Warm getaway and iPhoto tricks

My husband's company gave him the day off work on Monday for Martin Luther King Day. It was kind of weird because this was also the first day back to co-op for our three older kids. Although their teachers had been giving us assignments for the past two weeks, they didn't have class. Monday was supposed to be their first full day back at their academic classes.

It feels like we have been running like crazy lately. I have had to work more hours than usual the past few weeks, and it seems like I've been working more on weekends. We decided to take advantage of the fact my husband was off work and make the most of it! So, we let their teachers know they wouldn't be at class, and we headed into the city.

I have wanted to visit the Garfield Park Conservatory since last year when a bunch of friends went on a field trip there. If I'm stuck in the snowy, cold weather of the Midwest, there's no place I would rather be than inside the tropical paradise of a conservatory.

The minute we walked in, all of the kids remarked about how they could smell the oxygen! It was nice and warm and humid. Two large rooms of the conservatory were closed because the roof was destroyed last summer by a hail storm. However, the five remaining areas that were open were a treasure.

The kids did a scavenger hunt to find certain plants, and then filled out a sticker sheet. My husband and I spent lots of time playing with our camera and testing out photo settings. We had a beautiful peaceful day, and we were so glad we made the choice to go there together as a family.

We took a ton of photos that we have been watching as a slide show in iPhoto. I was thinking how cool it would be if I could export the slide show, instead of posting the photos one by one. I did a quick web search and found out that you CAN do that in iPhoto.

It's as simple as clicking the "+" sign and then instead of creating a new album, creating a new slide show. Then, you just adjust your theme and music, add or delete photos and click export. I used the song "Where I Belong" by Building 429, which I just downloaded for free this week from the K-Love web site. (So, see... this blog post is just a wealth of information!)

I recently upgraded my iPhoto, so this was the first time we had used the "shatter" theme as a transition. We all love it and think it adds a cool effect to the slideshow.

So, here goes... Take a look: