Summer Portraits.

Since I am not taking any photography classes this summer, I have decided to create my own little project. What I really need is practice taking pictures of people. Objects and scenery are easy, but people pictures are what I really want to excel at. So far I have millions of pictures of my own kid, but this summer I wanted to practice with portraits of other families and kids. I extended the offer to my small group for free portrait sessions (because, hey, this is practice!) and I have rounded up some volunteers. Here's the first round of photos...the Tjernagels: Megan, Grant, & Anja. Enjoy!

The Farmer's Market

One of the things I love about living in Iowa is the season from May to October - Farmer's Market season! There are several local markets in various Des Moines neighborhoods on various days, making it easy to find good local stuff all summer, just about any day of the week. There are yummy local veggies, food stands, local wines, artisan cheeses, breads, sweets, and tons of other goodies. We love to stroll and take in the goods!

If you are a Texas reader, correct me if I'm wrong, but we don't have this sort of outdoor farmer's market in Texas. You know why?? Because it's blazing hot and people's faces would melt off if they were outside pedaling their homemade wares! Instead, the local farmer's market is usually confined to a little air-conditioned building that sells local fruit and veggies. Sorry, Texans, but the Iowa version is WAY better!

This past week Jason was working, so I took Alex as my date. Here are a couple of pictures to document our visit...

I finished. Over the weekend, I finished the 20k race I was training for. I am not gonna lie - it was waaaaaayyyy harder than I had planned. It's been 3 years since I ran a long race and I definitely felt it. Oh, and not to mention that I had a baby a year ago and am still a nursing mom! All that said, I finished. And it felt great to reach my goal with my husband and son cheering me on at the end.

Since January, I have been working really hard to lose the baby weight. Training for this race was a huge part of it. I've lost nearly 20 lbs and counting and I feel great. I have been meaning to blog about my lifestyle changes for a while now...I have a totally new vegetarian diet and exercise routine. Jason and I both have been really committed to it since January and we both feel better physically than we have in many years. I know it may sound a bit extreme, but we have read several books in the last couple of years about true health and disease prevention. Virtually all of them recommend reducing or eliminating eating animal fats and focusing on plant-based proteins, whole grains, and fresh fruits and vegetables. The most helpful books we've read are by Dr. Dean Ornish, a cardiologist who's researched heart health for his entire career. The evidence was compelling, so we decided to give it a try. It took a while to get used to cooking and eating differently, but now I don't think we'll ever go back. For all you who think we eat salad and tofu for every meal, think again. We eat tons of yummy stuff! (My husband has posted some recipes on his blog if you want to check them out.) Over the next couple of weeks, I will post a few recipes for the curious. You might be surprised at how delicious a vegetarian diet can be! Not to mention the health benefits and effect on your waistline.

Oh, this was supposed to be an entry about my race, wasn't it? I just thought I'd mention the diet and give you a little teaser for some upcoming blogs/recipes about it. The race and the diet changes have been a huge part of my health journey over the past 6 months.

Stay tuned! In the meantime, check out Dr. Ornish's stuffif you are interested in learning more about the diet and lifestyle changes he recommends.

Calling All You Makeup Experts...

And even if you wouldn't call yourself an expert, feel free to chime in!

I have had a long love affair with long-wearing mascara. I am a sucker for the words "16 hour" and "no smudge" on the packaging - no matter the brand.

I have been loyal over the years to various mascaras of this type. First it was the L'Oreal Color Endure line. They still make the eyeshadows, lip stuff, etc but for some reason they discontinued the mascara. (Don't they get it that loyal fans like me would have protested if given the chance??) Anyways, then I found Maybelline Unstoppable. Also a great find...no smudges and still visible before bed. Guess what? It got discontinued too. Recently I tried Featherlash by L'Oreal. The ULTA salesgirl assured me it was long-wearing. I'll admit that it is fairly good. BUT (are you picking up on my ultra-pickiness when it comes to cosmetics?) it is water resistant. This isn't ideal because it makes it difficult to clean off at night. Oh sure, you can use soap and water, but I can never master this without stinging my eyes out.

So now I'm on the hunt for a new mascara. I thought I'd open up the discussion to all you gals who read to see if you have any suggestions. Expensive or cheap, bring on the mascara ideas. After all, I'm just like you. In times like these, I'd rather not pay money for cosmetics that I'll have to throw in the trash later in the week.

Any suggestions, Lovely Ladies?

My Boy's hair.


When I was pregnant with Alex, my friend Callie used to say she didn't care if it was a boy or girl, as long as it got my curls. Callie, you might get your wish! I think I see a hint of curl in this boy's hair. I'm actually okay with Alex having curls...after all, he's a boy. I doubt he'll stress about curl products or request a diffuser for his hair dryer. He probably won't blame his bad day on the humidity and the fact that his curls don't look quite right. I'm guessing he will probably not worry about how curls make his face look more round, or make him look fat. And I can assume that he won't whine about wanting straight hair and listening to his Mommy encourage him to be thankful for curls...

Oh, but Heaven help us all when the girls with curls come along!

Happy Mother's Day to me.


My son made this lovely card for me with the help of his Daddy. The funniest thing is that Jason told me the whole story of making this card which included Alex using finger paints, towels covering the carpet, and a surprise exploding paint tube. Pure hilarity! The end result was this fabulous card and I love it. I'll be honest...I'm also glad I had no part in cleaning up the paint splats.

Oh, the wonderfulness of being honored by my husband and son today!


Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers, daughters, grandmothers, sisters, aunts and future mommies out there.

Sweet Baby James.

Last night Jason and I went to the James Taylor concert here in Des Moines. It is always so nice to go out on the town with my husband. I got the tickets for Jason as a Valentine's Day present and even though I bought them within half an hour of the opening time for purchasing tickets, we were on the second to last row. Thankfully, for concerts, I guess it doesn't matter how close (or in our case, far) you are from the stage.

Mr. Taylor played several favorite tunes, of course. One of our faves was How Sweet it Is (To Be Loved By You) because that's what was playing when we exited the church after just becoming Mr. & Mrs. Reynolds. Another one was Sweet Baby James. I always thought this song was about James himself - and considered the words odd for a song about himself. Turns out it is a "cowboy lullaby" he wrote for his nephew, his namesake. The crowd also loved Everyday, which is actually an old Buddy Holly tune. **For all you non-Iowans who read this blog, you might be interested to know a little trivia about this great state. The plane carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper crashed in a field near Clear Lake, Iowa on February 3, 1959. (a.k.a. The Day the Music Died) Another interesting little fact? My friend Carolyn's family owns the field it crashed in!**

I wish he would have sang Something in the Way She Moves though. I love that song simply because it challenges me to be the kind of woman that would leave my man saying, "If I'm well, you can tell that she's been with me now. And she's been with me now quite a long, long time. Yes, and I feel fine." What a tremendous compliment that displays a man's affections and reveals the nature of a woman's influence on them.

Another great thing about the concert is that the average age of the people attending was about 52. I'll admit that I'd much rather attend events with this age group, because, hey, they don't talk out loud during the show, attend to their beeping cell phones, stand up the entire time, or drink so much beer that they get embarrassing.

Guess that means we fit right in with the old folks these days!

Studio Final Exam.


This was my final in Studio Photography. The assignment was to make an old school collage using photos and words. I say old school because we literally had to cut, paste, and glue them on to a board and then photograph them in the studio. I'll admit that I thought this assignment was a little dumb (after all, hasn't my instructor figured out that you can do the same thing with a little electronic thing called a computer?) Anyways, despite my initial thoughts, I was pleased with the results. This photo turned out to be a great reminder of our honeymoon.

Overall, I learned a lot in Studio Photography. I am taking the summer off from classes and I'm not really sure if I'll be taking more or not. Either way, I'll still be taking lots of photos of Alex, life, and whatever else seems interesting. I've learned that good photography takes lots and lots of practice. So I'm not giving up my day job for it or anything, but I'll take whatever opportunities I can to practice more this summer. I'll keep posting whatever ends up in front of my lens!

Spring.


One of the things I love about Spring in Iowa are the blooming trees. There's about two weeks in the Spring where all the trees flower and bloom. It's so beautiful! And one of the things I love about our house is that we can see so many trees from our third floor windows. It makes for a lovely view. See?

Think $100 Million is a big number?

Think again. This may help explain...



HT: Todd Schulz

The 8 Mile Mark & Hubby's Birthday.

On Monday, I hit the 8 mile mark in my training. It felt good to be only 4 miles away from my goal for the Dam to Dam at the end of May. I feel like a runner again!

I had good motivation for Monday's run. We celebrated Jason's birthday over the weekend, and I ate a huge mound of cake. It was worth every calorie.

Happy Birthday, My Love!

The "tolerant" Left.

I'm sure you've been following the story of Carrie Prejean, Miss California 2009. In the Miss USA pageant the other night, she was asked to comment on the subject of gay marriage. The person who asked her, Perez Hilton, is an openly gay man/famous Hollywood gossip blogger who was one of the contest judges. He didn't like her answer when she said in part, "I believe marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's just the way I was raised."

After her answer, the crowd is heard giving a divided response. Some people clap and some people boo. But the real firestorm happened AFTER the pageant when Perez Hilton blasted in a video on his blog calling her a "dumb b*tch". He later apologized but when Carrie came out publicly to say she had "no regrets" about her answer (because she is a Christian and was quoted as saying she answered the question based on her beliefs), Perez launched into another video tirade on MSNBC using even harsher language than before to rail on Carrie and others who oppose gay marriage. The pageant directors even came out swinging saying they were "saddened" that Carrie is so "out of touch" with people her age on the issues. My thought? Good for her for being "out of touch"! It probably means she hasn't lost herself in a world that pressures her to give up her traditional views. And, hey, even our Left-leaning president has traditional views on the definition of marriage.

Here's my frustration with the Liberal Left agenda (represented by Hollywood and the media): They paint themselves as the most tolerant of all - accepting all people and welcoming them into the loving embrace of togetherness that they see as American and good. But what they really mean is "We are tolerant as long as you agree with us." Disagree with them or even worse, *gasp* hold any conservative viewpoint that includes a moral compass and view of God, and you are vile human being who deserves to be hated, publicly humiliated, cursed, bullied and blacklisted. I could be wrong, but how is that tolerance?

Stick it to 'em.

I hope you have been following the Kelley's blog and are excited to celebrate their exit from the hospital and return to vacation! They were at Sea World yesterday and get to extend their vacation stay one more day..."just to stick it to leukemia". Yay for the Kelley's! Thanks for praying for them. I hope you'll follow their blog more often and pray for them on their life journey.

Praying for Sea World.

Yeah, I know it may sound strange, but little Joshua Kelley is on his Make-A-Wish trip to Orlando this week and needs your prayers. Joshua has leukemia. He got his wish to go on a trip to Disney with his family this week, but now he's in Orlando Children's Hospital with a fever. That's not good if you are four years old and have cancer. And you know what? He hasn't even made it to Sea World yet! So, please pray that God would heal Joshua's fever quickly.

Pray for Michael, Jana, Joshua, and Andi to enjoy the rest of their family vacation and to rest in the knowledge that God is over all things - fevers, leukemia, and yes, even Sea World.

You can follow the Kelley's blog for their vacation update, and more importantly, learn more about their life journey with childhood cancer. They have an amazing faith and an amazing family.

My new favorites.

Juice.

For this studio photography assignment, we were supposed to shoot a food or beverage that might be used by a grocery store. The main goal was to make it look appetizing. I wasn't crazy about the juice shot, but it'll have to do for this assignment. The thing about studio photography is that you have one shot in the studio to get what you need. If none of the shots are good, you have to do the whole thing over again! Since this is just a hobby for me, I'm satisfied with this plain old OJ shot. Six assignments down, only one to go!

This is Chilling.

Yesterday I was reading the Iowa Right to Life newsletter and something caught my attention. Iowa is one of 15 states that have their own laws regarding cloning human embryos for stem cell research. (There is a federal ban enacted by Bill Clinton stating that federal money cannot be used for cloning and/or embryonic stem cell research) In Iowa, cloning is LEGAL. The law now permits scientists to create human embryos through cloning and grow them to any stage in development for the purpose of research. This is frightening to me. It's a quiet first step to the future of this type of research that (I believe) actually gives people the false hope that all disease can be cured eventually - even if it means casually creating and ending life. This is such a slippery slope. The"possibilities" are often touted as promising medical advancements. But this type of dangerous experimentation can lead to all sorts of outrageous moral problems.

Think about it...

Do you have a kid that needs a lung transplant? Why not grow another baby and give the older kid a lung from the younger one? Does your baby have cancer? Why not intervene at the embryonic stage and use the new kid to help the old one? How about your kid is blind and needs new eyes? Grow some new ones! The problem here, while it may appeal to parents of all types of sick children, is...what happens to the cloned human embryos - and if it gets to this in the future, the humans? Are they disposed of after they are "used" for the benefit of someone else? Is their health so compromised that they are no longer capable of living a normal human life? How is it that one human can be so valued over another? Not to mention my prime objection as a Christian that GOD is the creator of life. And it happens through a loving act of marriage, not in a test tube to make babies for the benefit of research.

I challenge you to do a little research on where your state stands on this issue. If you want to protect life, look into supporting a Right to Life group near you. Right to Life not only stands against the greatest tragedy of our day, abortion, they also stand against ALL measures that threaten life. Embryonic stem cell research, cloning, physician-assisted suicide, abortion, and other issues must be brought to the forefront of discussion for Americans. Because, whether you realize it or not, some politicians - particularly those in power now - are pushing for legislation that would allow all of these things. Often the legislation is presented as the great hope for curing all disease. It's not possible, folks. This world is a broken place. There will always be disease, hardship, and suffering on this side of heaven. While it's tempting to buy into a utopian idea that every hardship everywhere can be eradicated, it just ain't so!

Our attempts to create perfection here on earth are at best noble ideas. At worst, they are shocking efforts to elevate our human accomplishments to those of God. God is the giver and taker of life. We should allow Him to reign in this area and recognize our distorted notions that we can do anything He can.

Just something to think about today...

I know that baby shoes are unnecessary...

but I love them anyway. =)

More Studio Photography.

This studio assignment was to take some advertising-type photos. For this first one, we were supposed to make room for the ad type in the photo. I went ahead and added Oreo's trademarked slogan for effect.



This was a flat advertising shot. It makes me feel like I could go for a whole plate of Oreos right about now. Guess that's the goal.

Probably the only $25 I've never missed...

I paid $25 for this little jewel last summer at a garage sale. It was a practically new food processor, complete with the owner's manual and box. The lady who sold it to me said she'd never even opened it! Seriously, Lady, do you cook at all? Anyways, what a steal! Several times a week I look at it and think about how I've probably not found a better use for 25 bucks. I'm making baby food, hummus, salsa, all sorts of yummy things thanks to my little Kitchen Aid. I used to pass over recipes when I saw they had to be pureed or chopped or food processed of some sort. No more!

Come on, 2009 Garage Sale Season!

He always brings me flowers...

One of the million reasons I love my husband.

Celebration Time.

I am thrilled to report that I am officially back in my running groove. Yesterday I ran 4 miles with ease - such progress! Jason and I have decided that we are going to run the Dam to Dam here in Iowa at the end of May. Anyone else want to sign up for the 12 mile fun?

I am excited about a new race and a new training schedule. I'm also especially excited about fitting into my old jeans. Yes, folks, they fit!

Cue Kool & The Gang...

Hands.

This studio photography assignment was all about capturing hands. Michelle and Michael Sage were wonderful models for this shoot. We had a lot of fun in the studio. We got some hand shots and a few candids of Michael - he's a total natural in front of the camera! Thanks, Sages!

Slumdog Millionaire

Jason and I had the chance to go out on Friday night for a pre-Valentine's date. We had tapas at one of our Des Moines favorites, The Continental, and made our way to the Varsity. The Varsity is a fabulous old theater across the street from Drake University where the popcorn is still...brace yourselves...$1.75. The Varsity also always shows independent and/or international films - our favorite kind.

This week Slumdog Millionaire was showing. We loved this film, which, above all is a love story. It's also a fascinating journey that follows the memories of a young man growing up in the slums of India. It portrayed the humor, heartbreak, and triumph of slum life. I'll admit that I felt nauseous most of the first half. I had a hard time getting over the fact that for many children in the world poverty, filth, hunger and abuse are the norm. But, overall, this was a great film and one I would recommend to others. If for no other reason than to see some of the realities people in the developing world live with on a daily basis.

On a side note, Jason and I also discussed how ironic it is that these days have been labeled an economic "crisis" in our country. Seems like we should be honest and say, in comparison to the rest of the world, what we really mean is "we aren't able to keep up our outrageous standard of living and that bugs us." Take a look at the slums of India (or any other country in the developing world) and you might reconsider your definition of crisis.

Here's the trailer if you are interested...

My friend Lizzy invited me to her "First Annual Bloggy Friends V-Day E-Party". She had the fantastic idea that we should all bake some V-Day treats, take pictures, and post them on the blog. She has promised to post all the treat photos on her blog for the big day. This was super fun!

I have become obsessed with my new cookbook Hello, Cupcake! This book has SO many adorable cupcake ideas, I thought I'd give them a shot for the Bloggy Friends party. Before you go thinking I have too much time on my hands, let me tell you that these cupcakes are so easy. The decorating only took an hour. Based on most of my past baking projects, this one was as easy as (or, I should say easier than) pie. Ha ha!

Mommyhood: The First 6 Months


Alex is turning 7 months old this week. It's hard to believe that those first newborn months are already gone. Since it seems like the latest thing is to tag 25 things (on Facebook), I thought I'd jot down 25 reflections on Mommyhood on my blog...

1. I honestly don't know how I survived for the first 3 months of Alex's life on 5-ish hours of sleep every night. For anyone I tried to carry on rational conversation with during that time, sorry. I know it didn't make sense.
2. I now consider a successful day as shower=success.
3. I'm grateful for 2 hour naps. Mine and Alex's.
4. I'm glad Jason is such a good Daddy. I knew he would be, but it's sweet to see it.
5. I am thankful for our Connection Group who has been such a great parenting resource to us. They are godly people with a collective wealth of wisdom.
6. I will think twice before I gain 60 lbs. in pregnancy again.
7. The 2 a.m. "Crazy Talk" where I wake up panicked thinking Alex is trapped in my bed is still here. Alex grew out of night waking long ago. For me, however, it remains.
8. I never get tired of washing and folding baby pajamas and socks.
9. We still love the cloth diapers. I'm not sure I'll ever use disposables on future babies.
10. God has given me a precious gift in providing me the ability to feed my baby. I think breastfeeding is such a marvel of God's wonderful human design.
11. I love to watch Alex wake up.
12. I love to watch him suck his thumb to sleep.
13. Heck, I even love changing his diapers!
14. It's important to me to read, sing, and pray with Alex before bed.
15. I have learned not to brag about Alex's latest accomplishments because I think it sows early seeds of "My kid is smarter than your kid" among parents.
16. I probably say to Alex, "You are the sweetest baby in the whole wide world" about a hundred times a day.
17. I often think of how I would deal with it if Alex was really sick. Parents like these and these inspire me to trust God with all things.
18. I remember the day Alex first smiled at me. My heart beamed with pride!
19. Sometimes I worry that we will mess him up. I'm learning that loving and caring for him to the best of our ability means we aren't messing up.
20. I truly believe that Jesus is the giver of patience and grace in parenting.
21. I like to peek at Alex while he's sleeping.
22. When Alex first pooped in the bath tub, we laughed and caught it on video. It is less and less funny every time.
23. I've noticed that people can't help but smile at babies.
24. I've learned to comment little on other people's parenting tactics unless someone asks my opinion.
25. My goals in life have changed a bit. I remember that I used to think about pursuing a PhD. Yesterday I caught myself thinking that I needed to memorize the words to "Three Blind Mice".

Arrangement.

This is assignment #2 in Studio Photography. We were supposed to create an image of similar objects to form an overall pattern.
This photo was inspired by my grandmother, who is the most amazing seamstress ever. At 81, she can still crank out beautiful stuff with a needle and thread. Once I tried to learn the skill from her. She was so patient teaching me over and over how to thread the machine and feed the material through. I wish I could say that my finished product was a masterpiece, but it wasn't. I'm not sure that pillowcase will ever come out of my linen closet except to prove to someone that I actually did sew something once. Nonetheless, I loved spending the time with her in her sewing room and hearing her stories. She has lived a full life and is a wonderful storyteller. I think probably when I was younger I passed off her stories as boring and irrelevant. Now I hang on ever word thinking, "I hope I can remember every detail" as she tells me about her courtship with my grandfather. They have been married 63 years and are still a very happy couple. What an inspiration to know that the grace of God sustains love and makes marriage work forever.

And did I mention that my grandmother was a snow skier until she was 79? Yeah, seriously, I could go on and on about her coolness... But for this post I'll stick mainly to her awesome sewing abilities and my arrangement photo that is dedicated to her.

Studio Photography.

This semester I am taking a Studio Photography course. While I was initially disappointed to learn that most all of our assignments are still life and not people, I think I'm going to enjoy the class. My ultimate goal in photography is to be good at people pictures but I guess practice of all kinds is valuable. I'm planning to blog about my progress since it seems to make for interesting blog material. Probably most of you are thinking that it sure beats the poop in the bath tub stories...

The first assignment was to photograph an ordinary object on a black background, using one color of dominance. This was only the second time I've been in the studio, so I'm still learning how to use the lights etc. Studio lighting produces a whole new realm of possibilities. Overall I am pleased with the results on this assignment. Any votes for a favorite?

The official shoes of Iowa...
This is a picture of the only two pairs of footwear that are getting any action this winter. Goodbye cute high-heeled boots, winter ballet flats, and leather wedge heels. And you too, stilettos. Sadly none of them can keep my feet dry in the five or more inches of snow between me and my garage. So all the cutie shoes are packed up in the basement and these boots only ones getting any wear in Des Moines. *sigh* I guess I should look on the bright side of serious winter living... I am saving a ton on pedicures!

Mommy-like.

Last night when I went to change into my pajamas, I discovered that my shirt (which I slept in the night before...because, well, just because that's how it is sometimes) was on backwards. I texted my husband and said, "I just discovered that my shirt is on backwards - and has been for 24 hours!". He responded, "that's so cute and mommy-like"

Other Mommy-like moments from the week:
* Alex has pooped in the bathtub 3 times in the past week. I seriously hope he grows out of this soon. We only have one bathroom and I take my baths in there too...needless to say, I have skipped my nightly bath three times this week.

* Today Jason offered to watch Alex for a couple of hours so I could go out and do something fun. You know what I came home with? Organic baby food and a bottle of wine. Guess you might call that Yuppie Mommy-like.