The girls and I went with a friend to a wrestling tournament and had a blast! I get a huge kick out of seeing little kids play sports, and with these tournaments, we are watching the best of the best, which just makes it even better to watch! It was also great to see some of these dads enter in the open division to see if they've "still got it!" You can tell that some of these kids have State Contender written all over them!
As I was headed into work the other morning I was mesmerized with the way the gorgeous colors of the sunrise mixed with the fog that floated above the ground. Then remembered that I actually had my camera with me so I made a few stops to take some pictures!
These are the actual colors of the sunrise, with the very little editing that I did, I did NOT adjust any of the colors!
Back in late January, early February, my oldest declared that she LOVED winter because she gets to play in the snow and go sledding! It didn't take her very long to change her tune and ask when it was going to be spring out! She some how came up with the number 20 and started telling every one (every day) that it was only 20 more days till Spring!
I agree with her, I can't wait for spring either! Dani is the opposite of Ellee and does NOT like to be out in the cold weather and could care less about sledding (which I don't blame her one bit!). Both girls do, however, LOVE to ride their bikes! This summer Ellee will probably learn to ride without training wheels and Dani will learn how to pedal her tricycle - hopefully!
The good thing about Spring is that the weather is warm enough that we can take the bikes out... the bad thing is all the rain!
Another birthday has come and gone! I'm not one to put much emphasis on my age and I'm not scared to turn 30... but this birthday has given me a little bit of something to smile about!
So much has happened to me in the past 5 years and the last year has been quite a ride... good and bad. I have seen and been through stuff that I hope very few people ever have to go through, but I know that I am a better person now because of it.
Over all, I am discovering just how strong I can be! With all the good there is bad, and with all the bad, there is good. Age is just a number and your actions and attitude are more important! One positive about my birthday - I can still say that "I'm in my 20s" for one more year!
I have dropped 20 pounds in the past year and I can honestly say that it has made a huge difference in my life for the best! I am better able to handle stress and I have seen it make a positive impact on the girls!
I am determined now, more than ever, to use my hobbies and skills to try to give some hope to Type 1 kids. I don't know if there will be any new advances or break throughs in my time, but I hope that I am at least a role model for my girls. I hope that one day, Ellee and I can ride together in one of the rides as proof that Diabetes doesn't have to hold any one back from anything.
And with that determination, I got myself a road bike for my birthday! The guys at the Trek Store in Columbus were great! And even better that they are a sponsor for the local Tour de Cure ride! This bike is encouragement to get out move forward! I now have no excuses not to do Ride to Cure or Tour de Cure rides! *sigh* Now just waiting for spring and good weather!!!
Every once in a while, you need to step back and reassess your life. Some things, despite your best effort, will never be the way you want them to be, no matter how hard you try! Everyone has a point where they finally learn that to be happy means cutting the ties that hold you back and move forward in a more positive light. Now that I've done that, it's time to focus on the positive stuff that I want to accomplish.
Back in high school, I had a once-in-a-lifetime chance to participate in a unique event - "Bikes on the Beach" on the Outer Banks of North Carolina! It was a "Wider Opportunity" through the Girl Scouts where about 60 high school aged girls from around the country got to ride bicycles from the Southern end at Ocracoke up to Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge. The ride was about 60 miles broke up over about 5 days with camping and sight seeing!
This trip has been in the back of my mind for the past 10 years, especially when I bought my Trek last summer to help rehab my broken leg. This summer I had a chance to do a bike tour, and even though it was less than 20 miles, it definitely set me in motion to get a road bike and do longer distances! I love that I'm now able to skate 20-26 miles, but I want to push myself with longer distances and a different activity to work different muscles. I also now have a new mission...
Since my oldest was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes about 9 months ago, I've looked into different fundraisers that JDRF has. Even from the first time of looking into the Ride for a Cure, I knew that I wanted to do one, but down the road. 100 miles in one day was A LOT and very intimidating, so I put that on my future planner at about 5 years out. But now I'm starting to reconsider! For the past month I've been anxiously checking ride.jdrf.org for the 2010 rides to be listed! If I'm unable to raise the required amount of money to do it this summer, I will be doing it next year!
I've got two people to ride for... Ellee and Gavin (they are related, and if I have this right, they are 2nd cousins twice removed)! For the most part, me doing a century ride in their honor is not about raising money to cure this disease, it's about motivating them to do what every they put their mind to and not letting T1D get in their way! Ellee loves riding her bike and wants to learn to inline skate in the worst way! I have no doubts in my mind that she will be out skating marathons with me in 5 years, or out doing distance rides or even mountain biking with me in a few years! And I am just fine with this, because it will help her body naturally regulate her blood sugars!
I took a little hiatus from Photography recently due to some family issues. Now that things have settled back into a routine, I decided to take a chance and photograph a different kind of event! A special thanks to Jon for letting me be above ring side to capture the fights! Even though these didn't turn out the way I would have liked, I learned quite a bit about capturing this type of action! A new lens will be in order should I be able to do this again!
ACC Christmas Clash - Dec. 19th
One 5x7 or 6x8 image at 72 ppi for each product/package. A "package" is defined as a group of items sold as a package so is photographed all together. All images are edited and sent on a CD. Shipping of items to be photographed is NOT included in price. Return shipping can be added to the price (unless bartering for products) or a prepaid shipping label can be included with products.
$50 for 1-5 products/packages
$75 for 6-12 products/packages
$100 for unlimited products/packages
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