So I’m pretty camera illiterate. I never learned it with film cameras, and most digital cameras that are point and shoot make it hard to do anything but. So when I got my nifty little SLR camera, I had a lot of learning to do. Finally, FINALLY, I feel like I’m getting somewhere. I’d pick up tips here and there that would make my pictures a lot better (thanks, Erin) but I never quite put it altogether which was due to total ignorance on my part.

So there’s this photography thread on my birth board (that I love, have I mentioned how much I love the May 07 mommas?) and for whatever reason, it made sense to me. It helps that she wrote it for both Nikon and Canon users (I’m Nikon).

Here’s the link if anyone’s interested…

And here’s my latest photo…

It’s not perfect, but the lighting is right and it’s in focus, and I was having trouble with both of those…

OK, I suck at blogging. Sorry. I’ve admitted it now so I’m ready to move past it

Do you all mind if I just post random stuff? I think that’s what keeps me from posting most days, it’s just a little too random. If you’ll forgive my shabby picture cropping, and random thought process, hopefully I can keep this thing updated a bit more…

I’m trying to get better with my camera. Two Peas has a photography tutorial (12 weeks to better photos) and I’m working on it. I also have a thread on my birth board that’s helping too. In the meantime, Dash and I have been having some fun. I was out sick yesterday, but not sick enough to take advantage of the afternoon sun.

Yes, that’s my son. My baby. Standing. Sigh.

Still, the spikey hair…

Sweet baby face

I introduced Dash to a spoon and a pot the other day and he was quite happy with the spoon.

Mohawk bathtime.

Sorry they’re huge, it’s part of my randomness. If I made them the right size I wouldn’t post them. I swear I’m going to do better.

Weight loss update… still sucking! We as a family are doing better though. We’re excercising more and eating better and as soon as Dash claims his independence hopefully it will all melt away.

So when I’m dieting I try not to eat flour and processed carbs. I still eat fruits and veggies, just not bread and sugary sweets. So last night I was looking for a stuffed chicken recipe, because I thought it would be on my diet, and I stumbled across this fantastic recipe.

You just mix up the marinade, stuff you may very well already have in your kitchen, coat the chicken with it, and stuff it. I used crumbled feta and real bacon bits and just mixed them together. It seriously took me 10 minutes to throw together and like 30 minutes to bake. I served it with mashed potatoes and green beans and it was wonderful. If I ever have a dinner party, this is what we’re having.

OK, so I was really coming on here to tell you about one thing specifically and then realized it was 10 on Tuesday time. Let’s see if I can come up with 10 things.

1. Two Peas in a Bucket is doing a 12 week photography class if anyone’s interested. This week’s lesson is on aperture, and I learned quite a bit. It just started this Monday. Here’s the link to the message board, so you can find them each week. It’s the 10th-ish one on the list.

2. Our “Reduction Junction” started this week at work. So far day one and two have gone really well. I’ve gone to curves both days, and John has decided to excercise with me so we’re walking together at home.

3. Dash has started doing a hysterical version of crawling. He’ll be on his belly, straighten one leg so his butt’s up in the air, lean to the opposite side and then fling his arm toward whatever he’s trying to get to. John’s impression of this is even funnier. I’ll see if I can get it on video, it makes me laugh out loud when I think of it.

4. We’ve hit a sleeping snag. I think it’s because he insists on sleeping on his belly and then wakes up in the middle of the night and doesn’t roll back over. Instead, he peeks his little head over the pack and play edge and tries to find us.

5. Is there an age limit for sleeping in the pack and play?

6. You know what’s helping me the most at work on this diet? My lunch buddy is on it too. If she doesn’t want to go out then I don’t either. I’ve been eating Boston Market turkey and mashed potato dinners for lunch and they’re fabulous. (And healthy.)

7. Since I’ve been going to curves on my lunch break (so it won’t cut into my Sir Dashalot time) I’m trying to stay at work until 4:30 and it’s killing me.

8. They laid another guy off here at work again and it’s freaking me out. I think I’m safe because I do stuff that seriously no one else wants to do, but I feel like I’m on freaking Survivor. “Colleen, this week, you’re SAFE!”

9. My 10 year reunion is coming up and I’m dreading it because I’m a chunky monkey. Roz is putting it together so I’m going to go, chunk or no chunk. How can I lose 84 pounds in 5-7 months????

10. What else, let’s see. Since diet-mania has begun, gum and peanut butter are my two best friends. I do the no wheat no sugar diet, so I can have fruit and rice and stuff, just not pasta or bread which I don’t miss that much. So i’ve been eating an apple and peanut butter twice a day and I love it. I smear as much peanut butter as possible on a tiny chunk of an apple.

11. Bonus! I’m thinking of switching dentists and I have to call my old one and tell him and I’m dreading it. We’ve been going for 14 years or so. I told my Mom and she goes, why don’t you call the office after they’ve closed and ask to have your files transferred? Perfect idea, Mom… so I’m breaking up with my dentist on his answering machine tonite or tomorrow night

So a clarification on number 5…

We want our kids close and when we first talked about trying again, it was one of those things where I wanted the next one in spring of 2009, but not in May (Dash’s birthday), and not really in April (mine), so maybe March, and that would put us trying again in June. And that really, really freaked me out. So then I thought, well, if we tried in like October and had a July baby, that would be ok, but then I’d be really pregnant in the dead heat of summer. And that would suck. Either way, it’s probably going to happen sometime next year, and I feel like I was JUST pregnant, so I’m trying to come to grips with that

Sorry I’ve been MIA, I’ve been on vacation and I’m bad about getting on the computer when I’m not at work. Hope everyone’s had a lovely Christmas. And hope 2008 exceeds 2007 for you. Here’s my last 10 of the year…

1. We’re watching football for New Year’s Eve. Auburn’s playing Clemson.
2. This year has been filled with an insane amount of babies.
3. Dash is so close to crawling it’s painful for all involved.
4. I’m having a hard time letting go of 2007
5. I’m also having a hard time accepting another pregnancy is probably going to occur sometime in 2008.
6. This vacation has made me realize that I don’t want to work full-time anymore but that I must work part time. Baby wrangling is hard 24/7.
7. My favorite champagne in the world is Andre’s Pink Champagne. I love it and all of it’s $6.50 goodness. It used to be $3.50 and I still loved it.
8. I’m having a hard time thinking up the rest of these
9. I cut my hair the other day and I like it. It’s short, but it’s cute.
10. Wait! I have pictures!

I’ll do better updating pictures, I promise. We have a bunch. We had a great Christmas and a great vacation. Dash is reaching for us now and it’s quite cute. Happy New Year’s, everyone…