Tuesday's Top 5

I'm back for this week's edition of Tuesday's Top 5 (you were waiting all week for this, weren't you?), and this week's topic is:

THE TOP FIVE BLOGS I AM DIGGING RIGHT NOW

So, like most of my contemporaries, I enjoy technology. I'm not a super-techno geek, but I spend my fair share of time checking e-mail and facebooking and all that good stuff. I also like to spend a little time in the blogsphere now and again, and I thought I'd compile a list of some of my favorites.

A quick disclaimer, though: This is not a "best of" blog list or anything. I don't claim to be an expert on any of these blog topics. I just think these are fun. Also, I'm not including (with one partial exception) any photography blogs. I figure, if you're not a photographer, you don't want to be looking at a bunch of photography blogs, and if you are a photographer, you probably have your own list of photo blogs.

So, wouldn't you like to know what blogs I'm digging? Of course you would.

5. Conquering the Century Club. This is a blog all about travel, and it makes the list, not only because it is a fun read with lots of interesting information, but also because one of the authors (theoverworkedamerican) is a friend of mine. The blog is witty and fun and there is a quest involved. I love a good quest!

4. Simply Hue. This is the partial exception to the no photography blog rule because, technically, the author is a photographer. But this blog is way more than a photography blog. It is BEAUTIFUL. Seriously, I go to this blog whenever I need a fix of pretty stuff. And you can buy the pretty stuff at the author's etsy site, too. Cool!

3. Bakerella. Now, I am not a foodie, but I like food, and you don't have to be a foodie to enjoy Bakerella because the blog itself is so scrumptious to look at. You can almost taste the food without having to make it yourself. Check out that recipe for Apple Cake on the front page. It is looking like a pretty decent use for all these apples I've got laying around now. Hmmm...

2. The Bright Side Project. This is a blog dedicated to giving away free stuff. And who doesn't like free stuff? But wait. There's more! We're not just talking about free samples of dog food and laundry detergent. I mean, they give away really COOL free stuff. Like handmade jewelry and personalized stationary and art. I love this site! To be eligible for the free stuff all you have to do is answer some thought provoking question like "What era inspires your fashion style" or "Who would you like to photograph and why?" Honestly, this blog would probably make the number one spot except they've had some technical difficulties lately and haven't announced any winners for awhile. Still, it's worth putting yourself in the running for some cool free stuff once they get things back up and going, so clicky clicky and check it out.

1. Mila's Daydreams. I just discovered this one the other day, and it gets the number one spot out of sheer cuteness and creativity. Somewhere over in Finland there is a mom with a sleepy baby and a lot of imagination. It is too cute for words. Just check it out.

So that's it. The top 5 blogs I'm digging right now. And speaking of blogs, this blog powered by:

Happy Tuesday!

Apple of My Eye

Every week Max's class at daycare has a different theme. Colors, shapes, dinosaurs, etc. This week's theme was apples. Apparently, somebody at his school was reading my mind, because I had already planned for us to go apple picking this weekend. What a perfect way to round out his week!

I had never been apple picking before and here are a few observations: 1) it takes no time at all to fill a peck bag with apples; 2) the picker thingy is super fun; and 3) it is hard to shoot a two-year old in an orchard in full sun. Max had a blast, though. He loved LOVED getting to pick an apple right off the tree and eat it. And he is LOVING the apple sauce we made today. Anyone else have an apple recipe to recommend?

As an added bonus from today, I got the hubs to snap a few of me and Max while we were there. Pictures of me with Max that don't involve me stretching my arm out as far as it will go in front of me while trying to hold the camera still and keep Max still are very hard to come by. I love these.

Tuesday's Top 5

Welcome to a new segment here on the ole' blog. Something to spice up that ever-bland day, Tuesday. Now, sure, the whole "top whatever list" thing has been done (oh David Letterman, you trend-setter you), but I occassionally make these lists in my mind, so I might as well share them with you, my (three or four) faithful readers.

So, without further ado, here is today's Top Five.

THE TOP FIVE THINGS I HEARD IN THE CAR THIS MORNING

Riveting topic, ay? Okay, a little more ado. Something about this list that you have to understand is that I am rarely in the car for more than like 2 minutes in the morning. I ride ye ole' public transportation to work, so being in the car for an appreciable amount of time is a thing of the past for me. As a result, my knowledge of popular music and culture has severely suffered. Whenever I take a trip to Florida, in fact, my sister kidnaps me, ties me up, forces me into the trunk of her car, and blasts the latest songs out of the speakers so that I don't embarass her as a sister. Okay, not so much the tying and the trunk stuff, but the rest is true. So just keep that in mind. I can't be expected to know all the latest Gagas and K'eshas and all that nonsense. I take the train. But today, I drove. So here's the list. Really.

THE TOP FIVE THINGS I HEARD IN THE CAR THIS MORNING
5. Vogue. Okay, not exactly the most modern stuff, but come on. It's Madonna. She was gaga before Gaga was gaga. Plus, even when you're driving and it's tricky to do all the face-framing hand stuff, you can still do a good bit of head dancing.

4. That soul sister song. No, not Lady Marmellade. You know, that one that goes "Hey soul sister, something something something." This one makes the top five list because it reminds me of my husband (who has TOTALLY stopped reading this by now). He really likes this song and makes fun of me for not knowing the words, so he gets it on the list.

3. The story about the Lynyrd Skynyrd guy dying. I mean, I'm not happy he died or anything. I just didn't know that there was a real Lynyrd Skynyrd who inspired the name of the band. And apparently, he wasn't a fan of the band. But come on, Lynyrd! It's Skynyrd! Who doesn't like Skynyrd, Lynyrd? Probably, they're not going to be playing Free Bird at the memorial. Too bad.

2. The melt your popsicle song. Alright. I'm sure everyone else in America knows the actual name of this song and is probably long tired of it. But me, I just like the popsicle part. I mean, if you can incorporate the line "so hot, we'll melt your popsicle" into a song, you get my vote.

And finally, the number one thing I heard in the car this morning....

1. "Mom, I wanna listen to the popsicle song again." Love it. Happy Tuesday!

And since no post is complete without a picture, here are three other things that make a different top five list of mine:

How Much?

We could all use some.

Embracing the Midwest

If you know me, you know I'm not from Chicago. In fact, I'm not from the midwest at all. I'm from Florida (and proud of it. Seven generations, thank you very much!) We've lived here for over two years, but to some extent, the idea of having a corn field in my backyard or a sledding hill down the road or a tornado siren in the neighborhood is still so novel to me. And while I might not like all the things living in the midwest brings (i.e. snow, snow, and more snow. Oh, and tornadoes, too. Not a big fan of those), I'll admit the place has its own sort of charm.

Having a corn field in your backyard, after all, is pretty cool. Particularly when you find the cutest little cowboy hat at GapKids and a great old produce crate on the side of the road (yeah, I stopped and took it. Don't judge.) Of course, to get the most out of all these pretty cool things, you need to have a cooperative, two-year old model, eager to do the farmer/cowboy thing for you early on a Sunday morning.

Well. At least he's cute.

Sunset

Trying my hand at a little landscape/sunset-ness. Not something I have done a lot of but it's nice to mix it up a bit. Plus the sun setting over the corn field in our backyard Thursday night was too good to pass up.

If the little man will cooperate, I'm going to try to do a corn field shoot with him this weekend before they start plowing. Stay tuned. Cooperation is often elusive when it comes to Max and the camera.

Sweet Baby Deliciousness

You know what I'm talking about. That certain something that newborn babies just emit from their pores and that makes you want to cuddle and squeeze them and causes you to start swaying side-to-side involuntarily. At three weeks old, Baby Finn was just oozing sweet baby deliciousness. If you have followed Maxaroni (and Cheese), you'll remember Finn's older sister and parents from last fall. Big sis is better known around my place as the little girl with the red hat. But, she's a big girl now and now she has an adorable little brother to boot!

In photographer speak, three weeks is a little outside the typical "newborn window," but with a bit of coaxing (and some formula) Baby Finn was perfectly happy to just chill and be still. That is, when he wasn't busy with dad trying to find the perfect football watching/baby feeding spot for the upcoming football season. Big sis got in on the action, too.

Thanks guys for allowing me to capture Finn's first days. It is such an honor to watch your family grow!

Jump Up It's a Good Day!

I know you've seen a lot of Max lately (come on...he's cute), but not to worry. I have a date with a three-week old named Finn tomorrow morning. Squeeeeee!

Until then, jump up! It's a good day! (by the way, if you have kids and you're not a fan of Brady Rymer, you should be.)