Photoshop Fun

Lewis bought me a cool camera when our house sold, and I've been having a great time figuring it out. So far, I have the point, click and focus parts pretty much down. Aperture, focal length and ISO are pretty much eluding me, but I'm trying. Yesterday I dove into the deep waters of photoshop. I watched tutorials on youtube, and had to pause them every few seconds and rewind over and over. Photoshop is like the mind of a woman, to a man. Unfathomable depths. You can totally screw things up with some errand click you didn't realize you even did. I had to restart things several times. But I'm learning. I'll get it, I promise. Here are some of my projects today:


I know some day soon I'll laugh at what a terrible job I did on these, but today, I'm proud of myself!

Our Growing Family

We did it! We've been talking a lot lately about expanding our family, so we all went down to the feed store and we did it!

Is there anything cuter than a baby chick?

How about a baby duck?

What about two of them, a male and a female, that love and cuddle each other? It's so adorable, if you pick one of them up, the other cries until you cuddle them both. They kiss when they're reunited. It's just soooo sweet! Dainon and Logan have named them Kit Kat and Sweaty Bicep. Guess which one is the boy?

Our murderous chicken-killing dog was irresistibly drawn to the new babies. I can just hear her thinking, "Just one little bite! That's all I ask!"

Here's Logan holding the cuddling ducks, with Jill looking on- waiting, hoping.

"One day, one sweet day, you're gonna get lax. You're gonna turn your head for just a second, and I'll be ready."

We got a mix of eaters and layers. In just five short weeks, I get to post about the guys chopping 5 of their heads off. Eek!

The rest, ten of them, get to be ours for good. Or at least until Jill, hawks, or coyotes get them. What do you think? How long will it be until the first one moves on to its reward?

"Why ducks?" you ask. I thought they would be fun. We'll let them have little ducky babies, and either eat them, or let someone who likes baby ducks eat them. We'll keep the breeding pair around though. What's a little farm without ducks?

Catch Up

I feel like I'm so behind. I've started to post so many times, but just get diverted before I'm done. So I decided to give a reader's digest version of the last few weeks.

*I'm obsessed with home decorating lately. I've scored big time at yard sales, and have bought a ton of spray paint. I'm having the time of my life.

*I had a great Mother's Day. I scored a lilac, burning bush, heirloom tomatoes, chocolates and adorable things from my boys.

*I got to speak in Church on Mother's Day, along with Lewis and Dainon. I love speaking in church. I wish I could do it every week, but they won't let me :)

*I hosted the whole Earl clan that very same day. We ate, and played baseball in our field. Good times, good times.

*My Mom, Dad and Grandma came over for a visit. We took them all over the back of the property, even the boys' fort. They were good sports.

*Lilacs are blooming right outside my back door, leaving me transported with joy.

*Fruit trees are blooming, and hidden treasures in the back forest have been found: massive elderberry trees, choke cherry bushes, and a wild apple tree. Jam, anyone?

*We're still Earls, even though we moved. So of course there is a rope swing, and kids to play with Kelton.

*I'm taking my first baby steps at decorating. What do you think? Like the little mirrors and basin and pitcher? Recognize them from the spray paint picture?

*Jill is in heaven digging everywhere for gophers. No squirrels to chase here.

* Isn't this picture a thing of beauty? Three cheers for having boys old enough to mow the lawn!

*The boys had their Father/Son campout, which is also known as National Mothers of Only Sons Holiday. I was down with a grevious injury (I sliced the top of my foot pretty deeply) and was ordered to STAY DOWN. Which I did, so my friend Elisa brought a girls night party to me. Tons of food, lots of laughs... it was great.

We have big plans coming up. They involve these, >and these.

And just maybe this:

Some Photos

Okay, I couldn't wait for my modem to get here. I decided to post a Missy-Eye view of some of the cool things here. This is the deer trail that leads off our property to where the herd beds down at night. It's a 2-acre parcel of thick brush and a huge basalt hill. There's the coolest tree that forms a natural canopy-like fort that the boys have claimed as their own. Except that one day, Dallin went busting in there to find himself face-to-face with a mama deer and her baby. He showed remarkable presence of mind and just backed away slowly. It's a wonderland back there, I tell you.

I love the sunflowers here. They're everywhere, just growing wild.

This was my first day with my camera. A Golden eagle obliged me by circling overhead.

This photo makes me so happy. The nails, the creosote on the post, the twisted barbed wire... I love it.

This is my new spice garden. I dug it myself. It was quite a feat! I'm growing parsley, cilantro, thyme, rosemary, tarragon, chives from my last spice garden, sweet marjoram, lavender, and lemon balm. I still need sage, sweet basil, mint and oregano. Except oregano might just have to be potted. Have you seen how oregano spreads? It was a weed in my last yard. I'm going to use the rest of the space as a kitchen garden. There will be no big garden plot this year. This is what the beds look like right now.
Fancy, huh? It used to be a worm farm. We'll need to pull off the orange insulation, the rotten wood on top, cut down the trees that have grown up, scrape out the weeds, add tons of topsoil- then we'll be ready to plant. See why I'm waiting for next year?

But at least one project is completed! I painted my shutters black. Or, I got Lewis to paint them for me. They used to be the same color as my door- Ack! Don't they look loverly?

There's so much more rain here, there's lichen all over the trees. LOVE the color! It reminds me of my carpet. Wait- I love the color OUTSIDE.

Remember when I said there was a lot more rain here? I love this photo.

New pink life bursting forth. What do you think- apples? That's my guess. But what kind?! It's a mystery unfolding right here.

This is a great blue heron I saw yesterday while fishing/taking pictures with Logan. This is about a half mile from our house.

This is my pile of rocks that we dug from our field. We're going to use them in our landscaping! (clapping hands giddily) I can't wait to find a home for these lovelies.
So there you have it. Not any photos of inside, but as I get projects done, I'll post them.

Almost There.....

I won't consider myself fully moved in until I have Internet access. "What?!" you say, "Haven't you already lived there over a month?"
Yes, I have. For many weeks I was in rebellion against confiscatory Internet prices here. Did you know, in Kennewick, I only paid $26 a month for really decent speed Internet? Here, the cheapest I could find is around $75 for not nearly as fast. I have abstained on principle. But, I just can't take it any longer. AND.... I got a rocking camera that I'm having so much fun with. I'm dying to post all the pictures of my life here. Any day now, you will see eagles soaring overhead. Piles of rocks that this chickybabe has dug from her very own field, destined to become a wall around her spankin' new spice garden. You'll see my best thrift store find ever, a delicious black leather club chair I nabbed for $20! Life is very good here. We've been busy getting to know people at church, inviting someone over at least once a week. Lewis has been working like crazy getting his business up and running, but he's still had time for planning a cabin he and his father are building this spring/summer, playing baseball with us in our field, snuggling up and watching movies... those kinds of things.
Here's one I took of Dall. Oh, the joys of leaving my cruddy point and shoot behind! I'm just barely learning, but it's really fun work. Hopefully, in a day or so, I can fill you in fully on exactly what our lives here look and feel like. Until then....I'll watch American Idol and fret over who gets sent home!

Know What I Saw Last Night?

Lewis and I had a busy day yesterday schlepping the last of the stuff from our storage unit to our new home. What a windy day that was! My parents were kind enough to take a load too, and come see our house. Oh, joy! To see my parents again, in my new home really filled my cup. After the dust had settled and our guests were on their way, Lewis and I snuck out for some food. Did you know that things close really, really early in this small town? The diner closed at 7, that left a Chinese restaurant, a bar, and Mexican. We chose the Mexican, and they were just about to close (it was 8:30). They sweetly stayed open just for us, and we had a lovely meal. It reminded us so much of the Tri-Cities. We chatted with the owner, and she laughed when she told us that they were the only Mexican family in town. Can you imagine that?
As we were pulling away from the curb, we noticed a small animal in front of the Chinese restaurant, about the size of a cat. We could tell it wasn't by the way it moved. We turned the car into the parking lot, so our lights would shine on it, and what do you know! It was a raccoon. It stood there, looking at us, and then meandered over to a bowl on the lawn that must have been left there for it. This is a different world over here, my friends, a different world.

Mustache Mischief Managed

So yesterday was a hard day. I was feeling really low, and even allowed myself a few tears. Just a few, because, like I said before, I didn't want a red puffy face for my meeting at the school. That would be so embarrassing- to look like a freak in front of the counselor, principal, and about 7 teachers. Who would want to do that?
So instead of crying, I messed around with my makeup in my new bathroom. Attached to the wall in my new master bath, is one of those lighted mirrors that magnifies your face like crazy. It's horribly disgusting and fascinating- every blemish, every stray hair stands out like a neon sign. I spied some tweezers and went to town, blissfully distracted from my sorrows. I glanced at the clock and gasped. How time had flown! I dashed out the door and drove to the school. I ended up being early and I took a last quick peek in the car mirror. What I saw turned my blood to ice: a bright red mustache on my upper lip, and my eyebrows were glowing crimson. Oh, the plucking!!! It's a good think I didn't cry and make myself look like a weirdo, right?
I cast around for an idea. "I know," I thought, "I should rub my face and pinch my cheeks so my whole face looks equally red!" Genius. I did just that. I was sporting a very, very healthy glow when I breezed into the school. I had to wait a few minutes for the teachers to arrive, so I nonchalantly strolled past a mirrored wall to check the damage. Dang! I was every bit as mustachioed! I rubbed, rubbed and rubbed some more, hoping against hope that by the time the teachers made it, my features would look normal again. Then I saw the drinking fountain. Cool water! That HAD to help. I bathed my hands and rubbed my face. As I straightened up, I saw a group of teachers had gathered, waiting for me. One approached me with an outstretched hand. "Hi! Pleased to meet you, sorry, my hand is wet." Doh. Does it get any dorkier? I was stuck. I went into the meeting, feeling like I was on the way to my own execution. During the meeting, every time they looked at me, I was sure they were thinking, "What's wrong with her face? Poor thing, she must have a skin condition." I fancied I could see the sympathy in their eyes. I tried to cover for myself, looking contemplative and rubbing my upper lip, but I knew it was no use.
I drug my feet as I made my way to the car, inwardly cringing at what I would see in the car mirror. I sat down, took a deep breath, and peeked at the swollen horror that was my face. I looked totally normal- except my cheeks had a rather healthy glow. I laughed all the way home.