Who likes pretty pictures? Raise your hand!

I LOVE pretty pictures. Clean, fresh, lively and simple that capture the subject and set the mood. Well, Every Now n then I do take some pretty pictures but I forget how to use my camera because I am not always around it. Sometimes its faster just to use my camera phone. Some things in life just get abandoned because we don't know how to fully use or control it. Like my sewing machine that I got from mothers day 2 years ago and have never used it.Yes, I hate to admit this but it is true because I have so many ideas and projects I want to do yet, it scares and it is a little intimidating and the thought of My Toddler, Max, "helping" me sew is a headache in its self. 

So yesterday...

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BEHIND THE SCENES

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I took a photo class yesterday from the amazing Katie Dudley (Photography).

At first we had a problem with my camera of the metering focus thingy

being locked in the top left area. So this one area was always the item in focus.

Anything closer to me was blurry. not cool. not pretty. not fun. very frustrating and

I was ready to cry. Thankfully Katie figured it out and on my way to a great day of learning tricks. I need to keep repeating to myself  ISO, Aperture, Shutter Speed and PRACTICE. PRACTICE PRACTICE.

NO more of this take some pics do good, 3 months pass, TRY taking pretty pics again,

getting frustrated cuz i forgot all that i learned previously and now all i get are blurry images.

Well I am happy to report I don't think I will need a photographer to photograph my babies.

Look what I was able to do. It is so fun and rewarding to see and get amazing results & understand what I need to do to get these results. Its all there for the most part we just need to know how to utilize the tools

(hmmm that liner goes towards a lot of things in life ).

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Here we have busy boy get into everything, Max (2 1/2 years old).

He was too fast and I didn't get the dumping of scrabble

and tossing the bag but I did get this that lasted for a few seconds.

He loves his ABCs and knows and recognizes all his letters.

Then on his way to playing peekaboo with West (the pretty dog).

Some of these next pics of my darling Miles David and West together

are truly my favorite. I love that my boys are not afraid of big

strong, active, curious , powerful dogs. 

Could he be any cuter?? Even with drool and sweet potatoes on

his face those eyes and smile just captivate my everything.

Oh how I love my "sweet potatoes". "Oh my Max"

and "Oh my Miles"

(all these pics are the raw original images. no photoshop, no cropping, no altering)

as natural as it comes baby! "Whipppeee" for me. I feel proud. In a nice way.

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It's amazing what one can do when you really put your best foot forward.

think of what you are doing.

trusting yourself to get amazing results

(this is an ongoing battle at times in many areas of my life)

take the time to learn

allow someone else to teach you

(we don't know everything and we can learn many great lessons,

tips n tricks we didn't even think about when we get out of our comfort

zone..again we aren't just talking photography here.)

Just bite the bullet and do it!

Quit talking about it and just DO.

A saying me and my roomies "the 3 M's" Miss (me), Mem and Moe)

would use was: "Buck up (name), Buck up!"

If we want to be good or amazing at something WE got to do it.

I loved in conference the talk about flipping the switch, let the light in.

I believe it was Ucthdorfs talk. I love the whole concept of light when you really think

about it all & the symbolism that it has for the SUN and also the SON of our Heavenly father.

So, there's a lot in life that no one is going to do for us it is all up to us to do.

We have to act upon and flip the switch, want the light in our life

This is my lil reminder to myself to get my butt into gear! "COCO ATTACK"

-Well, I hope you have a fabulous day!

— Moi

Good Morning, Good Morning to you and you and you and you...

Ya know how there are certain songs that just add to a better mood?

it only feels better if you are dancing or clicking your heels..yeah think Gene Kelly

and me singing, or trying to sing. but it feels good. I love mornings like this!

Especially when I can do a nifty move!

Which brings me to my post for today.

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LIVING WITH LUPUS

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There are those trials that we bring on ourself by our agency and

pay the consequences or the others that are placed before us that all we can do

is take each moment, or each day at a time, hope for the best give all we can

physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually and not give up.

I was in an accident in May of 2000. No, it was not my fault.

With it I had some body aches, stiff neck, pain and thought over time,

like a few months tops I would be back to my "normal" hand standing crazy self.

I tried doing a handstand and collapsed, and knew something was really

wrong with me with such a sudden loss of strength. 

A few months passed with more unusual pain allover, feeling beyond weak,

deep muscle aches, swelling, chest/lung pain, I was sensitive to the sun more than ever, terrible circulation, my fingers would get white and then blue, gray. I couldn't do much of anything. Everyday basics became very difficult like opening door knobs ( i have a funny story about this), even hugging others or people touching me hurt so bad that all i could do was cry and express begging them to not touch me. So sad and not fun at all to tell them this because you saw in their eyes how much they wanted to relieve me of this pain. 

I had 7 months of no answers, back n forth ER visits, pain gallore. Finally a ER doctor that could direct me and had a answer. This was a huge relief to have a name to this, feel a lil better that I wasn't some weird unusual "wolf" thing, it was just lupus. What ever lupus is...

Lupus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune, inflammatory disease.

Simply, we all have an immune system. When we get sick we have antibodies

that fight the viruses. Well in lupus these antibodies not only attack the invaders

but also our healthy important organs they can't tell the difference. :(

When I was diagnosed I was working full time, going to school full time and had just a lil more than a year left, I was young, single and wanting to date. The Spring Student Art Show was around the corner and I submitted a few pieces. Surprised & shocked

I won "Best of Show"  with this charcoal piece of mine of some darling old men.

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5 years of a complete hell that I do not wish upon anyone. I was 22 that walked

like I was 92 . This disease robbed a great deal of my life, time, goals, vision, health. Yet I learned many great lessons, my faith was strengthened, my sense of humor changed, focus and priorities changed as did my relationships with my family and many others and with my Savior. Thankfully I could continue to do alot for myself especially when it came to dressing and going to the bathroom—Oh yes the bathroom! OK this is funny! With my symptoms I lost a lot of strength in my fingers & hands and still today hard to open jars and turn door knobs. I finish in the bathroom, wash my hands and dry them, and I try to open the door. Yeah I couldn't open it. I was weak, tired, I yelled for my brothers to help who were downstairs. I laughed, I waited, I was bored...finally Justin came to my rescue asked if I was ok... I laughed and said I have been yelling for you guys because I can't open the door (as I am laughing). It hurt but it was truly funny. I made up a song called

" I hope I go into remission" in the tune of a LDS song

" I Hope they call me on a mission" I will have to share those lyrics sometime.

As of today, I have been off all drugs (13 pills) for almost 4 years now. I changed my eating habits, diet, exercise, and put my health into my own hands and had faith that it wouldn't last forever and there was more to my life to still achieve and have.

Being able to laugh at myself thru hard times has been my medicine

when life brings not the greatest times and to not give up, take each days as it comes.

Click those heels together (if you can) and enjoy all the things you do have or can do.

Hello all. I hope you are having a fabulous tuesday.

So I have been redesigning my website and blog, and 

I don't know about you, but I go back n forth of a few designs

I have created. Somedays it is SO hard to settle on a design

when it comes to represents MOI. Anyone else out there like this?

I hope so..raise your hand to make me feel better. haha

So this design will have to do until I do finally pick and quit changing my designs.

OK. Well today I thought let's improve one thing right now.

Where I can DO & BE better.

Better in what?? you may ask

POSTING!

I will do my best. "baby steps" right?

talking about "baby"

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check out my new profile pic. It is sort of old. 

My cute, 2nd "sweet potato" is just a few weeks old.

He is now 8 months old.

CRAZY! How fast time flies.

SO, I am a firm believer everyone has a story to tell.

We all are here to learn some great many things and to SHARE

many great and wonderful things that only we can do. So with that said
I want to share more of moi, who I am, my craziness and completer randomness,etc.
But I need some "follow suit" of organization with my random chaos thoughts so

I will be having new themes or things I post about every now and then.
I hope you like this new change and idea. I hope you will add to it
and share with me what you have learned, or feel free to email me or post
pictures of the cute printables you have from my Etsy shop.
I would love to see!

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DESIGN

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GOURMET CHEF? I WISH

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LIVING WITH LUPUS

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MY RELIGION

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MY RANDOMNESS

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FAMILY. MARRIAGE. RELATIONSHIPS

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BEHIND THE SCENES

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thats it for now..I'm sure I will add down the road to it.

SO heres to a new goal. It's never to late to start improving right?

:P Tomorrow will be a post with following suit of one of my themes.

Have a great night!

-Moi