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Friday, December 23, 2011

Christmas Lights

Tonight Damon and I went downtown to check out the Zilker Park Christmas Tree. We grabbed some hot chocolate and kettle corn and walked around. There were so many people, but it was fun all the same!





Saturday, December 17, 2011

Dozer's Graduation

A few weeks ago, Dozer graduated from the training class we had been taking him to at PetSmart. They clearly don't fail anybody, because there is no way Dozer should have passed. Either way, seeing him in his graduation hat was so adorable, and made the past 6 weeks of torture almost worth it.



Saturday, November 12, 2011

Photo Friday: One

It's been quite some time since I've participated in Photo Friday, so I thought I'd submit one. This week's challenge is "one."

Click below to see the photo!

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Fall is here...

...the leaves are changing, the temperatures are dropping (hey, 80s are better than 100) and all of the seasonal treats are back on the menus! This is my favorite time of year. Here are a few pictures I took while Damon and I were walking Dozer last week.



Saturday, September 24, 2011

Pecan Street Festival

This week my mom and my aunt came to visit us in the great state of Texas! The weather was mild "in the 90s" and we had a good time. They planned their trip perfectly because we were able to visit the Pecan Street Festival this weekend. I had never heard of it or been before, but it is a festival that takes place downtown and features lots of vendors, food & great music. There is also, of course never a shortage of interesting things to look at!
Fried gator anyone?
lots of arts & crafts vendors

this little boy was so cute!! a clown was making him a balloon animal-he was so excited!
trailer covered in ash trays donated by those who have quit smoking
 not sure what was under his "cape," but I didn't stick around to find out....

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Sleepy Dozer

I think it is pretty well known that bulldogs are considered to be "lazy" dogs. Some of my favorite times of Dozer are when he is his sleepiest. These pictures were taken the day after we picked him up from being boarded for one day... he barely moved the entire day!




Sunday, August 28, 2011

Happy Anniversary!

This weekend was our 1 year anniversary -- it is crazy how fast the time flies. Our first year consisted of sprucing up our first home, getting a puppy and moving to Texas... and I wouldn't change a thing! I had only one request when my husband first asked me what I wanted to do to celebrate, that he plan and organize it. He probably had a minor heart attack at first, but he definitely came through and surprised me with an amazing weekend.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from our wedding:

Monday, August 22, 2011

Dozer turns [one]

Time sure flies when you're having fun... isn't that what they say? Either way, time goes on, and it has been a whole YEAR since our precious little puppy was born. Dozer has really been our pride and joy over the last year, and I don't know what we'd do without him. He's chewed up shoes, pillows, and even our couch, but nothing compares to the feeling you get when you come home to his excited-self. I love this dog and Damon & I wanted to make sure he got the best birthday possible. Since his birthday fell during the week (August 23) we decided to celebrate over the weekend.

We know that bulldogs aren't really known for swimming -- but we thought we would take him anyways :) We went to Barton Springs to let him play in the water, and it was hilarious. He loved the water, but cannot swim at all. We'll get him a life jacket for our next trip! click the link below the first picture to check out more pictures....

Father & Son -- going swimming!

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Kayaking

Yesterday was the perfect day to do some kayaking--it was overcast, breezy, and not too hot. Damon and I headed to Town Lake yesterday to try our hand at kayaking. We had a great time. It was so amazing to be kayaking in such a serene location, yet, if you looked up, you would see the skyline of the city. Hopefully this is something we will do again!

Here are a few pictures of our adventure:





Saturday, July 30, 2011

Round Rock Express

Last night we decided to go to a Round Rock Express game at the Dell Diamond. It was a little over cast with a strong wind, so the temperatures were almost perfect. There is just something about the atmosphere at a baseball game that is amazing, there is no other feeling like it.

The stadium was pretty cool, but I obviously didn't go to watch the game. I prefer to spend my time gorging myself on food and people watching. There was plenty of both of these things going on last night. This stadium had philly cheese steaks and funnel cakes-WOW!! I think it is pretty obvious what my food choices from last night were...

Anyway, feel free to check out some of our pictures from the game.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Barton Creek Greenbelt

Yesterday Damon & I decided to go hiking on the Barton Greek Greenbelt. There are almost 8 miles of hiking/biking trails and the entire area spans over 800 acres. We only hiked about 2 miles in, but we definitely are going to go back!

Saturday, July 23, 2011

SURPRiSE!

Last weekend I made a surprise trip to Indiana to help celebrate my brother (25) & dad's (50) birthdays. There was a country/cowboy theme to the party, and it was so adorable. Check out some of the pictures...

Sunday, July 17, 2011

lions and tigers and bats, oh my!

So far Damon & I are loving living in Austin. We have been exploring this new city of ours taking on all the touristy activities. A few weekends ago we decided to head over to the Congress Avenue bridge to see these famous bats. Since the bats don't come out until sunset, we thought we'd head down early to check out some of the food trailers and sights in SoCo...

Shaved Ice! Delicious!
BEST cupcakes ever (and I know cupcakes!)
Waiting for a cupcake

its so dry & hot here even the cacti are dying...

loved this sign outside Freebirds
Full of shaved ice and cupcakes, we head over to the bridge to check out these bats. There are reports that up to 1.5 million bats live under the bridge, making it the largest bat colony in North America. Every night around sunset, the bats emerge to feed. The sight of these bats was amazing, but the noise... not so much! Click below to check out some pictures.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Barton Creek Farmers Market

We've officially been in Austin for almost three weeks and part of me still feels like we are on vacation! While living in an apartment has it downfalls, there is definitely something we are taking advantage of, all of the extra time on our hands. Back in Indy, we always spent our weekends cutting the grass, planting flowers or fixing something that was broken... now, we don't have to worry about any of that! We are taking advantage of our extra time and trying to see everything that Austin has to offer.




Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Austin!

I have really been slacking on the blog posts lately, and for that I apologize! Things in the Acton household have been extremely crazy, especially the last 72 hours. Our small family is getting ready to make the biggest transition of our lives thus far--we are moving to Austin. This is something we have been thinking and praying about for quite sometime, and now everything is falling in to place. Damon and I have both accepted positions in the area, and we will be moving in the next three weeks.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Backyard Fun

One of the most wonderful things (not really) about living in Indiana, is the heat and humidity that can come out of no where. My husband and I took Dozer for a walk last night and holy cow was it humid! I felt so bad for Doz, so I suggested that we let him play in the backyard with the hose for awhile. I'm not really sure what I was thinking--I am not a fan of wet dog smell. Anyway, he had a blast, and that is all that matters!

Check out his latest pictures, he is getting to be such a big boy!

Friday, April 29, 2011

Design Work

Along with recently becoming interested in photography, I have also become interested in design work. I recently took a series of workshops through IUPUI's IT Training & Education Program. The series was on desktop publishing fundamentals and covered the basics of InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator while also discussing page layout techniques. It was honestly one of the most beneficial classes/workshops that I have ever attended. It is so amazing how easy it was to pay attention and learn when you are actually interested in the topic being discussed. Even though I learned a lot, there is still a TON more out there.

My newest page is called "Design Work," and it will focus mainly on some of the work that I have done. I know I am still an amateur at this, but is something I truly enjoy doing. If anybody out there needs anything designed for them, please let me know! I am always willing to help.

Check it out by clicking here or just click on the tab at the top of your screen.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Minimalist

Minimalist is the theme for this week's Photo Friday challenge. I decided that I would go ahead and try to do something a little different this week, so I thought I would try to stage a photo to match the challenge.

When I started thinking about what I wanted the final shot to look like, I asked myself what I thought the word even meant. To me, being a minimalist is having a "less is more" attitude. That is why for this particular photo, I decided to only use a piece of a fruit/vegetable (depending on what your personal take on a tomato is!).

Although it may not be considered a "natural" shot, I am still pleased with the way it turned out. The only light used was from a nearby window, and I love the natural glow it casts. I also love the condensation that started appearing on the tomato.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone!

Easter was a little different for us this year since we didn't really have any big plans with any family--so I decided to create a mini-Easter dinner for my husband, brother and his wife. I'm no Rachael Ray, but I think the meal turned out to be pretty delicious!

My favorite part of the meal were these chocolate Easter nests that I made for dessert. They are not as pretty as they should have been, but they were still delicious. Check out the recipe for these yummy little treats here!


Sunday, April 17, 2011

[SPRiNG]

"No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow"

That is something I try to remind myself of every winter. For those of you who live in nice, warm climates, you may not understand...but winter in Indiana can sometimes be rough. See my "Iceapalooza" post if you don't believe me!

Anyways, the weather has finally started getting above freezing (yes, I consider that to be warm) and flowers are starting to bloom, what a wonderful time to venture outside...

Friday, April 15, 2011

Lines

This week's challenge for Photo Friday is "lines." Since I took some pictures yesterday, I actually had a few to choose from. I was amazed at how many different photo opportunities there were just from walking around in my neighborhood. The reason I took this photo was because I loved the way the blades of grass formed so many different long lines.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Dozer

It is hard to believe that our precious little puppy is almost 8 months old. It really makes me wonder "where does the time go?" In case anyone forgot, this is what little Dozer used to look like:


Since the weather has finally gotten a little bit nicer, I decided to head outside and take some photos. Check out the rest of this post to see my pictures of Dozer from today!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

John F. Kennedy

Since we were visiting the great state of Texas, we thought we would do a detour to Dallas so we could check out some of the JFK monuments. They have an amazing exhibit at the 6th Floor Museum [what used to be the Book Depository]. The audio tour is so informative and gives some really great perspective on not only the assassination, but also on the Kennedy family.

I was never a real history buff in school so my eyes always glazed over whenever topics like this were discussed. I am so glad we decided to visit the museum because I learned so much in the short time we were there. If you are ever in the area, I highly recommend stopping by. It is a very humbling experience, regardless of how you feel about the Kennedy family.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Now THAT is a donut!

When we began planning our trip to Texas, my husband immediately began searching the web to see if Adam Richman [from the Travel Channel's Man v. Food] had recommended any delicious eateries in the area. Boy were we in luck. One of the places that caught our eye was a place called Round Rock Donuts. This place looked amazing! You can check out Adam's recap here.

I wouldn't exactly classify myself as being a "healthy" eater, but I have definitely been trying to cut back on sweets. This means that eating donuts is a rarity in our household. This Round Rock Donuts place was something that we just had to try. We obviously had to order the Texas Sized Round Rock Donut, and this donut definitely keeps with the saying "everything is bigger in Texas."

Words can't really describe how insane this donut was! Check out my pictures and let me know what you think!

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Texas State Capitol

Another amazing place that was a "must see" while in Texas was the State Capitol. It was absolutely gorgeous. We spent our first day in Austin just walking around downtown when we stumbled on the Capitol. We definitely made a point to come back the next day so we could check out the grounds and the inside. There were so many details all over the grounds and the building that represented Texas pride.

[FUN FACT] There is a law in Texas that prohibits any structures or buildings from being built that would interfere with the view of the Capitol building.

Here are some of my favorite photos of the Capitol building--we had amazing weather while we were there!

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Mellow Johnny's

As I mentioned last week, Damon & I recently made a trip to Texas for a little R&R--well, that's actually a lie, if you know anyone in the Acton family, you know that their vacations rarely contain much rest or relaxation. All the same, we took a trip to Texas!

One of the things that Damon was most excited about was making a trip to Mellow Johnny's. For those who don't know, Mellow Johnny's is a bike shop that Lance Armstrong created in downtown Austin. Damon has a huge man-crush on Lance, so this was one of our top "have to see" items while in town. Lance is a huge inspiration for Damon, so I thought what the heck. It was actually an amazing place to see. Lance memorabilia is displayed all over the shop and it has an awesome atmosphere [it almost made me want a road bike, then I remembered my coordination and clumsiness...]

Turbulent

This week's Photo Friday challenge is "Turbulent." The thing that I associate most with this word, is airplanes! So I decided to use a photo that I took a few weeks ago while we were flying home from Texas--the sun was just beginning to set.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Open

This week's Photo Friday challenge is "Open." I decided to use a picture that I took last week while I was visiting Austin, TX. We did all sorts of touristy things while we were there, including checking out the State Capitol. No offense to Indiana's, but wow, was this place beautiful.

One of the things I loved the most about the Capitol building in Texas was all of the detail. From the doornobs to the chairs, Texas Pride could be seen everywhere. This picture not only shows one of my favorite details in the building, but I also think it fits the "open" challenge well. Hopefully I will be posting some more of my favorite pictures from the trip soon.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Cupcake

A few weeks ago, my husband and I visited a pet store that had some of the most adorable pet treats I have ever seen.  We decided to get Dozer some [not that the fatso needs any!] of the cute treats.  I picked out this cupcake because it so closely resembled one that I would eat.

I attempted to capture Dozer as he was eating it, so here is what I got.

Contrast

This week's Photo Friday challenge was contrast. The picture I decided to use was one that I took back in October while visiting my sister-in-law in California.  There was some washed up seaweed on the beach that looked pretty ugly in color, but I thought it might look interesting in black and white.

Seaweed

Monday, February 7, 2011

Superbowl

This photo is along the same lines for editing from the "Self Portrait" picture in the post before this one. Since it was Superbowl Sunday, I thought it could be interesting to portray what [in my opinion] most Americans look like on this particular day.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Me, Myself, & I

This week's Photo Friday challenge is "Self Portrait." Oh boy.  Not exactly something I was looking forward to.  I thought I would take a different approach to this challenge by doing a multi-person portrait. WARNING: this is my first attempt ever at doing something like this, and I know it needs a lot of work, but I guess I need to start somewhere.

This picture captures a few of the things that I spend most of my time doing on a daily basis:
  1. I love to spend my free time [when I have some] reading.
  2. I spend a lot of time on my computer or my phone--but a lot of that time is spent staying in touch with my family and friends--and those people are very important to me.
  3. Lastly, thanks to my husband, I spend a lot of time at the gym.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Photo Challenges

I have been trying to think of an idea [besides this blog] to hold me responsible for taking more photos, and I stumbled upon two different sites, one is called Photo Friday, and the other one is through Flickr.  They both are centered around the idea of a weekly theme or challenge.  What a great idea! I am really hoping that this helps me out.

This past week's challenge on Photo Friday is "Travels" so I decided to go with this old picture.


This photo was taken back in August of 2008 on a trip to NYC with my mom and younger brother.  We spent a few days touring the city, making a stop at Pier 17 where this photo was taken.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Meet Dozer


Dozer is our insanely crazy English bulldog puppy, and I don't even think crazy does him justice.

Unless you have actually met him, he is a little hard to explain.  Ever since I met my husband, he has wanted a bulldog that he could name Dozer. For the longest time I told him that it would be best to wait until after we got married to get a dog...I thought I was in the clear. Not so much. 

Iceapalooza

Who doesn't love central Indiana's weather?  Last night most of Indianapolis got blasted with a severe ice storm. Just take a look at the radar from this afternoon...it seems a little ridiculous. The roads were so bad that my work was even closed for the day!


Since there was not much to do, I bundled up to head out to our garage to attempt to spread some salt on our sidewalks and stairs. I stepped outside and instantly realized the eeriness that surrounded me.  No noises.  No one to be seen anywhere.  As soon as I looked around, I saw the ice that completely covered everything outside.  From the power lines, to tree branches, to the gutters to the chain link fence.  I had entered an icy wonderland. I immediately pushed salting the sidewalks to the back-burner [which I regretted later] and decided to grab my camera. 

Really, a blog?

So I am not going to lie, I am not considering myself to be a "blogger." Actually, I don't even know what that means.  My husband recently created a blog to help keep him dedicated to his triathlon training [shameless plug-damonacton.blogspot.com] so really I am just copying him, don't tell.

Not too long ago, I decided to purchase a dSLR camera.  I have no idea how to use it,  I don't even understand photoshop, but I thought "what the heck?" and decided to buy it anyways.  I've only used it a few times since I bought it which is really a shame.  I am attempting to learn how to use it, and I thought that having a blog might help keep me dedicated.  So we will see where this actually goes.

I have always been interested in photography, and I think that might stem from my dad. I always saw his interest in the hobby while growing up [he took my senior pictures in high school], and now I am actually trying to do it for myself.  I know I will never be considered a "professional," but that does not bother me at all.  My husband is always telling me to find a hobby, so maybe this is mine.  If nothing else, I find shooting relaxing and rewarding for myself, which is really the only thing that matters.

Feel free to follow me on this journey and see where it goes. I am always interested in and looking for tips, tricks and advice, so please help me!