tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54863983747571072402024-03-12T21:33:17.225-07:00Jamanda Boyd{Jacob & Amanda Boyd}Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comBlogger140125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-31056646729177928452010-04-14T13:45:00.000-07:002010-04-14T13:52:53.040-07:00Fun with DartsOur friend Jeff brought his Canon 7D along the other evening while we played darts with a group of pals. Here is what transpired:<br /><br /><object height="281" width="500"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=10895883&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=c9ff23&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=10895883&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=c9ff23&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="281" width="500"></embed></object>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-58697557609969307302010-04-12T07:00:00.000-07:002010-04-12T07:00:03.229-07:00We are moving.<div style="text-align: center;">I'll begin by stating the simple fact, and then I will further explain: Jacob and I are moving to Lawrence, Kansas this summer.<br /><br />Last year Jacob decided to apply for graduate school to pursue a PhD in Biological Anthropology. So, he signed up for a Kaplan GRE test preparation course. For six weeks Jacob submerged himself in the preparation for the GRE, and at the end of it all, he took the exam and did quite well. Next we chose schools, nine of them, and began the application process. Getting letters of recommendation from professors was a beating, as was watching our checking account balance dwindle as we invested our money in the pursuit of graduate school. And finally, after an entire year of nail biting, the decision has been made: the University of Kansas.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S79rD5pVIXI/AAAAAAAAA34/9i2cmAkJ1l0/s1600/Jayhawk.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S79rD5pVIXI/AAAAAAAAA34/9i2cmAkJ1l0/s400/Jayhawk.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458198988154282354" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">This is a Jayhawk. They are indigenous to Lawrence, KS. They are a rare bird, and apparently they wear pilgrim shoes and cannot close their mouths.</span><br /><br /><br />Jacob will receive a Masters in Anthropology over the course of the next two years. We are very excited to be embarking on this new journey, though we will hate saying goodbye to DFW, which has been our home the entirety of our married life. We will especially miss the friends we have made (though the friendships themselves will NOT end, not being able to see and visit with some of our favorite people as regularly as we do now is going to sting).<br /><br />My final day at work will be steadily approaching as the days go by (the end of May is when we and our workplaces have decided as our transition to non-employment), and as we near the end of our stay in Dallas we will be packing boxes and getting things squared away in anticipation of moving a couple of states up on the map.<br /><br />Wish us luck and wisdom! We are going to need it!<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-79676795914472195092010-03-10T18:34:00.001-08:002010-03-10T18:36:19.917-08:00Love Is WaitingOur friends Aaron and Heather Hale have begun the process of adopting a child from Ethiopia! Follow their story <a href="http://www.loveiswaitingadoptionstory.blogspot.com/">here</a>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.loveiswaitingadoptionstory.blogspot.com"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 208px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S5hW_sZ-NfI/AAAAAAAAA24/GVN9hW5Um5E/s400/LIW.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447199401556456946" border="0" /></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-59355008417884804962010-02-12T12:47:00.001-08:002010-02-12T13:22:36.744-08:00Vacation<div style="text-align: center;">This week Jacob and I arrived back from vacation. My pops and the two of us traveled to New Mexico for 4 nights, staying in Santa Fe for two nights and Taos for two nights. We ate so much good food (with a newfound obsession with green chiles) and I learned how to ski (Jacob was already a ski pro). And now I'm obsessed with the thought of the mountains and wishing I could ski every day.<br /><br />We didn't take many photos, I was too focused on relaxing. But, we did go out and take a few photos in the winter storm that occurred in DFW yesterday. You would almost assume that these photos were taken in a typically wintry region of the United States, but you'd be wrong...they were taken in Dallas, Texas...<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">**you will notice that Jacob has a difficult time with being serious in a photo</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3W_zOKJNTI/AAAAAAAAA0Y/4Zg_J7M2w88/s1600-h/Small_IMG_0479.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3W_zOKJNTI/AAAAAAAAA0Y/4Zg_J7M2w88/s400/Small_IMG_0479.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437463011814618418" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XDTSlBemI/AAAAAAAAA0g/VeeoINb4gA0/s1600-h/small+IMG_0475.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XDTSlBemI/AAAAAAAAA0g/VeeoINb4gA0/s400/small+IMG_0475.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437466861291797090" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XDhUIjyII/AAAAAAAAA0o/MQsf_e-GDig/s1600-h/small+IMG_0553.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 260px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XDhUIjyII/AAAAAAAAA0o/MQsf_e-GDig/s400/small+IMG_0553.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437467102227449986" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XEsSvsHXI/AAAAAAAAA0w/3LvXzKJfbhg/s1600-h/small+IMG_0559.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 269px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XEsSvsHXI/AAAAAAAAA0w/3LvXzKJfbhg/s400/small+IMG_0559.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437468390344891762" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XGhVHkj7I/AAAAAAAAA04/3NWK9n-Xozs/s1600-h/small_IMG_0556.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S3XGhVHkj7I/AAAAAAAAA04/3NWK9n-Xozs/s400/small_IMG_0556.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437470401026625458" border="0" /></a><br />These photos were taken by our friend and work associate Jeff Arnold of <a href="http://www.jafilm.com/">JA Film</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-16352776585492861332010-01-27T11:49:00.001-08:002010-01-27T12:55:17.522-08:00The perfect birthday gift...<div style="text-align: center;"><br />The new Apple iPad. Just released today. Sigh...<br /><br />Whether or not I actually ever own one is up in the air, but I do believe this technology is so cool, and is revolutionizing the way we watch movies, read books and magazines, etc.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.apple.com/ipad/#video"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 306px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S2CY_Om8DCI/AAAAAAAAA0Q/sILD4rkq8P0/s400/iPad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431509362629413922" border="0" /></a><br />Only $499? They're practically giving them away!<br /><br />Watch the <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipad/#video"><span style="font-weight: bold;">video</span></a>. It explains it all.<br /><br />:::<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-63621129977747672022010-01-19T13:43:00.001-08:002010-01-19T21:28:53.008-08:00Jake's birthday<div style="text-align: center;">Jacob Boyd celebrated his 23rd birthday last Thursday. We ventured out into Dallas and had a pleasant, rainy day. AND we found a new favorite restaurant:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1Yp5NUNmQI/AAAAAAAAAzI/V1xj_WWICDk/s1600-h/Kathleen%27s.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 262px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1Yp5NUNmQI/AAAAAAAAAzI/V1xj_WWICDk/s400/Kathleen%27s.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428572463645432066" border="0" /></a><br />It is (most obviously) called <a href="http://www.skydinerdallas.com/joomla/">Kathleen's Sky Diner</a> and it is located at 4424 East Lovers Lane. If you go in search of this place, do NOT go to 4424 WEST Lovers Lane, because you will be disappointed to find nothing but a vacant building. This mistake we made, so you do not have to. I say this as if Kathleen's isn't well known already; according to their website, Kathleen's opened in 1988, and in every way this place shows itself to be a happily known staple near the Inwood theater. The food was superb: I orderd the fish tacos and Jacob had the grilled meatloaf sandwich. Both were excellent. And for dessert, we ordered the peppermint chocolate cake, and they even put a little candle in the ice cream for Jacob's birthday:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1Yr0vK0CLI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/GotG-qX3Fz4/s1600-h/kathleens+cake.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 334px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1Yr0vK0CLI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/GotG-qX3Fz4/s400/kathleens+cake.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428574585856723122" border="0" /></a><br />The rest of the day we putzed around town. Bookstores, the mall, a comedy club. And for the grand finale...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1YsjXY4-YI/AAAAAAAAAzY/LzyxCh2N8gc/s1600-h/Mavs.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1YsjXY4-YI/AAAAAAAAAzY/LzyxCh2N8gc/s400/Mavs.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428575386927167874" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1aUcZlyPQI/AAAAAAAAAzw/EfMoWUoB7Kg/s1600-h/mavs+game.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1aUcZlyPQI/AAAAAAAAAzw/EfMoWUoB7Kg/s400/mavs+game.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428689616468327682" /></a><br /><br />We went to the Mavs game on Friday night (with a couple of our friends). Thankfully, the home team won. And Jacob successfully made it another year!<br /><br />:::<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-63885213788681280172010-01-16T18:49:00.000-08:002010-01-16T18:53:43.950-08:00I don't think I could put it better than this...<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://aaronhalemusic.blogspot.com/2010/01/got-lot-to-give.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S1J6_pTRVyI/AAAAAAAAAy4/InvsxkqQKSc/s400/100113_Haiti_6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427535734771898146" border="0" /></a>A friend recently posted a blog which responded quite well to the disaster in Haiti. He included links to several ways in which people are able to help. I think I'll let his response speak for me, as I often find words hard to come by in the event of large-scale disasters.<br />Click the photo above, or <a href="http://aaronhalemusic.blogspot.com/2010/01/got-lot-to-give.html">here</a>.<br /><br />:::<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-16882626859550100192010-01-13T11:57:00.000-08:002010-01-13T11:59:46.734-08:00Just showin' some love...<div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S04l0-4DzkI/AAAAAAAAAyw/qM3eXUx1IDQ/s1600-h/original.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 258px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/S04l0-4DzkI/AAAAAAAAAyw/qM3eXUx1IDQ/s400/original.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5426316193189580354" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-42208410458036324832010-01-07T11:50:00.000-08:002010-01-07T12:16:26.197-08:00Recent Work<div style="text-align: center;">Apart from getting stuck in snowstorms, here is a bit of what we were up to in December:<br /><br /></div><p style="text-align: center;">This is a project that several of us at <a href="http://www.lakepointe.org/">Lake Pointe Church</a> collaborated on for our Christmas Eve services. It is the Christmas Story, as told by our pastors, Steve Stroope and Wes Hamilton.</p><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><p style="text-align: center;">I (Amanda) created all of the illustrations for the piece using Illustrator and my trusty Wacom tablet. <a href="http://www.kevindooley.net/">Kevin Dooley</a> animated our humor bit, which includes the animations of Steve Stroope and Wes Hamilton, using Toon Boom Animation. <a href="http://www.jafilm.com/">Jeff Arnold</a> animated the Christmas Story using Abode After Effects. Wes Hartley created the audio mix using Apple Logic Studio. Danny Davis recorded voice over audio.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><object width="500" height="281"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=8600344&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=8600344&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="500" height="281"></embed></object></p><p style="text-align: center;">:::<br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Here is the behind the scenes footage, which was shot by <a href="http://www.kevindooley.net/">Kevin Dooley</a> and edited by yours truly.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><object width="500" height="281"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=8515557&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=8515557&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="500" height="281"></embed></object></p><p style="text-align: center;">:::</p>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-24052090581728313702009-12-27T21:43:00.000-08:002009-12-28T15:56:52.978-08:00Christmas Eve 2009<div style="text-align: center;">On December 24th, 2009, Texas was hit with a moderate to heavy snowstorm that delayed travelers seeking to make it home for the holidays.<br /><br />We were two of those travelers.<br /><br /><object height="253" width="450"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=8429157&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ffffff&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=8429157&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ffffff&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="253" width="450"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="338" width="601"></object><br />Sheesh.<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-46751783887211274332009-12-22T08:00:00.000-08:002009-12-22T14:20:32.243-08:00This Year's Christmas Card<div style="text-align: center;">Part of the fun of the holidays is designing the Boyd family Christmas card.<br /><a href="http://jamandaboyd.blogspot.com/2008/11/holiday-cardschristmas-cards.html">Last year's card</a> was a fun little experiment, as I had just begun working in Photoshop and experimenting with graphics. So, with another year under my belt, I have come up with this little ditty:<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxsRw2ysOMI/AAAAAAAAAww/hPy-C14P6YE/s1600-h/Web_Christmas+09+4x6+cover.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 294px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxsRw2ysOMI/AAAAAAAAAww/hPy-C14P6YE/s400/Web_Christmas+09+4x6+cover.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411938908255303874" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">It is Jacob and I playing instruments and singing, which does not happen in real life. But for the purposes of our Christmas card, I found it quite charming.</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">This is a slightly modified replica of an illustration created by long-time Disney background artist <a href="http://www.californiawatercolor.com/artists/268/">Ralph Hulett</a>. This guy was amazing. Here is the original artwork created by the man himself:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxsTCc6Z82I/AAAAAAAAAw4/KKTwcVf1P04/s1600-h/ralphhulettcards.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 316px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxsTCc6Z82I/AAAAAAAAAw4/KKTwcVf1P04/s400/ralphhulettcards.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411940310057612130" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">We hope everyone has a very merry holiday!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />:::<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-57047661537772378852009-12-14T19:41:00.000-08:002009-12-14T19:43:47.861-08:00Had to pass this on...<div style="text-align: center;">I love <a href="http://improveverywhere.com/">Improv Everywhere</a>. Their stunts always make me chuckle, and sometimes even warm my heart, as in this case:<br /><br /><object height="315" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/40qHb9uFpRI&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/40qHb9uFpRI&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="315" width="500"></embed></object><br /><br />and this one:<br /><object height="315" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1lVS22y4uoU&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1lVS22y4uoU&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="315" width="500"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />and just for kicks, this one is hilarious:<br /><object height="285" width="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/jwMj3PJDxuo&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/jwMj3PJDxuo&hl=en_US&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="285" width="340"></embed></object><br /><br />:::<br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-18777774157800741652009-12-11T15:41:00.000-08:002009-12-11T15:46:24.140-08:00...frames...<div style="text-align: center;">Before two weeks ago I had probably 2 framed photos in our apartment, tops. But we decided that we need more family photos around the place, to brighten up our home and remind us of friends and family.<br /><br />So now we have <span style="font-style: italic;">a few </span>framed photos, slowly making our way to <span style="font-style: italic;">several</span>, and then on to <span style="font-style: italic;">many</span>, in due time. We even got a little table at Canton last week to set some on! Now this is what you see when you step through our front door:<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SyLY4htmz_I/AAAAAAAAAxY/BaWMv7ditPQ/s1600-h/_Tabler.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 304px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SyLY4htmz_I/AAAAAAAAAxY/BaWMv7ditPQ/s400/_Tabler.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414128167686688754" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Here's to trinkets!<br /><br />:::<br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-18210043641454940582009-12-08T07:16:00.000-08:002009-12-08T07:47:24.605-08:00To bring Christmas cheer...<div style="text-align: center;">In case you haven't heard, our good friend <a href="http://aaronhalemusic.blogspot.com/">Aaron Hale</a> has released a Christmas EP entitled <span style="font-style: italic;">Hark!</span><br /><br />Since December is here, and we are all surely listening to beau coups of merry holiday tunes while working or cooking or so on, I thought I might pass on the link to this FREE download...<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://aaronhalemusic.blogspot.com/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxxJdeh6xlI/AAAAAAAAAxQ/YvVvrOZ0luA/s400/PROFILE.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412281622952855122" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:85%;">{This awesome album art is created by Aaron's wife, Heather Hale (of <a href="http://www.twineandtwig.blogspot.com/">Twine & Twig</a>), quite a talented little lady}</span><br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://aaronhale.bandcamp.com/">Click here to download the EP!</a><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Aaron's tunes are sublime, so give yourself an early Christmas gift and download the EP!<br /><br />:::<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-48806058146744591732009-12-07T07:00:00.000-08:002009-12-07T07:08:59.234-08:00Yuletide<div style="text-align: center;">Ah, Christmas decor. Its funny how just a few strands of lights and some garland can really liven up a room.<br /><br />Here are our Christmas stockings, hung by the chimney with care (they're ice skates!):<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxsZd_a2FKI/AAAAAAAAAxA/oWUVo76kV90/s1600-h/_stockings_.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 258px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SxsZd_a2FKI/AAAAAAAAAxA/oWUVo76kV90/s400/_stockings_.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411947380246713506" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">And our artificial Christmas tree, which is tiny, so we put it on stilts. Note the mixture of holidays, as we have stuffed pumpkins beneath the tree in lieu of gifts. We also have itty bitty stockings as our topper:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/Sxsb4kJKdQI/AAAAAAAAAxI/gQTsRd7n3bQ/s1600-h/_tree_.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/Sxsb4kJKdQI/AAAAAAAAAxI/gQTsRd7n3bQ/s400/_tree_.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411950035804517634" border="0" /></a>:::<br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-21437674834241467192009-12-05T16:03:00.001-08:002009-12-06T15:43:56.206-08:00Jam-Packed Holiday Season<div style="text-align: center;">It has been a trifle busy around these parts during this holiday season. Lots going on at work, lots going on at home. More info later...<br /><br />But for now, here is a photo that I took this morning at First Mondays in Canton... Jacob and Jeff found some gnarly shades. We sure froze our booties off, but Jake and I scored some Christmas stockings and a new table... and a couple of Christmas gifts that we shall not describe in detail here.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/Sxr045rZ-tI/AAAAAAAAAwY/J95O_FAX8A8/s1600-h/IMG_1809.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/Sxr045rZ-tI/AAAAAAAAAwY/J95O_FAX8A8/s400/IMG_1809.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5411907160631802578" border="0" /></a><br />We hope everyone is having a merry Christmas season!<br /><br />:::<br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-24034765108110871592009-11-04T11:02:00.000-08:002009-11-04T16:01:25.762-08:00Murder Mystery Adventure!<div style="text-align: center;">This Tuesday we got together with some friends, with the spirit of All Hallows Eve still lingering in the air, and threw a murder mystery party!<br />Jacob was a hobo named Amos and I was the effeminate son of a wealthy railroad baron. We had a stunning cast of characters ranging from a lady of the night to a bartender with a severe gambling addiction. I turned out to be the killer. Muah ha ha ha!<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SvHQtl6LMSI/AAAAAAAAAwQ/S-Szf6wH2lc/s1600-h/DSC_1204.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SvHQtl6LMSI/AAAAAAAAAwQ/S-Szf6wH2lc/s400/DSC_1204.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400326909882741026" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SvHQeHFFOqI/AAAAAAAAAwI/u8recfQIzRc/s1600-h/DSC_1469.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 280px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SvHQeHFFOqI/AAAAAAAAAwI/u8recfQIzRc/s400/DSC_1469.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400326643908950690" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SvHQHpYS5OI/AAAAAAAAAwA/QgG2-hIoiSY/s1600-h/Guys.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 254px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SvHQHpYS5OI/AAAAAAAAAwA/QgG2-hIoiSY/s400/Guys.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400326257979352290" border="0" /></a><br />The rest of the photos can be found <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/44414066@N08/sets/72157622735404926/">here</a>.<br /><br />:::<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-1949096114737161892009-10-19T07:07:00.000-07:002009-10-19T07:09:36.827-07:00Autumn...<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/Stxys4hhqOI/AAAAAAAAAv4/Rb-9wVgnpew/s1600-h/Autumn_Arboretum.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 328px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/Stxys4hhqOI/AAAAAAAAAv4/Rb-9wVgnpew/s400/Autumn_Arboretum.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5394312569095825634" border="0" /></a>We finally got the opportunity to visit Autumn at the Arboretum this weekend. Although there was no red or orange in the trees, the pumpkins created a very autumn-esque feel. It was such fun, as was the entire weekend... great times with friends and some family.<br /><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-78671482604058076232009-10-13T11:08:00.001-07:002009-10-13T11:10:39.816-07:00Bosses Day '09<div style="text-align: center;">Here's a little ditty my co-worker and I put together for our boss. Thankfully, we have a supervisor that we enjoy and who has a good sense of humor.<br />Bosses Day is this Friday, go out and get your boss something nice. Unless you hate them.<br /><br /><object width="400" height="220"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=7045860&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=7045860&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="220"></embed></object><br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-51267683915373387012009-10-06T07:06:00.001-07:002009-10-06T07:16:08.739-07:00the Cleanse update...<div style="text-align: center;"><br />Let me tell you, I think Jacob and I have all the resolve of a sack of potatoes. No self discipline. NONE.<br /><br />All it took was us going through 10 waking foodless hours, arriving home from our respective workplaces, and talking each other out of the Cleanse.<br /><br />And that's when we ate. And it was <span style="font-style: italic;">delicious</span>.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Master Cleanse tips for success:</span><br />– Only start the Master Cleanse if you have 10 consecutive days free without any social interaction. Because in America, most social interaction involves food of some sort.<br /><br />– Prepare yourself mentally before starting the Master Cleanse. The night before we started, I had made an entire batch of homemade cookies from scratch. Bad move.<br /><br />– If you are going to be on the Master Cleanse, you'll also need to be on the toilet... often. Make sure there is one nearby throughout your day. This becomes increasingly difficult if you work full time.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">More Master Cleanse info <a href="http://themastercleanse.org/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">here</span></a>.</span><br /><br />:::<br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-54581662854322390102009-10-05T06:17:00.000-07:002009-10-05T12:18:34.465-07:00Oh no...<div style="text-align: center;"><br />This can only mean ONE thing...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsnyN8cxjzI/AAAAAAAAAvw/iZ5Qs43zkrE/s1600-h/IMG_7113.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 274px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsnyN8cxjzI/AAAAAAAAAvw/iZ5Qs43zkrE/s400/IMG_7113.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5389104750504546098" border="0" /></a>We're starting the Master Cleanse today.<br />(Or, at least, our own modified version of it... no salt water flushes, and for a shortened duration of time)<br /><br />The last time we tried this we didn't do so hot (we are, after all, <span style="font-style: italic;">food</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">lovers</span>).<br /><br />We'll see how we do this time around...<br /><br />...more to follow...<br /><br />:::<br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-73621222330212039852009-10-02T14:07:00.000-07:002009-10-02T14:17:03.057-07:00Have a germ-free weekend!<div style="text-align: center;">Remember <span style="font-style: italic;"></span> those flying monkeys from <span style="font-style: italic;">The Wizard of Oz </span>that were the Wicked Witch of the West's creepy goons?<br />Well, sometimes that's what I picture when I think of the Swine Flu, attacking all of us from the air...<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsZtZj3OMfI/AAAAAAAAAvo/R4Y_s6cP2iU/s1600-h/Swine+Flown.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 290px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsZtZj3OMfI/AAAAAAAAAvo/R4Y_s6cP2iU/s400/Swine+Flown.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388114290086392306" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">So have a safe and germ-free weekend, folks... don't get swine flown!<br /><br />:::<br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-60764145760248939922009-10-01T09:41:00.000-07:002009-10-01T09:42:53.402-07:00Happy Birthday, again!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsTb0Z1gnoI/AAAAAAAAAvQ/krn0OW0USl4/s1600-h/Larry+Birthday.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 301px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsTb0Z1gnoI/AAAAAAAAAvQ/krn0OW0USl4/s400/Larry+Birthday.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387672747576958594" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">It's not "growing old"... it's "ripening"<br /><br />:::<br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-60513764541824984892009-10-01T09:29:00.000-07:002009-10-01T09:30:35.548-07:00Happy Birthday!<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsTY-3buptI/AAAAAAAAAvI/NnzDelz8Hew/s1600-h/Ashley+Birthday.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 304px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsTY-3buptI/AAAAAAAAAvI/NnzDelz8Hew/s400/Ashley+Birthday.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387669628785698514" border="0" /></a><br />:::<br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5486398374757107240.post-11794855983690640342009-09-30T06:00:00.000-07:002009-09-30T08:14:12.210-07:00September Project #2A few months ago I fell in love with some hand-cut paper art by a lady named <a href="http://madebyjulene.com/">Julene</a>. This woman is wonderfully talented, and her artwork is to die for, so, naturally, I wanted something created for us!<br /><br />So I consulted her, but with the realization that she lives in Europe and it wasn't in the budget at the time, I decided to try it myself. Now trust me when I say ours is nowhere as refined or as detailed as hers, but it is perfect for our home. And after doing just one, I have a new respect for how talented she is, and would really suggest anyone who is interested to check out <a href="http://madebyjulene.com/">Julene's website</a> and purchase some lovely paper-cuts from her.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsNQ0lTJ5_I/AAAAAAAAAt4/yYQrCBqPADQ/s1600-h/IMG_7097.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 356px; height: 232px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsNQ0lTJ5_I/AAAAAAAAAt4/yYQrCBqPADQ/s400/IMG_7097.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387238443561117682" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsNRLIF-hXI/AAAAAAAAAuA/yMplIJwYQBc/s1600-h/IMG_7098.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 354px; height: 462px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHrBIce8kFk/SsNRLIF-hXI/AAAAAAAAAuA/yMplIJwYQBc/s400/IMG_7098.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387238830858208626" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The quote: "We finally chose to walk like giants" is from <a href="http://www.storypeople.com/storypeople/Home.do">Brian Andreas</a>, who is another artist/writer that we love. The full quote is:<br /><h1 style="text-align: center;font-family:trebuchet ms;" id="title_div3911037988" property="dc:title"><span style="font-size:85%;">"In those days, we finally chose to walk like giants & hold the world in arms grown strong with love & there may be many things we forget in the days to come, but this will not be one of them."</span></h1>We searched for a quote that resonated with us, and turned to our Story People books and found this one straight away. I sketched out the design and Jacob cut it out. It was originally meant as a gift to one another for our 1 year anniversary, since paper is the traditionally gift for 1 year. A bit late on the finishing, but it has the same heart behind it.<br /><br />It still lacks a bit of polishing and fine-tuning, but in it's almost-completed-stage, I think this little baby isn't half bad for a Made-by-Julene knock-off!<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Note:</span> We used watercolor paper, which is a tad too thick. If we do this again we'll use thinner paper. To cut it we used a very, very sharp exacto knife and change the blade regularly.<br /></span><div style="text-align: center;">:::<br /><br /></div>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com3