Week 3

Another week has whizzed by. To recap all that happened this week I will start with Monday when I had a 4 hour class on Business and Marketing (this class makes me so nervous). They throw around a lot of big numbers about how much it will cost to start a business and then tell you all that you need to do to market yourself... ahhh... scary. Then I learned about creating black and white imagies in a computer class for 4 hours. Which was followed by 2 hours in computer lab. Yep... another 12 hour day.

Tuesday I had to sit through a Nikon camera rep's depressing presentation. And I shoot Canon, so it was incredibly uninteresting and he wasn't a very good speaker. I could only handle 3 hours and then left early. But I had the afternoon off to catch up on some reading for classes. My friend Amanda and I took a drive about an hour north of here to the Bison Range (we didn't see any bison because we were too late to get in) and Nine Pipes National Wildlife Refuge. It was fun to be out shooting for a couple of hours.

Wednesday we had a class on digital cameras in the morning and wildlife photography in the afternoon... both excellent classes.

Thursday the Canon rep was here for his 4 hour presentation. He was a much better speaker and I was a little more interested in my brand of camera system. In the afternoon we had a 4 hour class on studio lighting. It was interesting but it was also the first time I was so tired in class it was hard to focus.

Friday we had 4 hours in the lighting studio playing with the lights and equipment. I had a lot of fun and could see myself doing portraits. In the afternoon or Photo Studies class learned about creative techniques and then went through an exercise on figuring out our styles. I felt like we were released creatively. It felt good to do some of the creative side of photography and not just the technical stuff. The real treat for the week came that evening when the Canon rep brought a bunch of gear for us to try out. At one point I had about $7,000 worth of equipment out on the street trying it out. I loved trying out the different lenses and cameras, but I am also realistic that it will be quite some time before I can have any of those expensive toys. That evening a bunch of us went over to someone's apartment where we had a Canon vs. Nikon dart game going on. Canon is totally winning and it looks like the game is going to continue through October.

Saturday slept in for the first time and had absolutely no plans. It was good to take a break. In the afternoon a couple of girls from my group called and asked if I wanted to go hiking (and taking pictures, of course). We went for a 3 mile hike with all our gear. It was so much fun. Then in the evening I went downtown with another friend to take night pictures. I filled a 4G memory card in one day... nearly 400 photos.

Today has been a day of catching up on laundry and the details of life. But I did manage to squeeze in a 12 mile bike ride with Cora and her boyfriend. I think I have had more exercise in the last 2 days than I have had in the last 6 months. Oh, and the weather has been fantastic! 70's-80's perfect for adventuring.

Photo of the Day

This is a photo I shot in color and turned into black and white for a class. I really like how it turned out.

Old Friends and New Friends

It was getting late last night when I was writing so I didn't get to telling you about Saturday.

A couple of months ago I connected with some college friends via Facebook. They were living in Spokane, Washington. A mere 3 hour drive from Missoula. The only catch was that they are moving to Virginia this month. So I hopped in my car Saturday morning for a little road trip.

Matt and Jessica Roberts are good friends from college. We spent 4 years together at Sterling College and then had the privilege of going to Russia the summer after our sophomore year. Jessica even pulled out her photo album of our adventure in Russia. I wish I had a picture to put up here of the three of us back in the day. We were a site, that is for sure. That summer I remember telling Jessica that she and Matt were going to get married one day... and they admitted that they fell in love that summer. They were married a week after we graduated from college and I was able to attend their wedding. Over the years we have been in touch off and on. The last time we saw each other was our 5 year college reunion...7 years ago.

It was such a fun day catching up on our lives, the lives of other friends we have kept up with, and meeting their kids, Karis and Lucas. We went to an amazing park for the afternoon. Here are a few pictures of my old friends and new little ones.

The best part about seeing Matt and Jess was that the 7 years didn't seem to matter. We were able to pick up where we left off and enjoy one another just as before. I am a little sad that they are moving so far away. But hopefully it won't be 7 years before we meet again.

Week Two

Week two wasn't quite as a shock to the system as week one. But we were quite busy.

We learned about outsmarting your light metering systems in your camera and white balance in Photo Studies. Then had our first Lighting class and started to learn about reading light. We also had our first Business and Marketing class (the only class that really makes me nervous). We had a history lesson in Visual Studies and learned about meta data tagging in Image Capture Edit Manage class. There were two Field Help sessions this week when we were able to sit down with an assistant and our camera and make sure that we were getting all the information right. And we had a lab session for our computer lessons. But I can't forget the 4 hour lecture we had on Lenses. The most important lesson about lenses is that there is no perfect lens. Now I have to figure out how I can get a couple more lenses to I have a good lens system for my camera.

And Week Three they are supposed to really ramp it up... I still am not sure what that means.

Today was a beautiful day in the 70's and I was able to go out and take some pictures. Here are some that I liked.

New Toys

My tripod system came today. Now I can start using it. I am excited to use it, but my experience with tripods in the past have been a love/hate relationship. They allow you to shoot a lot of things you might not get to otherwise, but they are heavy and slow to set up.

We'll have to wait and see how this relationship goes.

It SNOWED!

We are already 11 days into June and it snowed today! Not just a few flakes, but the white carpet covering the hillsides surrounding town. I actually had to use my windshield wipers to clear the snow off of my car windshield this morning. I am quite baffle by this. I understand that I am living at a higher elevation, but this is crazy. I have been wearing my winter clothes I brought for fall. I even broke out my orange wool coat this morning so I wouldn't freeze to death on the 7 minute walk from where I park (it's free) to the school.

Classes are going well. It is amazing that nearly all of them are 4 hours long, but don't really fell like it. I feel fortunate that most of it has been stuff that I have heard before (but not necessarily used). It makes grasping the concepts much faster. Although I do have a feeling that any day now I will be in over my head and really have to start practicing harder. My most current delema is what to do for meals each day. I don't want to eat out, but sandwiches get old really fast and there is no microwave or refrigerator at the school for us to use. AND I am already carrying what seems like 25lbs of gear each day (especially if I have to bring my monster laptop). Any ideas?

Week One

One week. A lot can happen in one week.

I met a lot of new friends, including my housemates - Cora, who owns the house, and Erich who is here for an internship this summer and Cora's friend's little brother. Both are great and easy to be around. Although there are days when I don't see them because of our schedules. (I will try to get pictures later).

There are 100 students in the Summer Intensive portion of RMSP's Career Training program (the first 11 weeks of my stay here). We are divided into 6 groups. I happen to be in Group A. The only thing I can tell that this effects is that I almost always have a 9am class. Group A has 17 members ranging in approximate age from 18-65. I would say that the majority of us are 25-40. I have connected with a girl, Amanda, who is from Portland. She and I generally hang out together in whatever is happening. There are some fun personalities and people from all over the country.

My days are very full with 4 hour classes, field help sessions, lectures, and lots of note taking. They warned us that week 3 is when things really start to ramp up. It makes me tired just thinking about it.

Thursday we only had an afternoon class for a couple of hours so two other group a's went with me to a wilderness preserve just south of here. We had fun just doing something different and taking some pictures - even if the pictures weren't great. Here is one that was nice.

It has been a great start to my new adventure. Stay posted for more news and a new web page that I get to put together for class.

Checking In

That would be bringing my own caffeinated beverage, Amy. But thanks for the fun visual. The chairs are still terrible in the lecture room... but at least they added tables so we can lean on them if necessary.

Tomorrow I am heading out to take some pictures with a couple of classmates at 6am. Anyone want to join us? It has been raining every day and cold enough that I wore a long sleeve t-shirt and jeans today with a jacket. I am ready for summer to come back.

Ready, Set, Go!

Well, I feel orientated.... sort of. The day was full of introductions and tours, excitement and nerves. I had a good time and get to start with my first photo studies class at 9am tomorrow. And they had no coffee or cafinated beverage of any kind today... I came home with a headache and backache (from the chairs). I am taking my own tomorrow!

To be continued...

Welcome to Missoula

I am here! Yesterday I left Boise about 10am. I wasn't in a huge hurry. My goal was to get to Missoula before dark. Traffic wasn't too bad and I stopped to stretch a few times. Misty thought I should have a picture of my weighed down car. The kids really thought it was great to help pack the car. It was hard to say good bye as I had anticipated. But I did manage to tear my self away.

The self portrait is at the top of White Bird Hill about half way between Boise and Missoula.

I arrived in Missoula at 7pm, noting the WalMart and Safeway stores as I drove by. I knew my roomate wouldn't be home so I found the key, let myself in, unpacked my car, drove to WalMart and Safeway for food and other important items before I crashed at 10:30pm. I couldn't keep my eyes open to meet my roomate. So I didn't actuallly meet Cora until this morning. She is very nice, but just had knee surgery on Thursday so she is a little out of it. A couple of her friends came by to take her to church and invited me along. After church we went to lunch and they drove me around Missoula to show me how to get around. Once we got back to the house I made another run to WalMart. I think I have been to WalMart more in the last 24 hours than I went to WalMart in Boise in nearly 2 years. I did spot a Target, so I will have to stop there later to see if they had the things I couldn't find at WalMart.

And this is my room. Note the Japanese futon... it is always good to be able to pack your bed in a duffle bag. Thanks Kim and Ryu for your help to get my futon back to the US. Then there is all of the stuff that still needs to be unpacked, but I just don't quite know where to put it. I have a closet, but no dresser for clothes. I guess I will probably end up hanging everything up in the closet.

Tomorrow things kick off at the school... 8:30am orientation. I will let you know how it goes.

Checking Things Off

I have been checking things off my list like crazy this week. I finished up with my tutoring job. All of my stuff is packed and ready to go in my car. The camper is officaillay taken care of... it was cleaned out and readied for storing. Today was the day that Misty and I set asside to take the camper and suburban to storage on the miltary base. My good friend Betsy helped us get on base. It turned out to be an all afternoon project. It is quite a relief to get that done. With just a few days left, I am to the point of trying to think of what I have forgotten. I am looking forward to getting on the road Saturday.

Dad Update

The good news about Dad - his PSA (cancer numbers) are going down by about a point a day! He had a great appointment today and his 4th round of chemo. The doctor told him that he will only have to have 3 more rounds.

Lots of answered prayers today!

New Toys and Plans

It has been fun getting new toys in the mail over the last few weeks. New equipment, books and a laptop have all arrived. My sweet new laptop is a 17 inch monster (thanks for your help Peter and Misty). I think it will be a great tool as I learn and start off. I will have a few things to order just after I get there, but most of it is in. I do need to download Adobe Lightroom and Adobe CS3 for my laptop in the next few days. But it looks like I am pretty much set.

I only have one day of tutoring left and I will work next week at Young Life trying to pass on all the information that is in my brain to the guys. They haven't hired a new admin so there will be a bit of a break between me and whoever takes my place. The will have to manage for awhile on their own.

This weekend I am going to pack away anything I am not taking with me, clean the camper, get the oil changed in my car and try to think of everything I have forgotten to do. Next Wednesday we are going to try to take the camper to Mountain Home Airforce base to store it. Then Saturday I will make the drive to Missoula. It should be about a nine hour drive through the mountains.

I will try to keep you all posted on the details of my new adventure.

Mom

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!



Thank you for all your encouragement and love!
I love you!

It's Coming!

Another year checked off... and a new adventure to begin. It surprises me each year how quickly times passes between birthdays. Photography school has overshadowed most things this spring. In just three weeks I will be in Missoula for 5 months. Everyone asks if I am excited because it seems that this is the best way to segue into the topic of my adventure. Of course, I am excited! I had better be excited with all the resources and time I am investing in this. There are moments when I am unsure of my decision for whatever whacky reason I can come up with. But for the most part, I am looking forward to ALL of it. I don't know a lot of details yet, that will come during orientation on June 2nd. But I do know that June - August I will have class 6 days a week. September through October 17th I will have a little more sane schedule of 5 days a week. When I am done with school I should walk away with all of the training of a professional photographer, a business plan and a portfolio. We will just have to wait and see where those things take me.

Wrightsville Beach

1 Friend with a memorable birthday

















1 Perfectly situated beach condo













7 Fun women












Miles of beautiful sand














One Picturesque Pier










































Breath-taking scenes














































2 Dear Friends















Vacation doesn't get sweeter than this!

A Place to Stay

After months of researching housing options for this summer I have a place to stay! It is so fun... and a little nerve wracking... to see how God works out the details. After following up every possible lead for a room in Missoula, one of those leads did work out. I contacted the Young Life in Missoula and emailed one of their committee members. She sent me onto one of the volunteer leaders who might have a room in the house she lives. After several emails with her, I began emailing with the girl who owns the house and it is perfect. I will be renting a room in a 4 bedroom house. There will be a couple of people coming and going while I am there, but I am looking forward to meeting some new people. Hurray! The dates work out, the rent is great, and I will have new friends. Thanks to everyone who helped me think of possible places to stay!

Life these days

We have had a taste of summer this weekend. But it isn't supposed to last. This weekend was in the 70's. It was wonderful to spend time outsideand I have seen several people with bright red sun burns. The kids didn't want to come inside after playing in the sandbox today. But it is supposed to drop 20 degrees by Tuesday. So we will still have some cool weather before it actually decides to warm up for the year.

Dad is doing pretty well with his chemo. He did loose all of his hair this week. Mom said that he doesn't look good bald. But he has learned how to tie a do-rag and ordered a new hat.

In 10 days I get to go celebrate my good friend, Anita at the beach in North Carolina! Definately something to look forward to.

Photography school count down... one month, two weeks and 4 days... and counting. Now if I could only find a cheap place to stay.

Kid Snapshots

A few fun shots of the kids and Jun.

Two Months

Two months and counting down
I have two months of "real life" left before I venture north to Missoula for Rocky Mountain School of Photography's Career Training program. It only gets more exciting the closer it gets. A couple of other students that are going to be with me this summer have called. We are all trying to figure out housing. I am looking forward to meeting them. Our conversations have been very fun. I will continue to keep updated.

PS the official start date is June 2nd

Dad

An Update on Dad
Dad started chemo last Friday. He is doing pretty well with the side effects so far. We were excited that he was able to get treated in Alaska so they don't have to travel so much. They only have to drive to Anchorage for treatments and appointments. The docotor in Anchorage is also excited about working with their doctors in DC so that Dad can qualify for other drug trials in the future if need be. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. Mom has been keeping her blog updated if you want to read up on the details.

Easter Thoughts

I have just returned from church is Easter Morning. As I sit enjoying my Americano with cream and sugar for the first time in 40 days, my thoughts are of Christianity and Faith and the Church.

Creeds

As I drove home from the Easter service this morning, my radio was tuned to NPR. They were playing an interview with Jaroslav Pelikan about Creeds, the orgin, the need, and the faith behind them. (speakingoffaith.org if you are intersted) I was intrigued. I grew up in evangelical churches and really didn't know or understand what a creed was until college. I attended a Presbyterian college and began to learn some of the more liturgical styles of worship as well as the history behind them. Honestly, the first Creed I thought much about was from Rich Mullins' song Creed that came out in the 90's. From that song I began learning a little more about creeds and catachisms--the history of them and the tradition of them. And I really began to embrace them for myself.

My sophomore year of college I began preparing for a summer in Russia. One thing we had to do with the group going was to attend a service at the Eastern Orthodox church nearby. It was a facinating morning as a former Baptist talked to us about what had happened during the service as well as the traditions of the church. I had a new found knowledge and respect for the Orthodox church. (Thanks Kim!)

Lent

Until a few years ago I had no idea what lent was about. I read a book that inspired me to learn a bit more and observe it that year. This year is only the second time I have observed the Lenton season. I personally gave up coffee (Naomi, I have thought of you often this year!). Not for the caffine or because I had to have it every day, but because it was something that I do just for me and that I would truly miss nearly every day. It was surprisingly harder to deny myself this time. But I tried to remind myself of Jesus' sacrifice each time I was tempted to drink it. I also read scripture as listed from the Book of Common Prayer's Lenton readings. This was a great habit of scripture reading to adopt. And one I am hoping to continue. This is not to brag, but to explain some of my spiritual journey.

One's spiritual journey looks very different from another's and I know that mine is quite unique. I haven't always appreciated other Christian styles of worship or even understood them. But as I have experienced many churches, styles, and traditions it has given me a greater appreciation for their differences and similarities. I want to always focus on the beliefs we all have in common and not the petty difference or service styles. I remember the feeling of holiness and consistancy that comes from a laturgical service and can enjoy and appreciate that. But I also appreciate the excitement and relativity of the modern church I attend currently

So these are my Easter thoughts of my personal spiritual journey. Where has your journey taken you?

Spring

In honor of spring I decided that my blog needed a fresh look. Green is perfect for all the green that is beginning to poke through the ground. My feature photo is one that I took last summer while in South Dakota. At a family gathering I snuck away with my cousin Elaina to take some photos of the prairie. One of the things that I am most looking forward to about photography school is leaning to take pictures of what I see and having them turn out as I see them. I have taken a lot of pictures in South Dakota and not had them turn out. It was hard for me to photograph what I saw and make it a picture that could share that with others. This one happened to turn out as I hoped.

Here are a couple more from that evening.

Visitors

This is Jun. I have been waiting almost two years to meet her.

Kim, her mom, has been a wonderful friend since I met her my freshman year of college nearly 12 years ago. We share many sweet memories of my college days, ministry, international adventures, and the ups and downs of life. Kim was with me on my first missions trip and my first trip to Hawaii. She stood beside me as I learned to live in Japan, translated Japanese tv over the phone for me, and cooked me American food whenever I visited her while we lived there. I was priveliged to go to her wedding and sent her packages of warm socks and books for Christmas.

A week or so after the twins were born I heard from Kim. She and her husband were given a precious baby girl to adopt. And she shares the twin's birthday. I was thrilled for this dream to come true for her.

Last week I met Jun for the first time. And she is truely a blessing. Jun, Kim, Ryu and Kim's parents all came to Boise. We were able to let the kids play together, go swimming, catch up on life, and go shopping. It was such a gift for me to have them come to see us.

The kids were fun. Jun freely gave them all hugs. Katie loved it while Joe wasn't so sure he wanted Jun that close. Lizzy was very concerned that she got enough time to play with Jun. And Jun loved playing with new toys.

Thanks Kim, Ryu and Jun for coming to Idaho!

Busy Weeks

Thanks for all the encouragement! I really am excited for the summer and all that is coming. It seems like it is coming so fast.

The last few weeks have been really busy. Saturday was the Young Life Banquet. It is our biggest fundraiser of the year. For weeks we have been preparing. There were some nervous moments a week before the banquet when our RSVP list was slim. But God is faithful and we had over 320 guests. It turned out to be a great night. The event was much easier for me this year. It was nice to know what to expect and how to do things better. I have also been working a lot more hours in preparation for a summer of study and no income.

But the best thing about this week is that my good friend Kim is coming! She will be here for a few days with her husband and daughter. I am anticipating a lot of fun, shopping and kid time. I am so honored that they are taking part of their vacation to spend it with us. I am going to have to take some photos to commemorate the fun.

Making Plans

I am now officially signed up for Rocky Mountain School of Photography. I have sent in my non-refundable deposits, filled out my student loan papers and started looking for housing.

The school has set up a web site for the summer career program. It has tons of information about Missoula, the program and preparing for the summer. They even have a sidebar count down calender.

My Montana summer is about to begin... which is exciting and a bit scary at the same time. Change is good, right?!

Winter in Central Idaho

A couple of weeks ago I spent an afternoon driving up to Idaho City. It was a bright winter afternoon. Here are a few shots I got from that trip









Last weekend was the Young Life leader retreat in McCall. I took a couple hours on Saturday attempting to photograph some of the amazing snow.

I even took a few photos of my friend, Kadi's house in McCall to show you how deep the snow is this year. If you notice the sidewalk is shoveled... but it is only as wide as the shovel.

Weather

For weeks we have had snow. Snow that reminded me of Alaska a number of times. Then in a few days it would start to disappear. The next morning there was another two inches of snow. Last weekend the cycle was broken! 50 degree weather finally came back last weekend. The snow line has receded up the mountains and there is the hint of spring in the air. Last year I started wearing my flip flops on March first and wore them until October. We'll see if the weather cooperates with that record.

Sorry, friends up in Alaska, I know break up is still a long way off. I remember those days. Hang in there... you do have the best summers ever to look forward to.

Boondoggle Deferred

There was a plan for this week. Too bad our plans don't always happen like we hope. Today is Misty's 30th birthday and for weeks she has been working on a plan to go on a mini-vacation. She even asked Mom and Dad to come down to help with the kids. Then the sniffles started and we hoped that they would be short lived. It was not to be. Mom and Dad came but the kids had full blown double ear infections and the adults weren't doing so well either. So the trip was postponed and we have been wiping snotty noses, dispensing medicine, and praying like crazy that Mom and Dad won't get it. Poor Misty has been a good sport, but she is disappointed. Hopefully we can make it up to her one of these days.

Happy Birthday, Sister!

Hand and Foot

While in college my good friend, Kim, invited me over to her apartment one evening to play games. Her grandmother was in town and a noted card shark. As I remember it the scene played out something like this: Kim, Kim's grandma, me and a single guy-that I beleive Kim was attempting to set me up with- sitting around a table eating M&M's and popcorn while Grandma was solemly explaining the sacred and extensive rules to a game called Hand and Foot that she played religiously with her friends. I know we played a long time that night and this game became one of the regular games played at any get together at Kim's place... whether in Kansas or Japan.

Kim didn't manage to set me up with any guys, but she did play a huge role in getting me to Japan. While we were both living in Japan Kim had several parties at her house. This almost always included great food and extensive games of Hand and Foot. We even figured out how to play with a lot more people or as few as three.

I believe it was the year I learned Hand and Foot that I introduced it to my family over the holidays. During the holidays my family spends together we always inculde a lot of hours playing games. Some times it is cards sometimes it is a board game, but alawys fun. And Hand and Foot became a fast favorite with everyone.

A couple of weeks ago Kim sent me an email asking if the Hand and Foot that is ALL OVER my families' blogs is the same Hand and Foot that her grandma taught me. Although I think it has changed some in some of the finer points and rules in my family, it is essentially the same. I have taught many, many people how to play and I know my parents are still teaching people. My grandmother loves to play with whoever will take the time. My cousins begged my parents to play with them over Christmas. It and Rook definately make an appearance at some point during a family get together. And today Lizzy heard us talking about it and insisted on playing 'Hands and Toes' with us. She was, however, a little disterbed when Peter used his foot. She kept saying over and over, "Dad, I don't have a foot."

Kim's grandmother passed away a few years ago, but her legacy lives on through the family of a shy college student that she played cards with. Thanks for sharing her with me, Kim.

Florida

I have been to Florida, soaked in some of the warm sunshine, and returned to the cold again.

This trip was with Young Life. The guys in my office were generous enough to take me along to the Young Life All Staff Conference. This conference only happens every 4 years and is a huge celebration of the mission of Young Life. Over 4,000 staff from across the US and 60 countries around the world converged on the Marriott World Center in Orlando. I roomed with the other Admin in my office, Betsy. We were fortunate enough to get 3rd floor rooms that over looked the pool. I enjoyed drinking a cup of tea on the balcony each morning before the long day began.

During the week we had some amazing speakers, Earl Palmer, Dale Bruner, and Donald Miller (writer of Blue Like Jazz). There was also a surprise visit from Jeff Foxworthy. He did a show for us and then the next morning he and his wife spoke to the general session. They are volunteer Young Life leaders and she was involved in Young Life in high school. Jack Hannah, the animal guy from David Letterman, made a surprise visit with some of his animals. He provided some of the best laughs of the week. He also has a personal connection with Young Life as his daughters and son-in-law have been involved in YL. We also had a visit from Ben Stein and his movie producer. He brought his film that comes out in February called Expelled that addresses the issue of intelligent design. We got the opportunity to preview the movie. And I highly recommend that you go see it. His producer was also a YL kid in high school. It is amazing to see how YL reached so many people and they, in turn, make a difference in the world.

Friday we ventured to the Magic Kingdom. It was fun to enjoy the 'Happiest Place on Earth' with my friends. We had to get a picture of the girls in front of the castle. We also got stuck in the Buzz Lightyear ride... this is Matt and Mel hanging out waiting for the ride to continue.


All in all it was a fantastic trip with good friends. It was so good to get away to soak in some sunshine and spritual encouragement.

Blue Cheese

When I was younger I didn't like blue cheese at all. I remember that my mom loved blue cheese dressing and always chose it at restaraunts. I couldn't imagine why. Sometime in my twenties I decided that I really did like blue cheese. About that time I remember having conversations with several friends about whether or not blue cheese was good. We came to the conclusion that it must be a grown up taste that you learn to like as you get older, like coffee. One friend assured me that then she would always be young becasue she would never like it.

Over the holidays I went to a Christmas party and my favorite thing on the pot-luck style snack table was an amazing blue cheese spread on green apples. I tracked down the maker of this divine dish for the recipe. I hope you will try it if you like blue cheese.

One package of cream cheese
1/2-3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
chives (one green onion will work)
salt and pepper to taste

I had it served with green apples which was amazing, but it also works with crackers.

Merry Christmas!

December seemed to fly by so quickly. I do have things to blog about, but without the challenge it was harder to stick to my writing. I was even humbled my the fact that my mom blogged more than I did this month.

I even have a video to link in for you. Last month I talked about Lizzy singing Baby Face and promised to put a clip on if I could. Peter cut the video for me of just Baby Face... enjoy. If you have more time, the whole preschool program is on Pete & Misty's web page.
The holiday vacation around here didn't quite turn out like we had hoped. Joe started the fun on Friday when he started throwing up. This fun has traveled throughout the house and we have all paid homage to the porceline throne. All productivity and activity that was unnecesary stopped. All healthy energy was spent cleaning up after the sick ones. This will explain why all of my out of state friends have not received their gifts, nor are likely to for another week or so. The only benefit to this quick diet is that I will look great for my trip to Florida in two weeks because no holiday pounds are hanging around.

I hope you all had a much healthier holiday vacation. I also pray that you know the hope of Christ's birth and the reason for this holiday season.

RMSP

A week ago I sent in my registrations form for Rocky Mountain School of Photography's career training school. Today I received my first packet of information. It is exciting that I have officially started the process toward this adventure. I now have two weeks to complete an agreement form and send in a rather large deposit. (The only thing I am not looking forward to is the money part of this adventure. But that will work out eventually.) Once I send in the deposit I will receive another packet of information that has more specific information to my summer of intensive study including equipment and housing information. By the way, if anyone has any connections in Missoula, I will need a place to live for 5 months (besides my car).

PS For those of you who haven't noticed, I put a link to RMSP's web page on the right side of my blog if you are interested in looking around.

Things That Make Me Smile

Dark chocolate anything.
Seeing a beautiful sunrise or sunset.
When Joe and Katie crack each other up.
Being in the mountains.
Sleeping in.
Seeing the invisible hand of God at work around me.
Playing cards with all of my family.
When a photo turns out as I envision it.
Singing along with Christmas songs while shopping.
Road trips.
Reminiscing with friends and family.

I know there are many many more... but these were on my mind recently.