Well my lovely friends, I’ll be shoving off on Monday to the great state of New Jersey to attend Victory Jam 2009 at Harvey Cedars Bible Conference on Long Beach Island.  Victory Jam, or VJam as us repeat offenders call it, is a gathering of about 300 middle school children, counselors, one poor nurse, camp staff, and families at the beach to have fun, hear God’s Word, and build relationships.  My husband has been going since 2000 (I think) as the head Audio Video technician and this will be my 5th year attending with him.  (Year #5 was interrupted due to the fact I was pregnant with my second child and forbidden from traveling all the way to NJ so close to my due date.)  So, if in your daily thoughts, you would just remember us, the many, many children and people behind the scene who make this thing work, we would greatly appreciate it.  We jokingly call this our “vacation” because it’s really our trip to the beach where we see Josh, but don’t have much time with him, and where he exists on Vitamin Water & 5-Hour Energy drinks, but has the time of his life.  Please pray for the hearts and lives of these dear children that they would feel loved and cared for at such a tender age in their lives.  And pray for ME!  I’m going to be a part-time single parent with two children at the beach, and as you might remember, I don’t like sand!  Thanks so much you all, and we’ll miss you!  I won’t have my beloved camera with me because it’s at the “doctor.”  But  will have my iPhone and my Flip Mino, so look for updates on my facebook page!  Here’s a few photos from last year….I’m off to fold some laundry and watch The Day the Earth Stood Still.

Water balloon volley ball

Lucas (a counselor) encouraging his team

Harvey Cedars at dusk

The Sroka gang last year

One of the many messy games – chocolate covered bagel on a string

Cheeseballs attached with peanut butter

Some more peanut butter

Bethany – our church’s fearless leader

The human chain – last leg of the relay race

Jimmy the banana man

Okay…so I’m totally in love with these photos and it was waaaaaaay hard just picking a handful to show you in the preview blog. So, to wet your appetite even more (and basically because I’m in love with this song), here’s a slide show of Mark & Lindsey’s engagement. Go ahead, play it over and over again….goodness knows I have. Someone’s gonna take me and my husband out some day for some shots of us just so I can put them to a groovy song like this. Enjoy!

I have been checking the Weather.com app on my iPhone all week hoping and praying it wouldn’t rain this past Sunday.  The weather here in Maryland has been crazy unpredictable these past few weeks, and it was changing daily on my weather app.  Luckily, or by the grace of God, I was blessed with a mild, rain-free Sunday evening in Fells Point for Mark & Lindsey’s engagement photos.

I believe I met Mark when my family first moved to Maryland from Oklahoma and we began attending the same church as his family.  I’m reaching waaaaaay back in my memory here, but I believe I would have been about 8 years old then.  And I met Lindsey not too long after in the fourth grade at Belvedere Elementary School.  I remember that year well because I misspelled “chimney” in the class spelling bee and didn’t make it as far as I’d hoped.  Don’t worry though, I wasn’t crushed too badly.

Well, my point is, I’ve known Mark & Lindsey seperately for a number of years, but I always find it so neat when two people I know, who I didn’t know knew each other, find each other, fall in love, and begin a life together.  Isn’t it a small world?  They were such a great couple to photograph.  All I had to do was tell them tons of cheezy jokes and stories, and they just laughed it up!  Plus I think they were a little nervous being in Fells Point on a Sunday with tons of people watching them cuddle, kiss, and do engaged-people stuff.  But everything went great.

And what I loved was that Lindsey did some research on some ideas she had before we went out.  She’d found Max Wanger‘s site and loved the session he did of a couple with a huge balloon.  So, we tried some things with balloons and some without.  All the while, I felt like we could have been the pied piper and gotten little children everywhere to follow us with those balloons!  They were coming out of nowhere saying, “ball-oon, ball-oon!”

I had a smashing good time (like my new word) with you both, Mark & Lindsey, and can’t wait for your wedding this October.  I know it will rock!

My husband thinks this one would look appropriate with a pitch fork

Do you know what we spelled?

And I think this one has to be my absolute favorite!  Look at the way he looks at her.

Here’s a tease from Mark & Lindsey’s engagement.  I also wanted to share with you and ask you what you think of this “effect” I put on their photo?  I’m trying a retro/vintage look….kind of like old Polaroids.  It’s fun to experiment.  Let me know your opinions, and any ideas as well.  I’d love to hear them!

*make sure you click on the photo for a larger view

The left is the one with the “retro” effect, the right is the original.

About three weeks ago, Beverly and I had the great honor of seeing a fine young man named Drew celebrate his graduation from the United States Naval Academy.  Drew’s mom was my daughter’s preschool teacher this year and Emma just loved her.  When she asked if I’d be there to document this occasion for her son, I was honored.

Now all of you know I’m no graduate of the USNA, but I’ve known some, and those men and women work HARD to get where they are.  They are some of our nation’s finest representatives,  and the promise they make to serve and protect us are nothing short of heroic.  But just as they work hard, they deserve to party hard too.  Bev & I had such a fun time watching Drew relax with his family & friends,  play some cornhole &  beer whiffle ball, and eat his heart out…he had certainly earned it.

Drew, we wish you the best in your future endeavors.  Enjoy your short time off, and don’t forget to call your mom often, because I know she’s gonna miss you!

The Navy Ram

Cornhole

This is what Drew will be training for

Drew’s brother playing some cornhole

This gift was an Orioles hat Drew’s friend took from him 4 years ago when he entered the Academy

He was surprised they’d kept it all these years

A loving father