The Joys of Yarn

In the number of years I've been married, I've never really wanted to learn how to crochet or knit. My dear mother-in-law, she is an awesome crocheter (she can whip out things that should be sold for $100s of dollars in just a few weeks). She has always wanted me to learn how to crochet, and well, it took my sister-in-law getting ready to have a little girl, to get me on the band wagon.

At first I thought it would be really tough, and didn't really understand all the lingo that goes with crocheting.  But little by little and stitch by stitch, I learned how to SC, HDC, DC FDC, BDC and just about everything else you could throw at me. I go so excited, I finally mastered the cute little pilot eared hats and those cute little bear ear hats.

Now I can do diaper covers!! And baby sacks, I'm so excited :) :) :) So now anytime I need a photo prop that requires me to crochet, well, I can do it with little to no problem.
So what has your joy of yarn been today?

1 thing you didn't know about yarn: Did you know that it takes six miles of yarn to make one t-shirt?

:)

21/365 : Got 50?

Do you have a 50mm lens in your bag of tricks? I do and ever so often I pull it out and it is wonderful.  But the 50 is not always the best lens at medium or long distances. It will not bring the subject in, and when shooting objects that are far away, well, you look like you've never picked up a camera before.
If you are able to get close enough to your object , you can take advantage of that shallow depth of field and get pretty creative with your subjects.
Shooting in tight, you’ll have the same soft background effect as if you were shooting with a telephoto, only you can tackle subjects that are much closer than most telephoto lens can handle.
The 50 can focus on subjects that are about as close as 1 foot away, and with depth of field diminishing the closer you get, you can create some dramatic imagery. I love taking out the 50 for my detailed wedding ring shots, it adds so much detail to the shot, without being over done.
So if you don't have one, invest in one (Ebay has them starting around $50), and take it out and play with it, get to know it, love it.

Yummm, yeasty goodness

Quick Yeast Rolls

Recipe by: Thelma Brewster, my dear husband's grandmother

1 package dry yeast

1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees)

2 T sugar

1 tsp salt

1 egg

2 T shortening

2 1/4 cup all purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water in large mixing bowl.  Add sugar, salt, egg, shortening and 1 cup flour.  Beat until smooth. Stir in remaining flour; continue beating until smooth, scrape batter from side of bowl. Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled. (about 1/2 hour).  Stir down batter and spoon into greased muffin tins (or greased cookie sheet spreading them out about 2 inches apart).  Let rise until double again (about 1/2 hr), preheat oven to 400, and bake about 12-15 minutes.

This recipe was so easy to make, and the rolls turned out beautifully!!

18/365 For Elliot

When did dinosaurs live?

Dinosaurs lived on the earth a very long time ago. They are all dead now.They were the biggest land animals to ever live upon the earth. When dinosaurs lived, there were not a lot of  people yet.


 
Were there many kinds of dinosaurs?

There were hundreds of different kinds of dinosaurs. We know what dinosaurs looked like from their skeletons. Scientists have studied the bones and have learned many things, but we still don't know everything about them, only God does.
 


Did all the kinds of dinosaurs live at the same time?

We know that all the different kinds of dinosaurs didn't live at the same time. One kind would die out, and another kind would develop.

 
Did dinosaurs lay eggs?

Dinosaur babies were hatched from eggs. Some dinosaurs lived in families. The parents took care of and raised the children. There were very large dinosaurs and very small ones.


 
What did dinosaurs eat?

Some dinosaurs were vegetarians, eating only plants. Animals that eat only plants are called "herbivores." They were peaceful animals. One plant-eating species was the Barosaurus. It had a very long neck, so it could reach high into the tree tops and eat the tender young leaves. Even trees fifty feet tall were not safe from these huge animals.

Soon after, smaller plant eating dinosaurs roamed the earth. One kind was the Iguanodon. It ate low-growing ferns and bushes. The vegetarian dinosaurs had cutting, puncturing and grinding teeth for eating plants.
Some of the larger dinosaurs had weak teeth, so they swallowed their plants without chewing them. They also had wide mouths for gathering leaves, and big cheeks to hold large mouthfuls of food. They had little claws on their toes, to rip down tough leaves.

Other dinosaurs were meat-eaters, or "carnivores." Some traveled in packs and hunted smaller dinosaurs. They had sharp, jagged teeth to tear and bite. They had sharp claws, with one large talon on each foot. The talon was as long as five inches, and was used for slicing into the flesh of the animal to be eaten.

One of the meat-eating dinosaurs was the Deinonychus. It was only about ten feet tall, but was a ruthless hunter.

Some of the meat-eaters probably hunted alone. Tyrannosaurus rex was the biggest carnivore ever to walk the earth. It was as tall as a two-story building, and had teeth up to seven inches long. Other carnivores ate their own kind, making them "cannibals."
 
We will never know everything about the dinosaurs, only God knows all about them. Have you researched the facts about dinos today?

Snow Day

15/365 .... one photo a day keeps the....

So, how do you pick what to photograph on what day? I try to remember that there is life outside of my customers, so I really have to concentrate on what to photograph. Today I focused on one of my best friends, my dog. She is all of 3 1/2 and she is a great buddy just to hang out with, and if you are cold an awesome heat blanket (which only weighs 75 lbs).

We usually remember to photograph important things, like kids birthdays, lost teeth and sporting events and family vacations, but what about everyday life?

Sometimes I wish I had a camera with me, instead of leaving it at the house in my camera gear, when I see something truly great. Or if there is somebody I really would like to meet, and create a memory with by taking a photo, and all I have is my little 3mp camera phone :( I really hate letting a great opportunity pass me up just for the fact I don't have my camera.

So what has caught your eye today?

Something great created by your child?

Love and laughter between siblings? 

A loving parent who when they pass, we wish we had taken more photos of them?

A love in your life, even though you are busy, you never make time to take a couple's photo?

An inspirational Bible verse?

A loved pet?

Yourself?

There are many things we can photograph, we just have to take that leap and do it.

Happy Photoing :)

How much do you love the smell of fresh bread? With butter? and jelly? I got to make 5 loaves today for my family, and they loved it :) Yummy onion-herb bread for ham sandwiches and white bread to go with your peanut butter and jelly. There is nothing better than fresh bread out of the oven.

Photo project 365: #13

This happens to be my favorite bird, a Eastern Blue Bird (found in Western KY). I got to see 3 of them today, and if we are lucky, we will get a mating pair in our little blue bird box (try saying that 5 times fast), at the back of our yard. Sunny skies, blue birds, life is great!!

12/365

Can you imagine how short I felt (well shorter than I am already) when I stood next to this very old tree in our backyard? I love this tree, it provides shade in the summertime, and doesn't block out God's warming sun in the wintertime.

10/365

 I love the colors :) Isn't is so simple to please a child when you are only 7 or 8? Usually you can get out just plain paper and crayons, and they have a blast for at least a while. I love them even more now, because my children can create works of art with just a new little drawings.

So what have you photographed today?

9/365

What have you photographed today? How about some cuteness? I've gotten on a streak where I'm making baby caps :) and this is where I'm at so far, not bad going from a know nothing about crocheting to caps in about 15 minutes for the simple ones :)

And they lived Happily ever after

And they lived oh so happily ever after.

Who's your team?

In honor of a friend's wedding day tomorrow, his favorite team colors. Can you guess who?

Fishing Around

Gone Fishing, will return on Monday ;)

Blocked???

Back home in Virginia there is a little town called Chilhowie, and this was one of the last stamped blocks from the Chilhowie Block company.

It has traveled through 4 states and 16years to finally stand guard at my flower garden, to protect it from three very roudy little boys and their big dog :)

I love where I grew up it, and I love that I have a little piece of "back home" with me everywhere I move to.

Friday Night Games

Oh what the love of a child will make you do.

When you use to go and party

now, the party comes to you

in the form of little men that you get

to walk around a board.

Oh what the love of a child will make you do,

forget the high heels

and makeup.

Bring on the dice,

and share a night

off the town

with the ones you love.

Valentine's Day Mini Session

Sweet tooth?

As a homeschool teacher, I'm always ready with a good reward for a job well done.  So, what are your grades like??

Brownie Points?

I remember when I was young, my father had a collection of these Kodak Brownie cameras in our den. They were all little square bodied cameras that according to him took a beating and kept on working. Well today, you can't even buy film to give them a whirl anymore, but they are still oh so cool to look at. I was blessed with this little beauty one summer by my wonderful son, who knew that his mom needed this more than anything else for her birthday :)  To get similar photos now, you can make a pinhole camera ( http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=11865&pq-locale=en_US&_requestid=42787 )

Project 365

How many of us take photos on a daily basis? I normally take photos at least once a week, and they are always of different things. This year I have committed to take photos on a daily basis, you know get to really know my community and my camera. So, my first photos of this year long project are of my crochet hooks and current project for a family friend who is expecting a little boy any day now.

Why do it?

Taking a photo a day is a big undertaking with big payoffs. Here are just a few reasons why you should consider doing it:

• Imagine being able to look back at any day of your year and recall what you did, who you met, what you learned… (Often we find it hard to remember what we did just yesterday or even last night, let alone a whole year ago! I know that I'm so in this boat.)
  
• Your year-long photo album will be an amazing way to document your travels and accomplishments, your haircuts, your children's haircuts and relationships. Time moves surprisingly fast.
  
• Taking a photo a day will make you a better photographer. Using your camera every day will help you learn its limits. You will get better at composing your shots, you’ll start to care about lighting, and you’ll become more creative with your photography when you’re forced to come up with something new every single day. Even if you have a simple camera on your cell phone, use it daily, that way you can document lost teeth, first days of school and those yearly birthdays :)

Also don't be afraid to photograph those who are not your family, friends are awesome and if a cool looking person on the street catches your eye, go for it. You may never know who you might meet if you do.