Bread Man

This is Chad's bread. No, he didn't bring it from France, or buy it at a bakery. He made it. Have you ever seen anything so perfect? Yum, yum, yum. I'm signing up for lessons!

Photo Contest Time Again

Yes, I'm entering another photo contest. Not a big one. It's through The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond's blog (a very fun blog for photography and cooking enthusiasts). The assignment is to submit a photo demonstrating shallow depth of field, where the focal point is in focus, but the rest of the picture is out of focus. We can submit a total of four pictures, and I've already picked three that I like. Now I need your help picking a fourth. Here are some to choose from. Which one is your favorite? Thanks for your help!!

AB
C
D
E
F
G
H
I

Vintage Brown, circa 1982: CORRECTION

My apologies to Amanda and Chad for mislabeling the picture. The person that I thought was Amanda is actually Chad, and I think Amanda is sitting next to Mom. If so, then we're all present and accounted for in the picture! Here's the corrected pic.

Vintage Brown, circa 1982

Ok, so 1982 used to not sound so very long ago. But when you stop and figure that this picture was taken 28 years ago, the early 80's becomes an era of the past, kind of like the way I used to think of the 50's.


The place was Berchtesgaden, Germany (also the site of Hitler's Eagle's Nest). Dad used to arrange single adult conferences for LDS men and women, and this one was in the beautiful, lovely, stunning, picturesque town of Berchtesgaden. Fortunately for us, the conferences became a family affair, so Dad and Mom brought all seven of us from Wurzburg in the big, green Caprice Classic station wagon.

I'm guessing that in this picture we are watching some sort of talent show or something. Whatever it was, it appears to be quite riveting. Even little DiDi is mesmerized. The only one of us kids that I can't find in this picture is Chad. He was probably on the stage singing. :) Actually, all the single women thought he was so cute that one of them probably had him on her lap. Or, there is an empty seat next to Amanda; maybe he is under it.

You'll notice that I've pointed out a few interesting aspects of this picture (click to enlarge). I am particularly disturbed by the fact that I have a hair brush poised and ready for a possible hair emergency. Wow, being that concerned about your hair is not the way to live!

More Fun with Actions

Here's a picture I snapped a few weeks ago while visiting Salt Lake City with Duncan's parents.

Here is the same picture with a Photoshop action applied to it. Not a huge difference, but it gives it a boost.

Here is the same picture with three different Photoshop actions applied to it. (I kept the Angel Moroni gold using my own sweet Photoshop skills, not with an action.)
I think I'm addicted.

Sisters

I like this picture of the girls, even if it does look like Chloe has a mullet! That's just the way her hair grows, I promise. Maybe it's time for a haircut.

Blessings

Blessings come in all shapes and sizes. Yesterday, Duncan gave our daughter, Charlotte, a name and a blessing in church; little girl, but HUGE blessing to us. A few family members also participated in the blessing; namely, my dad, Duncan's dad, and my brother, Chad. Our Moms and my sisters, Diannah and Amanda, and Amanda's children were in the congregation. And later, we got to see Duncan's brother, Parker, and his daughter. Thank you, family, for coming and supporting us. We love you! We are so grateful for the gospel, and the restoration of the Priesthood--the power of God--on the earth.

Of course, I took a number of pictures of the occasion, and that's where the second, comparatively small blessing comes in: Photoshop Actions!

Here's one picture straight out of the camera. Not bad, but with one push of a button you can have something like this:

Or this:
So much fun, I can't get enough!!