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12 Weeks to Better Photography- Week 3 (White Balance)

>> Friday, March 19, 2010 – 12 Weeks to Better Photography, Photography

This week's lesson is all about the color of light and white balance. The handy-dandy lesson is HERE. You see, sunlight casts different colors throughout the day but for this lesson, we focused on indoor light. Most times when I take pictures indoors at night, the pictures come out yellowish. Not very pretty. Tonight, I took a picture of a white piece of paper so my camera adjusted to that color. I'm not very good at explaining (or even understanding) this photography phenomenon so go ahead and read the lesson yourself.

Let's get to the photos. The first picture was taken on AWB (auto white balance). Notice the overall orangish tint to the picture...The next picture is taken using the tungsten WB setting. The white on Mia's paws, face, and neck are actually looking a little more white but not quite perfect yet. Finally, I was able to use the custom white mode (CWB) that I set up earlier with the white paper. Perfect :) Personally, I think this picture looks like it I took it at noon with all the windows open so light could fill the room. Nope...it was 9 pm!We celebrated Mia's birthday all day and you can tell that she is just pooped. We got some adorable pictures of her opening her presents and I hope to have them uploaded soon!

12 Weeks to Better Photography- Week 2 (ISO and Shutter Speed)

>> Thursday, March 18, 2010 – 12 Weeks to Better Photography, Photography

Better late than never, right?

This week's lesson is about ISO and shutter speed. The very helpful printout is HERE. ISO is all about lighting. You set your ISO to low numbers in low light and higher numbers indoors. The lower the ISO, the slower your image is captured and the more light is required. The higher the ISO, the faster your image is captured and the less light is required.

Shutter Speed is how quickly your shutter opens to capture the image. A fast shutter speed can capture things like sports and quick moving action. A slow shutter speed looks blurry...think cars on the highway at night. I love those kind of shots!

This week's assignment wanted us to capture water in our sink. The ISO was set to 1600 because I was inside. This first picture has the shutter speed set at 0"5 (half a second). The shutter speed is REALLY slow so the water looks blurry.

This next picture has the shutter speed set to 1/80 of a second. Much faster and sharper but still a little blurry.Finally, I set the shutter speed to 1/1000 of a second. VERY fast and able to catch a very sharp picture. Cool, huh?!? (I did have the lighten the color of the picture afterward because not enough light was getting through with that fast of a shutter speed.)Week 3's assignment will be up tomorrow!

Happy birthday, Mike!

>> Monday, March 15, 2010 – Mike

Happy birthday, to my favorite man.You are an amazing husband, wonderful friend, and such a great father to our baby, Mia.We love you very much! Have a great day!

Weight Loss and Websites

>> Thursday, March 11, 2010 – Running, Weight Loss

Today, I stepped on the scale and had a big loss. I lost 3.4 lbs this week!!! Awesome, right?!? Wellllll...it comes after last week where I had a pretty BIG gain. I guess I am starting to feel the frustration of the yo-yo. I know that cutting out alcohol will definitely improve my numbers on the scale but I am not ready to do that just yet.This week was awesome because I finally met a HUGE running goal. I went outside last Saturday and ran. And ran. And ran. I ran longer than I had ever run before. I ran longer than I ever thought I could run. I ran for 56 minutes and 53 seconds. HELLO...that is almost 1 hours of running! Without stopping!!! Never did I think that I would ever be able to do this. I couldn't even run the entire 5K on Thanksgiving without about 30 seconds of walking. This was HUGE for me and if you don't believe that I did it, here is the proof...Here is where I stand as far as weight loss.
WW Week 7
Weigh-in: -3.4 lbs
Total Loss: -7.0 lbs
Slow and steady. I have had big losses but a couple of gains too. I really need to be more committed to this weight loss. I am sure that Mexico lingering in my future will help motivate me.

There are a couple of weight loss sites that I would LOVE to share with you. Being on weight watchers has really forced me to make conscious decisions about what I am eating. I can honestly say that I haven't been to a McDonalds, Taco Bell, or Qdoba (they are all within 1 minute from my house) in 7 weeks.

The first, new favorite site is Hungry Girl.This site is amazing! You can find delicious recipes include how to cook with my favorite cheese, Laughing Cow (only 1 point per wedge). Seriously...check out these recipes right here! I love California Pizza Kitchen's BBQ Chicken Salad. LOVE IT! I can make it on a pita for only 6 points. Ummm...yes, please! If you subscribe to her site, you will get emails almost daily about great swaps and how you can make your favorite restaurant items. I will be trying this recipe very soon!

Ok...next site. Actually, it is a blog...Gina's Weight Watchers Recipes. Go there. Now. Everything on this site looks amazing! I haven't actually made anything from this blog yet but I have all of the ingredients for the Crockpot Chicken Taco Chili and will be making it next week. A few of my friends tried this Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken Breasts and had wonderful things to say. I will be trying this one out soon too! I love how all of the Weight Watcher points are already figured out!

Finally, Dottie's Weight Loss Zone (restaurant section). You can go to any of your favorite restaurants to find out how many points are in the meals you want to eat. This site has been necessary for me. I have had 3 night events at school over the last couple weeks where I have had to run out and get something to eat before returning to school. I am able to go to this site, find something that fits within my points, and enjoy. I was pretty shocked to see that many of my favorite foods were worth more points than I can eat in one day. Mike almost died when he saw that the nachos he gets from Taco Bell were 18 points. That is almost 1 day of food for me.

Sooo...that turned out to be a much longer post than I thought it would be. I guess if it was helpful to anyone, then it was worth it. Have a great night!

Where in the world...

>> Wednesday, March 10, 2010 – Vacation

is Carmen Sandiego? No, I have not suddenly become an ACME agent/detective. However, I am feeling like quite the world traveler.

It is official...we are going to Cancun!

Italy Hotels

>> Tuesday, March 9, 2010 – Italy, Vacation

I have been very busy juggling school as a teacher and as a student this year. Recently, I have working on our Italy trips and I am pleased to say that all of our hotels have been booked. Mike and I didn't want to spend too much money on hotels since we don't plan on spending too much time in them. That being said, we weren't quite ready to stay in hostels or 1-2 star hotels either.

In Rome, we will be staying here! How sweet and I love it all lit up at night! In Florence, we will be staying at the this beautiful hotel. To say that I am excited to visit Cinque Terre, would be an understatement. This adorable, yellow hotel has me so excited! Look closely over the bridge in the picture above. That is the terrace where we will eat breakfast each morning.Venice, Venice, Venice. Here we will be staying at another yellow hotel...I see a pattern here!Another rooftop terrace...I promise that when I have a bad day, I am going to look back at this post and know that I get to visit these places sooner than later. Ahhhhh.....

12 Weeks to Better Photography- Week 1 (Aperture)

>> Sunday, March 7, 2010 – 12 Weeks to Better Photography, Photography

A few blogger friends are following this online tutorial and I thought it would be the perfect way to get more familiar with my camera. Meredith at La Buena Vida posts a photography lesson each week and then you try it out and post your results.

Week 1's lesson is about aperture. Everyone loves when pictures that have that "blurry" effect and aperture is the reason why it happens! Mike has tried lecturing me about this many time so I was familiar with this concept. When your aperture, or f/ (f-stop), is low, then less light is coming into your lens. Therefore, less of the picture is in focus and the background will be blurry. When your f/ is higher, then more light is coming into your lens and more of the picture will be in focus. Read more about her first lesson HERE. The printout that helped me a lot is right HERE.

I was outside enjoying the weather with my favorite pup and decided to take some shots of her adorable, little legs.Picture #1- This picture was taken with the f/ set at 1.8. This means that a small part of her legs will be in focus and the rest of the picture will be blurry.
Picture #2- This picture was taken with the f/ set at 8. This means that you will see more of her leg and hairs in focus, as well as the fence and ground in the background.

Picture #3- This picture was taken with the f/ set at 22. This means that more of the background is in focus, such as the wooden planks of the fence and the coloring of her back leg.Week 1- Done and done!

No Phone Zone

>> Saturday, March 6, 2010 – Celebs, Random

Today, I finally took Oprah's "No Phone Zone" Pledge. I have Oprah set on my DVR and at the end of every episode, she mentions making your car a no-phone zone. I don't really know what I have been waiting for or why I didn't pledge sooner. This morning, I promised to stop texting in my car. As embarrassing as it is to admit, I have definitely texted while driving. It is careless and dangerous and I am not going to do it anymore. On Oprah's website, you can choose what level you would like to pledge. You can choose one of 3 no-phone zone promises:

I will not text while I am driving

I will not text while driving and will use only handsfree calling if I need to speak
on the phone while I am driving.

I will not text or use my phone while I am driving. If I need to use my phone, I will
pull over to the side of the road.

I am hoping to give the handfree device a shot in the future too. Go ahead and take the pledge right HERE! Have a great weekend and enjoy this beautiful weather.

Dear Winter,

>> Thursday, March 4, 2010 – Random

I am sorry to say, it is time for you to move on. You have graced us with your presence for quite a while now but you have overstayed your welcome. March is here, which means it is time to pack your bags and leave.

Thank you for the good times you gave us this year. Mia enjoyed her first snow. We thought it was hilarious that she would pee on our deck, porch, and driveway because she forgot where the grass was. I also appreciated the 3 snow days that you gave us. That was nice.

I am hearing rumors about 59 degree weather this weekend. I think Spring might be trying to push you out. Don't be stubborn, just go. I promise that if you leave, I won't even complain about the loss of an hour for Daylight Savings Time. I promise that I will walk my dog outside more often. I even promise to start running in the mornings again.

Goodbye, Winter. See you next year!

WW- Week 5...Slowly by surely...

>> Saturday, February 27, 2010 – Weight Loss

WW Week 5
Weigh-in: -2.4 lbs
Total Loss: -6.6 lbs

Yahoooo! I love weeks when I lose! Especially when one comes a week after I gained. On Saturday , Mike and I took a wonderful run in Forest Park with our great friends, Peter and Kate. Mike and Peter ran 7 miles (Mike's longest and fastest run ever). Kate and I did run/walk intervals and ended up running 3.5 miles total with probably another mile of walking. I really liked running in the park and I would like to do it more often when it starts warming up!

Unfortunately, we ate Mexican TWICE this weekend and I have a feeling it is going to impact this weeks weight loss. We shall see...

Updates!

>> Monday, February 22, 2010 – Charity, Vacation, Weight Loss

I seriously need to get better about this blogging thing. Thanks to those of you that are still reading and commenting. I promise, once I get through this semester, I know I will be better about updating.

This week is conference week, which is usually the worst time of the year. I feel like I am a crazy lady all of the time. I am busy at work, taking my final 2 masters classes, and my calendar looks like a mess. I just need some time to myself to relax and I honestly know that it won't happen until after school is out and I have graduated.

I am just looking forward to this... I can do it!

WW Week 4
Weigh-in: +0.8 lbs
Total Loss: -4.2 lbs

Whoops! I guess that is what I get after over-indulging BIG TIME over the weekend while celebrating Mardi Gras and Valentine's Day. Oh well! It was worth it! This week will be another rough one because I am super stressed and busy, which really makes it hard for me to work out. I ran 4 miles for the first time and I am hoping to be at 5 miles next week. Only time will tell! I weigh in this Thursday for week #5 so let's hope for a big minus.

AND THANK YOU so much for commenting on my post about donating to Haiti. I got 46 comments and decided that 50 cents per comment just wasn't enough. I definitely didn't want to donate only $23. Instead, I donated $2 per comment plus $8 and gave a total of $100! What a fun way to donate!

Finally...our roof is having more problems. We noticed a spot on our ceiling in our room months ago. Well...long story short, we need to do some more patching up and put another $700 into the roof. Uck....the joys of being a home owner.

Just noticed that it is 9:30...bed time. What have I become?

DONATION FOR HAITI!

>> Wednesday, February 17, 2010 – Charity

Tomorrow (Thursday 2/18) will be the last day to make your comment worth money on THIS POST. Right now there are 44 comments. Instead of donating 50 cents for each comment, I am going to donate $2.00 for each comment! So leave some love if you have not done so yet. Thanks for everyone who commented :) Have a great evening!!!

Bad Mia

>> – Mia

We really WANT to give the little girl more freedom so she isn't in her crate all day. Today was her trial period. Only 3 1/2 hours and what does she do? THIS....Awesome...too bad you can't help by smile when you see her. What a brat!

Love

>> Sunday, February 14, 2010 – Holidays

Photo: Flickr Storm

WW-Week 3

>> Friday, February 12, 2010 – Swimming, Weight Loss

Week 3
Weigh-in: -2.4 lbs
Total Loss: -5.0 lbs

Yahooooooo! So happy about my loss this week. Although I drank a ton in Columbia last week (I still need to blog about that!) and ate El Rancho at 1:30 am, I still lost. I ran 3 times last week and swam 3 times. I just hope I can do it all again this week with Mardi Gras and Valentine's Day around the corner!

Google Reader people...come out and check out the new layout. I wanted to post bigger pictures while still holding onto the labels and links on the right side. Mike also made me a new header to change things up!

Finally, if you haven't commented on THIS POST, please do it. I will be making my donation next week!

Ohhh...one more thing. As I am adjusting the colors on my new blog layout, I can't figure out how to change the color of the links within my posts. See the link above...I don't like the light brown color. Does anyone know what it is called so I can change it! Thanks :)

My new workout

>> Tuesday, February 9, 2010 – Swimming, Weight Loss

This...Plus this...
Plus this....EQUALS...My new favorite workout!!!! I am still running and training for my 6 mile relay for the Go St. Louis but thought this would be a run way to switch things up on my non-running days. It is hard!!! I was never on a swim team growing up so I am just winging it right now. I can't go to fast or for too long without stopping to catch my breath but this is an awesome workout! Any swimmers out there? (I am hoping this also helps with my weigh-in on Thursday.)

I want these, please!

>> Friday, February 5, 2010 – Fashion

The current rain/snow shower is getting me thinking of a perfect pair of Hunter boots. I am leaning toward the red pair (my favorite color)...But I am also loving this dark purple color...With so many colors to choose from, I'm not really sure which one to pick!Endless.com can get them here by Monday. Hummm...what to do????

EDIT: I just found out that Target has a pair of red knock-offs for only $20. These definitely beat the Hunter's $115 price tag. Do I need the real things?

Weight Watchers- Weeks 1 and 2

>> Thursday, February 4, 2010 – Food, Weight Loss

We have been doing Weight Watchers at work and our group of 15 people has already lost over 80 pounds total!

Week 1 went really well and I thought I was going to see a big weight loss on the scale. I told Mike that I would be happy as long as I had lost something. I got on the scale and only lost 1 pound. I'm not going to lie...I was mad. But, I continued to track all of my points and go the gym. I am currently up to running 2.5 miles. I am going to give 3 miles a shot on Saturday.

Last night, I made a recipe our of the Weight Watcher's book they give us each week. This picture is from the WW website but mine looked just as beautiful! It was DELICIOUS! You should definitely give this recipe a shot. Mike loved it too!!!

Today was weigh-in #2. Although I wanted more than 1 pound, I knew that any loss was what I needed. This week's loss was 1.6 lbs! YAYYYYYYY! If I lose a pound each week, I will lose 13 pounds by the end of this. Let's hope the losing streak can continue.

I am finding the weekends are really hard for me and not only for the food but the beverages. This weekend, we are going up to Columbia for a lush and chow-fest and I can't wait. Not sure how I am going to count points yet. Oh well! We will see!

I'll start posting my stats here too:
Week 1
Weigh-in: -1 lb
Total Loss: -1 lb

Week 2
Weigh-in: -1.6 lbs
Total Loss: -2.6 lbs

Happy Friday!!!

Oh, happy day!

>> Friday, January 29, 2010 – Wedding

17 months later, I have a preview of my wedding video! It brought back so many emotions and memories from that day. Enjoy! (Double click to make it bigger!) Or go HERE.

Mike and Lauren from Browers Photography on Vimeo.

Back on the Wagon

>> Tuesday, January 26, 2010 – Running, Weight Loss

Today it all began. Running has become a part of my life again. I went out today after work with the dog and together, we ran 2 miles without stopping. Big deal for me since I really haven't done anything in a long, long time. I forgot how good it feels to get out there and run. I was pretty impressed with Mia too. It was her first time running and she did a pretty good job!

I weigh in on Thursday for Weight Watchers. I am so scared that I will not have lost anything. I have been really good watching my points and I just hope for some positive reinforcement from the scale. I know that I can't expect a big number. To be honest, I would just like to see 1 pound. Please pray to the weight loss gods for me and send good vibes on Thursday!

Again, please comment here! Right now, it looks like I will pay $2 per comment rather than $0.50.

Don't want to post without a picture so here is one I took last week of my lovies :)

Whose refrigerator is this?

>> Saturday, January 23, 2010 – Weight Loss

I have never had such a colorful refrigerator! I know this might shock all of you healthy people, but we have never been big into the healthy eating. I wouldn't say that we were UNhealthy eaters, by any means, but we definitely were not eating all of the fruits and veggies that we should have each day. One of my goals for the new year was to eat a fruit each day and I have been doing a great job so far. I just got home from the grocery store and lot at all of this color!Yup...that carrots, lemons, apple, and oranges.
Mia was very interested in the veggies. We have broccoli, celery, spinach, lettuce, yum!

Tomorrow I am going to make a soup, chop all of the veggies, and put my snacks in baggies that are easy for me to grab. I better lose weight this week!

***Thank you everyone for your supportive comments on this new Weight Watchers journey. It may not have seemed that I need to lose about 30 pounds, but unfortunately, it is true. I am only 5'3'' and I am definitely considered overweight. ***

***Also, I am amazed by all of your generosity with your donations to Haiti. You have all done a lot of things to help and it is truly amazing. I know that we are not all particularly in an economic position to be donating large sums, but every little bit counts. I love reading all of your ways of giving. Don't forget to comment here to help me keep track of my donation.

D-Day

>> Thursday, January 21, 2010 – Weight Loss

Today is the day. Today, I started Weight Watchers. I stepped on that horrible scale and saw a number that I have NEVER seen before. A number that was 7 pounds above my "NEVER AGAIN" weight. Only 3 pounds under my "It's time to jump of a bridge" weight. Awesome.
We rounded up a more than 15 people at work so a Weight Watchers leader comes to us and leads our meeting from my school. I had absolutely no excuse to not participate. I am hoping that by taking this seriously, keeping track of my points, and starting my training for the marathon relay, I will lose at least 10 pounds in the next 13 weeks. Wish me luck!

Also, please comment on this post to help me keep track of my Haiti donation amount. Thank you so much to those that commented but 26 was a little weak!!!

Donations for Haiti!

>> Monday, January 18, 2010 – Charity

Hello, my dear blog readers!

My heart goes out to the people of Haiti and I want to help. I was already planning on making a donation to The American Red Cross Haiti Relief and Development Fund so I thought I would add a fun little twist. I am going to follow Katie's lead and donate $0.50 for every person that comments on this post (up to $200) from now until February 18th (one month from today). There are 266 people that subscribe to my blog and many others that casually read and visit. I want everyone of you to step out of Google Reader and comment.

Anonymous posts won't count!!! You have to put in your name and/or blog and tell me something about yourself and if you are doing/have done something to help the people of Haiti. I also challenge you to match my donation or ask for comments for donations on your blog. Thanks for helping!

Resolutions, Shmesolutions...and Happy Blogoversary!

>> Monday, January 4, 2010 – About Me, Blog, Holidays

This year, I had struggled a little bit going back and forth between goals and resolutions. I can't make a resolution like "graduate with my masters degree" or "travel to Italy" because I know I am going to do those things. I need to focus more on things that will better myself, that I don't currently do, and I can work toward all year. Here is what I came up with:

1.) Eat fruit- I can honestly say that I eat at least 1 vegetable each day. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about fruit. (And I am sure that the orange in my Blue Moon doesn't count!) I am starting this goal off at eating some type of fruit once a day. I had an apple today :)

2.) Cut back on the Diet Coke- I don't even like soda. But, I don't like coffee or tea and I need some caffeine in my system in the mornings. I got myself in the habit of drinking at least 3 Diet Cokes each week at 8:00 am. Not good. Today, I ordered water at lunch :)

3.) Continue pushing myself with running- I signed up for the Marathon Relay but that is in April. I want to start training for a half marathon after that. I just wish it wasn't so darn cold so I could get out there now!

4.) Clean my house more often- I am a self-proclaimed slob. It is true. I have a colored coded closet, I need every document in the right folder at work, and I leave my crap ALL OVER our house. I am a little bit of a hoarder and I really need to work on this. I might even start changing my sheets more often (Kristal).

5.) Hang out with my friends and family more/as often- Life can get us busy at times, but I want to continue putting my friends and family ahead of other less important things.

Those 5 are just the tip of the iceberg for me. I am going to try to create a 101 in 1001. I'll be working on that and posting as soon as it is finished.

I also missed my 2nd Blogoversary! Thanks to all of my friends and readers! I'm really going to try to blog more often!

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