WOW - Where Does the Time GO?????

Mea Culpa - it has been HECTIC around here! My apologies to you for not posting and not checking in on your blogs! For some reason I don't think that things are going to change anytime soon! WOW!

We have been enjoying a visit from our nephew and his little sweet pea who just turned 3.

Poppa and I celebrated our 35th high school reunion with a dinner cruise on the Portland Spirit on the Columbia Gorge. It was SO much fun to visit with our friends from what seems forever ago but at the same time just a short time ago! Here is one of my close girlfriends since 2nd grade!

OK. The REALLY exciting news - I have a CAMERA!!!!!! A great friend found a super deal for me on a Canon EOS 350D Rebel XT! Oh yeah. Uh huh. For a photography dummy, I am having a blast with it! I just unpacked it this morning and I think that I have taken nearly 200 photos just today! Now, please just bare with me for a few pix - can you tell the difference in the following ones compared to all the rest of the blog?

I know - this one is fuzzy, but I had to post it. Why? This is the FIRST photo I have been able to capture of Chick-a-Dee with a full smile! One and a half years of trying and I finally got it!

I scared IBoy half to death with this shot. He had just walked out of the shower into his room. I had walked quietly behind him - not meaning to startle him, but I did. He wasn't very happy with me :-)

Auntie blowing bubbles for the girls.

Miss Violet watching the bubbles.

OK - I know the dead flowers need to removed - just experimenting with the camera, ok?

I had SO much fun taking pictures of sweet Violet!

Don't laugh - I'm taking pictures of EVERYTHING!!! This was as delicious as it looks - I'll share the concoction with you.

I started with the recipe from Brent Riggs on the MckLinky blog hop, but of course had to alter it slightly. Slightly like, I had some extra things in the fridge that sounded good to throw in with it, so I don't know how his tasted before my extras. At any rate, it was a hit in this house - even the little girls munched it down! I won't bother to put quantities in, because I am more of a pinch of this and a spoon of that. SO - I used avocados, freshly cooked (still warm, in fact) corn cut from the cob, tomatoes, lime juice, fresh cilantro, hot green chile peppers, green onions, cucumbers, grated cheese, and salt. We had it at room temperature and then chilled the little bit of leftovers. Poppa just came home from work and finished the bowl off. Yummy!!!

Not too bad for an automatic setting, heh? No - he wasn't part of the salad.