Death Valley-teasers

Rolled in late last night.

Dusty, dirty, and tired but refreshed all at once...

Trying to wrap my head around working today.

Get ready for a whole lot of desert photos.
We had a blast

spring banner

I love when I get home from a long day at work only to find
amazing and totally unexpected mail in the box.
Today I opened a sweet little card with a mini-banner inside from Michel.
you brightened my day today, thank you!

Spring in Reno is sort of a tease.
You know mother nature was giggling to herself
as she dumped snow on us as a equinox gift.
That's okay, I saw daffodils today... it's on it's way.
~~
Also, not sure if I will be here tomorrow
 and I know I won't be here for a few days after that.
I plan spending some quality time shooting film with my Pentax,
perfecting my landscape photography,
getting dusty and (hopefully) catching a few
sun rays on my face.
All  while chillin' in a tent somewhere near or below sea level.

oh and one more thing. I just added a "Reply" function to the comments. I am hoping that this will make this space a little more interactive and easy for me to respond to all of you out there, so go ahead, don't be shy. Leave a comment and say, "Hi".

Catch y'all on the flip side.

weekend in pictures

Rainbow Friday at daycare called for homemade baby legs using this tutorial.

Saturday was a lazy day of just hanging out with the kids and watching the snow fall.
I taught myself how to make a paper crane,
was out on pinterest a little too long
and then I found myself out and about with my bestie
for the evening.
Sipping wine (and then beer) and chatting away the hours.
Much needed and very fun.

Sunday was spent grocery shopping
and figuring out what we wanted to do about our camping trip plans
due to the (wet) weather.
We are headed south instead of west
and hoping for the desert to stay dry.

turning the tables

how I spent my St Patty's evening.
hanging with my girlfriend, sans kids
eating good Thai food,
sipping local brewed beer,
supporting a very cool local organization and listening to this guy spin.

nice.

it was a good ending to a bit of a stressful day.

I love when a moment can reshape your entire mood. As soon as I walked into this event I forgot all about the crap going down at the office and just settled into the really wonderful energy that was bouncing off the walls in there.

Hippie-hipsters are right up my ally. I declared to my girlfriend that one day, I would like to learn how to spin and also have dreadlocks. Just like the ones the guy had who was standing in line for food in front of us. They were long and not to thick and half tied back. He was adorable by the way. I had an instant mini-crush on him,

shhhh don't tell Daddy-O. *wink*

keep calm

I have been a little anxious with all the news of what is happening in Japan right now. I am so sad for all the loss. The nuke melt down business had me in near panic yesterday. What kind of a world have I brought my children into?
This is the sort of thing that had me thinking long ago that I didn't want to have kids, because how could I bring another generation into the world with such scary things happening in/to it?

But my husband reminded me that maybe one of our kids will have the answers, that maybe they will invent a way to make it better... Thank goodness for him, oh and for yoga. For the fact that I feel better when I am on the mat and when I leave the mat. For the ability to send good vibes, well wishes and positive energy to those who need it oh so badly right now.  Thank goodness for little reminders of keeping calm...and carrying on.

73:365, brussels and pasta

mmmm, yum.

And if you are worried for the boys that I am making them eat all to healthy, don't be.

I made us brownies for dessert.

If you are interested, here is how I do the b-sprouts and simple pasta.
 I chopped the brussel sprouts to make little discs or put them into the food processor to shred them (this is a good way to 'hide' what they really are).
Heat a bit of butter, garlic and sliced prosciutto (let the ham get a bit crispy) in the pan and then tossed the brussels in to saute.
I get them soft but not to the point of loosing that pretty green or all of their crunch. If I have lemon, I squeeze that in on top to cut the 'bitterness' that this veg can have. Last night I didn't have any so I threw a splash of white wine in there to de-glaze the pan. Salt and pepper to taste.
The pasta was a very simple version of Smitten Kitchen's spaghetti cacio e pepe. Which sounds entirely more fancy than it is, but oh so good.
Those brownies, um yeah, boxed Duncan Hines. (what?)

Weekend Art

My weekend's 365 shots are both art related. Today's was a little piece of street art that I had spotted early in the week and hadn't had time to stop and shoot. I thought it was a stencil, but when I got out of the car, realized it was spray paint.

Yesterday's photo(s) were from our morning visit to the Nevada Museum of Art. On the first Saturday of the month you can visit for free. They just opened a fantastic new show (Leo Villareal's Animating Light) so we made time to check it out. Fifi hung out in the pack and O had a great time, it was a perfect exhibit for him to go to- it was also his first visit to the museum. I think he liked it. My mom and god-parents joined us too, it was really nice.

 I will let the photos tell the story...

O spotting Buffalo and I on the stairs. He also saw this hanging from the ceiling.

I am pretty smitten with this installation. It is about 2 stories tall and over 16 feet across.

You really have to see this live because it is constantly changing, such a beautiful piece of work.

What a fun way to spend our Saturday!

Half

We visited the pediatrician yesterday for Fifi's 6 month well check. She had the paper on the exam table totally crumpled and destroyed by the end of the visit. The doctor said she would have been concerned if she hadn't done so.
Six months, it is amazing to me to watch my big girl (16lbs 9oz and 27inches long) and realize that she is half way thru her first year. The doctor checked her and asked me a few questions and said Fifers looked great and seemed to be right on track with development and growth.

Baby girl is doing things that crack us up these days. She likes to blow raspberries and hold her toes while you change her diaper. She hates to have her nose or face cleaned, but doesn't really mind the brush running through her wispy hair. She loves to be on her tummy and will actually roll onto it if you place her down on her back. I walked away for two seconds the other day with her like that and when I came back she had flipped over and scooted her self 90 degrees to the side. 


Fifi has also been scooting herself backwards and is often getting herself stuck up against a wall or under a chair.The daycare also told us that she got 'lost' yesterday- scooting herself backwards and into a corner. (I totally trust this place and know that the kid is faster than you would think at this reverse mode thing...)

She is getting up on all fours and rocking, smiling proudly at herself the whole time. Today she even did a little worm-belly flop thing and got herself moving forward. oh boy, we are all in for it. She is also sitting up for a few seconds at a time, until she forgets that she is sitting and topples over to her side. It's pretty funny actually.

She loves anything that crinkles and is quite fond of how plastic crinkles in her hands. It's funny how fast you forget to keep your glass full of water or other spillibles out of arms reach when there is a little one around. she literally picked up Daddy-O's glass the other night and set it gently back down on the table. We have talked with O about how some of his toys are off limits for Fifi and what a chokable is and why he needs to help us keep those away from her. I think he gets it, but this whole toy age gap thing makes me a little nervous.

We have started feeding her solid foods here and there. I'm not pushing this to hard yet, but we have tried cereal, sweet potatoes and butternut squash. She seems to really like the squash. I think we will maybe do bananas and avocados next. She is really interested in whatever we are doing while at the table so I feel pretty good about starting her slowly on foods other than breast milk.

Sleep has been on and off good. I could do with out the 4:15 wake up calls during the work week since going back to sleep for an hour seems to only leave me groggier than if I would have just stayed awake. These don't happen all the time though and she even does full night stretches on a regular basis. Overall, she is a much better sleeper that O was and I am grateful for that.

Fifi, you are such a light in our world, full of smiles and joy. We love you beyond words. Happy half birthday my girl!

68:365, red shoes

My mom and I went out thrifting last Sunday. We just about to leave the last place and I spotted these red beauties across the room. I checked them out and they are leather and in pretty darn good shape. They need laces, but that hasn't stopped O from wearing them around the house.
This was at breakfast this morning. His cute little feet dangling from the chair as he ate his mandatory waffles with a side of eggs. I loved how the patent leather red was shining with the morning sun.

66:365, gym bag

Have I mentioned I have been attempting to get to the gym on my lunch breaks? I even talked Daddy-O into going with me twice now.
I thought I was going to pass out during the first class. Then, once I made it thru, I wondered if I was going to be able to move due to all the lactic acid build up in my totally out of shape body.

I can tell you, just going once a week is making me feel better. Not just physically, but mentally.
It's sort of ironic though because our membership runs out at the end of the month and we can't afford to keep paying for it. I guess I will have to get super motivated and start working out at home.

Every day on the way back to the office I see a million things I want to stop and take pictures of. There are few really great murals that I want to do a shoot at sometime and then there are always the characters wandering around downtown.

I have to pass the new bus station and I get to see the flying bus. I think the first time I saw it I almost caused a car accident rubber necking my way and practically missing all the new stop lights they have installed down there that I'm not used to having to stop for.

 I need to get down there at night because I am sure it is rigged with some funky neon or something. I am still not sure what to make of it, but it sure does add some character to the place.

Dinos and Dragons, Oh my!

Last month I attempted to take O to the Dinos and Dragons show at the Wilbur D May Museum. If you remember, it was sort of a bust because I got my dates mixed. We made up for it by going for fries and milk shakes.

But today we decided to give it another shot and we actually made it to the show. It was a good way to celebrate his 2.5yrs birthday. (when I told him it was his half birthday today he told me "we need to make happy cake then!) Before hitting the museum, we went for a swing first at the park. Nothing like swinging "Up in the sky" to get your heart pounding and ready for seeing dinosaurs and dragons. (Will I ever tire of capturing his face when he is swinging? nope, pure joy)

We were the first people in the door when they opened the museum, and even though O was SO SO excited to check it out, as soon as he heard the ROAR of the dinos he wouldn't budge past the entrance.

The gal told us there was another area to check out that might help him warm up to things. So we went over and looked at the dress up clothes and puppets.

It took two more tries (and a few more kids to show up) before I could get him to even think about stepping into the exhibit area. I didn't want to freak him out, but I knew once we were in, he would like it. I was right.

The show was a little small and a tad cheesy, but was pretty cool for the most part. They had an activity sheet for the older kids to follow as they made their way thru the show so I could see how that could really get them into it if the kids were of reading age.



 And I really liked how they linked the idea of dragons to dinosaurs. I also liked how they tied in different cultures, the dragon for the Chinese new year, Native American culture and the knights in shining armor saving his fare maiden from the beasties.



There was only one room I couldn't talk him into going in because, "They are just too noisy." Which is funny to hear coming from one of the loudest people I know. Silly boy.

64:365, tea leaves progress

I am getting further along!.

I feel like the slowest knitter ever.

I don't even want to look at my rav stats to see when I started this.
I know it was before Fifi was born though...



I just have to dedicate some time and get this bad boy done!
I am still loving the yarn I am using and how it is knitting up. I did have a problem when I started the sleeve- I some how managed to be inside out and got at least 2 inches in to it and realized what was going on, grrr. At least I caught it before I got much further and didn't have much problem ripping it back. I am always scared to rip back for fear of dropping stitches.