Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Happy Easter!
Well, as always, life got in the way of all my plans last week. But despite me being sick we still got to do a lot of Easter activities. We had our Jerusalem dinner with lentil soup, dried figs, flat bread and olives (thank you Winco bulk foods section!), had a couple movie nights with Veggie Tales' Twas the Night Before Easter (I know, we're so cool... ps- that movie didn't actually have much about the real Easter story in it. Just for reference) and To This End Was I Born, we had a competition to see who could make the coolest oil lamp and ended the week with Easter dinner with Doug's family. It was a great week! I love having the opportunity to remember the life of our Savior- His sacrifice can truly bring joy to every life.
Photo Class: Fast
ISO 500, 1/1600, f/1.8 Cats + Water + a fast shutter speed was really fun. In fact, I'm not sure I'm quite done with this one. I'm determined to get one with his tongue catching a drop of water. Unfortunately my cats weren't quite as thirsty as normal, so I just didn't have many chances. (and yes, we do let our cats drink out of the bathroom sink. I figure much grosser things have seen that faucet)
Photography Catch Up: Near and Far
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Holy Week: Monday and Tuesday
Well, I was too sick to get out of bed on Monday and was doing only slightly better today... so our Easter celebrations were quite limited. But here are my thoughts anyway.
Monday: Depending on which book your reading, Christ's cleansing of the temple occurred either on Sunday or Monday. Maybe this is corny, but I thought on Monday we could have a nice big spring cleaning day. You know you're officially an adult when that starts to sound fun... But wouldn't it just feel great all week to spend time together in a recently deep cleaned room? I think so. And maybe next year I'll even get out of bed to do it....
Tuesday: Tuesday and Wednesday are full of great parables that Christ taught in His last days: the wicked husbandmen, the marriage of the King's son, the widow's mite (not a parable, but it fits in with the rest), the Ten Virgins, Talents. It's interesting to see what He taught knowing that He would soon be leaving his disciples. Again, no big celebration today. But we did read through some of the parables. Next year I'll feel up to more... hopefully...
Monday: Depending on which book your reading, Christ's cleansing of the temple occurred either on Sunday or Monday. Maybe this is corny, but I thought on Monday we could have a nice big spring cleaning day. You know you're officially an adult when that starts to sound fun... But wouldn't it just feel great all week to spend time together in a recently deep cleaned room? I think so. And maybe next year I'll even get out of bed to do it....
Tuesday: Tuesday and Wednesday are full of great parables that Christ taught in His last days: the wicked husbandmen, the marriage of the King's son, the widow's mite (not a parable, but it fits in with the rest), the Ten Virgins, Talents. It's interesting to see what He taught knowing that He would soon be leaving his disciples. Again, no big celebration today. But we did read through some of the parables. Next year I'll feel up to more... hopefully...
Monday, April 18, 2011
Holy Week: Palm Sunday
The Sunday before Christ was crucified is one of his glorious stories. He had recently rose Lazarus from the dead and as the news spread the people began to see him as the King he truly was. As He entered Jerusalem on a donkey (fulfilling the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9) the people waved branches and spread clothes along his path. John mentions that one of the branches they wave are palm branches- an emblem of Judea that appeared on their coins. The palms branches were also necessary for survival- cutting them down would cause a loss of food and livelihood. So by waving these branches the people were offering to sacrifice their own comforts to give their Kind a royal luxury. What a beautiful way to welcome Christ into their city and lives!I've been trying to find a way to celebrate the happenings of each day of Christ's last week. For Palm Sunday we had a little FHE on the story and symbolisms and then hung 'palm' leaves to remind us to welcome Christ into our home. I also pulled out our Nativity puppets and made us a little Palm Sunday set up (we'll have to borrow someone's kids sometime so we can act the story out- it's just not the same with two adults...)
Have you ever celebrated Palm Sunday or Easter Week? What did you do? I'd love some good ideas!
(if you want more info on celebrating Easter Week, check out these books- I love them both- God So Loved The World by Eric Huntsman
(this one is full of scriptural info and photos of the holy land- great for adult scripture study) and A Christ-Centered Easter by Janet and Joe Hales
(this one has a day by day layout of short stories and activities for all of Easter week. It's mainly for kids, but I guess I'm a kid at heart because I like doing most the stuff too))Sunday, April 17, 2011
Discoving Easter
So, I'm on a quest to change the world.
Or at least to share my opinions with the few people who will actually read all the way through this post.
It makes me sad that religious holidays have developed themselves into meaningless celebrations of nothing. And it makes me double sad that when I do try to cram religion into a holiday it always ends up being the boring part. (I mean, I do love the story of Christ's resurrection but hastily reading aloud chapters from the Bible before bedtime on Easter Day has never been super inspiring or, honestly, very enjoyable to me. Especially compared with eating basket-fulls of candy.) Now, I'd like to mention that I'm no against Easter egg hunts or chocolate bunnies or anything like that. I just want to get the religious side of Easter to a place where it can compete with those things both in importance and in the amount of fun we have.
I've made the goal to find new Easter traditions that allow us to enjoy the religious side of Easter and I thought I'd share them here so that (a) I'll be commited to keep it up all week, (b) I can hear if any of you have good celebration ideas and (c) maybe, just maybe, someone out there will read these posts and think- Hey, celebrating the real meaning of Easter wouldn't be so boring after all!
So I hope you'll excuse me for the next week while I stand on my Easter soap box.
Here it goes...
Or at least to share my opinions with the few people who will actually read all the way through this post.
It makes me sad that religious holidays have developed themselves into meaningless celebrations of nothing. And it makes me double sad that when I do try to cram religion into a holiday it always ends up being the boring part. (I mean, I do love the story of Christ's resurrection but hastily reading aloud chapters from the Bible before bedtime on Easter Day has never been super inspiring or, honestly, very enjoyable to me. Especially compared with eating basket-fulls of candy.) Now, I'd like to mention that I'm no against Easter egg hunts or chocolate bunnies or anything like that. I just want to get the religious side of Easter to a place where it can compete with those things both in importance and in the amount of fun we have.
I've made the goal to find new Easter traditions that allow us to enjoy the religious side of Easter and I thought I'd share them here so that (a) I'll be commited to keep it up all week, (b) I can hear if any of you have good celebration ideas and (c) maybe, just maybe, someone out there will read these posts and think- Hey, celebrating the real meaning of Easter wouldn't be so boring after all!
So I hope you'll excuse me for the next week while I stand on my Easter soap box.
Here it goes...
Opposites Class Day 6: Loud
Jessica's Entry
ISO 200, 1/100, f/3.2
ISO 200, 1/200, f/2.5
Whenever I look at a photographer's photos I'm always in love with the ones that have bright, clear colors. I want to know how they do it! So I went searching for 'loud' colors to shoot and then looked up a couple Photoshop tutorials. For these I put the photo in 'lab' mode and then played with the curves. Does anyone know a better way or a good place with tutorials?
Doug's Entry
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ISO 200, 1/5, F/5
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Opposites Class Day 5: Quiet (Doug's Entry)
Candle and Glass
ISO 200, 3, F/10
I thought that a single candle would exemplify "quiet" for today's photo entry. I added a bunch of glasses to get some good reflections. I had a lot of fun playing with long exposures.
Please note that the above image is fully compliant with The Rule of Thirds, it subsidiaries, and so forth...
Opposites Class Day 5: Quiet
Jessica's Entry
ISO 500, 1/100, f/5I've had so much quiet time lately that it's not really a positive thing, so rather than photograph something 'quiet' I focused on something that helps me deal with all the quiet. Recently that's been quilting, specifically hand applique. This specific quilt is the one I'm designing for the LDS International Art competition- I designed it in Illustrator (good thing I got that BFA, huh? What would I do if I couldn't design my own quilts in a professional design program!?) and am now hand sewing the entire thing. I know. Way, way too much quiet time! You'll get to see a picture of the whole thing until I'm done.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Opposites Class Day 4: Out
Jessica's Entry
ISO 200, 1/800, f/2.8
I love these flowers- they come up with our crocuses and they just scream spring to me every year. Today's focus was on taking a photo outside when the sun is high (of course the sun was high on a cloudy day when I took this so... it wasn't quite the learning experience it should have been).
Doug's Entry
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I can't actually decide if I like this picture or not. But it definitely turned out way different than I thought it would. So yeah...here it is.
ISO 200, 1/600, f/1.8
Opposites Class Day 3: In
Jessica's Entry
ISO 400, 1/60, f/1.8
ISO 400, 1/60, f/1.8Today's photo comes with a recipe because these are just about the best chocolate chip cookies ever- as long as you're a chewy cookie kind of person. (as opposed to crispy, thin, or cake-like textures. All of which I like, but nothing beats a good old chewy cookie in my mind) I got the recipe from my Mission President's wife, thus the name-
Hermana Record's Chocolate Chip Cookies
½ c butter
¼ c + 2 T white sugar
¼ c + 2 T brown sugar
1 egg
¼ t vanilla
1 c + ¼ c flour
¼ c oatmeal
¼ c coconut
½ t baking soda
¾ c chocolate chips
Nuts if desired
Mix first 5 ingredients until just mixed. Add remaining ingredients. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 mins.
*These are REALLY good if you substitute chocolate chips for white chips and add crasins and almonds!
Doug's Entry
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I didn't really have time to do an entry for "In" so I am just posting some of the pictures I took inside a few months ago. I took these pictures as the setting sun was shining in our windows. I really like how they turned out.
Doug's Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Recipe
2 slices bread
Peanut Butter
Jelly
Spread peanut butter on left slice of bread. Spread jelly on right slice of bread. Combine slices with peanut butter and jelly towards the center.
Opposites Class Day 2: New
Jessica's Entry
ISO 500, 1/40, F/2.5
ISO 500, 1/40, F/2.5Today's theme is new and these are the NEW bins I made for our bookcase. I lOVE them! I can keep all of my fabric and yarn right out in our dining room for all the world to see. I love finding good storage solutions for small places.
Doug's Entry
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ISO 200, 1/100, F/1.8
Following the opposites theme, for my "New" entry I took this picture of Jessica's new teapot. -Doug
Opposites Class Day 1: Old
Jessica's Entry
ISO 800, 1/26 f, f/6.3
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Doug's Entry
ISO 200, 1/320, F/1.8
My idea for the topic of old was to take a picture of Jessica's OLD copper tea pot. Immediately after getting all setup, our cat Georgie came and sat down right in the middle of things. I found her rather photogenic and ended up just taking pictures of her.
Photo Class
Doug and I got a new camera last year and have had so much fun learning how to use it! Our friend recently told us about this free online photography class during the month of April and we've decided to try it out. So get ready for a bunch of photos this month!(we have to post our assignments on our blog)
(ps- if you're interested in the class you can still sign up- just go to http://bethvphotography.blogspot.com/2011/04/opposites-photo-class.html)
For those of you who know what you're doing when it comes to manual mode on cameras- don't judge my settings too hard! I'm learning!
(ps- if you're interested in the class you can still sign up- just go to http://bethvphotography.blogspot.com/2011/04/opposites-photo-class.html)
For those of you who know what you're doing when it comes to manual mode on cameras- don't judge my settings too hard! I'm learning!
Friday, April 1, 2011
To Appreciate Their Efforts
Tomorrow is the beginning of another General Conference weekend. (if you're not sure what that is, click here for more info) I'm so excited this year to listen for a new little insight that I've discovered the past six months.
Every day to keep up my Spanish I read a little bit of the Spanish Liahona- a magazine published by the LDS church. The Liahona includes articles for children, teens and adults. Just like in any language, the children's articles are written in simple words that can be easily read and understood by someone who has only been reading a few years. For me, the kids' articles are a breeze- I often sit down and read a couple stories before I even realize I'm reading Spanish. The articles for teens take slightly more thought, and the articles for adults require my 100% concentration and often the help of a Spanish/English dictionary.
This might sound slightly surprising to you if you've never learned a second language. I know before I joined the bilingual ranks myself, I always assumed that once you were 'fluent' in a language you were just as good at it as you are your first language. I was surprised when my Spanish teacher in the missionary training center admitted one day that he actually hadn't ever learned the Spanish word for door nob. 'How is that possible?' I thought, 'You're fluent.' Boy did I have a LOT of lessons in store for me.
I soon realized that I would never be finished looking up words in the Spanish language. After all, I still have to do that in English! As I became more and more comfortable speaking Spanish I learned that the key to speaking a second language well wasn't necessary knowing every word, but being able to take a thought and figure out how to express it in the limited vocabulary you already had. It's like playing a never ending game of Taboo.
Keeping this in mind, you'll understand my delight when, every time I finish reading an article written by Dieter F Uchtdorf I look up and think to myself- oh yeah, I was just reading Spanish! It's the same response I get when I read the kids' articles.
President Uchtdorf's first language is German but he gives his talks in English, a second language he speaks very well. So well that I'd never imagined his vocabulary to be limited in any way. However, as I read his addresses in Spanish I realized he's playing that second language Taboo game right along with the rest of us. Every single word he uses in his talks is a word I know in Spanish- which says a lot since I have the Spanish reading comprehension of a young kid. Yet with that simple language he shares deep and interesting thoughts that enlighten the minds of the most educated adult. It's a beautiful result that could only be done by someone who had to learn English the hard way.
So this weekend I especially look forward to listening to the addresses given by President Uchtdorf and those speakers who have been working not only to compose a talk for millions to hear, but to translate it into a language that is not their own. Their extra effort and discomfort (I can not imagine speaking to so many people in a second language!) allows us to have intricate truths explained plain and clear. I am so excited to listen and appreciate their efforts a little more this time around.
Every day to keep up my Spanish I read a little bit of the Spanish Liahona- a magazine published by the LDS church. The Liahona includes articles for children, teens and adults. Just like in any language, the children's articles are written in simple words that can be easily read and understood by someone who has only been reading a few years. For me, the kids' articles are a breeze- I often sit down and read a couple stories before I even realize I'm reading Spanish. The articles for teens take slightly more thought, and the articles for adults require my 100% concentration and often the help of a Spanish/English dictionary.
This might sound slightly surprising to you if you've never learned a second language. I know before I joined the bilingual ranks myself, I always assumed that once you were 'fluent' in a language you were just as good at it as you are your first language. I was surprised when my Spanish teacher in the missionary training center admitted one day that he actually hadn't ever learned the Spanish word for door nob. 'How is that possible?' I thought, 'You're fluent.' Boy did I have a LOT of lessons in store for me.
I soon realized that I would never be finished looking up words in the Spanish language. After all, I still have to do that in English! As I became more and more comfortable speaking Spanish I learned that the key to speaking a second language well wasn't necessary knowing every word, but being able to take a thought and figure out how to express it in the limited vocabulary you already had. It's like playing a never ending game of Taboo.
Keeping this in mind, you'll understand my delight when, every time I finish reading an article written by Dieter F Uchtdorf I look up and think to myself- oh yeah, I was just reading Spanish! It's the same response I get when I read the kids' articles.
President Uchtdorf's first language is German but he gives his talks in English, a second language he speaks very well. So well that I'd never imagined his vocabulary to be limited in any way. However, as I read his addresses in Spanish I realized he's playing that second language Taboo game right along with the rest of us. Every single word he uses in his talks is a word I know in Spanish- which says a lot since I have the Spanish reading comprehension of a young kid. Yet with that simple language he shares deep and interesting thoughts that enlighten the minds of the most educated adult. It's a beautiful result that could only be done by someone who had to learn English the hard way.
So this weekend I especially look forward to listening to the addresses given by President Uchtdorf and those speakers who have been working not only to compose a talk for millions to hear, but to translate it into a language that is not their own. Their extra effort and discomfort (I can not imagine speaking to so many people in a second language!) allows us to have intricate truths explained plain and clear. I am so excited to listen and appreciate their efforts a little more this time around.
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