Actually, the prompt for the Shutter Sisters and Papercoterie Picture the Holidays was “Every Little Thing”.

Here is the prompt for Day 6:

“Begin this day with eyes wide open to the tiny wonders that are constantly swirling all around you. Even at the most ordinary time of day, while doing the most mundane tasks, little moments of enchantment will reveal themselves. Find some small delight today.”

Nothing is never mundane with the two Crazies involved.  This time they got to get Gigi involved and talked her into building their Christmas gingerbread house with them.  What a treat for them all!  But what they REALLY could not wait to do was eat the gingerbread house.  So after building and decorating I have a very short time frame in which to record their masterpiece for posterity.

My “Little Things” are the little fingers who want to always be involved and create.  I find delight in them.

Day 6: Every Little Thing

But what would this post be with out showing you what is really happening

Here are the Crazies ready to be done with the pictures and the house!

Do you all have any family traditions that your little ones just never let you forget to do?

Cheers,

K

Well, it has been a really crazy week here! I have been taking pictures but just have not sat down long enough awake to post any!

So now I will be playing catch up which I think is not what I am supposed to be feeling or doing this season.  But it is still nice to take the time to sit and think about the images I want to capture and then get them and then put them together to tell our holiday story.

This prompt for Picture the Holidays was titled “You Hold the Key”.  In essence you hold the key to your happiness is how I interpreted this.  What do I do when I need to reset things or change perspective.  Well there are a lot of things that come to mind…music, napping, hiking…but really I need to just sit and take the time with the most important things in my life…my boys.  Yes, they are crazy and yes, sometimes they make me crazy, but I love them and spending time showing them what is important is the key to my happy life.  If they are happy with life then I am happy.

So this day I set out to carve out that time with them.  We sat and read a favorite holiday story together this time…The Night Before Christmas.  We actually read it twice.  It was nice when we were done playing with the camera to sit some more together and just keep reading.  We took time to do what would make us happy…being together.

So here it is:

Day 4 You Hold The Key

I would love to hear what it is that puts things into perspective for you during the crazy times! Thanks for stopping by!

Cheers,

K

Yay!  Wow.  This was so much fun! Which is what the holidays SHOULD be when you have two little Crazies to enjoy it with!

Today is Day 2 of Papercoterie’s Picture the Holidays session and the subject was Reframing the Season.

Here is the prompt we each received…

“Beginning December in a calm state of mind might seem easy (now). But, the frenzy of the holiday season can get the best of us and sometimes can come on with very little warning. There will be good days and bad but the gist is to look at this holiday season a little differently. This season we aren’t only going to ‘hope’ to enjoy it (amidst the chaos) we will enjoy it! It only takes a little reframing.

As a symbol of looking at things a little differently, today you’ll be using a literal frame for your image. You get to decide what goes in your frame today and how you choose to capture it!”

So I took it literally in many ways.  First, it’s obvious I used a real frame.  But then I showed how we are going to view the holidays…we turned the place upside down! We are going to enjoy the heck out whatever we can!  We just may have to stand on our heads to get a new perspective about some things but we will have come around eventually and enjoy ourselves.  Crazy giggles and everything!

So here it is:

Day 2: Reframing the Season: From Our Crazy Perspective!

Copyrighted © 2011 Kasia Gilbert {Canon 40D, ISO 100, 50mm, Off-camera Flash, Remote Shutter}

Okay so that was a lot of fun but you surely understand that it never works with just a single shot, right?  Want to see some other from the day?

My husband thinks I am crazy but that is really why he married me.  He is fun but a lot more, um, “controlled” then me. So when he saw these next few images he just shook his head, kissed me on the forehead and smiled as he walked away…wonder what he really thought?  Oh well! He’s lucky to have me! LOL!

Okay so no, my children did not see me do this.  No, they are not allowed to do this.  But hey, mom HAD to test the remote shutter.  How else would you do that effectively with out jumping on the bed, hmmm?  That’s what I thought.  You know you would so do it too!

Copyrighted © 2011 Kasia Gilbert

There is another member of our family who likes things to be kept orderly besides my husband.  That would be our beloved 4-legged first born, Rebel.  He came in to correct us of our unruly behavior and uncontrolled laughter.  Plus we were messing up the bed!

Well, he decided to shut down the operation by getting in the frame and then by blocking the shot all together.  Let’s just put a green hat and shoes on him and call him the Grinch.  Spoil sport.

Notice Rebel’s disapproving stare our direction.  Well, he was probably right.  This is where things sort of started coming apart…

I want to thank Crazy #2 for trying to save his mother and well Crazy #1 I can’t really blame you for sitting there laughing.  Rebel…you were no help…really.

So, there you have it.  Crazy in our house.  Where the holidays get a different perspective perhaps.  Enjoy your holidays your own way with your families and friends and traditions!  You KNOW we will!

Cheers,

K

Well it is now December 1.  We are still not completely unpacked.  That has been frustrating but it is what it is.  The flooring still needs to be put in upstairs (of course that is my whole office space!) before the boxes that are downstairs and in the garage can be moved up and unpacked.  Someday.

The hardest thing for me right now is that it is December, Thanksgiving has come and gone and I do not have a single twinkly light on display.  It is killing me a little inside each day that passes and my Christmas decorations remain in their moving box.  This is my absolute favorite time of year.  The only holiday that I decorate for is Christmas.  There is something about the white lights and delicate ornaments and smell of the pine wreath and green in the garland wrapping the staircase banister that just makes me feel like a kid again.

So, since this has not been the best move (okay the worst on record from even my childhood growing up a military brat) I needed something to turn my frown upside down, holiday style.  That is where Picture the Holidays has come in to play for me!

I am super excited about joining and participating in the online “class” that has been put together by Tracy Clark of Shutter Sisters and Papercoterie.  It is called Picture the Holidays.  The premise is to slow down, take time to enjoy what this season is all about and take some pictures along the way.  I have not been good at all with blogging or with getting things settled but I really just need to take some time to BE STILL.  I need to look around and grab my phone or my camera and my two crazies and make some memories for at least the next 31 days.  I pray that will last a lot longer then that but let’s start with the 31 days.

Each of the 31 days I receive an email prompting me to stop and think about an aspect of the season and then interpret that how way I would like.  I can do that literally or try to put into a picture a feeling or a sense.  At the end of the 31 days our images will be put into a book just for us.  This is not only going to be an exercise in deliberate pause and reflection for me but I also want to use the next 31 days to stretch my creative muscles and work on better images.  So here we go…

Day One: Holding onto Gratitude

Image Copyrighted © 2011 Kasia Gilbert  {Canon 40D, 50mm, ISO100, 1.4f, 1/30sec, Edited}

Okay, first things first…what is it?

My oldest son, lovingly referred to as Crazy #1 on occasion, made the most profound Thanksgiving statement this year.  We were fortunate enough to be surrounded by family this year for Thanksgiving and went around to everyone present, each saying one thing we were grateful for.  Of course there was the obvious choices of family, roofs over our heads, food on the table, our faith, etc etc…not to downplay any of these (I was one of the obvious!).  But when it got around to Crazy #1 and he was asked what he was thankful for his response was “The world.”  So simple and succinct but really true.  As a 5 year old resident of this world he really truly loves it.  He loves the people.  He loves the animals.  He loves the weather.  He loves school.  He has such a true and loving heart that I fear for him finding out that the world is not as wonderful. We don’t shelter him but he really just seems to love the world as it is.  What a lesson I need to take from him.  He is not worldy, he loves the Lord.  But he loves the world.  Reminds me of one of the earliest verses we learned as kids: John 3:16 For God so loved the World that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever should believe in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (emphasis added). God loves this world and my Crazy #1 is thankful for the world…so maybe I should stop and look around and see what they see and love and be thankful for all that has been given to me too.  Thank you D-man for your wise 5 year old spirit.  That is why I decided to capture today him holding on to a globe, a representation of this world that he (and now I) am grateful for.

Now.  The breakdown on the image capture.  Not great, I know.  Today was dark and cloudy and I have misplaced my tripod amongst the moving boxes.  So I should have instead shot a higher ISO and a faster shutter speed to make it sharper.  Hand shake, that’s me.  I am happy with the composition and the depth of field.  Not so happy with the sharpness.  But I know how to fix that now don’t I.  I knew when I took the photo but I let myself rush to get it done instead of slowing down like I should and enjoy the process.  At least I sat still long enough to really think about what I wanted the image to be.  I’ll work on the process next time.

Cheers,

K