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A boy in Africa…

02.28.10

Photo courtesy of David Held

What a wacky last month or so– earthquakes of huge magnitudes rocked Haiti, Chile, Argentina leaving tsunami threats in their wake…it’s hard to fathom all this suffering. And yet, I am reminded that these are the “birth pains” that foretell of the return of the king who will make all things new again. It’s so hard to reconcile suffering and mercy in the same breath, Lord help me believe.

When I hear Solomon’s story, I can’t help but believe. This boy was orphaned when his only living family member, his father, died several years ago. Solomon grew up suffering a lonely life, but God was merciful in providing him a home at Kolfe boys orphanage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Not only that, Solomon was in his room on that day that my family visited Kolfe, and went out to meet them when he heard this lady was giving hugs to all these boys telling them that they are loved and special. That lady who didn’t want to visit Kolfe– the odler boys orhpanage. She thought it would be a threatening place. She was shaken to her shoes to see these boys, and Jesus told her to be his arms and hug them. God urged Solomon outside and both that lady–Mama Eileen and Solomon were forever changed. Too old to be officially adopted, Eileen & fam adopted him through email, sending care packages with other adoptive families going to Ethiopia. Solomon went from being lonely and depressed to awakened to new life in Christ, aware for the first time of what it meant to be a believer. The Lord proved himself able to care for even Solomon, a lonely African orphan, and now he wants to share that love with others.

Now, this story gets crazier. (Which is so like God.) Mama Eileen is my mom. If you know my mom, you know she never wanted to go to Africa. She went, along with my dad and sister, to pick up her babies, Josiah, Keziah and Keren. But then she went back!! My family really felt that the Lord wanted her to go to Solomon’s graduation from high school. So she went. Solomon had been failing classes when he was depressed, but with people now in his life who care about him and pay for his school, he wanted to do his best, to prove them proud. When they called his name, and only then, did they find out that he was graduating as VALEDICTORIAN.

Solomon has been given the prestigious honor of a full scholarship to the college at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. This is unheard of as an international student. This is so God. The only thing standing between him coming to school here is on this Friday, March 5. The TOEFL exam. He must pass this exam in order to get a visa. Please pray with us that he will be able to pass without trouble. And then, pray with us that the US will grant him a visa for studying, which they can be leery of granting to orphans, for fear they won’t return home. But, you see Solomon is not a Mestas. He is God’s. Who knows why else my mom and this boy were brought together, if not to bring him to study here in Wake Forest, NC for an even bigger picture!?

Please pray for his visa, for his exam, and for the money to get him here (plane ticket and health insurance). For more on Solomon’s story of suffering mingled with mercy, see http://jobsdaughters.blospot.com.
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Posted in Adoption, Community Involvement, Personal

by Melissa-Tesoro

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Three Years.

02.21.10

About three years ago, my parents and my sister felt that their desire to adopt again was to be redirected from China to Ethiopia. Long story short, it was two days later that their youngest daughters were born across the world in Addis Ababa. Their protective older brother was two and a half at the time, and their birth mother was all too happy that they would be placed all together in one family. It’s hard to believe that it’s been two and a half years since the three have come home to America. Even harder to remember that the Twinettes used to be sedentary, quiet, and chubby! Happy Birthday to some pretty rambunctious, delightful, hilarious, pink-obsessed three-year olds!!
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A fabulous “T-Rella” (Cinderella & Princesses) Cake!! Huge shout-out to the Mama of the Year for this cake!

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My boy loves him some cakie. IMG_5822x

A pretty tutu for a pretty girl! IMG_5879x

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For more on orphan care related ministries, please see

http://www.christianalliancefororphans.org/index.php

http://www.hopechest.org/

http://www.showhope.org/

http://www.chsnc.org/

Posted in Adoption, Personal

by Melissa-Tesoro

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Adorable Baby Shoot: Cana

02.17.10

I absolutely love shooting babies at this stage– chubby, sitting, and easy to dress up. I did Vaden’s at 6 months, which you can see here back in September 2008. Cana’s didn’t happen til 7 months, but it’s still the same stage of life. I got an hour in with this little one before she started to lose composure, so I was pumped! For more, check out her slideshow here. Let me give a shout out to Crickett for the awesome tutu and headband!! We LOVE it.

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Posted in Babies

by Melissa-Tesoro

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Loveshoot Giveaway Winner

02.14.10

Thank you so much for those of you who entered the loveshoot giveaway. I know you thought hard about your options, took the time to write and nominate someone and let me tell you, it was difficult to decide. Each story was touching and inspired me to find ways of reaching out more often to celebrate love. After much deliberation, prayer and deliberation and prayer… the winner is
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Thanks, Carolina, for entering your parents. I really had a tough time trying to decide, but in the end, love is about sacrifice, commitment, and putting someone else before your own needs/wants. Pedro and Isabel Rincon show that they have what it takes to make love last. Through thick and thin, they have stuck together and it is evident by being around them that they truly cannot live one without the other. This year they will be celebrating 40 years of marriage! They have 3 grown children and 2 grandchildren, all to which they continually pour out love and support. They are also great examples of what it is to serve others and each other. Truly an admirable pair!

Posted in Promotional

by Melissa-Tesoro

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02.12.10

Much like the good ole days of yesteryear (a.k.a. high school) I am home on a Friday night. My babies are sound asleep, I am done editing photos for the night, and I am praying that I can one day truthfully echo the words of Martha Washington in a letter to Mercy Otis Warren:
“I am determined to be cheerful and to be happy in whatever situation I may. For I have learnt from experience that the greater part of our happiness, or misery, depends upon our disposition not upon our circumstances.” {December 26, 1789.}

Check out this gem:

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Posted in Babies

by Melissa-Tesoro

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March Madness

02.08.10

Here’s a steal of a deal. There are a limited number of slots, so email me to book as soon as you can!

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Posted in Children, Couples, Families, Individuals, Promotional

by Melissa-Tesoro

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Then Comes Marriage: Esther & Steven

02.03.10

Oh. My heart is full of happy feelings as I write this post. Why? Well, Back in 2001, just after 9/11, I flew across the Atlantic and found myself living with a house full of Brits, and discovered that another American was coming soon. I was so excited, and hoping that the week delay for her would not discourage her from coming to do her DTS with us YWAMers (Youth with a Mission). The day of her arrival came, so we planned a party, baked some delicious goodies, and even made a “red carpet” out of red paper to welcome her, only to see that she was exhausted and practically ran over our carpet on her way to her room, all the while staring at us all like we had lost our minds. I don’t really remember what happened next, or even over the next few weeks… I just know she hated me. And I didn’t especially love her. She even had her family and friends back home praying about this awful girl she was living with! We finally had a talk where we got it all out there, and I remember that everything changed. I can’t imagine that year without her. In fact, I can’t imagine life without her. In truth, she’s one of my best friends in the whole world. When I have exciting things happen, I call Esther. When I am having hard times, I call Esther. She was my doula when Vaden was born, and flew all the way to see me several times. When she’s not off birthing babies in South Asia. Yes, she’s amazing. She is a midwife and a missionary and though she’s spent a lot of time all over the world, her heart is in Cambodia.

When Esther told me she’d met someone, I knew he had to be pretty amazing. You see, Esther didn’t date really. She was holding out for a guy she could actually see marrying. She had known Steven for a while, and they were good friends, fellow YWAM missionaries, and he’d taught her some dancing. (Steven is a dance instructor. And a budding photographer. And really, from what I gathered, he could probably do anything. He’s a missionary.) Anyway, after leaving YWAM’s main campus in Kona, Hawaii and being separated, Steven realized what a gem Esther was and wanted to have her all to himself. He was supposed to be in Switzerland for a while, but cut his time there in half in order to come back and plan a wedding.

So, on New Year’s Eve, we (Randy, Cana, and I– Vaden stayed with Mimi and Papi) flew out to Seattle, actually Puyallup, Esther’s hometown. The town full of people who knew that I was the awful girl she grew to love. And I got to meet Steven, and start to get to know him. I am grateful that he loves his bride with all his heart. There is no denying that these two are head over heels. I am so honored that I got to be there, and that we got to photograph the sweet beginnings of this sweet marriage.

To be honest, I am glad I am not a photographer in the Seattle area, at least in winter. The weather was not ideal for outside photos, but we managed to squeeze some in when the drizzle stopped for a few minutes. I am glad we did. I think Esther & Steven are, too.
To check out their slideshow, click HERE.

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I love when the couple opts to see each other before the wedding. It’s such a sweet time to spend with just each other, and it’s always great to make sure you get awesome photos without feeling so rushed!
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Posted in Weddings

by Melissa-Tesoro

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CONTEST: Loveshoot Giveaway

02.02.10

I am not really huge into hamming up non-major holidays, but when I got to thinking about it, I thought Valentine’s Day would be a great day for a giveaway. No, not because love is a sentimental feeling (though that is a part of it) but love is about sacrifice, commitment, and putting someone else before your own needs/wants. Thus, I want to bless a couple with some time to focus on each other, and I want to give them the pictures for the memory of it all! So, it’s contest time. Here’s the deal: I’m going to do a free one hour loveshoot (that is to say, a man + woman shoot– can be married or engaged or just together for the time being) for one deserving couple to be announced on … you guessed it, February 14!

What I need from you :

1. Think about a couple you know who would love to have their portrait taken together, who could not otherwise afford it, or is normally too busy to have time to themselves, etc…

2. Write me at tesorophotographers@gmail.com with the reason why I should pick that couple.

3. Do all of the above by the deadline: Midnight (EST) on February 5, 2010.

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Posted in Couples, Promotional

by Melissa-Tesoro

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Snow Days!

02.01.10

It’s been cold cold here…and we got snow and ice over the weekend, not a ton, but enough to debilitate our area. As of this morning, Randy says, the side roads are all still pretty slick, but the temperature has just finally climbed above freezing, so hopefully the roads will improve. Although, it seems that more freezing rain is expected tomorrow and Friday. Anyway… Vaden absolutely LOVES the snow or “hno” as he calls it. He did not like to sink into it, and whined and whined at first, but then he screamed when it was time to come in. He refused to leave his new playground. He enjoys walking on the icy snow, listening to it crunch under his boots.

Here’s Cana on the left. She was a little bewildered by the whole thing. This is Vaden in his first snow on the right. Last year.
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Randy taught him to eat the snow (when it was still fresh), and he holds it in his little mittened hand proclaiming, “Mm, mm. Nom nom.” It melts my little heart.

(Now, yesterday, the snow was not the freshest, but nobody had walked on this part. )

Vaden borrowed our neighbor’s sled and went sledding, but eventually preferred to pull the sled around instead. (That’s my boy.)

Vaden helped his Papa shovel, too!

Posted in Personal

by Melissa-Tesoro

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Little Man Jayden.

01.30.10

This little guy is so adorable. I fell in love. (Don’t tell Randy.) We chased each other around Joyner Park on a rather chilly day, chatting it up about Legos and colors and the Museum of Life and Science he’d visited the weekend before. And his mom, Elisabeth, and I caught up on life. Randy & I met Jayden and his mom over a year ago at a Show Hope Weekend in Nashville, TN. We sat at the same table, sipping water, hugging our boys, and crying as we listened to story after story of adoptions, of Maria’s Big House of Hope, of Maria Chapman. It was that weekend that Randy & I announced to my family, who was also there, that we were expecting again. I was still nervous about having another baby while my first was still a baby. Elisabeth assured me that she loved being about 15 months apart from her brother and that they were close all their childhoods. I felt that I could have a boy or girl, and that my children could be good friends– I didn’t have to have another boy in order for the kids to be best buds. Well, I had a girl. And I was totally ok with that. Partly because of Elisabeth.

Anyway, I was so pumped (whenever I use that word I think of the high-tops I had in the early 90’s that I “pumped” up)… so, I was so excited when she called and asked if I would take some photos of Jayden. I remembered how cute he was, and I couldn’t wait.

Jayden is adopted from Guatemala, and I want to give a shout out to all the readers to look into adopting. It’s really an awesome thing. I love shooting to promote adoption, homecomings, family photos, etc., and hope to do more and more of it in the near future. More to come about that later, but for now, here is Jayden’s slideshow! And a few shots for the blog.

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