For some reason, my mom canceled our Easter get together. I am not quite sure why she did that, but I feel guilty for saying that I was sort of relieved. Maybe I was sending her subliminal negative messages when we were initially planning the celebration. She said it was because they needed to get ready for a wedding they were attending out of town. Which they won't be leaving for until Thursday (4 more days) and will only be gone for the weekend. Either they are just getting old and need more time for planning, or that was a very weak excuse.
Instead, some of our neighbors planned a little celebration at the neighborhood tot park near our house. We each had to bring 10 eggs for each child the night before to the organizer's house. We arrived at the park today at 11, and there were lots and lots of eggs all over the park area scattered around. I don't know if you can count eggs lying in the grass two feet away from each other as being "hidden", but the little kids had fun running around and acting surprised. Everyone was supposed to bring some food to share for a pot luck. Apparently we don't go to pot lucks very often because the girls were baffled as to what a pot luck was. They kept wanting to call it a pot roast. I guess it is good that we are starting to socialize with more of our neighbors.
Today I am blogging for some ideas and opinions from the three of you that read this thing. We are shopping for a couple different things and I am in the research phase. First, we are thinking of getting a Mac. Gasp! I know, moving away from the PC platform is a big risk. I tried to do it in 2000 and ended up selling my iMac on eBay 2 months later. I really want to try this again. I want to use the Mac for photo organizing and archiving (more on this later) as well as web surfing and school work. We will continue to keep our PC, but I want a computer for my very own. Which brings me to the next question - desktop or laptop? I am leaning towards a desktop because if my goal is photo driven then I need the guts that come along with a desktop. However, I did want it somewhat portable so I could surf the internet in bed or on the kitchen island. Lucky for me, the iMac desktop has integrated wireless so I won't need to connect to the wall for internet. It is also basically one cord for power and nothing else. I won't be plugging it into the printer because our printer is on our network. So, if I was feeling brave, I could carry the 20 lb monitor around the house praying that I don't drop it and break it. Strangely enough, this is what I am leaning towards. Ah, but then I see those amazing commercials for the MacBook Air and think that I really have to have a laptop that can fit into an envelope. That thing is so cool and small. I could literally carry it around in my purse like an oversized wallet. So maybe I should get that instead...your thoughts?
Since my goal is to organize all our old photos, I need a new scanner. I have one that is about 8 years old and it is an Epson Flatbed scanner. For the most part it works okay, but the software it comes with is AWFUL. It crashes all the time, overwrites photos it just scanned, and all around makes me want to throw it into a wall. I thought maybe I should look into a new scanner for the upgraded pixels that are available and hopefully better written software. Unfortunately all the reviews are about 6-8 years old and it seems that with each new model, Epson hasn't fixed their software problems. So, if any of you out there have a fantastic scanner (I need to scan photos, 35mm film negatives, and slides in one machine, if possible) I would love to hear it!
I guess that is enough ranting about the Caballero frivilous buying frenzy. On to more interesting gossip and insights into our strange household.
The girls were on Spring Break all last week. About two weeks ago, Felipe mentioned to the kids that he wanted to do something fun with them over spring break and maybe take them to California to Legoland. Unfortunately, there were some big things that happened at SRP and he was unable to take the time off. Wise woman that I am, I foresaw this happening light years away. Back when he told the girls he might be able to take them to Legoland, I told him it wasn't a good idea to get that into their head. He insisted that the kids understood that he said *might* and they wouldn't get so wrapped up in the idea. Uh huh, right. Needless to say, we had to do some damage control since Californ-I-A was off the table. I told the kids that on Friday we could all go and do whatever they wanted for the whole day. We called it an Arizona Vacation Day. We went to new places (so it felt like vacation) and basically let the kids decide what to do. For breakfast we went out to eat bagels and then we proceeded on toward Tempe Marketplace. We had never been there and thought it would be fun to try. It is an outdoor shopping plaza and the day was just beautiful at 80 degrees. As soon as we got there the kids saw the Harkins theaters and decided that they wanted to see a movie. We saw Horton Hears a Who in the Cine Capri theater. I hadn't been to the new Cine Capri, which is a revised theater from the original Cine Capri in Phoenix, but it didn't disappoint. It was beautiful with all the seats laid out in a manner so that everyone had a good viewing angle. The large velvetly curtains made it seem regal and old fashioned too. Felipe didn't have a clue that the theater was any different than any others he had been to, so I guess it didn't make much of an impression on him. Anyway, the movie was adorable. I hadn't seen any previews are any ideas of what it was about, so I had no expectations. I really liked it.
After the movie, we wandered around to As You Wish, which is one of those pottery places where you paint pottery and leave it with them to put it in the kiln. Each one of us picked a piece to work on. Sadly, of all four of us, mine looked the worst. I rather expected it, as I am NOT creative at all. Worse yet, I am impatient, which makes for a terrible artist. I think Felipe had the most fun. He is the artist in the family and he really enjoyed spending a lot of time on his project. He is as excited as a little boy to pick up the finished pottery. We pick them up on Tuesday, and if I remember, I will post some photos of our work.
After painting, we went to dinner at a new restaurant and went shopping for toys and clothes. I think we spent at least two hours in one store so the kids could stare at WebKinz to decide which ones to buy. For those of you parents who don't know what WebKinz are, you soon will. And if it isn't a WebKinz, it will be something else.
One super long day, all about the kids. In the end though it was all about our family, because for a very rare moment in time we weren't trying to balance work, answer our cell phones, rush the kids through their projects, or hurry home to do chores. I think we all had a great time.
~cc
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3 comments:
I really liked your post. The Arizona family fun day sounded great. It's nice to give the kids a day where they get to do whatever they want. God knows I drag Sam around to run my errands, passing by places he'd love to visit like parks, libraries and his favorite: car dealerships.
On the great Mac vs. Windows debate... I've been meaning to write a blog post entitled "Why I love Apple products (but rarely purchase them)" or something to that effect. I think iPods are great, iPhones look really cool, iTunes is a great application, and the AppleTV even looks intriguing. However, although Macs look great- all of the coolness goes down the drain the first time you run into a wierdo Mac-specific issue.
I think that one of the worst things about Macs, ironically, is photo management. That is because iPhoto *sucks*, and since Macs are still such a minority there aren't a lot of other choices out there for Photo management software. Picasa is so much better, and they don't make it for Macs. Safari also sucks, but they do make Firefox for the Mac so that helps.
That said, when I go into an Apple store I drool all over the iMacs, the MacBook Air's and even the MacBooks. They look so cool! But these days, I measure ease of use with 1 hand. As in- I have Will in one arm and I want to upload a single image from our camera, resize it so it isn't so huge, attach it as an inline attachment to an E-mail and send it. For a number of reasons, it takes me much less time to perform that task on my Windows laptop than it would on Deanna's 3-year-old iBook.
If I had a nickel for every time Deanna complained of flaky behavior on her iBook, I'd probably have about $20 by now. Each time she has a gripe, I come over with a "Bah, you must be doing it wrong- let me show you show you how to work this thing" attitude. Each time, I end up spending longer than I'd like trying to figure out why the computer is so darn quirky.
But they're so pretty. When you think about them sitting in your home they're a beautiful addition as opposed to the black boxes and wires associated with most PCs. When you start looking at Windows desktops and even notebooks, they all look so darn ugly in comparison. Where to turn? Sony? Expensive! Dell? Boring! What to do?
Desktop or notebook? Tough call. For me, I'd say a notebook. Add a flat panel later if you want one- the prices are always dropping.
Check out the Dell XPS M1330. If I had to get a computer right now, that's probably where I'd look first.
Hey Christy!
I'm gonna comment twice since my memory is so lame, I'll forget what to write about your computer issue, and whatever.
First of all, it looks like "bob" has a lot of suggestions for you. Having never owned an Apple computer, I can't speak from experience. I have often wondered if I could make the switch. However, I don't think I ever will. Just curious is all. Like you said...that new AirMac is so incredibly appealing! My current laptop is now a grandma (at 4 years old) and is quite clunky. I would love a new streamlined machine, with more than 30 gigs of hard drive!
I don't know. I think there are so many other programs and applications out there for media that it's not "necessary" to get a Mac just for that. I agree, the desktops are cleaner and less "cordy", but I guess you just have to weigh the pros and cons. I think they are a bit pricey too. Same reason I would never buy an iPod for myself (although my sister bought me one for my b-day a couple of years ago!)...there are just too many other good options out there that cost less. Not to mention the compatibility issues. Yeah. I vote for you NOT to get a Mac.
*okay...on to read the next part of your post! Cheers!*
Ahhh, what a cute vacation! I've never been to the Tempe Marketplace (I don't think...have I? When did it open...where is it?).
You BETTER post pictures of your pottery! I'll bet the girls had a great time with the both of you!
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