i ♥ faces: Pout

I know my one and only reader (Hi Mom!) saw this picture on a recent post already. For this I am terribly sorry. But, when I saw this weeks theme was "Pout" I knew I had to use this photo of Lilly. Her pout was not posed. She was just digging in the dirt as usual and looked up when I snapped the picture. I think she looks so striking, even with her little pouty face. The original picture wasn't as close up but I zoomed in to focus more on her face for the i♥faces theme.

You can see more entries (and lots of cool picture and editing tutorials) over at the i♥faces blog.



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CPAP, Headbutts, and Pictures. Oh My!

I slept with my new CPAP machine last night. Turns out that during my recent sleep studies I was diagnoses with Sleep Apnea (where you stop breathing during the night). My case is mild, I only stop about 15 times an hour. But add that to long apnea spells and my blood oxygen level drops as low as 72% for about 12% of the night.

When I had my second sleep study to determine the settings I needed, I slept with the mask on the entire night. When they brought me my own machine yesterday, I wasn't given the same mask. Since I'm a mouth breather (attractive, I know) I have to have one that covers my mouth and nose and the one they gave me rests on my forehead and isn't comfortable. I had hoped since I have to drug myself to sleep anyways that maybe it wouldn't matter. Well, it must. I don't think I made it even half way through my normal 5 hours of drug induced sleep before I took it off. I woke up without it on. I don't remember taking it off.

I'll give it another shot tonight. But I'm not holding my breath (or am I??). Bad joke, I know.

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This morning I was laying on the couch. I was tired and my head hurt. (Maybe that had something to do with wearing or not wearing the Chastity Mask... oh I meant CPAP). Noah was playing around and Shane was chasing him. Well, he likes to run from Shane and burying his head in my lap or arm or whatever he can get to. Since I had my eyes closed I didn't see him coming. His huge noggin banged me on the bridge of my nose so hard my teeth nearly chomped my tongue off. And I thought I had a headache before. I don't know why but he does this to me a lot. I'm either going to end up dying from my nose being shoved into my head or my nose is going to fall off.

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I finally started getting my tax information ready to take to H&R Block. (You can say it. I'm a slacker!) I have to go through my accounts and get totals for Mary Kay and Medical Expenses. I should have started in November. Instead I started today. No pressure. Luckily I got quite a bit done (either that or I'm forgetting what I really need) so I jumped over to Photoshop and played around a bit more. I seriously need to take my photoshop courses because I could do this full time. I would feel like I was never working. It's detailed and creative and computer related... right up my alley. Maybe I can take a course this summer. I also added a Velum like graphic to a couple of the pictures. It was on a recent tutorial from the i ♥ faces blog. Of course I had to try it. What do you think? I'm really up for some comments and thoughts. That being said, I'm 100% self taught so please be nice. "I just don't think I could take that kind of rejection" (name the movie!!).









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Smile

I have been having fun with the i♥faces photography contest each Tuesday. Since Shane gave me my new camera for Christmas, it's been a good excuse to post a new picture each week. This week I didn't participate because, well, I thought it was still Monday. It would seem the weeks are going by so quickly lately that I've decided to subconsciously relive past days. Though today sure felt like a Friday.

Not a big deal though. I caught up on work last night so today I spent my online time learning Photoshop. I'm not very good and I still have NO idea what I am doing but it's still fun. What I really need to do is work on my composition. I haven't taken a photography class in such a long time I've lost my artsy touch. I've gone point and shoot. *shrug* What can ya do?

Here are a few of the photos I did today.






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Carnivorous Cow

Lilly just cracked me up!

She saw a cow on TV and came running to me.

Lilly: Mommy! There's a cow! You have to hold me tight so the cow can't eat me.

Mommy: (holding her tight) Oh, Lilly. You are so silly. The cow isn't going to eat you.

Lilly: ha ha. You're right mommy. I over acted. I'm so silly.

I didn't even know she was in the business.



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i ♥ faces: Green

This weeks theme is Green. Today is St. Patrick's Day. However, since every single member of my family is sick (besides me) there will be no St. Patty's themed pictures to post. At least there won't be any without snot, fevers, or droopy eyes. Instead, I decided to post a picture of one of my favorite days last spring. The twilight hours were warming up and Noah was in bed so we headed out back for a good ole session of bubble chasing. The grass was green, the Russian Olive Tree's were fragrant and it was a family moment I cherish.



Please visit i ♥ faces for more Green entries.



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Did You Know Dew Drops Are Boys?

Lilly never seems to stop talking. She even talks in her sleep sometimes. It doesn't matter if we are at home or in the car or at the store.

Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy. . .

She is growing up way too fast. I blink my eyes and she has learned some new thing or out-grown her clothes. And while I relish in every Mommy she says, I am still developing a facial tick. There are times, though, when she catches me off guard that I can't help but laugh.

Tonight during bath time Lilly and Noah were playing with the bubbles and making each other laugh (that is by far my favorite sound ever). Lilly would take the bubbles into her hands and tell me it was a dew drop and she was the water fairy from the movie Tinkerbell.

Then she did the funniest thing (and maybe it was only hilarious because I'm her mom but still). She put the bubbles on the wall and when they would start to slide down she would say "Oh no! You poor little fella!"

It struck me as so funny!! I'm sure she gets it from the plethora of movies she watches. She is so like her Dad in that way. But she is only 3!!

Poor little fella... who says that?? LOL


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It's A Learning Process

I am in desperate need of an attitude adjustment.

I recognize it so I am hoping that it's the first step to fixing it. Usually, the days after I don't sleep well, my pain level is increased and I have a bad headache. I end up having less patience and more irritation. Some might say that it's understandable. It's tough not getting a good nights sleep and young children can be a lot of work, especially when you add on working 30+ hours a week. But that doesn't fly with me. The days of me getting less and less sleep seem to be compounding right now as I change my sleeping meds (this is such a bigger story than will work for this post) and my kids will only be this age once. And it's such a cute age!

The one thing I want from my life is to be a good wife and mother. Everything else would just be icing on the cake. So I KNOW I need to adjust my attitude to match my desires. I need to stop feeling so overwhelmed and exhausted.

I need to figure how.

A vacation might help but it's just not in the cards right now. So as I think about it, I've come up with one thing I think might help. I need to strengthen my spirituality. I've had to avoid going to church since October to keep Noah away from the concentration of close together people (have you ever noticed how many people go to church sick? And my ward is full of older people who seem to ALWAYS be sick). Since we still have a month to go, I really need to get my spiritual feeding on my own. I need to read my scriptures more regularly. It seems like there are times I do really well at this and then times I don't. And whenever I don't, eventually I realize something is missing and needs to change.

When will I learn?


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i ♥ faces: Creative Crop

This week we also get to post our original picture so you can see how "creative" our crop really was. This was difficult because it seems to be so programmed into my head to look for the right way to crop. So to visualize it as creative proved to be a challenge. But I believe that's the entire point. To push our creative process and enhance our skills.





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You Know, We All Have One

Lilly has spent the last 10 minutes going poo poo in her underwear.

She just went up to Shane and told him she needed to go pee pee and wanted him to come help her. So when he asked her if she was done going poo poo it went something like this. . .

Lilly: Daddy! I need to go pee pee. Come help me!!

Daddy: Are you done going poo poo yet?

Lilly: Not yet.

Daddy: Then finish going first.

Lilly: No Daddy! Come now.

Daddy: Don't you have to go more poo poo?

Lilly: I have to spray it off with my poo poo sprayer.
(and by poo poo sprayer she means she has to go pee pee to help the sticky turd fall off her bum.)

P.S. I am SO sorry to everyone who was grossed out by this post. But what mother doesn't document her daughter calling it a poo poo sprayer?


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I Feel Like. . .

A total jerk. Shane just read my recent post about loving your husband and while this isn't a big deal really, it didn't quite turn out the way I had hoped. Don't get me wrong, I am benefiting from it (I'm currently experiencing the joy of a forgotten foot rub). Although, I can honestly say I had hoped the last part where I said I cared more about the 2 hours of quality time together than I ever would a foot rub would be the stand out part. Instead, it seems, forgetting my foot rub made more of an impression on Shane and in turn, made him feel bad.

Go ahead and say it. I know you want to. I am a jerk.

I did just inform Shane that the foot rub was fantastic and that I was writing a make-up post. Because, while he did forget last week, you must know that he is the most wonderful man. And forgetting is a rare occasion. He by far gives more foot pampering than he receives.


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I know...

I really need to take another batch of photos to play with.


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Caught Ya!

After:
Before:



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Why Its Important To Love Your Husband

One day they might promise to rub your feet for you. Knowing how much pain you have been in lately, this will be his way of saying thank you for cooking such a great dinner and welcoming him home from work with a clean house.

But. . .

Before he makes good on his promise, he just might fall asleep on the couch even though he promised he wouldn't.
Then, when you lovingly try to wake him up because you are going to bed, he unknowingly gives you his sleepy look of disdain.

So you crawl into bed alone with achey feet knowing you have to get up super early for a Dr appointment with the kids.

But frustration doesn't eat at you. Because you love him no matter what. And you care more about the 2 hrs of American Idol you watched together making eachother laugh than you will ever care about that foot rub.

It just might happen.


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Having Her Cake... And Eating It Too

This is the Messy pic a la Lilly. I thought since I shared the picture of Noah enjoying his cupcake (you guessed it, it's BRIGHT frosting) you might want to see Lilly enjoying hers. Although, a few years seems to make a big difference with how much ends up in your mouth versus how much ends up on yours face. (Although with Shane and I... age doesn't help much.)



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iHEARTFaces: Messy

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