Catching up again!

I know I have lapsed in the posting department. Missed a day here and there due to how busy I was before we took our trip to move Izaiah to Vancouver. Did manage to take some photos before we left and definitely took many while gone. So I thought I would catch up to the day we left first.

Here is a stair case at the university. It was a tucked out of the way place except for the poor lady, I trapped in her office while we took family photos. Stairs are a great metaphor for life. They take you up and forward. Some times you stop half way up to see how much farther you have to go or look back to see how far you came. The landing between the next set of stairs, gives us the space we need to take a break, catch our breath or just enjoy the time.

 This is what is on my fridge, family photos from last December when we had hoar frost. I have always had photos on my fridge. I have always had a cluttered fridge for some reason. Things, paper or photos on it. The last 10 years or so, I only try to keep only photos but every once in a while, paper creeps up there. When the kids were younger, off course their wonderful pieces of art work hung proudly.

Plants vs Zombies. Admitting that I am addicted to this game. It all started when a friend invited me to play bejewelled. I caved and played it. Some how, I ended up on popcap games and played Plants vs Zombies, the free version. I some how got Izaiah hooked. He was out one day and came across the mac version, cheap, installed it in my computer so I can continue to play. Last Halloween, I spent the evening beating zombies, entertaining Bernie while handing out treats. I admit, this is my speed of gaming. lol

The day before we left for Vancouver, Kseniah went to Girl Guide camp. This is all her stuff she got ready herself to go camping for the weekend. 

Miss Kseniah, in the fancy braids I did for her for her camping weekend. 

Izaiah got himself an iphone before he moved. He was going around and taking all sorts of photos to have with him in his phone. Before Kseniah left Friday, I took a photo of him and Kseniah. This is in our front yard. I can not believe how much my kids have grown in the last few years. It is some times hard to believe I have a grown child and two not that far behind. Need I mention that they are all taller than me!!

This is CheapCheap. It is actually a duck and was a gift from Bernie's cousin Audrey for Izaiah at his baby shower. Cheapcheap was the one stuffed animal he became attached to when he was small. It was a constant companion and it is nice to see and know that Cheapcheap still is his companion and was tucked safely, here in the top of Izaiah's back pack waiting to leave the next morning for Vancouver. 

Well, this was early in the morning and Iliajah woke up to see us off. The boys being the boys, every one of their photos is on the silly side.

September was a month filled with much activity. The beginning of me starting this project, our 25th Anniversary, finishing up as much as work as I could, Iliajah starting high school. Izaiah getting ready to go to school in Vancouver with a move there, my Plants vs Zombies addiction is real and the reality of having my first move out. Seeing as I am posting this a few days after Thanksgiving, I can say, I am Thankful for a wonderful husband, 25 years of amazing memories and my three amazing children. I am grateful that we are a close family.

Catch up Day

Good Morning! This morning is catch up.

Here is Friday's photo. This is my sister with my friend's sunglasses on.

My anniversary cake, which I made myself. I really don't like bought cake. Will eat it if given to me but it is not my favorite. I really didn't want to go to a bakery either so decided to bake it and decorate with live flowers from my garden. Very glad I did this.

The flowers we received from family, friends and each other. 

It was my goal to not use any work as my photo of the day but the weekend was so action packed and I had a session Monday morning. Besides, she is soooo cute, how could I not.

I Want to Bang on the Drum all Day

Here it is day three, and still cheating. Can not fault me for being brutally honest.

So I actually did not take a photo today. However, this past weekend I took several hundred. I wanted to take some very funky, trendy, hip photos of Izaiah playing his drum kit. I do have photos of this but with a lot of garage background. I wanted some where I could play a bit more in the post production end.

I figured that by taking so many a few days ago, it was like taking one today.

I remember well, when a drum kit entered our house. Izaiah was to say the least, video game obsessed. I refused to let him buy any more games and that he should buy himself a musical instrument. He agreed on the fact that the instrument would be a drum kit. What could I say, he got me, so I agreed. He saved his money and with a little help from mom and dad, his first drum kit entered our home. For I believe the first year, he just banged on the drums with no real sound. Once he took some lessons, the banging turned into music. He became very good, very quickly.

With his new found talent, he out grew this drum kit. He saved up, sold his other kit and bought himself the Mapex kit. I noticed a remarkable difference immediately with the sound. He continued to bang out his talent in the basement. Then one day, when I got home, the place where my van used to be parked sat his drum kit. With the kit moving into the garage, so did some additional teens start hanging out to play in there.

You always practice at the drummer's house. We never minded, ever! Rather liked it and enjoyed all the action of teens hanging out at our house. A few bands have assembled and all have disbanded, except one. One of his good friends, Ryan, who still comes over to just jam when their schedules allow. I will truly miss this with Izaiah moving to go to school soon.

Love watching him play. He is a very musically talented young man. The drums are only one of many instruments that he can play. He also played the trombone, plays the bass guitar and piano. He is so fortunate to play by ear. I know his talent will render him great opportunities in his future career. Until then,

"I want to bang on the drum all day, ....."

The Decision About Flowers

Here is the second day and I will be cheating again! I do sort of not go with the flow at times. This could be one of them.

Flowers are a must for a wedding. The bride has her own special bouquet as do the bridesmaids. There were some in church and two centre pieces on the head table. Which we gave to each of our mothers after the wedding. I know my mother still has hers. Bernie's, well I am not sure because she moved and with a move, purging happens.

You already know, if the mothers still have theirs, the flowers were not real. There were several reasons I did not have real. Twenty five years ago, real was not as fashionable as they are now. Some where in that time, keepsakes became the rage. Fake cakes to keep, bouquets to keep, a second garter to keep, matches with the bridal couples name and wedding date, napkins with your info on it, wedding souvenirs (mine were little bird bread doves which my mother made, about 500 of them!). You get the picture. We never had the match books. For people who were not superstitious, we believed that a match book some how contributed to a divorce. Weird, I know, but when Bernie was purging the many match books he collected from weddings, many of those marriages ended in divorce. We were not going to tamper with the match book spirits.

I had fake, artificial, silk flowers. Our wedding was also out in the country side so picking up fresh flowers could be an issue. What if it was hot!! The flowers would wilt, oh my that could be horrible that they would not last longer than the wedding day. It seemed the reasonable thing to do, is go silk. My flowers cost $300 and I worked as a counselor at a summer camp to make money to pay for the flowers.

Since my wedding day, I have received live flowers many times. Taken photos of them and truthfully they brought me an entire different joy. They actually have a fragrance where silk, nothing.  They will not last until the next anniversary, so that means, getting fresh ones again. Perhaps even a different colour and kind. Why would we not want flowers every anniversary? Think about this? If he gave us a bouquet of silk, artificial, fake flowers on our first anniversary, we truthfully could have them until our 25th. Every year, he goes down to the basement, pulls off the plastic covering them from getting dusty and says "Happy Anniversary, honey, I love you!"

Screech!!!! We know that never happens. If it has, they did not make it no where near their 25th.

I did love my bouquet. If I did this again, I would do live. My bouquet was stored in my trunk for many years. One day, it went into the dress up box of clothes. My daughter, neices and any other little girls who played dress up used it as their bouquet. I guess it brought continued joy. Truthfully, I think it finally saw it's better days and may have been trashed.

Yesterday, I got 2 dozen roses. When I was a teenager, I said, I would marry the man who gave me 2 dozen roses. I felt that if he loved me, a dozen is not enough to show me loves me. Dozen is standard, 2 is he is serious, he loves you and cherishes a commitment.  Well, I did because he did. I know I told him this when we were dating. It is nothing he has forgotten. It is not a deal breaker if I don't still get 2 dozen roses but it sure makes the deal sweeter if I do.


My bouquet in the classic wedding ring photo with a glimpse of my dress.

The 2 dozen roses I received for our 25th Anniversary. The Disney hats story will have to wait for another day. 

Our Anniversary

Well, here is the first day and I am already cheating. Not that I won't be posting a photo but will be posting 4!!! Maybe next year is a leap year so I am allowed an extra one and because it is my anniversary, I am allowed an extra one and it is my project so just decided, I don't need to stick to the photo a day rule! For today any way. Besides, could not really decide and that was due to 25 years ago, wedding photography was not as creative, spontaneous and moment capturing as it is today.

I rather enjoyed taking photos of my wedding dress. I hung in the window for some drama of back lighting. Thought I should use my flash but not directly, so bounced it off the ceiling or off my wonderful yellow walls. Cool, I thought.

Off to down load, photoshop and viola!

Some interesting bits of information about my wedding dress. Bernie and I got engaged March 9, 1985. I was heading off on a student exchange on May 12, same year. We decided to get married that September. So with finals looming, a big 6 week exchange trip to Ukraine, it was actually amazing I had found my dress when I did.

I was moving out of my apartment. No need to spend money when I would be gone for almost two months. Mom and I finished up and I suggested we should go looking for dresses. Off to the only store I knew how to get to. I picked out one dress, the one hanging in my living room today, mom picked one out and we sort of agreed on a third. I put on my choice. Wow! Loved it and I looked awesome in it. Tried the other two and have definitely deleted those memories.

So, now for the price. Wedding dresses at the time ranged from $100 - $200 maybe the odd one at $250. Mine, which is hanging in my living room, $600. Yep, I choose a designer gown from New York. Put it on hold. Talked to dad, took him so he could see how amazing I looked in it and persuade him to buy. Oh, ya, Bernie was there too! I am hung up and a whole lot of different tradition and seeing the bride in her dress was not one of them.

Divorce was not a new thing with people we already knew at the time so I figured that if so many brides really believed that it was bad luck for the groom to see the bride in her dress, than I totally challenged bad luck head on. Not really, it was a superstition I just did not believe in. We, Bernie and I also saw each other the morning of our marriage. We went to the city to get our hair done and me my make up. We also walked up and down the isle together, walked into church together. This was very radical for many of the guests at our wedding which I wonder if any of them even remember any of this today how we went so against the grain of what is considered traditional.

Does it matter? No, marriage is what the couple makes their life to be.

Reason for the 365 in 25

I have finally done it! Started at least. Started my 365 project which means a photo a day for the next year. I have been wanting to start this project for quite some time but have not managed to discipline myself to an effective start date. With the eve of my 25th wedding anniversary, I thought that this would be a great time to document the 25th year of marriage.

I would not only be capturing the events, happenings or things around me in my life but I also figured that I would be preserving bits of the past. I have the perfect first item I will photograph on the 7th. You will have to wait until then to see what it is I will be photographing.

Yes, I did officially start this on September the 6th, 2010 and the reason was to make sure I have a place ready for my photograph that I will be taking on the 7th.

A blog with out a photo is just no fun so I include one from 25 years ago. Here is to my 365! To my/our 25th Anniversary! A year of fun, challenges, pressure, decisions and documented memories!