22 - Sliver of a View From My Kitchen Window.. Part 2

21 - Water

I'm grateful to have clean water at the turn of spout.

20 - I'm Thinking.....I'm Thinking

Just for Fun

19 - Cheap Thrills

A sucker from the bank and letting her get the mail always makes her day.

18 - If I Could See Through Her Eyes

17 - Got Me Through The Day

16 - Stragglers

15 - Such Helpers

This is what I found after my shower. My daughters wanted to help me with the dishes. I found all of the unloaded ones on the counter and a few dirty ones put back in the dishwasher with far too much dish detergent in the door. The real reason that they wanted to help was so they could put the detergent in, that is their favorite part. I must admit I was a little disappointed that they didn't finish the job. Not to worry I will get them trained before long. ;)

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14 - Dedication

13 - Sliver of a View From My Kitchen Window

Wish they were closer.

12 - Young Minds

The holiday peaked her interest and she has been reading about MLK Jr. since.

11 - Extracted

Still unknown is the cause of the gash on her head. By the 6th different story I heard, all different tales of clumsiness, I figured that the wound was taken care of and that is all that mattered. (Back of the head required staples instead of stitches or the would have had to shave her head). This girl is a tough one....clumsy, but tough.

10 - Happy MLK Jr. Day

9 - Game Time

8 - Two years gone

How would you feel if two years of your life's memories were irretrievable, lost, stolen, just plan gone? Those who know me know that my mental memories let me down....fade away. So I feel sad.

Curse me for not talking the same measures of precaution for my family's memories as I do for my photography work. I hang my head in shame.

7 - Early Years

6 - My Happy Day

She is my happy day. My company when all the house is gone. Helper in my shopping decisions. Eater of my treats. Laughter in my morning, snuggle in my night. She is my smile on my face.

5 - Pizza! Pizza!

I love me some pizza and another way to enjoy it is in the form of soup. This is the first time I made it and it is delicious (thank you Jillian). Those who care to, enjoy the recipe and be sure to let me know how you like it.

1 (28 oz.) diced tomatoes with roasted garlic, not drained

1 (14.5 oz.) reduced sodium beef broth

8 oz. stick pepperoni sausage diced **If you want to use the pre-cut kind, just buy the smallest package and add the whole thing, sliding the pepperoni in halves.

1 1/2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms

1 large green bell pepper, diced

1 large red onion, chopped

1 cup of water

1 Package Italian Salad Dressing Mix

1 cup of shredded par-skim mozzarella cheese

Mix all ingredients except cheese in a 3-qt. or larger crock pot. Cover, cook on low heat for 6-8 hours, or until veggies are tender. I did this without the crock pot and cut the time way down. Just sauté the mushrooms, onion, and bell pepper till soft in a skillet. Then add all and cook for 30 min. to an hour. I would also suggest cooking the pepperoni in the microwave on paper towels for 20-30 seconds and pat down when done. This will help get rid of some of the grease from the pepperoni. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle with mozzarella. Bon Appetit!

4 - Only if We Could Fly

So I heard a noise and interpreted it as tape being pulled in enormous amounts. I went to bring the hammer down on such wastefulness when I discover my Leena making wings out of her school work so she could fly. I encouraged her creativity with the caution of, "please do not attempt those on high platforms and such". She agreed and on she went about her construction. As I was scrambling for my camera I heard my son tell her that she needed like 10 pieces of paper stuck together before it would really work :p. There I stood with a smile on my face as I caught her running up the stairs. Oh, to be a kid again and think the things you could think.....

3 -Bathrooms Cleaned....check

There is nothing glamorous about cleaning the bathrooms...but there is something about a glamorously clean bathroom. Love it, but hate to do it. Well, it is done now for this week.

2 - Sweet Surprises

My sweet Sophie made this for us in church. It was her Christmas gift (but we have been absent from church and just got it) to us and it was all wrapped and everything. She brought it to us in church and couldn't wait for all of us to see what it was. She was so proud of it and I just love it. If you can't tell her hand prints make up the penguins feet. I love getting things from my children that they made.

1 - The Beginning of Pixelating my life

So here I begin this journey. I will remain optimistic and push on till the end. I worry about time and what will require me to complete this challenge, but I have others to inspire me (my husband and children) and encourage me with there endurance (thank you Suzanne). I hope this will be a growing experience for me personally as well as professionally as I peel off layer by layer. You will see into my life and those that are in it. I don't usually look to expose myself, but want to stretch myself and extend my limits. So we will see how this goes......... I may not be able to post each day, but will still release my shutter and pixelate my life each day. Please let me know if you are out there and enjoy the journey with me.

I start with a photo of my awesome kids. I took this in December, but since I am in charge of my challenge, I get to make the rules. I like the idea of starting January 1, but I am a little late. So I will throw in an extra photo here and there of my choice to catch up. This was my Christmas photo this year and the kids were awesome. They performed beautifully for the bribe offered. It was inspired by a similar photo taken by an awesome photographer, thanks Angie. I saw something similar on her blog and had to try it out for myself. One complaint by me is that I didn't have more strands of lights to wrap around them, but (thank you Megan) only had two and one strand wouldn't work. The glow of the lights was enhanced (thanks to my tech/husband for teaching me how to do it)....... It is so fun learning new things on Photoshop. I'm sure you will see many more of my cuties throughout the year.....and off we go.