A weekend away and some random stuff.

We went to Carpinteria this weekend, my wee family of five.  I drove on up with the baby Friday morning, and Chris and The Bigs came up on the train a bit later.  Carpinteria is a quaint beach town just south of Santa Barbara.  It's quiet, quirky and small and chock full of neat antique stores and other hidden treasures.  My grandparents have a tiny little condo a block from the beach and it's such a treat for us to get away for a spell for just the price of gas or train tickets.  The train stops just two blocks from the condo, and just about everything else is within walking distance, including a Starbucks.

This was Makena's first real experience with the beach and Miss Priss wasn't too thrilled with the whole sand and big, scary ocean thing.  Within forty-five minutes she was huddled under a towel, ready for a nap, begging to go back to the house.  Aidan, on the other hand, would easily spend all day at water's edge, gleefully shoveling wet sand and torturing sand crabs.  He looked so cute in a pair of Makena's sunglasses.  He loved standing in one spot and watching his feet disappear a bit more with each little wave.  Water is definitely his element.  And Nadia, our big seven-month-old girl with her first tooth coming in, was content to take it all in from the safety of the backpack, securely strapped to daddy's strong and capable back.

We also got to spend some time with my Uncle Chuck and his lovely lady Leslie.  We had a sushi dinner with them on Friday and then they cooked us pancakes and bacon this morning for breakfast.  Yum.  Chuck and Leslie have been living up there for about a year and they really seem to have found their happy place, happy together.  I'm happy for them.

Now, getting up there - the packing of the car, the four-hour drive up from San Diego, the potty breaks and bottle breaks and all - is really no big deal.  The whole weekend is still to come and the adventure is just beginning.  But come Sunday morning, after really only one whole day of fun, it's time to pack it all up, clean up and wash linens, and then the drive home looms before us like dark thunderheads - ominous, foreboding, gloomy.  It's the same drive as the one that got me there, but the trip home is always longer and harder.  The trip home is always the hardest part of vacations, isn't it?  All in all, our drive home was not too bad - light-ish traffic here and there and lovely, clear weather - but it's really a better idea to make a longer weekend of it next time.  Duly noted.

 

And now for the random stuff.

I love my Tonic scissors.  They cut like nothing else I've ever used.  If I wasn't in danger of losing a lip, I'd kiss them.

I love my Epson R1800 printer.  It's big but it's beautiful and prints really big, really fine, really beautiful photos.  Yeah, baby.  I also have an Epson Perfection scanner which I love also.  My particular model has been superceeded but it works beautifully.  Great products!

I've joined Weight Watchers.  Having a rough start but excited about the process.  Not sure how much of my progress I'll be sharing here, just in case I fail in losing any weight, which is exactly what has happened the last few times I tried to diet.  So, if you don't mind, wish me luck.  I'm needing it.

Black pen lines, stamps by Fontwerks, and these little letter stickers (which I'm finding very hard to find) have become staples of my scrapping lately.  I'm also loving American Crafts' a la carte paper line and My Mind's Eye buttons from their Tres Jolie line.  The buttons come in cute little jars and they're called "French Kisses."  Totally adorable.

I use Photoshop CS2 to edit my photos.  I use levels and curves to adjust the lights, darks and colors in my photos, and I use the Gradient Map for converting to black-and-white.  I also have itty bitty actions which I use here and there. 

My next lens purchase will either be a 17-40mm or a 15mm 2.8 fisheye.  (Honey, in case you're reading this, pretend you didn't and then take a deep breath.  Really.)

Now is the time to book your holiday photo session.  We will be traveling out of the country in December and the last weekend available for sessions is November 17th.  Send me an email to get on my calendar.

So, that's it, my friends.  Enjoy.

Comments

[Tami]

Hey,
I just started a diet, too! My neice's wedding is in about 8 weeks and I would like to be about 6 to 8 lbs lighter by then. Ok, really I would like to be 20 lbs lighter by then, but I doubt there is a wish fairy listening right now. So, I'll settle for 6 to 8. :0)

So, here you go...I wish you all the best in your weight loss adventure.

Great pictures!

[Cheryl]

Looks like you had a lovely time! :)
WW rocks! I lost about 15 lbs on it last year just following it and reporting my daily points to a friend by email. We didn't do the meetings (or pay to join lol!) but it really worked having the accountability! Sadly, I need to get back on the bandwagon because a few of those lbs suck back onto my butt when I wasn't looking. Good luck!

Thanks for your little product list!

[Cheryl]

Looks like you had a lovely time! :)
WW rocks! I lost about 15 lbs on it last year just following it and reporting my daily points to a friend by email. We didn't do the meetings (or pay to join lol!) but it really worked having the accountability! Sadly, I need to get back on the bandwagon because a few of those lbs snuck back onto my butt when I wasn't looking. Good luck!

Thanks for your little product list!

[ryan]

isn't photoshop cs2 great. my school newspaper uses it on everything(we take like 500 pics for every possible event). curves and levels def. work out great. variations is another really good tool i use.

read my blog!!
~~ryan