then and now

what a difference three years makes.  happy anniversary to us!

a ben update

pvt. benjamin klima is currently serving in the us army and is training at ft. benning, ga.  apparently, ft. benning has an official photographer; who knew?  while trolling through their photos, i found a few of our very own benny.  also, ben received information regarding his duty station.  after he's done at ft. benning in may, he'll be headed to ft. wainwright, alaska.  he doesn't sound super thrilled with it (i'm reading a tone in the letter he sent), but he'll get to have some amazing experiences in his off days.  and he's stationed in a safe place, so i'm counting that as a good thing.

can't anybody smile for the camera?

he's a lefty, but i guess they make him shoot right-handed?

he looks kind of miserable in this one.

obsessed

i have become slightly obsessed with you are my wild, a weekly photo project from 14 photographers across the country, documenting how they see their children.  i love week 10 especially; if i could recreate most of those shots with lily, i would.  i think the girl with the red boots and the girl in the garden hose are my favorites.  along with the girl walking her dog.  love love love.

bff twinners!

lily and her bff, baby k, were able to get together to celebrate pi day.  and while they were together, i noticed they continue to develop a remarkable resemblance to one another.

lily and baby k

why do you keep taking pictures of us?

happy st. patrick's day!

due to copious amounts of irish heritage on both our sides, kevin, lily, and i celebrated st. patrick's day over the weekend.  we went to the st. patrick's day parade, ate corned beef and cabbage, and then got pedicures with my various siblings-in-law.  i know that pedis aren't usually a st. patrick's day thing, but, well, we needed them.  and props to my bil, dan, who decided to man up and get some color on his toes.  kevin kept his pedicured feet polish free, sadly.  it was a full day and good times.

bil, dan, getting ready for the parade 

a little leprechaun hung out with us for the day

hey! a drink!

i'm part irish...i need to celebrate a little

it shouldn't be this hard to get a little nip...

got it!  what? who left the cap on!?

celebrating with kilts and polka dots

maggie got into the spirit with her festive ensemble

it's always a parade with some bagpipers!

oddly, the imperial army from star wars is apparently irish, too

pretty toes and relaxed bodies

lily really enjoyed her raspberries

shoe lover

proving that she is my daughter, lily has shown a marked preference for shoes.  my flip-flops, specifically, but if those are not available, she will find what she can in the shoe department.  her next favorite are my glitter flats.  lily will crawl her way over to me and pull the flip-flop off my foot, then proceed to use it as a chew toy.  i'm kind of a fan of the "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" stance, and to be honest, if it gives me a few minutes peace, i'll let her chew on darn near anything.  

letters

i have become a very frequent letter-writer lately, thanks to my brother, ben.  he is in the army and the only outside contact he has (except for the occasional three-minute phone call to my parents as a reward for something) is the letters he receives from friends and family.  and so, i have become extremely prolific in my letter writing; sometimes i get one in return.  

i received a letter today that said he was glad he could get to know his sister (me) better with every letter.  i loved reading that.  ben was still in high school when i left the hometown for grad school.  when i moved to long beach, two brothers were there, and i had the opportunity to get to know them again, as adults.  but ben and i have never really had that.  he's always been the baby brother i need to look out for most.  but here he is, in the army, stationed in georgia, and the only way i can communicate with him is to put my thoughts onto paper.  and so i do.  i send him things that i am feeling and thinking about.  i send him photos and updates about lily.  i keep him posted on current events.  and i am able to bear my testimony to him, again and again, in different ways and different topics.  

the letters i receive from ben are stark and honest.  he tells me how isolated and alone he feels, that he is going back to church now (at least for his boot camp duration) and is reading the book of mormon (they're only allowed to read religious texts at boot camp).  

i am glad ben feels that he can be open with me, and that, as he said, we are getting to know each other through our letters.  there is something about the written word that compels us to write with our heart and soul, and less with our mind.  it is an opportunity to have a conversation where thoughts are not interrupted by the other person or our surroundings.  we put our end of the conversation on paper and send it to the recipient.  and wait for them to respond.  i am grateful for the chance to get to know my brother as an adult and i look forward to the time we can be together in person.  but i will always be grateful for the letters that allowed us to be so open and honest with one another.  

catch!

lily is kind of a daredevil; she likes to be tossed around.  so, kevin and his brother, dan, played catch with her the other day.  she laughed the whole time.  i can't wait till she's older and can be launched greater distances.  

best $2 ever spent

happy easter!

the baby-proofing begins...

Lily learned to do this...

...and she feels quite proud of her new skills.

six months

when my brothers and i were babies, we had professional photo shoots at six, nine, and twelve months old, just to show how much difference three months makes.  so, i decided to keep the tradition going with lily, except my professional photographer is kevin.  we went to a local park on a beautiful california winter day and had some fun.  lily was in an exceptionally good mood and very cooperative.  it was kind of a rarity when it comes to her photo shoots.

six months old and loving life

she saw maggie and got super excited.

loving the swings

her introspective look

she loves standing like a big girl

don't let the ladylike demeanor fool you.

maggie and lily are learning to get along

someday they'll be friends...