Foreground

This month at Take Out Photo the monthly special is foreground. It's the very last second for me to post this, but I'm just glad I'm getting it up at all. If you haven't noticed, I haven't been blogging much. I haven't been taking many pictures either. I'm blaming it on the cold weather and my blue mood. I need a change of something in my life! I'm in a rut. 

Anyways I didn't think I would have anything to post this month, but I did take this picture while playing outside at Matt's parents last week. I was playing with my aperture and focal points on the grass, then took this one of Winston. I think it counts as foreground. I love the bokeh of the grass in the foreground. Winston looks so dang cute just sitting there on his knees too.

Thinking I didn't really have anything to post, I had gone through some old pictures and came upon these from last June. I've never posted them, so I thought it would be a good chance. Plus, I think they are pretty cute pictures. I'm not sure why I never posted them. I had been shooting exclusively in manual for only three months and was still learning to do it, a lot of them didn't turn out good, I guess that's why I didn't post them. In this first one, I love the wheat right in front of Quinn. I didn't mean for it to be there, and thought it had ruined the picture back then, but now I love it. 
I've always loved this picture, both the boys started running at me as I was trying to get a picture of them. I love how they are both barely in the frame. It was really back lite so I tried using the flash. Quinn was really bright right in the front, and Malcolm was really dark. I like the original still, but playing in photoshop, it really made the picture more perfect. It was fun to play with layers and layer masks to get Malcolm out from the dark.
We stopped by this wheat field on the way back home so I could feed Winston. Matt took the boys out and tried taking pictures, until he got frustrated, so I took over. I love them a lot more then I did then. Funny how that works.

He's Going to be the Death of Me

Man I love Winston. He is already 13 1/2 months and he's going to be the death of me. He's not really that busy of a kid, he's pretty content a lot, but he's a sneaky monkey. I've already posted once about his climbing ability and it hasn't stopped yet.
One morning after I changed Winston's diaper, I left him in his room to play with his toys. I heard him getting frustrated a couple times, which isn't uncommon for him, and then realized a few minutes later I couldn't hear him playing. I went in to find him on top of his changing table. He climbed up on to the rocking chair, that is right next to it, then climbed up onto the changing table from stepping on the arm rest. He was so proud of himself. I picked him up and took him into the living room, where he booked it right back to try it again.
I just had to post this picture of this look he's been doing for the last month or more. It's so cute and funny.
His ball went under Quinn's bed, so he went to retrieve it. I've never had a one year old that was so brave.
He's started this one too. He can pull out the chairs from the table and climb onto them, so that he can climb up on the table. He thinks it's so much fun to be up there, even if the table is empty. It's even better when there are snacks up there for him to find though.
He even tries getting off, but he's not that brave to fall that far. Only off the couch and our huge bed does he do that.
He's also figured out he's tall enough to do this. The little booger. He gets right up on his tippy toes and can barely reach the handle.That's why I hate these kind of door handles. A child shouldn't be able to open doors until they are older then two. It's a rule, don't you know.
He thinks he is so big to be able to do this.
He'll just open the door and slam it open and shut over and over.
How do you tell a 1 year old no?
They just go right back to doing it again.
So I just give up and let him be a one year old and explore.
How can I say no to this cute face. The sneaky little booger.
Since Christmas break, he's been teething and teething and teething. Will it ever stop? He is by far my only baby that is affected by his teeth coming in. But I guess I can't blame him when he gets all four top teeth coming down at one time. His right side tooth broke through first, then about a month later, his left side tooth broke through. Then about a week later the two top teeth came through together. Man he was not happy. Considering they caught up to the other teeth so fast, I'm assuming they must have really been pushing hard. I love the little gap teeth smile, but I miss the gummy smile too.
My life is really over now. For the last four weeks or more, he started doing this.
First it was just a few steps here and there, and he would get tired of it fast. Now he's doing it all day long. He still crawls quite often, but just this week, he's been walking even more. If he falls, he'll just crawl, but he's getting up and walking around all the time. Must be that there's more space for him to explore here at my Mom's house. In the picture above, he's so excited that he found my mom's itouch to play with.
I love this sweet baby, but he is going to be the child that I always have to worry about. He's a little dare devil. Even if he falls off and gets hurt when he's trying to climb, after some loves, he's right back up trying it again.

What's happening here!

I can't believe I've only posted once this month, and the post didn't even have any pictures. I have tons I've been wanting to post about, but have yet to have time to do so. I've been trying to keep my priorities straight and not be on the computer too much. The result is over 100 unread posts on my google reader. I think I need to cut back on the blogs I read! Priorities people!

We came home to visit our family for Spring Break and I was anxious to have time to do things like sewing, blogging and visiting with friends. When we were home for Christmas break, I had nothing to keep me busy. This week though, I have been busy nearly everyday. I've started on my sewing, but have yet to finish what I started. I have yet to start a post to get updated on my blog. I have also not called my good friend I wanted to see while I was here. Where has my break gone?

Winston must be teething yet again. He has another terrible diaper rash from all the messy diapers, he's waking up way early and doesn't want to go back down, and occasionally waking up at night. He's also only napping for about an hour or less. My poor baby. He is my worst teether. (Is that really a word?)

I promise, updates are coming, I just need to convince Matt to let me use his laptop that is finally fixed and see if he'll let me put some of my photo programs on it!

All For A Good Cause (and other ramblings)

I keep meaning to post that I weaned Winston. It's been four weeks ago now. Man, I've been distracted. I didn't know when I was going to wean him, I didn't have a plan, but the Thursday after he turned one, he woke up really happy. He usually woke up crying and wanting to nurse pronto. Since he woke up happy, I decided to try just feeding him some oatmeal. He ate it fine, and I just gave him a sippy cup of milk after eating. I was only down to feeding him two times a day, morning and night, so that night I was contemplating whether I should feed him or not. I decided to just see how he took his sippy of milk. He took it fine and has been on a sippy since. He's never acted like he's missed nursing. 

I was ready to give it up. I nursed him longer then any of my other boys. With Malcolm I lost my milk supply when he was seven months. I was working full time, night shift, and pumping. I'm not surprised I lost it. I was very sad about it though. It was my only time to bond with him when I was at home. When Quinn was eleven months, he just started weaning himself. He started only nursing for like two seconds, then wanted down to play. I just decided to go with it and put him right on a sippy cup and milk. I was ready to have my body back. He did fine, until he did his random wake in the middle of the night and wanted to nurse.  

I've enjoyed this time with each of my kids, but I'm not in love with it. I don't get overly attached to it and have no desire to nurse past twelve months. (I have other reasons for wanting to go past twelve months, but I won't go into that.)  By that time, I'm ready to have my hormones back in order, be my own person and to be able to leave the house all by myself. 

The real reason why I was so ready to be done with Winston, I was wanting to make some money giving plasma again. I did it for a whole six weeks prior to moving home for the summer and finding out I was pregnant with Winston. It's been nearly two years since then. The money I made then, I used to make our car payment and go out to eat a few times. A luxury we don't get to do very often being so poor.

This time though, I'm doing it all for a good cause. Not for the people that will benefit from the use of my plasma. Not to help my family pay bills, or do fun things. I'm doing it because I have needs. Okay, maybe their not needs, but wants. You see I have many wants relating to camera equipment, things that I can't just ask for as a gift. We're too poor to use the money that Matt makes. We're also too poor to use our tax return. We need to have a little bit of a savings in case there's a need. So I'm resorting to giving plasma and stashing the money away for many, many months so that I can buy things that make me giddy. (Just know that I'm not selfish though. If there came a time that we couldn't get by without my stash of money, I would put it to good use, and try not to feel too disappointed. Okay, maybe a little.) 

The truth be told. I don't like giving plasma. I use to have a fear of needles, prior to being pregnant and giving birth. I was planning on a natural birth with Malcolm I was so scared of the epidural, until I started feeling the intense back labor, then I was all ready for the big long needle they use, which I've never seen in my life and never plan on seeing. I like the affects that long needle produces. Since then I have been poked enough that I'm not scared anymore, but it does make me anxious. Every time I go in I'm tense. Every time I go in they poke my finger to make sure my blood looks good, and that hurts more then the needle to give plasma. I hate that finger poke. Then when I sit in the little plasma chair, I just feel fidgety. I don't ever look when they poke the needle into my arm, I've never even seen the needle prior to it being in my arm. Then throughout the whole donation, I'm checking the clock, wondering how much longer. Luckily my donation is pretty fast, give or take a half an hour. I also only give out of my right arm. Which makes for a nasty scar. The one and only time I gave out of my left arm, it took me 45 minutes or so, and I just haven't been willing to give it another shot. It makes me too anxious to sit that long with a needle in my arm. 

Despite all that though, I'm committed. I wake up twice a week at 6 am so that I can get there right when they open at 7 am. I have to get there nice and early so that I can be back before Matt leaves for work. Them I'm out of there by 8:30 am or a little later. It's so worth it, my little stash is growing. All for a good cause.