Sorry I haven't posted in a while. It's been CRAZY around here. But that seems to be normal for us so why can't I get used to it? So I am trying to learn something new (as usual). I feel like the Jack of all Trades, Master of None. I learn a lot of things but applying them and mastering them is a WHOLE other story! I was practicing to use my flash without showing that I used my flash. How'd I do? My poor little guinea pig... he was okay with me taking his pic because I promised him some computer time and here he was letting me know I was pushing it! LOL So yeah, I'm posting this while he and Wow Wow Wubzy attack underwater sea creatures...

Thanks for visiting! Settings are: SS 1/40, F/2.5, ISO 400, taken in Manual Mode with my 50 mm f/1.8 lens and my 430EX Speedlite tilted over my left shoulder up onto the wall and partially the ceiling. I took a pic without the flash to show how dark it was with these settings but it was just black and no fun to look at on a blog! LOL

Okay, Heather tagged me so here goes...

5 Reasons why I blog:

1) It is a great way for others to see what is going on in our lives. We have many friends and family that live out of state and we don't get to see or talk to them regularly. This way they can see what we are up to and how much J is growing each day!

2) I joined the POTD challenge and this is an easy way to post my photo of the day for others to view.

3) When I post pics for others to see, I get the opportunity to get helpful CC! This is a great way to learn how to improve my photography!

4) It is a fun way to document our lives. I am a scrapbooker and I love to record what we do and when we do it so that later we can relieve the fun memories and cherish the moments we will never get again. All the milestones, all the celebrations, all the thoughts that go through my mind as I watch my son grow up... Blogging briefly satisfies my desire to get it out and documented. And others can see it too!

5) Hmmmm...... I guess I will have to say that it has been just too much fun! I have met so many great people and have grown so much in my photography hobby. I love to visit other's blogs to see what is going on with them and how they are doing. I didn't know if I'd like it or not because I don't think I'm all that interesting. But I do like that others can keep up with us and it makes me feel like we are a little closer the more we learn about each other with each little peek into our lives. A regular blog wasn't for me but a photo blog is fun! A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Ok then I'll shut up and go back to photo posts!

And who shall I tag now? I will tag my scrap buddies: Noni, Sam and Lindsey... and a couple POTDers: Michelle and Amy! Now off to let you all know! Have a great day!

This is my Dear Hubby, John. I'm definitely emotionally attached to this guy. This year will be our 9th wedding anniversary. Somedays it seems longer than that! LOL But some days it seems like just yesterday and I'm reminded how precious each moment is with him. I am thankful for a godly man I can trust to do the right thing and to keep our family's best interests at heart. He was nice to let me take this picture of him!

These are Jeremiah's attachments - his "Baby" and his "Ba-Ba". "Baby" is little yellow gourd from his VeggieTales Nativity toy set. He loves to watch VT and for some reason only a toddler would understand, this became "Baby". He carried him around everywhere, slept with him, shared his meals, etc... We almost lost him a few times but luckily we always seem to find him again. He's not as attached these days but stumbled upon him the other day and was so happy! He looked up at me and said "Momma, cheese baby?" (AKA: Momma, can you take a picture of baby?) So we decided to have a little impromptu photo shoot of this little yellow guy and Jeremiah proceeded to rearrange him after each shot. And of course J's "Ba-Ba" ended up in the shots which I was happy about since it is his true attachment. This goes EVERYWHERE with us. Luckily he's not attached to just one in particular so we can switch them out as needed (and buy more!). "Ba-Ba" is a cloth diaper. I used lots of them as burp rags when he was a baby and they are still with him as he gets ready to turn three. These are not the best shots in many aspects but I love them because it reveals a slice of my little man's childhood...

I was so frustrated this day! My camera was returned home from repairs the day before and when we got to the park and started shooting I noticed the problem with my metering sensor was NOT fixed. Oh I was so mad! But life happens, right? I haven't finished proofing the pics but wanted something to post so here are some from J's shoot this past weekend.

As you can see in the first few shots, my camera was overexposing all my pics and it steadily got worse and then I had to switch to full manual. I'm not that great with full manual yet so my settings were hit or miss. I am not really pleased with these so I'm happy that the purpose was for practice and fun. She is a sweet girl and we did have fun and I did get lots of practice shooting manual! So I suppose it wasn't a wasted trip. Thanks for visiting!





Shipped out my camera body, AGAIN, today. Hope to have it back within a couple weeks. And I hope it really is fixed this time! Grrr....

****These disappeared (not sure why) and I couldn't remember what order (or even which pictures) I posted so here they are again (and maybe a couple more! LOL)****

Here are some shots from the "S" shoot you got a sneak peek at a few days ago...

Thanks for looking! Any HHCC is greatly appreciated - how else am I going to learn?

One thing that strikes me funny is when it is raining but still so sunny! It makes things almost magical because it was always so unreal to me.

It was just sprinkling so I went out with my camera (it's home again -yea!) tucked under me and snapped a few shots quickly before heading back in again. I wanted to get the reflection of the sun in the puddle but couldn't get the right angle without getting the camera wet so you'll have to settle for the glistening in the waves of waterdrops! {SS 1/1250, F/1.8, ISO 100, 50mm, Shutter Priority Mode}

Tiny sunrays poking through the bushes to fall on this lone little wish-stick hidden in the flowerbed....
I spent the evening playing "photo shoot" with a beautiful little girl in the youth group. We had so much fun wandering around the park taking pictures everywhere. She was so great to work with and has the most gorgeous eyes! I haven't gone through and proofed yet but here is a sneak peak of "S" from today...

Jeremiah loves to dance to praise music! He wants to play the song over and over and over while he dances his crazy moves!



and some of Daddy's moves with his...


This is so fun, I'm going to have to post more videos!

All of you who know where I grew up know I can't stand to be cold and a hot summer day is my fave of all time! Well, it's not quite a hot summer day around here but I think the warmer weather is finally here to stay! This means lets get outside and play until we drop! We had a blast this past weekend breaking out the bucket of sidewalk chalk and taking a wagon ride around the neighborhood. We met a new neighbor and a new little friend for Jeremiah! I'm looking forward to the fun days ahead!

I was goofing off trying out the panning technique. It worked except I wanted the wagon and the boy in focus, not just the wagon! Oh well!