The Great Debate

I was able to hang the pom pom fringe on the white curtains in our bedroom but Ryan put a stop to it and hid the fringe. He thinks it looks terrible and I feel it adds that finishing touch. One of my favorite stores is Anthropologie and part of the reason I like it so much is they have that "added touch" to make it unique and interesting. So what's your opinion???

By the way, we love having company and it's a good motivator for us to clean. However, we do get disappointed when our company doesn't show . . . ahhhmm Mr. JR.

Such Junk

Check out this pile of junk that was in our crawl space! We're adding insulation and had to remove it before they could get started. The pile includes a Christmas tree, garland, two furnaces, a sweatshirt, a gigantically heavy piece of cast iron pipe, plastic planter, ceramic planters, wire, parts of a blower motor, wire fence, a wooden folding table, glass jars, beer cans, cooking pots and pans, and my favorite - a red plastic dashboard! There may be more but there are only 10 hours of daylight.

Good Karma

Today local firefighters were gathering "Toys for Tots" and it was the perfect opportunity to purchase games and toys for the kiddos. I know a lot of charities are suffering this year so we picked up a couple extra ones.

This evening we were a block away from the house and the car completely DIED! We couldn't put it in neutral and the emergency lights wouldn't come on!!! Scary! Within 10 seconds, two cars stopped to help us out. Someone called a tow truck for us but Bob saved the evening. He was able to fix the fuse for us to make it back to the house. I couldn't believe how many people offered to help; there is still plenty of good in the world.

Christmas List

Remember when you were a child and you received the new toy catalog. Start the list and circle your favorites. I got a sneak peak at Jesse's and Ethan's list . . . J is requesting 38 hugs from our family. Such a sweet 8-year-old, I hope he never changes.

Giving Thanks

This Thanksgiving, I'm very grateful for all of my friends and family, especially for this sweet little boy.

The other day, I told Harrison we needed to blow his nose before we left. He made a mad dash into the bathroom. I was pleasantly surprised, thinking he was getting toilet paper. When I walked into the room, he was pulling out the blow dryer :)

Decorating Boys

The cousins had a good time today decorating turkey cookies. I was a little scared when they mentioned making "turkey cookies" but they turned out just fine. Although it appears one of them may have gotten run over.

Turkey Day

Someone is getting ready for Turkey Day by roasting in the sun.

Full Window

I've painted the wall in between the windows, what do you think? Ryan didn't notice it until I pointed it out then he said he liked it better the other way. I have quite a bit of blue paint left so it can be changed. I'm also working on an idea for curtains which I'll post once I get them up.

H's Room

Harrison's room is finally starting to come together. I hung the curtains or I should say fabric for the curtains a couple of days ago. When my sister comes she's going to help hem the edges but I couldn't wait so I cut the material in half. Originally, we hung the numbers with sticky velcro taps but they kept falling on H's head (sorry buddy). We have plaster walls so it's very difficult to hang anything for fear of creating a huge hole. We bit the bullet today and tried nails. Woohoo, it worked! I made the numbers last February so it's nice to see they finally have a home.

Sniff, Sniff

Every time Harrison walks by flowers, he has to stop and touch then smell them. It's pretty cute and today we ran across a row of planters so I was able to snap this pic. We can learn a lot from children.

Designing With Nature

There's a house on the corner that has the best pine cones you've ever seen. They're bigger than the average cone and they have a warm tone to them. If the cones are laying on the sidewalk, I figure they don't mind if I take them. Actually I've never seen anyone working on the yard so they probably welcome removal of them.

I haven't decided what to do with them (I'm still working on the collecting phase). I saw in a magazine, a group of them hanging upside down by red ribbon. At Pottery Barn they are painted silver, with or without glitter. Or I could paint the tips white. I think I'll have to sleep on it.

And The Sign Says . . .

Maybe I should do a series of photographs on "Signs of Downtown". The colors on this one are beautiful, the way the rust from the arrow is intruding on the white circle . . . love it. It's a shame we don't make buildings and signs like they used to.

Bedroom Project

I loved the color of our bedroom when we first painted it but after we moved in, it became my least favorite room. My mom suggested I accessorize with blue so your eyes can move about the space. My sister suggested painting the spaces in between the window so it appears to be one unit and the blue isn't broken up. I've added a lamp and a bedspread with shades of blue. Tonight I'm painting the space between the windows. I think it's already looking better.

Mama Time

I'm not sure if Harrison is spending too much time with me; he sure enjoys Mama's red shoes. I was proud of him getting the feet right and I was able to track whenever he was.

Beware SANTA!

I don't know if this a warning to Santa . . . it is hunting season.

Getting Older

Like all of us, pumpkins suffer from wrinkles and sagging faces from too much sun and father time.

Treeless Treehouse

No trees, no problem. When you live in a small town and next to relatives, it easy to find a telephone poll and lumber laying around :)

Cousins Hangin' Out

Harrison showing his cousins how to maneuver the tractor. He just loves hanging out with the boys.

Bathroom Decor

I decided to hang my white plates in the bathroom since it's the only wall that can handle nail holes (other walls are plaster). Ryan asked if it was weird to hang plates above the bathtub . . . I think it looks pretty good.

I Call It Spam

We stopped by the Oriental Market today to pick up some noodles and it's always an interesting visit. I had to get a shot of the "luncheon meat" and the variety of options. I'd probably choose the "Fortune" brand and hope I was fortunate enough not to get sick. If you're ever in a new place check out the grocery store. You might be amazed at what you'll see or (if you're brave) try.

Day Two

We're hoping to wrap everything up today. Unfortunately, the morning started with us trying to hunt down the product then we were having issues with the lighting. After about two hours of scrambling, everything fell into place. I'm beat today and ready to get home to my boys.

Styling 101

One of my favorite parts about my line of work is art directing photo shoots. Today we're photographing stuffed chicken breasts and pub wings. We hired a food stylist from Chicago and shot the images in-house. After 7 hours of picking, poking, shooting and moving, we ended up with four glamour shots. Click here for an interesting blog read about food styling and photography.

Distance

Two photographers I really admire are Robert Frank and Henri Cartier-Bresson. Both were experts on capturing the "street photography" or "real life reportage", I've always tried to carry this style with me as I venture behind the lens. There was something about these ladies that stopped me in my tracks.

Libations

Ryan said his dad would appreciate the lace on our pint glasses. We had a relaxing outing this afternoon sans child. R chose his usual Rogue Dead Guy Ale and I took the waitress's advice and went for the White Rascal. Not too bad, not bad at all.

Monster Leaf

Most people can look at leaves and immediately identify the species. Me, not so much. Let's just put that piece of knowledge on my ongoing "to do/to learn" list. I'm still searching for that extra hour or two in the evening but haven't been able to locate it in quite some time. At least you'll never hear me say "I can't find anything to do today".

The Art of Compromising

Whenever you're in a relationship there will always be some sort of compromising and by doing this you may see your world in a new light. In today's photo, I imagine the husband really wanted a carport for his precious truck but the wife wasn't about to give up the old tree in the backyard that's been with the family for years. Well then we'll cut a hole in the roof and everyone will be happy. Problem solved.

Call Me Rooster

Whenever Harrison's hair sticks up, I can't help but think of a rooster. He's giving me the "whatcha lookin' at fool" look.

Head Be Achin'

We've had this wireless router for about a month. Ryan spent a good portion of one evening trying to hook it up but no luck. Tonight I messed around with it and everything was installed correctly but no internet. Out of desperation, we called the Geek Squad and they were going to charge us $150! Gasp! I don't think so . . . five minutes later I got it working.

Blue Skies Ahead

We've been drowning here the last couple of days which seems like weeks. The forecast for this week is mild and sunny. I can hardly believe it's already November, this time of year flies by for us.

The Life of Lucy

Lucy's life involves sleeping, eating and getting harassed by Harrison. Every once in awhile, she gets to enjoy a day in the warm sun. Today was her day to shine. We gave her a little leftover salmon to keep that noggin working. Some kitties have it made.