembered I needed an image of myself and had about 2 minutes to set up the self-timer, pray it was in focus (completely forgot to adjust exposure) and SNAP - I was done! 

22/365: Re-Arranging Sunshine

My son has been coughing a lot lately and although colds and viruses seem to be running rampant right now, he has no other symptoms and his cough is completely non-productive so I was thinking maybe it's an allergy.  Thus I spent 2+ hours cleaning every nook and cranny of his room including moving and vacuuming behind and under every piece of furniture and dusting.  When I removed all of the drawers from his dresser I was disgusted to find cobwebs and sawdust that I quickly vacuumed up.  Then I decided to rearrange his room a bit.  The main challenge was trying to keep the kids out of his room so I could get it all done, as you can see Miss Em thought she hid herself well under a blanket.  HaHa!

I think the new arrangement of furniture is much better, but the cough still seems to be going strong. :(

 

21/365: Pajama Day Sunshine

Preschool is so much fun!  Today was "Pajama  Day" and the kids squeezed fresh orange juice and enjoyed a breakfast feast of pancakes and sausage.  I love how Miss Em was laying on the table watching her brother just like one of the "big kids".

20/365: Lovely Girls Sunshine

Do I even need any words to express how much I love this?

19/365: Choosing My Battles Sunshine

I love how this image could have been taken decades ago or just today.  Potty-training has been around since the creation of people, although I have no idea how Adam and Eve knew what to do when Cain and Abel came along.  

In 4 months this girl will be 3 years old.  Her brother potty-trained right away at age 3.  She has been using the potty whenever it suits her for over a year now, yet she still wears diapers most days.  They say potty-training girls is easier than boys, but with how strong-willed this one is, I'd rather not turn it into a battle of wills between mother and daughter.  I know she "can" be potty-trained, but it's more a matter of when she "wants" to go in the potty or when going in her pants is just fine for her.

Choosing My Battles Sunshine:

18/365: Emptying the Soap Bottle Sunshine

It was a tough day so I put the kids to work...

Actually, this is what my friend and I found Miss Em doing while we were in the living room helping the 3 boys clean up.  McGee decided she needed some help with all that cleaning and jumped right in.

Emptying the Soap Bottle Sunshine:

17/365: 5 Little Cousins Sunshine

5, 4, 3, 2, 1...those were the ages as we looked around the dinner table tonight.  We were watching our niece and nephews and had a wonderful evening listening to all of the cousins laughing, giggling, chasing, hiding, and loving on one another.  They all piled on the couch to watch "Dinosaur Train".  Can you tell the middle three are siblings?  My two are the bookends of the bunch.

5 Little Cousins Sunshine:

The fun thing is they get to all be together again tomorrow night as my husband and I get to have our "date night".

ETA:  Just had to edit and add that my niece just walked in the office and saw this post and said, "That's a beautiful picture!"  :)

16/365: Sunday Self-Portrait

It has been a busy, busy weekend and I didn't get home Sunday night until past midnight so thankfully hubby took a quick picture of Miss Em and I right before church to count as my portrait for today.  It's not creative, but I always love how cooperative and eager Miss Em is to have her picture taken with me.

Happy, Baby Girl Sunshine:

15/365: A Date for the Cousins Sunshine

We enjoyed the afternoon and evening with cousins and at one point they set up the trampoline with all of the chairs, plates, cups and food and McGee said they were going on a "date".  I loved the well set table so much I knew it had to be my picture for today.

A Date for the Cousins Sunshine:

14/365: Heavenly Black & Whites Sunshine

At 4 1/2 McGee has been saying the sweetest and funniest prayers lately.  Last night he prayed for Uncle Gordon who has been having back pain and then some...

"Dear Jesus thank you for all that you give to us and do for us and please help Uncle Gordon to feel better and take away his pain.  We know you are the true king and, but why did you make dinosaurs to live on the land?  Well I love you very much and thank you.  Goodbye.  Amen."  

The italics were to show how he really drew the word "true" out and I loved how he was praying, then had a thought mid-prayer and voiced it.  Praying really is an honest conversation with God and I'm glad my boy is just keeping it real.

Then there is this little independent one who has the most precious little prayer voice, but is a bit stubborn about praying and has to be encouraged on occasion to voice her prayers out loud.

Both of these images were taken today in a mini (say 3 minutes) session out front after mommy received an exciting delivery from the UPS man. ;)  Also if you'd like to see some more pictures telling about our fun day you can head on over to my family blog.

13/365: Birthday Cake for Nobody Sunshine

We had a wonderful day AT HOME today.  No preschool, no errands to run, just the kids, dogs and I with no agenda.  It was fantastic!  My kids have been known to get into some trouble and make some whopper messes when I'm not looking, but this time I was right there with them letting them go wherever their imaginations were taking them.  Apparently their little minds were up for a birthday party and they created birthday cakes with sourdough bread, blueberries, mini-marshmallows and chocolate syrup.  The party was complete with a hearty rendition of "Happy Birthday Nobody".

Happy Birthday Nobody Sunshine:

Afterwards my son proudly marched around the dining room saying, "I'm 5 years old now, I'm 5 years old!  Oh yeah - I'm 5 years old now!"  (Um, not for another 4 months actually!)

12/365: Princess Cousins Sunshine

I didn't intend to post dress-up images back-to-back, but we've been having a couple of fun days full of playtime and these are the images I'm getting (and loving)!  We are blessed to live only a few doors down from my brother and sister-in-law (my husband's brother) and their kids and between the 2 of us we gave my in-laws 5 grandkids in 4 years.  The cousins are so close in age and have a BLAST playing with one another whenever they can.  Tonight we swapped my son McGee for my niece Addie and the girls had lots of fun playing dress-up.  You can tell my daughter Miss Em just adores her big cousin!

11/365: A Couple of Holy Knights

My 4 yo son is currently obsessed with all things weapons: bows and arrows, swords, daggers, guns, etc.  For Christmas my son received the "Armor of God" from my in-laws and his friend Jared received it as a gift as well.  Today we had a "Dress-Up Playdate" and the two had fun playing swords totally decked out with the Helmet of Salvation, the Shield of Righteousness, the Sword of the Spirit (the favorite piece in the ensemble), the Belt of Truth and the Gospel of Peace (the leg shields).  

My son is on the left and his friend is on the right.  The funny thing is both boys are pretty small for their size and I love how the belt is falling near Jared's knees.

A Couple of Holy Knights Sunshine:

10/365: Frosty Morning Sunshine

It was incredibly cold and frosty here this morning, 28 degrees to be exact which is not at all common here.  

Frozen Lion Dog-Toy on a Frosty Morning Sunshine:

9/365: Self-Portrait Sunday

It's Sunday so I'm reluctantly sharing another self-portrait with you.  It's a bit scary to me knowing I will have to post another 50 self-portraits by the end of the year.  I mean really, who likes to take their own picture?  Let alone stare at it during editing and posting.   Hmmm...I know this is a good challenge, but I'm looking forward to posting what the rest of the week will bring much more!

8/365: Breakfast With Friends Sunshine

I was blessed to enjoy the morning over coffee and waffles with a few dear friends.  Unfortunately I still haven't mastered the art of handing my camera over to someone and getting a decent, in-focus picture back in return, but I'm still glad to have this capture to remember our fun.

7/365: For the Love of Shoes Sunshine

I love shoes, I do.  In high school I think I remember counting over 40-50 pairs once, a little excessive I know, but each pair held a unique style, purpose and feel to them and I couldn't help myself so I loved them.  With an adult budget nowadays my shoe love has been reigned in the last few years, but I still love a great pair of shoes.  These are adorable, feminine and best of all?  They only cost me $1.20!

6/365: Well Loved Marinade Sunshine

My mom was and is the cook, but my dad is the griller and a few years ago he shared his "secret" marinade with us via email and it has been used on all sorts of meats and is a big hit every time!  The printed out email is covered with many layers of wine and soy sauce drips, but it is a well loved recipe and we'll be enjoying some tri-tip with it tonight!

Well Loved Marinade Sunshine

5/365: Snowman Day in Preschool Sunshine

This is our first year of preschool and we love it!  My son's teachers are amazing and we enjoy all of their fun ways of teaching including themed "days".  Today was "Snowman Day" and McGee enjoyed a post-preschool snowman snack that he made in class, after saying a quick prayer of course. :)

Snowman Day in Preschool Sunshine:

4/365: Stomp Rocket Sunshine

A beautiful day of sunshine gave us a great excuse to play with some of the new Christmas gifts.

Stomp Rocket Sunshine:

and... Trying to Get the Rockets Out of the Tree Sunshine:

3/365: Waking Before the Sunrise Sunshine

First of all I want to welcome and thank any and all of you that have stopped by my new blog!  I'm excited to see where this 365 Project will take me and hope you'll stick along on the journey!

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Some people are morning people...I am not.  I adore a good night's sleep and being that I'm a night owl, sleeping in is my favorite way to get rest.  As a mother this is actually quite rare to achieve, but waking before the sunrise is most definitely not something I aim for.  However, today I had to commute an hour away for an early morning start at a consulting job and I enjoyed watching the dark sky lighten over the countryside while I sipped my splurged-for Starbuck's Peppermint Mocha and drove to work.

Waking Before the Sunrise Sunshine:

I Heart Faces│Best Face Photo

I Heart Faces is having their Best Face Photo of 2010 contest this week and although I could spend hours pouring through all of my pictures (and I did spend a little bit of time tonight), it's usually an incredibly difficult task for me to narrow it down to just one picture.  Tonight though there was definitely ONE picture that stood out as a favorite face photo of mine and it's a recent one I just posted too!  From the magnifying glass to her eye, the deliberate jut of her chin and her side glance, this picture perfectly captures the adventurous, fun-loving and goofy personality of my little Miss Em!

2/365: Cleaning Out the Office Sunshine & Self-Portrait Sunday Sunshine

Ever since getting my new computer (*cough, I'm a PC, *cough) I have wanted to re-arrange my desk a little and clean out our office which functions as an office/music/scrapbook/library/man cave room.  I really would love a whole room makeover complete with lovely fresh paint, pretty curtains and an organized to the max space, but today I was happy to just vacuum all the dust from under the desk, throw away lots of things and re-arrange a little.

Cleaning Out the Office Sunshine (with the last of my Peppermint Hot Chocolate):

Also a fellow 365er is using some themes to help complete her project and I've decided I will try to participate in "Self-Portrait Sunday".  I already had my post ready to go when I remembered this so I quickly snapped a shot of myself reflecting from the oven door:

1/365: Sickie Sunshine

Since Christmas Eve I have been sick with a cold and since Tuesday my little Miss Em has been sick as well.  She has a cold and what the advice nurse called "viral pink eye" which means instead of just a runny nose, she has secretions coming out of her eyes as well.  You can see in the photo on the left a bit of redness on her right eye (your left).  The eye looks bloodshot and we have to wipe yellow and green boogies from her eyes throughout the day and take a warm wash cloth to them each morning to try and wipe the gunk away.  Yet despite being sick this little girl is all smiles and fun for us, she still radiates her love and joy through Sickie Sunshine:

Yikes - I think I'm going to do it!

I can't believe I'm going to type this, but I think I'm going to attempt a Project 365, taking and posting 1 photo a day for the next 365 days!  Being the poor decision maker that I am when it comes to photos of my children, I may post more than one photo a day or a collage of photos.  I don't want to put a lot of rules on myself, but as stated in my header I want this 365 project to be a way to document the everyday rays of sunshine I find in our day-to-day, routine-filled lives.  I thank you if you've decided to join me on this journey and I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for our family in 2011!