Somebody's ready for Spring!

January 24, 2015 by Theresa Larson

Waiting on the pool to warm up is basically torture for Anna....

Every weekend she begs us to let her get in the pool...

Haha!  This is the farthest she's gotten so far.  :) — Haha! This is the farthest she's gotten so far. :)

And I finally decided to paint these letters I got for the kids 2 years ago!! Seriously!

Josh never seemed as excited about these things as me, but I pulled them out last night, and as soon as Anna saw her name it was all over. They are getting painted, and they will be hung this weekend. :)

So, spray paint has come a long way!  No more painted fingertips!  :) — So, spray paint has come a long way! No more painted fingertips! :)

Oh...and I bought these before Meredith was even a thought in my mind...I'll have to pick up some letters for her next year in Canton. :) And she's the one who could really use some additional decorations in her room. Oh well.

Just another weekend...

January 18, 2015 by Theresa Larson

Josh decided the house was too messy for him recently and started getting onto me about it...to which I said it's completely unfair to expect 1 person to clean up after 5! So, on Saturday we stopped everything and picked up. It made for a long, lame Saturday. The kids' toys were all over the house. Josh and I had started tripping over them in the middle of night when Meredith would wake up. "/ Train pieces would go flying down the front hallway on a regular basis as I would fumble along in the dark on my way to the kitchen to warm up a bottle. I've heard this is normal when you live with young kids...

Anyway...after a few hours of cleaning together, we finally got the house to a point that's livable...until all of the toys make their way back downstairs over the next day or two.

Does anyone else have a vehicle bay instead of a breakfast nook table?  Or is it just me? — Does anyone else have a vehicle bay instead of a breakfast nook table? Or is it just me?

When we viewed this house, one of the first things we noticed (one of the first things everyone notices) is the set of soccer goal posts in the front part of the property. It was actually noted as a feature... "sports field" I believe is what it was referred to as. They looked a little out of place to me, but I could live with them. Figured the kids may want to use them in a few years. And everyone that comes over uses them as a way finder to get to the right house. Josh HATES them. I can't believe they've lasted this long. This weekend he finally cut them down.

I didn't realize how big these things were until I was standing under one of them!  Good grief!  I'm kind of surprised I never came home to kids playing in the yard thinking it was a neighborhood park or something... — I didn't realize how big these things were until I was standing under one of them! Good grief! I'm kind of surprised I never came home to kids playing in the yard thinking it was a neighborhood park or something...

Welding machines and cutting torches remind me of my Dad.  :) — Welding machines and cutting torches remind me of my Dad. :)

And they're down.  No one will ever be able to find the house again.  ;)  The plan is to use the metal for the dog run that we desperately need.  Hoss and Hilde come back from the trainer pretty soon.  Maybe that can be… — And they're down. No one will ever be able to find the house again. ;) The plan is to use the metal for the dog run that we desperately need. Hoss and Hilde come back from the trainer pretty soon. Maybe that can be next weekend's project!

Wallace tagged along with me and Meredith this morning.  He carried those goldfish the entire time.  And on a side note...Meredith is not as great in the backpack carrier as Wallace used to be.  He'd sit back there calmly for me for h… — Wallace tagged along with me and Meredith this morning. He carried those goldfish the entire time. And on a side note...Meredith is not as great in the backpack carrier as Wallace used to be. He'd sit back there calmly for me for hours...Meredith starts flinging her feet around like she's riding a horse every time I stop to take a picture... "/ This results in lots of shaky pictures.

One reason I love the new house is there isn't always a privacy fence in the background!  :) — One reason I love the new house is there isn't always a privacy fence in the background! :)

Play Time!

January 03, 2015 by Theresa Larson

It got a little brutal with Thomas and Friends today. :)

I honestly thought Wallace would get more into this combination of green army men and his train set...but it was mostly me having fun with them and him batting the green army men away. Ha!

Nothing to see here....just delivering some chocolate....

That guy didn't last long before Wallace knocked him off there.

Hommie got into Anna's paint set today...  Good thing she wasn't home at the time...he might have lost that hand!  And who says the engine has to lead the train? — Hommie got into Anna's paint set today... Good thing she wasn't home at the time...he might have lost that hand! And who says the engine has to lead the train?

Christmas!!!

December 26, 2014 by Theresa Larson

Christmas with a 4-year-old in the house is a game-changer! When Anna was 1, 2 and 3, we could get a lot past her, but this year....not so much. She's been so excited about the whole concept of Christmas, it's actually quite contagious. Not that long ago Josh and I hadn't even bothered to put up a tree. That soooo would not have flown with 4-year-old Anna around.

So, I decided to give the rental 20mm lens a second chance. I spent nearly all of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with it on and slowly got acclimated to it. It was actually nice because I could get the entire room in shots if I wanted to, and the pictures improved throughout the day. I found myself getting right up in the kids' faces at times though. Lucky for me, they are apparently used to this, and so it didn't seem to phase them too much.

Twas the night before Christmas...and Wallace has taken the frickin bridge off his train tracks yet again!!!  He's all calm about it in this picture, but he frequently freaks out and runs to me screaming to put it back together for him.  S… — Twas the night before Christmas...and Wallace has taken the frickin bridge off his train tracks yet again!!! He's all calm about it in this picture, but he frequently freaks out and runs to me screaming to put it back together for him.
So, this is usually where Meredith is hanging out/tugging on the camera strap when I'm taking pictures...you just can't see her with my typical lenses. :)

I've put most of Anna's old shoes in Meredith's closet so they're ready for her when she grows into them, but Wallace always finds these old ladybug boots and tries to put them on.  They're just tight enough that he can still fit into them&nbsp… — I've put most of Anna's old shoes in Meredith's closet so they're ready for her when she grows into them, but Wallace always finds these old ladybug boots and tries to put them on. They're just tight enough that he can still fit into them (barely), but he can't get them on by himself, so a huge fit ensues every time he finds them. "/

Anna put her special twist on decorating the Christmas cookies.  :)  We might go through more sprinkles than most families... — Anna put her special twist on decorating the Christmas cookies. :) We might go through more sprinkles than most families...

Meredith is super into whatever Wallace is doing lately.  It drives him bonkers. — Meredith is super into whatever Wallace is doing lately. It drives him bonkers.

Wallace got some wheels!  But Santa had some assembly issues that we are still trying to work out.  "/  The kids haven't seemed to notice though. — Wallace got some wheels! But Santa had some assembly issues that we are still trying to work out. "/ The kids haven't seemed to notice though.

Anna likes to make up her own poses now-a-days, and they totally crack me up.  :) — Anna likes to make up her own poses now-a-days, and they totally crack me up. :)

Meredith got some fancy shoes that she really can't stand having on her feet.  :) — Meredith got some fancy shoes that she really can't stand having on her feet. :)

Homegirl got some wheels too!  The braces make the challenge of learning to ride a bike even more challenging, but the only one who seems to be frustrated by it is me.  She's getting pretty confident on the bike fast!  Much faster tha… — Homegirl got some wheels too! The braces make the challenge of learning to ride a bike even more challenging, but the only one who seems to be frustrated by it is me. She's getting pretty confident on the bike fast! Much faster than I ever thought she would. :)

Can't believe Christmas is over already. :( I was telling Anna today that we would need to start taking down the decorations soon, and she was pretty upset by that. I've assured her it will come back around next year though, and that seems to have pacified her for now.

Renting lenses for the holidays

December 23, 2014 by Theresa Larson

Since the rental place was having a promotion, I decided to rent a couple of lenses I've had my eye on for a while. I rented a 20mm f/2.8 and a 180mm f/2.8. After about 2 seconds I decided the 20mm and I weren't going to get along. I think my vision is just so poor that wide angle lenses bore and frustrate me. I have a ridiculously difficult time getting them to focus on what I want them to focus on. I'll give it another try before I send it back, but it kind of felt like I was looking through the wrong end of a set of binoculars.

The 180 on the other hand...I LOVE LOVE LOVE! I wasn't so sure that it was focusing on what I wanted it to when I took it out to take some pics of Anna and my nieces in the back yard, but when I pulled the pics up on the computer they didn't look half bad! And that's even with my slightly unsteady hand! I am thinking this will be a good lens for me for outdoor sports for the kids when they get bigger.

All of these were shot with the 180, and I was about 50 feet away from the kids, which is awesome because I can take pics without being a distraction!

I'm so glad the auto focus wasn't getting confused!  I know I keep complaining about my vision, but seriously...it makes me heavily dependent on the auto focus....so it's crazy important. — I'm so glad the auto focus wasn't getting confused! I know I keep complaining about my vision, but seriously...it makes me heavily dependent on the auto focus....so it's crazy important.

My sister's kids crack me up. I'm not sure if they are extremely well camera-trained...or the complete opposite. They refuse to ignore the fact that I am there. :) But for the purpose of testing out this lens, it was perfect. Carson kept finding new places to pose for me.

Honestly thought the bark of the tree would trip up the auto focus, but nope!

I just happened to have it super-glued onto the camera (I seriously don't think I'm going to remove the 180 until I am forced to put it back in the mail....) when Josh pulled out some fireworks.