November: In Review

Brrrr! It's damn cold. It's that time of year, and my intolerance to cold is starting to get to me. It never seems that the good weather lasts as long as the winter months, but I'm sure that's my imagination. Nevertheless, winter is certainly here, so I guess I'll deal with it like I usually do.

Well, I have one more month of this thing left, and at this point, I've decided I will not continue into next year. It's gotten to the point where it's become a real chore to try and force myself to photograph something every day. I feel like it's having a negative impact on my photography, and that's something I don't want. On the other hand, something completely unexpected has happened in the creation of this blog. I've learned that I really enjoy the writing of the blog. Never for a moment did I believe that would be the one thing that I took from this. So what does that mean? That means that I will be continuing to blog in some way. I haven't yet decided what that format will be, but I was thinking about creating a blog not only for myself, but one all my siblings could also use. It would be a great way for all of us to keep up with each other, and it would be great for me to read about you guys for once. I'll keep you all updated on what I decide, and hopefully I have something up and running by the end of the year.

Here's my favorite shots for the month of November:

Super Mario Galaxy!

I try to avoid as much as possible writing about video games. They are a big part of my life, and by far my favorite pastime, but I'm keenly aware that most of my readers are not quite as interested as I am. That being said, for those of my readers who do get into games, I feel I have to talk about Super Mario Galaxy for Wii.

I originally wasn't going to get this game, but when there was a killer deal on Black Friday, I decided to give it a shot. Considering the glowing reviews this has been getting, at the very least I could always sell it on eBay. Considering the cost, I would likely make money on it anyway.

I've never really been into the 3D Mario games. I guess I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to platformers, preferring them to come in the "classic" 2D style. I didn't like Mario 64, and I hated Mario Sunshine, but this game has made a believer out of me. It's really unlike anything else I've played before. I'm not going to get into the specifics, since there are a lot of reviews out there that do that already. Let me just say that if you have a Wii, there's no reason for you not to have this game. If you don't own a Wii, this is a great reason to get one. Today. No, I mean it. Go right now.

Veggie Soup

Tonight Steph treated me to a bowl of some really great vegetarian soup. The recipe was given to us from my sister Kathie, and it really brings back memories of the vegetable beef soup Grandpa used to make. Except, of course, the beef. Frankly, I really didn't miss it. The only thing I recommend is to cut the recipe in half, since what she made was enough to feed a small army.

Kale Soup

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1 1/2 Cups Kidney Beans
1 Cup Onions
1 lb Fresh Kale
1/2 Cup Carrots (diced)
28 oz Can Chopped Tomatoes
4 Cloves Garlic
1 tsp Thyme
2 Quarts Vegetable Stock
1 lb Red Potatoes



Directions:

Heat oil in a large pot. When hot, add carrots and onions. Cook 5 minutes.
Add garlic. Cook 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Reduce heat to medium.
Add stock, potatoes, and thyme. Simmer 15 minutes.
Add tomatoes and beans. Simmer 10 minutes.
Add kale. Cook 5-8 minutes.

Note: Cut Kale crosswise into 1-inch ribbons.

Showing

18 weeks along, and Steph is staring to show. She's actually been showing for a few weeks now, but this is the first picture we've taken of her "belly." I think we've decided to take a shot from here on out every other week, but we'll see how it goes. We may go monthly. Next week Steph has an ordinary check-up next week, then the following week is the big one- the 20 week ultrasound. This is the one where we may find out the sex of the baby! Yes, we are going to find out. Steph and I both like to be prepared.

Favortie Shots #20: Happy Anniversary!

Today was our 3rd anniversary. Happy anniversary Steph!

3 years ago today, Steph and I stood in line for about an hour in the hot Las Vegas sun to get our wedding certificate. With me in my suit and Steph in her dress, we were by far the most dressed up in the entire crowd. It was a little surreal to be standing amongst all those people dressed like that. I really don't dress up very often, and had I known it would have been that long to stand in the sun, I likely would have waited to put on that suit.

We were married in the "World Famous" Chapel of the Bells, and the surreal atmosphere carried on into our ceremony. The woman that married us reminded me forcibly of the old woman from Poltergeist, not only for her overt creepiness, but she actually looked like the woman. It was bizarre. The photography session consisted of about 6 shot in the chapel, and that's the only thing I regret about our wedding. We have virtually no shots, and the ones we do have that were shot by them are pretty bad.

After the ceremony, we were treated to dinner by Steph's aunt Suzy's father-in-law, Dick. He lived in Vegas at the time, and we won't soon forget the hospitality he showed us. He's really a great guy, and took us on a tour of Vegas that was really great.

Marrying Stephanie was the best thing I ever did. I'm really lucky to have someone so wonderful to me, and so understanding and patient of all my flaws. I couldn't ask for a better person to spend the rest of my life with.

Happy Birthday Nathan!

Today was my nephew Nathan's 2nd birthday. Jennee and Jason had a nice get-together at the local Grange hall, and even though I didn't get there until around 4, it was still nice to see everyone for a while. I was only there long enough to snap off a few shots, but I think I got some pretty good ones. The last one would have been my favorite, had I not gotten a little fuzzy around the edges. The shutter speed was a little slow. I know that's just one of my nit-picky issues, so sue me. It's my shot. Anyway, I still like it.

Here's a couple more: