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Tomorrow Caleb turns seven. It’s not one of those big monumental birthdays, just a regular middle-of-the-road kind of birthday, yet it still feels very significant. This morning I pulled up Facebook and was greeted with a photo memory the two of us, taken just before his first birthday. Oh how life has changed since then.

caleb reading bey blade paper
Checking out new bey blades

As I scrolled through the memories that Facebook so graciously pulls together, I clicked over to one of my Tuesdays With Caleb posts. That sent me through a wormhole here on this site as I read and reminisced over the photos taken during that time with him. What I wouldn’t give to have those days back. I was definitely thankful then for that time, but even more so now. Being able to work from home a couple days a week and spend time with him was such a gift.

caleb on ipad
a little iPad time

So much has changed since then and I’m a little sad that I’ve failed to document it. I’m really sad that I was not able to continue the photo project I started with him. I’ve taken snapshots on my phone and posted little tidbits to Facebook and Instagram, but the early years of his life were not documented in the same way that his siblings were. I can blame it on life being more busy with three little ones, or the fact that life with Caleb has been a little bit more of a difficult adventure than we expected, or even the fact that I just can’t calm my brain down enough most days to focus on writing, but regardless, I am sad that I don’t have that time to look back on. I have memories, but the details are lost.

caleb with bey blades
Let ’em rip! Bey Blade time!

Today is President’s Day, so the kids and I all have a day off of school and work. We’re preparing to celebrate Caleb’s birthday tonight with the family as tomorrow will be busy with back to school/work/activities. I pulled out my camera this morning and decided I’m going to document just a little. I can’t promise that I’ll continue to write, or even keep up with the photos – but for today, I’ll have those photos and this post to document this time in his life.

cat playing with paper
Bonus kitty photo!

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Tuesdays With Caleb

Perhaps it was all of the sleep that I managed to get in over the holidays, or maybe it is just the time of year, but I’m suddenly feeling the need to write, to photograph, to be creative. I’ve been knitting like crazy (3 hats and 2 scarfs in the last week!), and I’m really missing the feel of my camera in my hands.

When I think over the last year or so I realize how little focus I have had on my photography. I had a blast at Shutterfest, my first photography conference, last April. I came home energized and full of ideas and things that I couldn’t wait to try. Then life happened and my focus went back to just getting through the daily grind while photography took a back seat. I took plenty of photos, great ones even, but I don’t feel like I improved much.

One of my biggest regrets over the last year is not taking the time to just photograph the every day. Sure, I have lots of dark, blurry, iphone camera shots, but I don’t have a lot of great photos that really tell the story of our lives this past year. I’ve gotten lazy about taking my big camera out to capture those moments. When I scroll through my Facebook and Instagram feeds I find myself feeling envious of the great photos that are being taken during the simple moments by my friends. I think how precious those memories will be some day when they look back at the timeline of their lives. I realized even more how much I have missed documenting when I looked back at some old photos of my own this week. The curls on my toddler daughter’s head (that are now as straight as can be), photos of Zach learning to walk, playing with a caterpillar in the front yard. I don’t want to miss those moments.

As I watched Caleb play today, in the amazing early afternoon sun shining through our living room window, I realized how much I am missing of these days (even though I spend more time with him than I was able to with either of the other kids). I decided then that I wanted to commit to capturing more of his childhood. I’ve been thinking about starting a new photo project this year to help keep me focused on improving my skills, but a 365 project is too daunting to take on right now. I’ve been thinking about a selfie project, but I would probably never complete that either. However, a project featuring one of my favorite subjects might just be doable. So, I decided today that I will attempt a “Project 52”, posting one photo a week (at least) of Caleb and his shenanigans.

I’m going to call it “Tuesdays With Caleb” as Tuesdays are one of the days that we get to spend together every week – just the two of us. I’m super creative with the titling, see?

Today I took five minutes out just to shoot him playing. I love that he went and got his little toy camera out and was taking some shots of me as well. I will most likely post a few of my favorites here and at least one shot on Instagram/FB each week, on Tuesday even, if I can keep up. Hopefully, this will help me hold myself accountable as well as help me practice and improve my skills as the year goes by.

Play time with Caleb

Play time with Caleb

Play time with Caleb

Play time with Caleb

Play time with Caleb

Play time with Caleb

Play time with Caleb

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Two Months

Now that I finally got the birth story written out, I can go on and whine about how my sweet little baby is already two months old. Time is cruel. It just keeps speeding up faster and faster. I really don’t know how two entire months could have passed by so quickly. But, here we are.

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We had a few very frustrating days with Caleb this week because he suddenly decided he didn’t want to sleep during the day. He was fine until late afternoon/evening, then he turned into Mr. Crankypants for several hours until he finally would give in and sleep.

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The good news is that he finally seems to be breaking through this little phase. The better news, is that he has slept for a six hour stretch the last two nights without waking up. You won’t see me complaining about that!

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Caleb is also figuring out how to move his hands and feet and is starting to grab at things in front of him. He has a special interest in Mommy’s hair and necklace, but will grab at his toys on his car seat or play mat as well.

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We have found that he’s very ticklish, and a tickle on his belly or toes will more often than not earn you a big smile. There is nothing better than a baby smile to turn a bad day around for me.

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At two months old, this little guy has us all wrapped around his little finger.

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Celebrating Four

While I was off in LaLa Land (otherwise known as maternity leave) Miss Evie had her fourth birthday. Turning four was a VERY. BIG. DEAL. It was the first year that she really grasped the concept of what a birthday is and she was crazy jealous that her cousin turned four a few months before her.

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She insisted that her birthday party be held at a place that had bounce houses and inflatables. Most of her cousins have had these parties and she was not going to settle for anything else.

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The place was a bit crowded (and HOT!) but Evie had an absolute blast bouncing and sliding with her friends. Her theme this year was Tangled (I couldn’t tell you how many times she has watched this movie!) and, as usual, her Aunt Tanya made her an awesome cake!

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She received some awesome gifts from her friends and bounced and played until she was completely worn out.

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Caleb made things really easy on me by sleeping through the entire party on his cousin’s lap.

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I’m both excited and sad to see her turn four. This year has started out pretty rough so far behavior-wise, but there have been a lot of changes in our house with a new baby around and it was expected. She is growing up so fast and tries so hard to act older than she is, pushing all the boundaries. I want to enjoy this year with her because I know that year five brings so many more changes and my little girl will soon be a big girl.

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From our Family to Yours

Stopping in from the craziness to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! We had a wonderful morning watching the kids open and enjoy their gifts and are finally finding some time to relax. We have been very blessed this year and can’t wait to see what is around the corner in 2012!

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