Week 25: Bell Canyon

Another busy, busy week!  We have been busy making preparations on a project that will hopefully be completed by Saturday. . .but that will be next week's post.  This week I give you a couple pictures from our adventure up Bell Canyon.  It was beautiful! 

Neither of us had ever been there before.  Supposedly there is a waterfall at some point up the trail, but we had no idea how far up it was, and we ran out of time.  This was as far as we got.

. . .not nearly as exciting as a waterfall.  We'll have to try it another time.  

Also, this thing flew by my neck.  AHHH I hate bugs!  Anyone have any idea what it is?  It was HUGE!!

Happy photographing!

Week 24: Matt

Today's post is dedicated to this guy.

Oh how I love this man!  On Friday my husband turned 29!  We celebrated by going on an overnight trip to Jackson Hole, courtesy of WesTech Engineers (ok, to clarify, the trip was for WesTech's 40th anniversary, not technically for Matt's birthday, but the timing worked out well).  It was great to spend some time together riding horses, going whitewater rafting, and just hanging out without Alex!  But that is not really what I want to talk about; today I want to talk about how awesome my husband is!  I'm sure I could write pages and pages, but I will suffice with these few things:

Matt is an amazing father!  I absolutely love watching him play with Alex.  He can make Alex light up and laugh in a way that no one else can.  I'm sure there is something on the Y chromosome that I will never understand, but Alex LOVES playing cars and wrestling with Matt.  It brings me more joy than I ever thought possible when I hear the two of them laughing together.

Matt is possibly the handiest person I know.  I have been amazing at the things he's figured out how to do, often without any real previous experience - everything from rebuilding cabinets, to running a new gas line, to fixing the car.  Our house is slowly becoming the perfect home, and it's all because of him. 

Over the last 6 or so years, Matt has supported me in all of my crazy ideas.  He never said one word to persuade me not to go to Russia for 6 months when we were dating, even though I had no idea what I was getting myself into and it was ridiculously hard for him when I left.  When I wanted to switch my major from Biological to Civil Engineering, he helped me get caught up in a couple classes when I had to change my schedule partway through the semester.  When I was unsure if I could really work as an inspector on a road construction site and didn't really want to take the job, but didn't have any other options, Matt was the one that gave me the courage to accept the job that was SOOO far out of my comfort zone.  When I proposed painting the living room a bold yellow and orange, he simply said "ok, I trust you".  When I was bored at home, Matt was the one that pushed me to try out math tutoring; when I sucked at it he pushed me to get better.  Matt was there holding my hand when I gave birth to our son; he continues to hold me when I've had a long stressful day with Alex.  There is much to be said about a person who will stand by you on the good days AND the bad.     

Yes, like every other couple, Matt and I have our own issues.  But when I step back to look at the big picture, I can see that Matt is absolutely perfect for me, and I couldn't have asked for a better husband!  Matt, I LOVE YOU!!  Happy Birthday and Father's Day!!

Happy late Father's Day to all of you men out there, and happy photographing!!

Week 23: Rexburg

We have had a busy week!  We went up to Rexburg with my mom and grandma for a couple days to visit my cousin and her son.  The boys had a grand time playing at the park, swimming, and going to Bear World.

Albino Elk Calf at Bear World

Riding the rides at Bear World

It was a long car ride back, but between blankie and the truck book, we made it.

And oh how he loves blankie these days!  This morning I was cruel enough to wash blankie.

But thankfully blankie is now clean, and life is good again.

Happy photographing!

Week 22: Toddlers (Part 2)

Toddlers are difficult,  I have talked about this before.  But now that Alex is walking, he is beginning to take things up a notch as he develops a new sense of independence.  We took him to Tracy Aviary on Friday, and oh boy. . .all I can say is I think it's time to get a leash!  He also started practicing his drawing skills while I was in the shower the other day. .

This kid has no interest in drawing on paper, but apparently scribbling on walls is AWESOME!  When I tried to explain to him that we only draw on paper and NOT walls, he completely ignored what I was saying, grabbed Matt's hand, and pointed out his beautiful masterpiece.  Oy! . . At least it wasn't in a room that we have finished yet.     

Alex has also begun a hands-on study of culinary arts.  Yesterday while making some biscuits for dinner, Alex insisted he help stir.  As any good chef knows, a spoon is completely unnecessary in these matters when you have the use of your hands.  After getting dough all over, he was very distressed that his hands were dirty, so I sat him on the stool at the sink to wash.  He began playing with the faucet while I finished up, putting the dirty bowl in the sink.  And what do you do with a dirty bowl when you are 1.5 years old?  Why you put it on your head, of course!  Who knows, maybe globs of dough make for a good conditioner.

 

Having a toddler is hard!  They are crazy, and loud, and really really messy.  At times I wonder why I was so eager to have kids in the first place.  

And then things like this happen: the other day I had to do laundry, so I pulled out the hamper and began picking up the clothes on the floor (yes, we are slobs like that).  Alex was happily playing with the USB cord he found in the office, and I honestly wasn't paying too much attention to him.  The next thing I know, Alex is at our dresser, frantically trying to open the drawer.  "No, Alex, we don't need to open that right now," I tell him.  He starts to throw a fit.  My blood pressure rises.  "Alex, don't throw a fit.  We don't need to get in there right now. Go find something else to do."  He starts pounding those little fists of his and screams.  "Ahhhh!!!  KID!"  I stop what I'm doing and bend down to pick him up, at which point I realize that he is holding some dirty clothes from the hamper.  "What on earth?  Little man, what are you doing?! . . . . .ohhhhhhh"  And then it hits me; last week I had him help me put away Matt's socks, and now my sweet little boy had decided to "help" me by putting the dirty clothes from the hamper into daddy's drawer, but was frustrated that he couldn't get it open by himself and I had told him no.  . . . motherly FAIL right there.  I promptly changed my tune once I realized what he was doing and tried to explain that I was grateful for his help, but that those clothes needed to go in the washer INSTEAD of the dresser.  Thankfully he was equally as happy to throw all the clothes in the washer for me.  

Yes, my child runs around like a mad man, makes huge messes, and has become the Tantrum King.  Yes, it is definitely a challenge to take care of him.  So why do I do it?  Why does anyone ever have kids? 

Playing in a blanket fort

Because it is completely worth it.

Happy photographing!

Week 21: Memorial Day

Miss me yesterday?  Hopefully you all had a fantastic Memorial Day weekend; I know we did!  We were extremely busy helping family with their home improvement projects, attending family parties, and creating a sugar monster along the way.

(Alex was a huge help making grandma's birthday cake Sunday morning)

 We also installed this. . .drum roll please. . .dum duh duh dum!!

New Front Door!!  Yay!

Ok, to be fair, it was all Matt and Leo who installed the door.  Sharla and I spent the day weeding and planting a tree and flowers.  I wanted to document all of our hard work, but just as I put Alex down for a nap and grabbed my camera,

sorry, no pictures of our awesome front yard today.  Perhaps I'll take one after I get the front door painted.  Any suggestions on paint color?  I'm thinking a dark red or blue.  Oh there is nothing harder than picking out a paint color!!  So many choices!  So many shades!  I think I love that color, but will I hate it when I get done painting?  Ahhhh, struggles!!

At the moment I'll stay out of the rain with a plate of cookies and my paint swatches.   

Happy photographing!

Week 20: Guess What?

So I was a bit of a slacker and only took pictures one day this week.  (So much for my goal of a picture a day.)  I had good intentions, but somehow the week went really fast and there was a lot going on. . . 

But guess what?

I just submitted my first photo project for my photography class!  It has only taken me . . .*cough* one and a half years to get around to it.  But hey, better late than never right?  And I have until September to go through 8 more lessons and do one more project. . .plenty of time for a procrastinator like me!  I figured for this week I would share with you my project. . .not that any of you really care, but hey, I finally submitted it.  I would love to hear your comments on the pictures.  There are things about all of them that I don't like, or I wish I would have done differently, but I'm finding I feel that way about all of my pictures.  I'm always looking for ways to improve, and would appreciate any input. :)


Photo #1: Emphasize the Subject

Photo #2: Slow Shutter Speed

Photo #3: Fast Shutter Speed

(This is an older picture, and I hate the shadows caused by the flash, but I love the splash of the water and his facial expression.  I tried to move to minimize the shadows, but by then Alex decided he'd had enough.)

Photo #4: Make a photograph in a tricky lighting situation

Photo #5: Students Choice

(Normally fish are rather boring, but there is a part of me that is fascinated by Lion Fish)

In other news I finished Alex's blackout curtains (perhaps I'll post pictures later) and we had our first inspection today on our basement remodel that went fairly well.  Yay!

Happy photographing!

Week 19: Mom

Today's post is dedicated to this woman.

Yes, that is my mom.  Yes, she is sitting on the polar bear statue at the zoo.  And yes, she will probably kill me for posting this.  But since yesterday was Mother's Day and since I didn't take any cool pictures this week, I want to write about my mom.  I love my mom!  She is amazing!  She is the type of person who loves to have fun; she is never too old to sit on the polar bear statue and have her picture taken.  I have so many fun memories growing up because of her, from dancing around the house to the Elton John record, to awesome birthday parties, to gorgeous homemade halloween costumes, to our family vacations to exotic places like Nephi and Brigham City.  She is probably one of the few people in the world who could make Ogden seem exciting; but hey, stay overnight in a hotel, go swimming, check out the local architecture, go to the local diner, and it was almost as good as going to Disneyland!  

Looking back I'm starting to realize how much my mom has really done for our family.  When my father developed health problems, my mom gave up her dream of being a stay-at-home mom and went to work.  When I was 8 or so, she went back to school to be a respiratory therapist.  I don't know how she did it - going to school, working full time, all the while taking care of the family.  I don't recall her ever really complaining about her situation in life.  She has taught me a lot over the years.  She really is super woman, and I'm so grateful to have her as my mom!! 

Go tell your moms how much you love them, and happy photographing!