Early early birthday present

Yesterday Peter and I got Lily her birthday present.

I had this grand plan of having my father in law care for the puppy until the actual day.

But, well, the present was just too exciting to wait.

So I picked her up from my moms and we raced home to open her awaiting gift.

Here she is, her first peek.

Is that really for me!
Lily meet Wally. Wally, Lily.
She asked me several times if Wally got to stay.

They are becoming fast friends.

She told us several times this was the best present ever.

Could that smile be any bigger!

Walter D. newest member of our clan.

One very happy almost 5 year old.

We love you baby girl!!

Camera practice

Lily has been working for several weeks on a sticker chart.

I called it her hi and bye chart.

She had to say hello to her teachers and school friends and goodbye.

Not an easy task for my Lily.

She however completed the chart without a setback.

My hope is that after 3 weeks we have created a pattern and

will have no more snarky hi's and byes.

She was rewarded at the end of each week with a small incentive.

Her big incentive was to go and ride some ponies by the zoo.

I decided that I have so many pictures of the zoo and surrounding area that it would be a good time to practice my camera skills.

I took my camera out of automatic mode.

Yikes can you believe it.

I am not overjoyed with the results

but I am pleased. I am really working on apperature.

I want the background to be blurred and my subject in focus.

I think part of my problem may be my lense.

That also may be an excuse for my lack of skill :0)

This is not a great picture but feeding the giraffes is exciting!

I also let her be as goofy as she wanted.

B-B-B Batdog!!!!!

Meet BatDog.

He came to my house on a day I could use a laugh.

I laughed til I cried.

I think BatDog takes his job very seriously!

He even did a little howling at the, moon?

Perhaps it's the Bat Call.

This is the face that says,

OK mom where's the treat you promised.


I think it was worth the complete and total humiliation.

Tamales Tamales

This is what we looked like when we first discovered the Tamale festival.

This is also our very first ever corn on the cob.
It was a good day.

Today we brought Nonnie and Papa to the Tamale Festival.

We met our friends M. and O. there.

Lily learned that bounce houses are not scary.

She had fun fun fun. O. is not pictured because in each picture he definitely did not have to go to the bathroom.

We kept asking and he kept adamantly saying no he did not have to go!

It was clearly a true statement as I have evidence. :0)

Each of them made their very own pinata.

I am inclined to call it a maraca

as the candy seems to be missing.

Ahhh and the Tamales.

This is the worlds largest tamale.

We got to help eat it!

And then Mocha Creme Brule for dessert.

O. daddy treated us like queens.

He even had the torch to crystallize the sugar.

Added a little class to the festival.




Cheesy smile cause bouncing is fun!

Tonight we shall feast on some more tamales.

Yum yum yum!

Photography class

I am starting an online photography class today. I sure hope it inspires cause I feel really very uninspired. I think it has something to do with going back to work :0) Stay with me. I'm still here.