Camera Accessory Wish List

85mm lens

Wide Angle Lens

Maybe Macro

too many lenses to count...but a portrait one with special glass, a nice zoom lens, and also a MACRO lens (emphasis on this one) for my purposes, I suppose. But, definitely a couple more to assist me with the portraiture I acquire. I am very happy with what I have, and feel blessed that I can work with it for now. Someday, we'll have a back up camera, too. I just need patience!!

Busy Day- at home

Stamp sets I found for 1.99, not the 7.99 price (at least) I am seeing online!

I added MANY MANY more sites to view here, on my blog. Since I felt sick to my stomach today, I spent time online, more than I normally would have, but I found so much inspiration. Some photography related, but mostly paper crafting and digital scrapbooking stuff. It was quite delightful.

I also read to be caught up in my friend and I's Bible Study, among other topics, too. I think I am going to start a new blog of my own that is dedicated to what I am digging into with my faith.

I loved my class yesterday, and my tag book (not quite yet completed) is sitting on a stand in my kitchen. I have a new area set up with a couple of unique furniture pieces from my parents that they were getting rid of..perfect way to get some crafting material organized, and even nicely in view.

I am thinking that looking into a sofa bed would be nice for us, instead of getting a new plain couch. That way, sleepovers would be easier, especially in the future. AND, it would be nice for when we had visitors. We have three bedrooms, but they are all occupied!

A huge HUGE thank you goes out to my mother who brought my kids lunch. And a big hug for my little helper, Ella. :-)

Love

credits: Aja Abney: cream dot paper, green paper; swirl and love doodles by Angie Briggs.

I love Last of the Mohicans. So does my dad. The bridesmaids at my wedding walked down to the fast violin song of the movie, and my processional was a quiet song from LOTM as well.





My dad got to hear a string band play music from Last of the Mohicans at his Civil War Reenactment setting.





Oohhhhh I am so jealous I have to admit. I told my DH I'll love him forever and ever and ever if he can contact the band so we can go hear this music live. It stirs my soul like nothing else I have ever heard.





Speaking of love, here is a digital layout from today..I am trying to pick my way at some stuff. I downloaded more freebies and also worked on some real paper layouts the other night. Tomorrow night is another class and Jennifer and I's Bible Study right after. I am excited for my girl night out!

What is a well

Well (LOL), a couple of weeks ago I submitted a storyline for a friend's blog challenge. Whichover story was chosen, her very talented writer friend would create a story. Now, I hope not to take away from that upcoming story (my storyline was chosen), but this was too interesting today to pass up blogging.

Here is my storyline:
Fantasy: In the middle of a town, there is a glass well, and steps that wrap all around the well. Inside the well is a small wooden whistle that falls from the top, slowly, towards the bottom. It disappears and then reappears at the top, and falls down again.
No one has been able to touch it, or take it out of the well. No one knows, or remembers, what the whistle does. Except one.

And then, today, the guest speaker used this prayer from, if I remember correctly, a pilgrim, therefore, it's date written is not merely this century.

Here is his quote, which flooded meaning into my little made up storyline.

My mind is a bucket without a bottom. With no spiritual understanding, no desire for the Lord's Day. Ever learning, but never reaching the truth. Always at the Gospel well, but never holding water. Give me a broken heart, filled with your Spirit that carries home the water of grace.

At the fishing hole

I concentrated on Buddy photography-wise. The girls and Rich had fun fishing. But, with one pole, because the other was defective that we just got, and then the one we were using wouldn't work right either. Therefore, no fish caught tonight and we will be returning both of the poles for probably something cheap LOL. The Sponge Bob one may actually be worth the $10 instead of $25 LOL!

So, here are some pics I metered for the sky and then shot of Philip. That's how you do silhouettes, I think! And then, one of the dolls we made. Natalie's life like near perfect one is the far left, then Ella's, then Mine. I gave a chuckle when I saw that photo...it fits our personalities, how we made them.

We saw Ratatouille (spelling?) and it was good. Philip was sleeping most of the time, but he did find some enjoyment to his first time at the theater. It was cute to see the girls try to figure out the steps at Tinsletown. :-)

Tomorrow morning is a busy day, and I fear that I won't get enough rest to be up to par. Good thing we have the rest of the day free. The past two days, and week, have surely been busy.

We Painted Dolls

Ella, her friend, and I....I found these plain dolls at Pat Catan's for under $1/piece, and then got some fabric acrylic paint, and we all went to town. Ella especially loves to paint. If she has an option at school, she'd paint over anything else.

I hope to grab a few pics of them tomorrow. They still need to dry.

Let's just say I was quite inspired by the scrapbooking class I attended last night!

The large canvas is ordered...the one of just Ella. I will eventually order one of Philip but I need the perfect picture, and I will pray it comes soon! Don't want him to be left out, poor thing.

I took the kids to the mouse trap..haha..C.E. Cheese's, I mean. They had fun..after I dragged them around to the craft stores, they needed to run free.

My hubby is outside with them now. I can't believe him..he rode Philip's itsy bitsy bike to be funny. This bike is only slightly bigger than Philip!
Very funny!

Sailor Outfits....Post 1

This made me cry....as a mom, it just struck me.

Artwork

Here is the photo I may make as my canvas. I made it look like art already...so printed on canvas should look really nice (at least, I think so!). The sock on Ella is bothering me and I am trying to decide if I should get rid of the sock, or clone some on her leg. Hmmmm.....

well It's a few hours after I posted this originally and now I think not..this is NOT for a big canvas..someone brought to my attention on my photography board that it would look too blurry on a canvas, b/c it does that affect anyways a tad bit. So...probably the one of just ella..or a few I may have people vote on tomorrow.

My family

got me out of bed tonight and to a nearby lake tonight..I watched them "fish" with weeds. It was funny. I saw them pop bubbles along the pathway. It was a new location for them to play..and honestly, quiet. One lone fisherman..but next time, there'll be three awfully goofy ones once they go to the store to buy some gear. A great place to find some interesting photographs too.

The banjo is really nice. I loved hearing it today. Rich really has mastered music..with any instrument. It's amazing to me.

A friend of mine that had surgery recently called me..well, today she did. It was a blessing that she called, and more so that she is slowly on the way to recovery. Friday, I'll pick up her little girl, Natalie, and she'll spend the night. Ella is very excited. I hope it'll help my friend out, although I am afraid I may be taking her "help" away!!!!

Something Free

And it will be HUGE~

a 16x20 gallery wrap! I found a site that other photographer's were discussing, and it is surely true. Now, my dilemna will be choosing the photograph for my canvas. That is quite a dilemna...this photograph will be in my living room for quite some time! Do I do a photo with just Ella or one with just Philip? Or both?

Jennifer and I had a wonderful study time last night again. Today I am having tea withdrawl as I am taking a test for something for a doctor's appointment..and not having tea, is well, just awful.

Richie brought me flowers today! I had a pretty tough day and it was a real pick me up. Tomorrow he's going to get his banjo. Yes, banjo. We can finally browse the internet normally as we changed our browser..and this is the new email for that..although, we don't use that email...kindof funny..any guesses to the real words? LOL!

harmbanjmandpian

Tap Tap, tappity Tap!

Guess who joined dance?

She had so much fun and will be going to her SECOND class tomorrow. She loved the first class. They are working on "technique" with the tap shoes...Listening to their dancing songs was fun. The music is very cute and fun-loving.

High School Flashback

Here are some photos from one of the SWEETEST girls I have ever known. She's from church and graduating this year.

Link to a photo

I made ordinary to, well...a bit magical?

A Restorative Process

Here is a summary of what I have been told by the doctor and nurse practioner of Advanced Intregative Medicine..after two visits, both in which I cried at.

My thyroid treatment that had been currently underway was incorrect..so a new one was given, and will not be successful for another month or so, the way that it progresses.

My body has a severe lacking in iodine. Magnesium, too, which helps produce metabolic energy. Other supplements to help me are Vitamin C and Vitamin B-5, and a few others, because these are important in reconstituting the ADRENAL functions.

At this last visit, I was told that fibromyalgia is a "catch all" for something that most physicians can't pinpoint, or don't try to completely solve. Something called Adrenal Exhaustion was brought to my attention, and a little pamphlet which, well, explains a lot.

Here's the story of a patient that was included in the pamphlet. Most of it is "me" and if it isn't, I'll place an N beside the comment (truly, though, there won't be many "N's."

The first thing Barbara said as she sat down in my office was, "I am totally exhausted." A thirty-eight-year-old grade school teacher, she was barely able to meet the demands of her work. Barbara was nearly desperate in her plea for help. She told me that by the end of each school day, her muscles and joints ached, her throat hurt, and she would develop a low-grade fever. She couldn't even imagine having the strength to prepare dinner for her family, or keep house. Fortunately, her husband did all the domestic activities. The elder of their two children pitched in as well.

When Barbara was able to get nine houre of sleep, she would arise in the morning with the feeling that if she pushed herself hard enough, she could manage through the day. But she felt hardly any joy, spontaneity, and creativity- qualities she considered essential to teach and to parent. For this reason especially, she was depressed, for she was falling far short of her expectations. But she was depressed all the time anyways, she said, even if she'd had a rare good day at school and everything was going well in her family.

If anything out of the ordinary happened- like having a cookie, having a pleasant dinner with friends, staying up past 10:00 pm, shopping for groceries- then her usual end of the day symptoms would be even worse. She usually needed several days or more to recover. If she drank milk or orange juice (N), she would suffer from migraine headaches- sometimes she'd get them regardless....
As a result of these symptoms, Barbara attempted to control each day. She had absolutely no reserves to deal with unforeseen events. She said she couldn't continue on this way. If she didn't get some relief soon, she was going to have to take a medical leave of absense from her work.
I asked Barbara when she last felt well. She replied that she'd been functioning fairly normally until eighteen months before, when she'd been diagnosed with mononucleosis (N, but I had mono in high school and right after that was diagnosed with fibro). She never seemed to recover fully from the mono, she continued, and it was in the following monhts that her current symptom picture began to develop. After a year of not getting any better, she was treated with an antidepressant. This medication had given her a little relief, but the overall effect was not substantial...

MORE: It is our adrenal glands that buffer stress and enable us to stand up to life's onslaughts. These glands give us the capacity to perform and to adapt flexibly to the demands of everyday. It is also the adrenals that enable us to go beyond our usual limits of endurance when needed and help us to recover in a reasonable amount of time...but plainly, Barbara had little capacity left to perform, adapt, or recover.

Stressors
emotions: worry, anxiety, guilt, anger, fear
Insufficient sleep
Chronic infections
Chronic Pain
and more I won't list

Symptoms (I'll list what I deal with)
Excessive fatigue, weakness, nervousness, irritability, mental depression, apprehensions, inability to concentrate, moments of confusion, poor memory, feelings of frustration, light-headedness, dizziness that occurs upon standing, insomia, headaches, tenderness in adrenal area, low body temperature, hair loss, difficulty losing weight, tendency to inflammation, increased susceptibility to autoimmune diseases (I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, which is an autoimmune disorder)...I left out about 1 third of the main list.

Most of these symptoms are "fibromyalgia" symptoms, but now, I have hope that many, if not all, will be sentenced to SILENCE in a few months. I have a peace about it. I was told the fatigue will be the hardest to change though. And that is by far, the worst of it for me.

Artful Blogging

A brand new magazine for people like me!

My Neice

Ella has this beauty

that just comes perfectly through photographs....but this one in particular. She was actually being or pretending to be camera shy here. She loves her pony, and yes that is a tatoo on her arm, but it's not a princess or flower...it's Superman. By the way, those are Gap capris I got for her for $3 recently at the store itself, and they are my favorite. I love that rugged but classicl look on her.

Can you pray for your computer? If so, than I will. I can't yet manage to post pics on here from our own computer at home, and using the browser itself is tricky. Thus, far and few between blogs. I do need to update a few on my second doctor's appointment that I had Wednesday in PA, but I will probably do that later. It was another encouraging appointment.

I signed up for 2 scrapbooking (well, more like technique classes) at a local scrapbooking store, and I am excited. I just had my first high school senior photoshoot that went lovely, but have yet to concentrate and look at my pictures. This week was just super busy, and today is no better, really...plus, I am dealing with more intense pain in my body, all over, today. But, likeI said before, my appt. was hopeful, so we'll have to concentrate on that fact.

I am excited about my scrapbooking again, and have even tried to do some more digital ones. Earlier this week I spent time with a friend and we scrapbooked all morning..I completed 4 pages. Yeah! Plus, I found some nice CK rubon letters for .97/pack. I also picked up Somerset Studio 40% off..I love those magazines. There are two others I like: Somerset Life, published quarterly, and Somerset Legacy (Memories?). The problem is, they are expensive material. I love the artistic nature of them. Sometimes it's a little too much for me, but it soothes my soul to read the articles and look at someone else's creativity.

I am excited that my friend and I are meeting again Monday for another Bible Study. My dad told me he was so pleased that he and I can go back and forth reading similar things and talk about them, too. Jennifer suggested a study guide that she saw that focuses on both Esther and Ruth. I love the book of Ruth....honestly, these two books just lets you soak up so much culture and history of the Bible. Its delightful..really, to think God provided WOMEN as main topics in the Bible. With that in mind, I would say, he is one for ALL people. And isn't that wonderful? I get an ache in my heart when I hear it said that HE doesn't love me, couldn't, etc. I can only just pray at this point for those that they can somehow draw near to God, because when you do that, He will certainly draw near to you.

Sometimes..

I really believe that having a sensitive nature is just plain tough. And so misunderstood. And very hard to deal with when you are a sensitive person..see how that works? It's a vicious cycle. I have things that came about today that just pricked my heart more and more...little holes that probably need to be filled by some quiet time

Tea

and cereal

and a big hug and smile from my hubby

and two cute kids in bed asleep.

HoW CUte IS tHIs SOnG?!

SONG

This is her website...I soooo want this CD!

I haven't been to a Bible Study for a long time

and tonight I was at one!!! It was wonderful. Jennifer and I studied parts of the book of Esther, and will definitely have more to go over. Plus, when I got to the coffee house a bit earlier, I saw Sam and Laura. That was a nice surprise, too.

This nice evening made me forget the news I got at the dentist....it's time for ALL 4 wisdom teeth to come out. I am not looking forward to this, but knew when I went to the dentist today I HAD to tell him about the back of my mouth bothering me. I thought I was going to get out of that surgery, since, my goodness, I still have a baby tooth left in my mouth! Oh well! God will provide the peace in my heart. With my two little kids, I don't want to think about being put out for even this basic surgery.