Welcome to my 365 project for 2011. My goal is to capture the ordinary and extraordinary parts of my life. Here goes nothing...

Monday, February 28, 2011

Day 59


Wednesday is Read Across America Day and we are celebrating by having a character parade at school. Cameron is in love with Junie B. Jones books and wanted dress as her for the parade. She decided upon the Captain Field Day look. So being the ever-dedicated-to-books mom that I am, I painted the Captain Field Day logo on a white shirt and added some yellow splotches to a purple ribbon & Voila!!! = costume complete. I sure hope this thing dries before Wednesday morning. Now to figure out what I'm going to wear.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Day 58


It seems cliche to post a picture of a windmill being that we live in Texas. But where we live outside of Fort Worth, there really are windmills everywhere. People use them decoratively and some ranches still use them to pull groundwater to the surface for their cattle. Today all these wonderful icons of my state were turning at warp speed. The winds were gusting and I thought this captured today.

Day 57


We traveled this weekend to the wedding of one of the girls I coached years ago when she was in high school. She's now working with my hubby as the girls gymnastics coach for Saginaw High. It seems that we've come full circle. It brought tears to my eyes to see her all grown up and getting married. She wanted to make sure that Cameron came home with a bouquet even though she wouldn't/didn't catch the one she threw. When we got back to the hotel, I caught her admiring herself in the mirror holding Stormey's bouquet. I can only imagine that she was picturing herself as a bride someday.
I worked as best I could to get the picture looking better than it did SOOC. The lighting in the hotel room was horrible.

Friday, February 25, 2011

Day 56

It was another big day in kindergarten. Today was the day that the kids began their unit "All about Me". The unit is kicked off by making rice babies. Each child (with help) fills a man's tube sock with rice to the weight he/she was at birth. Then the parents help zip tie them and the remaining portion on top is sewn down to make the baby's cap. We added eyes, hair, bows, and wrote the child's information on each little rice baby. The kids will spend the next two weeks taking care of this baby and learning many new things all related to them and how they've grown and changed. It was such a wonderful day!

All the parents that helped loved it as much as the kids. We all drifted back to those terrific memories of the day our precious gifts were born.

Day 55


I'm a day late getting this one posted. We were called into action last night when my dear friend thought she was going into labor with baby #3. We rushed over to bring home her oldest with us so that she could stay while Mommy and Daddy went to the hospital. Long story short, no baby yet!

So better late than never on my post.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Day 54


I realized it has been a while since I did a photo of myself and I have vowed to photograph me more. So, here is me today. I had a rough day at school because a colleague just was down right hateful. I'm typically not a sensitive person, but she really hurt my feelings today. Anyway, I decided that tonight I deserved to put on some comfy clothes, prop up my feet, enjoy a cold beverage and watch American Idol.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Day 53


I came home from work today to discover that my battery on the camera was totally drained. So, I'm posting another picture I took yesterday while on my hike. I wish I'd taken this from a standing position instead of squatted down. Overall, I like the repeating pattern of the fence posts. Rugged would be the adjective I'd use to describe the vibe of the pic.
I've strayed away from the Joy of Love workshop. I wasn't getting any feedback from Willette.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Day 52

We had the day off from school/work because of Presidents' Day. I got some alone time thanks to my wonderful hubs that wanted to spend the day with his girl. So, I went for a nice LONG hike at Eagle Mountain Park and of course packed my handy dandy camera. Just loved these oaks. Nothing in nature says strength better than an oak tree. They actually always make me think of my Papaw and his strength and the deep roots he planted for our family.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Day 51


It didn't take the daffodils long to start budding out. I just posted a picture of them last week as the green leaves were starting to poke from the ground. Spring has SPRUNG!!! Yippee

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Day 50


We attended a Girly Girl birthday party this morning. The girls had so much fun dressing up in glittery outfits and getting their hair, nails and makeup done. (Cameron only wanted her hair fixed. The rest was girly overload.) Then they were able to dance and do a runway show. It was quite an event. Here is a candid one of her and her BFF, Hannah, singing along with some Hannah Montana song while they waited for their turn to have their hair fixed.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Day 49

Today was Kindergarten Rodeo at Cameron's school. The kids had a beautiful day to be outside pitching washers and horseshoes, roping calves (not real ones) and having stick horse races. Tried to shoot from slightly below her eye level. Another great event to finish up their unit on Texas.

1/400, f5.6, ISO 100
Off to night two of SHS gymnastics meet. I'll be getting caught up on everyone's blogs tomorrow. Happy Friday to all!!!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Day 48


This one isn't from today (earlier in the week), but it will have to do for day 48. When I get my gymnastics pictures edited, I'll post them. It's been a long day and this picture makes me happy. She's such a Fancy Nancy sometimes.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Day 47

This is a dead plant along the pond. It had some cool seeds on the other side, but I liked the way the light shone through the dried pod.

I'm posting my today picture, and I will have to get caught up on my commenting on everyone's pages on Saturday. My hubs has a big gymnastics meet the next two days and we'll be out of commission until the weekend. I'm going to do my best to at least get a picture up each day.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Day 46


I'm trying to push myself to shoot from different angles rather than the same tired ones I've been using. Cameron is always looking for rocks with shell imprints. So while she was squatted down looking, I got right above her and asked her to show me what she'd found. Not only was the rock a keeper, but so was this picture. It's been so beautiful here. I hope to get many more outdoor shots this week.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Day 45

Love is in the air. At least in Kindergarten, it is. Today for the kid's Valentine party, they were asked to dress up because they would be participating in a school/class dance. So many of the boys came dressed in their slacks and ties while the girls chose their fanciest party dresses. Cameron's teacher is so fabulous because she has been working with her kids on proper etiquette for asking and being asked to dance. After the kiddos chowed down on cookies and juice, they took turns asking each other to cut a rug.

I am so lucky that she's on the campus where I teach so that I can sneak down and capture these moments.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Day 44


There are signs that Spring is around the corner. The daffodils have started to come up in the flowerbeds. I can't wait until they've bloomed and we have those spots of bright yellow color in the yard.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Day 43

I tried Courtney's tips for creating movement using a slow shutter speed. I used my trusty tripod to help with shaking. I had a few shots with cars coming both directions, but I like this one best. I was positioned on a curve in the road in my neighborhood and I didn't get a clear picture of headlights and taillights. I want to try this again when I can find a good spot with a median where I can get both without them being all jumbled together.

ISO 200, 15", f29

Day 42


Whoops! I didn't get this up yesterday. Guess better late than never. Cam's class doing readers' theater.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Day 41

In Cameron's class, they do these sticker stories. I think it is such a cool idea for new writers. If you don't speak/read 6 year old, it says "One time in soccer I scored a goal. My team name is the Wild Things." I can't wait to look back at this at the end of 365 days and see how much she's grown and changed in the way she writes.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Day 40

I have been waiting ever so patiently (not really) for my new remote for my camera to arrive from Hong Kong. Yes, I could have purchased one at Best Buy, but I found one on Ebay for $0.99 with no shipping fee. I'm all about a bargain. Even if this is the only picture it ever takes and never works again I've gotten my 99 cents worth.

I love my Pioneer Woman cookbook my dear nephew gave me for Christmas. If you don't have one, you should get one. Her recipes are fabulous.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Day 39


Not the most exciting picture, but it commemorates our 100th day of school. Each kindergarten child was asked to bring a collection of 100 things. The day was filled with fun activities and lots of counting to 100. My 5th grade class didn't really do much to mark the day. They think they are way too cool to do "baby" things like that.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Day 38

The Joy of Love assignment today was "gift from the heart". I picked this photo of Cameron eating ice cream in her after shower turban because of the look in her eyes. This sweet little girl can express so much with those green/hazel eyes. Everyday, when I look at those eyes, I know how blessed my husband and I are to have her. She is truly a gift from God's heart and she captured mine from the moment I met her.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Day 37

Cameron and I've had a lot of time together over the past week. Not only were we snowed/iced in until yesterday, but the hubs has been gone this whole time on a business trip to Las Vegas and won't be home until Monday. We've had a lot of quality time together, and it was all good until we played Chutes and Ladders. Bet you can guess who won! She gets her sore loser attitude honestly. I hate to lose, and I come from a long line of bad sports. Apparently, this didn't skip a generation. Sorry, Cam, I wish you'd gotten your dad's easy going spirit.

I think this collage fits in perfectly with the Joy of Love assignment for things you love to hate.
365 friends, I will try to get caught up on everyone's blogs this evening after the tiny one is in bed.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Day 36

We spent the day signing Valentine cards for Cameron's classmates. Now that she's in Kindergarten she has a few more kids in her class than last year. So, we didn't do homemade ones this year. We found some super cute ones with monkeys on them instead. She really enjoyed writing each friend's name and adding stickers. It was a good way to spend part of our day.

Friday, February 4, 2011

Day 35

Well, this is our 4th day off from school and we had about 6 new inches of snow to play in this morning. It was the wonderful powdery kind that was just right for sledding. Of course, we do not own sleds being that it only snows maybe once a year here. So we improvised using our recycling box lid. It worked like a charm. These pictures didn't turn out exposure-wise like I'd hoped, but I'm not really familiar with appropriate settings for snow. I probably should have let them be a little more under exposed rather than have my meter at zero. I still love them because of the sheer joy on Cameron's face.





Thursday, February 3, 2011

Day 34

Today's assignment for my Joy of Love workshop was to do a then and now. Cameron has always loved books since the time she was big enough to hold them. At 6 months old she'd stare at the pictures. Now that she's 6 she's reading everything in sight. Her dad and I can't even spell things in front of her now because she can figure it out. It makes me happy that she has found joy in reading.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Day 33

Day 2 home from school because of the ice storm that hit Texas. We've been having these rolling blackouts because of the energy usage. When the power came back on after the second outage, we decided to fire up the oven and make some brownies. My darling daughter did such a good job licking the bowl it may not need to be washed. (just kidding)

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Day 32

We finally got a snow day! Too bad the wind is blowing 30mph and you can't be out there longer than 5 minutes. That didn't stop Cameron and Goldie from playing in it. Cameron's snow angel was interrupted by the pooch.

This is my picture I'm using for my Joy of Love prompt of the day. These two are both in your face kinds of creatures. Here's a perfect example. That's just what they do.



ISO 100, 1/200, f5.6