Still breathing....

We've really kicked it up a notch over here. Crazy busy! My dad flew into town last night and my sister, bro-in-law and niece drove up to stay the weekend, too. We're having tons of fun.

I'll post pictures and descriptions of all the excitement ASAP. After I've caught my breath. But for now.....here's a teaser. KitKat's first basketball game:

Foto Friday--Composition

What is it that makes a photograph stand out? It is certainly more than just correct exposure or whether or not the photographer has achieved perfect focus. Even photos that are technically “correct” can be BLAH if they are not well composed. And I’ve certainly seen plenty of photos that were not focused or exposed correctly that have still had plenty of visual appeal because of the way they were presented.

So what are some basic tips to improve your composition?

1- The rule of thirds.

Wikipedia’s describes the rule of thirds as "a compositional rule of thumb in photography and other visual arts such as painting. The rule states that an image can be divided into nine equal parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two equally-spaced vertical lines.” The idea is to place the main subject on, or close to, one of the intersecting lines. Human tendency is to place the subject directly in the center.

Here's the way most people would frame a shot of a couple (special thanks to my sister for taking this picture of us--centered--just because my husband insisted on it).....

My sister and I convinced my husband that an off-center photo of us would look even better. He didn't believe us until he saw the image later. Now he wants it framed. :)

2- Try a different angle

Have you heard of the Dutch tilt? The Dutch tilt is “a cinematic tactic achieved by tilting the camera off to the side. The shot is composed with the horizon not parallel with the bottom of the frame.” Recently, I’ve seen this technique being used quite a bit in photography. While it is not a technique that you would want to use on every picture, it certainly catches the viewer’s attention and can be really fun.

Instead of always taking photos of people “straight on”, try shooting your subject from lower or higher than their eye level. This works particularly well when taking close-ups or head shots of people.

3- Some photos require a wide zoom. Others work better zoomed in close to your subject. Think about what you’re trying to say in your photos. Is the focus of your photo a person or a landscape? What ever your focus, FOCUS on that.

4- Learn the “rules” and tips of composition and then be prepared to break them. Photography is an art. Be creative.

Remember that art is subjective. A photo that is very aesthetically pleasing to one person may be completely boring to another. My best tip--Move around and try something new!

I'll take the 2-hour delay.....

I'll even take the 70 minute drive to the store...

The kids went to school today (they had a 2-hour delayed start) AND Mom, AJ and I were able to make it out to my favorite store of all time (is it sad that my favorite place to shop is a thrift store??)

About 10 minutes down the freeway we ran into this:



The traffic continued until the exit before we got off the freeway. Our 30 minute drive took us over an hour. But AJ slept and Mom and I chatted the whole way. Can't complain about that. We watched car after car drop huge sheets of ice off the tops of their cars (and heard the huge scraping sound as our van lost sheets of ice, too). It was quite the spectacle. Thank goodness we were not close to any accidents. We passed several, including one car that was wearing the bumper from another car.

The shopping was amazing. I found bags full of treasures--among the best being a bag full of Castle Kingdom Lincoln Logs. The 3 little kids have been playing with the new set for 2 hours now (with not even a snack break!). We LOVE Lincoln Logs at our house, and the castle set is not only rare (haven't even seen it before) but it is right up Twizzler's alley.
I also found myself a pair of gorgeous, slipper-soft black shoes to replace the shoes that I just ruined yesterday (the soles are split in half). I am super excited about them. We got jeans for Reese and KitKat and church pants for Twizzler and pajamas for AJ. I also brought home a stack of books for me!

It doesn't get much better than this!!

Back at home, Necco wanted to clear off the steps next door. Nobody lives there anymore, so it tends to be neglected (hmm..big understatement). Thanks, Necco!

Tomorrow is Twizler's big day. Yep, the BIG 0-8. Geesh. I JUST realized that I need to make a cake. Glad I remembered tonight!

Honestly....

I recently received a few new awards. Keep them coming, ladies. I feel so special when fellow bloggers gift me with an award. Yeah! Please read below for some things you may not know about me....and for the unique way (read: cheat!) I'm passing this award on.



This first award is from Lori at The Downs Gang. Apparently, she considers me "brilliant in content and design." Cool! I'll take that!

BTW--I've got to tell you, I've always thought this award looked so neat. Now I get to keep it forever on my page. :) Oh, if you haven't scrolled all the way down to the bottom of my page, I keep my award down there. I ran out of room everywhere else. Ha!

Here are the rules of the award:
1) Choose a minimum of 7 blogs that you find brilliant in content or design
2) Show the 7 winners names and links on your blog, and leave a comment informing them that they were prized with "Honest Scrap." Well, there's no prize, but they can keep the nifty icon
3) List at least 10 honest things about yourself

OK--for the 10 honest things about ME:

1. I am having a really hard time thinking of even one thing about me. I don't really want to make this a confessional....Let's make this about things I've done. Things I've experienced. Things that have made me ME.

2. OK--I started blogging in October 2007, and I never knew it could turn into something so big, and something I loved so much. I never expected to make so many friends through my blog (both people locally and all over the country).

3. My grandma, my mom, and I have all had 5 kids. We fit into a mini van perfectly, but it makes taking friends along a little tricky. I love my family size.

4. Growing up, I loved to write. I even told everyone that I wanted to be an author when I grew up.....but I don't consider myself a good writer anymore.

5. I got married when I was 20 and a half (because back then, the extra half year was important!) and I got pregnant with KitKat a month before our first anniversary. It seemed so logical back then, but now I am shocked that we did it the way we did. Of course, I wouldn't take anything back or do it any other way.

6. I took ballet classes (started when I was 3 1/2), piano lessons, and guitar from my neighbor. I also went to summer school for fun one year.

7. I went on a summer study abroad trip to Mexico after my freshman year of college and had the best time of my life there. Those memories are still so vivid, even though the trip was 15 years ago. I would do it again in a heart beat.

8. I went to a dermatologist to remove an annoying mole near my left breast when Necco was a baby (she and KitKat both picked at it while they nursed and it was very irritated and irritating....). A short time later, I got a call from my doctor letting me know that it was cancerous. I was 24. The same age that my father had been when he died of cancer (melanoma). Luckily for me, my cancer was not malignant and it was easily removed. Several years later, I went back in for my 6 month check, and the doctor found pre-melanoma on my left thigh. They had to send it in to multiple labs to verify that it was not actually melanoma. They operated on my leg for an hour while I watched and listened. Pretty intense. Very sobering. That was on CandyMan's 32nd birthday (if I'm counting back right) and I just felt bad that I had to stay off my feet for a week and couldn't make him a birthday cake. I am waiting for the cancer to come back, but worse this time.

9. On a happier note, I nursed my kids for a combined total of 86 months. That's over 7 full years of my life that I have lactated. If you add the 45 months that I was pregnant, that's almost 11 years that I have physically supported another life. When I weaned AJ just before his 2nd birthday (back in May 2007), it was the first time since December 1996 that I had not been either pregnant or nursing. My body didn't know how to handle it. I still miss nursing.

10. I have never broken a bone or been in the hosptial except to deliver a baby. Despite my health problems (the cancer and my heart condition), I've had pretty good luck.

AllHailQueenMommy from This is My World gave me the Butterfly Award. I think it's so cool that someone I have never met thinks that MY blog is one of the coolest blogs, and that she (and other cool ladies) visit me daily. What an honor!

The rules (because there always have to be rules):

1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. Award up to ten other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message for your awardees on their blogs.

And Lisa at Mommying on the Fly gave me the Proximidade Award.

Proximidade is described as follows: 'This blog invests and believes in PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes for self-aggrandizement! Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated.'

Isn't that so nice?!

And now for the awarding.....Since I'm actually writing this post nearly a week in advance to be posted during my week with my mom and I can't guarantee that I'll have a chance to let my favorite bloggers know I've given them an award, I'm playing by my own rules and making up my own awarding criteria. Here's the deal....

1. If you have commented on my blog at least twice this week, you can grab these awards. Even though I may not get a chance to comment back to everyone who sends me a comment, I want all of you to know that your comments make me smile. I treasure each one (I haven't gotten any nasty ones yet!) and they DO make a difference! I'm honored that you take the time to visit me, and I wish I could comment on all of YOUR blogs every day.

2. If I have sent you an email in the last 7 days, you can grab this award. That means you must be really special to me!

3. If you know my real name, you can consider yourself awarded. Haha! But please keep it our little secret.

Got a message this morning....

Snow

Ice

Rain

Wet

Cold

School is cancelled for another day.

Stuck at home again.

That's 5 days off school (yes, I'm counting Saturday and Sunday)....after the 2 weeks that I had sick kids at home, mind you.

The kids are thrilled. What could be better than this?

Mom and I.....well, we're not so thrilled. We haven't had a moment alone (oh--except for the run to the Verizon Wireless store to see why her phone was not charging. Hmm...Take the battery out, put it back in....Fixed!). I know--that sounds totally selfish, right? We live across the country from each other and we really look forward to having quiet lunches together while the kids are at school....shopping for hours....or just sitting down for a mid-day girly movie. We're not getting any of that. Grumble, grumble, grumble....

At least I got a few good pictures out of the mess today. :)

Reese was thrilled that she could "ice skate" down our side walk. Yes, that's solid ice there. I was waiting for her to break something.







Look at AJ's lip--almost completely healed!



Eww! She licked the ice too fast for me to do anything but yell from behind the camera!

A Joke for You

Why were the early days of history called the dark ages?
Because there were so many knights!

I found this picture of Twizzler while making the slide show for this Sunday's BIG DAY. I can't believe how much he's grown up.....but even this morning, he was playing Star Wars with light sabers and shields. He's 100% boy.

PS--I'm playing along with Lots To Learn (great children's DVDs) and Twitter Moms (one of my favorite networking places to hang out), who are having a little contest. I'm also using this as my Wordful Wednesday post for the week. For more wordful Wednesday fun, click the 7 Clown Circus button below!

Apple of my eye

AJ wouldn't cooperate with me to get the shot that I was going for....but this will suffice. What can I say about this kid? He is my sweetheart. My baby forever. The apple of my eye.

For more Wordless Wednesday photos from other great bloggers, see 5 Minutes For Mom and MomDot and A Daily Does of Toni!

Bloggers Unite Against CPSIA

Two women who sell on Etsy have put together a very informative post on CPSIA. See their thread here, or read on....Personally, as an avid (read: addicted) thrift store shopper, I am scared to death about what this act would mean for my ability to clothe my kids. I do not buy clothes new. That is a luxury I can't afford with 5 kids.

Content copied with permission:

As parents and concerned citizens I’m sure most of us at one time or another have been confronted with the question of lead poisoning. But have you asked yourself what your government is doing to protect your children from lead contained in toys? The answer? They're banning toys, taking books from schools and libraries, hurting low income families, killing entrepreneurial spirit and risking putting the economy in an even greater depression than we've seen in decades. I'd like to introduce you to their solution: the CPSIA.

Do you know about the CPSIA? No? Then I ask you to take a few minutes to find out about it.

The CPSIA stands for Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, a new set of laws that will come into effect on 10 February, 2009 and will impact many, many people in a negative way. Make no mistake, this is very real. View it for yourself. If Forbes, the American Library Association and numerous other media are paying attention, perhaps you should too.

How will these new laws affect you? Well, here are a few examples:

To the Parents of Young Students:
Due to the new law, expect to see the cost of school supplies sky rocket. While those paper clips weren't originally intended for your student to use, they will need to be tested now that your 11-year-old needs them for his school project. This law applies to any and all school supplies (textbooks, pencils, crayons, paper, etc.) being used by children under 12.

To the Avid Reader:
Due to the new law, all children's books will be pulled from library and school shelves, as there is no exemption for them. That’s okay though, there's always television. Our children don’t need to learn the love of reading after all.
Article from the American Library Association http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=1322

To the Lover of All Things Handmade:
Due to the new law, you will now be given a cotton ball and an instruction manual so you can make it yourself since that blanket you originally had your eye on for $50 will now cost you around $1,000 after it's passed testing. It won't even be the one-of-a-kind blanket you were hoping for. Items are destroyed in the testing process making one-of-a-kind items virtually impossible. So that gorgeous hand-knit hat you bought your child this past winter won’t be available next winter.

To the Environmentalist:
Due to the new law, all items in non-compliance will now be dumped into our already overflowing landfills. Imagine not just products from the small business owners, but the Big Box Stores as well. You can't sell it so you must toss it. Or be potentially sued for selling it. You can't even give them away. If you are caught, it is still a violation.

To the Second-Hand Shopper:
Due to the new law, you will now need to spend $20 for that brand new pair of jeans for your 2-year old, rather than shop at the Goodwill for second hand. Many resale shops are eliminating children's items all together to avoid future lawsuits.

To the Entrepreneur:
Due to this new law, you will be forced to adhere to strict testing of your unique products or discontinue to make and/or sell them. Small businesses will be likely to be unable to afford the cost of testing and be forced to close up shop. Due to the current economic state, you'll have to hope for the best when it comes to finding a new job in Corporate America.

To the Antique Toy Collector:
Due to the new law, you'd better start buying now because it's all going to private collection and will no longer be available to purchase. “Because the new rules apply retroactively, toys and clothes already on the shelf will have to be thrown out if they aren't certified as safe.” http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123189645948879745.html

To the American Economy:
Already struggling under an economy that hasn’t been this weak in decades, the American economy will be hit harder with the inevitable loss of jobs and revenues from suppliers, small businesses and consumers. The required testing is far too costly and restrictive for small businesses or individuals to undertake.

To the Worldwide Economy:
Due to this new law, many foreign manufacturers have already pulled out of the US market. You can imagine the impact of this on their businesses.

If you think this is exaggerating, here is a recent article from Forbes
http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/16/cpsia-safety-toys-oped-cx_wo_0116olson.html

And for those of you prepared to be stupefied and boggled, The New Law
http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/cpsia.html

Did you know? If this upsets or alarms you, please react.

Snow Day Bonus!

You can imagine the hoorahs this morning when I checked the school district's web page and discovered the news.....

NO SCHOOL TODAY!

So the kids got to spend another day at home with Grandma. What perfect timing! Yesterday was a teacher work day, and today was a snow day. Extra time with Grandma!

After a lazy morning, we had lunch at Burger King...

And then stomped through the snow to the movie theater. We saw "Inkheart." I would totally recommend it for older children. Although AJ was completely fine, I wouldn't recommend taking your preschoolers to see this in the theaters. There's a pretty scary "Shadow" monster towards the end. But no bad language, no sexy scenes. Just an interesting story about a "Silver tongue" who makes books come to life when he reads out loud.

Mom helped make Chinese food for dinner....When CandyMan came home, he said, "Is this recipe on your food blog already?"

Um, no, it was from a box. Thanks, Mom. It's nice to go the easy route every once in a while. :)

I caught this close up of Twizzler as we were cleaning up from dinner. Love his eyes!

The kids are all praying for another day off school tomorrow. Ice storms are coming tonight, so there's a possibility....Mom and I are praying that the kids go to school. We are eager to get to the used book store.

Tackle it Tuesday--House guest style

My mom arrived yesterday for a week-long visit. We love it when Grandma comes to stay! The kids have a blast and I love having the extra adult interaction during the day (plus we always do a little fun shopping together. You see, I am a bargain shopping addict with no money right now, and it is really rough to not be able to go scouring for bargains all the time!)

The only challenge I have when Mom (or any other visitor) comes is getting the accommodations ready for her. You see, we only have 3 bedrooms and as you can imagine, the 7 of us fill them up. We have space in the basement/toy room/office-computer room.....so that's where she sleeps. That is a challenge in itself as the basement/play room/office is also the most used (and usually the most messy) room in the house. It just takes a little prep. Here's what I do to get ready:

1. Do all of the laundry prior to her arrival. Pay special attention to the sheets and pillow cases that she'll be using. Lay out sheets and towels for her. Bring out the AeroBed.

2. Clean and vacuum the basement. Make sure that the extra stuff is put away.

3. Prep the basement bathroom (the bath and shower don't get a lot of use, so they always need an extra cleaning up). Stock the bathroom. Soap? TP?

4. Normal cleaning for the rest of the house. I've gotten over having my house perfect for guests. I know they'll still love me even if the piano is a little dusty or we still have Christmas bins in the family room.....That was totally true last Friday, but I took care of it!)

5. Finally put away all of those things that have been sitting in my room waiting to go up into the attic. Why are there always ALWAYS things that need to go up into the attic?

Yes, these are the Summer clothes and the Christmas bins. Still out.....no more!

6. Sit back and enjoy the visit. I'll have all next week to clean up. Mom is here. I'm going to take advantage of it.

For more tacklers, visit:

Mom's Here!!

Please excuse me from my normal blog commenting rounds this week. My Mom is in town!
(Don't worry--I've pre-written all of my normal posts for the week, so I'll be around here. And I can't keep myself completely away.....)

She got here this afternoon. Just in time for a lunch trip to Chick-fil-A. The kids were all off school today (teacher work day) so it was a perfect day to pay with Grandma!

My sister and niece also joined us for the day. Look at these lovely ladies!


Favorite! Andrea and KitKat are great friends.
AJ is doing much better today, but he's still drinking out of the side of his mouth. He's a trouper.

Not Me!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

As for me, I have NOT been sneaking time in on the computer while I should have been cleaning up for my mom's arrival in.....10 minutes!! Eek! (gotta cram in a few more minutes before my week-long break, right??)

And I absolutely, positively, did not eat two Klondike Heath Bar Ice Cream Treats in two days. Not me! (and just for comedy sake, I won't mention that when I first wrote this out, I did NOT call it a Dove Bar. Wait. Isn't that soap? Dove sounded good. I have definitely NOT been eating soap, though. Chocolate all the way)

PS--I totally know that Dove is chocolate, too. I just confused myself for a while this morning....

I almost didn't post a Not Me Monday today, because I TOTALLY haven't been doing ANYTHING embarrassing or naughty lately. I've been a complete saint. :)