From the Haugen Heart

"Newlyweds become oldyweds, and oldyweds are the reasons that families work." Still in love..... pretty clear, isn't it? I got to know this lovely couple as I visited with them in preparation for this photography session. My goal was to not just capture some nice smiles but to say something about the depth of their relationship. Ken and Mary are not newlyweds, they have been married for 44 years and have been very intentional about being in a loving relationship with each other. (Friday night is "date night") It shouldn't be a surprise that Ken and Mary have this kind of relationship. Ken is the founder of Friends of the Family Ministries in Corvallis which provides relationship counseling, pre marital counseling, classes and workshops so you can see that he practices what he preaches. Wouldn't it be awesome if all newlyweds became "oldyweds"?

"There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy's life that he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure."                                                                                                                                                                       Mark Twain I love this quote and the magical, exploratory time of childhood it represents. It evokes a time gone by, however. How many boys (or girls) are heading out into the great outdoors to search for hidden treasure today? I read an article recently about how dramatically the space that children are allowed to explore unhindered by adult supervision has shrunk in the matter of 4 generations. The example cited shows a great grandfather allowed to walk 6 miles to go fishing while the modern day 8 year old is allowed to go to the end of the block. I doubt that we can or even should go back to the freedom that children had in days gone by but I mourn for the h