It's A Movie

This week my photography project group was assigned It's A Movie for our theme.  I'll admit, at first I may have thrown up a little in my mouth.  I'm not a big fan of images that I have to set up and create.
Look at what's going on around you and shoot like crazy is what I always say.

Surprisingly, I had an immediately fabulous idea for my movie picture.  I told Prince Charming we needed to fly to Nevada, rent a car and then drive really slowly out of town so I could photograph us Leaving Las Vegas.

He said no.

Fine.  Really, I told him, all I needed him to do was stand outside so I could take a picture of him.

"It's pouring down rain....and there's lightening!  Did you just see that!?"

"I know.  You can be Rain Man."

He said no.

So, I asked my son to put on his sister's cowboy boots and hat and be Urban Cowboy.

He said, "No.  That hat is pink."

I told him I would probably do the picture in black and white so no one would know anyway.

He said, "Nooooooooo-wah."

I asked my daughter, my go to model of choice, if she'd put on her 147 articles of pink clothing and look at me all gorgeous like and be Pretty In Pink.

She said, "And what do I get?"

I said no.

I thought about making a Manhattan so it could be....well...Manhattan.
But food photography makes me gag.
(as does a Manhattan)

I figured that I would be able to find something movie-ish at my kid's football game, so while we waited in the stands for kick-off I started looking around.  Prince Charming said that I should wait until the lights came on, then take a full field shot and it could be Friday Night Lights.
Which, I told him, was stupid was because it was Saturday and Friday Night Lights was a TV show.
He got all highfalutin' and stuff and said,

"It won't matter what day it is in the picture.  No one will know that....and it was a movie before it was a TV show."

Oh, okay.  Mr. Moviefone.

"What?"

Whatever.

I did find a few movie worthy shots:

Field of Dreams

The Shining

Face-Off

or alternatively, The Grid Iron Gang

(but this game is still pissing me off so I refuse to have anything more to do with it)

Twilight

Here's a few others that I've shot recently that would totally make it if I didn't always feel so guilty about going in and manually changing the date they were taken
(the project group moderator is sticky about dates and only submitting new work taken that week)
(expand yourself and grow as a photographer)
(blah blah blah):

Swingers

Splendor In The Grass

Along Came A Spider

(I used this one last week, though, and everyone wigged 'cause it was a spider)

In the end, I promised my daughter a triple scoop ice cream sundae and a full hour of Fancy Nancy if she would let me drape her in tulle and walk her across the street to stand in the trees so I could get my friggin' movie picture. 

Prince Charming took one look at it and said,

"Pfft....Kinda' obvious, isn't it?"

"Only if you know what it is."

"Ghost."

Dang, I hate it when he gets it right.

8 Things That Made This A Great Summer

Summer vacation is almost over.
(*sigh*)
It seems like just yesterday I was grousing and complaining about the gaggy ending to the school year and just wanted it to be over.
My children are helping me adjust to the upcoming school year by doing everything they can to make me wish it would hurry up and get here already so I can enjoy some peace and quiet around the place again.
They're cooperative like that.

To celebrate the end of what has easily been our best summer vacation in years I made a list of the 8 things that made this summer great:

1.  The Lake
This will officially go down as the summer my son discovered the lake.  And that swimming in the lake about rules all.  You can run and scream and horse around in ways that you just can't when Grandpa has set up patrol on the pool deck.

2.  The Back Deck
Many years ago, after much begging and pleading and promising to be his best friend, Prince Charming installed French Doors for me in our living room.  They always looked so glamorous and classy on Days Of Our Lives and I was desperate to throw them open and step out onto my flower filled veranda and marry the love of my life whom I had thought was dead but had really just had a face transplant and now looked like someone else and went by a totally different name.  This summer that dream was realized. 
Just the flower filled veranda part, though.
(the love of my life thing happened a long time ago)
So, if I had to write an essay entitled Where I Spent My Summer, it would be this:

3.  Avocado Salad
Chop together a bunch of avocados, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, red onion, cilantro, and garlic.
Toss with lime juice and olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
For a little extra punch, throw in some grilled shrimp.
(or some fresh jalapeno if you want to serve it to someone who says stuff like
"Yeah, no it's good....not too spicy though, is it?")
Enjoy for lunch on Sunday afternoon or for dinner on the sidelines at football practice.
Put it on fish tacos, scoop it up with tortilla chips, or eat it with your fingers while you sip margaritas
(if you're in to that kind of thing)
(which I am)
It's delicioso.
(Thank you to my sweet sister-in-law for posting it and inspiring my new favorite salad for the next forever.)

 

photo from Set Your Fat on Fire Fitness

4.  House of Cards, The Walking Dead, Scandal, Downton Abbey
Through a fluky click on my laptop, we ended up with Netflix streaming,
and now I speak to everyone with a slight British accent,
desperately want to go to Washington DC where all the nefarious people are,
and am terrified that at any moment an assemblage of zombies is going to silently appear out of nowhere and eat everyone I know.
It's awesome.

5.  The Island
Our 5th annual trip to visit friends who live on a small island on Puget Sound was one of the major highlights of our vacation months.  We did things and went places while we were there that we hadn't done before because the children were finally big enough for me not to have to follow them around and worry that they would fall off a rope swing and kill themselves.
Or get stuck in a tree, 3 feet above a slimy, shallow pond, that may
(or may not)
possibly have been filled with fish poop.

6.  S'mores
I love toasted marshmallows and I think I roasted more of them this summer than I have ever.
I love holding them over the hot coals and slowly turning the stick until the outside of the marshmallow gets all golden and crispy and melty.  Then I pull off the outer part that's done, eat it, and put the rest of it back over the heat.  Then I do that again until it's all gone.
Unless I'm in the mood to just set it on fire so that it gets all black and burned and flavorful in such a way that makes my toes curl.
Oooooooo.....decisions, decisions.

7.  The Princess Tea Party
Once upon a time Grandma discovered the Disney Store.
And the girlies played princess happily ever after.
And then they did it all over again when my niece came to visit, because what's a Princess Tea Party with Princess Jasmine?

8.  My Lensbaby
I fell in love with my Lensbaby this summer.  We hadn't really spoken in a couple of years.  It really wanted different things out of life, and I just wasn't prepared to go that way.  The last few months, though, really turned things around for us.  I don't know if it changed, or if I did, but we've reunited...and it feels so good.

I hope you had a great summer!

And I love ya'.

 

The Princess Tea Party

 
Three little girls 

Were invited for tea.

Their fairy grandmother 

Had planned it with glee.

  She made them all wait,

And close their eyes.

They came in holding hands,

And found such a surprise.

Crowns and glass slippers,

Wands and three dresses.

They spent the afternoon

Becoming princesses.

The make-up was out,

The curling irons hot,

The girls squealed with excitement

As they all found their spot.

 The girls helped themselves,

As their mothers stood by,

And only once,

Got glitter in their eye.

When the princesses were ready

They sat down to try

The tea Grandma made

With their pinkies held high.

They posed for some pictures

And tried on some shades

 

Cinderella and Merida,

And a red-head mermaid.

The 5th Annual Island Day Extravaganza

I've spent the past 34 hours recuperating from our 5th annual family visit to my parents' friends' house.
Or as we call it "The Island".

When we first started going there, my daughter was 3 years old and I had to follow her around the forest trails to make sure she didn't step on a rock or fall into the pond or climb something nature only intended for monkeys and tree frogs and stuff.

I've matured a lot in the last 5 years and I felt much more at liberty on this go around to simply park the car, unlock the doors and say
"Go.  Come back when you're hungry,"
as they flounced off into the forest.

After a while we headed down to the dock for a boat ride.  I had decided not to partake.
(once your watch your lens plummet like a rock into the deep, dark fathoms of a lake from whence it will never be recovered, boats lose all appeal)
(don't ask me how I know that)
And while my maturity level is certainly higher than it was five years ago, it's not so high that I didn't have to remind my son 143 times to buckle his life vest and stay seated and quiet while the boat was moving.

"Mom, I know.  Okay?  Just stop worrying."

"No, but, you're the oldest so you need to set a good example.  Sit down...and hang on to your sister, and stay quiet so Frank can concentrate on driving."

"O-kay."
(and then he glanced around extremely conspicuously to see if anyone was watching)
(or could hear us)
(evidently, it's embarrassing when your mother loves you so much that she doesn't want you to fall off a motor boat and die)

As they pulled away from the dock and let the motor rip, my son threw his hands up over his head and yelled something that sounded like,
"YYYYEEEEAAAAHHHOOOOOO.  I'M FREE!!!!!"
I may have misheard that, though.  I'm sure I did.
The motor was very loud.
 

Turns out, they weren't just tooling around the water.  They were actually going over to another smaller island to romp around on the sand cliffs for a while.  And while I secretly wanted to flop down on the dock and soak up the sun in silence, I kind of felt guilty that my brother was the only other adult over on Sand Cliff Island with all of the kids.
But, then I remembered that he's a middle school PE teacher and he could totally handle it.
Plus, he used to scream and yell and mess up tons of crap when he was little and it was totally annoying and payback's a bitch.

As I was searching around for a towel to ball up under my head as a pillow, the boat came back.
The presence of the other adults was being requested.
So, I zip-tied my camera around my neck and headed out for the Island of Caterwauling Children.

They were floating in the water

and running on the rocks and climbing up a really steep hill to fight over who got the next turn on the rope swing.  My brother dared me to try to climb up the hill.
I pointed out to him that I am 42 and 3/4 years old and I don't have to do dares anymore.
And I was wearing my new sparkle flip-flops with absolutely no traction whatsoever.

"Yeah, like that would help."
 (Punk)

But, I decided not to care and instead focused on the fact that my children were trying to run and jump into a sitting position on a stick that was tied to a rope that had been hanging there at least 67 years, which then swung them out 30 feet in the air over Sharp Shards Of Shell Beach.

I gently reminded my son about taking turns and not letting go of the rope and killing himself.
He glared at me and made a slashing motion across his throat while he mouthed the word Stop through clenched teeth.
He followed with a few other slicing hand movements across his body that I think meant
Just calm the hell down!

So, I released and gave up, which actually made for a very relaxing rest of the visit.
While they jumped around the cliffs, I sat on a log sipping Diet Coke.
When they hung their hands out of the boat, dragging them through the waves on the way back to the dock, I played Which One Of These Island Mansions Would I Want? in my head.
When they were splashing and screaming in the scummy pond water, I told them to pipe down because the adults were sitting right across from each other and were having to yell to hear over all of their racket.

Not long after, my son came walking down the gravel path with blood gushing from his nose.  I stopped in mid-S'more bite and casually asked if he was alright.  I mean, I didn't want to be overbearing or anything, lest I be subjected to more hand slashing and teeth clenching.

"My nose is bleeding!"

I kind of shrugged my shoulders and said, "Oh.  Do you maybe need help?"

"MOM!"

Proving my theory that they always come back in the end. 
Especially when they get bashed in the nose playing football with their cousin.
(I'm just saying.)

After 10 hours of fun and sand and dirt and salt water and pond slime and cake and dip
(cream cheese, cooked bacon pieces, and chopped green onions)
(try it)
(and don't say I never did anything for ya')
and soda and more cake and more dip and S'mores and rope swings and dip for the road,
we piled into our cars and left our gracious hosts waving wearily from the driveway.

Prince Charming was waiting with open arms when we got home.  He didn't get to go this year.  A little something called Running A Company kept him away.

He listened to us all twitter on about the fun we'd had and tucked us in after we collapsed in bed.
We slept for about 12 hours, then got up, stayed in our pajamas until noon, watched TV all day and wished next summer would hurry up and get here already
so we can go back to the island again.

10 Ways I Know That Summer Is Here...{Or, Project 52 ~ Water}

1.  My children are always wet.
All the time.  Sometimes it's the pool.  Sometimes it's the rain.  Sometimes it's the garden hose.  Sometimes I'm not sure why and it unsettles me so.

2.  There's basil growing on my deck.
Which is not so much a sign of summer as it is a testament to my unfailing optimism that I can grow herbs.
(no matter what anyone says)
(and by 'anyone', I mean the herbs)
(which, I'm not sure, but I think laugh and point whenever I walk by them)

3.  We've stopped eating at the table.
And the preparation of every meal begins with
"Paper plates tonight?"

4.  We built a fire pit in the backyard.
To bring that wonderful, beachy campfire experience home so we can roast marshmallows and eat S'mores all summer long.

5.  We have a fire pit in our backyard that we haven't yet built a fire in.
Because we're flopped on the couch at 7:00 with our paper plates, Wheel of Fortune, and Netflix streaming.
(Hello?  House of Cards?)
(It's like West Wing)
(on steroids)

6.  Bedtime is no longer about sight words and glasses of water and CD stories and negotiations and 14 times up and down the bunk bed ladder culminating in a process that takes longer than they'll actually be asleep.
It's more of me lifting my head off the couch, calling to them that it's time to turn off whatever Good Luck Charlie episode they're watching and hit the sheets.
(and don't look at the TV when you walk by 'cause we're watching our show and it's not for kids)

7.  My house is a complete mess.
I've decided not to care because children are here which means no matter how fast I clean, it'll be a pit sty again in 5 minutes so what's the point?
If you need me, I'll be on my basil-smelling deck with some wine and Dan Brown.
(and an umbrella)
(I mean, we are in the northwest)

8.  I feel absolutely ZERO sense of urgency to get anything done.
I no longer have a limited amount of time to work in peace and quiet before the children get home
(I won't know peace and quiet for another two months and four days)
(unless Good Luck Charlie is on)
so I don't have to rush around getting things done and I can Facebook all day.
(there's just a whole lot a' nothin' goin' on there, you know?)

9.  I have big plans...
...to read the 27 books I have on my nightstand
...to make fresh lemonade every week
...to go swimming and to the park and to the zoo and on picnics and out and about so we don't just sit around all summer Facebooking
...to paint my bedroom
...to paint my food pantry
...to grow sunflowers
...to make raspberry jam
...to take my daughter to Girl Scout Wilderness Camp

10.  I will not be staying at Girl Scout Wilderness Camp.
Because that would kill me.

Wherever you are, I hope you have a great summer!