A Christmas (after actually) Morning @ Mom's

 There was ice on the ground, the sun was just beginning to pop over the trees, and among the trees there was quiet...almost no sound.  Just the sound of a few birds and the sounds of a warm house.  The heater was roaring and so were the snores from the sleepers.  Me, I was wide awake and ready to take some photos.  

Just wanted to share what I woke up to the day after Christmas at my mom's house.  While the house was still quiet and everyone else was still asleep.  I, of course, took my camera and began shooting what I thought would be something for me to remember and pass on to anyone willing to take a peek.

(I was also trying to perfect my skills in manual mode.  So none of these photos have been edited.)

 Here sits Santa, Gingerbread Man, and Mr. Snowman in the living area.

 Christmas theme pot holder hanging on the kitchen cabinet.

 Mom's Christmas scene lit up with a few "AA" batteries....I was playing with my manual mode on this photo.

 This is Me-Me, my mom's beloved dog.  Since I was up early, I let her out to do her "business".  As she was walking up to come back in, I snapped this cute little shot of her looking at me, like, open the door fool!  This dog is 14 years old and it's getting hard for her to get around the place.  She wakes up and can hardly walk due to arthritis and she doesn't leave my mom's side, literally! Where ever my mom is, that dog is right under her.  You bump into her and she falls helplessly on the floor.  But she is a sweet dog.  

As I was sitting in the living room, I noticed my toes were sure getting warm fast.  I looked down and saw a little read lite connected to his small size heater.  This small heater put out some heat and my toes sure did stay warm that morning.

Paw-Paw Chauvin

I'd like to introduce you to my grandfather, Ray Chauvin.  He lives in Denham Springs, LA. and has always been the sweetest person!  When I was a little girl,  he used to call me "Lucy"...why he did this, well, you know, I've never asked.  I guess I could do that huh?

I haven't visited with him in almost a year except for when I'd see him at the doctor's office I used to work at.  He'd come in the office with that sweet smile and that sparkle in his eyes.  Everyone at that office would tell what a sweetheart he was...but I already knew that!

So, here he is, the stunning and forever handsome, Mr. Ray Chauvin:

Photo Opt with Mom

Just another snapshot of my mother and I...thought I'd share my manual mode, flash setting, & camera timer skills!

Christmas Morning #10

Another Christmas has flown by and another morning to wake at 1:22 a.m.  That's what time Cameron figured out that Santa had stopped by to deliver.  So, of course my husband and I drag out of bed to watch our daughter open her gifts...AND of course I had to have my camera handy while dad had the camcorder!  Here are a few snapshots I captured that EARLY Saturday morning:

Hope everyone had a happy and safe Christmas!  

Ready or not, hear comes 2011!

Dancing Queen!

Let me introduce you to my mother-in-law, the "Dancing Queen", aka Shirley!!  Now I can tell you that back in her day, she WAS literally a dancing queen!  I've heard story after story about how Mrs. Shirley like to boogie-woogie on the dance floor with Mr. Roy Sr.  It's very rare that you can catch her in dancing mood!  I was lucky enough to do that this past week.

One of my husband's Christmas gift was an iTunes card and he decided to download some tunes that obviously got Shirley to loosen up and shake a leg!  The music was for him and his father to listen to while they were both outside relaxing.  As Shirley and I were cleaning and cooking we happened to open the kitchen window to let some cool air in, but instead we let the cool air bring in some all time good music!  

So we both headed outside to take a closer listen and as I began to shake my butt, Shirley decided to shake hers too!  I had to run and grab my camera.  As I returned she was already out of breath from all the dancing I missed.  But she still had some energy to "shake" it a little more...just enough for me to capture these photos!

Thanks Shirley Jean for the great snapshots and the laughs!  Love darling :-)

Melissa  

The Roe Family Christmas 2010

Well...it's already begun!  Christmas time is here and in full swing gang!  We decided to open gifts for and from each other Christmas Eve afternoon.  We did this partially since Cameron was so excited and she was counting down the hours till the rest of the family arrived tonight for our annual Christmas Eve celebration.  I think doing this calmed her nerves a bit and was only the beginning of what lies ahead when Santa comes!  Me and my husband snapped a few photos today and I'd like to share them now.  I'm sure during the rest of the Holiday weekend I'll have tons more to share, so stay tuned. 

This time is for family, friends, and letting all your loved ones know how much they mean to you.  This should be done all year round, but during the Holidays it makes my heart joyful and teaches me that no matter what....your family will ALWAYS be there!!

So this is for all my wonderful family and friends that mean bunches to me....Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!

Melissa :-)

Check out more Christmas photos HERE!

2010 Girl Scout Christmas Party

Of course our annual GS Christmas party had to end up at Leo's!  The girls had a blast, even though they may have had blisters on their feet and bruises on their bottoms by the end of the 2 hours....and some moms too!!  We had plenty of food and hot chocolate to boot.  I snapped  bunch of photos and hope everyone out there enjoys taking a look.  Thanks Susan and all of the other moms for making this party a hit!

Click HERE to view GS party photos!

Going to Grandma's!

It's been about 9 years since I've seen my Maw-maw Johnson in Alabama since my Paw-paw passed away.  Not keeping in touch with my grandmother has been the hardest thing now for me to even bear.  I'm still not sure why I didn't call once every few months, but I just didn't.  I think back and realize that maybe it was my grandfather passing away that was so hard for me to deal with, so NOT dealing with it was easiest.  I know now how stupid that is and calling my grandstander up just out of the blue made me happy and her as well.  I will never do anything crazy like that again.

My family and I decided to take a road trip to visit her and my Uncle and his family.  It was the best 4 hours I've spent in a car in a LOOOOONG time!!  Didn't seem to take us long to get there, but the over night visit went by dreadfully fast!  We were able to catch up and have some good eatin's too!  The best thing about my grandmother is that she loves to cook and does it very well.  We talked, ate, visited, talked, ate more, and talked till the sun went down.  I was able to introduce my family to my Uncle Greg, Aunt Rhonda, and my cousin Kyle, who are BIG Bama fans.  I had to be introduced myself to them since it's been so long!  

We all had a blast and can't wait to plan another road trip!  Next time, we will definitely stay a little longer.  And make sure to bring everyone lots of PURPLE & GOLD!

Love ya Maw-maw Johnson

(Love ya too Paw-paw)

Click HERE to view more photo's!

My sweet Cameron aka: "Doodle-bugs"

Click HERE to view more photo's of Cameron!

To: Mom

My beautiful mother!  

My family has been visiting with my mom more lately than ever since we are officially "homeless".  We are currently building a new home and visiting mom on the weekends is like a get-a-way for us.  We are staying with my great in-laws and on the weekends we need to change our surroundings.  

Each time I visit, she is always on Facebook.  Checking out new posts of friends a submerging herself in pictures of the Philippines.  So, I captured her in her moment of relaxation and some what of a get-a-way for her as well!

Love,

Your daughter :-)

All American Kaleigh!

A free picture collage by Smilebox

Cameron's Halloween 2010

It's that time of year again...Halloween.  What am I gonna be? What am I gonna wear?  What are all my friends dressing up as?  Where are we gonna go trick-r-treating this year and with who?  These are the questions I get asked every year since my daughter was about 5 yrs. old.  She was so undecided at the beginning of October, undecided until about a week before the big 31st!  We went shopping for a cheerleader costume and stubbled upon this "Groovy" costume instead and of course she HAD to have it.  It turned out very cute and VERY short.  I thought maybe her father might freak due to the length, but he never spoke a word...at least to me.  So we bought the costume, colored eyelashes, and a peace sign sticker for her face, and bam....here she is looking like a 16 yr. old instead of a 10 yr old child.  I have to admit, she does look beautiful and she strutted her stuff that chilly Saturday night like she was the "it" girl....and to me she was!!  Even though in the beginning, I would try to ignore her question after question about what costume she was going to buy...I now know that I will miss the questions.  I'll miss them since I know this year is probably the last year for her to really dress up and go door to door.  She's growing up and I theres nothing I can do to stop it.  All I do now is take in all her childhood moments and know now not to take anything for granite...even if she bugs the crap out of me!!

I will always love you Cam-bug,

mommy

Biloxi Weekend Getaway

One weekend, several months ago, my family decided to take a weekend trip to Biloxi beach and just relax.  We asked my mother-in-law to join us and she did.  We had the best time...eating, laughing, and playing in the sun.  The weather was perfect and the light was perfect.  So, of course I had my camera and went to shooting everything like always.  But one of my favorite pic's shot, was the one my husband captured of my daughter and I....and you can view it at the top of my blog page.  We had a good time that weekend and plan to go back again!  

Mother's Day 2010

I know Mother's Day has come and gone....but I was going through my photo file and stumbled on this one.  Since my mom just had surgery, I'm thinking of her as she recovers and this picture fits in perfect.  My mom is the most beautiful person I know.  I love my mom and my sister and they are two people I love dearly with all my heart.  Great moms deserve a Mother's Day EVERYDAY!

Happy Halloween!

High School Seniors caught by the photoCHICKS!

All the Seniors that joined Michelle and I on a gorgeous Sunday, enjoyed the photo-shoot as much as we did.  We had a great time laughing, playing, and posing.  Asked to be a model for a day isn't hard....as you can tell by the photos.

And then there was more....here a few Smileboxes of my Senior students:

Free collage generated with Smilebox

Picture collage generated with Smilebox