Parents, if you want wonderful pictures of your children, never teach them to say "cheese"! Please learn from my mistake or you will have thousands of photos just like mine - squinted eyes, scrunched up noses, clenched teeth, and an image that just screams "say cheez!!!". Join me while I search for that one perfect shot that doesn't conjure up images of dairy products. Oh, and unless you like that *messy* look, you'll probably want to clean their faces before you snap away. I never seem to remember myself.

An imporant sidenote is to make sure you document your life! Recording the little details of the who, what, where, when, & why makes for wonderful stories and captures your life for years to come. Because if you are like me, you'll forget it all 5 minutes later!

Monday, October 22, 2007

Our Lake

The view this time of year from our house...




Sunday, October 21, 2007

Autumn in New England

Ahhh, great time of the year...apples, pumpkins, gorgeous foliage, chill in the air (well, not yet thanks to good ol' global warming). We took some time this weekend to enjoy the autumn delights.














Sunday, October 14, 2007

Random Stuff

It has been a very busy month for us so I haven't had much time to post on this blog. But here are some random things about our life these days.

I spent a long weekend in Philly for a conference and realized that I really don't want to head back into the nutrition counseling field...too much new info that I really don't feel like stuffing into my brain at this point in time. My brain is just too filled with ABC's, Moo Baa La La La, Humpty Dumpty and Dora. Heck, N's 2nd grade math homework had me confused the other day! (What the heck are double fact statements, bunny hops, and turnaround facts anyway? Why can't we just memorize stuff with flash cards??? Yes, I eventualy figured it out, but probably 20 minutes later than the average 2nd grader). So, I'd much rather do the photography and graphic design/educational materials stuff than head back into private practice. Now if I can figure out a way to make a go of that I'll be happy. Oh, by the way, food manufacturers are coming out with some real CRAP! I was pretty much in shock most of the weekend.

N & J have been very busy with school, swim lessons, soccer and cub scouts. M continues to try to be just like the older siblings. She is loving gymnastics except for the male instructors. Doesn't want to go near them. Which is ok with me. Hope she feels that way in 15 years! Somehow, I doubt it.

It is finally feeling like autumn around here. We're having a chili cook-off and Halloween party later this month; let me know if you're in the neighborhood and want to join in the fun. Man, some folks are already getting competitive about their chili thinking it will kick butt. My VEGAN chili beat out all the meat loaded, heart attack, blood pressure rising, oh my stomach is going to kill me later, wanna-be chili's last year. I'm sure I'll win again this year, but if you think you can compete let me know!

I got a new program from Adobe called Lightroom to organize all my photos and assist with the digital processing. It is going to be a very long haul importing everything into the program. I've rarely deleted any digital photos and in 2-1/2 years I've amassed over 20,000 pictures on the computer. They are taking up just a *wee* bit of space on the hard drive and now I have to painstakingly delete some of them. Very hard for me to do that! While I can easily send the ones of me to the recycling bin in record time, other ones aren't so easy. Gotta do it though! Our 320 GB hard drive is near capacity and that doesn't make Ken too happy. And goodness knows there is NO WAY I'm going to stop taking pictures!

Think that is it. Sorry there isn't anything too exciting, insightful, or witty on my blog. Just some loooooong ramblings and hopefully enjoyable photos.

Here are some random photos as I'm going through the whole photo organization/deleting headache.














PS - Cynthia, we are thinking of you and hope you have a very quick, healthy recovery.

Friday, October 12, 2007

New Hampshire's a close second

While I've shared that I absolutely love Maine, and I do, I think New Hampshire is running a very close 2nd. We went there last weekend for the long Columbus Day weekend break from school and it was FABULOUS! The views and abundance of outdoor adventure opportunities in the White Mountains are incredible. Here are just a few of the fab sights we saw. We will visit there again!