Off to a Land Far Away

I shall return. Have a great weekend!!!

And on a side note - today is my parents' 33rd wedding anniversary. How awesome!

Your Camera Takes Nice Pictures

I found the link to this blog article through another photographer friend's page on facebook and thought I would share.

http://www.erinfarrellphotography.com/theblog/?p=817

We Hunt Dinosaurs and Dragons in Our 'Hood

Today, we met up with my Aunt, Uncle, and two cousins at the country club.  It was a scorcher today, so the water felt fantastic!  Carter had such a fun time with his mini super-soaker, and no one was safe from his wrath.  Though we all got some payback on him, trust me.  Here are some pictures from our day (note: other than the first picture, these were all taken by my aunt).

When we got home, Eric put some chicken on the BBQ and Carter informed me that we were going to hunt dinosaurs and dragons.  Surprisingly,he didn't bring along any of his weapons of choice, instead we did a lot of belly-crawling across the yard.  So I snapped a couple of quick pics, and then joined him on his adventure.  We sure didn't find any dragons or dinosaurs (thank god), but there was a yummy dinner for us when we were done hunting!

Hope you all had a great weekend - we're already deep in planning for next weekend:  a mountain adventure with some of our friends and kids.  Should be fun!

Movie Review: Shutter Island

I had zero interest in watching this movie, but somehow, my brother talked me into it.  I thought Leonardo DiCaprio did a fantastic job, but the movie was just awful.  And even beyond that, there were parts missing - like when they were interviewing the patients and the one lady asked for a drink of water, when she actually took a drink, there was no glass in her hand.  I thought I blinked at first, but I had Eric go back, and sure enough, there was no glass.  How do they miss something like that?  The entire thing was just a complete waste fo 2 hours of my time.  Although, I do have to admit, from a psychological viewpoint, it was extremely interesting.  But that's about it.

More of the Sawtooth Mountains

I took this picture last November, when my friend, Wendie, and I went on our outdoor photography adventure.  It was absolutely freezing, but we had such a great time!

Cape Horn Lakes, ID

Before we went on our camping trip a few weekends ago, Eric did a bunch of research on remote places we had never been to before.  One of those places was Cape Horn Lakes.  I wasn't exactly excited to drive all around to find these lakes, simply because we had Carter with us and I don't think it's fair to him to be strapped into a carseat for hours at a time (though our trip to Tahoe in September will be exactly that).  Fortunately, we all had a great time exploring the mountain roads, and finally stumbled upon the Cape Horn Lakes.  As you can see, it's a gorgeous place; however, there were more mosquitoes than I had EVER seen before and it wasn't how I wanted to spend a camping trip.  So we played around for a little while, but ultimately chose a different camping place......on a river......with less mosquitoes.

My Outdoor Boy

{Fercho} Family Shoot

Last week, I had the opportunity to do a family shoot for this hilarious family, and their lovely dog, Chloe.  Chloe is 11 years old and is such a trooper!  I had a great time with these folks, and here are some samples from our evening.

A Line of CRAP

So I called in last night to pay my internet bill.  I could have paid it online, but they charge a fee to do that.  We all know how I feel about places that charge a fee to take your money.  Seems like double-dipping to me.  So I called in to use the automated system because that's still free.....for now.  I managed to get to the payment menu and that's where I ran into problems.  The automated system continually failed to recognize my "yes" or "no" command prompts (seriously, how complicated is it?), and then further failed to recognize when I would press "1" for yes or "2" for no.  So it eventually kicked me over to a customer service rep - who spoke English, thank you very much.  I explained to the person that the automated system was having problems and I simply needed to pay my bill.  So we went through the process of repeating my payment information, the payment amount, confirming virtually everything about my identity, having Eric authorize me on the account so that they would accept MONEY, and then she spoke the words that ultimately set me off:

"And there is a $4 charge for me taking the payment over the phone."

Hold the boat.

Back up.

Say that again?

"Yes, there is a $4 charge if you make the payment to a customer service rep as opposed to the automated system."

Deep breath.

And ever-so-politely (FOR REAL!!), I said:  "Ok, then I hereby request that you waive the $4 charge since it's not my fault the automated system doesn't recognize voice command prompts, or when I push a button."

I was then informed, "ma'am, I can't waive the $4 charge."

"Oh yes you can, you can adjust anything on my bill from your computer - adjust the $4.  And if you can't adjust it, simply add a $4 credit.  I've dealt with you people enough to know what you supposedly can and cannot do."  (At which point, Eric starts laughing and says "oh jesus")

So we go through the exchange a while longer, until she ultimately tells me that she has to put the $4 charge on there, and then she can fill out a waiver form and submit it to the supervisor, who will approve it.  FINE.  As long as I get my $4 back.  And $4 won't break my bank, trust me.  But I'll be damned if I'm going to pay that stupid fee simply because the automated system isn't so automated.

Recapping

We have spent the past couple of weekends in the mountains - either camping or at the cabin.  I spent so much of my childhood exploring the vast wilderness Idaho has to offer, and I think it's only fair that Carter explore the same, and new, places.  The camping spot we chose a couple weekends ago was new to Carter and me - it really was a great spot, I'm sure we will go back.  Assuming that next time, the dog does NOT chase a skunk into our camp in the middle of the night!  Here are some pictures from our adventures.

Definition Please

DENIAL

–noun

1. an assertion that something said, believed, alleged, etc., is false:

 

2. refusal to believe a doctrine, theory, or the like.

3. disbelief in the existence or reality of a thing.

4. the refusal to satisfy a claim, request, desire, etc., or the refusal of a person making it.

... 

8. Psychology: an unconscious defense mechanism used to reduce anxiety by denying thoughts, feelings, or facts that are consciously intolerable.

{Kristin & Matt} Wedding

This wedding was actually done over the 4th of July weekend.  It was out at the Base, and didn't provide for a whole lot of creative places to snap pictures.  But we made due with what we had.  My mother in law helped me out with this shoot and we had a great time!  Here are a few samples.

Sawtooth Mountains

This mountain range is incredible.  And from my vantage point, I'm still quite far away.  I have some that are much closer that I need to edit.  But for now, here is one from this last weekend.

Home, Home on the Range

A scenic shot from our trip this weekend.

And, We're Back

Well, we're back from a fantastic weekend of camping.  I have entirely too much to unpack, too much editing to finish up from last weekend's wedding, and frankly, I just want to go hang out in my own bed and watch some TV tonight. And for those who know me, I'm not the type to just park myself in front of the TV and channel surf.  So I'm off to rest, I will definitely recap the weekend for you - maybe tomorrow.  It was totally fun, and filled with some wild stories! Check back in soon.  For now, I leave you with a picture I was able to snap today.

Summer Nights

Last night was a typical summer night for us - playing in the pool right after work, eating dinner out on the patio, then heading over to one of the elementary schools or parks nearby to play until it's almost dark.  It's always such a fun time and we are all ready to hit the pillows as soon as we get home.  Here are some pics from our night.

Hope you are all having a fantastic summer, too!!

{Tammy & Mark} Vow Renewal

I shot this vow renewal ceremony two weekends ago.  Tammy and Mark initially got married six years ago, but never had a formal ceremony.  And Tammy wanted her day with her white gown and everyone oooohhhhhing and aaahhhhing over her.  So they had a very small, very intimate ceremony and wanted pictures done with some very basic editing.  Here are some samples from their day.

Celebrating Independence Day

For the 4th this year, we opted to stick with what we did last year:  a BBQ at our house with family, followed by fireworks.  The food was amazing - I think everyone left with full, happy bellies.

This boy loves ice cream - if you can't tell.

My mother in law wore her festive flip flops - I love these!  I definitely need to make some for myself.  She basically used Old Navy flip flops and lots of her scrapbooking ribbon.  Very easy to make, and pretty cheap too.  She said she also has a BSU pair - awesome!

We started out with some basic sparklers for Carter, showing him how to write his name and draw all the shapes.

The we moved out front for the bigger fireworks - the hubby is quite daring....a boy will always be a boy.

I hope everyone had a safe and fun time!