Muffins With Mommy (and other adventures)
September 21st, we knew Ian’s school’s addiction to sugar was not good… but frosting on a rice krispie treat? See this image larger.
On a personal side note, it was this day, September 21st, when I got the following text from my new/old friend Steve, who was working on an adventure video game called Lilly Looking Through:
What would it cost to hire a guy like yourself with skills similar to yours, to work 9 months to help work on an adventure game?
The answer was, of course, a lot more money than they had… but it didn’t matter. With Melissa’s approval, I told Steve I’d help him. At 41, this old dog was not only going to learn a new trick, but had found a whole new back yard in which to play, the one he’d always longed to be a part of. 🙂 Should it have a future, or be just a one-off deal — it’s still a big deal in and of itself. I got to try to do the thing I always wanted to do… stuff I had written off as impossible considering how “settled” life is now. How many people get that chance?
September 22nd, Ian and Nina make their own fortress/tent in the sunroom! See this image larger.
Well done, kids. You look really packed in there. Now who has to go potty, anybody? See this image larger.
Nina snuggles with Mommy on the couch. See this image larger.
They both look pretty content to me! See this image larger.
September 23rd, Ian pets a kitty at the farm. See this image larger.
September 25th was “Muffins with Moms!” Mommy got to go in, enjoy a muffin with her kiddo and see elementary school in action! See this image larger.
Here Ian points out a word with an “a” in it. See this image larger.
Melissa got to enjoy a day with her son, in fact. Here Ian and a hot dog get along just dandy! See this image larger.
Happy to be exploring near the Rogue River! (Not to be confused with the Rouge River.) See this image larger.
That’s my kiddo! See this image larger.
You get a real sense of scale here. I know who would win in a fight, but if there was some kind of stinky foot battle? I think it’d be a toss up, honestly. See this image larger.
Some weird interactive art installation thingy that was both fun and functional! See this image larger.
A day later, Mommy got a nice card for coming in to Muffins With Moms! See this image larger.
The inside had a hand-written note from Ian! See this image larger.
Mrs. Lanham kindly passed along the original shot from the card, as well! See this image larger.
September 26th, one of Ian and I’s afternoons together after school. See this image larger.
This wasn’t too much of a staged shoot. I ran in, grabbed my camera when I noticed the lighting, and asked for some smiles. See this image larger.
What I feel like I got was the definitive images of Ian for that summer and even this age. See this image larger.
This is potentially my favorite shot of Ian for all time. He glows. I definitely recommend looking at this one larger. (I did do some minor photoshop work here, a scrape near his elbow, a stain on his shirt, a little food or something on his face…) See this image larger.
September 28th, the school had a “walk” for a charity. I know they raised $15,000 but I can’t remember what for. Probably to buy more candy. Melissa and I both came down to join in, but we missed Ian as he walked right by us here. (It turns out he drew the short straw to carry the “Lanham” sign indicating what class they were in, so he was walking right next to her! We caught up eventually!) See this image larger.
What a great day. When I look at these pics I can almost feel the warmth of the sun, and I remember being very happy. See this image larger.
Wonderful smiles! See this image larger.
Back at the classroom for debriefing. See this image larger.
Pre-walk, the kids gathered for a group shot. Ian is in the front on the left. See this image larger.
Post-walk, the participants of Mrs. Lanham’s class gathered for another shot. We’re on the right toward the back. 🙂 See this image larger.
