The Visitors...

Grandparents are special people. These two grandparents are particularly special – they are Mason's grandparents. They live in Kansas and, despite the distance, they still manage to be loving, supportive and a big part of Mason's life.

I don't get a lot of opportunities to interact with girls, being that I have a son. When my nieces come to visit, it's a whole new ballgame – ribbons and dresses, boy bands and giggles. Not unlike mother and son relationships, I have found that grandpa and granddaughter relationships are very special...

...so special that a Grandpa with few computer skills will assist his granddaughter with online Webkin activities.

Oh, the joys of grandparenthood...snuggles and kisses, hugs and special time together.

Clown Dog on Christmas...

Christmas is the time for family, food and gifts...electronic gifts. Mason received a remote-controlled helicopter and Brian was giving it a test run when Callie decided it looked like it might be fun...

...she was hesitant at first.

And then the circus dog came out in her. She caught some air trying to get to it!




Mason got a turn too. Fun was had by all!

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve is Coming...

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...in the hopes that Grandma and Grandpa would soon be here!

And Mark, Elizabeth, Brooklyn, Jordan and Madison! Whoa! It's going to be a busy holiday season around the Fleske household.

The Christmas tree has a lot of room to breathe this year. There are lots of presents to be unwrapped! We can't wait!!!

Polar Opposites...

I had the pleasure of meeting a childhood friend of mine in downtown Atlanta over the weekend for a mini-portrait session. As a child, Cara was painfully shy, but certainly has blossomed over the years. It was interesting to meet her boys....

Austin, her oldest, is as outgoing as any child could be. All smiles and energy, he's a photographer's dream. I'm sure he would have let me take his photo all day long. I even got a hug when I left. Cool.

Then there is Trent. He's of the "very serious" variety and so much like Cara that it was scary. This is him just being stoic...I didn't ask him to stand this way – he just did. He didn't seem to mind me snapping away, but I certainly wasn't going to get a smile out of him – even if I did make a fool out of myself. He wanted no part of me and every time I got close, he would bury his face in Cara's neck. He he. Good luck with that, Cara.

I am hoping the next time she and her family come to town that we can spend some time together. Let's hope her husband doesn't get deployed to El Paso again. See you next time!

Thanksgiving in Summerville:

It had been several years since our family made the short trip to South Carolina to visit my Aunt Ginny and Uncle Lynn. In those short years a lot has happened: Aunt Ginny had a stroke and has made a full recovery, Dale was diagnosed with type 1 Diabetes, Brian and I bought a house and my brother died. It's been a long year – for sure.

I got the opportunity to spend some time with my favorite uncle at my brother's memorial in September and, since it had been so long since we had visited them in Summerville, I invited myself to Thanksgiving dinner this year. My only request – fried turkey. I know you're thinking, "wait a minute, you invited yourself AND made a request?" Yep.

As you can see, I got my request and then some! There was a traditional baked turkey (far), fried turkey (the only turkey in focus) and infrared baked turkey (front)! Wow!

There was also smoked Boston Butt. Not that there is ever any shortage of food at my Aunt and Uncle's, but this is over the top!

I had the pleasure of meeting my Aunt's niece. Don't ask me how that relates to me...it's confusing. My cousin, Lynn Jr. (far), and my Aunt's niece's husband, Larry (front), had the privilege of carving the turkeys.

Again, the amount of food was over the top! Mountain o' turkey, here I come.

And there was this. This is sweet potato casserole. Notice there are no marshmallows? Those are delicious, toasted pecans on top. Only one word to describe that – whoa! Move over boring marshmallows...pecans are in the house!

I really think Uncle Lynn missed his calling in life. He stood in that very spot for most of my visit...he may have been fattening us up for the slaughter.

On Saturday morning we had homemade oatmeal. Now, this may not sound like a glamorous breakfast, but it's loaded with butter, brown sugar and raisins. OMG. Yum. What a great way to start the day! Thanks, Uncle Lynn!!!

I promised Mason we would make the drive to Charleston to collect shells at Isle of Palms. Most people like to go to Folley Beach in Charleston, but we know Isle of Palms is the best-kept-secret of the Charleston area. It's never crowded and parking is easy and free....absolute perfection. Shhhh. Don't tell anyone!

It was quite chilly on the water on Saturday morning, but we found quite a few treasures and enjoyed walking on the beach. Note the hesitation to get close to the water....

...until the water came to him! Brrrrr!

We arrived at the beach shortly after the tide went out, so there was a myriad of things to discover on our walk. This is the carcass of some kind of crab...I think.

Naturally, Mason wanted to put it into the bucket and carry it home. I had to put the kybosh on that idea. Ew.

"Take my picture with it!" Ew.

The patterns left in the sand from the tide were beautiful and felt really interesting on my feet.

It was a great Thanksgiving! Maybe we'll go back next year. I think I can get into this not cooking thing. Hopefully next year Brian can join us.

Keep the Change...

Brian and I have been customers at Bank of America since moving to Atlanta in 2005, and I must say that I'm not a big fan of Bank of America for one major reason: their hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. That means, my dear readers, that when I need to go to the bank, I must do so during working hours. That also means that, on the days I need to go to the bank, I have to spend my beloved lunch break at the bank. Awesome. NOT! Yeah, I said it.

There is one feature of being a Bank of America customer that I do like: Keep the Change. Every time Brian and I use our debit card, the transaction gets rounded up to the nearest dollar. So, if I spend $1.01, I really spent $2 because the bank will put the 99¢ into my savings account. Does that make for a messy check register, yes. But there is a big advantage to using the Keep the Change program at Bank of America: they will match 5% of your savings and add it to your account. We are getting paid to use the Keep the Change program. Check it out...

We have been part of the Keep the Change program since 2008! That's a lot of savings in less than 2 years...just for using our debit card!

Some people like to go to bed early and some people like to stay up late. I am a night owl, so it was no surprise to me when Mason turned out to be a night owl as well.

There are quite a few nights that I stay up late editing photos or chatting with an old friend on Facebook. Sometimes it's a little too late for my little night owl. I get a giggle out of coming into the living room to find my little monster sleeping in a big, cozy Lazy Boy recliner. Hey, at least he chooses the most comfortable piece of furniture to take a snooze in. Like father, like son.

Hurricane Watch...

One would think that, since Atlanta is so far inland, we wouldn't have to worry about hurricanes coming in from the Gulf of Mexico or even on the Atlantic coast. However, once a hurricane hits land, it doesn't just stop. Ida will continue to move northward and Atlanta is right in it's path.

Hurricane Ida is projected to hit the Gulf Coast sometime today and Atlanta is bracing for the aftermath sometime in the next few days. Atlanta is projected to receive approximately 2-5 inches of rain tomorrow alone. Bracing for hurricane weather is nothing new to Georgians, but after the flooding here last month, every Atlantan is preparing for the worst.

Please pray for the Southeast during this hurricane season. Hopefully this will be the only one that affects North Georgia this year! I don't know how much more rain this area can handle after a 3 year drought.

Drumroll, Please...

Here it is. This year's LifeTouch masterpiece.

Yes, I do actually think this one is better than last years. I've got to dig through my archives to find that gem from last year, but trust me...it's better. I do feel like LifeTouch fails to capture a child's true smile. Brian thinks I'm too critical...but am I?

Would a teacher go into a classroom unprepared? Why would Lifetouch come to an elementary school unprepared to make kids smile their "real" smiles? New Life Academy is a small school when compared to other local elementary schools. Why not come and make kids smile by making a fool out of yourself? Why be a children's photographer if you were not prepared to make a fool out of yourself? Why bother if you're not going to capture the beauty of childhood in a 1/125 of a second photo?

Yes, this photo is fantastic in comparison to last year. Does it capture Mason? No. Do I think it's an acceptable photo of my gorgeous son? Yes, if you find mediocricy acceptable. He's much more handsome than this photo exhibits. Keep trying LifeTouch. With a little practice, you may actually get it right.

I Heart Halloween!

Ever wonder what a one-eyed pumpkin sees? Now that's scary!

Mason was so excited to choose his very own pumpkin this year. He had a vision in his head of what he wanted said pumpkin to look like. For weeks I heard, "I want a pumpkin with one eye and a bat for a mouth." Awesome.

I don't like to get our pumpkins too early because they burn a hole in his pocket and wants to carve them too soon. If you've ever carved a pumpkin too many days before Halloween, you know they don't make it to Halloween before they hit the dumpster. Anywho, the day finally came that we went to choose pumpkins. I think I was as excited as Mason. I just love choosing the perfect pumpkin. What to carve?


I drew they eye and the mouth on the skin of his pumpkin and *gulp* handed him the little saw-like knife to cut out the shapes. You know, the little saw-like knife that comes in the Pumpkin Masters pumpkin carving kit? Yeah, that one. Relatively safe, but still sharp enough to cut through pumpkin...and flesh. *GULP*

He did rather well, wouldn't you say? No flesh wounds...except for the pumpkin, of course. Bwah ha ha!

The Amazing Miss Way...

Spooked Out!

Is there a better way to express a love for Halloween better than decorating the house? I came home last night from shooting a wedding to an 8' Frankenstein blow-up guy on the front lawn. This was not part of my spooky house plan, but Mason likes it. Callie, on the other hand, is quite frightened of Frankenstein. Funny.

The Neighbors...

Our neighbors love Halloween even more than me. They have boxes and boxes of costumes and this is the one Mason came skipping across our lawn wearing. Flattering, yes? Stay tuned...the house is decorated!

Duh Family

It's been a few years since we had family portraits taken, and it's come to the point where this is as good as it gets. This is the real deal, folks. Love it or leave it.

My Brothers...

In life, there are many things that you may never know about someone – even if you're very close to said person. My close friends and even some family members learned something about me in the last week that, until recently, I had never given a second thought about sharing: I have three older brothers.

Most of my friends and family are aware of my sister, Tiffani. We speak often and visit each other whenever we have the chance. She is my mentor, especially in the parenting arena, and I can always count on her for sound advice.

My two oldest brothers, Michael and Steven, are my dad's sons from a previous marriage and my youngest brother, Ryan, is my mother's son. Although Ryan and I are not close, we do keep tabs on each other regularly. Unfortunately, I lost touch with Michael and Steven over the years and have only regained contact since moving to Atlanta.

This major detail of my personal life was suddenly brought into the limelight on September 15, 2009 when Steven was killed in a car accident at the age of 40. As he was driving, a tree branch fell onto his vehicle, causing him to lose control and overturn into a ditch. Although he and his passenger were wearing their seat belts, Steven did not survive the crash. Thankfully his passenger escaped with only minor injuries.

I was deeply saddened to receive the news from Michael about the accident and even more saddened that I didn't have the chance to really get to know Steven. Although we were siblings by blood, we were only mere acquaintances. I knew he was married to a beautiful woman named Kelli and that they had a daughter named Sunni Jo. He worked as a mechanic in the Pine Bluff area and was the lead singer of the band Black Iris.

I regret that, as his sister, I knew about him only what most people would consider to be idle chatter or social pleasantries. I never got to know the person that he was...father, husband, brother, good person. Life seems to be full of regret, sometimes.

Immediately after receiving the news, I began making plans to travel to Arkansas for the memorial service. Determined to not add missing Steven's memorial to my list of regrets, the family and I hit the road and met Tiffani and Athena in Pine Bluff on Friday afternoon.

Tiffani and I hadn't seen some members of the Shelton side of the family since we were small children and I was a little nervous about who we might be seeing. Everyone was gathered at Steven and Kelli's house. Uncles and Aunts, siblings and friends all sitting around talking about the life of Steven. They shared photos and stories, laughed and cried. It was truly wonderful and I feel closer to him now more than ever. Another regret.

I met my niece, Sunni Jo, and Kelli, Steven's wife, for the first time. What a lovely couple of ladies. Sunni Jo is a year younger than Mason and her toothless smile would melt you heart. I'm certain that she was the apple of Steven's eye.

Many of the older people who attended the memorial stated one thing that stuck in my mind: As you get older, it seems like the only thing that brings families together are marriages and deaths. As I get older, I am finding this to ring true.

One good thing did come from our visit to Arkansas: I got to spend quality time with Michael. We had chatted on and off for several years. He would often drive through the Atlanta area on his truck route, but we were never able to cross paths in person. I have invited him to come and stay in Atlanta whenever he feels the urge...I hope he takes me up on that offer.

How Much is That Doggie in the Window?

I think we've all driven down the road and seen a dog hanging out of the window with tongue wagging and hair blowing in the breeze. It's not every day you see a child and his best friend, who happens to be a bear instead of a dog, hanging out of a car window. Rest assured, we are parked in a parking lot, so no safety violations here!

Happy Anniversary, Blog!

Today, I am celebrating 3 years of blogging! That means that, for over half of Mason's life, I've been writing our story for the online world to see and read. It's been a pretty wild ride, so far!

This photo was taken the summer our family moved to Atlanta (I think). Mason stayed with his grandparents for nearly a month! He got his first ear infection that summer and spent numerous hours with his 3 cousins at the farm in Kansas.


I don't have many photos from when we lived in the apartment in Duluth. It was a difficult time for our family. I had difficulties finding a job, Brian worked long hours and Mason and I spent a lot of time together.





This is my favorite of his Halloween costumes, by far! The year is 2006 and it was my first Halloween at Consumer Source. Little did I know that everyone in the office dressed up and we decorated our cubicles and passed out candy to children from the homeless shelter. After the kids left, I brought Mason to the office to trick-or-treat. Man, he raked in the loot!


Brian still worked at the Atlanta Athletic Club – where we frequently fished the ponds.


Pre-K graduation was a ton of fun! I had a hard time facing that I now had a school-aged child.


Tiffani and Athena came to visit and we went to the GA Aquarium. I can't wait to go back!


We love spending time outside!


Mason wanted to be a veterinarian in 2007, so we got him a pair of scrubs and a stethoscope. He listened to Bear's heartbeat quite often.


Callie came to join our family in 2008. She won our hearts at PetSmart adoption day and has been a great addition!


The boys love her!


Sometimes the birthday goodie bags have something to make me smile.


I don't know many people that don't have a fond childhood memory of licking the mixer bowl...


...or jumping into puddles.


Mason LOVES the snow. It could be because he's only seen it a few times in his life. It does snow in Atlanta, but not very much and it doesn't stick around very long. This photo gives you a good indication as to why some things are referred to as "flat as Kansas".


Mason's first kiss! Layla and Mason spent the day together at Six Flags and had a blast! Do you think he likes her?


Mason will forever be a part of the Hoschton, GA Guiness World Record for the most scarecrows. He looks pretty scary, right?


...or is THIS scary?


Joining the Taekwondo class was one of the best things Brian and I have done for Mason. He loves it and it helps with his behavior and motivation. I never would have thought that an extra-curricular activity could do so much for a child's well-being.


2009: our family goes to Disney World for Mason's 6th birthday. What a great way to celebrate!


Swimming lessons went well. He got over his fear of deep water and learned to float on his belly and stomach.


We make an effort to go to the coast at least once a year. We didn't make it to South Carolina again, but we were in Florida a few times. An excuse to go really isn't needed.


And last, but not least, Mason learned to ride his bike sans training wheels. This was taken just a few weeks ago! My goodness the last 3 years have flown by. What a great adventure our family is on...I can't wait to see what's next!