I have nothing creative to say about a blog post

I love this photo. I know I say that a lot any more, but some pictures tell more of a story than others and this one definitely tells a story. Duc loves to run and it is usually in the opposite direction of me, or in this case, Oma. Don’t be concerned, Duc doesn’t mind being held this way at all. In many ways he prefers it because he is able to see the ground. Many times when I am holding him he will lurch forward in much the same way just he can watch my feet.

I don’t post all my favorite photos on here because I am still concerned about people ripping them from my blog. I can only hope that people are respectful of other people’s work, and especially recognize that collecting photos of other people’s children is really not cool.

I do display my photos at work and my co-workers and the hundreds of people that work in my company often view Duc as “their” child since they got to see our story on the “Today Show”. There are many requests for photo viewing, which I happily oblige. And something interesting has happened as a result…people have begun asking if I would take photos of them or their children. It was something that came as a surprise, but it indulges my love of art and photography. Now, however, I feel like I really need to know and understand photography more. I have been doing a lot of research, reading, and of course, practice. I’ve been fortunately to know a few professional photographers and have been picking their brains for advice over the last few months.

I don’t know what, if anything, will come of this, but I feel a responsibility to take good photos for my friends and co-workers. I’m trying to get as much practice and research done this summer before committing to going further with this. (Why does it feel so scary to put this out on the public domain like this?)

I have reserved a new lens that I will be picking up next weekend and I am going to do my best to save for a couple of other pieces that I think I will need. Because I prefer natural light photography I need to be looking at upgrading my camera at some point. No rush, just enjoying learning and getting as much experience as I can over the next year while I decide how if I want to proceed with this.

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I dreamed last night that I received my referral from China. Over the months and years that I have waited, the dreams of my daughter have changed quite a bit. From a little round-faced girl with dark bobbed hair, to a twelve year-old girl, to a child with a heart defect—my nights and my daydreams have been filled with visions of this child. Last night it was different, very different. My China girl was actually a China boy. Yep, another boy. Not only that, he was about the same age as Duc. I love my son like no one else, but the thought of having another boy the same age actually gave me a cold chill. But, over the last few years I have learned that God often sees things differently that we see things. The big picture that I often can not comprehend at the time sometimes becomes so much clearer after the days and weeks melt away. Time, in this sense, is on my side.

For whatever reason, this time of the month often brings up thoughts of my China girl (I still believe it will be a girl despite the dream!). This month marks twenty-nine months since logging in with China. It seems like an impossible number, but here we sit. Again, no rush, just enjoying my son and getting as much experience as I can. He has been a great teacher.