The End and The Beginning

The last of Christmas and taking down the decorations caused me to want to take a few last shots of the Christmas tree with my new cool camera ;) I still have so much to learn about taking pictures, but was excited that I got this shot....and this one...Christmas 2008 is over and the year is now in the history books and we move onto 2009 -- who knows what 2009 will bring...it is really up to us to make it a wonderful year!
This is a shot I took of myself with a timer. It was hard for me to get a good focus and most of the shots were blurry....something that I'll have to work on a little bit.

One of my goals for 2009 is to get myself into better physical shape. We took advantage of the River Trail in Redding to do a 5 mile walk/run. Rob's mom came with us and did her own walk while we did ours. Everyone just has to go at their own pace....It has been inspiring to watch "The Biggest Loser" and to realize that if they can lose weight and get in shape...

well, by gosh, by golly SO CAN I!!!!!

This last shot was a picture of Great Grandpa Fink, Great Grandma Fink, Great Aunt Joanie and Rob and I. It was taken on a timer. It was pretty funny as I had it set to take 5 pictures in succession and I was the only one that moved!

Go figure!

Christmas {Part I}

Well, for Christmas we got a Wii. I can't believe it, but we did and it has proven to be alot of fun and a crowd pleaser. It has been fun to play games together as a family or to play Guitar Hero that Jen brought over on Christmas for us to try out! We had alot of fun either....... Strumming the guitar like Ethan or...
....Singing a solo like Tyler!
....and someone had to have fun on the Plasma Car....
even if it wasn't Chase :)
I think Jen took this picture of Shell....
but it was my camera so I get to take credit for it! :)
I like the thoughtful pose.

Christmas {Part II}

Bella, Bella, Bow Bella....here's our little Bella with her new toy.Aunt Jenna and Bella
Steve and Ethan trying to put a square into a round hole...
or at least pounding the balls that go into the toy with the square lego!
Going outside to try out the outdoor toys...Tyler's remote control car
and Chase's Plasma car....
Summer watching Wii...

The New Camera

Well, it was a pretty exciting Christmas for me. My sweet husband bought me a really nice camera. Now the hard part begins. I need to learn how to use it so I can add some pics to my blog. Looking at this pic of me - the first thing I need to do is remove the lens cap! Rob and I went up to Redding to visit with his parents for New Years. While we were there it rained and I thought I would try out my new camera on some outdoor shots. I was amazed at how close I could get and how clear the pictures were!
I loved the way the raindrops clung to the fir tree

and the weeping willow.

Grand Kids at the Window

I am so lucky as a Grandma to have my grandchildren, Tyler and Chase, stay with us for a while. I look forward to coming home every night just to see them and to hear how their day went. In the mornings, on occasion, Tyler would get up when he heard the garage door go up and we had a routine that he would wave good-bye to me as I drove away. Sometimes Chase would join him. I loved seeing them so much at the window in the morning that I thought maybe I could get a picture of them waving good-bye to me. I know the picture isn't the greatest quality but I cherish this picture with all my heart! Big kisses to Tyler and Chase from Grandma Fink!

Love you, love you, love you! :)