Bookmark my new site!!!

My new website, Holly Anissa!
www.hollyanissa.com

And my first post!
Hello, hello! Welcome to my new site!!!

I've invested in a real website and I'm using a self-hosted WordPress blogsite powered by ProPhoto Blogs as my interface. I am so excited to share it with everyone! This blog is being retired, so bookmark my new website!!! I hope you all follow me there! Holly Anissa is my first and middle name. :)

Week 7

Anna was being sweet with Jenny and it's so rare that I can get a photo of them together. This photo makes me so happy! They were both wearing white and were both in great moods. What a treat! My beautiful girls.



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Week Six

I am really starting to feel better now and was able to pick up the kids several days this week. One day after school, it was sunny and pretty outside and I was inspired to take some photos. Jenny and Anna stayed in the van while Dominic and I walked by the pond. The ducks must've been hungry because they came right up to Pickle. I wish we'd brought some bread!



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Week Five

Remember in Week Two how I mentioned that Jenny was reading Harry Potter to Dominic? Well they are now on the third book! What is so cool about this is that Dominic has started reading the first book to himself. We've had some really cold weather here and an actual snow day today. Well on Wednesday we had a 2-hour delayed start and I heard Dominic get up then didn't hear from him again for about 45 minutes. I asked him what he was doing and he said, "Reading Harry Potter."

Here he is... my 6-year old son halfway through the first Harry Potter book in three days, all by himself! Yes, I'm a proud mom!




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Week Four

It's been a rough week overall... Anna came down with a virus over the weekend and was home from school Monday and Tuesday and I had to drive her to the doctor on Monday which was the first time I've driven since surgery. The virus has subsequently taken down me and my mom so we are all ready to feel better!

I have an amazing online friend named Joey. She sent me a note last week that something was coming for Zachary in care of Anna. (Zachary is a baby reborn doll that Santa brought Anna and she is sooo smitten!) Anna has been trying to get Zachary to fit into a very small baby doll carrier and she's been obsessing over getting him a real carseat. Joey remembered me mentioning this online recently and guess what??? Joey gave Anna a carseat for Zachary!

In this series of seven photos, Anna is receiving her surprise gift.
1. Anna first realizing this big box from FedEx is for her.
2. Anna reading the label on the box.
"Zachary Dylan" c/o Anna
3. Total surprise, happiness, excitement, and utter joy as she realizes what is in the box. I very nearly chose just this photo alone for week 4.
4. Pulling out the carseat. You can just see her face and how excited she is.
5. She is literally jumping for joy!
6. Anna buckling Zachary in the new seat. Do you know that she was looking at baby doll carseats online and this was the very one she had picked out?
7. Anna and Zachary in his new ride. She is one happy girl. WTG, Joey! Thank you so very, very much!!!



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Week Three

Yesterday brought me the first day since I had surgery where I was up and around and engaged with the kids after school. Dominic had had a great week (all "green" days!) which has helped him be in a better mood. Anna is doing well too but oh my gosh, do I miss cuddling with her! Jenny started classes at ACC and has mixed reviews about her professors.

Yesterday after school, Dominic was feeling particularly playful. I got some hilarious shots of him eating Smarties (which he swore made him smart when he was four) and he was convinced they were sour. I'm hoping to get a few "sour Pickle" face photos up soon. I also captured a rough-housing session between him and Jenny and he definitely came out the winner there. ;)

This photo though... it captured my heart. He was laughing so genuinely (tho' I can't share why, he was being inappropriate... boys!) that I got this moment of him looking up at me. He seems so small, young, innocent, and happy. I wanted to try out the black and white conversion technique that I created earlier this week for the Clickin' Moms Photoshop 15th challenge so I used it on this photo. There is something timeless and precious about black and white photos, isn't there?

I love being a mom. I love being their mom. :)



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Week Two

There have been very few opportunities for taking photos this week since I am recovering from this knee replacement surgery. The only time I've left the house is to go to PT and I'm spending most of my day on the CPM machine. But... yesterday, I was feeling downright peppy for about 32 minutes. Yes, that's right! ;) And I got a glimpse of this special moment between Jenny and Dominic. It was quite comical watching me hop around trying to get a good shot of the two of them together.

I have mentioned before how much Dominic reminds me of Jenny when she was his age, right? Jenny started reading the first Harry Potter book to Pickle last weekend and he is completely enchanted. As soon as he gets home from school, he wants to hear another chapter. Jenny was equally enthralled when she was small, I can remember it so clearly. I read the first book to her when she wasn't much older than Dominic is now. They are almost finished with it already!

I'm looking forward to feeling better (I hope soon) so I can get involved in my life again. My mom, Curtis, and Jenny have been taking care of everything and they have been wonderful, but I think they are getting a little tired. I hope I can take more photos next week, I miss it so much! For this photo, I used Paint the Moon's new freebie action called Jubilee.



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Week One

I wanted a really dramatic photo to start my 2011 Project 52 but this one is honest and symbolic.

Last week, I had a partial knee replacement of my right knee along with some other procedures. I wrote out the whole story on Elusive Tranquility but suffice it to say that I had been having a difficult time getting any exercise of late or even just keeping up with the kids for the last few months. This surgery was necessary to keep me mobile and I wanted to document it as much as I could with photography. I took this photo right before being wheeled into surgery. Of course I had to get a pedicure so my toes would be spiffy plus my ortho is a cutie-pie. ;)

This photo represents a new beginning for a new year. I am optimistic that once I finish physical therapy I will be able to conquer anything physically. It also symbolizes stepping onto a new path in my own journey... with my health and my dreams.



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The Beginning

So many of you know that I did Project 365 last year and documented the days on 2010, A Year in Pictures. It was a bigger time commitment than I bargained for but I am so glad I did it. I captured a year of our lives and the kids will forever have that to refer back to as they grow up. I also discovered a passion for photography and I have some big goals for this year that I'll be teasing you with from time to time.

In thinking about 2011, I really wanted to continue to pick up my camera every day but I knew I didn't want the pressure of downloading, processing, uploading, writing, and sharing the photos everyday. So a natural alternative was Project 52. I might share my single favorite photo from the week, I might share seven. But I will only blog once a week and talk about what's been going on in our lives.

I'm getting a late start because I spent most of last week in the hospital having a partial knee replacement. This surgery has kicked my butt. Not only do I not have very many photos so far this year, but they are also not very good! Ha! So I'll be getting Week One up tonight or tomorrow and hoping to capture a good one by Friday.

Thanks for following along on my new journey!