Photo Assignment #4 Faceless Portraits

Ems:  “The World At Her Feet”

Boo: “An unusual shy moment”

Me: “Bits and Pieces”

And then to have to show our faces?

Don’t we all feel better behind the camera.

The mirror shot.

It’s been a tough year and a half figuring out “who” I am.

But if I had to pick one word–mother.

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This photo project inspired something else in me though.  When Carolyn first posted the assignment it brought back a memory of something I had wanted to do years ago.  When Boo, the youngest, was about two years old, I had the idea to take a photo of the four of our hands all together and frame it.  Though I would have liked to see the small two-year old hand of Boo and the four-year old hand of Ems, I am glad that post-divorce I can now take the picture of this little family as it is, with no hard feelings about the loss of my husband.  So here is the true nature of this little family to me.

The brilliance of love, a love between me and my beautiful girls that carries us through every day.

The strength of all three of us together.

Me.

Ems.

Boo.

Almost Wordless Wednesday: Reflection

I have made the decision to reflect quietly until after the holidays.

I will be posting some photos, as time allows.

If you have the time, stop by.

In the meantime…

May the blessings of this season surround you with comfort & joy.

Will follow up with you all after….

#3 Select A Theme: Snow

Everything that could or would go wrong for this week’s assignment did.  My theme had originally been “festive” as I knew we were decorating the house and going to the Christmas parade in town on Saturday.  Well, my back decided to prevent me from decorating and an unexpected blast of snow prevented us from going to the parade.  When life gives you lemons……you go out into the backyard and shoot a new theme.

We rarely get snow here in my little part of Maryland before January.  One Christmas Eve we were blessed with snow, which was also my due date for Boo monkey ( I didn’t have her until Jan. 3rd, luckily).  This is her below, outside the second time around, with hot chocolate all over her face.  Notice how she is following the keep your ears covered rule.

So there was a rippling of excitement going through this house yesterday as the girls donned boots and coats, hats and scarves to get outside and play.  Two pairs of wet, muddy clothes, a warm chicken lunch and some hot chocolate later, I finally got a chance to work on the photos.  I definitely wanted to do some editing to bring out the chilliness of the pictures.   Now throw in some camera malfunction and some computer testiness and you’ll understand why I threw in the towel at 10:00 last night and said just start fresh today!

I want to thank Carolyn and Camilla for sponsoring this project.  I have enjoyed it immensely.  It has brought a whole new field of vision to how I am taking pictures.  To stop and THINK first about what I am going to shoot, rather than snapping the same old things.  I probably would not have braved the outside yesterday and missed these gorgeous shots (okay, probably I would have).  It’s also been wonderful getting to meet so many new friends doing the same thing so please if you are not already in the project take some time to see their creations as well.

bloom rosenotes farmama florali we heart yarn beehouse hives hartwood roses potjethee ididn’trealeyes madebyanmarie mackvilleroad giveagirlafig earthycrunchy earthmama once upon a parent

If I missed anyone, please let me know, I am glad to see more of my friends are joining in!  I won’t be around to comment until later this afternoon, but if I come across anyone new I will add them to the list.

We have one more assignment, and it’s a good one, so if you want to join in, gather up here.

1st Pumpkin Pie

I just realized tonight that I missed posting Ems first pumpkin pie.  She requested to make a dish for Thanksgiving.  I suggested pie.  I rolled out the bottom crust and showed her how to roll it on the rolling pin and off into the dish.  She made the filling, rolled out the top pastry, cut out the shapes, then placed and egg washed them.  I did the oven bit.   I made a blackberry with a granola topping, but it paled in comparison to hers.  I was outdone by my eight-year old natural baker.  Let’s see what she will make for Christmas….

Preparing The Nest

One thing I wanted to be done this year is a complete clean out of our home.  Out with the old, in with the new.  Loose papers, junk, plastic, bits and bobs out the door.  A preparation for starting 2010 as the year of living simply.  Well, I was actually on quite a roll for awhile, completing the downstairs and then things fell to the wayside.  So, now we sit three weeks from Christmas, a month from the New Year and I am still not pleased with the “stuff” that is surrounding us.

The Christmas preparations are on a good roll.  Most of my gifts this year were simple.  Something easily done.  I will have a last minute flurry of activity as the week approaches and my food gift items will need to be prepared, but my hope is that we lose the stress of Christmas’ past.

I want this Christmas to be about home, hearth (if we had one) and relishing the comforts of family and simple activities.  We are going to try.

So as I finish stripping the nest and enjoying the bits of this season, I may be short on words (something that does not seem to happen very often, no matter how hard I try).  The words are there, swirling around in my brain, those half written posts, but for now they will wait as I turn my attention inward.

I have grown and changed and prospered so in this past year.  I have just about healed my wounds and found some contentment in what life has handed me.  I have myself, my girls, my family and a lot of you to thank for that.

Now my attention must turn to my physical, my everyday, self.  So many times, I  find I am wishing, dreaming, searching, losing my head in a series of clouds of what if’s, could I’s, maybe’s.  Dreaming is a good thing, but right now I need to bring it home.  Focus on the everyday.  Feather the nest.

When 2010 comes, I want to be ready for it…….in the meantime there is one thing that will never be put aside, the lens of my camera, and the results of that will always be here.

Wordless Wednesday: Stone Bunny, Where Would You Dream To Go?

James & Elijah

I snapped a couple of other portraits at my Mom’s on Sunday and thought I would share the family members who have replaced all of us children at home.  It seems there is not much I won’t take a picture of these days, but pets, my goodness, they are a challenge.

James.  He was my brother’s cat, who moved in with my parents when my brother graduated from college this year.  He is a very handsome cat and I love to follow him with the camera.  He has taken over the household in the little time he has been there.  When I walked through the door Sunday he was stretched out on a rug in front of the woodstove.

This is Elijah, though we all call him Eli.  He is one gigantic German Shepherd.  I have never cared for German Shepherds since I was bitten by one as a child, but Eli changed my mind about them.  Since he was a puppy he could bowl you over.  He just  leans on you and you kind of fall over.  He’s a big baby though, and very fond of my girls since we lived with him for a little while last year while this house was being built.

So, how come my own pets are never so well behaved when I have the camera?  A few comments and photos from the environmental portraits project reminded me how integral our pets are as members of our families.

Sunday-Portrait In Progress

I shot portraits of my parents today.  Sometimes faces aren’t necessary.

Environmentals: Photo Assignment #2

This weeks challenge was to capture five family members or co-workers including yourself from an environmental standpoint.  I chose my five most immediate members, my children and my grandparents.  For the list of who is involved visit here.

My Grandmother

This is the view from her kitchen window.  Preparing food, cooking, cleaning up.    That window viewed directly out this window, is one of my kitchen windows.  I consider myself blessed beyond measure to see her through my window.  One night I caught my Grandfather kissing her in this window, they will celebrate their 64th wedding anniversary in a couple of weeks.

My Grandfather.

This photo is a few months old, I wrote about it here.  This is his favorite tractor, a gift from my Grandmother.  He is always busy, always doing something about the place.  Not sure what he would do without this machine to help him do all the things that must be done.  And he seems to have everything you might ever need in his garage.

Boo

This is Bear.  He was hers before she was born.  She cannot sleep without him.  He travels with us and occasionally goes on day excursions.  Notice the underwear on the bed.  She never puts away her socks and underwear.  She leaves them everywhere even hiding them in drawers rather than putting them in the hamper.

Ems.

Has a two books in the bed rule.  How many times have I said, “Ems, you don’t NEED more than two books in your bed at a time“, yet somehow I have a hard time enforcing this rule.  Her teacher told me she is the only student in the class allowed to have three books in her desk at a time because “she actually is reading them all“, she said in amazement.

Me.

After some thought, this one sums me up.  My mind swimming in the thoughts of 1,000 projects and recipes. As hard as I attempt to organize myself, everything remains, half complete.

Thanksgiving Morning.

Beautiful.

Thanks  D. for prodding me to go outside between the rain and the fog.