CHRISTmas and CHRISTMAS

Christmas is a great time of year. It allows you to reflect on CHRIST and celebrate what his birth has done for you, and spend time with your family. Too bad there are so many politics in the holiday.

I really enjoy it. But for Andy, it means alot of overtime and less hair. For working parents (in my house it happens to be a man), it gets a little stressful when your making the money for the holiday. He also doesn't care for the holiday because then he has to go to the company Christmas party. (He wouldn't go if it wasn't for me) No matter what, the day comes and everyone enjoys December 25th.

CHRISTmas for us this year included a drive-by Nativity at a local church, giving to friends, and the kids performance in a show at the Church of Christ. I unfortunately was unable to make it (pregnancy), but Andy took pictures for me. It looked really good, since Andy took 95 pictures for me :)

Christmas was alot of fun.I made 30 Carmel apples and delivered them to friends. Christmas Eve night, the kids opened their pj's,watched a movie, and off to bed they went...for Santa was coming! Morgan was sooo excited. She has always been a happy, positive child. Trey doesn't really believe in Santa, but he played along. He still has the spirit And loved the suspense of Christmas morning. And Mattie loved Santa. She is my little character. She liked opening pjs and couldn't wait for the morning.

The next morning was when the fun began. Kids were up before us, pre-occupied with their stockings, and were excited to see all the wonderful things that await. I got Kitchen knives and...a Wii! Not just a Wii, but Mario Brothers with it. Let me tell ya...It's like being a kid again. So much fun.

My point: I believe CHRISTmas and Christmas go hand in hand. They both play a role in the holiday. I love the excitement of seeing Santa Clause and the presents and seeing the kids eyes light up. And then I love the spirit that I find through listening to songs of Christmas like"Silent Night". I love the story of the journey Joseph and Mary took to deliver Gods son, Jesus Christ. I wouldn't want Christmas without either one. They both go hand-in-hand to create the holiday season. It just wouldn't be the same to take one part out of it. Christmas is a great time of the year and I am grateful for my wonderful family and memories.

A KIND ACT

Today, I went grocery shopping at Safeway. I went in with a budget. I was also thinking how lucky I was to have a sister that is a couponer...but also how I can't use most of her deals.( I sure wish I could). So my budget was 200.00 and I was a little stressed about the whole budget thing.
As I was strolling down the meat isle, there was this lady on the other side heading strait towards me. I usually don't like that in a grocery store because it kinda feels like a Mexican standoff. But, I passed on the right and smiled as I walked past.
But she stopped me and said:
"You look like someone that is a mom of a family. I have this list of coupons for free food and wanted to see if you wanted it? All you do is spend 50.00 and you get these 4 items free..."

I took them and ran...
JK. I took them and said "Are you sure! That is so nice."
I mentioned to her that I was trying to budget on this shopping trip and that it would help to meet my goal. I think she felt good because she did something nice. She told me happy New year and waved to me before I left Safeway.

You know, this whole experience made me grateful for good people. I wish I could come across kind people all the time. It makes me want to be a kinder person because of how it made me feel. It's really neat how it spreads and brings in cheer.

Dinner Ideas for the next 2 weeks

Getting on a budget...a food budget has helped me to plan. After grocery shopping for specific items, I find how much easier it seems to make my life. Wow, I got a plan...and a menu...and I save money! Why didn't I do this before??

Ok, so I know I am not perfect, but I do know we have alot of meat in our freezer this year. This should make meal planning easier and my grocery shopping trips more focused. (I find myself venturing into the meat department because I get tired of game meat all the time)

A New Year might mean something to me after all. Maybe this is the year to focus on a budget. It might be good to even teach the kids about budgeting. Too bad my brother in laws arent a little closer, they could give me some good tips (since they are accountants). Anyways...

My menu, (for a family of 5). For the next two weeks under 120.00.
*Bought one and will use it for 2 meals. (A bargan)
DINNERS
taco soup
indian fried bread tacos
*ham (on sale right now at safeway for 1.49pp) and mashed potatoes
*ham and potatoe soup with rolls and salad
chicken and (rice&brocolli rice-a-roni), baby carrots
hamburgers and homemade fries (w/russet potatoes,olive oil, johnnies seasoning)
hamburger helper
lasagna hamburger helper
halibut and homemade fries w a veggie
fahitas
noodles w teriyaki chicken
moose roast with veggies/potatoes
green salad with grilled chicken

BREAKFAST
Scrambled eggs w/ ham
pancakes
oatmeal
2 bags of cereal (maybe...I probably won't make it 2 weeks :)
??
LUNCH
Sandwiches
mac-n-cheese
cup of noodles
grilled cheese sandwiches
salad
??

It isn't complete, but it's a start. Atleast I got the dinners out of the way.

Have you heard Anna Graceman? She is a 10 year old girl with an amazing talent. My kids and I love her music and listen to it all the time. She is amazing because :
1-She writes all her songs
2-She sings amazingly! I mean, not just amazingly but leaves me with tears on some of her songs.
3-She plays the piano all at the same time.

We love you Anna and hope you continue to surprise us.
Go here to annagraceman.com to check out her site and her newest song. It's a free download right now.

A Christmas Traditon

We attempted to do a Christmas tradition. One we had never attempted before.

However, we had some technical difficulties.

But It was fun designing them.

Hmmm....maybe next year we will try again.

175 days to go

Today I am 15 weeks along. The baby is the size of an apple.
Pregnancy had been going easy. I was surprised with the lack of sickness and strain I was having. But like all good things, that has now come to an end. I have been sick almost every other day for the last 2 weeks.
This baby creates these awful headaches that are associated with body aches. I'm not sleeping at night soundly and parts of my body become numb over time when I sleep. I also am having evening sickness (vs morning sickness).
What seems the hardest is the energy factor. It is an act of congress to do the dishes or vacuum the floor. Andy is working alot and I can't seem to get everything done in the day (between the energy factor and the sickness). Dinners are basic like mac-n-cheese or burritos. My laundry pile has been sitting on my couch for a week.
I hope this all goes away soon. I want to get organized again and enjoy the holidays. I would like to plan for weekend outings with the kids. But for now, all I can do is relax and try to get over these headaches that go down my back.
Yes, pregnancy isn't fun. It isn't fun for anyone here anyway. I feel bad because I can't do much when I feel sick.

Changes to the Blog

A New Year is coming fast. Once Thanksgiving hits, everything goes in hyper-mode and before you know it, it's 2010.

Once 2010 rolls around, I will have a new blog address. I have planned on doing this for a while for confidentiality. If I could, I would easily change my background, but my address would always have my last name in it unfortunately.

I really appreciate all your comments and support over the years. I hope your all having a wonderful Christmas season.

COMPOSITE

I am done...finished...my last assignment. I did it and am now celebrating with Mattie. We are sharing a bag of Cheetos (mmm...)
Get this, my last assignment took me 3 hours of editing. Sitting here on my computer for 3 solid hours putting together this picture that I will never use. It is funky, but that is how it's supposed to be. Here is what I did.
I had 6 photos. Out of those 6 photos, I selected items out of them. Then moved each item into one photo. Then you have to blend all the items to make it look like 1 NATURAL photo.

(These are all the people in that picture. What exactly are they doing? I sure don't know.)

Here are some of my other final photo's. I picked a master of photography in animal wildlife. Here are my photos mimicking his work.



His name is Steven Kirkpatrick and if you would like, go Here to see some of his work.

Freeze & Thaw

For the last 5 days, I have looked out the window and seen frozen ground and blue skies. One of my assignments was to take a picture of "Freeze and Thaw". Mother nature gave me plenty of opportunities to photograph this topic.(A stream flowing with Ice forming)

(The hood of my car. With a little help from photoshop. Made the picture black & White. Then went back in and added the original color back into the heart.)

Panoramics

(Click on picture to enlarge and see all our decorations)

One of the topics we learned about was how to make Panoramas. These are a lot of fun. If your interested in learning, I can teach you how. So simple. I love it. It's nice that you can get everything in a picture that you see. The angles, the texture, and the depth.

CHRISTMAS CARDS

During the Christmas season, one of the things I try REALLY hard to do is Christmas cards.

1-We get a family picture for the year and
2-Living so far away from the lower 48, it's my way to reach-out and give friends and family a little something from the Vaughns.

Don't we all enjoy receiving Christmas cards?? I know I'm not the only one who gets excited over getting something in the mail besides bills.
Growing up, I loved checking the mail for all the Christmas cards we would receive. Some would be from people we'd never heard of, but most were distant cousins and family. One year in particular, I remember all the Christmas cards and how I thought, "we must be loved."

Back in my younger years, my mom would put together a whole Christmas newsletter! I think that would be a lot harder than taking a picture. But whats really cool is to look at them now! It's pretty funny to see where I was at over the years. Heavens knows, I was always a perfect angel growing up though :) ALWAYS.

HERE ARE OUR PHOTOS FROM 2008 AND

HERE ARE OUR FAMILY PHOTOS FROM 2009

Friends and Family,
Look for our Christmas cards to be coming in the next month. If you have moved or I don't have your address, make sure you email me your address.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

And that is a wrap

Only 2 more weeks of my photography class! Wow how time flies. I had gotten far behind (which isn't good), and thought I was giving up. But why would I give up when I am that close to the end I can count the days? I have been working on completeing all my past assignments and getting them turned in.

Here are some of my photos I shot, edited, and completed. I still have more to complete, but I now feel it is possible to take good pictures and am excited again. (picture taken at Gettysburg, PA at sunset. You can even see the pickets and the peach tree where thousands of our men fell. I am thankful for another day of life)

(Converting a picture from color to Sepia. Mattie is clutching onto Treys hand on the dock)

(Hands. Cutting out a pinewood derby car)

(converting to a Black and White photograph. This one is my favorite and my inspiration comes from Cash for Clunkers)

(Mysterious.)