Today was the first time I’ve had my camera out since Easter.  If you’ve been keeping up with me on Facebook or read my Easter post that’s been lurking here for a week, you already know I’ve been a little under the weather.  Not to worry, things are looking up.  Today was a great day!

So great, in fact, I actually sat outside in a camp chair watching my boys have a little fun.  You all know, I can’t possibly sit and watch someone, anyone have fun without snapping a few photos.  AND, thankfully, my camera wasn’t too far away.

Nothing like THIS mischievous grin to make me smile!

or this CRAZY giggle!

I’m telling you, even on our death bed, we Gurney’s are a barrel of laughs.  Just ask these two yahoos – who never fail to keep me on my toes and always have the big wheels rollin’….in EVERY sense.

Grandma (my mom) REALLY helps, too.  She’s kept my entire family fed for around two weeks now.  AND, she’s also the one who financed this BIG WHEELIN’ idea.

The boys were completely pumped!  AND, I was having so much fun watching them have fun, I let them SKIP nap.  THAT almost NEVER happens!

Of course, no great idea comes without a little controversy.  Leave it to Wes to cause a bit of disruption…

I guess he grew tired of riding and decided to put a few bumps in Ty’s path.  Unfortunately, his mama spotted his disruptive behavior before it became all out war.  “Wes.  Get the wheel barrow out of your brother’s way.”   “AWWWWWWWW.”  He moved the wheel barrow, dragging his bootie the whole time.

I’m pretty sure he showed me a little bottom lip, too.  BUT, in the end, a game of hide-and-seek saved the day….

and Ty just kept the Big Wheels turnin’.

Happy hump day!  I miss you guys…

He’s serious.  I call him a “deep thinker”.

He’s quirky.  I call him charismatic and captivating.

He’s bull-headed.  I call him determined.

He’s funny.  I call him witty.

He’s so DRAMATIC.  I call him riveting. 

This is a prime example….

It all started while showing a little love toward our pup.  Innocent enough, right?

Awww, you say.  So sweet.  BUT, it went from sweet and loving to…

Attack pup on the loose.  Yep, I don’t have a photo of the next scene, because I had to rescue Ty from said pup.  In no time, Echo (our pup), was on top of Ty licking and scratching and just getting plain ‘ole excited.  You know how pups are, right?  Well, apparently, it was NOT fun for Ty.   He immediately burst into tears.

At this point, I tell him (because I’m into tough love and all) to “get tough”.  I go on to explain that we live in the country and dogs are gonna jump on you…yadda yadda yadda.  I finish off by telling him if he can’t take the heat, go in and take a nap.  He’s obviously tired.  It’s not really like him to wail loudly over a pup jumping on him.  He is an animal lover, after all.

This was him during our one-sided conversation.

and right afterward (once I’d mentioned the “n” word.  N-A-P)

Oh, the drama….

Usually, in instances like these, it’s best to tease him a bit or tell him a couple of jokes, which I proceeded to do.

Slowly, but surely, this magnificent and warm-hearted little boy started to forget the drama.

Then I pulled out my secret weapon.  I said, “POOPY”.  Yep, I did.

Just look what that one word does for our bull-headed boy.

And finally, a discussion (again, one-sided) of how lucky he is to have such an amazing and spectacular MAMA who loves him.

Aww, yes.  There it is.  That smile.  Those eyes.

And the world was right again.

Be still my heart.

Do I really want to be rescued from this insanity?

I’m not so sure.

Because in the midst of all this craziness, there are quiet, soulful moments that take my breath away.

and I’m softly reminded why I was placed here on this wonderful Earth.

Not so at the Gurney’s…

Here it’s caused quite a ruckus…

It’s caused fighting over pieces and anger over mixing and messing by a two-year old we all know…

except in the early morning hours, when Ty is at school.  Wes has them ALL to himself.  I have a feeling he relishes those calm, unsharing moments….

The trees have to be just right…

The funny thing is Wes really uses pieces of ALL our toys.  See the water tower?  It is part of a train set.  The boulders?  Those came with a dump truck toy.  Then there’s the tractors and trucks…  I think we have a couple of barbed wire fences that were packaged with the military forces, but the wood fence replica is from a barn set.  He’s got it all mixed in there.

Ty would be horrified.  Because, Ty is all about perfection.  I’m afraid he’s a bit more like his mom in that way.  Each piece has to be lined up perfectly.  He’d look at the above shot and wonder why Wes mixed the two types of trees.  He might even tell you exactly what type of trees those are…  Then he’d get really aggravated that the tractors and trucks are involved in a military battle.   It’s all pretty funny, really.

But, mostly it is NOT quiet, pretend play.  It is LOUD.  The sounds of battle are evident in every whisper and scream.  Air Force jets break the silence with their dynamic whizzing and whooshing…

The one thing I don’t hear on mornings when Ty is at school is the sound of fighting between brothers and that, my friends, is VERY nice.  Wes enjoys his quiet time without his brother…for about 20 minutes.  Then, it’s all about “WHEN ARE WE PICKING TY UP?”

They do love and miss each other….even after all the harsh words and yelling.  I hope it’s always that way.

I know I’ve said it before, but I’ve fallen in love with the music of John Mayer.  I’m not sure why I’m just now discovering him (I knew who he was, but never really listened to his music)…maybe I’ve lived in a bubble for the past few years…who knows.  BUT, now that I’ve listened, I’m inspired.

As I was proofing the night away this week, a song poked it’s way into my head via the cool headphones I was wearing (80’s style…outside of my ears – I hate the ones that go in.  They give me a headache!).  I recently purchased an album on iTunes but apparently hadn’t listened all the way through because I was hearing a song for the first time.  I stopped what I was doing to listen – I didn’t want to miss any of it by being distracted!  It’s not like I had work to do or anything.  Afterward, I had to Google it to read the lyrics.

I was inspired.  I was smiling.  I love music that does that…

I shared this song with everyone on Facebook instantly.  I had to.  It was the right thing to do – I’m pretty sure I sent it to EVERY friend, which is probably WAY too many.  Now, I’m sharing it with you.  Take a look…

and after you listen to it once, listen again and again.  Then go buy it… you’ll feel all bubbly and happy inside.  Guaranteed!

AND be sure to read the lyrics below.

How can you argue with a song like that?  In a time when everyone seems so pessimistic…it takes courage to be believe in the positive.

The Heart of Life by John Mayer

I hate to see you cry
Lying there in that position
There’s things you need to hear
So turn off your tears and listen

I know it’s good

I hope your Tuesday is filled to the brim with happiness, smiles, and lots of sunshine.  I know mine will be!

REMINDER!!!

I’m still accepting nominations for BEAUTIFUL WOMEN sessions.  If you have no idea what I’m referring to, you can read more about it here.  I’m no longer limiting it to just “moms”.   The next winner will be announced THIS FRIDAY!!!  So, nominate a beautiful woman you know…

I can’t wait to meet them all!

Here are a few of my favorites!

I’m starting with the cake because it was so totally cool!  I love butterflies!  The whole wedding incorporated butterflies…

Kyle and Lahree released some during the ceremony.  Then, afterward, the guests got to release some, too!  It was all about celebration and making wishes for Kyle and Lahree.  How cool is that?!

The butterflies were kept in tiny little triangle boxes…how do they survive in there?  I really have never seen anything like it!

You can’t see them flying away in the above photo, but they were there…soaring to new heights.

I love the idea of having friends and family sign a photo mat instead of a wedding book…something you can actually hang and read each day.  I haven’t pulled out my wedding book since my wedding.  Have any of you?

The wedding was so heartfelt and emotional.  Many of the moments during the wedding were spent dabbing eyes…me included.

That’s Sheena in the background…she’s Lahree’s sister and the Maitron of Honor.  I think she shed more tears than any of us.  It is her little sister, afterall, who’ll be moving away very soon.  She’s having to let go…and let God, and Kyle take over for her.  It must be difficult to do when you love someone so much and have always taken care of them as only a big sister can.

I think there’ll be plenty of love to spare, though.  Check out that kiss!

During their first dance, I felt like an intruder eavesdropping when I shouldn’t have been.  I’m pretty sure everyone else felt that way, too.  It was STEAMY!

Congratulations, Kyle and Lahree.  I wish you all the best!

All in all, we had a great time!  We picked flowers, chased bugs, played a little peek-a-boo, and generally had lots of fun!  We even got the big guy in this bunch to participate in a little workout!

Here are my favorites!

PUSH, Daddy!

I love the relationship between everyone in this family.   Mom and Dad tried to sneak in a few snuggles now and then, but the kids were having no part of that!

I loved the pretty white flowers in the background of this one.  I couldn’t resist snapping a shot next to them.  Speaking of flowers, I LOVE how they are blooming in full force around here…FINALLY!

Ya gotta love a little Daddy’s girl!

and here’s one of the only shots I was able to snap of the two of the kids together…they were busy running in opposite directions ALL night!  Sounds really familiar to my household…

Just for fun, I talked Mom into letting me take a few shots of JUST HER.  We gals never get that opportunity!  I thought they turned out really nice.  Of course, it helps when you are gorgeous!

Like Mother like daughter…

His blue eyes remind me of Ty’s…and the look he’s giving in that last shot reminds me of Wes.  It was a perfect way to end the night…

Have a great Wednesday!

First, because they were willing to try an urban session and second, because they were so AWESOME!  I met up with them in OKC this past weekend – They’d been traveling for a couple of days to get to Oklahoma where they have family.  It turns out this adorable family is from Washington!  I’ve never met anyone from Washington state before so I was really excited to get to chat with them about the scenery there – It’s somewhere (along with Oregon) I’ve always wanted to go.

I was a bit sad upon hearing that the daddy of this great family will be flying out next Monday.  He’s a soldier.  After hearing that, I knew I had to create something special for them…I know they’ll miss him tremendously while he’s gone for the next year…  Hopefully, these images will help them along the way and maybe even bring a smile now and then…

If it was me, I think I’d have to have this collage framed really big….a reminder of all the fun we’ll have when Daddy gets home!

While walking around midtown, we laughed and talked and had a great time getting to know each other.   I can’t imagine how hard it must be preparing for such a huge event.  My heart goes out to the momma of this group – I know she must be aching on the inside knowing what’s to come in only a week…

That night, though, they were all smiles.   There is plenty of love to go around in THIS family…It made me smile just watching the relationship between them all…

and finally…the lovebirds…

Well, except for a little bit…

AND, it’s a good thing I did let them eat what they wanted while hunting the eggs, because we came home with two FULL buckets of candy.  Seriously?  Does the Easter Bunny have to bring SO much?  I think, next year,  he should bring lots of toothpaste to go along with all the candy…

The boys had a great time, of course.  They’ve been hunting and re-hunting eggs ever since.  Neither of them will eat a hard-boiled egg, though.  We came home with 15 of those.  Still in the fridge.  Even I can’t eat that many hard-boiled eggs.

We usually celebrate Easter Sunday ON Sunday.  But, the weather forecasts were saying rain so we hunted eggs a day early.  It couldn’t have been prettier…SO warm.  We spent the entire day soaking up the sun’s rays.  It was perfect.

It’s nice to get everyone together.  Both of my boys LOVE their cousin Kensy.  Isn’t she a doll!

I would love to have her eyes – very unique.  I’ve never seen anyone else with eyes the color of hers.  They really do stand out.  AND, those little pink cheeks make her even cuter.

Not only did the kids get to hunt eggs, but they rode bikes, blew bubbles, flew super cool airplanes around the yard, played croquet, and threw an amazingly huge frisbee for the dogs!  Whew!

And all that was just on Easter SATURDAY.  We went to our friends’ house on Easter SUNDAY -  we hunted more eggs in the house since the weather forecasts were right and it was really yucky outside.  So yucky, I barely took any photos…All you get is Saturday pics. 

Wes’ favorite thing to say while looking through his eggs was “op-en it!” over and over….He was hatching eggs faster than he could hunt them.  It’s a bit hard to hunt eggs while eating candy at the same time…Luckily, Daddy was around to help out…

and Momma, of course…

I hope everyone had a super Easter.  I know we did…even Uncle Kendall sends his good wishes to all of you…

These two are probably ready to strangle me for being so slow with the sneak peek, but NOW all will be forgiven.  The pics couldn’t have turned out better.  I think their session is one of my absolute favorite senior sessions to date.  By the way, I was playing around a bit with the images above using two different actions.  Which color do you like better?

It’s been a bit of a busy week OR TWO for me… I’m pretty sure all the seniors in town have decided they better get their senior portraits taken BEFORE graduation!  It’s a mad rush to find a day for everyone!

These two crazy guys asked if they could do something a little unusual – COMBINE both their sessions into one.  It’s actually a pretty cool idea and will save you some major bucks.  Senior sessions run you $350, but if you’d like to combine your session with a friend, it’ll cost $500 TOTAL – saving you each $100!!!  Email for more information.

For now, take a look at these two awesome guys!

Meet Tyler.

Tyler is hilarious and VERY outgoing.  It didn’t take any time for him to warm up to the camera!

I couldn’t resist getting a shot of Tyler’s folks in the background, especially when I spotted them hanging out on the tracks with the guitars.  Perfect!

I’m pretty sure that last one is a favorite of mine…something about that black jacket.

These two are in an acoustic band together.  Their band, All For That, is playing in Norman on Sunday at The Red Room.  If you’re interested in tickets, let me know.  Okay, Tyler.  That’s it for you, for now.  Moving right along!

Meet Eric.

Eric was a tiny bit quieter than Tyler, but his coolness factor was WAY high!

I had so much fun with the guitar shots – I could totally do nothing but album covers for edgy bands….talk about FUN!

Seriously, though.  How cool are these two?  Plus, they had me laughing so hard I could barely focus!

Check out those eyes!  AND, I saw some shots of Eric on Facebook the other day WITH SHORT HAIR – he looked JUST AS GOOD!

Alright, you guys.  I’ll be contacting you as soon as the entire gallery is live.  Have a great week!