They say it's my birthday

It is not your birthday, too. Well, probably not.

Chris and I celebrated last week with a spectacular dinner at Cityzen (no photos - I was preoccupied with an amazing Pinot noir and trying to figure out what a "sugartoad" is)(A fish. Don't worry. It's a fish.) And tonight I received a classic Chris card, of construction paper quality.

I like the bottom line most. A little clarification, in case I was holding out hope for Hallmark. Awesomeness.

Pardon me

I seem to be going through some sort of animated gif phase.


Free gif maker

The most sun we saw all weekend

Sunday sunset after a rainy few days at Bethany Beach. Nature is such a bitch sometimes.

Grilled chicken salad with raspberries and goat cheese

We have a problem with raspberries in our house.



The problem being that when we buy them, the Peanut gobbles up the whole lot of them in one sitting. They are just too delicious and too fun. And too perfectly shaped for little fingers.



However, Mama would argue that they are also too expensive for a mere toddler snack. So, in order to get our fair share, I thought I'd throw them in a salad.



Super easy and I'm sad that I just now discovered it with summer over. Basic grilled chicken, simple balsamic vinaigrette (like the one used here), fancy lettuce, fresh raspberries, pecans and crumbled goat cheese.

I asked Peanut what he wanted for breakfast this morning. His response? "Salad."

Smile. It's Friday.

How do you make gifs

Friday bliss Chris.

The difference a year makes

Don't worry, this isn't some sappy post about how awesome my kid has become over the past year (that would be waaaay awesome, duh). Instead, it's a braggy post about how I've almost learned how to use my camera. Friday will mark my one year manualiversary, one year since I started shooting in manual mode.

I remember the first outing in "m" well - the Peanut and I joined my friend Alison and her daughter to explore the butterfly house at Brookside Gardens. And guess where we spent the morning before Hurricane Irene? Brookside! So, I actually have some pretty good examples of before and after. Let's marvel in my own photographic metamorphosis, shall we?

2010


Blandest. Butterfly. Ever.


Except this one.


Whoa there, little buddy. I was actually *thrilled* with this shot at the time. I had never gotten such clear, noticeable catchlights.


Baby in a log! Blown shirt is overpowered by extreme cuteness! This is still one of my favorite Peanut photos.

2011




Oh hey, focus. That's a neat trick.


Bonus flower shot. My gift to you.


Undecided on the vintage edit. Completely decided on keeping the kid.


And I still struggle to get catchlights, but at least I've learned a thing or two about composition.

Friday bliss: first pumpkin ale of the season!

Bring it, Fall. Let's do this.