Family

Birthdays are always a big deal here at The Garlick Press no matter the age being celebrated. This time, it happened to be Cassandra's day. Twinkling beautiful blue eyes give away the depth of her happiness.


Even though surrounded by two little people who keep her constantly busy and sleepless and running...Cass is blissfully happy with her little family. Someone is always coughing or barfing or pooping or crying or all of the above. If you don't believe me just try to carry on a phone conversation with her. But her joy through all of it is what I find remarkable. It is a profound reminder of what it takes to be a family.

 Family is that unconditional place you can always count on for love and adoration and a good story or two.

The place that might annoy you on occasion

but also make you gleeful. Goodness this photo got me. His smile and her smile adoring the annoyed two-year old...they are so much alike, right down to their grins.

Family is the place where kisses are passed along like gentle breezes in Autumn...gracing regularly along cheeks and lips and foreheads...

and the place where smiles are as plentiful as sunshine.

Family is the place where birthdays will always be celebrated...complete with candles whether or not it is cake or pie!

The place where wishes can still come true.

Family...it has to be one of the most beautiful masterpieces of life!

Punkin Patch Pickin

I love Fall...I know everyone says that.

But I truly love Fall, especially where I live.

Crisp cool night time temperatures warm into perfect golden days

where the Autumn sun kisses mountain leaves

making them twist and twirl and blush their colors of Fall.

It's the perfect time to gather at the Fredrickson Family Pumpkin Patch.

Where little girl cousins with chocolate on the end of their noses embrace.

And little boy cousins scout out the perfect pumpkin. It's important to have first choice.

And no matter what anyone says...

I am big enough to pick up this pumpkin all by myself!

OK...Dad can nip it off the vine, but that's all.

I can do the rest.

Because I'm big you know!

Perfectly capable of doing this by myself.

A quick wash and they are all ready to take home to be carved up for Halloween frights.

Carter,

Henry,

Camden,

Olivia,

Lola,

and Ambree all got to drive Grandpa's tractor...even if they didn't actually go anywhere.


Not sure what these two were up to...but I'm sure it is not trouble.

A little time to throw kids in the air.

One Two Three and blast off!

I love Lola trying to help her Daddy throw Olivia in the air.

Don't forget to give Henry a turn too.

My brother's giant hands wrap around his newest grandbaby Hazel, who is so beautifully named after my grandmother Hazel.

Before heading for home with our treasured Jack-o-lanterns to be...Grandpa Max wants to make sure we each take home a ginormous squash as well.

All done punkin pickin for this year...we picked the perfect ones Grandpa Max. Thank you!

Twenty

It's Jiggy Day.
Today Jocie would be sweeping gracefully into her twenties. I wonder what her twenty year old self would look like. Sometimes passing a stunning young adult red-head I think I know. I miss her...as much today as the day she vanished from my arms. Although there are a million, here are twenty things I miss about The Red One.

• Those astounding freckles that tell the story of her life
• Her cat noise "Reeer" in response to parental chastising
• Giggles from her girlfriends sleeping upstairs
• Shopping with her at Anthropology and Nordstrom and Juicy and Buckle, and everywhere else
• Her easy and contagious laugh
• The way she picked up Izzy the pooch and carried her around like a baby.
• Our conversations 
• The way she bounds down sets of stairs
• Her ridiculous requests
• The nonsense that always follows her around
• Her long gorgeous red hair with highlights in every hue
• Skiing with her...sigh...
• Her larger than life presence in our home.
• Those long toes...usually with black or green or gold painted toenails
• Her mischievous antics
• The way she teased her baby brother relentlessly
• Her voice...oh how I miss that voice.
• Pairs of outrageous high heels left by the back door
• How she talked me into buying a pack of gum whenever we were out.
• The sister trio...The Brown One, The Blonde One, and The Red One

A close friend sent me a thoughtful note this week that resonates so deeply...

"Jocie is a super hero. We may not have met her in person (the way we've never met C.S.Lewis or Bach or Joan of Arc) but she inspires us, she has changed our family for the better."

Happy Birthday angel, I love you to the moon and back.

Snapshots of a Good Life

I'm often told my camera takes such great photos...which makes me giggle. I have had my digital SLR camera for nearly four years and one of the reasons I now call myself a photographer has nothing to do with the camera but everything to do with Karen Russell's online class...Snapshots of A Good Life.

For those of you who are serious and ready to learn about photography...Karen's your girl!

Nana Bubba Birthday Fest

Being a Nana has all the benefits and few of the responsibilities associated with kiddos.

Which is precisely why we invented Nana Bubba Birthday Fest!

An entire jam-packed weekend filled with playing, adventures,

eating treats, and all manner of spoiling of the birthday grand child. Olivia and I started at Build A Bear workshop on Friday afternoon.

Where two-year old Olivia chose a monkey she named Munk; put him in a box and drug him home from the mall.

The babies call our house Nana-Bubba-Chet's house. Only fitting that Uncle Chet gets to join in the Birthday Fest with an adventure to our favorite Farmer's Market.

Where we had a picnic (clearly Chet is having a blast here)

and munched on quesadillas!

Naturally I had to sneak in Olivia's two-year old photo shoot.

We bought the outfit from Peek.

I highly suggest if you are a Nana or a Bubba or a Mamma or a Daddy, that you shop there soon.

The outfits are to die for!

Sometimes I struggle shooting Olivia...capturing her beautiful smile and twinkling blue eyes before she gets annoyed at the camera.

One evening after dining out on Pasta (Olivia's favorite)...I happened upon this little park with the most enchanting crab apple trees.

Where we giggled,

and laughed until we could hardly breathe.

Folklore says that blowing the seeds off a dandelion is said to carry your thoughts and dreams to a loved one who is not with you.

Carefully pick one of the feathery heads from the grass;

charge each of the little fluffy feathers on the flower with a tender thought; turn towards the spot where the loved one dwells;

and blow! 

The little seed-ball will send your message faithfully! If you want to know if your dear one is thinking of you...blow again!

If there is one single stalk left on the puff, it is proof you are not forgotten. You know where I blew my little dandelion wish!

I'm absolutely positive that Olivia went down the slide about 500 times during Nana Bubba Birthday Fest.

As soon as her feet touched the bottom she squealed with delight "more slide, more slide?"

Up and down we rode the slide late and later into the evening setting sun. It's Birthday Fest, so bedtimes are not strictly adhered to...don't tell the Mamma!

I am hoping to instill in Olivia a love for some of my favorite things. I hope she learns to cook and bake and fill her home with scents of deliciousness!

Experience the joy as someone you love licks their lips and asks for seconds.

The warmth and love that bubbles from a happy kitchen!

At the end of the weekend I am happy to say that the first Nana Bubba Birthday Fest was an astounding success and fun was had by all. Now how is spoiled Olivia going to go back to normal every day life when she returns home to her Mom and Dad?