Who Says Racecar Drivers Can't Wear Skirts?

This one does!

Over the New Year's Eve holiday, we headed out of town to visit some friends.  We had heard they were hosting a smashing party.  It was definitely the party of the year for all 5 people in attendance.  You may recognize them from  here and here.

The guys golfed during the day so we took the kids to the local Discovery Place. 

It was really a really nice place and I will definitely take L back when she is a little older.  There was a ton of stuff to do but she was really only interested in each station for .2 seconds before moving on to something else.

One of the things she was really interested in wasn't even an activity.  They had this incline ramp to walk up and apparently that was the most fun activity ever.  Either way, she was worn out once we headed home that afternoon.

This picture pretty much sum her up right now.  In one word: curious.

She is curious and busy because of it.  Exploring her environment all the time.

This water activity was a really big hit.  She loved splashing the water with her hand while laughing hysterically.  Hearing her laugh with amusement was quite possibly the cutest thing ever.

Lately, she has been quite the character.  Here are some of the high points:

• Just this week, she has learned how to say yes and no in an appropriate fashion.  My favorite was asking her if she wanted to go to bed and her shaking her head up and down in response. 
• Both at home and at daycare she has taken to throwing things away on the sly.  Daycare said they found about 6 items in the trash before figuring out the culprit. 
• She is very polite even when doing something she shouldn't.  Thank you is one of her favorite things to say.  She says it appropriately the majority of the time.
• She now loves to say "all through" verbally and using the sign.  My favorite is her telling me she is all through when doing something she doesn't want to do such as getting her diaper changed.
• Still sleeps 12ish hours per night and is generally a really happy toddler.
• Tiny.  Weighing in at whopping 17 lbs.  She loves to eat but I have no idea where it goes because she is tiny.

Overall, she just continues to be more fun all the time.  We are so thrilled to have her around.

The Best of 2011

Since one of my goals for 2012 is to get better at knowing how to use my camera, I decided to review my photos from 2011.

There were some (ok...a lot) of bad ones.  A few others that weren't bad.  Then there are these, which in my opinion could actually be placed in a frame to display.

Almost all of these were taken after the birth of my shiny 50mm 1.4 lens.  The only one that wasn't was the first one.  It was taken about 2 weeks prior. 

 I'm actually only including it because my husband is actually smiling for the camera, which is a rare occurrence.  You are more likely to get Swine Flu than get him to ham it up for the camera.

Without further adieu....

Big Rock 2011.  These 2 have been friends for almost 20 years.

Lauren on her big sister's birthday and just one day shy of 6 months old.  This was also moments after opening the box containing my new lens.  In love already!

 

Lauren 9 months old playing in the bathtub.

 

A sunset wedding captured of the deck of Breakwater Restaurant in Hatteras, NC. 

11 months old playing in the front yard.

My debut as a sideline photographer using this lens. Thanks to a good friend for trusting me with it for the day.

 It was a good time but also really humbling.  I truly admire those guys/girls who do this day in and day out because it is truly challenging.  My goal for the day was get a few good shots and not get run over by one of these guys.  Much harder than I originally imagined.

Lauren's only other girl cousin at her 1st birthday party.

Lauren showing off at her 1st birthday party. 

Lauren and Tonka on Halloween.  This picture is hands down my favorite photo of the year!

One of Lauren's cousins who used to love being in front of the camera.  Now, not so much.

His brother with Lauren.  He loves Lauren.  Absolutely.Loves.Her.  I love this picture of them together.

Christmas morning 2011.  This pretty much sums up her personality.  Happy and curious all the time.

Finally, the day we went to see Santa this year.  The picture with Santa wasn't bad but also not one of my favorites. 

This picture is probably my 2nd favorite for the year.

There you have it, the year in review through photos.

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Speaking of Dr. Seuss....

What are my goals for 2012 you ask?

Many of last year's goals will remain, with the addition of a few new ones.

The goals carrying over from 2011 are:

• 
  
  To continue to learn Photoshop Elements.

Ideally, I think it would be best if I enrolled in a physical class because I learn by doing. If you are local to me and know of one, I'd love to hear about it.

• 
  
  Continue to learn my camera by starting and finishing the Two Peas course.

• 
  
  Run 2 half marathons. They can't be destination races this year, so I need to start looking semi-locally.

• 
  
  500 in 2011.

Started this morning. 3.5 miles done. 496.5 to go!

• 
  
  Not to get pregnant nor to have an additional child.

Yes, again.

• 
  
  Continue decorating the walls in my house as well as the actual house itself.

• 
  
  Read 4 books this year. Ideally, this is one per quarter. I'm taking suggestions if anyone has them.

Now for the new items:

• 
  
  Blog at least one time per week.
  


• 
  
  Take more photos of Tonka, as well as photos of Tonka and Lauren.
  


• 
  
  Travel

3 weeks of vacations planned hence the need for local races.

• 
  
  Enroll Lauren in an extracurricular activity such as swim lessons or gymnastics.

Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss you'll land in the stars right?

These are not lofty goals but there are a lot of them. I'm not going to achieve all of them however, having them written out allows me to feel like I am making forward progress all year long.

Here's to 2012 being another great year!

Let's Tally It Up, Shall we?

As I reflect on closing out 2011, I think it is fair to summarize where I've been and where I'd like to go in 2012.

No resolutions on this train. Goals are the most efficient way for me to measure my progress throughout the year.

January 1, 2011 is when I finally threw out the resolutions and started down the path of goals.

On a high level, I think it was productive. It gave me the breathing room to pull back some if needed, in order to direct my focus elsewhere.

For example, when I was at the peak of my running this year, there truly was not room to squeeze much else into my schedule between training and my daily life. During these times the other goals often sat idle until I could direct more attention to them.

How did I do in regards to my 2011 goals?

• 
  
  To learn Photoshop Elements.

Progress = 2% maybe? There is still a lot to learn here although I have learned how to adjust lighting, download/use actions, and of course crop. I've barely scratched the surface on this one so it will remain for 2012.

• 
  
  Continue to learn my camera.

Progress = 75% I took some amazing "for me" pictures this year. This one will remain on my 2012 list because there is still room for improvement specifically metering.

• 
  
  Run this half marathon.

Done with a bonus disaster for good measure just one week later.

• 
  
  500 in 2011.

Finishing the year with 350 miles.

• 
  
  Finally get my red Kitchen Aid mixer.
  

Done. Isn't she pretty?

• 
  
  
  


• 
  
  Decorate the walls in my house.

Lots of progress. The hallway is almost 100% complete. My office is also well underway. We have also added 2 new prints to the living room.

• 
  
  Not least to not be pregnant nor to have an additional child :)

Done. Whew!

• 
  
  Start reading again.

This is definitely the one item where I can say I 100% failed this year. I am alone in saying I didn't read not even 1 book for the 1+ crowd? Unless you count Dr. Seuss I did not make any progress on this goal. Must regroup for 2012.

All in all, I'm really proud of 2011. At times, I felt like I was on balancing on a tight rope with no net below but in the end I can really see the progress I have made. It was hard yet fun and rewarding.

On to 2012......

'Tis the Season

To be jolly.

Another Christmas season is now behind us, yet I still feel that some tasks have been left undone.

The Christmas tree was never 100% decorated although it wasn't noticeable to others.

New ornaments have been added for both girls and I need to take photos to capture those memories for the future.

Finally, we must undo all of our hard work until bringing it out again for Christmas 2012.

Putting all of that aside for a moment, let's take one final glance at our Christmas from this little one's point of view.

This pretty much sums it up. She was all smiles from start to finish despite having no clue what was actually going on.

Happy. Healthy. Blessed.

She was spoiled to her very core with both gifts and love from others.

It was way to much for such a tiny person to soak in at one time

. We are so grateful for where we are in our lives and that we have this little one to share it with.

Merry Christmas!