Where Did February Go? Part One

Snow followed by cold followed by snow, followed by more cold.  That pretty much sums up most of February.  Cars, geese, and deer alike are not moving very quickly in this deep freeze.  

Some of my favorite memes that are circulating include the following:

• Who Made Elsa Mad?
• Just Keep Shoveling. Just Keep Shoveling.
• Tell us what you've done with the grass, snowman?!
• Dear Winter:  I think it's time we broke up.  I can't put up with your icy disposition any longer.
• 40 Days with lows below zero...but it's supposed to be in the teens next week.  So I got that going for me, which is nice. 

And now for some of my own memes--I call them mines.  LOL! 

I thought I had the blues, but just had the setting on my camera wrong for the snow picture, so I guess it's just cabin fever after all.

The dry air is a shock to the system.  

My skin has had enough abuse.  Winter is not all that it's cracked up to be.

I'm currently buying lotion in bulk.  I had it delivered on a pallet last week.

My electric bill surpassed my grocery budget, so I unplugged my freezer, and threw everything outside.


At least the bugs are gone! :)

January Shots

"The New Year lies before you like a spotless track of snow.  Be careful how you tread it, for every mark will show."

 My daughter's art teacher is an absolute gem!  She has allowed the creative genius in my talented girl to emerge and take flight.  

Goofing around at the coffee house one day, my daughter had the giggles and my constant snapping of pictures just fueled her silliness.  I'm sure it didn't have anything to do with the fresh caffeine running through her veins...LOL!

The winter clouds and reflecting glow of lights from town made a perfectly eerie backdrop for the trees and silhouette of this castle formation.  

Another Christmas Put to Bed

I met my husband and his family just over 21 years ago.  They welcomed me and my son with open arms, and we were allowed inside their circle to celebrate Christmas.

That first Christmas we spent together, we numbered eight--including hubby's siblings and parents.

Yesterday, a total of 20 of us gathered to partake in the traditional meal of chili and oyster stew and open presents.  In the last 21 years, the siblings have married and multiplied which makes getting us all together and sitting down at one time to open presents nothing short of a miracle.

Yesterday's gathering concluded the four planned holiday get-togethers for me for this year.  Now there are no more presents left under our tree, and we have to start thinking about the New Year's Eve plans and my birthday which are both just over a week away.

This time of year goes so fast, and then it practically comes to a halt waiting for the long, bleak winter to subside.

So as the sun sets on another Christmas season, I look around me thankful for the many blessings in my life and strive to hold onto this feeling through the cold months ahead.

October 2014 - 30 Day Photo Challenge - DAY 8:FENCE

Don't fence me in as I am on the fence about this topic.  

Doesn't it seem like a gated community is just a fancy way to describe white picket living within a barbed-wire-fence type of neighborhood?

___________________  

From winter of 1999 to the fall of 2000, I challenged myself to photograph a certain fence post configuration in Southern Minnesota to represent each season.  The result is as follows.  

These were all taken with my first digital camera--the Sony Mavica.  I realize I'm missing spring, but you get the idea.

30 Day Photo Challenge - Day 12:TREES

Reached into the far recesses of the photo files for these beauties.  I know for sure the 1999 images were taken with my first digital camera--the Sony Mavica.  I have never been able to resist taking a drive around the countryside after a heavy winter fog has coated the trees with a thick hoarfrost. There is something simply magical about the crystallized branches on a winter morn.

I think that I shall never see a tree as lovely as these trees...

Frosty Morning in North Iowa ~ 1999

Frosty Morning in North Iowa ~ 1999

Frosty Morning in North Iowa ~ 2009

Frosty Morning in North Iowa ~ 2009

Frosty Morning in North Iowa ~ 2010**

Vacation spots have provided for a some wonderful tree pictures as well...

Sunrise Over Lake Bryan in Orlando, Florida ~ 2009

Spanish Moss on trees in St. Simons Island, Georgia ~ 2013

[**the 2010 Frosty Morning image is the only one that was edited to enhance the color...the others are not re-touched**]