He Made The Team!!

Well cuts came and went and my little brother Blair made the Winninpeg Blue Bombers football team!!! We are so proud of him and can't wait to see him August 10th when he flies into Vancouver to play against the B.C. Lions! Here's the latest article on Blair from the Winnipeg newspaper:

Canucks' showtime:
Atkinson, Picard ready to prove themselves
By JIM BENDER, SUN MEDIA

Although they are still "futures," patience has paid off for a pair of Canadian prospects.
Receiver Blair Atkinson spent the entire 2006 seasons practising with the Blue Bombers but never got a chance to suit up once. Dominic Picard suited up for the odd Winnipeg game but was essentially limited to converts.

But Atkinson will make his CFL debut when the Bombers open the regular season against the Eskimos in Edmonton on Thursday. And Picard will start at centre.
"I came out last year, practised for the whole year and waited my turn," Atkinson said yesterday. "This is my turn and hopefully, I can make the most of it."
Although the former University of Manitoba Bison is now one of only two healthy Canadian receivers left, his status is the result of unexpectedly turning heads at training camp.

"I feel that if I hadn't had at least a decent training camp, I wouldn't be here right now," said the 6-foot-4, 213-pound Langley, B.C. native. "I'd be out somewhere else looking for a job. But I had a good training camp and I guess that's the result of it, you get some good playing time ...
"But I'm not out of the woods yet. We've got a bunch of Canadian receivers hurt still. But I can only go out and worry about my own status."

Atkinson, 26, will likely back up veteran Jamie Stoddard as the other non-import pass catchers -- O'Neil Wilson, Arjei Franklin and Adam Eckert -- remain in sick bay. But he has already been handed special teams duties.
"I don't think I'll be nervous," said Atkinson, who spent Sunday night getting congratulatory calls from his ex-Bison teammates. "I'll be anxious, though. I've been waiting to play a regular-season game for about a year now. I didn't get any action last year so, I'm anxious to get out there and make an impression to the rest of the league and to our team."

My New Birth Announcements!

A client asked me if I did birth announcements and it got me thinking... well the answer WAS "no"... but now it may be "yes". Here's my first three trys at it... what do you think? You might want to double click on them to get a better view of them. Thanks!!

Ashleigh's Third Birthday!

Yesterday my little baby girl turned THREE! I just can't believe that three years has come and gone. But it's time to celebrate and so we threw her a Princess Party... all the guests had to come dressed in their fanciest gowns! Here's the invite I made for it:





Here's Ash all done up in her princess outfit we got especially for her party... it just KILLED her that she couldn't wear it until the party! Look... she was just as shocked as I was that she's already three!!




Awww.... my little cutie all ready for her party and willing to pose for some photos (for once!).





This is the cake I made her to go with her Princess theme.






This is Ash's cousin Erika... they're only a month and a half apart in age and they are best little friends... it's just too cute!






Our friends Tyson and Lisa's little boy, Carter, came dressed up as the most handsome Prince in the land, fully equipped with a sword and shield (in case he was needed to slay any dragons or save any maidens in distress!!).





Ash's little buddy Strachan also came dressed as a Prince... actually, "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince". It was the cutest thing ever!!!!!





The helium balloons were a hit... especially with Madison!







The party was thoroughly enjoyed by both young....





.... AND old!!!!!!!! (Yes, he is on his knees!)






And here's a picture of all the Princes and Princesses together... oh, what a night!!

Happy Birthday Angel!!!! We love you!!!!

Just some random pics...

Poor little Jakey man took a tumble off our deck (only a 6 inch drop) right onto a rock bed... OUCH! He looks like he's been in a fight... poor kiddo!














Ashleigh and her apples... she just can't get enough! And the ones she likes best are usually bigger than her head!! :)






And last but definitely not least... my little photographer!!! Every time I pull out my camera (which is a few times a day!!) Ash runs over to the toybox and pulls out HER camera and starts snapping everything she can... "Say Cheese Jakey! Look at Ashwee, Jaker!"... I'm so proud!!!

Edited to add to: Shameless Brag...

Holy Cr@p!!!!! There was an awesome write up on Blair in the Winnipeg Free Press today! Not only does it sound like he's starting to get recognized, but the team's starting quarterback Kevin Glenn was singing his praises!!! Woohoo!!
Click on this link to read the article:

Winninpeg Free Press Article on Blair

GO UNCLE BLAIR!!!!

Shameless brag...

... on my little bro Blair! As you may or may not know, he's in training camp with the Winnipeg Bluebombers right now and we're all crossing our fingers for him! But it sure doesn't sound like he's needing it... a few days ago, he got Catch of the Day with two circus catches up in the air over many defenders!!

Then yesterday he was named Star of the Day by the head coach Doug Berry AND the Winnipeg Sun! Here's the quote:

"STAR OF THE DAY

Not only does non-import wide receiver Blair Atkinson keep getting open, he keeps making solid catches whenever the ball comes his way. And he was the most noticeable pass-catcher in yesterday's camp."

It must have been the "Go Uncle Blair" chants that me and Jake do before bed every night! LOL

I'll keep you all posted and... GO UNCLE BLAIR!!!!

Maternity Shoot

Well I did my VERY FIRST maternity shoot last night. Woo! That was scary!! But I managed to pull it off and here are some of the results. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE some honest opinions on these. She's hired me to do her newborn shoot as well so I really want her to like them!
Thanks for looking!!

Ash's Photoshoot

She just looked so darned cute in her little bikini!! She got it from Strachan for her birthday last year and it's still holdin' strong! In fact, it even looks cuter now that she's not in diapers!! Hope you like 'em!!

We Bought a HOUSE!!

Ted and I bought our first house!! We are so excited and it will be perfect for our little family. It's a three level split and has 4 bedrooms. I'm just so excited that the kids will have a little backyard to play in and I won't have toys EVERYWHERE! I'll even have an office to store all my camera equipment, laptop and school stuff.

The house itself needs a lot of work but we're all up for the challenge, AGAIN! Here's some photos from MLS that I downloaded for you all to see. Enjoy!

Finally!! A New Post!!!

Here's the path that we sat on to picnic (Ashleigh's favorite thing to do these days!!). I used the Orton Technique on the photo for any of you who familiar with Photoshop Techniques.





This is my most successful attempt (and still not that successful) at shooting a bumble bee in a flower... man that's hard... those suckers move fast!! Click on the pic to get a better view of the little guy.





We went to Campbell Valley Park this weekend. Ash LOVES walks and Jake... well... Jake is happy doing anything!! LOL
Here's a couple shots I got. I've been trying to shoot manual more and consequently, half the photos were either underexposed or over... argh! Thanks for looking and sorry it's taken so long to post!!