MeMe never ceases to amaze me. Not only is she gorgeous, but her talent for ballet is unbelievable. She has such a wonderful build for dancing, so graceful. And she's flexible - something I am most definitely not. Ha. Oh, and she's the best model for my never ending photo shoots. She even offered to climb in a tree without me asking her...she's learned well. ;)
I'm starting to experiment with different angles and poses for my photos - what do you think? MeMe's ballet outfit had a rather poofy skirt, so I thought I'd go a little Marilyn Monroe-esque, with her skirt spread out around her. Unfortunately, that didn't work out so well since the skirt was a bit too short...

For you photographers, do you have any tips when it comes to posing models? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated - I can use all the advice I can get! :)

-carlotta

"Are pumpkins made out of the same material as these?" (referring to plastic pumpkins)
-MeMe

Me: "How would you like it if I always sat in your chair?" MeMe: "Well, you are!" (MeMe liked sitting in my chair during meals, so I had to resort to sitting in her chair ;))

"I'm giving everyone name tags in case we forget each others' names."
-MeMe

"We saw a callapitter at the park!"
-Lilly

"I'm gonna finish watching the movie. You can just finish making dinner by yourself."
-Lilly

"Can I have some mild salsa in my hot chocolate?"
-MeMe

I asked MeMe to put on some weather appropriate clothes, as she was wearing shorts and a tshirt and was cold. Lilly responded, "When I get cold, I just go to Mama."

"I love you, Caladda [Carlotta]."
-Lilly



I'm pretty sure they're the cutest kids in the world. Then again, I'm biased, as I'm their big sister. Oh well. I still think they're the cutest kids in the world.

Have your siblings/children said anything lately that made you crack up or your heart melt?

-carlotta

PS Two words. 500 followers. Just like I think I have the best siblings in the world, I'm pretty sure I have the best readers in the world. Group hug!

PPS For those of you who wondered how I make my blog header, head on over here. It's the same method, I just arrange my photos a little differently than when I wrote the tutorial.

 Yesterday I was craving photography. Since we've gotten back from Germany, life has been an absolute whirlwind. No relaxing and getting adjusted to the new time zone for us! I was so busy with everything going on, I put photography on a back burner.

But? I really missed it. Really, really missed it.

MeMe had twenty minutes before she had to leave for ballet, so I dragged both MeMe and Lilly outside for a little photo shoot yesterday afternoon. And with each click of the shutter, I felt better and better.








(I'm serious. Before taking the above photo, Lilly said, "Dude. Take my picture. Seriously." And then proceeded to pucker up her lips and formed her fingers into a peace sign. Something tells me she's going to be even more trouble when she's older. ;))

I know I'm biased, but, dang,  I have some amazingly gorgeous sisters.  I'm so jealous of Lilly's skin. And eyelashes. I adore the color of MeMe's eyes and her hair is beautiful.

Do y'all notice anything different around here? Yep, instead of pastors-girl.blogspot.com, it's now pastorsgirlsponderings.com! It's still in the process of transitioning (it can take up to three days before it's available all over the internet), but it's coming along nicely :) After it's finished transitioning, it'll automatically redirect anyone that arrives at pastors-girl.blogspot.com to my current URL. I've updated my blog button as well to the correct URL. If you could grab the button with the correct address, that'd be great. When you visit my blog from now on, just type "pastorsgirlsponderings.com" instead of my old one. When you're on the new URL, my followers gadget will work, but while it's still transitioning, the gadget won't work on my old URL. I've been planning this change for quite a while...exciting stuff, guys!

Does this make me a total geek? I mean, I'm getting excited over a URL change. Man. I really have no life.

Oh, and I cleaned up my sidebars a bit...I finally figured out how to separate the various gadgets in my sidebars with horizontal lines. I think it looks so much better now...what do you think?

-carlotta

PS Thank you all on your input yesterday on my lens decision! I was originally leaning toward the 55-200mm lens, but now I'm thinking the prime might be better right now. I'll let you know what I decide :)

Are you getting tired of saying "happy birthday" yet? Just hang for one more day, because it's MeMe's 7th birthday!

I can remember her birth like it was yesterday. Our whole family (at the time being my mom, dad, Jeremiah, and me) was actually there when she was born. When we heard, "It's a girl!" and heard MeMe's first cries, I ran out to the other room where my brother was watching Mary Poppins. "The baby's here!", I exclaimed. "It's a girl!" Jeremiah barely glanced at me, his eyes fixated on the TV screen. He gave a very uninterested, "Oh.", and turned back to his movie. I still crack up over that.

Though she was officially named Mariam Elizabeth, on the drive home from the birthing center we agreed on calling her MeMe as a nickname. It really stuck ;)

MeMe was a very quiet, content baby. She rarely fussed, but always wanted to be held. Being overjoyed to finally have a little sister, I gave no objection and held her as often as I could.

When she was almost two, we moved to a St. Louis seminary so my dad could become a pastor. She was amazingly good during all the packing and traveling.

MeMe instantly bonded with the little girl two months her junior whose family lived above our apartment on the seminary campus. For the two years the family lived there, they were inseparable. They were so adorable together! 

When it came time to move again - this time to Oklahoma, MeMe was old enough to actually understand all the hustle and bustle that was moving. It was so fun to see the exciting, thrilling thought of moving to a new state through her eyes. 

That was already three years ago. Where does the time go?! Now, MeMe, you're seven! I can't wait to see how the rest of your life unfolds.

Happy birthday, MeMe! I love you. :)

-carlotta

PS I know she looks a little somber in these photos, but I love how they draw attention to her eyes. And no, she's not really that pale ;)