Sleeping Tristan

I just cannot resist a sleeping Tristan.  Most nights at around 10:00 I quietly enter his room to check on him before I go to bed - he is always sleeping so peacefully and so beautifully - I just cannot help it....I have to pick him up. :)

The Swing and the Zoo

...............and a visit with Grandma and Grandpa!  What a day!

Grandma & Grandpa's chickens:

At the zoo:

Happy Birthday Lexie

This past Saturday was Lexie's 3rd birthday.  Do you ever really enjoy life more than you do on your 3rd birthday?  I am not sure about that.

Lexie made it very clear to all of us that it was her "happy birthday!"

I love this picture of Andy helping Lexie on her bike.  It kind of says it all.....

Night Vision

These three images are my first ever attempt at night photography.  I do know the number one rule, use a tripod....honestly that is about all I know.  I have a lot to learn!! 

It was cold and windy outside as well.  I do not like cold and wind, so my first attempt was short lived.

If you get a chance, check out this link:
http://dakotalapse.com/
His night sky photography is breathtaking.

In Full Color

Geez, this is another iPhone photo.  Sometimes after work I just run out of steam...my creative energy and any other energy that may exist has been completely wiped out.  Last week, work was a crazy mess.  I really had nothing left by the end of the day - my picture taking ability clearly shows that.

All I managed Thursday was one little picture of Tristan in his walker.  He looks happy anyway and the picture is full of color!  Kind of a bummer that his eyes are not in sharper focus though.  And yes, he is a drooling machine right now.  His little shirts are always soaked.

Apple Dog

Middle of the week.  A picture of our Apple dog.

Spirit Mountain Hike

On Tuesday of this past week Adam, Tristan and I went on a hike and climbed up Spirit Mountain...oh yeah, Apple (our dog came too).  Because we were hiking, I did not have my Canon camera along, but my iPhone camera did a pretty good job of capturing some sun flare!

New Power Tools

I am playing catch-up on my blog today.  - Last Monday, nothing really exciting happened.  We met up at Home Depot after work and purchased a new drill.  We have a few major house projects coming up and our last drill went out in a "blaze of glory" you could say.

Here we are, checking it out:

I admit, not a very exciting photograph.  At the time this was taken, I was reading through my photography / camera books trying to learn about the auto focus on my camera.  I was struggling with getting the correct area of my photos to be in focus.

I used the CoffeeShop Ice Pop action to edit this photo.

One Extra

I was traveling all weekend and took lots of pictures, but I have not had a chance to edit them yet for posting, so this is just a little extra post until I get to the "real" photos I took over the weekend.

These are a couple of iphone / instagram photos of my little Tristan in his bike trailer.

I will be back later tonight with weekend updates!

StoryTime

My little Lexie girl.

Lexie and my dad reading stories.

Domenick and Tigger playing in the muddy pond.

Tristan driving the golf cart with Grandma and Grandpa's help.

Duck Puppets

Tristan and I traveled to visit my mom and dad over the weekend.  While we were there he acquainted himself with a duck puppet that quacks!

Grandma Dorothy - Tristan's Great Grandma Dorothy also came over for a visit.

2/365 Photo Skills and a Messy House

Day Two.

So yesterday I forgot to write about something "really cool" that happened - it especially made me feel "really cool" anyway.  A few weeks ago I took pictures of my friend Jen's new baby boy, Cameron and her other son Blake.  Both boys were so sweet.  Blake was so friendly and I was even blessed with a kiss.   About a week after the photo shoot, I had the best shots edited and I burned a photo CD and gave it to Jen.  Well she took the CD to a printing store to have some prints made up and (this is the really cool part) the photo store would not print the photos because they were "clearly professional." :) Jen left me a message about all of this. I was pretty excited about her inconvenience!

In the end all I had to do was give her a signed permission slip so she could print them.

A couple of the pictures I took for her....

Uh...today I have a cold and I knew it was going to happen.  Tristan has been a sneezing, drooling mess and I have been a giant tissue for him.  I was talking to a co-worker about it today and she agreed with me.....the runny, goobery, icky noses are the worst! I stopped at the pharmacy after work and picked up some cold medicine hoping that would help, but really I just want/need a warm bed and some sleep. So, I did not get a workout in tonight.  I am sure I will be posting more about my daily exercise in the coming days and weeks.  There is a lot going on in that compartment of my life....it really deserves its own blog post! :)


A picture of my little munchkin in the bath....baths are still in the sink. He loves the bubbles and discovered how much fun splashing is!

The last two pictures are of my messy house.  I am having a hard time keeping the clutter picked up lately!  I am going with the saying that good mom's have messy houses and happy kids!

Prior to Tristan my house was never rarely out of order.  Now, that is pretty much a given.  Ah well, I work full time and would rather play with my baby and spend time with Adam after work.

The Start of Something

I am sitting here at 8:36 on my 30th birthday adjusting the blogger background for my new blog titled Destination 365. It still needs work, but I am off and running.  I am so excited!

Turning 30 is kind of a big deal to me.  Honestly I was a little stressed about it.  Really, who wants to leave their 20's behind?  When I was in my 20's I could wear whatever I wanted and not look "too old".  Granted I never really wore anything that I cannot continue to wear until I am 40 - if I wanted to.  I don't.  Anyway, basically in your 20's you can get away with things because you are young.  Life's mistakes can be overlooked.  Well, when you turn 30 I really feel like it is time to have it together. Luckily, I mostly do have it together.   I am married to Adam - he loves me with all of his heart...I have a beautiful, happy and healthy little boy, I have a nice house - a new car and pretty much all of the "stuff" I am supposed to have. So really what is the problem about turning 30?  Nothing...not anymore....I am totally happy.

Not to say that all of my life's goals are achieved.  I want to travel more.  I want to be debt free.  I want a job I feel satisfied with and one that challenges my creativity.  I will get there when I get there.  I now know it is more important to live in the moment.  To cherish the days and the little things.  Most of us say this and I am not sure how many of us live it, but I am going to try.

Hence the reason for my Destination 365 blog.  I have decided to document each and every day of my 30th year through pictures.  Over the past year I have learned to LOVE taking pictures.  I have a super awesome camera that I am learning my way around - I still have lots to learn....so please be patient with my photos!

So what happened today on my 30th birthday?  Well, I was awake at 5:11...yep 5:11 by a super cute little man who was full of smiles.  Tristan likes to do this...he wakes up incredibly early and is all happy and full of smiles. In the meantime, I am changing his diaper and getting a bottle together half asleep and barely functioning.  Typically, right after his diaper is changed and his bottle is gone, he goes back to sleep.  Now I am awake with no chance of going back to sleep.  Anyway, the rest of my day was great and I am honestly happy that I was awake early to enjoy it.

I took the day off of work and spent it with my two boys.  We went to Caribou for mochas, drove to my favorite park to drink them and baked a birthday cake together.  We also went to Twin Ports Cyclery and I bought a new bike!

Here it is with my little bike trailer attached and baby Tristan along for the ride.

I also received amazing presents from Adam.  He bought me a new camera bag and .................. a new camera lens.  A Sigma 20mm 1.8 lens.......I am beyond thrilled with it!!

This first shot is a photo I took with a lens I already have.  A canon 50mm 1.4 lens.  This is also a great lens that I love to use.

The next photo is the exact same.  I was sitting in the same position on my floor and the settings of my camera were exactly the same, but I used my new lens.  I get that the pictures are kind of boring, but you can see that it opens up so many more opportunities.  Crazy difference!!  Now I just need practice!!

A couple of more shots:

I received so many phone calls and facebook posts today and text messages from friends and family.  I really do feel happy and loved!  Thank you!!