MAMA'S GOT A NEW TOY

After years and years of wanting a new camera, but just not being able to justify that I actually needed one enough to spend the huge amount of money it was going to cost...I got one! I went in to the camera store to look at lenses and left wanting a new camera. Technology has advanced so much in the 6 years that I have had my camera that I really didn't need the fancy one I had been looking at, so my investment wasn't going to be nearly has drastic. I thought about it for about a month, had a few photo instances where I wished I had it during that month, and then I decided to take the plunge.

It has taken some getting used to, and even tonight I did something silly at a shoot that I didn't know how to fix. My new camera does so much and I haven't even tried to mess around with many of the features because I am just trying to get a hang of the small differences from my old camera. The new one does video, and I haven't even once tried it. I guess get a bit nervous about those kinds of things. But overall, I am pretty happy with it.

Anyway, the number one reason I wanted a better camera is that I could take better pictures in low light. So one day while Ashley was over and I had Porter as well, I took a bunch of pics of the kids playing around. I took SO many because I was trying to get a feel for all the new buttons. This only means that I ended up with way more pictures then I could ever choose from. I love all these faces so much that it makes it hard not to want to share them all. These were taken on June 9th.

PORTER AND THE BOW-TIE SHIRT CHARMS ALL

On June 2, little Porter arrived at my home looking especially dapper in a bow-tie and suspender shirt. He looked so cute that I just had to take a few snaps of his amazing face. I didn't get very many because he was on the move pretty fast, but I was able to catch a few winners of this winner. Love him so much!

STAR OF THE STAGE

Stella's performances with Clayton Productions were really cute this spring. I loved her adorable costume and the songs. Her group did a medley of theme songs from old TV shows where they sang "Happy Days," "Beverly Hillbillies," and "The Love Boat." Stella's solo was during "The Love Boat," and she nailed it every single time. I was always so proud, but of course...not surprised.

It was a really rainy May and so many of her outdoor performances were either moved inside or canceled. One of her shows was supposed to be held outdoors but because of the rain she had a second show at the Valley Fair Mall. Cute Ady came to support her and I know it meant a lot to have a friend come to one of her shows. Porter and Grandpa Sallay came too.

The following week one of her outdoor shows was finally not rained out and we were able to enjoy her singing outside. Stella was excited to have Grandma Evans, Ava, and Ashley make it to this show and she said they were her favorite guests because they brought flowers.

A fun thing about this spring is that we were able to talk Stella's best friend from preschool, Averi, into joining her group. Stella loved having a friend to see in class each week and have a friend to hang out with at performances.

I'm always so proud of Stella when she is on stage. Most of the kids that perform with her are pretty good, but I wouldn't even know for sure, because all I see is Stella. I think she is the best and no one can convince me otherwise.