creative exercise for the week

Last year I attended a photography conference with Richard and Amy from Red Leaf Studios - what an inspiring couple!  I didn't attend the conference again this year, but wanted to try out the creative exercises they assigned to attendees...

1.  show negative space
2.  negative space with foreground
3.  negative space with foreground interest
4.  using light creatively
5.  framing

They used pears as their inanimate objects - hmmmm...have I overdone pears or should I use them again?

place setting

rollerskating...

                                                                                                                          ...and a little Guitar Hero

slide

puppet show

The entertainment at our house is endless...

Galloping Grace Youth Ranch

I'm always amazed how many hidden jewels there are in Albuquerque.  We just stumbled on this - Galloping Grace Youth Ranch.  It's run by an aquaintance of Walt's from high school, and they offer FREE horseback riding to kids in Albuquerque - it's completely run on donations and by volunteers.  We started with some chores (shoveling manure out of the horse trailer - makes loading the dishwasher seem much more managable), and then each of the kids got to ride a few times around the horse arena.  Even the two-year-old did it (with an adult on either side of her, of course).

And a couple more photos (as requested).  Oh, and the kid in the middle isn't ours, but he and his mom were helping with the chores and they took a break to watch the horses...

summer

Naked baby pool swimming officially marks the beginning of summer for us.  What about you?

memory

My friend Michele makes the cutest presents for my kids' birthdays.  And she has three boys (stop it, Michele - you're making me look bad! ;)  This was for the middle baby's birthday:  she made two copies of photos and glued them to wooden discs to make a toddler-friendly memory game.  My kids LOVE it!

Happy Father's Day

Yep, here's the reality of being a father...of course I waited until the end of a very full day to take the photo, and the oldest is making faces, the youngest is about to cry, and the middle is in the midst of making a large mess of nesting dolls on the couch. See the dazed look of the daddy? Yet he comes home every day for more wrestling, bath time and late night cuddles and stories. Those are the moments that color a dad - the moments that aren't glamorous, that are real and lasting. Those moments are the ones that make me most grateful to have him as a partner in this crazy endeavor called parenting. Love you, honey.

stolen moment

This actually is NOT the bride and groom - it's a groomsman and his girlfriend having a stolen moment...think they'll be next? ;)

this week...

...the stomach flu has worked its way through every member of our family
...I have slept little
...my patience has been thin
...I long to enjoy summer, play outside and be done will illnesses
...I am grateful for every small sweet moment with my kids

hello, blog!

I was a little behind, and then I had two weddings this weekend, and then I got the worst stomach flu I've had since I started teaching some 10+ years ago. I'll spare you photos from the last two days...

if you're married to a medievalist...

...then you know that "chain mail" is redundant (similar to Rio Grande River) and you think nothing of knitting next to your husband constructing body armor.

self-portrait

Make sure you hold the camera strap up with your foot to prevent the camera from falling on your head should you attempt this at home. ;)

c+hunk=chunk

smile

cuddles

Sometimes they're sweet to each other. Spontaneously, without bribery. It's rare, but I capture it when I can. ;)

back for more...

see more on my photo blog here. It's probably cheating to post on two blogs but this is what I did on Sunday. ;)

pixie

it's a little short. she won't wear pigtails or barrettes for more than five minutes so I decided to just trim it a little. and then even it out. and then take her to jungle cuts to have them fix it (thank goodness I waited until after her birthday to experiment with her hair). I think I can safely add "haircutter" to my list of professions never to pursue. ;)

going to the zoo, zoo, zoo...

...how 'bout you, you, you? You can come too, too, too...(I need to expand my musical exposure, I think!)

six months old