Denise 365

December 2009

12.1.2009: Morning Girl

12.4.2009: Pizza Dinner

12.5.2009: Anticipation

 

12.6.2009: Christmas Tree is Up!

12.8.2009: New Shelves (in my stamping/scrapping/office room)

 

  12.9.2009: Shelving Complete

12.10.2009. My Two Elves.

12.11.2009. All Dressed Up and Ready to Dance.

12.13.2009. Jay’s Birthday

12.18.2009: Coffee Date with Gigi.

12.19.2009. Christmas Baking.

12.20.2009: Dance Recital

12.20.2009 (b): Holiday Cards

12.22.2009: Soap is Ready!

12.23.2009: Daycare Gift: Soaps and Homemade Bath Products

 

12.23.2009 (b): Visit With Santa

 

12.24.2009: Christmas Eve and the Tree is Decorated.

12.25.2009: Christmas Morning, Opening Presents.

 

12.27.2009: New Popcorn Popper

 

12.28.2009: Bike Assembly

12.30.2009: Hybrid Mini Album

12.31.2009: Pajama Party at Daycare

November 2009

11.1.2009: Mitten and Scarf Weather is here!

11.2.2009: Gigi and her Snack

11.3.2009: Sausage and Roast: Prepping for Italian Family Pasta Night.

11.4.2009: Dance Class Cutie

11.5.2009: Gymnastics Class: Ready, Set, Cartwheel!

11.7.2009: Dance Recital

11.8.2009: Family Pasta Night – Homemade Pasta.

11.13.2009: Gianna Portrait

 

11.14.2009: My Hubby

11.15.2009: Warner Park

11.16.2009: New Hairdo

 

11.17.2009: Drying Flowers

11.21.2009: Bridal Session

 

11.23.2009: Desk Art.

 

11.24.2009: Enjoying the Fireplace

11.25.2009: Gigi Bakes Cherry Pie

 

11.26.2009: Thankful for my Girl.

 

11.27.2009: The Pink Christmas Tree

 

11.28.2009: Thanksgiving, Round 2

11.29.2009: Fireplace Cleaning Routine.

October 2009

10.1.09: Morning Bagel.

10.3.09: Ruby Red Slippers

10.4.09: On a Hayride.

10.5.09. Homemade Soap

10.6.09. Minnesota Grapes.

10.9.09. At the Farmers Market.

10.10.09. First Snowfall. 

 

10.11.09. Stuffed Porkchops.

 

10.13.09. Gigi and Dad.

 

 

10.15.2009. Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

 

 

10.16.2009. Birds of Virginia.

 

10.17.2009. Fall at the Apple Orchard

 

10.18.2009. Writing Thank You Notes.

 

10.22.2009. New Candleholders.

10.24.2009. The Reluctant Fairy.

 

10.25.2009. My Dear Hubby.

 

 

10.27.2009. Halloween Candy.

 

 

10.028.2009. Working from home.

 

10.31.2009. Halloween. I am Bat Girl.

September 2009

9.1.09. Short Hair

9.2.09. Crazy Hair Day

9.3.09. Ice Cream Dessert

9.4.09. Home Sweet Home.

9.5.09. Morning Coffee

9.6.09. Peanut Butter Bars.

9.7.09. Pretty Pedicure.

9.8.09. After Swimming

9.9.09. Dance Class

9.10.09. Gymnastics Class

9.11.09. Before the Pig Roast

9.12.09. Roasting the Pig.

9.14.09. Gianna

 

9.17.09. Halloween Costume: Batgirl.

9.19.09. Sunshine.

9.21.09. Thank you for neighbor.

 

9.23.09. Tuna Steaks

9.25.09. Bridal Portrait

9.29.09. Pudding for Dessert.

9.30.09. Chocolate and Cream Wedding Card.

August 2009

Photos from August 2009.

8.1.2009. Pool with Kiel. Gianna ADORES Kiel. ADORES him. So when he takes the time to play with her in the pool, she’s in total heaven. 

 

 

8.2.09. New Recipe: Cajun Chicken Pasta. Not bad, but I like my sauce a little thicker.

 

8.3.2009. The Fort. Gigi has managed to arrange her collection of blankets over her toddler bed (with the help of a broom handle) to create her own little fort.

 

8.6.2009. County Fair.

 

8.7.2009. Mini Pizzas. Gianna learned to make these by having them at daycare, so we decided to try some out for ourselves for dinner.

 

8.8.2009. With Grandpa

8.9.2009. Pool Princess. Gianna got dressed up in her princess clothes after spending the day in the pool.

 

8.11.2009. Babies. Gianna loves her babies.

  8.12.2009. Infant Portrait Session. Photographed a friend with her precious new baby girl.

 

8.15.2009. Fruit Salad, yummy, yummy.

8.16.2009. The Most Delicious Cocktail. Ever. Pomegranate Martini. Have a couple of these and you won’t care whether or not you eat dinner. Not that I speak from experience.

 

8.17.2009. Obligatory After Pool Shower. Complete with Baking Soda Hair Treatment.

 

8.18.2009. Tiramisu cake. Yum. O.

8.19.2009. Ugly Teeth. A set of fake teeth she ‘won’ at Space Aliens.

 

8.20.2009. Family Portrait.

8.25.2009. Client Session.

 

8.26.2009. Gigi and Her Annie. We hit the road on a three-day roadtrip – just us girls.

8.27.2009. Duluth Lift Bridge at Night.

8.28.2009. Skies over Cass Lake.

 

8.29.2009. The Shore of Cass Lake. 

July 2009

Continuing on with my photos from 2009, here are the photos from the month of July.

7.01.2009. New Coffee Table. This beauty was a Craigslist find at just $35.

 

7.02.2009. Buh Bye Old Staircase. Took off the temporary staircase off the sunroom door and installed a more sturdy staircase (and big enough to have storage below) in its place.

 7.03.2009. Meatball Sub.

 

7.04.2009. Fireworks Over Mississippi River.

 

7.05.2009. Orange. Cheeseballs.

 

7.06.2009. Soccer Team. Gigi is in the middle in all pink.

 

7.07.2009. Ladybug Cards.

7.08.2009. Orange Nemo Toy.

 

7.09.2009. Braids.

 

7.10.2009. After the Swim.

 

7.11.2009. Pool at Night.

 

7.12.2009. Tiger Lilies in Mom’s Garden.

 

7.13.2009. T-Ball.

 

7.14.2009. Stormy Weather.

 

7.15.2009. At Bat.

 

7.16.2009. Orange Juice.

 

7.18.2009. Downtown St. Cloud/Worldwide Photowalk.

 

7.19.2009. Banana Cream Pie.

 

7.21.2009. New Wall Art.

 

7.23.2009. Gianna.

  7.24.2009. Morning Cereal.

 

7.25.2009. Jay and Denise – Housewarming Party.

7.26.2009. Watermelon.

7.27.2009. Running the Bases.

7.29.2009. Kisses for Dad.

7.31.2009. In the Poll with Kiel.

June 2009

Still playing catch up with last year’s photos. I’m proud to say I have selected and edited all my photos for the year and now just need to publish them here! So watch in the coming days/weeks for updates. I even taught myself how to automate some of the steps by creating some Photoshop actions to make the images sized and sharpened for the web, and also to insert my watermark. Before I was doing it all manually, but having an action definitely makes the task easier to undertake! Plus, learning about how to create these actions makes me feel good that I pushed myself to figure it out.

It’s also my hope to continue to share photos from 2010 here as well… though I’m not doing project 365 this year, I am still pushing myself to take better photos and get better at Photoshop. Publishing them here pushes me to do a good job on them since they are out there for everyone to see!

6.1.2009. Practice learning how to capture sunflare on photos. Mission accomplished.

 

6.2.2009. Planting time.

6.3.2009. 7-layer bars. So good.

 

6.4.2009. Tea party.

 

6.5.2009. Gianna and Olivia

 

6.7.2009. New recipe: Pioneer Woman’s Crash Potatoes. If you have never tried these, you are missing out.

6.9.2009: Faded Roses. Received on our wedding anniversary, I didn’t think to take photos of them until now.

6.10.2009. Gigi’s Home. Gianna spent the week camping with Grandma and Grandpa, along with her cousin Olivia. And now she’s home.

6.11.2009. Ready for planting. I bought these planters at a local once-a-month trash-to-treasure shop, and I LOVE them. I do not, however, have a green thumb. Despite my best attempts, I couldn’t get the daisies to bloom. In fact, I couldn’t get them to grow in the mostly shaded north-side of the house. For 2010, either move the planters or try a different type of seed.

6.12.2009. Miniature Doll Toys – the smaller the better: Universally Loved by Little Girls Everywhere. At a cousin’s graduation party, Gianna got to play with her second-cousins. Here the have their favorite little dolly toys scattered across the patio.

6.13.2009. Cousin Robin. Robin’s graduation party, Gianna poses for a photo with Robin.

6.15.2009. Soccer Practice.

6.17.2009. More Soccer Practice. Notice the new pink ball. :)

6.18.2009. Father’s Day Cards.

 

6.19.2009. Going' Scrapbooking.

6.20.2009. The Loft – Taking a Writing Course.

6.21.2009. Sleeping Beauty

 

6.23.2009. The Little Mermaid.

6.24.2009. Clouds and Rainbows

 

6.25.2009. Henna: The Next Best Thing to Face Painting. Attended the local Lemonade Fair, but got there too late to get the face painting I had promised Gianna, so we opted for Henna art instead. it was really cool!

 

6.26.2009. Swim, Swim, Swim.

 

6.28.2009. Sub Sandwich. I love making these big sub sandwiches ahead of time to let the flavors marinate for a few hours before eating. Plus, it’s an easy meal for eating around the pool or while on the boat.

 

6.29.2009. Corn on the Cob. It’s not summer until there’s corn on the cob!

 

6.30.2009. Gianna does dishes. And yes, I still hate editing photos taken under the icky florescent lighting.

May 2009

I’m slowly working my way thru the photos for the past year. I’ve decided for 2010 I will not do a 365 but I will continue to frequently take photos and post them here.

 

5.1.09: Gianna’s sunflowers continue to grow.

 

5.2.09: Tiramisu for dessert tonight.

 

5.3.09: Tiramisu cake for dessert. MIL’s birthday and needed to bake her a cake. Dare I say this one tasted better than the ‘real’ tiramisu?

 

5.4.09: Sold. ‘Nuff Said.

 

5.6.09: Finish trim on door. Because it was too cold last fall when the door was installed to complete the trim because the grout required certain temperatures, this project had to wait until the weather warmed up.

 

 

5.7.09: Graduation card. Was commissioned to make an elegant graduation card. I LOVED how this one turned out. Kraft, black, and white are so classy.

 

5.8.09: Mothers Day Flower. Gianna came home with this special gift for me from daycare today.

  5.9.09: Bath Salts. We made bath salts to give as Mother’s Day gifts. Here we are mixing them all up!

 

5.10.09: Dandelion Portrait. We went for a leisurely drive today, stopping in at Jay’s newest housing acquisition to check it out and photograph it. Gigi picked some dandelions outside and posed for a portrait for me.

 

  5.11.09: Kristi’s Gift. We give Gianna’s daycare mom a gift each year on Mother’s Day. This year it was a set of homemade cards with her monogram/initial, along with a bag of homemade bath salts, and a set of homemade soaps. 

 

5.12.09: Recital practice at SCSU. Tonight the dance girls rehearsed on the big stage in anticipation of this weekend’s recital.

 

5.13.09: Winter Water. Emptying a whole winter’s worth of water and snow melt off the pool cover. That poor pump had to work for HOURS.

 

5.14.09: Bye, bye, old house. The night before our original scheduled closing… I spent the evening doing a final cleaning at the old house, and took one last photo to remember the place.

 

5.15.09: Rain! We had sooo much rain today! Look at all the standing water in the year. Yikes!

 

5.16.09: Silly Dress Up. Pajamas, Easter hat (from when she was one!), scarf. GREAT combo!

 

5.17.09: Backstage at the Dance Recital.

 

5.18.09: Asleep in the Rocking Chair.

 

5.19.09: Charlotte’s Web. We are reading a chapter each night. Great book.

    5.20.09. We celebrated the sale/closing of the old house today by taking our first real dip in the pool tonight. Gigi is decked out in all her gear: life jacket and goggles! 

 

5.21.09: In the Rocking Chair.

 

5.22.09: In the sky. I believe it was a beer ad.

 

5.23.09: Flowers. Our realtor sent us flowers after the house closing. They were pretty!!

 

5.24.09. First barbeque. It was the first barbeque of the season! We enjoyed ribs and garlic bread, done on the grill. 

5.25.09. Down the Slide. Gigi had to be convinced the slide was a good idea. This was her first time down. And she wouldn’t attempt it again for most of the summer.

 

5.26.09: Natural Light. I don’t remember what we were doing, or what was significant… only that there was pretty sunlight coming in through the windows in the breakfast nook, and it made for pretty portrait lighting.

 

5.27.09: Surf and Turf. It’s our 9th anniversary, and we cooked surf and turf on the grill. Steaks and calamari. Yum.

 

5.28.09: Roses. Jay bought roses for our anniversary. Here they are a few days later, but still looking good. 

 

5.29.09: Angel's and Demons. Good movie. (The book was better!)

 

5.30.09: Individual wine. Found these cute little bottles of wine at the liquor store and had to try them out. Perfect for when you want a glass of wine but hate to open a whole big bottle.

 

5.31.09: Bike ride! I’m not exactly sure why the bike was in the kitchen… but it was. She looked so cute with her hat and sunglasses on her teeny tiny bike!

4.1.2009 thru 4.29.2009

I’m catching up on photos, so I thought I would post all of April’s together in a single post.

 

4.1.2009. Dance Photos Are Here! Gigi’s dance photos are in. Aren’t they cute!

 

4.2.2009. Fireplace Detail. I liked the morning light coming thru the north-facing front door and wanted to photograph the fireplace in that natural light.

 

4.3.2009. Cabinet Detail – These posts are the detail on the kitchen cabinet below the cooktop.

 

4.4.2009. Morning Portrait.

4.5.2009. Fudgesicle. 

4.6.2009. Daddy and Gigi.

4.7.2009. New Sandals for my Little Girl.

4.8.2009. Easter Treats. Gianna and I made little easter treat bags to share with the daycare kids.

 

4.9.2009. Doorknob. 

4.10.2009. Fuzzy Navel Cake. Just like rum cake but with peach schnapps and orange juice. I love all things peach flavored, and this cake was totally yummy!!

 

4.11.2009. Colored Eggs. Gigi and I colored Easter eggs today. Auntie Annie taught her the fine art of using a white crayon to write on the egg before coloring, and so Gigi attempted a few designs herself. I love the little person she drew!

 

4.12.2009 – Easter Umbrella. Grandmas each brought easter baskets for Gianna, and the basket from Grandma Winkelman included a bright flowery umbrella. Just what Gianna always wanted!

 

4.13.2009 – Cemetery.  We went for a walk in the cemetery across the road from us. This mausoleum caught my eye.

 

4.14.2009 – Treadmill. 

4.15.2009. Red Gerbera Daisies. Jay picked these pretty red flowers up for me the other day. I love them!!

 

4.16.2009 – Outside Light Fixture. Bottom View.

 

4.17.2009 – Licking the Cake Batter.

 

4.19.2009 – Blowing Bubbles.

 

4.20.2009 – Stamped Cards.

4.21.2009 – Hair Appointment. This is where my money goes!

 

4.22.2009 – Warm Bubble Bath! After an evening of raking the lawn, it was great to soak in the tub for awhile. I love my new bathtub!!

 

4.23.2009 – Chocolate Milk in the Morning. In an effort to bribe Gigi out of bed at a reasonable time, I offered her chocolate milk for breakfast. Chocolate milk itself wasn’t motivation enough. She needed to have TWO straws to be convinced. 

 

4.24.2009 – Marinara. Tried a new Giada de Laurentiis recipe. Yum. 

 

4.25.2009 – Daddy Teaches Gianna How to Count Money.

 

4.26.2009 – New Recipe – Lamb Pasty. Made with leftover Easter lamb.

4.27.2009 – Stamped Cards.

4.28.2009 – Planted Sunflowers. Gigi and I planted her sunflower seed she got from the Easter bunny a few days ago. They are just starting to poke thru the soil.

 

4.29.2009 – Growing Sunflowers. Here they are just a day later – look how much they’ve grown!!

3.29.2009 thru 3.31.2009

3.29.2009 – Fixing the Puppet Show. Gigi took her puppet show booth completely apart the other day, and here Daddy is guiding her thru the steps to put it back together. It took them a couple of hours, but they did it!

 

3.30.2009 – New (Granny) Shoes. Part of the rehab for my weakened ankle involves wearing shoes with a good arch support. My physical therapist suggested Clarks shoes for me, and I ordered these casual flat black shoes. Online they looked pretty cute. In person, they look like ugly granny shoes. But they are comfortable and they help my feet and ankles, so I’ll set my pride aside.

 

3.31.2009 – Coffee Cup at Small Town Coffee Shop. I didn’t take this photo today, but I did the retouching of it today as I wanted to make an enlargement to hang on the wall. The photo was taken the previous Saturday at a small town coffee shop. As it turns out, it was one of the last days they were in business. Someday I would like to do a photo series of photos taken at coffee shops. Anyway, I really liked how this one turned out, so I wanted to fancy it up with a little sepia toning so I could enlarge it and use it to hang in my house.