February 20, 2009

So, I have been playing around tonight, trying to figure out how to edit some of my pics like those senior pics I saw on the internet. The cost for those things are ridiculous--starting around $500--so I was thinking...maybe I might be able to take some of them myself. I know they won't be as good as a professional and I will take him for some of those, but I want some really interesting pics of him and his trombone and sooo I am trying to scope out different spots for us to take them around Waco and figure out how to make them look like those professionals do without spending the $700 for the CS3. Anyway, I was playing around with the editing on some pictures I took of the girls in the fall. See what you think and let me know. Tam

These were of Leah:

The first is Straight Out of Camera (SOOC). It is OK. A little blue for my liking but..... I was happy with the picture when I adjusted the levels and changed the tint to something a little warmer......

BUT......

you can see--with a few minor adjustments, it really made the picture come alive!!

Isn't She Beautiful??

Here is another:

Hard to believe it is the same pic isn't it?

Here are some of Rachael: (SOOC--same blue tint because I had the White Balance set wrong--always check that first.duh!!!)

beautiful girl!

but, with a few, i dare say--EASY--adjustments,

now she's a model!!!--Look at those Eyes!

Here are the other poses:

This one is my favorite, i think!

And here is one of Courtney: Now, the lessoned learned with Courtney?? Wait for the sun to go down a little. the sun was too harsh when i took her pictures.

This is really the only good one i got, but I am sure that I will have many more opportunities!

Anyway, i will keep working. I wanted to try some different tones next--maybe a vintage look?? For now, I am off to bed.

Check out Shutterfly as I will add all these images. I want to see them printed. I had 46 free prints so I got some of Leah's basketball games and some other pictures I took of Volleyabll and Courtney. I was really pleased. They look grainy on the computer but when printed, they look great! I also used my free book coupon and made a book for Leah about her basketball season and I love it! Pics turnes out fantastic. So, if these turn out all right, i can make Andrew some pictures for a fraction of the cost!

Let me know what you think!

Tam

February 19, 2009

Well, I am back and in only a few short days! Courtney lost her tooth last night. She came home from school with it hanging half way down her chin so we decided it was the night to pull it. She was having way to much fun grossing me out. She could breathe heavily in and out and the tooth would move back and forth. Anyway, Rachael convinced her the last time that only SHE could pull Courtney's teeth without hurting her so Courtney insisted that rachael be the one to pull her tooth. So, Racahel grabbed a wad of TP and courtney assumed the position. Back against the wall and braced for the pain! In a matter of seconds and with only a small scream, Rachael was holding the little tooth in her hand! It happened so fast, I barely got any pictures! Later that night, we put the tooth in her pillow and we discussed the size of the TF. Allie told her she had a car to travel by so Courtney was trying to imagine how big she was. After tucking the tooth safely in the pillow, she finally settled down to bed! The good thing is, she waits so long to pull her teeth that the other ones are already half way in so there is hardly ever any snaggle tooth pictures! In honor of the TF, I scrapped Courtney's little experience and so I thought you might like to see it too! Tam

February 17, 2009

OK--so I am not a good blogger. I know it has been awhile since my last post, but, in my defense, I have been so very, very busy. I have, however, been taking my pictures ALMOST every day. Some of those days I was pretty sick so taking pictures was not my first priority! Anyway, I have finally been able to start scrapping again and I felt inspired to scrap some pictures of our trip to Oregon last summer. Kirk and I finally had a break from Leah's games and we decided to hit some of the local tourist spots. We were told we really must go see some of them, so we decided on the Japanese gardens and the Rose Emporium. We didn't get to spend near enough time at either one, but it was so worth the adventure. Oregon is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been and I would love to go back.

I am also including week one of my Life 365 project. I finally got them all done and I will start on week 2 this week. It is harder than I thought. The pictures are fine, but trying to scrap is hard. I get stumped because I don't really know how I want my book to look yet. do I want color pictures or black and white? I think I chose to go with B and W because it really makes you look at the subject and not all the different colors. Let me know what you think.

January 7,2009

7/365

Beautiful day today. Weather warmed up a bit, wind died down and sun came out. It almost looked like spring! Since it was so pretty, Courtney and I went out after work and played a little soccer. She tries to make home like school. The other day, I had to work late and Kirk was able to pick her up early. that very rarely happens and Courtney eats it up when it does. When I walked in, Courtney and Kirk were playing school. She had three stations set up and he was at the first one doing a color by number. It made me laugh seeing him on the floor with colors spread all about him and she was ever so gently reminding him to cal her "Ms. Allen". When I came in she asked me to play along so I settled in next to Kirk and she handed me my paper to color. Kirk and I decided to play the part so, when Ms. Allen wasn't looking, he hit me. Of course, I burst into tears and she immediatly sent him to the corner. When she wasn't looking, I stuck out my tongue at him and he of course, tattled. She turned to him and rather sharply said " I didn't see it so it didn't happen." I had to laugh. I was the teacher's pet. On this day, our "school time" was PE. We went outside and I took my camera hoping to capture some great photos. At first, she had to show me all her moves. I was pretty impressed. She could dribble the ball really well and she could could hit it with her head and knees. After I took my pics, we went across the street to play a little game. That girl's got game! She was using both feet to move the ball up and down the field and she was pretty tricky when it came time to go for a goal. I think she needs to play some soccer! I am adding those pictures--just because!

As we finished up, we turned to see the most beautiful sunset. The colors were so brilliant. My picture really doesn't do it justice. We stood together and she chatted about her game, but I couldn't keep my eyes off the sky as the sun dipped below the earth. God was great when he created the sun the moon and the stars! What forethought he had to imagine and create a sunset. Man could not even describe its beauty much less create anything as beautiful! Everything about it was amazing. I think I will make it a point to catch a few more sunsets this year.

January 6, 2009

Day 6/365

I don't have much time today. I am working feverishly on some volleyball books for the varsity team as well as Kirk's team--about 20 books in all. I have to have them all done in about two weeks in order to have them printed and back in time for the banquet in early February sooo... I will keep it short.

We have a quiet week this week. The girls are at their dad's and Kirk was at a game tonight so it was just me and Courtney. We decided to take a walk with the dogs(in an effort to keep my resolution about keeping in shape) but little did I know that the wind would pick up and blow about 100 miles and hour and that the temperature would drop so quickly. It was COLD! I thought it would be a nice chance to get my picture of the day but it was a little hard to get a nice clear one when you have a dog leash in hand and you can't stand up straight because of the major gusts of wind! . Anyway, this was the ONLY one I got today--not too bad.

January 5, 2009

Day 5/365

We woke up this morning to a very cold and dreary day. I think it was appropriate since that is what I felt like myself this morning. After two weeks of vacation, going back to work made me feel dreary. When I got to work, it was even worse. They had piled mail and notes and cases so high on my desk that I couldn't find a bare spot to put a pen down. Needless to say, I felt like the weather looked today.

I had to run to Harker Heights to make an emergency visit to one of our dentists. It is something I do twice a week but I found myself going a day earlier than planned. I hate going and grumbled a bit as I walked out the door. I have to remind myself all the time "atleast I have a job!" but most the time, I wish I didn't. I have way too many things I want to do at home and with my family. I wish I was rich. But since I am not and a job I must have, I am trying to find something good about it. The drive the Harker Heights is about 45 minutes from Waco and today, because I had to take Leah to BB practice in Crawford, I took the back roads. Now, I have taken them many times before but today, I really stopped to look at the countryside as I drove along. The sky was dark, it was raining but the rain was freezing on all the trees and wires. Today, those brown, ugly trees appeared to be a brilliant white. As I looked across the wide open field, it occured to me that this is what we would call--at least in Central Texas--a winter wonderland! We don't get much snow, but the freezing ice made the ground and bushes and trees appear white--like a fresh snow had fallen. It occured to me that, had I not had to drive to Harker Heights today, I might have missed this beautiful sight. The trees heavy with the weight of the ice and the occasional evergreen that stood so colorful next to their brown counterparts. I saw the most beautiful red birds feeding and an occasional cow that stood in the cold winter rain and grazed. A calm came over me and I felt at peace. I am reminded of the beauty of God's earth even in the dead of winter. When it appears that life is at its ugliest--there is a glimpse of beauty that keeps you moving on towards the hope of a prettier tomorrow.

Day 4, January 4,2009

Today was church day and Rachael's best friends father was preaching at our church so, for the first time in I don't know how long, we actually got the kids up, without a fight, got ready for church AND--and this is what is amazing, left for church ten minutes EARLY! Now this may not seem like a big deal, but for us, it was a miracle. Everything went right today. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, I have decided it deserves it's own blog! Have you ever got up and just felt like all was right with the world today? The sun was out, Courtney had snuck in the bed earlier that morning and was snuggling up close, the dog who,as soon as the alarm goes off inches her way out from under the covers right to the top of my chest, was burying her head in my neck for her morning hug and Kirk was snoring lightly right beside me. As I lay there I realized that I may not have many more mornings like this one. I mean--surely Courtney will quit coming in for her morning snuggle and quiet talk pretty soon. She will be seven in March and I can't imagine that she will be coming in for too much longer. Sometimes I wish she would stay in her own room but this morning, as she snuggled close, I cherished this moment. Like I said, everything felt right.

Anyway, we had a great church service and afterwards had a nice lunch with our very best friends. It is so hard to have friends when you have kids that take you from one place to the next, but somehow we have managed to develope a nice friendship. We have kids the same age and they play the same sports so we see them often at the games but it is always nice to sit down and catch up.

After we got home, everyone split up and I found myself in my room for a quiet moment. It doesn't happen very often, so I took camera in hand and I set out to capture my picture of the day. I got a new lens for Christmas and I have been dying to try it out so I set about on my new mission. Well, I got the cold shoulder from Rachael, Kirk was taking his nap and Leah had, once again, closed herself up in her room and was watching 24 hours of the show "24" It was cold today and the heater went out on their side of the house so she was in her pajamas under the covers with her little DVD player and cell phone right next to her. I just got a pillow in the face--no good picture. I do not think that they really appreciate my picture a day resolution! Now Courtney, she will pose for anything so I headed to her room. She lost her first tooth a few months ago and she has a new one that is beginning to get loose. She informed me that she needed to eat more apples because it would help her lose that tooth even faster! So her mission and my mission coincided. Hence my POD.(picture of the Day,for those who are wondering) I am going to miss having a little one around. With Andrew turning 18 and Rachael fixing to drive, I have realized that they grow up way too fast. I miss those days when the only thing that was important was whether or not their tooth would fall out while eating an apple. It really makes me want to capture everything about them so I won't forget. I think a picture a day is not enough......I hope they get used to the camera. :)

You ever have those days when everything just seems to be right with the world?? Well, I had one today and it made me smile.