About

This blog is powered by WordPress, sweet tea, gummy bears, Nikon, Photoshop, Lightroom, and bloggable moments provided by my husband and our eight children. I hope it substitutes in some small way for incomplete baby books and unfilled photo albums.

My web design business is Barefoot Blog Designs, and I write for (in)courage, The Homeschool Post, Blissfully Domestic, and Heart of the Matter. I have a hopelessly neglected photoblog now that I’ve decided to quit trying to compartmentalize that side of me, so I post photos to my heart’s content right here.

(“About Me” layout inspired by Scott Kelby’s “About” page)

Vital Stats:

Born in Arkansas; resident of Georgia.

Occupation:

Homeschooling mom since 1993; photographer; web designer; blogger.

Dream Job:

I’ve got it: NAPP Evangelist (Type in promo code “DAWN” when joining NAPP and you will get Corey Barker’s “Adobe Photoshop CS4 Design effects” DVD and $10 discount! If you’re a homeschooler, be sure to apply for an Educational Membership.)

Dream Ride:

Apple green VW Beetle

Education:

B.A. in Russian from Emory University; also attended Dartmouth College and University of Arkansas, Ft. Smith.

Last Book(s) Read:

Currently Reading:

An Echo in the Bone: A Novel (Outlander) by Diana Gabaldon

Next Book:

Within the Frame: The Journey of Photographic Vision by David duChemin

Favorite Films: (In no particular order)

While You Were Sleeping, Emma, A Knight’s Tale, The Legend of 1900, Pure Country, Happy Texas, Kate and Leopold, Moonstruck, The Manchurian Candidate (original, not remake), North by Northwest, The Philadelphia Story, Pride and Prejudice (A & E), The Princess Bride, Ray, Sabrina, Say Anything, Spiderman 2, The Terminal, That Thing You Do, Facing the Giants, Ocean’s Eleven, Ocean’s Thirteen. I’m partial to period films and what my husband terms “lovey-dovey suspense.”

I love this movie quote from Alfred Hitchcock: “The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder.”

Favorite Bands/Musicians: (In no particular order)

Alison Krauss, Sting, Ray Charles, Harry Connick, Jr., The Cars, Chris Isaac, Boston, BNL, Crowded House, Faith Hill, Frank Sinatra, George Strait, Gin Blossoms, The Greencards, Montana Skies, Crooked Still.

Favorite Restaurants:

Chili’s, Carrabba’s, Backyard Burger, Swallow at the Hollow, On the Border, Buca di Beppo.

Interests/Hobbies:

Photography; Photoshop; web design; blogging; playing with fonts.

Favorite Foods:

Mexican, mushroom & Swiss burgers, pasta & chicken in Alfredo sauce, chips & salsa, brownies, cheesecake, gummy bears, sweet tea, barbecue, pizza.

Latest Projects:

Learning everything I can about digital photography and my Nikon D80 and enhancing my shots in Photoshop and Lightroom. Learning how to work with magazine layout WordPress themes.

Accomplishments:

Catching a hunk of a guy who still think I’m as hot as he did when I was 18; giving birth to 8 of the cutest kids I’ve ever seen; somehow convincing some really nice people to let me design their sites.

Favorite TV Shows: (in no particular order)

24, Smallville, (I really don’t watch much TV).

Computer Setup:

20″ iMac; 13″ MacBook; OkiData C5150n color laser printer; Canon PIXMA MP620 all-in-one photo printer

Favorite Software Programs:

Photoshop, Lightroom, Dreamweaver, Firefox.

Favorite Diversion:

Taking pictures of my kids, hiking with the family, letterboxing, dates with my hubby, going out with my girlfriends.

Personal Philosophies:

No one person is important enough to make everyone around them miserable (got that from my mother); the things you really dread are never as bad as you think they’ll be; what goes around comes around (you reap what you sow). I’m basically an optimist, the kind of person who doesn’t expect the worst-case scenario (I never read the emergency C-section chapters in the childbirth books). The good Lord and my faith in Him are what get me through each day, because I really don’t have a clue what I’m doing on my own. I am thankful for a God who “is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” and a wonderful church family.

Visit my 100th post, 100 Things, for more useless trivia about me. :-)