December 19/11

We basically have had no snow this year.  Only a few light dustings, so I thought I should take some pictures when we do get it!!  I love the snow sitting on these branches.  I would like to get a macro lens that I could get a cool close up of a single snowflake.  I love how they each have their own unique shape.  When I was little I used to look at the large ones that fell and I tried to see how they looked before they would melt on my hand or mittens.  If I could capture that in a picture that would be great!!

Snow Covered Branch

December 18/11

Ever since I have known Mark, every year he has made shortbread cookies.  It now includes having Egg Nog & Rum with nutmeg on top as we are baking them!  Mmmmm...made 6 batches.  Mark makes the best shortbread cookies I've ever tasted.  He says the recipe is from his great grandmother...so good!

Best Cookies

December 17/11

Everyone knows I love old things.  They have character & cool colours.  Like this old chair...love the red.  I can see this sitting on my front porch with some fresh greens and twigs on it.

Old Chair

December 16/11

This blog is a story of my life for the past year...so I have to add this picture that I took this spring.  It's of the house that Mark & I built together 14 years ago when we got married.  We blended our families, had good times and bad...like everyone...but still made memories that we will keep forever.
Our house has officially been sold as of today.  Exciting and sad at the same time...

Memories to Keep

December 15/11

I love landscapes...even this time of year when all the leaves are gone.  I find the trees more interesting without leaves!!

Leafless

December 14/11

The reason I like this picture so much is how the background blends so nicely...and the flowers just pop.  And the colours in this vase...Ash & Braden brought it back for us from their honeymoon in Greece.  I love blue & white combinations!!

Greek Vase

December 13/11

I'm always looking for unique things...and some of the building tops are just cool looking.  I just think that if someone looks at this in 50 or 75 years they'll wonder what the heck this was for...these are on a barn-like building that I pass on my way to work.

December 12/11

Oh my gosh...I have spent all night trying to pick out a white paint colour for our trim.  Literally hours spent surfing the internet searching for the "best white".  Do you know how complicated it can be...who would have thought that white would be so hard?  Dove White, Cookie Crumb, Designer White, and the most popular...Cloud White.  I still haven't picked a trim colour, maybe I'll move on to the walls...

So many choices...

December 11/11

It's been a very busy weekend!!  So my posts are a little shorter than usual.  I just loved the texture of these grasses. It's December 11th and it's amazing that these are not covered and weighed down in snow yet...

Texture

December 10/11

Another full day at the new house, ripping things apart, tearing out walls and burning what we have torn out.
Thanks to Norm & Erna for all their help...and what's better after a long day of work that take out
Chinese food...yum...

Take Out

December 9/11

I have always loved scrabble...I've played it with my kids for years and used to play it with my sisters and grandparents.
I love how the scrabble tiles are being framed now and used in crafts.
I think these are 3 important words...I'm not framing it as I might think of something else I want to say!!
That's the beauty of the scrabble pieces, you can make so many phrases and words...

So many possibilites...

December 8/11

I've been talking lately about our new home which I'm really excited about.  However, it also gets me thinking that I'm really going to miss our house we have now too.  Mark and I built this house when we blended our two families together and there are many memories here.  What got me thinking about that was this picture I took of our outside light underneath our pergola.  I remember the day spent with Mark and friends at the Aberfolyle Antique Market, just looking for the perfect light.  And we found it!  There are many little things that bring back good memories that we will have to leave behind.  But I guess they are only things, and we still have the good memories :)

Perfect Outside Lantern

December 7/11

So I just got home from our other house and it's after 9pm.  I was thinking what is my picture going to be today?  I drove up our driveway and our neighbour has all his lights put up for the season.  The reason I took this picture was to see how a picture I took in the dark would turn out and to see how my depth of field worked as well.  I used an external flash and I think it turned out great.

Coloured Lights

December 6/11

When I was younger I always had 20/20 vision.  I was sitting at my desk tonight and noticed 2 pairs of my glasses...then I got thinking about how many pairs I actually had.  These are a few...not counting the ones at my workplace and another pair floating around the house here too.  I also have a new prescription in my purse ready to fill for stronger glasses than what I have now.  Oh well, none of us can stop time and if my eyesight is the only thing that is fading I feel pretty fortunate :).


The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision. 
Helen Keller 

Sight to See

December 5/11

I have a glass bowl full of these on my counter...I love the look mixed with fresh cut greens from outside.

Fresh cut greens...

 

December 4/11

Busy day today...antiquing with Tyler & Dayna, bridal shower for Megan and then renovating the new house.
I'm posting a picture I took a couple of weeks ago from an old building.  I still find the architectural detail they put into old buildings amazing!!

Building Faces

December 3/11

We were renovating all day today, and one of the main things we did was burn all of the old cupboards, vanities etc that we took out (with a burn permit of course).  Our friends Norm and Erna watched and added to the fire for hours today (thank you both!!).  This picture is after many hours of burning...

Embers are the glowing, hot coals made of greatly heated wood, coal, or other carbon-based material that remain after, or sometimes precede a fire. Embers can glow very hot, sometimes as hot as the fire which created them. An ember is usually formed when a fire has only partially burnt a piece of fuel, and there is still usable chemical energy in that piece of fuel. Often this happens because the usable chemical energy is so deep into the center that air (chemically O2) does not reach it, therefore not causing combustion (carbon-based fuel + O2 → CO2 + H2O + C + other chemicals involved). The reason that it continues to stay hot and does not lose its thermal energy quickly is because combustion is still happening at a miniature scale. The small yellow, orange and red lights often seen among the embers are actually combustion. There just is not enough combustion happening at one time to create a flame. By the time embers are completely 'burned through', almost all of it is pure carbon will have loose physical bonds, which is why they crumble with the slightest touch.
Info courtesy of Wikipedia.

Isn't science amazing???

Thanks also to Ash & Braden, and Tyler & Dayna for all your help today!

Fire Embers

December 2/11

As you know I love black & white photos.  This picture of part of an old building just looks so much better in B&W.  I liked the angles in this shot...

OLD

December 1/11

I have really been liking to take close ups lately.  I've said many times before, they just make things look much more interesting than they actually may be.  This is seeded eucalyptus (which is my favourite filler for arrangements) and I just love the way it looks up close.  I'm thinking of blowing this up and framing it for my new craft room...

Close Up

November 30/11

I just took this picture a few moments ago...our first snow that is actually staying on the ground and trees. Not bad for November 30th in Canada!!  We usually get it much earlier...

Snow

November 29/11

Woohoo...got our new house today!!  Let the renovations begin....

Old out...New in....

November 28/11

I liked these colourful leaves.  When I saw the picture on my computer I really noticed the new green leaves reaching out from the centre and I thought of us humans.  We age and get older but we also get wiser.  So while we have our outer selves that may appear older, or as I like to think "more colourful", we have more wisdom and love reaching out from the centre of us...our hearts.

When I can look Life in the eyes,
Grown calm and very coldly wise,
Life will have given me the Truth,
And taken in exchange - my youth.
~Sara Teasdale

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest. ~ Confucius

Colourful

November 27/11

So I was upstairs in my office tonight and I looked over at the chandelier that hangs over our great room and thought how cool would that look using my star filter.  I've used it with sunlight before but not on bulbs like this.  I like it!!  This is an 8 point filter, I think a smaller point would look a bit better but it still makes it appear a little more magical than just the plain bulbs. I also like the way the light is reflected in the chandelier itself and the window behind...you have to look closely but it's there...

Points of Light

November 26/11

I had forgotten I had these crystal door knobs.  I bought them at a yard sale about 6 years ago and put them away.  Now that I'm looking at redoing our new house, I found these and can't wait to use them in our master bedroom.  So vintage and pretty...

Vintage

November 25/11

We have a vine in our backyard that has these berries on it.  I think it looks cool as the berries are drying up with the colder weather.  I still love close up shots!

Withering

November 24/11

So I decided to do my "me" picture for this month.  I didn't feel like getting my tripod out this morning so I shot this picture in a mirror.  Not bad, I don't love the lighting on my face, but it is certainly a learning process.  It was quite sunny this morning...next time I'll wait until I don't have sunshine hitting my face.
Anyway, it was fun trying!!

Self Portriat

November 23/11

I was just sitting in front of our fireplace and thought of my picture for the day!  I thought it would look cool taking it looking through a wire birdcage I have on the hearth.  I like taking shots with different perspectives...

Looking Through

November 22/11

I  CAN'T BELIEVE how fast this year has gone by.  I took this picture because in January when I started this blog I had one of my winter arrangements on my porch.  It's that time of year already,  when I have made another one.  Wow, this year has flown by....
Now I'm just waiting to put some white birch in it.  Our new house that we get next Tuesday has a white birch tree in the front yard that needs some trimming...  :)
And these always look better with some snow on the ground too, although I can wait a little longer for that.

Winter Arrangement

November 21/11

I'm so excited!!  Every year there is a manufacturer of paper goods, ribbons, boxes, etc that opens it's doors to the public for just a few weeks.  I went there today and picked up bags, ribbon, tags, wine boxes...I have my supplies for the next year.  May not sound exciting to some, but for those of us who love creating things out of paper...priceless!!  I think I may have to go back for some wrapping paper, but they have so many designs it may take me a while :)

Crafty

November 20/11

Today was a lazy day... a good day to make some cards.  I'm figuring that once we get our new house on November 29th, I'm not going to have as much time to do stuff like this.  We have a LOT to do at the new house. So anyway, here is my creation for today.  I love lazy Sundays...

Sunday Card

November 19/11

I went to my sister Kim's today after dropping our Mom off at the Toronto airport for her flight to California!  She is going to see my sister Cindy and my niece Crystal and their respective families...
Anyway, this is Kim's dog Kelsey...cute little thing.  They have another dog Kingston, but this was the best of the pictures I took.

Kelsey Dog

November 18/11

You know fall is here (and just about over) when leaves are sitting in your hanging chair instead of yourself!!  Time to put it away for the winter :(

Hanging Chair

November 17/11

We have had some snow flurries in the past week, so I wanted to make sure I got this picture before it snowed so much we couldn't see this yard.  It is one of the prettiest yards I know of.  A very old 2 story house sits on the lot and if it ever came up for sale (I've never seen it for sale) I would love to have it!!  It reminds me of a park...

Park Setting

November 16/11

This picture started out as a white spider mum.  I've said before that a lot of the fun of taking pictures is playing with them afterwards.  I used Adobe Lightroom to turn my white mum into this pretty pink.  Very cool...the message here is that you can never believe everything you see...

White to Pink

November 15/11

Sometimes it's just nice to go for a walk and appreciate all that is around you.  Here are a few things I saw on my walk today...  The colour and textures you see surrounding you are beautiful, even in the smallest things.

Out for a Walk

November 14/11

I posted this picture today because I love the colours and the glitter in the background!  It is just a picture that makes me happy.  Colour can do that... :)  And it makes sense that I like this picture because two of my favourite colours are blue and green... What are yours??

Colours

November 13/11

We had an open house today as our home is for sale.  I put fresh flowers around the house, and I just love how they look.  I'm also a certified floral arranger, so anytime I can get fresh flowers I do.  White lily's are one of my favourites as you don't need a lot of them to make a statement....

White Lily

November 12/11

It was a beautiful sunset tonight.  I took this picture while Mark was driving...not too bad for not being at a standstill...
I can't wait to move to our new house...the back faces the west, so we should have some pretty nice sunsets...

November Sunset

November 11/11

I know this is another picture of flowers, but honestly I'm amazed that on November 11th I could still be taking this kind of picture.  It has been an unseasonably warm November but I was still surprised to see flowers blooming.  I'm sure it will be my last picture of outside blooms.
It snowed for the first time today!!  For those of you who may look at my blog that don't see snow, you are never quite prepared for it.  It just comes too fast after a nice warm summer and fall.  It brings reminders of what is to come...brrrr.... Oh well, winter is a really pretty season too.  I can't believe how fast this year is going. I started my blog on January 11th this year...2 months to go...

Final Fall Flowers

November 10/11

This is just a weed...milkweed...but it is so cool looking.  It looks so soft, like cotton or something.  I can't put into words what it reminds me of...any suggestions?  The way it comes out of it's seeds, it makes almost a flower shape.  It was blowing in the wind today and caught my eye, so I had to take a picture.  Funny how the smallest things can get your attention...I've never looked at milkweed this way before...

New way of seeing something...

November 9/11

Ugghhh...I feel terrible...
I'll be back tomorrow...

I have a cold....

November 8/11

I've posted before that I love different doorways, so when I saw this one I thought it was interesting enough to show you.  Just look at all the different elements surrounding the door, above the door, and at the sides.  So cool...

Cool Doorway

November 7/11

I had a few hours to waste this afternoon as I was off work at 2pm and had an appointment at 4pm.  I took a few minutes to go to the downtown area of the city I work in and shot some pictures of the amazing architecture.  They just don't do this anymore...I love to see the workmanship of years ago. Amazing...

Architecture of long ago

November 6/11

Today we turned the clocks back, so Mark and I were up quite early at Ty & Dayna's.  It was a bright sunny morning and there were lots of chickadees in the trees.  I waited until one went to the top and I love how he looks against the clear blue sky.

Clear Blue Sky

November 5/11

We are at Tyler and Dayna's house this weekend in Windsor and I forgot my card reader, so...I can't post my picture for today :(  But I will post it tomorrow. 
We just got back from a fabulous Italian meal at Koolini's....good food and even better company!

So we are back from Tyler and Dayna's, and this is a picture of their cat Steve.  I know I've posted one before, but he is just so cute!  I love how his whiskers are caught in the light.  Every time I go there I think he is starting to like me better, but then he puts me in my place and lets me know it is HIS house.  He really loves Tyler and Dayna though so that's what counts...he will eventually get to like me, I just know it... :)

Steve Yzercat

November 4/11

This is a different picture today.  I took a picture of a painting that my good friend Peg created.  She is so talented and I think of her every time I look at this.  She donates proceeds from selling her paintings to the Canadian Cancer Society.  Peg has such a positive outlook and it shows in her paintings!  I love the colours in this creation and know it will look great anywhere I put it...I just had to show everyone how talented she is!!

Peg's Picture

November 3/11

I've seen a lot of animals in the past year that you don't see often around here.  Llama's being the most recent one and these Buffalo that are next to my mother in law's (they also have deer).  Anyway, just thought it was kind of interesting and it shows that until you start taking pictures everyday, you may just miss all these kind of things...

Buffalo

November 2/11

It was an absolutely beautiful day today for November.  I was walking at work on my lunch and the way the sun was hitting the back of these branches just looked great!  I'm so glad I caught this image...

I said yesterday I wanted to go back for that green gourd...the stand had been closed down for the year when I went back today :(

Capturing Sunlight

November 1/11

I see this stand everyday on my way to work, but have never stopped as it's not on my road to work.  I decided to stop today.  They paint their pumpkins and gourds so nicely!!  That's what I think this time of year should be about, not ghosts, spirits, witches, blood & gore...Just my thoughts, but how much nicer are these pumpkins & gourds with their happy faces and nice designs.  I'm going to stop tomorrow and see if the green gourd with the black design is still there.  I love it!!

Happy Pumpkins!!

October 31/11

I got home late tonight, so just a quick picture I took this morning.  I was looking for pencil crayons this morning and when I got some together I thought they would make a cool picture.  I like all the colours...they remind me of when I was little.  Every year when school started we had to have a new box of pencil crayons.

Colourful Crayons