A Big Deal.

Today was a big day in the Williams household...
Miss Mags said her own name... like for real said it... clear as day...
Wahoo!

You have no idea how big this is for us... super BIG.

When Maggie started speech, the first thing I asked her teacher was that we get her to say her name right.
At the time, when asked "What's your name little girl?"
Mags would reply with a confident "abjabbadalabba."
Over the passed month and a bit, it has slowly gone from that nonsense

to...

"Deedee" (people would say, "oh hello Deedee" and I'd have to say "oh no, her name's not Deedee".)
(I'd get all kinds of looks)

to...

"Mmmma-Dee"

to...

"Mmmma-gdee"

and now...

this morning...

Slowly, but surely she sounded out "Mmmmmaaaggggeeee"!

There was a lot of cheering, yelling, and high fiving going on, which led to a lot of repetition.
She was so proud of herself... and we were too.

I've been waiting almost three years to hear that name come out of that darling little mouth.

Mustache March

Creates a whole new definition for the word "Grody".

Nail Biter.

I've signed up for this fabulous photo class from an amazing photographer here in San Francisco named Nicole Hill Gerulat, also known as a little sussy.
She is so talented and I've completely fallen in love with her creativity and work.
It has been such a good experience for me, and has also forced me to come out of my comfort zone a little bit...
Last week after our first class we were given "real" homework assignments, where we were informed that when we returned to class, she would be critiquing our photos in front of everyone.
(pretty sure I haven't felt that kind of pressure since zone finals in grade 11)
It ended up not being near as scary as I thought, and I figure the best thing you can get is constructive criticism anyway.
How else are you going to learn and get better?

I've learned so many things from just the first week...
-my LCD screen plays my photos back a little brighter than they will show on my computer, which is definitely handy to know.
-everything we do is in natural light, which I've always preferred, but now I understand why it creates such a better outcome.
-I can be the full commander and chief of my camera, she has taught me how to us everything manual, so that I'm in complete control of the output I get.
-I now understand creating motion, capturing motion, rule of thirds, and how to use my f/stop for a desired result.
-we were only allowed to submit unedited raw photos, because the goal is to get a great picture in the first place.

Here's just a small sneak peak at some of my homework...

Budding Photographer

Maguire got a hold of our little point and shoot camera the other morning, so I let her run away with it.
Not too bad for a first timer...
I loved how she would tell me to say cheese and then concentrate on taking a photo of me.
Definitely the first thing I wanted to be doing in the morning before even brushing my teeth.
I guess it's only fair, considering how often I've got a camera shoved in her face.

Wish

I sure wish Mags and I had gotten to get in on this action... maybe soon... stay tuned.

My First Timer.

When Juli first moved here, we were talking the perks of being in the city when I mentioned how cheap manicures and pedicures are here. She immediately responded that that didn't mean much to her, because...
SHE'D NEVER HAD ONE OR THE OTHER!

What?!?!

So when I found out what her induction date was going to be, I talked to John and arranged her kidnapping the night before she was to go to the hospital. When I went to pick her up (or kidnap her), she was some what surprised to see me, but when I told her to go put some flip flops on, she broke into a big smile.

Once we were on our way, I told her that we were going to pamper her toes, because those would be the one constant thing she'd be looking at through out labor and it wouldn't be right if they weren't pleasant to look at.

It was hysterical when Juli told the ladies around us that this was her first time...
they literally looked at her like she was speaking a different language.
By the time we were done, everyone was waving, shouting goodbye and wishing her luck.

We went with the same colour, so that every time we'd look at our toes, it would bring a smile to our faces.