Snapshots of the Week

A few photos from Trevor's birthday celebration, for a certain dear sister who was over on the other side of the world, and sorta missed the action:

Dad was an eager on-looker for this momentous event...

...as was Josiah...

...and Seth.
(These family gigs require intense concentration...so please, don't break the train of thought)

Since we wanted Trevor to know how cool and awesome we really think he is, while helping him to look suave and classy at the same time, we found him an exciting card with a nifty sticker inside that expressed our feelings precisely...

And then, since one pair of sunglasses is never enough, we gave him another pair of those, too.

The sticker, combined with the sunglasses with the sweet new nose-shield, gave just the effect we were hoping for: smart, exciting, and definitely unique.

This pink doo-hicky-thing is apparently a brilliant newfangled frisbee that flies like nobody's business--playing catch with the neighbor's hyper puppy will take on a whole new dimension...

...of course, there are multiple uses for this new frisbee.

...and my lovely sister-in-law, Raquel, showing that there are at least two different ways to bring a smile to someone's face.

Raquel showing off her baby bump.
Brock, we love you already! :-)

And 'Chelle, we miss you! Lots and lots.

Birthday Bliss

We celebrated Trevor's birthday tonight, since he'll be at Civil Air Patrol's encampment over the anniversary of the day when his happy introduction to Planet Earth actually occurred.

Somewhere between the time when cake and icecream were dished up and the time when they officially disappeared forever, the boys (Trevor, Seth, and Josiah) got into a lively discussion about birthday candles which left me to wonder what truly goes on inside the mind of an adolescent male:

Josiah: "Yeah, we were at WalMart, looking for birthday candles for you, Trevor...and you know how these things go--you really have to test them to see what kind of product you're getting."

Seth: "Yeah, and some of them were really cool! They burned extra bright, and super long."

Josiah: "Yes! We got the whole candle aisle going at once."

Sis: "Yes, and I bet that store clerk was extra mad for a super long time, too...she probably kicked you out of her store."

Seth: "Um, yes..."

Josiah: "We tried those little tooty horn things, too. You know the kind--the ones they use at parties, and so on? Wow! Some of those are loud. That poor clerk lady..."

Trevor: "I think they make a special new kind of birthday candle now...dy-na-mi-te? Or something like that."

Josiah: "Yeah, it's like...make a wish and blow out your candles. QUICK!!!"

Seth: "And then...Kaboom!"

Josiah: "KABOOM! KABOOM! KABOOM!"

Sis: "And then...'Where's Cadet Beaty?' or 'Boy, where'd you get that funny frosted hat?'"

Trevor: "But next year...next year, you'd definitely know what to do. 'Um, the candles are burning down. AAAAAAAHHHHH! Everybody take cover! Run for your life!'"

Josiah: "Yeah...'Hit the deck! I've got the fire extinguisher!'"

There was an impressive pantomime which took place at that point which left us laughing helplessly in our chairs...

Goodness, I love having teenage brothers. Life would be so. much. less. interesting. without them. ;-)

Happy Birthday, Trevor! Love you!

Photo Shoots with Trevor

My younger brother Trevor and I did a really fun shoot last week for an online contest called "Occupations." He decided that it would be fun to go for a student look...and we came up with some rather zany results:

Something as simple as hairstyle can really make you feel like a complete dork...

I think there was some sort of monologue going on about studying Spanish at this point...

I'm thinking of wearing pigtails to any future job interviews...

...just because they're so fun, and lend a certain air of professionalism.

We did another shoot focused around the element of "Purple":

And maybe not so purple:

A lovely time, all in all. Photo shoots are always full of great laughs, if nothing else. Go Trevor! You're well on your way to going pro with this, my little man, and I'm proud of you! Not only are you becoming an awesome photographer, but you're really growing up spiritually and emotionally as well, and I'm excited to see the incredible man that you're becoming! Woohoo!