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.

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.

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!

Hi Grandpa

Haven't had the opportunity to post lately as the past couple of weeks have been really busy. My dad came for a visit and we all had a wonderful time. The kids love spending time with him. I'm currently up to my eyeballs in preparations for a conference that I am going to this weekend in Philly. Hope to have much more free time once it is over!

So you won't miss me mommy

My ds started kindergarten a couple of weeks ago. While waiting for the bus to arrive on his first day of school, he picked this "flower" for me. He thought it would be a good way for me to remember him and said "this is so you won't miss me while I'm gone".

My settings were TV mode, SS 200, f/3.5, ISO 100. 24-70L lens at 70mm. The first is shot in RAW, SOOC. The second is PS'd - processed the RAW file, then defoged at 20/60/0. I adjusted curves, +contrast, then lasso'd the eyes to adjust curves to lighten them a bit. I then burned in the edges. CC please!

I know for a fact that my exposure reading in my camera said this was the correct exposure. I'm thinking my XT is underexposing a bit...maybe time to get a new camera? :-) I've only been shooting in RAW for a short while now, for the past 3+ years I've always shot in jpeg...so since the camera was making adjustments I never noticed the underexposure. It is really bothering me now as I don't like doing much pp'ing. Plus, many of my images that I post online now are looking pixelated...even though they don't look that way in adobe or when I print. Don't know what that is about. Getting a little annoyed!