Case of the Crafties

It is just me, or does arrival of fall make you go in crazy craft mode? 

When I feel that chill breeze breaking through summer heat, I have this strong desire to create something. 

In the past two weeks I have baked banana bread, made the pillow case covers from my last post, and knitted this mug cozy. 

I was looking on Etsy to buy one, but then I thought "I bet I can make that!"

I found this free knitting pattern and finished it in 2 daya. The pattern wasn't too hard, but you really have to pay attention to it. I think it turned out nice for my first one!

I don't know how long it will last, but I've been eating really good lately. Lots of fruit, veggies, and eggs. I LOVE mango. Yummy! 

At the thrift store I bought a giant stuffed tweety bird for the dogs. It lived for about 20 minutes before Evie pulled out all the stuffing. I can't believe how much stuffing they squeeze in toys! 

Hope you are having a great week! 

My New Lens!

I've been keeping an eye out for a used lens.
Woke up this morning, checked the Craigslist ads, and there it was.
Met up with the person 2 hours later and had myself a Sigma 70-200 f2.8 lens.
Once I got home, I had to test it out.
Luckily, my model is very beautiful!
I am so pleased with the quality of pictures from this lens. I read a lot of reviews and decided on the Sigma over the Tamron lens.
I would have chosen the Nikon over both, but the $2000 price tag is just not possible yet.
The Sigma lens is a bit heavy, but its autofocus is so fast and quiet.
I'm starting to photograph weddings (one on Valentines Day!) so this lens will be so great!

I shot these photos in RAW and didn't have to edit them at all.


(For those new to my blog, my lovely model's name is Evie. She is a Belgian Malinois).

New Year 2013

I really love New Years. It might sound a little cliche, but I love the fresh start the new year brings. There is a whole new year ahead of me and I can make it into anything I want. 

We had some friends over for dinner last night and stayed up to watch the ball drop on TV. 

I got to sleep in this morninig, which was glorious! I love my sleep! 

And to top things off, Mr. Brilliant made me breakfast! He's so good to me.

Happy New Year! We have so much ahead of us to look forward to!

Little Lia

Lia

My little one,

Saved from a life on the street, and abuse,

Her soft little face brings me laughter and joy.

She loves Evie, her big sister, but sometimes can't keep up with her.

I love my little Lia and I'm very thankful to give her a happy home. 

Notice a theme in most of the pictures? She loves playing with the frisbee, or basically anything that she can catch. She would play catch for hours (if I didn't get bored of it!)

My Evie

Evie

She brings me laughter when I have tears.

A soft touch after a hard day.

Sweet kisses when I feel like giving up.

A cuddle budy every morning.

Always and forever my protector.

She's like my best friend, my child, and a love bug, all wrapped up in soft fur. I love her. 

Arabelle

Meet Arabelle. This cutie is my mom's dog. How can you say no to those puppy dog eyes? I love it when she lays like that. Reminds me of a seal. 

She's such a sweetie! She will come up to you, and roll on her back, meaning "rub my belly!"

Hope your week is going well. It's going by so fast for me! Tested one kid yesterday, two today, and one more tomorrow. I currently have 4 psycho-educational reports in progress. Busy times, but I'm enjoying it and learning a lot!

How is your week going?