family thanksgiving . . .

we had a really nice time celebrating thanksgiving & kate & eldon's 10th anniversary with their family & mom in Lloydminster. they were wonderful hosts & it was so good to see them settled & enjoying their new home & communtiy. we had a great turkey meal on saturday followed by charades. we all went to church sunday morning & really enjoyed the service. i did a little family shoot sunday afternoon & after some more great food & interesting conversation we headed home. thought i would share a few of my favorites . . .

welcome back . . .

i know . . . i know . . . it's been a year since my last post . . . what can i say . . . it's been a really busy year. my parents moved their camper from our town campground (it's a long story!) & are soon leaving the country. so i thought i should probably get this up & running so they can keep up with our lives while they are away. i also think it will be neat for my girls to look back on this someday. . . a little more exciting then my diary days!
my parents insisted they did not want a big wingding for the upcoming 4oth anniversary so we had a simple but wonderful family brunch last sunday & then a walk & mini photo shoot in the park. happy 40th mom & dad!

claire & her violin . . .

emma kate . . .

the wedding day . . .

first day of school . . .

and were these girls excited! it brings back so many memories. it was such a warm & sunny day. i loved hearing the sound of kids laughing & playing at recess. looking forward to getting back into routine.

happy birthday kate!

it's hard to believe my little sister is 33! i've been looking through some old albums trying to find the perfect photo to celebrate this special day. . . i can not help but notice the amount of fancy cakes you got over the years. when i look back through my photos my cakes were usually dried out looking angel food cakes . . . no bitterness intended . . . i do wonder why i love angel food cakes so much today??? anyways . . . have a wonderful day! i wish i could be with you to celebrate! looking forward to our birthday picnic under the twisted trees!

happy anniversary . . .

i'm thankful for . . . the little things. the big things. the fact that you live with me & still like me. for your incredible patience. for fixing things. for your parents who had you & raised you into a sensitive & loving man. for your endless acts of kindness. for your brains. for meeting you at the right time & place. for our beautiful girlies. for your incredible patience. for your practical nature. for your terribly dry sense of humor & sarcastic way. for how really opposite we are. for your love of god. for your parenting skills. for sixteen up & down years together & for me being able to share it all with you!

summer with gram & grampa . . .

the girls went to camp last week. emma kate was at redberry & claire was at elkridge with her cousin piper. gram & grampa wanted to do something special for the two younger girls because they weren't going to "real" camp this year. claire received this in the mail . . .

some of the highlights at camp elkridge this year were: bingo in waskesui, badminton, trips for soft ice cream, boat rides in grampa's boat, popcorn & movie night, campfire at dusk (s'mores), visit the beach, playground & candy store, beauty night & pedicures! we spent a couple of days hanging out with kate & eldon before dropping the girls off.

i thought grampa was to take it easy after his heart surgery !?!

. . . the highlight of brian's weekend . . .

thanks for the great memories mom & dad!

another gem . . .

thought i would post a few from this shoot as i am just processing the order. another gem i was able to capture & shoot. lucky me.

i love you gram . . .

i got the call at six thirty this morning . . . gram had fallen in the night & was being sent by ambulance to hospital. it was hard seeing her that first moment. kinda takes your breath away.
she didn't know who i was. spent the day taking care of her. those beautiful blue eyes so distant & troubled. so restless & unable to settle. it was a tough day . . . trying to be the nurse that makes everything better & inside longing for the good old times when i was just her granddaughter.

another grad shoot . . .

the camera loved her & so do i! a beautiful girl both inside & out. she was only in grade eight when we moved here. we are going to miss having her around. she is an amazing athlete & is going to be running for the university track team while she studies.