Girlfriends

"...friendship is a slow, ripening fruit."  Aristotle

My girlfriends... we've been together for probably about 19 years?  We had two more in the beginning who dropped out of meeting with us for different reasons (although they are still dear friends!).  But these women are so much a part of me.  We've been through an incredible amount together and have always been there to support each other.  I know I'm so fortunate to have this group in my life.  I love them all!

They're another thing I'm so grateful for!  

10/365

I know it's not July yet

I know it's not July yet...so why do I have the July banner on the blog?

As many of you know, I'm getting ready to take off to New Zealand and Australia with 31 high school students...and we're teaming up with another group of 12....so, that's 43 high school students and 3 leaders.  As I'm trying to get the massive amounts of paperwork organized...plus my suitcase.... I thought I'd go ahead and put up the new banner....

Follow us on another blog:
http://p2ptravelers-ozandnz.blogspot.com

Playing at the park in the wind

 It's been extremely windy lately...so windy that it's knocking over plants.  Emerson didn't care.  We walked to the park a couple of different times and both times, his hair was blowing like crazy...as was mine! 

 He loved this ledge.  It goes around this rubber-chip area where some of the play equipment is. 

 He was proud of himself for balancing on it as he walked...

 "Look, Mimi!" 

 He was asking me .... asking multiple times ... for me to take a picture of him!  This is the first time he's ever asked me that. 

"Picture, Mimi," he said.

 After walking all around the perimeter, he ran over to the bench and climbed up...

 but didn't stay long....

He started running around...

 then hopped back up on the bench...

 "Picture, Mimi," he said. 

What a cutie!!!

 "Am I just a little bit cute?" he asked.

"No, Emerson...You're a WHOLE BUNCH cute!"

(This was not the true conversation!)

 Emerson was loving watching all the dogs...all the other kids running around.

 I tried to get him to go down the slide... but he said an emphatic, "NO!"

 When it was time to go, he stopped to check out the park one more time.

 I told him it was time to go back to Mimi's house.

"This way," he said.  (True!)

I told him no, we needed to go the other way. 

He thought about it a minute...

then grabbed my hand...

and off we went....

I love taking my little men to the park!

I love my little guy:)

Watermark on Eme

SOOC... This stands for Straight Out Of the Camera

Here is the edited version.  I lightened the photo.... then I enlarged his eyes ever so slightly...and brightened them slightly.  Then I added some texture to the background.

Not to leave well enough alone, I decided to add his name on the side.  I love his name...but I don't know that I like it on this photo.  You've seen other photos where I put the name...and I usually like it...just not too sure on this one.  I made it orange since he's wearing orange!

Today, I learned to make a watermark.  A watermark is what many professional photographers use so others can't copy their photographs.  I'm certainly not a professional photographer, and generally don't care if someone copies my pictures.  I wanted to try it though...to see how I liked it.... 

So here is my little Emerson... 4 versions of my little guy...absolutely adorable in every one!

Many faces of Emerson

Saturday, while my guy was edging and mowing, Emerson hung out on the front porch and watched.  He started hamming it up, telling me to take a picture, and just being cute...  I took so many photos with different expressions!

Enter PSE9 and my new toy of making grids for pics...and here we have 'the many faces of Emerson' or it should be 'some of the many'!

He loves to read books!

Emerson loves...absolutely loves to read books!

He'll ask to read the same one over and over and over again....

Here, he had his daddy reading Go, Dog, Go ... this was after his Mimi had read Go,Dog, Go more than once...

He likes to turn the pages...

"Big dog, little dog..."

After Go, Dog, Go, a Halloween book was next.  It makes no difference that it's June and not October. Emerson was making a ghost sound....Ooooooooooooooooo!

His daddy looked like he was losing interest in reading about Halloween for the 63rd time... but Emerson was still enjoying it! And so...we kept reading!

Emerson + PSE9 + a 3.5 hour nap

 An explanation of the formula:

Emerson came to visit for Father's Day...but his Mimi took more than her fair share of playing time!  The trusty d90 came along for some of the time...

 After he left about 4 p.m., I fell asleep ( I NEVER take naps!) and slept until 7:30 p.m.

Which means here it is at 1:45 a.m. and I'm just starting to get tired...just starting to feel like maybe I could go to sleep...

 Add PSE9 in with the mix...and I've just been having fun editing photos!

 Emerson and I went to the park...where he played...threw rubber chips...watched some kids slide but would NOT do it.  That's funny, because at Benjamin's birthday party, he went down the slide countless times.  I think this one was a bit too high...he climbed up, and then when he got to the top, he said, "No slide!" and turned around and came back down!

More to come:)

Emerson eating a banana

" Mimi, can I have this banana?" Emerson asked.

 "Of course you can!  Your Mimi is worried about you not eating!" 

 I was happy to see him eat.  Seriously, I don't know where he gets his energy.  This was banana #2 in 24 hours...  He loves his milk...and drinks plenty of it, but eating.... he just says 'No' whenever we try to give him something to eat. 

Emerson was creative in the way he ate his banana...but what you only see the beginnings of in this video...is him starting to choke...choking on that huge piece of banana!  I grabbed him, pulled it out, he cried...for a minute or two...and then all was well!

But...no more banana!