A Grown Up Christmas List

It seems this sickness is a national thing. Yesterday start with a headache (which is not uncommon for me) and then this morning it was a headache w/ sinus pressure but worse was my eyes. They were swollen and sore and I wanted to scratch them out of their sockets as they were so dry. As the day went on the achyness set in and the sinus pressure built up. I got off work an hour early and just in time as the chills set in. Matt came over and jokingly put his ice cold hands around my neck. Man did it feel good but he didnt keep them there long as he said I was burning up. I thought it was just me. All in all I just feel miserable. With the lack of energy and motivation to move my lame self off the couch I did some Christmas dreaming. I've realized my Christmas list has gotten rather grown up and with uh I guess grown up prices. Actually beyond most grown up prices.


In no order of importance or amount of want.

I need a new point and shoot. Mine faced the brutality of my drivers seat. It feel under it and the screen must of gotten crushed when it got adjusted

This is one of those things that dont come with a high price tag I've just had a hard time finding. Its a high def. lens filter. Average filter size is 55mm or 72mm but mine is a 62mm and either Im not looking in the right places or they just arent as popular. But this is near #1 on my list. The enhancement on a picture from it is awesome.
This is both a want in a need. It will help improve indoor shooting. A huge assist when it comes to the Assembly.


This is a Jill-E camera laptop bag. Can we say totally cute. I love my shoulder sling for my camera but there is nothing feminine about it. Its trendy and yet practical. It will hold one body, four lenses, and a plethora of accessories AND up to a 17" laptop. The best part it has four small wheels and pull out handle so it can go from a shoulder bag for the first day of the assembly and a roller for the next 4 when it becomes annoying to carry around all the time. Its is nearly perfect !!! Only thing is this bag is about $300.00 :-/ Yeah I wont be getting this for Christmas haha
Then something Ive been wanting for the last two years. Last year I bought my camera instead and then this yrs pfd bought my phone and paid bills. The price on this beauty is nearly $2000.00 again NOT GETTING THIS FOR CHRISTMAS but I can dream can't I lol . In case someone isnt familiar with this wonderful piece of technology its the Apple Macbook Pro- oooh the photography editing I can do with this *sigh* someday

Yup thats my Christmas list and haha none of it will be under the Christmas tree. Oh well

Winter Wonderland

Wednesday night brought the snow. We came out of the restaurant and the snow was falling hard and fast but it was still so pretty. I love it when it snows here as it usually means its warmed up. Like right now its trying to snow and it 31 degrees. I love it.

Anyway we came back to the house to play some Wii games. Matt got a little feisty and thought it clever to throw a snowball at me. He'd have regretted it had it hit my camera :P



This was actually Friday the pictures got out of order. I woke up to feeling like I was living in a snow globe. The snow was coming down in large flakes that fell so gracefully.

This was Thursday. After a large yummy meal Matt, Mom and I went for a walk it was a bit nippy but so beautiful.


I excluded this one because its just too funny. Mom decided she wanted to go over to the play ground. I turn around and she's laying down on some snow covered steps. Matt took my camera and hopped up on the hand rails and stood over her to take the picture. Just watching the two of them was hilarious its probably one of those you had to be there moments.

Youth on the Hunt

November was my month to plan the youth activity and so I put together a photo scavenger hunt. They were given a scripture and they could take it literally or figuratively but they had to use their creative to find an object or subject to take their picture with. It could not be in any house hold and could not be on any team members body. We split up in two teams and headed downtown to have some fun.

The first one:

John 12:23
And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.

Nate is standing by the Railroad Clock

I messed up on the scripture for this one when i did a search it changed statue to statute  and so I just wrote Psalms 81:4 without double checking and wrote statue on the slip as it was suppose to be mine but ended up trading with someone. So Joleesa took her pictures with a statue of one of the founders of Anchorage.
Isaiah 22:19  

And I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy state shall he pull thee down.

Here is Nathan and Joleesa at the bus station. This one is posed a challenge for Mom, Matt, Nathan and Jo as nothing is called a station anymore its all Fire Department, Rail Depot ect. so they final called it good a the Bus station even though its not really called that.

This was my team and let me say that three photographers on one team ment a lot of fun but also  pictures of EVERYTHING lol. Team 1 had taken 12 pictures  Team 2 (which was Micah, Megan, myself, Tim and Levi) took 72 hehe 

This was Tim's slip

Hebrews 12:2

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us

Incase it doesn't look familiar this is a statue of Butto the lead dog of the first great race. The Iditarod! This is where the ceremonial start takes place every year.

This was my slip and I was rather happy with getting it as it ended up rather random. I've been wanting to play on this train but never have.

Proverbs 22:6

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Luke 14:23

And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

Haha here mom is pointing at the dead hedge 

This was Micah's which this is my second favorite of the night. His is a little more interpative then the rest. His scripture was..

Isaiah 60:8

Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows

We represent doves in the windows lol  like I said we had fun.

This is my favorite this was Levi's 

Scripture: Genesis 1:14   And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night and let them be for signs, and for seasons,  and for days, and years:

This is the Anchorage's town square per say. It decked out with beautiful lights, a  large less beautiful Christmas tree  and a skating rink that circles the park. Its so pretty I love it 
This is Matt's his scripture: Hebrews 13:2  Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Here is the angel they were entertaining hehe
This is a two part picture: you can't appreciate the funness ( I know not a word) of the first one without seeing the second one.

This one is Megan's

I can't remember for sure what her scripture was as I had changed it several times.

I believe it was Luke 21:1- and he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.

And how fitting but a penny press. The gift shop was about to close up and we begged to get a picture with the penny press. The guy looked at us a little weird and said most people ask to take a picture with the large bear. We unpuzzled him and explained the scavenger hunt.

The weather was great. Not to chilly and not to busy downtown. We ended the night with homemade pizza and a movie that had us all laughing. I think everyone had fun and we've pretty much decided come April we'll have to do something similar but maybe with a little more of a challenge 

All Things Pretty in Pink

most days (not resent days) I love my job but there is NOTHING I love more then to be given something that I can shut work out of and escape into a side of me that has no limits and I can be as creative as I want.

Last Tuesday was Joleesa's baby shower. Hehe oh boy did I have fun with it. It was exhausting but so fun. From the little details all the way to Joleesa's exhausted happy face when the night was over. Mom will say I went over board and I probably did. It'll be PB&J sandwhiches for lunch for several weeks lol but it was worth every penny and ever second put into.

It started with the invitation which I actually got paid to create. One night I did a coat check for a Governors Award Banquet and it could have been 6 hrs of boringness if I hadn't had my computer. By the end of the night I was well please both with what I was able to put together and the tips I had in my pocket hehe....


Then came the baby shower. Sis Mack had done a diaper cake for Lillian's baby shower and it was so cool. So I googled it and realized these things are insanely popular and actually sell for maga $$$. So I googled some more figuring there had to be instructions of some sort out there to create this fun center piece. Directions in hand I went to work... quickly deciding I didn't like the way the instruction was leading I ventured on my own and I have to say I'm rather fond of the final out come. Every cake needs a topper and it seemed rather fitting that the baby's first bear top it. 

It sat in the middle of the table. Pictures I've taken through out her pregnancy so far (along with a 4D framed ultrasound picture) flanked the right side and pink and white plates, cups and napkins were to the left. Holding the utensils is a little red wagon that say's ITS A GIRL. ( there was a flower arrangement in it that was delivered to Jo the day after she found out the gender)
A party needs balloons and when it comes to baby themes they sure do have a collection of fun ones. My favorite is the big pink foot print. (the bear holding the balloons is from Jessa)
Here is a close up of the diaper cake. This is 80 diapers each individually rolled and tied off with clear stretchy craft line. The diapers are fittingly baby Winnie the Pooh.
Our house has such warm lighting that everything either looks so pale or very orange ( the wagon is actually red and the ribbon a bold pink but oh well)
Every party needs streamers so going across the room was 3D hearts, paper flowers and butterflies 
Matt and Nathan came by to whisk Dad away for some male bonding. Which apparently consisted of streak, chicken, shrimpp and abundance of other food lol 
Every party needs games. We had peoples water breaking (melting ice to release a pacifier), passing a box left to right to right to right as mom read a story about the Right family. Here is a picture of one as Dallas's mom had to guess how big her baby bump was and got it right on the dot. 
Then it was present time and boy did this little one get spoiled with some pretty cool and creative gifts as well.
here was a gift from Dallas's mom- an umbrella wrapped in receiving blankets and filled to capacity  of lots of cute girly goodies 
I remember when gifts use to be wrapped but I have to say the bags are getting just as fun as the actual presents and just as expensive lol 
Every baby needs needs noisy toys *whispers* so do big kids Matt rather enjoyed playing with it when he returned hehe 
This was Megan's gift that was sooo cool. It was a laundry basket filled with clothes but not just simply folded in the basket much more creative then that.....
She created what seemed like a never ending but totally coool clothes line of cute baby clothes
These type gifts are so fun but you almost dont want to take them apart 
a friend of mine and Jo's that we use to work with stopped by. This is her little girl. Who I absolutely love and think next to my future niece is the most adorable little girl (Im sure some will disagree :-) which is okay hehe)
In the end while all of use were tired to the bones Megan had a burst of energy  and so all the baby clothes from the shower and what was previously bought came out to be organized and put away. I do think this little angel has more clothes then I do which is simply shocking lol 

I Got Mail!

and it wasnt an email! There is something so fun about getting mail but there is definitely something even more fun and thats getting a fun card made by Sis Emily from Sis Becki. I dont think I deserve such a fantastic thank you it only took forever and a day to for the dvd to get to her. Well at least the second one the first one got sent to the same address but different city because the duffus of a Fed Ex clerk put down the wrong zip code :-P I guess he was feeling creative because the zip code doesnt exist and so whoever was on the New Mexico side had to get even more creative in trying to read the clerks mind as to where it was to go... when from the beginning they could have just read the package that I had nicely written the correct address with a real and right zip code but I guess that wouldnt be as entertaining. Hope whoever in Sandia Crest is enjoying a DVD of nearly 1,000 pictures of people they have no clue who are hehe. (Sadly unless the recognize the flag I dont believe they'll know its from The Church of God. I don't recall any pictures in which I zoomed out that the banner showed. Oh well )

The funny part is Dad took it to Fed Ex the second time and sent it Expedite Air which means it would be on the next FedEx flight out the package went flying on the 12th and promptly arrived on the 13th. Now according to the envelope Sis Becky was very prompt in sending a beautiful "Thank You" in return on the 13th. For 44 cents it arrived with in two mailing days lol. Got to love living in Alaska the mail is just as unpredictable as the weather.

It was a wonderful way to end a very long and busy day. Normally the mail has already been gotten by the time I get home or Dad calls me on my way home from work that he hasn't gone out to get to pick it up before coming in the house (yes its just at the end of a short drive way :-P) Joleesa, Mom and I were talking about the shower tomorrow and made me remember that one of our aunts had let me know she was sending a card in the mail for Joleesa (which was mail from MN on Tuesday and arrived today -told ya its random) and I was thinking it odd that it hadnt arrived yet as usually for a standard letter its 4 mail days max. and thats when we realized that the mail had been neglected. So here at 11pm Joleesa and I both get to joy of opening beautiful cards :-) I love it


haha I just had a whole blog about mail and the one before that was about the weather :-) wondering why people read this :-D


GOOOD Night

Got to Love Technology :o)

Wahoo I figured it out... So it's been about a month now sense I've gotten my iPhone and could figure out how to blog with it. I can take pictures edit pictures post pictures receive pictures and a whole load of other things but I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to blog. Other the my professional pictures and any designing I do I really don't get on my computer much these days so if it can't be done with my phone It probably gets neglected. So we'll see how well I blog now. Let see how truly wonderful my phone is and see if I can post pictures from it. Oh well it'll have to wait I got a connection error. Maybe next time I got some pictures from the snow storm that blew into today. I'm sadden by the fact that I actually don't find the aspect of winter pretty anymore. I know 6-7 months of it lay ahead and that just depresses me. I'm going through a phase where I've got an itch to move. Well actually it's something I'm praying about if this itch is really God pulling on me I don't want to neglect to do His will just because in my eyes I see so many reasons to stay. Then I look outside and just dread the winter ahead :(

I need to go out with my camera and remind myself how beautiful winter is here. I see things so much clearer through a camera lens