Singin' In The Rain

Keller-isms

L'il Man has said some amazing things in the last few days.

Not that he's a stranger to saying amazing things, out of context against his three year old frame . . . it's just that . . . HOW does he manage "adult" so well?  LOL

* * * * * *

Scene 1:  Snuggled on the couch, reading The Bee Tree, we come to the line that says:  ". . . and they broke into a dead run . . ."

Keller stops me.  "What is a dead run?"

I pick myself up off of the floor and answer his question.

* * * * *

Scene 2:  I'm cleaning the kitchen, music is playing in the background, the singers singing this refrain:  "The Lord is the Rock, He is the Rock Eternal . . ."

"Mom, what does 'Rock Eternal' mean?"

I pick myself up off of the kitchen floor, and answer his question.

Exhaustion In His Eyes

L'il Man had been going full swing through the weekend.  He'd endured a four hour 'shopping' extravaganza - enduring blazing heat in an *almost* old fashioned auction type setting on Saturday, followed by a fence post planting event.  His Sunday experience was that of more fence posts . . . and more fence posts . . . what kept him content the day long was the plentiful harvest of wild huckleberries dotting the landscape.  Even when Dad began bush-hogging, when he found a bush full of berries, he left it for L'il Keller-Man to imbibe.

So it was that the final hours of Sunday were filled with the noise of a tractor laying trash vegetation low; the discing of otherwise wild territory; and the chasing of bumble bees while the little boy waited.

Literally, we sat in the iron rocker, mere inches away from a bee who was so busy with his nectar harvest that he paid us no mind whatsoever!  (click on photo to enlarge!  Woot!)

It was peaceful ~ the wind rushing through the tops of the pine trees and brushing our unkempt locks against our brow.  The drone of the tractor behind us as we sat, waiting.  Oh, for the day to end, the Little One would pine - for the briefest of moments, before finding yet another earthy sight to hold his rapt attention.

Berries, berries, and more berries as Dad drove 'round and 'round.  Then suddenly, the Black Eyed Susan's come into focus -

 and it was time to gift Mom.

While he is such a patient child, and easily entertained by his own exploration, surely this day . . . this weekend  . . . was the largest he'd taken on.  The exhaustion could be seen in his eyes.

At the first opportunity, he fell asleep hard, sans a very necessary bath.

For Keller, this 'farm' business is for the bees.

:D

For Want Of A Subject

There's a downside to having allowed your photos taken over the last six weeks or so pile up into a huge conglomeration of . . . .editing material:  where to start.

I must say, I'm not so talented at shchlogging through the "oldies" to find those gems once again - but I'm on task, and giving it my best effort!  :D

Secondly, there's a challenge to keep ones' blog-writing material fresh when one is living with only *two* of her family members, temporarily, namely, The Boys.  I mean, how many air-tosses can one take, before they move on to better blog waters?

I dunno, but here's to tryin' . . .

And, for you nurturing, emotive mommas out there ~ a moment ~ brought to you fresh at ChoiceCentral:

Yup.  That's me.  Lookin' for fresh material . . .

:rotflol:

A Vantage Point

Some things in life are simply enjoyed with a birds' eye view.  :)

Or at the very least, from a different vantage point.  :)

No two people share the same exact view of an event or happening, not every event is experienced in the same way by all parties present.

Yet no matter how one looks at things, ice cream in the park with Dad makes for one fantastic day!  :D

Brotherly Admonition

The most amazing relationship exists between my two sons ~ there is no doubt they are connected in ways most siblings hope to connect with one another.  Yet, as Little ages, and begins to experience his gorwing independence in temper tantrums and stands of defense for his own way, there are times when Big has to exert his own perspective.

Such was the case yesterday morning, as L'il Man wanted nothing to do with the task at hand.  Israel, in an attempt to discuss the new course with him, found himself instead wrestling a tiger of a toddler.  Here is a glimpse of how the scene unfolded:

Are any further words necessary?  The gentleness with which Israel executed the redirection of the L'il Man was astounding - even while being kicked and scratched!

Hopefully, today will be less cantankerous.  We shall see . . .

:D

God Is Great

As I pen this blog entry, the day has waxed long.  I'm still encouraging L'il Man to go ahead and go to sleep; the house is quiet and Dell is quite comfortable next to me.

The frenzied pace of the last three weeks has blanketed my mind with an overload of details, making me quite unsure as to how I might extract this story or that in such a way as to make it relevant to here and now ~ and bring you-all up to speed on the status of all things Choice Central.

Perhaps the best way is to begin?

Then begin I shall.

I took Israel to the paintball field today, which is located just a few miles from our family favorite hiking spot, Vasquez Rocks.  Vazquez now harbors a whole slew of memories for me, for us . . . and today was no exception in creating a bookmark in the mind.

Today, Keller hiked with me, completely upright and on his own two legs!  We traversed the glorious countryside, wind whisping away at our hair; summit after summit spreading out before us with more grandeur that the first.  My littlest discovered that yucca plants are prickly, and his cheeks reddened at the exertion of climbing steep inclines.  He relished the shade of the big, diagonally ridged rocks, and took charge of calling to Dell as he trotted nearby.

This outing, no sling was employed, no stroller utilized.  Just me, and my dog, and my boy, hoofin' it across the hillsides.

Bliss.

Well, okay.  I confess.  The final leg of our trip, Keller had finally had enough.  He requested to be carried, and I threw him in the wrap, then onto my back, where he chatted with great animation about the events of the hike itself.

Pretty impressive, I say, that a 2.5 year old would take on such a journey.

What captivated my heart, however, was each time we hit a summit, and he'd say, and I quote:  "God is great!"

Yes, my Little Man.  God is great, indeed. 

All In A Day's Play

The epitome of a happy girl, as shown by her trademark smile.  :)

The epitome of a happy boy, as shown by his flying hair.  :)

The epitome of an enjoyable day, as shown by taking pictures of beautiful girls.  :)

Question:

Why is this (as they say in Cajun-land) t'bebe sleeping?

Because of the emotional trauma of having fallen down a set of stairs for the very first time in his life!  :eek!:

He was unharmed except for the startle of it all.  He cried for some time before being convinced he really was okay, and then, the overwhelming desire to simply sit in Mamma's lap for a long time was just too much for him to resist!  Having awoken at o'dark-thirty in the morning, it was no surprise to me that he'd take a mid-morning nap!  :)

Check out the view from the top landing -----> here!  :D

The Best Nest For A Rest Test

Well, I now had one . . . but what was I to do with it?   I'd not had a telephoto lens in my hand since Annual Staff in high school.  And now?  I was dealing with a whole new tiger ~ digital photography, not film.

Fortunately, my family provides plenty of opportunity for action and/or drama and/or impromptu events.  The weekend has been full of such.

Before the GilGuy left to care for his Dad, he mowed the lawn, discovering a Killdeer, in high alert to protect her babes-in-eggs, right smack in the middle of the lawn.

It was dusk, low-light and all, but the DSLR didn't even hesitate.  I worked in automatic mode with the telephoto lens, and the camera immediately set on 3200 ISO, garnering photos that would have the viewer thinking it was broad daylight!  :)  WOOHOOO on that!  :D

Then, there was the impromptu and unexpected trip to the lake with the neighbor.  As I sat on the beach, snapping away at the antics in the water, I considered whether or not I'd really see a difference in photo quality with the telephoto lens.  I shouldn't have even given it a second thought!  The clarity, the detail was superb!

Yet the crowning glory, the cream of the crop moment came for me, when, with very little fanfare, I simply caught this bird, mid-flight, with ease.

I've still much to add to my skill set with this lens . . . but with no lack of testing grounds upon which to hone those skills, I think I'll be busy at least until 2011.

Then?

It's a macro lens, all the way, Baby!  :rotflol: