Three Punks, a Cabana Boy and Me

Week 3 of 365

2012-01-21T13:11:00.000-08:00

15:365

Trying out some frames that i bought. i know it doesn't really go with this photo but I was just playing around. :) The punks are really into wrestling right now. Here they are showing off their wrestling outfits and the trophies they "won". My job was to keep track of their moves. I know NOTHING about wrestling so I wrote down things like, "armpit move", "stinky breath move", "sit on your brother's face move" and my personal favorite, "moves like Jagger". :)

16:365
Punk 1 and his spaceship command center. He was planning to blow up some evil doer.

17:365
I have been freezing all week. I just can't seem to get warm. These haven't come off my feet for a few days.

18:365
Oh happy day! My first canvas! love!!!!

19:365
Pretty but oh so cold...

20:365
Playing "The Dukes" with my punks. Boss Hogg crashed into Roscoe and the Duke boys and Daisy won the chase. :)

21:365
I MISS SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I will admit that we had a lot of fun this morning taking the punks sledding. But my heart will always belong to hot summer days spent in a pool. :)

Week 2 of my 365 Project

2012-01-15T18:59:00.000-08:00

My week in photos...

9:365

Got myself a little something, something today. :) Oh and it is not a coffee mug! Happy January 9th to me! Also got to hang out with a fun friend for the day and watch my boys try to pick up money from a drained fountain in the mall while I wasn't paying attention. Gotta love boys. Especially ones who aren't used to being in a mall! geez.... Oh and here's a tip. Don't try to take 3 little boys into Victoria Secret. It won't go well.

10:365
Baby Punk started speech therapy today. Once a week until he is three. He loves having a "teacher" for himself just like brothers.

11:365
Punk #2 wants to be a babysitter when he grows up. :) Really! That is what he wants to be! He loves babies!

12:365
Making out with my boyfriend.

Real 12:365
Baby Punk looking at the snow falling.

13:365
My punks driving away with their Nana for the night. Can I get a "HOLLA"!!!! I had 30 fabulous hours to myself in my own home. I got an insane amount of stuff done. Thanks Nana and Papa!

14:365
We had a self portrait challenge this week in photography group I am a part of. I originally said I was boycotting it and didn't want to do it. Well... I caved. I promised myself I would only spend 5 minutes trying it and I didn't want to freak myself out about it. So... I stood out in the freezing cold and snapped away. This is the only one that I didn't look completely bug eyed and scary. There. I completed it. :)

Homemade Decorations

2012-01-13T18:05:00.000-08:00

I thought I posted this a long time ago. Oops. Oh well here it is now....

I'm a sucker for homemade holiday decorations. Especially Christmas. The boys and I made this cute little chandelier. When I say we, I mean I cut out the gingerbread boys, Punk 1 scribbled on them for about 2 minutes and called them ninjas and I yelled at them all while they strung fishing line all over the place and kept climbing on the kitchen table while trying to "help me". :)
i thought it turned out pretty cute.

and all four of the boys making buckeyes together. My job was to dunk them. :)

Hope you all had a great Christmas!

Week 1

2012-01-08T16:33:00.000-08:00

1:365

Punk 1 in a 50's style Diner.

2:365
The closest I will ever get to this lens. Yes, it is my new coffee mug. :) Thanks Cabana Boy!

3:365
Cabana Boy's rebellion.

4:365
Completely a ridiculous newborn picture but the story is cute. The newborn is the baby of our long time babysitter. Punk 1 made this paper crown for the baby to wear for his photos. I had to take at least one with it. :)

5:365
Sunrise from my front porch. I swear I live in one of the prettiest parts of the Midwest!

6:365
Farm fresh eggs thanks to the Richards Family! The eggs are such beautiful colors! The box is adorable as well. I made the family sausage, egg and cheese biscuits for breakfast out of these.

7:365
Second shooting with my wonderful friend Joanne. I have learned so much from her and I am so grateful to her for all that she has taught me. Plus we just have a lot of fun together! I snapped this of her as she was jumping in her car yesterday. So cute!

One week down. 51 to go. ;)
a

365 Project

2012-01-01T14:48:00.000-08:00

Well today is January 1st, 2012. I am ready to commit to my first 365 Project. I am planning to take at least 1 photo a day for the next year. Ideally they are to show some creativity and help me with my photography skills. Realistically, some days may be just a quick shot with my Point and Shoot camera. I would love to include my boys/family as much as I can in these. Here's to a fun resolution for 2012!

We went to the Purdue/Illinois game last night as a family for part of Ben's Christmas present. On the way home today we stopped for burgers at a 50's restaurant. Thought Charlie's "chucks" fit right in with the setting. :)

For all you techy brains out there. Not sure there are any that read my silly blog but in case:
1600 ISO, f2.2 and 1/400 SS on a MKII, 50mm

Christmas Card 2011

2011-12-28T20:28:00.000-08:00

I promised to show the pics that did make our Christmas card this year. I went for a totally different approach. Forget the formal shots. It just wasn't happening. So... I can't show you the actual card b/c I live in the dark ages and don't have a scanner (or texting which annoys my friends to no end!) So... you will have to settle for me explaining the card. I can't take credit for this idea. I have seen it done in a few different ways. I just put my own spin on it.

Front Cover:

Silent Night

Holy Night

All is Calm

The inside cover:

Silent?

Calm?

NAH!!!!

Merry Christmas from The Tonagel Family!

So there you have it. Our non traditional Christmas card where everyone is NOT sitting together, NOT looking at the camera and NOT acting like we are having a grand time. :) This is reality. This is my family!

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Ours was hectic, tiring and wonderful. I am trying to recover from an awful headcold and get ready for two newborn photoshoots! Love me the newborns! (They help keep the baby fever at bay.) :) Which means Cabana Boy loves the shoots as well!

Night all!

ps. Can you tell I just came home from Starbucks. Yappity, yappity yap! Woo Hoo for caffeine!!!! And date night with Cabana Boy and some old friends!

Beginner's Workshop

2011-12-21T12:11:00.000-08:00

Who wants to come hang out with these two crazy girls?!?!?!? :)
Contact me if you are interested. As I am typing this we only have 4 spots left! They are going quick!
a

Christmas Card Bloopers

2011-12-18T12:29:00.000-08:00

So I sent out our Christmas cards and I had to go cheap this year. If you didn't get one from us sorry!!!! I just had to cut back our list it was getting out of control!

I heard from a few that they were surprised that we didn't have a family picture or a "formal" one of the three punks. Well... here are a few examples of why we didn't have a nice picture of the three of them.

Enjoy! (I was about in tears by the end of this session). :) I know I am getting extra picky now that I do this for actual money but man you would think the photographer could get a few nice shots of her own kids!

Nope. No such luck.

note: these are all SOOC.

seriously?

Wow. you guys look thrilled. Check out the burrs all over Punk #1's sweater. Yup. Had the pleasure of picking all those (along with the million on #2's) off one at a time.

How about just a picture of their rear-ends? That sounds good to me!

This is pretty much the only photo that made the editing table. I am planning on doing a lot of redecorating this winter in my house (shh... don't tell Cabana Boy. He doesn't know that I will be dropping the credit card like it's hot yet). Thinking this little cutie might need to go up somewhere in my casa.

Next post... the pictures that did make the card. :)
a

Oh and complete randomness but if you are interested... I along with my BFF Darcy will be hosting a photography workshop geared especially for moms just wanting to learn how to use their DSLR cameras. If you didn't know what "SOOC" was. This is for you! Leave me a comment with your email if you want the details. Thanks yo.

Happier Times

2011-12-14T07:38:00.000-08:00

If you personally know me at all you know I am not a fan of this yucky white stuff outside. I also hate coats, scarves, boots, mittens and all the gear you have to put on just to get out the door.
One of my goals this winter while taking a break from photography is to actually get my personal photos organized, ordered and put in albums. I found these photos and I immediately started to feel warmer. ;)
ahh... happier times. Warm sunshine, a pool full of cool water and three little boys who love the water as much as I do. Come back summer!!!!!!!

He's got some mad cannonball skilz!

And I have mad camera skilz to catch them. :)

I love this photo showing how much they love to play together. I need to remember this when we are stuck inside all winter and they are ready to punch each other.

Kissy face!

And here's me workin on my tan. I really should have painted my toes before taking this photo. my apologies.

How many more months until the pool is opened???

Christmas Activities

2011-12-10T12:00:00.000-08:00

We enjoyed our annual "Breakfast with Santa" this morning at our community center. It is such a nice event they put on.

Here are the boys pics with the Big Guy. I left early to help at the breakfast so I didn't think about setting out nice clothes for them. Oh well. They look like my normal little ragamuffins. :)

whoa, a hug this time!

Here they are decorating their tree the other day.

and the best hot chocolate ever. Thanks to yours truly. :)

I had to laugh, I walked through the kitchen just now with my camera to plug it in and this is how Cabana Boy was cutting Punk 2's hair. Looks like fun.

Peace out, a

A Stitch in Time Giveaway!

2011-12-07T11:52:00.001-08:00

A Stitch In Time Boutique is having a giveaway for this adorable Christmas hat. Check them out here on Etsy or here on Facebook. Super cute stuff!
Thank YOU for sponsoring the giveaway!
a

Pottery Night

2011-12-02T06:39:00.000-08:00

Our family enjoyed a great night at Pottery Bayou in Winona Lake last night.
Each punk got to paint two ornaments, decorate two cookies, write a letter to Santa, visit with Santa, hear a story and decorate with some stickers. We all had a wonderful time!

This was about as close as Punk 3 wanted to get. He did finally sit on his lap but he wasn't thrilled about it.

Here's how Punk 3 used his stickers

A rare picture of the two of us.

Punk 3 still looks worried about being that close. :)

Man I have cute punks!

Free Christmas Cards!

2011-11-14T12:34:00.000-08:00

Tiny Prints is running an offer for bloggers!
Head on over to Tiny Prints Christmas Card Selection to see their awesome cards.
Here is the one I really like.

and here is my pathetic attempt to do a photoshoot with my boys. This is what they gave me...

I like that card design because it allows you to have a lot of photos all in one space but keeps it looking simple.

How do you organize your Christmas cards? We keep ours in a basket on the kitchen counter to look through. I heard of a great idea last year. My friend's family chooses one card out of their basket each night at dinner to pray for that family.

Are you a blogger? Sign up here to receive 50 free cards through Tiny Prints! Awesome!!!!

Ok, get creating!
a

Sweet, Sweet Baby

2011-11-03T18:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this is technically a photography post but it's going on our family blog anyway. :) I had the honor of attending my 6th birth and it was so special. Darcy is one of my closest friends and also a fellow photographer (I should say that she basically has taught me a good chunk of what I know!) :)

Anyhoo... enjoy these pictures of Miss Emery's birth...

Praying over Emery.

The pretty mama and me. :)

2 Year Old Punk

2011-10-26T04:54:00.000-07:00

I did a quick photoshoot of my little two year old the other night. When I say quick I mean it was literally about a minute and a half long. I quick grabbed him out of car and stuck him in front of this barn while Cabana Boy was getting the other two out. Baby Punk got this outfit from our friends the Grady's. I LOVE IT!!!! He is so cute! I have never purchased a canvas before but I think this picture and Punk 2's preschool photo might push me over the edge to get some. Now all I need is for Big Punk to cooperate and get a good one of him!

This is so him. Smiling but being shy and not looking at me. :)

We had a staff cookout the other night. It was wonderful! We took an hour long hay ride through Amish country and a beautiful woods, had a campfire, roasted hotdogs, kiddos jumped in a jumpy house and ate a bunch of pumpkin cheesecake (my contribution! yummo!)

With Daddy on the hayride

Making funny faces with a friend.

The other punks were there also but they don't like my big fat camera in their face these days.
Oh. I am cracking up. Punk's friend's fly is completely open in that picture. Hah!

Ok, hope you are enjoying your fall. We hit up two different pumpkin patches yesterday for two different field trips. Ooy! Not sure how I am going to keep up with all these boys when they are all in school!

peace out, a

oh and side note... go check out my best friend Darcy's blog- More Left Unseen (on the ride side of mine) for some funny preggo pics I snapped the other night of her and her hubby. They are so funny!

Preschool Photo

2011-10-20T04:22:00.000-07:00

I took Sawyer's Preschool Photos this week. I have to admit he is the cutest one in the bunch. Not bias at all. :)

Birthday Boy

2011-10-14T19:48:00.000-07:00

It's my sweet little water-baby's 2nd birthday today. Lots of mixed emotions. I love the stage he is at and he is such a joy in my life but I hate that I know longer have a "baby" in the house. I purged the house of most of our baby things over the last month. It is nice to have them gone but still sad.

Man is he cute...

This is so him. Binky in his mouth (i know I need to take it away. he is the third baby. i spoil him), Bear under his arm and another Binky in the other hand to give to his Bear. Such a snuggle bug.

and here is the dog sporting the birthday hat b/c Birthday boy wouldn't keep it on. Poor Abner. He has been completely forgotten about in the last few years.
Can't wait to celebrate baby punks birthday on Sunday. The boys and I have been prepping all week with crafts and decorations. Love me a party! :)

Crush

2011-10-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

Big Punk came with me to my photo shoot the other night. It was for a friend of his- Lilly. :)
He requested a few photos with her and I was happy to do it.

Pumpkin Pancakes: It's what's for Breakfast

2011-10-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

Big Punk is not a morning person. He was still in bed. :)

5 Seconds

2011-09-19T05:36:00.000-07:00

Please take 5 seconds to click "vote" for this amazing ministry.
Thank you!
http://givingoflife.com/browse/heartline_ministries/

You can see the link to Heartline on the right hand side of my blog. They are a ministry located in Haiti. They are bringing hope and health to the women and babies of Haiti.

Hunters

2011-09-19T05:03:00.000-07:00

The Great White Hunters headed out on Saturday to get their deer stands ready. I spent the day shooting a wedding. Sweet deal! :)
Man they are cute. Even if they are covered in camo.

Big Boys

2011-09-15T04:42:00.000-07:00

The older two punks started pre-school last week. They are getting so big!

This really shows how their size difference is increasing! yowzers that boy is big!

Punk 2 was nervous the morning of his first day. He didn't eat any breakfast. Once he was there he was good to go!

Punk1 started a new school this year. We opted not to send him to Kindergarten so we needed something different for him. I hope he likes it there!

And here is what Baby Punk did... :)

Culinary Arts

2011-09-12T04:39:00.000-07:00

We forgave each other after the diaper/time out issue and did some baking together. Love this little boy!

Naughty Baby. Naughty Mommy

2011-09-09T04:38:00.000-07:00

my sweet, innocent perfect baby punk got put in time out for the first time last week.
i asked him to put his dirty diaper in the trash and he refused. gaww....
crud... i have to do something about it. i can't let him get away with it. so... after a few times telling him to throw it away. he yelled at me and refused. so... to time out he went.
Naughty Baby.
I... went and got my camera.
Naughty Mommy.

Tell me you wouldn't want to take pics of those big puppy dog eyes, poutty lip and snotty nose?

oh crud... he's on to me.

and here he is putting himself back into time out b/c he liked it so much.
this is not going well!

crap.

and the stand off continues. there is the diaper. there is the trash. just put it in there already!

now he's playing hide and seek.

i am so bad at parenting him. Cabana Boy and I both admit that he has us wrapped around his little fingers. We can't help it that he is the cutest baby boy in the world! Don't even try to argue that b/c I will win. :)

So 45 minutes later... Punk 2 convinced him to throw it away.
Overall i think we both learned something...
Mommy will win but she will take pictures the entire time. :)
peace out,
naughty mommy

Friday Night Football

2011-09-02T19:39:00.000-07:00

If there is a home game on Friday nights this fall this is what we will be doing.

Handsome hubby watching the game and keeping an eye on the students.

Baby Punk playing in the sandpit.

All the punks playing with friends and eating tons of junk food.

and me? with a camera in my hand of course. Duh. :)

Bohemian Symphony Collection

2011-08-30T12:40:00.000-07:00

I am a proud owner of the Bohemian Symphony Collection. If you are not... Go check it out, purchase it and enter in the giveaway!

Above photo of me processed with "Skin Glow", "Lovely Eyes", "Porcelain Veneers" and "Simply Charming".
Thank you Lidia for your beautiful actions!
a

Here is the link. Go check it out!
a

Wedding Photographers

2011-08-29T13:13:00.000-07:00

Hard at work. :)

I REFUSE to do it!

2011-08-26T14:47:00.000-07:00

This past week I have been tackling clutter. I am forcing myself to clean out our closets and... the tubs and tubs and tubs of BABY BOY CLOTHES in our basement. They are taking over the house!
I ate a big bowl of ice cream the other night and then tackled the tubs. In the end I ended up with these massive piles to take to the resale shops and Goodwill.

I would be lying though if I didn't show you this tub. 1 tub filled to the top with baby boy clothes that I am refusing to part with. I just can't do it. Some are stained, some barely worn but all with a lot of memories. I am keeping them and that is all there is to it. :)

Happy Birthday Cabana Boy!

2011-08-23T12:08:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my Cabana Boy! I love you more now than when we were 16!

The punks and I just got home from visiting him at his second job where we took him and all the office staff some dessert.

The boys and I had some fun this morning coming up with this little surprise for him.

My little cowboys

2011-08-18T18:01:00.000-07:00

My punks are becoming little cowboys! It has been over 10 years since I was on a horse and it has been fun to have them learning all about caring for Honey. It has brought back so many memories for me. I learned to ride on a pony very similar to her.

Here they are strutting their stuff.

Trying to teach Punk 1 neck reigning.

He was so happy!

First time trotting!

Giving her a well deserved treat.

Punk 2 rode too but I was leading him.
What fun!

A BIG FAT THANK YOU!

2011-08-14T05:16:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to thank you all for voting for my picture in the "Capture Life" contest. After 600+ votes my picture won!!!!! It received 278 votes. Thank you so much for your support of my hobby turned business. I am loving that I have found something that I feel like I am decent at and enjoy doing. Ben commented that he was happy for me b/c a few years ago I had been having a hard time. After I stopped teaching I didn't have as many friends and didn't have anything that was just mine. I have that now! I have the best friends in the world and am so enjoying my life. I thank God for blessing me and my family.
Thank you also to one of my dearest friends, Darcy Holsopple Photography for taking this picture of my Cabana Boy and I. :)
a

No need for words

2011-08-12T19:33:00.000-07:00

I can already read Meg's comment now, "You are dead to me. Dead I tell you. "
Sorry. I know I am a terrible sister in law but it would be a complete injustice if I didn't share this photo with the world. :)
a

11

2011-08-06T11:50:00.000-07:00

Congrats to Cabana Boy for putting up with me for 11 years.
We got to run out last night for a quick kid free dinner. Always a treat!
We both agreed last night that we are happier and more in love now than when we were teenagers.
God is good!

My Last Ditch Plea

2011-08-06T01:39:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Everyone who has voted for my photo. If you have not yet I would so appreciate you taking 1 minute to cast your vote for #8!
Capture Life Contest

THANK YOU!!!!!!
amanda

Congrats Zach and Daiane!

2011-07-31T03:06:00.000-07:00

We spent the day yesterday celebrating at Cabana Boy's cousin's wedding. Guess who was the photographer? :) Never thought I would say it but, "It was me!!!!!" I will be honest and say I was an absolute nervous wreck about the whole thing. Like trying to throw up all morning nervous. But... in the end it was an awesome (HOT) day and we got some beautiful photos. They are seriously the most photogenic couple so it made my job a breeze.
Here is just a tiny taste of some of their pictures. I will put a load more up on my photography page in a few weeks but wanted to share these on here for family.
Oh and side note... sorry to all our family that I didn't really get to talk to. Like I said before, I was so nervous and focused that I just couldn't concentrate much yesterday. Anyhoo... congrats to the couple!!

Summer Lovin'

2011-07-29T05:22:00.000-07:00

I am lovin' summer (not the extreme heat) but summer still.
And... I am lovin' this little boy.
Whoever said you don't take as many pictures of the third baby hasn't met me and my big fat camera. I have ridiculous amounts of photos of his little mug.

Actually on second thought all of these were taken with the little puny point and shoot. The combination of clumsy me and my big dog camera at the fair didn't seem like a good idea. Still great pics.

We LOVE the fair but it was just too hot this year. We ended up at MD's for lunch with the cousins.

Our annual "Big Chair" picture.

Baby Punk cracking up at his Papa's mouse trick in Pioneer Land.

Going to school in 1850. He was a terrible student.

I wish I looked cute all hot and sweaty.

The rain is coming down outside and I am hoping it is going to cool everyone off a little bit.
Have a great weekend!
a

Just another Sunday night

2011-07-25T05:43:00.000-07:00

Cabana Boy and the punks husked 108 ears of corn last night and then he and I froze 17 quarts of corn once they were in bed. That should last us until next summer!
Oh the joys of living in the country and having a neighbor that grows the best sweet corn we have ever tasted! So thankful for these blessings!

My Red, White and Blue Crew

2011-07-18T18:19:00.000-07:00

If you have read my blog for any real length of time you may remember that my Punk #2 is a firecracker baby. I love the 4th of July! It is my favorite holiday. Always has been.
Here are some pictures of us celebrating his golden birthday.

Cabana Boy wanted him to have a set of gloves and ball for his present from us.

He's got an arm!

Charlie immediately ran in the house and came out with his glove marked. :)

Nana and Papa Tonagel got him this ice cream cake. yum!!!!

Sawyer had a birthday party with all his friends back home.

Water balloon toss

Blowing out his candles on my poor pathetic "fighter jet" cake. It ended up looking more like a clown cake. Some else said it looked like "Lake Wawasee" oops.

It was great b/c the boys cousins from TX got to come this year. Brooksie giving his famous kisses.

Check out the jet he got!

and just a funny pic. :)

have a great week!

Is this Heaven? No, It's Iowa. :)

2011-07-12T19:10:00.000-07:00

I know I have used that title before but it cracks me up every time we make our annual trip to Iowa. Once again we packed up the ol' swagger wagon and headed out to see our wonderful friends the Grady family (Charlie's middle name).
Their three kiddos- Addison, Lucas and Dawson and our three punks have a blast together.

Here they are getting ready to head out for their first trip to the movie theater.

Look how excited they are!

Cabana Boy refilled popcorns three times and took a punk to the bathroom. :) He still enjoyed the movie.

One of our favorite parts of the trip- Japaneese Steakhouse night! Each year we ditch the kids with a babysitter and head out just us adults. So fun!

Athena and Matt

Matthew being a little silly. :) Sorry couldn't resist putting this up!

You can check out some more pics of their kids over on a.tonagel photography.

Calling ALL LaPorte Blog Readers!

2011-07-09T05:02:00.000-07:00

I have attended the LaPorte parade every 4th of July except for 3 years. This year I decided that I am going to do a service for the citizens of LP and make up a "LaPorte Parade Sightings" BINGO card. I need your help though! Each year we kind of laugh and keep track of some of the usual sightings you see when you attend the parade each year.

You know...
-shirtless beer gut guy
-snake guy
-family walking their ginormous dogs on the parade route
-teenage girl with gangsta guys
-large girl hanging out of window watching the parade
-former high school love interest

You get the idea. Submit your comments on who you love to see at the parade so I can get these cards made up. Come on! It will be fun!

and for your viewing pleasure...
Punk 2 mesmerized by belly dancers

My adorable birthday punk. :)

candy punk

baby punk waving at everyone

Oh and Cabana Boy says I need my own card slot because I now have feather extensions. I love them!!!! He hates them. :)

Ok, leave me your ideas for my BINGO cards. Can't wait to hear what you look forward to seeing at the parade every year! :)

peace and feathers,
a

shades

2011-07-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

Grandma Sensow got the boys these awesome Aviator Sunglasses. I think they look so handsome in them! When I asked them to pose for me. This is what Punk 1 broke out into....

Heaven help the girls he likes in middle school and high school. oh my!

Couldn't resist getting a pic of froggy.

Here is my birthday boy!
Don't mind my ridiculously large reflection. :)

Scarves in July

2011-07-02T13:50:00.000-07:00

So here's some randomness for ya...

Punk 1 has been begging me to make him this scarf since fall. I gave in one Saturday and he and I made them for all the punks. So no need to worry. The boys will be plenty warm with their sharks wrapped around their necks this summer.

The boys and I enjoyed a birthday party for Goshen Birth Center on the courthouse lawn a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun celebrating all the babies that have been born there.

Ellie wore the shirt that I made for my midwife Rachel after I had Brooks. It is a spoof off of the "Epidural? Schmepidural!" shirts you may have seen before. This one says, "Epidural? Aquadural!" It is an idea for advertising our center to others.

Who's hillbilly kid is this? geez!

All cleaned up and swinging before Church.

Ben trying out the camera on me. :)

toodles.

Blog Vacation is over!

2011-06-27T17:44:00.000-07:00

Let's sum up the last few weeks with some pictures shall we?

guess what? the punks got a pony! Well, their grandparents got a pony.

Meet Honey! Isn't she cute?

I got to attend a waterbirth and then got kicked out of a c-section. This is my sweet friend Leanne and her baby girl, Madeline. She and Matt have three boys and now a baby girl. So happy for them!

Mama got a new toy! a new camera and lens to be exact. :)

I have attended 3 weddings in the last two weeks. Second shot one, assisted at one and crashed another for a few hours.

Here is sweet Anna. I watched her mama catch her in the water. Beyond awesome. :) Read her birth story on their blog. You can see it on the right hand side "its the little things"

Ok, I promise to keep up a little better for the rest of the summer.

Good to be back. :)

A little Break

2011-05-16T11:23:00.001-07:00

Hey all,
I am going to pay the small fee to keep our blog going and get my photography blog totally revamped! Looking forward to the new look and making my little hobby more professional.
In the mean time I am going to take a little break from updating our family blog. Check back in about a month for some new pics.
Until then. Enjoy your families and the beautiful spring weather!
amanda

haircut pics

2011-04-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

I put the pics of our youngest punk on my fb page. If you want to see them and aren't a friend of mine already, send me a message and let me know you aren't some bubba in prison and I will friend ya.
a

No More Pictures!?!?!?!?

2011-04-25T04:40:00.000-07:00

Apparently I have maxxed out on my picture space! NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I will have to figure something out. Until then...
sniff sniff
no more pictures. :(
a

Another Satisfied Customer

2011-04-23T11:57:00.000-07:00

Once again, I had to cave and allow my boys to get their hair cut. I HATE cutting their hair. It just changes their looks so much. I let my mom trim Punk 3's hair about a month ago in the back. The entire time I cursed her and told her I wouldn't like it and to plan on me being mad at her for quite some time.
Last night I prepped our friend Ryan "The Village Barber" in Winona Lake that I would also be very mad at him and not like my baby boy's haircut but not to take it personally.
Ben took him to get his first official haircut while I took pics of Ryan's three adorable children.

These pictures make me roll with laughter.
They said Punk 3 was the best customer he had ever had. He didn't move once.
I don't think his expression changed the entire time!

Don't act too excited there bud!

Another satisfied customer.

Thanks Ryan!

ps. i really dislike the haircut and I am mad at you but

I will like you again in a few weeks when it grows out. :)

Cousins at the beach

2011-04-23T10:36:00.000-07:00

the vacation was awesome because we got to spend it with my sister and her two kids. the cousins had a great time with each other!
Here are all the boys hard at work and Lyla supervising them. Good girl! :)

digging a hole to china. they promised to bring me back a baby girl.

punk 3 burying me

love these back-lit photos.

poor cabana boy got burnt the first day

our condo

a pic for the grandparents

my sis and her kids

another attempt at China.

we found this awesome sculpture

the whole gang

Cabana Boy supervising

gray and punk 1

Lyla and her ladybug collection

this was my favorite part of vacation. watching them do this all day.

remember to check out a.tonagel photography blog for some more pictures.

David Crowder*Band - How He Loves

2011-04-22T09:07:00.000-07:00

Two Posts in one day. I am so loved on this Good Friday.

The Sweet Smell of Pine-Sol

2011-04-22T04:39:00.000-07:00

A friend sent me this devotional this morning.
What a good reminder. Especially for task oriented me!
Read and enjoy...

“Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’” Matthew 19:14 (NIV)

I admit it. I’m the world’s worst when it comes to preserving photos. I have boxes of photos stacked in various cubbyholes. I tried to organize the pictures once. I divided them and placed them in large envelopes. My next step was to put them in albums. They are still in the envelopes — stacked in a box.

My children Melissa, Ryan, and Leslie are now in their 20′s and newly married. The chances of me ever getting these precious memories organized are slim to none, but I’m realizing something powerful. Memories aren’t limited to pictures.

Remember when, Mom? is a common phrase in my house now. We have become the hub, a privilege once reserved for my husband’s parents. At holidays and special weekends, they drive up and unload luggage and pile into the guest rooms. We laugh and reminisce a lot around the table. Remember when we went on treasure hunts in the pasture? Remember when you jumped on the bed and popped Ryan up in the air so high it scared you? Remember that yellow Slip-n-Slide™?

I do remember. But I also remember a young mom with three little ones who worried that her house wasn’t spotless when an unexpected guest showed up. I remember the angst of trying to do everything and the fatigue when my day ended before my chores did.

I also remember days that I threw caution to the wind and jumped on the bed, even though it might make others frown. I grabbed a shovel and gave the kids plastic buckets and we looked for old bottles and trinkets at the abandoned homestead nearby. We mixed dishwashing liquid and water and I laughed out loud as the kids flew like greased lightening across the yellow slippery slide.

Some of those memories were captured in that pre-digital age, but most were not. However, they are etched on the heart of my young adult children.

What they don’t reminisce about is the sweet, sweet smell of PineSol™. Whether my house was perfect or how it compared to others’ is not even on their radar.
Why did I worry so?

Is it good to have order and structure? Sure. But don’t allow the pressure to be the perfect mom keep you from the simplicity of playing with your children. The unmade bed will still be there when you are through, but I promise that a child will grow quickly.

Take a moment today and look past the clutter and the to-do list and be a child again. It might not be a picture-perfect moment, but it will be a memory.

Dear Lord, time passes so fast. Slow me down. Let me enjoy the smallest pleasures. Let me play with my child instead of only knocking down a to-do list. Let me laugh with my teen instead of fussing at him. Thank You for sweet memories, Amen.

Big Punk at the Beach

2011-04-21T11:32:00.000-07:00

If you know my big punk he is about the most social kid you will ever meet. seriously. he talks to everyone and is constantly narrating everything he does.
you know that he is a ladies' man. the beach was heaven for him.
He met Amanda from Georgia, 4 teachers from Kentucky, Rocco from who knows where, random people in elevators and a few teenage girls.
Here's the condensed story...
Cabana Boy (mine not our real one) and Punk 1 are walking to the beach and as they walk past a group of girls, they yell, "Hi Charlie!" to them.
Ben says, "Charlie, who are they????"
"Oh. Just my friends."
He comes and tells me about it laughing.
The next day my sister and I are debating/lamenting over a teenage girl that is walking the beach in front of us. Let's just say she had the most adorable teenage figure but an abundant upper chest. We were talking about whether they were God given or not and praying/hoping they were. As we are sitting and talking I finally came to the conclusion that I didn't think they were natural.
Charlie walks up behind us and says, "Hey, there are my friends!" and points to the girl.
My sister and I roll over with laughter and try to hide our tears. She finally says, "Nice Charlie. You know how to pick them at 5 years old."

it's a requirement to get buried in the sand.

running pics are always fun.

busy, busy busy!

Exhausted after a day in the sun.

and purposely putting on a pouty face b/c his mom wants a good picture of him. :)

cousins up next. You will have to head to a.tonagel photography blog for the formal looking pics. Not that there are that many since the kiddos could have cared less about smiling for a camera. Too much sand and water to play in. :)

Punk 2 at the beach

2011-04-20T10:53:00.000-07:00

Every boys dream. Running free.

look at that cool wave.

He was very intense about his digging. Him being our "junk yard dog" he got in trouble quite a bit for rough housing on the beach but it was so good for him to be out in the fresh air with plenty of room to run.

When we tried to do some formal pictures. This is what Punk2 gave me. Not sure what exactly he is doing but he obviously thought this was cool.

peace out yo.

and you guessed it up next Punk1

Beach Baby

2011-04-18T12:40:00.000-07:00

for you impatient folks. :)

Here are a few quick pics of Punk 3 enjoying the beach. Out of all three he surprised me the most. I knew the other two would love it but he LOVED it! He was scared of the ocean the first day but after that we had a hard time keeping him out of it. He was so busy carrying sand, buckets of water, eating snacks, taking naps on me under the cabana (ps. we had a REAL cabana boy! funny story at another time when i have time to write) and diving head first into the ocean.

pure joy.

don't look at gross me. focus on the cute baby. i really should have photoshoped this image. blah...

loving the king size bed that he came and crawled into every morning at 5:30am. little stinker.

early morning walk

snuggling with cousin lyla

still dry at this point.

not any more...

snacks taste better with sand in them

king of the sandpile

i'm in love with a short pudgy man.

running away from me and my camera

Punk2 up next...

The Beach

2011-04-16T08:13:00.000-07:00

Just to make you all a little jealous...
Here is where I was last week. :)
I didn't realize how desperately we needed a vacation. We had never taken a true "vacation" with the kids and it blew away all my expectations.
I am working through my 600+ photos. Most of which are just the boys and their cousins playing in the sand.
Here are some from one morning when Punk#3 and I watched the sunrise out on the beach. I am not a morning person at all but this was worth it.
Notice we are the only crazy ones out at that time of morning.

more beach pics to come...

Happy 5th Birthday to Punk 1

2011-04-10T12:28:00.000-07:00

So I have tried a couple of times to post this entry and for some reason blogger just won't let me do it. I have gobs of pics from Punk 1's party that I wanted to share and they just keep getting regected. These few that I got on here are kind of out of order and it won't let me rearrange them.
So...I am giving up and just posting this.

2 months late... here are some pics from our rockin pirate party!

Can't tell from here but the cupcakes were little fish.

We had a treasure hunt with some dumb clues made up by me. Cabana Boy and Greg are laughing b/c they don't even understand my clues.

Papa Hughie reading the next clue.

Miss Darcy had the last one. It said something about a big booty. :)

They found it! Telescopes, Gold coins, eye patches, Big hoop earrings and pirate tatoos for all the kiddies.

hold onto your hats. here's a bunch of photos from our Pirate party!

I teared up a bit when i got out my cake pan and saw Grandma Anne's initials on the side. She would have been decked out as pirate for this party.

the serious pirate

We just arrived home from a FABULOUS family vacation. I am working my way through 654 pictures. :) I will blog about it later this week.
ta ta, a

Citizens of Nappanee

2011-03-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

No need to fear any longer. We are here to protect your town. Mom gave us these suckers as bribery and we vowed to stand and look cute until they were gone. So... basically that gives you about 30 seconds of safety. Use it wisely.

Poor Antique goers. They had no clue that Punk 2 was watching their every move.

I wouldn't want to meet him in a dark alley.

I took about a million of these photos of the boys. I may post a bunch later but wanted to share these few quickly.
Sleep well all. I am safe in my house with these superheros to protect me.
a

Birthday Boy/Ladies Man

2011-03-20T12:25:00.000-07:00

I got to visit Punk's Preschool class on his birthday. I took a few :) photos while there. His teacher referred to this as "Charlie's Harem" Apparently Charlie and these two little cuties don't leave each other's side all morning. Neither one looks thrilled at the moment but aren't they cute?

They played Batman and Batgirls together.

Two nights ago at bedtime we were getting ready to say prayers. The Punk pulled a blank slip of paper out of his prayer jar. He explained to me that means you get to pray for whoever you want tonight. So he said, "Thank you God for my good friend Lilly. Thank you also that I don't have to search for a wife anymore." I about lost it. It was all I could do to contain my laughter. He was so serious! I can't believe what comes out of his mouth some days.
Earlier today he said he wanted to sing me a song. I sat down, he got out his guitar and he proceeded to sing, "We can go to the tropics. Sip pina coladas. Shorty I can take you there." The 2nd Punk chimed in with, "Where the grass is green and the girls are pretty." Lord please forgive us for teaching our boys classic 80's rock. We can't help it!

Happy Birthday to my little pirate!

President's/Principal's Day

2011-03-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

For some reason Punk 1 was all hyped up on President's Day a few weeks ago. School had been cancelled for Cabana Boy (but he still went to work) and Punk 1 kept insisting that we get him some presents and make a special meal for him. I wasn't following any of his logic but it kept the boys busy all morning. They kept gathering random things from the house and wrapping them up. (translation: making a huge mess with wrapping paper and using every inch of it and scotch tape that I had!)

When Cabana Boy, I mean President Tonagel???? got home this is what he was met with...

So I'm guessing the Punk had Principal and President confused. I won't tell him otherwise. After this year, I think Principal's should have a national holiday. :)

Oh and this picture is for Troy and Megan. Cabana Boy LOVES this shirt and wants to wear it EVERYWHERE. I have tried to gently tell him that he is not a government official and just looks like a dork while wearing it. He said, "Nonsense. Everyone kept staring at me at school today. I think they liked it."

Catching Up

2011-03-15T06:59:00.000-07:00

So I once again find myself way behind on my blogging but here is at least a quick peak at Charlie's Pirate Party thank you care I made. Picasa Collages are the best thing since sliced bread. Love them for this kind of stuff!
I will eventually update the blog with some pics from his party and happenings around here. We have been busy with school, attending another birth all night (me not Cabana boy) and house hunting (none that has been successful).
For now, you are going to have to just settle for this little teaser. Oh and I will share one photo from the birth. :) If you haven't found my photo page on facebook or my blog, check the right hand side of this blog for the links.
peace, a
or should i say, "peace on earth, begins with birth" :)

You would think I was Amish

2011-03-02T20:06:00.000-08:00

If you saw my cart in Aldi grocery store you would probably think I drove a horse and buggy that morning but alas no.
Is this the most ridiculous amount of chili ingredients you have ever seen????

The punks and I (one pirate in attendance) made 9 batches of chili on Thursday. We have been stuck at home for way too long and were starting to go stir crazy. I enlisted their help and we whipped up all of this in a matter of about 2 hours. I am doing a meal trade with my MOPS group so hopefully all this hard work will pay off. (don't worry the puffy paint did not go into the chili. made shirts with that before the chili and never got the table cleared off.)

Here's the end result. Man that is a lot of chili. (notice all the squash on the next shelf!) hah!!!!! Poor Cabana Boy. All I feed him is chili and squash.

Oh and here is our supervisor.

I'm off to go fill the gas lanterns and throw an extra blanket on the beds. Don't tease I really am going to do that. I may not be Amish but i do live in an old, cold house in the middle of Indiana Amish Country.

Night all,

Who's ready for a pirate party?

2011-02-27T05:58:00.000-08:00

We are!!!!!!!!

Our punks/pirates are ready to break out the booty and have some fun this afternoon! Party On!

Argh Matey!

Bieber Fever

2011-02-26T19:59:00.000-08:00

I can't help but sing, "Baby, baby, BABY!"
when I see these pics. :)

Here is punk #1 showing me some of his dance skills. HE (just to clarify that he picked this clothes out) changes his clothes about 5 times a day for whatever he is doing at that moment. (playing soccer, playing basketball, playing football, dancing, doing artwork, pounding on one of his brothers...) you get the idea.

Think he's gonna make me millions one day?
"oh baby, baby, baby oh..."
I'm off to watch another youtube video. :)

My little models

2011-02-23T07:36:00.000-08:00

Convinced two out of the three to let me take their picture.
Can't believe this first punk is going to be 5 this week! Crazy!!!!!!!!

This is his typical face. He rarely smiles. He is a happy boy just not expressive. He will make a great politician some day.

Choo Choo!

2011-02-20T12:14:00.000-08:00

A blog reader wanted to see pics of my house. Well... I haven't been good about snapping any pics of it when it doesn't look like this so I guess I will just keep it real and show you what it looks like on a normal day before 7pm. Here are the punks with their Geotrax train that their cousin gave them. It seriously takes up the entire dining room. It also takes about a week for me to figure out how to get all the pieces together so it stays up for about 2 weeks at a time or until we are tired of tripping over it and I can't stand all the crumbs and dust in between all the pieces.

There is an antique buffet and dining table set in there somewhere.

So there you have it blog readers, my beautiful dining room, geotrax and this little mug.

peace, a

His "super" power

2011-02-17T12:18:00.000-08:00

Apparently his super power is being able to magically get the snack cupboard open time and time again and get into the cookies when Mama isn't looking.

Brothers

2011-02-14T12:49:00.000-08:00

My little punk rock band

I would like you all to know that I got 2 out of the 3 of them to smile at me by balancing an exercise ball on my head while taking this picture. Punk 1 was purposefully giving me his "mad" face.

Thanks to my friend Jill for letting us borrow Punk 3's sweater so we had a whole matching set.

# 2's pose for the camera

Almost Birthday Boy

And they are sick of the camera after 2 minutes...

My Quest to be Cool

2011-02-11T12:24:00.000-08:00

Every girl desires to be cool in one way or another. Her definition of cool may be very different from someone else's but I think it would be hard to find a female that doesn't have that inward desire.

Growing up, I was not a "cool" girl. I didn't have designer clothes. We were not poor but my family just didn't spend money on those types of things. You know the things that matter to every middle school girl- Guess jeans, shirts from Maurices and County Seat. I can still remember trying hard not to be envious of the pretty girls with their curly hair, big bangs, overalls with one strap left down, Guess t-shirt and the "Pump" Reeboks. Oh and they were dancing with a boy at "Fun Nights." You know what else every cool girl had? Wickets. That's right I said WICKETS. They wore their cool winter ski coats to school with all the wickets from their ski trips still attached. It was kind of a competition to see who could have the most hanging from their zipper.

My mom begged me to go on the 4-H ski trips every year but I was too scared to go. I didn't know how to ski, it looked scary and plus I wasn't cool and I knew it. So... I never went.

Well all you "cool" girls look at me now! :) So, I'm still not cool (notice my "Sensow" smile and rubberbands in my hair b/c I forgot hairties) but I have a wicket!

When I started teaching they begged me to be a ski club sponsor for 2 years. I tried to explain to them my "uncoolness" and how I didn't know how to ski! I finally caved in my third year. They dangled free season ski passes in front of Ben and he told me to do it. So... I went and took the ski lesson with all the other 6th graders and was completely terrified. But lo and behold I learned to ski! And guess what, I love it!!!!! So I helped sponsor the club for two years at WMS. Cabana Boy and I bought skis after my first lesson and have enjoyed this sport together ever since. We haven't been able to go for the last three winters b/c of us having baby after baby after baby... but his parents stepped in, watched the boys for the night and let us go ski! It was awesome!

Here's Cabana Boy on the slopes. Look at that form!

And here's cool me. :)

Ben asked what it would take for me to feel cool. I told him if I was a well known birth photographer someday I would finally feel cool. He said that most people wouldn't consider that cool. Just weird. Thanks babe.
Remember how I mentioned that what is cool to one girl may not be to another? Well my cool is birth photographers. I think they are way cooler than movie stars and pop artists. Maybe not Fergie but everybody else.

So what makes you cool? Mind sharing?

peace, a
ps. yes, i know I have terrible English skills. Don't tell my former Language Arts students.
I faked it for 5 years. I don't have to anymore. :)

Pumpkin Story (turned birth story)

2011-02-08T14:22:00.000-08:00

This post is LONG overdue and may not really mean much to most people but I think it is kind of a sweet story. If anything you might enjoy the pics. I actually wrote this in October but for some reason just never posted it. It ended up turning into a LOONNNGGG post. So... sorry for all my wordiness. I wasn't planning to write Brooks' birth story on here but it just kind of started spilling out. Enjoy or just scroll down to look at pics and skip the reading. :)

On the day Brooks was born, I was lets just say in a pretty emotional place. I still have to control myself and not cry just thinking about this special day. Since I never shared his birth story I will give a very brief rundown of the day. I had prepared myself for a "Wham bam thank ya' mam" birth. Instead I got a 16 hour labor. Charlie was born in 10 hours, Sawyer 4 so I thought there was a good chance I might walk into the birth center and go straight to the tub. Well... it didn't happen like that.

I started labor at 2:30am. It was pretty consistent contractions for about an hour. I was so excited! I know most people dread the idea of pain in childbirth. Not me. I honestly don't get that. I have had people comment to me and say something to the effect of "Well, you must have had easy births to do it three times without meds." Um... no! I honestly resent that. I worked my butt off through those three labors. I did it out of love and because I know it is what was safest for my babies and me.

Anyway... back to the story... after an hour of good contractions, they sllllooowwweedd way down. ugh! I was in slow early labor all day. I took the boys to Fairfield to drop off cupcakes, went to Walmart, called the midwives, got checked, went to lunch. When I realized that I couldn't finish my lunch because the contractions were getting pretty strong I figured it was time to head home. On the way, I stopped quickly at the store because I had the idea to buy three pumpkins. One for each of my babies. I knew I would be bringing home a new little bundle that night. So... after an Aldi's stop we finally headed home. (looking back I think what on earth would I have done if my water broke???)

Once home, I cleaned up the house, plopped the boys down in front of cartoons and waited for Ben to get home. As soon as he got home, I went and laid down, no sleep. Just kept timing contractions. At 4 minutes apart I called and told the midwives and Ben's mom that we were on our way. We were all so excited on the ride there. I can remember us yelling, "Our baby is coming!" (between contractions of course)

Upon arrival at birth center, I kind of crawled my way in and sat on the floor crying. i was totally overwhelmed from being so incredibly happy, tired from being in labor all day and let's face it in some major pain. It was all worth it. I was having my third baby in the place I had dreamed of.

Unfortunately, once again the contractions slowed way down. Goodness. you have to be kidding me! I labored in the living room while bouncing on a birth ball. I talked to Rachel about birth and had her remind me why I was doing all this. :) I needed a little pep talk. She said, "You want the high right?" Yea, I want that. The total adrenaline rush of birthing on my own. Remembering all this. Experiencing this with my family right here with me. Showing my boys the reality of birth. And a whole lot more.

Ok, a few hours later, Rachel could tell things had picked up and knew if I was going to have a waterbirth, I needed to get into the tub NOW. So... in I went. My waterbroke within the next minute or so and after me yelling at Ben and Rachel in a little moment of panic, a minute and a half of some major pushing, Rachel pulled Brooks out of the water because I was just staring at him in disbelief. I cried and cried. I couldn't believe my baby was here. I asked if it was a boy or girl and Rachel said, "It's what you thought it was, A BOY!"

Fast forward to this past summer...

I randomly asked Ben what he had done with the pumpkins I bought on the day of Brooks BIRTHday. He said, "I threw them out back by the field. The boys and I went back and low and behold there were about 12 pumpkins growing right under the irrigation. I guess it was the perfect spot for them. Don't ask me why but I get choked up thinking about those pumpkins that I bought while I was going through the pains of labor for my boys and then watching them reseed and grow into 12 new pumpkins for our family to enjoy again the following year.

The boys and I checked on our pumpkins every day throughout the summer and fall. They kept begging to pick them. I wanted to be patient and wait for the perfect time.

October 14th. Brooks' 1st birthday was the perfect time.

I bought those pumpkins one year before and now I wanted to proudly display these pumpkins.

So... after naps the boys and I trecked out to the little makeshift patch and picked all the pumpkins. I will admit that this is when I finally cried on his birthday. I had held it together the whole day. But not now.

They thought it was a blast lifting up the big ones and rolling them around.

Look at those muscles Charlie!

Sawyer, I think that is the face I made when I was in labor. Actually I know it wasn't that cute. :)

Birthday boy Brooks trying to help.

Our harvest of pumpkins!

Right back where they started.

Afterward we waved at all the farmers working on their harvest. You know we love our tractors and farmers around here.

I made Ben promise that if we ever move I can arrange to come back and at least get one of our pumpkins in the fall to plant at a new home.

peace, a

Crayon making

2011-02-06T19:35:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts. I know I promised to do better with the blog but I needed a little break from it and hadn't honestly taken too many photos around the house here lately.
A have a few posts ready to go now so check back every few dates for an update on my punks.

Today's post is about a craft we did a few weeks ago. I have been trying to clean out and organize our craft supplies a little better. The punks have a bad habit of just dumping out all the crayons, markers, glue sticks, etc... all at once and then just making a huge mess without actually creating anything. So in an effort to organize we pulled out all the tiny bits of broken crayons and decided to melt them together to make some new rainbow crayons.

tip: double up the foil. A few of our pieces broke and we had wax all over my muffin tins.

When I told the boys to put their heads together so I could get them in the photo, this is what I got. :)

After baking them at 250 for about 12 minutes, I put the pans outside to cool and we ended up with a bunch of these beauties!

When mama's sick...

2011-01-20T17:21:00.000-08:00

I have been ssssiiiicccckkkkk all week! It royally stinks. I am finally feeling better today so sorry for the lack of interesting posts this week.
I hate being sick. My kids love it. They know my resistance to germs and cartoons is way down. Their brains are officially fried. We watched Toy Story 2 and 3 this week along with numerous other cartoons. I just didn't have the energy to do much else.
I am off to bed for the night but here is a cute little mug shot of Punk 3.

Andrew Peterson - Dancing in the Minefields (Official Video)

2011-01-18T06:18:00.000-08:00

This song hits home today as I have been sick for a good three days and my husband who i met when i was 16 has been taking care of our household. He's now back to work and I am home on my own.
Thanks for sharing this video, Kathy.
a

Fighting over their brother

2011-01-14T06:35:00.000-08:00

Ok, the picture quality isn't the best on these (taken with my point and shoot- Yes, i have

three cameras and am saving for another. do you have a problem with that?)

The boys' facial expressions crack me up in these

Punk 3 adores his older brothers. And they ~~tolerate~~ love him.

Here they are in a little tussle over who gets to hold him.

Check out Punk 1 and 2 yelling at each other.

#1 wins for the moment.

Now #2's turn. Look at Punk 3's face. Doesn't he look like he is just loving this? Hah!

peace out all you blog stalkers!
a

You spoke, I listened

2011-01-12T04:15:00.000-08:00

Alright, alright... apparently someone besides my sisters-in-laws and my mother-in-law do read this blog. :) It was nice to hear that you all enjoy my boys antics and my amateur photography.

To be honest I don't use this blog as a way to record my boys' childhoods or as a digital scrapbook. I know many use their blogs like that and that works for them. I however view my blog as an outlet for me to laugh at my boys from a different perspective, poke fun at my Cabana Boy (who I adore and love with all my heart), share my heart/mind and share some pics that I enjoy. I write because I mainly want to make someone else smile. Yesterday morning, I wasn't so sure that anyone checked my silly old blog.
Well you spoke, I listened.

So now what to post about????
What do you all want to hear about? This gives me a focus with the posts. Sounds like you enjoy funny punk stories, Cabana Boy's attempts at anything other than bringing me drinks on a beach and wanting to see my home a little bit.

Anything else??? If you have any other requests let me know! I will work up a few posts and get going on them.

In the meantime here is a picture of Punk 3. "Hey Bud, I think you have something on your nose." :)
Love him!

To Blog or NOT to Blog, That is the question!

2011-01-11T05:48:00.000-08:00

Having some blogging doubts. Does anyone read this thing? Am I just talking to myself when I write these ridiculous posts?
Thinking of taking a major break from the blog. If you read this silly old thing and enjoy it let me know in the comments. (You can write a comment without a blogger account.) Otherwise you may not hear from me for awhile. If you do like the blog, what do you like about it? What do you want to hear more about? I am having trouble lately thinking of things to "blog" about.

In the meantime here are a few pics from our Christmas break. It was like a fantasy land. It was awesome. We stayed up late every night watching Christmas movies. For some reason I don't feel so bad about frying my kids brains with tv when they are Christmas movies. That and I like watching Will Ferrell dressed up as a huge Elf. :)

Punk 3 was acting like one of the Chimpanzees that you see at the zoo picking bugs off of another chimp. He kept inspecting Punk 1's hair and beating him on the head. Pretty funny!

Ok folks if you want to see pics and read about our zany family. Let me know!
a

Sledding in a Winter Wonderland

2010-12-28T20:08:00.000-08:00

Papa Hughie got the Farmall all revved up to drag some little boys (ok me too) around the yard.
It was a blast!!!!!!

Here's Brooksie and Nana watching from the window.
Notice his shirt, "all mommy wants for Christmas is a silent night." :)

"Crazy man" (Uncle Joel)

My crazy man- Sawyer

Yea! Get him!

"Crazy man" trying to give Jace a pep talk.

And they are off!

Check out those smiles! (and Jace's look of shear terror)

One of my favorite pictures...

Pretty, pretty snow! All 10+ inches of it!

Hey look, it's "Crazy Man" making a snow angel!

My Favorite Christmas Song

2010-12-21T18:16:00.000-08:00

I love the words in this song.
Merry Christmas!
amanda

Chucks

2010-12-20T11:42:00.000-08:00

The boys got a few Christmas presents yesterday. Their new "Chuck Taylors" were a huge hit! I had two pairs when I was in middle school and I am wishing I still had mine! I may have to splurge and buy myself a pair of low top yellow ones.

Here's Jace, Sawyer and Charlie showing off their new kicks.
Thanks Uncle Greg, Aunt Amy and Cousins Jace and Will. The boys love them!

For the LOVE of Sprinkles!

2010-12-15T04:44:00.000-08:00

Finally a post from me! I needed to take a little time off from the blogging world. For those of you who were wondering I did get to finally attend the homebirth. The poor gal went 8 days overdue so I felt like I hadn't stopped staring at my phone/computer waiting for word to jump in the car. So... my eyes needed a break.
But you don't have to wait any longer... here are a few pictures from me passing on my love of sprinkles to my boys!

Confession: store bought cookie dough from Aldis

Oh, I'm so proud. Look at all those sprinkles.

Charlie showing off his masterpiece

My entire kitchen was covered in sprinkles!

Would you like a cookie with your sprinkles?

Decisions, decisions. Which one to eat first?

That's my boy! Spoon on the sprinkles!!!!

Finished products. They got to do more cookies with Nana a few days later. I think they are officially sprinkle addicts also.

And my attempt to get a picture of all three. (The impossible task.) Notice how they picked out their own clothes, no one is matching and no one is really looking at the camera.

As good as it gets. Pretty cute if I do say so myself.

Caution: Random Cuteness Ahead

2010-11-25T10:12:00.000-08:00

Here are some random pictures I am going through...

My little monster. Thanks Nana and Papa Hughie for the outfit.

We don't celebrate Halloween but they dressed up and passed out some candy at FJSHS.

My cowboys and indians....

Trashman

Eating lunch with Cabana Boy at his other job.

Bathtime at our house...

Watch out. These are the deer hunters at our house. They climb like half way up this pine tree and "shoot" at things.

Ohh... and Date Night! Thanks Darc for the pic!
I love going on dates with Cabana Boy and having a best friend that is a photographer. :)

peace out, a

Thankful for Crafts

2010-11-23T12:06:00.000-08:00

I love fall crafts! I am thankful that my boys are starting to enjoy crafts a little more. We collected all of these pinecones at the park a few weeks ago and then one rainy morning we decided to paint them beautiful fall colors.
We also made these name cards for the Thanksgiving table. They are supposed to be ears of corn. Cabana Boy said they looked like coconuts. Either way I think they are cute.
Charlie practiced his writing on them. It was a good way to get him to work on his handwriting a bit.
The boys are super excited to see a certain Aunt and Uncle!

I am hoping to fit in one more craft before Thursday but we will have to see.
Hope you all have a blessed Thanksgiving!
a

Who's tired of me talking about squash?

2010-11-22T11:55:00.000-08:00

I think I was Amish in another life. I would make some bearded man proud right now. I cooked up about 8 squash yesterday. Plus the oodles I had done a few weeks ago. So... I have 14 bags of frozen squash in my freezer.
If you ask us over to dinner be prepared. I will probably be bringing something made out of squash.
a
ps. I am making 3 squash, 2 apple and 1 pumpkin pie on Wednesday for Thanksgiving. Sounds like a feast to me!

50 Free Christmas Cards

2010-11-20T18:34:00.000-08:00

Shutterfly is running a promotion for bloggers. You know us cool folks who waste time late at night writing about mindless things instead of doing important stuff like sleeping!
Anyhoo... go on over to Shutterfly to check out their photo products. I use this site for all of my photo album prints, invitations and Christmas cards.
Here is their new selection of Christmas cards. Anymore I hate to be a humbug but it just isn't much fun to get a Christmas card without a picture in it. I love running (ok walking fast) to the mailbox in December to see who sent us a picture and even sometimes an update on their family.
This card style cracks me up! I'm thinking it might be perfect for a picture of our punks.
I have also ordered quite a few (sometimes totally free!) photo books. Ben claims I have a "Platinum" Shutterfly credit card stashed away some where. I promise I don't!
If you are not already registered with Shutterfly, do so! You get free prints just from signing up and then special offers are continually sent to you. Totally worth it.
Now... if you haven't ordered your Christmas cards (um.. me!) get to it!
a
ps. I now get mine free from Shutterfly for writing this post!
Woo hoo!!!! Pays to be an insomniac blogger!

Whoopsie Daisies

2010-11-20T17:55:00.000-08:00

Wanted to take a minute to brag about Whoopsie Daisies. This is my sister's business. She is based out of the DFW area of Texas.
She is super creative and talented when it comes to handmade goodies. She has been published on other blogs/websites and even in a book!

She surprised me with two fall items.
I am a wimp and HATE for my ears to be cold so this headband is PERFECT for me! It is also good at helping to camouflage really bad roots! (i solved this problem yesterday by going brunette) :)

This adorable pumpkin is making it's home on my buffet in the dining room.

And these hats were supposed to be for photo shoots but Punk 3 just looked too adorable in them!

Man, i could just eat him up! He is so cute!

So... if you are looking for a fun, unique fall gift for someone check out her blog at Whoopsie Daisies Days and her Etsy Shop here. She is starting to fill her Etsy site up with Christmas items as well. Can't believe that is just around the corner already! Yikes!

You can also see the link to her shop at any time on the right hand side of my blog.
Thanks sis for the goodies! a

Man I wish we lived closer!

2010-11-12T05:01:00.000-08:00

I have been pretty busy this past week. Cabana Boy laughed that I have become quite the traveler lately. For the past two weekends we have driven to Indy and Muncie to watch school events and then this week I got the brilliant idea to throw all three boys in the car early in the morning and drive 3 hours by myself to go see our cousins Matt, Courtney, Nolan, Meredith and Liam for a few hours then drive 45 minutes to see my wonderful friend Nikki and her whole family (including her brand new baby girl!). My original plan was to do this all in one day and drive back home by 4pm. Well by 1pm I realized that wasn't going to happen. So... we drove back to our cousin's house, stayed the night (without any of our overnight things!) hung out the next morning and then made the long trek back home on Wednesday.
The moment we walked into the house Punk 3 decided to puke all over me. Fabulous. So... everyone had baths/showers, we ate lunch at 2:30pm and after another puking session all over me and our couch all the boys were in bed by 6:40pm. Not kidding. We were beyond exhausted!
I'm so glad we got to see everyone even though it was a short visit. I sure wish I lived closer to these wonderful friends and family.
In other news not much else is going on here except for Cabana Boy working like crazy, the dreaded hunting season has started and I am super excited/scared/nervous/honored that I am on call for my first birth photography shoot. I can't wait!!!! It will be a home waterbirth and I just am so humbled that this family is giving me the amazing experience to be there with them and allow me to capture these moments for them. I hope I can see through my tears that i know will be flowing as I take the pictures.
As much as I love the posed pictures of babies/kids/families I love more the moments in time I try to capture of life with these families. I know this is what I want to remember about my babies.
With that being said here are two photos that I took of my family and friends. Thanks guys for having us!

My Addiction

2010-11-04T04:48:00.000-07:00

Hi, I'm Amanda and I'm addicted to sprinkles. I love them. I think they are beautiful.
When I see them in the store I can't help myself. I put them on pretty much any kind of baked dessert.

I actually walked into a store that had a whole row of sprinkles and thought, ohh.... I want to do a photo shoot in front of all these because they are so pretty. Then I will buy one container of each kind! I actually look at sprinkles and try to think of something I could make just to use the sprinkles. Pathetic, i know!

Maybe I need an intervention? Not sure what that would look like. Anyone else have a funny little item that you are addicted to and can't help but buy and store up?

must be love

2010-11-02T11:09:00.000-07:00

that is the only reason i can explain why on earth i would let my child do this to my face. cabana boy won't admit it but he got his face done up by artist charlie too.

man my hair is nasty. sorry.

What's for dessert?

2010-10-29T19:16:00.000-07:00

Because I love torturing Cabana Boy guess what I made him for dessert the other night???

SQUASH PIE!!!!!!

Hah! I couldn't let all this fresh produce go to waste!

It was actually really good. Think like pumpkin pie but not as strong of a taste.

He ended up loving it too. I sent half the pie with him to work this morning so we will see what returns. Wonder if anyone will be brave enough to try it.

For those of you who are "SQUASH LOVERS"

Here are the two recipes I used. I hate measurements and directions (and typing) so I abbreviated. If you are picky about that stuff. get over it. :)

Magic Squash Pie

1 1/2 cus cooked/mashed butternut squash
1/4 tsp salt
1 c milk
2 larg eggs
1 15 ounce can sweet/condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbs flour

~Mix all the ingredients, pour onto unbaked pie crust and bake at 375 for about 50 min.
Smells delicious!

Harvest Squash Soup

-1 roasted butternut squash

1 tbs olive oil

1 yellow onion, sliced

1 large clove of garlic smashed

about 4 cups vegetable stock

1 tsp paprika

2 tsp fresh thyme

1/2 cinnamon stick (This is a must!! Smells unbelievable!)

salt and pepper

If you have toasted pumpkin seeds and oil drizzle this as a topping.

~ Cook onions and garlic in the oil. Add squash. Stock, paprika, thyme and cinnamon stick. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about 20 min. Turn off heat and remove stick.

~Blend soup in blender on high in batches to make it really smooth. If it is too thick add more stock. Return to soup pot and put the cinnamon stick back in to add more flavor.

~ I served the soup with french bread and a salad. Ben claims he did like the soup but would have appreciated it more as an appetizer than an actual meal. :)

Guess what we are having for dinner tonight? Meatloaf and SQUASH!!!!! :)

Birthday Bash

2010-10-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

I've been delinquent with posting pics from Brooks' first birthday party. I still haven't edited these but at least wanted to share a few from our day.
We had a really nice morning with the grandparents. They all came early to come with us to church for Brooks' dedication. It worked out perfectly that they could enjoy that with us and then help me with all the party preparations in the afternoon! Smart planning! :)

The weather was perfect for an outdoor fall party.

Papa Sensow getting a kiss from Brooks.

The GIGANTIC cupcakes!!!!

The Birthday Boy!

Kisses from mama after stripping him down to dive into his cupcake.

Hayride time!

Ahh... the end of the night. What a fun filled day with family and friends. Thanks to everyone who made the day special. It was great to celebrate with people who mean a lot to us. Brooks loved having everyone there and is enjoying his gifts. He was spoiled with some really fun things and some sentimental/keepsake gifts that I especially loved (his own chair to sit with his brothers at the kids' table and a rocker that was mine when I was little.)

Thanks again to everyone! We really appreciated you celebrating our baby boy with us.

My Birthday Boy

2010-10-20T17:40:00.000-07:00

Happy 1st Birthday to my birthday boy
Brooks Frederick!

What's for dinner?

2010-10-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

Cabana Boy claims I was trying to poison him with this dinner.
His colleagues even agreed.
I said I was trying something new. Something healthy. Something from my "Mothering" magazine.
What's for dinner?
Squash Soup!
What is your verdict?
Dinner or Poison?

Remembering Brooks' birthday

2010-10-14T18:16:00.000-07:00

Today was Brooks' first birthday. I know I should be sharing a collage of his first year in pics but I am just not up to going through my thousands of pictures. I cried enough already today.
Instead I am just reliving his BIRTHday 1 year ago. It really was the best day of my life. The wedding was nice, the births of Charlie and Sawyer were awesome but Brooks birth was just the best. I loved it because I fell in love with my husband more than ever and was so happy to have my other two boys there with us (and can't forget Nana!). I can't say enough wonderful things about Goshen Birth Center and the Fairhaven midwives. They really did give me the birth of my dreams.

So... if you would like to see some of the posts dealing with his birth here ya go...
-One of the last posts before he was born- "Homestretch"
-Posting at 2am the next morning right after walking in the door- "It's a..."
- First pics posted "Brooks"
- Details- "The Final Countdown"
- I love "The High"
- and of the answers to your "Burning Questions"

Here are a few pictures from this morning of my birthday boy-

I almost want to go wake him up and squeeze him. almost...

Fall Fun

2010-10-12T11:42:00.000-07:00

We had fun last week doing some fall activities.

The boys and I made our annual trek to the Pumpkin Patch with our MOPS group.

Poor Brooks he is going to have to put up with a lot from his big bros over the next 18 years!

On Saturday we went to the Apple Orchard with Cabana Boy. The 80 degree weather felt pretty weird as we were hiking around the orchard but we still had fun.

"Seriously Mom. It's an apple. Do you really need to take a picture of it?"- Sawyer

Brooks LOVED chomping on this apple the whole time.

Luckily Cabana Boy is tall and has long arms to reach those high apples!

You know I love me some tractors! Thank God I am a country girl. Last week was gorgeous around our place. The tractors and combines were out in full force all around our house and the beautiful trees are in prime color. Seriously, I am blessed to live where I do. I know Malibu probably has it's perks but man I can't imagine anything much prettier than rural Indiana in the fall. Thank God I am a country girl!

ps. T minus 2 days until Brooksie's birthday. Pass the Valium, Prozac, Zolof.
Whatever just something to get me through the day!

America's Next Top Model

2010-10-03T18:42:00.000-07:00

Charlie wants Tyra to reconsider her 5'7 requirement. He's got the "smile with your eyes" part down pact.

This was Sawyer's pose that he wanted to do for me.

And this was the freaky squirrel that we were chasing. It didn't have a tail! So weird! Pretty sure it was sick.

My bribery this time for the boys (aka me. i was hungry) was Georgia Mudslide Blizzard. Totally worth it! yum!

Apple Orchard

2010-10-01T18:35:00.000-07:00

Thanks Nana and Grandma Sensow for coming with us to the Apple Orchard!

Sawyer was a tad tired afterward. :)

Call me sentimental

2010-10-01T03:56:00.000-07:00

This was me and two of my pumpkin babies 1 year ago today. I have been trying to pretend that my baby boy won't be turning one in two weeks but with it being October 1st I have to face reality.
Oh man... hope i make it through his b-day and party without any valium or prozac!

Oops forgot these...

2010-09-30T18:28:00.000-07:00

These were some of my favorites. Forgot to include them.
Hope our friends and family like them b/c you will probably be seeing them again around Christmas. :)

The Keepers

2010-09-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

And here are the keepers. Thanks Darcy!!!!!!!! Check out her family blog to read her hilarious commentary about their photos! Seriously, I have read it twice and was there and am still laughing!

Ok boys you earned your suckers and matchbox cars. (Yes, i have no problems with bribery.)

And because my Cabana Boy loves me he agreed to do some kissy face pictures with me. It was our 10 year anniversary and we had never done anything like this before. It was a blast!!! We can't wait to do this again as an actual date with just Darcy/Darin and Cabana Boy and I. We have some pretty funny other ones but since Cabana Boy has a second job as a principal (blah blah) he doesn't want the world to see them. Booo..... Anyway... here are a few...

Oh side note... when I changed into this Principal Tonagel said, "You can't wear that at Fairfield. It is a major dress code violation." (spaghetti straps and holes in the jeans)

Oh well!!!!! Send me to Mrs. Yoder for some duct tape!" (I am a terrible Principal's wife.)

The Out-takes and my hidden talent

2010-09-27T11:15:00.000-07:00

Does anyone have any clue how hard it is to get three boys under the age of 5 and two ADD adults to all look at the camera at the same time? Let me assure you it is practically impossible!!!

So here is the VERY first picture Darc took.
Everyone is perfect except ding dong me with my eyes closed.

Let's try NO ONE looking at the camera.

And everyone but Ben making a weirdo face.

Have you used the restroom lately??? If not, you might want to before seeing this picture.

No, I am not kidding!

Ok, so apparently I have a career in interpretive dance. I have absolutely NO CLUE what I am doing in this picture. I don't remember dancing around at all but apparently I did at some point. Look at everyone looking at me like, "Yup. She's completely lost it."

Good thing I can laugh at myself (remember the driver's license????)

Enjoy my dancing skills...

Ok, go use the bathroom. Stay tuned the next post... the ones that were usable! :)

The Photographers

2010-09-24T12:52:00.000-07:00

So I am way behind (surprised I know) on updating the ole' blog. Last weekend we had a GREAT time hanging out with our friends the Holsopple's. (check out their blog for the pictures I took of them.)
We ate dinner and then headed downtown to trade family pictures. First off my pal Darcy and I got our pictures snapped by Cabana Boy.

Not as much fun being in front of the camera...

Smile!

Oh you look so cute! :)

Up next are the out-takes from our shoot! :)

It's like a disease

2010-09-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

For some reason I have this problem with thinking i have more time than I really do. I love having projects going. I love to especially make gifts for people. But seriously can someone just remind me next time to buy presents for people like the rest of the world!

Here's what I have been working on the last two weeks.

Well actually this one just got started at 8pm last night. I had the "fabulous/idiotic" idea to make these shirts for the boys for our family pictures (in 24 hours). Nothing like waiting till the last second!

Not hard but still really, should I be doing this right now?????

Here are the the big bro/sis shirts for the triplets!!!! Hope you like them Kristen. I will be sending them to you early next week.

Two more shirts for a friend.

And finally bath/beach towels for the Grady kids. I bought these towels in May and have had all the supplies ready to go for like two months but it took me this long to actually get them done. Ugh... sorry kiddos once again your b-day presents are late from the Tonagels!

So... hopefully my sewing bug "disease" is out of my system for a bit. I have lots of photo shoots lined up for the next few weeks and I need all my creative juices to flow in that direction. 3 tomorrow actually!!!

peace out yo,