H Family Photos

save in your favorites

2008-01-26T14:20:00.001-08:00

well, i know i'm a dork, but i think i'm going to stop blogging for a while.

but i will continue to upload photos to flickr, so save this address in your favorites.

and i'm sure i'll also continue to upload videos to youtube, so save this address in your favorites.

i like blogging, so i feel fairly certain that i'll have another one eventually, just not right now.

xo

spaghetti for lunch

2008-01-25T11:56:00.000-08:00

mamababygiraffe

2008-01-24T10:42:00.000-08:00

winter watermelon

2008-01-23T10:57:00.000-08:00

i got some watermelon today. it's probably v's favorite fruit and i figured that even if it wasn't the tastiest watermelon, it would still be a nice treat.

a place to bark

2008-01-21T18:48:00.001-08:00

if you're a pet lover like me, you might be interested in this. farmgirl susan writes it much better than i could, so i'll let her tell you about it.

gaming

2008-01-21T18:28:00.001-08:00

here's a great game i play with v: we get down on the floor with a big pad of paper and some crayons. then i outline numbers or letters of the alphabet and then we take turns coloring them. when she was younger, she just colored them at will, but now we practice taking turns and naming them as we color. it keeps us occupied for a while and it's a good "quality time" game.

after we were finished playing today, we hung it on the wall and talked about it for a while. she was very proud of herself.

roses are...

2008-01-19T11:18:00.000-08:00

architect

2008-01-17T10:11:00.001-08:00

r likes to build cool houses out of v's duplos. this one has a fireplace.

always so serious-no sense of humor, this cat.

practicing "writing"

2008-01-14T10:34:00.001-08:00

butterfly

2008-01-13T18:56:00.000-08:00

one of v's latest games is to put a butterfly sticker on her finger and my finger and then the butterflies flutter around the living room.

smackeroo!

2008-01-08T12:12:00.000-08:00

i have most of these same pictures in color on flickr, just click on one of the photos to get there.

what we did today

2008-01-06T16:46:00.000-08:00

what about you?

spinning tops on the duplos.

baby in a box.

piggyback rides.

trying on mittens.

reflecting on our day.

happy new year

2008-01-01T09:08:00.000-08:00

uncle brian's hat

2007-12-30T10:11:00.000-08:00

i think i'm switching back to smaller photos. i can't make up my mind.

thursday play

2007-12-27T11:42:00.000-08:00

merry christmas to you

2007-12-25T09:22:00.000-08:00

standing on v

2007-12-23T11:58:00.000-08:00

this morning, v & i put these little alphabet books she has into order by singing the song and she would tell me what came next, then find the right book, and put it next in line. then she matched up her pig with the pig on the p book and we went from there, finding things that could go on a letter until she was tired of the game. lots of fun!

she's standing on the v.

snow images

2007-12-23T11:56:00.000-08:00

snow images i like on flickr.

1. Snow in Kup,Kup Land., 2. finch trying to keep warm, 3. Park Bench in Snow, 4. red chapel, 5. Snow shack, 6. A Walk in the Snow, 7. which way do i go?, 8. A Snow Heart For You :) xoxox, 9. snow dog, 10. Thanksgiving Snow, 11. snow monsters come out to play, 12. April Snow in Red Square, 13. last nights snow, 14. Snow Leopard, 15. Fat Pony in Snow, 16. spring snow on barberry

epic edits weblog

2007-12-23T04:40:00.000-08:00

there's another photography website i have found recently and really like, epic edits weblog. brian does a weekly photodump of photos that he likes from his flickr group - and he chose two of my pictures for this week.

sweet!

one is the fifth row, second one from left. the other is the sixth row, third from left.

i won i won i won!

2007-12-22T05:36:00.000-08:00

i won a contest! there are a million of them out there on the internet every day. but i have to say, if i was going to win one, this one is perfect for me.

i won a year's free flickr pro account from all day i dream about photography. if you're into photography, you should definitely be reading adidap. i found the site about two weeks ago and i'm slowly working my way through the archives. sites like this make me realize just how much i have yet to learn (but in a good way).

and i do dream about photography all day, pretty much (you know, in the midst of playing duplos and keeping v from squishing the cats when she hugs them). so thanks antoine, this was great news to wake up to!

she's no ralphie

2007-12-21T07:38:00.000-08:00

any relation to frank j. vegeburger?

2007-12-20T09:29:00.000-08:00

two people on the entire earth will get that.

baby, it's cold outside

2007-12-20T09:22:00.000-08:00

she doesn't care - she loves to be out!

patience

2007-12-19T08:43:00.001-08:00

v and i are making cookies this morning and she ate a bunch of chips, as you can see. then she decided she needed to sleep and nothing makes a better pillow than a cat, right? i could not believe this cat's patience - he must be in the christmas spirit.

cupcakes and watercolors

2007-12-18T19:09:00.000-08:00

eating a red velvet cupcake.

painting this morning.

and a sweet one of miss kitty.

master of business

2007-12-15T17:34:00.000-08:00

r's graduation was yesterday. yay!

love.

one more from earlier

2007-12-13T15:59:00.000-08:00

couldn't resist.

mush

2007-12-13T15:43:00.000-08:00

is santa here yet?

2007-12-13T07:21:00.000-08:00

pink

2007-12-12T15:07:00.000-08:00

patience

2007-12-11T10:46:00.000-08:00

v, putting boots to bed on g's back.

yesterday

2007-12-11T08:39:00.000-08:00

the weather was perfect for playing in the park. lots of fog on the water, really pretty. the water level is so low, though.

this tree looks perfect for a fairy door.

favorite

2007-12-11T04:10:00.000-08:00

i was just remembering this morning - we play dan zanes cds all the time and at the show v recognized the songs she knows right off. when they played wonderwheel she said "baby's favorite song!" and when they played malti she said "mama's favorite song!" at first she sat on my lap and hid her face in my neck, but she eventually relaxed and started clapping "in time" with the music (kind of difficult for a recently turned 2-year-old) and she learned how to clap after each song. i took her down near the stage so she got to see everything up close. she was entranced.

i'd been trying to figure out how to teach her what "favorite" means and it seems using songs on a cd does the trick nicely. yesterday we went to the park (i have some pictures, i just haven't gotten around to them yet) and she didn't want to leave after an hour and a half (the weather was gorgeous - didn't even need a sweater) and i told her we'd get in the car and listen to dan zanes! and she was like, ok cool, let's blow this joint. who wants to swing when you can listen to music?

dan zanes at the bijou

2007-12-09T19:35:00.000-08:00

we took v to her first concert this afternoon - dan zanes at the bijou theatre. it was a really nice venue and the show was fantastic.

the stage before the show.

daddy & v.

father goose. this is my favorite photo from the set.

after the show the musicians stood outside and talked to the fans for a while.

it doesn't get any better than that! Here's the entire set of photos.

playing with textures

2007-12-09T19:23:00.000-08:00

i have so much to learn. tonight i watched this tutorial on how to add textures to photos with photoshop and played around with it for a few minutes. adding a texture is basically putting one photo over another so that the texture of the top photo shows just a bit. a lot of people are using textures lately and, while it can be really cool, i tend to prefer just a plain old photograph. but i also like to learn new things and to know how people are doing what they're doing.

here's what i came up with. here's the original:

and here's the texturized photo:

i think it looks kind of cool.

some time to just be

2007-12-09T10:36:00.000-08:00

beyond

2007-12-08T13:37:00.000-08:00

gray

2007-12-07T06:50:00.000-08:00

v was complaining this morning.

took lots of w.

v thought g needed to have some breakfast, so she brought it to her in bed.

food

2007-12-06T08:01:00.001-08:00

v and i made some banana muffins for grandmo, who is coming to visit this weekend.

i found this at the store yesterday. r is in school all this week and he missed out. between me & v, it didn't stand a chance.

elfin magic

2007-12-06T06:18:00.000-08:00

v says elf you.

ho ho ho!

new scarf

2007-12-05T19:23:00.001-08:00

feets & dora

2007-12-05T10:06:00.000-08:00

skeletons

2007-12-04T08:41:00.001-08:00

book

2007-12-04T08:39:00.000-08:00

i'm making a book for v of stuff around the house with the word printed on it. i started it more than a year ago but didn't get around to finishing it. i found it a few weeks ago and showed it to her today - she is in love with it, so i'm going to finish it up when i get the chance.

just some stuff

2007-12-03T17:24:00.000-08:00

here are some photos i've taken over the past several days.

way too early in the morning.

ross took this one. i'm reading to v.

this is the bag that v came in.

blocks i'm saving for when v gets her own room.

roses that the neighbors gave me for my birthday.

that's hilarious!

2007-12-01T10:47:00.000-08:00

strap on my ear goggles and i'm ready to go

2007-11-30T10:46:00.000-08:00

caught miss kitty sleeping this morning.

and v and i made some pinecone/peanut butter bird feeders.

then v found her goggles.

peanut butter face.

and now for something different

2007-11-29T10:03:00.001-08:00

i didn't take this picture, my friend sanja did. this is sanja's daughter reese. she is quite the beauty, as you can plainly see. sanja sent me some of her thanksgiving photos yesterday and this picture was among them. i saw some cool photo potential there, so i cropped it square and applied some serious photoshop actions. :-) love it!

what do you think?

still sick, but feeling a bit better

2007-11-29T06:05:00.000-08:00

when i get sick, i like to sleep. when v gets sick, she likes to get up at 5am.

go figure.

feverish

2007-11-28T17:36:00.000-08:00

sort of a day trip

2007-11-24T11:58:00.000-08:00

today r wanted to go see the l0st sea, which is an underground cave with a big pond inside. we went last year, when v was much smaller and more easily bribed into good behavior with goldfish crackers.

this is the tunnel that is the entrance to the cave.

this is v in the gift shop after we decided to skip the tour because v wouldn't stop screeching when r wouldn't let her climb the walls of the cave.

this is v while i tried to keep her occupied while r bought a coffee mug, postcard, and magnet.

this is one of the many, many shots i took with all different sorts of setting combinations on my camera, trying to catch both the flare of sun coming through the trees and the gorgeous trees/forest floor. in this shot i got a pretty good picture of the forest, but not so great of the flare. what i think is cool is that i did not punch up the colors at all in photoshop (though i did a few other things) - these are the colors the camera captured.

in this one, the flare is great but the forest is too dark.

the turnstyle at the entrance to the tunnel.

so we tried to take the tour, but turned around before we got to the boats. they were really nice about it and gave us our money back, so i'd say we still had a good trip.

what i learned about my camera this week: that i can make the flash brighter or less bright. who knew? well, plenty of people did, but i didn't. in fact, if you have a good point and shoot you can probably do the same thing. it's really useful so that you can shoot indoors in darker conditions and not have people's faces be so bright white. or when shooting outside under a really bright sun - you can turn your flash on but turn it down so that the person's face won't be dark. i wish i'd known that when i was shooting these.

love

2007-11-24T05:21:00.000-08:00

happy thanksgiving

2007-11-22T12:05:00.000-08:00

happy thanksgiving to you!

christmas shopping for v?

2007-11-22T05:04:00.000-08:00

so far, i've only had books on the list, but i'm adding a few toys that i know v would like for christmas to her amazon wishlist, just fyi.

their names are pink baby & blue baby

2007-11-21T16:01:00.000-08:00

finally decorating for thanksgiving

2007-11-21T10:16:00.000-08:00

this is the extent of it. i'm not that good with the decorating, seasonal or otherwise.

playing with photoshop

2007-11-20T05:39:00.000-08:00

dinner & stuff

2007-11-19T18:09:00.000-08:00

today we went to the park and it was just beautiful. we gathered about 22 bright red maple leaves to "show daddy" when we got home. unfortunately, i didn't take my camera. we also met a nice mom with her 3 really nice kids all age 4 and under who actually looked more tired and worn out than i would've thought possible - and i know a lot about sleep deprivation.

after nap, we read a lot of books out on the porch.

dinner was good fun. we listened to some music and v entertained us by screaming and laughing "just like dido."

she was loud, but cute, with little flower stickers in her hair.

i tried to narrow it down

2007-11-12T13:44:00.000-08:00

here are photos from this weekend in georgia. we went down for v's family birthday party. these are all my favorites. i tried to narrow it down, but you know how it goes - they're all my favorite!

my brother & me.

there is a fish in this picture...

baa baa

2007-11-07T14:46:00.001-08:00

going to art class

2007-11-07T10:40:00.000-08:00

this morning was v's art class. she really gets a lot out of it. the women who run it commented to me that v loves touching things with a lot of textures, confirming what i already knew. i didn't take any pictures during class because i had enough to deal with keeping her on task (or at least somewhat close to task), but i got one after.

i pass this hotel on the way. i love that sign. the last time i went by it it was rainy and dark outside so they had the lights on but i didn't have my camera. next time it's stormy, i might have to make a trip.

reading after class.

we pass this on the way too. it doesn't seem to be in use any more, though there are trucks and stuff out back. the brick is really nice.

it's really cold here and on the way back i kept rolling the windows up and down and screaming my head off about how cold it was. she loved that!

daddybaby/catbaby

2007-11-06T06:51:00.000-08:00

back at our favorite place

2007-11-03T11:37:00.000-07:00

we took monkey to the zoo.

and we said good morning to the bears.

then we went to the playground.

the frog was spouting out a rainbow for us.

v found an egg (with the paint all but off). i had to promise to get her her own set of play eggs for christmas - otherwise she wasn't going to leave this one behind.

love the egg.

i have the "vivid" turned up on my camera, which really saturates the colors. i like it that way, except that it exaggerates the color of her hand. her hands were definitely cold, but not that cold!

she did eventually put the egg back in the box.

in this little room you could see the baby beavers having their breakfast.

ride 'em cowgirl!

happy halloween

2007-10-31T16:03:00.000-07:00

and happy birthday to shelli!

waiting for daddy

2007-10-30T17:36:00.000-07:00

apparently, while v was napping, the cops chased down and arrested someone in the "backyard" of our apartment building. we missed the whole thing by about 15 minutes, luckily.

new parts

2007-10-30T10:47:00.000-07:00

mr. potatohead got some new parts today.

happy saturday

2007-10-27T10:52:00.000-07:00

the tiredness is in the eyes

2007-10-26T10:24:00.001-07:00

just like her daddy.

play time

2007-10-25T14:25:00.000-07:00

pumpkin pie

2007-10-25T09:37:00.000-07:00

one of the many, many nicknames i call v is pumpkin pie.

cat

2007-10-24T18:30:00.001-07:00

haveithaveithaveit!

2007-10-24T10:36:00.000-07:00

terrible twos. it's not so bad, really.

ISO 1600

2007-10-23T17:39:00.000-07:00

boo!

2007-10-22T18:35:00.000-07:00

from friday afternoon at the zoo.

she sees the shark, but isn't sure if she wants to meet him.

is finally talked into meeting the shark.

spooky bats.

my little ladybug.

sweetpea and ladybug.

ladybug.

here v is dancing to the bellydancers' music.

a unique presentation.

bellydancer.

all her favorites - but she wouldn't go any closer than that, not even for candy.

loves her daddy.

the best part.

playing with flickr mosaic

2007-10-22T10:03:00.000-07:00

cake and presents

2007-10-21T17:57:00.000-07:00

new slippers!

a toolkit! with a hammer! and wrench!

the cat wants out!

mr. potato head!

time for cake!

daddy helped her blow out the candles.

v can't stop moving!

she was excited all day long - running from her new tunnel to her new trampoline and all around the room. yelling, two presents! happy birthday baby girl! happy birthday baby guywit! and things got even better after her nap when there were suddenly balloons everywhere and more presents to open!

it's a great day to turn two.

happy birthday v!

2007-10-21T05:46:00.001-07:00

ladybug

2007-10-20T14:29:00.000-07:00

color photos tomorrow...

present

2007-10-18T19:55:00.000-07:00

my friend jeanne and her husband bilge (who i haven't yet met!) sent v a lovely birthday present - a strand of freshwater pearls in just the perfect size for a 2 year old.

thanks so much, j & b!

freshwater

2007-10-18T16:12:00.000-07:00

v got a very special birthday present in the mail today. more later, time for the bedtime routine...

she got a new doll

2007-10-18T08:49:00.001-07:00

i was going to wait and give it to her for her birthday but i knew i'd never get away to actually buy the doll, so i just took her with me. then she had to have it, of course.

picking up leaves with her feet.

v walked through the photo during a long exposure.

pinwheels and balloons

2007-10-13T06:05:00.000-07:00

happy with a balloon

2007-10-12T19:19:00.000-07:00

she's always happy when she has a balloon.

more photos tomorrow. they're uploading now and it's taking forever. i'm ready for bed!

happy weekend!

pink corduroy dress

2007-10-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

not a very willing subject today, but i had to take pictures of her in this dress. the shoes are so cute, i got them (on sale!) in two sizes so she can wear them for a good while. her feet are big - and they seem to grow much faster than the rest of her.

this afternoon

2007-10-10T16:31:00.000-07:00

lots of fun this afternoon...

calling her daddy on the cell phone.

daddy's home.

helper

2007-10-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

v loves to help around the house. she helps me put the wet clothes into the dryer by pushing them in for me.

she'll also help put toys away, but she usually wants to take them back out immediately.

in one of her fall outfits

2007-10-09T17:19:00.000-07:00

it was kind of chilly and rainy this afternoon, so i thought v might like to wear one of her new fall outfits.

bringing her farm out onto the porch.

v and her silo.

checking to see if mama has a cat on her head. i ask her that a lot to get her to look at me so i can take her picture. it doesn't work so often anymore - now she just says no and keeps on doing what she's doing. she knows there's no cat on my head. probably not a sheep or a panther either, but i keep asking.

then i got the bright idea to ask her if i had a lens cap on my head. so she took mine and put it on her head!

lucky for me the lens cap doesn't fit through the fencing.

playing with her farm.

a new park

2007-10-06T16:31:00.000-07:00

today we went to a park we hadn't been to before. it's beautiful there. there's a good playground near the water and it's just lovely.

bluebell ice cream hat, day 2

2007-10-05T10:56:00.000-07:00

yeah, i know i should probably clean the chocolate off her chin before i take her picture but i didn't want to lose the magic of the moment.

on the porch, pt. 2

2007-10-04T10:07:00.000-07:00

box o' cat.

she might have my eyes, but not my eyelashes (hers are thicker/more curled).

wylie never stays out for long.

on the porch

2007-10-03T20:23:00.000-07:00

lucky for me she doesn't know how to twist the tube of lipstick yet. she did end up reaching her finger down into it and smearing it on her cheek, though.

beauty.

i'm tired now, more tomorrow.