After a hiatus last week, Happiness Is is back! 

To play along, just write a post with two things that made you happy this week (or more. If you're rule defier. Hehe.), with a link to me/the Happiness Is button. Then come back here and link up!

Remember, if I don't get more than 5 link ups, Happiness Is will be closing for an unidentified amount of time.

<div align="center"><a href="http://pastors-girl.blogspot.com"><img alt="Happiness Is..." src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1064/4732886685_1331802b43_m.jpg" /></a></div>

Happiness is...

...spending time with my sisters. I took a bath with them last night (don't worry, I had a swimsuit on ;)), and I realized how precious these moments with them are right now. Soon they're going to be all grown up and they're not going to want to spend time with their big sister. MeMe was jabbering on about how "People are just so fat these days!" and how I'm "like those girls, you know, those teenagers with long hair and blue eyes. Sometimes green eyes. Those ones that always are hilarious and love laughing. And the ones that are fashionable!". Lilly told me that she liked her skin better. My skin had "all those sprinkles on it" (i.e. pimples. Thanks, Lilly. I only have about four!).

I just closed my eyes, squeezed Lilly tighter - who was sitting on my lap - and just relished the moment. 

...driving on rural Oklahoma roads. There's just something about the brilliantly blue sky, the lush vegetation, and the old bridges that I love.

What has made you happy this week? Link up and let me know (or leave me a comment if you don't want to write a post)!

-carlotta

It's that time again (Already?! Didn't it seem that school just started last year?)...back to school.

Back to learning new things. Back to tests.

Back to pencils, homework, and teacher's dirty looks (I couldn't resist!). Back to reading Ancient Egyptian Literature. Okay, maybe not. But that's one of the things I have to read ;)

Back to fresh, clean notebooks. Back to textbooks.

(Above is my pink entry for Raw(e))

Back to schedules, and if you're not homeschooled, back to rushing from class to class.

Although I'm probably going to change my mind on January 24th at 1:12 pm*, I kind of like getting back to school right now. Even though I'm homeschooled (more like online schooled and self taught with my mom checking on me once a week), I'm going to try to stick to a more rigid schedule this year. We'll see if that lasts ;)

Have you started school yet? Are you glad to be back in the rhythm, or would you rather be doing anything but school?

-carlotta

*This date and time have no significance. They were just picked randomly.

PS I'm only 8 followers away from 300! Eight! Do you think you guys could help me make it to 300? Please? :)

EDIT: People! You've done it again! I am now at 300 followers! Eeeekkk!

These candid photos

aren't the best in the world,

but they're precious to me. 

They show MeMe...the goofy, silly, braid and swimsuit wearing MeMe.

MeMe...my sister. 

I love you, MeMe :)

Do you have any siblings? If so, do you take silly photos of them too? 

-carlotta

No, I don't have a reason for putting the 5 in parentheses. I just thought it looked cool ;)

Haven't heard enough about food photography lately on my blog? Well buckle up and hang on for the ride - you're about to hear about it more! ;)

On my crazy, random, food-filled post a few days ago, many of you said that I take such great pictures of food. (Aww, thanks! Y'all make me blush :))
I thought I'd share a few of my tips...with a little guidance, anyone can take photos (and I don't mean that to sound like I'm bragging) like me...or even better ones!

1. good lighting. This is probably the most important thing - the one that either makes or breaks a photo. Natural lighting is best. I go into our sunroom and take most of my food shots there on a small table in front of the biggest panel of glass. I realize you may not have a sunroom, but I recommend lugging your dish outside to get the best shots. If you're too lazy (and I've done this before, don't worry :)), try going right by a window.
Just make sure - that whenever you're taking pictures outside - to not get directly in the sunlight, which washes out colors and doesn't make food look appetizing.

2. no flash. Oh gosh. Next to good lighting, this is second most important thing. DO NOT, under any circumstances, USE YOUR ON CAMERA FLASH. Don't don't don't. This is one of my biggest pet peeves - when people use their on camera flash just because the camera has it. 99.9 percent of the time, it does not enhance a photo. Just like in direct sunlight, it washes out the subject - but it looks even worse, since it's artificial light. I think I've used the flash on my camera once or twice. Really.


3. get creative with angles. Get up and close with the food. Experiment with different positions. The picture doesn't always have to be taken from above!  I often handhold the plate I have the food on and move it around to make it a bit easier to snap the picture...it saves me from getting down on the floor ;)

4. make the food look pretty. How can your photos be good ones if the food presentation is awful? Go the extra mile and place the food on the dish so it's not broken, etc. Try your best to arrange it a little artfully. And if there are smudged bits of food on the plate (even if it only happened 10 seconds ago), wipe it off.

5. simple backgrounds. Have very, very simple backgrounds. If your camera can do it, blur out anything that doesn't have to do with the food. If you take a picture in a crowded, cluttered place, the food is not the star. And you want the food to be the star, don't you? Focus entirely on your dish. (And by "dish" I don't mean the plate, bowl, etc :))

(I know I've posted these photos of the pig ice cream sandwich before, but I had to do it again. It's just so darn cute!)

Let me know if you have any questions :)

Happy food photography-ing! 

-carlotta