So – Cameron is family – sort of – kind of – somehow! My grandma and his grandma are cousins – or something. Either way – another of those kids I’ve known since they were little – growing up way too fast!

And again – my parents house – a PERFECT backdrop!

Cameron – you have grown up to be an AWESOME guy! I am so proud of you!

Courtney is my “little” cousin – what on EARTH is going on with my babies growing up so fast!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE that shot on the left! There are three places I LOVE to shoot – my backyard – the bike trail in Mansfield – and at my parents!

GORGEOUS!

All too often – my favorite shots are the LAST shots of the night!

Courtney – you will succeed in whatever you do! The sky is the limit! I am so proud of you!

At the end of September – we spent the weekend with my sister and her hubby – duckface. Really – he is Xavier – but Samm calls him duckface – which means that Fitzy calls him duckface!

Samm found a pumpkin farm – which was NOT like the pumpkin farm here at home – but it worked!

Can you BELIEVE how awesome Samm looks!

Then we painted my belly – Fitzy kept asking to paint baby Enoch!

OH THAT FACE! I just can’t get over him!

He loves loves LOVES his Aunt Sammy! I wish we lived closer to her!

I took pictures of just the little ones last year – and this year – the whole family – with a NEW little one!

OH MY WORD!

I CANNOT EVEN STAND IT! I love love LOVE those shots!

Thank you SO much for asking me to photograph your family again! I love watching your family grow!

I met this family early in the summer – right after they brought their little *O* home! We set up extended family pictures for late September!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE those shots!

Thank you SO much for asking me to photograph your BEAUTIFUL family!

I took photos of the *W* family almost 3 years ago – THREE YEARS! I cannot believe how fast time flies!

LOVE LOVE LOVE those shots!

GORGEOUS!

SO SWEET!

Vicky – thank you SO much for asking m to capture your family again!  I cannot WAIT to meet your baby girl!

My cousin and his girlfriend had a SWEET baby girl in September! I am so honored that they asked me to photograph her!

She is one of us – FOR SURE!

OH MY WORD! Those cheeks!

Chris & Amanda – thank you SO much for asking me to photograph your little one! She is GORGEOUS!

Jessica booked her wedding with me at the ARNOT MALL BRIDAL EXPO this year! It was the last wedding of the season but it came so quickly!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this shot of the little flower girl. Fitzy is also at the – very shy at first and then ham it up stage!

BEAUTIFUL!

I love love LOVE that shot on top – one of my favorites from the day!

Brothers. Sisters.

Fathers. Daughters. Mothers. Sons.

GORGEOUS!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE those shots! LOVE!

AH! Those ones too!

I couldn’t decide – so you got all three versions! LOVE that shot!

In January – I took their engagement photos at the same spot – so we had to recreate the picture!

I needed to remember that they were right under that little crook in the tree – so it’s not perfect! But you get the idea!

I cannot deal with mother-son dances. I fast forward to the day when it will be my turn – and I lose it!

Thank you SO much for asking me to capture your day!

I was SO excited when Erin asked me to take her senior photos! When I first started my business – her sister was one of my seniors – and then her brother! It was awesome to complete the circle with Erin!

BEAUTIFUL!

LOVE THOSE SHOTS!

Erin – thank you again SO much! Have a GREAT senior year!

If you don’t know – Jared and I share a website where we blog – the marriage fight.

In order to better understand what I’m about to write here – you might want to hop on over there and read – at least – the last two entries. About grace.

There is so much I want to say. So much I want to just pour out – but it’s not time. It’s not all mine to share. So I won’t.

But I will tell you this. I’m struggling. In the past – I’ve written about the hard times. It’s how I heal. How I process.

That’s a tear on my arm – right above the dandelion. It’s mine. From this morning. There were a lot more. A lot.

I’m angry. I’m confused. I look at the pictures on our bedroom wall and wonder what happened to those people. In our wedding photo. At a picnic. At the beach.

Pregnant with Fitzgerald. That’s where you can see the change. All the pictures before – we were – different. You can see it. We aged – quickly. That sparkle in our eyes isn’t as bright. Looking back – we should have been in counseling the first time we miscarried. Tomorrow would be Enoch’s 4th birthday. FOURTH. I cannot believe that it’s been that long.

(I’m okay – little Enoch in my belly is okay – I’m talking about our first baby – which we also named Enoch)

And then it all just kept coming. We got pregnant so easily that first time. And then – not so much. And I got really sad. And Jared got really sad. And then we got pregnant with Fitzy. And a new chapter in our life began. In so many areas. We miscarried again. We lost sight of each other and what was important in our lives. In our marriage. We miscarried again. Then we started to get our marriage back. It was a rough spell – but forgiveness and grace was abundant. Then we got pregnant. Again. For a fifth time. And we knew he would stay. And we both felt really awesome about where we were. How far we had come. How far God brought us from where we were.

And then – almost overnight – it started to crash. Hard. Harder than all the crap I just mentioned. Harder than anything I have ever been through. And it broke. And the pieces are still scattered. Just a few corners and edges put into place. But like with any puzzle – once you get to all blue sky in the beautiful landscape background – all the pieces look the same. And you have to start sorting them by shape. Pouring over the slight changes in the color – teeny little changes. And it takes a very long time to fit them together. To figure it out.

I feel like that’s where we are. So much has happened and there’s so much to piece together – that it’s overwhelming. The entire puzzle is blue sky. And even the edges and corners are tough. Intricate and detailed. Specific. Each piece has to fit perfectly.

And it’s taking a very long time. Which in reality – is a speck. But oh my – it seems so long already.

And in less than 7 weeks – Enoch will be here. Another precious baby in this house. A house that will have new windows next week and we can move upstairs. And if I’m honest – I’m having a hard time being excited. Because I’m terrified.

I started counseling yesterday – and she asked – what were 4 things I do well. Only 4? Just kidding. I thought about it.

Well – I organize well. I have a take control personality – so I think I lead well. I am a photographer and I think that God has blessed me with the ability to see things others can’t – so I capture moments well. And I mother well.

What’s your goal? What – my goal? Um – my goal was to have a baby before I turned 30 – I was 29 and 11 months. Check. Start a photography business. Check. But now – to be fun. To be a fun mom and wife and sister and daughter and friend. Because sometimes – I’m not. But we all need that one person that says – c’mon guys – should we REALLY do this? Do you REALLY need that sweater for $100? I know my strengths and I know my weaknesses.

And.

Love hopes all things. Right?

I mean – it’s tattooed on my arm. I look at it every day. Multiple times a day. And still – I lose hope. I cry and I whine. And I HATE whining.

Right now – it’s a deep deep valley. One where the sun hardly shines. And I am so thankful for my growing family. I am so thankful that I get to spend the days with a little boy who is full of joy. And hope.

Fitzy’s newest thing is to stand on something – a block – or a shoe – and balance. He says – MOM – look at me do this! I say – that’s fantastic baby! I’m so proud of you! And he waddles off to find the next thing to balance on. When he sees something he likes – he says – oh momma – that’s so niiiiiiiice. ooooooh. It’s seriously the best. He does the dishes. He does the laundry. He cleans the sink. He folds clothes. He washes windows.

I was so angry that this was happening now. Why couldn’t this have happened when we didn’t have a baby and one on the way. Without Fitzy – I would be in that valley too. Me – personally. I’m in it now with Jared – but I have to be the one to remind him – us – to look for the sun. Without Fitzy – it would be a lot easier to find a cave together – crawl into the darkness – and not care about coming out.

I told my aunt the other day that I felt like God was giving me the bare minimum to get by. That He could see me dangling off the cliff by my pinky – barely holding on. And He said – well – here’s a little deeper of a ledge for you to grasp. Just a little. I know you want more – but this is all you can have right now.

Now – I know – I know – God isn’t mean and vindictive. He doesn’t take pleasure in watching me dangle – although some of you would disagree with that. But it’s how I feel. And feelings are important. And so is the truth. That God is covering us and holding us.

And I tell you what seems like random babble – to say this. God has given me organizational skills. Leadership skills. Strength – but knowing to ask for help when I need it. The ability to see beauty in things that others can’t. And I’m a great mom. I have never had to use those skills like I am right now. Like I will have to. That all that crap was to prepare me – us – for this.

To depend on Jesus.

Fitzy asked me to rock him today – he hasn’t asked me to do that in a while. A few weeks. But it’s been MONTHS that he has fallen asleep while I rocked him. I needed that today. To hold my baby and know that God is holding me – holding Jared – holding Fitzy – holding Enoch – even tighter. That while I’m dangling off the edge of that cliff – while we are – that He isn’t above us – giving us just a little bit more – He’s right below us. Ready. Waiting.

Today – I texted Jared and said – What do I do? He said – Pray. Wait. Listen. Love.

I’ve prayed and prayed – and pray. I’ve waited and I feel like I don’t have much time left to wait. I’m listening but not hearing. And love. Love has been redefined in my book. Which isn’t always a bad thing. Hard – yes. Bad – no. So I love.

But I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what we need.

Well – yes. A miracle. We need a miracle to find our way out of this valley.

While I tend to give out tough love – more than gentle love – I didn’t like receiving it today (not mentioning any names – Ericka) but it was what I needed to hear.

We need prayer. We need hope. We need a miracle. We need Jesus.