picture me {im}perfectly

picture me {im}perfectly.what i don’t do

you must, must, must read this blog post.
a sweet friend emailed it to me and in honor of its greatness,
i am going to list some of the things that i don’t do.


  • i don’t always stop K from putting stickers all of L.
  • i don’t always sweep the floor after dinner. (even though my husband prefers there to be no crumbs under his feet and even though there is a myraid of items that could be swept up.)
  • i don’t always make my bed
  • i don’t always have my children make their beds
  • i don’t always pray before i speak
  • i don’t clean my desk after each use.
  • i don’t fold the laundry when it’s finished in the dryer.
  • i don’t always stick to my weekly cleaning schedule.
  • i don’t always know what i am going to serve for dinner that night.
  • i don’t always go grocery shopping as early as i should.
  • i don’t clean out my car as often as i should.
  • i don’t finish one task before starting the next.
  • i sometimes take life too seriously.

linked up last week
and its message was and is 
so poignant in my life.

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
until next wednesday
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 


For I am convinced that neither death nor life, 
neither angels nor demons, 
neither the present nor the future, 
nor any powers, 
neither height nor depth, 
nor anything else in all creation, 
will be able to separate us from the love of God 
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:38-39


check in on friday for a giveaway you will not want to miss!

1566. K’s movie night with B
1567. neighborhood festivals
1568. mommy and D night
1569. reading, reading, reading with my littles
1570. sneak preview movies

picture me {im}perfectly.way too many

i have this problem.
and it really is a problem. 
not one of those fake problems.

i take too many photos.
and sometimes, it’s paralyzing. 

i just did a 
super, super 
fun shoot with 
and her family
(and no, i will not even reveal one sneak peek shot).
the lighting was absolutely beautiful
and her set-up and 
location ideas were just fabulous.

but i took too many photos.
way, way too many.
i’m not even going to reveal to you how many i took.
but trust me.
it was a ridiculous amount. 
so now i have to go through them all 
and get rid of the ones that i shouldn’t have taken 
in the first place. 


this little guy wanted to be my test shot person
each and every time.
and yes, i know that he has an orange forehead.
it’s from pastels, 
obviously. 

i think that i fear missing out on anything.
my mom says that i was like that even as a baby.
never wanting to miss a beat.
and i think it’s carrying over into my photography.
and it needs to stop.

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and maybe you, too 
can add a few things to your to-don’t list.

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 

There is a time for everything, 
and a season for every activity
under the heavens
Ecclesiastes 3:1

1586. encouraging yet quick phone calls
1587. the most incredible lighting. ever.
1588. a fun new photo-taking location
1589. not missing what we don’t have
1590. birthday celebrations

picture me {im}perfectly.life is hard

oh, life.
right now, life is hard.


(the head-spinning, weekly, color-coded calendar)

it’s wild and 
busy and 
tiring. 
actually, it’s exhausting. 


(the never ever ending to-do list)

but as much as i long for 
what life was like or
will be like, 
just not in the now,
(as my pastor just reminded me in a recent sermon)
i will be in my life at that time. 
i will be there. 
my sinful,
never satisfied nature. 
it will be there, too.
and when i am finally there, 
in the future, 
i will probably be longing for how life is right now.

that she linked up last week
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and her incredible words of wisdom
about social media.

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 

1571. homemade cookies
1572. with milk
1573. cancelling our “work night”
1574. watching D love to learn to play the keyboard
1575. finding the kids at the kitchen table, dressed for the day

picture me {im}perfectly.not ever early

i have this problem.
it’s a pretty major one.
it effects my children.
it effects others. 

my husband: always early.
me: always late.

everywhere i go.
i am late.
i don’t know how i do it.
i try.
i really do try to leave my house when i should.
but it never happens.
there’s always one thing i forgot to pack up
or bring 
or do.
and then, just like that, we are late.

“tk421 why aren’t you at your post?”

i have no idea why (or if) this is funny.
B saw this photo and told me to write that.
and i also have no idea 
why K is wearing D’s underwear. 
moving along…


i have plenty of friends who arrive early everywhere they go.
and i wonder what i am doing wrong.
i did grow up in a house where 
when my brother was six, 
he asked what the word 
“early” 
meant.
honest.
he had never heard that word.

head on over to natalie’s blog
[yes.jpg]
to be reminded of what 
completely trusting God looks like. 

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 


Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. 
Let nothing move you. 
Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, 
because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

1 Corinthians 15:58


1551. the reminder to love. today.
1552. sweet baby M, born yesterday
1553. tj’s mini ice cream cones
1554. a night filled with laundry and my to-do list
1555. skinny ties


picture me {im}perfectly.things aren’t always as they seem.

things aren’t always as they seem.
you know that my dear friend, KS
and her kids came for a very short visit.
they were here for less than 48 hours.

so of course, we soaked up every last second we could with them.
on our one big day with all the kids,
we headed to the beach because just in case you didn’t know,
they don’t have them in wichita.
but, they do have
lakes and
lots of golf courses and
huge houses and
yards there.
just not the pacific.
so we headed there.
and since we were there, 
we snuck in a little shoot
because you know i can’t resist doing that.

but while i was trying to take a couple quick shots of their sweet family
(minus dad who was already back home, working)
my little ones were in the background.
L was on my back in the ergo
(not the most ideal place while taking photos, but it works).
K was trying to jump in nearly every frame
to play with her friend, A
and D was threatening to run away.
he was upset that we were at the beach 
but not going to the water.
so, it was not the most ideal shooting situation.
but, we made it work.
it just wasn’t pretty.

i think the photos turned out well
but that’s in large part to the fact that i have
gorgeous friends
on the inside and out
who have gorgeous babies.

and, that mini-chocolate chips were given
at every 
smile or 
grin or 
glance 
at the camera as a reward.
please note, i do not bribe my children
(or other children)
except when i am taking photos.


this little man busied himself by digging a hole.


and seriously, is she not statuesque?


these little girls had the best time.


and i love the slide in the background 
of this shot as her favorite color is yellow
(just like my mother-in-law).


he gave me plenty of happy grins


and the three of them
absolutely melted my heart.


i adore her.


and so does he.


he is so comfortable in his momma’s lap.


and this one might be my favorite from the whole shoot.


or this one.


or this one.


and here is my guy putting on a happy face.


this actually might be one of my most favorite photos.
poor little P was definitely done for the day,
so his beautifully long eyelashes
were moist from his tears.
i couldn’t resist taking this photo.


and this little face


completely influenced this little face.


and oh, that hair!


sweet little friends.

and my lovely friend Jackie linked up last week 
photobucket"
and i don’t know about you 
but i could totally relate with her post.


picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
until next wednesday
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 

And my God will meet all your needs 
according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19

1531. my sweet K’s birthday
1532. remembering her birth
1533. the non-puffy clouds
1534. taking a different route home
1535. army guy figurines

picture me {im}perfectly.so clean

i know that i have been teasing you 
with a lot of things to come
and i’m sorry that i haven’t written 
about all of those things yet.

life is wild.
a good wild.
but wild.
and i am mastering leaving 
a lot of loose ends around.


and here is another post about those amazing desks,
yet without any details on them
(coming soon or later.
how about coming soon-ish.)


we are loving these desks.
really, 
truly 
loving them.


i wanted to take a photo 
of these desks when they were cleaned up
and when the floor around them was cleaned up.


keep in mind, 
my house 
always 
never
looks like this.
well, that’s not entirely true.
the layer of dust you see in the above picture 
is a very common site in our house.
but everything else, 
(which what i really mean to say is
everything else that’s not on the floor)
not so much.


my family room is 
never 
ever 
this clean. 

well, actually that’s not true. 
from the hours of 8pm to 6:30am it can be this clean. 
not always, but it has the potential.

my house gets 
cleaned, 
organized and 
put together. 
but it only stays that way for mere moments. 
unless we’re not at home. 
or the children are sleeping.

but even then, 
dishes are usually in the sink.

thanks to my sweet friend, LH 
who didn’t link up last week via the blog 
but posted this on facebook:
I love showering my kids with fun on their birthdays! 
This is my chance to celebrate their special contribution
to our family. Thanks to EH I embraced the crazy chaos
without cleaning my floors (gasp!), 
among PLENTY of other unfinished “to do’s.”
The cupcakes may have only been frosted 
one minute before they were eaten; 
isn’t that better than one minute after?! 
Hill has also taught me, by example, 
to embrace the moments, 
memories AND the imperfections. 
My life is full today.

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 

Praise the LORD.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with tambourine and dancing,
praise him with the strings and flute,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
Praise the LORD.
Psalm 150

1511. my amazing dad who always has help 
for my computer difficulties
1512. the blue skies after the rain
1513. good tears because of a therapist
1514. being driven around
1515. L moving forward (literally)

picture me {im}perfectly.bossy

if you know me, 
you know that i tend to be bossy.
quite bossy.


i’m the oldest of four children, 
so i think it comes naturally to me.
in every circumstance but one.


when i take photos of people 
other than my children
i tend to be the exact opposite of bossy.
i become laissez fair.
i know. 
do you even believe it?
hardly, i bet.


but having that mellow attitude 
isn’t really good for me 
when i am taking photos.


i know that being bossy isn’t the best thing.
but it really does come in handy,
sometimes.
and for me, it’s when i am taking photos
of people other than my children.


for instance, 
my sister and her husband came for a visit 
and brought along my little nephew, baby E. 
so of course, we had to schedule a beach shoot for them.


and my bossyness just came out naturally. 
typically, when i take photos of those besides my children
i feel very anxious and intimidated
but not with my sister!
just ask her.


i was as bossy as bossy can be.


but it worked because i think she’s used to it.
and you know what? 
she responded really well to it. 
and i think her husband 
just rolled his eyes and went along with it. 


but in real life, 
i do tend to be too bossy.


so be sure to picture me {im}perfectly.


how cute is this shot?
so cute.


i had such an awesome time 
shooting them.


and i can’t wait until they come and visit
so we can do it again.


this was the very first time i got to meet 
sweet little E.


and i soaked up every little moment i could 
with that darling baby boy. 


head over to erin’s blog
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where she reveals her {im}perfect mothering 
when it comes to her kids’ nap schedules.

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
until next wednesday
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 

1491. seven minutes to catch up
1492. really, really loud music in the car
1493. wonderful talks about Jesus
1494. seeing and hearing what He is doing in others’ lives
1495. hot dogs for dinner

picture me {im}perfectly.grime

i have a hard time 
accepting the grime 
in my life.


you know, the yucky stuff that i have to do.
the stuff that needs to be done
and the stuff that God has given me to deal with.

often i desire to pray it all away.
so often.

but i know that 
i need to embrace where i am.
i need to recognize that the Lord gives gifts.
and He doesn’t give gifts. 
and that what i don’t have is also a gift.
and it is intentional. 

i need to embrace this time and season of life. 
embrace it in its fullest.

head on over to 

again to hear some beautiful words 
straight from her heart.

picture me {im}perfectly
is a weekly project to reveal that we don’t have it all together.

i will post a 
picture me {im}perfectly
blog post every wednesday 
where you will be able to link up to your blog
revealing that:

you are not picture perfect,
your kids are not picture perfect,
your house is not picture perfect,
your crafts are not always picture perfect,

let’s 
encourage, 
inspire and 
remind 
other women 
that none of us have it all together.  

add my button to your blog post
and link up to your direct posting
and feel encouraged. 

The Lord your God is giving you rest 
and has granted you this land.
Joshua 1:13b

1466. a husband who saves the day
1467. a night out
1468. just enough time
1469. looking to the back of the car 
and seeing my sweet L looking at me
1470. new systems

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