Good Egg Hunting

Yes I'm still blogging and yes I am OK. I just had to plow through ugly March and then immediately left for a dream destination...more about that later. I meant to post this before I left.

Planning fun grand kid adventures is one of the best parts about being Nana and Bubba. 

Our annual Easter egg hunt is one of my favorites.

 The Easter Bunny was on hand to help with egg hiding.

 Olivia took Easter egg hunting very serious this year...

 as did Henry.

 After a long and frigid winter, the weather was glorious for the last day of March.

 The grand babies are growing up so quickly.

Speaking in sentences and paragraphs, conversations come easily. They are both like babbling brooks...spewing words like water.

During the Easter egg hunt there was a race for the illusive golden egg hidden just for adults. An episode ensued where Dean threw Sami the dog from the hen house with a mouth full of Mother Clucker's feathers filling the air. Not to worry...Mother Clucker survived

The Easter bunny left bubbles for Olivia and Henry. Apparently candy is more important; the kids wouldn't even put the bubble wands in their baskets. Note to the Easter Bunny...candy only!

Affectionate and adorable...Olivia knows just how to make her Bubba swoon. You could practically hear his heart pitter patter out loud.

 A lot of candy was consumed that day despite both kids having annoying coughs that just wouldn't stop.

Sometimes I forget that these two aren't exactly the same age, as they act like twins. In fact I was surprised to see the difference in height as witnessed in this photo. Six months makes a pretty big difference when you are only two years old.

Something I never forget...is how lucky I am to be alive in this beautiful world and how blessed I am to be a grandmother to these two.

 Henry has deep soulful eyes that melt your heart into a puddle of love.

 And he is especially fond of Bubba these days...it's a guy thing I guess!

 Bubba is constantly inventing new things to entertain Olivia and Henry.

 Like finding a new way to get from the top of the back yard to the bottom.

 She loves super throws from Dad!

 Blue sky, vivid colors...Spring is here and it is a welcome change.

 Time to dream in the green grass and warm yourself with rays of magical Spring sunshine.

Easter egg rolling was a riot this year. While no one was looking, Henry threw egg after egg down the driveway until we finally noticed.

The Garlick Press takes Easter egg races very serious. I'm not sure if the kids even understood the concept.

Olivia was more entertained by following the wobbly colorful eggs down the driveway. Reaching down every step or two, unsuccessfully trying to pick up the rapidly rolling egg.

 I love this shot. Moments like this remind me why I own a camera.

At the end of a successful Nana Bubba Easter Egg Adventure, Henry was content with one remaining green egg. He carried it around for hours. Lucky for me, I discovered it hiding in a toy before it had time to "ripen" into something less desirable. I hope your Easter was just as lovely!

Mutiny

Traitor, sneaky snake, double-crosser, miscreant, Benedict Arnold...go ahead and let me have it if you want to after reading this post.

I have been a Nikon girl from the moment I picked up a camera five years ago. But when I decided to upgrade to a full frame camera as one of my Filthy Fifty items...I had no idea it would take me here. Here is all my Nikon gear...packed up and ready to go.

Because now I am a Canon girl (apostate, two-timer)!

A couple of my lenses found very good homes with photographer friends and I still plan on selling my Nikon body.

And this is my first photo taken with my new Canon. Literally unpacking the camera as we drove two hours to lacrosse games, I had NO IDEA even how to change my settings yet. Canon and Nikon are completely different.


And this is the second photo I shot. Dean taking a picture of me with his iPhone.

Oh you had me at the first shutter release Canon...just like butter. In fact I call it shutta butta!

Very simply put...every camera has a sensor which collects light through the lens to create a digital photograph. Full frame cameras have a larger sensor than a crop camera.

Which means I can now take sharper photos in low light situations,


and capture more of this Cache Valley scene.

Even Izzy is a fan of the new camera...just not a fan of being put in the chicken coop!

Filthy Fifty #8. I put on big girl panties and upgraded to a full frame camera. I have SO much to learn about this Canon camera, and I can't wait (deserter, defector)!

Five

Dear Jocie,

Today marks five years or 1,825 days or 43,800 hours which equates to over 2.6 million minutes that have crept by since you left us for heaven. My heart records every single tick of the clock as a scar; invisible to most but entirely suffocating to me. Sitting just a few feet from your room as I write this post, snow is gently falling and I can't help but remember every detail of your last morning with us. How giddy you were to be on the mountain for a beautiful Spring ski day. Wearing an In-N-Out t-shirt and basketball shorts over base layer; long red hair bouncing...you bounded down the stairs for breakfast. 

Five years...it can hardly seem possible. You have missed SO much of us just as we have missed SO much of you! 

I want you to know that even midst so much sorrow...joyful and happy times have weaved their way back into our world. Our family has been blessed to welcome the miraculous addition of baby Olivia Jocelyn 

and twice blessed to witness baby Henry's miracle arrival just 6 months later. Your Mom and dad are grandparents...which makes you Auntie Jocie, can you believe it? 

And your big sister is a mother, an incredible mama. Her once structured life now chaotically revolves around two little people. You would be so proud of her, I know we all are! Cass regularly tells her babes about Auntie Jocie and the millions of memories you made during your short life.

These little ones have stolen our hearts. 

Sometimes their antics remind me of you...especially Olivia. For she is a girly girl who loves to dress up, adores all amounts of sugar, and thrives on teasing the dog along with her baby brother. Sound familiar?

Speaking of your baby brother, he is no longer little. Next month he'll be driving a car and going out on dates. Chet is now older than you were when you left us...such a difficult thought for me to navigate. Oh how I wish you were here to tease him and wrap you freckle kissed arms around his manly shoulders and squeeze him tight. The two of you would be knee-deep in music, skiing, and shenanigans...I'm certain of it.

Your dad is still the man of my dreams. Although he has experienced overbearing pain and grief from your loss...he has also found strength to smile again. Just like always, he continually makes me laugh.

Last year he proved to all of us that he is still a pretty tough guy. But beneath that strong exterior lies a daddy heart that beats a little quieter since you have been gone. 

Every single time his skis lay tracks across freshly fallen mountain snow, I know he longs to turn his head and see you following close behind. Instead he settles for your spirit trailing next to him.

The Garlick sisterhood of the brown one, the blond one, and the red one is noticeably incomplete without you Jocie. Much like a three-legged stool missing that third leg, the balance is not quite the same. I know their loss is different than mine.

Living in LA now, I refer to Dione as lawyer girl. She is just a few months short of finishing law school at UCLA. Her commitment and achievement in accomplishing this law degree amazes me. You would love her new pooch Dorothy, she is sweet and adorable and just a tiny bit mischievous. 

As for me, I stumbled innocently into the world of photography and have become enamored with the view of the world through a lens. At hundredths of a second, I capture and subsequently savor the important moments of our life. I am a blogger...not the typical mommy blogger...more like a sad mommy blogger learning to live again. Establishing a presence on the internet has introduced me to photographers and bloggers all over this small world...wonderful people I am so lucky to call my friends. My journey through grief these past five years has been buoyed up through their constant love and continued support.

Admittedly, I would give anything to see your blue eyes dancing in my viewfinder. But it is your spirit that urges me forward each and every day. I miss you enormously!

Believe it or not, we keep bees,

raise chickens,

and have even found a way to continue your legacy.

 This family makes you part of everything we do and everywhere we go.

 But most of all today on this milestone awful anniversary, I want you to know dear sweet child of mine...that we are OK. That although this photo is missing our red-head...

you are never absent from our hearts.

Love, Chet, Dad, Mom, Dione, Olivia, Bob, Cassandra and Henry

PS...And thank you for the snowflakes, I think they are a sign of your love showering down on everyone who misses you today.