all in a day's work by amy parsons photography

a few changes....

NEW feature....I just installed a way for you to subscribe to my blog.  All you have to do is type your email in at the right------------>Go through a quick email confirmation and YOU ARE DONE....Now, all you blog stalkers out there can stay updated on my exciting life and business.  I know you are out there!!! (wink, wink)

xoxo, Amy 

School is almost out, time to play!!!

Hooray!!!  There are only 5 days left of school!!  I don't know about you, but I'm counting down the days until I can hang dark blankets on the windows of my daughters' rooms and pray that they sleep in past 7am.  (does anyone else do this?)  This year has been a hard and hectic year for me.  Grace is finishing the first grade and I drive her (the other 2 just enjoy the ride) to school in the mornings.  Then I come home and have about 2 hours to either do running or 1 load of laundry or pick up the house a little before I have to get Holli, our middle daughter, down to catch the bus. (she goes 1/2 a day)  Then I get back and hope it will be an easy task to get Charley, our youngest daughter, down for her nap. (can you believe she's almost 2?)  IF she naps, I work a little more either on the house or my photography work, make phone calls or do whatever else I need to do until time to get them off the bus at 3:30.  Then it's playing, homework, dinner, baths etc. and off to bed they go by 9:00pm.  I usually go straight back to the computer to work without any interruptions and I work until anywhere from 11pm to 2am.  This all depends on how much tea I have consumed during the day.....lol...and how loudly the dog is snoring at my feet. (Oz, our English Bulldog)  Usually I drift off to "LaLa_Land"  pretty quickly until my hubby's alarm goes off at 4:45.  I try to tumble out of bed to pack his lunch and see him off to work, then lay back down for 45 minutes until time for my alarm.  Now, on most mornings lately I stagger to the couch to watch the weather and I end up getting TOO cozy and I have been known to drift off to sleep.....waking up in just enough time to get them out the door just in time for the tardy bell.........but ONLY 5 DAYS LEFT!!!

We bought the girls something special last week to play with this summer.  It's something that I always wanted as a child.  See, growing up in a house with 2 other girls, we were forced to use our imagination constantly.  And boy.....did we have wild imaginations!!  (right girls?)  Here are a few things we pretended...now, keep in mind, we are from the boonies.   lol....

We turned the double sinks in the bathroom into a pool and a hot tub for our barbies.      

We would go into the tall grass and play "Jungle Barbies" and they would drive their cars in the safari wild.  They would loose each other and have to survive alone all night.  This particular grass was literally past our little bony knees, so these barbies had a big jungle.  And the 2 outside dogs were the MONSTERS.....lol...Barbie just can't outrun a Shephard.  That's probably my most fun memory with the barbies. 

Turning the sidewalk into a Barbie corvette/jeep racetrack.

Using a pogo ball for a circle counter top.  (Please tell me you remember what a pogo ball is!)  Like a pogo stick, but you squeezed your feet together and bounced...very hard to do, so we came up with other uses for it.  OH, and the Trapper Keepers......we used them for walls and all sorts of things.

I remember not wanting to sleep on the bed, because we had spent all day turning it into a Barbie Mall or House. 

THEN.....when we thought we were getting "way too old" to play with barbies, but the younger sister(s) wanted to play, we'd agree to play but "only fix their hair and change their clothes", we'd say.  But by then, I am ashamed to say, we were almost teenagers!!! 

lol....there was this one doll.  He was the only KEN doll we had and we used to fight over who played with him.  I mean , come on, he could get ANY girl he wanted, right?  The only problem with Ken, was he only had 1 arm.  I'm not sure what happened to him....lol.  I just know he could only stand on the left side of whatever barbie he chose, so he would look like he had his arm around her........lol...

We would play with those barbies until they fell apart. Even after they lost limbs.... We'd put them in the tub and pack them in our suitcases.  I remember the little details of everything.  My mom actually saved them for us.  I went and dug through them a few months ago.  It brought back SO MANY memories to look at all those barbie clothes we used to fight over.  There was 1 wedding dress, (early 80's style, long sleeve and collar), 2 sequin prom dresses, a stonewashed bluejean suit, bikini's, hotpants, halter dresses, and even a pair of legwarmers.......lol.  What a trip to see my daughters playing with the same exact things I spent so many hours enjoying.

SO........back to what we bought them....A little girls dream, or 3 girls in our case.  The PLAYHOUSE of IMAGINATION....

    Here is one of each of the girls in their new playhouse.

Grace was rocking her baby doll in the wood porch swing.  She was singing her to sleep... notice their window boxes full of new flowers they planted by themselves. 

   ...and Holli was mad that I wanted in and I hadn't knocked yet OR said the password. (the back double doors open for adult axcess.  Once you get inside the front, you can stand up)

Here's Charley playing "Pee-tye" with me through the window screen.  That's her favorite game....

and the WATCHDOG is always on duty at the Parsons Playhouse.  Here he is peeping over the half front door.  He kinda reminds me of "The Grumpy Ole Troll, who lives under the Bridge" ..lol.  Oh, I know you moms know exactly what I'm talking about, don't you?   I guess I've been watching too much Dora and Diego (Aye-go is Charley's favorite cartoon)

Holli told me the only thing that would make the playhouse more fun was if it had a TV in it.  It looks like I'll be teaching them a little about "Using their Imagination" all summer and keeping the TV off...lol

Thanks for reading.....

Their first born....

Last week, I took photos for the sweetest couple.  They have been married for almost 3 years and are now expecting their first child, a daughter.  The couple are teachers in our county and he coaches the high school football team.  I went to school with both, Tera and Aaron, and they work at the same schools we attended together.  This lovely couple bought a house that they personally remodeled for their new family.  Tera and Aaron were so much fun and I think we laughed the...entire time.    I wanted to share some of MY favorites so far of their session.  I hope you enjoy them...

We tromped through the wet grass for a few shots. (sorry about your shoes)

They snuggled across the bed...

...and snuck in a few kisses when they could.( I just adore the way he is touching her belly)

I am telling you, her ultrasound has the be the most perfect ultrasound I have ever seen.. what an incredible photo of her face.  At this VERY MOMENT, the baby was kicking her.  The expression on her face tells it all !

I must say, that this is one of my favorites.  Please check out their complete album. 

I've GOT to get better at this.....

So here I am on a rainy day, sitting at my desk.  Wishing the rain would stop so I could work in the garden and the flowers.  Needless to say, I haven't  written a blog in awhile, either.  I'm SLACKING.....I know.    I feel TERRIBLE about it.  If it makes it any better, I have thought, "I need to go blog that" numerous times and then I get side tracked.  I used to pick on my mom for this...now I feel like I am looking at her when I look in the mirror and hear myself talk..go figure  ;)

We have been balancing a hectic schedule lately.  My girls have had field trips and girls scouts meetings and parties.  Daddy has been working midnights, so mama is completely zonked... School is nearing it's end and we are attempting to plan our vacation to FL to see my big sister.  Her baby is due in June and we should be there about 3 weeks after. Love you, Stacey  :)

Yesterday, was another field trip.  We went to a play at MSU and the fish hatchery.  We saw tons of fish.  On the way home, Grace asked for FISH for dinner, cause seeing all those fish swimming made her HUNGRY.  lol....and I was afraid she wouldn't want to eat fish anymore after seeing what we saw earlier. Trish, my little sister, watched Holli for me.  We went to get her and apparently Holli kept her laughing the whole day.   I swear, these girls take after their daddy.... and I see him in them when they laugh and smile.  (In this image you can see my name tattooed on his wrist.  I love it...)

He keeps me rolling on the floor.  They amuse me on a daily basis.  They were being silly, giggling and cackling in the back of the van, the other day on our way home. (one of my favorite sounds in the whole world)  They were laughing hysterically at each other..Charley of course has to immitate them both by forcing her laugh out. Then out of the blue, Grace says, "Home, James...off to the looney farm we go!" I just don't know where they get this stuff from.  NOT ME......lol.

I've been trying to get some deep cleaning done.  I'm failing miserably...  I tried to run the sweeper and it won't work.  I checked everything..wondering what has happened to yet another vacuum. (we have a bad record when it comes to them)  I took the cover off and tried to clean it.  I flipped the vacuum head upside down and "low and behold, MY TOOTHBRUSH fell out!!!"  My TOOTHBRUSH......of all things!  I've been looking for it and lucky for me I have a backup for occasions such as these.  Apparently it got placed in there and I ran the sweeper anyway.  I know what you are thinking, I didn't run over it.  It was placed there when the head was off the canister.  It fit perfectly down the tube and got jammed there.  Hmmm....I wonder?   Yes, there is only one CULPRIT....and she's the 21 month old walking around here with Q-tips sticking out of her ears. (??)  Holli said she was pretendiing to be an alien.  lol....

 

She is into everything, and I think she is destined to climb Mt. Everest!  She can be on top of the table in 3 seconds flat...I guess this explains why my vacuum started smoking this morning and why my house reeks of burnt rubber....blugh! 

I have taken some fun and awesome sessions lately.  I will be posting about them soon.