Chronicles of Organized Chaos

A New Adventure?

2011-11-15T11:36:00.001-07:00

{Life as ART} with NicholeV Photography

Oh, so much fun could be had. It's always better to learn and grow.

~Stacey

Take Down

2010-03-08T11:43:00.001-07:00

‘Whah?”

D.J. started wrestling in February and this past Saturday was his very first tournament.

It started out early for weigh-in and then the waiting…. and the waiting began.

So much waiting that our scrapper took a catnap on the floorboard of the bleachers.

D.J.’s division was supposed to start at 11a.m. but was running a little late. Two and a half hours late!

We we’re worried that we would have to leave before he had the chance to wrestle,

which would be quite unfortunate since we’ve sat for all those hours and he was so looking forward to his first match.

But luck would fall on our side and he was called to Mat #1 within 15mns. of our deadline.

The ref. wiped them down to make sure they didn’t have any slick-stuff, shook their hands,

opponents did the same and the game was on.

Those first few tense moments to see who is going to shoot first, like gunslingers at high noon.

I’m not sure what exactly happened, but D.J. has him by the legs.

David, Devin, Miss Is and I were along side the mat cheering D.J. on. The guy in blue is one of D.J.’s coaches.

Nice lift. The scoreboard in the background, 0-0.

D.J. is up three and round two is about to start.

I know it’s really blurry; the action is fast and D.J. is working it.

The red team scored a point for his escape.

Oh boy, that doesn’t look good. Right now the score is 8-4 against D.J.

Uh-oh! Come on D.J.

In an instant D.J. turned it around. Hold’em!!

Still holding….

Such a nail bitter! Keep him down, keep him down.!!!

Now the ref is on the mat, making absolutely sure.

PIN!

The ref closes the match by saying how he thought that was the best match he’s seen all day.

They all shake hands and then it happens.

D.J. is announced the winner! Whhooo-hooooo, we’re all jumping up and down!

The wrestlers shake the hands of their opponents' coaches and then their own.

His match coach said that he couldn’t believe that this was D.J.’s first match and that

with a last name like his, he’s gotta be a wrestler.

The winners sign their bout sheet. You can see the score 4-8; without the pin, he would have lost.

The exciting match erased the painful day of waiting and the ride back home was a happy one.

If we didn’t already have plans that evening, we would have stayed so he could finish the

tournament. Can’t wait for the next one! Of course, this is all to stay in shape for football! lol

Zuppa!

2010-02-27T18:32:00.001-07:00

Hi, my name is Stacey and I’m an Olive Garden, Zuppa soup addict.

Yeah, I love the stuff. So much so that I found a recipe and tweaked it for the crockpot ‘cause that’s how I roll. I made it today and it was DELICIOUS! Four bowls later and I had to share the goodness.

1 lb Italian sausage

1 1/2 tsp crushed red peppers (I used a leftover packet from Dominoes)

1 large onion, diced small

4 T bacon (I used pre-cooked real bacon bits)

2 T minced garlic

10 cps (5 cans) chicken broth

1 pint heavy cream

1 lb Russett potatoes washed with skins on, thinly sliced

1/4 bunch of kale diced

1) Bake the sausage until cooked, drain grease and put in the fridge.

2) Sautee onions, garlic and crushed red peppers until onions are clear then chuck in the crockpot.

3) Pour in 10 cups chicken broth, toss in bacon bits & sliced potatoes.

4) Cook on low until potatoes are soft. (about two hours give or take)

5) Add heavy cream, diced kale and sausage. Stir. Heat through.

6) Serve will class, devour with wild abandon.

The fam ate it all in one day, it’s that good. Try it!

Wild Kingdom

2010-02-22T14:00:00.001-07:00

Feeling a little frisky this Valentines Day, Spike and Lucky shared the love.

It was like watching an episode of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom and I just happened to have my camera ready to document the affection.

Like any respectable, gentleman-like duel, the two warriors bow before the carnage begins.

I couldn’t help but laugh watching them play – yes, they are playing.

Lucky dog does this spinning-flipping thing around Spike to taunt him.

Spike is like a lion on the African plains taking down a weeks worth of dinner at a time.

Check out the claws on the hinny, or Spikes teeth sinking in.

Lucky gets is jabs in too, what goes around comes around and in the end all is well.

*Click on photo to see full-size.

Today…

2010-02-04T17:08:00.001-07:00

Seems I’ve been MIA from blogging, though the time I’ve spent on Blogger has made my head spin like Linda Blair’s character Regan in The Exorcist. January was jumping – dumping – at least it seemed like it. So, here’s a month in a nutshell.

cleaned out the Farmers rooms
cleaned out the game closet
cleaned out the pantry
cleaned out the cupboard, drawers and every other kitchen nook and cranny
cleaned out the laundry room
cleaned out the master room (finally got rid of three boxes that sat on the floor, unpacked for the last *cough* four years!)
cleaned out the master bath and nearly lost my life. (Not really, though the fumes –good and bad – were enough to do me in.)
made six, packed bus loads to various charities
lived without a functioning dishwasher and yet remain married
made homemade white chicken chili – soaked beans and all
field trip with Devin to NNU for a science fair (way cool)
field trip with D.J. to NNU to see the Boise Philharmonic perform (way cool too)
had a baby session to shoot, edit and deliver
met with the couple that I’ve been hired to shoot their wedding
lost a lousy 8 lbs.
finished the 2009 fed taxes
asked to be a LIFE mentor
organizing the next ward activity (Circus themed)
went to an Enrichment that I didn’t have anything to do with
PTA stuff
played with Lucky (yes, we’re taking good care of him!)
tossed my cookies and then some (in no way do I want to go “bulimic”)
sick Farmers too (Miss Is is home today)
Miss Is was awarded a Positive People award for being an excellent student
fed the missionaries
went to a wedding reception
lunch date with hubs at Olive Garden where I pigged out on Zuppa and salad
custom designed my “stuff”
caught up on LOST (missed all of last season and I’m still just as confuzeded)
got a new ‘do and colors too
felt guilty for the past 30+ days for posting jack-diddly-do-daugh, noth’n.

Hmm, that sums it up. Hopefully February will be much better. I can’t tell you how relieved I feel about unloading all the extra stuff; the house feels cleaner even though there are still dirty socks and Lego's everywhere. Getting close to “launching” officially. Today I’ve been fighting with the devil of a registrar and blogger; they don’t like each other very much and the tech guys helping out must have a voodoo doll just for me, I’m sure. Bridals are coming up – excited about that and praying that this yucky weather will improve, that the grass with magically go green or it dumps a fresh blanket of snow. Making custom V-day cards for the Farmers. I made Devin’s last night in about 30mins, including an on-location shoot! I really like how they turned out! With any luck I won’t catch whatever Miss Is has brought home and will be able to keep on keep’n on. And just like Em, I feel like every post needs a picture… granted, mine couldn’t be as cool as hers even if I had walked on the moon.

Me and my new ‘do.

The Farmers watched Willy Wonka the other day (in my wee-little mind there is only one Wonka, Mr. Gene Wilder) while I was cleaning out the kitchen and I got to sneak a peek between cupboards. This picture is inspired by the lovely blueberry tint Miss Violet Beauregarde takes on because of her impatience. We have a lot in common, Miss B and I. “…a mop of curly brown hair” and “talks very fast.” I’m not sure about being a 10’ tall, 2000 lb blueberry, but some days it feels like it. Farmers… Ooompa Loompas? Maybe not.

Drip Drip Drop

2010-01-12T16:43:00.001-07:00

Happy New Year… twelve days late. I’ve kicked off twenty-ten with a vengeance against household chaos. Not that I could ever eliminate the crazy altogether, but I can at least dampen the blow. Three bus loads of stuff have been dropped off to charities and the slow drip of tangible organization is making its way into the bedrooms of three Farmers. Everything has its place –even my sanity. Looking toward the spring and summer, I know I’ll be just as busy as ever (which is very good) and the “mommy-maid” chores will only get more difficult to keep up with. It’s been hanging like a lead balloon over my head for the past few months and I’m tired of waiting for it to come crashing down so my new philosophy on the subject is “better now than later cow”. Yes, as in “Don’t have a cow, Mom. It’s not that messy.” We’ll see how the up keep goes. In the meantime, I’ll seek and destroy the chaos of the kitchen, pantry, master bedroom and closet to finish my “house of order”.

Today, I didn’t get so much done. It’s a rainy day, errands had to be made and I lacked the breath to dive headlong into the cupboards. The sun and the Murphy’s oil will come out tomorrow, red-headed orphans or not.

f/5.6 shutter: 1/640 Exp: +.33 ISO 3200

Raindrops on the window.

f/5.0 shutter: 1/1000 Exp: +.33 ISO 3200

Splash down on the cement.

f/5.3 shutter: 1/2000 exp: +.33 ISO 3200

f/5.3 shutter: 1/1000 exp: +.33 ISO 3200

The Ree’son I’m So Giddy

2009-12-29T21:58:00.001-07:00

Okay… I don’t even know where to begin other than just admitting – straight up – that I’m a fan-girl. A big PW fan-girl. If you’re in the know, then you know who I’m talking about. If not, you will be.

I’m not much for entering in whatever flavor of the moment contests or drawings the world-wide web has to offer, that’s not me. There is always a borderline healthy and yet sometimes tragic veil of doubt swirling like water vapor off of a piping hot cup of cocoa in whatever I do. The space between humility and the ugly truth is hard to find. It’s good, it’s not-so-good, better try again, give it up and girl… this just sucks.

I’ve been really busy on the photography side of things, sessions that I haven’t posted are backlogged and will probably not make it – at least on this site. There has been a recent upward swing of downs lately that I was really lost in the thick of it, a shower room of doubt and frustration if you will. Prints gone poopy, calibration chaos and enough techno-acronym babble to make the opthamalically blessed go cross-eyed with a slight tick of Tourettes.

I happened to be in a que sera, sera attitude the other night and while visiting one of my usual haunts I decided to send in two submissions to PW’s Holiday Bokeh photo pool knowing that my two little shots would be in a virtual sea of thousands of wonderful work I only hope of someday attaining. “There, it is done” and I went on my merry way.

Saturday evening I got a chance to sneak away and peek online. This is what I found.

It was an after Christmas, Christmas present. Miz commented on my picture… wow! Miz, PW’s photo cohort and snap-happy extraordinaire. I couldn’t believe it! I love her style and practical, vanilla explanations of spumoni that any ice cream lover can understand and appreciate without the use of an “Everyday Italian” dictionary. Wow…

This evening I got another unexpected wow. WOW!

That’s me!! On Ree’s site, The Pioneer Woman herself, flanked by a gingerbread boy and sleeping beauty. My leaf bokeh I took in the backyard after our sledding trip. Just a snap and other than the fact I liked it, I never thought anything more. Utterly breathtaking! No way. NO WAY…. See, I’m giddy. Full-on, valley girl, OMGosh, about to burst giddy.

Just thought I’d tell you…

A Little Rosy

2009-12-28T12:11:00.001-07:00

This year I didn’t seem to get the gumption nor the time to bake all the usual goodies that I usually do. Sure, my thighs appreciate it, but that’s about it. No Almond Roca cookies, no sugar cookies, no fudge or Russian tea cakes. Forget the home-made hot buttered rum mix, almond joys, toffee, lemon and seven layer bars – just forget it.

Earlier this year I picked up a couple of rosette irons and molds in their original, 1960’s something box with instructions and various recipes. I remember going over to Aunt Karen and Uncle Gordon’s Christmas parties and having these and other yummy treats. (Fried mushrooms, prawns, zucchini, cheese sticks and the list goes on.) In fact, I remember getting a “grown-up” truffle on year… shh, don’t tell.

Christmas was officially packed up and in the attic by six o’clock in the evening of the 26th and this morning I was bound and determined to get some very neglected house work and laundry done, that is until I walked in the pantry and saw the faded boxes. Chef Tell, a proud user of Nordicware products pictured on the front – afro and all, whispered in my ear, “Laundry sucks, make cookies instead.” Curse you Chef Tell. I made the cookies.

Honestly, I thought it was a good way to remember Uncle Gordon who passed away this fall. Devin enjoyed tapping the stuck-on cookies off the mold and all the Farmers devoured them with or without the sugar. I think I might have to add them to my Christmas goodie repertoire next year.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T15:11:00.002-07:00

Last weekend we had the opportunity to travel to Salt Lake for the family Christmas party. We stopped by Temple Square to show the Farmers the sights. D.J.’s favorite part was the “hall of orange” where we walked through a tunnel of orange lighted trees on the other side of the Assembly Hall. Devin really liked the Tabernacle, “the big, open area and old pipe organ. All the old wood and old wavy glass too.” I think he liked the old things! lol Miss Is liked listening to the Nativity Story and seeing the manger scene (though she and I sat on a bench yards away. Is said she wanted to sit, but looked a little teary-eyed to tell the truth) and Jesus echoing in the clouds. (Translation; the Christus.)

I haven’t really taken pictures of lights before, however, I think I’d like to try again. Should’a, would’a, could’a had my tripod, but didn’t and it shows. Talk about a lessons in aperture and shutter speed. Oh well, c’est la vie.

Thanks Cindy, George, Robin, Miss Abs and the rest of the grown-ups for hanging out with us.

It’s Snow Fun

2009-12-22T16:39:00.003-07:00

Braces

2009-12-15T08:12:00.001-07:00

Last week D.J. started his journey in Orthodontics. Even though he doesn’t have a full set of permanent teeth in yet, we’re working on what he does. They’ve moved so much in a week. D.J. is very diligent about brushing his bling and picks a song from one of my playlists to brush to. Good boy! He is back to eating all the stuff he’s used to except, of course, the no-no’s like apples, popcorn, gum, chewy candy and the list goes on. Since this picture was taken, I’ve been making him carry around a tube of Chapstick. lol

She Can Be Taught: Part Deux

2009-12-11T17:19:00.001-07:00

My very good friend Lora and her family came to visit Thanksgiving weekend. It was an overnight stop at our bed & breakfast, but we made the best of the short time we had. What did we do? Chat and crochet.

It was last October that Mrs. P taught me how to crochet . I learned how to chain and started making a scarf and that’s where it ended until now. These flowers are so cute that I had to learn.

Doing things the hard way right out of the gate, I decided to be an “over-achiever” and do two colors. Fact is, I messed it up so badly that I made it into a “carnation” to cover up the boo-boo’s. This wasn’t the teachers fault… it’s all me.

You can dress them up with buttons or other little do-dads of your choosing. I hot-glued the brown one (I made this afternoon) to an alligator clippie thing so Miss Is can wear it as a barrette or on her hat. (She made her hat herself, by the way.)

The more you do, the better you get – I still need to make more! And just in case you want to make them too, I’ve included the recipe below. Happy Stitching!

Irish Rose Instructions:

Using size H hook, chain 4. Join the end to the first chain with a slip stitch to form a ring.

Round 1: (single crochet in the ring, chain 3) six times. Join the last stitch to the first single crochet with a slip stitch.

Round 2: (single crochet, chain 1, 3 double crochets, chain 1, single crochet) in each spacecreated by the chain 3.

Round 3: Now you begin working in the back of the flower you have started creating. (single crochet around the first spoke, then chain 4) 6 times. Join last stitch to first with a slip stitch.

Round 4: (single crochet, chain 1, 5 double crochets, chain 1, single crochet) in each space created by the chain of 4. Join last stitch to first with a slip stitch and weave in the ends.

You may add another layer of petals by repeating Round 3 increasing the number of stitches in the chain by one.

And when I’m not making flowers, my latest project is a skullcap beanie. Around and around and around I go… when will I stop, I don’t know!

Since we’re on the subject, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite places/things.

I really like this one, it’s called the Crochet Spot... she's young and trendy-cool. Most sites I've come across smell like Grandma, not that it's bad, but the sites are hard to navigate (old-skool web, single links etc.) and a Barbie doll toilet paper cozy isn't exactly on my high priority list.

Crochet Couture; that's what this one is all about. It's aptly named. Stitch Diva

And if I'm good enough to ooze with sass and style, I’d make these… Don’t you love them?

Okay, I fell in love again - I haven't fallen this much since learning how to do an axel on ice skates - LOVE THESE!!!!!!! I have to get good enough to make one, I just have to. So awesome!

Do you crochet? What is your favorite thing to make? Will you share? Link a picture of your favorite project in the comments!

Lil’ Pilgrim

2009-11-24T14:48:00.001-07:00

Today was the First Grade First Thanksgiving Feast. Miss Is’ class were Pilgrims and she was bound and determined to look like a real one, so much so that it sparked quite an argument this morning.

“Mom! I need a black skirt, white apron, black shirt with a tall white thing around my neck and a hat.” As she threw the black tights I had just tossed her back at me.

“You can wear what I can find in your closet or you can go just in your purple panties for all I care.” I returned the tights along with a black and white checkered sheath dress with equal gusto.

“Can’t you go to the store and get me a black skirt?” Maddy’s arms were folded across her bare chest; dress and tights on the floor.

“Absolutely not." I’m trying to adopt the “regal” pose instead of just letting the smoke and flames shoot directly out my eyes, ears and nose. “Don’t worry, you’ll look as pilgrimly as I can make you, but I’m not going to the store.”

“Fine.”

“Fine.” I started gathering one of the legs of the tights together to help her get them on. “Get over here please or we will be late and I’d like to figure out a hat for you before we have to go.”

Geez-Louise, Sis! I dug out a white pillowcase, folded over the side and wrapped it around her head after a quickly giving her some braided piggy’s. The end result was not too bad if I do say so myself. Of course it wasn’t the over-achiever, full on Mayflower costume, but I worked. She was happy, I was happy and off to school we went.

I helped out serving gravy, sweet potatoes and corn and pulled out my phone just in time to snap this one and only picture of Miss Is while she was in line. By the time I was done, she was too. It was a lot of fun, lots of food and all the first-graders enjoyed their First Thanksgiving Feast.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Trash to Treasure: Two Dollar Table

2009-11-23T16:36:00.001-07:00

All right, I’m a ding-dong. Well, that goes without saying I suppose. Somehow I have lost my before pictures of my two dollar table so this trash to treasure is considerably light on the trashy part and therefore unimpressive. I can, however, tell you that this table was so icky that the manager of D.I. laughed at the check-out and said, “I never thought we’d sell that table. I thought we’d have to pay someone to take it.” Of course I jumped on the opportunity to be PAID for something I wanted, but I shelled out the two bucks anyhow.

The poor thing was wonky with a couple of screws loose, which I can totally sympathize with, a few adjustments later and all’s well. The recessed glass top was covered in 80’s stickers and at least a quarter inch of dust. Goo-gone and it’s gone! Using what was left of the spray paint I had used on the chairs, it got a fresh, shiny black coat . To bring out the rope details on the sides, I dug out some very ancient metallic gold rub-on paint with I applied with my mad, artsy skills… my fingertips.

It fits nicely in between the two chairs and currently has a lovely, all-white floral arrangement in a glass vase on top. All for less than a Happy Meal on 1/2 price Tuesdays. Cha-ching!

A little preview of things to come…

Trash to Treasure: Now Seating

2009-11-20T16:08:00.001-07:00

Good bones, but a lot of goo. I found these two beauties at Savers for $6.99 each. I had - no, I HAD to have them.

They were just what I was looking for, but never thought I’d actually get.

The chairs I found online in a similar style would have cost me around $300 so at $14.00 I will happily settle.

There are a few good-sized gouges as you can see and the upholstery is atrocious, I think it was off-white back in the day.

Not that the finished color is bad, it’s just not what I’m after and covering the flaws would be hard to blend.

Trashy chairs at Savers: $14.00

So I did what any do-it-yourselfer girl would do. Buy a big can of spray paint and toss caution to the wind. Of course, it’s always nice to put down a layer or two of newsprint, but a minor precaution nonetheless. Piano Black in a high gloss finish.

Paint: $3.48 at Wal-Mart.

I found an online home decor fabric site that I’m in love with, it’s called Warehouse Fabrics Inc.

The prices are decent and there are so many lovely fabrics to choose from that making a

decision between choices a, b, and c, d, e, f was rather difficult.

Check out was easy and shipping was fast.

Having yet another reason to break out my electric staple gun, I set out to recover the pads while the paint dried.

Two yards of fabric with shipping: $17.42

A few screws here and there, remove the painters tape off of the front legs covering the silver caps and……

Ta-Dah!!

Love, Love, LOVE my chairs.

I plan on ordering a few more yards and making fill-ins for the backs out of Masonite that I can Velcro in or out depending on how I’m using them.

As always, everything has a dual purpose.

Grand total: $34.90!

Someday I’ll finish decorating my office and give you all the “tour” so you can see how perfect they are! One thing about thrifty, trash to treasure decor is that sometimes it takes imagination, patience and a little elbow grease to get what you want. To me, that’s half the fun.

Up next, my $2.00 side table.

Senior Pictures: Delaney

2009-11-16T16:54:00.001-07:00

What a ride taking pictures for this girl was! My bus (Yukon XL) was stuffed with myself, Delaney, her mom and boyfriend, Preston and let’s not forget the suitcase with everything a fashionista teen would and could possibly need for a photo-shoot. We started off at a barn then made our way to downtown. From there we hit the rain tracks and multiple, out of the way places along the way. Preston was a trooper through the whole thing, finding songs she likes on my iPod and holding the boom box just right. He was an even bigger sport when she asked if she could get some pictures with him.

Delaney had her senior photos taken already by a local pro, but didn’t like them so much – at least not the lovely price tag that went with the few prints available. So I asked if I could give it a try, if I could do any better and maybe, just maybe there will be something she loves. Judging by the fact that I received an instant text message back when I told her the pictures were ready and ten minutes later she was at my door, I’d say yes.

Some are fun, grungy and bold while others are muted and classic in black and white. Heaps still yet to learn…

It started raining towards the end of our session. See the rain drops – you know, those blurry white stripes? Delaney asked if I could capture them, so they’re supposed to be there. lol I really like how this one turned out, it’s one of my favorites.

The middle shot was taken just before we got kicked out of the train yard. Technically nobody said “leave” it was more like a worker staring at us from outside the buildings. For the record, I did look for someone to get permission from before we started. Claim ignorance, right?

Favorites with the beau… the filmstrip shots. They could really hold the “serious” look so much that her mom and I had to break it up.

This shot was completely candid, well… Delaney notice the camera pointed in her direction. We were clearing out of the road before a

red mustang ran us all over, Delaney and Preston headed for the pull-out and I just leaned up against the guard rail a ways down the road and happened to catch the moment.

Doesn’t that just scream personality?

Thanks Delaney!

Do A Good Turn

2009-11-14T09:58:00.001-07:00

Those boys of mine were busy bees this morning, running the snow-dusted neighborhood to collect food for the Scouting for Food drive. I’ll be sure to have some hot chocolate ready for them when they return! They love the food drive, even though there are complaints about getting up early on a Saturday and being cold, but in the end they are excited to have helped other families out.

Lucky Dog & Lightroom

2009-11-11T13:56:00.001-07:00

Meet Lucky, he’s our “adopted” dog we’re babysitting for a year as my sister April travels the world

doing things I only dream (or have nightmares) about doing.

I live vicariously through her and am happy with that.

In the meantime, I get to play pet-parent to her pride and joy Mr. Lucky Dog, the inspiration behind WonderMoto. He’s a blast.

The Farmers love, LOve, LOVE him and I have to admit it’s nice to have both Lucky and Spike

at my feet while I am home alone all day. No, don’t jump to conclusions… the Farmers can stay in school. lol

And how could you not love that?

Or that? Lucky is ready to please and more than ready for a good round of fetch.

“I’m ready…. ready… ready…. I’m still ready.”

I suppose his patience wore a little too thin.

It’s dangerous business trying to take pictures with a tennis ball in hand.

But he’s back on his game.

What concentration! What perseverance!

Doesn’t he make your heart melt? Even if you’re not a dog fan, he makes a great case to be one.

So well behaved is he, except for when he gets the idea in his head

that he needs to be the center of attention. Like now, as I’m sitting at my desk,

Lucky’s wet nose nudges my arms off the keyboard.

Or I get a big, slobbery kiss when we’re cuddling on the sofa watching t.v.

And that’s when I take a break and we go play ball again until he drops.

Yep, he’s a lucky dog all right. But we can’t forget about Spike…

Who spent the entire time I played fetch with Lucky contemplating the deeper meaning of life at the edge of the pond.

Deep thoughts like “how many birds can I catch at the feeder”

or “here little fishy, heerreee little fishy.”

Or deeper still, “when will that darn dog go home!”

You gotta love a cat with attitude. Lucky and Spike are friends actually.

They tear up the great room going round and around and around the seating

area until they either get yelled at or one of them calls a truce.

The same thing happens outside, except it’s the trees and they don’t get yelled at.

Lucky settled himself down in Spike’s bed – that was hilarious,

talk about Goldie Locks’ '”this beds too small” – we decided it was time to get one of his own.

They snuggle each other. They bathe each other. They’re just good buddies who look out for each other.

The strangest thing happened yesterday,

Lucky nudged me out of my seat and headed downstairs to the back door.

I thought it was an emergency potty run, but instead I just let Spike in and Lucky was happy. No potty needed.

Saturday Dave and I went into Petco to get a new bag of dog food.

I remembered what brand, what color of bag, but when we got there we found two green bags.

I called Dev at home and asked him to check for me.

“What kind of dog is on the front of the package?”

His classic reply, “I don’t know… a spaghetti dog?”

I knew exactly what he was talking about.

I hope this makes up for the lack of Lucky updates, April.

He’s doing just fine and lov’n life… not too much though! Take care, we miss you! We love you!

A little side note, I’ve got a new software program that I’m playing with. It’s Adobes Lightroom 3. All the pictures went from RAW

camera files to completely processed in less than five minutes. Heck, it took longer to paste them into this post

and is incredibly faster than what I have been doing.

For example, the old way:

1. Import RAW (can’t see the images)

2. Convert using Camera Raw in CS3. (10-15 shots max at a time.)

3. Sync if applicable.

4. Save as TIFF’s

5. Edit one by one or batch process (single action) if there are only slight changes.

6. Save.

New way:

1. Import RAW into LR

2. Select similar groupings, adjust and sync.

3. Slight edit if necessary in LR or more serious stuff in CS3

4. Export as TIFF’s and JPEG’s.

Done!

I have to play around a little more with it before I can make an “educated” decision, but so far so good.

Need more practice… need more pictures…. need more willing volunteers!

Football Farewell

2009-11-11T09:51:00.001-07:00

The boys in blue, our very own Broncos, won their first and last game of the season. It was wonderful. I loved seeing these kids who have worked so hard all season long finally get a win. Not that winning is everything, but it sure helps.

The picture below is from the playoff game against the “Green Giants” – quite literally. D.J. is #61 on defense and needs to take on those… those ogres in front of him. He got bowled over so many times, but always got back up. That’s all I could ask for. It wasn’t only D.J.’s problem either, the whole team seemed to be instantly dwarfed. Needless to say the Broncos put up a good fight, an honorable fight, and closed the season with a loss on paper and a win in courage and determination.

I’m so proud of D.J. – of all the boys – I could burst.

Junior Lightweight Division next year, bring it on!

PCSI: All Hallow’s Eve

2009-11-10T10:54:00.001-07:00

Warning: The following scene may be too graphic for some gourds. Grower guidance is suggested.

It was a gruesome find beneath the dim porch light. You would expect monsters, aliens, a princess fairy, transformer, storm trooper, Jedi or two, but never this.

There was no trick nor treat at the doorstep this Halloween. An innocent pumpkin lay in bits, the cool blade of the hatchet cleaved his head in two. Seeds scattered the ground too early for planting. Surprised horror marked his dying moments as the candle flicked and then went out.

The Sheriff was first to arrive. He received the call on his radio from P-patch. A 187 - he knew it wouldn’t be good, they never were.

Despite his rotund physique, the Sheriff worked the case with the utmost care and agility, keeping his eyes wide open for clues. Time was not on their side, things would get moldy fast.

His partner, a slightly sadistic veteran of the force with a knack for getting his man called in the preliminary report. He had seen this before. He knew what needed to be done. He knew who to look for and he did it all with a grin.

One of the most decorated forensic scientists examined the remains, finding clues everyone else would miss among the chaos.

Collecting that one piece of evidence to permanently can the perpetrator for nothing less than a baked conviction.

Justice or sweet revenge for the departed is best served cold… with a dollop of whipping cream or vanilla ice cream.

The team continued working into the night, burning candles at both ends. It was going to be a long one.

The Perps: D.J. (Sheriff), Miss Is (the Squint) and Devin (the Veteran). Mom & Dad the lowly victim.

Pictures from the Patch:

Miss Is was rather upset, the hay ride struck and killed her first pumpkin pick that she happened set too close to the road.

And for the record, the Farmers DO NOT WATCH CSI. We got the idea from the broken bits of pumpkin along the roadside,

wondering who would smash someone’s Jack-o-Lantern just for the fun of it. How mean is that?

Wrestling

2009-11-05T07:35:00.001-07:00

Tuesday night Devin competed in his very first wrestling meet for the Longhorns. The first match went three rounds and he lost by points. Luckily he got a second match against his old school. Another three rounds and in the final seconds, Devin scored three points and won eight to five. Whooo hooo!! I’ve gone from football mom to wrestling mom in a matter of weeks. Longhorns take on the Kavemen next Tuesday; I can’t wait!

Beginning of the first match, Round 1.

Get your GRRRR on!

Second match of the night.

I was so excited cheering Devin on that I forgot to take pictures when things turned around.

I even missed his three point gain and the ref’s declaration of his win!

Oh well, I suppose it’s better to cheer than not to cheer! Go DEVIN!!!

Senior Pictures: Kelly

2009-11-03T21:35:00.001-07:00

I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun it was to take these pictures. It was all “fly by the seat of your pants” that day. I knew I wanted to go to Boise – downtown to be specific – but I hadn’t vetted each location. If I remember correctly, it was one of my very first Lessons in What Not to Do. The train depot in Boise was spectacular; so much so that we were jockeying for positions with two weddings, other seniors, homecoming formals and family pictures. Kelly was by far the cutest girl there (excluding the brides who were dripping with elegance) and I again did my best to pretend that I know what I’m doing – camera envy and all. These are a few of the favorites.

Boo-boo’s,mistakes, and “I should’ve done this instead” everywhere. I’d like to think I’m getting better, heaven knows it’s not for lack of trying. As long as Kelly is happy I’m happy and she seems thrilled.

Angel Kisses is what she calls her freckles and from the looks of it, Kelly is loved very much.

Koi pond, waterfalls and lots of rocks to climb on.

The architecture of the Depot was an amazing backdrop of textures and lines.

Kelly was after an Abercrombie & Fitch style photo minus the barely there clothes and the hunky man-child (the latter much to her dismay).

This is what we came up with.

Yep, she’s standing in the middle of Capital Blvd. and that’s the State Capitol in the background.

When there was a break in traffic, Kelly and I would dash out into the middle of the four lane thoroughfare,

pose, snap and make it back to the safety of the sidewalk before the next round of traffic blew by.

Needless to say, there were a few catcalls, honks and whistles.

I love to get those goofy shots; funny faces bursting with personality.

My second try at senior pictures – check.

Wouldn’t You Like To Be A Carny Too?

2009-10-22T15:05:00.001-06:00

Last Friday was the elementary schools Fall Carnival. A bake sale, school store to gear up in blue and a wide variety of booths for all ages and skill levels we put on by the teachers and grade levels. All the money earned goes directly to that classroom or special. I still don’t know what a flaming chicken is. (Name of one of the booths.)

Thanks to a generous donation of food from the local grocer, the P.T.A. was able to supply dinner for the masses and use 100% of the proceeds to improve the school and various programs like the Library, P.E. and Music departments.

David and Devin had been prepping for months learning and practicing their balloon twisting skills. The line went on for what seemed like forever. Devin was our sword man, he couldn’t twist them out fast enough. Dave was left with the other critters which were mostly flowers, dragonflies and monkeys. By the time the evening ended, they had made over 160 finished balloons that were paid for and countless others he twisted for fun. Apparently, twisty balloons were a big hit and they plan on tying up the Spring Fling. I guess we’re carnies now.

There was also a raffle that night with some really cool prizes. Lucky me, I won two of them. The first was a family fun night at a local restaurant (like Chuck E. Cheeses) including free pizza, drinks, rides and game tokens. The Farmers are totally stoked; I just might save that one for a rainy day – to save my sanity when cabin fever gets to be too much. I had my fingers crossed for the second prize, a $25 gift certificate to a fancy-pants salon. I figured I could use some pampering, though I have know idea what to use it on. A haircut maybe? Dye? Mani-pedi? Eyebrow wax? Facial skin peel? On second thought, that doesn’t sound so relaxing. Anyway, score one for the G’s at the carnival.

See, we’re looking like a bunch of cranies already!

A Thousand Words

2009-10-17T12:26:00.001-06:00

I’ve been busy. Sick. Busy. Farmer sick, crafty busy, another Farmer sick, sewing busy. Sick and busy seems to be the lot of it lately.

I was finishing up edits on some photos in my office last week about the time the two youngest farmers were due home from school. Miss Is marched up stairs and begged me to help her (this was frantic pleading actually, and it involved a little knocked knee dance). Frustrated by the frequency of this same scenario day after day, I stuck to my stubborn guns and refused to tag along merely as a spectator.

The dance continued wildly until she gave into whatever it was stopping her and rushed into the upstairs bathroom. Did I feel bad to hear her simper? No. Am I an awesome mother? No. Would I do it again? You bet’cha! But don’t be fooled by all the tough talk, I felt the pangs of guilt as the dam broke.

Once the deed was done, hands washed and pretty pink princess panties no longer in knots, she came back in without a word. “See, you don’t need me.” Congratulating her success – and mine too – I finished up the last photo. “Umph.” was all I got in return. Apparently Miss Is was busy too on the opposite side of the desk with a scrap piece of paper and a very pink highlighter.

A few moments later, she rounded the corner and with all the attitude a six year old diva can muster she showed me this and said very sweetly, “This is what I thought of you yesterday…”

(The only thing missing is the meadow of wildflowers I’m skipping in.)

“And this is what I think of you today.” The tone was no longer sweet. Is then proceeded to flip it at me and storm out of the room, slamming the door with extra gusto behind her to drive the point home and in her mind, the dagger deeper.

(Fire and brimstone or a dark, dreary castle in Transylvania?)

I laughed. Hysterically. I almost had to do the same knocked-knee dance that got us into this mess in the first place. I wanted a daughter and oh boy did I get one! She didn’t have to yell at me, call me names, tell me how much she doesn’t like me or how she doesn’t want me to be her mother anymore. All she had to do was draw me this, it’s worth more than a thousand words and definitely a few giggles too.

Lessons in What Not to Do: Studio Bingo

2009-09-24T16:46:00.001-06:00

Senior pictures; it’s that time of year. Sunday I was approached by this brunette beauty asking to take her senior pictures. Apparently she like what I had done for Bill & Mary (LWND: Getting Mary-ed) and was eager to have me behind the lens for this educational, lifelong milestone.

“Kelly has the utmost confidence in you.” Her mom told me over the phone after I admitted my photography shortcomings and suggested that they take a last minute jaunt over to one of those “quickie” photo studios a strobe above the street side, pull-the-curtain and insert your dollar kind. You see, the yearbook photo requires an indoor, solid background headshot. They even specify how large the head should be (no more than an inch and a half from chin to the top of the hair) and a quarter of an inch short of the top of the picture. Basically they want a studio shot, something I don’t have nor do I want to financially delve into at the moment. Like most things, gear can become a greenback black hole where the return will never out pace or keep up with its ferocious appetite. Lesson learned: Fess up to your weakness and work the problem to your strengths. It hit a little hard to know that this sweet girl had more faith in me than I did in myself; I wasn’t going to let her down.

Confidence, huh? Well, it was time to do what I do best – fake it and improvise. I stopped by Joann Fabrics before the shoot and picked a couple of Panne velvet panels 1 yard by 58”. Enough for head and shoulders, but that’s about it. Stealing the scouting flag pole idea, I cut 1/4” aluminum conduit into three lengths, slapped on two PVC elbows and set the whole thing on rebar spikes. Indoor wasn’t going to happen, at least if I can help it. Lesson learned: Home Depot, not the spendy Idaho Camera, can save the day.

Kelly and I had a five o’clock appointment Tuesday at her parents countryside home. Beautiful landscaping and plenty of grassy, open shade. The sun was lower in the sky and sent a beam of golden light between an evergreen and chimney, casting a long column of shadows across the yard. Using my awesome skills in astronomical mathematics and orienteering, I hammered in the rebar base (making sure not to hit any underground pipes) and calculated the best angle for the backdrop, the reflector and the celestial orb of a side and top light.

This is where Bingo comes into play. I have my game card in front of me, my lipstick pink ink dotter in one clenched fist and a lucky, thumb-stroked rabbits foot in the other just waiting on bated breath for those winning numbers to line up. ISO, aperture, shutter speed, white balance, exposure and reflected, indirect, direct and flash all to be accounted for and let’s not for get the dreaded umbra and penumbra. Full manual, external flash, and opting against my usual lens of choice for the 55-200m VR zoom, I started marking off each square.

Gold was up first on the impromptu stand and Kelly and I rocked it - quite literally. If you feel good about yourself – it’s a good hair day, your eyeliner isn’t smudged, and blemishes are a thing of the past, chances are you feel better in front of the camera. Smiles come easier, giggles grow and before you know it you have a stack of relatively painless pictures of you being you and not the I’ve-sat-here-for-hours-and-my-face-is-going-to-fall-off-if-I-have-to-smile-one-more-time while the only thing keeping said smile up is the pleasant daydream of strangling the photographer you. Add my not-so-secret, secret weapon and who knows what will happen.

Music. As in get your groove on music. I asked Kelly to bring her iPod dock and queue up her favorite playlist. Michael Buble kicked us off with a Sinatra standard oozing with class, golden oldies (of which I was quite impressed with her extensive tastes a generation before myself) and a couple of current pop-rock and rap ditties. The Diva herself, Aretha’s Chain of Fools. Pat Benetar’s Heartbreaker capped off the last shoot (black drop) with a timely, rocker hop off the white plastic lawn chair I happened to be standing on. The rabbit’s foot must have counter-acted Murphy’s Law because I didn’t land most embarrassingly on my backside or worse yet, break my camera. It all seems rather unorthodox, but this is me were talking about. If I had any proper schooling, I’d know better and wouldn’t allow such childish frivolity to stand in the way of serious artistic expression. Lesson learned: Have fun, be silly when needed, get the job done and let the numbers fall where they may – there’s more than one way to win at bingo.

Minimal – and I mean minimal – editing went into these due to time constraints. I delivered proofs Wednesday afternoon and set up our appointment to go and do the real senior pictures this Saturday. Another adventure I look forward to. Michael is invited. So is Pat, Stevie, Neil, Elvis, Aretha, Fergie, UB40, Avril, Miley, Taylor, Josh, the Brothers of course and …. Can I yell bingo?

Meet Kelly, the cutest southern belle this side of the Mississippi.

And the yearbook photo is….

Kitchen Couture

2009-09-16T11:04:00.001-06:00

I don’t think my sewing machine has left the dining room for the last six months. In fact, I know it hasn’t and to lessen the cringe-factor of being such a slacker seamstress, I decided to channel my inner Lucy, to duke it out with Donna Reed and put together an apron any true domestic diva would be proud to sift, simmer and soufflé in.

Inspired by a vintage, twenty cent thrift store pattern and a buck-fifty a yard “retro” looking fabric, my Bernadette and I began our torrid affair last Thursday. And like any to-do, we had our ups and down and I unfortunately let the seam ripper get between us much to my own chagrin. I suppose it would help if I didn’t have to have it MY
WAY all the time, but there you have it. Stubborn as all get out and definitely too big for my sewing britches.

The top portion is big enough to bless the well-endowed woman which I’m certainly not and I added the extra raspberry trim at the neck, waist and hem line upping the sewing difficulty level to beginner. Let me tell you exactly how many pleats there are in the bodice and skirt – a gazillion. I found some kiwi flat lace and added two strips to the v-neckline just to give the appearance that I know what I’m doing.

Yes I digress, an actual picture of my backside. My motto is “the bigger the bow, the smaller the biscuits” and I’m not talking about the baking powder kind though sometimes I wonder at the rate mine are expanding. Those Victorian ladies had it right; corsets, bows and bustles hide many a late-night nibble sin.

What can you do with extra fabric? Why… accessorize a la Lucy. To be honest, we’re making headbands and bows as one of our Enriching U-niversity labs for Super-Saturday and this was the trial run. I didn’t attach the bow, it’s on a clippie so I can move it around or just wear it alone. Sunday I wore it (yes, I wore my apron to church solidifying my place as a true “moron” in the world in an effort to advertise the upcoming Relief Society event) and placed the bow at the bottom of the headband, just where the fabric meets the elastic.

I happened to buy two patterns that day and a second set of fabrics to make yet another apron. This one is a retro blue/brown paisley pattern and I’m so going rockabilly with it, pettiskirt and all. If you can’t cook, at least look like you can. Maybe I’ll make a matching apron for Miss Is and get her off on the right foot.

Props to Devin’s shooting skills, though I’m reminded of why I’d rather be behind rather than in front of the camera. Humility. Check.

I Can Can

2009-09-14T14:11:00.001-06:00

I seem to be back in the thick of it, making up for lost time while the swine flu had us down. Our tomatoes and peppers we started from seed this spring are finally producing. The church orchard is ripe for gleaning peaches and thanks to a fellow gardener, I have an abundant supply of jalapeños. My counters are covered in zucchini and I’ve made enough fresh salsa to more than cover the daily veg recommendations for the next six months.

Peaches halved, Roma’s whole, tomato juice, salsa and crack in a jar (a.k.a. jalapeño jelly) have all been canned. Thank goodness for our three burner camp stove and a nine quart water bath. I do all the chopping, slicing, dicing, ice water bath inside. The rest is done outside in my makeshift kitchen. Less of the mess and the less my A/C has to kick on.

I’m keeping all the canned goods in my pantry this year and I have to admit, I get a little buzz of pride at seeing it all. Warm, hardy stews, spaghetti sauce from scratch, peach cobbler, crack and cream cheese, and spicy salsa to chase away those bland, brown months until spring. Canning is a skill I’m grateful to have, though pressure canning is something that still scares me. Something about exploding jars and steam burns… I suppose at some point I should get over it, but then again maybe I won’t as long as grocery stores have case lot sales of canned corn and green beans.

There is at least one more twelve quart batch ripening in the garden and apples will soon be on the way. I think it’s time to make some of Grandma Madeline’s apple butter and another chocolate zucchini cake. I love fall!

Biohazard Chaos

2009-09-10T14:05:00.001-06:00

Not even a week into school starting, Devin gets sick. He wasn’t feeling so hot on Sunday so let him play hooky from church just in case anything other than an achy feeling cropped up. Monday he was up getting himself ready for school at the usual time; I was being lazy and still in bed when I heard a terrible hacking noise. “Is that Devin?” I asked Dave who was also doing his best to delay Monday. I got up to check on him and good thing I did. He was sacked out on the couch and I instantly knew he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. A couple of clicks of the mouse later, Devin and I discovered that he had every single symptom of H1N1, affectionately covered by the media at large as swine flu. The hard part about each symptom was that it’s exactly like any other run-of-the-mill illness. “Nah, you don’t have swine flu.”

At D.J.’s football practice later that night, we heard from friends that his middle school had a suspected case and sent home fliers that afternoon to warn parents and symptoms to look for in their son or daughter. “Nah, it’s just the flu… maybe.”

By Tuesday morning, he was one sick teen and the Quick-Care Clinic was first on the agenda. The poor guy “shouted groceries” half a dozen times within the five minute drive to town. Immediately we noticed warning papers taped to the outer glass doors of the clinic in hunter – or should I say biohazard - orange. If you have a cough, please ask for a mask at the front desk. I felt the piercing, disgusted eyes of everyone in the waiting room as Devin snapped the elastic over his head. Nothing says I have a communicable, deadly disease so watch out like a dual-filtered, foam-lined mask. So here was are, sitting in the foyer just outside waiting room, Devin, Death and I.

Finally making it in to the physicians assistant, the compulsory tests were ran without much to do. It wasn’t until the two foot long swabs came out that Devin got a little nervous. “I think they poked my brain.” He said after the assistant left the room. The influenza swab is taken high up into the nasal cavity almost but not quite his brain. Insert teaching lesson because I’m that kind of mom,”How did the Egyptians mummify their dead?” Devin’s reply, “By sticking a wood needle with a hook up their nose and scrabbling their brains to pull it out in little pieces.” Wow, he did learn something in sixth grade world history! Two pokes and ten minutes later, he’s positive for influenza A, the first indicator of “swine flu”. One more swab for the C.D.C. and we were out the door with a prescription for Tamiflu and a mandatory week of no school – worse yet, isolation. Quarantine…. Official results wouldn’t be in for a week while the state looks its over so in the meantime we were advised to take it seriously.

Is it or isn’t it? Are we just being paranoid? That was the big question on our minds. What do we do with Miss Is and D.J. (who seemed just as unusual as usual)? David took the rest of the week off. He’d be drawn and quartered if he brought “it” into his workgroup even though he tested negative later that morning. Debating whether or not we should go to football practice that afternoon, D.J. started coughing and within two hours ran a fever of 103. Now I have both boys sacked out on the couch. I don’t like to take advantage of people, especially people we know, but it really helps when your Bishop also happens to be a pediatrician. I had called for advice the day before and he was most helpful, that night I called to see if Devin’s dosage would work for D.J. I guess four years and ten pounds apart didn’t make much difference so I started him on the antiviral as well. That made the decision easy. Nobody goes anywhere.

Devin had the orange puke bowl, D.J. the white. By Thursday, I had officially claimed the red. Yep. Let me tell you how fun that was. Not really. Wouldn’t recommend it. I remembered why I don’t sit around and watch daytime t.v. everyday, why I love MY pillow and why it’s best to braid you hair. I had held out hope that I would escape infection, but knew that moms almost always suffer the same fate. During Dave’s ‘Doc-in-the-Box’ clinic visit at work, the P.A. prescribed a full course of Tamiflu with a wink, “you and your wife, just in case”. I was grateful for the thought and stated taking the white and yellow caplets right away. I was, however, well enough to watch the BSU – OSU football game!

The last four days of exile seemed very, very long. You can only watch so many movies, play so many games, sleep so many hours before stir crazy takes over. Friday afternoon we took a family trip to the rural (and empty) gun range to shoot the .22 Cricket. (My babies can shoot a gun with surprising accuracy.) BYU vs. Oklahoma and home-made Twix bars Saturday. Slacker Sunday at home and Monday was the last day, thank goodness. (Happy Labor Day)

Tuesday life went back to normal. The farmers were off to school, Dave to work and I had a bunch of errands to make. That night during D.J.’s football scrimmage, I got the call, H1N1 positive – your son has been confirmed by the state.

In the end, Miss Is and David remained untouched and nothing more than a lingering cough for the boys. Hopefully that will be the last we have to deal with the flu this year. I suppose it’s better sooner rather than later when school work is still in post-summer review and nothing pressing on the calendar. Take care, wash your hands often, have groceries (easy prep food) for a week in the pantry and lots of Lysol and bleach and you’ll survive… we did.

August – A Narrative: And So It Begins…

2009-09-04T14:52:00.001-06:00

The first week of practice. D.J. is the one in the grey t-shirt. Practices are Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesday, Fridays with games on Saturdays. Oh, a let’s throw in Scouting Thursdays for good measure. This week was all about conditioning.

Stretching, running, basic drills and plays. I couldn’t help but laugh during warm-ups, I kept thinking of Spaceballs and bobble-heads for some reason.

The second week of practice was full contact and much more exciting. D.J. is in the purple jersey.

More stretching, running, drills and plays with a crunch.

He took a hit from the “toughest” player on Monday, the first day with pads, and hurt his wrist.

D.J. shed a few tears and sat out for about fifteen minutes, but was back in action for the rest of practice.

I was really worried that it would’ve been the end, even Coach W called to see if he was okay.

When we got home that evening Dave and I asked if he still liked football.

“I don’t like football….” Here it comes, I thought. “I love it!!!”

Saturday, August 29th was their first “game” during the jamboree at the local high school.

Our boys were in blue and aptly named the Broncos. We all had to wing it since their uniforms were ready yet.

The D (defense) shut down their offense and once we took possession it was Bronco time!

D.J. is getting some much needed advice from Coach W.

The rest of the pictures are of various teammates during the game.

D.J. loves to play and we’re all excited to support him and the team.

We’re even watching football on t.v. now. Shocking, I know.

More as the season goes on!

August – A Narrative: Aye, Aye!

2009-09-04T13:59:00.001-06:00

It’s that time of year again when ships sail the pipe – or rain gutter – for maritime glory and Cub Scout bragging rights.

D.J. made his ship by himself and did a bang-up job of it too. He chose the Cub Scout colors of blue and gold.

D.J.’s dry docked ship.

Huffing and Puffing!

Bubblegum, bubblegum in a dish. How many pieces do you wish?

In the end, D.J. won a few races and had a great time overall.

Lessons in What Not to Do: Mrs. Idaho Headshots

2009-09-02T15:04:00.001-06:00

Beauty pageants? Last week I had the opportunity to take headshots for Mrs. Canyon County to compete in the Mrs. Idaho pageant. She needed headshots to submit for the contestant pamphlets, pageant brochures and other media. I’ve never done specific headshots before and had a lot to learn. What is a headshot? Is it just your head? Head and neck? Head, neck and shoulders? Straight on, side or from behind? Black and white? Touched or unedited? And that’s just the tip of the ice burg.

I met up with Molly around eleven in the morning and snapped off a few inside. Yeah… not good. I was seriously doubting whether or not I could pull this one off. Studio lighting indoors is a must – at least that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.

Outside and in my comfort zone, we found some open shade to work with. Molly had a lovely celery green sweater on and perfect retro-glam hair that worked well with the evergreen tree I used as a background. My reflector became her new best friend, it was a love-hate relationship adding just a touch of light underneath her chin and cheekbones to chase away those unflattering shadows. Lesson learned: Don’t blind your subject in pursuit of shadows.

Since theses photos are specific in nature, I let Molly glimpse the camera LCD to make sure that we were headed in the right direction. Some angles and lines that we thought would work well didn’t and some of the “let’s just give this a try” (as I contort myself into an odd example) poses gained the best reviews. Lesson learned; it’s okay to be a poser – sometimes. Find what flatters and don’t be afraid to twist and tweak it until you get what you want.

With any luck, she’ll be the next Mrs. Idaho!

(The last two shots are the ones she chose to send to the director.)

August – A Narrative: Forever Young

2009-09-01T14:47:00.001-06:00

Tuesday, August 11-12th:

I had the utmost pleasure in tidying up the house to play Bed & Breakfast to my best friend from Oregon, Lora as her and her kiddoes, minus the eldest, made their way back from Utah. The day they came happened to be Tayler’s fourteenth birthday and Devin was excited to share it with him. (I’m sorry Tayler that you had to spend it with us! lol) In his honor, I made a vanilla-strawberry cake with Strawberry and chocolate ice cream on the side. (Thank you Duncan Hines and Dryers.)

It was good to see and visit again, though I still think that we need a girls weekend retreat to really get caught up!

Photo props to our mutual friend and photographer, Quillan Kasl.

Lessons in What Not to Do: Baby, Baby

2009-09-01T11:24:00.001-06:00

My first maternity and newborn sessions and a gazillion lessons in what not to do.

You may recognizes this glowing gal from a post back in June; what can I say, it’s been a very busy summer.

Jenna was great to work with. Easy going and up for just about anything even at thirty-eight weeks. We hit the usual haunts along the greenbelt, at which she wouldn’t let me help her up off the ground, and then headed for her home. She has the cutest, pee-wee league sized basketball of a tummy that made these “maternity” shots not so odd.

When I first heard of the concept I honestly wasn’t really sure about it, but then I got to thinking, remembering my first and shuffling through what very little prego-pictures I had and I began to realize that a nice, I-don’t-look-like-the-broad-side-of-a-barn in full-bloom motherhood would have been special. Sure, I’m grateful for the snapshot of me in David’s sweats, tent-like tee, bad hair and some type of food – who knows what – being unceremoniously and quickly shoved into my mouth, but I’d like to think that I was beautiful at some point along the way with actual proof and not just the consolatory, obligatory, please-don’t-bite-my-head-off line of “you look radiant, Dear” or “there’s nothing more beautiful than an expecting mother.” Hmmm… reading back through this grammatically challenged paragraph it appears that I may have some issues here. What are your thoughts? Did you – do you – have great maternity pictures? Would you want to have them?

And baby makes three!

Ten days. That’s how new Christian was when he had his very first photo session. I had came over in the early evening, just after his usual feeding and before the subsequent naptime. Babies are best asleep; too bad he wasn’t up for it. Patience, that’s what I learned. Lots of patience with new mommies and new babies. Christian was colicky and as we later found out suffering for acid reflux so needless to say he wasn’t his happiest. Mom and Dad tried hard to get him settled, but I decided that we could try again later. Lesson learned: Know when enough is enough.

Eleven days. First thing in the morning after second – or was it third – breakfast. Well fed and content with a light pat on the back, Christian was a superstar. Both Mom and I were happy to have the little man resting peacefully so she could take a break and I could snap away. There were a lot of “oohs” and “awes” as we gently tucked in little arms and legs for each set up. Christian liked to have his man business on display; his tiny knees bent and crossed at the ankles reminding him of the comforts of mom. Lesson learned: Don’t say “little man business” while Dad is around. He might take offense to certain parts being labeled little, tiny, cute etc. Instead it’s better to overcompensate with big words like huge, enormous, and gargantuan. The last one REALLY sounds manly and would make any new papa proud.

Babies poop. Babies pee. It’s a fact of life. The couch, the bed, Mom in her only pair of jeans that fit post-pregnancy. Lesson learned; be prepared to have things tinkled on or worse, machine washable is a plus and baby wipes wipe more than little bums.

Though I’m somewhat happy with the way they turned out, I’ve realized the need for a soft box and a detachable flash would help tremendously. Shadows would disappear and be replaced with even, wrap-around light to create a depth and details. It’s on my B&H Photo wish list. Lesson learned: Do the best with what you’ve got and that necessity (and a poor-gals budget) is the mother of invention.

I also had the opportunity to make custom baby announcements – six different styles – for Mom and Dad to choose from. It was fun to let the “scrapper” out of the closet and use different digital papers, embellishments and the like I’ve been collecting.

Bottom line, love the mommies, love the babies and love what you (try) to do.

Props. to Mrs. DLee P for crocheting the “pod”.

Lessons in What Not to Do: Oh Sandra Kay!

2009-08-31T15:01:00.001-06:00

Dave and I were bad. Really bad. We’ve been planning to kidnap our nieces for the past few years and never quite got up the courage to actually go through with it. Actually, our crazy-busy teenage nieces never had the time to indulge their old, fuddy-duddy aunt and uncle. But this year we made the getaway with Miss Sandra strapped in the back of the Yukon. No, we didn’t bind and gag her though I seriously thought about such restraint for the other three – who shall remain nameless– that we had to take home. I’m sure she was doubting her decision halfway into the nine and a half hour trek, but she took it like a pro and didn’t bolt at the numerous potty stops along the way.

So what do you do with a teenage girl in the house? Shopping. Lots of shopping. All day long marathon shopping. Good ol’dollar days at Savers thrift store and Sandra and I were hunting the deals for a new wardrobe. Name brand clothes, little bitty price tag. We picked up the basics, those pieces every girl should have in her arsenal. A nice flirty yet modest black skirt, fitted shirts and jackets, jeans that hugged all the right places – even if you are a beanpole – and shoes to finish off the look. Let me tell you, she was a trooper. It couldn’t have been easy to have a shop-happy aunt like me keep tossing this and that into the dressing room at a rapid-fire pace and expect to fulfill the “mommy” duty of having to crack the door to check for color and fit. In the end, we left with quite a haul and a handful of outfits to mix and match. Not bad for her first day in Chaos.

The following Monday was the big day! A nine-thirty Razzle Dazzle appointment for a cut and highlights followed by photographer-wanna-be torture. Downtown and down in an weedy field the poor girl was poked, prodded and plastered with hairspray to get the “shot”.

Meet Sandra. She’s seventeen, a senior and the sweetest teenager I know.

August – A Narrative: Steinaker Resvr.

2009-08-28T17:37:00.001-06:00

This years family reunion was held at Steinaker Reservoir State Park, just outside of Vernal, Utah August 6th through 9th.

Food. It’s always about the food, isn’t it? A bit of history served as the kitchen, an old Korean War relic that was built to feed the frontline troops was put to use feeding our horde. Susie, Slade and Co. provided us with plenty of vittles to keep us going and coming back for more.

Lots of crafts to entertain. Beads and lacing. Leather works and even a forge.

Friday night we were treated to a puppet show by Slade’s brother and sister-in-law. Here I am pretending to be a set of drums.

The kids loved it… even the big ones!

The baby monkey was a hit.

Dave and his sweet niece, Sarah. Such a cutie!!

Whenever we weren’t being crafty, fed or entertained, most of us spent our days on the water. For your viewing pleasure…

August – A Narrative: LPT 2009

2009-08-28T11:49:00.001-06:00

D.J. the fisherman.

The last few days of July and the first of August were spent up at Lucky Peak Reservoir, nestled just past the foothills of Boise. This was our second annual trip with friends to the local watering hole. I especially like how we can go from camping to home in a little under an hour and still feel that we actually went somewhere. The W’s, E’s, P’s made the trek again with the P’s II and the Ms. M joining the fray. Horseshoes were a hit, but nothing beats a late evening dip. The food was fantastic as always and there was plenty to be had. Strapped into their lifejackets, the kids were constantly on the beach or in the water and were hardly heard from unless it was time to fill the bellies or slather on the sunscreen. All in all it was a successful trip and one we look forward to next year.

Lessons in What Not to Do: Tying Knots

2009-07-27T17:10:00.001-06:00

Wow oh, wow. Where to begin?

Meet Holly and Don. They got married a ten days ago and for some reason decided to hire me to be their “photographer”. Holy Cow…. I literally cried when her sister, Mrs. B sent me the email. Seriously? Really? Really, REALLY? Are you sure? Wow. To say I was dumb-smacked would be an understatement. This was either the best compliment yet or a big, heaping bunch of crazy. No offense M, but I’m leaning towards crazy on this one. This is me were talking about here; just a girl, her camera and lofty aspirations anchored in concrete shoes. Gulp. I said yes.

Homework, lots of homework. I have a few really good amateur and pro-photog blogs I visit. Each one has a different style and a unique eye that I would love to have a fraction of. I got the chance to meet the bride and groom about a month before the big day to get an idea of what they wanted, what I could possibly do, and all the particulars. I wouldn’t recommend going into any event blind. Lesson learned; the more homework the better.

Nightmares and vomit. Yep. You’d think I was the one getting hitched. I was pushing the recommended dosage the so-called experts slapped on the Alka-Seltzer warning label. Being the optimist that I am, all the “what if’s” nearly killed me. What if I under or over expose everything to the point of no return? What if I fall on the bride and groom. What if I lose all my shots? What if I drop my camera or lenses? What if my computer exploded? What if a meteorite hits the house? What if…. Lesson learned; don’t eat anything spicy the week before and pop a couple of valium. Just kidding on the valium.

So the big day arrives and those knots in my stomach tighten to the breaking point. There was another “girl with a camera” – a very big, grown-up camera (D700) - that left me feeling that much more under-qualified for the task ahead. Sure, it’s not the size that counts, but it sure does help. I watched her work her bride and groom plus family and tried to follow suit. Unfortunately, high noon doesn’t allow for oodles of open shade to stuff a large group under so we had to wait until they were done before our party could move in. Lesson learned; don’t size up the competition, just the group shots.

Phew! Family temple-side shots in the can as they say and the temperature keeps rising. I believe it was reaching 100* and everyone was melting, myself included. Luckily the luncheon was right next door at the meetinghouse so family and friends could find quick relief. The bride and groom on the other hand were at my mercy. Having done my homework, I had a series of poses to work through. A photography road map of sorts to get from point A, B, C and back again without radical changes or crisscrossing the grounds. Unfortunately, the lawns were soaking wet, muddy and in a few places, underwater. Mental note to nix the grass pictures and readjust. Can you smell the smoke? It’s my map (and my noodle) going up in flames. Or is it down if flames? Take your pick, either one will do. Lesson learned; adapt and try your darnedest not to spontaneously combust.

Receptions equal lots of pictures of everything. The centerpieces, entry tables, cake, punchbowls and pretzels – I mean everything. All those little things that with everything else going on throughout the day seem to slip through those memory cracks. To add to the excitement, the fire alarm was pulled and with it came all the sirens, bells, and whistles with a fire truck to boot. It was pretty funny. Definitely memorable. Talk about burning love…. Lesson learned: take advantage of the chaos and turn it into something worthwhile.

With the bride and groom happily off on their honeymoon, I was off to start part two – editing. I’m trying really hard to have a soft hand, the barely there effect that adds just enough snap, crackle, and pop to make it hum. Anyway…. here’s where another hundred lessons are learned.

For now a peek. Holly and Don haven’t seen these yet. (Just for you, M!)

Kalaloch: The Hoh Rainforest

2009-07-27T12:40:00.001-06:00

Kalaloch: The Beach

2009-07-22T14:24:00.001-06:00

Hours and hours upon hours of sandy bliss.

Sand drawings of pirate ships and submarines, deep pits, forts with barricades tested against the tides. Kites and critters. Bare feet and Horseshoes. Salty air and seagulls. I love the beach!

That’s All!!!

Up Next, Kalaloch: Hoh Rainforest

Kalaloch: The Wood

2009-07-22T10:56:00.001-06:00

Nestled along the Washington coastline, Kalaloch is surrounded by the Olympic National Forest and the Quinault Indian Reservation.

It took us about 11 hours to make the drive from our Boise-area home. Of course, you have to factor in multiple bathroom stops, lunch and a fill-up.

I’ve been going to Kalaloch ever since I was a kid, as far back as I can remember. It was our summer destination of choice. Mom and Dad once asked if we wanted to go to Disneyland or Kalaloch and to this day, I haven’t set foot in Mickey’s world. That’s how much we loved it as kids.

It had been two years since I last went “home” so I was more the eager to return. We were prepared for rain, lots and lots of drizzle, mist, and intermittent downpours, but this trip was beautiful every single day. One evening was cloudy, but it didn’t matter.

It’s such a treat to unzip the tent door and have the morning sun peek through the trees to greet you hello.

Miss B, Mr. C, D.J. and Devin.

Just a few feet from our tent door is the watering hole, potable water piped in from the lodge.

Washing off under the spigot feels like living in an Irish Spring commercial.

Cool water, a carpet of moss to stand on, the roar of the waves below and the lush undergrowth, the smell of which no scented candle can replicate.

So many trees to climb!

The kids spent their dry, daylight hours in the woods in search of a sasquatch, fighting wild animals, dragons,

aliens, and whichever dumb adult decided to wander in with a camera to capture them.

“I know what you are… You’re my cousin.” Sorry, I couldn’t help the reference.

D.J. and Miss. B were agreeing on the ground rules for the latest round of hide and seek.

Back at camp to burn the sacrificial twigs before getting some much needed shut-eye only to get up and do it all over again.

I didn’t spend the entire vacation with a camera in my hand – I’m on vacation too and honestly, how many “campy” pictures can one endure?

One early morning, my mom woke me up with a photo-op.

A rather large bald eagle had landed in the dead tree near our campsite and was quite content to perch there while I fumbled with my camera.

To give you perspective of just how close….

The blue dome on the far-left is our tent, followed by Grandma & Grandpa’s tent trailer, the eating pavilion, my sister’s tent and the dead tree. On a side-note, my mother calls to tell me that the morning we left, it landed in the tree right above our tent. It figures!!!

It’s one thing to see such a great bird, the symbol of our nation, chained to a stump in the zoo or wildlife refuge. It’s another to see it free.

We ended up seeing a lot of eagles, a “family” of sorts. Two adults and two fledglings gave us quite a show circling the camp and landing on the beach below.

(Here’s the point were I give love to the telephoto lens and yet curse it at the same time. I thought it was an auto AF-S lens when I bought it – it’s not so everything is manually focused and much harder to get a crisp, crystal clear shot. These were the best. I suppose I’ll just have to try, try again!)

Up next, Kalaloch: The Beach!

HP 6 and the Girls

2009-07-15T09:38:00.001-06:00

So the girls and I stayed up way, way past our bedtime to attend the 12:02am showing of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

We arrived just after 9:00pm, fully stocked for the long wait. Tickets – check. Camp chairs – check. Strawberries and chocolate ganache complete with fancy paper doilies – check. Being the envy of all in line – priceless.

We were quite a crew.

View Full Album

Luck would have it, the best seats in theater #3 belonged to us – the center of the center. Seated around 10:30pm, “informative” and highly stimulating conversation filled in the gap. Hagrid and Hermione walked in; a couple of young, teenage girls we know. It happened to be “Hermione’s” seventeenth birthday so we sang to her and hooked “Hagrid” up with the guy sitting just below us. We’re so helpful that way. At 12:06am the lights dimmed. 2:45am the credits rolled and so solidified HP6 as my favorite Potter movie to date.

I’ve learned to deal with “creative adaptations” in these movies, HP5 was the biggest disappointment with the exclusion of my favorite scenes. HP6 is no exception, but it was intense, funny, and a satisfying morsel of the book. Yes, I love Ron Weasley and we got more Ron, though I’m waiting for the loyal and fiercely protective book Ron to make an appearance. I’ve read reviews were movie-goers trash this latest effort, claiming the purest side of the road and chalking it up to nothing but a two hour and fifteen minute teenage romance wrapped up in eighteen minutes of meaty, plot-moving magical mayhem. I disagree. The young Tom Riddle was creepy. A slowly dying, less than invincible Dumbledore. (I still prefer the late Richard Harris.) Draco’s torment to fulfill his mission and Snape’s Unbreakable, knowing the final outcome of his character, was played to perfection by Alan Rickman. Of course, seemingly vital scenes were either brought about by different characters, i.e. instead of Tonks finding Harry on the train, it was Luna, or all-together missing (with the hope of incorporating them into the 7th and 8th movies) would leave the non-reader a little perplexed. As I understand it, the final movies are in production and due out 2010 and 2011 respectively and IMDB has a blurb about absent characters/plot lines, fostering the hope of pulling it all together.

Can’t wait to see it again with Devin. For now it’s bottoms-up with the Diet Coke and the challenge of upright habitation with merely three and a half hours sleep. Here’s to the girls – those who were missing included – can’t wait for HP7, we’re so dressing up. Dibs on Bellatrix! lol Until then, we’ll continue our lapse in maturity this November with New Moon.

Kalaloch Kaleidoscope

2009-07-07T13:41:00.001-06:00

We’re back. The car has been unloaded, the laundry is being washed and I have a mountain of pictures I’m eager to sift through. Covering Kalaloch and our time there would coalesce into a badly written, poorly shot, coffee-table sized graphic novel minus the damsel and tights. So I don’t bore you all with lengthy details and a zillion of-kilter shots of the Farmers, I’ll break it up into loosely relevant ‘chapters’. The first of which covers one of the reasons why I love Kalaloch so much.

Nikon D60 85mm f/5.6 1/4000” ISO 400

This was taken the evening we arrived. David, my dad and I were walking to the lodge to confirm the I, the holder of the reservation, was truly there. The Sitka spruce trees that line the bluff are beautiful despite their twisted, wind ravaged appearance.

Nikon D60 34mm f/4.0 1/13” ISO 400

On the way back from the lodge, the sun was peeking through the wood just before our campsite. I think there might be dragons.

Nikon D60 24mm f/5.0 1/1250” ISO 400

Nikon D60 70mm 1/3200” ISO 800

Nikon D60 85mm f/10 1/250” ISO 200

Nikon D60 270mm f/5.6 1/1250” ISO 800

Nikon D60 85mm f/8 1/125” ISO 200

Nikon D60 300mm f/5.6 1/4000” ISO 100

Nikon D60 70mm f/5.6 1/10” ISO 800

Same evening. It was pretty dark when I took this and thought it was a great opportunity to play with slow shutter speeds.

Nikon D60 300mm f/5.6 1/80” ISO 800 Cropped 100%

Full of firsts, I thought I’d shoot for the moon.

Nikon D60 40mm f/4.0 30” ISO 800

An experiment. This is a shot of the moon setting. I used my tripod, remote, 8 pt. light filter and shutter speed of 30 seconds.

Don’t break out the Windex, there’s no need, the white blob to the right of the moon is a star.

Nikon D60 135mm f/4.5 1/200 ISO 200

The wooded drive in from the highway. I love the column of light breaking through the trees.

Nikon D60 85mm f/9.0 1/200” ISO 100

“My little buttercup, has the sweetest smile. My little buttercup, could you stay for awhile….”

Nikon D60 65mm f/10.0 1/250” ISO 140

Midway up the bluff. A veritable gauntlet of buzzing bumblebees to get to the beach from our campsite.

I wouldn’t have thought that dandelions would be so dangerously beautiful, but the destination is worth the stinging risk.

Nikon D60 24mm f/10.0 1/250” ISO 160

View from the beach looking towards our campsite.

Nikon D60 85mm f/10.0 1/250” ISO 140

Nikon D60 85mm f/8.0 1/160” ISO 100

There is an outcropping of rocks to the right that are only accessible during really low tides.

The seagull and the starfish; it sounds like it should be a children’s book title.

Nikon D60 85mm f/8.0 1/320” ISO 100

Snail shells on the beach.

Nikon D60 85mm f/8.0 1/250” ISO 100

Feeling a little crabby? David found this little guy on the beach during our tide pool walk.

We washed him off, flopped some kelp down and waited for the next wave to make it in.

I was more than a little nervous of being caught off guard and getting my camera wet, but it all worked out in the end and am so excited to have this.

David got a “shot” of his own, my biscuits in the air for the world to see as I hunkered down in the sand.

I will not be posting that award-winner or I will be more than just a little crabby.

Nikon D60 30mm f/10.0 1/250” ISO 125

Ruby beach, a few miles north – and looking north – of Kalaloch.

Nikon D60 62mm f/4.5 1/1600” ISO 100

Another experiment; Panorama without a tripod. I flubbed it a bit – a lot actually – but overall it’s not too horrible for my first try. Ruby beach looking southwest.

That’s Destruction Island on the right. The lighthouse has since been decommissioned, but when I was a kid it was running.

We would see if we could hold our breath as long as it took the light to spin back around. I don’t ever remember making it.

Nikon D60 24mm f/6.3 1/60” ISO 200

Looking up through the maples in the Hoh Rainforest.

Nikon D60 85mm f/10.0 1/250” ISO 200 Cropped 100%

Nikon D60 24mm f/5.0 1/60” ISO 200

I guess I have a thing for beams of light. This one was taken on the Hoh river trail.

Just a few of many, many pictures.

Smashingly Sweet

2009-06-24T12:40:00.001-06:00

Okay, as if I didn’t have enough going on and all – a trip to Kalaloch, Utah, fun photo sessions with oodles of lovely pictures to edit, I snuck a peek on Craigslist. And just so you know, I did sell Miss Is’ Power Wheels yesterday so it wasn’t all for treasure hunting, but I happened upon something I knew I would regret if I didn’t at least try to lay my hands on it.

Be prepared, this would be the smashingly portion of this post.

A bloody mess or at least it was, I smashed the Sam-Billy, H-E-Double hockey sticks out of my thumb just after successfully laying my hands on the loot. It’s still numb in between the throbs two hours later. I didn’t swear and only a few crocodile-sized tears fell, but it was worth it.

This would be the “sweet” part. A free, old couch perfect for photos. I can see it now… Mom and Dad snuggled up on one end and their kids, eyes-rolled complete with mish-mashed faces in utter disgust on the other up against a rustic brick, Old-Town background - maybe even some modest graffiti (not that I’m condoning it.) Or placed out in a wheat field underneath brilliant blue-speckled skies. Or amid a line of fire maples in their autumn glory. Or smack-dab in the middle of a grove of river birch or aspens. Or…. So many useful places, so many fun “poses”, so many families/couples to shoot!

Since I’ve scarred you all and will not be posting anything for the next week and a half due to a much needed vacation, I thought I’d share something not so gross and very sweet.

~Stacey

Good, Clean Fun.

2009-06-23T08:31:00.001-06:00

Saturday’s Project in Pictures… Enjoy.

Prep’n the Patio

2009-06-18T15:32:00.001-06:00

Once a young Farmer myself, I remember one of our summertime chores - besides scrapping moss off the rooftop shingles with a putty knife which there is not way in Hades will my children be doing - was pressuring washing the algae-clad patio. “Grandma and Grandpa M have a lot of patio,” I told my hydro-help. I could tell he wasn’t listening to me as I delved further down the snowy road of ‘when I was a kid’ lectures.

“You’re Grandma’s feet would get so sunburned. Your aunts and I would write things in the cement and we would spray each other with the water jet. It would hurt if you accidently got your feet, stings really bad….”

Today’s adventure was in preparation for a Father’s Day BBQ we’re hosting Sunday afternoon. Devin fixed the grill and put together paper lanterns. D.J. and I swept what the fall and winter winds had blown in and washed the whole thing down. Little instruction was needed; he was a natural.

Breaking up stuck-on, dried up dirt clods, maneuvering the mud flow around the BBQ and the flower pots. It was wonderful. Not a single compliant. And then I saw this and realized why he was such a “natural”.

Monday Morning Flowers

2009-06-15T12:22:00.001-06:00

These were taken this morning in the backyard. It was raining and everything was fresh and colorful. I know what each plant is, except for the

bottom right. I have no clue and I know I didn’t plant it. Can you shed some light here and tell me what it is?

The stalks behind it are my Daylilies. It has a fairly skinny stalk, a tubular blossom like Foxglove and turns out at the ends like Snapdragon… but it isn’t.

It’s lovely and I certainly don’t mind the intrusion, I just want to know what it is exactly and I’m coming up empty handed. Any thoughts?

Tip-Toe Through the Temple Grounds

2009-06-12T12:59:00.001-06:00

Last night I stopped by the Boise Temple to do some “homework” for wedding and to take a few pictures for an upcoming Enrichment event. I believe that it is fair to say that the Boise Temple has one of the smallest grounds with the exception of those literally in the middle of a city. From a photography stand point, it makes it rather difficult to get “that” shot. All the pictures that I have seen of the BT have been shot with either a fisheye lens or from across the street or interstate with a wide angle. I have a wide, didn’t venture across the very busy Cole road and this was the best I got. Hardly the whole enchilada; maybe the crusty end of tortilla that baked into a rock because there was no sauce to keep it tasty and all the bubbly-hot cheese oozed off – it’s about that good.

Yes, more phun with Photoshop.

I took that… me, I did. Sorry, sometimes I have to convince myself.

Back to the enrichment thing…

Maybe something like this. I dunno, my creative brain is rebelling against me.

The more I look at it, the more I tear it apart. I think the G needs to be the entire frame or just about.

The RS theme this summer is

Sacred Homes, Sacred Temples

after Elder Gary E. Stevenson’s

conference talk.

It’ll be a 12x12” print decoupage onto a tile and distressed/antiqued as one would like.

Anyway, the grounds made up for my frustration with these beautiful roses. I’ve been rockin’ manual lately, actually the whole time there and it’s amazing what a few changes to the settings can do. Success or complete and utter failure. No photoshop phun, just processed into JPEG’s from the NEF files I shoot in.

Hey, Chick. Thought you’d appreciate the eye-candy. lol

In the Background

2009-06-06T16:55:00.001-06:00

This morning we ran Devin in to Boise to pick up his new video game from my boyfriend, Craig. He’s been drooling over Halo Wars for months now and as of yesterday, barring a few more chores, earned enough to purchase a used copy for the Xbox 360. Eight sausage biscuits later, the exchange went rather well in the parking lot of Micky D’s.

So here we are in Boise on a rainy Saturday with no other place to go in town, that is until I had a brilliant idea. The fabric store. THE FABRIC STORE! It’s been a few months since I fed my fabric addiction and thought I’d drag the rest of the Farmers (Dad included) to one of my adulthood Disneyland haunts. I still don’t have curtains up in my office, surely that was an important enough of reason to go.

Hanging from the storefront was a big, yellow and black vinyl banner that read, Store Closing. What the heck!!! No way… I was crushed. Once I read the sign over again in disbelief, it said that another store had closed and they had all their fabric. Whew! I can still feed my need. Anyway, this particular fabric store had their cotton prints/solids on sale for $3.00 a yard this weekend only. Such news requires a handful of tissues to wipe the drool from off my face. My man-slave, a.k.a. Hubby, carried the rolls as I wandered through the aisles. There was too much to choose from – too many possibilities that I was drowning in ideas. I kept it under control and limited myself to only five. I find that I’m struggling with the idea of venturing back as I write this post; hundreds of yards of half-priced fabric tell me yes, but my photog bank account says no.

Now to improve upon the situation, I have to relate to you the real savings. Regular price was $5.99 a yard. Not bad and I was ready to pay it. The rusty damask was actually mismarked, but the sales lady let me have it for the $3.00 yrd price. Each fabric swatch is 54” wide by 9’ long. All together I spent $47.00 and change. Here’s where the kicker comes in. At “tready” photography supply stores, fancy-pant backdrops just like what I bought in the 4 1/2 ‘ x 9’ size run anywhere between $90-$120 without shipping. You do the math! $500.00 or just shy of $50.

The white chain on the green background is really neat, I bought it specifically for Christmas/Spring shots. And who can say no to a very pretty celadon green and chocolate? Obviously I couldn’t. The pineapple-like motif of the green and white floral is quirky. I reminds me of vintage 1960’s wallpaper. Damask in rust and gold; the picture doesn’t do it justice. Last, but not the least, a blue and chocolate damask. I can’t wait to play around with these. Any takers? Of course, Miss Is was ready for a very impromptu shoot – very impromptu – as in less than ten minutes from walking in the door. I flipped the blue damask over the old radio in the great room, weighted down by a dried floral arrangement and I dare say, my statuette of the Holy Family and snapped away. Miss Is went into model-mode and worked it. As you can see from the upper-right hand shot, she’s all that. We’re so professional… NOT!!!

(All of Maddy’s shots are proudly SOOC with nothing but window light! I’m getting better, albeit slowly.)

Pomp and Circumstance

2009-06-03T14:01:00.001-06:00

Today is the day that my baby girl graduated.

She has her degree and as they say, ‘everything you need to know you learn in kindergarten’.

The first day of kindergarten; it seem like it was so long ago.

Mjss Is and her teacher, Mrs. W.

The graduates entered to Pomp and Circumstance and took to the risers to sing a few songs they’ve learned. The last song, called

“First Grade” was very fitting, the perfect send-off to their official elementary education.

Kinder is hard work. Getting up on stage in front of everybody is even harder.

Congrats, Miss Is!!!! We’re so proud!

Brownlee Reservoir

2009-05-28T21:34:00.001-06:00

On the road to Brownlee, about 2 hours and forty-five minutes to go. Nothing much to see.

Oooohh. Horses. (Just a little reminder that we’re zooming down the Interstate at 75mph!)

The Farmers didn’t have their usual toys for this trip so spying anything interesting helped minimize the “are we there yet’s”.

The view started to change from flat and matted brown to hills, plateaus and rolling greens.

There were cows.

And a REAL live cowboy came galloping down the hillside.

There were winding rivers and little towns

with a grand hotel, motel, inn and coffee shop all in one.

I even discovered that I own a small ranch house and restaurant.

The last bit of civilization before we started the climb.

Our view from the top, a nose-bleeding height of 4,131' above sea level.

Winding roads

and lots of rocks

until we reached the bottom.

First on the agenda, find a campsite.

There we these little shanty-town shacks all along the shoreline.

Though the water was beautiful, it was very cold.

I loved the way the black rocks jutted out from underneath the carpet of green.

It made the hunt for a campsite that much more challenging, but we found it. Center-left is where we pitched our tent

When we landed the bow on the somewhat sandy beach we found hundreds of butterflies flittering about and resting on the wet soil. It seemed almost magical.

Once camp was set up it was time to fish. It started out a little slow until Dave caught a 2 lb. bass.

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A mule deer came down for a drink near one of our Crappie hot-spots.

With our tummies grumbling, it was time to head back to camp. Devin started a fire and Dave set up the grill. We had some fish to fry.

The fishy taste of victory. Chili cheese dogs on hand just in case the lines weren’t hot.

With such success, the Farmers fished into the night and actually caught perch.

(I should’ve brought my tripod… oh well. A quick lesson in what not to do or should I say to do.)

When the last of the sunlight faded away, the stars took over and so did all the critters that hoot, howl and scurry – sometimes rather noisily.

This was the first time we had camped so “rustic” and both Dave and I were a little nervous to say the least. We made a huge fire and stayed up into the wee hours.

The loss of sleep did have its benefits; shooting stars and an eyeful of twinkles we don’t have the chance to see in town. Realizing that nothing was going to eat us or just too tired to care, we rejoined our snoring Farmers in the tent and tried to catch a few zzz’s.

Up to take some flower shots while the sun was low.

Just before the tent came down, the boat pulled from the water and we said good-bye to Brownlee.

The ride back was uneventful. Well, I suppose there was a tiny event. As we came back down the mountain, the drivers side window rolled down to take in as much fresh air as possible, a small honeybee lost it’s way and landed right between Miss Is’ thigh and her shorts. She freaked, I tried not to freak and help her out without either one of us getting stung. Who knows what happened to the bee, I never did find it again, but all was well.

Brownlee Reservoir – we’d do it again.

A Memorable Get-Together

2009-05-28T16:32:00.001-06:00

A bunch of “us” gathered together at the home of the “M” family for a Memorial Weekend BBQ on Saturday evening.

The Hostess with the Most-est & the Grill Master.

Their home is beautifully decorated in Americana-Chic. Not just for Memorial Day, but every day! Very, very cool.

It inspires me to finally frame and hang the reproduction copies of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence

I’ve been squandering away for the past eight years.

And the food. The food. THE FOOD!! It was so wonderful, every bite of it.

Broccoli, Fumi, potato and jello salads. Cakes and brownies too!

And the meat… the tri-tip steaks and slow-cooked seasoned pork loins.

The young, tender chicken grilled to utter perfection.

No, we didn’t eat the fluff-balls. They’re more like pets than a main course.

Being the awesome fifth grade teacher that she is, Mrs. “M” hatched the little darlings as part of a class science project.

Everyone ate and had a great time. That is until a family fight broke out between Mrs. “M” and her sister “J”.

Good thing I had my camera handy to document it all just in case. You never know when a good piece of blackmail will come in handy.

Apparently, the scuffle began with littl’sis divulging a little too much information. Of course, it was very entertaining for the rest of us.

Fantastic food, hot chicks and a cat fight. The “M's” sure know how to party.

Lessons in What Not to Do: Getting “Mary-ed”

2009-05-18T16:31:00.002-06:00

Last week I had the opportunity to do my first engagement “session” for Mary and Bill. I did my homework. Lots of homework. Came up with a few ideas and things I would like to try, but most of all I was hoping – praying – not to screw it up. We went to two locations, the abandoned rock house a just down the road and the green space around the corner. Time was a factor so I’d rather snap than waste precious minutes driving.

The old house was great. I’d love to officially get permission to trespass. Did I say trespass? I mean, observe the beauty at close range. Multiple phone calls, a few neighbor visits and still no luck getting hold of the older gent. Plead ignorance and beg for forgiveness, right?

It was around one o’clock in the afternoon and the rock walls of the house face south. Not the greatest lighting situation and it shows. I’d love to try again in the early morning/late evening when the sun is just below/above the horizon. Any willing victims out there? Lesson learned, be more mindful of the light.

As always, the green space was a treasure trove of backgrounds. On Mothers’ Day, I found a that our mega-bag of hotdog buns had sprouted and suggested that we feed the ducks, giving me the a chance to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather and make mental notes of the best settings. Creek, boulders, trees, flowering bushes and green grass – what more could I ask for?

Things went really well, well… I think they went well despite my jitters. Bill and Mary were great; cool as a cucumber and willing to do most everything I asked no matter how crazy it seemed. It’s a whole different world taking pictures of people who can sit still longer than two seconds without squirming, picking their noses and all together vacating the framed shot. Don’t get me wrong, I love the kiddos. They have the best natural shots.

Yeah, things went well – that is until I slid myself waist deep into the creek and then some. Of course I was totally up for it. It was my idea. I’m already a major dork so taking it one step further isn’t much of a jump. Like the difference between lilac and periwinkle, it’s still lavender. I suppose it isn’t so much a lesson in what not to do as it is to just be prepared to get a little messy. And on a side note, mid-rise jeans when wet morph into low-rise. Keeping my pants hiked up was a challenge, kind of like the days of the ‘hook’. You girls know what I mean. Just F.Y.I. if you’re planning to jump in a creek with your clothes on anytime soon.

So we finished up the last of the shots, I couldn’t think of anything more and after two hours I think we all were a little tired. The three of us started heading back to the car from the middle of the green space trail when I discovered that my keys were missing. Two black headed, chunky-chip keys, a host of house/church keys, two large rings, a key fob for the Yukon and some how I missed placed all of that. I checked my camera bag, no glory. The reflector bag… no luck. By now my jeans were sticky and there was no way the lot could be shoved into my pancake pockets. Panic starts setting in, “oh crap” was right.

The first spastic thought that jerks my mind is calling in the troops (you know who you all are) for an emergency extraction. Good thing Bill reminded me to take my phone out of my front pocket as the water crept up to my hips. It still works despite chucking it to shore, I can still call. Unwilling to admit I’m a complete and utter idiot, I pushed the S.O.S. to the end of the line and tried not to sprint back to the the creek side location where I decided to take a swim. No keys.

Mary said that she’d return to our first locale and check there while Bill and I kept looking. I should probably reiterate the fact that we were on a short time schedule, that Bill’s flight left at six and it was almost four. Shortly after, we followed in her footsteps to find her heading towards us and shaking her head. I was closer to making that phone call. Checked the rocks, checked the trees. “Are these it?” Mary asked, holding up my current bane of existence.

Feeling about as bright as a burnt out bulb, I took them home, picked Miss Is up from a very “charitable” sitter and retreated back into my little hidey-hole of the world. I hadn’t heard from the boys so I was hoping to find them engrossed in a video game or cartoon. I guessed right and for the record, they had called. It just happened to be during the frantic throws of stupidity.

Adding injury to insult, I slipped off my new pink slipper shoes to find bloody heels and swelling blisters. Another lesson learned. Don’t wear spiffy let alone new shoes no matter how put-together you want to look.

Thanks Mary and Bill for letting me go snap-happy!

(Click picture below of a slideshow link.)

When Fluff is a Must!

2009-05-06T11:35:00.001-06:00

In cruising the web for ideas, I stumbled across these pettiskirts as made famous by Kaiya Eve and thought they’d be good to have in my arsenal of photo-props, but at a whopping $130 a piece for the larger sizes, it was NOT going to happen. Ebay and Etsy of course have them, but I still don’t want to pay. So I did what I do best – improvise. In the Birthday Pictures post, Miss Is is wearing a bright red and a soft, baby pink pettiskirt that I had made. I didn’t use nylon chiffon or crinoline as the Eve/Ebay/Etsy skirts do because I was after the “look” and not so much the softness for constant dress-up wear. Besides, the chiffon is harder to find and takes more jingle out of your pocket. Tulle, even the sparkly kind, isn’t more than a buck-fifty a yard.

So far I’ve made (in order) baby pink, ruby red, coffee bean brown with rose fluff, black with hot pink fluff and now this one for the tutorial. I still have a butter yellow, purple with lime green sparkly fluff, another black and hot pink (I “donated” the other one). I think they’re fun and can use the same concepts to morph them into different designs.

Here’s how I make’m!

You’ll need:

Approximately 3 yards of tulle plus another 4 yards of the same or contrasting color.
16” of 1” wide elastic
32” of 1” wide ribbon,
8” x 54” satin/sateen or taffeta
1/2 yard of med. weight fusible interfacing
Either a 500yrd. spool of thread for a single color skirt or two 250yrd. spool of thread in the main and accent tulle color.

Tools:

Iron
Sewing machine
Two bobbins
Pins
Ruler
Scissors
Cutting mat and circular tool is optional, but it really helps if you have them.
Patience

Step 1: Square up your 8” x 54” satin. It’s never cut straight at the fabric store no matter how good it looks just eyeballing it. Go ahead, just give it a trim.

Step 2: Cut 1 1/2” strips of fusible interfacing. How many will depend on what width you bought. Cut enough to line the outside except for the salvaged edge.

Step 3: Iron on the interfacing as close to the edge as possible (length wise). Make sure the bumpy side is down, otherwise you’ll gum up your iron and that’s just not fun. This helps with fraying and gives the waist extra strength.

Step 4: With the right side of the satin down, fold the salvage (short side) edge back onto the wrong side of the satin and sew to make a nice finished edge. Do the same to the other side.

Step 5: With both salvaged ends hemmed, turn the satin over (wrong side down) and fold in half, bringing one hemmed edge to the other.

Sew a 1/2” hem. Lock your stitch at sew 3 1/4” down the length of the hemmed salvage edge. Lock your stitch again. (That’s just hitting reverse and then forward again to sew a “knot”.
Lift the foot and gently pull the fabric 1 1/2” forward. (You’re not sewing that section.) Lower foot and sink the needle. Start sewing again, locking your stitch and continue to the end. Approx. 3 1/4”.

You should have a loop of black satin with a “hole” in the middle of the seam. If you do, GREAT! If not, keep at it.

Step 6: Fold the loop in half lengthwise, right-side out, so that the interfacing edges match up on the inside. Pin all along the edge. You should still have a loop, just skinnier. The “hole” should be up at the top.

Step 7: Sew 1 1/2 “ hem just below the “hole”. What were doing is making a sleeve for the waistband .

Step 8: Once the first stitch loop is completed, slide towards the pinned edge another 1 1/2” and repeat. This step gives the skirt something to hold on to without directly pulling on the waistband sleeve.

Step 9: Take your 32” length of 1” wide ribbon and cut a diagonal in the middle to create tie ends.

Step 10: Sew with a zig-zag stitch the straight edge of one ribbon to the end of the 1” wide elastic. Repeat. Make sure to check that the ribbons are right-side up (or down) on either side and that the diagonal ends are “pointing” in opposite directions, peaks either at the top or bottom. Thread the ribbon/elastic through the waistband sleeve leaving the ribbon ends exposed. Tie in a cute, little knot so it doesn’t slip back through.

Step 11: Spread out the interfacing (bottom) edge and set aside.

Step 12: Cut your “main” tulle color into SIX, 5” wide strips across the width of the tulle. ( Tip: I use my circular/quilting set to accomplish this. Make sure there are no wrinkles and fold over twice so the cutting strokes are shorter that if the tulle came straight off the bolt.)

Step 13: Since your cutting stuff is out and the tulle lined up, go ahead and cut TWELVE, 8” wide strips and set aside. Keep them separate from the 5” strips.

Step 14: Go back to your 5” wide strips. Sew THREE lengths together, end to end, with a 1/4” hem. Repeat with the other set of THREE strips so that you end up with two, THREE length long strips.

Step 15: Shirr (gather) each of the strips down their length 1/4” from the top. I don’t have a shirring foot ($15 at Joann’s) so I use my tension (set to 6) and stitch length ( 5, as long as it goes) to do it. Make sure the gathers are not too tight, but nice and fluffy. Sometimes I have to “help” the gathers by tugging on the threads from behind the needle just until I get the ruffle I want, then the machine does the rest.

Step 16: Grab the satin waistband. Place one back edge (directly opposite of the ribbons) of the bottom, right-side up on your machine. Slide in the top of one of the shirred strips between the presser foot and the right-side of the satin. We’re sewing the tulle on top of the satin. (Tip: Make sure that your hems that attach the THREE lengths together are facing down.) Sew the shirred strip around the circumference about a 1/4” up from the edge, making sure not to catch the “second” bottom. (That’s why we split the ends.) Basically there is a “top” layer and a “bottom” layer to the skirt.

(First layer attached)

Step 17: Repeat step 16 to the other side. Again checking to make sure the length hems are facing down. Technically, there is not a “wrong-side” to the skirt if you make it this way.

(First and second layers attached to waist.)

Step 18: Sew end to end SIX, 8” wide strips together to make two sets. Just like Step 14.

Step 19: Shirr each set along the top; the gathers should be tighter. You’re basically adding twice as much fabric as you did for the first tier.

Step 20: Make sure that your hems are facing down. Only using one tier of tulle, place the top, back bottom edge under your presser foot and then place the shirred 8” wide strip on top, about 1/8” from the edge. To get the poofy-ness we’re looking for, stitch the shirred second tier to the straightened first tier. (I know, I’m making up words and not making a whole lot of sense.) See the picture below; it’s worth more than all the above. Try to sew along the shirred stitch to minimize lines. Sew all the way around to the end. Slightly overlap the end with the beginning and lock your stitch.

Step 21: If you have extra 8” shirred strip at the end, cut if off as close to the last stitched point, making sure not to cut off material needed for the skirt.

(First layer of second tier.)

Step 22: Repeat Steps 20 and 21 to the “bottom first tier”. CHECK that your connecting, strip hems are facing down.

(Both tiers and layers completed.)

Step 23: Now for the fun-fluffy-stuff. In this skirt I chose an electric blue as my contrasting color. (Thus the bright blue ribbon.) Cut up all four yards of tulle into 2 1/2” wide strips.

Step 24: Don’t be afraid of the monster-like pile of fluff. It will be your friend if you know how to handle it. Remember to change out your thread color if needed!

Step 25: Sew all the strips end to end, keeping the hems on the same side. (Tip: I start with one strip laying across my lap, fold the left end back towards itself and place another strip end on top of that and sew. No need to lock the stitch. With the newly sewn strip edge under the presser foot, find the end of the top strip, fold it back towards itself and add another strip. Place under the presser foot and sew. Repeat… a lot. This keeps the hems on the same side and keeps you from having to lift the presser foot, cut the thread and place the new connection in three separate steps. When you have four of five “connections” lined up, go ahead and snip them apart. If you’re really good, there shouldn’t be any extra thread to trim off either.) This is the fifth skirt that I’ve made and the above tip was born as the ‘better, faster way of doing things’ from that good ol’ mother of necessity. Do what you want; this works for me.

Step 26: Shirr the 2 1/2” wide strips down the middle. Again, do this with your tension otherwise you’ll want to give up and curse me for even suggesting this tutorial.

Step 27: On the top-side, bottom of the second tier, stretch-out the ruffle and sew the fluff-stuff to the top. Just like what we did before. Try to use the shirring stitch as a guide. As always, make sure your connecting hems are down, though it doesn’t matter too much so if it’s not, don’t start over and please don’t cry.

(I help control the fluff by gently pressing it down so it doesn’t catch on the presser foot and wad up.

I can also see what I’m doing, but I can’t imagine why that would help!)

Step 28: Attach the fluff-stuff all the way around. Just keep going, just keep going… and going. Go some more. It will be worth it. I promise. Lock your stitch at the end/beginning and hack off whatever is left like in Step 21.

(First layer of fluffy-stuff attached.)

Step 29: Repeat steps 27 & 28 with the remaining layer. The one that isn’t cute.

Step 30: Commence the happy dance of joy. You’re finished.