Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Jager is crazy

Jager licking his chops. He is such a strange dog but Garrett loves this picture.







Pictures from Thursday 2-18

Harvey kitty



Dolly Dog



Sweet Baby Feet

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Ten Things Tuesday

1. I'm going to try and get all of my 51 list on my side bar so it's visible as I update it.


2. Connor has turned into a good little sleeper. He only wakes up once or twice now. His first stretch is usually between 5 and 7 hours long. He's come a long way from a month ago.


3. Now we need to just work on better naps (he is getting better though).


4. I got a new baby carrier this weekend. It's an Ergo carrier. We have the black one in the picture below. It's better ergonomically for baby & parent. I carried him in the front carry at the outlet mall on Sunday for about 1 1/2 hours and my back didn't hurt once. He fell asleep too & was so cute.
5. We got a new "blender". It's the Ninja. Yeah it comes from a cheezy infomercial but it really does do an awesome job!
6. I'm getting my hair cut today but have ZERO clue what I'm going to do with it. Guess I better google some hair style sites.
7. I think I'm going to have to put together some kind of calendar to keep me on track with my 51/1001 list.
8. It's time for me to get my wedding rings serviced. They need their white gold plating redone.
9. How did Connor become 5 months old already. It does NOT seem like it was 5 whole months ago that he was born. We came home from the hospital exactly 5 months ago today.
10. Someone heated up their lunch upstairs & it smells awesome. I want some of whatever that is. Since I don't have any idea what it is, I think I'll get Thai food.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Ok 51 in 1001

My aunt suggested it be 51 (has a better ring to it).

Here we go.... Start date is today 2/22/2010 and End date is 11/19/2012.


1. Learn to use a DSLR camera. (in progress)
2. Learn how to use photoshop. (in progress)
3. Read 101 books (0/101 complete)
4. Visit a state I haven't visited.
5. Be enrolled or attending college by the end of the 1001 days.
5. Get and keep my closet organized.
6. Cook 25 recipes out of Julia Child's cook book.
7. Learn how to keep my house clean.
8. Pay off our consumer debt (we'd love to have student loans paid off too *maybe*)
9. Get 25 blog followers (10/25)
10. Have Connor out of diapers.
11. Reach my goal weight (that's a secret number)
12. Sew a garment.
13. Have every room in the house painted the way I want it (1/9 Complete)
14. Host a Christmas or New Years party.
15. Learn to knit (in progress)
16. Drink nothing but water for 2 weeks straight
17. Get new kitchen counter tops
18. Get new flooring.
19. Tile the bathrooms.
20. Get a new back splash for the kitchen.
21. Put $10/week in a savings account for Connor (I'll reasses the amount later to see if we can increase).
22. Take a photography class.
23. Save all spare change and deposit it into Connor's savings account at the end of 1001 days.
24. Finish 2 quilts.
25. Buy a new washer and dryer.
26. Get a pedicure at least 5 times.
27. Buy new living room furniture.
28. Finish our patio/backyard.
29. Breastfeed Connor until at least a year.
30. Drink more water (should be about 80oz per day)
31. Complete room in garage & organize the rest of the garage.
32. Blog every day for a month (excluding picture posts).
33. Get pictures of the wedding & the baby framed and on the wall.
34. Watch all of the Oscar Best Picture winners & write a small review.
35. Bake 10 different kinds of cup cakes (this won't be good for weight loss)
36. Host a cookie swap.
37. Style my hair every day for 2 weeks.
38. Write a will.
39. Attend a woman's retreat.
40. Renew my passport w/ my married name.
41. Go camping.
42. Go to a ballet.
43. Go to the dentist
44. Go to the eye doctor.
45. Get a massage.
46. Get a manicure (or paint my nails myself) at least once per month.
47. Run a 5K race.
48. Donate blood at least once.
49. Put $5 in savings account for every goal completed. Buy something fun at the end.
50. Buy a pair of red shoes.
51. Build a kitty condo for Missy.

Who says I have to conform???

Ok, coming up with 101 things in for my 101 in 1001 list is crazy hard. Especially when your computer freaks out and you lose 30 of them from your list. I've decided my life is FAR too crazy to do 101 things. So, I'm going to be unique & do 50 things in 1001 days. It doesn't really have the same ring to it but....

I should have that list up tonight & the countdown will start.

My poor little Connor has a cold. I think it's getting better now but I feel so bad for him. He's also teething so he's been in a really cranky mood since Friday.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

I didn't do 46 or 47 since I've been sick but here's another from day 48.

Picture 45



We had tea on Sunday for Julia's birthday (can you believe she's 20 now, or as Dad would say, she's 12). This is the timer telling us when our tea would be steeped properly.

I got my lightscoop!!!

Time for a comparison. Both pictures were taken at F/1.8, SS 200 & ISO 400. First picture is on board flash on auto & second is taken with lightscoop. There was no post processing.







What a difference. Big plus....it was only $25!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

TTT

1. I am sick :(

2. Connor is bouncing away in his jumperoo. I don't know if any child loves his jumperoo like Connor does.

3. My lightscoop hasn't come yet. I'm getting antsy.

4. Jager is a stinky dog.

5. Connor had a melt down earlier after waking up from his nap. Not sure why. I took him into the shower and he calmed down.

6. We're having slow cooker pulled pork sandwiches. Hopefully they turn out well.

7. It's about time for this baby to have another nap.

8. Whoa, my ears just popped & I can hear properly.

9. Baby is now napping.

10. I'm watching Spin City. Haven't watched it for years. It's pretty funny.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Marvelous Mondays

On the first day of the work week you need a little reminder that things really aren't that bad (even if you have a cold ::sneeze, cough::)


I've decided to list 3 things that I'm thankful for & a blog that inspires me.
1. I have a wonderful husband (who bought be beautiful diamond earrings for V-day) and a healthy, happy, unbelievably cute baby boy.
2. I have a mommy willing to watch said baby boy for cheap. I'm so glad he doesn't have to go to daycare.
3. I have a good paying full time job. In this economy (even on a Monday) that's always something to be thankful for.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Picture 44



Cooing and smiling away. I love this baby.

Friday, February 12, 2010

41, 42, 43 (2 posts in one night. I'm caught up!!!)

41. Connor doing some tummy time. Poor baby woke up with a scratch on his face. Extreme flash. I'm hoping my light scoop will come soon.



42. This was my attempt at metering without a flash once the sun went down. High ISO so it's a little noisy but I still like it.


43. "Mom, why do you make me come to this girly craft store?"


43 (again. I figure I skipped a few days so I'd throw a few extra in from the days I actually shoot). This is pretty yarn from Ben Franklins.


Well it's past midnight. Time for this mama to hit the hay.

37 & 38

37 (not sure why this is underlined, can't get it to go away) My co-worker Brooke asked me to take some pictures of her and her friends at Tolo. Julia described it best. It was like herding cats trying to get all these chattering girls to cooperate. Brookie is in the yellow dress. Isn't she cute?



38. Here (oh, I see the underlines went away) is Connor with his Bumpa (or Bompa as mom likes to say its spelled, the jury is still out). He can get Connor to smile every time. Lookalikes don't you think?

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Day 35

Wow, I'm behind. I should've known this would be hard. Here is #35. Just so you know, day 36 was a fail I guess. Working full time w/ a babe is hard.

Here is Ms. Sophie the Giraffe. Connor likes to nom on her in the car.



#37 & 38 coming up. Pretty sure I failed at 39 and 40 but I did do 41.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Ten Things Tuesday

1. Connor has started sleeping better ::knocks on wood::. We're getting 5-6 hours for his first stretch of sleep & then 3 hours and another 2.

2. We think the reason is....we moved him to his own room. For the first 3 1/2 months he WOULD NOT sleep by himself. You had to hold him. Now, he sleeps better by himself. When he wakes slightly in his room, he puts himself back to sleep. When he wakes slightly with me in the room, he knows I'm there and insists on nursing. If I had my first choice, I would still want him with us (he seems so far away) but I'm doing what's best for everyone.

3. Oddly enough I'm actually more tired now that he's sleeping better. I think before I was in survival mode, now my body actually wants real sleep & wants to make up for the last 4 months. I slept a total of 9 hours last night and am still very sleepy. Don't get me wrong, I actually prefer getting sleep. I'm just hoping this passes.


4. I think I need a pedicure. Maybe this afternoon. We'll see.

5. I also need to get my eyebrows done. It's already pre-paid, I just hate getting it done. It kinda hurts.

6. I finally found new slacks for work this weekend. Finally a pair that are long enough. They were 25% off too (not that they were cheap to start out with but slacks are kind of a necessity).



7. I have some things from Amazon.com coming this week. I'm excited.






The first thing is that little blue guy (for Connor of course). It's made by the same company (Vulli) that makes Sophie the Giraffe.


The next is a book called Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. I've been told by a number of sources that it's the best book to help understand the relationship between ISO, shutter speed and apeture. I'm hoping it'll give me some insight and help me improve my photography.




The last is a light scoop. It's a light diffuser that fits over your existing on board flash. It bounces the light so you don't get such harsh flash light on your subject. Below is an example.


8. Wow #7 was involved. I should get back to work. I'll hurry up.


9. I left my lunch at home :( Guess I'll get something out.


10. I want to start using coupons. If anyone has a good website that helps, please let me know. I know of grocery game but maybe there's something out there you don't have to pay for.


11. (bonus) I'll get pictures of #35 and beyond here hopefully tonight.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

31, 32, 33, 34

31. All 3 boys



32. Look, I'm learning to knit.



33. Jager always wants to be the center of attention. If anyone knows how to edit (or avoid in the first place) the "green eye" let me know. I imagine it has to do with using a flash. He was cute though.



34. Connor had his first taste of rice cereal. Looks like he didn't hate it.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Logo

Last night I helped with my co-workers school project. She's in high school and is taking an event planning class. She needed to "create a company" which would include letter head & business cards etc. She asked me to help create a logo for her company.




It was fun. Maybe I'll have to think of taking a few graphic arts classes when I finally make it to college.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Ten Things Tuesday

1. I skipped Starbucks this morning. Good for my wallet and waistline but not for my brain.

2. My cousin had her beautiful baby girl last night. Lailah Belle Goff 7 pounds even, 20.5 inches.

3. I miss my baby all day.

4. I'm getting hungry. Hope lunch time comes quickly.

5. Something needs to be done about Connor's frequent waking. Maybe it's time to move him to a different room :(

6. The Dixie Chicks shouldn't have redone "Landslide". Fleetwood Mac did a much better job.

7. Drama at work.

8. I made "Rustic Chocolate Pie" this weekend. I found the recipe in the February issue of Better Homes and Gardens. It was soooo good.

Ingredients
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
5 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter
1-1/2 to 2 Tbsp. cold water
6 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate (not to exceed 62 percent cacao), coarsely chopped
2 egg whites, at room temperature
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (I actually used ground almonds, ala french chocolate macaroons)
3 Tbsp. pine nuts, toasted (optional)
Chocolate shavings (optional)
Directions
1. To make crust, in bowl thoroughly mix flour and 1/4 tsp. salt. Cut butter in chunks and add to bowl. With two knives or pastry blender, cut butter into flour, tossing to coat with flour until largest pieces are size of pine nuts and remaining resemble coarse bread crumbs. As you work, scrape flour up from bottom of bowl, and scrape butter from knives or pastry blender. Do not let butter melt or blend completely into flour. Drizzle 1-1/2 Tbsp. cold water over flour mixture while tossing and mixing, until just moist enough to hold together when pressed. Add remaining water if needed. Turn out on plastic wrap. Gather into flank disk, pressing in any loose pieces. Wrap in plastic; refrigerate 30 minutes or up to 3 days.

2. Position rack in lower third of oven. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Let dough stand 30 minutes at room temperature, or until pliable enough to roll without cracking. On lightly floured surface, roll dough to 14x9-inch oval, about 1/8 inch thick, rotating and dusting with flour to prevent sticking. Brush excess flour from dough; fold in half to transfer to a piece of parchment slightly larger than dough. Unfold dough. Loosely fold and roll edge, without pressing, to form rimmed crust. Place parchment with pastry on baking sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until light golden brown (crust edge will be a little raw inside).

3. Meanwhile for filling, melt chocolate in microwave on 50 percent power (medium) about 2 minutes. Stir frequently until chocolate is almost completely melted. Remove from microwave. Stir until melted; set aside.

4. In bowl beat egg whites with cream of tartar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar and 1/8 tsp. salt. Beat until whites are stiff but not dry. Pour pecans and melted chocolate over whites; fold with spatula until batter is uniform color.

5. Remove crust from oven. Reduce oven to 350 degrees F. Dollop filling on crust. Spread to 1/2 inch thick. Bake 10 minutes, or until surface looks dry and slightly cracked (fudgy inside). Cool on baking sheet on rack. Serve warm or cool. Cover and refrigerate after 2 hours or up to 24 hours. To serve, sprinkle pine nuts and chocolate shavings.

Makes 10 servings (hah, I think we made it into 6 servings & they were still too small for my taste.)


9. Connor played in his friend John's jumperoo this weekend. He had so much fun. Garrett's trying to get one off of craigslist.

10. HUNGRY! NEED FOOD NOW!