The Weekend Photo Warrior

I spy

2012-02-15T09:45:00.000-08:00

sorry haven't been blogging much life has been busy and I haven't been out with my real camera much this was taken with my phone but serves as a reminder.

Always be looking around, you never know what you will see I walk the mail down each day at work and take this little hill there is a small water fountain that in the summer always has lots of birds playing in it but in the winter it is turned off Only the yucca's stay green in the snow I looked down and saw this pair of shoes sitting in the yucca

it made me think what were they doing there? did someone leave them for safe keeping later as they were tucked inside a bit maybe they are not of use anymore and left there for someone that needs them more to find? or maybe someone decided they wanted to run barefoot and left them to come back to

who knows, I certainly will never know but it made me think of hidden treasures no matter what look around , up down and thru you just might find a hidden treasure

as a side note I thought I would mention I started a new blog yeah like I need more right? well this is not really for everyone it is something to help me keep motivated with being healthier I call it fitness mouse mostly some ups and downs, tips and techniques and information I have found about health and fitness my personal diary out there for everyone to see if you are interested take a peek http://fitnessmouse.blogspot.com/

Happy valentines Day

2012-02-14T05:57:00.000-08:00

HAPPY VALENTINES FROM DUNCAN

P52 shadows

2012-02-05T16:43:00.000-08:00

week 5 of the P52 challenge is shadows

It was a beautiful day so we headed to the dog park I really wanted to get his shadow but he was to full of cabin fever to stand still and was off running I really liked these tree shadows though so this is what I went with

p52 self portrait

2012-02-05T16:42:00.000-08:00

last weeks challenge (yeah behind) and I struggled with this because I had a bad week and didn't feel like taking my own picture so i bit the bullet and shot one today

pretty much straight from the camera except a little cropping

am I the only one that feels younger then they look? I look at myself sometimes and wonder who is that? one thing I know I really need to dye my hair again hahaha hmmm what color this time?

wish fairy

2012-01-28T12:38:00.000-08:00

my mom spent about 40 hours making this doll for me I love purple and she knows it its a wish fairy you put a wish in her purse and she may grant it for you I still need to do that

I added some lens flair and then a bokeh overlay by shadowhouse

what wish would you put in her purse?

Linking up with our home to yours dedicated to our moms. http://ourhometoyourscrafts.blogspot.com/

6 words

2012-01-25T21:06:00.000-08:00

Another challenge in the KK Beyond Layers class was to pick our 6 words something inspired by an Smith Magazine we need to pick 6 that describes us

Now I have a hard time with this as I have said before but I came up with this:

live life for today not tomorrow

what does that mean well it means I try not to let my past rule my present and my future sure our past shapes our future but its what builds us as a person life has ups and downs, good and bad, happy and sad, if it didn't well we might as well be a rock because there would be no emotion in our lives no sparks to keep us going to the next day

so I try to think of today as just a stepping stone for tomorrow and a new adventure awaits just on the other side of that rainbow

what is your 6 words???

side note:
picture taken in 2007 in Hoonah Alaska in the icy straight, we were on a cruise and suppose to go to Skagway well rough seas prevented it so we changed to Hoonah at first we were sad because we had a fun train ride planned but oh were we so glad we ended up here. to this day we talk about some of the unexpected ventures we had that day. it was fitting to have this rainbow show up on one of those adventures some of my favorite pictures came from that little town

Just enough

2012-01-22T16:35:00.000-08:00

struggled with this theme from kim klassens beyond the layers class finally came up with this

used just 2 layers of texture on this one called awaken and the other called chamomile tried to make it uncluttered but couldn't resist putting some words in it

P52 - the Dreamer

2012-01-19T22:04:00.000-08:00

the dreamer

Its starts off with a burst of energy

You continue to pound away at it with your enthusiasm

knocking any loose stones out of the way as you go

there are ups and there are downs

And long flat parts that seem to go forever

you continue to knock those stones loose

you feel like giving up

but see the end in sight and just know you can make it

and knock away a few more stones

something inside you pushes you

its that finish line in your sights that gives you strength

until finally there are no more stones

for this is your dream

you have reached your finish line

Until your next dream

this weeks P52 theme is by life with my 3 boybarians (see sidebar for link) is I dream the dream this is my interpretation

edited to add: I had this post already to go and poof gone grrr so in closing I just want to say as a teenager I use to write a little poetry I thought I might try writing a little more now and again and came up with this bit using a runner as a parody

the steel statue represents a big race we have here called bloomsday since it snowed and was a blah day I added some textures by french kiss and an overlay by shadowhouse did a bit of light rendering and added a border

captured

2012-01-18T19:59:00.000-08:00

before I start this post I have to make a public thank you to geri at I heart Art check out the Like button at the bottom of my page is that cool or what? I was having a moment one day short on time and patience and she managed to get that in place for me Check out her blog she has some awesome work and always so very helpful she has a tutorial up on how to do this here:

Last weekend I spent the weekend at a retreat scrap booking and making cards I had planned to get out and take a few walks but it was cold and I am a wimp I admit it I am a wimp I hate to be cold

So I shot the above with my I phone and it didn't turn out to bad I guess i wanted to see how well they would blow up and got this:

some distortion but you can see the ice crystals so not bad at all I think it takes better pictures then my point and shoot but not better than my D90

my story

2012-01-17T19:33:00.000-08:00

my story

that's me in all my glory at work Not to bad for a cell phone picture First off I will have you note the pants they are green and the rest is brown That is what I get for getting dressed in the dark and hubby never noticed as I walked out the door that way. what does that show you well, I suppose I could have gone home and changed, at least at lunch, but NO stayed and worked even told others what I did just how I am if you can't laugh at yourself then life is just no fun It shows I make mistakes, lots of them at times, and sometimes I don't learn from them, yes this has happened before

Any how a little about me I am a 46 year old working mom of a 21 year old Not sure how time crept up so fast but it did I think sometimes my head doesn't realize I am suppose to be an adult I work full time in a legal office with the title of accounting clerk but really its more like jack of all trades but I pay the bills and maintain a database most of the time

In my spare time I have fallen back in love with pictures I don't always take a good picture but I keep trying I have improved over the last few years and each year my scrapbooks get bigger or that could be that I have a digital camera and don't know when to stop taking pictures when I do take pictures Because I am at work all day it is usually the weekend when I catch up taking pictures especially in the winter when I leave in the dark and get home in the dark I don't ever plan to get rich with taking pictures just want to improve on what I take mostly

I also like to make cards and use rubber stamps for that I have another blog for that and just recently started it back up again I recently started walking 1/2 marathons I know crazy right but once you start it gets a little addictive I love to try new things, yoga is on the list for this year love my dog and frequent model for my pictures a westie named Duncan and if I had more time and money my favorite thing is to travel ANYWHERE

so that is a little tid bit on me looking forward to meeting everyone in the beyond the layers class

Made with love P52 32

2012-01-13T09:28:00.000-08:00

this weeks challenge is made with love. I am posting two things from my two brothers

First one is my john's crafting. he works with steel and knows I love whimsical things about my yard.

The next is from my brother Paul he likes to do etching. sadly not a great picture with my point and shoot kept getting a glare even after I took it out of the frame but anyhow here it is. he knows I like mice, have them all over the house, and so it is of a couple of field mice.

Haven't been blogging or taking much pictures hope that changes next week. I am off to a retreat this weekend so hopefully we have some Internet access (usually very slow) that I can link this up. then next week I start kim klassens beyond the layers class so will see at least two posts a week from me hopefully.

resolution P52 week 1

2012-01-08T13:14:00.000-08:00

this weeks theme is resolution. I decided to put my challenge to myself to read more. I got a reader for Christmas and so far loving that and have books that need to be read all over the house. I use to read a lot when I was younger, then I had a kid and that seemed to be something that there was never enough time for. now that he is all grown up I have more time and am doing more.

I found a good site called goodreads.com that tracks the books I have read (you will see in my side bar the current book I am reading) and lets me add books I want to read. do reviews share with friends and lots of other stuff. (edited to add this is for e-books and regular paperbooks)

Another site for all of you that have got e-readers is pixeltoink I signed up for the daily newsletter and they email me a list of books that are available for free or really cheap. I have already started a good collection on my e - reader.

so what books are you reading???

upcoming themes in the P52 series

Week 1 – ending Friday, January 6: Resolution
Week 2 – ending Friday, January 13: Made with love
Week 3 – ending Friday, January 20: I Dreamed A Dream
Week 4 – ending Friday, January 27: Self-portrait
Week 5 – ending Friday, February 3: Shadows
Week 6 – ending Friday, February 10: Drink up!
Week 7 – ending Friday, February 17: True Love
Week 8 – ending Friday, February 24: Cabin Fever

eagles

2012-01-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

well I haven't been on here in a week and the reason. I really need to learn how to use raw photos well import them at least

took a short drive to Idaho to shoot the eagles and decided I would try raw. luckily I shot raw + jpeg because the first time I downloaded the shots NONE of them showed up now they aren't great shots and not many because when we were there they weren't flying as much. but I finally had a little more patience today and reloaded them. success,, well part way got the jpegs in but now how to edit the raw photos. ugh. no patience for that today so will try that at a later time.

here is my best shot. I need a bigger lens to get these shots that is for sure my 105 doesn't cut it.

unedited shot because now I can't find my cropped shot. grrr. time to walk away from the computer.

Hello 2012

2012-01-01T17:35:00.000-08:00

so here we are 2012 another new start. a couple of days ago I asked you what your word for the year was and told you mine was challenge.

I am going to personally challenge myself this year to a few things and here are my top 10, or at least the 10 I can think of at the moment not in any order.

1. more exercise and do at least 2 1/2 marathons
2. be a better person (take that however you like)
3. finish more projects - to many ufo's in my life.
4. work more at learning more about photography
5. have a better attitude (goes along with #2)
6. read more - i miss reading and over the years have not done much.
7. be a better friend (more of #2)
8. learn yoga
9. take better care of me
10. be more thankful to the people around me and god.

to help me accomplish some of these things I have signed up to do 2 different photo challenges for the year:

kim klassens's beyond the layers - 52 weeks of encouragement, motivation and inspiration centered around, but so much more than phtoshop.

my life with 3 boybarians p52 challenge - 1 photo once a week for a year challenge.

other challenge update:
still looking into a yoga class that fits my schedule but its coming,
working on my list of projects to complete at retreat in january
need to get back into walking (i so hate the cold need to get over that)

http://stampmousephoto.blogspot.com/2011/12/what-is-your-word-for-2012.html
And don't forget to link up to your word for 2012.

Goodbye 2011

2011-12-31T17:05:00.000-08:00

http://stampmousephoto.blogspot.com/2011/12/what-is-your-word-for-2012.html
Don't forget to link up to what is your word for 2012.

as we close one year's calendar and open up another year spend a few moments to reflect on the year remember the good times, the laughs but also the sad and the sorrow.

From all memories we grow the good and the bad.

This is a picture my sister in law in Texas took a few years ago I edited it and added some words and borders. I have yet to get a successful picture of a cardinal but then again we don't see them where I live one day I will have my own cardinal picture but until then I love this one.

Also want to publiclly thank our home to yours for the mention on her blog. Check it out here.
http://ourhometoyourscrafts.blogspot.com/2011/12/saturday-shopping-link-up-your-favorite.html?showComment=1325353560526#c6789237129023708903

what is your word for 2012 ???

2011-12-30T16:38:00.000-08:00

Over at My Heart Art Geri asked us to link up what our word for the year would be. She chose balance which is always a word I try to keep in my mind and at first I was thinking oh that is what I should have then I remember something I said to my brother the other day when he asked about new years resolutions. I said I didn't have any I only had personal challenges for 2012

by definition challenge is many different things to me it is how I motivate myself.

I will talk more about what my challenges for the year are on my new years day post but for now I leave you with this post and a thought in your mind as to what your word for the day is link up with Geri's site or post your word in the comments below.

Technology or magic

2011-12-30T07:50:00.000-08:00

Well to me at least. Trying out a post from my Christmas present.

Everything including the pictures and editing were done on the iPad.

I used a photo app called photogene to do this it also allowed me yo upload to Flickr so that I could add it to this post

How cool is that. Technology is just a fancy word for magic I thinks

merry christmas from the lok's

2011-12-25T23:19:00.000-08:00

from our family to yours I hope you have had a merry weekend and many cheers to the new year fast approaching.

christmas eve

2011-12-24T13:13:00.000-08:00

so this wasn't taken on Christmas eve but on the 10th (I believe the full moon night or a day before or after)

I loved how the conservatory looked from outside.

I hope everyone is with their loved ones today or tomorrow at least and enjoys the goodness of family, friends and life.

all the creatures

2011-12-23T13:06:00.000-08:00

well we are almost out of the conservatory this is my favorite scene. It takes the crew from thanksgiving till the first Friday in December to get this ready

I think they outdid themselves this year.

I decided to try out a new banner. it happens to be the same one as my facebook page thanks to florabella she had a great template and tutorial. check her out here: http://www.florabellacollection.com/

sitting among the plants

2011-12-22T13:09:00.000-08:00

i love how the lights light up this plant

i don't put pictures of myself on here much because I prefer the other side of the camera but hubby insisted it be taken so I will put it up here.

birds in the house

2011-12-21T13:04:00.000-08:00

these birds of Paradise seemed odd in a room full of winter feeling lights and plants. but the silhouette
worked and they look magical. a hint of warm weather to come.

ferns alive!!!

2011-12-20T13:01:00.000-08:00

what a lovely accompaniment to all the flowers and succulents in the displays so delicate looking

old

2011-12-19T12:51:00.000-08:00

this christmas cactus is over 100 years old 1905 or 1906 was when it was first acquired. adorned for lights for the holiday it is still amazing.

ps no tripods allowed in the conservatory not that you could use it anyway the place was packed.

poinsettia tree

2011-12-18T12:58:00.000-08:00

these lovely white poinsettia's built up to make a tree are always a favorite of the conservatory.

didn't want to use a flash on them to spoil the effect.

interesting name

2011-12-17T12:49:00.000-08:00

interesting name on this plant

if you missed yesterday's post I am at the conservatory for the christmas light display. will have a couple of days of posts I think.

christmas comes to the conservatory

2011-12-16T12:45:00.000-08:00

with over 30,000 lights our conservatory was all a glow for the holidays.

do you have a conservatory where you live? have you ever been? great place to visit

what is new!!!

2011-12-15T12:06:00.000-08:00

well maybe not new but resurrected. I started out blogging by blogging pictures of my cards then it grew into photography. Now I am turning my rubber stamping / craft blog back on and posting to there as well. this is an effort to keep me motivated in that area of my life as well.

you can check it out here:

http://stampmouses.blogspot.com/

I have also decided I am going to do another 1/2 marathon to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma society. I have my blog up and running on that and it will always be available to the right. Come check my progress:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/wa/paccrest12/llokx7

2011-12-14T23:55:00.000-08:00

had only a quick moment with only a few people in the background to try this and fired off one shot. not with my good camera just a point and shoot so not very sharp but acceptable for a photo album.

this is one of the christmas bulbs on a tree in the bellagio, I cropped it down from this shot:

and a picture of the whole tree:

a bear to remember

2011-12-13T23:44:00.000-08:00

again at the bellagio gardens:

the theme seemed to be polar bears and penguins each on opposite sides of the room with a walkway in between that had water going from one side over your head to the other.

this bear is made from flowers

and these penguins were animated:

again the orange I have hit some button on that darn camera. I think my 35mm is easier to use. never thought i would say that.

and the walkway (never could get a clear shot without people in it:

go ahead touch the water. we did its real and ended up getting some lady all wet.

2011-12-12T23:38:00.000-08:00

if you only get to see one hotel while in vegas you MUST see the Bellagio. From the lobby with its blown glass flower ceiling by chully (spelling??) you are lead into the conservatory. wow a beautiful enclosed garden that is changed many times throughout the year to reflect seasons, events and holidays.

one of my favorite things is they always (at least every time I have gone) have a Painting done with flowers

these are real flowers a close up of some of them:

wrap up

2011-12-11T23:20:00.000-08:00

So did you guess from the last post? well not likely.

I was here along with 43,999 other people:

in las vegas running (well walking really fast) the rock n roll marathon (i did the half 13.1 miles)

pretty crazy and fun girls weekend there were 7 of us that traveled to the race together:

ok bad picture and one missing who was taking the picture. we were waiting to get to the race from our hotel the plazzo to the Mandalay bay and were lucky enough that because they were running out of time and shuttle buses to go in one of these

yeah I know some bad shots just had my phone with me, traveling light for the race, and the reason this is all in one post instead of spread out. this is what you get when trying to NOT slow down and get trampled and take a photo as we race past the venetian. and of course it was the only photo I got of that hotel all gussied up for Christmas that weekend.

half way point and only other photo I took during the race freemont street, again moving:

post race craziness trying to get back to our hotel decided to have a beer and hang out in mandalay bay for a bit

oh and the metal can't forget that didn't do 13.1 miles in 3:17:34 for nothing. a personal record for me shaving 12 minutes off my first race.

the only photo of the group i got and it sucks something in my little point and shoot makes the photo turn orange and I haven't figured it out yet this was the best I could do to get the color out of it :( we were off to a birthday dinner which included the mom and sister of one of the gals with us.

it was an awesome weekend I think I could have slept for 3 days after the race if I didn't have to work. can't wait for the next one. this is becoming addicting and I don't like to run even. hahaha.

where I have been

2011-12-10T23:19:00.000-08:00

no excuses but will whine about being busy with the season, out of town, training and anything else I can get away but the truth is I just haven't had my heart in it and not even sure why. I even felt guilty about it what does that say??? i don't even have a huge following. oh well I whined and feel better.

so where have I been??? here is a clue for you:

disclaimer: NOT my body if you couldn't tell its a cut out

2011-11-29T14:43:00.000-08:00

I saw this on a friends post and copied it here seemed like a fun thing to do.
1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?   hot chocolate, no whipped cream and sometimes a bit of nutmeg or peppermint yummy.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?  wrapped of course.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?  White

4. Do you hang mistletoe?  No

5. When do you put your decorations up? the long weekend of thanksgiving. pumping up the tunes as I do it.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish?   i am weird i love all the veggie choices.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Laying on the floor with the lights off and watching the lights twinkle on the ceiling.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? can't remember how old I was but I found a box of tissue wrapped toys and guessed. never let on I knew and to this day I still get a stocking from santa. :)

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? yep at my mom's we exchange that day. as a kid we always got to open one and it was always new pjs. hmmmm wonder why? haha

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? lights, bows, and animal critter ornaments

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Good only christmas morning then it can go away. the older I get the more i dislike it. yes I do like how it looks I just hate going out in it.

12. Can you ice skate? forward and stop thats about it.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? hmm favorite gift was not a tennis bracelet. lol was going to go back to this question and then forgot. favorite gift hmmm don't really have one.

14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? remembering family and how important they are in my life.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? hmmm kolachie cookies probably.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? since married we have always gone to a movie on Christmas day. our first few years we were far from family so we started doing this. at first (23 years ago) we sometimes were the only ones in the movie now it seems it has become many people's tradition.

17. What tops your tree? A porcelain angel

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? both I love seeing their faces and shopping for just the right thing but why lie who doesn't like not getting something it brings out the kids in us all.

19. Candy Canes: Yuck or Yum? good in hot chocolate

20. Favorite Christmas show? haven't really seen any good ones and to snowy and icy to get out most of the time anymore

21. Saddest Christmas Song? christmas shoes

22. What is your favorite Christmas song?  most anything like bing crosby. I love christmas music one of my favorite shows is the bells of st mary and it has "Adeste Fideles (O, Come All Ye Faithful)" which if I have to pick one would work. outside of bing I love transiberian orchestra.

I leave with 2 favorites one from bing and one from transiberian if by the way you ever get a chance to go see do so it is well worth it.

homemade gifts

2011-11-27T19:55:00.000-08:00

anyone making any homemade christmas gifts this year?

besides cards I am doing a few photo calendars. Used the template from shutter sisters to make these CD calendars. (hopefully those getting them don't see this. :) ) found a lot of places could not process these properly because they weren't the standard 4 x 6 and they wanted to crop them so that they were not usable or stretch them out. office depot was able to correctly do them yeah now I can order the rest (these were the test 2 batches) Decided I needed to mount them on black paper though to make them look the best.

got your hat and tails??

2011-11-26T13:37:00.000-08:00

The tree and decorations are up and Duncan has decided to dress up a bit for the moment. hmmm looks like someone needs a haircut. looks more like a pauper waiting for his coal for christmas. hahaha.

so is everyone ready for the holidays?

linking up with tracy's trinkets and treasures check out the other pooches.

http://tracys-trinkets-treasures.blogspot.com/2011/12/christmas-photo-of-your-pet-linky-party_09.html

also linking up with I heart faces

http://www.iheartfaces.com/

family

2011-11-25T11:48:00.000-08:00

our annual thanksgiving get together at moms

and of course our annual funny photo

Happy thanksgiving.

2011-11-24T12:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry been busy haven't been taking many pictures or posting

today was the annual turkey trot. a fun run through one of our parks (3 miles) and all you need is to donate money or food for the food bank. always a good cause. As I was getting out of my car this turkey approached (how fitting) and I was trying to get a good picture with my camera but it decided it needed to attack me and proceeded to chase me down the block much to the amusement of onlookers and myself. how fitting for today!!!!!

I hope everyone has a great thanksgiving. what are you thankful for?

I am thankful for so much in my life but mostly my family and friends.

cheesecake strawberries.

2011-11-17T22:30:00.000-08:00

found this on pinterest and thought what a fun idea. found here: http://pinterest.com/pin/144467100516311569/

they took me less then an hour to make them all and boy are they yummy.

do you pinterest? do you try ideas from other blogs and sites???

FIRST SNOW

2011-11-16T22:30:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend we had our first snow. while I am NOT a fan of snow it did look pretty. this is the only shot I got of the day. but it does show our nice new expensive roof and gutters. We were going to remodel the kitchen but the roof was really bad so it came first.

CHANGE

2011-11-14T22:07:00.000-08:00

added some shadowhouse masks and overlays to create this then added words

light and the leaves

2011-11-13T19:34:00.000-08:00

the light coming through the leaves the other day in the backyard was so beautiful I had to take a picture. only had my point and shoot nikon coolpix s9100 handy so decided to experiment with a few of the setting to see the difference. all shot in auto mode, auto white balance the only part i manually changed was the exposure bias

this is my favorite for some reason (-2 steps) gives it a bit of an Erie look

(0 steps) this is the closest to what it really looked like outside flash engaged

which do you prefer???

didn't care for this one done with 0 steps no flash and manual white balance to orange

this is my least favorite +2 steps no flash manual white balance

smile even if you don't feel like it

2011-11-12T15:10:00.000-08:00

on a recent long walk I saw this funny little face put into a tree. It was a long walk/run 10 miles that day. in preparation for another 1/2 marathon in Vegas in December. It made me smile and made me push through the next few miles.

autumn means

2011-11-11T14:07:00.000-08:00

time for the annual dog in the leave shot.

shot with my point and shoot since I had it handy when we were raking leaves AGAIN. I did add a template by shadowhouse - if you have never seen his blog go there some very cool free downloads. he does some amazing stuff. http://shadowhousecreations.blogspot.com/

with fall comes less traveling and less time outside for me because I really hate the cold so posts may come a little less often but may try some new techniques on older pictures and other ideas to keep my motivated so you never know what will show up next.

working on some ideas for 2012 to present when they are all ready to go I will announce them. Anything you would like to see more of or less of or new???

goodbye to city by the bay

2011-11-10T13:37:00.000-08:00

in my scrapbooks I always try to do a couple of things. take pictures of cityscape's as I am entering them and at least one sunset picture to end the book. We left San Francisco by plane as the sun was beginning to set and while not a perfect picture I thought it fitting to end my posts of San Francisco with this shot. You can see the bridge and alchatrez from the above shot.

do you take pictures specifically for a scrapbook? if so what are they? do you take shots outside of a plane window?

any room for me??

2011-11-09T13:35:00.000-08:00

pier 39 has a wonderful spot for the seals to bask in teh sun.

although it looks a bit crowded if you ask me.

hello there

2011-11-08T13:33:00.000-08:00

what do you suppose this seal is thinking? my guess...... please find your own dock to do your business on this one is taken thank you very much.

taken on pier 39 in san francisco

the conservatory

2011-11-07T22:43:00.000-08:00

last of the conservatory pictures. do you have a conservatory where you live? have you ever been? they have some great specimens there.

orchid

2011-11-06T22:42:00.000-08:00

orchids were a main part of the conservatory in san francisco. never been able to grow one myself but wow they had so many here and they were so beautiful might have to give it a try again. one of the tips they said was don't overwater and don't over heat them.

orange splash

2011-11-05T22:40:00.000-07:00

another flower from the conservatory. I have forgotten the name of it unfortunetly.

lily

2011-11-04T22:36:00.000-07:00

the lily pads at the conservatory were beautiful. and this white one really stood out for me.

plants

2011-11-03T22:34:00.000-07:00

another shot from the conservatory. i loved how this was framed.

can you guess?

2011-11-02T10:30:00.000-07:00

Can you guess what this is??

maybe this will help...

still no idea?

well you probably guessed some sort of plant so you are mostly right. its a Tortoise plant. found at the conservatory in san francisco.

DRACULA ORCHID

2011-11-01T10:39:00.000-07:00

While in San Francisco I had a chance to spend a little time at the conservatory at the golden gate park. one of its prized orchids is the dracula orchid. I am having fun playing with that new technique I learned a few days ago and took the blah picture (took with point and shoot zoomed in as much as possible) and came up with this:

per wikipedia : The strange name Dracula, literally means "little dragon", referring to the strange aspect of the two long spurs of the sepals.
for more information on this flower: http://www.draculaspecies.com/

good vs evil

2011-10-31T06:39:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween everyone will you be getting tricks or treats??

this year Duncan couldn't decide if he was Good .....

or Evil.....

either way he is sure to get a few extra treats.

hope everyone has a save and happy halloween.

fresh fish anyone???

2011-10-30T11:23:00.000-07:00

throughout chinatown we found lots of fresh fish and other "edible" things that I had no idea what they were. I think it would be a great place to get fresh food each night for dinner before heading home.

and if you haven't notice I created a very simple button thanks to through a photographers eyes great tutorial go check it out!!!!!v

chocolate

2011-10-28T21:39:00.000-07:00

first try at this new technique for me Found it on the ramblings and photos by Ashley Sisk blog. It was very easy once she explained it. wow

the picture is from the san francisco waterfront's famous square with a couple of chocolate shops in it. took it with a point and shoot that I am still learning to use so not a great shot below is the original shot. so thought this might spice it up a bit and make it still useable for my scrapbooks.

tried to add the button to the link back site but blogger is giving me fits please check out the other submissions as: http://www.ashleysisk.com/2011/10/shoot-and-edit-week-42-memoriesedit.html

lanterns

2011-10-28T11:21:00.000-07:00

loved these lanterns and the streets were full of them

china town

2011-10-27T23:06:00.000-07:00

As I have posted before I spent a long weekend in San Francisco doing my first 1/2 marathon the Nike Women's marathon which I raised funds for Leukemia. One place we walked through was china town. found this amazing dragons painted on the side of the wall. we each took pictures at it. this is me. but did I take a picture of just the wall NO. what was I thinking??? anyone else ever do that???

I didn't take my big girl camera just my little point and shoot since I was traveling very light. dang I guess that means I must go back. I really think it would be a fun place to take the hubby for a long weekend. so much to see and do and so little time.

shadows fall

2011-10-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

while in san francisco on the bus I saw this building with the shadows falling on it. thougth it was pretty. Not to bad of a picture taken through tinted bus windows with a little point and shoot.

linking up with 52 photos project: http://www.52photosproject.com/2011/10/time-to-share-look-up.html

hint of autumn

2011-10-24T22:08:00.000-07:00

I added a new tab: photography challenges and looking for more entries anyone know of any please let me know.

autumn is hitting the trees finally here. although with it comes colder weather which I am not fond of.

I used 2 of kim klassens textures pumpkin and paper staiined then a frame by shadowhouse

check out the other entries in the texture tuesday by kim klassen

also linking up with the creative exchange always a great place to see some amazing picutures:

ding ding

2011-10-24T11:29:00.000-07:00

rice a roni the san francisco treat. so thought of that song as we rode the trollys. ended up taking lots of different transportation there. Due to the occupy wall street movement we ended up walking a lot more then we planned to because they closed streets for them to march some planned some I think unplanned.

I am not so good at self portrature but here is proof I was actually on a trolly

those ears

2011-10-24T08:53:00.000-07:00

This is my niece's dog a little older then the last post i showed of her. she is so cute a little long haired chiauaua she is all ears though. the little tail goes so fast I can't seem to capture it on the picture.

paddle out

2011-10-23T08:45:00.000-07:00

taken about a month ago in couer'd alene a couple of paddle boarders out for the day.

last rose

2011-10-22T08:36:00.000-07:00

well almost took this about a month ago the weather has turned and leaves are falling. no longer do we smell the roses and scents of sweetness. In its place are crisp days and darker skys. the sunlight falls sooner and darkness lasts longer. no more do we have toes exposed just barely our noses. makes me sad but glad to see the colors of fall.

Check that pair

2011-10-21T04:51:00.000-07:00

I am guest blogging today over at Craizee Corners blog. check it out and find out what that title really means.

looks like one of the links isn't working so here is the correct link to today's post http://craizeecorner.blogspot.com/2011/10/2-for-price-of-1-today.html

the prize

2011-10-20T10:10:00.000-07:00

sorry its been a couple short posts still tired and catching up from teh race. this is the coveted tiffany finisher metal. it says I run to be. I later had it engraved with STRONG. at the niketown store. only requirement was that I bought somethign. lol not a problem.

5 months ago

2011-10-19T15:44:00.000-07:00

I started training with team in training to walk a 1/2 marathon. It has been an exciting, emotional and rewarding event in my life. I raised almost 3000 for Leukemia and Lymphoma and was able to cross the finish line at the Nike women's marathon in San Francisco this past weekend

my journey started and ended with a dear friend that trained with me, Jen. Her sister in law had been battling leukemia for a second time. i sprayed some purple paint in my hair, ugh that was a mess, for the event.

and they are off:

this is the start of the race for me. I crossed the start about 16 minutes into the race. 22 thousand strong and 13.1 miles to go through the hills and streets of san francisco.

It was a perfect day, well almost a bit humid 90% and I trainined for cold weather and really wished I would have trained with a running skirt instead of pants. live and learn.

tick tock time is running out

2011-10-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

for all the flowers. took this picture in September when the flowers were blooming. this is the clock tower left over from the railroad yard and the pavilion was left over from the worlds fair in 1976

how fast are you?

2011-10-17T11:12:00.000-07:00

yesterday I ran my first 1/2 marathon in San Francisco. I scheduled out a bunch of posts since i knew i wouldn't have access to a computer. I am flying home tonight (hopefully on all of this info) so thought I would post a picture of my sister in law when she came to visit us last month.

the sculpture's are steal and located in our downtown area on the edge of riverfront part. they symbolize the racers in our biggest race Bloomsday one of the largest in the nation. my dad when he was working sold the steal that made all those sculptures guess that is why I am partial to them.

mountain flower

2011-10-16T23:02:00.000-07:00

well time to leave the mountains so here is one of my favorite shots form this trip.

are you my mama

2011-10-15T10:53:00.000-07:00

this little guy really liked my husband

he/she followed him around for a bit that was until it spotted a bug

ready set GO!!!!

2011-10-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

ok thats me run/walking my first 5k race. the moose chase trail run on top of Mount Spokane a couple of weeks ago. A small group raced through the hills and trails of the mountain. It was a gorgeous day out I ended up actually being way to warm but had a blast.

it was a bit of a practice at running in a race of any kind. As you have seen by my side bar i have been fundraising and training to do my first 1/2 marathon and raise funds for leukemia. as you read this me and my team (team in training team) are on our way to a weekend of fun, tears, laughter, stories and pounding the pavement in San Francisco at the Nike women's marathon. I will be mostly walking but a really fast walk. amazing I could hardly walk for very long when I first started training 5 months ago and now I am doing 13.1 miles.

its not about the finishing time its about accomplishing something you have never done before.

This weekend I race for Stephanie (recovering from her 2nd round of leukemia), Mitchell a young man just diagnosed and franca who passed last year.

now back to our regularly scheduled posts

up a hill

2011-10-13T10:57:00.000-07:00

yesterday's shot was done from the top of this little hill

hubby was happy to be out hiking in the sun that day don't you think?

2011-10-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

see that patch of white snow? that is where we started out from at hurricane ridge visitor center. i love that we are just about even with teh mountain tops.

snow much fun

2011-10-11T10:34:00.000-07:00

while up on hurricane ridge we came across some snow (yes snow in august) so hubby and I had a toss of snowballs

hurricane ridge in august

2011-10-10T19:10:00.000-07:00

just love this shot little late in the season for tons of fowers but I will take it.

looks its chuck testa

2011-10-09T09:55:00.000-07:00

naahhhh just my husband being silly playing with some tree moss

edited to add : sorry internet was terrible where I stayed over the weekend so only quick posts chuck testa for those that don't know is a taxadermist in california and has created a craze over his commercial check it out :

what is the buzz all about

2011-10-08T13:06:00.000-07:00

found this bee hanging out on a thistle up on hurricane ridge. he was HUGE.

havign some internet issues so sorry for the short post.

I can see Canada from here!!!!

2011-10-07T04:50:00.000-07:00

said in my very poor Palin voice. lol

yep thats canada as seen from hurricane ridge zoomed in a bit.

here it is zoomed out.

magical forest

2011-10-05T23:18:00.000-07:00

ok one more brief interuption and then back to hurricane ridge. I just couldn't resist playing in the edit me at my reflection of something. I had the perfect use for it.

i had this texture for a long time one of the first I downloaded unfortunetly I don't really know whose it is all i have is pareerica on flickr group will have to do some research maybe I can find it on flickr. ugh I didn't know how to save them properly so that I could find the owner of them back then sorry.

edited to add: the texture creater can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/pareeerica/

the original picture:

check out the other edits here:

hurricane ridge

2011-10-05T09:00:00.000-07:00

located a few miles up from port angels, washington is one of the most beautiful places. where else can you hike and see deer, be equal to the tops of mountains and see snow in august.

here is a picture my hubby snapped before we headed out for our hike

autumn weeds

2011-10-03T23:57:00.000-07:00

bought a new point and shoot to take with me to San Francisco in a couple of weeks for the marathon. can't really take my big girl camera because traveling light and can't run with it. I bought a nikon coolpix s9100 so did a few test shots over the weekend while on a short hike. it was right at noon so very bright out (not complaining summer can stay as long as possible)

these weeds needed help though the original picture is below so I added kim klassens autumn texture in color burn mode then some pumpkin grunge to it and they really popped.

the theme for this texture Tuesday is gratitude I am so gratefully for a wonderful day in the sun with my hubby and dog.

2011-10-03T09:00:00.000-07:00

this deer was in the parking lot of the hurricane ridge visitor's center with its mom.

a different kind of blue

2011-10-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

so on a day not long ago I was a beach (last few posts have been about this) that same day we climbed to around 5000 feet and only a few miles away or so away to hurricane ridge near port angles washington

i have always love pictures where there different shades of blue in it. like you see with ocean or mountain landscapes. this is as close as I could get. wasn't happy with the sky and I guess I could have changed it in photoshop but thats how it came out i did play with the levels a bit.

so now you can guess we are going to visit the mountains on my blog for a few days.

reflection

2011-10-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

one thing about this beach (murdock beach) is the rocks at low tide produced some great reflections.

can you see the eagle from yesterday's post???

eagle eyes

2011-09-30T15:00:00.000-07:00

while wondering out on murdock beach in washington state near sequim we spotted this eagle. this is as close to it as I could get with my lens.

twirl

2011-09-29T19:28:00.000-07:00

let your imagine be your guide.

I learned a new trick today with teh help of lisa from lisa at lisa gordon photography.

the original photo was blah so I spiced it up using the instructions from another rich collectable photography;

this was a quick play with it took all but about 4 minutes. took me longer to read the instructions.

give it a try and let me know what you think. I will add the site to my tabs above so teh instructions are saved.

linking up with bonnie again:

murdock beach

2011-09-28T16:58:00.000-07:00

or should I say mud beach at low tide.

found this little secluded beach at low tide to find rocks a t. had heard they were unusually round. we didn't get to go very far because we didn't have the right shoes on. next time we wear waders. it was fun to wonder about all by ourselves.

love is....

2011-09-27T07:42:00.000-07:00

used a few kim klassen edits on this one. taken while at the beach the rock isn't perfect heart but close. so drew a heart around it and took a picture. but wanted to add words but make them look like they were written in the sad so used pse for that here is a snipit of what I did.

this is the original photo

fast legs

2011-09-26T09:54:00.000-07:00

these little guys were FAST this is the best picture I took of them and is blown up from this picture:

i only had a 105 lens and tey were skittish so couldn't get to close.

stop

2011-09-25T09:48:00.000-07:00

stop and think or at least wonder what someone is thinking in this case.

this is my husband on the beach with mt baker in the background and one of my favorites from the trip

reality

2011-09-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

time to head back up the beach on the second half of our hike. our short stay at the lighthouse included our packed in lunch definitely worth the trip

this sign points us on our way out of the lighthouse area.

leave a light on for me

2011-09-23T11:25:00.000-07:00

taking a picture of the light proved to be a challenge the space wasn't very big so this is the best of my shots. the light stays on 24/7 and you can see a bit of that in the picture.

the lighthouse is manned by volunteers that pay for the privilege of staying on the station for one week at a time. but what a great vacation that would make. while we were there a family with 2 kids and the grandparents and an au pare were staying there. they give tours of the lighthouse and explain the history and do some cleaning type work around the lighthouse as part of their tour of duty.

this is the living quarters you stay in while there:

more information on the light house can be found here: http://newdungenesslighthouse.com/index.html

i was amused one of the little girls had a shirt on that said "i'm a keep" I thought that was too cute.

up to the top

2011-09-22T09:21:00.000-07:00

this is the view from teh top of the lighthouse that I showed you yesterday. located 5 1/2 miles out on the dungenous spit in sequim, washington. well worth the hike out there. the dark piece of land to upper left is where we started from

we really didn't relie that we would get to go up to the top of the lighthouse so it was a special treat for us. but getting to the top was interesting the steps are small and narrow and 74 of them.

destination

2011-09-21T10:08:00.000-07:00

what is your destination? do you ask that yourself daily? I find that each day gives me a new answer and by focusing on today we can make it through the day.

can you spot my destination for today? - sometimes like these trees and the shear distnace of my destination its hard to see even hard to manage concuring it.

but anything can be done with a little time and effort put into it. right? zooming in a little closer you can see the destination a bit better.

and with a few more steps and zooming in a bit more you can really see where I am going with this.

thats mt baker in the background and the dungenous spit lighthouse. Its a 5 1/2 mile walk to get there from the end of the forest and the start of the beach. we saw this a couple of years ago and said one day we are going to go there. recently we made plans for a long weekend just to accomplish this. And it was worth every step of the way.

so where is your next destination and where will your feet lead you to next?

ocean dreams

2011-09-20T02:02:00.000-07:00

one of the best things about stolling along the beach, a quiet deserted beach, is that you can reflect, think and dream. I added some pumpkin grunge and dream textures by kim klassen to this picture to spice it up a bit.

where do you go to reflect and dream??

linked up to tuesdays textures by kim klassen

a stroll

2011-09-19T10:46:00.000-07:00

anyone guess what this is? well probably not that hard of a question for most but throwing it out there to hear the answers:

while strolling along the beach at the dungenous spit in sequim, washington we happened apon this.

It landed perfectly upside down. fitting I suppose to die belly up.

finding this reminds me of how we should always not look forward but down as well all the way around us. one never knows what you will find at your feet.

so how many of you guessed jellyfish?? this is probably the best way to encounter a jelly fish that is unless you go to palau where you can swith with millions of them in a lake and never get stung. someday maybe I can hit that place. check out the video on this website: http://blogs.howstuffworks.com/2011/06/01/swim-with-13-million-jellyfish-in-palau/

forest walk

2011-09-18T10:18:00.000-07:00

a short walk through the forest to the beach

used a texture called serious magic by kim klassen because I thought the sooc shot needed a little somethign here is the orignal:

deception bridge

2011-09-17T11:00:00.000-07:00

on the way to the ferry we had to go over deception pass and this huge bridge. decided to strech our legs a bit and walk teh bridge. pretty high up but what a view.

below the bridge there must have been some good fishing because there was a lot of fisherman down there.

to get to the other side of the bridge you had to go down and over and then back up stairs to get to the other side.