iPad Case Design Contest

I entered the iPad case design contest at Zazzle

Feathered Frenzy iPad Speck Case by lynnsphotos
Browse other cases for the iphone



I'd appreciate any votes.  The contest is on facebook and runs through December 19 and you can vote once per day!  Click the following link to go directly to my design for voting.  Thanks!!
http://apps.facebook.com/designandvote/item.php?id=158

It all started.....

In a small town in Massachusetts

Where I was born 41 years ago.

Now I'm living in Wisconsin, wearing purple snuggies!

And eating chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting.

Made with love by my hubby!

Quick Update

Well, I had my surgery this past Friday.  All went well and I was at home and in bed by about 3:30pm.

They removed the cyst and he is 99% sure there is nothing to be concerned about.  But they do send it in for testing just to be sure it's not cancerous.  He tried to just remove it and leave the ovary but once he detached it, he could not stop the bleeding so he just took the entire ovary along with it.  Which is perfectly fine.  I knew that was an option.  I have a spare that will take over for the missing one.  We aren't planning on any more kids so that wasn't an issue either. 

For the most part I'm back to normal, though there is still some soreness periodically and still a bit tired and need to randomly nap.  The pain medication has a tendency to slow things down in the bowel department so I had to get some Milk of Magnesia to help things along. 

Three words!   Dis...gust...ing!! 
That is the absolute worst tasting thing I have ever tasted!  Leave it to hubby to get a non-flavored version. (Though otherwise he has been awesome taking care of me!)  My mom said the stuff she got in the hospital at least tasted minty.

BTW, her surgery went well also.  Once he got in, it was not nearly as bad as expected and he is pretty confident he was able to clean it all out pretty well.  She has been home, resting.  She goes back at the end of the month for follow up and to figure out when chemo starts. 

Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers sent.  They were much appreciated!  I hope all my blog/Internet friends are doing well as I haven't been around as much keeping up with you all.

Happy Halloween!

My daughter Skowt and her friends are part of a group at school called "Students 4 Service".  They do service projects, volunteer their time and fund raise for different causes.

Each year the teacher has them Trick or Treat for change and they donate all the money they collect to the local food pantry.  Skowt and three friends went out last night in our neighborhood.  I'm proud to say that in just 2 short hours they collected almost $200!!  They got some candy too...Bonus!

At one of the houses a guy threw in 3 bills.  Well, as the girls walked away they realized one of them was a 100 bill and not a single like the other two.  They quickly discussed it among themselves and went right back to the house and asked the guy if he meant to put that in there.  He of course did not, he thought it was a 3rd single and thanked them for returning it.  He said he would have given them about $20 to start but saw that he only had a couple small bills.  So proud to hear that they were all honest and returned the money.  Guess, I'm doing something right!

Was a little disappointed to hear how rude some people were to them though!!  One woman, as soon as she saw them at the door said "I wasn't planning on giving any candy to teenagers!" 
What has she got against them?  Would she rather they were out causing trouble??  Once they explained what they were doing she did change her idea of them and gave them some money.  sheesh.
Another guy yelled to his wife from the background not to give them money cuz they were probably just gonna keep it for themselves and buy booze.  Excuse me??  Of course when I asked my daughter what house he was at she "forgot". 

Here are my kids dressed up last night for Trick or Treating....

She was going for Lady GaGa but we had to work with what we had! 

The Mad Hatter

Happy Halloween!!

Why I've Been MIA

It seems like I go in spurts on this blog.  I post quite a bit for a time then go a long time with nothing or very little.  Usually it's because of blogger's block, having nothing I feel worthy of blogging about.  But sometimes it's because I just don't feel like blogging.  Like has been happening lately.  We've been having some issues going on in our family that have made me emotional and I don't feel like blogging, much less anything else.  So as I've said once before what's a blog about my life without sharing the bad along with the good?  So I thought it was time to share what's been going on so I can get on with it, move past it and have fun blogging again because I did have some other blogging ideas.  I'll try to keep it brief.

First, remember back in April when I talked about our vacation curse and my mom getting sick in TN?  Well, once she got back they gave her more antibiotics and drained the cyst or whatever it is and thought she was good.  Her doctor wanted to follow up in 3 months with another CT scan just to be sure and we thought all was right in her world.  Well, after only 2 months it started acting up again, turns out it started getting bigger again.  They opted for surgery to remove it, once he got in there he realized it was cancerous.  Obviously not what anyone expected.  Since he's not an oncologist he just took some samples and closed her up.  He got a gynecological oncologist (it's located in the area where her uterus and ovaries used to be) involved and she is now scheduled for another surgery on Wednesday, which will later be followed up by chemo and radiation. 

In the mean time I went for my annual mammogram on the 14th and they saw something yet again.  It's the same spot as always that was determined just to be some cysts/fatty tissue but the radiologist claims it's gotten bigger and recommended an MRI.  Well, before doing that I decided to call my gyno, see what he said and possibly go back to the specialist I've seen in the past before scheduling a super expensive procedure I may not need.  So I see him on November 4th.  Praying that it's nothing again.

And if that is not enough........while talking to my gyno I decided to let him know about the super heavy periods I've been having the past few months.  The I have to go home and change my clothes kind of super heavy.  He had me come in for an ultrasound.  They found 2 uterine fibroids.  Now in and of themselves they are not big deal.  They are very common, not cancerous but just make you bleed.  Alot.  But while doing the ultrasound they also take a look at the ovaries.  Turns out I have a Dermoid Cyst on my right one.  That has to be removed.  So I go in for surgery on Nov 12th.  That's what I'm concerned about.  There is a possibility that could be cancerous.  Again, I'm praying it's not.  While they are at it they will also be doing a uterine ablation to take care of the fibroids and hopefully control the menstrual bleeding if not stop it all together.  I could live with that!!

Anyway, don't look at this as a "oh poor me" post. I'm not going to turn my blog into a pity party.  I just wanted to give you an update into what's been going on with me.  I would appreciate a prayer or two and some good thoughts that my mom and I get through it all OK. 

Reading Rick's book

For the past couple of days I've been trying to read this....

Rick Springfield's autobiography, which was released on Tuesday.  I'm only about half way through it but my mind has been racing and I have some mixed feelings about it and just wanted to get some of them out.

I can tell you right now this post will probably be quite lengthy so if you don't have much interest in Rick, his life, his book or my thoughts on it you may want to skip this post.

Consider yourself warned ;)

For those who do want to read on I've tried to keep it pretty general and spoiler free in case you have not read the book.  The few things I mention specifically are already out there and have been discussed in the press etc.

So, even before I started reading I was having some mixed feelings about it.  I was excited to get it and read all about my idol.  But I was also a bit apprehensive because of the comments he'd made about even "die hard" fans being shocked by some of the content.  Did I really want to read it?  Would there be things in it that I didn't want to know?  Would it change my view of the man I've "loved" since I was twelve?  I'm trying hard not to let it!

On the one had I feel sad for him because of some of the things he's gone through.  All the rejection, loss, death, sadness and depression.  All the feelings of self doubt, self hatred, and lack of self worth.  All the moving around, always being the new kid and not feeling as if you belong anywhere.  Because I get that.  I've had many if not all of the same feelings myself.  Maybe not to the extent that he has but they've been there and many times still are.  I only moved once when I was a kid but it SUCKED.  Big time.  So I can only imagine what it was like doing it as often as he did.

But on the other hand, he's done some not so good things.  Things I normally don't condone and look down upon.  Things I would never have done myself.  But what am I supposed to think of all that?  I mean should that change the way I feel about his work?  The songs that mean so much to me and kept me going as a teen?  Many of which were inspired by these very things?  Things that happened in the past, many before I was born or even knew who the hell Rick Springfield was?  Can I keep the artist and the man behind it separate?

I dont' know.

I mean, there are so many other bands and singers out there with songs I like.  I don't know much if anything about their past, their personal lives.  They could have done some of the same things yet I still love the songs.  How about people I know in real life?  I'm sure many if not all of them have done some not so spectacular things in their past that I would frown upon but we are still friends.  Still family. 

So just because I chose to read about Rick am I supposed to give that all up because I disagree with some of his choices?  How can I?  His music is part of me and who I am today.  It got me through some rough times and I'm thankful for that.  It means the world to me.

Along those same lines, my husband did some pretty bad things before I met him.  Some maybe worse than what Rick has done.  Some he may never even tell me.  I know he's told me a lot but I still get the feeling there are things he's too ashamed to tell me.  But I was able to get past those things and fall in love with him.  He became my best friend and we've been married for almost 20 years and our marriage is stronger than ever.  So if I can get past what my husband has done, the closest person in my life, shouldn't I be able to do the same when it comes to Rick? 

I don't know.

Then on the issue of infidelity.....I haven't gotten to that part in the book yet but I obviously know it's coming.  I'm trying to decide just how I feel about that.  At first I thought well, that's between him and his wife.  If they are able to work it out and she is able to forgive him for it and stick with him then more power to them.

But then I started thinking about my own feelings on it.  If it happened to me I don't think I could get past it.  To me that intimacy is a very private, personal, meaningful thing and if my husband did that with another woman I would be crushed. 

I have pretty much disowned my father for the same thing.  I haven't seen or spoken to him in over 12 years because he wanted me to accept his new wife.  The woman that had a part in breaking up my parent's marriage.  So how do I disown my own father for it but overlook Rick doing it?  Because it's not personal?  Because there were other circumstances (alcohol) in my parents breakup besides just infidelity that are also part of the reason I haven't had contact with him?  Because it really has nothing to do with me and being a fan of his work? 

Again, I don't know.

The weird thing is, despite the fact I'm having all these conflicting feelings and wondering "am I still a fan, do I still like him, should I be thinking differently of him?", I'm still feeling "protective" of him.  He's had a lot of press lately and when I see an article or a comment on an article that is not so flattering or rude, that's shooting him down for some of these things or as many are, not quite accurate in the details.........seriously if you're going to criticize someone get the facts straight!.....I feel the urge to defend him. 
I'm also upset that I didn't get to go to the book signing at the Mall of America this past weekend like I'd hoped or that I am unable to make the two in Illinois this coming week. 

Does anything in the book change the fact that he and his music has meant so much to me over the years?  Does it make me a bad person if I still want to be a fan? 


Like I said I'm only half done with the book.  Maybe things change.  Maybe my thoughts will change.  We'll see. 

I guess now though after typing this all out I'm starting to realize we all have our own demons, faults and shortcomings.  Who am I to judge what he has done?  Or my dad for that matter? 

Now what do I do?   

Guilty and confused,

My movie watching challenge

Who is your favorite actor/actress?

Have you seen all their movies?  I mean every single one?  The crap ones they made before they were famous? 

How many people say oh, I love so and so.  I've seen all their movies.  But when you take the time to look you really haven't.

Anyway, where am I going with this? 

Well over the years there's been many actors/actresses that I've decided I liked and realized I've only seen a small portion of the work they've done.  So I thought it would be fun to pick one out and work through their list of movies.

I had run it past my mom and she thought it was a cool idea so we decided to do it together. 

Our first pick?  Sandra Bullock

Speed was on the other night and that's when I brought it up to her so who better to start with then, right? 

Keanu Reeves will have to be next ;)

Would you believe in a list of over 40 movies and some TV appearances there are only 3 that we have both seen? 

So we started with "Two Weeks Notice" since it happened to already be on my netflix cue.  One down 40 to go!  This could take a while!

Who would you start with?

Introducing...........Wesley the Hamster

Well, she did it.  She wore us down and we finally gave in to getting a pet.  We talked her down from a dog though.  I just cannot see hubby and I with a dog!

So a hamster it is.  We kind of surprised her.  She was talking about it for quite some time and kept asking me about it.  Well, I told her we had to discuss it with Daddy.  He works second shift so they don't see him that often but she would never bring it up to him.  I think she was afraid he'd say no without giving her a chance. 

So in the mean time while she was waiting for the day he was off and was going to bring it up I talked to him and we decided to go ahead with it.  We checked out some cages and ended up ordering one online because it was much cheaper.

She was so impatient waiting for that thing to get here!  Once it did she did a little happy dance and was ready to dig right in. 

But me being the all time worst at putting those types of things together and of course the mean mom that I am made her wait 2 whole days until Daddy was able to help her. 

They got it all put together Saturday night, then came the wait for actually getting the hamster.  We originally had told her we were going to get it through the humane society.  Well there really isn't much of a selection and considering the fact they only live 2-3.5 years or so getting an adult one means he's already got one foot in the grave!  lol

We went yesterday with the intent of just getting some bedding and stuff but ended up deciding to just get one while at Petco.  We narrowly missed purchasing a pregnant one that we thought was a male!!  While waiting for the guy to come back to help, she had chosen one because of the size and because we thought it was the only male.  She was checking him out and all of a sudden says "Ewww!  What's that he's eating?  It's all pink and gross!"

My immediate thought was not a baby hamster!  She said it looked like it had little arms.  So hubby got down to look and said that yeah it looked like a little baby.  The guy comes back asks if we had any questions and I said "Yeah, if this ones a male what's with the little baby it looks like it's eating?"  He was a little shocked, said he just cleaned out that cage and there were no babies.  He checked it out.  Yup, sure enough.  Female.  Just cleaning the baby, not eating!  Whew.  They had the tags mixed up.  So we chose another.  And he double checked the sex.  Hope he was right!

I wanted to get a pic of her holding him but of course he was a little skittish so we just let him be to get used to his new home.  BTW, if you've seen "The Princess Bride" you'll know where the name came from.  Though she didn't want to spell it the same.......the movie character is actually Westley, with a T.



Color me Purple!

I've been wanting to do this for a while now.

Finally had it done today when I went to have my hair cut......

Set up the appointment the last time I had it cut.  Kept it quiet from hubby that whole time!  Stopped by his work after I got out and he was a bit surprised but happy I had the guts to do something different.

I still have curl left in my hair but she dried it straight so you could really see the color.  There are streaks throughout but the right front area in the photo is the spot that stands out the most.

Now to get up the courage to get that tattoo I've been wanting.....

Brewer game

Saturday night we went to a Milwaukee Brewers game.  We haven't gone in years.  Mostly because we aren't sports fans.  And don't get me started on the cost of everything either!  EIGHTEEN friggin dollars for parking! 

Skowt's high school band was playing for the pre-game so we decided to head out also.

No home runs were hit so we didn't get to see Bernie go down the slide!

Like I said, not something we normally do but it was fun to go as a family, do something different and watch my daughter out on the field. 

We did get to see the woman who babysat my kids for about 6 years or Nana as they called her.  We knew she had worked at the ball park after she stopped sitting for us but didn't know if she was still there.  Well, we bumped into her on our way out (we left a tad early) so that was nice.  Tiger didn't remember her, she was too young and Skowt didn't get a chance to see her as she had to stay with the band for the entire game.

Wish me luck....

As you may or may not know, I quit my part time job back at the beginning of June.  I was not happy there and frustrated and decided I wanted time at home with the kids over the summer because really they're not gonna be around all that much longer.  And also because I wanted to focus more on my photography.

Well, I accomplished the spending time with the kids part.  The photography....not so much.  Just check out my photo blog.  I haven't posted there in over a month.

But recently I came across Zazzle again.  It's on online marketplace where people can set up their own storefront and create customizable products with their own designs or photos.  I had visited there in the past and considered setting up an online store but just never did.  But this time I decided it was time to go for it.  This is why I decided to leave my job, right? 

I've considered doing portraits (I think high school seniors would be fun) and people have asked me about that.  And while I may dabble in it here and there and do stuff for family and friends I don't think that is where I'm at right now.  I love taking photos of my family and people in general.  But put me in the "official" portrait situation and I get very nervous and uncomfortable.  I have a hard time in social situations as it is, just talking to people and feeling comfortable.  So having to make people feel comfortable in front of the camera and getting them to relax so their photos look natural is a hard thing for me. 

So while I will try to continue to work on that, for now I've decided to focus on other subjects and build an online store.  You can check out my store specifically by visiting the link below.  There are only a couple things in there right now and I still want to play around with the look of the store and store description, but let me know what you think.  I'd appreciate it. 

Fishing Bouy Mousepad by lynnsphotos
View a different mousemat on zazzle

I still have my gallery at SmugMug and will continue to add photos there as well.  So hopefully between the two I can get something going.

Also, if there's anyone out there willing to let me put a link to my store on their site let me know.  I'd be willing to do the same for you! 

Do they listen?

Not always.  Especially when I tell them to clean up their rooms or put away their clothes.  Just like every kid.  But there are some things you say that you really hope they are paying attention to and will hang out in their brains until needed at a later date!

I've got two kids.  I'm always wondering if I'm raising them right, being a good mom, doing the right thing, setting a good example.  Will they turn out to be decent, loving, strong women?  Will they make the right decisions?

Back in April of this year when we took our trip to Tennessee we stopped at a grocery store one night to pick up a few things.  My mom and Tiger went in while Skowt, hubby and I waited in the car.  It was a nice night so we had the windows open. 

While waiting a fairly young couple came out of the store and walked to a car a few spaces over from ours.  When they got near it all you could hear was the guy yelling and screaming at the girl.  Swearing, calling her names, telling her how stupid she was etc.  I don't even remember all he said.  I just remember it was awful.  He got in the drivers side and she was on the passenger side and paused for a moment.  You could tell she was crying.  I remember thinking "Don't do it.  Don't get in that car."  

She did and he sped off.  Without thinking I turned to my daughter and said "If you are ever with a guy and he talks to you like that don't get in the car.  Go back inside, call me and I will come get you"  She just looked at me and said OK.  She seemed kind of stunned.  I think it was a combination of what she heard from him and from what I told her.  But that was the end of it.  I never went any further or brought it up again.  

I don't know if it had any impact on her or not.  I pray that she never finds herself in a similar situation.  I just hope that it sticks with her and she remembers what I said if she should ever find herself being treated so cruelly and that she will have the guts to walk away.

Table Topics Tuesday: Hotties!

Shannon over at the Nuthouse asked us to list our top five hotties. 

Anyone who has ever set foot on this blog probably knows my all-time #1 hottie is Rick Springfield!!

So yeah, he gets two pictures! 

As far as the rest of my top 5?  Well, that could change on any given day!  Here are some of the ones that came to mind today!  In no particular order..........

Drew Fuller

The latest season of Army Wives just finished up so he's currently toward the top.

Scott Bakula

I used to love watching him in Quantum Leap!  I still think he's got it!  Can't wait until the 2nd season of Men of a Certain Age starts.

Taylor Kitsch

Who doesn't love Tim Riggins on Friday Night Lights??  Sad to hear this year will be the last season :(

"Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose"

Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley

The Salvatore Brothers

I can count them as one entry right?  They're brothers and I can't decide which one I like better! 

That was tough.  Because as I started putting together this post I kept thinking of more.  Ask me tomorrow and I may have a totally different answer. 

Wreck this Journal {Update #3}

Yeah, well so much for doing this regularly!  It was only last November that I started this journal project.  That's me, start something new and not keep it up or follow through. 

So I was sitting in the car the last night waiting for Tiger while she had her riding lesson.  I had brought some stuff to do while I waited but was still bored!  I had my Wreck this Journal in the bag and decided it was about time to work on it some more.

I opened it up to this page:

OK, I'll do this one!

So I carefully removed tore out the page.

I folded it up.

And stuck it in my pocket!

I put in through the wash today.  But not without some planning, which of course goes totally against the point of the book!  I first had it in the pocket of my zip up hoodie.  But I thought it may fall out and get torn up to pieces in the washer.  So I ended up putting it in the back pocket of my jeans.  It made it through and was still inside the pocket when I removed them. 

What I didn't account for was the dryer.

That's when it came out of the pocket and ripped into 3 pieces and got all wadded up.  So maybe it wasn't supposed to go in the dryer.

It didn't say to put it in there.  But it didn't say not to.

Whatever.  I flattened it out. 

And taped it back together.

It's now resting peacefully back in it's place in the book.

It shrunk though.

First Day of School 2010

Back to school.  It's always such a bittersweet time.  So happy and proud to see my girls growing up and advancing on to the next grade.

But sad that it means they're a year older and that much closer to leaving the nest :(

Every year I look forward to the alone time it gives me. But every year on that first day I always seem to have that feeling of loneliness and what do I do now?  Hopefully this year that won't last too long.  As usual, I do have a long list of stuff I want to accomplish.....actually getting to it is a different story! 

Do they think I'm made of money?

My kids start school Wednesday so we are officially broke!

Registration fees..........public school is no longer FREE!

Athletic fees so my daughter can participate in tennis and track.

School photos....because even though they suck, I've been getting them all along and have a frame going for each kid so I get the minimum package.

School supplies...........because they "need" all this stuff that they come home with at the end of the year less than half used!  Seriously, my kids have come home with 5 different color notebooks that they had to have with maybe 10 pages used in each.  Really???  This year I tried to recycle a bit more than in the past.  Still had to shell out a decent amount though because they both needed new backpacks and lunch bags. 

Tennis dues.......they collect from each player to pay for the banquet, a place mat they make for each girl, parents night and coach gifts.

A new tennis dress..........is there some reason they can't wear the same style two years in a row??  Ugh!  Never mind the fact that they have to BUY the dress in the first place.  All the other sports have school owned uniforms!

Pep band shirt......again, is it so awful to wear the same shirt from last year?  I guess so!

Band field trip.........yup, school hasn't even started and we've already had to pay for a field trip!

And who knows what else!  I guarantee that both kids will come home the first week with something else they need money for.  I'm already hearing rumors about a $100+ calculator that my daughter is supposed to need for honors Algebra. 

My little equestrienne

Yes, I had to look up the spelling of my post title!!  I didn't realize there was a feminine version of the word equestrian.  Anyhoo....


I think Tiger has finally found her "thing"! 

Riding horses!

She tried different sports, dancing, saxophone and clarinet.  But she never seemed to really get into any of them.  It's taken a while and much frustration from me because she always seemed to want to quit everything she signed up for but I think this is finally it.

All 3 of the people who helped out asked me if she had ever ridden or had a lesson before.  She's been on a horse twice before this and only on one of those trail rides in the Wisconsin Dells.  Where they just stick you on a horse and they just follow each other along a trail.  No formal training.  But they all could not believe how well she was doing for her first lesson.  Looks like she's a natural.

She's been bugging me for lessons for quite some time now but I was always hesitant given her past history and what I thought the lessons would cost.  But the place we found is pretty reasonable and they are flexible with how often she will be taking lessons. 

She hasn't stopped talking about it since her lesson ended at 1pm on Friday.  In fact she is in her bedroom right now teaching her older sister everything she learned!