Two outta three aint bad.

This time of year brings more than rain and flowers, it is also a time for graduations, communions and weddings. I was lucky enough to have two great sessions today, the first with a beautiful new graduate and future nurse the second was with a very handsome young man who is going to make his First Communion.

Oh Brother!

Today we celebrated my favorite brother's birthday at the Livingston's Pub. It had all the fixin's for a good time ~ pizza, snacks, cake, ice cream, friends, family and some adult beverages!

Love you Libby!

Autumotion

Autumn is always willing to help me out with a photo challenge and tonight was no exception. So we went to neighbors and used the swing set to get this series of Autumn jumping off the swing!

(This is my first attempt at layering shots to follow a series of action photographs.)

Dancing Flames.

Today i tried a new technique and created these images, dosen't the last one look like a Phoenix Rising!


UPDATE: My Phoenix Rising was picked as one of the best shots on the LearnMyShot website! Follow the link below:


http://us1.forward-to-friend.com/forward/show?u=e19da8ca50550c6411df3b690&id=1d4bd96658

More signs of spring.

Took a trip through the yard to see what was popping up out there and i found a few surprises. We are currently under a Tornado watch so i am glad i took a few minutes to walk around and enjoy.

Water Study

In an effort to keep on learning as much as i can about photography i have been taking a lot of webinar's and watching some on-line tutuorial's one of which was the inspiration for today's Water Study! I was trying to capture water in motion and thought this series was kind of cool. I also posted an additional image on FB that is actually my favorite but i had to make it black & white because i didn't have my white balance corrected yet.

If you have an idea you would like to see me try let me know.

(if you would like to see the above images larger just click on it)

A sight for sore eyes!

This Easter did not have the same feeling as years past. Cliff and the kids were up north for the weekend so no egg coloring and of course they are beyond the powdered footprints i used to make all over the floor (you know the Easter Bunnies footprints) but we did all end up in the same place at the same time for dinner, including papa. Best of all Crystal safely made the trip home from Kalamazoo for the holiday. Now i just have to get through the worry i go through when she drives back tomorrow!

Oh and by the way this is crystal, no shower, no makeup, what i wouldn't give to be young and cute!

What a Day!

S unshine

P lenty of warm fresh air.

R obin's egg.

I ncredible smells.

N ew buds in trees.

G reen grass.

And that was just my walk around the neighborhood, what a day!

How was your day?

"An Apple A Day Keeps The Doctor Away"

Why this message never resonated with me over the years is beyond me. But when two people mentioned the health benefits of eating an apple everyday this week a light bulb went off. Eat an apple a day, brilliant and i can do that.

What's your best health advice?

A few minutes for for myself.

Today i took a detour from my errands to do something i haven't had in a while, i stopped by to soak in the beauty of the Lake. The water has always made me feel at peace, so i took a few minutes out for myself. The sun was shining and it was beautiful out but let me tell you it was very chilly down at the end of that pier.

"Dodgeball is a sport of violence, exclusion, and degradation." Young Patches O'Houlihan -Dodgeball

Cameron got suited up today to play in a school sponsored Dodgeball Tournament. He left the house wearing neon orange and the name of his team is the "Crave Case" at just over 6' tall he makes a pretty good target unless of course he stands sideways.

Not your average Tuesday.

While the photo above is only a small portion of my day, i felt i had to post something on the lighter side. Truth is i spent the majority of my day at the hospital with my dad who was having some not so pleasant issues. On top of that i had to jump his car twice, once in the pouring rain. Bottom line he is okay and i never mind helping him out as he is often the first person i call if i have a problem.

This evening i was just wiped out and Autumn came up with the idea for today's photo which was just perfect as this is part of our "normal" tuesday.

Michigan Weather

While i can honestly say i am not surprised by what i saw this morning when i woke up i still find myself thinking what the hell! It's the rollercoaster effect that most surprises me, i mean wasn't it about a week ago that i unleashed the monkey toes and wore my sandals? It's hot, it's cold, it's snowing, i am sweating good grief.

Took a couple of photos of the back yard and i actually watched the snow disappear as the day went on, now as i look out the window all that's left are a few snowy strips here and there. Oh did i mention it is supposed to be 60 on Wednesday!

The "SheCave"

Well the "SheCave" is finished, with the exception of filling it with more things that i love or that inspire me. This space was originally an upstairs laundry room, although we never used it in that capacity it has always been a storage space and most recently housed a huge and very heavy armoire. Now i have a small creative and inspirational workspace. Thanks to Cliff and Ken who moved the armoire downstairs to become my new prop closet.

Do you have a space of your own?

Salsarita Saturday!

Paul & Sue came by to share their vacation photos and we had a little south of the border cuisine at Salsarita's where i had a heapin' helpin' of nacho's.

Breaking News

For those of you who may have missed this breaking news, Cameron Gave Blood Today, the way he came home telling the story of queasy kids, cookies, water bottles an arm bandage and enough iodine to reattach an arm, i thought i might have to call channel 7 and report the news. I finally said "dude, people have blood drawn all the time as a matter of fact i just had some drawn a few weeks ago, it's no big deal, it's not like you just had a major surgery". But i am proud of my boy for doing a great thing, just thought all the hoopla was kind of funny.

Playoff Hockey

I once read somewhere that there is only one day out of the year in which there is not a professional sport being played, to most men this may seem like a dream come true, to most women myself included i think "good lord what sporting event will i have to fake interest in today". Now don't get me wrong i do enjoy a good playoff game especially the last 5 minutes or so but i could do without everything leading up to it. Well today the Eastern Conference began with a game between the Montreal Canadians and the Boston Bruins, there is no doubt who Cliff is rootin' for he is a big Bruins fan (as long as they are not playing the wings.) And while I am happy to jump on his band wagon and root for his team I am a bit torn as my mom was born and raised in Montreal, it seems a bit sacrilegious! Call me when the Wings are in the last 5 minutes of the last Stanley Cup Playoff game.

A Little Autumn on a Spring Day!

I accomplished a lot today, more progress in the "shecave", did some cleaning and organizing throughout the house and had a wonderful session with a handsome little guy named Chase. But it is the frames on the living room wall with the stock photos in them that are driving me crazy, one reserved for a photo of cliff and i {see unsuccessful first attempt on March 19th} and the other was waiting for a photo of Autumn {the only child without a senior photo}. So Autumn and i went out in the yard and took a few simple shots, she loves to pose for me so this was not a problem and we both really like the one above, it will suit our needs until we decide to have another photo session in the back yard.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

The crack-down-on-clutter continued throughout the day and i spent a lot of time organizing in the new "shecave" and figuring out what stays and what goes. The photo above is of some very rusty but cool cast iron finials (they got to stay). Sometimes i don't know what attracts me to certain things but as i look at this picture i can't help but love their color and texture.

Monkey Toes Unleashed!

One of the true signs of Spring, at least around my house, is when i unleash my monkey toes. Slapped on a couple of coats of "Freefall" (pink~yes i buy my nail polish based on their names too) and jumped into my favorite sandals and took a walk.

I also shot a few photos on my walk and in the backyard and i caught this photo of a cardinal trying to have a conversation with a bronze bird on my birdbath.

Vitamin D

Got myself a healthy dose of Vitamin D today while cleaning out the flower beds.

Got My Vitamin Z

Today i got some vitamin "Z" at the Detroit Zoo where i went to a volunteer's meeting. I help my cousin with a garden there near the Aardvark exhibit so it is a great opportunity to shoot photos at the zoo and give back to the community too.

Opening Day

Tiger's won their home opener today against The Kansas City Royals! The weather started out rainy and miserable but mother nature took a break and the weather cleared up just before the start of the game. The final score was Tiger's 5 - Royals 2.

Cliff did not get to go to the game, would you believe he had to work over time (this is the first time this year). When he got home he put on his Tiger's pullover to show his team spirt.

Eat em' Tigers, eat em' up!

Home (Depot) Away From Home

The last several weeks i have spent a lot of time at the Home Depot, one of my favorite haunts, today i decided to capture some photos as i perused the aisles! Hoping to share some before and after photos as i wrap up some of the projects in the weeks to come.

2 Michigan Staples

Unpredictable weather and Coney Dog's. We were supposed to hit a balmy 52 degrees and be partly cloudy instead we were lucky if we hit 38 degrees and it rained all day. Cliff and i had to run a couple errands so we stopped off at one of our favorite haunts in the Clem, Gus's Coney Island.

Grateful

The last two days I had the pleasure of working with some great two year olds and a fabulous four year old. It made me feel so grateful to do what i do, i love spending time with little ones because they are so genuine and joyful, not to mention cute as can be.

While today's photo has nothing to do with my day i felt compelled to shoot my favorite tree in the yard because the sky looked so cool through it and i know that in a few weeks it won't look like this.

Live, Laugh, Love

I love letters and words - so today i used my set of scrabble letters (bought specifically for crafting) to spell out the words that have been on my mind the most lately!

Eat, Create, Eat

Today's theme seemed to revolved around two things creating and eating! Helped my cousin finish her project and we were so involved that we did not realize we at a whole batch of my newest creation - salsa! (actually i was turned onto this Salsa by my S.I.L )

And before you ask here is the recipe - I chop everything fairly small and usually use green pepper because i like my salsa colorful.

4-6 Roma Tomato's

1 - Pepper

1 - Hot pepper

1 - Red Onion

1 - can of white corn (shoepeg)

1 - handful of Black Beans

1/2 to 1 cup of Italian Dressing

Also if you really want to enjoy this salsa you must use scoops!

Today is dedicated to my brother!

Paul this one is for you, old school Doriitos - I remember your routine well - 3 Dorito's, 1 sip of Pepsi, wipe your hand on the carpet! Ah, memories, I also remember you throwing a pencil up at the ceiling tiles to see if you could get it to stick it's a wonder you didn't poke an eye out.

A Night in Paradise!

Well would you believe an hour in Cheeseburger in Paradise! Cliff and i had a gift card that was begging to be used! No cheeseburger for me not much of a burger eater but i had a wonderful Buffalo Chicken Wrap!