Orange County's Family Photographer, Tara Whitney

this isnt happening

lalalalalallalalaaaa
my fingers are in my ears.
lalalalalalalala
like david spade in emperor's new groove.
lalalalalalalalala
this just isnt happening.

my baby is a kid.

modern slip 'n slide

this weekend, we left the comforts of our orange county 85 degree temperature to brave the 100 degree temperature in riverside for a family get together.

trust me, it was worth it. (we even lucked out and didnt have any traffic)

the whole gaggle of grandkids...

sticky cousins

so love this crazy shot of tarzan nate

this pic just cracks me up!

someones getting a pie in the face at the next party...

kickin it old school as the heat faded away and a gorgeous breeze picked up. made us all want to be outside. brought back so many memories of watching jeff and his dad play ball out here in high school.

it really was the perfect bbq day. wet squealing fighting yelling giggling kids, rummy under a ceiling fan for the grown ups, bleu cheeseburgers, famous potato salad, and marie calendars peach pie.

still inseperable

these two, anna and ivy.
there is a very VERY fine line between love and hate between them, which seems to drive us as moms more crazy then them. five minutes in a bathroom screaming alone about how unfair the world is seems to be all they need to move on to the next big adventure.

coming to a theater near me

i think it was my brother shane who got me addicted to the apple.com movie trailers. i go look every few weeks for what is coming out. not like ill get a chance to go see them but a girl can dream. and wait for her netflix queue.

here are some that strike my fancy.

the darjeeling limited

rocket science

feast of love
"do you think love is a trick or do you think its the only meaning there is to this crazy dream?"

into the wild
i read the book. amazing true story. sad and moving.

margot
excited to see jack black in this.

the ten
"you smell so good......is that coffee breath?"

dans paris

they said:

waiting at a traffic light this morning anna opened her window and stuck her head out.
"mom! it smells like centipedes out there!"

sitting at the kitchen table eating lunch. nathan looks at me and serious as can be asks me out of the blue, "mom, can i be the ruler of the universe?" pause. "um no," i said. "WHYYY?," he whined. "duh. Because IM the ruler of the universe!"

went in to mckennas room to wake her up last week. she was under the covers. i pulled them down slowly to wake her up with a kiss and she opened her eyes wide, looked me in the eyes and said, "i dont want to be your monkeywrench."

we have been addicted to guitar hero lately, drew kicks ass on medium. we were playing a multi-player pro face-off and he beat the pants off of me. he is such a good sport too. never one to rub it in my face he screamed, "YOU JUST GOT SERVED! WITH A PLATE OF FRIES!"

myspace

hey have you guys noticed i put a myspace link to the right?

yes. i got a myspace and added texting to my cell specifically to be in closer touch wtih my younger sisters. apparently EMAIL IS TOO HARD FOR THEM. and the phone? puh-lease.

its texting and myspace or nothing.

so here i go plodding along towards the future of our children. myspace and texting. what next i ask?

telepathy? what could be easier and more convenient than texting? telepathy is all im coming up with.

and girls, if you dont know what telepathy means dont you dare text me to ask.

ITS CALLED A DICTIONARY. look it up, as our mother used to say.

dont google it....dont you dare google it.

barns. they just seem to find me.

driving to my next house in minnesota i passed a barn on the side of the highway. i dont remember what highway it was or the exit now, but when i saw it i did that happy wave my hands in front of my face deep breathing thing i do when i get really excited.

so after we took some shots at home

we went over to the barn.

i think momma chose this shirt just for me.

we then walked around downtown anoka

today i am posting from my kitchen table. the loft is in full swing. it is framed, drywalled, and taped. today they are sanding (the messiest day of the whole process) the drywall to get ready to texture it, and then paint. lucky for me my imac transports easily.

the doors are off my kitchen cabinets and the kitchen is a mess because we are having the cabinets repainted. no more 1990's oak cabinets. we are doing them black, with some of the cabinet faces painted with black chalkboard paint so we can write notes to each other.

until tomorrow........
peace out.

he is on my list

pete murray | opportunity

im in love with him and the use of words in the video.

im glad i cracked you guys up-its too good not to share sometimes you know? i love that i live with someone who makes me laugh everyday. we laugh a lot around here. i definitely do get in on the rough housing but usually i leave it up to dad and put my headphones back on. :)

cold heart

as it happens every morning, when jeff and i get showered and dressed all of the kids seem to gravitate to our room and start messing around on our bed.

jeff puts music on the computer-loud and not my choice of song usually. so thats what starts the grating on my nerves. then once he gets out of the shower he gets dressed and starts playing with the kids. rough housing, tickling, throwing them around on the bed.

so i have obnoxious crap music blaring in my room and screaming giggling kids.

just so you are all aware, i get overstimulated really easily. so why does she have four kids you ask? well, i ask myself that question sometimes as well. but usually the only times i ask that question are when im overstimulated-so its just a vicious circle really.

for example-WHEN WE GET READY. all of us getting dressed, they are asking me questions, what do i wear, can you brush my hair, where are my glasses, can i wear this shirt with those pants, no? why not mom it matches! do this button, tie those shoes (oh how i hate tying shoes) not to mention the pain and agony i go through most days just trying to figure out what to put on this ...... body of mine.

add to the mix-jeff. and his loud obnoxious music (wait did i already say that) and jeff. throwing around the kids in his own small version of WWF.

today i turned around and snapped "STOP IT!"

and they all kept on with their little games.

so i said again, "CUT IT OUT YOU GUYS!"

this got a bit of a reaction from anna, who ran over to my side.

so i walked over to jeff and punched him in the shoulder to get his attention, "DUDE-IF YOU WANT TO PLAY LIKE THAT THEY HAVE TWO BEDROOMS WITH PLENTY OF ROOM THAT ARE VOID OF A MOMMY GOING INSANE!"

to which he replies, "okay okay."

he stops. walks up to me and hugs me.

"its too bad you just have a cold, cold heart that cant stand the sound of childrens laughter."

the nerves melt away. i smile and we laugh.

and that is why i love him.

and they carry on.

one more

fionn regan | be good or be gone

this vid makes me SO happy. (thanks amy!)