Sunday, December 29, 2013

Photos, Photos and More Photos

Seriously, if Mom is going to keep taking a zillion photos a week, she's REALLY going to have to start posting more often, or we are going to end up with a lot of posts like this one that have TONS of photos.  Mom had a five-day weekend for the Christmas holiday, so that did give her a lot of opportunities to take pictures, and Mom took advantage of all of those opportunities!  Trust me, there are a zillion photos in this post.  Biggify (click on a photo) for best viewing.

First, let's get some action photos.

My sister is a frisbee hog!

And she's got some legs on her - we don't call her the Hippobottomus for nothing, ya know!

I'm just watching in amazement - her torso has GOT to be 6 feet long!

Finally!  I stole one from my sister!

You will notice that I am NOT a Hippobottomus!

Is it me, or does Abby look like she's a two-legger out for a stroll?
Mom has started calling Abby a 'land-shark'.  I think the following photos illustrate why, exactly, Mom has been using that term.

Does someone hear the 'Jaws' theme?
Just like the cover of the latest Time magazine!

Yes, Abby, you SHOULD show off Every Single Tooth in your mouth!  Heehee.
Land shark indeed!  In addition to Abby's 'Jaws' moves, Abby has also been testing out the Doodle Launcher.  The weather has been warm and sunny, so Abby has been working on her amplitude and style!

Amplitude is okay, style is a bit dorky...

I think she loses style points for missing the frisbee, unfortunately.

Not bad in amplitude, and she did catch the frisbee.

I think the Doodle Launcher was on the 'ejection seat' setting!

Amplitude, style points AND an audience.  (I have to humor her, ya know!)

I think Abby is going to be a contender in the next Winter X-Games, don't you?
One of Mom's 'new things' has been to get photos from different angles.  Her latest quest is to see if she can get photos of us running at her, and she thinks these photos would be 'coolest' from ground level.  Which means that Mom lies down on her belly in the snow and attempts to throw the frisbee after which she then hopes we'll come running back to her.  Needless to say, Mom is still working on this whole thing.

Hi Mom!

I don't need a frisbee to look stylish!  (Besides, Mom really can't throw a frisbee when she's lying on the ground.)

Goofadoodle coming in hot!  Watch out, Mom!

"Look out again, Mom!  Crazy dog coming in for a landing!"  (No cameras or Moms were injured in the taking of this photo)
"Hey, Mom.  You know I like to skid to a stop, right?  If I spray you with snow, well, you'll only have yourself to blame!"
While she's down on the ground, Mom usually gets a few other shots.

"My name is Abby, and I'm a frisbee hoarder."

"Hey, uh, Mom?  I brought you this frisbee; could you throw it please?"

"Here, I'll even pick it up to give you a hand."
After a while, Mom gets cold and it's back to action photos.

Rehearsals for the ballet 'Doodle Lake' go on year-round!

Notice that I am NOT a land shark.

"Abby watch this - it is possible to catch a frisbee without putting ALL of one's pearly whites on display!"
But lest you think the entire weekend was go-go-go, Abby and I had some downtime.

Christmas Eve we had visions of bully sticks dancing through out heads!

"Zzzzzz....."
And we had some afternoon nap-time.

We actually do snuggle up to each other!

Abby after one football game too many!

Lazy Saturday afternoon (and a chance for Mom to try out her aperture-priority setting on her camera).
Of course, Mom also got some 'face shots'.  Something about how she can't get enough portrait photos!




Mom particularly likes this photo because she caught the 'late' (3pm) sun just before it set behind our hillside.

Hipposnooterus!  (Actually, Mom is please with how the background is indistinct while Abby's schnozz is 'tack sharp'.)

Is it possible to get enough snowy snooter photos?  I didn't think so....

Of course, you really can't have enough photos of me against a snowy backdrop, either!
As you can imagine, after a while Mom's constant snapping of photos gets a bit old and I have to make a statement.

"Pfffth."
And if I didn't make my point clear, let me stick my tongue out at you some more.



So there!  Heehee!

Now, just a few more photos...

In addition to taking photos of us all weekend, Mom and Dad managed to get in some cross-country skiing:

Dad being all ninja-like in his cross-country gear.
And Mom DID take us on a bunch of walkies.

Walkies, from Abby's point of view.  Yes, I AM the lead dog!
And we got to see what Santa Paws left in our stockings!  (Mom is still figuring out the shutter-speed/aperture/ISO triangle, and we weren't exactly sitting still!)



And I got to pose next to a ginormous pillow that was a present from our Granny and Grandpa.  (BTW, this is one of those family 'stories', but it has to do Jimmy Stewart having gone to my Mom's high school, and "It's a Wonderful Life" being an old family movie favorite...)

"Actually, it IS a wonderful life!"
And FINALLY, one of Mom's favorite photos of the long weekend.


Hopefully Mom will get up posts during the week, so we won't end up with one post with 87 photos in it!

*kissey face*
-Fiona and Abby the Hippobottomus

Friday, December 27, 2013

At Least Mom is Having Fun...

Unless you have been dead  (Ahhh!  Zombie alert!), or possibly been living on the dwarf-planet Pluto, you will already know that Mom has a new camera (and that she paid for it entirely with gift-cards, reward points and money earned from market research surveys; just ask her - she'll tell you - at least three or four times, if you aren't careful...).

Needless to say, Mom has been going crazy with the flashy beast.  While there will be a longer post this weekend with Even More pictures, Mom has So Many Photos that she wanted to get some of them up now. And boot our letter to Santa - which served its purpose - Santa (and Granny and Grandpa) were very good to us!

Mom's photos have been of varying quality, mostly because she's still in the early stages of learning how to use her camera (luckily our Granny and Grandpa got her a book for Christmas that explains where all the various settings on the camera can be found, what the settings do, and how to use them - without this book, our Mom would be truly hopeless!).  Mom is also in the early stages of learning how to take pictures from the 'artistic' point of view.  But when she's taking pictures of us, there are always treats involved, so it's all good.

"Why yes, Mom, I will stand here as long as you hand me that turkey snack when you are done.  You do realize I have the roof of the house coming out of the side of my head, right?"

Fluffica (aka Abby) doing what she does best - sitting in the snow, ignoring Mom and the camera!

Fluffica still not looking at the camera.  And hoarding frisbees.
One of Mom's favorite things to do (at least for now) is to sit/lie in the snow and see what sort of pictures she gets.  Well, I'll show you what sort of pictures she gets...

"Hey, uh, Mom?  Whatcha doing down there?  Are you okay?  If you are okay, can I have my treats now?"

Holy Hipposnooterus, Batman!
For some reason, Mom still thinks sitting/lying in the snow is a good photographic angle...

This next picture is only of interest because it is of the back of my neck.  Actually, Mom was reading her 'How to Use Your Camera' book and was trying out the manual focus option.  As Mom was sitting in bed, and I was right next to her, I was her guinea pig.  (Alas, no turkey treats were dispensed in the creation of this photo...)

Biggify this one if you are really interested in seeing my collar and/or the back of my neck!
While the actual photo-taking process is fun (you know, because there are treats involved), the editing process is vastly less interesting for Yours Truly.

"Mom, why do you want to look at me on the computer when I'm Right Here, Next to You?"
*sigh*  Couldn't you at least get the color tones right?
More pictures to come this weekend; I'll be the one napping on Mom's computer.

*kissey face*
-Fiona and Abby the Hippobottomus