Incredible & Edible

My favorite food is an egg. Boiled, scrambled, poached, baked or fried it doesn't matter - I love eggs. LOVE eggs. (My second favorite food is an avocado, but that's another post.)
I am always looking for new ideas and recipes that use eggs. I especially love eggs and toast, but in my opinion, if you're gonna eat toast with eggs, the yolk HAS to be runny. It just has to. So, yesterday afternoon I was watching all of the "Mad Hungry" episodes I had recorded this past week. I never get the chance to watch them during the week, so as soon as I can wrestle the remote from my 6 year-old's sticky little hands and turn off Spongebob... I finally get some quality time with my DVR.
Now, I record a ton of cooking and food shows, but I have to say my new favorite is "Mad Hungry" with Lucinda Scala Quinn. It comes on right after Martha Stewart on the Hallmark Channel, and I think what I love most about LSQ (that's what I call her) is that she makes "real" food - stuff I would actually cook myself. And she uses 3, maybe 4 utensils in the kitchen - one of which is a cast iron skillet (which I had to run out and buy once I started watching her show). She also uses this simple little wooden-spatula hybrid thingy and a Le Creuset pot. I am fairly certain that with these 3 things, you could cook anything. Seriously.
One of the Mad Hungry shows last week had to do with foods/recipes for those feeling under the weather or for when you or your family just need a little comforting. She made this ahhh-mazing chicken broth recipe you can turn into Tortilla Soup, but that, too, is another post. One of the dishes she made was nothing more than buttered, toasted bread with a 4-minute egg over it. That's it. So this morning when I walked into the kitchen I saw we had maybe 5 slices of bread left and I knew we had eggs, so I thought, eh - why not try it. It was wonderful. It was simple and filling and perfect. The plus side... we didn't spend money on sub-par fast food. I love that such a simple, average egg-on-toast breakfast can make you feel good about taking the time to make something for your family. I highly recommend checking out the "Mad Hungry" show on Hallmark and taking a look at the awesome blog here: http://blog.madhungry.com/

4-Minute Eggs over Buttered Toast
(Oh yeah, and Sriracha sauce.. 'cause it's awesome.)

A little side note on my photos.... the camera on my Blackberry is crappy. But I'm lazy and use my phone instead of dragging out the Canon and downloading photos. Plus I was hungry and couldn't wait.

"Best Thing in the Whole World" Pumpkin Pancakes

HELLO EVERYONE IN BLOGLAND! Or Blogville. Or, whatever you call this place....
It's been a looooong time since I've posted anything, but I have been having some fabulous kitchen adventures lately and I really wanted to brag about my mad culinary skills. So, naturally I decided to revisit my little blog here. Plus, I noticed that I still get an insane amount of traffic to my blog, even though I haven't posted anything in oh, I guess about 10 months. HOLY COW! It's been 10 months since I posted anything? Wow...
Anyhoo, here I am. There's nothing really new to report, well except that Ben is almost done with Kindergarten (Oh. My. Gawd.), I went full-time at my job in December, and, um, I guess that's about it.
After sleeping late this morning and spending the early afternoon mindlessly browsing the internet, I finally thought of what to do with that can of Libby's Pumpkin Puree that's been staring me in the face every time I open the pantry door. I decided to make Pumpkin Pancakes. While I was making them, I knew all I had in the pantry was regular pancake syrup of the Aunt Jemima variety, so I thought I would just make some homemade whipped cream, to keep with the "pumpkin pie" theme I had going. They turned out DIVINE, and the hubbs moaned the whole time he ate them. Ben declared them the best thing he has ever eaten. Which would sound like a big deal, but he actually declares everything I make "the best thing in the whole world" - don't get me wrong, I love that he loves my cooking, but he actually once announced that the Nutella I spread on Ritz crackers was "the best thing in the whole world." So, you see my point, right?
So, if you are faced with a can of pumpkin puree in your pantry and would love to make some of these "Best Thing in the Whole World Pumpkin Pancakes", here is my recipe. Since I don't really write recipes, it might not be exact, but cooking is an adventure - taste as you go, make adjustments when you need to and be confident in your final product. Trust me.

BEST THING IN THE WHOLE WORLD PUMPKIN PANCAKES
1 1/4 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (this is where you should taste - I like a lot of this, you may not)
1 cup milk
6 tbsp pumpkin puree
2 tbsp melted butter
1 egg

Combine all your dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk together. Taste the flour mixture to make sure the pumpkin pie flavoring is how you like it. Next, combine all of your wet ingredients. Make sure your melted butter has cooled enough that it won't "cook" your egg when you combine them. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. You want the mixture lumpy.
Lightly grease a skillet over medium-high heat and pour just under 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake. Flip when small bubbles form on the top of the batter. Once you take them off the skillet, put a very small pat of butter on each pancake.
Now for the whipped cream... I used about 1 cup of heavy whipping cream, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tspn very good vanilla extract and pumpkin pie spice to taste (start with a little, taste as you go). I used my electric mixer until the cream was fairly thick, but not butter. But almost butter - you see, I was putting this on pancakes and I knew it would melt a little, so I wanted it thicker than regular whipped cream. It was a good idea to make it thicker - since we ended up spooning the whipped cream onto each pancake and rolling it up to eat it. Hee hee....

Flip Side...

I'm going to take a little break from the whole blogging thing for a while. I have some other fires in my oven and to be honest, blogging hasn't really been anything I've wanted to do lately. I'll be back.... probably sooner than I think.
Take care peeps... and I'll see ya on the flip side. ;)

The Incredible Shrinking Ben....

My son is shrinking.

Facebook, Twitter and Blog.... Something's Got To Give!

I spend an enormous amount of time online. Actually, it's more like an absurd amount of time. Okay, I spend an enormously absurd amount of time online. And I've got dreams, you know? Ambitions. Goals.
So, here's what I'm thinking... maybe all of you who come to this blog might consider becoming my buddy on Facebook? Or maybe following me on Twitter? Or, wow, I don't want to sound crazy, but maybe even both?!?!
You see, I update my Facebook and Twitter accounts several times a day, but this blog is a lot more work and takes a ton more energy for me to keep current.
I wish there was some app or program that would update all three of my "time sucks" (those being Facebook, Twitter and Blogger) all at the same time. Does that exist? If so, let me know. It would change my life!
I am going to try to post some of my mobile uploads on my blog. Let's face it, I come across some funny shiz out there on my fabulous adventures, and I want to keep y'all up to date.
So, let's see how this works...




Here's a link to my Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/melmel

And, here's a ink to my Twitter page:
http://twitter.com/marshmelanie

Busy.... Definitely NOT Lazy!

Seriously. I have been crazy busy, that's why I have neglected my blog. No really, it's not at all because I'm lazy...

So, here's the excuse - April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and since I spend 'part-time' hours away from home working for a Child Advocacy Center, well, it means I was pretty much preoccupied the entire month. But rest assured my schedule has calmed down and I am feeling a bit more bloggy these days. Let's see..... what have we done....

Well, there was Easter. We spent it with my parents. It was nice, but the weather sucked. We did start a new tradition though.... we hide Easter Eggs in the dark and let Ben find them with a flashlight. Sounds fun, right? And no, it had nothing to do with us waiting so late on Easter to hide the eggs (or actually almost forgetting about the eggs altogether). Here is a photo of Ben's Easter basket:

Easter Basket

We went to Galveston again last weekend to take my hubby-the-artist's works to a new gallery. Blossom Street Gallery on the Strand. So, check it out if you make it to Galveston in the next month.

We got our mailbox fixed after a good-for-nothing-drunk mowed it over playing chase with other cars at 5:00 in the morning a month ago. The new mailbox actually looks better than the old one. That's awesome. We take our car in on Monday to get it repaired. I am curious what type of rental car we will get. For some reason I love getting rental cars.... it's like a mobile motel room. Kind of exciting. It's like a little adventure. And yes, I realize how pathetic that sounds.

Fabulous new mailbox

After they repaired our mailbox, we decided to do a little landscaping around Casa Loca. Yes, we recently named our house. Hey, if rich people can do it (one of Martha's houses is named "Skylands" for craps sake), then poor folk should have the same fun, yo. And we thought 'Casa Loca' was apropos. It's amazing what a few nice plants can do for your home. It turned out even better than I thought it would. I opted not to buy anything with flowers. I kill anything that blooms. It's a sad fact of life for me.

I always wanted some of these spiraly shrub thingys

This helps hide the fugly water meter thingy

Ahhh... greenery.

So, that is what's been going on around here. How have you guys been? Oh, and I thought I would leave you with a photo of the absolutely cutest boy ever....

See? Pretty cute, right?

Fabulously Busy!

It's been quite a long and busy week here in my fabulous world. Today is actually the first day that I haven't had something I just absolutely *must* get done. Well, except for house work. But if you could see my house, you would realize it's obviously not a priority with me right now. Oh well.... whatevah.

My work has been insane these past few weeks, but I think it should start to settle down now. At least I hope so anyway - I need to get some projects done around this house.

Oh, here's a little interesting turn of events... around 5:15 on Friday morning, some drunk loser plowed through our stone mailbox, our neighbors' stone mailbox and another neighbor's parked car while going around 70 miles per hour. It totaled the parked car, and sent 20 and 30 pound stones flying into our SUV and our neighbor's SUV. So, there's a whole lot of damage and a whole lot of drama to deal with now... yippee.

I hope all of you are doing well and enjoying your springtime... I'll be back soon.

Take care!

Our poor mailbox... R.I.P.

Want a Cool Blog Layout? I've Got Connections...

Have I mentioned how much I love the ladies over at Smitten Blog Designs? Well, I do. And not just because they designed this fabulous blog for me. Not only are Kate and Heather uber-friendly, they are also incredibly talented. And when I was working on establishing a blog for my work, they designed the cutest header for our agency, and made me look GREAT to my Director and Board. Thanks, ladies!
So, check 'em out.... and tell them Mel sent ya.

http://smittenblogdesigns.blogspot.com

Getcha-Getcha Grill On

We have had some ah-mazing weather here the past several days, and my hubby-the-artist decided to dust off the grill and cook up some steaks. He was "inspired" by a steak grilling competition that was on Food Network last week. So, we went to our local butcher shop and picked up some Porterhouse steaks and ground meat.
Instead of our usual loaded baked potato we normally pair with steaks, I decided to try and make my Mom's potato salad. You see, my Mom makes the best potato salad on the planet. I'm serious. It is the potato salad to which I compare all others. The pinnacle of potato salads. A potato salad so absolute, that I have never even attempted to recreate it. Until Saturday. I looked all over the internet for a recipe, and I could not find one that even came close to my Mom's. So, I winged it. I cooked my potatoes, boiled my eggs, crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. And you know what? I did it. I actually made my Mom's potato salad. It was incredible. It was fabulous. And I did not get even ONE photo of it! Oh well.
Sunday we had hamburgers off the grill. Oh y'all, my husband's hamburgers are tha shiz! Better than any take-out or fast food. I LOVE his burgers!
They were so good, we decided to have them again tonight. But with a twist. We added crispy bacon and a fried egg. OMG!!! I also made sweet potato fries. Words cannot describe this meal. The awesomeness of this burger defies the limits of the English language. Yeah y'all, it was really, really good.

mmmmmmmmmm.... egg and bacon on a burger!

Cheap + Easy + Pasta = Yummy Dinner

mmmmmm.... pasta!

Oh y'all..... I made the best tasty-cheap meal tonight. Aside from being really inexpensive, it's also super easy. I get these regular emails from Everyday Food from my favorite lady, Martha Stewart. I usually skim over the recipe, check out the photo, and if it doesn't 'wow' me I just delete it. But I got this recipe in my inbox yesterday and I looked at the photo and thought it would be something Mr. Ben would like, and since it was pasta I knew my hubby-the-artist would like it, too. So, I figured what the hell... let's try it.
I did make two little changes to the actual recipe. The shallots at the grocery store were $1.99 and well, I'm not paying that much money for a snobby onion. So, I just picked up a small yellow onion instead. Also, I used boxed angel hair pasta, not fresh. Other than that, I followed the recipe exactly. It turned out SO GOOD Y'ALL!!! I picked up a loaf of French bread from the store, which was only $1, and I can get two meals out of it. So we only ate 50 cents worth of bread with the meal. Awesome, right?
Oh, and for those of you that know me, you know I hate peas. But my son and hubby-the-artist love peas, so I added them. And I actually did eat a few. But to be honest, there were several peas left in the bottom of my bowl. Whatever...
Check out the photo of my pasta (above) compared to the photo from Martha.... not bad, huh?
Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

Serves 4 to 6

• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 4 slices bacon, sliced crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 shallots, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 box (10 ounces) frozen peas, thawed
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 18 ounces fresh angel-hair pasta

Directions

1. Set a large pot of salted water to boil. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain (leave fat in skillet).
2. Add shallots to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 1 to 2 minutes. Add peas and half-and-half; season with salt and pepper. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
3. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente, according to package instructions. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta, and return to pot. Pour sauce over pasta; toss to combine, adding some reserved pasta water a little at a time to coat. Sprinkle with bacon, and serve immediately.

Photo and Recipe From EveryDay Food, March 2008
Check out this recipe online at MarthaStewart.com.

Life's a Beach

Big Shrimp outside Gaido's Restaurant

This past Saturday, my hubby-the-artist had a showing at PeckArts Gallery in Galveston. We decided to make it a family affair and stay Saturday night at a hotel on the seawall. Ben had not experienced a beach yet, and since he loves sand and water, I was pretty sure he would enjoy it. And boy, did he ever! We actually had to drag him from the beach kicking and screaming. After the beach, we had a fantastic seafood lunch at Gaido's. It was great. We plan to go back and spend more time in Galveston.
Here's the thing with Galveston... back on September 13th, 2008, Hurricane Ike hit the island with a vengeance and pretty much devastated the area. Ike was the third costliest hurricane to ever make landfall in the United States. Historic landmarks like the Balinese Room, a night club where famous crooners such as Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. once played, was swept out to sea along with other popular spots such as Murdoch's and the 61st Street Pier. When you drive around the island, you can still see quite a bit of damage from the storm. There are homes and businesses that look like they have been literally bombed, and the creepy, skeletal remains of the famous Flagship Hotel (which sits on a pier over the water) are haunting. But Galveston is making a comeback. And I have to say that the people are super friendly and the atmosphere has a quirky, laid back feel that reminds you a bit of New Orleans and Austin combined. Did you know that Galveston had the first post office, the first naval base, the first cotton compress, the first insurance company, the first gas lights, the first opera house, the first orphanage, the first telephone and the first electric lights in the state of Texas? Seriously. (I lifted that info from Wikipedia... just wanna give props where they're due.) So, if you get the chance you really should check out Galveston. Oh, and stop by the gallery and take a peek at my hubby's paintings.




Here's a video I made from our day on the beach. I apologize for the poor quality, I tried to upload the original version to Blogger, but it was three times the size limit, so I had to adjust the quality. I also apologize for what some might consider cheese ball video music. I just thought it needed some tunes, and well, I was feeling nostalgic. Deal with it. *wink*

It Helped ME Make a Great Meal!

My family and I are addicted to fast food and take out. Seriously addicted. Up until two weeks ago, it was not uncommon for us to eat fast food every day for lunch and grab take out for dinner every night. It was absurd. Stupid. Asinine. It was destroying our health and not to mention our bank account. But it was just so easy, and I didn't have to clean up or do dishes, and the food was good and.... I had a million excuses/reasons as to why I thought it was okay to feed my family expensive junk every day. But two weeks ago, that all changed.
My problem is that I watch a ton of Food Network and read way too many cooking magazines. Somehow, along the way, I got the idea in my head that mealtime at home meant I had to bust my ass in the kitchen for a couple of hours and create fabulous feats of homemade cuisine that wowed my family and friends. Truth is, I don't have that kind of energy most days. I also noticed that I was spending about as much at the grocery store buying all the ingredients I needed for one meal as I was on take-out, which was defeating the purpose of cooking at home. That's when I finally realized.... not every meal has to be photo and blog-worthy. Not every meal has to be something I spend hours preparing. The point is to cook at home and eat at the table as a family and be more responsible with money. That's when I met my friend, Mr. Hamburger Helper. One pound of meat and couple cups of hot water and you've got yourself a meal, people! It's SO EASY and guess what? It's actually really good. It's not haute cuisine, but it's dinner. And it's cheap. And I'm okay with that. We have almost instantly noticed a difference in our bank account, too. So, dinner at home.... it's one of those baby steps I was talking about in my previous post. But it's working....
Oh, and hey, you see that package of Bisquick Complete Cheese-Garlic Biscuits in the photo at the top? That package of mix was 24 cents! 24 CENTS PEOPLE!!! And all you do is add some water! OY!!


I'll post other recipes I find that are quick and cheap, too. I've also got some great money saving tips for house cleaning coming your way. It's all about sharing the money-saving love, y'all....

Tweet Tweet!

Are you on Twitter? If you are, do you follow me? You really should consider following me... some of my best material comes to me in 140 characters or less.

http://twitter.com/marshmelanie

Let's Shake This Up a Bit, Y'all...

You know, I've been mulling it over for a while, and I think I might just change the direction of this here blog of mine. I still want to post family updates and photos and all that groovy stuff, but I am wanting to change the focus a bit. You see, I'm really working on making some changes in my life and I just feel that maybe my blog should reflect these improvements I'm working so hard to accomplish. They are baby steps, but each one I take gets me that much further along in my journey. So, I guess this post begins my quasi road trip to a better me.... and yes, I realize how absurd that sounds. But hey, it could be fun. Or a complete train wreck... stick around and find out which one.
Oh, and one more thing... for those of you that know me personally, and I mean *really* know me, you know that I sport a bit of a potty mouth. I have really tried to keep my obscenities out of my blog in respect for those readers (and family) who would have been offended by such vulgarity, but let's face it, the "shit's" and "damn's" and "bitches" are staples of my vocabulary. They are part of my feminine charm. So, I'm warning you now, they will find their way into some of my upcoming posts. And yes, working on my "colorful" language is going to be one of those "baby steps" I take in the future, but for now, hang in there and forgive me.
So, the first post of my new blog "season" is on its way. And here's a teaser for ya.... it has to do with my really shitty money management issues and my being too damn lazy to cook at home more than once a week. That's right folks... I am tackling my family's take-out and fast food addiction. Riveting blog matter, right? Oh yeah.... this is gonna be a blast.

:: Well, Hello Everyone! ::

Hey there! Did ya miss me?
I apologize for my absence, but rest assured I am back on a regular blogging schedule.
I am working on a slide show of all of our photos from the holidays, not to mention all the goodies from Halloween, our trip to the State Fair and Benjamin's 5th birthday party. Wow, I really have been gone for a while, huh?
For now, I will leave you with a few photos of Benjamin from this past fall.
Talk to you all soon!

Ben eating a corn dog at the State Fair of Texas. October 2009.

Ben on the motorcycle ride at the State Fair of Texas. October 2009.

Checking out his spider ring at Covington's Fall Festival in Rowlett, Texas. October 2009.

:: New Year, New Blog Resolution ::

Oh, my poor abandoned blog... I promise I haven't forgotten about you. Things have just been insanely crazazy around here these past few months, and to be honest, my blog was the last thing on my mind. I am gearing up for a fun-filled New Year's holiday with my family, but I will return to my blog the first week of January. Promise. No, really, I promise. I am making a resolution to post at least three times a month. I know it doesn't sound like that much of a commitment, but trust me, with my schedule, it definitely is. Plus, if I end up posting more than three times a month, I will feel like I have really accomplished something.
So, to all my blog buddies out there in cyberland, I hope you have a wonderful, fun, safe and memorable New Year's holiday. See ya in 2010!

:: Oh, I Forgot I Had a Blog... ::

Well, not really. I have been meaning to update this thing for weeks now, but I just keep getting sidetracked. I have some great excuses though. Here they are...
1. We were out of town the weeks before Halloween
2. We had family in town for Halloween weekend
3. Ben had a birthday and a birthday party
4. Oh yeah, I have a job now....

So, I am working on blog posts for all the crazy fun stuff that's been going on around here. So, check back soon, okay?

:: Halloween Countdown Begins ::

Did you know there are only 26 days left until Halloween? I know... I can't believe it either!


Ben had originally wanted to be a Whoopie Cushion for Halloween. I found a costume online, but it was really pretty cheesy, and not worth the money. So, this morning I talked to Ben about being a Vampire instead. He was wanting to wear Vampire teeth with his Whoopie Cushion costume anyway, so I thought maybe he would be open to the idea of just being a Vampire, sans Whoopie Cushion. And to my surprise, he was excited about being a Vampire. I mentioned fake blood and a cape, and I am pretty sure that helped make up his mind. Jason and I normally have costumes that match Ben's, so this year we are going to sport some Vampire bites.... sounds fun!

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Halloween?

:: Oops... I Just Stepped in Some Art! ::

Last night was 'Art Step' in Downtown Bryan. I don't actually know why it's called 'Art Step', since most other cities call the same type of event an 'Art Walk'. Art Walk sounds better to me than Art Step. But hey, what's in a name, right?
My husband has some of his original works hanging in a cafe/gallery for the month of October. Since last night was also his opening, the three of us went to check out the night life and have some fun.
I love walking around downtown. My parents grew up in Bryan and I love seeing all the places they would visit when they were young. There has been a huge downtown revitalization movement, and there are new businesses and attractions that make the area a lot of fun. There's the Carnegie Library my mother and aunt went to when they were kids, the Queen Theater where my parents would go to see movies, and old bank buildings and pharmacies my mom remembers visiting when she was young. I think that's why I like living here. I grew up in San Angelo, where my parents relocated when my dad was working for GTE. Before that we lived in Dallas, so it means a lot to me to be in the community where my parents lived when they were kids, went to school, met and married. Not to mention I still have a ton of family in the area. Here are some photos from last night:

My hubby took this photo. It's one of the buildings that has been remodeled
and now is home to a restaurant and some cool apartment flats.

Busy street corner in downtown.

Some ladies spinning thread. On the other side of them was a
woman working on a weaving loom. It was fascinating to watch.

My hubby's works. Lots of happy fish...

More colorful fishies...

Ben hanging out in front of some of my hubby's abstracts.

The downtown area is beautiful at night.

The Palace Theater. My parents saw 'Rosemary's Baby' here when it was first released. Several years ago, the exterior walls collapsed, so they added a huge outdoor awning and kept it as a theater. My hubby had an art show on the stage during 'Art Step' last year.

My hubby took this. Another remodeled building and an incredible moon.

Just a nice inspirational song playing on the radio on our way home.
We had a great evening.

If you want to check out more of my hubby's works, then take a peek at his website: www.ipaintfish.com.

I hope all of you are enjoying your weekend!

:: Photography ::

About a year ago, we bought this awesome camera and I just knew I was going to hone my photo-taking skills and turn into this incredible photographer and hang my works in galleries. Okay, so I'm kidding about the gallery part, but I really did think it would be easy to pick up photography. Yeah, I was wrong. VERY wrong.
Here's the thing... I love taking photos of my family. I love capturing natural, real images of the people I love. I have never liked those "studio pictures" where the family sits all nice and still and posed for the camera and then it gets all airbrushed and they add those weird blurry edges. Bleh. Just not my thing. It's not real. It just doesn't seem honest. Plus, it's expensive. So, you will never see family portraits on the walls of my home. Instead, we have framed pictures of candid moments throughout our lives. Real places. Real moments. Tons of memories.
I am also not a big fan of editing my photos. I don't crop or sharpen... I like the photos the way they are. The moment was special enough for me to want to document it, so I don't want to change it.
Thanks to advancements in camera technology, the playing field has really been leveled when it comes to photography. Tricks and techniques that were once available to only professional photographers and studios are now at the hands of every day people. People like me. But here's the deal... taking photos is one thing, but having the eye and skill to see a real opportunity and capture it in the perfect moment takes true talent. I have two friends, one a professional photographer and the other a new stay-at-home-mom, and they both take the most beautiful, inspiring photographs. I can't describe it really, but if you could see their photos, you would know what I mean. They have talent. Amazing, real talent.
I subscribe to a few newsletters from online photography groups that send weekly tips and ideas to my inbox, and I love them. I have learned a lot. So, this weekend, maybe Saturday, I am going to drag my incredible family around our neighborhood and cities and practice taking photos. I have been wanting to do this for a while, but the weather and our busy schedules kept getting in the way. But this weekend should be perfect.

I took this photo last year at the State Fair. October 2008.

I took this photo at the famous Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, NY.
It was actually included in an online travel guide for Buffalo, NY. August 2008.

This was also taken at Forest Lawn. We spent hours there.
It is huge and beautiful and I can't wait to visit again. August 2008.

Forest Lawn Cemetery. August 2008.

I took this at the Dallas Arboretum this past spring. March 2009.