The New Numa Numa

I can't HELP myself! My nephew whoops the Numa Numa guy's hiney.

These RV Few of My Favorite Things

We've been livin' the full-time RV life for nearly 1 month and in this time we've discovered a few favorites.

Clothing: Wilder loves his swim trunks. Brian likes his running shorts. Waverley doesn't care. And I love my black tank from The Gap and my black Royal Robbins travel skirt. Accessorize with scarves, necklaces and earrings, of course. Lots of fun!

Dining: Edamame. My microwave cooking and steaming bowl from Pampered Chef (totally necessary.) Plastic microwavable plates from WalMart (found in the Microwave and CrockPot section.) Speaking of... 4 qt. CrockPot (thanks, Brian. Killer pot roast last night. Can't wait to do chicken and baby back ribs! Not together, of course.) Thick plastic tumblers from WalMart, perfect for everything from wine to hot tea. And Wilder loves cookies -he's a monster; a cookie monster. And cheese. We're becoming cheese-a-holics. An intervention may be necessary.

Cleaning: One thing and one thing alone has been my go-to cleaning solution -Antibacterial Cleaning Scrub Wipes from Costco, Kirkland brand. All thanks to my fabulous sister, Crystal. These puppies handle everything from bathroom to kitchen and the two feet in between. Oh, scrubby wipes, I adore you and your fresh citrus scent!

Entertainment: Wilder prefers rocks and his case logic full of kid DVDs. And "White Christmas" -but only the first 10 minutes, then 'On the the next!' Brian would rather read (if we could leave him alone long enough to do so.) Waverley enjoys exploring Wilder's toys until he runs over, grabs them and insists, "No! Share!! Share!!" and grabs them all back. Me? Ha! The Laptop and watching movies with Wilder. Oooooooh, and PBS. YESSSSSSSSS.... Beautiful, sweet PBS (but only the Create channel during the week and the regular channel for Saturday and Sunday evenings when the British shows are on. I've even got Brian hooked. SCORE!)

For now that's our list of must-have's. We'll see what month two brings and how the list evolves. The pillow calls....zzzZZZZzzzzzzZzzzzZZzzZZZzzzzz....

Flashback: Halo/Walkin' On Sunshine

Wilder's favorite Youtube -the Glee mashup of Halo/Walking on Sunshine while bopping with Mama. He looks so serious, doesn't he? Created in May and finally pulled off the other camera to show now.

Christmas in July: Wilder Salutes General Waverly

Check out Wilder's salute at the end. It's ridiculously funny. Not sure how he got his cheek confused with his forehead.

Brian's totally sick of watching Wilder's new favorite film over and over, but I'm still in heaven. One of my all-time favorite movies -and at least half the inspiration for Waverley's name.

It's The Dad Life

In honor of my fabulous husband.

Granger and Bartlett, Texas -a family drive

Welcome to Granger, TX. This is what our life is about -exploration. After a family walk this morning, work in the afternoon, we were ready for a new experience this evening and headed out on the road -today it was Granger and Bartlet, Texas.

I loved the Alamo Hotel. Who wants an adventure?! I'm up for it! It would surely make a good blog post!

Furniture. Undertaking. Wall Paper.

Deere John,....

Okay, wait, wait, wait. I thought that this kind of photography was playing hooky. Until today. As we're realizing our new lifestyle and -most importantly- living it, I came to an important conclusion that this was really part of my job. But not just my job -this was why we started this lifestyle in the first place! Exploration, newness, seeing the world -this was the stuff of our new lifestyle and I am beginning to capture our new life -our love.

Welcome to Bartlet, TX! I had an infatuation with their historic main street's doors.

Doors like pie. Hmmmmm to yummmm.

The Secret Garden.

I saw this place and immediately thought that I wanted to buy or rent this section in Bartlett. Chance of that happening? Slim to none, but it's still an inspiring building, doncha think?

Ah, the doors of Bartlett. Just one of the many.

Who doesn't love retro murals? Really? They are so fabulous.

I loved these colors. Muted blue with a rich, dark red. The tapestry in the windows were perfectly chosen. I wanted this building, too.

Oh, the chairs. The chairs of Bartlett. Who wouldn't love imagining the conversations that happened on this string of chairs outside this long abandoned shop?

Traaaaaaaaaaiiiiiinnnnnnn!!

Tracks.

A refreshing coke awaited us back at the RV. And a terrific line up of great shows on PBS. I love British TV on PBS -and Brian's becoming a believer, too.

I'm in heaven!

What's New?

It's been a heck of a long time since I've blogged about what the kids are up to. I've got a few minutes and I'm dying to share.

Wilder has always had a mind of his own, been his own man, highly independent, a real pain the butt... I jest (a little.) Lately he's been doing something that TOTALLY cracks me up, but is rather naughty. An example: He's outside playing and he's not ready to come inside. I ask him to join me. He begins to walk away and in a sweet sing-songy voice says, "Bye! Bye!" with a delighted smile and half a smirk. Grrrhhhh! But how can I not laugh?! It's disobeying in the cutest way.

He's also at the stage of running to me every time he gets any kind of boo-boo. For such an independent little guy seeking comfort from Mama, I rather adored getting to cuddle him. It's been, oh, nearly 2 years since I got to cuddle him, so I've been liking this. Brian hasn't. Highly annoyed that he's starting to call for Mama when Papa lays down the law or when he gets a bump, he's ready to help Wilder move past his attention-getting methods. I agree.... but I wanna cuddle :) I'll find other ways, I'm sure. Wilder is starting to sit on our laps for a few minutes while he watches a movie, so that is lovely for me.

Nothing makes Miss Waverley laugh like her brother. It's phenomenal seeing the bond they share already. He loves to "wrestle" her -more like roll around and sometimes on top of her- and though we keep reminding him to be soft to "Sissy" and stay off her, she still loves it (unless she accidentally gets bonked in the head.)

Waverley is scooting around like mad and Brian said she just crawled across the floor today! Six months old tomorrow and our little girl is such an amazing little person already. She continues to be a pure ray of sunshine, charming everyone who meets her. I call her "The Sweetness" 'cause that's what she is.

Wilder's current favorite movies are "Robots" and "White Christmas," the latter of which makes me a very happy lady. Waverley's name was largely inspired by the film (though a different spelling) and it's been a family favorite since I was in high school. The song "Sisters" is a favorite for Crystal and I and we've often performed it together.

Photos to come soon, I hope. Still catching up on work and I've a wedding to shoot on Friday, so we'll see how soon I can get an update on here.

In the meantime, we're doing well and continue loving our new lifestyle! Getting to be together is the best!

More Kings

My brother-in-law, George King. Such a gifted leader, father and man. I'm so proud to call him my brother.

My stunning (exuberant and hilarious) sister, Crystal, and George.

Zaccai making friends with his latest catch. He is the ultimate lizard hunter.

*Sigh* I miss their fun crew! So very glad we got to spend some time with them -and had a great adventure.

Beauty Bootcamp, Escondido!

My sister, Crystal, facilitated a mini Beauty Bootcamp for her church, Light & Life, in Escondido, CA while we were visiting. I had so much fun working with her as we put together a 4 hour Saturday class that helped women and girls (mothers and daughters) to ground themselves in their identity in Christ and equip them with tools to empower them and build confidence!

Mary was an excellent model while we discussed skincare and natural make up application.

Just look at that glow!

Thanks to Crystal, who grabbed the camera to snap some shots, I've got some pictures to show for our fun and nurturing time.

Thank you, Crystal, for facilitating this, and to each of the ladies for joining in! What a blessing to me -and I hope you left with a bundle of new tools and are standing tall in the confidence of your identity as Christ's beloved daughters!

Meet Jax

Meet Jax. She's a fun, fabulous teenager I had the joy of shooting with two weeks ago. I worked with her mother, Jana, on a Wells Fargo shoot last month and her daughter needed fresh headshots -so here they are!

Embracing A New Life

On the last leg of our roadtrip we arrived in Georgetown at 1am, so technically that makes it Thursday. Brian decided that since we'd be arriving in Junction rather late, why not press on to Georgetown if the kids and I would already be asleep as he drove. Unfortunately hardly anybody slept, but the kids were ready to rack out as soon as we arrived at Eastview RV Ranch, just 3 min. from our home (that will soon be on the market.)

Yesterday was spent getting settled, doing paperwork, much needed laundry and a grocery run. Wilder kept begging to go play with the kids toys by the swing set and, after we moved to a more permanent spot, the piles of rocks and dirt across from us where they are putting in several additional RV spots.

Right as our first hot dinner in the RV was ready to dish up, Wilder got bit by 2 fire ants and it wasn't pretty. After a quick bath and some soothing, he immediately requested to go back outside and play in the dirt. Really?! You just got bit and cried the loudest I've ever heard -and you want to go BACK?! Hm....

Just when Wilder was screaming bloody murder from the ant mishap, the owner came by to welcome us -and kindly but firmly requested we keep him out of the construction area. He said he's got his rock right where he wants them and didn't need Wilder's assistance. Good luck to me keeping him away from there! Not sure how THAT'S going to happen.

Kitchen stocked, clothes and linens washed, pantry finally in some kind of order -I'm ready to send Brian off on his National Guard duty this weekend and get back to work while the kids are sleeping. We loved our visit with the Kings and I cherish the time we've had together -Wilder has asked several times for Uncle George and very often to go see the kids. Soon, I hope. But being in one place for the next month as we prepare the house to go on the market, I'm thankful for the time to breathe and get situated. We've been though so many changes in a few short months, a little rest, or at least regularity, is just what we need.

The wee ones are finally napping so I better get to work.

*Sigh* Welcome to our new life!