Friday Randoms

1- I don't think I can adequately express in words the way I feel about taxes this year.

Here's my attempt.

I HATE TAXES!

Usually we have plenty of money withheld and get a return. . .  at least a little one.  This year, not so much.  It was mostly my fault. . .  but I am not pleased. 

2- On to happier topics. . .  PhotoCamp Utah went swimmingly!  This is me sitting at our table. . .  there was a lot of sitting involved.  But I was really happy with how our table looked and we made some fantastic contacts, so I'm really glad we did it.

3- Since PhotoCamp was a Saturday, and Tamera said she'd take him for the day, they went to the zoo!  I have to admit, I wish I could have been two places at once that day.  Apparently he became engrossed in watching the llamas and wouldn't leave them. 

4- At dinner at Chilis the other night, Nolan decided that sugar packets were the perfect musical instrument. It's loud in the background, but still amusing.

5- Brand recognition.  The other night, Nolan was playing with my phone and scrolled through to see the following icon.  and then he yelled "TARGET!"

He also recognizes Coke, Walmart and Chilis. . .  what does that say about our life?

I guess, I'm happy it's not McDonalds, which is apparently the most widely recognized by kids. . .

Friday Randoms

1- A small moment of one warm day. . . Nolan insisted on being outside, so we went out on the front steps for a little bit. Yes, he insists on carrying 3 cars with him when he leaves the house. 2 are always The King and Boost. The third one rotates. And he's getting better about wearing his sunglasses. As you can see, they don't stay in place very well on his little face.

2- The excitement of PhotoCamp Utah is palpable among the photographer set right now. Following a bunch of them on Twitter reminds me of a bunch of kids getting ready to go to Disneyland. It's awesome.

It starts at 8 am tomorrow, which does not please me one bit. . . but I can suck it up. Hopefully when we can talk to them and help them understand how we can help their business, we will gain a whole batch of exciting new clients.

This idea scares me, don't get me wrong. There will be a lot of organization involved . . . But it's mostly an exciting prospect.

3- I feel that my giddiness of warmer temperatures and blooming trees and flowers is dampened significantly by the crazy allergies that are plaguing our household this week. I am sure I have experienced the crazy levels of TIRED I'm feeling before. . . but I don't remember, and I don't like it. I could barely move yesterday for the tired. . .

Must visit a Dr. and get some good drugs STAT. Zyrtec is not cutting it.

On the plus side, I found a really cool iphone app, called Allergy Alert, that tells me what the pollen counts are like and what days will be good and bad. That's pretty fun, right?

4- One of the things that has tortured me during this diet has been cookies. I never really considered cookies to be a particular vice of mine, but I have discovered that they are one of the only things I just seriously CRAVE. It doesn't help that Girl Scout Cookies are roaming around (Maybe even in my own pantry) to torment me. Can you say Tagalongs?

If you are NOT on an insane diet, I have a solution for you to the shortage of girl scout cookies you find yourself in. . . Rather, Ms. Baking Bites does. Recipes for home made versions of your favorites!

You're welcome.

5- Nolan has a new buddy. Tamera's nephew Erick is just a little bit older than him, and has come over to play a few times. Last week, they went to the park. Erick calls Nolan "best friend".

How cute is that?

Sienna Michelle

So, Jeremy & Emily have a beautiful new baby girl. Her name is Sienna, and she's adorable. . .

And since Emily & Melissa have now posted her cute face, I figure it's OK for me to do it too.

Seriously, don't you just want to pinch those cheeks?

I've always loved the aunty job. It's always been my favorite. And I have a feeling that more little girls in the Webster family is only going to increase my fervor.

Now, if I can just find my way to California to snuggle her. . .

Friday Randoms

1- Nolan's new favorite thing to do in the morning while we're getting ready for the day is play his computer game. He's still trying to figure out the mouse. He's fine until he gets up against the edge of the table. He can't quite grasp the "pick it up, move it and start again" thing. I find myself getting annoyed about that, and then I realize, with that one exception, MY 2 YEAR OLD CAN USE A MOUSE. And then I calm down and thank PBS for making this game. He is entertained for as long as I'll let him be. . . and sometimes that's an hour. . .

2- This stupid diet is doing very weird things to my hair and nails. . . hopefully it's a short lived change. . . but if anyone has any good suggestions for volumizing shampoos and conditioners, my hair would appreciate it.

3- So, we started watching Mad Men this week. . . and I know I'm going to get flogged for saying this. . . but I don't get it. We're only through one disc, 3 episodes, but I don't get the hype. It's well written, mostly well acted, and the art direction is gorgeous.. . but I don't care about ANY of the characters. It's funny for a little while to laugh at how much people smoked and the female/male dynamic in the 60's. . . but where does the really compelling stuff start happening? When does it start becoming something I can't wait to watch again?

Those of you that love it need to enlighten me so I don't give up.

4- We are up to our eyeballs in preparation for PhotoCamp Utah in 2 weeks. It's a good thing Ben has graphic design skills, because he's been putting them to use big time this week. I can't wait to see our Moo Cards! Cross your fingers for us that this event leads to some awesome business for us.

5- The Oscars are on Sunday. And, per tradition, we are having an Oscar party, complete with ballots, food, and prizes. I'm pretty sure Avatar is going to win. . . and that disturbs me. I haven't seen the movie, but out of principal, I don't believe a movie that has NO nominations for writing or acting can truly qualify in the Best Picture category. It may be amazing technically, but not Best Picture.

The Joker

This is what Nolan looked like when I left the house this morning.

He REALLY likes raspberry jam.