The Stone Family

It's been a while!

2010-07-15T07:24:00.000-07:00

Since my last post a lot has been going on in our world. Eleck turned 4 and Bryce turned 2 and Mommy started a photography business. You can see the website of Tall Blonde Photography here! Daddy started roping again!

Here are a few photos from the past few months!

"This is my picture pose." Eleck 4 years old.

My little Cowboys!

Eleck refused to get off of his Gator even though it was raining and hailing.

My sweet Eleck! He is growin' way too fast!

He loves his wild rag!

Do you think he will ever get into trouble?

There is nothing like a good horse, love Hummer!

My Sugar Beets

2010-03-07T18:59:00.000-08:00

Sugar Beets is what I refer to my two little boys as, they are sweet as sugar and they both love beets so I guess it just fits together.

Tomorrow I leave for five days to fulfill my duties at AgWorks Solutions in Washington, DC. I am not ready to leave and nor will I ever be ready to leave my babies and their daddy for five whole days.

Today was a very exciting day for our little family! We joined Canaan Trail Baptist Church in Alto, NM! God is working in our lives as he never has before and we are so excited to just live in His will! We spent the day together on the ranch just enjoying being together! Praise God for our many blessings!

The Sugar Beets are growing up too fast! It seems like yesterday we were just married and had no kids.

Ever since I was a child photos of Cowboys, especially my Daddy, always intrigued me. Today I have the perfect model, my husband, Troy. To improve my photography skills I am taking a class on natural light photography and one of my assignments was capturing a silhouette, below is my attempt of that!

The clouds were awesome today, I could have taken pictures until the sun went down. I think my volunteers would have been a little tired though! Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I do!

To my sweet Sugar Beets know how much Mommy loves you and misses you.

Rhett Carson Smith

2010-02-24T17:05:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the world, Rhett Carson Smith! He joined us February 23, 2010 at 3:12 PM. He weighed 8 lbs and 11 oz and was 21.25" long.

Rhett was born to my brother, Brandon, and his wife Becky! You have seen photos of their other babies, Natalie and Isaac on the blog!

We are extra excited that we are the God parents to this sweet little boy.

We love you Rhett. May God Bless you sweet boy.

The Cowboy that Stole my heart

2010-02-19T11:55:00.000-08:00

It will be six years ago on March 5, 2010 that Troy swept me off my feet!

I love you so much Troy and I am so thankful for you and the beautiful sons we have been blessed with.

More today than yesterday.

One of Daddy's little Cowboys

2010-02-16T10:13:00.000-08:00

Bryce now insists on wearing his daddy's huge cowboy hat if he is outside or inside. Here are some of the photos I snapped yesterday!

I can't get over how much he looks like his name sake, Grandpa Bryce!

I love you Brycie!

Funny Cloud & Haulin' Hay with Daddy

2010-02-05T20:50:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning to this odd cloud...

While we were waiting for Daddy Eleck wanted to wear Dad's winter hat and his own wild rag while he pretended to be a pirate in the ship he built in his room with his bed! What a neat imagination he has!

In the afternoon we went on a road trip, because this year has brought more snow than we've had in a LONG time, that means we need more hay! We drove to San Antonio (New Mexico) home to the Owl Bar and Cafe to pick up some more little bales. Unfortunately there was no time for a famous Green Chile Cheeseburger.

At the Lopez Farms I found this awesome ole' truck, beautiful landscape and kind people to photograph! I'm also getting to test out my new logo/watermark for the first time on the photos!

What a blessing to get to be with my family day in and day out! Praise the Lord!

Paris 2003

2010-02-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

I am preparing for another trip to Washington, DC and in doing so I was searching through old files and found some photos that I felt the need to share.

Paris 2003 for the OIE conference. Great friends and a great time! Looking forward to seeing you in DC!

For those of you who don't know my middle name is Nell...that's where Nellie Belle comes from!

There was never anytime for fun because we working so hard!

My boss, Bill Hawks, such a stick in the mud.

Of course we were drinking soda water!

Don't Touch that SLR!

2010-01-18T15:11:00.000-08:00

The awesome ladies at Two Photogs are having another great photo contest! This time is it all about shooting without your DSLR camera. Below are my three entries!!!

The mares and colts in the Steel Tank pasture. Taken with my Nikon Coolpix.

A day at the park with Eleck and Bryce. I only had my Nikon CoolPix with me that day and it took me multiple tries to actually capture him jumping!

Another one from our day at the park!

The girls...

2010-01-15T15:13:00.000-08:00

These heifers are some of the most important "girls" on the ranch. When they hear the feed wagon they start runnin' or as Eleck says "here comes the stampede".

The Chow Line

Lovin' ranch life!

I was playing with the settings on my camera and used a 50mm 1.4 lens and turned the aperture way down. In PS I used an action called "dim the lights" three times and got this image...a little different but fun!

The boys

2010-01-11T19:22:00.000-08:00

Complete angels!

I Love this family - Capitan Family Photographer

2010-01-06T09:03:00.000-08:00

I got to spend New Year's Day afternoon with the funniest family! We had a wonderful time and learned a lot of great jokes! Thanks to all of you!

I hope you enjoy the sneak peek!

Thank you all for spending the afternoon with me, I had a great time!

Lady & a Horse - Capitan Family Photographer

2010-01-06T07:21:00.000-08:00

In my hunt for volunteers to build my photography business Miss Staci volunteered, boy did we have fun! She even brought Money along for the shoot. Thank you Staci for braving the freezing cold and arriving in the early morning hours!

Stacie you are an EXCEPTIONAL young woman and I know that you will succeed at whatever you put your mind to. I look forward to seeing how you will impact the world.

Stones Chelsea

2010-01-06T06:29:00.000-08:00

The newest addition to the Stone family. Though we were planning on waiting a while to get another dog, Chelsea, just was too good to pass up, she is even registered with the AKC...not sure if we are ready to get into raising dogs but we are excited to have her!

Welcome to the family sweet Chelsea! We already love you!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-05T09:34:00.000-08:00

At the last possible minute we decided to attend the New Year's Eve party at the Carrizozo Country Club. We all had a fantastic time! There were so many beautiful children and people there that I should have taken more photos. Below are a few that I did snap!

Welcome to 2010

My sweet Eleck was scared of the other kids at first and just watched them play...that only lasted a few minutes!

Bryce loved watching the excitement from the comfort of Poppy's lap.

Samantha is Bryce's new friend, she is five months older and an absolute doll, I loved taking her picture.

She did eventually smile for the camera!

The rest of the shots were mostly candids as I don't think people knew what to do with a camera at the New Year's celebration!

Beautiful Mrs. Ferguson

The Cooper gals! Gorgeous!

Mr. Cooper doesn't like the camera

Poppy and his Grandsons

The boys new friend!

Christmas Greetings from the Stones

2009-12-22T16:36:00.000-08:00

This is the Christmas letter and photos that I had planned to send out via snail mail, but that didn't happen due to printer problems. Merry Christmas to all!

May you have a blessed Christmas !

THE BELL
I KNOW WHO I AM
I am God's child (John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15 )
I am united with the Lord (1 Cor. 6:17)
I am bought with a price (1 Cor 6:19-20)
I am a saint (set apart for God). (Eph. 1:1)
I am a personal witness of Christ. (Acts 1:8)
I am the salt & light of the earth (Matt 5:13-14)
I am a member of the body of Christ (1 Cor 12:27)
I am free forever from condemnation ( Rom. 8: 1-2)
I am a citizen of Heaven. I am significant (Phil 3 :20)
I am free from any charge against me (Rom. 8:31 -34)
I am a minister of reconciliation for God (2 Cor 5:17-21)
I have access to God through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:18)
I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph. 2:6)
I cannot be separated from the love of God (Rom 8:35-39)
I am established, anointed, sealed by God (2 Cor 1:21-22 )
I am assured all things work together for good (Rom. 8:28 )
I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16 )
I may approach God with freedom and confidence (Eph.. 3: 12 )
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13 )
I am the branch of the true vine, a channel of His life (John 15: 1-5)
I am God's temple (1 Cor. 3: 16). I am complete in Christ (Col. 2: 10)
I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).. I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
I am God's co-worker (1 Cor. 3:9; 2 Cor 6:1). I am God's workmanship (Eph. 2:10)
I am confident that the good works God has begun in me will be perfected. (Phil. 1: 5)
I have been redeemed and forgiven ( Col 1:14). I have been adopted as God's child (Eph 1:5)
I belong to God
Do you know
Who you are?

'The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make His face shine upon you
And be gracious to you.

Ranching, not always Glamorous

2009-12-18T06:11:00.000-08:00

When ranch life is documented it is usually of Cowboys and Cowgirls horseback working cattle with very bucolic scenery all around. Unfortunately that is not the "normal" kind of work we do on the ranch.

This time of year the days consist of checking the first calve heifers, feeding and then doing all the necessary repair work on the fences or water tanks.

Yesterday Troy spent the entire morning fixing water leaks that were caused by the extreme cold spell a few weeks ago. He digs the leaks up with a shovel, and is usually covered in mud before completing the task.

The digital scrapbook pages below document Troy and his trusty helpers doing the not so glamorous work that is involved in the up keep of a working ranch!

Sunshine & Shoes

2009-12-13T13:22:00.000-08:00

Now that my photography is becoming much more than a "hobby," I am doing everything in my power to learn just how to be an outstanding photographer. One of the things that I have been doing to improve my skills and study is reading various photography blogs. One I ran across, and now follow, is Two Photogs . These amazing photographers are giving away a space in their first mentoring session starting in January 2010. Lord knows I really need all the mentoring I can get! I live in one of the most beautiful places for outdoor portrait photography...I just need help learning how to capture it!

To win I must document my guilty pleasures in pictures. I enjoy eating too much for that to really be a guilty pleasure so I decided on Sunshine & Shoes!

Growing up a rancher's daughter, I didn't have many shoes other than athletic shoes; a few pairs of dress shoes for when I had to wear a dress; and of course cowboy boots. When I took my first real job after college I landed in Washington, DC, and had to purchase a whole new wardrobe; that is when I developed a passion for shoes! I now own too many pairs to count, and since I'm a rancher's wife I very seldom get to wear any of my "fancy DC" shoes!

Sunshine is also another guilty pleasure; I don't get outside in God's beautiful outdoors near enough since I help pay our bills by being inside in front of the computer.

I loaded up a few of my favorite shoes, cowboy boots, bench, camera, tripod and remote in the truck, and went searching for the perfect spot on the ranch to document my guilty pleasures, Sunshine & Shoes.

Winter on the Ranch

2009-12-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned in the previous post this is by far the coldest winter I've experienced while living north of Capitan.

Willa sent me some photos where twenty years ago they received 44 inches of snow and then ten years ago they got 20 inches of snow, I must say I hope we don't receive quite that much, but we do need the moisture.

Here are some photos that I have taken on the ranch and of our first calve heifers, a few of our mares and our stud.

Stay warm!

This is Jude one of our favorite mares, I think her mane needs some attention.

This is Cash our stud horse.

This is what happens when the tractor freezes up...

This is our first calf of the year.

How to Build a Fire

2009-12-10T06:59:00.000-08:00

Troy and I have been living on his family ranch for almost five years now. The very first thing I learned when moving here was how to build a fire "properly". Our home was built in the late 1800's and the only form of heat in the living room and kitchen was good ole' fashion fire. At that point all the bedrooms had wood stoves in them as well. Today we only have to worry about building a fire in the living room and dining room, everything else has "modern" heating.

This morning as I looked at the fireplace, which was overflowing with ashes I decided that "How to build a fire" would be my first blog tutorial!

Hopefully one person out there will benefit from this! I learn by seeing so below are the step by step photos.

#1 Gather extremely small pieces of kindling and arrange:

#2 Stack wood across the base supports (ours are made of old rail road iron and horse shoes). You build the stack up lattice style:

#3 Using a match light the small kindling on fire

#4 Sit back and enjoy the fire.

This is probably very elementary for most but I had fun documenting what I learned five years ago!

This is by far the coldest winter we have had since moving here...two days ago we had winds that blew over 65 mph. Another blog post soon to document the extreme cold.

More family Thanksgiving!

2009-12-09T14:23:00.000-08:00

This Thanksgiving was extra special as Papa Charlie celebrated his 80th Birthday! Below are photos of three of his kids and their families who were able to join us! We had a wonderful time and wish we could all get together more often!

Family Thanksgiving in Mills, NM

2009-12-01T13:35:00.000-08:00

We spent three great days with my family in Mills. We all ate way too much and just enjoyed each others company.

Enjoy the photos from the weekend!

More photos to follow with great grandparents and more cousins! We are SO thankful for the time with family!

Family Photos

2009-11-29T10:13:00.000-08:00

Thankful to Martha Whipple who snapped our photos while here visiting.

Nothing like Good Friends!

2009-11-29T09:56:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time with the Whipple family a few weekends back! Here are some pages of our adventures.

Deer Hunting with the White's 2009

2009-11-29T09:14:00.000-08:00

The White's have hunted here for over 30 years! This year their family joined them to celebrate Thanksgiving in Ruidoso we were delighted that they were able to come back out to the ranch!

Both David and Bill took home nice deer!

Fun with the Whipples

2009-11-29T06:54:00.000-08:00

The Whipple's joined us for a weekend of deer hunting and family fun! We even found time to snap a few family photos for one another, I used some of the photos to design some Holiday greeting cards for them!

We are thankful for great friends!

My boys....

2009-11-19T10:48:00.000-08:00

Editing and reviewing photos to put together our 2009 family scrapbook has been a challenge but also so rewarding. As I look at the photos from the last year I can't help but wonder how time is going by so fast.

The photos below were taken in July and they have grown up so much since then!

Hope everyone is having a blessed day!

Scrapbooking

2009-11-17T09:24:00.000-08:00

I have always wanted to me the Mom who had the boys scrapbooks up to date. I wanted to be like my Mom who could make a page look so beautiful and in addition make tons of crafty things for my home... It is easy to say that I have totally failed in that area.

For the past few weeks I have been trying to change that. I have made multiple handmade birthday cards using my cricut machine and even a birthday bouquet for a neighbors daughter. I accomplished making the family calendar for Christmas gifts and I have completed five scrapbook pages for the 2009 family book.

Thanks to Carol who introduced me to the Creative Memories line of scrap booking items I now have paper, books and even digital software. It is awesome and I am looking forward to tapping into all that it can do as I work to complete my first "coffee table" style scrapbook for my sweet boys!

To my Mama and all my scrap booking friends, thank you for lighting a fire under me...I will be even more appreciate in years to come!

Below are my first scrapbook pages!

After seeing this software in action I even became a Creative Memories consultant! Check out the full line of CM products at http://www.mycmsite.com/sites/kimberlystone

Did you know that people disappear for a weekend and do nothing but scrapbook at some kind of a bed and breakfast or retreat location? I had never heard of such a thing but you can bet that I will be at the next one, ready to learn!

Happy Scrapping!

Ranch Life

2009-11-11T18:49:00.000-08:00

God has blessed us so richly as we have the opportunity to raise our children on a ranch, in His beautiful out of doors. Eleck and Bryce are learning the importance of taking care of and respecting all of God's creations.

Here are some photos of the ranch and kids...

Thank you Lord.

Troy

2009-11-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

My true love...

Fun with Friends

2009-11-10T13:48:00.000-08:00

Sunday morning part of the Traylor family came over to play for a while! Emma, Meghan, Tobyn and Kelly are pictured below!

Then the boys and I went to Addy's 3rd birthday party!

Addie the Birthday Girl!

Abby, Addy's cousin!

Eleck loves the guitar!

Northern New Mexico

2009-11-08T06:42:00.000-08:00

Though I call Capitan, NM home now, I am still very fond of Northern New Mexico! Below are photos of some beautiful country and gorgeous children...hope you enjoy!

The turn off to my parents house.

About 2 miles from my parents house along the canyon.

The view out the kitchen window.

The bench sits where Troy and I said "I Do" five and a half years ago.

The front entry into the house.

The Cross Canes brand above the fireplace.

Isaac and Natalie our niece and nephew came over to play!

My sweet niece, Natalie, naturally beautiful!

The kids had a great time playing at Gramme and Grandpa's!

Enjoying all the Halloween snacks that Gramme put together for them! Bryce and Ike enjoyed their first taste of candy corn!

The best group shot we got of the costumes!

The kids had a great time trick or treating at a few neighbors houses and then in Roy!

Thanks Mom, Dad, Becky, Brandon, Natalie and Isaac for a great week!

The Curls

2009-11-03T19:02:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite parts of my baby were his beautiful curls, despite that many thought he looked like a "hippie" or even a girl. The longer they got they did get a little out of control so Troy and I decided it was time to give Bryce his first hair cut! Gramme Barbara did a great job!

Before...

During...

After...

Fun at the Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

The boys had a great time picking pumpkins at Nanny Willa's pumpkin patch! I took so many photos I couldn't choose so I'm putting them all up here!

Their Gramme Barbara was here to partake in the fall fun!

Eleck didn't want to pose for many photos so most of them are on the run...

Bryce had just as much fun...

I managed to catch the boys together a few times...

Thank you Nanny for the pumpkins, we love you!

Some random photos...

2009-10-23T19:08:00.000-07:00

The crazy things my boys do...

2009-10-23T13:43:00.000-07:00

Over the past week each of my boys have done things that leave me thanking God for protecting them...or praying for the patience to not get upset with them...

This particular incident started with the boys riding down to the red house to help Poppy feed the heifers.

While Poppy and Roy fed we waited by the small drinker...

Both of the boys love to splash their hands in...I warned Eleck not to lean too far...but Eleck has a hard time understanding...so before long...

this is the after shot of his self "dunking". This did not slow him down one bit...see below

Thank you Lord for protecting my baby.

Later that day Troy got a little upset at a cow who refused to move out of the gate...

I love taking photos of him...even if the hat is not my favorite one!

This post would not be complete without a little story about Bryce...

That little face would never tell you that he is mischievous...

This is how I found him later that day...

Already sticking his tongue out at mommy...

He also reached and got a beater...his first taste of whipped cream...

I can't get out the beaters now without him screaming for a taste!

At the corrals - Capitan, NM - Ranch Life Photographer

2009-10-21T13:35:00.000-07:00

Though Bryce and I missed out on truck loading we were able to spend the whole afternoon at the corrals taking photos as they sorted off all the cows and sent them back to their respective pastures.

The clouds were too good to not include in the photos! Below we have the neighbors who joined Troy and Preston.

The cattle...

Daddy and boys...

Here is a photo of our mountain and the clouds...these clouds did bring moisture with them! I also had some time to shoot a few photos of Nanny's roses!

Blessings to you and yours.

Ranch photos from today - Capitan, NM Ranch Photographer

2009-10-20T19:17:00.000-07:00

Troy's bay horse...nubbin.

Troy's childhood friend and neighbor, Kyle

Fun Football Fotos with the Bowen Boys - Capitan, NM - Family Photographer

2009-10-19T16:32:00.000-07:00

As I venture out to begin taking family portraits professionally I have recruited a few folks to be my "guinea pigs". Thank you Tracker and Price for helping me out!

Photos of Bryce

2009-10-19T15:38:00.000-07:00

Some of my favorite photos of Bryce!

Photos of Eleck

2009-10-19T15:13:00.001-07:00

Here are some of my favorite photos of Eleck!

Summer Fun

2009-10-19T13:19:00.000-07:00

2009 has been an exciting year for the Stone family! We have calved out heifers, worked cattle, trapped bobcats, traveled around New Mexico, went on a cruise, rode horseback and just played! Here are a few of our favorite photos of the year!

Learning how to Blog...

2009-10-19T08:07:00.000-07:00

My second day of being an official "blogger" and I'm not sure if I know what I'm getting myself into...this is rather addicting.

I am hopeful to post some client photos and even make a website banner before the days end.

I'm off to blog...

The Troy Stone Family

2009-10-18T06:37:00.000-07:00

Troy and I have been married since September 5, 2009, we have two beautiful sons, Preston Eleck and Bryce Arthur. We live on the Stone family ranch north of Capitan.

Last October our life was changed drastically when we learned about Reliv International. Reliv turned out to be an answer to so many prayers, I will share more about that later.

In September of 2009 I quit my job of over five years and am at home with my family full time. Now I help out at AgWorks Solutions a Washington, DC based firm as well as being involved in numerous civic organizations.

I hope those of you that read this blog will enjoy following what the Stone Family is up to and watch all the mischief our children get into through photos!

Blessings to all,
kns