Day 59

2.28.09 - Still playing with my camera and new 50mm lens Andrew and Blake got me for Valentine's Day. I love this shot of Andrew. I don't think I'll ever get tired of taking his picture. I just think he is so handsome. :-)

Day 58

2.27.09 - I took some great shots of Andrew yesterday and finally got around to editing them today. We took off outside to get out and play a bit and for me to practice with my camera.

I've been playing around with light a lot lately and I think I'm starting to get the hang of it.

This is one of my favorites because this look is so Andrew and I like how the sun looks like it's all around him.

Day 57

Today I started a new blog for my new photography business. I still have a lot to work out with the business but one thing that comes easy to me is blogging so I figured I'd start there. This is the header from my blog. I know it's not the best time to start a new business but everything is coming together so easily. I'll be happy to take pictures of friends for now and if more comes from it, that is great.

Day 56

Today we went to a local library and learned all about Mars. This is right up Andrew's ally, he loves anything to do with space. They mentioned Star Wars in the class and I thought he was going to explode with excitement. We got this nifty Mars Mud recipe card. The kids got to touch the mud in class and Andrew was impressed. I'm sure we'll be making this tomorrow.

Day 55

2.24.09 - I snapped a picture of Andrew with his Auntie before she left this morning. We miss you already Auntie! It was a nice visit but way too short!!

Days 49-54

Day 54 2.23.09 - I have no picture for today because for my picture I am using the brochure from the new preschool we toured today and signed Andrew up for this fall. We love it!! We weren't sure if we wanted to move him since he's been at his school for over 2 years but this other school seems to be so much more organized and clean and it's just a preschool not a preschool/daycare. Plus, Andrew will be in a Jr. Kindergarten class because of his age. So, the class will be ran like a Kindergarten class but not as strict and with a lot more play based learning.

Day 53 2.22.09 I had to sneak into Andrew's room tonight and capture him and Blake reading a bedtime story. It's so great to have him home again. The house was so empty and quiet without him. I don't know what we ever did before him.

DAy 52 2.21.09 - ANDREW'S HOME!!! Finally. I feel like he's been gone forever. My sister brought him out and that was also fun because we will be able to spend some time together. Yes, Andrew is doing what you think in this picture. Poor Auntie. :-)

Day 51 - 2.20.09 Here are some pictures of before and after of our new carpet. I love the new carpet!! It's so soft and lush compared to what we had before and I really like the darker color.

DAy 50 2.19.09 - Today Blake had training and the carpet people came to install the carpet in the entire house. Yay!! I had to keep busy in the basement to stay out of their way so I finished painting the rest of the walls. I can safely say I am done painting for a few months. I was on my feet for 16 hours straight. I haven't hurt like that for a while. It looks great down there now though!

Day 49 - 2.18.09 - Today we started to clean up a bit in the basement and moved our furniture back over into the living room area. Blake had to study for some training he has the next day so I finished painting the walls in the staircase. We also went to Home Depot and picked up gazzilion rolls of tape for my painting project tomorrow.

Day 48

2.17.09 - What a difference some paint makes! We painted the columns a chocolate brown yesterday. I was really on the fence on whether we should do it but I found a brown I really liked (Ralph Lauren - Artist Brown). It makes a huge difference in the basement. We also painted the walls in the staircase. What a pain! Blake finished all the trim on the beadboard. We worked almost 12 hours yesterday. Today we are taking a bit slower. Our feet and hands are killing us. I have so much respect for those that do this kind of work everyday.

Day 47

2.16.09 - Today we spent the day painting the bathroom a rust color and the walls in the living area a khaki color. The khaki paint is called Paper Bag and it really does look like the same color as a kraft color paper bag. We are loving it. We bought about 12 more gallons of paint today to paint the beadboard and the rest of the basement. Yippee!

Day 46

2.15.09 - The last piece of hardwood!!! You can see the joy (and a bit of crazy) in Blake's face. Laying 1200 square feet of hardwood in 3 days will do that to you! It looks great though and I am so proud of Blake. I helped out and used the really cool floor nail gun but he made all the hundreds of cuts and figured it all out. Way to go Blake!

Day 45

Yes, yesterday was Valentine's Day and I suppose I should have chosen a more romantic picture than a bottle of Advil for our picture of the day. Maybe a self portrait of me kissing Blake on his cheek would have been cute but honestly this is all I had the energy for. Plus we are popping these babies like they are candy. :-)

Andrew went to a birthday party and he played laser tag so I may end up changing this picture out when I get the photos from that. Thank you Nellie for taking pictures!!

Day 44

We got a lot done in the basement yesterday. We only have the living room area to finish as far as hardwood goes. We still need to put trim on the beadboard, paint the beadboard and walls and put the bathroom back together. Lots to do!

Ps. I'm sore.

Day 43

Andrew left for California yesterday. He was such a big boy and did way better than I did. We pulled up to the terminal and he just said "Bye Mommy!" before the car had even stopped. Think he was ready for his trip? I watched them walk into the terminal and the last thing I heard him say was "Nana, I can't wait to go on the airplane!" He's going to have a great trip. I already miss him like crazy but I know it's good for him and my family to spend time together.

Day 42

Matthew is 8 years old! We celebrated his Birthday with him at dinner last night. Can't believe how big he is getting. He is growing up way too fast. He was sitting at the table listening to his new iPod. Wow!

Day 41

I've really been working on my photography this week and I downloaded a bunch of new Lightroom presets. The preset I used on this photo is my favorite (for now).

Day 40

Yet another photo shoot I did with Andrew! This boy is such a trooper and he really does like having his picture taken. He now calls himself a model because I'm always asking him if he'll be my little model and how good he is. At least he doesn't suffer from low self esteem!

Day 39

Today I had the pleasure of taking pictures of my best friend's little girl, Nicole. It was for her 2 year pictures. Isn't she beautiful? She normally doesn't like her picture taken and trying to get a 2 year old to pose is pretty hard but after a bit she got into it and we had fun.

Day 38

Birthday Party!! Yesterday we went to a party for Andrew's friends Sophia and Max. Who doesn't love silly string? As you can see in the picture the adults were having as much fun as the kids. We had a great time!

Day 37

My nephew Kyle was in a serious car accident yesterday. Thank God he is okay and the other two guys in the truck are okay as well. I say thank God because the firefighters said they shouldn't have survived this crash and that it was the worst pin in they've ever seen. It's an absolute miracle they are alive.

They were driving back home from a job site and it was raining really hard and the driver went slightly off the road and couldn't get back on it because of the mud. The truck went down an embankment and hit along a medal fence and then a tree. The passenger side hit the tree and the whole dashboard and front tire folded up onto the guy in the passenger seat and that folded up onto my nephew who was in the back passenger seat. They had to use the jaws of life on both of them. Kyle was stuck for over an hour. Miraculously he only has cuts, bruises and is really sore. The person on the front passenger seat broke his hip/pelvis and was transported to a bone specialist for surgery. The driver they believe broke his shoulder but it doing okay.

It really is a miracle and I am so thankful.

Day 36

I'll never get tired of seeing the deer in the ravine behind our house. Last night there were a group of six on one side and a group of four on the other. They are just beautiful to watch.

Day 35

I made these little Valentine's Day treats for the kids in our weekly playgroup. They have little Valentine Hershey Kisses & Hugs inside. Yummy!

Day 34

It's my sister's Birthday today! Here is a picture of her slicing into her bday cake when she was young. I love how she is cutting her eyes up. What a cutie!

Day 33

I took a bunch of pictures of Andrew playing golf outside today but this close up was my favorite. I love the way he's looking up at me. He just looks so sweet. I miss taking pictures outside. They come out so much better. You can't beat natural light!

Day 32

In honor of Valentine's Day I had Andrew decorate a mailbox and each day, from the 1st through the 14th, I am going to fill it with a little love note and treat. I'm also doing this for Blake sans the treat and mailbox. ;-) Valentine's Day is such a commerical holiday but it's a perfect time to make sure those around you know you love and appreciate them. These little love notes didn't cost a thing.

Day 31

This picture cracks me up! It's my friend's husband, Mark. We got together with them last night and somehow he ended up wearing this cowboy hat. Ahh.... good times.