Happy 6th Birthday J.T.!

Today is J.T.'s 6th birthday. Where does time go? He took treats to his class today and his class sang to him. When the kids came home today, look what was sitting in Andy's trailer.... yep, it's a John Deere Gator! I wish we would've gotten this for him a year or two ago, because he almost doesn't fit. He loves it though. Within 5 minutes of being home he was already hauling pumpkins around the yard!

Michela's new chair

Look what Michela got! Isn't it cool? I want one!

Weekend away

Andy and I celebrated our 11th anniversary this past weekend by going up to Gold Beach, Oregon and staying at Tu Tu Tun Lodge. What an amazing place!

Here are a couple photos I took from our patio...

We really want to thank all of our wonderful parents for making this weekend happen. Thanks to Chet and Karen for keeping the kids. And to Mom, Dad, Pam and Charlie, thanks so much for the gift certificate to Tu Tu Tun Lodge and for picking up the remaining balance. It was a very relaxing getaway!!

Big news!

Sandi Bertain and I have gone into business together, as S&S Humboldt Weddings, to photograph weddings!! We are very excited about this new business venture. We are working on a website, which should be up and running soon. I have put a link to the website in the sidebar so check it out in a week or so.

We are each going to keep our separate photography businesses also. I am still available for portraits, if you are interested. Thanks again for your support!!

Pumpkin Patch

J.T.'s class went to the Alton Pumpkin Patch on Wednesday. Here's a couple photos I took...

The boys had a great time running around...

The chosen one....

Preventing H1N1

*I received this in an email from Karen (she found it online) and thought I would share it.*

Dr. Vinay Goyal is an MBBS,DRM,DNB (Intensivist and Thyroid specialist) having clinical experience of over 20 years. He has worked in institutions like Hinduja Hospital , Bombay Hospital , Saifee Hospital , Tata Memorial etc. Presently, he is heading our Nuclear Medicine Department and Thyroid clinic at Riddhivinayak Cardiac and Critical Centre, Malad (W).

The following message given by him, I feel makes a lot of sense and is important for all to know. The only portals of entry are the nostrils and mouth/throat. In a global epidemic of this nature, it's almost impossible to avoid coming into contact with H1N1 in spite of all precautions. Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation is.

While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order to prevent proliferation, aggravation of symptoms and development of secondary infections, some very simple steps, not fully highlighted in most official communications, can be practiced (instead of focusing on how to stock N95 or Tamiflu):

1. Frequent hand-washing (well highlighted in all official communications).

2. "Hands-off-the-face" approach. Resist all temptations to touch any part of face (unless you want to eat, bathe or slap).

3. *Gargle twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt). *H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate and show characteristic symptoms. Simple gargling prevents proliferation. In a way, gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu has on an infected one. Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful preventative method.

4. Similar to 3 above, *clean your nostrils at least once every day with warm salt water. *Not everybody may be good at Jala Neti or Sutra Neti (very good Yoga asanas to clean nasal cavities), but *blowing the nose hard once a day and swabbing both nostrils with cotton buds dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing down viral population.*

5. *Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C (Amla and other citrus fruits). *If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that it also has Zinc to boost absorption.

6. *Drink as much of warm liquids (tea, coffee, etc) as you can. *Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction. They wash off proliferating viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or do any harm. Neti pots and sinus rinse kits are available at the drug store and relatively inexpensive….under $15.

This weekend

Happenings so far...

1. Evan's 2nd birthday party;

2. J.T.'s soccer game;

3. Abigail's soccer game;

4. quick photos shoot for Crystal and her sisters;

5. very quick trip to Eureka to pick up my contest entries;

6. Abigail went to a slumber party.

7. J.T. went to Grandma and Grandpa's.

8. Andy and I had a very healthy dinner from Bob's Footlongs.

9. We watched a very strange movie, Surveillance.


For the rest of today...

1. Kids have Sunday school.

2. Andy went to the ranch.

3. I am meeting up with Sandi for some coffee and photography talk.

4. The kids and Andy are going to celebrate Grandma Jane's birthday.

5. I am taking photos at an 80th birthday party in Ferndale.


Whew! Busy weekend...

Another one

of my favorite preschool photos....

Western photo contest

Against my better judgement, I decided to enter another photo contest in the "Cowboys and Indians" magazine.

In the cowboy portrait category...

In the cowboy action category...

In the wildlife category.... not quite wildlife really, but it isn't cows or horses either...

A few more..

favorites from this weekend...

Sneak Peak for new Mr. & Mrs.

Sandi and I had a great time shooting our first wedding together yesterday. I wanted to share a few of my favorites of the day....

The bride is a singer for a local band so she sang to her groom... It was awesome!

What a day! I was gone for 12 hours for this, but it was worth it!!

Family photos

A couple weeks ago, I did some family photos for the Johnsons. We were lucky enough to have the opportunity to use Uncle Tom's yard, which was beautiful! Don't they make a great looking family!

Attitude?

Yesterday I shot some preschool photos and this was by far my favorite.... isn't she adorable?

Walk to School Week

This week was "Walk to School Week." Everyone was encourged to walk in to school, even if you parked on the street and walked in. Here's a couple photos I took on Wednesday...

Engagement shots

My friend Sandi and I are shooting a wedding this weekend. We got together with the bride and groom to discuss some wedding details and take some engagement shots. It was so much fun! They are so relaxed and fun that we got some really cool shots! I am so excited about the wedding! Here are a couple of my favorites...

I think we are going to have a great opportunity for some beautiful shots this weekend because they are fun, and a great looking couple too!

Photo contests

I have entered a couple photo contests lately and am starting to think that maybe they aren't for me. It really isn't the fact that I didn't win, it's more a matter of what is chosen as the winner(s). A lot of the time, it makes me step back and say "huh?"

My primary focus is on children's portraits. A photo contest isn't looking for portraits. They are looking for something different or strange or abstract. I feel like I have a decent photographic eye when it comes to portraits, but for an abstract item, I have a hard time seeing it. Does this make any sense at all?

I am not saying that I won't enter any more photography contests, but I will definitely consider it a while before I make a decision.

3 kids

Last Sunday, I did a session with these three cuties... it was a bit of a challenge, but we got it done. Don't they all have the most beautiful eyes!

Here's one of the out-takes, but I think it's cute!!

Thanks Andra!!

Just wanted to say a quick thank you to photographer Andra Stringer who let me tag along last weekend. I helped her shoot a wedding, and it was a great learning experience!!

Wedding

Last weekend, I helped Andra Stringer shoot a wedding in Scotia at the Scotia Inn. I am not sure if I want to go into wedding photography, but it was a great learning experience. Andra is so awesome and helpful! Here's one shot that I captured...

Photo contest

My photographer friend, Sandi, and I decided to enter a local photo contest that was being sponsored by the Redwood Art Association and the Eureka Photoshop Users Group.

These were my three entries:

The winners were announced yesterday afternoon. Andy and I went to see the gallery on Saturday night. There were some really interesting photos. I didn't win anything, but there was a lot of competition.

I want to congratulate Sandi on her entry, Butterfly Bubbles, in the "Digital" category. She received a first place!!

Summer Vacation

A month or so ago, I sent in an entry to the Times Standard's "How I spent my summer vacation" photo contest. The entries were judged more on content of the photo, not on the quality of the photo. While I didn't win, my photo was published in color in today's edition. It was a photo I took of the kids when we were in Hawaii with the Victorines in July....

The kids were very excited to see themselves in the newspaper!

Shipping days

We shipped out most of our calves on Wednesday and Thursday, 3 truck-loads each day. They go down to Harris Ranch in Coalinga, CA. I took a few photos on Thursday as they were loading the trucks and leaving the ranch...

And away they go...

Whew... and onto the next phase! We've already had a couple calves born... lots more to come!

My mom ROCKS!

My mom has been a lifesaver this week. The stomach flu was in the Albin household for part of this week and my mom was so great about bringing us crackers, gatorade, and other things we needed to survive. And then yesterday while I was at the ranch with Andy, I locked my keys in my truck. She brought an extra set to Ferndale so I could get into my truck. I just want to say that I have the best mom EVER! Thanks mom!!

Really? Seriously?

I received this in an email and just had to share it here. This was in the San Francisco newspaper.

I mean, c'mon?