I say alllmond, you say amond

Last Sunday we packed up the car and headed west to the Almond Festival in Capay Valley.  Our little monkey was excited for the petting zoo, I was excited to get out of town, and Daddy wanted a prime rib sandwich.  If you haven't been, the Capay Valley is gorgeous.  It's settled about 20 minutes west of Woodland, CA.  This time of year, the trees are full of gorgeous pink and creamy white flowers.  The hills are green with life and the mountains topped with white snow.  Somewhere past Esparto on highway 16, you are transported to a simpler way of life.  

We didn't expect the huge turn out, but the drive was still fantastic.  We passed the time in traffic by admiring the constant stream of motorcycles passing us by.  I started to wonder if this was a mini Sturgis when we rolled into Esparto.  So many bikes!  We stocked up on almonds in Esparto, and headed on to Capay for lunch.  The line in Esparto at the fire station barbecue was wrapped around the block! It must have been some fine barbecue.  Adam managed to track down some prime rib, and it was delicious. 

Here's a few pictures. :)

IHF Week 11 - “Bundled Up” Photo Challenge

This week is "Bundled Up" over at I Heart Faces.  Here's their description:

"For this week's theme we are going to try to celebrate the cold weather that many of have been experiencing (we need to find the good in the freezing temps, right?)

This week's photo should be all about snow, the cold, being bundled up, etc. Any way that you can show off the concept of cold and being "bundled up" will work for us.

Please make sure that at least one face is clearly showing in your photo entry."

Here is my little snow angel going for a ride. :)
 

(Yes, moms.  She had gloves.  No, those teeth aren't orange - it's bubble gum!)  


 
Make sure to head on over to I Heart Faces to see the rest of the entries! 

IHF Week 10 - “Jump For Joy!” Photo Challenge

This week's IHF challenge is titled "Jump For Joy!" What a fun subject!  Here's what they have to say over at IHF:  

"We want to see some air this week. Have your kids, husband, wife, sister, brother, co-workers or friends jump around like crazy for you and snap some fun shots while they do!

Your photo entry must have at least one face clearly showing in it."

 

 

Here's my little Roo jumping for joy!

 

 

 

 Make sure to head on over to I Heart Faces to see the rest of the entries!

 

Fix it Friday - Dustyn

This week's fix-it image on I Heart Faces is so adorable.  The little guy reminds me of the little flaxen-haired boy in my husband's baby pictures. :)

Here's the original:

And the fix:

First I ran a contrast fix script in Gimp, then adjusted the shadows and highlights.  

Then I used Picnik's eye bright and mascara tools.

I airbrushed and spot healed a few little boo boo's.

I dodged and burned midtones to even out the lighting on his face some.

And finally ran a lomo filter to soften the edges and saturate the colors.

Now head on over to IHF to see the rest of the fixes! 

 

Catharsis

They say that music heals the soul.  For me, it really is cathartic.  It helps me to purge those pent up emotions.  To move, to be free.  So this time instead of it being all about me, I'd love to hear what your favorite 'catharsis' songs are.  What songs help you to breathe in, breathe out, and move on?

Bounce!

What a DAY!  Somehow we managed to schedule two doctors appointments, a birthday party, along with Emma's regular preschool class.  All in all, it went pretty smoothly considering it was pouring rain, and we thought the party was this weekend.  You know the only bad part?  I thought the party was Saturday, so I didn't have a camera on me.  Gasp! The horror!  That DSLR and I are joined at the hip.  I'll have to explain this insanity, because it's a doozy.

-Wake up. Curse the migraine I had last night that kept me up until 2.  Curse the shower for taking so long to warm up.  Thank the Lord for the cloud cover last night, because I fell asleep with the bedroom window open.  Curse the fact that my pants aren't washed, and then backtrack and thank my handsome husband for washing them. 

-Take Roo to preschool.  Procure coffee and a breakfast roll.  Hobble through into the farmer's market to get two loaves of fresh sourdough for my bread fiend of a husband. 

-Hobble back to the car, zip across the street, and hobble into the neurologist's office.  Wait. Wait. Wait.  Another patient's baby decides to sit on my feet, and the parents thought it was hilarious.  Laugh.  Think they should move their kid not knowing who the heck I am, but laugh.  Finally!  Three syringes of Dysport (yep - botulinum like Botox).  Praise the Lord that I got through it with hardly any pain and no passing out!  Praise the Lord some more that the insurance company is paying for most of it. 

-Hobble back to the car. Pick up Roo at school.  Got her registered for some toddler sports classes this Summer with Miss Vanessa.  (Don't worry - they are really are more fun than sports lessons.)

-Realize that birthday party is today, not Saturday.  Cry a little inside at the thought of having to go from Sacramento to Roseville, back to Sacramento, then to Roseville again, and finally back home.  Realize that it won't be so bad.  Decide to go birthday shopping.  Try to make quick trip to toy store with my Roo and husband.  Realize that trips to the toy store are NEVER quick with a toddler. 

-Forget to get gift bag or card.  Head back to buy them.  Pretend to race around on scooter with my Roo on my lap. Manage to get some lunch.  It's drive-through, but it's still food.  Spilled mustard on my shirt.  Good thing I ran in to Old Navy on the way to the toy store!

-Trek to back to Sacramento to get my ankle checked out.  Yay! No breaks, just a bad sprain in my ankle and pulled muscle in my leg.  Left with a funky brace and orders to come back in a week and a half.

-Brave the storm to get back in the car and head out to the party.  Silent golf clap when I realize Roo is asleep in her car seat. 

-Realize we have an hour to blow before the party, and decide to go to the drugstore for some bottled coffee.  Change my clothes, and Roo's. 

-Party!

The End. :)

Since I have no pictures, here's some from last weekend at the inlaw's house boat.