Just Another Day

One morning, on our off-day from preschool, we heard a lot of big machines and trucks outside. 

So we investigated...through the front room window.

Turns out, there was a water leak somewhere along the pipeline and the crew was getting to work on it.

The kids loved watching all the cool vehicles dig and move, and they liked watching the men get into the giant hole. 

It was a pleasantly surprising event to watch on a gloomy day! 

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I know this is ridiculously blurry, but I love the background and colors, so that's why I'm sharing this shot...plus, nearly all the leaves have fallen off this tree, so retaking it is not an option.




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The theme at Simplicity this week is 'daydream' - I was really at a loss for an awesome interpretation of that. So I chose this image.

Autumn, Abstract and Animals

There's just something I love about the simple, monochromatic landscapes of Autumn. I think it's because, as beautiful as Spring and Summer are, in Fall we aren't distracted by color and are able to see the bare-bones beauty of plants.

This particular one reminds me of those 'chandelier' fireworks!










Boredom + empty snack sized Pringles can + wasting time in PSE
= abstractness that I'm finding surprisingly beautiful and artistic.









New meaning to the term "cowlick".

I love cows!
My grandparents raised cattle, and I'd sometimes go to the fence calling "Here, cowy, cowy!" I figured it worked well with kitties, so why not try it on cows?! It actually worked once.
...that was a good day! :)









So, the theme is technically "eyes", but I think it goes without saying that this fluffy bunny has two. ;)

Baby Love

This is a photo of my daughter from nearly two years ago! Where has the time gone?!

Here's my sooc shot:




And here's my after:


I honestly can't remember what I did to it...warmed or brightened or both and added a Kim Klassen texture to the background.





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Of all the shots I've taken of my oldest 'baby', this is by far my favorite! It makes me smile every time I look at it...even though he still has breakfast on his face. ;)

  

Two Special Things...

Our Son



This shot is capturing more of my son's happiness than my own - a brand new set of Phineas & Ferb pajamas ($3 on the Walmart clearance rack. Woot!), chocolate milk mustache and playing outside - but as all mothers know, when your kids are happy, you are happy!

This shot is sooc, by the way.
Yeah, it can use some editing, but that's not gonna happen because A) the theme at Simplicity is 'sooc' and B) I'm too darn tired/busy to care. ;)


  

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And our rings

This is actually my second wedding ring.
My first was flushed down the toilet, courtesy of the kid above.
It was when I was pregnant with our second and my fingers were too swollen for my ring to fit. I stupidly kept it on my nightstand, well within reach of our then 1 1/2 year old.

Before:



After:



I edit with PSE 8 and I honestly can't remember all I did to this shot!
I ran multiple PW Actions including Vintage, Boost, Heartland and adjusted levels.

You'll Want to Sit Down for This One...

...not because it's overly spectacular, but because it's a little long.

This colorful bokeh makes me smile! :)

I think this spot is a bokeh paradise, because below is a shot I got of the exact same tree this past Spring.
(Apparently, my focusing abilities have improved! Score!)

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This one is from last week's Simply Photography assignment.




Here it is SOOC:



But I had to edit it!




I like both, but for different reasons.
Which do you like best?

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Technically speaking, this shot isn't very good. But life rarely stops for me and my camera.
And I'd rather enjoy it than capture it perfectly - and these two make me wildly happy each and every day!
...as well as wildly crazy with frustration ;) ...

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The theme this week at Trendy Treehouse is babies! 

But since my babies are not really babies anymore, I dug out some cute snapshots of them from when they were both right at 7 months.

I can't post one baby and not the other!