A Little Reprieve from our Cabin Fever (7/52 - 52 Project)

 

On one of our very rare above zero days we decided to

venture out to frozen Lake Mendota.

The sun was shining and Grace and William quickly

grabbed icicles and had a little pretend swordfight.

 

 

 

 

 

I got to thinking that writing their names or drawing in the snow is

similar to what they do at the beach in the sand.

Only instead of wearing snow gear they have their

swimsuits on.

 

 

 

 

If you didn't know the lake was completely frozen over

you might think it was a gigantic field of snow.

Until you see the fishing shacks, piers pulled out of the water

and boats in dry dock.

It was fun to take a walk out on that big lake

and get out of the house for an hour.

 

 

Winters in the northern Midwest are cold and long but March is just around the corner.

And we are thankful for that.

 

 

 

 



Making the Best of It (Sunday Snapshot)

 

As the Upper Midwest is just about to turn into the North Pole temperature wise.

We are staying inside our warm and toasty home.

 

 

 

School is cancelled tomorrow and probably will be Tuesday.

 

 

 

 

 

When Dan and I were young and couldn't go outside because it was too cold,

we played board games, cards, read books, did crafts, and teased our siblings.

 

 

(And who said swinging was just for Summer?) 

Tomorrow we plan on baking cookies, maybe do some crafts with Grace,

and I'm sure there will be some playing on ipods and the Wii.

 

 

 

 

These (obviously) were taken when it wasn't 50 degrees below zero

like it will be tomorrow.

Please stay safe everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

 

project 52 - frost and snow (1/52)





Bitter cold and a

new dusting of snow...still, I

remember summer

 

~ Charles de Lint

 

 

 

 

It started snowing here in early December.

Wisconsin folks are probably experts about snow and frost (if there's such a thing),

and I'm amazed at the different kinds.

And because I'm a detail person I suppose that's why I notice these things.

This recent one arrived and is called

a 'hoar frost.'

These incredibly beautiful fern-like ice crystals form on the snow,

tree branches, wires or any frozen solid surface.

 

The best part of capturing the frost was the walk I took.

Peacefully quiet and calm.

 

I decided to commit to a project 52 this year and

possibly take one photo a day in February, but will see

about that.

 

35mm 1.4 lens

f 2.8

ISO 400

1/8000

 

Oh, almost forgot to say Happy New Year

and I hope that 2014 is a good one.

 



Merry Merry! (Sunday Snapshot)

 

 

Well it definitely was a Merry one.

All those days of preparation, shopping, wrapping, baking and cooking...

then it's over awfully fast.

 

 

 

 

 

And all that getting ready is worth every single second,

to see their faces.

 

 

 

 

 

We had a quiet, low key Christmas with my own family,

(Dan, me, Nick, his girlfriend Lindsay, Grace and William).

 

 

 

 

I put my camera down after I took these and didn't pick it up again,

which is good for me to do now and then.

Over the weekend we spent Saturday at my parents house with my 3 siblings

and their families.

A very, very fun evening and as always I laugh till I cry

when I'm with my two brothers and sister Betsy.

 

 

I hope everyone's Christmas was lovely!

 

 

 

 

 

 



Merry Christmas

"Christmas my child, is love in action."

 

~ Dale Evans

 

 

 

 

May the spirit of Christmas bring you peace,
The gladness of Christmas give you hope,

The warmth of Christmas grant you love.

~  Author Unknown

 

 

 

 Behind all the commercial-ism of the season
is the simple story about a family trying to get through difficult times.
And a baby born in a manger.

 

 

 

 

"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."

~ Luke 2:10-11

 

 

 

Merry Christmas!

May you find the blessings of Christmas - peace, love and hope...today and always.

 

with love,

Dan, Gail, Nick, Grace and William

Getting into the Christmas Spirit (Sunday Snapshot)

 

 

 “Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!” 

~ Dr. Suess, How the Grinch Stole Christmas

 

I've often wondered, what is the Christmas spirit?
What does that mean?
It seems like people are happier, kinder
and more giving.
It's a shame that it goes away after Christmas is over.
Maybe we can all try to keep Christmas in our hearts
all year round.

 

 

 

 

These were all taken this week...

the bits and pieces that I saw of Christmas around me.

Vintage tree decorations that come from my mother in law's family,

Will's school Christmas program, Grace performing at a benefit for a local

charity that helps families, and the lights at a nearby tree lot.

I see Christmas in all the details.

I leave shortly to photograph the live Nativity at our church tonight.

I hope you see Christmas around you.

 

 

 

 



Tradition (Sunday Snapshot)

 

 

 

 At Christmas, all roads lead home. 

~Marjorie Holmes

 

 

 

 

Growing up my family had the tradition of cutting
down our Christmas tree and as the years have gone by
and I now have my own family, we've continued it.
We moved to Wisconsin 8 years ago when Grace
was a little one of 3. That year Dan carried her
through the tree farm and it was bitter cold!
We still go to the same farm to find our tree and now
my two youngest definitely help and voice their own opinion
on which is the perfect tree.
This year the tree we chose is the tallest we've ever had.

I think I love this entire experience so much because
we get to drink yummy hot apple cider and
the fragrance of the fresh trees outdoors always
speaks of Christmas to me.


(Taken yesterday afternoon, the hazy light was gorgeous)

 

No Tricks, all Treats (Sunday Snapshot)

October,

tuck tiny candy bars in my pockets

and carve my smile into a thousand pumpkins.... Merry October!

 

~Rainbow Rowell

Clothes make a statement. Costumes tell a story. 

~Mason Cooley

They start talking about Halloween starting in early September,

and Will usually has thought of what he'd like to dress up a good 6 months

before Halloween. His costumes get a lot of wear as he wears them at home frequently.

This year he went as Ironman and Grace is a 'Weeping Angel.'

I took very few photos of our Halloween evening because it was a rainy one but it didn't stop my trick or treaters by any means.

Probably my favorite image was the candid one below as they checked out their loot in between houses.

 

It may have rained but they still had a great time!





October snapshots (iphone style)

October is almost halfway over.

We're in a good routine and my kiddos have been great about getting up early to get

ready for school

and completing their homework in the afternoons.

 Dare I say this...we are about 10 weeks away from Christmas.

 

1. Top left. 'Bruce Wayne' in black and white. 2. Grace making

lemon sugar cookies for her classroom (she has become quite the baker).

3. Ballet has started again for Grace. I have finally mastered the ballet bun

for her hair. 4. Gourds and mini pumpkins. 5. Grace with a sequined kitty cat mask.

6. We made a quick trip to Chicago for a girls China friends get together.

7. 'Frenemies' Jack kitty and Zoe dog, they rarely get this close together. Usually Zoe is

chasing the cat. 8. The leaves are starting to fall here. 9. Sweet little farm stand selling pumpkins.

I wish Fall lasted longer than it does, but for now we are savoring every

moment of it.

Welcome Autumn (Sunday Snapshot)

If you stand still outside you can hear it...
 Winter's footsteps, the sound of falling leaves.

 

~ unknown

October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came,

The Ashes, Oaks, and Maples, And leaves of every name.

The sunshine spread a carpet,
And every thing was grand;
Miss Weather led the dancing;

Professor Wind, the band....
The sight was like a rainbow
New-fallen from the sky....

 

~ George Cooper, "October's Party"

 

 

Autumn is here in Wisconsin.
This week our yellow leaves popped,
next will be the oranges and reds.

It's my favorite season for many reasons but
as a photographer I notice the light is low in the sky, golden
and delicious in color.
This week I took Grace out to a new location and loved the light in the trees.
I can't get enough of seeing these Fall colors
and spending as much time as we can as a family
outdoors.

 

 

It's all about Apples (Sunday Snapshot)

 

When the bold branches
Bid farewell to rainbow leaves
Welcome wool sweaters.

 

~ B. Cybrill

 

 

Fall has finally arrived in our neck of the woods.

Why do I love Fall so much?
 Maybe because for us Midwesterners it's 'just right' as in not too cold,
not too hot and humid, and not too rainy.

  Cool nights and bright blue skies have arrived.

So to celebrate Fall's arrival we made a little trip to a local farm that offers apple picking.
This is a new place for us this year.
The one we used to frequent had gotten crazy busy and

we were pleasantly surprised by the Appleberry Farm.

 

 

 

Now, what do I do with all these apples?
No worries, our two apple picking helpers have plenty of yummy ideas!

 I need to get busy. :)

 

 

(Sunday Snapshot) Summer Vacation

 

"Happiness is a Summer breeze, sand between your toes, and your best friend right beside you."

 

~ unknown

 

 

"For whatever we lose (like a you or a me), It's always our self we find in the sea."

 

~e.e. cummings

 

 

I call it beach therapy, for us also known
as our Summer vacation.
And the beach can be at the ocean, a lake or a bay.
I've had a love affair with being near water for most of my life,
so naturally my children would love water too.

These were taken two weeks ago while we were in Door County
enjoying some time together in the town of Ephraim.
I had great plans for taking even more photos that
would eventually be used for our Christmas
card but that didn't happen.
We came home a little bit early as our oldest son
was ill, thankfully
he's well now.

 I have found that my favorite photos are the ones where I just sit back and observe what's going on.
So I'll let the rest of the images speak for themselves.



(Grace created this woven wreath herself with things she found
on the beach,
a twisty vine and leaves made a beautiful headpiece).
 



 

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