Day 30: H-A-Y-D-E-N

Hayden wrote out his own Valentine cards this year. I saw lots of cute Valentine ideas on Pinterest and posted on Facebook, but let's face it, I am not supermom and ain't nobody got time for that.

The boys were ecstatic about their $2.99 Spiderman and Thomas the Train cards and who I am squander their excitement with some glow stick, goldfish, gummy worm homemade concoction? That's what I'm going to tell myself anyway.

I am proud of him for doing this all by himself and I love every bit of his chicken scratch  handwriting.

And that, my friends, concludes the 30 day photo challenge. I did it! Took me a while to post them all, but I did it. I consider that an accomplishment since I can't do anything for three days much less 30. I am actually really glad to have these photos. Some of them aren't perfect or the best photos I've ever taken in terms of lighting and technique, but I learned some new things and forced myself to try something different and now have beautiful memories to show for it. Hopefully, I will remember to capture these everyday moments. If I ever stop doing photography as a profession, it will not have gone to waste. I will have years of photos of my kids and for that I am grateful.

Day 29 - Wild One

She's a wild one, this one. With her piercing blue eyes and the biggest smile I've ever seen. I hope the world is ready for her. She may be small, but she is fierce. And I absolutely love her.

Day 28 - A Boy and His Bugs

Hudson has been fascinated with bugs for quite some time. He loves to look at them, touch them, squash them. He even tries to bring them in the house to show me. I do not share in his bug fascination, but I enjoy watching his wonder and amazement with them.

Day 27 - Little Helper

Harley is quite the busy bee these days. She wants to be right in the middle of whatever the boys are doing and she makes herself right at home. Hayden is very patient with her and let her mess up his puzzle multiple times before he got it all together. Hudson is not quite as patient. :)

Day 26 - Jump

The boys got this mini trampoline for Christmas and it has provided a lot of entertainment on these warm "winter" days.

Day 25 - Middle

This is my middle child. Sweet. Ornery. Full of life. Happy. Frustrated. Funny. Stubborn. The hungriest child I've ever met.

He had to grow up way too fast when his baby sister came and now that he will be three in a few weeks, I wish I could slow down and let him be my baby just a little longer. He is not an easy child to parent, but he is SO easy to love. Just the way he is.

Day 24 - Spider Crawl

Harley always crawls with one leg up. Hudson did the same thing. We have wood floors so I'm guessing that's why?

Day 23 - Jammies

Harley is hanging right in there with the big boys now. She just acts like she owns the place. I love all of my babies in their pj’s. Nevermind the fact that it might have been 4 p.m. when I took these.

Going...Going...Gone!

I always know when Harley is ready to go to sleep because that is the only time she sucks her thumb. Sweet baby girl. She was fast asleep right after this last photo.

Day 21 - Playtime

I am obviously a few days behind on posting these photos, but I am determined to finish this challenge!

Harley started pulling up and standing recently. She is really proud of herself! She is such a busy bee these days, always on the move and into everything. She is growing way too fast!

Day 20 - Happiness

We met our friends at Kiddie Acres last night. It is a nostalgic little amusement park that is just the right size for small children. It isn’t shiny and fancy, but it elicits happiness just the same. They absolutely love it there! There are several cute photos from the night, but this one is my favorite. And don’t worry, the creeper in the back is my husband. :)

Day 19 - Trains

The boys love playing with their trains. One thing about this photo challenge is that it is teaching me to slow down and pay attention to the little things that my kids do everyday that I sometimes miss because I’m too busy doing other things. I know the day will come all too soon when trains will be replaced with video games and girls so for now I want to enjoy their childhood and the fact that I haven’t lost all of my cool points yet.

Several people have asked if I will continue this after the 30 days is over. I don't know that I will do it every single day, but I do plan to do something at least weekly. 

Day 18 - Pretty in Pink

I am ready for the time to change because I get these ideas in my head and then I can’t just drag three kids to a location to take pictures so I have to wait for the mister to get home and it is already almost dark. I had approximately four minutes to take photos before the sun set, but it was worth it because I got a few sweet shots of this girl.

Day 17 - Firstborn

It is hard for me to imagine that my firstborn baby will be five in just a couple of short months. What a sweet, handsome, witty and hilarious little boy he is turning out to be. Those dimples are going to steal a girl’s heart someday. I love him to the moon and back.

Day 16 - Ladies of the House

Lady is so patient and puts up with three kids messing with her all the time. She is always looking for someone to lie down beside. I usually find her in Harley's room by her crib.

It was pretty dark when I took this photo, but I made it work.

Day 15 - Sleeping Beauty

I never ever get tired of watching a sleeping baby. This girl loves to sleep.

Day 14 - Looking Through

I am watching Jamie edit a photo she took of me. That person you see on the screen in the fedora is yours truly. :)

Day 13 - Alex and Jamie

I missed day 12 because I was busy getting ready to go on a retreat with my photographer friends, Alex and Jamie. More on that to come soon, but here are a couple of photos of them. Love these girls and I am so thankful for them. We share our failures and our triumphs, our frustrations and our fears, our hopes and our dreams. We started this journey together two years ago when we met in Oklahoma and we have come a LONG way since then. This business is tough, but we have learned so much about ourselves and our abilities and I can’t wait to see where it takes us.

Day 11 - Cheese

Hudson thoroughly enjoying his pizza roll. This boy is as sweet and ornery as they come. I can’t really explain it. He makes parenting hard and rewarding all at the same time.

Day 10 - Silly Girl

Harley is beautiful and happy even when she’s sick. I’m pretty sure I can’t say the same for myself! She found this scarf in my room and drug it to the living room and thought it was hilarious when Hudson put it on her head. Silly girl. Oh and if you haven't noticed my kids don't like to wear clothes very often. :)