Turn the Dial to "M" Mode? Are you sure?

Thanks to a bloggy pal, I enrolled myself in an on-line photography class. . .

My first assignment shooting in "M" mode. It was totally intimidating, but also liberating, and at least these didn't turn out totally black or totally white like the last time I tried to venture on the dial! I've got a long way to go, but at least I'm learning!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SEE, I told you I wouldn't ignore the big kids. . .in fact they have been my subjects for many practice shots! They benefit by getting to go to the park! LOL

I'm afraid my Blog will be a little boring for a while as I focus on photography. But I'll post my photos because I love that I can finally keep the dial on "M" and capture shots I'll treasure for life of my three little blessings!

What a process. . .(Boring update on the floors)

Remember the new floors? Well, new floors became new ceiling paint, new wall paint, and what a process it was. Here's the carpet and pad being removed. . .

 

Keeping the kids entertained by allowing them to ride their bikes inside while we lived on subfloor. . .tile was removed, the wood in the kitchen was removed and underneath was linoleum, and some other board so the kitchen alone was four layers!

 

My dad and I painted almost the whole house (minus the bedrooms). . .

 

Gong-Gong knows I blog - the "L" photo is just for you! Peyton copied him but has no idea what it means. I let him do artwork on the subfloor too. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

 

I even let Peyton paint. . .

 

Finally we're making progress. . .

 

 

Stained but not quite finished. . .

 

And now, the floors are done. . .Only took us 6 YEARS! Well, more like two weeks but 6 YEARS to make the decision. . .and a I decision I'm very happy about!

 

 

 

 

NOW, we just have to finish moving back in! The toy room looks the best!!! Still a little ways to go, but we'll get there. Hopefully not in another 6 YEARS!

Addi Boo, Addi Boo, I Love You!

So I barely made through last week. . .I'm home with Addi on Wednesdays, so I ignored the laundry, the bills, and everything other chore and had fun with a little photo shoot.

 

 

 

She loves to blow raspberries! Okay, okay, she just likes to SPIT and make lots of noise while she's at it!

 

 

I tired her out and she fell asleep right there on the floor. . .

 

Here's a shot from a couple of weeks back of our reflection! I love this expression! She thought it was so funny!!

 

I missed Addi Boo terribly my first week back at work, but I made it. . .and she still remembers me. Addi Boo, Addi Boo, I Love You!!!!

And for those who are wondering, yes, I still tend to my other two kids too! Pictures of them coming soon!

I'm so behind and I'm so not ready. . .

Happy Valentine's Day, and Gung Hay Fat Choy!

I am so behind on my blog, and I'm so not ready to return to work. Tomorrow is the day. I fed Addi her last bottle for the evening with tears running down my face. She fell asleep on my shoulder which she never does because she likes to be face out or simply lying down on her back with her face nuzzled into her co-sleeper. Her left hand was wrapped around my neck and her little fingers were holding on to my hair. She is getting so big, so fast. She loves to hold my finger if she can't fall asleep by herself. She screams, not cries, for her bottle, but cries if she's scared or startled awake. She already knows faces and won't let just anyone hold her. She prefers her bottles warm, she's quick to burp, and I'm guessing she's just over 14 pounds. She is a happy baby and she talks up a storm! She loves to spit and blow bubbles, and loves to smile!

Addi-boo, I have enjoyed every minute of being home with you and I'm going to miss you so much tomorrow. Don't forget who Mommy is, okay? I'll look forward to your big smile and that sweet giggle when I walk through that door. I love you to pieces.

 

 

Guess Who Turned 5?

 

Happy Birthday buh-buh. You have been quite the challenge lately but I'm sure it's not easy growing up. In a very short period of time you went from a lonely only to a big brother of two. At five, you aren't into the "boy" things I hear other kids are into. You march to the beat of your own drum! You love your stick horse, you love animals and especially if you can carry them around in a cage, you are riding a two-wheeled bike like a pro, you STILL love the color yellow, you enjoy Kinderdance, and you are a serious negotiator. You love food, especially udon and chicken teriyaki, and you are STILL in love with Hannah Montana. You love to sing and dance and are quite the comedian. You have an old soul with a sensitive heart. I love you buh-buh. . .

 

 

So, he put a few extra candles on his cake. After all, he is 5 going on 15.

 

Yeah, yeah, he still has had his paci. . .but he was ready to give it to the doot-doot fairy.

 

Well, maybe he's not so sure anymore. . .

 

 

 

His first words after making the cut. . ."Oh my gosh, I can't believe I did it."

 

To his Dad he then says, "Since we broke off my doot (paci) I think we should break off your finger." (Easy there mobster.)

 

My little monkey at 10 months old. . .you will forever be my baby buh-buh. I hope the year ahead is full of blessings. I love you.

 

And I know I tell you to be a big boy all the time, but don't grow up and run off too fast sweet P.

 

Can you beat THIS record?

It was bound to happen, right? The worm. . .the virus. . .ugggh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I believe my beloved laptop caught the bug from a thumb drive that I borrowed from my dad. So, first I panic, and get that nervous feeling in my gut like I've been invaded. Then I immediately shut it down. I start to wonder when I last backed up my photos to the external hard drive. . .then I think my external hard drive is corrupted because it wouldn't turn on - ummm, try the switch was off in the hall, so the there was no power to the outlet I was using. . .and THEN I call the beloved H* support desk. . .and I'm sold on this "tune up" to fix everything. And THEN I wait on hold for 2 hours. Literally TWO HOURS. I feed Addi, change Addi, put Addi to sleep, Addi wakes up, the nail gun is shooting outside my bedroom door (Remember the floors?) and I'm STILL on hold. Contractor laughs and tells me to drop the call and dial again. . .smart contractor. . .I wait another 15 minutes, finally talk to the tune-up guy who can't help me because I have a wireless issue. Mind you, it's been over 3 and half hours now, I've had a fruit leather, some almonds a few sips of water all day, and I'm told by the guy who I just paid H* almost a hundred bucks to help me that he can't help me so I can go back to normal tech support which is free, and the wait is only a short waiting time. Short is relative term. . .try another 15 minutes. I finally get to talk to Elmo. Yes, Elmo, as in the red furry guy, who is a gem, and a smart geek in the Philippines who helped me to reconfigure the whole damn darn computer. By dinner time I was released from a days work of H* support talk, to eat dinner to only fight another battle - RETURN of the payment. Oh, and Elmo scheduled for someone else to call me back to finish up the "reconfig" - yeah, that didn't happen. . .Elmo used up half his shift one me.

The above took place yesterday. . .today, I was still having issues. I called again, and hey, only spent 3 hours on the phone with H* but things are much better with my beloved laptop. Oh, except for the refund. . .my most recent support guy was in the US, so my problem would have to be escalated to another location. Can you believe that? I was being sent to a "Case Manager" when there was a "Case Manager" 10 feet away from the guy helping me, but it's policy. He told me I'd be calling Chile, but when I called and the recording was in English and French, I asked. . .Chile was really Canada. Guess they must have codes for the locations and the "C's" got mixed up? That or the guy who can fix computers failed geography and thinks Ontario is in Chile. . .Let me recap. 10:30AM ish to 4PM. No joke.

I told the guy in the US that I HATE Vi*sta, and H* should give us all a free upgrade. I may have to convert myself soon and become a M*c user.

Good news is, the only thing I lost is my FotoFusion scrap pages. . .wait, that's bad news, huh? I just finished scrapping all of 2009, but my exported files are gone. If you know how I might recover them, please do share. At least I still have the photos!

I keep photos on my laptop, a back up on my external hard drive, and I burn discs periodically. I think I'm going to back them up a third time on my other laptop and I'm seriously considering a Fl*kr pro account. Please share your thoughts on this too!!

If you made it this far, THANKS for letting me vent. I did this one more for me.