Friday Randoms

1- I love Adobe Lightroom.  Seriously.  If you are into photography/digital editing at all, I highly recommend it.  To say it has transformed the way we edit is a huge understatement.  I have been using photoshop for many years (like, 11. . .  since Photoshop 6, I think) and this is just. . . a miracle.  

I know it's not new.  It's just that I hadn't really used it much until about 6 months ago, and we're becoming fast friends, Lightroom & I.  I still have a lot to learn, but I'm guessing I'll just like it more as I do.

2-  How is my diet going, you ask? 

I certainly did NOT just eat half of a huge mint/chocolate brownie thing.

I'm quitting sugar again.  I swear.  I have to.

I still haven't had soda in 4 months, though.  That has to count for SOMETHING, right?

Fine.  I'm putting DOWN the brownie.

3- I finally won a food challenge at work!  I have to give all of the credit to Natalie, and her friend that gave her the recipe.  The white bean chicken chili won the day!

4-  I had 3 cavaties filled yesterday.  I have this insane fear of the dentist's office lately. . .  I never liked it.  At ALL.  But lately. . .  It is irrationally scary.  Like, I made them give me nitrous AND I took a Xanax just for my cleaning!  (In my defense, I have VERY sensitive teeth)

After about 4 hours, the novocaine had mostly worn off from the fillings, so I went to get lunch. . .  and it was VERY windy at my office.  I tried to get out of the car and the door blew shut and hit me in the side of the head.

I'm pretty sure that's what they mean when they say "Adding insult to injury"

(He picked this hat off the shelf at Target and wore it around for a good 10 minutes.  I had to force him to put it back.)

This picture is to help you remember how sweet he is before I tell the following story 

 

5-  And I leave you with a very long story, but an entertaining one, I'm sure.  

If you weren't there.

I have to preface this by telling you that I have MANY irrational fears and things that creep me out. Scary movies with devil children are one of those fears. Ever since we moved Nolan into a toddler bed I've been TERRIFIED that I'll wake up one day to him standing next to the bed, 3 inches from my face or something like that. But in the couple of weeks he's been in it, he's never gotten up. It was as if he had been told he couldn't get out of bed, though no one ever told him that. He still calls for us in the morning and after naps to come get him.

Well, last night, we stayed up WAY too late watching the Grey's Anatomy finale, so it was 12:30 by the time we got to bed. I was exhausted. I fell asleep FAST, which never happens. Next thing I know, I hear footsteps, walking really fast out of our room. It was Nolan. LEAVING our room, so I have no idea how long he was in there. I called his name just as he passed the door, and told him "come here" and he came over to me. . . but his eyes were half closed. The kid was SLEEP WALKING! It scared me to DEATH! I pulled him up into bed with us and tried to figure out what to do. We haven't had our gate at the top of the stairs because he doesn't hang out up there alone. The gate is down in our crawl space. His door doesn't latch completely, so did I dare put him back to bed? It was 3 am and none of us was going to sleep if I kept him in our bed. . .  And I had to work in the morning.

After about 20 minutes of fretting I decided to take him back to his room. By this time he was aware of what was happening. I rocked him, gave him a sippy of water, and tucked him in. I told him not to get out of bed, and to go back to sleep, and that I would see him in the morning. I closed his door and PRAYED that it latched. . .

Luckily, he didn't get back up.

Honestly, NOT the thing to happen after I was already on edge from that stupid Greys episode.   Did you SEE IT?!

Let's hope this is a short lived phase.

Interview with a 2 year old

One of the girls on my mommy board did an interview like this with her little boy and challenged the rest of us to do the same. I didn't think Nolan was going to sit still long enough to do it, especially when he knew he was being filmed. . . but he did! It's pretty entertaining.

Check it out:

Monday Randoms

The pace of our current life is threatening to overtake me.  And we haven't even reached summer yet.  I will slow down and breathe, however, long enough to write a post.  Heaven forbid I leave this place dormant.

1- We spent much of this past weekend with Ben's family at McKay Dee hospital in Ogden.  Ben's one remaining grandparent, his father's mother, broke her hip this past week, and soon after had a stroke.

2-  Melissa wrote a great post that fills in, in fabulous detail, my feelings on romantic comedies that I mentioned in my movie post.  Seriously.  She says it much better than I could.  (as usual.  she's a writer after all)

3- Last weekend we spent some time up at Grandma & Grandpa's house and the park up in Syracuse, and I had some fun with my camera.  Fun I hadn't had in a long time.  

He's pretty cute, I think.

4- That's all I got for now.  Time to move all my files to switch to a new computer for the second time in 2 weeks.  Such joy.  

It really will be if it actually WORKS this time.

Don't get me started.

Friday Randoms

1- These photos represent our weather over the past 2 weeks.  I am not even kidding.  And I am so over it.  It's MAY ALREADY! 

2- I got a new computer at work yesterday.  A shiny new MacBook Pro.  It made my heart sing as I carried it out of the building.  Even with a 2 year old with me to coax to the car. . .

And then I got it home and bumped the power cable at one point in the day. . .  and it turned off.  INSTANTLY.

Apparently one of the super special IT guys dropped it and got it wet. . .  How?  Please say he didn't drop it in a toilet.  Please!  I have no idea.  It was fixed once, and then we discovered the fix was incomplete. It's brand spanking new!  NO FAIR!

It has now gone to the Mac doctor and I am back to my old machine. . .  which they thankfully hadn't cleared off yet, and I'm crying a little.  Hopefully I will get it back soon.

3- Most things, Nolan is completely content to eat with his hands.  Which is weird, because he really hates to be sticky.  Hates to be dirty. . .  it's a little OCD.  And he is managing to use a fork with some skill these days, so I thought I'd capture it.  This was last weekend on his half birthday.  We celebrated a little.  We switched the rail on his bed to the toddler version. (you'd think I would have taken a picture.  You'd be wrong)  More on that later when I get my act together.

4- I need a really good "TO DO LIST" app for my iphone.  I need it to sync with ical.  I need it to be so simple to use that a monkey could do it.  (because that's how well my brain feels like it's functioning these days)

Anyone have any ideas?

1- Nolan's obsession with Word World continues.  

His newest thing. . .  trying to make more of things by adding an "S".  Observe:

Cows

 Ducks

2-  It's snowing in UT today. . .  for the second day in a row.

I don't think I need to clarify my feelings on this subject.

Also, I'm pretty sure the smoothie garden is going to need a restart. . .  I can't imagine that getting snowed on several times is going to be good for the berry plants.

3- Our summer just got pretty interesting. . .  Ben was cast in 110 In The Shade at the Hale Center Theater in Orem.  This is pretty huge for him for several reasons. . .  

A) his theater bug bites him pretty hard about once a year, and it's
TIME for him to do a show.  

B) A lot of very cool people and long time friends are in this cast.  

& C) Audra freaking McDonald is going to be in the show for the first 2 weeks.

How could he possibly pass up an opportunity like that?!

4- Tomorrow Nolan will officially be 2.5.  

Should there be some sort of celebration?  

I feel a little lame that I hadn't even considered it until this moment. . .

Movie Review Catch Up

It has been forever and a day since I did any movie reviews, so I am going to remedy that.  I have such a list growing in my phone that if I don't do it now, I'm going to forget how I felt about any of these films.  So here you go:

The Soloist

I was mildly interested in seeing this movie just for Jamie Foxx.  I really enjoy watching him do character roles, and this was no exception.  The script is not great. . .  but the story is definitely compelling and the acting is great all the way around.  I wouldn't say RUN to your Netflix queue, but it's definitely worth it if you need stuff to add to your list.  Especially if you enjoy either of the lead actors.

 500 Days of Summer

I kind of loved this movie.  I know it's trendy to say how great it is.  I'm sure it makes me a wannabe hipster. . .  but seriously. . .  this movie is GOOD.  It's gut wrenching and exhausting in the sense that we have ALL been in both of the main character's shoes.  It made me NOT miss dating, to say the least.  But in a quiet and introspective way.  Not in the usual flashy and obnoxious sort of way that movies usually do.  Watch this.  Seriously.  It's good.

(but be warned, it doesn't have a chick movie happy ending.  I'm not ruining anything.  They tell you that at the very beginning)

 Paper Heart

 I honestly don't know how I felt about this.  I can't say I really loved any of the "characters".  I can't say I believe for one second that this is an ACTUAL documentary.  But it's sweet and it's cute and it definitely embraces the "real person" thing in a big fat way.  And there are some really charming little stop motion animation sequences.

Post Grad

This movie is stupid.  Pretty much all around stupid.  It IS interesting to watch Jane Lynch play the straight character surrounded by a bunch of crazies. . .  but that's really all it has going for it.  Skip it.  I should have.  REALLY.

 Hurt Locker

 I can't say I totally ENJOYED this movie.  I watched it on a night when I really just wanted to relax. . .  and it was SO the wrong choice for that.  It captures intensity and anticipation in a way that only horror films have before for me. . .  but without the same darkness and fear.  It's incredibly well made.  More impressive because the director was a woman. . .  and I was completely OK with it winning best picture this year.  It's not a big shoot 'em up movie, though there is some of that. . .  but it definitely gives you a new perspective.  THe best part. . .  it doesn't take sides.  No, SERIOUSLY, it doesn't.  I was amazed.  It tells the story without a slant, from several different perspectives. . .  and that is a FEAT.

When In Rome

ARGH!  What IS IT with big name stars doing TERRIBLE movies.  This won't be the only time I say this in this post, but the leads were good, and had good chemistry. . .  but the script was AWFUL.  There were these random silly stupid side characters that I HATED. . .  Yeah.  Just don't waste the time.  Even if you like Kirsten or Josh. 
There's too much to get past.

The Boys Are Back

So. . .  I love watch a good Clive film.  And this one is good, though sad.   It's set in Australia and it's very quiet and interesting and it feels a little bit like real life. . .  totally worth watching. 

 Valentines Day

 NO NO NO NO NO!  With a cast like this, you'll understand my disappointment in this movie very well when I say:  Ashton Kutcher was by FAR the best part of this movie.  Seriously.  The outtakes during the credits were better than the movie.  The silly little moments where there were tongue in cheek references to other Gary Marshall movies, while TOTALLY out of place, were a little funny.  But the movie as a whole?  HORRIBLE.  I want my 2 hours back.  Seriously.

If you can't believe that Patrick Dempsey is a doctor, something is wrong.

 Alice In Wonderland

 GORGEOUS.  A lot of people whined about the plot of the movie and how it wasn't true to the books.  And I'm sure, if I had read the books as a kid, I'd have the same issue.  But I didn't.  So I didn't care.  It was beautiful, and captivating, and I really enjoyed the Tim Burtonness of it.  But if you care about the story, I can't be blamed if you disagree.

Bounty Hunter

Again I say, good leads, terrible script. . . Bad movie.  I wanted to like it.  But I couldn't.

HOW HARD IS IT TO WRITE A GOOD SCRIPT?!  & why waste the money to produce the bad ones?  I'm just saying.

 Inglourious Basterds

 Genius.  And by far my favorite Quentin Tarantino move ever.  It's got some look away moments, but mostly it's not gory.  And the language is amazingly tame.  I really really liked it.  SO much more than I thought I would.

 Surrogates

 I fell asleep for at least 5 minutes in the middle of this movie. . . but that doesn't mean it was bad. . .  It was actually a really interesting concept.  I didn't really CARE that much about any of the characters. . .  and maybe that's because they were really robots half the time.  I'm not sure.  But it's definitely interesting.  And your husband will probably like it.

How To Train Your Dragon

Oh my goodness, I liked this movie.  I have decided to officially abandon the idea that all digitally animated movies that aren't Pixar are crap.  It's just not true.  First I LOVED Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and then THIS!  It's gorgeous.  The voices are great.  And the story is really compelling.  GO see it.  Or at LEAST add it to your Netflix queue.

An Education

Brilliantly written.  Brilliantly acted.  And, much to my surprise, I didn't EXPECT the way it turned out.  Not that I always know how things are going to end.  Hardly.  But I never knew, at any point in this film, where it was going next.  And that was kind of refreshing. 

Emma - Masterpiece Classics 

And finally, the newest in the Masterpiece classics set of Jane Austen films.  I loved it.  LOVED it.  My only gripe, and it was a small one, was that I didn't feel like the age difference between Romola Garai and Johnny Lee Miller was all that obvious.  And it's kind of important.  But really, who cares?  Also, it was 4 hours long, spread over 3 weeks, and Ben watched ALL OF IT with me.  AND he liked it.  So that's saying something.  

Friday Randoms

1-Nolan inherited many of his eating likes and dislikes from his father.  Namely, his complete distaste for condiments of any kind. . .

But from me. . .  from me he got the love of popcorn:

Why wouldn't you want to eat it with a ladle, right?

2- We have a new client.  And I'm not going to say who she is before I ask her, but I have to say this. . .

She gets it.

It is so much fun to work one on one with a photographer that is truly wrapping her brain around what we're trying to do and is jumping in with both feet.  I am finding a ridiculous and slightly giddy joy in organizing and cleaning up the files on her computer. . .  I know.  THat's kind of sick. . .

But here's hoping she's the first of many.

(though, to be fair, Emily gets it.  She just lives too far away to take complete advantage)

3- I have been having a lot of fears creeping in lately about the end of the world. 

I know, I know. . .  I'm being overly dramatic.  I get that.

But all of these earthquakes.  All over the world?  And worse than that, one in my home state yesterday. . .

I have been hearing for 25 years that any time now UT was going to have "the big one".  Knowing the domino effect that's been happening lately, what are the odds that we WON'T?  And frankly, I'm not really ready.

Friday Randoms

1- Our friend Peter has been in town this week, visiting from England.  He was one of Ben's room mates back in the day, and both of us did plays with him many times during his years here.  It had been 5 years since his last visit, since before Ben and I started dating. . . 

Needless to say, things have changed a bit.

Nolan was his biggest fan, waking him up in the morning by saying "Peter?  Wake up?  Soccer?"  Peter was nice enough to teach him a thing or two about kicking the soccer ball while he was here. . .  and now it's all he wants to do.

Nolan loved Peter, but I made him take this picture first thing this morning after telling him Peter had to leave, so he was not thrilled.  As you can see.

2- I have not done well on my sugar consumption this week.  I blame the above mentioned Peter and his tendency to bring me British chocolate when he comes to visit.  It's just not fair.

I'll be back on the wagon soon.  After I eat a little more chocolate.

3- We're considering joining a CSA so that we can have fresh fruit and veggies this summer.  We just don't have a lot of space (or skill or patience, frankly) to grow a lot of the things we love in our shady back yard.  But part of our push for eating well is eating more fresh stuff, so we're thinking this may be the way to go.  But it's pricey up front, I'm not sure we'd USE everything, and I don't know if it actually saves us anything in the long run. . .

Anyone have any experience with these things?  Good idea?  Bad idea?  Too expensive?  Too many weird things we'll never eat?

And if it's a bad idea. . . any UT people know whether there are any good farmer's markets (n UT county) besides the somewhat disappointing one in Provo?

4- I need some new shoes for exercising.  I don't run. . .  it's too hard on my back.  But I like to walk, so I need a good pair of shoes for walking. Anyone have any suggestions?  The pair I have now are just SO tight.  Are they supposed to be tight?  Or have my feet just spread because of that whole pregnancy thing a while back and now tennis shoes will never fit well again?

I don't want to get too excited and assume that Spring is here.  I'm certain it's not. . .  but I do need to stop making excuses and just GET OUT THERE.

photo by Jack Brauer.  You can buy it.

5- Is there really a safe date in UT to assume it's done snowing?  Based on this year, I think not. . .

Easter Egg Hunt

As is the yearly tradition, we had an Easter egg hunt at my grandparent's house in Ogden on Saturday.

Nolan was MUCH more on board with what to do with the treats this year. . .  

But what he really wanted to do?

Climb the ladder

And hit the pinata.

Happy Easter!

Bubbles

I should be posting something random today . . .  but instead, I will leave you with a few photos.  Last week, for one day, it was more than 50 degrees.  So we took Nolan outside for some bubble blowing.  He LOVES bubbles.  Especially the big ones daddy can blow for him.

A few of my favorites:

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.