I did some vintage processing on some of these which turned out quite nicely. It helped that it was such a pretty evening for taking pictures.  I love this time of year!

My favorite. Wow!

Upon further inspection of my yard, I found more signs of spring. I’m so glad spring has finally arrived! It’s been too long!

Aw, cousins.

10. During summer vacation, everyday is Friday. I often lose track of time and the days run together. Love it!

9. Lazy days where I can actually sit on my couch and just c h i l l. That rarely happens any other time because I am so busy!

8. Sleeping in past 5a.m. I didn’t sleep in at all this summer but getting that extra hour and waking at 6am makes a huge difference.

7. Vacation Bible School! My church has an incredible VBS program every summer which ministers to 700 children and teachers and blesses me each and every year!

6. No hectic schedules crammed with after school activities that leave me wondering how we managed to accomplish so much in 24 hours just to get up and do it all over again.

5. Impromptu trips to the beach. Those are always the best!

4. Spending the day at the pool with my family, doing absolutely nothing.

3. Long, hot summer days filled with sunshine. Did I mention I like sunshine and hot weather?

2. Big brother – the only TV show I watch all year. Seriously, I don’t watch any other TV except Big Brother and unfortunately it only comes on once a year – in the summer of course!

1. Being a teacher, the number one reason why I love summer is there’s NO SCHOOL. As a mom, I love summer because the kids have NO HOMEWORK.

Now that I sound like the laziest person on earth, here are some pictures to go along with my love of summer…

My little “Cub” playing coach-pitch base ball. When he got his jersey he asked, “Mom why am I on the Ubs team? Oh wait, it’s the Cubs”.

At the beach, with Maddy.

The kids enjoyed the critters from the Georgia Aquarium. I discovered fish are harder to photograph than children.  They’re faster than a two year old!

Poolin’ it – Katie and Braden style.

Vacation Bible School Musical at Hillcrest Baptist Church.

We went to McClelland’s Critters a few times this summer. If you haven’t been before, check it out. The highlight of every trip is the snakes. The kids L O V E them, and so do I.

Katie was a little apprehensive about the 120lb snake at first. She warmed up after a while though. She’s such a little snake charmer.

Last but not least, a few shots from Hawaii. It hard to narrow it down to just a few so forgive me for the over load of photos. I wasn’t brave enough to take my big DSLR camera out and about with me so these were all taken with my tiny point and shoot camera.

This was a  little scenic overview spot where we (me and my BFF, Shawnna) hiked down to get a closer look at the view. We decided this was one of our favorite spots in O’ahu.

A little cove next to the Halona blowhole – too rough for swimming but still a gorgeous place to soak in all the amazing sights our Creator has made for us.

Sea turtles on the North Shore, Laniakea. These little guys came up to the shore to eat, relax and then go back to the ocean. We saw four on the coast that day and snorkled with two at a different location.

Diamond Head Lighthouse

Almost at the top of Diamond Head, an amazing view.

Hanauma Bay – another beautiful spot where we snorkled with sea turtles and fish in the coral that you can see in this picture.  This was another highlight of our trip.

My BFF jumping off the Waimea Rock into the Pacific Ocean. She’s crazy like that!

I found O’ahu to be so diverse – mountains, beaches, desert, rain forest, rocky coast. These were some of the mountains on the Leeward side of the island where it was much drier.

The view of Kaena Point from the airplane when I went skydiving on the North Shore.

Me – Skydiving - can’t wait to go again!

I thought the sky looked so incredible in this shot at Waikiki Beach. I was unimpressed with Waikiki Beach but I’m glad we parked it long enough to get this picture.  

Hurry back summer. I’ll just be here, waiting for you….

Here’s a sample from last year:

I recently ordered some black and white digital mats and they look  incredible with black and white portraits. Here’s one of my al time favorite shots of my kids:

And another style. These look really nice in wall collections as well.

Check out his hair!