New review post - our video monitor

Check out my review post about our video monitor.
 

Christmas gift review - Canon 50mm lens

I'm still showing off my Christmas gifts.  Next up is my new and shiny Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 Camera lens. 

Guess who got to be the guinea pig for my new toy?

Poor Travis - I wonder if he even has eye sight anymore after all the pictures that I take of him.  I'm sure he does.

Once I got bored of taking pictures of the dogs, I realized that I have all this fun baby stuff that I can take pictures of.

And pretty little girlie bows.

Isn't life exciting?

Perhaps I need to get a new life.

Anywho...

Let's talk about the lens.

It's so freakin' tiny!  And cute!  Now, I know this isn't the reason to go and buy a lens but it's just so darn cute!  I love it.

Here's what I do like about it:
Pictures of objects up close come out super sharp and the settings allow you to choose how much you want to blur the images in the background.  Check this out:

Pretty sweet!  I'm still learning about the settings and choosing my focal points, but it's a start.

This lens is not super expensive, which is appealing. But it does allow you to take great pictures of objects up close (i.e. tiny little baby fingers and toes).  It's also great for portraits or some sharp and creative weddings shots.

The down fall is that it's only good for one distance.  This can be hard to face when you spend $$ on a lens, but after doing a bunch of research on what was right for me (portraits, weddings, baby toes), I decided this was a perfect fit.

Christmas gift review - Telephoto Zoom Lens

For Christmas I got a new lens for my Canon Rebel Xsi: Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 Telephoto Zoom lens.

To test it out, Jon and I went outside to throw the ball to Cailey.

 

It's her absolute favorite activity.

She could fetch for hours.

But we try to keep it to about 20 minutes.  Anything more usually makes her legs wicked stiff and she ends up falling over.  It's pretty funny.  But also mean.  That's why we don't do it (anymore).


A little about the lens:

It is amazing! Obviously I'd prefer to be able to afford the EF 70-200mm f/2.8, but for the dollar, this one's pretty darn great.  It has the capability to take action shots that my EF-S 18-55 f/3-5.6 lens couldn't even imagine doing.  The zoom is also pretty ridiculous, allowing me to capture my little family running all over our yard from the safe comfort of my front steps.  The shots come out sharp regardless of the action or distance of the object.

Some things that aren't great is...I don't know yet.  I'm still learning but I think for someone starting out in photography that wants a little more than the starter lens, this is a great purchase.  I'm very happy.

As always, this review is not sponsored by anyone.  I just like to brag share about my gifts.

Presto Griddle and pancakes

This is a story about a girl, a griddle and pancakes.

Every Saturday and Sunday morning I wake up, roll over (this is a way bigger deal than it seems with a big belly), scratch my husband's back and ask him where my pancakes are.

Jon usually pretends to be asleep.  So I poke him.  Over and over again.  Then ask him where my pancakes are.  Eventually, he realizes that there is no getting away from me and ends up getting up to make me pancakes.  I've perfected the art of being annoying.

Before this Christmas making pancakes was a huge deal.  We would have to heat up 2 or 3 skillets and I'd have to wait about 30 minutes to have pancakes.  But not anymore.

This Christmas my wonderful mother-in-law got us this Presto Tilt 'n Drain Big Griddle.

Now making breakfast is easy, quick, and fun!

Just plug and turn on the griddle, make some pancake batter and pour it on.

You can make a bagillion pancakes at once!  With chocolate chips of course.

There's even still room for sausage,

and eggs.

Jon and I can have all the breakfast we want in one shot!

It's incredible.  And the best part is that I don't have to wait very long for my pancakes anymore.

This was not sponsored in any way.  I just really like pancakes.  And maple syrup.  And my new griddle.

Your holiday gift guide - a DSLR camera

Have I ever told you how much I love the Holidays?  Seeing the decorations in the stores makes me giddy.  I know that it's still early and Thanksgiving is still around the corner and many of you are probably walking around the stores, sighing deeply and wondering why there are already Christmas decorations and Christmas items around the stores.  But me?  Nah uh.  I'm excited!

So to celebrate the stores putting up Christmas decorations, I am going to start an annual holiday gift guide.  I'll just review the items I own and love and if you're struggling to find the perfect gift for your loved ones, check it out.  I'll add all the items to this here handy shopping guide:

And I'm going to add a Linky Tool at the bottom so if you want to pitch in and give your ideas - Link up!

Today I'll start with my love, my heart, my DSLR camera.

I did a lot of research before finally settling on my Canon Rebel Xsi.  The reason I chose this camera above others is its ease of use, the price, and its capabilities.

I really wanted something that would allow me to get started since I've never had a DSLR before, but I also didn't want to buy a "start up" camera that I would have to replace not too long after. 





I actually settled on a Canon Rebel XS which is currently significantly cheaper but when I was finally ready to purchase the camera, the Canon Rebel XSi fell in price so much that it was only about $50 difference!  I couldn't say "no" to that.  (ps- I recommend putting your "wish list" items in your shopping cart on amazon.com because you get notified anytime it decreases in price - that's how I caught my deal).

So let me tell you what I love about my camera.

First and foremost, I LOVE the picture quality.

Picture with digital camera

Picture with Canon Rebel XSi

See?  It's impressive! And that's on an automatic setting.  That's right.

Which brings me to my second favorite thing about this camera - it takes incredible pictures even on an automatic setting.  One of the things that really scared me about getting a DSLR is that I would never know how to use it.  But this camera has made things super simple.  I think the best part about this auto setting is that it also lets you know what settings are on during each shot - i.e. ISO, etc.  I use that to practice later on on my own and try to mimic the settings and then veer off a bit.

Then, once you get the hang of it, it's super easy to start trying out some of the other settings.  I'm still looking for a book or two on DSLR's and photography (*hint hint*) but in the meantime, I've been using the wonderful Google to get hints and advice and learn about this amazing new hobby.

Some things that I think aren't all that great about this camera is that it is big, as are most DSLR's.  I was ready for that though.  But I do wish I waited a bit longer because just a couple of months after I bought my camera a new one came out with HD video capabilities.  I'm not sure that I would pay the price to get that, nor am I sure I want them all in one, but I would like to have had an option.  Overall though, I really have 0 complaints.  Nada.  I love it.  It's my baby.

But be careful because this hobby is super addictive.  These are some items that I bought almost instantly:




This bag holds the camera and a whole bunch of lenses.  I'm not a big fan of the fanny-pack-looking thing and I wanted something easier.  Plus if fits a bunch of other stuff in case you want to pack up a sweater for cool weather or throw in a charger or two.  I love it.











Then of course I bought a whole bunch of SD cards.  And then I bought this 32 GB one for our trip to Dominican Republic because I panicked and decided that there was no way that I would fit all the pictures I would take on the 16GB, 8GB and 4GB cards I already packed.  I may have an issue.  I blame Jon for supporting it.







Now what I really want is this lens:




But there is no way in my life that I will afford it for my little hobby.









So instead I think I'll be asking for these for Christmas:



For all my super awesome far away shots.  Everyone has to have a telephoto lens, right?  Anyways, I read a whole bunch of things about what lenses to get and this is what I settled on for a price I can afford.











And this one for close-ups.  I can't wait to get all in my baby's face with this one.














And this flash because I don't want to blind her with mine.  And it makes everything look more natural.  I'm excited.  Aren't you?








So there you have it folks.  If you are a photography lover or married a photography lover or want to be a photography lover or...well...you get the point.  Here are some ideas for you.  With my commentary.  Enjoy.

I'll try to keep these down to once a week so you don't feel overwhelmed.

A pregnancy must have - the body pillow

Right around the time Peanut made her presence known to us via a positive pregnancy test, I started experiencing a lot of back pain.  It was kind of "fun" at first because it was my first real pregnancy symptom, but it got old pretty fast.  On top of it, I totally stopped sleeping.

By about 4 months it got so bad I actually started seeing a Chiropractor to help me out.  It helped so much with the back aches, but I was still having trouble sleeping.

By 5-6 months I was feeling much better with the help of the chiropractor, but I could never really get comfortable.  At night, I tossed and turned like crazy.  I spent an hour or two each evening laying around in the dark, hoping to fall asleep but rarely succeeding. On top of it I woke up multiple times each night, unable to ever get comfortable. 

I know that many of you who are or were pregnant probably experienced a lot more than just some back aches and lack of sleep, so I never really thought too much about mine.  I figured I was getting off easy.  Yet, by 6 months I was pretty annoyed with the lack of sleep and the tossing and the turning.  And Jon was too.  One night we were both super annoyed with my new habbit of tossing and sighing and turning that Jon suggested I look up a body pillow that many pregnant women buy.  I didn't waste any time and read every review online.  I finally settled on this pillow:



The reviews were pretty good with the exception of the pillow taking up too much of the bed space.  I asked Jon if he would mind but by that point I think he was willing to sleep on the floor if only I would stop waking him up in the middle of the night.  He urged me to buy the pillow.  After a little hesitation, I finally gave in.







The pillow came in just in the nick of time.  Jon was gone on another one of his work trips for the whole week and the pillow arrived the first evening I was home alone.  I eagerly unwrapped it and put it on the bed.

Okay, so it took up a lot of space.  I guess it was a good thing that I was home alone?

That first night was the most amazing night of my life.  Or at least my pregnancy life.

Not only did I fall asleep almost as soon as my head hit this gigantic pillow, but I didn't wake up until my alarm rang.  I'm not even sure that's ever happened to me before I got pregnant.

On a side note, I've been getting up to go pee 2-4 times each night starting around 2 months.  That night was the first night I didn't get up to go pee in the middle of the night - that's how deep my sleep was.  By 6 am I bolted out of bed and barely made it to the bathroom.  I guess getting up in the middle of the night was probably a good thing at least for that reason.

The rest of the week went by smoothly.  I slept like a baby.  I woke up feeling refreshed.  My back was feeling great.  But I was a bit nervous about Jon coming home.

On Friday, the hubs returned from his trip and finally saw the new addition to our sleeping arrangements.  He laughed, but seemed to be okay with it.  We had to adjust a little the first night but generally it worked out really well.

Then Saturday morning I woke up early, refreshed after a great night's sleep, and decided to take the dogs for a walk.  I got back to this:

Somehow I don't think the hubs minded the pillow all that much.

In fact, it took me over an hour to get him out of it and to get going.

Needles to say, the pillow's a hit.

On a more serious note, here's some pros and cons about the pillow.

It is pretty big and takes up about half of our queen size bed.  This isn't so bad if your hubs is willing to share (mine's a keeper).  It's also kind of bulky on all accounts so if you're into really thin pillows (which I am), it takes a bit to get used to.  It's also super hard to get all the blankets wrapped up around yourself when there is so much pillow around you.  And the one thing that really does bug me about it is trying to get in and out of it.  When I was a bit smaller, it was no big deal.  But each evening it gets harder and harder.  Now in the middle of the night I find it to be a huge pain.

On the plus side, it is amazing.  If you find yourself tossing and turning, unable to get comfortable, this might be a good solution.  I just love how it contours my entire body from head to toe.  I feel like it hugs me from ever angle.  The fact that it's all around you is also super helpful when you want to turn around in the middle of the night.  No matter which way I face (there are only 2 options by this point), the pillow is always there for me.  I love the thickness because it aleviates the pressure on my back, allowing me to sleep even better.

Overall, if I had to do it all over again I might go for the pillow that's on one side of your body like tihs one:

I think it'd be easier to get up in the middle of the night.

But I don't know if it would allow me to sleep as amazing as I do now.  I do love my pillow and I'm super glad I gave in and bought it.

Iberostar Bavaro

Jon and I have been on a few vacations.  We went to Cancun when we first got together, Aruba for our honeymoon, Cali, Russia and now Dominican Republic.  This resort might be my favorite among all those vacations.

Iberostar Bavaro in Punta Cana is the place to be if you want gorgeous scenery, fun animals or birds, amazing big pools, long white sandy beaches, lots of salty water (if you're into that kinda thing), delicious food, entertainment in various places and for various ages and interests, and so much more.

This is the lobby view from the walk to the pool.

And here is what you see if you turn 180 degrees.  And there's Laura. Hi Laura!  Our room is a couple of blocks toward the beach and on the right.

These are just some of the creatures that roam the grounds.  We are all well aware that these are flamingos, but thanks to Jon, we all continued to call them pelicans throughout the vacation.

The pelicans often joined us for breakfast.  They loved cheese!  We tried feeding them everything from salami to bread, but they only took cheese and they took it right out of our hands.  It was kind of cool.

Generally, the flamingos were actually kind of dumb.  They spent the majority of their time either fighting with one another or moving little rocks from one place to another.

Here are some other creatures that often joined us for breakfast.  The cranes always look confused like you just called out their name and they're surprised to see you.  Then they bend their necks, stare at the water, and grab some fish.  They don't like cheese.

Here is some more scenery.  The stuff on the left is the Big Boy Buffet as Laura kept calling it, while on the right is the covered walkway that helped us walk around to our various restaurants without getting wet when it rained.

These are bananas.  They were in the courtyard.

The bananas have these weirdo big flowers at the bottom.  We honestly had no idea that this is how the bananas grew.

I mean we knew they grew on trees like this, but we didn't know about these weirdo flowers.

My daring husband poked one.

These were my favorite flowers.  They were puuuurty.

This is the walk to our room.

This is our room - it was on the second floor.  We liked it that way.

This is our room and the very comfy bed.

And a very convenient sitting area with one of my awesome towel birds.  This is how you know the hotels are really good - when they leave you nice towel birds with my favorite purty flowers.

The balcony was totally awesome too!  We spent almost every morning and every night out here, just enjoying the cool morning and night air.

The pool was huge and gorgeous.  On the right is the deep end where we sat and dipped our feet in.  Straight ahead is the smaller buffet with a bar and a swim-up bar.  Every day they had various activities around the pool from rifle shooting, "the drinking of the beer" contests, BINGO in over 6 languages, some funky game where people tried to run into the pool on a floating mat, and many many other games.  They started early and went on almost all day.  We participated in a couple of them.

They also had this crazy huge chess set.  I have very little idea about how to play chess, so we left this one for the other vacationers.

Jon and Alex participated in the drinking of the beers.  They lost.  To 14 year old boys.  From Belgium.

Just beyond the pool is the beach.  We walked around in every direction and this beach was by the the longest and widest.  The sand was clear white.  The water was see-through.

In the water were awesome little boats that made for some pretty cool pictures.

Parts of our beach were covered with cabanas that provided those of us that are naturally blond and fair and burn easily with shade and comfort.  Unfortunately, to get one of these we had to get up early and claim our spot with some strategically arranged towels.

Some of the more coveted cabanas were in the front and provided us with this view.  Thankfully, Jon and I rarely like to sleep in on our vacations.  Ah.  Gotta love the ocean from this far away. 

I really like flowers.  These were in the lobby.

Oh! Almost forgot.  For the avid golfers, Iberostar Bavaro provided a golf course that spanned for miles.  I ran along it in the morning and I swear it never ended.  There is also a gym, a spa, some jacuzzi, massages on the beach under shaded tents, palm trees galore and so much more.  I'm packing up my stuff to go back right now.

Tomorrow will be my last installation about our vacation for the time being.  While on vacation, Jon and I went on a tour of Dominican Republic and saw the "real" DR.

But more importantly, we saw how chocolate grows and gets processed.  Yum!