My Journey In Pictures--2010

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2011-01-17T12:27:00.001-08:00

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I Heart Faces {Babies}

2010-06-15T10:23:00.000-07:00

I had to enter this week's I Heart Faces challenge since the theme is BABIES! I LOVE babies, but especially my babies:-), and right now I'm totally in love with my handsome Jesse. This is one of my most favorite pictures of him. It was taken in April. He looks absolutely delicious!

Head over to I Heart Faces for more baby fun this week!

Diggers and Dumpers

2010-06-09T23:04:00.000-07:00

Jack is in love with all things construction and truck related right now. Here are some of my fave pics of him so far this Spring. These were taken at Nana's house on one of our fun outside playtimes last month. I love the look of concentration on his face, and his sweet little hands.

May 2010

I Did It--A real scrapbook page!

2010-06-07T19:42:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun making this scrapbook page! I haven't digiscrapped since May '09. I can't wait to make oh so many more:-)!

These are pictures from Jesse's Memorial Day fun at Nana's house. He is so adorable!

Scrapbook Pages

2010-05-30T11:50:00.000-07:00

In an effort to make my blogger book have the least amount of pages possible, I am cleaning up/deleting any posts on my family blog that are unnecessary. So, anything that I can move over here, I am. Here are all of my digital scrapbook pages that didn't make it here last year. Seeing all of these pages makes me want to start scrapbooking again--if only there was more time in each day!

Easter 2009

Dan Nicholas Park 4/2009

Jack, about 10 months old

Joe, 1/2009, first Reverence Award in Primary

Hanna with 1st ever blue ribbon award. Won for a school newspaper article she wrote--2009.

January 31, 2009, Our sealing day.

8 wks pregnant with Jesse

12 wks pregnant with Jesse

Jack, 11 months old, 2/2009

Jamie's 36th bday, 2/2009

Jack's 1st bday, 3/2009

16 wks pregnant with Jesse

April 2009 journaling page

Easter 2009

Jack, 1 year old, 2009

Easter Train, 2009

20 wks ultrasound with Jesse

20 wks pregnant with Jesse

I Heart Desserts

2010-04-11T21:22:00.001-07:00

This week at I Heart Faces the challenge is all about dessert pics. I baked homemade cinnamon rolls for my dad as a sweet birthday treat because he thinks they are one of the best things in the world! He was surprised and loved them, every bite!

Head over to I Heart Faces and see what else yummy was captured on film this week.

Spring Pics—My Fave Edits

2010-04-11T21:14:00.001-07:00

I posted my favorite Spring pics over on my family blog. Below are my favorite edits using different actions and presets in both PSE and Lightroom.

OK, I could keep going, but I’ll stop here with these!

Before and After

2010-04-10T21:15:00.001-07:00

I played around some more with pictures from our Easter train ride. Here is the original:

Here it is using Abby’s Less Direct Positive preset:

Coffeeshop Scorched Honey:

PW Colorized:

One more before and after of some daffodils at the zoo a few weeks ago. Here is the original:

Here they are using Abby’s IR Flavor:

*PW and Coffeeshop presets can be found and downloaded at The Pioneer Woman and Coffeeshop blog links in my sidebar. Abby presets can be found **here**. All presets are free to download.*

Silly Face

2010-04-07T14:21:00.001-07:00

I thought one of Joe’s silly face pics would be fun to play around with using some different looking presets. Here is the original. He is so silly—just like his daddy:-).

Here it is using Auto Correct first, and then Abby’s Hikey LoSat preset. This is my favorite. I like the brightness of the face contrasted against the fence in the background.

And, here it is using Abby’s Gritty Exposure.

Both of these were edited in Lightroom using free presets found *here*. Can you tell I’m obsessed with Lightroom?! Don’t worry, there will be plenty more:-).

Blooms

2010-04-07T14:12:00.001-07:00

I took lots of flower pics at Biltmore in the greenhouses since the flowers outdoors weren’t in bloom yet. I have no idea what this plant is called, but I liked the color of it. Here is the original.

Here it is edited in Lightroom using the Abby Hikey LoSat Lbd preset.

Another using Abby Undo Grey Drabbiness preset.

And, yet another using NYSM Hdr-ish preset. This is my favorite.

A collage of all including the original (first).

All pics edited in Lightroom using the above listed free presets found *here*.

Biltmore View

2010-04-06T21:28:00.001-07:00

I took lots of pictures at Biltmore House when we were there a couple weeks ago. You could spend days taking pictures at Biltmore and still not be done. It’s so beautiful. I took this picture from one of the balconies on the side of the house. This is the original.

I wanted to see what I could do to brighten the sky a little and make the colors pop more—make it look more like it did to the eye that day. Here’s what I came up with. I edited all pics in Lightroom. On this one I used Sky Effects Deep Blue Something, followed with Modern Dsat + Reds and topped it off with Modern HDR Enhance.

I played around with this picture a little too much. Here are several more edits. I used all of the above and added NYSM-NYKF Subdued to this one. The trees and ground have a little more detail than the first edit. I like the sky better above, but landscape better below.

On this one I used all that I did in my very first edit and added Abby Hikey LoSat. I adjusted the exposure a bit too. I love the greens in this picture. You don’t even notice the greens in any of the pics above.

Finally, on this last one I used all of the edits from my first and finished it off with Abby Gritty Exposure. It looks like there’s a thunderstorm rolling in to me.

Can you tell I’m having way to much fun with Lightroom?!

And, here they all are for side by side comparison.

**All of the presets I used were downloaded *here* at Presetting Lightroom's 180+ Free Presets Collection from flickr.com.**

Exploring Lightroom

2010-04-05T14:05:00.001-07:00

I’ve been playing around in PSE the last few days and decided to give LR a try too. I love both of these programs! They each have different capabilities and both give pictures their own unique looks through presets and actions.

I experimented with some presets I found at *this* awesome link today that is full of LOTS of free LR presets for download! I used a couple of the pictures I got of Hanna and Joe outside last Friday, and one of Jack from yesterday.

Original:

After Wonderland Catalyst 48 Preset:

Here is what I did with Joe’s—original:

After Wonderland Preset Alice’s Not So Bright Day:

After Wonderland Preset Catalyst 19:

Here is Jack’s original:

Here it is after Wonderland Preset Dark Horse:

After I added the preset to these pictures I played with various levels and the exposure until the picture suited me.

I am LOVING these two new programs, and having so much fun learning them!

Spring Pictures--Joe

2010-04-05T07:06:00.000-07:00

I chose to color accent this picture leaving only the flower in color. I love this picture of Joe. He was just sitting off to the side looking at a flower he picked as I was taking pictures of Hanna a little ways off. He looks so sweet.

I edited this picture in PSE using Coffee Shop Selective Color action.

Where It All Began

2010-03-31T09:02:00.000-07:00

This is the gazebo at Biltmore House where Jamie proposed to me seven years ago next month. This is where it all began–the beginning of my fairytale:-).

I love you Jamie, forever.

Color Accent Mode

2010-03-05T08:09:00.000-08:00

My camera has an option under the SCN mode called Color Accent. I really like the way pictures look taken in this mode. I have enjoyed looking at them on the computer screen, but have often wondered over the last year if pictures taken in this mode would look good in a printed hard copy also. In ordering all the pictures for my 365 album of 2009 I decided to include several taken using Color Accent last summer. I was very pleased to find out that they look just as good in the printed hard copy as they do on the computer screen.

I found Hanna reading in her room this morning with Baby O. and thought it was a sweet moment to capture. I took one in regular auto mode:

I also got one in Color Accent Mode. I chose to focus on the color of Baby O.'s fur for the accented color.

Organizing Photos, Udating Home Albums & Blog Books

2010-02-23T17:48:00.000-08:00

I've decided I will not be posting a photo a day any longer. I am going to continue with Project 365, but in a different fashion.

Becky, a lady who is heavily involved in Project 365 (she actually calls it Project Life) and makes/sells albums just for these photos, has an awesome scrapbook kit--digital and "real" format. I am going to purchase her "real", not digital, version of the Project Life Kit. It comes with every conceivable material to make a really nice, archival quality scrapbook of a year's worth of pictures.

I went through all of my 2009 photos online today and ordered 365 of them for an album. I also ordered Becky's Project Life Kit. I will organize these 365 photos of 2009 into this album when they both arrive.

I have loads of picture albums from the last 10 years. From here on out instead of having so many albums each year, I will do this one album using Becky's kit (or one similar to it), and continue making a blog book using blurb for each year as well. I think this will be the simplest way for me and make the most sense economically too.

I'll post Becky's Project Life Kit and my 2009 blog book when I finish them. I'm just happy to finally have a system for my blog, and my physical photos that will work for me!

From here on out, this blog will be for unique photos, the tutorials I will continue to do each week and hopefully some digital scrapbooking in the near future.

Day 54--Snug As A Bug

2010-02-22T19:42:00.000-08:00

I found Joe reading this morning. He often gets up before any of us and goes on into our family/school room to watch TV or play. This morning he was curled up on the couch with Ted under a blanket reading a dinosaur book. He looked so content and so cozy. He was proud to tell me that he'd already "read" 40 pages:-).

Day 52--Lexee

2010-02-22T19:40:00.000-08:00

Jamie's cat, Lexee, was missing for six days. Tonight he found her and was so happy.

Day 51--Caught By A Lizard

2010-02-20T13:21:00.000-08:00

Joe had his first real play session with our backyard lizard friend today. He had a BLAST! He played outside with it for almost an hour. This was my favorite picture--he's sitting just inside the glass doors to the house with his feet and legs still outside. He told me the lizard had hooked his nose:-). I cracked up--so funny! I just kept hoping the lizard didn't escape into the house since he was sitting in the doorway--thankfully he decided to resume play totally in the yard soon after this picture.

Day 50--Castle Project

2010-02-20T13:18:00.000-08:00

I found a cool castle project for us to build together. We've been working on it all week. Last night we got a lot done, thanks to Jamie:-). It should be finished up very soon. Joe can hardly wait!

Day 49--Make A Wish

2010-02-18T19:54:00.000-08:00

Today is Jamie's birthday. Here he is blowing out his candles. I love pictures taken of this. To me it brings back memories of being a child when I really thought making a wish on the birthday candles would make it come true. I still remember it like it was yesterday. Jack looks so happy in the background watching him.

We had a fun night with Jamie celebrating his birthday--all of us--together.

Day 48--Princess Hanna

2010-02-18T11:00:00.000-08:00

This has got to be the life! So often I come home from my morning walk to find Hanna in bed reading. To be a child again, and to be a homeschool child who doesn't have to get up at the crack of dawn to rush out the door for school!! I know Hanna remembers those early mornings, and I do too, my own from years ago, and hers. I'm happy that she is enjoying her mornings reading and relaxing!

Bloggography Week 4--Apperture

2010-02-17T19:52:00.000-08:00

This week's Bloggrography tutorial is about aperture. This is one I've been anxiously waiting for. I tried to figure this out on my own and with my manual last summer unsuccessfully.

This week's challenge is to take pictures of something red or pink using your camera's aperture priority mode--preferably the same object with varying aperture values.

My camera will not let you fully adjust the aperture value, even in manual or custom setting you can adjust it down as low as it will go--which is 2.8--but when you press the button to take the picture, it may go up if the camera doesn't think the lighting is appropriate. That being said, the lowest aperture I was able to achieve was 3.5. I am going to keep playing around with this over the next week and see if I can get a pic at 2.8.

I found a few red berries still hanging on and got some pictures of them. Here it is at f/3.5--

Here it is at f/8 (which is the highest AP value my camera has), you can see that the branch and green leaves are more clear in this shot than above.

Here is the same cluster of berries, but this time the tree on the far left is what is out of focus, shot at f/3.5--

Here it is at f/8--you can see again that the tree on the left is more clear and in focus than in the picture above.

I wish I could have gotten a bit more of a blurred effect with my picture. I will keep playing around, but I am glad to know I can do this, and to know exactly what the AP value affects now when I take pictures.

To see what others captured this week visit Beth and Lolli for their weekly tutorial and Bloggography challenge.

Day 47--Feathers

2010-02-16T21:34:00.000-08:00

Whenever I see feathers of any sort I can't help but think of Hanna and Joe, because they are often bringing them to me to keep as a treasure. I have so many feathers in my treasure box.

When I saw this tiny feather blowing in the breeze today, I went back in and grabbed my camera to take a quick picture. I had felt particularly short on patience all morning and seeing this feather--as odd as this may sound--brought such sweet memories flashing in of Hanna and Joe. It put the day in proper perspective for me.

Day 46--Me and Jesse

2010-02-16T21:31:00.000-08:00

I want to make sure and include a picture of me with each of the kids often throughout my 365. Here I am with my sweet, little Jesse. His eyes get so big when the camera flash goes off. He is such a cuddly baby. I love him so much, and am enjoying every second I get with him each day.

Day 45--My Favorite Valentine

2010-02-14T12:54:00.000-08:00

This morning before breakfast Joe came down holding a large piece of folded paper. He gave it to me and said, "I remembered it was Valentine's Day and made this for you Mama."

Joe is such a sweet little boy. I love him so much.

Day 44--Snow!

2010-02-13T14:01:00.000-08:00

It snowed last night! It hasn't snowed in 9 years. This morning we woke up to a beautiful white snow covering on everything. It was so very pretty.

Day 43--Snowglobe

2010-02-12T20:08:00.001-08:00

Joe was so excited to find out he was making a snowglobe in zoo class today that he could take home for his very own. His eyes literally lit up and he grinned from ear to ear when Miss Jenny told us. He LOVED making it, did an awesome job, and it is super cute!

Day 42--Comfort

2010-02-11T21:17:00.000-08:00

This is my very favorite, well worn, so comfortable robe. I LOVE this robe and could stay in it all day, everyday. This robe reminds me of my days at home with my family, rocking my babies and holding my little ones close.

Day 41--Toothy Grins

2010-02-10T18:57:00.000-08:00

Hanna and Joe went to the dentist today. I was so worried that they were going to have lots of cavities--not that I feed them lots of junk:-), but since Jesse has come along, I've really gotten slack about making sure they brush and brush well. I've pretty much left it totally up to them. They both had a clean report from the dentist, and left with bright shiny teeth!

Day 40--Pure Bliss

2010-02-09T21:50:00.000-08:00

One of the bright spots in each of my days is seeing Jesse smile at me. You know he is so very happy each and every time he does. He is such a happy baby, and such a blessing in my life.

Day 39--Baby Feet

2010-02-09T14:16:00.000-08:00

I love baby feet, but especially my sweet babies' feet. Jesse is four months old, his feet have grown a lot, but they are still so tiny in comparison to his older siblings.

I love this picture. You can even see the little fuzzy lint in the creases of his feet from his sleeper:-).

Day 38--Bedtime Snuggles

2010-02-07T19:05:00.000-08:00

I was so happy to be back home tonight after being away from Jack and Jesse this weekend. I love bedtime story and snuggle time. It has always been one of my favorite moments with my children each night.

I had Hanna take this picture of me reading bedtime stories to Jack tonight.

Day 37--Joe + Ted = Pure Love

2010-02-06T21:09:00.000-08:00

I have never, ever been happier to see Joe all snuggled up with Ted ready for bed. After losing Ted today at the museum, this was a very, very sweet and appreciated moment.

Bloggography Week 3--Shutter Speed

2010-02-06T15:00:00.000-08:00

This week's Bloggography challenge is Shutter Speed using the S or Tv mode. I have never manually adjusted my shutter speed or even thought to do so before now. Honestly, I am not even sure if I've done it right--captured what I should have, but I've been practicing off and on all week, and here's what I've gotten so far....

I had the kids do some basket jumping for me in our family/school room. They thought this was a blast and have done it since many times. Joe's pictures came out best. He seemed to be just the right height to capture his whole body in the frame without the lighting being off.

For the challenge you are to take a picture of something in action, and you can choose to freeze the action or deliberately blur it. I tried to capture each of these. I took these pictures in Tv mode, adjusting the shutter speed as follows, and did no editing other than to resize them for this post. I let the camera select the ISO speed and noticed it was at 160 for these shots.

1/60

1/500--I took another at 1/250 but it was just about as blurry as the one above.

1/800

To see what others captured this week visit Beth and Lolli for their weekly tutorial and Bloggography challenge.

Day 36--It Doesn't Get Much Better Than This

2010-02-05T20:16:00.000-08:00

We are out of town for the weekend. Tonight while sitting in bed at our hotel, I've been enjoying Godiva. I LOVE chocolate and Godiva is my favorite indulgence!

Day 35--Joe's Note

2010-02-04T21:06:00.000-08:00

I found this note on the couch in our family/school room, and I can't lie, I cried when I realized what it was. I have had a very emotional week with my little Joe. He is growing by leaps and bounds emotionally right now. Losing that last bit of "babyness" that I so badly want to hold onto. I've had a week of off and on "battles" with him and have felt so guilty for punishing him throughout the week. And, I've been a little short on patience with him at times too, adding to the guilt. I immediately went to him and hugged him, told him how sweet this note was and how happy it made me, how much I loved him. He told me he loved me too, and Hanna--that's what this note says--I love you mama and Hanna, Love Joe.

What a sweet boy, and way to go on writing his first real note too!

Day 34--I See You

2010-02-03T19:05:00.000-08:00

Jack has really been into hiding behind curtains, under blankets and just about anything lately. He's talking up a storm too.

This morning while I was snapping about 100 pictures of Hanna and Joe jumping over a clothes basket, practicing a shutter speed tutorial--yes, I am photo obsessed right now--Jack decided to have some basket fun of his own. I heard a sweet little voice saying, "I see youuuuuu!". I turned around and caught this cute moment. Bless his heart, he is such a fun, sweet boy.

Day 33--My Favorite Snack

2010-02-02T19:08:00.000-08:00

A few months back my friend Christy turned me on to Larabars, and they have quickly become my snack of choice. My favorite--Cashew Cookie.

Thanks Christy!

Day 32--Hats

2010-02-01T19:41:00.000-08:00

I love cute winter hats on my kids. Couldn't resist getting a picture of Joe in his today. Even though Joe doesn't like his hat too much--simply because he doesn't like something on his head, I think he looks absolutely adorable:-)!

Day 31--Forever

2010-01-31T20:43:00.000-08:00

One year ago today our family was sealed in the temple for time and all eternity. The best day of my life besides four others--the day each of my four precious children were born, and I welcomed them into my arms straight from His.

I went today to take this picture. The blue sky and clouds look so pretty.

Bloggography Week 2: ISO

2010-01-31T14:24:00.000-08:00

I have SO much to learn about cameras, taking pictures, camera/photography "lingo"--the whole ball park! This is a goal of mine for 2010, and so I was excited to find through my friend Jenny a site featuring a weekly challenge and tutorial on cameras/photography. I do not have a dslr, but a very good point and shoot--Canon Powershot SX10 IS.

This week's challenge is ISO. You are to take a picture of a child's toy, or a child playing with toys while adjusting the ISO speed in P mode on your camera. I did no editing on these pictures except to resize them for this post.

ISO 80

ISO 200

ISO 400

ISO 800

I like the one taken at an ISO of 80 the best.

To see what others have captured while exploring their ISO settings this week, visit Beth or Lolli for their weekly Bloggography challenge.

Day 30--Have A Heart

2010-01-30T13:52:00.000-08:00

Today Hanna and Joe made Valentine's placemats. It was Hanna's idea. She remembered making them each year in Preschool and 5K and wanted Joe to be able to do the same thing. So, she made one, while teaching him.

I love sequins and glitter, and thought this would make a good picture.

Sweet Treats From A Friend--Day 29 Take Two

2010-01-29T21:16:00.001-08:00

I found the sweetest (literally) package in the mail this evening from my friend Christy. She was dead on with the chocolate she sent! Everyone that knows me knows I live off of chocolate--seriously:-).

We studied dinosaurs in our Preschool this week and the expandable dino wash cloths were a huge hit at bath time tonight! They were so cool, filled with dino facts. Joe LOVED it!

Thanks Christy, for being so thoughtful and sweet!

Day 29--Doctor

2010-01-29T13:37:00.000-08:00

What could be more fun than playing doctor with a real, live baby:-)?

When I walked into our school/family room this morning, Hanna had set up an exam table, got out the doctor kits, and had Jesse laid out on the table for his examination. Joe was playing along and they were all having a blast--Jesse included!

Day 28--I Caught Something!!

2010-01-28T19:50:00.000-08:00

Joe found a little critter tube in his "treasure" bin last night. This bin of treasures is actually a catch all for the stuff that I dare not throw away, but want to so badly. Somehow this little nature container ended up in his junk--I mean treasure bin:-). When he found it he brought it to me telling me he was going to take it outside tomorrow and catch something.

Today he was outside playing and he came running to the door yelling excitedly, "Look, I caught something!". He was so happy and so proud of his little ant.

I love sweet moments like these and never want them to end--ever!

Day 27--Peek A Boo, I See You!

2010-01-27T13:41:00.000-08:00

Can you spot what doesn't belong in this picture? What a cutie it is!!

Hanna keeps all of her Build-A-Bears in her reading chair. When I saw this opportunity, I couldn't pass it up.

Day 26--Controlling Chaos

2010-01-26T03:00:00.000-08:00

I couldn’t pass up this picture perfect moment as I was getting dinner finished up tonight.

This is how most of our evenings go at dinner time—Jamie is feeding, playing, consoling (take notice of Jack’s face—he was upset) and being a great Daddy so that I can get dinner on the table.

I am so thankful for a husband who is always willing to step in and help, no matter what!

Day 25--New Life

2010-01-25T07:00:00.000-08:00

Joe and I took a class at our zoo and got to see this new arrival while we were there. I've never been lucky enough to catch a baby koala out for a glimpse in years past, and Joe and I were both very excited to see this little guy!

Day 24--Concentration

2010-01-24T13:29:00.000-08:00

I got some pictures of Hanna practicing her violin this morning. She looks like she is concentrating so hard, and she was.

Cultivation

2010-01-24T13:28:00.000-08:00

I am so glad Hanna decided to stick with the violin. I so enjoy watching her practice and play.

Day 23--Heartfelt

2010-01-23T13:00:00.000-08:00

I found this letter on my bedside table last night and it filled my heart with so much love and appreciation for my Hanna. She is such a sweet, thoughtful girl and I am so thankful for all of the fun we have together, our friendship and to have her female companionship in our home filled with boys!

Still Trying For True Bokeh

2010-01-23T08:53:00.000-08:00

I love the look of bokeh. I have been trying to capture this with my point and shoot for about 6 months now off and on. I still haven't gotten there yet, but I think I am getting closer.

The ISO in this shot is pretty high, and I zoomed in all the way (I've been reading that's the thing to do with a point and shoot to get bokeh), but even with that I don't think the noise is too bad. I'll keep trying, and hopefully get it soon!

What do you think?

*Content

2010-01-23T07:00:00.000-08:00

Jamie is very blessed to enjoy his job and truly love what he does each day.

Day 22--Imagination

2010-01-22T14:39:00.000-08:00

Wouldn't you love to know what he is thinking? I would, and I love looking into his beautiful brown eyes.

Day 21--Dress Up

2010-01-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

Joe and Jack had fun playing dress up today. They came up with some pretty off the wall costumes. This was the funniest. What was super funny though was watching Joe pull those striped tights down over his head and chase Jack around like that. Jack was laughing so hard--they both had such fun. They are playing so much and so well together all of a sudden. I love watching them, and listening to them too.

Day 20--Winter Lizards

2010-01-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

Hanna loves nature, critters and animals of all kinds. She is so tenderhearted and compassionate. I love this about her.

Today she found two lizards in our backyard, and as always, spent her time looking for more and playing with the two she found.

Day 19--Art

2010-01-19T14:06:00.000-08:00

Joe made a really cool art project today based on primary colors, the color wheel and color mixing. He loved seeing what the colors came out to be as he mixed them onto his painting, and talked the whole time about how much fun he was having painting.

I love art, and all of my kids' precious creations.

Day 18--Four Months Old

2010-01-18T18:17:00.000-08:00

Today my sweet baby Jesse is four months old. He is growing so fast and is such a happy baby. He is such a blessing to our family!

Day 17--Tea Party From A Doll's View Point

2010-01-17T19:52:00.000-08:00

I treasure the American Girl tea parties I have with Hanna. I know all too soon they will be memories. She goes all out to plan and prepare for them--handmaking menus, setting the table perfectly and getting all dressed up. I love the way she innocently spelled herbal:-). So sweet.

*When Hanna saw this picture she said, "Wow! I've never seen a tea party from a doll's point of view before!". I thought that was such a neat way to "see" this picture.*

Day 16--Avocados

2010-01-16T17:00:00.000-08:00

I love avocados. I'd been wanting avocado burritos with sauteed veggies for a while and finally made them tonight. Delicious!

Day 15--Treasures

2010-01-15T20:17:00.000-08:00

Some of my favorite pictures to take are those of my children's hands holding the sweet treasures they bring to me. Hanna brought this treasure to me this afternoon while outside playing with Joe. I put it in my special box with all of the other feathers and rocks I've collected since becoming a mom.

Day 14--Cookies

2010-01-14T17:00:00.000-08:00

I LOVE cookies! Jamie brought these home for me as a surprise treat because he knew I'd been wanting chewy chocolate chip cookies.

Day 13--Good Health

2010-01-13T06:52:00.000-08:00

I've spent lots of time over the last week and a half wiping noses, suctioning noses and holding sick children. I am so thankful for healthy bodies that heal and mend with time and love--that no serious illness has come to our family.

Day 12--Violin

2010-01-12T06:45:00.000-08:00

Hanna resumed violin lessons this week. Thank goodness:-)!

Day 11--A Love of Books

2010-01-11T06:30:00.000-08:00

It finally happened! Jack loves books and reading, and being read to!

Day 10--Art and Creativity

2010-01-10T06:54:00.000-08:00

I am so proud of Hanna's artistic interests and abilities. Today she created this awesome polar bear painting. Unfortunately, there are some sweet scribbles that made there way onto the sunshine via Jack. I explained to Hanna this made it more special and unique--she didn't buy it:-).

Day 9--Muffin Tin Monday

2010-01-09T06:55:00.000-08:00

A favorite tradition--Muffin Tin Monday. This week's was all about snowmen.

Day 8--Heat!

2010-01-08T06:56:00.000-08:00

After years of freezing in the winter in our "big" room, we finally have a heater that works!! Jamie had just finished installing part of it. As usual, he's being silly.

Day 7--First Scribbles

2010-01-07T06:57:00.000-08:00

Jack's first drawings. Right now he prefers colored pencils/pencils to crayons. So sweet.

Day 6--Brothers

2010-01-06T06:57:00.000-08:00

Jack loves Jesse. He enjoys being close to him and playing with him every day. He is such a sweet big brother. They are going to be great friends!

Day 5--Best Friends

2010-01-05T06:58:00.000-08:00

Joe and Ted--best friends.

Day 4--Science

2010-01-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

I LOVE Science! I never realized this until I began homescool. Science ROCKS!!

Day 3--Daddy Time

2010-01-03T06:59:00.000-08:00

I am thankful for the blessing of having such a wonderful father for my children.

Day 2--Baby Faces

2010-01-02T07:00:00.000-08:00

I am thankful for the sweet face of my Jesse. He is breathtaking in this picture. I had just finished giving him a bath.

Day 1--Homeschool

2010-01-01T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am thankful to be able to homeschool my children, watch them learn, and learn with them. This is one of the greatest blessings and rewards in my life!

Project 365

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

I found a wonderful idea tonight....I am going to try my best to participate in the Project 365 this year--life through pictures. This is supposed to be a representation of what true, everyday life is for each individual. Not the grand trips or "special days", but the ordinary.

I am looking forward to it and think it will be a sweet way to focus on what is most important through each picture.

I plan to get started my posting tomorrow. I only have two weeks worth of pictures to post to be on track!

You can read more about Project 365 *here*.

Hands of a Child

2009-06-09T08:18:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things to take pictures of right now are my kids' sweet hands holding flowers. My kids (as I'm sure most do) very often bring me flowers when we are outside. As a friend reminded me this past week as she has been seeing all of the pictures of my kids holding flowers they picked for me, "These hands aren't going to be this size for much longer. Get as many shots of them as you can. Very sweet!"

Hanna brought a purple flower bud to me today and asked me to "take a picture of it with only the purple showing" as she put it. Purple is also her favorite color as you can see from her purple shoes down below!

More of Sweet , Little Hands

2009-06-09T07:03:00.001-07:00

I don't think I will ever be able to take enough pictures of my kids' sweet hands. This evening we were at a nearby pond feeding ducks and enjoying some of nature and Joe brought me a feather. I got this picture of him and his treasure.

A Little Crabby

2009-06-09T07:03:00.000-07:00

While at the beach a few weeks ago Jamie and the kids accidentally came upon this crab thinking they were digging up a shell. They were very surprised. This little guy stuck around for a few pictures before he was washed away. I couldn't believe how still he was considering the lens was only a couple of inches away from him.

Experimenting

2009-06-03T08:18:00.000-07:00

I am experimenting with some things in photoshop. Tonight I tried vignettes and edges. I have lots more "clean-up" and "clarifying" techniques I am learning, so look for improvments slowly:-). It takes so much time to learn this stuff and I enjoy it, but time is pretty scarce these days:-)!! I'm having lots of fun with my new camera and learning photoshop too! Here are a couple more pictures I got of Joe Sunday at the State House. Lots more to come....

Water Sprinkler Fun

2009-06-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

Water Sprinkler Fun

I took the kids to a neighborhood park today to play in the sprinkler. I got a cool picture of Jack in the water. I took lots and lots of pictures while we were there, but this was my favorite because it was different.

Jack at State House

2009-06-01T08:20:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture I took of Jack when we were feeding squirrels at the State House yesterday, hence the peanut can he is so dearly holding on to. It was so hard to get him to be still long enough to get a good picture. I took countless pictures of him, but only got a few good ones. This one was my favorite.

Picked Flowers

2009-06-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

I am in love with pictures of my kids' sweet hands holding flowers they picked for me. Today we went to our State House after church and Joe brought this flower bouquet to me. I had to get a picture of his sweet, little hands holding it.

Joe's Birthday Page

2009-05-30T08:12:00.000-07:00

Here is Joe's birthday page. I still can't believe he is already four years old! He is such a sweet boy and so full of personality. I love him so much!
I used Birthday Cake-Second Helping, by Dani Mogstead, at Sweet Shoppe Designs for this page. I love this kit!! This designer is becoming one of my favorites!

Zoo Animals

2009-05-30T08:11:00.000-07:00

We went to the zoo this weekend. I've never been one to take many pictures of the animals, but I wanted to see how my new camera would do using the zoom and a few other settings as well. Who knows if I did everything right with my settings, still so much to learn! Here's what I managed to get.

My Birthday Page

2009-05-29T08:15:00.000-07:00

Here is my May Birthday page. We had a really good time together as a family this day!
I used the kit In Your Easter Bonnet, by Dani Mogstead, from Sweet Shoppe Designs for this page. Great kit with lots of possibilities!

Mother's Day Generation Page

2009-05-26T08:15:00.000-07:00

Here is my first May scrapbook page. This is a page for Mother's Day of past to present generations on my mom's side of the family. I used the kit, So Memorable, from Sweet Shoppe Designs--a free Mother's Day gift with purchase from their site! The font is, Rage from Kevin and Amanda. This is my version of a scraplift from Sammi's, Sophia Claire page (SSD Gallery).

Scrapbook Favorites

2009-05-25T08:16:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post a few of my favorite scrapbook pages I've done so far. I've only been scrapbooking since February, but can honestly say I LOVE it! Never had the "hands" for paper scrapbooking--digital is the way to go for me! I am going to begin my May pages tonight, so I'll add those throughout the week as I complete them. Here are a few of my faves....

Field Day and Mosaic Tile Lily

2009-05-24T08:24:00.000-07:00

Our family had the opportunity to attend Field Day together with Hanna today. I got lots of good pictures while we were there. Here is one close-up of each of the kids from today that I really like. I LOVE close-ups so you'll be seeing lots of those:-).

Mosaic Tile Lily
I played around in photoshop with a mosaic tile effect on one of the flower pictures I took over the weekend. Here is how it turned out, different, but I like it.

Park Pictures

2009-05-23T08:24:00.000-07:00

We went to the park today, yes, again!! Joe's choice of activity today. He could choose anything, anywhere within day trip radius (he's the birthday boy) and he chose his favorite park:-). Of course, I brought along my camera to see what I could figure out on it. I got some pretty cool pictures today.

*These pictures of Hanna and Joe were taken using the color accent mode in manual on my camera. I think it's pretty cool to be able to do this kind of stuff to a picture with your camera instead of in photoshop.*

I took this picture of Hanna using the macro mode. She asked me to get the dandelion and I liked how she looked in the background.

Again, using the color accent mode in manual.

I never get any pictures of just Jamie. I took one today just playing around and it turned out really good. He doesn't want it posted, but that's what he gets for never reading my blogs:-).

So far I haven't even touched my pictures in photoshop! I had to photoshop the heck out of pictures taken with my old camera! I have some things I'm trying to figure out in photoshop though as far as techniques for accents with more pictures I've taken. I'll post them as I learn more.

New Pics With My Camera

2009-05-23T08:22:00.000-07:00

I have decided to begin a blog strictly for pictures I take as I learn how to use my new camera and some basic photography techniques, and for my digital scrapbook pages. I had been contemplating a new blog for my digital scrapbooking for some time now, and now that I am interested in learning a little about picture taking I thought it would be better to separate my pics and pages from our family stuff. I know everyone doesn't want to see every object I photograph and page I scrapbook:-). I hope you enjoy watching me learn and have fun with my new hobbies! I know I am!!

Jamie's parents got me a new camera for my birthday. I've wanted a new camera for a while to take better pictures, and thank them for this gift! It will be well used!!

On my morning exercise route I pass by lots of flower beds that are really pretty. I decided to drive over yesterday evening and try out the macro mode on my camera.

We went to Joe's favorite park again yesterday. I got some good pictures of him and Jack while we were there.

Joe brought this tiny flower bud to me while at the park and said, "You can take a picture of this, Mama". I thought it would be nice to have his sweet little hands that picked it in the background of this picture.

Scrapbook Pages

2009-01-19T11:13:00.000-08:00

After looking into turning my blog into a book, as I'd originally wanted to do at the end of each year, and seeing how difficult it seemed it would be, I thought digital scrapbooking might prove to be a better alternative. I played around with photoshop the last couple weeks and today finally figured out how to put it all together. These are my first two pages. I thought it would be fun to do a Halloween one. Next, I did one from this year. My plan is to do a few pages each month and at the end of the year have them all printed and bound in a Family Yearbook. It was lots of fun and I think they turned out pretty good for a first try.