Fall and Children always a good mix trying to enter a contest with www.rocktheshotforum.com

We'll see what happens there are way too many talented photographers out there for me to have a chance.

So I guess I need to upload a bunch of stuff to smugmug from this summer. I can't believe how much my monkey boy has grown up. He's getting his own breakfast in the morning, sometimes putting his own lunch together for school. He's mostly stopped asking for us to buy him things. He'll either add it to his Christmas list or save up his allowance to get it himself. (he gets between 2 and 3 dollars a week based on how many of his chores he does.) I'm proud of him. I'm trying to parent him the same way i was parented. My mom told me, that a parent's job is to make sure the child can survive on his own in the real world. It's funny when I told him how happy I was to having him chipping in and helping out he looked at me funny, and wondered why it was such a big deal. Then he thought about it, and realized a lot of his classmates/friends don't do things for themselves because the parents do everything for them.

I nodded and said "yes those are helicopter parents" There are a lot of people out there who graduate college and don't know how to live on their own because the parents never taught them the skills they'd need. I guess that's why I don't usually mind the mess when he helps me make a meal. He thought that was funny and a few days later he was explaining the concept to his Aunt Susan. She got a kick out of it too. So here's to growing a confidant skilled child.

How did summer blow by so fast?

Really wasn't it just May? Summer was busy in that stop and go type of way. Busy/gone one week nothing the next. So we start off with kids getting out of school late because of snow days. The week after I went back to my hometown for my 25th HS reunion. It's funny I saw a lot of these same people 5 years ago but I guess being 7 months pregnant I didn't really stay and hang out. I had that chance and I think surprised people with who I've become. At one point I remember saying, I had to go away to be comfortable enough to be who I wanted to be. I couldn't do that staying in Girard.

So we get back and it's 4th of July. The next week the munchkin (or I should say mouchkin, the boy is such a mouch when we're at his brother's sports events) started extended school year as well as Music Therapy. I think the combination speech therapy and music therapy out side of what he gets in school is really helping with his speech. So July we basically just hung out. Monkey boy did do a week of rock wall climbing at the Y. Then Aug started the craziness all over again. We were redistricted to a new school, so I'm getting involved in the yearbook there. I'm so lucky that in someways the Monkey is flexible. He's taken to the change in schools pretty well. In the end this makes it easier for the Munchkin as he won't have to change school when he starts Kindergarten next year. (sheesh how is it my baby will be in kindergarten next year?) We spent a week in TN visiting my dad. I had my art and photos on display at B&N for the month of Aug and to top all that off two of my pages were included in the Fall edition of Somerset's Digital Studio.


I can't remember if I actually posted the two pages on here yet. But they're there at the top.

Of course Irene had something to say about the start of school. The kids started two days late, well monkey boy did, the munchkin didn't really start until after Labor day. So now i'm getting into the swing of the school year and what to do with my mornings. Though for September they seem to be filled with various doctor's appointments, all those yearly things, mammogram, teeth cleaning, physical. I'm also taking an online course through HCC on photographing people. Just trying to up my skills. Wish they had a class on lighting but I may have to fork out 300 for something like that. (sigh) Maybe I'll go post some pages.

Just a few More

Oh I may as well post the two pages from this years, not doing so well keeping up this time around.

Might as well finish up my Art journal posting from Last Year.

I mean it is mid May of 2011 at this point.