With some money that I received from my dad for Christmas, I ordered a new camera lens that I’ve been eyeing. It’s the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II. I did some internet shopping and found it for a pretty good deal.
The UPS man dropped it off this afternoon, and of course, we got to playing with it and testing it out right away. So far, we’ve found that it takes really nice photos in low-light situations, which is nice. I like to avoid using the flash whenever possible, especially when taking pics of food to post here. I also ordered a light to help out with that… but that won’t arrive until Monday. :)
Anyway, here are a few of the test shots:
This lens is supposed to be good for portraits. After testing it out, I can definitely see how it would be. I can’t wait to try it out on babies!
I like how it it blurs the backgrounds of images. Very cool. (That’s a fake pine needle sticking out of Tessa’s mouth. We were taking down the Christmas tree!)
I love new “toys.” You’ll definitely be seeing more pics taken with this lens!
P.S. I am avoiding taking down my Christmas-themed header. It’s so fun, and it feels wrong to go back to normal. I’m brainstorming about another possible fun design. Otherwise, I suppose I’ll just have to go back to the old one. Hmmm….
Let me just start by wishing you all an official HAPPY NEW YEAR! I wonder how long it will take me to come to terms with the fact that it’s actually 2009. Hmph.
Last night, we went to a party thrown by some of our friends. The crowd started off small:
But it grew as the night progressed. As you can see, there was a 70s theme established for the evening. Some of the costumes were pretty hilarious.
My Oreo truffles and cookie cake were big hits; someone actually asked me if I did that kind of stuff for a living (I wish!).
We spent most of the evening singing along and dancing to Time Warner’s 70s Hit Music station. We turned on Dick Clark (or Ryan Seacrest, actually) long enough to watch the ball drop. Around 1:00 a.m., our friend Daniel made a surprise appearance. We all thought he was stuck in Connecticut (where he lives), but as it turned out, he and his girlfriend drove the 5-6 hours after work just to get to our party to see everyone.
Michael and I left to head home a little after 2:00 a.m. It was the first New Year’s Eve that we’ve ever actually slept at home, and I gotta tell you–it was sooo nice.
To commemorate the New Year, I’m going to steal a questionnaire that I saw over at Jenny’s blog, which she recently renamed “Charity Mom” (was formerly Mama’s on a Playdate). So here goes:
1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?
Got married!
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I can’t tell you the last time I actually even made resolutions. I guess this question is a big ol’ NOT APPLICABLE for me.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
A better question for me would probably be who DIDN’T give birth.
Just kidding. My friend Theresa had a baby boy, Rowan; my friend Kristin had a baby girl, Emma; and my friend Bethany had a baby girl, Ryanne. We had a couple of other births, too, but these were the closest to me.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
No. Thank God.
5. What countries did you visit?
I went to Canada a couple of times this year, but other than that, we stayed in the good ol’ USA. Though we did venture to the very far-reaching corners of our own country when we went to Hawaii for our honeymoon!
6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
More relaxation and free time. The first six months of 2008 were a whirlwind. It only calmed down after the wedding!
7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
June 21 — Our wedding day!
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Planning my dream wedding. I know that’s probably a pretty shallow achievement, but it was a lot of work, and it totally paid off.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not finding complete satisfaction on a professional level.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
No. Once again, thank God. The only illness or injury that actually comes to mind was a deep cut I got on the coral in Kauai. The only reason I even think of that is because if actually left a scar on my knee… but it’s not a bad thing; it’s a daily reminder of the best vacation EVER!
11. What was the best thing you bought?
The best money spent was honestly the wedding and Hawaii. But if we’re talking true material things, it’s gotta be our HDTV and new TV stand. Total upgrade!
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Our families and friends were all great to us this year. They helped make our wedding and the start of our marriage the best it could possibly be. (I’m going to go ahead and apologize right now for the wedding/honeymoon being a part of so many of these answers.)
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
I can’t think of anyone. Thankful for this as well.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Haha! The wedding, of course. And the Hawaiian tourism industry received a pretty good chunk, too.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Getting married and taking our honeymoon. (Damn, this was the wrong year to complete this questionnaire!)
16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
“Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey. It’s an oldie, and it wasn’t our wedding song. But it was one of the absolute MOST MEMORABLE moments at our wedding reception. I’ll never be able to hear that song without flashing back to dancing and belting out the lyrics at the top of our lungs, surrounded by all of our closest family and friends.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? Happier. b) thinner or fatter? Pretty much the same. Maybe a pound or two thinner. c) richer or poorer? Also pretty much the same.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
I could probably always use more exercise. Also, I didn’t ski at all in 2008. And I only rode my bike a couple of times, which wasn’t nearly enough.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Hmm, I don’t know. I can’t think of anything.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
Split between our families. It was nice.
21. Did you fall in love in 2008?
Nope, that was in 2002. :)
22. What was your favorite TV program?
Well, Grey’s sucked this year. So maybe Top Chef?
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
I don’t really “hate” anyone, but even so, I think the answer to this is no.
24. What was the best book you read?
The Time Traveler’s Wife
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Discovery? I have no idea.
26. What did you want and get?
New flooring in the kitchen and dining area. New TV. BlackBerry.
*whispers* And an awesome wedding and honeymoon!
27. What did you want and not get?
A big salary raise. HAHA!
28. What was your favorite film of this year?
Probably The Dark Knight.
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
We spent the day taking a really long bike ride along the Erie Canal. We stopped for my favorite ice cream (or, if we’re being specific, frozen custard!). Once home, we showered and went out to dinner at a little place in the Village. The weather was absolutely perfect–not too hot, which was awesome for August–and we were able to sit outside. I loved it. Oh, and I turned 26.
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
I can’t think of a thing that could have made it better. Everything that matters was fantastic.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
Whatever fit well and was affordable. I don’t think I really ever have a fashion “concept.” I’m actually not even sure I know what this means.
32. What kept you sane?
Being able to vent to my husband, mom, or friends.
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Barack Obama
34. What political issue stirred you the most?
HAHAHAHAHA. Oh, that’s funny. For crying out loud, what political issue DIDN’T ruffle my feathers. The entire election process (10+ months!) stirred me. It stirred me big time.
35. Who did you miss?
I missed some of the friends and family members who were unable to make it to our wedding.
36. Who was the best new person you met?
Wow, it’s hard to think of someone that I just met in 2008. Maybe my friends’ new babies? :)
37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
The whole thing with Tessa and living 2+ weeks believing she had cancer… that taught us–or rather, reminded us–that life is precious, and even when things aren’t going exactly as planned, there is always much to be thankful for.
I wish you all a fabulous 2009!
We’re about to take off for a party. I just wanted to wish you all a happy and safe New Year. I hope you all have fun, whether it’s at home, at a party, out to dinner, etc. as we bid farewell to 2008 and say hello to 2009!
In addition to the Oreo truffles, I decided to make a cookie cake and decorate it in honor of the holiday. It didn’t come out as well as I wanted (I need some serious practice on my writing), but I guess it’s still cute:
I used the Thick & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, but obviously just spread the dough into a pizza pan. I sprayed the pan liberally with nonstick spray, and I only spread the dough out to about 1-2 inches from the edges to allow for spreading. I baked at 325 degrees for approximately 20-25 minutes.
Hopefully my fellow party-goers will enjoy.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
After tackling the cupcake bites a couple of times, I figured the famous Oreo truffles would be easy. And while still time consuming, they did take less time (less steps!).
I followed the “alternate” recipe (uses condensed milk instead of cream cheese), which allows the truffles to be kept at room temperature. I chose to dip half of the truffles in milk chocolate, and half in white chocolate. Then I drizzled them with colored candy melts.
I made these tonight so we can take them with us for a New Year’s party tomorrow night.
Oreo Truffles
(Source: Kraft Foods)
Ingredients:
– 1 package (1 lb., 2 oz.) Oreo cookies
– 1 can sweetened condensed milk OR 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese
– 1/2 lb. milk chocolate candy melts
– 1/2 lb. white chocolate candy melts
Directions:
1. In food processor, grind Oreo cookies until completely crushed.
2. Place crushed cookies into a large bowl. Add condensed milk or cream cheese, stirring until combined. The cookie crumbles should all be moist so that they easily stick together.
3. Shape cookie mixture into 1-inch balls. Lay cookie balls on cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Place into freezer for a few minutes to harden.
4. Dip cookie balls into melted chocolate, and return to wax paper to dry. Drizzle with additional melted chocolate or candy melts for decoration (if desired).
If you use the cream cheese version, truffles must be kept in the refrigerator. Recipe yields approximately 30-50 truffles, depending on size.
This afternoon, I went to see the Marley & Me movie with my mom, my brother and his fiancee, my cousin and her husband, and my other cousin and her daughter.
And I’m not going to lie. It was rough.
However, the tough parts (toward the end) were totally worth it because of the story in its entirety. I read the book 2 or 3 years ago, and I loved it. Reading the book also meant that I knew what I was getting myself into with the movie–and I was a little bit afraid to see it. But I had heard good things, and so many of my family members wanted to see it, so I figured I’d give it a go.
I think we’re all aware of the rule: Movies based on books cannot possibly be as good as the book. I usually go to see book movies and leave completely disappointed. To take just one example: The Da Vinci Code. Holy crap did that movie suck. And that was Ron Howard. Ron Howard!! He generally makes fantastic movies, so I had high hopes for that one. But it suuucccked. Really sucked.
To my surprise, this was not the case with Marley & Me. Maybe it’s because there were a few years between my reading the book and my seeing the movie. Maybe it’s just because it’s a great story, and is seemingly impossible to mess up. Whatever it is… I really enjoyed this movie.
As far as I can remember, they followed the book pretty closely. Obviously there were little jokes added in, and things here and there that were changed for the sake of film (and things that were cut out for time), but the general plot, and the way that things happened–all of that was mostly the same.
They also added in a character (played by Eric Dane from Grey’s Anatomy), a coworker/friend of John’s, to help viewers understand Grogan’s career goals and the dreams he had for himself (and how life ultimately does not go as Grogan may have originally planned). Eric Dane was perfect in this role, as it is almost exactly the same character he plays on Grey’s.
But all of the fundamentals, the pieces of this story that make it great–love, life, and laughter–were all there. I read a couple of pretty bad reviews that complained that there was too much “me” and not enough Marley. I wonder if those reviewers ever read the book.
Every time I’ve described this book for someone who hasn’t read it, I’ve always explained it’s pretty much an autobiography that centers around 13 particular years of the author’s life, but it also focuses a lot on his and his family’s relationship with their dog. Sure, it’s the story of a dog. But it’s also the story of a man, his wife, and ultimately, their family. Of which Marley is a huge part. That’s kinda the whole point of the story, and I guess some people are missing that.
For the record, my 6-year-old cousin did not like the movie. She thought it was boring, and when everyone else was crying, she said “But it’s just a dog!” So maybe not necessarily a movie for the whole family. I think she was a little too young to really get it.
Surprisingly, I enjoyed Owen Wilson. I liked him in Wedding Crashers, and he’s had a few other funny, quirky roles, but I will admit that when I heard he was playing John Grogan in this film, I was not impressed. But he did a much better job than I ever anticipated. Jennifer Aniston was good, too.
About 18 months ago, my mom, my brothers and I had to put down our family dog. She was 14 years old, and we had rescued her when she was only about 6 months old. I was 11 when we got her, and was just a few weeks shy of 25 when we put her down. I felt like I had had her all of my life. It was one of the hardest things ever. So for me, I could totally relate to this story, and I thought the movie was completely genuine.
You can never understand the love of a dog (and the love you feel for a dog) unless you’ve ever had one. The love, the joy, the anger, the frustration, the commitment… everything involved. But really, that’s for any pet. Our pets generally don’t outlive us, we outlive them. So when we take them on as members of our family, we do it knowing that someday, it is destined to end in heartbreak.
And we do it anyway. Because it’s worth it.
So is this movie.
About
I'm Heather. I'm 33 and have been married to Michael for seven years. Together, we have two beautiful little girls we love more than anything, and a miniature dachshund who drives us crazy. I'm a full-time working mom who has very little time for my own "stuff" these days, like home improvement, cooking/baking, cake decorating, and photography. Despite the team not making the playoffs since 1999, I'm STILL a Buffalo Bills fan, which I think speaks to my loyalty AND sense of humor. I can't wait to pick up the pace with travel again some day... you know, when we're done being ruled by tiny fists. Welcome to my blog.
