The one with old photos
This picture was made when I was maybe 2? Not sure. You can see my sister, Kim and we must be with Granny and Papaw taking photos in a Photo Booth. Now I’m 50 something and this print is perfect. It hasn’t faded. It’s just here sitting on my table. This is why we should print out photos. Not ALL our photos but something. Right?
All sessions, weddings as well, include a gallery with access to download your digital files and keep them forever. This is great! But it should also include you PRINTING some of those kick ass photos out and tucking them somewhere future generations can find.
I smiled BIG when I found this little gem. It was the best feeling.
love does,
Kristin
the one with Lubbock Cooper Prom, 2023
OH, what a night!
April Fool’s Day was PROM DAY! I was so excited to be a part of this night for the Lubbock Cooper Pirates! Of course there’s a full gallery to be seen, viewed, shared and loved on, but in the mean time, why not enjoy this slideshow I put together? It has a few of my favorite moments.
Love does,
Kristin
the one where I discuss a new photo project
I read somewhere that 95% of what photographers do in their job is admin stuff. Yep. That’s right. Not shooting or honing our photo skills, but book keeping, editing, emails, etc. needless to say, I have to actively think about ways to keep my photo skills growing and progressing. To keep my compositional eye in working mode. This, a photo project.
I set an alarm on my clock and take a photo of what is in front of me each hour. Now sometimes it’s boring. Sometimes it’s the same thing but what this does is force me to compose an interesting shot out of a boring view. It keeps me working towards getting better.
The shot above is my view most days. On my computer, at my desk, slaving away over gorgeous photos of beautiful people.
Next hour, same view but I needed to recompose the image for a different composition. Always more than one side to a story, right?
Next hour, I turned around to see what was behind me. Hubby’s desk is quite the view, no?
Those of you that have been in my home know this view. I won’t go into too many details, but it was indeed a break from my desk.
You get the idea though. It’s a process.I’ll share a gallery of my day every now and then to keep my creative juices flowing.
Have you started a new project? I’d love tO hear about it.
Love does,
Kristin
the one where I'm in New Port Beach
I posted a bit on my Instagram stories yesterday, but I’m currently at the NPECA Conference in Newport Beach, California. It’s my 4th trip to Cali in 2022. I’m only typing that to let it sink on as to why my bones hurt the way they do. I’m sore folks! But where else to lay on the ground and stretch then here?
the one with my morning coffee
I’m grateful for so much that has happened in 2021 and 2022. I choosing to be grateful. I’ve heard it helps with stress, with my attitude, with my well being. Hug someone today and call someone you love. So much pain and suffering is a part of being human. We need each other.
I’m headed to New Mexico today to photograph a fabulous wedding! In the meantime, enjoy these lovely images from one of my favorite couples of 202l1.
Love Does,
Kristin
PS I wonder how long I can keep my blog streak going? Let’s go girl!
the one with 8 years
Eight years ago, our family went to Ruidosa for Sprint Break. Devin’s grandmother was with us and it would be the last time we were all together on a trip like that. We just didn’t know that at the time.
Brooke, Idalee, and Kalyn.
Eight years ago, Kalyn was at the University of Texas, in her first year of college. Brooke, a senior at Prosper High school (and my favorite homecoming queen!!!) Idalee? She was enjoying life as much as possible.
Me? I wasn’t feeling too great. I had missed a dear friend’s birthday party a few weeks before due to a stomach ache and it was still lingering. I was weak, fatigued, and “not myself”. Did you read that? I missed a party! That never happens, I love a good party.
Kanga was expecting her second litter of Pups. Summer Zoe has just finished playing her junior year of basketball. They went pretty far in the playoffs and we even took a trip down to Austin to watch the state playoffs.
I decorated the car of course. My new car because I sold “bling bling” my Denalie. 😩 The Honda Pilot is nice but it was no bling-bling. I still have this Pilot. She now has almost 300K miles.
Taylor, Haley, Jordan and Summer.
We had closed Take One Video and turned it into The Bull Stop. Life was good. Busy but good.
After that trip (and pain in my abdomen) I went to see my doctor and after a few questions, he ordered a colonoscopy. I laughed it off and he didn’t. Said I was close to 50 and I should just get it over with. See what was going on down there. So I did and a few days later, while driving to a bridal session in Midland I got the call that I had cancer.
Eight years ago I was diagnosed with cancer.
It’s a weird thing being told you have cancer. You immediately feel like the wind has been knocked out of you. It’s like a vacuum or a hole has sucked you in and all you can hear is your heart beating and your brain racing.
This is me after surgery.
Everything in my life quickly became a whirlwind. Surgery, chemo for 6 months, followed by radiation. I continued to work and take pictures. Many times I hid my chemo bag under a big baggy sweater. I didn’t like for my clients to know. I wanted to remain strong and still work! That was important to me.
And of course, it was hard. Hard on me and my family. Especially hard on my family. I can still see it on their faces. That’s the part about getting sick that you really don’t like. How it affects everyone around you.
I look back at photos and just wonder who that person was? Sometimes I miss it. Not the treatment but the feeling in my spirit that I had. Somehow I felt immediately closer to God and realized that most of this crap down here doesn’t matter. We are here to love him and our neighbor. Love is truly the greatest gift of all. I try and get that feeling back. That feeling of less flesh and more spirit. I really try.
I look back at this picture and I don’t recognize myself. This was 2 weeks after my tumor was removed. My mom and sister came several times during the next year. I have memories of that and how much I thought we needed to do that more often. My mom had lost her mother during this time, my Granny Helton and it must have been so painful for her to be mourning that loss while taking care of me. I can’t imagine.
I look like Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High. LOL
I let my hair go. I had to. I wasn’t sure if I would lose it or not during treatment so why get it colored? That’s my mom in the background. (photo above) We lived at Saddleclub during this time.
I photographed 3 proms during this time all in the month of May.
I photographed a wedding or two. With the help of a very dear friend, Kim Anderson and my BFF Toni.
Summer Zoe was still at home, Kalyn Marie a million miles away feeling lonely and worried.
It was scary.
But it was good, too.
I can say that now, looking back.
IT WAS GOOD. God was always there.
Devin even let me take photos of him. WOW! That never happens. HELLO! And my sister (below) was here for a lot of it as well. She would come and stay with me during my treatment weeks. You would get hooked up to the bag of drugs on Monday and take it off on Wednesday. You were pretty much toast on Thursday and maybe by Friday feeling better. She arranged her visits for the “tired” parts.
When your mom has cancer and you are this young, it changes you. You realize just how precious life is and that the stuff that used to matter? It doesn’t anymore. But it also changes you into worrying. That’s the thing that most parents who get cancer hate the most. Your kids worry. Everything you do, sneeze, cough, wince, they worry. Even 8 years later, they still worry.
Kalyn worried as well. She came home that Easter and as much as she could.
You know how busy life is when your kids are in high school. Activities and such. I made sure to be a part of that all I could. I wanted that. I LOVE that!
Eight years ago, I spent a lot of time outside in our pool. (Gosh! I miss that pool!) On the weeks when the “fanny pack” of drugs was off, I would spend as much time outside enjoying my pool. When you have a port “installed” under your skin, they can access it through needles and you don’t have to have an IV or entry way hanging outside your body. So, on the weeks in between treatment, I would swim. A L O T. I highly recommend getting a port. I had mine for years after treatment. I kind of felt it was my good luck charm. Cheesy, I know.
and our family spent a lot of time together.
Eight years ago, despite cancer…WAS FUN. That’s how God works. At the time you are going through the crap, and I was going through literal crap, you can’t see it. You feel the pain and suffering and how it effects your family, but then later, as time gets in between, you forget. And then you realize that life was good. Despite the cancer and the crap, life was good.
It’s still good.
Love Does,
Kristin
PS. To learn more about colon cancer, CLICK HERE.
the one where I get back into blogging
I used to share photos here on my blog all the time. You know, photos like this one of sweet Kanga Baby.
Maybe I need to blog my life more? I was reading an old blog I used to read daily and it made me miss the format. Going off the socials to read something that someone was sharing. I LOVED reading blogs! Heck. I LOVED blogging. But somehow I got away from It and simply only shared what I photographed instead of what I wanted. So, today I decide to jump back into the blog life and give it a go. I mean, don’t get me wrong. Instagram and the other socials are good and all, but it’s just not the same as keeping a blog. Sharing your thoughts and hopes and dreams and just STUFF, well, it’s pretty cool to have a record somewhere of all these things.
So, here I go. Jumping in.
Something I don’t plan on sharing here in this blog is the COVID/POLITICAL game that is a HUGE part of our world. I don’t use the term “GAME” lightly. Heck, life is a game in my book. So please don’t fill up the comment boxes below with nasty comments. I will delete them.
Back to blogging.
Me, living the influencer’s life. Or trying to. LOL Let me know if you wanna know where I got my outfit.
This weekend was a busy one! I prepared by madly cleaning my house and buying groceries. That’s what you do when you are preparing for guests to stay with you for a few days. You shop, clean and take selfies in the mirror. right?
The girl’s were coming home for the weekend. We had a wedding to attend. BLANE AND TARA are getting married. AGAIN! They married in a small ceremony in November on their original wedding date and were now having the COVID rescheduled one. Okay, so I guess C O V I D will get mentioned because it’s infiltrated every part of our lives, right? But let’s put a good spin on it, shall we? Let’s try and keep it uplifting for everyone!
Back to my weekend.
the girls at Mike and Val’s.
The girls arrived on Friday and we headed to Mike and Valerie’s. Have I told you about Mike and Valerie? That may be another blog post. We were supposed to have game night, but instead? Mainly because we were really late getting there and also because there was a rain storm and my garage flooded, but we made it and enjoyed ourselves (and cheese) and went home really late. They are from Wisconsin and always bring the BEST cheese with them!
yes. We kept a preggo momma up late as well. I’m so sorry, Val! This is baby number 5 for them and I’m putting my money on a boy!
Bridgette was in town! Did I mention that?
Brynn, Bridgette and me a few years ago enjoying some time in Granbury. She’s a bit shorter then me but oh, so much fun!
Brynn was giving a speech at Red Raider Awakening and Bridgette drove in to support her and pray over her before the speech. They had room for an extra guest and I got to go as well. It was AWESOME!
Have you ever been to a Red Raider Awakening? I didn’t attend school here and converted to Catholicism after I graduated college, but I hear it’s a pretty good thing. If you need more info, leave a comment below and I can get that to you.
After RRA, I had church flowers to attend to, a quick stop by the inlaws, (first time I had visited with them in person in forever! it’s felt AWESOME!) and a wedding to get ready for. In fact, our entire family of 4 cleaned up so very nicely. AND WE DIDN’T EVEN TAKE ONE SINGLE PHOTO TOGETHER. How stupid is that?
Here’s a family picture of the Jones family. HELLO! Not my family, but it will have to do.
We danced the night away! Of course, I danced the night away and I really wanted to keep on dancing and celebrating with family and friends, but it was a “spring forward” kind of night and I didn’t exactly love having mass @ 9 AM on ONE LESS HOUR OF SLEEP. So, home we went. And the next morning I was thankful. I try and be thankful every morning. You know, gratitude type thing. It’s slowly working.
I’m happy to be sharing my life through pictures again. I hope I can continue to keep this up almost daily as I’m always taking photos and I would really like to share more here. It feels so much better then simply posting on social media. Even though BLOGGING is truly social media as well.
did you know instagram is over decade old? Here’s my first post from when I joined back in November 2, 2010. W O W
Love Does,
Kristin
the one where I talk about the corona virus
a false positive on testing for the Corona Virus.
UNITED STATE CORONA STATISTICS
CONFIRMED 5.1 M
DEATHS 163K
WORLDWIDE
CONFIRMED 20.1 M
DEATHS 737K
August 10, 2020
The New York Times
You run into someone you know at the grocery store, or on a walk in your neighborhood, or pumping gas, WHATEVER; and the number one subject is COVID. You discuss what you’ve heard, inquire about each other’s families, as if you know of anyone that has been diagnosed. COVID-19 seems to be the most popular thing to discuss these days, in social circles, zoom chat rooms, family dinners around the table, on phone calls, etc. This blog post will be my attempt to share my thoughts on the subject
First of all, I believe the virus is real. I BELIEVE THE VIRUS IS REAL and people die. I truly do. We have two family members that are “at risk” due to health concerns and since the beginning, we have not hugged these people. They stay home and inside and are social distancing to the EXTREME. One had a birthday recently and no one was able to give them a hug or even cook them a meal or a birthday cake. We take it very seriously.
Second, I believe everything about this virus has been used for political gain. It’s an election year and every 4 years our country goes a bit psycho in how divided and ugly things get. Instead of discussing like adults and really trying to understand someone’s concerns and feelings, people get angry and hurt and downright mean when we don’t see eye to eye. Both parties are using this virus as a way to divide and conquer and all of us have to deal with the mess and fear they create.
Have you all known someone personally with COVID? We have. Our niece tested positive and quarantined alone in her apartment and completely lost her sense of smell. She felt pretty awful and had to provide a negative test result before returning to work at Baylor. Before she new she was positive, she exposed her family. They had to be tested and their results came back negative. One of my godchildren also tested positive. She complained of a headache that wouldn’t go away. She had recently attended a basketball day camp and her mom thinks maybe that’s how she was exposed. Sweat and close proximity in an indoor location? No one ever truly knows. We also have a co-worker who’s husband tested positive and she tested negative. She still quarantined for the 14 days and since some test results aren’t back for days, missed 21 days of work.
On Sunday, my oldest daughter, Kalyn Marie, called us and she was upset by some news she had received. She lives in Alabama and works for a private university there. All employees had to take mandatory COVID tests to be on campus. Hers came back positive. Yep. Positive for COVID. She’s only lived there a year and is alone and has tested positive for COVID. We are 14 hours away by car. Daddy calmed her down and we both gave her the information that we know based on hours of research by podcast, reading blogs, talking to doctors, etc. (I kind of go down rabbit holes now and then) and told her to follow protocol. Call your boss, let them know and take it a day at a time. She wasn’t having any symptoms, but you start to think maybe you do because of the positive results. She thought maybe she was extra tired. She was telling herself, I do feel a bit stuffy. Am I running a fever? Not a fun time for sure.
She calls her boss and her boss sent her to be tested again. Kalyn has been working from her apartment where she lives by herself, going in to the office and athletic department part time. She hasn’t been in public much and the people she’s been around? The same ones she’s been around for the last month. This raised questions about how was she exposed? If everyone else tested negative, how did she test positive? The second test was one that would determine if she has an active infection. A nose probe (up both nostrils) and a blood test for the antibody. ALL CAME BACK NEGATIVE. Whew! She’s relieved and I’m relieved. I asked her if I could share her story and she said yes.
So, here I am sharing her story and basically after months of hearing horror stories, reading horror stories, working during these pandemic times…(we also own a liquor store and I’ve worked there as well as photographing weddings), I’ve come to the conclusion that you can not trusts the tests and you must trust your own knowledge of your body and how you feel. That’s it.
Testing is BS. And I think we both know what that means.
Now, I understand that many who might read this have family members, loved ones, colleagues, friends, that have suffered with the virus, perhaps even died. I started this conversation with “ I believe this virus is real”. I truly do. And it’s scary. It can be intensely scary, especially with what the media has shared with us about people suffering and dying.
But I’m tired of being scared. Aren’t you? Let’s use our brains and learn what we can from each other and quit being afraid. We have lives to live. People to love and try to hug again.
What about you? Care to share your viewpoint on Rona and the testing?
the one with the update...
As of 6 PM March 22, 2020 my business is shut down.
You can read all about it HERE. The City of Lubbock issues 4th declaration of disaster and closed all non-essential businesses.
It’s very weird and surreal and just INSANE how this is all happening. Don’t you think? I want you to know, that I’m still here. You can message me, call me, whatever and reach out if you have any questions. I’m not sure how long this will last? I will be contacting those that have sessions currently scheduled with me and figure out a game plan.
Those porch sessions I wanted to do? I can photograph all of those that take place today, but not the rest. The closure goes into effect later today. This really hurts because I know many of you were brainstorming great ideas and I felt like your porch was a chance for everyone to really shine.
Love does,
Kristin
the one where I get my feet wet
Devin and I have a group of friends that we love dearly and have spent many beers with over the years. Our most recent trip was New Braunsfels and yes, I got my feet wet.
I got my iPhone wet as well.
I’m back and after 5 days “phone less” my phone is back as well.
Love Does,
Kristin
the one where I go to a Bachelorette Party
A girl’s trip to Possum Kingdom to celebrate Syndi’s Bachelorette Weekend! So much fun!
I’ve been trying to post this blog post for a week. I’m having issues with the writing and it driving me a bit insane. But I’m thinking it’s going to be ok.
I was having trouble with this software and it was making me angry so I just came here to finish my blog post. I just wanted to brag on this group of girls and how much fun the weekend was. Sydni had a wonderful weekend and I feel like relaxed and enjoyed herself. I know there was tons of laughter! And this group was so awesome to let me tag along. Thank you for that!!!!
AND if anyone reading this is thinking, “I want fun pictures and margaritas at my next party”, call me. LOL
Love does,
Kristin
the one where we celebrate Kalyn Marie and Summer Zoe, THEY GRADUATED!
Devin and I just got back from Austin where we celebrated Kalyn’s graduation from the University of Texas with her Masters in Education in Sports and Exercise Science. Say that 3 times! A few weeks earlier, our youngest, Summer Zoe graduated from TCU with her masters in Accounting. I didn’t get to attend that graduation, (photographing weddings) so we celebrated them together in Austin this past weekend. Family and friends met us and we had such a ball! HELLO! Maybe too much ball and not enough bed, but either way, I’m so proud of my kids and everything they’ve accomplished! ROCK ON, BEDNARZ FAMILY!
We stayed at the Lonestar Court. If you are ever planning a family weekend and need a cool space to stay that’s close to shopping, close to good eats, and a great space to just hang out, STAY THERE! It’s our 2nd time doing so and we love it so!
Love does,
Kristin
the one with the 80th birthday party
My husband’s uncle turned 80. He celebrated with a cousin that also turned 80. We all met at The 50 Yard Line and had a lovely dinner, a few cocktails and LOTS of good laughs! We told stories about “the good old days” and just enjoyed being together.
Happy Birthday, you two!
Love,
Kristin
the one where I obsess over Instagram influencers and try to take pics like one
Afterall, I am a photographer. How hard can this lifestyle picture taking thing be? Of course I have no experience whatsoever in selfies much. I mean I photograph people, not myself. Hello! I’m BEHIND the camera. But I do like getting ideas about what to wear and I learn so much from these accounts! It’s like a community of people that work from home and share a part of their life. So, I decided for about the last 30 days to photograph what I’m wearing. It’s all about the effort, right?
Here’s some things I’ve learned after following several influencers for a while.
They are mostly young moms. Many have young kids and this is their life. So, while I’d love to follow older lifestyle bloggers, many of my generation just aren’t sharing their lives like that. And if they do, they don’t buy the clothes I buy. They are much more about the prints and the florals and just weird stuff I could NEVER pull off. (Although there is one I’m sharing below that I follow for her hair alone.)
They love to video themselves trying on clothes. I think they call them “style sessions”. This is where they share one staple from their closet, like white skinny jeans and literally show you 5 ways to style them. It’s a thing people. And at first I thought it was “cray cray” and narcissistic, but now? Not so much. When these girls share a deal, it’s a MAJOR deal. You get ideas on how to wear things and what works and what’s good. One time a girl tried on ALL the skinny white jeans that are out there in the universe and rated her top favs. That’s a time saver folks.
They share more than just clothes. They share what they buy for their home, what they cook, what they drink, etc. It’s a bit obsessive yes, bur remember folks, I work from home. With a dog, by myself. These are my work mates.
They know about good lighting. YEP! Some of them do anyway. They look for the clean backgrounds, good natural light, and definitely know about the good angles and what to bend on their bodies to create a good clean line. LOVE this about following them.
Most share way too much make-up and hair care products then I’d ever need or want in years and years, but I think they get a lot of crap for free so this is how they get paid. Maybe? I do know every time you purchase something they share through a link, they get paid. I don’t really care, everyone deserves to get paid for their job. Right?
Most lifestyle influencers love dogs. Yep. They do. And you guys know how I feel about my Kanga. It’s a love/hate relationship, and I think it is with lifestyle influencers as well.
So, here's my top 10 accounts I follow on Instagram.
Natalie Borton
She’s my fav by far! I love her style and just how simple it is. Of course, she’s young, most of these girls are, but the clothes and outfits she’s share are more my speed. Nothing too fancy, very good quality and her color schemes are kind of my color schemes as well.
Jesse Coulter
This TEXAS girls is a working mom of 3 and has a sarcastic funny sense of humor that I can totally relate to. She lives in Austin, so much of what she shares clothing wise is geared for Austin Life. I seriously want her curly hair and obsess over what she wears all the time.
Jenn Reed
She’s quickly become one of my most favorite! She shares total deals on amazon and even though she’s the size of my thigh, I love what she shares! Some of it’s way too young for me and some of it totally works. She also shares good finds at Target and home stuff she finds for their remodel.
Maddy Guiterrez
Maddy is a plus size influencer from NY and is AWESOME! She shares great finds and isn’t afraid to put herself out there int he world. If you are a large person like me, go follow her and get an idea of what works on your body type and what doesn’t. She’s one that shows makeup tutorials and hair more then I care for, but I just tap past that in the stories.
Caitlyn Kruse
She' shares a lot about her kids, her food and her clothes! LOTS. But I love her style and she’s into pink which is one of my favorite colors to wear. When you rock short hair like me, and you love PINK’s music, PINK is a staple in my wardrobe.
Kismet House
Erin and her husband are so dang funny. They are currently working on a kitchen remodel and covering this well in their insta story. I obsess over everything in their house people!!! It’s so pretty and so well done. She doesn’t share much in the way of clothes, but if you are a Bachelor Fan, follow her stories for their play by play commentary alone. IT IS SO GOOD. Her hubby and her sit on their fabulous couch in their fabulous living room and watch and comment and it’s witty terrific and addicting.
John and Sherry
Young House Love is a long time “insta friend” for me. I have both their books, I’ve followed their blog for YEARS people, like 10, and they are total nerdy good people that have a great feed. Sherry is a child of the MTV generation, as am I and I get the jokes and puns she shares on her stories. They also have a podcast that comes on every Monday and it’s awesome as well.
Ashley Petrone
Arrows and Bows I found through the tiny home addiction on you tube I currently have. Remember I warned you about working from home ALONE. Yep. I’m Kristin and I have a tiny home addiction. It’s real folks. So, they used to live in a tiny home with 3 kids but recently bought a house and have remodel it to perfection. So, go follow and let me know if you figure out how they do their dance party videos. I’m dying to do one! I don’t dance worth a crap but hey, it’s fun and who cares. Life is short, LIVE IT.
Natalie Kolter/Vintage Porch
I found Natalie after researching AIP diets somehow. AND she’s HILARIOUS. She keeps it real. Sometimes very real which I love and appreciate because REAL is dang funny. She’s got a great attitude about life and kids and husbands and even though her style is way more vintage then me, I love her home and her dog Chester.
Shauna
Chic Over 50 is pretty darn cool. Way cooler then me and rocking a better bod than me. But goals, people. Goals. Everyone needs them. And I love her hair. She’s super cute and shares more in her feed then she does in her stories, but I love her style just the same.
Who do you follow? Let me know and I’ll see you on the “socials”.
the one with Front Door Decor
Front Door Decor is a local business in Lubbock that just happens to be owned by these two beauties above, Sara and Shay. It’s the cutest idea! They will come and decorate your front door and keep it fresh and charming and so cute FOR YOU. Yep. They work with you on the design and the craft and you have a choice of how often you want your door changed out. And the best part? You don’t have to store the wreaths yourself nor do you have to go and buy all the stuff to make the wreath. Assuming you are even CRAFTY. HELLO! Great idea! They of course are on social media so go and follow them and show them some love. We need to support local businesses and these girls are AWESOME!
Love Does,
Kristin
the one with the Iron Chef 2018
Morrison Supply sponsored the Iron Chef 2018 cook off here in Lubbock. All proceeds go to support the New Legacy Home for Women. Fantastic evening!
Have you heard of Brisas Seafood? Hello! They took home the BIG fork last night at Morrison’s Iron Chef 2018! CHAMPS! Total CHAMPS! And I was the lucky photographer that got to document the event! Thank you, Morrison! (and Lauren…) Other cook teams competing, Mac’s BBBQ and Kingstreet Pub. All proceeds go to support the New Legacy Home for Women.
Details that I know…
judges are appointed/drafted to participate. There are 4 of them.
3 teams prepare and serve an appetizer, and entree, and a dessert.
Each team is judged in several categories. Quality, plated appearance, and something else that I can’t remember.
just because your name has barbecue in the title does not mean that is what you cook. HELLO! These guys handmade their fettuccine noodles. Yep. BOOM!
Deep Eddies Vodka comes in more flavors then I realized. I’m sure my hubby realizes it, but I did not. Doesn’t matter, I’m a Tito’s girl.
house builders love good food
my cabinet guy is still alive!
Quail is so good I may have to start hunting these freaking birds that live out here on our farm. Our breed them and start a quail farm.
photographing a food event makes your mouth water all over your camera gear.
I’ve been told that this takes place every other year. What’s up with that? We can build homes every year for the Parade of Homes, which I LOVE, but we can’t get together and cook food? I think I may love this more. Wait…maybe they can combine those events? Am I on to something? Yep. Most likely chaos.
Love Does,
Kristin
the one where I visit the flags
O God of love, compassion, and healing,
look on us, people of many different faiths
and traditions,
who gather today at this site,
the scene of incredible violence and pain.
We ask you in your goodness
to give eternal light and peace
to all who died here--
the heroic first-responders:
our fire fighters, police officers,
emergency service workers, and
Port Authority personnel,
along with all the innocent men and women
who were victims of this tragedy
simply because their work or service
brought them here on September 11, 2001.
We ask you, in your compassion
to bring healing to those
who, because of their presence here that day,
suffer from injuries and illness.
Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families
and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy.
Give them strength to continue their lives
with courage and hope.
We are mindful as well
of those who suffered death, injury, and loss
on the same day at the Pentagon and in
Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Our hearts are one with theirs
as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering.
God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world:
peace in the hearts of all men and women
and peace among the nations of the earth.
Turn to your way of love
those whose hearts and minds
are consumed with hatred.
God of understanding,
overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy,
we seek your light and guidance
as we confront such terrible events.
Grant that those whose lives were spared
may live so that the lives lost here
may not have been lost in vain.
Comfort and console us,
strengthen us in hope,
and give us the wisdom and courage
to work tirelessly for a world
where true peace and love reign
among nations and in the hearts of all.
Pope Benedict XI--Prayer at Ground Zero
New York, 20 April 2008
the one with the #BooCrew in DeLeon
I photographed a wedding on Friday and left early Saturday AM to party with some fabulous women! HELLO! Baby Boo is getting married and she had her Bachelorette Party, "country fried" style in Deleon. No makeup required folks. She invited the bridesmaids and their mommas to come as well. Super cool!
All these girls grew up together at Cooper playing sports and hanging out. Let's face it, playing sports mainly. And a few of them went to college together. And the mommas hung out as well, team dinners, cheering them on, sharing dreams and wishes. It was so good to get away and reconnect.
The place we stayed was on Cari's parent's land in Deleon. It's a working ranch and had a great cabin for the girls to stay in and the moms stayed in the guest rooms of the home. We fished, road ATV's, some shotguns, had a trailer ride up to the high point, and just enjoyed sharing stories together and talking "wedding talk". The area was in a burn ban so no "campfire" on the famous hot dog hill, but we still enjoyed smores at home in the kitchen.
I bought this game called Cads Against Matrimony, which is like that other card game many folks like to play. It was so funny and I'm sure a bit embarrassing for many involved, but gosh, did you hear the part where I said it was so funny?!?!
There was a point in the day where someone mistakenly drank bacon grease instead of a cold drink, but hey, accidents happen. Just a shame I was the one that handed the can to them. I'm hanging my head in shame and forever apologizing.
I also got to see my baby girl, Kalyn Marie. She's a bridesmaid and drove up from Austin. It wasn't a near long enough visit, but it was definitely full of hugs and love. I wish we could do this at least one every few months, just to get away and connect. I love these people and I'm so happy Lauren, aka "Boo" has found her guy. He's definitely a keeper.
Love Does,
Kristin
the one with first communion @ St. Joseph Church
Sunday, St. Joseph Church in Slaton, celebrated First Communion. I was invited to photograph the event and tried my best to do a good job. I love our home church and even better, I love watching all the kids grow up there. You feel connected when you pray each week for our youth, our clergy, our people. It's a family you grow close to through the body of Christ. Enjoy the sneak peek!
Love Does,
Kristin
the one where the Houchin Boys + Bednarz Girls are ROYAL
Kalyn Marie and Ky Houchin at the Tiger Stadium.
My heart is so full and warm and happy right now! I told you I'd find these bad boy ROYALTY images, didn't I? How cute are these little babies?!?! I'm swooning!!! The Houchin Boys and The Bednarz Girls were super famous in Slaton USA. And all of them served in the Homecoming Courts in Slaton. I love looking at old photos. LOVE. This is why it's so dang important to print your photos, folks. Yes, in this day and time, you get the digital files when you hire me as your photographer, but please, pretty plese, PRINT THEM. I just had a 15 minute stroll down memory lane and I'm so very content in my momma moment right now.
Love does,
Kristin
