Happy New Year!

Success!

365 consecutive days...a photo taken and posted each and every day!

(Yesterday was the one exception, but I will count it as good, since the photo was ready to go. It's not like I forgot to post! Sometimes computers can just be troublemakers.)

I hope you've enjoyed kosmatka365 as much as I've enjoyed doing it. I plan to continue the blog, but I will probably not post every day. In fact, I'll probably post tomorrow, since I have a new lens I'd like to take out. Hope you all have a very Happy 2010!

And....we're in!

Every night is game night at the cabin. Here we are playing Quirkle...one of the new Christmas games the boys received. It's bound to be a hit!

**looks like the computer snafu is solved! Thanks to f-i-l Larry!!!

Day 364

Houston. We have a problem.
We are at the cabin. The process for uploading to this blog at the cabin can be a bit complicated, but so far, we've managed to do it.
Until today.
The photos are taken off the camera and loaded onto our laptop. We drive to the in-laws place to wirelessly upload the photo to the blog. But the laptop is not being "recognized" by the computer base station at the in-laws place. Which means, I'm blogging from their computer, without my photo of the day! I can't believe I made it this far without missing a day. We'll try and get this resolved by morning. We can't end the year like this, now, can we?
Wish me luck!

Badger Bowl Game

We considered a quick trip to Orlando for this game. Instead, we're watching from home.

Maybe next year?

On Dasher, On Dancer, On Bessie?

I bought this carved wooden Santa riding a cow the year we moved to Duluth. I think I was missing the state of Wisconsin. Today I used it to practice shots featuring bokeh. Christmas lights are a natural in these kinds of shots. The about dot com definition of bokeh is as follows, "Bokeh simply means fuzzy or out of focus. It is used to refer to the effect of shallow depth of field that creates a pleasing blur of color behind the subject. The type of lens and the depth of field play a large part in determining how out of focus the area is and whether or not it creates a pleasing effect in the image."

Fair Weather Skiing

It reached 28 degrees in Duluth today, so Mason and I hit the slopes. I had been putting off the skiing because of the colder temperatures, and all the holiday prep, but Mason's racing team practices begin tomorrow, so I figured he needed to get out at least once before that. He really needed to get his ski legs back since he just learned how to ski last year. Nothing like waiting until the last minute! After about an hour on the bunny hill, I decided Mason might be better off with an instructor, so that's Waylon with him (above).
Waylon spent an hour and a half with Mason, and said he was doing just great, skis nearly parallel on his turns by the end of the lesson. Yeah! Though he doesn't look happy here, Mason was very happy, and wanted to stay and ski longer. Unfortunately, mom's bad boots prevented her from going out with him for a few more runs. (We will be heading to fix THAT problem this week!)
Until the boots killed me, I had a great time skiing out on my own. The shot above is a self-portrait, taken on one of my solo chairlift rides. Oh, yeah. The blizzard seemed to have a huge effect on the turnout at Spirit Mountain. I never waited more than about 40 seconds for the lift. Unfortunate for Spirit, but great for the skiers!

Pizza for Dinner

*photo taken with Mason's new camera

We headed out to the Thirsty Pagan for a pizza feast tonight. The pizza you see was one of TWO pizzas ordered. We also had an order of pesto lasagna and a pretzel. We had plenty of food remaining for leftovers. Again, a fun time had by all!

Christmas Day

Here's a quick wrap-up of the days events. This was the scene after we all opened presents. Calvin was instructed not to get out of bed until at least 6:30 am. (he's always the early riser on Christmas morning). Unfortunately, he was right on time. The rest of us followed, with Mason being the last out of bed at 7:30.
Calvin methodically went through all of his presents, using each for several minutes before moving on to the next one. This is his new ukulele, which he is already able to play.
This show doesn't completely show Mason's day, but it's my favorite shot of the day. He's wearing his new hat (like the one singer Jason Mraz wears) along with his new shirt. I think his #1 gift was his new camera. Should he start a blog of his own?
Finally, an evening of great conversation, food & drink, with family and friends. Our neighbors came by for our 2nd annual Christmas dinner. This is starting to become a tradition!

For those who are interested in the weather here, it's still snowing. At 10 this morning we had 19 inches on the ground from this storm. I'm sure we've added a few more today. Oh. And the snowblower broke. The end.

Blizzard - Round 1

Paul is working today. It seems there is a steady stream of patients coming in needing his immediate attention (are people not heeding the warnings about going out in this stuff?). He probably won't make it home for dinner. With about 8 inches of snow on the ground and more on the way, I'm glad my dad is in town to clear the driveway and the walk. Paul should be available for round two, set to arrive tonight. I guess we'll have our White Christmas!

Bentleyville

We visited Bentleyville tonight. It's a new attraction to the Downtown area, but it used to be located south of town for years. This picture just can't do it justice. Thousands and thousands of Christmas lights to walk through, along with marshmallow roasting, cookies and hot chocolate, and popcorn....all for free. You can read all about it here.

Chapel Service

Calvin's school holds non-denominational chapel services to mark certain holidays (and sometimes non-holidays too). I took this shot during today's service. Dozens of former students come back to the school at Christmas-time for this event. It's nice to see them so eager to return and visit with old classmates and teachers. I hope my kids will feel the same way about this school when they move on to college.

Teacher Gifts

Tomorrow is Cal's last school day of the year. He'll deliver these to eight teacher mailboxes in the morning!

That's a Wrap

OK. I'm not quite finished wrapping yet. I still have a few more presents to buy. But I put a serious dent in the list, and in my wrapping today. Things are looking up!

Grandma's Sugar Cookies

My mom recently found a sugar cookie recipe handwritten in the margin of one of my Grandma O's old cookbooks. I decided to try it and mixed the dough last night. It was so sticky I was unable to roll it out. I didn't want to add too much more flour (eight cups used in the double batch!) so I let it sit overnight in the fridge hoping that would help. It didn't. I managed about three dozen slightly mangled cut-outs before I gave up and just rolled the dough into balls and pressed them down with my hands and a bumpy glass for texture. They taste OK, but I'm not sure this was my Grandma's go-to sugar cookie recipe. I'll have to ask my dad when he and my mom arrive for Christmas later this week!

Downtown Shopping

*again, taken with my iphone through my dirty car window!

I was surprised there weren't more people out and about this afternoon. I can't be the only person who isn't done shopping yet...am I?

Scroll to the Bottom for Holiday Greetings!

Daily photo later today...

Doing This Helped My Mood

Wearing a Santa hat during the process didn't hurt, either.

This is Life

This is how things are at our house tonight. The boys are fully caffeinated, working on homework. We've rearranged the furniture to accommodate the tree, but still haven't put up the tree. The only sign around here that it's Christmas? There's a wreath on the door.

Some shopping is done, most is not. Christmas cards will become Happy New Year cards (or maybe Valentine's Day cards?).

For some reason, the holiday season crept up on us. We'll make it work, but it's no Norman Rockwell Christmas this year.

View from my Commute

*taken with my iphone

Every morning after dropping Calvin at school, I head down this hill. I wish my windows were a bit more clean so you could see, but this view is spectacular. Lake Superior is out there. This morning the "steam" was swirling above the water all along the shore forming a huge bank of clouds.

This is near the bottom of the hill with Lake Superior straight ahead. Those clouds form a spectacular filter and the sun just seems to come from everywhere when it's like this.

Santa Coke

"Fully leaded" Coca-Cola is my drink of choice year-round. But there's just something about a Santa coke that tastes even better.

Black Coffee Magic Cake

I've made this cake twice in two weeks. It is so good it doesn't require frosting. What's the magic? We're not really sure, but it might be the shape that appears on the top of the cake. When I made this at the cabin, I thought it was just a fluke...but it happened again tonight.

Really, you have to make this cake!

Black Coffee Magic Cake

1 3/4 c. flour

2 cups sugar

3/4 c. cocoa

2 t. baking soda

1 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

2 eggs

1 c. strong brewed black coffee (cooled)

1 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. vegetable oil

1 t. vanilla

Combine top 6 dry ingredients. Add eggs, coffee, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour batter into a greased and floured 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes.

Robotic Puppy

While Calvin spent the day out of town at a Lego League competition, his brother stayed home and put together his own Lego robot. We'd been having trouble with the software for months, but Mason was able to put the whole thing together AND get it to work! He only needed help one time, and that was just to find a piece. Way to go Mason!

Glitter Poinsettias

*taken with my iphone

I walked by these flowers (are they flowers, technically?) in the grocery store tonight, and they reminded me of the poinsettias my friend Laura purchased last week when we were shopping together. She thought they'd set just the right mood for her party. Well, her party is tonight. Maybe she'll let us know how it all turned out! Hope you have a great time!

It's Cold Tonight!

I went to four different locations around town this evening to photograph a group of athletes from Calvin's school. The team members were bell-ringing for the Salvation Army. Two of the groups were outside (1-degree F, -17 C), the other two scored indoor duties. My camera preferred the indoor shoots, but the boys didn't seem to mind being outdoors at all!

Lego League

Calvin's Lego League team has a competition this weekend. I spent the afternoon shooting pictures of the group as they prepared their robots.

It's Here!

The big storm that everyone has been talking about is finally here. I don't think we'll get much accumulation where we are. Forecasters predict between four and six inches by the time we're done. Sorry, kids, I don't think they'll close the schools for that, but we'll know more in the morning!

Take a Flying Leap

I had two of my rugs cleaned today, so it was an opportunity for the boys to play what they called, "the steamroller game". Of course, that led into jumping over one another. This shot captures Calvin jumping over Mason. Nobody was hurt in the making of this blog post.

Office Chair

I've been looking for a new office chair. This isn't it, but since it's the only photo I took today, it's the shot I'll post.

Petrol

It's funny. Whenever we go Christmas shopping, Laura and I always find ourselves in the shoe department at Nordstrom's. Patty the shoe specialist humored me by bringing out every pair of size 39 Dansko's in this new design. Each pair is unique. I told her I loved the color and that it reminded me of gas in a puddle. She looked at the box and said, "It's called Petrol!" Of course it is! I'll take this pair, can I wear them now? (My purple slippers looked a little silly, but I wore my boots too long and it was my only option...when will I learn?)

Carbo Loading

My friend Laura and I have taken a full weekend for Christmas shopping every year for the last seven years. History tells us we will probably be out from 9am - 11pm. Sometimes we don't even stop to eat lunch. We're hoping the gnocchi from Maggiano's will help with the endurance. Not sure what the wine will do for us. Look for a late post tomorrow!

You'll See Him Coming!

We're finally below freezing in Duluth, and until tonight, Calvin didn't have a jacket. He didn't like the one we ordered online, so before turning back to the internet, we made one more sweep of the local shops. There were two I thought he might be interested in...both very plain.

Obviously, I don't know him as well as I thought I did!

Pink Ribbon

The planning for our annual scrapbooking fundraiser is underway. This is one of the "sneak peek" shots I took at the Young Survival Coalition office today. It will reappear on our event blog tomorrow! Double-duty photos...gotta love 'em!

Looking Out My Front Door