Our Different Sameness: July

Velocity. This girl never stops. She fits right in with the older kids now and is some times more energetic than all three of the older ones put together. She is as happy as can be and just wants to keep moving and exploring and trying new things. Ella just turned 1 last month and I am just amazed at how quickly she has gone from a tiny infant to a crazy little toddler. Life never slows down and like Ella it just keep slooking for ways to keep us moving. At the beginning of this summer, I was looking at the calendar thinking "ahh, this will be such a nice quiet break from the craziness of the rest of the year!" But somehow, the weeks fill up, the months pass by before I realize they started and Owen has developed a new hilarious trick. Nothing we do can slow it down except being in the moment and enjoying the pieces that make up the whole. Enjoying Ella in her element is so much fun. Helping her up the ladder and down the slide is sweet. Guiding Owen as he learns about frogs and dirt and water. All of things can add to a busy day, but slowing down and watching and participating is what helps me.

This post is part of a group blog : Our Different Sameness
Make sure to check out the other additions to this months prompt all about Velocity. 

Horace & Mae Photography

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Our Different Sameness : June

Chaos. Also know as life. It always suprises when I realize that my perfectly easy breezy summer all of a sudden gets clogged up with a billion different to-dos and happenings and festivities. Every Summer. This only reminds me that when it looks like life is about to slow down, it doesn't, and I don't say that in a bad way. Life is meant to be fast and unplanned and chaotic. I remember back to before I had Owen and it was so boring compared to where we are now. I have so much more to do and somehow we manage even with our terrible lack of forethought about most events. Chaos is honestly where we shine. I say we embrace it, laugh in it and enjoy it for all its worth.
This post is part of a group blog : Our Different Sameness
Make sure to check out the other additions to this months prompt all about Chaos.  

Our Different Sameness : May

This months prompt was intensity. When I think of intensity, it often brings to mind stress or bad attitudes or hard situations. But as I was watching little Kaylee today sing her favorite songs from "Frozen" :) I was reminded that intensity is not always a sign of something that's going wrong. She was singing her best for us and so loved performing as much as she knew. I remember performing in school plays and the intensity that goes along with the rush of nerves and having to remember lines and trying to sing loud enough for the people in the back of the room. You're so focused on having everything come together at the right time and all of you is trying your hardest. I love that Kaylee was feeling the songs with everything she had and that she was so focused on singing, even in the midst of 7 other kids rambling around her. Thanks for sharing your sweet heart with us Kaylee!


This post is part of a group blog : Our Different Sameness
Make sure to check out the other additions to this months prompt all about Intensity. 

Our Different Sameness : April

Since moving into our most recent home, one of the things I look forward to the most after winter is planting our spring garden. While Horace does most of the heavy lifting (and tilling and planting and weeding:), I love watching the seeds sprout up and make their way into the ground to begin growing us some delicious tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and herbs. Taking the hose out to water the baby plants seems a bit abrasive at first, but once we're mid-summer, the water from the spout doesn't seem to be enough. The sandy ground here soaks up water like a sieve.
After a lot of research, Horace saved some of his heirloom tomato seeds from last year and we were so happy to see them sprout a few weeks ago. The ability to take last years spoils and use them again makes us feel like we're getting away with something. A good bit of work. Free food. Endless enjoyment.


This post is part of a group blog : Our Different Sameness
Make sure to check out the other additions to this months prompt all about Earth.

Our Different Sameness : January

I'm starting a new project with a group of amazing photographers aimed at stretching our abilities and connecting our stories. Our Different Sameness will feature our photos every month, exploring a variety of subjects and ideas. This month, our topic was vulnerability and it was definitely a stretch for me. Trying to set up and take a photo that had something to say and a bigger meaning to convey was a great challenge.  

Vulnerability can be a great insecurity and also a wonderful characteristic in a person. I takes me a really long time to become good friends with people, the kind of friends that can just be around each other without entertaining or trying to keep conversation fresh. I often don't want to be vulnerable because I don't want to put stress on the other person or I don't want to be a burden and so I share much less than is conducive to a great friendship. But my sweetest friends seem to be those that have opened themselves up to me in such a way that they show that my opinion or advice matters to them. They become vulnerable to me, not to burden me, but just because they want to hear my thoughts. Vulnerability is a servant-hearted characteristic, when done well. You want to know what the other person thinks more than you care about how the situation makes you look. Christ became vulnerable. He became a feeling, crying, heavy-hearted man because he knew that we needed to see that part of Him. We need to see others vulnerability in order to know that we are not alone in our struggle. We need to be vulnerable in order to share the love of Christ in our deep troubles.

To see the rest of this months photos, head over to ourdifferentsameness.com . Check out the about section to learn more about the project and about the photographers.

Horace & Mae Photography
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