This n' that

Busy Saturday with a few photos to share from an Allen family shower/welcome baby lunch for Tonya at Zupas in American Fork and Jack's final basketball game, and earlier in the week with Bill's family, and then yesterday morning the fog iced all the trees and I could not stand to stay home so I spent some time at Willow Park.

Monday, January 28, 2013 - Thanksgiving Point Ice Cream (and carrot cake).  The little Kodak ran out of battery in the middle of our ice cream night at Thanksgiving Point, but I got a couple of shots before I lost it:

Karsyn and Kamryn each downed a slice of carrot cake before the rest of us even got our ice cream.  They had appetites, because later they had ice cream, too!

Ashlyn wanted glasses, as in Grandpa's.  Later she wanted ice cream, too.  And even later she just wanted to feel better.  She came down with the flu this night and proceeded to generously share it with her sisters.

Our precious Kamryn.  You are definitely growing up beautiful!

Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013 - First off:  SLC to purchase a new company car to replace the one Brent totaled the week before while driving to work on freezing rain.  We had to set a record for the absolute fastest time ever in picking out and purchasing a car.   We had stopped at ONE place Friday night and he test drove ONE vehicle.  Saturday morning he went back to buy it.  A red Ford Escape - great price, great ride.  When he woke up Saturday Brent turned to me and asked, "Is there really any reason to keep looking if I already really like the one I drove?"  I told him no.  I hate car shopping.  So I dropped him off at the dealer and returned to Lehi while he finished the purchase part.  It was proudly parked in front of the house when I returned after Tonya's shower.

Shower Power:  As I said, I came back to Lehi to join Tonya with all her great in-laws who were throwing a baby shower for her at Zupas in AF.   This is something Brian's mother and sisters, sisters-in-law have started doing for each who has a baby in the family, regardless of whether it's first or tenth baby for them. What a great idea is that!  

Adorable paper boat party favors, with life savers and Swedish fish - and black anchors that arrived after I took this photo.

Is this a fun group or what?

 After the food - which was exactly what each of us wanted and the clean up was a cinch - came the gifts.  Honestly, every baby shower should be this relaxed and laid back!

Tonya's niece made this adorable dog all by herself!

It was a fun morning.  Tonya is now in the wait and wait and can't wait mode.   She isn't due for another couple of weeks but suspect she may come a little earlier than that.  The baby's ready.  And so is the Mom.

Go, Jack, Go!   Saturday afternoon was Jack's final basketball game for the season.  We could not stay away from that now could we?   So, camera in tow, we drove up to watch Jack make a few baskets again. 

Jack has the ball.  He always has the ball.  He was the lead scorer the entire season.

Jack's cheering section (game over - Jack's team won 12 to 0)

Jack's teammate and good friend Ryan.  Ryan made his first basket of the season at this final game, and then went on to score two more times.  So they each made three baskets this night.

Sunday, Feb. 3, 2013
There should be a photo here, but I was so busy hostessing I forgot to take one.  What a great time we had getting reacquainted with my cousin Rob Urry in town for business for a couple of weeks and stuck with nothing better for Sunday than to join us for church and dinner after.  It's been years since we've seen him - so long he couldn't remember ever seeing us (I assured him if he saw a picture of me when I was younger he'd probably remember).  This is another Facebook success story - I love getting to know extended family better through Facebook.  It's like a year round family reunion sometimes.  But we really enjoyed having a very relaxing Sunday catching up on a lifetime of experiences.   Thanks for indulging us Rob.

Monday, Feb. 4, 2013
Woke up to thick thick fog.  And when it lifted, and I should have been into work, where was I?  At the river bend taking pictures.  I am such a total camera nerd!  Here are a few of my favorites from that experience:

Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2013 - Oh, that's today!
Yesterday afternoon, after my forage out into the wild for the photos above, I was invited by a ward member to join her photo group.  While I was out taking the pictures I had thought to myself how fun it would be to just have a group of other photo nuts I could share my enthusiasm with.  And just out of the blue here comes an invitation.

I was thinking something more along the lines of a book group - you know, a cozy group of friends who get together each month to learn and share photo experiences.  But what she was talking about was a Facebook group that posts online and critiques each others' work and posts results of challenges from an online photography course we all take from posted links.   You mean, I have to learn something??????

Well, I debated.  And then I dove in head first.  And the very first lesson was on composition and on taking close ups, real close ups, so close up they are abstract kinds of close ups.  I laid awake all night trying to think of anything that might fit that bill in this very cluttered house.  Nothing.  Except when I went to leave for work (hurray!  I was going to be early today!), something caught my eye as I walked out the door.  What was that?  A glint in the corner of the yard.  A big sparkle.  I looked and what to my wondering eyes should appear???????.... (sorry, bad form, I know)

A lilac bush covered with nothing other than glittering icicles.   Formed from a rain gutter with a little leak and a big ice clog drip, drip, dripping drop on top of drop to form a layer of hanging ice magic.  I changed plans midstream, ran into the house and rummaged through Brent's camera bag and found the wonderful macro lens that I have never used.     What better time, right?  I mean, if I'm going to learn, now is the time to really LEARN.

And this is what I captured this morning:

Didn't really notice this until I put it on the computer, but here, dear friends, is visual proof - Spring is Officially Frozen in a Block of Ice!  Yes, those are genuine buds.  In spite of the snow, in spite of the ice, spring will burst forth one day soon!  Lilacs will bloom again, and the world will once again be bright with blossoms and sweet bees humming.   It's coming!

This is looking down into a snowbank.  At a macro level.  Like a diamond mine glistening.

  And my most favorite of all:

One other part of the lesson involved looking at things at a different angle, trying more than one view.  I was through photographing and heading into the house when I looked over at the lilac bush again and thought, wow, I didn't try everything!  So I went back and tried shooting into the sun this time, and this is what I was rewarded with.   So surprised to find the little star bursts when I brought the photo up on the screen.  And this was a shot I almost walked away from.

I feel like a baby in a candy store.  Watch out Brent.  I'm in love with your lens officially and forever!  (But never as much as I'm in love with you!)

Wow.  That was a long - as in  L - O - N - G - post.  If you made it this far, you deserve a reward.  Thank you for hanging in there!

Oh - and if you're interested in joining this Facebook page, just let me know.  It's really full of other people who love to learn about photography, too.   People with all kinds of cameras and all kinds of equipment from simple to fancy and all kinds of experience from beginning to pro - just learning from each other.