Wow! Life hit the ground and ran

I'm going to post 3 posts today (assuming Gideon continues sleeping on me until I'm finished with all 3). The first is just August stuff I wanted to post (before during and after the other 2 posts). The 2nd is the total Solar Eclipse we experienced here (amazing!). The 3rd is first day of school. Let's go!


I had taken photos of the other 4 (I almost said 3! counting/adding beyond 5 kids is new to me!), so I had to get photos of the oldest 2 (post haircuts). I used a shutterfly gift card I've been saving a while to order 8x10s of these for the wall. I'll update them next year after my favorite photographer has her baby and is back in business.

Here's Carolyn.
(oops - I mean to edit that strand of hair that is longer than the rest before I ordered these. I knew I forgot an edit. That's the whole reason I got her hair trimmed - so it would all be even. I thought I'd done a bad job, but even the professional can't fix her stick-straight hair to be the same length. It looks it right after cutting, but after that it never looks all the same length again no matter how you brush it or wear it!?)

Carolyn took some pictures with Gideon.

Seth just wanted to be in and out of my little "photo studio" and get back to his book!

I took a photography class (just a little one) when Alee was a toddler. I'd like to take a photoshop editing class to learn more than what I've learned so far when Gideon is a little older to learn some editing techniques.

Gideon is smiling more often. The kids love trying to get him to smile. He's not smiling so much while they're at school. I think he misses the chaos and does not appreciate the extra time in the carseat.

He also is "talking" a little bit. (Not a lot of noises, but some.)

He didn't have much opinion about the water when we took him swimming last Saturday. He did want to eat as soon as we got into the pool. My always hungry baby.

(Yea for that hat that's next year's size and my nursing swim top. I was so discreet Alee thought he was just sleeping when she came up to see him.)

He was probably out of the water the same amount he was in the water. He napped on Rob. (And I got to dive - both back and front dive. Ah, it's nice to be able to bend backwards again!) We took some friends with us so the kids had someone close in age to play with in the pool. And no one got burned. It was a good day.

We are back in school mode (progressing towards full school mode, but not there yet), and life is about to get busy. The "normal" busy, but it feels busier, because we've been so relaxed the past 6 weeks. Next post!