I LOVE FALL!!!

I know, it's been a while. This is such a busy time of the year. But then again what time of the year isn't busy? This year is just flying by. Anyway, this post is going to be all over the place, so bear with me.

First of all, don't forget September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. SO, please remember, if you are near a Chili's restaurant on Monday, September 29, PLEASE eat there. ALL of their proceeds that day are donated to Childhood Cancer Research. I know there isn't a Chili's around Oxford, AL. But there is one in Gadsden, which is only about a 30-45 min. drive. Our family will be making Sept. 29 a family night out and take a trip to Chili's. I hope others will also. Please spread the word.

Another little guy I follow on Caring Bridge--Cole--earned his angel wings this past Friday. The little guy was just diagnosed July 26, 2008, one month after his 3rd birthday. His family had less than 2 months from the time he was diagnosed, and more than half that time he was sedated. His Caring Bridge site is http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/viewJournal.do?method=executeInit. Please pray for Cole's family...no parent should have to bury their child!


And please remember Coleman, as they will return to New York next week to begin his new treatment. They were pretty concerned about the date, Sept. 21, this past Sunday. You see that was the date 2 years ago that he was diagnosed, then on that same date 1 year ago, they were told he had relapsed. He is in his second relapse and remember he won't be 5 years old until this December. That little guy has been through more in his short 4 years than most adults will go through in their entire lifetime.


Here is a portion of Peggy's (his mom) post from yesterday.....

One more week before we leave for NYC. We have a LOT we want to fit in, lots to get ready and much to do before we go. It will be a busy week around here! Sept. 21, 2008 It was MUCH better than the two previous years! It started out with us deciding to ‘chance it’ and take Coleman to church with us. We’ve been keeping him home, trying our best to keep him away from germs with his low counts. He was SO happy- and was the first one ready to go in the morning. The boys and I headed out to the van and were waiting for Scott. Coleman said, “ohhhhh, I for-dot bunny!” (I had told him to make sure it was by the door before we got ready, so he wouldn’t forget it) I went into…. “remember when I told you to put it by the door?.....” Caden stopped me and said, “I’LL go get it Coe-man” and took off for the house. He came back and tossed it on Coleman’s lap. Coleman said, “FANK YOU TAYD! You are the bessess bwuver I ev-va had, ann I doan know WHAT I would do wifout you.” Caden answered, “I would do ANYFING for you Coe-man!”
Cman’s prayer when he went to bed last night…“ann Dod, Fank you for wettin us haf the BESSESS day in the woe-ld (world) today. You maked it a DWATE (great) day for me. Fank you Dod. Ann pweeze Dod wet Day-weck (Derek) det outta the hos-pi-ta ann have fun too.” THAT one was already answered! Our little friend Derek got to go home today- YAY Derek! (cp: derekellerbeck2007)
Oh how I love to hear Coleman pray. His prayers are so heartfelt, and he never ends without thinking of someone who needs to be prayed for…often many…)
We appreciate your continued prayers for Coleman’s complete healing. We not letting up…we’re letting God KNOW our desires, and we know He’s listening….we’re praising him for the blessings He’s given us yesterday, today and tomorrow.
This is the link to Coleman's link, if you want to read more of his deep thoughts and prayers....http://www.carepages.com/carepages/ColemanScott. You'll have to create a password, if you haven't visited CarePages before.


Okay, everyone......Are you ready for this Friday, Sept. 26, 2008...it's the opening of the movie.....Nights in Rodanthe, based on Nicholas Sparks' book. Here's a link to view the trailer.....http://nightsinrodanthe.warnerbros.com/ I'll have to wait until Saturday or Sunday night to make my first viewing of the movie (notice I said first), because I will be leaving Thursday afternoon headed here.....
About 8 ladies from church are attending the Women of Faith Conference in Atlanta. The theme is Infinite Grace. We'll be back Saturday evening. So, Nights in Rodanthe will have to wait a day or two. I'm pretty pumped about the women's conference and spending time with my sisters in Christ and meeting other sisters I didn't even know about!! I'll let you know more about that next week.

On to the next news....Tuesday, September 30, 2008 I will be headed to the local Books A Million first thing to purchase this beauty.... The newest Nicholas Sparks book....The Lucky One. Can you tell that I'm an avid Nicholas Sparks fan? Well, on October 9, 2008 I'll even make the trip to Birmingham, along with a few friends, to his book signing. I'm just a little excited! And yes, for those of you who know me well, know that date rings a bell with you. It's my oldest daughter, Abbey's 20th birthday. So I don't get the "worst mom" award, the book signing is at noon that day, so I'll be back in plenty of time to "celebrate" with my (sigh) 20 year old. Talk about time flying....

Well, except for the nip in the air and sleeping with the windows open, I guess that's all the excitement I have for this post. I pray that everyone is feeling as blessed as I do. God is Good....ALL the time!! I'll leave you with this quote....


"Every 60 seconds you spend angry, upset, worrying or mad, is a full minute of happiness you'll never get back"

Tag I guess I'm it....

Ok, my sweet niece, Bethany was in a blogging slump this past week. So, how does that effect me? Well, she didn't have anything she felt was worthy to blog about, so she goes and accepts a tag. Well, that's fine....for her. But, she can't just leave it at that, she has to go and tag me along with other innocent bloggers. Thanks Bethany, thanks a lot, like I didn't have anything better to do with my time on a lazy, rainy, Monday. Just kidding, of course. I kind of welcomed the break from real work. I will, however, be blog-kind and refrain from tagging any other unsuspecting bloggers. So, here goes....

6 Things You Might Not Know About ME
1. I HATE when I can't just eat ONE piece of chocolate or have just ONE cup of coffee. They call that addiction, don't they? Is there a c & c anonymous support group in town?

2. I love to cut the grass and work in the yard. No, I'm not crazy, as a matter of fact, it keeps me from going crazy. Since no one will help me with these tasks, it's my alone time, when I can talk to God, praise God, think, dream, and scheme, uh, make plans.

3. I am becoming more and more like a mean 'ole mom...just ask my kids. Isn't that my job, after all?

4. I tend to rely on Bobby too much for the computer side of my business. Why learn it myself, when I've got him? I really do need to sit down and learn it, I know.

5. I am obsessed with photographer's websites and blogs. It's a great to look at other photographer's work to get my creative juices flowing. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't.

6. I love my family...both physical and spiritual. I really don't know how people make it through life without both.

Ok, Bethany, there you have it. Consider that your Christmas gift....that's one off the list.

Oh, another thing.....a few happy birthday shout outs:
September 4th was our nephew, Chris' 35th birthday,
September 10th was our nephew, Logan's 17th birthday,
September 14 was another nephew, Noah's 12th birthday,
September 16 will be another nephew, Garrett's 4th birthday,
AND September 24, will be ANOTHER nephew, Lucas' 14th birthday, SOOOOO.....
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GUYS!!!!! See, why I am ecstatic to finally have a little princess added to the mix??

We do have nieces, but it's been a while since we've had a little one!!!

Which reminds me, we do have a niece, Brandy who will be 25 on the 17th of this month.....so, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Brandy!!

WHEW.... I think that got everyone....in the family at least. We have several family friends who also have birthdays in September. I know December is a busy month, but come on...these things wouldn't pile up so, if everyone would just do their Christmas shopping!! Just kidding of course.

"A baby is God's opinion that the world should go on" --Carl Sandburg

Childhood Cancer Awareness Day....

Today, September 13, 2008 is CHILDHOOD CANCER AWARENESS DAY. Chances are you didn't know that, probably didn't even know there was such a day. That's because you probably won't hear about it on the news or in the newspaper. Everyone has heard of Cancer Awareness and Cancer research, but did you know that Childhood Cancer Research is pretty much on its own. Of the money that is donated to Cancer research, only 3% goes to Childhood Cancer Research. Isn't that sad?

Below is a video of 165 little warriors of Childhood Cancer and heroes who have earned their wings. This video was created by Mimi Avery, the mother of Julian, who earned his wings January 19, 2008 at the age of 4 1/2. All he wanted was to be 5 years old and go to kindergarten, but when he realized that might not happen, all he wanted was for everyone to wear yellow and not black to his funeral. Because yellow reminds him of the sunshine, and he wanted everyone to think of the sunshine when they thought of him. It's just not right....I never met Julian in person, but I have learned so much through him....truly wise beyond his 4 1/2 years. Please click on the link below to view the video.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXTwHtBDqdo&eurl=http://www.carepages.com/carepages/JuliansWorld/updates/1716267

So what can you do? There are a few very easy things!
1. Become a Bone Marrow Donor. Many times the only way to save the life of a cancer patient is through a bone marrow transplant. Now through September 22, The Nascar Foundation is paying the $50 fee so you can sign up for FREE! Be a hero. Be a Bone Marrow Donor.

2. Go out to eat! Seriously! On September 29th Chilis restaurant will be donating 100% of their proceeds to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. What better way to help cancer research?! In the meantime, go Create a Pepper for Kennedy! Be sure to post the link so she can see it!

3. Go sign this petition!!!

4. Check out It's 4 the Kids. Bookmark it and visit often. There are LOTS of ways to help on there!

5. Go to Complete The Cure and watch the videos. For every video you watch sponsors will donate 25 cents to the Children's Cancer Research Fund. It doesn't sound like a lot, but it adds up quickly!

6. Most importantly, PRAY, PRAY, PRAY and spread the word!!! Talk and talk and talk until someone HEARS us.

Here are a few fact about Childhood Cancer: Did you know?
*Each school day, 46 children are diagnosed with cancer.
*On the average 12,500 children and teens will be diagnosed with some form of cancer each year in this country.
*One in 330 children will develop cancer by age 20.
*Although the 5 year survival rate is steadily increasing, one quarter of children will die 5 years from the time of diagnosis.
*Cancer remains the #1 disease killer of America's children - more than Cystic Fibrosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Asthma and AIDS combined.
*In the U.S. almost 3,000 children do not survive cancer each year.
*Over the past two decades, only ONE new cancer drug has been approved for pediatric use.
*Currently there are between 30-40,000 children undergoing cancer treatment in the U.S.
*As a nation, we spend over $14 BILLION per year on the space program, but only $35 MILLION on Childhood Cancer Research each year.
*There are 15 children diagnosed with cancer for every one child diagnosed with pediatric AIDS. Yet, the U.S. invests approximiately $595,000 for research per victim of pediatric AIDS and only $20,000 for each victim of childhood cancer.
*Research funds are scarce as most money is diverted to well-publicized adult forms of cancer, such as breast and prostate.
*Right now, this second, somewhere in America, there are 7 children fighting for their lives who won't live through the day.

I believe Julian, at 4 1/2 years old, lived the quote below....we can all learn from Julian.


"It's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." ~Abraham Lincoln




Everyone have a blessed day of worship tomorrow....

A Message about September 11......

Hi Everyone,

Below is the September update from Coleman's Mom that she posted on their CarePages site. I got permission from her to pass it on to you all. So, let me introduce you to Peggy Larson, Coleman's mom........

September 11,

I debated sharing this, as it was just my rambling thoughts I put down earlier today…(of course if you read Coleman's carepage, you're used to my ramblings by now!)
I also didn’t want to offend anyone who lost loved ones in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, or diminish the tragedy of that horrible day. I hope if you read this you’ll know that isn’t my intention at all. Sept. 11, 2001 will be engraved in all our memories forever.
We all remember what we were doing 7 years ago (doesn’t seem like that long!)…when we saw the horrific pictures on the news. Do you remember the feeling in the pit of your stomach as you watched over and over the planes crashing- and first tower crumble, then your breath taken away watching the second? Do you remember??? I remember coming home from work and watching as the stories were read, and sobbing my heart out. I remember the wrongness of it all… Do you remember hearing the phone calls of people stuck in their offices? Calls from innocent people in the planes to their families telling them what was going on? Some saying their good-byes? Imagine how desperate they felt…not knowing what was in their near future. Would they make it out of the nightmare they were in? Some had to be so struck with fear, they froze….some stood up and fought…. Some helped others, only to lose their own lives. What would YOU do in a moment like that? If you found yourself in a situation that chaotic and terrifying-
I felt the same disbelief and helplessness 5 years/10 days later… September 21, 2006. A plane crashed through our lives as we listened to Coleman’s doctor say “We found a tumor”…the breath was knocked out of us, I felt like a spectator watching with my hand over my mouth...watching everything around us crumbled like the towers. Our son was under attack.
We’ve been on our own “floor” or “hijacked plane” for almost 2 years now. Our future is uncertain. We’re picking up the rubble only to be knocked down again and again. We try to stay as positive as we can, (we TRUST GOD is with us) and I know we aren’t supposed to, but we can’t help it- the fear is there. It’s real. We watch the hell Coleman goes through with treatments. It’s like watching repeats of the planes crashing over and over again…time after time…as he fights on. We watch kids around us, in the same ‘burning building’…other parents with the same look of shock in their eyes. We don’t even have to speak words- we KNOW what they’re feeling. We have a bond with them much like anyone who goes through a tragedy together. Seven years ago the nation was hopping mad (myself included) that such horror could come to this country we love…. So many innocent lives were lost; so much taken away from us. I’m hoping our nation and political leaders will realize we’re still under attack. Cancer is a terrorist that doesn’t care who you are, where you’re from, how much money you have, it’s going to strike. It’s just as horrific and merciless as the terrorists were on that awful day. It’s crashing into people’s lives, attacking their world as they knew it. It's taking lives. It’s destroying carefree childhoods, destroying bank accounts, destroying family time, destroying any ‘normalcy’ it's victims once knew. Too many children in our country are crumbling. Families are left standing in the quiet ashy aftermath of this monster, wondering in disbelief what just happened in front of their eyes, and where to go from there.I’m praying we finally take a stand and say "we aren’t taking it ANYmore." Childhood cancer is unacceptable! One new drug for pediatric cancer in the past 20 years is unacceptable. Only 3% of all cancer funding going to pediatric research is unacceptable. We need to fight back!!! We’re banding our own war on this monster, but we can’t do it alone. We need an army.

Here are some ways you can help…

**First of all, if you haven’t signed the petition…PLEASE do it now! Please ask at least one person (I’m hoping you’ll ask more,) but at least ONE other to sign it. PLEASE. Ask people for their email and home address, and if you can sign it FOR them!
click here to SIGN THE PETITION.....http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/CureChildhoodCancer
Did you know there is a junior high girl in Des Moines collecting signatures from teachers at her school? She doesn't have a sibling with cancer, she's doing it simply because she has a good heart. She's willing to stand with us...(thanks MacKenzie!!!) Won't you? Gather some signatures PLEASE!!! Every one counts, and people are willing, if you'll only ask.


**You can wear a gold ribbon- Tell everyone you know (and don’t know) about the kids in this war. Talk about their battles…Talk about the casualties. Talk about the HEROES. Help bring awareness.


**Click on these links…check them out. Don’t think you can’t make a difference, because YOU CAN! We need to start somewhere. Start today. You can stand with us and FIGHT against any more attacks. Together we WILL be heard…we WON’t GIVE UP UNTIL WE ARE!!! Our kids need a voice in this fight.click and join PEOPLE AGAINST CHILDHOOD CANCER
Go to curesearch.org to find out more ways to help


**Eat at Chili's this month- a portion of their proceeds will go toward Childhood cancer research- Sept 29th ALL proceeds donated.

So something- anything to help bring awareness to our fight.
Don’t stand frozen because it isn’t affecting you...because it’s too sad, or you’re too scared. I’m here to tell you, it COULD BE YOU- IT COULD BE YOUR CHILD! Wouldn’t you want someone to stand with you in your fight?We took a moment of silence today to pray for the way too many families who lost love ones on 9/11. Our country was forever changed that day. We remember. We honor those who lost their lives way too soon…it was wrong, plain wrong. September 11th- is a day none of us will (or ever, ever should) forget. This post was not made to take ANY honor or importance away from people who lost their loved ones in the attack of 2001.

Sadly, Sept 11 2008 will be remembered as diagnosis day for 46 families (46 kids diagnosed EVERY single day) A 'terrorist' attacked 46 times today, and there are parents standing in shock tonight.Tomorrow it will happen again….and the next day, and the next, and next... until we do something to STOP it. We prayed for the parents who had to bury their children today- an estimated 2,500 kids will pay the price this year …7 each and every day. WE PRAY FOR A CURE!!! The children of our country deserve it. They need US to stand together and say “ENOUGH”. Won’t you stand with us? Quoting the hero Todd Beamer…“LET’S ROLL.”

Blessings to you all,(and thanks for being on our TEAM!)
TEAM LARSON

http://www.carepages.com/carepages/ColemanScott

There is really nothing more that I can add to that, except, continue to pray for Coleman, his family and ALL the kids fighting this attack on their little bodies. Here's the quote for the day....

"Don't ever give up" --Coleman Larson, age 4

Have a Blessed weekend, Gaye

Yes, I'm still here....

I know, you thought I gave up the blog world. Well, you're wrong, I'm still here. I've just been swamped. This past weekend I had a 2 day yard sale that went great. Steady shoppers and buyers both days. Friday they kept coming up until 4:00 pm even though we tried to stop around 1:00 pm. I got rid of A LOT of stuff!!! It felt soooo good to clean out and try to simplify. We even sold Bobby's pickup truck....how blessed we are!!



In addition to the cleaning out, pricing, setting up and having the 2 day yard sale, I've had several senior portrait sittings in between. So, needless to say, the 'ole blog was put on the back burner.



Once I get through all of the editing the next few days, things might slow down a bit. Except for the fact that September seems to be THE birthday month for family and friends. We have at least 6 nieces and nephews and 4 family friends who have their birthdays in September. And before we know it Abbey's birthday will be here (Oct. 9), then Alison's big 16 (Dec. 23). Christmas time is coming fast. But, before that is my favorite season of all......Autumn. I love the fall leaves and the crisp air.

A quick update on my C-man (Coleman). Team Larson is back home in Iowa for a few weeks of more chemo, before they head back up to NYC for the new treatment to try and rid little Coleman of the nasty beast of cancer. Also, please remember that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Continue to keep Coleman, his family and all the kids who are fighting cancer in your prayers.



In the next few weeks in between the not so busy days, my goal is to take time to go through a few on-line/personal photography courses. There's always more to learn....it's never ending. In other words, the blogging may be few and far between the next few weeks, so bare with me, I'll be around, just busy. Oh, I almost forgot, I've got a wedding to shoot in October also...busy, busy, busy.



I did find this along the road one morning last week after I dropped Alison off at school.....
Someone (thing) else has been busy. I also found this.....isn't God an awesome creator...... We are so blessed with His ever changing beauty.


I'll leave you with this quote, until next time....

"All art is the expression of man's delight in God's work, not his own."