day 190/365

Save Get the drama for from your mama. They come by it honestly. The animated mannerisms when focus is on what they have to say, the wide eyes, the eyebrow raise, the excessive use of adjectives.

Caelan is 14 now so he's trying to "improve" his reputation and be more cool, less goofy. Whatever. But this one is still under my spell (<---- note the drama.) Here he's telling me he's tired of my camera being pointed at him. And this is the kind of drama I've tried to pass on to them, the kind that makes people smile even if it is because they think you're a dork. Love that he gets drama doesn't have to be negative.

Day 185/365

Several years ago I followed the advice I'd read on several websites and brought my tripod when we went to watch fireworks. I wanted to capture some nice shots of the display and I'd read that the tripod was essential to getting shots of the trailing lights as the shutter would need to remain open longer than you can hand-hold the camera still.



What I found is I spent so much time messing with the tripod and worrying about people knocking into it that I missed out on enjoying the show. Using a tripod, I was also locked into photographing one location in the sky. It was a good experience but not one I have cared to try again since.



The past 2 years, I took my camera but left the tripod behind. Instead, I plop down in one of our collapsible chairs right beside the rest of my family, rest the heel of my foot on the seat, and stabilize my camera on my knee. Pretty technical stuff.



Doing this, I was able to set my shutter speed to 1.3 seconds and still get pretty clear images. Good enough for my scrapbooks!



Since my camera wasn't locked down to a tripod, I was able to adjust my camera to the location of each shot in the sky.



And since my butt was locked down to a seat right next to Will, I was able to watch his face and hear his commentary. There's nothing better about a fireworks display than that.

Day 184/365

A little glimpse of our Fourth of July shopping yesterday.








And because I'm a big goofball, I want these. Hatfield and McCoy fountains. I don't want to set them off. I just want them for their packaging.

Happy Fourth to everyone!

Day 183/365

I've been trying to make 2 adjustments lately. First, I've been dragging my camera bag along with us less frequently. That has been very difficult for me because there have been many times I've seen something and regretted not having it. I'm learning to enjoy more and worry about documenting every single detail less. It's been liberating for me and I've heard far fewer complaints from my family.

Second, I've been working on being less of a camera snob. To be completely forthcoming, this has been a result of adjustment #1. Since I don't have my camera with me as often, there have been a few times I've relied on my phone's camera. 2 mega pixel, 72 PPI images, no RAW images, SLOOOOOOOOW. And I've found it's been fine. In fact, I've enjoyed a few things about it. There is no set up. You just take what you get. No adjusting shutter speed, aperture, ISO, focus, zoom. You can only press the capture button. Sure I've gotten some crummy images. But I've also been surprised at the the "good" images I've gotten.

I would never have gotten this fun shot with my DSLR. I don't own a wide angle lens so with my 50mm lens, I'd have had to be standing outside the car squatting down instead of sitting in the driver's seat. And I never would have run the shutter speed down low enough to capture that movement. Even if I'd have thought to run it down that low, I wouldn't have captured a real moment. I'd have seen Will laughing hysterically, slamming his fist on the seat, had a light bulb moment, and I'd have had to try to recreate the humor hoping for an equal reaction or we'd have had to stage it. This right here is completely authentic. And I adore authentic, even if it means the package it comes in is imperfect.

Day 182/365

If you know me, you're wondering why I'm taking a photo of some other woman's shoes. Because if you know me, you know 2 things about me:
1. I'm all about comfortable shoes.
2. I'm clumsy.

So these can't possibly be my shoes. But they are.

My little sis and I went shopping last weekend. She's 20 and has legs 6' long and the prettiest feet I've ever seen. I'm 38 and short and have never been happy with my legs or feet. Those self-imposed stumbling blocks, coupled with my requirement of shoes feeling like slippers on my feet the day I bring them home from the store, means heels and skirts have never had a place in my closet. But when she starts trying on shoes, it's like looking through a Victoria's Secret catalog. You know better but you still start thinking, "Hmmmmm. Maybe. . . "

I started trying on shoes too. They all looked silly on me and hurt like hell. Then she threw these at me. I tried them on and I finally understood. They hurt like hell but I was still considering buying them. I was becoming weak and abandoning my practical nature that I've proudly held on to since the days of my youth when my mom battling getting me into a dress always ended with lots of tears and pouting.

We'd been shoe shopping all day and to that point, Kelsey had called one pair of shoes I'd picked out "Jesus sandals" and said about another, "Um, those look very . . . natural. If you buy them, you'll have to wear patchouli oil." When I put these on, she said, "Buy them." Not liking feeling weak, I quickly took them off and put them back on the shelf. Besides, where would I wear them? To the garden? The race track? Maybe to clean out the chicken coop?

When I went back to KC a few days later, my mom handed me a bag and in the bag, the shoes! And now I can be impractical, fall, or request a foot massage free of any guilt or responsibility.

Day 180/365

This is a $650 hat. You can, no doubt, see (and expect) that it's a quality hat.





Included in the price of the hat is this.

This is a Hans device. Hans is an acronym for Head and Neck Support. A Hans device is required safety equipment in the class of racing Caelan is getting ready to begin. While I was a pretty irritated that something as simple-looking and small in size came at such a hefty price, once it's purpose was explained to me, all my irritation went by the wayside and I was completely behind Caelan having one for racing, especially when I was told his grandparents wanted to buy it for him!

Basically what a Hans device does is, through the use of 2 tethers which connect to the helmet, prevent the driver's head from whipping so far forward in an accident that the spinal cord tears from the brain. Sounds like a wise investment, no? I think he's worth it.

Day 179/365

You're supposed to look at the second coupon and laugh at the portion that reads "get 40 tokens free for $15." Caelan brought this to me today, laughing. He realized, to make the meaning clear, it should read, "Buy 60 tokens for $15 and get 40 tokens free." It bothered him and he asked me to take a photo of it and post it here so others could also laugh. And my heart swelled with pride. He's a McGrammar, too.