the gang's all here

First I would like to say that rearranging photos on blogger is more difficult then it should be.

Here are a few of the family photos we took in Idaho. I'm pretty happy with them for the most part, but of course there are always things I wish I would have thought of... but I guess that comes with practice.

Let me know which one is your favorite! (You should be able to click to make larger.)


I think the sepia tone looks kinda rustic. :)

[sneak preview]

Lots of editing to work through, but here are a couple quick previews from our family picnic last week in Idaho.

I just couldn't resist this one of my ultra-cute nephew Tucker.


And I rather like this action called soft & faded. It's from the Pioneer Woman.


More to come, I promise!

at it again...

With our 7th (!) anniversary just around the corner, I thought I'd better get last year's page done for our anniversary scrapbook. I haven't made the time to scrapbook for a long time, and it feels good to be back in the creative saddle!

creepy crawlies for 200, Alex.

I wonder sometimes if blogging is becoming extinct. Most of the blogs I frequent have had less and less postings lately. I wonder if Facebook and Twitter have started to eat away at the blog scene. I hope not.

Anyway.

It turns out that we have quite a few reptilian friends living among us. I usually see them sunning themselves in the back yard or on the front porch. But lately they have ventured...closer.

A couple of weeks ago, we were sitting down to eat a quiet dinner when something ran across my foot and scurried across the kitchen floor. The dogs pounced after it and I only caught a small glimpse of something that looked like this:

I, of course, did not get nearly close enough to take this photo. In fact, I screamed and jumped out of my chair and ran into the family room. The little guy scampered under the stove, away from the curious puppies. After some coaxing, Dan convinced me to sit back at the table so we could eat.

I am not a fan of lizards or geckos or whatever you might want to call them. Even sitting here now looking at his little face makes me want to check under my chair.

After dinner, Dan managed to chase him from under the stove to under the refrigerator. And then - finally! - through the laundry room, into the dog room, and out the back door.

Now, I know that these animals eat bugs and spiders and whatever, but I wish they would stay outside.

Fast forward to yesterday. We were coming home mid-afternoon and Dan was backing the NSX into the garage. I was outside helping to guide him. Anyway, out of the corner of my eye I saw movement on the garage wall. You guessed it - another one! Only this guy looked more like this:

Dan tried to coax him out of the garage, but he ended up under the car. I quickly went inside, but I'm sure he is going to make his way in the house. I hope he just stays in the garage and eats the bugs out there... or leaves altogether.

Yes, I think that would be best. For everyone involved.

tap...tap...tap...this thing on?

Yes, we are still alive.

I'm not sure where the time goes these days. Here are some highlights.

1. Easter was fun. We did basically nothing. :) As it was also General Conference, we spent a lot of time watching TV. It was really amazing! If you're interested, you can watch or listen to any of the talks here.

It was also nice to have the extra day off (Good Friday)! We ate "Easter Dinner" with good friends Janet & Dell at their new home. It was delicious!

2. We got to attend the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo this year. We were worried about Dan's allergies, but he seemed to be OK. It was our first rodeo (this is a main event in Houston. each year, over 200,000 people attend). After the traditional "rodeo" stuff (my favorite events were mutton-busting and barrel racing), they have live entertainment. Lucky for us, we got to see the Black Eyed Peas! And boy, did they put on a show!

Here are some (not so good) photos. I took a bunch more, but I haven't downloaded them yet.

Doesn't Dan look like he's having a grand time?!?


And there are the Black Eyed Peas!


3. Last week I was in Battle Creek, Michigan, learning all about reciprocating pumps. Super exciting, I know.


That's about it, folks.

the Spirit of Easter

In light of the holiday, I thought you may enjoy this. The images are from the photography collection "Reflections of Christ" by Mark Mabry. I found the images very powerful. Happy Easter!

photo shoot

My good friend Rachel asked that I take some new photos for her facebook profile. Seeing as I need all the practice I can get, we headed out late Saturday afternoon for a photo shoot.

I learned lots of good things, including:

1. take lots of frames. more than you think you "need". I wish I would have taken at least double the amount of shots.

2. find the light. use the light to your advantage.

3. I need a lot more practice. :)

Please leave your constructive criticism in the comments.

And now, without further adieu... Rachel. (These are in order from least favorite to most favorite - click for larger view).

I like this one because it feels very vintage-y to me.

I'm not crazy about the angle on this one, but give me some credit for trying to be creative. I especially need to work on poses and angles. Hmm.

Isn't she just beautiful? I love this casual shot!!

This is by far my favorite. I love the bright color and her eyes are so bright. Love it.

Thanks for letting me practice, Rachel!