Coming Up

...and catching up! Quick side note: ha ha! I'm now officially caught up with the date! I can't adequately express how much this excites me. Okay moving on. 

So I happened to notice when I bought milk that it has my birthday as the expiration date - which when one only buys milk once a week is a little harder to do than you would think. Cool eh? Now I'm really excited for my birthday.

Burned

March 7, 2010

I can't help but sit and stare in fascination at the amount of green that suddenly becomes visible when an area of dead grass is burned. It's so counter-intuitive to see something so vibrant not only in the midst of fire but because apparently because of the fire. The idea of the pheonix is incredible and because of a little spring burning very much on my mind.

Tasty Treat

March 6, 2010

Truth be known I was absolutely obsessed with the raspberry on the side. I spent much more time photographing that than the any other aspect of the dessert (whole slice included...) and was sorely tempted to post one of those shots but wanted to give you a shot of the whole thing and quite honestly this picture turned out beautifully. The colors are incredibly true - lighting, composition, colors...everything look incredible in this shot. I just love it. I could only wish for similar conditions (and results) every time I pull my camera out.

Party at the Hotel

March 5, 2010

This is Emmuska's newest pig Party (because it came with the book "If You Throw a Pig a Party" which her Grandma sent as well as a couple of Dr. Seuss books with accompaning stuffed characters). She got her as we were headed off to our couples retreat and it has barely left her side since then. Apparently Party had a pretty long first day with Emmuska though as Emmuska felt compelled to tuck her into her hotel bed a couple of hours before she turned in herself. I spied this little scene and had to take a photo. It was just too good to pass up.  I mean not only was it a really cute scene but this may be the cutest pig yet. It is so freakin' cute! (full disclosure: I totally felt this way when I was reading the other pig book "If You Give a Pig a Pancake" I was/still am ready to hop onto the internet and find a poster of this pig to put on her wall. Seriously check out the books and you will know what I mean.)

Shadow

March 4, 2010

'Nah I won't need it today...after all I never use it when I take it down with me.' That was the thought running through my head as I pulled my hand back from the camera.  Of course it ended up being a beautiful day so when the kids begged to play on the playground I agreed and off they giddily ran.  And quite naturally there was a moment where I thought 'shoot! I wish I had my camera'.  After going down the slide a few times Emmuska's hair had accumulated a static lift. The dark shadow on the yellow slide kept catching my eye. I loved how you could see each fine hair. It was captivating. Thankfully I had my phone with me which has a camera on it (this would be the source of quite a few out and about shots...it's just a lot easier to have on hand than my big camera) it may not take the best shots but at least it takes them. I think I'll try taking shots like these again later this week when we are back at the park. It will be interesting to see which shots I like best - the ones quickly snapped on my phone or what I take with my dSLR - when everything else is the same. (Approximately - it will be the same location and the weather will probably be pretty similar...subject may be a little different but it will be close enough for comparison.)

Depth of Field part 2

March 3, 2010

So this is a way better example of a shallow depth of field. If the challenge was still open this would have been the shot to submit. I was just trying to take a picture of Missouri weedling her way onto my lap despite the fact that I had already given my laptop that place. Ended up with an awesome shot of her nose behind which the rest of her face of her face is blurry and I love it! This shows you exactly what can be achieved with a shallow depth of field as well as some of the artistic reasons to use it.

Pig!

March 2, 2010

Yeah 'cause one of those on this site would be completely unheard of...anyhow this one in the middle of the kitchen floor cracked me up. (Reminds me of the pig on Farm Town when it falls asleep - which could be why I thought this was funny. That pig never fails to make me laugh.)

Meatballs

March 1, 2010

And so they are.

Mmmmh...Gooey

February 28, 2010

This picture makes me laugh for a few reasons - first: his two chins, second: his sweater vest pulling up over his stomach, third: his face/cloths are covered in food. Does anything scream "I love food!" more?

Baby Blues

February 27, 2010

Seriously those eyes could go right through most metals known to man. I love it when I'm able to snap a shot of him staring at the camera - his gazes really can be quite intense.

Food Shapes

February 26, 2010

Shredded Cheese Funnel Cake

Who isn't eating one of these now-a-days?

Smiles

February 25, 2010

There are well many things I love about this photo but two things that strike me right off. First would be the reason I took this picture in the first place and that is Emmuska's outfit especially when compared to Liberty's outfit. Guessed who picked out what to wear today. Yeah despite any 'fashion tips' I might have had to offer Emmuska was pretty set on her choice. Liberty on the other hand didn't really care so I picked out her clothes. Got to give Emmuska props for sticking by what she really likes. (added note this was on the one day of the week that we actually went somewhere...so it wasn't selected for it's loungewear quality)

Second I love the girls trying to smile. Whenever I say 'smile!' these are generally the faces I will get. I love how hard they try. Bless their hearts they love me so much to put all that work into a smile just for me and my camera.

Things to Curl Up With

February 24, 2010

A couple books I pulled off my bookshelf - not nearly a complete representation of authors I enjoy reading (gosh I couldn't even begin to fill in that list here it's just far too vast). At this moment I'm wishing I had more time to read. I am however extremely grateful for the opportunity to nurse as this gives me the 'excuse' to just sit and read something for fifteen to thirty minutes at a time. (More if baby falls asleep...you know because it's practically criminal to wake a baby by moving.)

Yet So Forgivable...

February 23, 2010

Two things about this dog never cease to amaze me. First - the positions she can get herself into...she's like a mini pretzel dog. Rather impressive really. Second - no matter what she does (cover me in hair, bark at stray cats at two in the morning, chew things up...) she can wiggle her way back into my good graces with a few choice looks.

Hairy

February 22, 2010

This is what I get for cuddling with a dog seriously in need of some grooming...