Weekly Photo Challenge – Above

I walk out my front door onto the porch and my head naturally turns upward.DSC_0382

I walk a little further and down the front steps while gazing above.DSC_0378

I can never get enough of this beautiful sight, only available for a few days each year.DSC_0381

Yet it fills my heart with so much joy that I forget about the peeling paint, leaking roof and endless upkeep that this old house needs.DSC_0385

It was the tree I fell in love with, the tree sustains me and helps me believe that the house is worth the effort of restoration.DSC_0384 - Croped

My joy year after year comes from above.DSC_0399

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Up

It has been a challenge to keep up with the weekly photo challenge this year, but this weeks word joggled my memory. Only a few weeks ago I was laying under a tree looking up through the lens of my camera, for no other reason than to get a different point of view.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/04/19/weekly-photo-challenge-up-2/#more-18543

Weekly Photo Challenge – Illumination

IMAG0124 I had no idea what I would post for this challenge, but after shopping I came out into a strange world of fog and illumination…IMAG0125 I only had my phone camera but I had to capture this…IMAG0126 as I began to drive home all I could see were lights everywhere…IMAG0128Illuminated raindrops caught my eye…
IMAG0129 perhaps I should not be taking photos while driving, who knows where I might end up…IMAG0130 It’s as if everyone is still celebrating, the whole town is illuminated…IMAG0132 another corner and another picture…IMAG0134 I had to pull over and get out of the car…IMAG0135 IMAG0136 IMAG0137 lost in the lights…they have illuminated my soul…IMAG0138 - Copy (2)I think I’ve gotten a bit carried away with all this brightness…
IMAG0138 - Copy but when I pulled into my driveway there was a more realistic illumination.IMAG0142

Weekly Photo Challenge – Resolved

How unresolved my life is right now! There are so many problems hanging in the air that I feel like I’ve fallen into a deep well in the woods. I am confronted with the results of my poor judgment in the past and my limitations in the present. The only thing I have resolved to do is to find gratitude in each day and take one step at a time.

I’m grateful that my kids keep pushing forward with a good heart, regardless of obstacles.kids push w

I’m grateful to know that spring & summer will come again.spring & summer w I’m grateful that even in difficult times we can experience love, hope and happiness.happiness & hopeI’m grateful that I can still move and do things to improve my life, and that is what I have resolved to do …move 2013… to keep moving forward with life, love and gratitude that I can still do something to create change for the better.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/01/02/daily-prompt-resolved/

Weekly Photo Challenge – Surprise & 2012 in Photos

I’m cheating - 2 Challenges in one.

Surprise! On Dec. 24th at 1:00 AM, my daughter came home to NH from her trip to AZ. I made her stand outside the door and wait while I prepared the atmosphere in the living room. A crackling fireplace is something we’ve never had in our house before, but this year thanks to Netflix we had it complete with Christmas Carols!

WElcome home Jaz

2012 In Photos

The year of the Dragon began with sunshine and contemplation.

DSC_0488We never escape the winter whiteness in NH.Out Front WinterA trip to NYC for a change of scenery.Geo 2wSpring comes slowly…and so does change. It’s a difficult year.me at beachThe blooming of hope.Haze wBeauty offers comfort.The imperfectionLife goes on.back wall 4We may need to leave here someday….my living room 2but we can still enjoy what we have for now.Amoskeag damA strong & healthy man recovers quickly.for berter or worseSharing memories with old friends.Lake W2Saying I’ll love you forever, thank you, and goodbye for now.Mom & Me wTaking care of my own health becomes a priority.My yoga 2 For the first time in 20 years we celebrate the holidays in our own little home….first & lastand cope with winter the as best as we can.coping with winter

Weekly Photo Challenge: Changing Seasons

Seagulls float on the wind, moving neither forward nor backward.Seaguls float wBrittle sea-grass appears warm against the cold beach.fall-winter beach wThe wind and wet are no longer appealing as we bundle up and prepare to bunker down.F-W beach w The sun sinks in the west too early and the days feel shortened.change season sunset w The cool nights have their own appeal.

cold season portsmouth wAutumn becomes Winter on the NH coast. It was a rare sunny but cold day.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/weekly-photo-challenge-changing-seasons/

Weekly Photo Challenge – Reflections

reflections 2w

River-walk Reflectionsreflections 1wLate Autumn sunset at a north eastern beach.  reflections 3w

 

Weekly Photo Challenge – Thankful

DSC_0096My mother passed away the week before Thanksgiving. In order to give enough time for notifying loved ones, to avoid the holiday and allow people to make travel arrangements, we scheduled the memorial service for Dec. 1st. I think this was the first Thanksgiving I have not celebrated with my parents in 55 years.

I’m thankful for my family & friends, and their love and support during this difficult time.

I’m thankful that my mom is not suffering anymore, and that she is in a better place.

I’m thankful for traditions that bring us back together and keep us moving forward.

 http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2012/11/23/weekly-photo-challenge-thankful

Weekly Photo Challenge – Renewal

A timely post as I have been renewing my commitment to health and well being by going to yoga classes, meditating with a lovely smelling candle, and eating healthier.

 

My Christmas cactus is also experiencing renewal, especially since it didn’t bloom at all last year.

This is my daily morning renewal, my special blend, and it’s a nice afternoon renewal as well. God Bless the coffee bean, may they prosper and grow forever!

Renewal – What does it mean to you?

Weekly Photo Challenge: Foreign

October 29, 2011 was a foreign day as far as I’m concerned. The earliest snowstorm I’ve ever experienced. I’m not a native to New England so some might have experienced this before, but everyone I knew thought it quite strange.

So this was Halloween for us last year – it was so foreign that no one came!

Big – Sharing The View

 

 

The view was BIG! From every angle a huge landscape. Sometimes we don’t appreciate what we have enough, until we share it.These were taken with my phone yesterday while showing friends from out of town the local scene.
The old road to Robert’s Cove, as kids we ran down to the lake for a swim.
Another view of the lake from a different hill we used to hike. The island in the middle with the two hills is where my parents had a summer cottage.

There is a long family history in these 3 photos that brought back so many memories. Although I have not lived in NH my whole life, I have visited here since I was a baby. My  roots seem to be connected to this lake.

The lake is big, it would take 3 or 4 hours to drive around it. It has many nooks & crannies, coves and bays, islands & rocks. We took our friends on a tour around 1/3rd of it’s edges, the north eastern side, to share our memories and stories. Life is big and that’s why we share it.

 

 

Weekly Photo Challenge – Purple

Purple is and always has been my favorite color, every shade of it. So you would think that this weeks challenge would have been easy for me. However, since I’ve been working 7 days a week for a month and worked 50 hours last week, my brain is in a bit of a fog. Looking through my photo files I found some purple.

Weekly Photo Challenge – Movement

Everything moves. I move, I move the camera, the object moves, I move the objects on the page, the light moves, life moves. How does one ever take a still shot? The finger moves to the shutter button and the camera captures movement …

 

…but this is only the beginning, movement never ends.