Superfluous Fluff

Cravings

Ah, cravings.

You know you have them.

Sometimes it's a preference.  I usually have a dangerously fine tuned sweet tooth, but every now and then I don't want sweet, I want salty.  Or a big giant savoury salad.  It's all good. 

Once upon a time, I would get a low-grade craving for something, I would ignore it, it would pass.  I am master of my body!  Wahoo!!!

But the older I get, the stronger the cravings get.  Especially those once a month cravings.  Ladies.  You totally know what I'm talking about.  

And sometimes the cravings get all mixed up and bizarre.  I want salty AND sweet.  I want to dip my fries in my frosty, kwim?  The hormones, they make demands.

Resistance is futile*.

(Ok, not furtile, but frustrating.  There is no satisfaction gained from denying the craving.  Sometimes it feels good to give in.)

So when I went to PEI and one of the first things I saw were these, I squealed in delight (my mom can testify, she was with me).

A woman TOTALLY came up with this. You just know it.

Props to her.

And I must confess: I bought a package, just to try.  They were kind of meh.  Whatever.  Nothing to write home about.

But two days later, I NEEDED these.  They were all I could think about.  I HAD to go buy some and then I devoured them and enjoyed every single second.  And don't ask me to share.  They totally hit the spot in a way that nothing else could have.  MMMMMM.

So when I left the island I bought one last package.  And it was as good as the second one.

And now, approximately 28 days later, I woke up thinking about them.  In fact, it's all I can think about.

PEI. You islanders are GENIUS.

Just a thought?

Monthly subscriptions. 

Playing Tourist

I've been taken to task a couple of times now for failing to update the blog.  I'm trying!  Really!  I'm trying to be better.  Sort of.  We've been enjoying the last bits of our summer and not being tethered to the computer, so I'm afraid I'm not feeling toooo bad.  We'll be back to school in a week and a half though, and then I'll have SO much time to update you guys.  I have to admit, I'm really looking forward to getting back on schedule and having some time to myself again. 

So to catch you up and fill you in, here's something we did only last week!  That's not so long ago, friends!

Our Relief Society (ladies auxiliary at church) planned a cultural outing--we went into Fredericton to see the Changing of the Guard in Officer's Square, then had a picnic lunch and enjoyed a lunchtime performance from this cool drama club called the Calithumpians.  Then we wandered across to the lighthouse for ice cream. 

Pictures?

Is ice cream cold?

I seriously could have photographed these guys (and GALS!!! So awesome!) all day. I have an album up on facebook with way more images--and those are just my favourites from the day. I took so many. I had no idea it would be such an awesome experience. Of course the kids weren't nearly as impressed. It was hot and sunny and they just wanted to get to the shade and the picnic.

Which we finally did. Soooo much cooler under the trees.  And fun to sit and eat and laugh.

Check out the difference between sun and shade:

The kids loved the play...and the acorns they found while waiting for the play to start.

After the play was over we washed up at the washroom and then went over to the lighthouse. By then several of the sisters had already left and it was a very small group of us. I didn't think anything could distract my kids from ice cream, but they were WAY more interested in the lighthouse than the ice cream.  We paid the admission and then they RAN to the top.  There are all kinds of cool photos on the walls and activities for kids to explore, but my gang didn't even pause to notice them.  To the top!

One thing my kiddos learned this summer is that they're not tall enough to reach the viewfinders anywhere. Ok, they were never tall enough, but they never noticed them before now. This year they NOTICED them and also noticed that they're not tall enough. Sweetpea comes the closest:

But seriously, who needs a viewfinder to check out views like this?

Oh, and did you want to see the kids? Brace yourself for a typical tourist shot:

Cheese!

The kids agreed that it was a really fun day, and we did linger a bit to play on our way down again.  And OF COURSE there was the promised ice cream at the bottom.  No photos of that though, because I believe that ice cream and my good camera don't mix!

We had lots of time before and after the changing of the guard, which isn't until 11am.  On the way to Officer's Square from the parking place we passed a school museum which looked interesting, and on the way back we went over the little pedestrian bridge from the lighthouse to the parking area,  and found ourselves right at the doors to the library.  And of course there is Cora's!  Mmmmm.  We love Cora's.  So I think I'd love to do this again some day next summer (because the Calithumpians are almost done for this summer) and bring Hubby.  Start with breakfast at Cora's, check out that little museum, do the changing of the guard and picnic in the park, lighthouse and ice cream and top it out with some quality library time.  For our little family, that would be total bliss. 

There are a lot of other things to do and see downtown.  I'm sad to admit that while Officer's Square has been one of my favourite photo shoot locations, I haven't taken time to really SEE what's there to explore and discover.  It's fun to find that Fredericton really is a cool place to be.

Canada's Next Top Model

I did some fun family photos for friends the day before we left for vacation. 

They're friends, so I already knew that this 5 year old was a pistol, but when I asked her to stand on this bridge for me all alone...well.

Guess what she likes to watch?  I managed to stop laughing and get her to relax her pose a bit, but girl could WORK it!

Just a little tease before the real sneak peek.  I've just opened the file now and this one jumped out at me and reminded me of how much fun I had so I had to share it right away. 

Keifer Makes Me Work it

It's been over a month and I know you've been waiting.

My very first newborn photo shoot was with the ADORABLE Keifer.  Keifer is the first born of my friends D and J and they have been waiting for him for a very long time.  I was delighted to meet him at last.

Keifer decided to put me through my paces.  Believe me I worked for every image!  We did our photoshoot when he was only 7 days old and he was SO alert.  He was definitely not interested in sleeping through our first meeting.  Here he is mad at me because I unwrapped him to get some photos of his perfect toes.

I know the focus is off but I love it. It reminds me of life with my own littles.

You know what calms a guy down though?  A little one on one time with Dad.

Once Dad got him asleep we hit upon the secret to Keifer's happiness: Dude likes it HOT! I knew most babies liked to be kept warm, and I'd certainly done my homework and knew to work in a hot room, but I had no idea ANYONE could enjoy the temperatures that this little man preferred. It was a hot day, with temps in the high 20's (that's Celsius) and the humidex making it feel like the 30's. We'd closed all the windows and doors and turned off the fans as soon as I arrived. Mom and Dad and I were dripping with sweat and Keifer still wasn't happy...until we got out the blankets and the heating pad.

Ahhhh, that's the ticket! Hot=happy

Isn't he delicious?

Check out the baby fuzz and little baby rolls. I'm completely in love.

Oh, and you didn't seriously think I left without a photo of those toes, did you?

Thank you D and J for letting Keifer teach me all about being a newborn photographer.  You know I'd be happy to let him teach me more as he grows!  I loved every minute! 

***A note for photographers: I shoot with a Canon Rebel XTi.  It's a trusty camera and my other baby, but there's a great deal of noise produced in shooting anything ISO 800 or over.  I was shooting in a tiny apartment in the evening and determined not to have to resort to my flash.  For this reason, I shot everything with my 50mm 1.8II, wide open, ISO 400 and at 1/50 or even 1/40s.  The walls were painted a really bright orange, which looked phenomenonal (LOVE the apartment) but made for a whole lot of colour cast issues.  I did work to fix the colour and presented colour and B&W to the parents, but tend to prefer the B&Ws myself.  (Actually, I love B&W baby photos, period.) And yes, Keifer christened me. ;)

The Difference between Boys and Girls

We're just recently home from a week on Prince Edward Island.

6 days, actually. 

In packing for the trip, I made sure each kiddo had 7 pairs of shorts, 7 T-shirts, 2 pairs of pants (for those chilly nights and rainy days), a warm sweater, pjs, swimsuits, rain gear, etc.

6 days, 7+ packed changes of clothes.  Don't forget that on the first day they were wearing something from their closet--not something from the suitcase.

So what happens?

On the last day Sweetpea announces that she has no clean clothes left (and complains that I didn't make her pack enough).  Princess commiserates and informs us she's wearing her least dirty outfit as she ran out of clothes yesterday.

And the Boy? 

When I got home and started emptying bags into the washing machine, I found 4 pairs of shorts and 3 T-shirts neatly folded and obviously untouched.  Strangely, I don't remember ever seeing the same outfit on him twice.

And this?  THIS? 

This is why I suck at math. 

PS Vacation photos coming soon!