POTD - Texture

Smooooooth.Ok, the texture isn't all that smooth but the taste sure is. Is that cheating? Oh well. I'm a converted coffee lover. I never used to drink it until I moved in with Kev. In the mornings, I would wake up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and I just had to try it. I started enjoying not only the coffee itself, but the time we spent together on Saturday mornings with Kev's yummy made-to-order omelettes and a cup of joe. After having coffee every morning on our trip to Costa Rica, (which is without a doubt, the best coffee ever) there was no turning back. I was hooked.

Kev loves to get the exotic coffee beans. This particular type is called Brazil Bourbon. The coffee that we had this morning is Swiss Chocolate Almond. Both are wonderful. For a wedding gift, someone got us a fabulous Cuisinart Grind and Brew coffeemaker that we are so looking forward to christening in our new home...

I haven't been posting recently, as I've been ill all week. I'm still sick and bummed because it's gorgeous outside. I'm praying that I feel significantly better tomorrow because otherwise I'll never convince my husband to go to the camera store so I can pick out some new gear that I've been eyeing up. So please send some healthy vibes my way! =)

Another Winery...

Who knew that there were so many within such close proximity to us? My sweet husband found this one, I had never even heard of it. This is the sign from the road. Yeah. This tiny little thing way up on a telephone pole. Two weeks ago we were just relaxing on the weekend and my husband told me to get ready to go, but wouldn't tell me where. We ended up here, which was a very cool surprise. Anything wine-related scores major brownie points! =) We had just tried one wine when the phone rang. The owner's wife had been in a car accident. She was fine, thankfully, but the owner had to close shop to go pick her up which foiled Kev's plans. So last weekend we went back to try again. It's a tiny little place, looks more like a farm than a winery. I used a vintage action on all of these... it only seemed appropriate with wine shots!They not only had wine, but tons of wine paraphernalia... which I love. These are hanging soy candles. I so wanted these... but as my husband reminded me, we have no house and therefore nowhere to hang them at the moment. ::: sigh :::

And lastly, two shots of my Chloemonster because I love her even though she completely disregarded my shouting and ran after the neighbors dog, down their walking path and through the gate into their back yard...
This is her up to no good... she discovered where the shutters were being painted and was nosy... Busted!

POTD - Textures

Coarse. This is a statue that I came across a couple weeks ago... I like the way the lion's mane frames it's face. You probably can't see the texture of it too well in these itty photos. I suppose I should have taken a closer shot but I wasn't planning on using it for this challenge... Sorry if you have to squint!

Family Picnic...

We went to a family picnic yesterday... It was at the big, old house that was converted from an actual barn. Crazy. I worry about how many rooms we'll have to repaint when we go to look at houses & these people renovated their house from a barn. And it's beautiful inside. Tall ceilings, wood beams, just gorgeous. They have horses, which the kids were fascinated by. They even brought one out to give rides. And it was great to get to see the family... my aunt, uncle, cousin & her baby came down from Wellsboro and stayed with us. We only get to see them once or twice a year. I know my Dad really cherishes the time he gets to spend with his brother and sisters.

I had a hard time with the lighting. There were lots of trees so most of the photos had spots of bright sunlight as well as dark shade. Any advice for how to handle this would be greatly appreciated.

My cousin's baby, Emily... Isn't she a doll?

Emily and her Grandpa... look at that smile! Wish I hadn't cut off her fingers but it was a quick snapshot

My handsome husband. Doesn't he look so pensive? He's probably really thinking, "When is she going to put that thing away already?!?"

My Uncle Jim and his grandson, Cole. Poor boy got bit by the dog... Luckily, it didn't seem to phase him too much. He was up and running around with the other little ones soon after

Plexiglass...

My first try at plexiglass. The reflection ended up being darker than I'd like so I may play with it some more. Most of the others turned out looking like the baby had a siamese twin. Strange. Obviously, I don't know what I'm doing. Any tips for how to get good shots with plexiglass? Please share if you have any plexiglass photos of your own!

Aidan...

Here's a few that I took last weekend. Krista's cousin was nice enough to bring over her baby boy for me to take some practice shots. I still have a bunch to edit but I wanted to get a few out here. CC is always welcome And, if you couldn't tell by now... I love baby feet! How cute are those little toes?

Big Don's Big Day!

While many kids have fathers that golf, smoke cigars, and wear ties... I do not. I have a Big Don. To say that he's far from conventional is an understatement. But he's the reason that my childhood was so colorful. So full of laughter. So much fun. He's the only Dad I know that drove a baby blue minivan, tinted, complete with a sound system; amp, sub woofers, the whole works. And he'd come cruising down the street with country music blaring and bass pumping. He'd tell dirty jokes in the most inappropriate of times. He's had a mohawk. He started food fights. He once let us dye his hair purple with grape Kool-Aid. He drove a Harley Davidson. And then a crotch rocket. I've witnessed him sing 'I'm too Sexy' in rabbit-skin briefs and a feather headband. He has a tattoo. He had a tongue ring. He laughs at himself. He enjoys life, and doesn't care what anyone else thinks about it along the way. I think this picture pretty much sums it up... This was his choice of attire for his daughter's (my) birthday party. At McDonald's. Now that's classic.
He's everything that other Dads were not. And I adore him for that. I wouldn't change a thing. Because beyond the abundance of humor, he is the most kind, hardworking, selfless person that I know. Today, my Dad turns 50 years old. Despite reaching this milestone, I think we all know he will never truly 'grow up'. I love that. I can only hope that we've provided him with as many wildly entertaining moments as he's given us...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

Practice, practice...

My friend Krista has been a lifesaver for my photography. She's always up for letting me practice on her boys, which I'm so grateful for. She's been easygoing, up for anything, always enthusiastic, understanding, and supportive when I really suck. Here's some shots from today... This may be photo overload but I have to post them here because apparently Yahoo has forbid me from e-mailing them. I'd love any CC!

Slacker...

I know, I've been totally slacking on my Photo Of The Day posts. But I do have a valid excuse. We've been out house hunting the past 2 nights. For some reason, I had the misconception that looking for a house would be fun... an adventure, of sorts. Not so much. It's rather stressful. Things are looking up, as we found one that Kev actually likes. I was starting to think such a place didn't exist. He's found fault in every single house we've looked at since December. How did I ever land myself such a picky Virgo? Oh, and I like the house too. We're keeping our guard up... we've been warned about the potential disappointment from getting your hopes up too soon. But at least it's a possibility...

And in case anyone is wondering... tonight we are going out to celebrate my BIRTHDAY! My birthday really isn't until tomorrow but I have my very first Basic Photography class at our local community college tomorrow night so we're going out tonight instead. What kind of crazy person wants to do a 3 hour night class on their birthday? Me!

POTD - Fire

There's not much to write about this. It's incense. We don't really burn incense but Kev found this incense holder that he liked it so he got it. It's mostly decorative but I lit this baby up for the photos.

Now I have a question. I shot these at ISO 800. They turned out so grainy. I've seen photos posted online that were a higher ISO with less grain. So I'm wondering, are mine so grainy because of the high ISO or because I didn't nail the exposure. I ran noiseware on these. Any CC is appreciated!

Happy Birthdays!

Happy Birthday Paddy!

22. Feeling old yet? Ok, probably not. Maybe you would if you were turning... say, 28. Ugh, I don't want to talk about it. I hope you have a fabulous birthday and I vow to drink a glass of Christine's box wine tonight in celebration!

This is the look of pure joy found when the birthday boy opens the Pirates of the Caribbean Black Pearl Flagship toy. Or anything pirate-related for that matter. Yesterday was my friend Nicole's son's 4th birthday party. Jayden. Isn't he a doll? His smile is contagious.

I didn't take too many photos, and many of the ones I took didn't turn out all that great. My photography seems to be a rollercoaster... there's days when I love the shots that I've taken and other days when I don't like any of them.