First time Aunt

I'm a first time Aunt. I have one darling nephew. I only get to see him at most two weeks out of the year. In case you haven't realized it yet, I love taking pictures. Consequently, I'm currently sorting through hundreds of pictures I took while I was down visiting my sister and her family. I apologize for the sheer volume of Ethan pictures that are going to be appearing on Flickr in the coming days. If you have something against incredibly cute toddlers, I recommend you stay away for awhile.

The last time I saw Ethan, he was only 3 months old. His personality (and hair) was just starting to come out.This summer, I got to see his personality out in full force. One of the things I quickly learned was that he loves to be involved in everything...and I mean everything. His favorite part of the day is helping with chores. You are simply not allowed to sweep, do laundry, or do dishes without his participation.

He loves helping transfer clothes from washer to dryer.
He analyzes each piece of laundry...just to make sure the colors are correct.
He is quite meticulous in his examination.And shoves them all the way into the dryer.He makes sure things are spinning correctly once the dryer starts.
And then makes sure he didn't leave anything in the washer.After that it's time to do dishes.Doing dishes involves one of his absolute favorite materials to be found on planet earth.
Water. Ethan LOVES water. Water in any form. He gets very upset if he sees or hears water and can't touch it.Consequently, you absolutely cannot wash dishes without him.

I wonder if his love of doing chores will last?

Always be prepared

I should have been a boy scout...perhaps then I would have learned the lesson to always be prepared. And then I would have had more than a 50 prime lens with me when Zoe and I made a spontaneous stop at the Jefferson memorial. Don't get me wrong, I love my 50 prime. It's my favorite lens. Its portrait capabilities (see nephew post below) are stunning. But it's not so great for wide landscapes. Hence, all of those beautiful shots I had in my head as the sun set at the memorial were quite impossible to actually capture. Consequently, our trip to the Jefferson memorial ended up being a portrait shoot of Zoe. Which, to be honest, I didn't mind at all. I snapped this one when she wasn't paying attention to me. And promptly teased her for posing like a superhero. Doesn't she look like she's about to fly off to save D.C.?
Zoe and I go way back. The first time we met I believe we were in middle school. She remembers the meeting. I don't. We discovered during the week that this is the case for a lot of our history. Apparently, I have a horrific memory. We met at a youth group new year's eve party in Columbus. After that brief encounter, the next time we met was the first day of school our junior year of high school. We were both new students at the school, having recently moved to Indianapolis. She instantly recognized me; I had no clue who she was. It took us awhile, but we finally pinned down our fateful first meeting to that party in Columbus. With both a shared history and the shared experience of starting over halfway through high school, we were destined to be friends.It had been four years, and a lifetime of experiences in China, since I had last seen Zoe. But we picked right up as if no time had passed at all. A friendship like that is truly special. The great part of taking pictures of someone you have history with is you know their stories. You know how to make them laugh.
You know that exact embarrassingly funny moment in...was it econ?...to bring up in order to get that deep belly laugh.
Which is sure to be followed by that beautiful natural smile.
Perhaps even more beautiful than the scenery itself. The scenery you couldn't capture because you weren't prepared like a boy scout.
I even let Zoe take a few pictures of me before we headed out. I hate having my picture taken. I much prefer to be behind the camera. But I decided it wouldn't hurt to have some photographic evidence that I was in D.C.

On hold

I had grand plans of writing about some of my adventures in DC. Perhaps I still will. But for the moment, I'm preoccupied with this.
Oh those eyes! I love those eyes...and...
His voracious appetite for watermelon.His finger chewing grin.Those expressions...
and chubby little hands.
Can you blame me?

Updates will just have to be put on hold...

Just a quick note

I'm currently finishing up an amazing week in DC. I came out to see a good friend from high school, who I hadn't seen since moving to China four years ago. It's been great to catch up and reminisce, and I've had plenty of time to traipse around the city with my camera while she's been at work. Pictures and updates will be forthcoming.

Several of you mentioned a desire to help the two kids from the orphanage with club feet. They are now down in the south of China at the center, and they need your help! While we were able to raise the funds for their travel costs to and from the center, we are not paying for their treatment. The amazing part of An Orphan's Wish is that they will not turn away kids. To see their beautiful faces and to see ways to help, head on over to Stefanie's blog for more information. Her most recent post (Lookie, Lookie) is dedicated to the kids at the club foot center. My orphanage's two little ones are Joey and Lexi. And yes, tears pooled in my eyes when I discovered them on her blog this morning!

Confession

I'll go ahead and admit it. I'm a little bit of a snob. I love a good glass of wine, a good meal, and a good dose of culture. Due to the fact that for a majority of the year I live in a small city in China, where art museums and free opera in the park are hard to come by, it's been a treat to indulge in a bit of snobbery this summer. I have been frequently jumping on the treadmill in the attempt to justify caloric extravagances such as linguine in a white wine and truffle oil sauce with grilled asparagus. Let me tell you, that was well worth a two mile run.

Earlier this week my mom and I headed out to the Indianapolis Museum of Art. She patiently waited (and wisely brought a book) while I soaked in the surroundings with camera in hand. It was a delightful afternoon, as we moved from appreciating the artistry in the petals of an orchid to the metaphor of thousands of hands supporting a floor. Below are a few of my favorite shots from the day.

It's all about the people

The last two weeks have been filled to the brim with good classes, good food, and most importantly, good friends. Wheaton is always one of my favorite stops of the summer because: a) I'm a nerd and I like going to class and writing papers, b) Chicago in the summer is just about as good as it gets, c) I get to see dear friends who serve across Asia and show them around "my town", d) I get to worship with a community of people I love, e) I get to sit and talk and just be with amazing friends. Most of the time I was too busy drinking in the moment to pull out my camera, but here are a few shots of the people and places that made the time pretty much perfect.

Like I said, there's nothing like Chicago in the summer. Perfect temperatures. Beautiful evening. Free opera in the park. Good friends. Yes, please.

I was blessed by the hospitality of Greg & Noel, who fed me, provided a comfy bed, made mudslides, taught me a new card game, and got me addicted to hewering orcs on PS2.

Every summer Rachel cooks at least one meal for me, and every summer I'm reminded why I keep her around as a friend. :) Ok, even if she wasn't an amazing cook, I'd still be her friend. But it sure is a nice perk! That and the fact that we can talk for hours on end.
These are just a few of my classmates who are graduating from the program this summer. I'm going to miss learning with and from them!

In love

I have fallen head over heels in love. Undeniably, unequivocally in love. Ok, I know in the English language we're not supposed to profess love to inanimate objects (for an interesting discussion on why it's just fine to say you love things like parmesan cheese check out C.S. Lewis' Four Loves--an excellent book). Ahem, side-tracked. I apologize. Getting side-tracked is the reason I can't sit here......for more than ten minutes without finding something better to do than write graduate papers with impending due dates.

I'm partly distracted by the desire to take out and use my new love. My new love does this:Alright, you've probably guessed it! I've recently acquired a new lens, and I am super excited about it. I'm looking forward to trying it out as a portrait lens on all those faces I love in Wheaton. I make the drive up this Friday.