Pumpkin Carving

We got pumpkins at the Farmer's Market this year. Nathan learned all about pumpkins last week at school so to close out the week we carved some so he could get some hands on learning.

I was in charge of the knife and the kids were in charge of scooping out the guts. Dan took the job as photographer, he doesn't much care for carving pumpkins. Shout out to Annie's, sometimes I really miss that place! :-(

Nathan checking out the situation.

Nathan, "Mom this is really gross, I am not sticking my hand in there."
And he didn't.

Nora checking her pumpkin out.

She was just fine with getting her hands in there. So serious, she takes pumpkin carving seriously.

The finished product. Nora's is the one on the left. Nathan's is the football laces mouth. He was really excited that I made an "H" in the mouth. That way people would know it was his, "H" for Hanselmann.

OOOHHHH SCARY!!!

Ward Harvest Party

Not in focus at all but he was super funny last night. This is Adam, N&N's cousin.

Trunk o Treating buckets. We couldn't do it outside this year because of all of the crazy wind!!

Dan shot this before we left. I was a dark fairy.

Nathan did so well. Played almost all of the games and had a great time. He kept turning his hat backwards so his eyebrows were over his ears. He looked like a really old man with crazy ear hair. Super funny.

My cutie girl Nora. In the event of saving money we reused the costumes from last year. A friend of mine added the flower petals on the bottom for me so it was longer.

Silly Nathan, my friend added the pant extention and belt, I did the paint on the belt, Nathan ruined the paint on the belt, and the I tried to redo it. I also made his slippers by hand, no sewing machine, yes I am a super genius!

And one more of Nora, she is so sweet!

Five Year Check-up

Nathan had his five year check up awhile back but I never posted his stats they are, Weight 40.2 lbs 46%, this is an amazing feat! Height 43.5 inches 21%. His four year stats are Weight 32.5 lbs 19% and Height 39 inches 20%. He gained over seven pounds this year! It is all muscle for sure, he is still skinny as a rail!

Three Year Check-up

Nora had her three year check-up yesterday. She is doing so great. Weight 28 lbs, not out of the twenties yet but she is finally in the 10%! Height 37.25 inches 45%. She passed all of her tests: vision, speech, and motor skills. She has grown up so much this year. Last year stats weight 22 lbs, height 34.5 inches. It is all of those vegetables she loves to eat!

Hands That Heal Project

The Mercy Service Club and Autism Center gave Hanselmann Photography the opportunity to be very creative and be a part of their Hands that Heal Project. They are a new wing in the Mercy Hospital and needed a display put together for one of their main walls. We jumped at the chance to take some less than ordinary photos. The first photo here is the hand of the sweetest baby girl I know named Evelyn, and her mother. I heart that name!

I love the emotion that I feel when I look at these hands in prayer.

I think we could sell the rights to this photo to the people at Aleve or something for their arthrits campaign.

They did not use this shot because it is of feet, not hands. But I love it none the less.

We really enjoyed ourselves and were very pleased with the outcome.

Brown Baby Belly

We had our first baby belly photo shoot with this pretty lady right here. She is due any day now and is one gorgeous mama.

This is one of my favorite shots. I love the flower it is striking against the blue.

She is having a baby girl. I love how her skin and bracelet almost look metallic.

She still has yet to pick out a name so I thought these shots were a little funny.

This last shot was Dan's idea. I thought he executed it perfectly. I really enjoyed this session.

Cassandra's Senior Portraits

Our first senior. We also have a new watermark (right hand bottom corner). I really like it. I think that I will be starting a new blog for our photography and a facebook page for Hanselmann Photography. More to come! We are editing our baby belly session.

Life

Our house lately has been going through some struggles. Dan is still laid off from his job at Western Dubuque Bio Diesel. This will make it 10 months now without work. He has been very diligent with looking for work everywhere. We just are not sure what else to do. He emails applications and resumes out everyday and we have only gotten rejection letters. The unemployment check will stop in two months right before Christmas. We are trying to keep a positive attitude and are doing everything that we can to stay afloat. It really doesn't look like his old job will be hiring any one back and it seems as though they might shut down for good. He has been looking at office control manager, accounts payable/accounts receivable, and payroll. He would like to start school next fall and get his accounting degree.

This time off has allowed us to explore photography more and really pinpoint what kind of photographers we want to be. When things normalize and we get back on our feet we would love to have our own business as natural light photographers. We really enjoy working together on our projects and would love to do more with it. We have been learning so much and I feel that we are able to do great work with the tools that we have.

We have really enjoyed the family time that we have had together. Nathan is doing so well in school. He has gotten very social, in his own way, and is learning tons. He always has good things to say about his days at school. All around I have been very pleased with his progress. Nora has been blossoming as well. She loves being the only child at home. She is so creative and has such an imagination. I have been keeping very busy with photography and with my church calling in the Young Women's program. I have been trying to simplify our lives and really focus on what is important. Dan has grown quite a bit himself through this trail. He has really become very focused and outgoing while searching for a new job. I am so proud of his efforts and hope that they will soon be rewarded. If anyone knows of any jobs in the area let me know. We have been looking in Dubuque, Quad Cities, and Logan, Utah. Please keep us in your prayers. Thanks!