On a lighter note...

I took today off from work because it's been three whole weeks since we went camping and I am not accustomed to being in the office that many days in a row. (Poor, pitiful me. Hey, I've got tons of FTO, I intend to use it.) After a morning doctor visit and a long nap, we went out to the Grapevine Botanical Gardens to take some outdoor family portraits. MommaLlama was lookin' fly and the boys were very sharp in their new jeans and polo shirts. We obviously opted for a more casual look this year, maybe we'll do formal portraits next time. Perhaps one of these will make our Christmas card this year.

Then we went to the pumpkin patch. We opted out of the $5 per person corn maze (maize maze?), but the kids had fun running around and playing with a wagon. I am so pleased with my new flash and its ability to softly fill the entire outdoor scene and eliminate harsh shadows. I'm still working on my technique (and want a couple more gadgets - wireless shutter release and a diffuser) but overall I'm really happy. Here are a couple of shots from today.