I just mentioned something about learning from YouTube. So, I purchased a new camera last summer and I am loving it!!! There are still lots of features that I need to improve with and that's why I took a beginners course just the other week on photography. Even though I didn't get to learn much more about "my camera" it was good review on the basics. But, now I'm really interested in learning how to use my camera better, work on that lighting technique better and finally learn how to edit some photo's on Photoshop Elements.
I'm not a books learner. What I mean by that is I learn much faster and easier if I have someone showing me how to do things instead of being given a book explaining how it all works. Sometimes I think that may be my lazy excuse and I want to just skip to the fun parts and have someone show me how, so I decided to look up some YouTube Photoshop Channels. There's a lot to learn for me and it's endless information but that excites me. Photoshop has a lot of options and I'm really starting from the beginning stages, and it's gonna take some time to get anything mastered, but I'm willing to start. Maybe with the snow coming and blowing, I'll get some time to sit down and learn some good techniques!!!
Spring is a time when projects outside the house get looked at. I came up with a long list of wishes and wants but if we get to just some of them ... that's a plus!!! One thing on my wish list is to buy a grill. We went all summer long last year without a grill and if I have it to say, that's not happening again!!! We would often marinade steaks, cut them in small pieces and then cook them over a campfire on the back porch. That was both fun and tasty and we hope to do this again but having a grill to throw on some burgers or chicken or fish would be so yummy!!! We did get some cash back from Costco so maybe we can go there to shop for a grill!?!
Another wish list project is the garden. I would love to have some kind of a fence around the raised beds and pavers or bricks laid down in between the raised beds. Right now it's just grass and even though I don't mind the looks of that, it's work to weed ed between each bed and have it looking nice all summer long. Also, we still have a corner flower bed that is my night mare! Every year there are those crawly morning glory weeds that tangle between my flowers and anything planted there. I'm sick of fighting this every year and so I want it leveled off and grass seeded!
Mulching and trimming will all be happening in the next weeks too. When we came up with a landscaping plan for our new home two years ago, we were pleased with how it turned out!!! Thanks to Encore Landscaping they did a fantastic job! But our property still requires a lot of mulching but the kids help and Mike brings over the tractor! It will be fun to work at this project together! Hopefully, the new plants and trees with all thrive again when the weather gets warmer!!!
The basement is a work in progress right now. Mike had a goal of completing the new part of the basement (when we remodeled our home two years ago, we added more basement but it was never finished off) this winter. He's been working on this evenings and Matthew and Austin are helping him too! :))) I can't wait to see how it will all turn out because Mike has some good ideas and is trying to get this project wrapped up. Last night he was cutting some old boards and nailing them on one of the smaller walls. It still looks a total mess down there and lots to finish up but it's happening. Slowly ... but I'm sure it will look great after it's completed!!! The project will also go a little faster once Mike has done "his work" and then gets someone in to finish up the drywall, painting, electric and flooring.
I'm getting anxious about going to the greenhouses!!! I bought some big bags of potting soil yesterday and soon, one of these days, I'm going to fill up our outdoor planters with spring, cheery flowers!!! I can't wait!!!
Snow is on it's way ... so say the meteorologists. I hope that if it does shower us with it's white, cold flakes, that it will then melt and water my gardens and saturate the ground with nutrients! As soon as the sun shines warmer, we will be ready to plow the ground and get some seeds planted!!!
And here's a note to myself:
"Keep calm, Spring is coming!"
