Faux Hawk IN DA HOOOUSE

Mamma got her hands on some "got 2b glued" gel...Nuff said...I CAN'T STAND THE CUTE!

Seriously, who let me have gel!?!?!

Who loves ya baby? MMMMMMWAAAA

FREE photo editing class!

Run, don't walk to this site!

http://www.jessicasprague.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=976:free-photo-editing-class&catid=1:latest&Itemid=148

Jessica Sprague is known as the final name in digital scrapping (which I don't do much of, I like the creative process associated with the "real" thing, but the photo editing and enhancing is something I do A LOT). She is offering a free class in using Photoshop and Photoshop Elements to add frames, masks (really cool way to shape your photos or add a grungy effect, see below...), and layers to change the look of your photos. I have all of her books, and she is really user friendly. If you have Photoshop or Photoshop Elements, it's a great FREE FREE FREE class starting July 6th. You have to register 22-28th of June, but then you can access the class content starting on the 6th at your own pace.

Even if you don't have Photoshop, you can download a 30 day trial and this is a good way to see if it's something you want.

For my local friends, if you like, I'm more than happy to spend an afternoon with you showing you some of the basics and some fun EASY tricks with it. Let me know! Oliver has been taking monster 3 hr afternoon naps, so we could eaisly sit in my little yard with laptops and have some fun!

Here's an example of some of the fun things you can do (be sure to click on the photos to see the effects better):

SOOC shot: (straight out of camera, thanks Pioneer Woman for that little abbrevie!)


Then, just some quick levels and hue/saturation adjustments. Not too much, it was pretty good to begin with.

First clipping mask that I love, a torn edge look.

Probably one of my all time favs right now, this grungy scratched up look. Gives it kind of an "old photo" feel.

Number one thing to remember, this is easy and fast! So, who's in on the class with me?!?!

One more example with the grungy mask; I used three copies of it and layered it all onto digital scrapbook paper (sick sick obession I have here, isn't it?!??!)

MADE IT!

It is with utter and complete relief that I would like to report that my ninth year of teaching is OVER. YES!!!!!

On a totally funny Oliver note, when I went to pick him up at Kori's tonight he was out in the cul-d-sack wearing a toddler sized backpack and pushing a shop broom. Kinda weird, right? Kori said that once she put the backpack on him, he refused to take it off to the point he was all sweaty and waaay too hot. He was sooo p.o.'d at me that I wanted to take him home that he ran away from me for a block with the broom still in front of him! Maybe I'm not painting a good enough picture here, but it was pretty hilarious chasing my two year old down the block while he pushed a HUGE broom while wearing an empty Curious George backpack.

He spent the next 20 minutes in the car sobbing, snot everywhere, chanting "backpack, broom, backpack, broom..." Wow. Did that really happen to me?

ONE MORE DAY

until my summer is filled with this lil man!

Taken at Remlinger Farms this weekend. His face smushed into the wall in the bouncy house. Good times, good times!

Two more days...

until I have all the time in the world for my little man! Swim lessons, camping, playdates. I could SOOO totally be a stay at home mom now! Seriously, I can't wait to spend the summer with him. To be honest, I don't think I was a very good mama for a one year old. I wasn't quite sure how to "play" with him. This year though, GAME ON!!!

A list of our summer fun ideas:
-Beach time at Idlywood Park
-Park time at the water splash area near Crossroads Mall
-Library Story hour
-PLAYDOUGH!!!
-Sandbox time
-Coloring and painting
-Cooking together
-Maybe a real movie in the theater? Any thoughts on that one my dear (but few!) blog readers?
-Camping
-Swim Lessons
-Playdates
-Doing some serious construction with his "back-oos" and "ump-truks"
-Mama is going to try to get him to want to build with his Legos and bristle blocks
-Bustin out the train table fun

Any more ideas? Anyone want to go on some outings? Flight museum? Day hikes? Children's Museum in Seattle? Anyone? Bueler? Bueler?

May pictures

No, really. Mom and Dad NEVER let me climb on the table. I SWEAR...

Ummm...Uncle David? There is NO WAY I'm touching that worm!



With my Mama on her 35th (yikes!) birthday. Don't I look thrilled?!?!



With Big Pappa on his new tractor. FUN!

He is ALLLL boy and LOVES his power tools! HA

I KNOW this looks bad...There were no Oliver's harmed in the taking of this picture. (It was lemonade in the glass BEFORE we used it to make our beverages!!!)

Blowin bubb-oohs. A favorite pasttime!

His first pony ride. He wasn't so sure, but he seemed to enjoy it!

Having fun flying his plane around Granny and Grandaddo's house.

"OOOH! WHAT'S DAT...NOISE!!! AIRPANE! AIRPANE!"

PS-scroll down to the "Happiest Place On Earth" post for some more funnies...

Oliver at 2!

You may have noticed that I changed the picture at the top of the page. Today was Oliver's birthday two years ago. I thought it fitting that we all had a chance to look back and see how little "squiggle" was. 6lbs, 9 oz. 21 inches long. Today I put him on the scale. 31 lbs, last dr appt he was 34" tall (that was March). Tall and skinny!

At two, our little man:
-runs EVERYWHERE (even when I'm RUNNING with his jogging stroller, he is still chanting "run Mama run!". I AM YOU STINKER!!!)
-Loves to "fits it", loves his "turners" (screwdrivers)
-He's all boy. He adores "hell-coop-oohs" and "airpanes". Scroll down for the post on his broken nose. His love of spotting airplanes in the sky is what did him in!
-Not a fan of eating. Given his choice, he'd just drink milk all day and be done with the whole eating thing
-When he is "hun-ee" he prefers fruit (gapes!), "cheeps", and a new one just last night PIZZA. He actually ASKED for food last night. Since he's not spoiled at all, I totally ordered pizza for dinner on the sp0t....
-Oliver has his own language. Ollieglish. I know all toddlers do, but man, he can talk up a STORM. I have some pretty funny video that I'll try to upload tonight. (Imagine that...Oliver being talkative? Who would have known with two such QUIET, NON TALKING parents)
-Starting to like coloring and art projects. I can't wait until school is out! I bought him a big playdough set for his birthday, so we'll try that out tonight.
-Not sure how this worked out, but he is the easiest kid to get to nap and into bed. YES!
-Unfortunately, knows his favorite movies by name and will chant "CARS CARS CARS" when the song Life is a Highway comes on the radio.
-Knows and uses the word "funny". As in "Mama, when you fell it was sooooo FUN-EE!" or "Chasing Loki and Maui until I am almost puking with laughter is FUN-EE!"
-Speaking of the cats. Loki loves Ollie. Maui...not so much. He runs the second Oliver is in his vicinity.
-Best part for Dada and I right now? Oliver says "I wuv ooooo" and totally means it. He is really great at giving "huuugs" and "keeeses". He'll pucker up for anyone. I'm not kidding. When we were in Bozeman in January one of Shawn's cousin Kolby's friends babysat for us. Within literally 5 minutes of her showing up and sitting next to him on the bed he had laid one on her. We are SOOOO in trouble when he's in school!

Since I'm at school (no kids! camp! report cards done!) and I don't really have access to my photos, I'll be sure and post some recent ones this evening. I really promise. I swear I do!

PICTURES PLEEEEAAASSE!

Hello fellow partygoers! If you were at Oliver's birthday party Saturday, AKA overstimulating kidfest, and took pictures, would you mind sending some my way? Our camera battery died! ARRRG! In hindsight though, it was probably a good thing. I got to spend a lot of quality time holding his hand, trying to get him out of his shell, trying to get him to leave my side and go play, just good quality mom and son bonding time....NOT!

Seriously, I don't think I've ever seen him soooooo wound up!!!! LOL!! Did anyone get any picture of him that wasn't blurred? :-)

Sad, sad world out there

Ok, this will be quick. I really love me a good mama blog. Seriously. MckMama and Ree Drummond (AKA The Pioneer Woman) write funny, honest, and thought provoking blogs. I love that both of them try to give back to the blog community to show their appreciation.

That said, there are some sick, sick people out there who prey on people's good hearts and emotions. A blog I had been reading recently, but didn't link to because something just felt "off", did in fact turn out to be a fake. Sad. A person apparently lied about being pregnant with a terminally ill baby and sucked a lot of people (and money if you count the 2 cents per hit her blog got) in with her story.

Why mention this? One word. CAUTION. The internet is NOT all true! (duh). As I think about my little man and the access to technology and the world that he will have compared to when Shawn and I were growing up, I am scared to think of what he could be exposed to.

By the way, I'm real. Shawn is real. Oliver, all 33 pounds of him, is real. Really real. Like, no nap yesterday real. Poor Dada! He got Oliver duty while I was out sweating it up with my girlfriend at step class. Sorry, had to get an Oliver story in there!