Basic Lasso Tutorial for Photoshop

This is for all who requested a little help with the Lasso Tool (a.k.a. the tool that you use to "cut out" portions of your photos.) I tried to make it very basic, but if there are more things you want to know, just let me know and I will address them individually.


(Oh yeah, and the "helpful hints" box in the lower right hand corner really belongs in the "Step Two" section. Sorry about the bad "flow" of directions.)

Juan's finished product: (okay, I added the purple background and text.)

Memorial Day Weekend: Part 2

Memorial Day Weekend:

More to come....

Day of Fame: Marie Read

Hats off to Marie, who has been so patient in waiting for her Day of Fame. Here's a little bit about her that will make you wish she was your friend, too.

It was Fall Semester 2002 when I met Marie. She had been studying at BYU-Idaho for a semester and I just moved up to Rexburg to start my freshman year. We happened to be assigned to the same dorm and we quickly became friends. Ever since I have known her, I have been impressed with her cheerful attitude and infectious smile. She is quite a talented pianist and has a deep love for music. And man, oh man, if I possessed half the vocal talent she has, I would be happy. She is an adventurer when it comes to the taste-buds, too. When I asked her what her favorite food is, she said Duk Guk: a traditional Korean soup made with hamburger, rice patties, soy sauce, egg, and green onions. (Rice Patties pictured below)


Marie is a wonderful mother and wife to these two guys:


...but their family doesn't stop there:

Marie's 'Best Moments', told in her own words:

"I've had a lot of 'best times', but I think two of my favorite times were when I married my husband, and when I gave birth to my son. Another best time was when I was in high school and my family decided to play hide-and-go-seek in the house one night with all the lights off. I won by being the hardest to find because I dressed up all in black and hid in my parents laundry basket in their closet!"

If you want to see more of Marie, you can visit her here and here.

Thanks Marie!!!

It's Not All About You, Stacia

...as my parents so dutifully reminded me in my youth (and which I sometimes wish they would still do.) I realize I had better get back to reporting on the rest of the family.

Juan has been finishing up his last few required "assists" in the clinic before he gets his first patients (one week from today!!!) He's definitely getting anxious for the clinic. Yesterday he worked on ultrasonically "scaling" teeth of fellow classmates (which means they take out all the calcification build-up around the gumline... as far as I understand.)

Softball season has started again and that's been fun. In fact, our team finally WON a game after two years of losing!!! Not only did they win, but they SMASHED the other team with the final score. It was funny because as we were driving home, Juan said, "I kind-of don't like winning." I was taken back and asked why. "I feel bad for the other team," he replied. I just laughed because they have been the "other team" until now and I thought that when this day would finally come, they would enjoy gloating in their victory.





As for Siena...

She has been enjoying her independence to its full-extent. She loves to climb onto the kitchen table and pick the fresh flowers to pieces. She loves to care for her doll by putting it to sleep, feeding it, taking it to the potty, etc. She loves to read books and does so every morning while I take a shower and get ready for the day. She loves to eat stuff off the ground... still. She loves to splash in the tub... still. She loves directing me to what she wants by pointing and saying gibberish (which I am sure she understands.) She loves animals of all shapes and sizes... and flavors (a carnivore, we've got.) She loves playing the piano and loves pushing buttons on the keyboard to start a beat and some accompaniment. She still loves singing to herself wherever and whenever. She loves the Time Out corner (because it seems like she's always there.) And last but not least, she loves "pizza" and "coo-kies", or at least saying the words.

Nesting

Why haven't I blogged? I've been rummaging through drawers and closets trying to get things organized. Whew! We have a lot of junk!

The desire to organize never came when I was pregnant with Siena, but there were definitely times when I just felt like cleaning. This time around, it's very different. I hate cleaning (darn.) However, I love to organize and get the clutter OUT. There is now a compartment for almost every item of clothing Siena has- it's ridiculous, I know. We bought storage bins for all the clothes Siena has outgrown and since we have finally parted the sea of 0-3 month, 3-6 month, 6-9 month, and 9-12 month outfits, her old room is bare of any real human remnants. There's definitely a hollow feeling when I go inside the room even though all of the room decor is still intact.

As the weeks progress, I am definitely getting bigger... and it's getting more obvious. My own father couldn't even hold back an entire "fat" comment when we were on web-cam the other day. (No worries, luckily I understand his way of playfully pointing out realities by now.) It's definitely a different pregnancy than the first--easier, in fact.

However, I am now knee-deep into the dark days they call "The Terrible Twos" with Siena. Today I cried for about an hour because Siena refused to listen, let alone obey me, and because I kept thinking of all the ways I have been a loser-mom.

I blamed the sob-fest on hormones.

And the thing that I can't decide on to-this-day is whether to be a strict, no-nonsense mom or a "loving, gentle, angelic, praising, smiling, perfect mom". I still do not know what works better with Siena. I know I should have had a game plan by now, but Oops!... another loser-mom moment.

A, B, C- It's Easy as 1, 2, 3

Our 21-month old has to do chores now.

(I'll give you a second to get over your shock that we could be so cruel.)

She stands by me while I make her bed in the morning, then it's her responsibility to place Cocoa and Peanut (and recently, her bunny) on her pillow.

Also:
Teaching her how to count is going nowhere... it's still "Uno, Two..." So why not start the ABCs?

The Results Are In

America, you voted:

Siena is going to have an hermanita!!!!!