FeedReader

I'm going to go out on a limb here and deviate a bit from the usual posting of kiddy pictures and talk of kisses, etc. I'm going to do something even more manly than this...yes, I'm going to comment on a handy piece of technology.

So, I've been using FeedReader to keep track of all some of my favorite blogs. I realize this (or similar apps) may not be news to you. But, if you're saying, "huh...reader what?", then read on. Here's a screenprint:


It's basically a little application that allows you to put links to all your favorite blogs in one place (see the left pane in the screenprint), and to organize them into folders (I have my business news blogs in a separate folder from my family and friends blogs). When a blog title is bolded, that means there's a new post. The FeedReader will show all the posts for the blog (see top center). Clicking on the posting title will bring up the blog in the lower window.

If you want to visit the blog in your web browser, you just click on the button. But, here's the best feature of all in my opinion. . .when there's a new blog post available for any of the blogs you subscribe to, you have a little cube in the bottom right of your desktop screen that turns yellow! It's amazing...I don't have to spend time clicking around different blogs to see if there is a new post. You might do that for a month to catch a post on our blog. I just wait for the little cube to light up, and I can instantly go see what's new with friends and family.


Now, a question: FeedReader is pretty plain and simple, and free. Does anyone use a different reader that you really like. If so, comment on this blog and let me know...

Alright, back to the fluffy stuff...

Hello again! Sorry for the delay...

Our last post was a month ago...I think we can all pretty much agree: Jeff and Julie are lame bloggers! Or, is the lack of posts simply because "we're too busy kissing?" (when we were first married, this was our answering machine message).

Well, you know. When we were first married, we really were too busy kissing. Now though, our blog time is down simply due to work and keeping the kids happy. OK, I'll come clean -- some kissing too.

Anyway, on to the good stuff:

NEW NIKON D80:
Yesterday, we finally received our new digital SLR camera, and we're very excited to figure out what we're doing with it -- no clue at the moment. We both think we'll enjoy learning about photography together, so we made the jump (i.e., fairly large investment) and got some decent equipment. Hoping it sticks as a hobby.

We think it's a good thing (here I go, justifying this purchase -- minor guilt complex) that we always have a hobby of some kind together, or that we're building a skill, or learning a subject that we both find useful and/or interesting. When we were back at BYU, we signed up for pistol shooting instructions at a local gun range. Our instructor, Ken, helped us understand the ins and outs of handgun safety, maintenance, and shooting. We had the opportunity to shoot several calibers and many types of pistols. After this, we went through an NRA-sponsored marksmanship course, and we both attained a level of proficiency in shooting that we're really proud of.

That experience taught us that it's good to have something that we can accomplish together; something that neither of us was really familiar with. So, now we're trying out photography (a different kind of "shooting" activity).


Here are a few shots we took today -- nothing fancy, just "Auto" mode at this point:

That is one happy girl...both of them!

Sienna looks somewhat happy here, but really
she does not like being on her tummy.



...she does like to be on her back though...
...as long as you're in her face.



Ethan being a good big brother... giving a kiss. Sienna
was just crying before this picture, so we gave her a
pacifier, and Ethan said, "You just need calm down." It was awesome!

SNOW IN SEATTLE:
Last night, it snowed several inches where we live. Ethan and I (Jeff) wasted no time -- the snow comes and goes very fast in Seattle. We put daddy's snow hat on him, and mommy's gloves (we haven't bought him snow gear yet), and out we went. Ethan was really captivated by all the little branches and bushes being covered in snow.

Here's Ethan's first 'snowman' -- not quite large enough to give Ethan bad dreams at night:

And now, it's nigh-nigh time...