Friday, July 31, 2009

ISEK Camp 2009

Ayden looks forward to attending ISEK Camp during the summer and he designated this year's camp as his favorite of the three years he has attended. A camp-mate from last year joined him again and a camp counselor (although I'm not sure they're considered a "counselor") recognized him from previous years as well. It delighted Ay to see some familiar faces and participate in some new activities. What a great marketing job ISU Engineering is doing by offering these opportunities. Little do they know that my boy has taught me some things about ISU in the past two days that I didn't know...and I attended and now work there. Way to go ISEK for passing along some cool information!


What would this post be without photographic proof of Ayden's participation?



In honor of Ayden, they set up a grouping of "A" frames (aka: easels)...well, maybe they were there for another reason. I like to believe they're for Ayden.


Here's my boy with his solar car. He told me all about it...and he'll tell you, too, if you ask him.


I'll just throw a few in of Ayv while I'm at it. These were taken a few days ago when she dressed herself in a trendy little grouping. Maybe she'll attend ISU in Apparel, Educational Studies, and Hospitality Management someday.





My kids are growing up too fast!

Monday, July 27, 2009

July 2009 is the best!

I hope I never forget how lovely July 2009 was. These temperatures could stay year-round! It's been highs in the upper 70s and low 80s with a bit of rain here and there. Unfortunately, not hot enough to be too excited to head to the pool daily, but I'm okay with that...even if the kids aren't.


Tonight I was able to post two sessions and I pulled a few personal pictures from this past month into Photoshop for a little play. It feels like the most I've been able to accomplish in one sitting in a long time.

Although it's July and we should be outside, we found a bit of time to go through the closets. Ayla found a hat that was tucked away. I think she's pretty cute in it! She was making faces like a "silly goose" for me, too. Just ask her and she'll agree.

This past weekend was Zearing Days and I took my camera out with me. Ayvarie handed off the Little Miss Zearing Crown Friday night. Ayden played with his friends all day Saturday at the park with the kids' activities they had going on (he won a wrist band at the kids' dance that allowed him free entry on all the rides). Ayvarie performed her debut at the annual lip sync contest while Ayla simply hung out with us. By the way, Ayvarie already has plans for next year's entry. Watch out!

While downtown, I finally captured this sign painted on the side of the building down Center Street. I've been eyeing it since we moved here and hope to do more with it another day.

Then, on the way home, I stumbled across this great grouping of blooming things. Bugs were crawling on them, but they still looked pretty.

Here's some texture...
And here's a different texture...

The kids didn't want the weekend to end, and truthfully, I didn't either. We had a nice time with my parents at the parade and lunch on Saturday, then again at the antique tractor pulls on Sunday. Gotta love small-town festivities!

Monday, July 13, 2009

Palo Duro Canyon

We made it to Amarillo and back. We've been back for a while and I still haven't had a chance to go through all of our pictures. I pulled a few to post on the blog for a quick update. These are all SOOC shots, but I like them just as they are...as natural as the land we were on.




Our visit to the canyon occurred on the last day of our stay in TX, so we only had a few hours to run around before heading over to my Aunt & Uncle's in OK for the evening. The kids could have stayed there all week, I'm sure. Ayden spotted a turkey, Levi had his eye on a bright green lizard not long after he had spied one screaming across the road in front of us, and we all had the chance to view some bugs we're not used to seeing. From the information we received, there is a variety of wildlife, spiders, and poisonous snakes present in the canyon. I followed the kids with the camera so I could soak in the sights (probably to no surprise) and we left just as a storm rolled in. You can see the clouds building in the pictures. A thunderstorm in the canyon would have been a great experience as it sure wasn't a treat to drive in. Ask Levi!