Category Archives: Challenges

Happy Monday…Oh and Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s day is one of those Hallmark holidays that I can give or take. Actually, now that I have children, it is actually quite inconvenient. Or maybe it’s just because I have small children – one of whom can’t yet write his own name and so I am forced to manage the entire valentine-writing myself. Then I have the other child who can write his own name but sees a pile of 30 valentines on the table and feels overwhelmed by the workload. We managed to finish them up in shifts throughout the day yesterday. I don’t know if there’s a Bah, Humbug! equivalent for this holiday but that’s how I feel.

On a not-quite-so-cranky note, we had a fabulous action-packed weekend. It began with Iron Bartender on Thursday night, then Friday was my first pre-op for my brand new laser eyes (coming soon!) and dinner and a movie with my husband while the boys hung out at daycare for a few extra hours (thankfully I was able to see again by the time the movie started – eye dialation is no fun). On Saturday we had swimming lesson, a trip to the safety Saturday at the fire station, a consultation to get french doors (yay!) and then another night out without the kids – dinner for one friend’s birthday and then a stop by at another party celebrating two more friends. Sunday involved a little furniture shopping and a nap for all four of us – we needed it.

So, because I have not had time to edit all photos from the weekend (surprised?), I will share this little one for the current I Heart Faces challenge. This week is all about RED for women’s heart disease awareness. I took the photo in the back of the car while we were waiting at the grocery store and, since he’s wearing a red shirt, I think it counts. I just love this little slice of life and it’s a good reminder that I need to capture more photos that record our daily adventures. I also love that he’s covering his eyes and not doing a silly face or fake smile for the camera. It makes this one a little different.

 

 

Farewell January…

…it was nice knowing you, but I can’t say I’m sad to see you go.

Oh, there were good moments like Kei starting a new job, an end-of-month girls weekend at a spa (more on that later) and some great progress at the swimming pool for our five-year-old (head  fully under water!). But there were also quite a few challenges like Kei starting a new job (bye bye reliable schedule), a plague that swept through our house and took down Samuel and me at the same time, a workload that threatens to pull me under and, of course, the endless dreariness of a Northwest winter.

I’ve been feeling tired, uninspired and generally crabby –  but the optimist in me hopes that a new month and the promise of only a few more weeks of winter will help pull me out of this funk.

Thankfully my two year old seems to be coming out of his. The past week or so has been an enormous improvement in terms of behaviour and general attitude. He yells less, laughs more and has fewer tantrums. He’s also more likely to wake up in the morning on the RIGHT side of the bed. I’m cautiously optimistic, but I feel like I may be getting my happy baby back.

Which brings me to my I heart faces photo this week – best face photo in January. It’s not a perfect photo by any means, but it’s a wonderful memory of a nice, relaxing bedtime without arguments, challenges or screaming – a routine that is become more common as my little boy grows up. And how grown up he looks!

So goodbye January and hello to a February that promises more photos (with some new equipment), new eyes (hoping literally as well as figuratively) and the possibility of a little more sunshine.

Hustle and Bustle

Well, Thanksgiving is over, the turkey is almost gone (almost) the Ishida boys are back at school (albeit grudgingly) and most of us are sick or in recovery. Sounds like a pretty successful holiday weekend to me.

We celebrated in traditional style with our take-out turkey dinner – a tradition I started when we first moved to the states about 8 years ago and one I intend to maintain for years to come. It’s just so much more relaxing than standing over a hot stove and then having your children reject the food anyway. This year our good friends spent the day with us which made the whole day a little more festive and fun. The men watched football, the kids watched Totoro (highly recommended) and the women enjoyed a day when everyone was occupied and they could enjoy a few hours of chatting and sipping on hot mulled wine. Perfect.

I didn’t take any photographs, mainly because it was dark and dreary and I preferred, this year, to simply relax and enjoy the day rather than deal with the disappointment of trying to catch a few moments on film without a decent shot in the bunch.

So, without a thanksgiving photograph to share, I thought a little I Heart Faces challenge photo was in order. This week’s challenge is a tough one – scenic black and white with a person in the photo. A. My photos are 90% colour and, B. I usually choose people OR scenes. It’s rare that I combine the two unless it’s the standard tourist-in-front-of-a-landmark pic.

At first I was focused on finding a landscape shot, but ended up settling on this photograph that shares a little of the hustle and bustle of Yokohama’s Chinatown. Frankly, we didn’t see a whole lot of landscape during our recent visit to Japan but I love that I was able to capture a snapshot of time in the city and I feel as though the black and white places more focus on the people than the bold red and gold colors of the street.

Now, off to lie down and try to kick this illness so I can finish up my Christmas presents this week. Printing and international shipping deadlines are breathing down my neck.

 

Orange Days

I have been a little lax in posting a follow up to my last post about Japan. I have one coming, just need to find the time to put it into words. In the meantime I’ll post a photograph for the latest I heart faces challenge. This week is Orange and I am pleased to say that we are surrounded by a good deal of it at the moment. Sadly Portland days have become much shorter and so I am forced to enjoy the smallest sliver of colour for about 30 minutes in the morning on the drive to work.

Oh well, at least the weekend offered me an opportunity to take one of the best shots I have managed to capture of Samuel in a long time. While 2.5 years of age brings many wonderful things such as longer conversations, the ability to dress oneself and a new appreciation for books, it also brings the frustrating necessity to scream “NO” at the sight of a camera. So I’ll take the few moments of staying still long enough for the camera when they come my way.

Cute, isn’t he? And I’m not just saying that because I gave birth to him (OK, maybe 80% of it is because I gave birth to him, but he’s still cute).

Cover The Childrens’ Ears

Today’s I Heart Faces challenge is “Chalk.” I have so many photographs of chalk drawings and chalky hands and chalky hands drawing chalk drawings, but very few with faces in them. I did find this one. It was taken during our visit to Australia when the boys made full use of the big slab of concrete in the driveway and decorated the space with their temporary artwork. This is one of the only photos with a face in it. If you look closely you’ll see that he is holding a piece of chalk in his right hand. That counts, right?

I doubt that pic will win me any awards, either for photography or for motherhood. Just look at the state of that shirt!

THIS, however, should win an award. I’m not sure what delights me more – the word that comes out of Thomas’ mouth, or the moment of shocked silence from my brother who is filming. It’s worth making it through to the end. You won’t be disappointed.

Surprise!

I went through my photographs looking for an appropriate image for this weeks I heart faces “suprise” photo challenge and this image jumped put at me. What’s less of a surprise is the crumbs that are so clearly visible around the mouth. It’s a common sight in our house, and on this boy in particular.

We had a fun weekend which included a gathering with girlfriends to discuss charity golf tournament marketing strategies, a Japanese Obon festival at a local Buddhist temple, brunch with some new pre-school parents (feels nice not to be the new kid in town anymore) and chocolate bananas cooked in the backyard fire pit. (yes, chocolate bananas!). Oh and I managed to squeeze an (overpriced) hair appointment in there as well.

I also woke up this morning to discover that my one and only crush managed to get himself married over the weekend. Let’s all have a moment of silence please.

Amusement Park: A Photo Walk

On Saturday morning I managed to drag myself out of bed at 4:30am to head to a photowalk at a local amusement park. Rising at the crack of dawn on the weekend was a challenge, but it was definitely worth it. I feel like I learned more about my camera in just a few hours than I have in many months. It’s amazing what a little photo “me” time can accomplish. I played with motion, lighting, colour and angles and it was just so much fun.

The trouble was culling the 700 or so photos that I took down to my favourite 20 or 30. And now what should I do with them? Maybe a book? Or perhaps I should consider printing some to hang in my house (my house is woefully lacking in the photo display department – it’s tragic).

I had to submit one photo to the photowalk website.  I chose one that I thought was unique to our walk and would grab attention. Which one would you pick?. I have three days to change it so please be honest (and quick) with your response. 🙂

Purple

It’s funny how Monday’s are so much easier to deal with after a fulfilling weekend. Mine was packed with a special photowalk at an amusement park (at 5:30am!), a fun five-year-old pool party where we discovered our little water baby (Samuel – we’ll take you to the pool again soon, promise!) and a wonderful pot luck get together with good friends. And to top it all off, I have downloaded the first episode of Mad Men. Sometimes Monday’s aren’t so bad.

This week’s I ♥ Faces photo challenge is “Purple” and, well, there’s not a lot of purple in my world. I have never been a very big fan of the hue and, with two boys, purple does not make much of an appearance in our closets.

So to meet the challenge, I unashamedly borrow the daughter of a good friend who has declared purple to be her favorite color – right down to the specially chosen first pair of glasses.

Now off to watch Mad Men. I’ll be back with photos from my weekend adventure soon.

Mosaic Monday: The Special iphone Edition

I know I have been MIA lately. Work is busier than I remember it. Or maybe it’s my life that’s busier and it makes it harder to fit work in. Either way, I have barely found time to breathe. I have been relishing every moment away from the computer instead of enjoying the “me” time that it provides.

On the up side, I have been taking a lot more photos as part of my day job and I love that! It helps me dream of a day when all I do is take photographs from dusk until dawn.

Speaking of photographs, I my iphone arrived a week or so ago and I soon discovered the joy of camera apps. In the mood for a Holga? It’s right there in the phone.

So, today’s mosaic is a collection of iphone pics. It should also give you a tiny glimpse into how I’ve been spending my time lately.

Off to babysit for a neighbour and then enjoy two whole days off from work. I see a visit to the zoo in our future.

Back soon with more – promise!