conversation with a 2 year old

Little Miss: Daddy!

Big Daddy: Yes, dear?

Little Miss, angrily: I'm not a deer!

Wordless Wednesday

playin' with my macro...

and Photoshop.

Which one do you like better?

Do tell, don't be shy.

And hey, have a lovely Easter tomorrow!

Wordless Wednesday

into the woods

All last week the vultures were feeding on a dead deer in the woods behind our house, so I decided to sneak up on them and try to take some pictures. I only took Moops with me, knowing that it is useless to attempt any kind of sneaking with my other three (loud-mouthed) children around.

First step for Moops: shed the sandals. This kid is all about stealth.

I am not all about stealth, so my shoes remained on my shoe-lovin' feet.

We headed quietly into the woods. As we came closer to the area where they were feeding, we could hear the creepy, prehistoric clicking noises the vultures make. Eight or ten vultures saw us approaching and flew up into the trees. I was able to get one fairly good shot -

and lots of rather pitiful pictures of dark, hulking figures way up in the trees. The vultures were wise to us; they knew we were there, waiting to take pictures of them. And, like anyone who has a bald head and an ugly, shriveled up face, they were rather camera-shy.

Moops tried to outwit them by playing dead.

I tried to outwit them by sitting quietly under the trees, making myself an open target for chiggers.

But the vultures would not be fooled, and we were getting bored, so Moops decided to climb a tree.

Moops never feels as if she has properly enjoyed the outdoors unless she has climbed a tree.

It's just a part of who she is. She's been a climber of trees since she was a toddler.

She has to scare me while she's up there, of course. Look, Mammy, no hands!

Look at her, up there; she reminds me of Kate on Lost. Such a tough person packed into such a petite body.

There she is, hanging from a branch, thinking about how weird her toes look.

Yeah. They are kinda weird.

So, the vulture photo shoot was a bust. But at least I was able to get some shots of the not so elusive, long-haired Georgian Monkey Girl in her natural habitat.

(woefully late) Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

apple dumplings

Have you tried Ree's Apple Dumplings?

We used ginger-ale, rather than Mountain Dew, and they were so, so good. My eldest suggested we carve an idol in the shape of Pioneer Woman (or her mother) and worship it, they were that good. I'm just glad we don't own a bathroom scale.

Make them, they're delicious. They're easy. They'll make your belly button happy. You want your belly button to be happy, don't you?