Soph's photo shoot at University of Utah

This past Thursday was Soph's photo shoot for Waterford Institute.  For those that don't know Waterford School is a private school here in Sandy, Utah.  It was a big project to promote their educational products on their website and entailed at least 5 days of shooting.  The photos below were taken with my iPhone, definitely not by the professional photographer.

Me: "Soph smile" Yep! This is what I get, a perfect forced smile.

In total there were 30 models/kids between the ages of 4 to 8 and several model/adults to represent the teachers. It was pretty interesting and fun, a little tiring until the right shot was finally achieved.

The photographer was hilarious, claiming that it was due to the fact he was functioning on 4 hours of sleep. However, one mother in particular did not appreciate his humor so much, as he made a negative comment about her daughter's choice of clothes.  Of course, assuming she received the same email like everyone else she would have known that the kids were not supposed to wear white, black or anything busy.  The mother later asked me "what does busy mean?" Oh, well, I guess that explains it.

Getting headphones adjusted and body positioned just so

Having to deal with so many kids, the photographer basically color coded all of them when giving out instructions. Soph was known as the "pink" girl.  Of course!!  And the "red" boy, oh boy! appeared to be suffering from Tourette's syndrome and ADHD shouting out "sh@t" and "they're gay!"

I can't imagine how they can coordinate all 5 kids in a classroom to do the same thing at the same time.  Well, it only happened for a split second. I believe the photographer was lucky enough to capture that shot with his fancy camera.  No kidding, this is snapshot of what it was like....  ["Red" boy needs to put his arms down. "Red" girl needs to stop looking as if she's reading the Wall Street Journal newspaper.  "Light blue" boy needs to stop squinting.  "Green" boy, perfect, don't move!  "Purple" girl needs to smile more and looks as if she's stuck in the moment.  "Pink" girl needs to lean forward more, etc.  Okay, "red" boy needs to turn around.  Everybody needs to place their hands on the keyboard. "Pink" girl needs to pretend she's writing/calculating...] and on and on for 3 hrs.  I was exhausted just listening to it all!

Sophie with her pretend teacher

One of the things Sophie was supposed to do was accept an award from her teacher with a big grin and with lots of excitement on her face.  Did that happen?  If you know Soph, you probably already know the outcome.  The photographer said, "NEXT, go get the "green" boy.....Thank goodness, there was one boy, yes the "green" boy (aka Vance), that took his cues spot-on.  I believe it also helped that he was the oldest in the bunch.

Pretending to be working on the computer

Another cute little girl began crying because she was shivering from being cold and just broke out in tears....So she was out of the picture, literally and figuratively, for awhile.

I actually have to give a lot of credit to the photographer and the crew.  They did an amazing job with all the kids.  I think working with babies, kids, and animals are probably the most challenging.

Once the pictures have been selected to go online on Waterford's website, I will leave a comment herein with the link.

Soph's pretend teacher and photographer

So the lesson I learned about this particular photo shoot....things like tears, unruly behavior, no smiles, people in the way, can be resolved by blurring things out.  I asked Soph if she enjoyed modeling; she said "it was very boring" but still liked it anyway because she made some money, which by the way is going into her savings account for college.

Meet Zuri

Knowing it was going to be a beautiful day Saturday, we decided to pass the afternoon at Utah Hogle Zoo.  I was particularly interested this time as I had been wanting to see Christie's (African elephant) new baby girl for quite awhile.  The last time we were at the zoo, Christie was about to give birth in 2 months.

So, Zuri, which is Swahili for "adorable or beautiful" was born August 10, 2009.  She made her public debut when she was 1 month old and weighed slightly over 300 lbs.  She now weighs over 750 lbs since mid-June and is absolutely the most adorable and cutest thing ever!  Her mother weighs in at about 7,000 lbs for comparison.  If you want to keep track of Zuri's adventures, you can click here Baby Zuri.

Here's a video (uploaded by Deseret News) of Zuri, that captures her personality perfectly:





Here are my amateur photos:

Christie and Zuri

Hmmm...."that looks pretty good."

Zuri... "I think I want some too."

Very playful, wallowing in the mud and splashing.

The longest eyelashes I've seen on a girl....lol

Ohhh...that leaf really looks tasty!

Trying very hard to reach those leaves.  Unfortunately, this giraffe was not successful.

Finally, my hubby doesn't seem to realize that my biology degree consisted of only one semester of zoology.  And so, noooo, I was not aware that camels can go for 6 months without any water and can drink 30 gallons of water in 10 minutes.  Whoaa!

Hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend and staying safe!

June (yes, I know a very insipid title)

I can't believe it's already July.  Oh, Yes!  Happy 4th of July everyone!

Just think Sophie starts 1st grade next month.  A gazillion of things have been going on the past month and I don't see things slowing down any time soon.  I'm so glad I've found a product like Asea that is a boon to my boundless energy and endurance; a requisite to accomplishing everything on my plate while staying sane and strong.

I now see why the "reactive molecules" found in Asea is very popular amongst professional athletes, as well as, for those looking to repair and replenish their cells for better health.  I'm so happy with the team I'm in.  It's so close to the top and includes some of the original founders like Dr. Gary Samuelson's wife.  For those that don't know, Dr. Gary Samuelson is the atomic physicist who discovered how to replicate reactive molecules (found in your healthy cells) stabilized outside of the body.  It only took 16 years for someone to accomplish this feat that is undeniably cutting edge and a medical breakthrough.  Click here for more information about Asea, the only Redox Signaling product available.

Sophie has her first paid assignment with Craze Agency the middle of July.  I'm working on trying to get one of Soph's friends, Charlie in on this project so that way she'll be working with someone she knows.  I'll have more information about this later.

We recently had friends come visit us from AZ, and had such a great time while they were here.  I originally met my dear, beautiful, friend (inside and out), Tanya when we lived in Mesa.  Tanya's little girl, Jaida and Sophie were both enrolled at The Little Gym when they were like two years old.  We're both introverts and so it took us about a year before we finally introduced ourselves to one another...lol.

They have three really amazing, cute kids.  I just love this family! Jaida is probably the most precocious child I've met. Sometimes I forget she's only 6 years old. Bryson, to be honest reminds me a lot of my hubby.  He's such a cute little boy with the most amazing blue eyes (just like his mother).  And Rylan, oh my goodness is the most adorable, sweet natured baby with a bubbly personality. He's irresistible and incredibly cute.

My other friend, Kathryn and her husband were here recently as well.  Kathryn and I used to work together when Fleet Mortgage Corp was around in Columbia, SC.  It's been like 10 years since we last saw each other.  She and her husband were here in Utah visiting, looking for their new home. Can you believe it!  Of all places for her husband to transfer, they chose Salt Lake City.  I'm really looking forward to hanging out with them.  They too have a new baby boy, Cooper.  I usually don't look at mouths right off the bat, but Cooper has got the prettiest lips and is definitely a cutie.

It's going to be so much fun having Kathryn and her family here....just like old times, when we all lived in Lexington, SC and worked together in Columbia, SC eons ago.

Soph is doing well in her swimming classes.  Initially, I thought she had forgotten everything she had learned the past 3 years, but now she's made drastic improvements and is enjoying it more than ever.

She's still enrolled in gymnastics and likes it a lot even though she's struggling with her backbends and climbing the rope.  On the bright side, she's a wiz when it comes to doing the hula hoop on the balance beam.

So now we're waiting to get everything finalized with the selling of our house.  And then the real work begins when we have to pack and move.  I certainly hope we can get all this sorted out and get settled into our new hibernaculum before school begins and winter sets in.

This is just a snapshot of what's been going on with us.  Hope you and your family have a great holiday weekend.  Be Safe and Be Well!

Weather woes

Date: June, 17, 2010 - Wednesday

I believe we're finally over the cold snap here and we can now enjoy some warmth (I hope).  I checked the thermostat this morning and brrr... it read 65 degrees in the house.  Of course that's with one window ever so slightly opened.

Poor Soph had swimming lessons yesterday and temperatures dropped to 56 degrees (we're definitely below average temperatures which is the low 80's); now that's what I call a FROPA.  Still, swimming lessons carried on at Draper Pool; they do not cancel lessons unless it's raining.  At least she had her wet suit and the pool is heated to 85 degrees.  She seems to be enjoying swimming lessons a lot more this year, only because her instructor does not make her jump off the diving board....lol.

At first I was disappointed I was too late enrolling Soph in her usual swim classes.  But now that I see how much fun she's having....WELL.  It's funny how things work out and so far I'm pleased (including the cost! I'm saving almost $15/class).

Yes, a lot has been going on as you can see by the mere fact I don't update my blog as often as I would like. I don't even know where to begin -- the house has consumed a vast majority of my time.  I kid you not, we had an average of 5+ showings a week.  Once we lowered the price of the house, then the offers started coming in. It almost looked as if there was going to be a bidding war.

Now that we have our solid offers, I can stop showing....Whew!  If all goes well, we will be moving the end of summer.  If not, I fear I may start shoveling snow in September.  Who's idea was it to move here?

All I can say is the next place we live will include, in the HOA, snow removal on the driveway :)

Weird and not so wonderful weather

Today is Monday, May 24th and this is what I woke up to. Whose idea was it to move here?  Do I sound like a broken record... lol.  Hubby said it was in the 60's when he arrived into Phoenix and could imagine what it was like in Utah.  Draper City is going to have to change the sign to "no parking on the streets until June 1st" instead of April 17th for the snowplowers.

Off to shoveling snow :o/

Fun in the sun in Florida 2

Because we had so much fun last September in Florida, we decided to return to the Sunshine State for our spring vacation. We covered a lot of ground packed in 8 days, visited Magic Kingdom, Universal Studios, Sea World, Epcot, Cocoa Beach and West Palm Beach. Our trip didn't get off to a good start as we had to hang out more than 2 hours in the plane, waiting for the snow storm to let up, the plane to get de-iced, and everything else in between that resulted in a series of 40 minute delays...whew!!

Seven hours later, what was supposed to be a 4 hour trip, we finally arrived in Orlando to bright, sunny, warmer weather.  Here's a view from our hotel room.  If you like to golf, this looked like a great place to do so.

Once we arrived at the parks, the lines were quite short even for all the popular rides. The longest we had to wait was 10 mins, although there was one ride where the wait time was 40 mins., but someone kindly gave us their Fast Pass tickets.  How cool was that!!  Although this probably makes the 10th time hubby has been on the "It's a small world" ride, he does it for Soph as it's actually one of her favorite rides at Magic Kingdom.

While Universal Studios was a blast for both hubby and me, especially all the simulated, 3-D, 4-D rides... not so for Soph.

We didn't have time to try out all the different rides, but out of the ones we did, Vince and I REALLY liked The Simpson Ride.  That was such a blast that gave the sensation of really being on a roller coaster initially, getting spit out of Maggie's mouth after we got close to her tonsils, spit and all.  And had lots of loop de loops through donuts and one surprise after another in a make believe theme park called Krustyland.

Epcot was beautiful with all it's the artistic gardens. Here's one I like not only because of Mickey and Minnie but because of the sunflowers, one of my favorite flowers.

We got to eat at the French restaurant, Les Chefs de France.

Meet the animated Remy, the French chef rat from Ratatouille. Here again, Soph was not too sure about the rat. Vince and I thought he was soooo cute!

However, she fell in love with the French kitty.  So we got her a smaller version of the kitty that has now become Soph's constant companion.

Last September, we ate at Germany which was quite delicious.  Next time we want to try out Italy.  It's so  much fun to eat at all these different countries.

Sea World is always a fun and pretty place to visit.  Unlike Universal Studios, the surrounding was more peaceful and calm, no loud music blaring.  Hmmm! Are we showing our age?

Our little family

Shamu Show

Here's a manatee, a large aquatic herbivore marine mammal.  I always learn something new when I visit Sea World. Manatee's closest relatives include the elephants and the hyrax (found in Africa and Arabia).   If you look at their faces, they are actually quite cute.  This is the first time I've seen a manatee calf nursing.

I also learned that the reason flamingoes are pink is because they eat shrimp, brine shrimp to be exact.  It's the beta carotene, (you know the same beta carotene found in carrots that makes it orange) in the brine shrimp that actually turns the flamingoes feathers pink. Who Knew?

In this picture, it looks as if Sophie is swimming with the dolphins, getting ready to dive up.

Then we made a quick stop to Cocoa Beach and had lunch....on our way to West Palm Beach.

Sophie and me

Daddy and Sophie

West Palm Beach was probably Soph's favorite place of all....no loop de loops and walking everywhere. Actually, it was a great place for all of us. We stayed at Marriott's newly opened Oceana Palms, located at The Palm Beaches.  It was like home away from home and believe me we did not want it to end.  Our spacious luxurious villa had 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a well equipped kitchen and laundry.  Here are some photos although the photos really don't do it justice.

View from our back patio

Nice cabanas

Master Bedroom

Lots of ooohs and ahhhs

Master Bathroom

Sophie's Bedroom

Sophie's Bathroom

Living Room

Fully equipped kitchen with a better dishwasher than we have in our own home.

Back patio off living room.

Sophie loved her room.

Soph's favorite swimming pool at dusk.

Here are some more photos, that ends with a very tired, but satisfied Sophie on the plane back to Salt Lake City.

Daddy, Soph...our hotel in the background.

Soph could spend hours playing and making sand castles.  But what kid doesn't like playing on the beach? Including the big one.

Becoming such a big girl!

Daddy and Soph (in the cold water).  Too cold for me!

Just Me

Rinsing off the sand.

Soph's favorite water slide.

Who can resist that face at Lion Country Safari.

Feeding crackers to Cupid.

Walking on the beach.

The End!