Day 77 3-31-11

Sun flare.  I didn't exactly get my subject between the sun and me, but I was able to capture the sun going behind the mountain while we were walking to the park.  About 2 minutes later there was no more sun to  use!  SS1/1000 f/3.5 ISO100

Day 76 3-30-11

Curiosity.  I was trying to get that afternoon sun required for a sun flare, but the weather would not cooperate and there was too much cloud cover (or at least I think).  Instead I captured Kai staring intently at some dead leaves he picked up while I was getting the settings for the camera.  I liked how this has the back-lit look and you can see the silhouette of the mountains in the background (my favorite part about where we live).  SS1/200 f/2.5 ISO100

Day 75 3-29-11

Dragon. This is not my son.  This is a dragon.  He hisses and flies around the house and anywhere we go.  He is often a red dragon, but is known to change colors, which happens in the basement (usually when we are trying to do something else like go to bed).  He is a ferocious dragon and is not very good at following the rules or listening.  Still, we love our little dragon, especially when he returns Pierce to us.  SS1/125 f/1.8 ISO400

Day 74 3-28-11

Bye!  Kai watching Grandma leave for the day.  SS1/500 ISO100 f/2.5

Day 73 3-27-11

Content.  Went over to my Mom's for breakfast today.  Kai was getting a little cranky so my Mom grabbed his hands and walked around with him.  This put a big smile on his face.  He is so proud of himself when he walks, sometime it's the only thing that makes him happy.  SS1/100 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 72 3-26-11

Gardening.  While it wasn't the warmest day we've had, it seemed like a great day to start the garden.  I always miss out on peas and lettuce because we never get out there early enough.  Joe and Pierce were kind enough to till the soil while Kai and I watched.  We didn't end up getting any seeds in the ground, but hopefully I can get them in tomorrow before it gets too chilly.  SS1/200 f/5.6 ISO100

Day 71 3-25-11

Blowout #3.  My Mom came over today and was reading to Pierce.  Noticed it was right in front of the window and had to try the blowout again.  Love how the light caught his eyelashes.  SS1/50 f/1.8 ISO3200

Day 70 3-24-11

Backlight blowout attempt number 2.  This morning there was not a lot of sun in the kitchen, but I wanted to try for a backlight blowout again with more light on Kai's face so I gave it a try and Pierce entertained by bringing his snake around for Kai to look at.  Hard to tell, but Kai is actually grabbing for the head of the snake.  Loved the way his eyes popped even if it wasn't the best blowout.  SS1/60 f/1.8 ISO3200

Day 69 3-23-11

Cruising.  Kai is not crawling because as soon as you put him on his belly he rolls to his back.  Kinda hard to teach him to crawl when that happens or for him to figure it out.  It is not that he's not motivated to move or go, he is, just not in that way.  He prefers to whine about it or walk while holding onto something.  This morning before I left for work he and my Mom were walking around the kitchen and he decided to play with the letters on the fridge.

Day 68 3-22-11

This is my first attempt at a backlight blowout.  Kai seemed to get a kick out of it too, especially since I took his clothes off.  What is it about babies and not wearing any clothes?  Kai gets so happy, as if he's saying, "I'm free!"  SS1/80 f/1.8 ISO400

Day 67 3-21-11

Spring flowers.  I have had a song called Spring Flowers stuck in my head all day.  It's on the Bananaphone CD by Raffi if anyone is interested!  Seemed appropriate to take a picture of my first Crocus to pop out of the ground and flower (my favorite little flower!).  Caught Pierce's cold today as well so feeling under the weather, the flowers helped to brighten my day.  Think it's cute that Leo is in the background.  SS1/250 f/3.5 ISO400

Day 66 3-20-11

After we got home from the mountains today Pierce got out of the car and grabbed the sidewalk chalk.  It is so nice that the weather is getting warmer.  I love when we can play outside.  SS1/100 f/3.5 ISO100

Day 65 3-19-11

Spent the weekend up in the mountains with my sister and her family.  This is my nephew, Tucker, who is intrigued by Kai.  The way little kids act with babies is so cute!  SS1/125 f/1.8 ISO400.

Day 64 3-18-11

March in Colorado.  Yesterday we reached near 70 degrees only to wake up this morning to 3 inches of snow.  Truly, March in Colorado.  Tried to capture the way the snow coated the branches and sparkled in the morning sun.  SS1/1000 f/1.8 ISO100.

Day 63 3-17-11

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  Pierce and his school have been making Leprechaun traps at his school all week.  Today they set them up during nap time when those mischievous Leprechauns have been coming out and wreaking havoc on the school.  I ended up getting there before nap was over so I got to watch the children look into their traps.  What Pierce and his classmates found were their gold painted rocks and coins had turned to chocolate and they had other little gifts inside.  So, while they didn't catch their Leprechauns they did have some magic.  SS1/80 f/1.8 ISO400

Day 62 3-16-11

Hi Mom!  Such a beautiful day outside today.  It was so nice to be able to go outside after getting home from work today.  My favorite time of day is dusk when the weather is warm.  I love the way the light is that time of day and I hope to capture some of that this summer.  It was so great to have Kai on the grass, haven't had much chance to do that with him yet and he loved it.  SS1/125 f/1.8 ISO200

Day 61 3-15-11

"walking fast". Walking to school with just a down vest on. Chilly morning, but nice enough day for it. Look close and you'll notice the dragonfly puppet on his hand too! SS1/250 f/1.8 ISO200

St. Patrick's Day Leprechaun trap making at Pierce's school.  SS1/100 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 60 3-14-11

Perspective.  The first photo is of the sunrise this morning.  I guess that is what you get when the time changes.  The second I captured after work.  I thought it was so cute, and gave some great perspective on how small his hands really are.  I love that my children will have a special relationship with animals as they grow up.  SS1/100 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 59 3-13-11

Rain.  Kai had a rough night last night so when I woke up to rain on the window, but sun in the sky it was so refreshing.  As I was taking a picture of the droplets to capture my mood Leo walked up to the window. He seemed to say: "Good morning, Mom, how are you feeling?"  SS1/250 f/1.8 ISO 100

Day 58 3-12-11

St. Patrick's Day parade.  Today we took the kids to the St. Patty's day parade with my sister's family.  It was a beautiful day.  This picture I took of my niece, Kenedy.  I thought she had such a sweet face here and stood out in the crowd.  SS1/3200 f/4 ISO400

Day 57 3-11-11

Today after I got home from work I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner and Kai got in on the action.  He took the cue from me that digging through the pantry was pretty fun, especially when he got to grab things he had never seen before!  SS1/50 f/1.8 ISO400

Day 56 3-10-11

Affection.  Kai has been really fussy lately, it looks like his two top teeth are just about to break through.  This morning he was sitting on the floor and Pierce came up behind him and gave him a hug.  Kai turned to look at him and I snapped the photo.  It was very sweet.  The challenges of having two children fade with moments like these.  SS1/100 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 55 3-9-11

Gotcha!  This morning Pierce was playing around with a balloon we still have from Grandma's birthday party.  I had to lay on the floor to get this shot, but I imagine that this is the perspective of a young child who has just lost their balloon.  Pierce is pretty proud of himself now that he is tall enough to reach the string of the balloon in pretty much every location of our house.  Not the case last year at this time.  SS1/100 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 54 3-8-11

Ball?  It is a little funny that I haven't posted more photos of our dog, Leo, because he is near me for almost every shot.  This little border collie is constantly by my side, which usually means he is near Kai as well.  He doesn't mind being pulled on, or pushed on (complete opposite of our other dog, Mica) and he loves the camera.  Little Kai loves him.  Here, Kai is looking at Leo like "what are you doing?" and Leo is looking at me like "what are you doing?".   Silly kids...or Mom?  SS1/60 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 53 3-7-11

Happy.  Today I was able to spend the day with Kai.  He was pretty crabby for much of the day, but I loved being with him.  I have mixed emotions about this picture, but it was the best I could get blind and one handed!  SS1/60 f/2.5 ISO400

Day 52 3-6-11

Soccer.  You wouldn't be able tell Pierce was rushed to the emergency room for stitches on Friday night if he didn't have a Cars or Spiderman band-aid stuck to his chin.  It was nice enough here this morning to be outside to show Pierce what soccer is all about.  He had a hard time understanding not to use his hands and wondered (and got upset) why Dad kept taking the ball away from him while he was trying to kick it!  Silly Dad. He did great though and seemed to really enjoy getting out of the house and running around. ss1/100 f/1.8 iso100

Day 51 3-5-11

Rest.  After a long week all of us needed today to rest.  I managed to get Kai, who is extremely fussy (teething, I think), to sleep in his crib this morning.  Kai is a pretty good napper, but Joe and I have some trouble getting him to sleep on the weekends or are out and about so it is rare for to see my little one napping when it is light enough for me to get a picture of him.  I LOVE this photo of my precious little one with his blankie. SS1/50 f/1.8 ISO400

Day 50 3-4-11

Strength.  Yesterday I went to see Ninali and her baby at the hospital.  Baby was 8.5 weeks early so she is tiny and in her own little pod.  She is a beauty.  She is doing so well and I am amazed at the strength of this little being.  Children are fighters from the beginning.  I have to post two images today because my little one, Pierce, had to be strong yesterday too.  While taking a bath he somehow managed to cut his chin open and we had to rush him to the emergency room at 8pm.  He did so well.  He did not want to be there, nor did he want the doctor or nurse to touch him, but he did it anyway.  He was so brave he laid still while they put three stitches in his chin with only numbing creme, no shot.  I won't say there was no crying involved, but for a four year old I commend him.  This is our first emergency room visit.  Both Joe and I were a little naive about everything and did not know exactly what to do or where best to take him, just that we needed to go.  Joe took Pierce to Lutheran and I met them there (thanks to Tim for taking me) as soon as my Mom came to sit with Kai.  After taking Kai to the doctor late on Monday (also stressful), seeing Nina's little miracle, hearing about my niece throwing up all night before a flight back home from L.A., and Pierce's visit to the emergency room I can only say that I am extremely thankful that things did not turn out worse.  Everyone has been so brave and strong, especially our little wonders.  As parents I think we managed this week pretty well- we were unusually agreeable and calm.  While I am certainly glad this week is coming to a close, it will be one I remember for a long time and am a better person for living through it.

Day 49 3-3-11

The first sign of Spring at my house.  With March being our snowiest month I expect I will be taking pictures of this early bird in the snow, but that's how daffodils are.  I love the contrast of the bright green amongst brown of last years plants.  I planted these bulbs a couple of years ago in my planter and I love seeing them every year.  The days are getting longer as well so I took this as soon as I got home from work tonight and had just enough light.  ss1/80 f/1.8 iso800

Day 48 3-2-11

Anticipation.  Pierce and Joe were playing the very hungry caterpillar game and Pierce was waiting for the spinner to stop.  I tried to slow down the shutter speed to catch the spinner going, but it didn't turn out quite as nicely as I had hoped.  Kai is still under the weather and not sleeping well so I am exhausted.  I hope to be more motivated for pictures as the week goes on.  SS1/20 f/1.8 ISO800

Day 47 3-1-11

I thought I would try to work more on shutter speed today so here is a picture of Pierce playing in the tub.  I was trying to catch the water droplets, but I had to have the iso pretty high to get the exposure right so it's a little grainy.  SS1/250 f/1.8 ISO1600  Kai is feeling much better and it was nice to be home with him today.  Here he is this morning playing with the spoon.

Day 46 2-28-11

Sick again.  Had to run  Kai to the doctor last night because he has an ear infection. His first.  No fun for anyone and no sleep either.  Went to bed as soon as he did last night so no post until this morning.  Poor kiddo, you can see he wasn't looking good yesterday!  Still cute though (I think at least)!