Yesterday afternoon we got back from a wonderful and relaxing mini-break from Lake Tahoe. No email, no Internet, no Tivo, and not even much photography, believe it or not....my head is clear and now ready to begin regular life again.
The main agenda was kids activities, snow, reading, food, and fun. I think we covered all of the above quite well!
Today turned out to be a beautiful day so the kids and I decided to spend a few hours out of doors this afternoon. We headed out to feed the ducks and quickly went through a loaf of bread. Not sure who was more insistent, the ducks or the kids asking for more slices. We then headed to Grandma's for a little visit and then over to walk the trail. So looking forward to more beautiful Spring weather.
Check here for some more photos from today.
However....I now need to go pack to head back into Winter! We're heading to Lake Tahoe for the week. According to the forecast it's going to snow and dip into the low 20's at night.
1. Hire a professional to do a portrait sitting of your own kids.
2. Ella needs a hair cut. Again.
3. Jacob could stand to use one too.
4. Jacob is quite a model when the camera comes out. And he's in the mood.
5. Don't fuss with Ella's hair, clothing, shoes, etc. too much. Especially when she's not in the mood.
I just read on another blog a 'new' term I really like. It's called being a Life Artist...kind of a combo of all things photography, scrapbooking, memory keeping, story telling all rolled into one. It could be done on paper, on the computer, canvas or my favorite, all of the above, depending on my mood! Something a little...I don't know...classier sounding maybe?....then just a scrapbooker or just a photographer, etc. I think that's what I want to be!
Capture Life. Create Art.
Wish I could say I came up with it, but it's all her... Ali
I read about the coolest website in our local paper yesterday. It's called Google Earth and you can find it here Google Earth. Once at the website you download the free Google Earth tool and you can then fly over the earth and zoom down for a closer look. For whatever reason the resolution is horrible in my local area but everywhere else I've checked it looks great. I've zoomed in on just about everyone I know's neighborhood, so whether I've been to your house before or not, I now know what it looks like from above! We've sightseed from Santa Cruz,CA, to South Park, PA, to Mount Dora, Florida and everywhere in between!
What's really neat is to go to National Monuments and well known places. The White House and the Eiffel Tower are just a couple that were really neat.
Check it out!
For those of you that check this blog regularly you'll notice some major changes to the look and feel. I've been thinking about really customizing it and spent the last couple of hours tweaking and changing..this will be an ever evolving project I'm sure, as I'm never quite satisfied!
One major new change is I now have a Photo of the Day link where I will post a new photo daily. (Click the photo to the right!) This is mainly for my benefit to encourage me to practice my photography skills but also a photo diary of sorts. It will usually be a new photo taken that day but occasionally I will post an older photo for fun. I love looking back at old photos, especially of the kids...they change so darn quick!
I encourage you to post comments on here. You never know what can happen...prizes just may be involved! Gotta keep life interesting, you know!
A friend recently had a baby and after meeting her daughter, I just knew I had to do a photo shoot with her. Now keep in mind, I have never done a photo shoot for anyone other than my own kids before, but I just had to do it! I have been wanting to learn more about the particulars of photography; proper lighting, f-stops, shutter speed, all that good stuff...so what better way than to learn by doing. I did learn a lot and I learned even more about Photoshop. Very complex program with a very high learning curve but I'm slowing catching on and quickly filling a notebook with notes. For the past year I have been acquiring equipment and collecting books so it's about time I get serious about learning! I am now completely immersed in the world of photography and Photoshop.
Here is the link to a few of the 100+ photos I took of an adorable little girl Newborn photo shoot
My friend Karen gave me the coolest little toy for my birthday last month. We are all still mesmerized by it. It's called the 20Q and it's this little round electronic ball that you play 20 questions with...the freaky thing is, that no matter how random of an item you pick and how basic the questions it asks are, the darn thing guesses what you're thinking 95%+ of the time! Aaron is constantly threatening to throw it out the window...it's got to be possessed or at the very least have a little camera inside. LOL!
I just found that the 20Q has it's own website where you can play it. Check it out here! 20Q
This morning we went to a birthday party for a playgroup friend who turned 2. The kids had a blast playing together and enjoying some yummy cupcakes. Check out the photos here... Birthday Party pics
Jacob got all excited when he saw the snow start to fall this afternoon. He immediately ran to his room to put on his snow gear. It was coming down good for a little while and looked like we might have a very interesting afternoon. However, by the time he got all dressed there wasn't really anything left!
So I have never seen any of the previous American Idols before, just never thought I'd be interested. I love music and different artists, but the thought of watching a bunch of wanna be's just never intrigued me. This year I couldn't ignore the hype, it didn't seem to be going away so I decided to check it out after what, 5 seasons now? Now I can honestly say I'm hooked! It is so entertaining to me. Aaron has gotten into it as well. Even the kids seem to be into it at times. Had I known what a big committment it was, maybe I would have refrained...3 nights a week! But it is good entertainment and something to look forward to at the end of a long weekday. I'm not sure how it's been in previous seasons but the guys are so much better than the girls. I have my top picks (which coincidentally is pretty much Aaron's favorites too). Our very favorite is Chris Daughtery...
But we also like Bucky
And Taylor Hicks
We both like Elliot as well...he's got a great voice but just doesn't seem to have the right look or performing ability...
Aaron also likes Ace Young. Of the girls, I like Mandisa and Paris and Aaron likes Kelli Pickler. I just never knew this show could be so entertaining! They just might even get me to start voting. Go Chris!!
Wednesday we took a day trip to Chico. We rarely head that way and we really need to go more often. It's a very interesting town and has so many places to explore. We found a really neat playground in Bidwell Park that was great fun for the kids. Aaron and the kids bought me a new telephoto lens for my camera and I had fun trying it out here. Bidwell Park Photos
Ella and I have had an incredible last few days...we both celebrated our birthdays and had a great time. Thank you to everyone who shared in the celebrations with us both near and far.
We started the festivities Monday morning with a 'Little Artists Party' with our playgroup, everyone had a wonderful time creating works of art and enjoying a magic show by the Great Aarondini. The birthday celebrations concluded Tuesday evening when I went out to dinner with a group of my best girlfriends...to my favorite cuisine, Chinese. Nothing better than making the fun last!
Thank you everyone and here's a link to 'some' (OK, a lot!) of pictures ... Ella and Lisa Birthday Photos
