Fun with Shelby

Jamie's cousin, Shelby, came to visit this week. Jamie was so excited, he counted down the days and had a hard time waiting for her and Grandma to arrive on Tuesday.

Jamie was excited to read out loud to Shelby and Shelby was quite impressed. She returned the favor and read Jamie his bedtime stories.








On Wednesday, we went to Storytime on the Lawn at the library. A storyteller from Denver was there to entertain everyone.









Parker, home from vacation, also came to storytime. Parker was so excited to get to play with Shelby, he brought gifts from his trip for both Jamie & Shelby. Jamie was happy to see Parker.









Wednesday evening, Grandma & Shelby got to watch Jamie in t-ball action. He was impressive, as usual, and so proud that he had special fans in the stands.

















Today we went to Zapata Falls and then to the Sand Dunes. A full day of fun, mud, water, sand and sun!















The half mile hike to Zapata Falls is fairly easy, except for the final 50 yards. Then it is an icy trek through the water. Cold but definitely worth it.
















































Eating a picnic lunch at the Sand Dunes picnic area. It's best to have full tummies before heading out to the sand.


































































































































































































































































Showers were priority one once we arrived home. Then Benadryl for the mosquito bites, dinner, ice cream and bedtime.

SLV Habitat for Humantiy Video

another sports photo disappointment

Yesterday was "picture day" for t-ball. It was probably the last time I will actually pay for these photos as I continue to be disappointed by the lack of professional quality. The individual photos were taken on the field, in the shadow of the dugout, and I even asked Brad (the photographer) if the funky shadow would cause lighting problems and/or be a lousy backdrop. His reply was something about how it was better to shoot in the shadows (which I totally understood but still the composition problem persisted). So, after he was finished, I stood Jamie up against the dugout and took this shot. We won't get the "professional" photo for a week or so but I already know that I like my shot better.

The weird thing was that, after all the individual photos were taken, he lined them up against the dugout for the team photo...oh well!

FireBalls 2008

Where The Wild Things Were

The guests for Storytime On The Lawn were wild! Employees from the Alligator Farm were on hand to talk about some of their residents, followed by the opportunity to get up close and personal with alligators, snakes and bearded dragons.

My Messy Workspace

I'm trying to come up with my swap card for SU! Convention. This is one idea... what do you think?

A Trip to the Dentist

Jamie had his first visit to the dentist today. (I know... I'm a BAD ex-dental assistant!) He had a good experience and left the office saying that he wants to be a dentist when he grows up.

Happy Father's Day!

Jamie colored an insert for a personalized coffee travel mug and was so proud to give it to his daddy.
Bill had his choice of family activity and he chose for us to see the movie "Kung Fu Panda".
It was a relaxing and fun day!

Habitat for Humanity House

Today was a work day at the Habitat for Humanity house. Our church joined with the Methodist Church to work on this great project. It was interesting to see and be a part of the
construction process, especially for Bill & me because we have no building experience. We spent the day hanging drywall and the time flew by!






Owen (not my brother...) measuring drywall













Bill assisting Owen
















Julie working in her own closet

Camera Shopping

So, I'm a bit OCD and when I set my mind on something, I usually don't let go until I make a decision. I've been researching digital camera's all afternoon, evening & night...to the exclusion of everything else.

I can manipulate my old camera to take photos, but it reverts back to movie mode after each shot. I'm hoping that eventually the dirt & dust will dislodge. Wish I knew how to take it apart safely and just clean it out myself!

If I get a new camera, I've determined that I want a point and shoot, not just a sub-compact with auto everything. I guess I'm too much of a control freak to let the camera decide what shutter speed, aperture, etc. I want to shoot at. I also want to be able to shoot video clips so that, at least for this camera, leaves out the nice SLR's. (I will eventually get one of those too, with lenses & filters to play with.) I've narrowed my choices down to three: Canon Powershot G9, Canon Powershot S5 IS and Canon Powershot A650 IS. They are all rated highly by Consumer Reports and are all within the $300 - $400 price range. I'm really leaning towards the S5 IS because of it's optical zoom, 60fps QVGA video capability, vari-angle LCD display, ability to shoot still photos while shooting video, multiple shooting modes & features and price. If it had the ability to capture photos in RAW format, it would be a no-brainer.

Still playing with the old camera...
Here's picture proof of some of my online research ------------>

and a River Runs Through It?

Warm winds and warm temperatures are finally melting the above normal snowpack in our mountains. Over the weekend, we noticed that the field to our north was flooded and now it is coming across the road and through our front yard. We have had our share of flooding and excess water for the year, but this looks like it will pass without any $$$ out of our pocket.

It was when I went out to take these photos that I discovered that my camera was a victim of yesterday's wind and dust. I can still get it to shoot still photos but have to hold my thumb on one button while I press the shutter button to keep it from going back to movie mode. Irritating and bothersome but until the budget says I can afford a new camera, I guess it's better than nothing.

Oh, and guess what? The wind is blowing again today.

T-Ball, Dust Storm & my camera bites the dust (pun intended!)

We had 50 mph wind gusts during Jamie's t-ball game yesterday. It was not fun for the parents watching in the stands and it could not have been fun for the players either. When they weren't chasing their baseball caps across the field, they were hiding their faces and exposed body parts from the blowing dirt. A typical t-ball game (at least in Alamosa) is 2 innings and this game was called after just the first inning. Some of the kids were disappointed but most were glad to get out of the wind, especially since they still got snacks!

My camera didn't fare so well in the dust storm. I pulled it out today to take some photos and, it's stuck in movie mode. The control buttons don't work and I'm not sure I want to pay another $300 for repair and endure another summer of my camera being in the shop.
So, I'm looking for a new camera...got any suggestions?

Larry revisits El Valle

Larry spent three days with us and was able to visit lots of friends. He was also able to get in a couple of fishing trips. It was great to see him after 15 years...doesn't seem like he's been gone that long.

FireBalls

Jamie's t-ball team is called the FireBalls. He is having a blast with t-ball and is improving in all areas, especially fielding and catching.

the new uniform

nice swing!

the dugout





















the high five line


















Go FireBalls!!!















and the most important thing about t-ball...
SNACKS!!!

Summerfest 2008

Bill had a booth at this years Summerfest on the Rio
It was a windy weekend so he wasn't able to set up all of his displays. He still managed to do a fair amount of business but, really, the reason he does this event is to talk to all of the friends that stop by. The Dennedy-Franks from Santa Fe were here for Summerfest and Larry Mayer made a return to Alamosa after 15 years.

Jamie & Bill slept in the tent at the park on both Friday and Saturday nights. It was cold, a new record low was set Saturday night when we got down to 24 degrees.

The Weathers' came by on Saturday and took Jamie with them to enjoy some of the fun attractions. It's just not Summerfest without a ride on the train and a trip to the bouncing castle!

Donna, Kathy and Sheryl stopped by...they were celebrating their birthdays!
Happy Birthday girls!

Summerfest is the social event of the summer in Alamosa and it's fun to walk around and see friends and neighbors as we look forward to summer.