More Camera Woas

Wednesday, 22 Febuary 2006

How is it that some people can own the same cell phone, digital camera, video camera, computer... you name it - for YEARS! and it never, ever dies on them, and others, are lucky if their $500 piece of equipment lasts them 12 months.

The Cannon PowerShot has died again, I was able to take two pictures (of Kelly's blanket - see below) before slipping the camera into my pocket and heading off to pick up Emily from preschool. After picking up Emily, dropping off the blanket (making two potty stops), and arriving at the recycling center to deposit 2 months worth of recycling, the camera took two 100% blurry pictures, and then decided to shut off when ever I turned it on and pushed the shutter button.

Arge! We just got it back not 3 months ago from having it fixed! And before I sink an additional $150 in getting it repaired, we're taking a look at what else is out there. GR has found two he's interested in - the Cannon PowerShot A620 and the Cannon PowerShot SD500. Since I still need to read the reviews myself, I'll save judgement for a later post.

So for now, I'm back to carrying the Nikon - the mother of all cameras - with me to capture moments like these:

Chicken Noodle Please

Saturday, 11 February 2006

We have a couple of really big churches in town and the Congrational Church is one of them. Each February, one of the groups they sponcer (it helps local battered women and children), has a fundraiser where they show 25-30 quilts and sell homemade soups and pie. For about $4 you get a bowl of soup, a drink and a piece of pie.

Thanks to Campbell's television advertising, I discovered a month or so ago that my children like Chicken Noodle soup, making this even a lunch possiblity for our crew. We met Bob and Diane there and had a lovely lunch. Rebecc and Emily enjoyed their chicken noodle soup so much, they requested more for dinner - but they didn't want the carrots or green things (celery). So we had chicken noodle soup for dinner too (basically a beefed up Campbell's).

The quilts were beautiful and it was a fun, relaxing hour with the kids and all those who attended this popular fundraiser.

Cookie Moster meets Baby Jay

Back in November I started shopping for flannel to make Annalise's baby blankets. At a local quilt shop I saw the cutest blanket for a baby - they used a fun fuzzy fleece with a deep nap on one side, flannel on the other, a bias tape trim along the outer edge and tied every 5-6" with a pearl cotton thread to keep the layers from slipping. When I saw this I knew one of the 10 babies born between January and March would get this blanket. It was so soft and bigger than my usual blanket (Mom - it's about the size of your blankets - finished 40-41" square) - perfect for a new sibbling.

When I told my friend Kelly (who just had baby #3) about this blanket and she said it was exactly what she needed for her new little one. She picked out the flannel and I went in search of the plush fleece... three fabric stores later I found the blue long haired material, and at the fourth I found the perfect red for the bias trim.

I finished it on Saturday while GR was working and got it delivered to the new baby this week. I'm really pleased with the end result. It is soft, functional (not too big, not too small), and fun to touch. Since this is the first one I've made, I'm interested in seeing how this blanket holds up to washings, dragging, tugging - typical baby and toddler use. Considering how the standard ‘Kathleen flannel baby blanket’ has evolved over the last 9 years, I'm sure there are areas of this blanket that could be improved upon. We'll just have to wait and see what they are. For Kelly's sake I hope there aren't a lot!

Mile Stone Moment

Tuesday was a PE day for Rebecca and she decided to wear her pink and blue lace up tennis shoes that normally stay at Grandma's house. She wanted to tie them herself, but couldn't quite remember how to do it. After first talking her through the motions and then showing her, she got both shoes tied!

Friday was PE again, and again she insisted on wearing the pink and blue lace-up tennis shoes. She asked for a quick refresher course on tieing her shoes and quickly got both shoes tied.

Saturday, GR had to work the early shift at the pharmacy, so after an hour of Disney cartoons, I asked the kids to get dressed (compete with shoes so we could run errands) while I made breakfast. Becca came downstairs, competely dressed from head to toe, with her lace-up tennis shoes on, tied perfectly! I was floored!

In other mile stone news - Emily taught herself how to whistle and has been whistling up a storm for the last month. Another thing she and Rebecc both have figured out how to do - snap there fingers! Pretty impressive!