We took Haille with us, my sweet niece from Tennessee. She has never been to the beach, so we had SO much fun showing her around.
She informed me that she LOVED it — but could have done without the sand.
Me too, girl. Me too!!!

We took a ferry over to Shackleford Island in hopes of seeing the wild horses. No luck. We walked and walked, and found lots of horse poo — but no horses. I think the little chatty ladies with me might have scared the horses off if we did get within earshot. Some of our ferry-mates say they saw them — and if we had walked for 5 more minutes, we would have seen them too.  Oh, well.
The girls did find TONS of shells there; and I”m happy to say that we started Haille’s shell collection off right!

We also visited the aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores, the Beaufort Maritime Museum (arghhhh, Blackbeard!), ate lots of great seafood and logged a lot of hours soaking up the sun at Atlantic Beach and Radio Island.

Here – see for yourself!

While we were in Beaufort, Chad had a fall.
I heard a loud noise and ran upstairs to find Chad on the floor and a little confused.
From what I’ve pieced together, his right leg just went numb and he fell. Since that time (Tuesday evening), he’s not been himself. He can’t really feel his right arm or leg and is having more difficulty walking. He is also having more difficulty stringing together sentences; he just can’t find the right words.
For example, he was in a tizzy last night about not being able to find his eye drops. He was adamant that he needed his eye drops and they weren’t where he left them (on top of his dresser). He was getting very frustrated, trying to explain what he was looking for. I found the eye drops, and he just grew more frustrated, and told me he wasn’t looking for those eye drops. Finally, I figured out he was looking for his chapstick.

On Thursday evening, I called hospice after hours for the first time to inquire about additional pain meds. A nurse walked me through the medications in Chad’s comfort pack (a box of emergency meds I can use if he’s in pain or has a seizure) and we were able to help him feel a bit better.
On the way home Friday, I talked with our nurse and let her know the changes I’d witnessed this week and set up a consultation with the on-call nurse for today (Saturday). She came out and assessed Chad’s pain level and neurological health.

I knew something was going on. And after talking with the oncologist, the nurse confirmed that Chad’s new/worsening symptoms are signs for disease progression.
What does this mean?
Chad’s tumors are growing quickly. And they are causing pressure and swelling in his brain. The pressure is causing the numbness and loss of sensation in his right arm/leg, the word issues, and confusion. He is walking with a cane now, and drags his right foot. He actually has an abrasion on one of his toes from the way his toes curl under when he walks. (He had to remove his shoes at one point this week, in hopes of walking more steadily). He is unable to hold a fork or spoon properly, and is unable to put enough pressure on a pencil to make a mark or form a word.

His steroid and pain management plan has been increased. The steroids will reduce the swelling and allow Chad to have more quality time, hopefully. We’re still trying to find a pain management routine that works consistently, though.

We are almost done with traveling, as I fear that being so far from home isn’t the best idea in the world right now. The nurse and doctor told us that they were very concerned about us leaving again, but also understood what we were trying to do; as much as possible for as long as possible.
Every day with a meaning; every day a destination.

We are leaving again tomorrow for Tennessee, to visit Chad’s sister and brother-in-law.
We haven’t seen them since June 2009, and I am looking forward to having most of the Lanford Clan together for a few days.

Great Wolf Lodge (Concord) – LOVED!
Lazy 5 Ranch – LOVED!
Discovery Place – LOVED!

We leave for Beaufort next week, so stayed tuned for the second installment of our Summer

Here are a few of my favorite images from today’s tea party.

Carys is listening intently to the day’s tea selection.
Peach, Orange or Blueberry.
I think she tried a bit of each.

A calm moment before the tea was poured.

Delicate PB&J, pineapple-cream cheese sandwiches; with the crusts removed, of course.
And little nibbles of fresh fruit.
My girls were in heaven!

The littlest Lanford Princess was able to attend – thank you, Shauna!
Tea parties are her thing, and she “can’t wait to invite her fwends to have tea, too!”

I asked her to eat neatly.
Apparently, this is what she thought I meant.

I was giggling at this scene.
She fidgets with her earrings when she is unsure about a new situation.
My little big girl, all dressed up, eating neatly at a tea house and fidgeting with her earrings.
Sweet, sweet girl.
She will be moving out before I know it, won’t she? Le Sigh.

And my other favorite image form today: Lucy couldn’t wait for me to go to bed.
It’s true I’ve been keeping odd hours lately.
So, this is where she thought she’d settle in for the night.

I’m also going to take a break from photography for a while.
I absolutely love it, and it makes me feel good. But the post-session work is a little more than I have time to do right now.
Every morning, my girls ask if I have to work on the computer — and the answer is usually yes, if there are photos involved. And there are always photos involved, it seems. (Which is a good, good thing!)

If I have booked your session or if we have talked recently about booking, your session is still on.

If you would like to book a session, please let me know.
My last photo day will be Friday, August 13. I have a few days here and there that I can shoot .
Email me and we’ll plan.

Thanks for your understanding. I also must thank you all for my success lately; your word-of-mouth advertising has helped me grow — and I am so thankful!

It was a beautiful Carolina June day — it was perfect, albeit a bit hot.

The couple was a absolutely adorable with one another, and their family & friends were some of the most genuine people I’ve ever met. I’ve been pouring through the images all evening and have put together a little preview of my favorite shots.
Images will be available on my photography website in the new future.

Hope you enjoy!

Details shots:

K’s dress — which was stunning! She looked absolutely beautiful!

Tears of joy, followed by intense laughter, mere moments before her walk down to aisle.

A few moments with her Dad & her new Hubby:

My kind of gal — she had two receptions. Which meant she had two confectionery masterpieces!
A more traditional cake, and then a cupcake cake later in the evening. Awesomeness!

We also had a friend join us. Spencer will be turning two in a few weeks, so we took his two-year-old portraits at the same location. He is such a sweet, sweet boy!
I was really happy with this location, until the mosquitoes attacked. Note to self: always have bug spray at hand.
No. Matter. What.

Did I mention how sweet she was during our shoot last week?
Absolutely delightful!

Thanks, Donna, for letting me capture her newest skill: walking!

I’ve also made some cosmetic changes to my photography site.
Visit when you have a moment. I hope you enjoy it — I’ve had a lot of fun putting it together and plan even more tweaks in the near future.
I am definitely staying busy with photoshoots lately; which does my heart good!
It feels completely AWESOME to do something I absolutely love and make others happy at the same time.

I currently have limited slots available in the next few weeks and months — so please shoot me an email if you’d like to schedule a session.
Portrait sessions are $100 for a limited time only. Email me! You’ll be glad you did. I guarantee it

We ventured to downtown Wendell and a farm in Lizard Lick, NC.
Despite fighting with the wind, it was a beautiful day and we got some awesome captures!

Here are a few of my favorite shots from today – enjoy! If you’d like to see more, go to my photography website by clicking here.
Many thanks to Adrinne and Colton, a sweet, sweet couple.

Congratulations on your upcoming graduations.