Evelyn

I'm always a little hesitant to do a photoshoot, considering my lack of education on the matter. I'm excited to be in a photography class at the community college and have learned a ton of things to connect the dots from what I've learned through experimentation, to why those choices work.

A few weeks ago, I did a photoshoot with Christina's baby. I did a photoshoot with Christina back in September; this is sweet Evelyn:

I'm hoping that I will begin to see things in a newer light as I learn more about photography in my class. In the mean time, I've been lucky enough to see what I want to see through the lens of my camera.

Happy Chinese New Year 2012

Today is the day we celebrate the Lunar New Year - the Chinese New Year. 2012 is the year of the dragon.

I am surrounded by dragons. I'm married to one. So what characteristics does a dragon have? According to Wikipedia a dragon has the following characteristics:
Magnanimous, stately, vigorous, strong, self-assured, proud, noble, direct, dignified, eccentric, intellectual, fiery, passionate, decisive, pioneering, artistic, generous, loyal. Can be tactless, arrogant, imperious, tyrannical, demanding, intolerant, dogmatic, violent, impetuous, brash.

Happy Chinese New Year!

Friday Night Videos

Another Friday Night Videos on an early Saturday morning. I have videos stashed up from when I went off the grid in the winter, with my world of busy.

I posted this video to Facebook a few weeks ago and thought this would be another great home to feature the video:

This "Superbowl Commercial" is pretty funny - poison ivy is my favorite flower!

There's a reason I love boxers and this is just one of them. I remember when my boxer met a horse for the first time...similar response. I love the cows in this video:

Such a cute little video of baby sloths:

Friday Night Videos

I realize it's been a while since I posted a Friday Night Videos so I thought it would be a good time to begin again. (By the way: I'm excited to start blogging about the election...yay!)

Starting it off with a video about my lovely state of Utah; It really is a great place to live:

I am looking forward to this movie so much! I grew up on this story. One of my fond memories of my childhood was of my brother re-counting a child version of this story. Truly a great story:

2012 is the last year of our existence according to some fear mongering individuals...in my mockery, I'd like to share this video:

Speaking of the new year, I thought that little Ormie the pig fit perfectly into my New Year Goals...

I'll end, with the cutest video I have found...I love these clever videos of the dad interviewing the toddler ... so funny:
Now that I've finally caught up on all the gazillion things I was doing in November and December, I can get back to my blogging and photography. Yay!

Favorite Pictures from 2011

I've narrowed down my favorite pictures from last year. I had a busy year and I'm glad my camera was with me for most of it.
Some of my favorite pictures are faves because of the memory and others, because I really like the way the picture turned out.

#1: I went outside and there were weird little icy nubbie things all over, like old crystals beginning to grow. This was about the size of a dime and I like the look.

#2: In February, Eric and I took our nephew Chance to the boat show. After a nice morning, we went to Pirate O's. They have this tiny old car on their porch. The lighting was too good to pass up so I put Chance in front and started clicking.

#3: We had a long winter in 2011...it seemed to last forever. On a stormy morning, on the drive to work, I put the camera out the window and got this picture..

#4: This picture was taken at the celebration we had for my nephew's birthday. My brother and his wife had just split up and the kids were (and still are) taking it very hard. Elise hadn't smiled for several days and she laughed and laughed when she and Eric played together. She is a joy!

#5: Elida and Mason were in town in May and we went to Fairmont park near my house. This little girl was trying to get the birds to eat some of the bread she was so willingly sharing.

#6: On the same day, Mason was playing on the play ground and I got this shot of him. I love the look on his face.

#7: One of my favorite memories of 2011 was the U2 concert! We camped out in the rain playing cards and chatting. It was too much fun! A truly great memory.

#8: This picture made the favorites list because of what it means to me. Taken on the day we were in the path of a Trax Train. One of the scariest moments of my life.

#9: I love, love, love the lighting and color of this shot. This was one week before my cousin was married to this sweet, sweet girl.

#10: In July, Eric and I joined my brother and traveled to LA for a great concert and to see Six-Man. At the Six Man, I took this picture of Eric enjoying the beach. Definitely a favorite of mine.

#11: There were so many great pictures on this day at Echo. April and Sandy were passing through and we all spend the weekend playing in the water; and family favorite pastime. I loved the facial expressions on the faces.

#12: I was so sad that my camera was in the shop and I was using the lesser of my cameras. We were wandering the Utah State Fair when I turned around and saw this image. I was glad to have any camera at the moment.

#13: Halloween is a favorite holiday...it's fun to decorate the house and dress up. I was double checking on a few outside decorations when I saw this one: Eric standing in the black light in his costume.

#14: My mom retired in November and I love this family picture. It was such a marvelous night and being with my family made it that much better.

#15: Richard asked me to take a picture of him and the boys wearing La Celeste shirts.

#16: We went to Temple Square of Christmas Eve and this was one of my favorite shots.

There were many other favorites, but it would defeat the purpose of naming a few, if I listed them all here. The rest of my 2011 favorites are stored on Flickr.
I have previous years of favorites as well: 2009 and 2010.

Reflection on 2011

2011 was....an......exciting eventful interesting year. Not too heavy, not especially light on the drama, at least from a personal perspective.

One big joy and accomplishment for me was that I lost 35 pounds. Not the 70 I wanted, but half, so not all bad. I plan on continuing this effort in the coming year; something I'll address in a later post.

I didn't read the 100 books I'd wanted; I read an embarassingly low ten....10% (in fact I haven't finished reading the 10th: Lord of the Rings Fellowship...); when I made that goal I didn't account for the physical time it would take to read 100 books and still lead a very busy and full life.

I documented, through the camera lense, my life and the lives of those around me a little too much and had a hard time keeping up; especially near the end of the year.

I recieved an unexpected upgrade to my camera...one that I absolutely love. It has prompted me to take a new look at my hobby and my future.

My mom retired and we threw her a very successful party. She's a free bird now....it's nice to see her doing what she enjoys on her own terms.

We lost several family members and close family friends. A reminder that life is short, even when you've lived a full life.

I would say the most profound moment for me was the Trax accident on June 14. It has been a very sobering experience each time I think about it too long. I've stopped sharing many of the emotions because that's when things get a bit heavy. I remain grateful for the forces that stepped in and spared us and our families of the pain that could have so easily befallen us that day. I realize that I have more to do in this life. I've been miraculously spared many times and I recognize the hand of God in my life; and not just on those days of potential tragedy.

My feelings toward my past faith have not changed (if anything, they've become stronger and more resolute) but I am more defensive of what I once believed and held so dear. I don't expect that to change in the coming year. I am grateful for the freedom guilt free days that came from leaving it all behind.