New camera

I always seem to dabble with my hobbies doing a little of this and a little of that. I have finally decided that I want to develop a talent; I want to become passionate about something and be really good at whatever it is. Ben and I invested in a new camera. We bought a Canon XTI which is a digital SLR for those who are unfamiliar with camera names. We were tired of taking horrible pictures with our cheap $100 digital camera. I am especially excited because I am interested in photography and want to learn about how to take good pictures. I have a neighbor who is a photographer and who is helping me learn about doing the settings manuelly. She is really good at composition. Here is one of her pictures: Here are some of the pictures that I have taken. I have really enjoyed learning how to set shutter speeds and f-stops. Ben is also teaching me how to use Photoshop which will definately be useful with photography. Of course I am not a pro. . .yet!


In this next picture there were palm trees behind Mia and it looked like they were coming out of her head (bad composition!), so I erased them in Photoshop!
This next picture Ben took. He is very good and has great composition. I hope some of his skills will rub off on me!

"You don't know my life!"

One day CJ was telling her dad about how her friends didn't believe that she had gone to Disney on Ice. This is how the conversation went. CJ: ' "I was telling my friends that I went to Disney on Ice and they were like, "No you didn't" and I was like "Uh huh, YOU DON'T KNOW MY LIFE!" ' That is my favorite saying these days. I am very much influenced by what my children say subconsciously. I get "What heck you doing?" from Mia and "Go gee go" from Xander and find myself quoting them throughout the day. I still say "I can do ever what I want" and "Can't know how" from CJ's toddler days. What does this say about my intelligence level? (Don't answer that).


CJ is signed up to take an after school enrichment cooking class. She is way excited. I was hoping to put her in the art class but unfortunately it wasn't offered this time around. She is so much like her Daddy in so many ways.


MIA is having fun with play dates. I have continued to do "school" stuff with her whenever she is in the mood. We are learning to recognize letters of the alphabet. Wherever we go, Mia looks for the letter M (her favorite, of course). What I would like for her even more is to socialize and play with kids her age. The other day we went to the park and had lunch with some friends. The park was near a marina and so the kids were able to see tons of boats. Mia and I are both excited to have new friends!


Mia has this new thing she does with her toys, chairs, and books. What may look like a pile of mess is a very organized place for her. She will stack toys and lay them out very methodically. I have made the mistake in trying to put away her things only to be scolded about moving them. In fact, on her bed, she has babies on her pillows and ends up just sleeping on the mattress because the babies cannot and will not be moved.


XANDER is the cutest kid around. Everyday I think how lucky I am to have this little boy. He loves containers and putting things in them. Yesterday he gave us a little scare. He somehow got a hold of toliet bowl cleaner containing hydrochloric acid and squeezed some out onto the carpet with the lid on crooked. We didn't know if any got in his eyes because he was crying so hard. Long story short, he was just fine but our carpet was fried. Note to self, never buy that cleaner again!


BEN has had some interviews with some people at Pixar. Hopefully we will know sooner whether or not we will be staying here.


As for ME, I have been enjoying making friends. I know that sounds silly for a person my age to say. You would think I have this reservoir of friends over the years. And I do in a way. It is mostly my "keep in touch" friends who are scattered everywhere. When I was juggling work full time and being a mom I really didn't make alot of effort because I was so busy. Then I finally got to stay at home and really didn't make an effort because we were living with Ben's parents. So here I am now, with no excuse, and with a strong desire to make friends. I've decided everybody no matter how old you are, needs friends. I feel like I should break out in song, but lucky for you, I won't.



My dad taught me "One man's junk is another man's treasure" and I have taken his advice. As a kid, I would get embarrassed when my dad would stop and get things from people's garbage. I would sink in my seat and hide. Now, I am following in my father's footsteps. I am a dumpster diver, there, I admit it. I browse the dumpsters every time I go by them hoping to find some fun treasure. So far I have found Harry Potter books which Ben sold at work, a wooden chest, a dresser, and a computer (to Ben's delight). I just want to take this opportunity and thank all the people who were evicted from their apartments or took off and left their belongings. Thank you.