Project Life 365

Wow. Four years of blog silence have passed. I nearly had a heart attack a moment ago when i was looking diligently for a blog (this one!) that should have shown up on a google search. I don't know why it didn't. perhaps a google search doesn't mean sure-fire the way it used to. Perhaps that is a relief. a little more uncertainty that we can relax into. We watched a baby still nursing able to navigate to his favorite scene of a cartoon on an ipad. apple changes everything. what the hell?! what will be the inconvenience of this generation? I still think Idiocracy the movie is the scariest horror flick I've ever seen. I started this entry to tell you about creative steps I'm taking to document life over the next 365. I'm not trying to make art, just to use the prompts with the first thought/best thought. Would love for you to join me on the journey. click here to see my statigram collection

She Loves Horses

Cowgirl Rosa Jane loves horses and they scare me. Lots of things in life scare me, so I guess this is just one more thing in the great scheme of things that Elenor Roosevelt said, "You must do the thing you think you can not do." And sometimes that just means simply putting one foot in front of the other and doing the next thing!

Natural Light Headshots Save the Day! (Austin Corporate Photographer)

Sometimes, stars align and pathways are cleared to help a fella out. This handsome guy was just nominated for CFO of the Year in Austin. I highly think he deserves it and can't wait to hear the future goodnews that he was also crowned CFO of the World. Good Luck, Man!

Motherhood round 3

{photo by Lisa Woods.}
Man, I've been thinking loads as of late. Wondering why I can't blog like I used to. I think it's because my perfectly malleable daughter has come into her own. She picks out what to wear and she has very strong opinions about what to do and not do and when to do it. From ages of birth to two, most everything was hunky dory and going my way. Now, I have to be creative and manipulative and it's just plain draining.

Now, I can see that my weaknesses have shaped her almost as much as my strengths. I pray each day that things will be different, that I'll do better and quit taking the easy route. Some things never change though. I'll keep praying and asking God to turn our weaknesses to strengths. That the big lessons will take heart and that at the end of the day she'll know how very much she is loved being just who she is. Motherhood is an amazing journey. Some days we are high as a kite in love and others we're at each others throats to take a nap or clean the house.

She tells me, "I still love you even when I do the wrong thing, Mommy."
I love her all the time. To infinity and beyond. Weaknesses and all. God only knows what I'd be with out you. Thanks and glory to Him for all the miracles in our lives.

Inspired to Blog

Yesterday, Linda Anderson, spoke to us at Mom2Mom. She usually speaks via recorded dvd sessions, but on this day she was LIVE and IN PERSON. Linda is AMAZING and I love her to death even though I don't *really* know her. But when she speaks, I feel at peace and I just know the words of God are flowing from her heart and mouth and it's the most amazing thing to be in her presence. She talked about a lot of things yesterday like where is your head most of the time in your daily life -- it is focused in the future and writing that great amazing novel or more applicable to me is becoming the brightest and shiniest star photographer or are you on the hamsterwheel focused on the daily events that consume and never seem to end -- sure the kitchen is clean in this moment, but fifteen minutes later disaster zone. Whew!

I know I've been so busy with my part-time photography job that I've been neglecting this blog and I started to get sad that there's no evidence in journaling about what's been happening in our lives... so I vow to do better. Small snipets and daily overhearings. Rosa Jane is funnier than ever, even if she does seem to be obsessed with a mini-dvd player and playing Cinderella from start to finish over and over again... seriously, I think it's three times a day when we're home. So I'm trying to be more conscious and out the door.

I can't tell if it's a marked improvement over what she used to do with the Litte Mermaid, which was to watch it over and over but she was constantly hitting the fast forward button so it was over as soon as it started.

At any rate, she's princess obsessed and has to have princess light up shoes. She received non-itchy princess dresses - a blue one and a purple one - for Valentines day and she was super excited about them.


We bought a new Toyota RAV 4 this week and I'm really enjoying the new found space. I can drive for miles and miles now which is sweet relief from the imprisonment I was feeling with the Passat Lease agreement.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

Love from all the Roedners

The Week after Christmas and Anticipating Change

I can hear you. I can hear you ask, "Why don't you write any more?" And the answer is things have been crazy busy in the Faux-Toes department getting everybody's holiday photo on for size. And taking care of Amy's twins on Tuesdays and Thursdays and then it was the week before Christmas when running errands becomes a cruel joke of survival of the fittest. It is the hardest thing to keep focused on the real reason for the season. It's easy to get caught up in the wrapping paper and tape and ribbons and bows. Not to mention the bank account. I don't know how we would have gotten through Faux-Toes crazy season if Don hadn't been home these last few months. Soon everything will be changing in our world. Don goes back to work after seven months at home. Seven months in the eyes of toddler is as far back as she can remember. I'm excited for change but I want to do better, be better and set some attainable goals: Like real weekly dinner planning and working out on a regular schedule to be fit and have energy and lose the weight that's found it's way to my hips over the last stressful time. I have joined Beachbody as a Coach to add accountability on this front. Would love to have you join me on the path to fitness. Ask me how! I have big goals for my Faux-Toes business, too. We're planning a shoot tour and hopefully my sidekicks will be able to travel, too... Houston, Dallas, Nashville and Boston. Other locations are under consideration. So if it seems like an overhaul on goals and ideals, well it is... but after 2008 and the craziness that ensued... it's the least we can do for 2009. I'm taking tips and recipe ideas for homecooked dinners. So post your ideas now... don't be shy! :-)
Here's to what is sure to be the most amazing year yet! Hang on to your hats!!

And Life Goes On...

As a celebrator of life and individuality I enjoy spending time around the family during the holidays. I try to savor every minute with what are now our elders, which is really my parent's generation. I lost both sets of grandparents years ago through debilitating disease like Alzheimer's and Parkingson's. But seeing my nephew who looks just like my grandfather, it begs the question if he also acts the same. I'm dying to *really* know how our grandparents and so on and so forth acted as a child. I don't know if it's just me, but I'd love to have seen the toddler President George Bush. I just think it would be hilarious and so telling. So insightful to the person they are today. My grandmother with Alzheimer's lived with us during my tumultuous high school years. She'd always ask me if I was really going to wear my hair (longer on one side)like that, and if I was really going to leave the house in that outfit. She also always wanted "a little bit of color: on her dinner plate. which meant she really wanted some kind of brightly/artificially colored Jello salad concoction on her plate. I think of her often and feel sad that I really never did "know" her b/c by the time I was of age to know her, she'd already lost most of her personality. Still I was thinking of her this morning as I dressed as brightly as a rainbow. I wonder if she also loved colorful clothes and if I got that from her.

I like to think so. Happy Thanksgiving... belatedly, but with a very full heart.

So-called Creative

These so-called creative hair salons for children crack me up. Who do they think they are foolin' anyway? I have no idea because I'm on to them like white on rice. They have play-cars/airplanes for chairs and tv's mounted on the wall blarin' some silly "child" show. And all the hairdressers I've ever seen seem to have no sense of humor nor creativity when it comes to getting a child to do what they want. They want the child to look down, but hey, isn't that Dora playing on the big screen on the wall over there? Who wouldn't want to watch that rather than look at their boring old knee that hasn't changed in ever so long.

Here's my daughter this morning: I left her bed-head tangles in tact and so the lady is combing and combing and pulling and pulling and meanwhile RJ is shirking and leaning farther and father away... as far as she can without actually leaving her chair and the lady says, "honey, I need you to sit up." It's hilarious. RJ was quite the trooper and as always I'm super proud of her. It's just funny to me that no one seems to look around and see what's actually happening. That's odd to me 'cause I could size the place up in 2 seconds flat. This is why I usually just take RJ to a normal salon.

Who needs all the distractions that they can't enjoy anyway?!

Wish You Were Here

I wish you were here sitting next to me as Rosa Jane flitters this way and that way talking in non-stop run-on and on and on sentences saying the same thing over and over and over again until some how you can interject that you understand. It's so hard not to crack up at her. I just adore her so.

Rainbow Face

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

We went to the pumpkin patch where RJ picked out the perfect rainbow art for her face. She was so stinkin' thrilled with it. Her friends quickly followed suit.

Today Don dropped RJ off at school and a boy whom he did not recognize came up to them and said, "I'm glad Rosa Jane is here!"

What a sweet thing to have heard. I love that our little girl is well-loved by her friends. Love is what makes the world go around. And speaking of love, the reindeer and i just celebrated our seventh year of wedded bliss with the best sushi we've ever had in our lives. And it's just down the street in Austin-town.

What's Down There?

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

We went for a hike this morning in the woods near our house. It was glorious! The perfect company. The perfect 63 degree weather. The perfect place to be. Before we knew it, we'd hiked too far for the kids to walk back to the car so Don had to run ahead and meet us. While we were waiting, I introduced the kids to a riveting game of Rocks, Paper, Scissors. Is it any surprise now that they are three, they no longer want to use two fingers for scissors? I let them use their three and it was no doubt their favorite thing. I kept pulling out my Rock and crushing them. Sometimes I'd be paper just to shake it up and give them something to cut. They loved it. I loved it. We came home and had the perfect breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast. Listening to James Taylor.

For sure, this was a morning to remember. Now, if only she'll take a nap before we head to the pumpkin patch this afternoon....

Funny Rosita in a Purple Coat.

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

It's 70 degrees here -- chilly!! So we donned our coats and drank our morning drinks on the front porch. I was watching Rosie flutter this way and that way, just dying to go get my camera. She's now at the age where I have to ask if it's okay. She was saying, "no" i don't like my picture taken... and then we said, "come on, do it for William! the ones you love love seeing new pictures of you. trust us."
And so she did these for William. Lucky for us he's coming over for dinner tonight.

Officially Three and Dressed to Kill.

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

Pow. Pow! Admit it. You're dead. On the floor writhing in pain at the sight of such cuteness meeting your eye.

Ha.

I'm kidding.

These will make RJ's official three portrait pictures. Now if only I'll get them printed. The clothes are by Matilda Jane. Stinkin' adorable!

Next?

What a crazy time in the world it is. I mean, I'm just floored. I'm floored by IKE. I'm floored by the actions of the White House. I'm floored by the candidates for President. I'm floored by the market and economics of it all. I feel like for years we didn't know what to say about politics or the state of the world. We were caught off balance, perhaps. And then terrorism, and the war, and Bush, and Hillary Clinton for goodness sake, Katrina, Rita, and now Obama and McCain and Palin?! How can we not discuss it? It is just beyond me not to. And I'm the last person in the whole wide world that ever wanted to get into a discussion about politics. So, like I said, it's a CRAZY time. I keep hearing John Mayer's "Waiting on the World to Change." I feel like it's a-changin' alright. Hold on to your britches, my friends!

"I'm the Birthday GIRL!"

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

We had a great time yesterday celebrating with a few friends. There was only one incident that required ice as a result of a head-on collision. Good times for everyone. I love parties.

Stinker

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

I do love that she lets me take her picture. Even if she gives me the hardest time doing it. It always strikes me how other kids always want say "show me the picture!" from the back of the camera. But RJ never says this. She just doesn't care. Oh well. I adore her and am so happy to have caught her days before she turns three for the first and only time.

Girls on a Beach

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

I couldn't find these pictures forever... and alas, here they are. Rosie plays with her friends Ashley and Kate minutes before everyone departs to avoid Edouard.

Happy Labor Day, Y'all!

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Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

We're back from a super fun time with family over the long weekend. Good thing the Biggest Loser is starting soon. I could use some serious inspiration to get rid of the 10 pounds I've packed on this summer. Enjoy the photos of cousins galore!

carly may weigh just 4 lbs, but think again if you want to mess with her!

carly may way 4 lbs, but think again if you want to mess with her!
Originally uploaded by ..Kristen...

My newest infatuation!! Meet Carly and Chloe. Chloe "refrigerator" and Carly "bird". I love'em!!