Meet Dotty. Dotty is Kenidi's assigned horse each week at therapy. To say that Kenidi loves Dotty would be an extreme understatement. Everyday she asks me about "oohs" which means horse in her language. We think she got horses and cows mixed up somewhere along the way and refers to horses as "oohs" because of the noise that cows make..."mooooo." It is nothing for her to come in with her cowboy boots and her riding helmet asking for the "oohs." I have to count down sleeps with her (days/nights) and remind her that she has 4 more "sleeps" for example before she sees the "oohs" again. These talks have to be the sweetest thing you've ever heard.
The shot above was just my way of capturing the beautiful light that was filtering in thru the barn the other night. It's great to be able to have the weather where she can do this outside year round. Back home in Indy, we had to do it indoors. I was standing right on the edge of the fence and the light was hitting the corner. There is so much to be said about natural light. It really is gorgeous. Thus why I can't stand to use a flash on my camera. EVER!
She looks upset in this shot below but this is Kenidi's shy face. I was snapping photos of her and she noticed me there. She swung that shy look at me and turned away from the camera...
The mundane orange cone below - again just a shot showing the natural light hitting it in just the right way. There is such beauty in the mundane if we are willing to look for it. I love being a photographer because the camera teaches you to look for things you never saw before. To look for beauty in even the ugliest of places...
Those who know me well...know that I love angles. I love architecture. I love lines. Leading lines. I looked up in the barn and saw these lights strategically hanging in a row. Loved it.
And this hook below. Nothing. No significance whatsoever other than the gorgeous natural light that is hitting it again.
I saw this sign on one of the barns. Thought it was very profound. This entire horse facility is run off volunteers. We pay only $10 a week for Kenidi to ride there. The day to day runnings of the facility are done via the help of all volunteers. Even the side walkers you see walking beside Kenidi when she is on the horse are volunteers. This is a HUGE difference compared to the facility that we went to in Indy for her. We loved it there but it was $180 a session compared to the $10 we pay now. Thankfully our insurance paid for most of those sessions back home. The unfortunate part is that many families never get the opportunity to send their child there because it is so costly and they don't have the means to cover it. Very sad!Volunteers ROCK!
These side walkers are there with Kenidi to make sure that should the horse ever act up, they are there to help her. In all the time we've been doing this though, we've never had a horse get out of line. They are what they call "Bomb trained." Meaning even if a bomb were to go off near them, they remain controlled and don't go crazy - especially with a rider on their back. Kenidi tells the horse when to go and when to stop. She is to pull on his reigns when stopping and shake his reigns and tell him to "walk on" when she wants him to go. It is really amazing to see how calm she is when in therapy with these horses.
Now look at these images and notice how all of the locals are wearing coats, muffins around their heads, etc. Kenidi of course just has on a sweatshirt. It was 66 degrees on this particular day - with sunshine. However, according to how the locals were dressed, you would have thought that it was below zero outside. LOL! Of course us Hoosiers are good with a simple hoodie. Ha ha!
It still seems so odd to me to see palm trees with barns and horses. I don't know why. The barns and the animals just remind me of the Midwest. However, they roam where the palm trees grow too...
Now this is what I call one big ol' ceiling fan...
We are so very thankful for all of the therapists, doctors, volunteers, etc. which have now come into our life since moving to Florida. God placed some great ones in our path and we couldn't be more at peace with the individuals we entrust Kenidi with. It is such a scary thing to have to find and recruit all new people to handle the medical issues and the day to day routines (i.e. school) and so forth when it comes to your child. Because Kenidi can't speak to us and tell us her feelings or how her day went, we rely on trustworthy people to make us feel at ease when it comes to her. It is so very tough but when you have relationships with stellar individuals such as these, it makes each day a little easier. Thanks again to everyone who is helping to make us feel so at home here in Florida.
We had a great dinner last night with Joe (our friend from Indiana). Although we missed Tamara and Derek - his wife and son - whom we hope will be back down to visit here real soon. Their family is looking to purchase a vacation home down here in the Cape Coral area so we are pretty stoked and excited about that idea. Derek is one of Brennen's best little pals that he has known since his early elementary school days. We adore their family and hope that they'll be joining us down here as residents soon. It would be great to know that they could "beach it" with us whenever they are in town. :)
That little yellow hand in the photo above is Kenidi's. I think she got it from school. She carries it around in her hand and as small as it is, I always find it sitting or laying somewhere. It's literally about the size of an eraser on a pencil. So tiny. It always makes me laugh though because I've been trying to teach Kenidi how to give the peace sign forever but she just can't figure out how to get only the two fingers up and the others kept down. It's too much coordination for her little hands at this point. She did learn to give two thumbs up the other day though and we've had a hoot with her ever since. She walks around giving everything two thumbs up now. I decided to break out the macro and photograph the chubby little peace sign hands because they remind me of Kenidi so much. Love em'! Love her!
And speaking of love...did I tell you guys how much I love that son of mine too? (even though he NEVER lets me photograph him...he gets it naturally I guess) Yeap, for those of you who aren't friends of mine on facebook, you probably hadn't heard that Brennen made the honor roll here at his new school. I'm so proud of him. It brings me such joy to see him excited about school, his grades, and doing well overall. He came home with a certificate the other day for his honor roll accomplishment and let me know that he got to participate in a special luncheon/party for making the school honor roll. Again, we are thrilled with his transition just as much as we have been Kenidi's. He has a wonderful teacher who has really encouraged him in writing. He loves to write and she's noticed that - and has since promoted his want to keep on writing. His grade level took the "Collier Writes" test here this week. It's part of a test that is similar to our I-Step testing back in Indiana. It had a big portion of the test which centered around writing. The top score you could get was a 6. She let it be known that after skimming quickly over Brennen's test, she felt he had scored either a 5 or 6. I was so pleased and yet again so proud. His grandparents spoiled him with cards and letters in the mail for his hard work. Inside those cards...yeap you guessed it...money. He loves the "green" and I just love their support and the unending encouragement they give my kids. (and me) We are so blessed with the family we have. So very, very, blessed.
On another positive note, please keep my Mom in your prayers. She had a job interview this morning and we are hoping that it went well. She should know something within a week to ten days if they decide to hire her. Please pray for favor in this area with us. We are desperately lifting her up in hopes that she gets some good news and lands this job with benefits, insurance, etc. She needs this and it would be a perfect position for her. Thank you in advance for your prayers. We can't begin to tell you guys how much we appreciate them.
For now...I'm off to go take a 30 or so minute walk/run before coming back to edit some images. The palm trees are swaying here in Florida today and I love getting outdoors to here their actual rustling as they sway back and forth like that. I'm weird - I know. However, they have a sound just as the sea has a sound when its waves come rolling ashore. Happy Friday everyone! Have a superb weekend!
No time for a "real" photo today. However, I managed to snap this very blurred and out of focus shot the other night and thought I'd use it anyway. This is how I found Kenidi on her bed the other evening. She was intent on watching her "Bear in the Big blue house" potty training video. Even though she is enthralled with that DVD, I'm about to fire Bear in the big blue house because his potty training videos aren't helping Kenidi get anymore excited about learning the technique herself than when we began. Grrrr! Still trying...
Speaking of Kenidi, many of you have requested that I start putting more photos of her and family back on the blog again. I can honor your request for photos of her because most times she is still a willing participant in front of a lens. Brennen detests my camera now days and I have to physically bribe him to cooperate. LOL! As for Brent and myself...as you know...I rarely post photos of my husband on here and NEVER post images of myself - well almost never. I have decided to keep him and any details concerning him and I as private as possible. I'm sure you've noticed that in the past 8 months. There is a certain individual who reads my blog "hourly" and therefore, I like keeping that person in the dark as well as any others out there who feel that they need to get up in my business or know what is going on in my life. People still think that just because I blog about one millisecond of my life each day that they are owed every detail surrounding us, our family, our children, our lifestyle, etc. Wrong! Don't think so. Believe it or not, there is a HUGE part of me that is a very private person. What you see here is a 20 minute snippet of something that my day held each time I post. That doesn't mean I should have to give a full account or run down of my life to anyone. So...I appreciate all of you who want to see more family photos. You are so very sweet. Again, I can arrange that regarding Kenidi's images. However, for the other three of us...it might be pretty tough. Ha ha! I'm not saying I won't share images of us - EVER - but as you know, it is rare. We like it much better this way. God for bid Kenidi ever turn on the camera. Who knows what I could blog about then.
Speaking of Kenidi, she is doing phenomenally well. Eloise, I know you and several others have asked me how she was doing with her new school. She is doing GREAT! Her teacher is an amazing woman with great patience and unending knowledge when it comes to working with special needs children. We love her. She does well on the bus too - has a great driver and an awesome aide on there each morning and afternoon with her. Kenidi has made great strides since starting at the school back in November. She is a completely different child than she was the first half of the year when she was back in Indiana at her old school. We are so thrilled at the smooth transition she made into the Florida school district. God is good!
We have enrolled in equestrian therapy here in Florida just as we did back in Indiana. She looks forward to it every week. Her horses name is "Dotty" and she is completed obsessed with her. The trainers at the barn have commented on Kenidi's exceptional posture and how she has caught on to riding so much quicker than they've ever seen in a child. They are very pleased with her skills and we thoroughly enjoy watching her tell "Dotty" to walk on as she shakes her reigns and then pulls back on them and says "OP" for stop. It is the cutest thing ever. I have some photos from last week that I'll share here on the blog for you guys soon. They are of her riding Dotty. Fun times!
We have begun visiting a new pediatrician down here and he has been a big help in getting us acclimated and introduced to new therapists, a new well known neurologist in Miami, etc. for her. Again, the transition has gone unbelievably well. God is good!
Speaking of horse therapy though, that is where we are headed now. She visits there every Thursday after school - armed with her riding helmet and pink cowgirl boots that every adult there wants for themselves. Problem is...they only come in kids sizes. :( Trust me, I would've already had a pair for myself if they had come in my size. LOL! After we get back from therapy, a good friend of ours from Indiana is coming over for dinner. I'm cooking lasagna for the crew. It's great to have a "Hoosier" in town visiting us down here. Wonderful to see familiar faces. So for now...have a wonderful Thursday evening. Thanks for always inquiring about Kenidi and the rest of our family. My blog readers ROCK!
HER LOOK - NAPLES, FLORIDA CHILDREN'S PHOTOGRAPHER
Just because.
Just because I found this in some old images and had put them aside as "unusable."
Decided unusable wasn't a good categorization for this one any longer. This is Kenidi's "look" and I love it. Her hair had gotten really long recently. I took her to a nearby salon and got her hair cut back off in an angled bob yesterday - similar to what she had here. As I was driving her home, I looked in my review mirror at her new "do" and thought..."Now that is the Kenidi I know." The long locks just didn't do much for her - other than create chaos in the morning as we tried to comb out the tangles before the bus came. Not fun. But this...this is fun. The picture, her look, the "do," all of it.
Fun-ness I say.
Finding an older image like this is like finding money in a coat pocket that you never knew was there. ;0) Good stuff!
Beings that Kenidi and I had the H1N1 virus together, we've become quite the little bed buddies together. She hasn't left my side since her illness began which was almost two weeks ago. Even though she is better, she has stayed right by my side as I ride out what is left of my journey with it. (which is hopefully not much) Every now and again I'll look over at her and just stare at her as she watches TV aside me. I've caught myself thanking God for this little bed buddy of mine and how much she adores her Mommy. She is literally stuck to me at the hip. God help her when she has to return to school next Tuesday. Actually...God help me. :)
I am so excited about the fact that this is the New Year. TwentyTen is what I plan to refer to it as. (instead of two thousand ten) Reason being...I want to make this year twenty times better than a score of ten could ever be. I am so stoked about all of the plans God has in store for our family. This past year was a rough one but as always, we saw our way thru it only by way of Gods grace. I'm excited about our new lives here in Naples, Florida. My new business here next to the sea. My new photography classes I'll be teaching/adding onto this year. The kids new sports teams. New friends that we've made here. And the list goes on and on. God has always been so very good to us - even when we weren't reciprocating that to him. This past year leading up to today was no different. He still carries us in the palm of his hand. We are his children. Just as Kenidi is my daughter, I am his. For that...I am grateful. I am excited. I am me because of all the things I can do thru him. And in the end, when a fellow, dear, sweet, blogger friend mentioned coming up with a word for us to live by in 2010, I decided I needed two words instead of just one. As you all know, I'm not one to follow the rules much. My two words that will be privately tattooed across my two wrists baring wings - one word for each wrist - as my hands go to sink my head into them during those dark days/hours that we are sure to experience in TwentyTen...the words..."Abundant Courage." Two very small words that mean such HUGE things..."Abundant Courage." (wished from another photographer acquaintance on Twitter for the New Year) Because I'm "His" daughter, I know he is showering me with "abundant courage" as I crossed the thresh hold into TwentyTen last night. I cannot wait for New Years Eve 2011 - just so that I can look back and see where all that "abundant courage" via those wings - by way of Gods grace - allowed me to go. Many of the goals I'm after for myself this year will take an exceeding amount of "abundant courage." I've been given that courage by God. And it started today. January, 1st - TwentyTen! This date is significant today but will be VERY significant to me in the distant future, I'm sure. So...as I lay here, recovering from this eventful illness, and watch my gorgeous daughter bat those stunning eyelashes beside me, I pray that she too will one day have "abundant courage" as she walks beside God while attempting to tackle and attain her life goals. I pray that she knows him so well that she can lay in bed with her own children someday, laughing about being bed buddies, all the while thanking God for his enormous amount of grace, blessings, restoration, and the ability to turn her fears into abundant and overwhelming amounts of courage. Happy TwentyTen peeps. THIS is going to be "MY" year. I pray you will make it "yours" too!
The good Lord above graciously gave me Christmas day before dropping what we now believe to be H1N1 in my stocking later that night. I was really ticked too because instead of bringing me "Edward Cullen" in my stocking, I got this garb. What - is - up - with - that???
All of you poor people who have experienced H1N1 already, you'll know what I mean when I say that my body aches all over - all the way down to my teeth. I have been in bed since Friday late afternoon with no end in sight. My fevers have ranged anywhere from 103 to 101. There is no rhyme or reason to the ups and downs. Kenidi...yeap...she is now pushing a week of fevers too. Hers is now running in the low 99's but unfortunately it is still lingering. We are soooooooooo over this. Kenidi has been back to the doctor for a 2nd time already. If her fever doesn't break and stay gone for good, we are going to have to take her back again. It's a mess over here. We. are. at. war.
War with this nasty bug that has no mercy on anyone. No remorse. No guilt. Just all out war with guns blazing. I've never experienced anything like it in my life. Never. Brent is now complaining of a scratchy throat and sluggish feelings. I think I heard him mention something about wanting to go to bed by 6pm tonight. This might be his pay backs though for looking at me as I laid in bed the other night looking like death warmed over and then muttering the words..."Ang, it's mind over matter babe." Yeah...needless to say...I told him where he could stick his "mind over matter theory" and let him know that I'd remind him of it when he was laying on his death bed here in a couple of days with the same thing Kenidi and I have. This is what happens when you are married to a man who treats daily life events like a business. As though an entrepreneur would when they embark on a new uphill battle. Just mind over matter babe. Just mind over matter. Yeah...whatEVAH!
All of this comes in the wake of me making a huge mistake by helping my mom set up a facebook account. I am ill as ill gets and have to stumble upon her page yesterday and today where she is proceeding to steal photos from me and add them to her page. "Unapproved" photos at that. Yeah...you know the kind. The kind we disown our friends for taking and then tagging us. Yup...that kind. I don't mind her posting pictures on her page of me but she best let me approve them first. I had to go in and delete the photo off her page twice now. I warned her that if I had to do it a third time that I was going to take "my computer" out of the Bonita house where she is staying and thus she will no longer have access to the Internet there period. LOL! See...she is using one of our old computers that has old pictures on it from things I've uploaded. Now she has some bidding war attempt going on over on facebook for those feeling the need to see the "said photographs." YAY! Even my new neighbor friend is in on it. (Hi Lorrie!) Ha ha! What a joy as I'm struggling to even muster the strength to walk to my shower let alone have to watch facebook like a hawk because my Mom is on there having a hay day with my wretched images. BLAH!
In the end, I'm just asking for prayers. Prayers to help us overcome this nasty ordeal and prayers that Brennen won't end up with it now too. So far he is still trucking along. I can't bare the thought of him having to endure this as well. I'm also just praying that Kenidi can kick this and be done with it. The fever especially due to her epilepsy. Fevers bring on seizures. We can't have any extra of those. Just can't!
In the meantime, I'm jealous of the sunshine and beautiful swaying palm trees that I can see out my bedroom windows/door. It all makes me even more sick to know I'm missing all of that outdoor beauty. Not only that but it is the kids Christmas break. They are off school and we've been cooped up since last Monday basically. So not fun. Again, please just send a few prayers our way, will ya? I hope to be back to our regular scheduled programming very soon. Figured I'd better post an update though just to let ya'll know we are breathing. :) I was beginning to get emails from some of you asking where we went. Sorry. We are still here. I promise. Hope all of you had a spectacular Christmas.
It struck & struck hard. Hard and fast. One minute she was fine. The next minute she couldn't breathe well and had a 103.4 fever. After a trip to the doctor yesterday, a nasal test, and blood work to confirm her white blood cell count was low, she is now being treated for H1N1.
Poor little Kenidi. She always gets the shotty end of the deal. Her immune system just doesn't handle as it should. She is the first to get everything in our family. This thing has kicked her butt (and mine). Last night was rough but we survived. She qualified for the Tamiflu because of her having epilepsy. However, she vomitted upon taking it for the first time right off the bat. I had been warned by the doctor that Tamiflu can cause vomiting. They were right on! Many of you facebook friends confirmed that on my page as well. After setting my alarm for every four hours last night in order to rotate the Tylenol with the motrin, her fever finally broke at around 4am. She was sweating profusely and ended up being in a pool of water - her own sweat - by the time all was said and done. It broke my heart. Although I have a ton of stuff to do, including our Christmas shopping, I stayed in today with her in my lap or laying in my right arm all day today. She has been very clingy and I can't say that I blame her. She'll look at me, ask for juice, then pull on my shirt collar, physically pulling me onto the bed and say, "seep...!" (that means "sleep" in Kenidi's language) It is her best way of instructing me to lay down and just relax with her. Although her fever is at bay, her cough sounds ferocious. We are hoping that she'll have her pep back in her step by Christmas.
For now, I'm off to get ready to head out for a few hours so that I can attempt to wrap up the Christmas shopping which I have yet to begin. Nothing like waiting until the last minute this year. This is a new approach for me. Ask me later how well it worked. LOL! Happy Wednesday.
Kenidi being pushed around on the dolly by her Dad...
I love how she fits just perfectly inside the contour of it. So funny!
Also, I'm sure you can see that we are in the process of altering the blog a hair. I thought that I wanted to give it a new fresh makeover. You girls know how I love to change things up a bit from time to time - never keeping anything long enough for it to get stale. Same goes for my AGD logo. If you have a good eye, you'll notice that I changed up my logo design a bit. Well Crystal did it for me - I just told her what I wanted and she magically makes it happen. I had her remove the crown and the heart from my logo. I wanted only wings from here on out. Reason being, it is the wings that AGD is known for - not the heart - and not the crown. Not only that but I have had the logo just long enough for several people to copy the design. I'm not fond of the copying especially when one of them was supposed to be a good blog friend. Therefore, in an attempt to always stay ahead of the game and keep the AGD look but yet always keep it fresh and out of the box, I trashed the heart and the crown, and made it a bit more grown up. Less girlie and more cottage chic. Less zebra-ish or less of a black and fuchsia color scheme and opted for a more beachy look. A fresh and clean new vibe. Angie. I just wanted it to scream AGD & Angie. So...I'm thankful to have a look that isn't blending in with the over saturated amounts of wings, crowns, and hearts now. I love the look and think that Crystal and Amy ROCKED it like they always do. I hope that when you log onto this page now that you will instantly be propelled to the shoreline with us and that you will enjoy your time here as though it was a virtual vacation of sorts. I can't wait to share the Naples treasures with each of you.
This card was given to me by my dear friend Tamara. I met Tamara several years ago when Brennen became friends with her son in 2nd grade. We've enjoyed our time with them ever since. They are great to vacation with and we love their company no matter where we are. Tamara and Joe are considering buying a vacation home in the same neighborhood that our Bonita Springs house is in. We are keeping our fingers crossed that they will so that they will have an excuse to come down and hang out with us all of the time. :) Either way, Tamara gave me this card after our dinner together the other night along with a bag full of "good-bye" gifts that I fell in love with. The card was my favorite though. The wordage on it couldn't be any more perfect. Just had to share...
And speaking of Brennen...a couple of you have asked how the kids are taking the move. Well, it's like this...Brennen is now 10 years old and in 5th grade. He adores his friends here and will miss them terribly. We've assured them that they are welcome at our home in Naples anytime they want to come down. Fortunately, the area where we live has lots of families who go on Spring Break to the Ft. Myers Beach area each year. Beings that we will only be about 40 minutes from Ft. Myers Beach, we are hoping to keep in touch with many of his friends just on Spring break alone not to mention the rest of the year too. Brennen is excited and nervous all at the same time regarding this move. I am the same. Thankfully he is a pretty outgoing kid and makes friends easily. I'm praying that lunch time and recess will be a breeze for him that first day/week. That is my only worry - those moments in general. Brent and I decided that if we were going to move, we needed to do it NOW. It was going to be easier to transplant Brennen there in Naples now - rather than waiting until junior high or high school. He will be at the elementary school for about 5 months before migrating over into the middle school next year with everyone else. The next 5 months will give him just enough time to meet some friends to "move over" into the middle school with. We didn't want to throw him into the junior high next year to fend for himself. We truly believe that getting in the elementary school for the next few months will be a plus for him as he transitions to the junior high next year.
And Kenidi...well...she is a whole other story. Although she doesn't quite understand what is going on, I realize the transition will be tough for her into this new school - mid year. It will be tough for me as well to have to watch her adjust. However, without going into a ton of detail here on the blog...I'd rather watch her transition into a new school in Naples than have her stay in her current school even one more day. I have not discussed her school much here lately out of fear of hurting some feelings or causing an uproar. However, after meetings with the principal of the school as well as repeated conversations with her current teacher, to say that Brent and I are disappointed would be an understatement. Kenidi has come home with multiple incident reports from the school nurse this year - sometimes weekly and even twice a week - due to injuries she is receiving while at school. Sometimes the injuries are explained by acknowledging another child hurt her within the class but then there are most times when no one seems to know what happened to her to cause the injuries. The aide doesn't know, the teacher doesn't know, etc. As you can imagine, sending your child - who can't talk and tell you about her day - to a school where she is coming home injured on a regular basis, really makes your job as a parent even that much more heart wrenching. The school is understaffed and has admitted that they are short on aides and now her teacher has even left for the year due to maternity leave. Kenidi is extremely scared - more like "petrified" of a particular aide in the classroom. When I take her to drop her off, she breaks down and goes into a mode I've never witnessed before when she thinks I'm about to leave her with this particular aide. The bus driver has noted it as did Kenidi's speech therapist at the school. They all confirmed what we were seeing. I don't believe this aide is harming Kenidi but there are other factors that I know cause her fear when it comes to this woman. We've repeatedly asked the school to work with helping Kenidi and this aide transition together but no one is listening. And the final straw came just a couple of weeks ago when I went to drop Kenidi off at school one morning. Her teacher never came outside to get her as scheduled - nor did the aide who was working that morning. When I called inside the school after all of the buses had come and gone and we were the only ones left, the front office staff sent out a school janitor to come and get my daughter from me at the back of the school and walk her to her class. Oh yes they did. Now...I know the janitor is definitely an up and up kind of guy. The principal assured me that he would have released his kids to this janitor anytime. However, I am NOT the principal. I'm a parent who is responsible for the well-fare of my children and I'll be darned if I'm going to release her to a school maintenance worker instead of her teacher - as planned. That janitors job is not to get my kid to class. That is my job and her teachers job! Nuff' said.
So...let me repeat myself again...I would rather watch Kenidi have to endure the adjustment of a new school mid-year rather than to have to watch her go thru one more day of torment at her current school. Clearly there are issues there. People are dropping the ball and they've admitted it. The children in that special needs class have gotten less than 50% since the first day of school began. I'd like to say that her teacher "checked out" in recent weeks when she got further along in her pregnancy. However, the truth is...she was never "checked in" from day one. As you can imagine, this is hurtful for us because we had her in the best school with the best teacher and the absolute BEST aides last year.
Unfortunately, the district let most of those people go and then shuffled everyone else around to different areas. So...it's tough when one school, one principal, one teacher, and four different aides spoiled us rotten regarding the care and love they showered our daughter with when she was in their care - only to go to the polar opposite when the district changed her school this year. Thankfully, I've been able to remain good friends with her teacher as well as an aide of hers last year. We love them dearly and miss them being in her life more than words can describe. I used to always hear about the horrible time that parents of special needs kids have with schools before I had Kenidi. However, I never realized the drama and its complexity until I had a special needs child of my own. As her only advocate in life, Brent and I will do whatever we feel necessary to keep this child safe and comfortable. And at this point in time, that means moving her to a new school.
Are we moving just because of her school, No. Not at all. Truth be told...this move to Naples has been in the works for 10 plus years. Deep down, even you guys knew I'd end up there someday. An opportunity presented itself to go now, so we are going - before I change my mind again. I swore I'd never leave my parents and move there. Now look, I'm leaving my Dad and Cathy behind as well as Brent's mom. It's a tough decision. In the end though, life's curve balls helped me make that decision. My goal is to get to Naples, dig in deep, and go gung-ho with my photography business there. I want to make a name for myself and build a business that can sustain itself for my family. Photography is a HUGE passion of mine and I feel that I can promote it there better than here in Indy. I can shoot year round there. As a natural light photographer, I only get 5 months or so here in Indy to shoot each year. And that is if Mother Nature doesn't cause me to have to cancel sessions due to weather issues. Naples is a tourist area. People flock there for family vacations and tons of them want family photos on the beach when in town. I want to embrace those wants and cater to the those families willing to let me photography them. I've been there and know how hard it is to find a beach photographer or any photographer for that matter when on vacation in a tropical area. Due to my own experiences when searching for a photographer, I plan to hopefully saturate the market there in Naples and Southwest Florida in general. We'll see where the good Lord takes this. I'm letting him lead the way. For all I know, he'll get me down there and away from photography doing something else totally different. I heard a saying the other day that said something to the effect that God laughs at our "10 year plans." I truly believe that. He totally has his own agenda and I'm confident that his agenda is always best. :) Less than 48 hours to go...
Brennen spent the night with his Grandma this past Friday night. He had a ball with his cousins. The three of them really look up to him because he is the oldest and the two girl cousins have been known to claim that they want to "marry" him. Ha ha! It cracks all of us up. They are all such a hoot together. We are so thankful for family who play an intricate and major role in Brennen's life. With that said, Daddy went to pick Brennen up from Grandma's on Saturday and when he did...Kenidi and I took to the streets for a little impromptu fall photo shoot. This child LOVED crunching thru the leaves in her boots. She would stomp just to hear the leaves being demolished underneath her feet. It was hysterical.
The leaves were all dead and dried up so they made for some great crunching noises. She loves textures so she kept grabbing them and feeling them as well. I kept praying that a big ol' worm or spider wasn't going to crawl out from underneath them onto her hands or head for that matter. Ha ha!
The light outside was that warm honey/golden shade again. It was a gorgeous day to say the least.
Her eyelashes kept jumping out at me during the session - like they always do when I'm photographing her. Her and Brennen both were blessed with beautiful eyelashes. We have no idea where they got them from...
I love how her hair has like three different shades or colors running throughout it. I'm guessing it is from being in and out of the sun so much. Women pay good money to have their hair highlighted and colored like that. Ha ha! Kenidi's just comes naturally. Who would have ever guessed that when she used to pull all of her hair out due to frustration while being non-verbal, that she would end up with hair like she has now. God is good! Oh...and there is that golden honey light again...and the eyelashes again too...
I know I've said it here before but I'm going to say it again. I can truly see the world in her eyes. She has so much love to give. She is truly the most affectionate child I've ever known.
I have no doubt that she is touching the lives of many and that she will continue to do so as she grows thru the years. We are so blessed by the fact that she has changed how we view the world. Thru her eyes, the world became a totally new and different place to us. For that we are very thankful. But mainly...I am just so very thankful to be able to call her "mine."
I don't know about any of you other special needs mothers out there, but I know that with our family, there is never a dull moment when it comes to parenting Kenidi. That child is the most lovable human being on the face of this earth when she wants to be. However, when she doesn't want to be...she can be a real handful. Therefore, opening up her backpack and finding her daily progress report to read from class every afternoon is always a treat. I'll be real and say that most days...we get negative reports about Kenidi's behavior lately. I haven't talked much about it here on the blog in the past couple of months but she has had a really tough time transitioning into this new school that the district moved her to this year. Brent and I have been very concerned about it and are truly torn with how to handle it. Unfortunately, Kenidi seems to be acting like a completely different child this year ever since starting at the other school in the district. The change of moving to the school they switched her to has not settled well with her for whatever reason. We are praying that things eventually turn around for her but right now it bothers us tremendously that she has to go thru this stuff. You want to scoop her up and switch her to plan B because of the worry you experience as a parent.
With that said though, there are many days when we just have to look at each other and laugh over something she has done. Today was one of those days. I get an emailed progress report on her 'in class therapy sessions' each week. Today's report is what you see above. Notice the red arrow I drew on it though. Read where it is pointing to. It says something like this:
"Guidance required and oh by the way...she did try to leave class 4 times."
Ha ha! I busted out laughing when I read it. I don't know why but I did. You'd have to know Kenidi in order to appreciate this note. The child can escape anything and everything - and she tries to consistently. I laughed until my sides hurt after reading that one line about 15 times over and over. The more I read it, the more it made me laugh. It was kind of like the therapist was trucking along...telling me about her session with Kenidi...and then it was like "oh and yeah...by the way...she tried to leave class 4 times." So funny! That is our Kenidi for you. Always keeping us and everyone else on our toes. It's times like this that we laugh and thank God for a child who can walk rather than get irritated that she isn't exactly behaving as she should in therapy. There were many days when she was a baby that we worried she would never be able to walk. By God's grace, she is not only walking but she is running and trying to escape therapy sessions. God is good friends! All the time - God is good!
Just because she loves showing us her new teeth that are coming in. Just because I love her eyes in every photograph she takes. They are the true window to ones soul - hers is no different. Just because we love her and the smiles she brings to our faces each day...
OK...I'm way behind on posts. I'm still trying to catch up after my three days away this past weekend. Therefore, this post is just a quickie for times sake today. I apologize in advance for any fire engine red lips or orange skin tones. HA! Unfortunately I wasn't able to find my monitor calibration kit in stock at the local camera store near me. Therefore...it has to be ordered. I also didn't jump into photoshop this morning and edit them in there before posting. So...we'll be rockin' the totally over saturated stuff for a bit longer I presume. :) The good news is that these are their real skin tones - and not lightened in photoshop. I'm all about keeping it real whenever possible - even if it does mean that my kid has a tan and thus produces horrific skin tones to manage should you aspire to have a professional looking photograph. (Pro's want the pale white creamy skin tones - not the tan orange ones) Beings that this is just the AGD blog and not my photography blog, I'm making the executive decision to post them anyway. :)
I took these this morning while waiting on the bus to come. Kenidi was in rare form so it was a bit tough to capture even a candid snapshot. However, these will do for now.
She was totally hamming it up this morning. And Brennen - he refused to get in front of the camera after the first shot. Imagine!
Her faces were cracking me up. She is a hoot! She's been very clingy after me having been gone for those three days back to back. I love it though. We laid in bed last night and watched TWILIGHT together. Yeap, she is an "Edward" lover just like her Mama is now! Anyway, she curled up next to me and just snuggled there thru the whole movie. You can tell she was having some withdraws. Unlike with a typical child her age, you can't tell her..."Hey Mommy will be back tonight" and expect that she'll understand it. All she knows is that you are leaving and she doesn't understand that you WILL be back. It breaks my heart. It's always a blessing to come home to her smiles and her deep, deep, hugs. Brennen just misses my break dancing abilities when I'm gone or the sound of my voice not singing and rocking it out to him in the car. Right bud? Ha ha! I'll save that story for a later date. :)
In the meantime, I'm still editing through all of the images I took from this past weekend. They are on their way. I'm sure I'll have to break them up into several days worth of posts. I took over 600 pictures. So...I'm slowly but surely whittling my way through all of them. Fun stuff! Enjoy your hump day! Angie
Brennen informed me this morning that he would "NOT" be standing out at the bus stop getting his picture taken every morning from now thru eternity. He asked me when "enough was enough" and wanted to know how much longer I was going to continue to drag my camera out to the bus with him and Kenidi each morning. As you can tell by the look on his face in the picture above...he's done! If that wasn't a forced smile, I don't know what was. Ha ha! I've been lucky to get the ones I've got due to his normal unwillingness to get in front of a camera. Hummmm...wonder where he gets that from? Wink wink~! ;) Now Kenidi on the other hand, she looks like she is posing for some back to school ad or something in that shot above. She has no qualms with posing away and loves every second in front of the camera. Beings that she has been my model for all of my designs since the year after her birth, she is naturally accustomed to life in front of a lens. She knows no different. I honestly think she views it as part of our daily routine. God help me when she finally figures it all out and resigns on me. Until then, I'm soaking the smiles up...(even if this shot below is blurry and blown out somewhat)
You can see what is left of one of her battle wounds from the war with a classmate on Tuesday in this shot below. It's on the side of her chin. I'm praying that it doesn't scar and that it heals up and completely disappears. Just a little bump - a little war wound. She is a "Seaman" though. She can handle it!
For now, I'm off to go drudge up some energy. This 6am alarm buzzing in my ear the last three mornings is killing me. My body is definitely detesting the early morning fun we are having now that school is back in session. I'm sitting here editing images at my laptop and I feel as though I could just crash right here at the kitchen island. When I woke Kenidi up this morning, I asked her if she was ready to go to school again today. She looked at me, shook her head "no" and rolled back over. Those were my sentiments exactly. Ha ha!
I'll be posting the "foto find Friday" project here on the blog again tomorrow even though I'll be in my mentoring session. The theme this week is "water." If you have a photo that somehow pertains to water, post it. We'd love to see it. Thanks to each of you who participated in last week's "flower" theme. xoxo, Angie
Well, day two must have went a bit better for Kenidi. (other then the note from her teacher confirming that she was pretty defiant most of the day today) Yesterday she came home with two nurses incident reports in her backpack from where she had been injured in class by a fellow student. Therefore, the fact that she didn't have any incident reports in her book bag today made me a relieved Mama. She does have some war wounds from the apparent battle yesterday but she seemed fine when she got off the bus. We layered her up with more neosporin and more band aids today before she left and the areas of concern look to be a bit better this evening. What a first day, eh? I don't know what was worse, learning of the cat fight or finding out that she went swinging after an adult herself. Oh yeah...welcome to our world.
I just finished cleaning up dinner and am off to sign into my next online photography class. We are discussing "curves" in photoshop tonight. Fun stuff! I'm learning tonight - not teaching. Speaking of teaching though, thank you to all of you who have signed up for the next round of my photography workshop today. I know we are going to have another great class on our hands. Also, if you have questions regarding what topics we will be learning, don't hesitate to contact me. I hope to post a blog update again tomorrow and then from Friday on, I might be a little MIA for three days. I'm totally stoked to be participating in a mentorship program with a local photographer here in Indy. I'm spending three straight days with her (from 10am in the morning until 9pm at night each day) as she teaches me the ropes and instills in me the knowledge she possesses regarding photography. She is an award winning creative portrait photographer and I'm so humbled and honored to be working under her and to just be in her presence - soaking up all of her talent that she is so willing to share. She has traveled the world to areas such as Australia, England, Hawaii, etc. fulfilling requests for her mentoring amongst colleagues in the industry. There are no words for the excitement I have regarding this mentoring that she is doing for me. I've literally been busting at the seams for Friday morning to roll around. I can barely contain myself. I'll definitely be sharing more about who she is and all that she taught me come Monday. The woman does brilliant work in the photography realm and I'm sure I'll be awe-struck while in person with her. She is one of my top favorite two photographers in the United States. Therefore, to be able to work one on one with her for three solid days is such a blessing. She has special shoots planned - even night ones - where she'll be instructing me on changing lighting conditions, shooting in RAW, commercial driven photography rather then "posed" photography, location scouting, urban and rural shoots, advanced photoshop techniques, etc. Have I told you how stoked I am about this opportunity? Until then, please ignore the pinging sounds you might hear. It's just me bouncing off the walls and counting down the minutes until the mentoring begins on Friday morning. Stay tuned...I'm sure I'll have lots of photos to share from the 3 day experience. Thankfully, we are supposed to have sunny and 90 degree weather the entire three days here in Indiana. I'm eager to have her teach me the tricks of using my available light while on a shoot. Good times~good times!
For now, it's off to learn "curves" in photoshop. Wish me luck. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this photo (above) of Brennen and Kenidi this morning while waiting on their bus. Have a great night! xoxo, Angie
First day of 5th grade (big man on campus) and first day of 1st grade. My babies are growing up.
Brennen did great. He has a new bus driver this year which he is thankful for. So is Mama! Wink wink! ;) He climbed up the steps to the bus and waved to me once in his seat like "This is how I roll - no big deal Mom!" I teared up as I walked away. To think just last night he was still holding my hand and leaning on my shoulder as we walked thru the mall together only to know that in one more year, he'll be off to the middle school and probably "embarrassed" of good ol' Mom by that point. Breaks my heart that he is getting so big. He has yet to seem "too big" to love on his sister though. Love that!
He is always looking out for her and leading the way...
Although Kenidi didn't do so swell and wasn't as "hey this is how I roll" when entering her class this morning, they were both all smiles and cheesy grins at the bus stop for that moment.
Kenidi even got some "hey check me out" moves in before her day started.
I'm praying for them both and their teachers today. Brent was watching Kenidi as she slept last night and he said out loud..."Oh Kenidi, they have know idea what they are in for, do they?" (meaning the school and her teachers) He was all..."They have no idea whose coming to town and it ain't Santa Claus." Ha ha! I was cracking up. He is so right. I just hope these new teachers can handle her. Wink wink! ;) Here is to a new day - a new chapter. Hope all of you are off to a great start this morning. xoxo, Angie
