Clownin' Around with Raggedy Ann

Last night we went to a Fall Costume Party at Ron and Jennee's house and oh what fun we had! I laughed so hard my sides hurt (no joke). The best part was that everyone had to come in costume. There were definitely some interesting outfits! Aaron was a clown and I went as Raggedy Ann.

It took me about 45 minutes to an hour to paint Aaron's face. I had never done this before and quickly learned that it's much harder to do than it looks. We made it though, and I think it actually came out pretty good.

Mark & Kristin went for the 50's look (aka Sandy & Danny from Grease).

Ron & Jennee were old people. They were really old people.

Dwayne & Katie were a bowling pin and bowling ball.

Aaron didn't recognize David when he and Trisha first walked in. Wigs certainly do change your looks!

Everyone lost it when Aaron demonstrated how big his clown suit was. He really needed a bunch of balloons to top off his outfit. :-)

Nicholas, the giraffe...

and Michael, the dragon, were great playmates.

The food was delicious and very festive. (Jennee is so good at that!)

And then we all carved pumpkins (and roasted the seeds, which were really yummy)! This was such a blast!

We knew we were getting tired when we started switching wigs. Isn't it amazing how your hair makes such a difference in how you look!

October is Family Portrait Month

Did you know October is Family Portrait Month? I know they nearly have a holiday for everything now and some of it is getting to be quite much. However, I think Family Portrait Month is great! If you haven't had a family picture taken recently, you really should get one done! I always tell Aaron that when we're 80, he'll be so glad we had pictures taken when we were young. :-)

Here are a few family pictures I've taken within the last month.

GBS Homecoming

I love Homecoming at GBS! It's such a neat time to see friends and hear the new singing groups and band/choir. Homefest down in the gym afterwards is always so much fun too! It's kind of like Thanksgiving- you have to eat pretty much the whole night.

They had some really cool booths this year. This one above sold pizza and ran out twice!

This tropical booth was cute (and they sold whole dill pickles).
The wet sponges being thrown into people's face was also a big hit. I certainly would not have volunteered, but it was fun to watch.

Yes, it really was a sea of people. Hard to maneuver, but I loved it!

The high school sophomores did a good job with Coney Castle. They had a really neat idea - someone was walking around with a laptop that would take your picture with the King of the Castle (Justin Singleton's boy) and email it to you (below).

Jenny & Lisa - what do I say?

Not sure what the whole story was behind this. Rachelle shoved an entire pie in Gumby's face.

Jim and Anna Orndorff are the nicest people. They received the Alumni of the Year award - very much deserved!

Mark and Aaron - still talking. They're worse than Kristin and me. :-)

My buddy, Nathan Klotz. Somehow, he found a quiet corner to eat in peace.

Saturday morning was the dedication of the new Facilities Building. The maintenance team has needed this for a very long time - I'm so happy that they have such a nice building with lots of room. (I told Mr. Lum that this building would make a great photography studio since it's so roomy, but he wasn't too impressed with my idea.) :-)

The building from the front side. It's really much bigger than it looks in this picture.
(Dave Frederick asked if I would take this picture while he was walking along side the building - ha - totally kidding!)

Happy Birthday, Kaley!

Today is my niece's 6th birthday!

Have fun at Disney on Ice tonight, Kaley!

2006

2007

School Pictures

School pictures are so much fun to take. It's a neat thing, if you really think about it. I'm sure there are many kids that would never get their picture taken if it wasn't for the annual school photo! I can't imagine why a parent would not want to purchase their child's picture every year (and not just because I'm a photographer!). Seriously, kids change so fast and it's so important to have a picture that records this history.

When I started doing the school pictures here at GBS, I also did class pictures (as a group) for the elementary grades. These pictures are some of my favorites. I had a class picture when I was in school and still have them! I love looking back at them and remembering all my classmates and teachers.

Here's a few from this year.

Happy Birthday, Aaron!

Aaron is 31 today! He hasn't felt like getting out since his surgery, so Matt and Erika came over last night to celebrate his birthday.

We had stuffed chicken for supper. This is a delicious recipe - that is pretty simple to make. The recipe can be found here if you are interested.

I ordered his birthday cake from Marianne Brown. She did such a good job and the cake was delicious!!

Here's a few catch up pictures.

Aaron got to ride in the electric cart at Wal-Mart (this was before surgery). I think he enjoyed this a little too much. He would go zooming past me and then back up just so he could hear the very loud BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!!

Right before surgery - he still had a little bit of a smile.

Post - surgery picture. He was really nauseated from the anesthesia, but the doctor said the surgery went very well.

Hope this doesn't gross anyone out, but I think it's kind of interesting. :-)
About 17 staples - ouch!

OK - I've been tagged!

Okay - since I've been tagged by 4 people now, I guess it's time to share 7 random things . . . 

1. I love dill pickles and eat 2 whole ones nearly every day.  I have done this for several years.  (The best price is at Wal-Mart - they have the gallon jars of whole dill pickles for $3.88.)  Literally, my mouth is watering as I type this.

2.  I've passed out twice in my life.  Once in high school while giving blood and once in college while picking up my sister, Dana, after she had her wisdom teeth removed.  When I woke up, Dana was in the chair and I was on the bed she had just been in.  It was scary then, but hilarious now.  (I almost passed out seeing Aaron after surgery last week, but somehow I managed.)

3.  My dream is to have my own photography studio some day with lots of cool photo areas inside and out.  

4.  I love traveling and am always ready to pack my bags and go somewhere, especially overseas or to places I've never been.

5.  I am frustrated with people that don't like change or never venture out.  My pet peeve is hearing, someone say "But we've always done it that way."

6.  Butterfinger is absolutely my favorite candy bar (no others even come close)!

7.  I've attended five different colleges: Cincinnati State (Business), GBS (Church and Family Ministries), IUPUI (Photography), Wilmington (more business) and Liberty University (grad classes in Mgmt).  Whew!  I plan to stop after December.  

Happy Birthday, Jana!

Happy Birthday to my sister, Jana!
Hope you have a great day!

Too busy to blog

Someone said I needed to update my blog. Here are some reasons why I haven't had time recently:

• I am immersed in the hardest graduate course I have ever taken. It's called Executive Leadership and Management. Great topic - but tons of requirements. We are in teams of 5 people to complete this huge research project. One of the teams members is in Iraq and so we can hardly ever communicate with him. Another group member just dropped the class tonight, so the 3 faithful team members had a 3-way call tonight for over an hour that just ended at 11:30 PM. We have to divide up the drop-out's assignments, which means more responsibilities for all of us.
  

• I am teaching a 3-hour college class here at GSB on Thursday evenings. Love the topic (Office Procedures), but takes a lot of time.

• In the last 2 weeks I have photographed over 400 people for school pictures (GBS & UBC). Loved doing this, but now proofs have to be printed, photos labeled, etc.

• GBS is preparing for an evaluation visit with the accrediting team from the Higher Learning Commission. Preparation for this visit has meant a lot of extra work in the office.

• My husband has a torn ACL and MCL and has to be driven to and from work and to and from school for night classes (I'm very thankful that we live so close to Christ Hospital and to UC).
  

Since Aaron's ACL surgery is tomorrow (Friday) and since we have to be at the surgery center in about 8 hours (7:15 AM), I'm off to bed. I will post again sometime, when things slow down a little.

Touchdown!

Last night we enjoyed watching my nephew, Drew Englund, play football. These 6th graders were fun to watch! It was Lakota (his team) vs. Indian Hill. Drew's team won 24-6! I've always liked football, but can't say I've ever totally understood everything about the game. I should know the rules since I was at every single home game during my 4 years of high school (I was distracted though, since I was in marching band. You can't play the trumpet and learn football at the same time, right?). Anyway, Aaron very patiently answered my many questions last night and now I am "educated" in the rules of football.

Drew is # 5.



I know this is kind of blurry - but it is an "action" shot. Way to go, Drew!

"Good game, good game . . ."

Two Happy Couples!

Saturday morning I had the privilege of taking engagement pictures for two couples: Faith McManaman & Josh Avery and Dana Englund & Phil Vernon. It was great weather for outdoor pictures! We had fun at Ault Park and the studio shots were fun too.

Faith and Josh are planning their wedding for July 2008 in New York. Faith use to work in the Admin Building when she was a student at GBS - her desk was diagonal from mine. We had many good talks and fun times!

Since Dana is my sister, she has no other choice but to use me for her photographer :-) (with the exception of the wedding - I don't do weddings for family). Dana and Phil are getting married in Missouri on October 27, 2007.