Life by the Creek

Ouch.

2012-01-27T11:22:00.001-05:00

This is what happens when you trip as you're running... and your bottom teeth go through your lip.

And then, your brother offers you the chance to play with his remote control car.

Next, you come around the house with mommy while she tries to "find the light".

Think I found it. :)

Giveaway at Rafflecopter!

2012-01-26T18:05:00.002-05:00

Rafflecopter is celebrating! :D

They're giving away an iPad 2, and a couple Kindle Fires. And, it's open to Canadians! Woot!

Go ahead and enter. And make sure you tell 'em I sent ya. ;)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What's up?

2012-01-25T21:19:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been busy around here. I know, I know, I always say that. ;)

Well, it's true.

I think I started too many things at once.

There's the Shooting 101 course. (If you haven't taken it, and you are still struggling with White Balance, Metering, Exposure.. run, don't walk, and sign up. Seriously. So good.)

We're on Week 3, and I haven't been able to do the Week 2 assignment cause... it's dark.

So very dark.

My house is a cave.

There is no sun.

We seriously have to have lights on ALL. DAY. LONG.

No likey.

I also signed up for the SITS girls course "31 Days to Build a Better Blog."

I had good intentions.

I posted my intro into the forum, followed some other newbies on Twitter... and then fell off the wagon.

It's partly because where I live, there's a dead zone for cell service. Really. I looked it up with my carrier, and yep, right where I live, a dead zone. I'm pretty sure my house was right in the centre of it.

So, it means that I can't use Twitter unless I'm out and about... or on my computer.

And, if I'm on my computer... I am doing other things. Not much time for Twitter.

So.. it's hard to connect with new bloggy buddies.

It'll happen.

Eventually.

Last week, I also had to clean out every kitchen drawer four times. Because four different mornings, I woke up to evidence of the rockin' mouse party that had happened in my drawers the night before.

{gag}

"What??" I hear you say. "Don't you have like, four cats?"

Three, actually. (Well, seven if you count the kitties that stay outside.. but I don't.)

"Well," you say "what's wrong with your stupid cats?"

And the answer is... they are locked in the bathroom at night.

Cause we have no heat in our upstairs.

And we leave our bedroom doors open.

And our cats love us {me}.

And love to sleep on our {my} heads.

I am not a fan of cat hats.

And so, they get locked in the bathroom.

And we {I} sleep cat-free.

We {Jeff} loaded up a trap, and the first night...

SNAP!!

{gross}

Jeff got rid of the critter.

A few moments later...

SNAP!!

{seriously?? so gross!}

Jeff got rid of the critter.

And... you guessed it...

SNAP!!

{!! How many mice were invited to this party?!?}

And that was all we heard.

It happened once more the next night... and nothing since.

I hope they've learned their lesson.

So, I leave you now with one of my metering test pics from last week.

Only needed to resize and sharpen.

Me likey. :)

Project 52 - Week 3

2012-01-23T00:01:00.003-05:00

Well... it was quick shots this week. ;)

I've been using up all my free time trying to figure out CWB//gray cards/etc... and I realized today why I wasn't getting it.

I had combined two different assignments together in my brain.

D'oh!

Now that I realize my mistake, it's been a lot easier to figure out.

On to the photos!

First, we have Food.

Slice of Justin's Chocolate Banana cream birthday pie. It was so good.

And for "My Everyday", the theme was Create.

I have many talents. ;)

That's it for this week!

Well, except for this.

Jeff and the boys cleaned out the calf pen yesterday... and let them outside in the snowy sunshine for the first time.

I think they liked it. ;)

Testing, testing...

2012-01-20T17:41:00.000-05:00

So, I signed up for Shooting 101 at Clickin Moms.

I wanted to get all the ins and outs of manual stuck in my head, and this course seemed to be the way to go.

Boy, is it ever!! I'm learning a lot. Really. Even though I've been shooting in Manual for .. two years?!? One year since I got my T1i.

I've been trying and trying this week to figure out Custom White Balance. Don't know why, but it's taken SO LONG for it to stick in my brain.

Here's my test shots. (All photos SOOC except for resizing. Didn't even sharpen.)

(Oh, and excuse her bored face. I've roped her/one of her brothers into doing this for me at least a couple times a day this week. Yep. I'm just that good. :P )

12.5% gray card

Resulting picture:

18% gray card

Resulting picture:

I think I like the 12.5% gray card better. Even though Max the bunny has some blown spots on him, Becky's skin is a much nicer colour/brighter. And, I know that typically Canon's meter better with 12.5% gray, so it's not really surprising.

Thoughts?

Can I move on from this assignment now? ;) :D

Thirteen

2012-01-18T17:35:00.000-05:00

Well, today's the day.

Yet another new chapter in my life.

I am now the parent of a TEENAGER.

Thirteen years ago, my firstborn burst (literally) from my body. And made me a mommy.

And now, he's thirteen. Heading quickly towards manhood.

It's happened in the blink of an eye.

This:

To this:

Happy 13th Birthday, Justin. :)

10 things...

2012-01-15T16:36:00.001-05:00

I was tagged!

Here's my answers:

1. Describe yourself in seven words.

Practical, researcher, introvert, teacher, night owl, aspiring photographer, carnivore. :)

2. What keeps you up at night?

Just one more page/blog/row. A small toddler if she naps.

3. Whom would you like to be?

I'm happy with being me. Being someone else would be way too much work.

4. What are you wearing now?

Capris (yes, in the winter) t-shirt and pink crocs. Which I rock.

5. What scares you?

Spiders. And creepy movies. And heights. So, a creepy movie about a spider on top of the CN Tower would do me in. :P

6. What are the best and worst things about blogging?

Best: Finding new inspiration, meeting people who are interested in the same things I am, being able to see the world from my living room.

Worst: Wishing I could meet the people that really inspire me, and knowing it's probably not going to happen. Feeling like the worst blogger in the world if I don't post every day.

7. What was the last website you looked at?

Clickin Moms. I think I'm addicted. ;)

8. If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?

I would read my bible more. I've been doing a daily reading plan, and so far, so good! I also need to pray more. Also... to be a size 10 would be nice. ;)

9. Slankets – yes or no?

No. I'm not even sure what they are, but based on the name alone... no.

10. Tell us something about the person who tagged you.

Cyndi is one of those bloggers that inspire me. Her perspective is amazing. I love that she posts poetry along with her fabulous photos. I would love to meet her for coffee. :)

Whom are you going to tag to join the quiz?

Let's see... I think I'll choose:

Linda. Because she's my sister and I can guilt her into answering.. >:)

Sarah. Because I am amazed at all she does, and she's a great mom, too!

Karli. Because she was one of my very first online blog buds.

Jess. Because she is a lot like me, if I was perfectly thin, could hula, had a rooster and my very own axe.

Gina. Because she's a homeschooling mommy too, and makes the best. camera. straps. EVER!

Help me choose!

2012-01-15T13:17:00.001-05:00

Okay, so I have had a twitter account for a couple months or so.

I opened it just for fun, and chose a name that's a family joke.

I think I'd like to change my twitter name. Cause other people don't get the joke. ;)

I'd use my name, but another adeena out there somewhere stole it first. ;)

If you were me, what would you use? I could use AdeenaP, or LifebytheCreek, or ???

(Oh, and right now I'm PuppetMasterx11. ;)

Should I change it? Leave it? Thoughts?

Project 52 - Week 2

2012-01-14T21:14:00.001-05:00

Here's my Project 52 pics for this week.

You've seen my photo for "Up". ;)

Cause her hair is "up", and she's looking "up". :)

Now for "My Everyday".

Here's "dry".

Wood for the woodstove is very dry. And so are the dog hairs stuck to it. ;)

There you go!

We're actually finally getting winter in Canada right now - lots of snow and it's *so cold*! Although, it's supposed to melt again next week.. such a weird winter!

My girls...

2012-01-11T20:33:00.002-05:00

Just for fun.

Cause I'm taking a class, and have to practice. ;)

And they're adorable.

(Not that I'm biased.)

Truth is truth.

Outside. In the SUN. And +6C degree weather. In mid-January. Craziness.

(This one has a little Vanilla Pop action. ;)

(Just because I felt like it.)

Watching a kitty climb her leg.

(No Vanilla Pop.)

(A little B&W layer though.)

(I might wish that I had tried a little Vanilla Pop instead.)

She loves baked beans.

(I love how sharp her eye is! This one is SOOC - with just slight sharpening for web. Me likey. :D )

Show {off}

2012-01-09T19:54:00.001-05:00

Just cause her ponytails kill me with cuteness... ;)

Project 52 - Week 1

2012-01-09T19:49:00.003-05:00

After a few days of not-picking-my-camera-up-once, it's time to start fresh for this new year! :)

I'm taking on a Project 52... or two. Yep - two different projects, two different themes! But, that's still only two (or four... ;D ) pics a week... much easier than 7. ;)

Week 1: Breakfast

First, it's breakfast for cute little calves.

Then, breakfast for cute little children. ;)

(She would NOT leave it alone! Kept laughing about the "eggie". :D )

Week 1: My Everyday - happy

I've been trying out BBF. Sharp eyelashes make me very happy. :D

Getting her first email from her Granny makes her very happy. ;)

Linking up for the first time with My 3 Boybarians.

There we go!

Next week will be "Up" and "Dry".

It`s so awesome!! :D

2012-01-04T19:55:00.000-05:00

So, when I was ordering the calendars for Christmas from Wal-Mart`s photo lab (yes, I know, but actually the quality is pretty good at ours) I noticed something called a `Digital Photo Plaque`. I wasn`t sure what it was... but figured I`d make up a collage of my favourite 365 photos, and order one for fun.

Found a great collage template through Clickin` Moms, filled it in with my favourites (four from each month, plus my favourite of the year in the centre), adjusted the size by adding some text at the top (original was 20x20) and ordered.

It came in today.

Cost me $40.

I love it.

Like, I`m so thrilled with it, I can`t stop grinning when I look at it.

It`s big.

I know, I know, I ordered it. I knew it was 24x20. But still, you never can quite picture these things... or at least, I can`t.

I`m not sure where I`m going to put it, since I really don`t have any bare wall. (Not kidding. Have I mentioned our house is *tiny*? )

(And yes, the 5x7's are falling out of their frames. I hate those frames.)

Memories, Dreams and Reflections

2012-01-03T18:40:00.000-05:00

It's taken me forever.

But, it's finally finished!!

I even found all new never-posted-before pictures for each category. Woot!

Memories, Dreams and Reflections of 2011.

1. Me!

It's me and my mini-me! :) I think one of the things I'm most proud of that's photography related, is that I've switched to shooting totally in RAW. I don't know why I was so afraid to go RAW... I love it! And love the control it gives me in editing.

Now I need to figure out CWB/Kelvin. ;)

2. I Love You

My five kids. (This is what happens when the toddler is NOT in the mood for pictures. Even when her mommy begs, pleads, promises treats, etc.)

3. Still Laughing...

I have like 100 pictures of her on the trampoline. She was making so many faces, it killed me! :D

4. Winter Wonderland

So, we got some snow at the end of November... which melted. We had a green Christmas. (Boo!) It's actually snowing today - Jan. 2 - but it's supposed to melt yet again. So much for snowy winter in Canada! ;)

5. Birthday - share a birthday picture (your own or someone you love).

My oldest on his 12th birthday. He is totally not listening to me, and continuing to get older.

He will enter "the teen years" on the 18th.

I'm not ready.

6. Friends

They're only two... but they're best friends. :)

7. I Was Inspired...

I've seen so many amazing pictures on various blogs/sites/pinterest, and I've been inspired to look for different composition/focus.

8. Spring Fever

What says "Spring" more than a box of baby chicks?? :D

9. Travel

My two dancers were invited to perform at the Roger's Centre in Toronto at the exhibition game before the Bills/Redskins NFL game. The Roger's Centre is right beside the CN Tower. It's over a three hour drive away, so I think it counts as "Travel", right? ;)

10. Summer Days

Kids jumping into a pool. Totally summer. :)

11. Day In My Life - a picture of a typical day in your life.

4 calves x 3 feedings a day = lots of huge baby bottles. We've actually pail-trained one, so we're down to three bottles per feeding. :)

12. All Smiles

Okay, this one needs some backstory. My brother in law, Tyler, plays a "game" with my children that he has named... Earmuffs. Basically... if he is anywhere near one of them, he'll randomly yell "Earmuffs!" and if they don't put their hands over their ears (earmuffs, get it?) he gives them a wet willie.

Classy, I know. ;)

But one day, while sitting around the campfire, I happened to snap this picture. Like I literally just happened to catch it.

It was hilariously awesome payback perfection.

Just as I snapped the shutter, she yelled "EARMUFFS!!" and got him. Right in his ear. Epic.

13. Autumn

"All of these leaves are MINE!!"

14. Family or Home

This says home. Kids by the barn, someone carrying a cat. Regular occurrence here. :)

15. Celebrate!

Fireworks at the beach for Canada Day. Gotta love it. :D

16. Let's Do It Again...

As I sit here with very cold toes... I wish I could be sitting by a campfire. Just a few more months, and camping season starts again. :D

17. I Miss You

My father in law passed away in 2011. So, we had our first Christmas without Grandpa. It was a little weird. Missed his laugh, and his joking around.

18. Beautiful

My first girl. She's definitely beautiful - inside and out. :)

19. Dress Up

My sister has the best costumes for Hallowe'en. It's so much fun every year to see what she comes up with.

20. Macro or Close Up

There were a lot of huge, kinda creepy caterpillars at the campground last year...

21. Holidays

You knew it had to be Christmas. ;)

Right at the top of our tree, hangs an angel ornament. In memory of our baby girl.

22. My Favourite

I think you all know what picture is my favourite of 2011.

So, for something different... I thought I'd show you My Favourite: The Other Side. :)

23. Don't Ever Change

I hope they'll always be really great friends.

24. Just Because...So There!

Just because... she loved her Dora trike. And because I love the grin she is giving her brother.

25. Hopes and Dreams

Let's see... for this year, I would like to:

1. Rock my camera. I want to know it inside and out. I've signed up for a course to hopefully help with that.

2. Make each shot count. I enjoyed doing the 365... but definitely had some days that I picked up the camera just to complete the shot for the day... without putting much thought into settings/wb/composition/etc.

3. Do less editing. I do need to resize for the web, but I really want to get my settings right in camera, so I can spend less time in Photoshop, and more time with my kids.

4. Continue my daily Bible reading plan. Day 7, and haven't missed so far! Woot! :D

5. Meet up with a local photography group/person. I don't even know if there is any such thing around me, but I can't be the only person in my area interested in photography! ;)

And there you have it! My Memories, Dreams and Reflections from 2011.

Linking up with Ashley.

Project 365 - Week 52

2012-01-01T16:32:00.000-05:00

It's over!! :D

This is the last round up of 2011. It's been fun... but I've decided to take a break from a picture a day.. at least for a little while. ;) Instead, I'm going to do two different things.

#1 I'm starting a Project 52. :) With prompts. If you're a member of Clickin' Moms (and if you're not... trust me as a newbie, it's worth it! ;) you can join in there, too. This week's prompt is "breakfast".

#2 I'm also joining in on a monthly blog train with the theme "How I view". First up is "New beginnings".

Yay for new things! :D

On to the round up.

358: Colouring with paper that is bigger than she is. ;)

359: My sister made these awesome penguins!! And they were delicious. :)

360: She loves her new "barbie".

361: One more kitty picture for 2011.

362: Random kid picture.

363: I love how sharp her eye is with my 50mm. But, my house is so little. A 28mm or 30mm lens is next on my list.

364: We hooked up the xbox and kinect. Watching the kids play with the kinect was so fun! :D

And, just because I want the whole year documented here...

365: Andy is running and jumping everywhere!!

(That's Sir Loin and Amos on the right.)

Why is Andy running and jumping everywhere?

Because he was let out of the isolation pen.

Why?

Because we needed it for Alex. ;)

Ethan bought this calf with his own money.

So, now we have four. Our own little herd. :)

Linking up with Sarah.

Top 11 of 2011

2011-12-28T17:02:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's time to pick the top 11! That means this year is practically over.

Wow.

Here's my favourites from this year... with a few missing. Seriously, I had such a hard time picking out only 11!

#11 - Girls enjoying the first snowfall of the season!

#10 - Cousins/BFFs playing trucks together.

#9 - My oldest... who will be 13 in 21 days. I die.

#8 - It's so hard to get all five looking and happy!

#7 - Four oldest.

#6 - Those eyes. It's the reflection of the sun/grass in those blue, blue eyes that I love.

#5 - Oh it's ON!!

#4 - I made her a hat, and she wanted a picture. :)

#3 - I swear this girl lived on the trampoline this summer!! And the face still kills me. XD

#2 - Tired dirty baby feet. ♥

#1 - I still love this one so much. It's my favourite of the year, I think.

Well, there's my top 11. I wish I could have picked a top 24. ;)

Project 365 - Week 51

2011-12-24T09:00:00.000-05:00

Only one more week!!

Here's my round up:

351: She fell asleep on the way home from a shopping trip... and stayed asleep even after we brought her in, and took off her coat!

352: Turkey dinner time! We have our turkey dinner the week before Christmas. :)

353: Her "mermaid" crown. ;)

354: He insisted I take his picture with the wrapping paper I just bought. ;)

355: He still tries to hide when I take his picture... I'll just have to stalk him some more. :D

356: My two girls.

357: The outdoor kitties love me.

And that's a glimpse of how it's been around the creek this week.

Linking up with Sarah.

Where's Hamelin, again?

2011-12-23T22:36:00.000-05:00

So, I'm the Pied Piper. Except, I don't attract rats or mice (thank goodness!!)... I attract cats.

I can't take a real step when I'm outside... there's literally a cat or two or four sitting on my feet/winding around my leg/trying to climb me/licking any skin they can find/etc.

(And yes, I'm wearing shorts outside. With snow on the ground. We have a woodstove... and it gets hot in our house!)

I don't mind the kitties... especially when they're this pretty.

But it's annoying when I'm rushing outside to take advantage of the last of the light... and they won't leave me alone for five minutes!

I got Justin to call them to the shed with the promise of food... and got this shot. Love the glow from the sun. Literally caught the last of it. The next shot has no glow.

I hope all of you have a fantastic Christmas! :)

She's a mermaid...

2011-12-19T22:49:00.000-05:00

One day, a couple weeks ago... she found this in the drawer in the bathroom.

And promptly put it on her head.

"It's my trown! I a mermaid!" she said.

"It's your crown?" I replied.

"Yeth! I a mermaid!" she said again.

Being as I had never heard her say "mermaid", and it wasn't something I was expecting... I couldn't figure out what she was saying. "You're a ...what?" I asked.

"I a mermaid."

"A ... what?"

"I a mermaid!!" she said, with a little more force. ;)

"A... mermaid?" I finally said slowly.

Her face lit up.

"YETH! I a MERMAID!"

And she continues to wear her "mermaid" crown. ;)

Project 365 - Week 50

2011-12-17T22:41:00.000-05:00

Can you believe there's only two weeks left in 2011?? Wow!

Are you ready for Christmas? All I have left is wrapping. Woot! :D

Here's this week's round-up:

344: Jeff and his November birthday buddy! :D

345: She stole an English cucumber off the counter... and ate it. It was almost a whole one.

346: Some fun with Christmas bokeh. :D

347: Becky put her cheerleader ribbon in Hannah's hair. It was so big, and looked to adorable! :D

348: Me: "Let me take your picture." Michael: "Okay." After two shots.. "Can I go back to watching Planet Sheen now??" He's a great model... as long as it's not tv time. ;)

349: This means WAR! (Transformer chess=awesome. ;)

350: We picked up another baby Jersey bull calf. Three day old Amos is HUGE! The same size as Sir Loin, who's three weeks old!

I haven't had time to post to both blogs this week, so if you'd like to see a few more pics, head over to my 365 blog: http://creeksidefamily.wordpress.com/

Linking up with Sarah.

She's dancing...

2011-12-12T01:33:00.000-05:00

She's feeling better!! Yay! :D

And today, the outfit of choice was her sister's old size 6 dance outfit.

Makes practicing her "dance" more fun. ;)

(Excuse the crappy flash. Although it looks bright in my house, there's a lack of windows... the kitchen is behind her, with two south facing windows. That's it for the main house.)

Doesn't she have those moves like Jagger? XD

(It kills me that the dog is sitting there. XD I think it's because the other kids were upstairs playing at the time...)

Once she was done practicing, she needed a snack. And helped herself to a "pickle".

She'll eat an entire cucumber herself.

I'm so glad she's feeling better.

Even when she steals the cucumber. ;)

Project 365 - Week 49

2011-12-11T01:11:00.001-05:00

Another week has flown by!

I'm considering whether or not I'm going to do another Project 365 next year. It's mostly been a good experience... and I love looking back over this year and seeing the change in my photography, but I kinda feel like I need a break. We'll see. Still have a few days to decide. :D

337: Photo shoot with my chunky monkey nephew! :D

338: Fun with my Christmas tree.

339: Needed a picture for Grandma.. and it was a cloudy, dark day. I hate popup flash. A speedlite is on my wishlist. ;)

340: Today was my mom's birthday, and she got a camera from my uncle. Her face is priceless. :D It was also the day that Becky performed the solo she learned in *July*. And she remembered it, and did a fantastic job!! I was so proud of her.

341: View out my kitchen window.

342: Sick baby girl on my lap.

343: Jeff was called back to the mine! :D YAY!

And that's how it's been around the creek this week. In case you're curious, Hannah is feeling much better! I think she's finally kicked that stomach bug. Woot!

Visit Sarah and check out some more end of the year projects.

Show {off}

2011-12-09T12:40:00.001-05:00

I've kinda been missing from the online world, I know.

Hannah has been sick with a stomach bug for over two weeks. We'll think she's getting better, and then BAM! Another day of throwing up. :(

Poor, pathetic little girl.

I took this last night. When she's sick, she won't leave my lap. Makes it hard to get anything done, but she'll only be little for so long. Soon she'll be too big to spend a day snuggling on my lap.

She's currently zonked out in my arms again. All pale. I hope she kicks it soon!

Showing {off} my shot.

I ♥ Faces - On Your Feet!

2011-12-05T10:37:00.001-05:00

This week's theme at i♥faces is focused on FEET.

I just took a few adorable baby feet photos on Saturday... but my favourite foot shot is still the one I took of my baby girl this summer.

She was playing all day at the campground with cousins, and finally fell asleep while having a snack. I couldn't resist those dirty, playing-hard-all-day-in-the-dirt little feet!

For more fantastic feet, visit i♥faces.

So tute!

2011-12-04T16:32:00.001-05:00

I spent a few hours at my sister's yesterday, taking pictures of my 12 day old nephew.

As Hannah would say "Weid is so tute!"

Yes, yes he is. ;)

Some of my favourites:

Yes, I made the hat and sweater. ;) I have many talents, don't you know. :D

"Bum, bum, bum..."

This one makes me laugh. :D

I should have done this with Sarah, too! Turned out so well.

Just for fun. :)

Yay for cute baby pictures! :D

And, in case you're curious, Reid is over 10.5 lbs already! He's a chunky monkey. :D