The Best Kind of Restaurants...

...have tablecloths. and not just for the aesthetic. I avoid taking Clark to restaurants because as soon as he touches the table or high chair (which are inevitably greasy) + uses his hands to eat anything = allergic reaction. It's mild--some hives around his mouth--but still unsettling for me. Tablecloths, though, get a thumbs up from me. Lazy susans on the table are fun, too, for spinning flatware, china, and toddlers.

This was at the Mandarin, in Bountiful, UT, to celebrate Grandma K's birthday.

Blushing for With Rapture

One of my all-time favorite photographers--Brooke of Blush Photography--is offering the chance to win a seat at her With Rapture workshop in April. I started following her 4 years ago when she took some headshots for a musician friend of mine. She is amazingly talented and her work is stunning, beautiful, and addictive. Attending her workshop would be a dream come true for me.

To enter the contest, I had to blog my favorite photo. Asking me to choose a favorite anything is like asking me to run a mile under 4 minutes--it's nearly impossible. However, I narrowed it down to a few choices and very nearly posted one from a session I shot for someone recently because I liked its artistic quality. But then...I kept coming back to shots of my son. For me, those evoke the most emotion because I'm a proud MWAC (mom with a camera). I especially love this photo because he's wearing an outfit that my mom dressed my brother in as a baby and saved all these years so I could love it too. I can also see patches of ezcema and little scratches on his skin that were ever present in the early days of dealing with his food allergies. We've come a long way since then.

I hope to win the chance at the workshop so I can learn not just how to snap a photo but how to capture special, beautiful moments in others' lives that will be cherished like I cherish this image and this boy:

Slidey Friday

We went sledding (or sliding, as the kids said) on Friday as part of a quick trip to Utah. We were lucky to have a huge pile of fresh snow to enjoy at my parents' house...

...which also meant we had to push the "Blue Spinner" out of some trouble before the sledding could begin.

My mom showed us how to ride her new sled

then we all trudged around back to have some (cold) fun!

Sledding isn't just for the kids, of course.

Grandma took a break from sledding to make us a snow angel.

This was our view as we slid down the hill.

Clark LOVED the snow so much I wish we could have brought some back with us.

Garden is a go

Clark and I got our garden started over the weekend beginning with a trip to our favorite nursery: Buchanan's on 11th. Having a toddler help me on this one may have been poor judgement on my part, but it was exciting nevertheless. Freedom to dig his hands in gravel and dirt is a dream come true for Clark, so I let him have at it.

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He had a sad moment at one point, which I attribute mostly to teething and not gardening. We had to take break when I turned around to see Clark covered in dirt, gagging on a portion of it that made it into his mouth, and holding a just-planted (but now ripped from its home) tomato plant in his hand. Clearly my two hands weren't enough to keep perfect order. A lot more dirt and gravel ended up on the ground, clothes, and in Clark's case, mouth, than I would have preferred but I'm glad he was involved since he gets excited to check on the plants we worked on together.

Have Tools, Will Use

Stevie made an uh-oh to our compressor while backing into the garage a while ago. The coupling piece got sheared off, leaving some of it behind in the regulator. I took the compressor to a tool repair shop, who then referred me to the Makita service center. Once there, they told me they'd need to replace the regulator and coupling, which they estimated to cost me about $150 or more. No can do, I thought! Especially considering the whole compressor was $150 in the first place. It's hardly been used, so I took it back home and called my dad to see what else could be done.

Using my dad's suggestions, here are my supplies for the repair:

1. broken coupling :(

2. went to Kwik Kar for oil change, inspection, and mechanic advice for my compressor

3. mechanic advised me on what tool I needed (extractor) and gave me one

4. #5 extractor I purchased later since gifted one didn't fit COST=$4.09

5. roll of teflon tape to wrap threads of new coupling COST=$0.98

6. wrench for Clark to use (to pound on the compressor) to help his mom

7. wrench I used

8. piece I successfully extracted

9. shiny new coupling COST=$2.98

$8 later the thing is as good as new. This is my "I fixed it, take that, Makita!" wink.

I'm still trying to figure out what the guy at the hardware store meant when he sold me the extractor and said, "tell him to pound on this a little bit, then he can unscrew it." Whoever he is never showed, and quite frankly he's too late, since I already fixed the thing without his help. Next time, Mr. Magical Fix-It Guy, next time...