3 years later...

The paint on the wall was no longer new,

The paint on the board was more chipped,

One of the see saws was already history,

And the Little Girl was no longer a baby.

But she still loved her see saw on her trips to the playground,

And 3 years on, this Mama is still taking her pictures

My, how time has passed.

With more poise (Kecil), better camera and technique (Mama), it was a different picture, yet still of the same Little Girl, same joy in her play, same laughter.

And of course, the best part, she actually looked like her Oma in her childhood days.

Even Oma concurred.

Mama & Kecil

It was really hot outside today, so, rather than going out (and come back with a headache), we stayed inside during the hottest part of the day, and made a reel of pics of Mama and Kecil.
As you can see, we both had fun. Even Daddy joined us for a quick shot:

Hihihi.... Now that Mama has a proper tripod, I think we are loving that corner of the house with the big mirror. At the same time, the reel above brought this Mama down memory lane, through pictures of Kecil and Mama together. Here's a few that I think have not made it here:

Ah... the days when Kecil was smaller, and lighter. Then she got bigger:

Despite the intellectual knowledge that kids grow up SOOOO fast, the truth can still come as a shock at times.

Here's to more girl & Mom bonding time, and of course, the gem of the day:

busy childhood ....

This Mama really has like 2 post (and more stories) already in motion.
But this Mama has also been busy.
Mostly because of these culprits pictured above.
I guess childhood is a busy business, full of playdates, impromptu walks, a few small quarrels (that Mama or the other mama needs to referee for)... so many things.

We'll try again tomorrow to finish what had been started.
In the meantime, do check Kecil's {photoblog}. This Mama had started it to post pictures when time does not quite allow for full post. It was left empty for a while, but there has been quite a few new pictures. The link can also be found under the big Kecil Stories picture above.
After a visit, you are always welcome to share what you think over here.
Cheers!

Shutter happy girls

Once in a while, various ships would find their way to the nearby harbor...
And once in a while, Mama and Kecil would make some time to visit and to take pictures. Just like when the hospital ship came by. Sometimes we would even come back for more. Just like this time.

We already dropped by to gawk at the ships before, you see, right after we finished with Family Day. But since we were already tired from all the games, we merely circled the area using the car. The second time, however, there were only Mama and Kecil (we were going to pick up Daddy from the airport, but that's another story), so we actually took our time, and our cameras.

Kecil's 'camera' and bag are actually part of the loot from the Family Day. So, yah... I guess we can safely say she's very happy with them, indeed.

So we came back with a pic of the ship:

Courtesy of 2 shutter happy girls:

Cheers!

Oo Light....

We've had some streaks of good weather during the past week, but this Mama's hope for an end of the rainy season was obliterated with the arrival of yet another storm.
Which simply means rain ... rain... and more rain.
Not that we are ungrateful, of course. The plants certainly benefit from all the rains. Besides, it's not like they are really huge storms, the kind that uproot trees and the likes.

It's just... I guess this Mama's preferences lie not with overcast days like in the picture above.
Try the light on a sunny day:

Oh yes. This is more like it. Days for swimming, frolicking outside, picture taking.... and half a dozen other things.
Also, with the camera hiding safely in it's dry box (to protect against the crazy humidity and all), picture taking had generally screeched to a halt, which means Mama will run out pics very soon. Ha!
Perhaps we'll see what we can scrape from the bottom of the barrel.

Ah well... here's wishing for more sunny days to come soon. Or at least, a dry day, with no rain. That will be good.

Sunday photoshoot

We had some time to burn before we caught the Zombies last weekend, and so we went for a drive around the area. The weather was not quite sunny, but it was not pouring torrential rain either, just nice for a short photoshoot.

We went near the beach, where we caught sight of some of the big ships that frequented the bay...

Then Mama and Daddy took turn with the camera, just so we both have a picture with Kecil each. I'd say they both turned out pretty well. Did you see the sliver of blue sky behind Daddy?

All in all, it was a good weekend. Perhaps Mama should put a tripod in her wishlist, just so we can take a picture all together, Mama, Daddy & Kecil, instead of taking turn at the camera. Until then!

Caught on camera

This Mama caught her Little Girl sitting at the backyard the other day, a blank paper in hand, 'reading' a story to the plants.
And so for a moment, this Mama was buoyed by the the hope that she had done pretty well after all in raising the kiddo: reading her stories, as well as sending her to school where stories ARE read regularly.
We'll still see how she turns out.

In the meantime, Kecil caught her Mama and the camera, and stopped 'reading'.

She did, however let me take a picture of two.

She's getting more and more familiar with her Mama and the camera. Just as long as her Mama still play with her after taking the pics, all is good. After all, there are times when she was the one asking Mama to take her pics. Usually after striking a pose.

Yes, something like that.

And yes, like this as well. (But just don't ask me the idea behind the pose. I have no idea, to tell you the truth)

She grows bigger everyday, this Little Girl of mine.

Walkies between best friends

Today's photo for the post is uncharacteristically heavily edited. That's because this Mama is still giddy playing with her new favorite online photo editor, PicMonkey. If you are into photo editing, you should try it. It's fun, it's easy to use, it's jam-packed with features, it's awesome.


Looking through various pics of the two little girls, they look like the model for 'best friends'.
But as you all know, even best friends get into fights, sometimes exactly because they are best friends.

During today's walkie, they fought. Again. For the nth time. For the same old reason(s):
Who gets to use which swing first, A pushes B while on the slide, who gets a bigger stick.... and so on and so forth.
And it can be a bit ridiculous how much importance these little people would place on such seemingly trivial matter (a longer tree branch, really?).
And of course, there is the matter of the fight itself, which can range from simple disagreement (quite easily diffused) to a full blown tantrum by either party (shouting match, tears, the likes).

Yet somehow when the storm has calmed down,
They would be back playing together again, holding hands, sharing things, laughing together ...
And the best part?
The moment we reached our respective front doors, there ensued a lengthy goodbyes which included no little amount of reassurance that we'll have the same walkies together the following day.

I guess that does describe best friends to a 't'.

And someday, when the picture above have really 'gone vintage', perhaps these girls would look back and laugh at their escapades.

Cheers!

Studio Mama 2: the story

Just like in Studio Mama 1, there is also a story behind Studio Mama 2.

Along the path that we usually take, either on our way back from Skool, or on our walkies, there are these small logs that the maintenance crew left behind when they (finally.. uhuk!) cut down the felled trees from last year's storm season. Well... we passed these logs many times, and Kecil never quite paid them much attention, until one day ...

We were on our walkies that day when we meet a bunch of kids going to the school nearby to watch a show. Somehow, the bunch of them went to sit on the log, much to the amusement of their guardian, and me. So, of course, I took a pic.

That day must have been a lightbulb moment for Kecil, for since then, we can never pass the logs without stopping for a while.

Mind you, the requests to stop was made by Kecil herself, and not because she was tired and needed to sit down. Her precise instruction was : "I will go there and you will take picture!". Ha!

And so take pictures I did.

That day when I took the Studio Mama 2 pics, I happened to bring my camera. With the new prime lens, the camera is more convenient to carry around everywhere, although I still do not carry it EVERYWHERE all the time.

On the way home from the bus stop, as usual, she asked to stop to take pictures. And so we did, stop and take pictures, that is.

And they turned out kind of awesome, if I may say myself.

And the moral of the story? I really should carry the camera everywhere I go, especially when I have my model with me.

How about you? Taken some good pics in the past few days?

StudioMama, part deux

It can't be too long ago, that Mama posted some pics here under the same heading of StudioMama. Kecil was smaller then. But here we are today, Mama already with a different gear, Kecil bigger, and slightly different 'studio': outdoor instead of indoor.

Let's just say, it's gratifying to see that all those hours spent reading the camera manual plus all kind of photography related articles actually bears fruit.

Interestingly enough, these are taken on a simple daily walk home from Skool. But then again, when you put someone with model potential, and another with a camera, pictures are made, yes?

Now, will you excuse this Mama while she gawk at her awesome handywork?

(and by handywork, I am indeed referring to both the model and the pictures)

Cheers!

Ami & Denise's Birthday

Sunday was the celebration of Ami's and her best friend's birthday, to which Kecil was invited. It was a pool party, and so we arrived loaded with stuff, ready for a swim.

But first, we had some activities. The birthday Princesses belted out a rendition of Beauty & the Beast (they did a real good job despite some squabbling for the shared microphone).
And then there were a few games.

Denise's Mom made some absolutely cute cupcakes as well as the beautifully decorated birthday cakes. Aren't they adorable?

Kecil did pretty well in the games, but as you can see, she was pretty antsy to get into the pool.

Well, soon enough she was in the thick of it, wading among a bunch of other kids, including the birthday girl herself!

There were even a few friends from Kecil's Skool, riding the dolphin.

It was a real lovely celebration, too bad we couldn't stay for long since we had to pick up Daddy from the airport that day. We did have a good time, and we do wish the two little princesses a Happy Happy 5th Birthday.

Happy Birthday, Ami & Denise!