A Dream!!!

I would be honored to win this contest!


I have thought long and hard over this and here is what my heart says. I am not the best writer, but here it goes, bad grammar and all...

My men. I love, serve, and God willing inspire them daily. This task is everyday, every hour, every minute.

There are days when this job God has given me seems too much, my patience runs thin or the things on the to do list don't get crossed off...but everyday I love them regardless. Mommies don't get sick days, we just keep going, because we have to, we want to. Everyday I encourage them, I put myself aside willingly for them. This chapter in my life, raising men after God's own heart and loving a man who is "Wild At Heart", is crazy, but I feel this is the most important chapter in my life's' book, for these men are a part of my legacy, HIS legacy I am committed to them, all the days of my life for they are nothing short of a miracle.
I love. With all that is in me, unconditionally, without needing a thank you, without hesitation, restrain,boundaries,or conditions...

Now this unconditional love I give is more easily given to my kids, rather than my husband. Sad, I know. I work on it daily, reminding Paul what a great father he is, how Gods provision is so perfect, how I would not be who I am without him. I know sounds so cliche' but it is down right the truth. It is hard to put someones thoughts and feelings before your own...seems so unnatural to me,I am not perfect at it, but I will continue to get better. I will Continue to read Gods word, and pray it keeps changing me.

I hope with my whole heart that I inspire them. My dream would be to inspire my boys to run hard after the Lord with all that is in them, it is so worth the reward. I hope I inspire them to take risks, to be brave and stand up for what they believe in. I pray they know failure is not the end result, and that we learn many things about grace and forgiveness through it. I hope I inspire them to love, to be blinded by color and simply see humanity and not skin.. I pray everyday that I as their mother will inspire them to find women who Love the Lord, and who will love them for them.

Now for your workshop and what it would mean to me to be able to attend. Where do I start? Although you are worth every penny and more, I would otherwise have to save up for who knows how long to attend one of your workshops. My husband has been out of a job since Sept 09 and we use my photography money to make ends meet. Thankfully the Lord has ALWAYS provided and we are abundantly blessed for that. Plus we have each other so we would be rich regardless. I think it would be a wonderful opportunity to be mentored by someone who has inspired my own creativity. Not to mention the other amazing people I could learn from who will also attend. I would be able to take a couple days and focus on the third love of my life...capturing people and creating moments. A huge BONUS is I would have a couple days away from snot, diapers, lollipops and other wonderful kid things that I am sure going to miss when they are grown and gone.

Life with BOYS!!

I just love this...my oldest son, playing in the kitchen, britches on backwards and inside out....

Ele Fun net on the head....and punching bag as a sword......

It never ceases to amaze me at what boys find fun, I love that Bowen was entertained for hours with this particular combination of items!!

Seriously this face cracks me up, where does he get his faces from?

He is just cute, what can I say. This is a special glimpse into a day in the life of a boy, an Estes boy at that! We do have fun, never a dull moment. So neat to see my baby getting so big, and what an imagination, I love how descriptive he is and how animated, and I love that he has conversations as if he is playing 2 different people...I just love it.

I always thought I would have little girls, well that was what my mother hexed me with!!! But I am so thankful for my boys, so rough and tumble yet just little lovers too, such sweet kisses and snuggles! I know a girl would add a new dynamic to this testosterone filled crowed, just in case it never happens, and the only pink I can ever buy is my own nail polish...well I will still be the luckiest girl alive, enjoying the blessings I already have!!!!

Happy Easter!!

So here we are, the day after Easter, I ate absolutely WAY too much candy, the kids had a ball and we spent the whole day as a family. On the down side, I have had a sore throat since Saturday and it is not feeling any better, but, I pushed through and managed to get some pictures of the boys as the went hunting for their eggs.

This was the first Easter where both boys were able to participate, it was fun. Every time Bowen found another egg, he would get so excited!! My kids are candy holics...they do come by it honestly, but I believe they were excited, not about the eggs themselves or the achievement of finding them, but for the shear fact that that meant they were going to eat more candy...

The boys did so well, they shared and dove in together to sugar heaven, and had a blast!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter, candy, eggs, chocolate are all fun but we are so thankful our God conquered the grave. IT IS FINISHED. What great words! More pictures from the egg dying coming soon....that was fun....

The Laser Show

So this weekend we had one good day to explore the outdoors, and well we decided to go and visit my family out in Stone Mountain. It was Keith's Birthday, so we celebrated with cake and good food, then we decided to head over to Stone Mountain Park. It was a blast. I will be honest, every other time I have been to the laser show I have not been impressed, but this time it was different!! I thought it was great! There were tons more lights and different music, I just really enjoyed it.

We took Bowen and left Judd with my mom, so it was nice to spend some time with him without the Lil guy there. We missed Judd, but it was nice to see Bowen and Mason play swords with one another, and of course I had to have the traditional funnel cake, one of my many food weaknesses. It was nice outside, not too cold in the evening, but just cool enough for a blanket and some snuggles!

Bowen loved the fireworks, it was so neat to see him laugh and giggle as they all went off. We had a great time , it will be nice when Judd can stay up a bit later and we can all go as a family. I enjoyed my weekend, and my night out with my 2 very special boys!

A big thanks to my momma who kept Judd Budd for me without hesitation so we could party at the park till about 10pm...

No pics, again I have been so super busy that the last thing I want to do is take pics while I am out....bummer I know, but I just feel that way right now! The weather hopefully will turn around again and Spring can finally arrive, and as soon as it does I will snag some updated pictures of the boys!!!

I am LIVE!!!!!!!!!!

So I am so thrilled to announce the unveiling of my new website!!! I have been working on this for months, and it has tested me a bit , but I am so very pleased with the result!! You can check it out here www.sugarsnapatl.com. Lots of great things are happening for Sugar Snap Photography, we are getting ready to expand, my very dear friend and business partner Tandy will be spearheading a new Sugar Snap in Orlando Florida! I am so excited for this expansion, we are looking forward to what God has in store for us the remainder of this year. Speaking of the remainder of this year, can you believe we are already almost in April??? Scheesh, the time is really flying!!

Just an update on all of us here, Paul is still working 2 jobs, he is really starting to see some results from his second job Mona Vie, I am so proud of him for reaching for his dreams and persevering, what a great example for our boys, to keep pressing on for what you believe in. He continually amazes me with his new look on life and leadership and I am so thankful he was God's provision.

My boys....oh, my boys....where to begin? I am on most days a referee, I try to keep the peace. They are such wonderful and loving kids, who keep me on my toes, and I would not have it any other way! They continue to bring such love and laughter to our home, we are truly blessed.

I am excited to help welcome a new baby to the Estes clan....(no not me) my sis in law April is expecting her 3rd, better her than me. I am so excited for them and am keeping my fingers crossed we will have a little pink added to the mix, that would be nice, we will see soon!!

I again am in a women's bible study on Thursday mornings, it is amazing ad I have meet some great women who I have come to admire, respect and adore. So if you are in the area and do not have plans on Thursday's come on, we would love to have as many great ladies as we can join us!

So I guess that is a little snippet as to what has been going on here, so busy, and there is so much more to report, but I am in a hurry and will have to make it another post.

I hope everyone has a wonderful rest of the week, I will try not to make the disappearances in between posts quite as long!!!

An Ode To Paul!

Valentines Day...what a silly holiday, I believe love should be celebrated all year long, not just one day. It is funny to watch all the men last minute running into the store to purchase the obligatory card, cheap box o chocolates and flowers. As I look back on this day (with no frills at all) it was pleasant. Just as I would have hoped for. My honey let me sleep in, and took the kids out for several hours so I could sleep. I woke up from my slumber and got tons of things finished around the house. I bagged 3 huge trash bags full of toys the boys will never miss, I started the move from winter clothes to summer clothes, and bagged the small ones to sell in the consignment sale next month, I cleaned the house and edited some pictures. It was great! Paul brought me home my favorite salad from Zaxby's and then we ordered pizza for dinner. You gotta love it when you don't have to cook....nice!

But I say all this to just get around to bragging on my hubby...I am not going to pretend online that we have the most perfect relationship, we argue and fuss and stomp around mad at one another from time to time(more me than him) but we are perfect for each other. I never dreamed the first time I met Paul that we would get married. Never did I dream this good old boy would steal my heart, but he did! I know he was surely not thinking I was his bride to be either... funny how God works things out!

I do know that he made me laugh(and still does) All the time!!! His lighthearted and carefree spirit were just what this city girl needed. He was a breath of fresh air with talent like none I had ever seen before, man can he sing!!! Paul has shown me so many things, how to forgive, how to love and how to fight for what is right, good and true. He has taught me some profound lessons only he could have guided me through. He is a big kid and so full of life, there is never a dull moment! He works so I can be home with our boys, and he works hard, even when he gets home, to play with the boys, give me a break and even occasionally do the dishes:)!

At the end of the day there is no blue Tiffany's box, there are no flowers and no cheap candy (or expensive candy at that) There is just love, love for each other. Everyday not just Feb 14, everyday! I have a genuine adoration for this man, only he can make me laugh when I am sad, only he can know something is wrong even when I do my best to hide it, only he understands this girl who is full of emotion....And in the quiet moments when I just know he thinks I am crazy, he chooses to love me for me. That is all I can ask for....he loves me, and I love him faults and all. And just when I think that silly feeling I used to get in the pit of my stomach is gone, he does something that gets me giddy all over again!

Love is a choice, not a feeling, I am getting better at claiming this. I may not "feel" in love everyday, Paul my hurt my feelings and be a jerk...but it is not about my feelings, it is about the choice I made to love him forever, serve him forever...my feelings may change, but my choice and covenant stands strong. Paul is God's perfect provision in my life...and I am one lucky girl. Happy Valentine's Day my lover...I will love you FOREVER!!!

My 2 Fellas!

So we have really enjoyed the past few weeks, we have had some wonderful weather! My Lil' Brother turned 13....crazy! We had a blast at Malibu Grand Prix! Photos coming soon! Other than that we have just been doing the same ole same ole! Not much happening, except, kids growing, learning, walking, talking...the usual! This picture is of my 2 big fellas! They are silly and I love it!! This was at the dinner table, after dinner, we played around, this is one of my favorite sets of Bowen and Paul!!

So that is my grand update...I guess no news is good news!! I am ready for the warmer weather...that's about it!