relationship...

When BJ was living/working down in Utah and the kids and I were still up in Idaho, our future was unpredictable and our present felt bleak. BJ and I switched off making the 4 hour drive to see each other on the weekends. One weekend, he would drive up to Idaho and the next, the kids and I would drive down to Utah. Because BJ lived in a shared apartment with a few other guys, my grandparents graciously opened their home to us for our rather frequent visits. Amidst all the difficulty, they were there for us; to pray for us, encourage us and support us. I remember when BJ got his permanent job offer, how excited I was to call and share the news with them because I knew they would really understand what a miracle it was for our family and would truly celebrate with us!
One huge, amazing blessing that came from these visits is that my kids really KNOW my grandparents now. They will have distinct memories of my grandma cooking and serving and nurturing and loving, of my grandpa always ready with a hug and a kind word, of movie time snuggled up on Grandpa's lap. I too have felt their love throughout my life. As a child, we lived just around the block from them and spent MANY summer hours playing in the fig tree (a.k.a. the pirate ship, the mansion home, the castle, etc), of eating toast with peanut butter & honey, followed by a lot of ice cream at our weekly "Ice-Cream Sundays", rehearsing for singing productions and plays. Then, during my college years I often visited their home when I found of couple of hours here or there between classes/jobs. I knew that I could always get what I needed there, whether it was a nap in the basement or a listening ear. Again, in my early years of marriage after BJ and I had purchased our first home, we suddenly found ourselves homeless when it turned out that the loan was based on a fraudulent appraisal. With nowhere to go, my grandparents opened their basement to us, where we lived for a little over a month while we made other living arrangements. And again, just recently they helped us through a difficult time. I know, right? How could I have made it through my life without their encouragement and love? So, yes. I am thankful that through it all, my kids have come to know my grandparents! At Becca's reception, my Dad and my Grandpa were sitting next to each other and I put the Bub down, saying "Go get Grandpa!" The Bub ran straight for my Grandpa. So Dad...I think is a sign: You need to move to Utah :) Just kidding...sort of!

Formal Wedding Portraits...

Don't you just love how happy they are together?
To view more pictures, visit my website at www.mindykiddphotography.com and enter "becca" in the clients section...

nieces & nephews...

magnify...

This series of pictures was taken at Becca and Brandon's reception. Their reception was held in my Grandparents backyard. One of the older grandkids brought this magnifying glass out of the house and when the chubster got ahold of it...he was just so funny. How could we resist capturing it? I loved these image so much that I could not pick a favorite!
This little guy's family stayed at our house last week. Is he not the cutest?!? Brett & Holly...thanks for being fabulous house guests. Brett cooked breakfast for us every morning that he was here. Holly took our family pictures. And, it was a huge undertaking. Holly coordinated our outfits, did the girls' hair AND took so many incredible pictures. I have only seen them on the LCD screen on the back of her camera, but am dreaming about them still! I am SO excited to make a photo collage on the wall with all of the AMAZING pictures she took. Thanks Holly! And...they even cleaned and vaccuumed the basement before they left!
I love spending time with my family and can't wait for the next time we can all get together again. Welcome to the family, Brandon!
Look for MANY more posts and images in the next few days as I slowly process all the images from the wedding.

ladybug release...

Last night, our community association released 30,000 ladybugs into the neighborhood gardens. We walked over for the event:







The girls lucked out and got to hold one of the bags of ladybugs. Each bag contained 1,000 ladybugs. The foof was not impressed. She informed us that she only likes to look at ladybugs. Definitely not interested in having hundreds of bugs crawling all over her! BJ took the foof and the bub home to put them to bed and the older girls and I stayed at the gardens while the girls played "ladybug fairies," happily spreading ladybug magic on all the plants.