inspiration avenue weekly challenge: ghostly....

my "ghostly" inspiration for the week!

inspiration avenue

ooooh...happy harvest!

i drive by this old graveyard every day en route to work.....

this week i was thinking about the submission for the inspiration avenue challenge "ghostly" so i stopped & shot a few pics.....

since this has been around for about 150 years, i figured there may be something "ghostly"  lingering around.... maybe "ghostly" but it just didn't inspire me!

the next morning when i arrived at work, the inspiration hit me.....

this was the shot i was looking for..... it looked like a full moon but actually is a lamp post behind a gorgeous tree.  that's "ghostly" enough for me!

photo of the week.....hydrangea

there's a tiny park not too far from my home on a main street downtown. all that's there is a gorgeous bronze goddess, one little bench & a few hydrangea bushes.   it's a cool spot to sit & i often go there to watch the people & traffic go by. this week i picked one of the remaining flowers (ooops, i couldn't help it!)  i love the patina & it's contrast with the deep red flower.  i entered this in the photo of the week challenge on jessica rogers blog.  check it out...it'll be worth your time to see some great photography talent!  i've also listed several different shots of this statue in my my etsy shop!

the autumn in my neighborhood

i never tire of the vivid, bold colors of the changing season! what do you see in the treeline?

little bird..... a successful experiment

i live on 8 acres in the woods & am blessed with a multitude of bird species.  i'm always taking pictures of my flying friends but most of them turn out too blurry.  i definitely have to improve my patience skill!

this originally was a blurred out little bird in a tree. i was experimenting with editing in picasso.  i generally don't do much more than cropping, saturating a little & playing with the sepia & black & white. i was so surprised & thrilled to be able to salvage this guy. i even entered him in the photo of the week on jessica rogers blog.  check it out to see her gorgeous dog "tupper" & other great etsy photographers! 

so here's "little bird"....  i think he's adorable!  what do you think?

inspiration avenue weekly challenge: TRAVEL

so i was strolling along & happened upon a blog "Inspiration Avenue"  & was immediately attracted to the gorgeous blue with white flower background.  i decided to stay awhile to further delight my eyes.  i read about this challenge & immediately decided i wanted on board.  i'm like a little kid with a love for games, contests & challenges!  this week the theme is travel.  earlier this week i was hanging out on a nearby beach having a blast trying to get the seagulls to stay still & smile for my camera.  this picture is all about the travel!!!

the finest things today

a warm & cozy fire....

the family dinner.....

playing with lucy......

queen of the night

hi everyone who may be stopping by to visit.  happy saturday morning! since i've not been blogging very long, it still feels a little strange talking to the blogosphere.....

i am new to the photographers on etsy team & discovered poe team member jessica rogers blog. every week she runs a "photo of the week" feature. take a peek as she has featured some great poe talent.  i jumped right in & submitted the photo of a very special flower that lives in my greenhouse.  she is called "queen of the night" which i think is very appropro.  i actually took over 100 photos (maybe a little obsessive) as she bloomed out her beauty. i will be listing some of them in my etsy shop photogenic gallery over the next few weeks.  feel free to take a look & enjoy just another delight from god.

trick or treatin' treasury

if i haven't said it before - i just love building treasuries!  no matter how many times i try to explain what this "obsession" is all about to my husband...he doesn't quite get it.  what he does get is when he hears me say "not now, i'm waiting for the treasury to open" is "don't mess with me...i mean business!"  no really - he's pretty cool about it.

this one is part of the "trilogy game"  i play with two of my etsy for animals friends.  to see our past treasuries check out this link to "in the making"  if you'd like to be in a treasury just let me know by leaving a comment with a link to your shop.  i love finding new favorites!

adirondacks, ny

a quick weekend away to the adirondacks....a great time!

turquoise & white.....the joy of dreaming!

 

turquoise & white are two of my favorite colors.  sometimes i build treasuries based on my desires to own the stuff.  if i had lots of money....i definitely would!  i am particularily fond of the polar bear by jrzygirlphotography.  i have never seen a live polar but would love it if i could & the photo would be great for my newly remodeled room (when it's finally done LOL).   hulk by tangleandfold is a perfect example of very talented fingers.  iktomi has exquisite pottery in her shop & there's not a piece i do not love!  the rest of these shops have some of my favorites, too.  ohhhh..... the joy of dreaming!

a word about potatoes.....

it used to be that you bought a bag of  potatoes and you could bake, fry, mash or boil them.  you made potato salad or maybe some hash browns.  now you go to the grocery store & spend oodles of time trying to decide..."do i want red or little red or organic red?"  oh but there's also white in 5 varieties.... how about russet, yukon gold, and the list goes on & on.  and that's only the produce aisle.  then you get to the boxed selection.  you can get 5 varieties of flavored mashed & when did scalloped become so fancy?  i might be accused of  discrimination or lack there of but they all taste pretty much the same to me.....

house under construction....

my husband is a painting contractor & our home is always under construction....projects that last months on end.  his specialty is antique home restoration & our dream is to remodel our home one room at a time.  we're turning our 1974 house into an 18th century replica, which means hand milled ceiling beams and mouldings & old tobacco barn flooring.  sounds great but the reality is i am always living out of boxes or trying to navigate around bins of things shuffled room to room.  our present project was expected to last 4 -5 weeks.  we're in our 7th & probably only half way there. i'm trying to keep my eye on the end result..... i'm going to love it.  but for now i'm surviving one day at a time.

perfect surprise for today....

i had a really long, chaotic day at work!  i'm an RN & 20 minutes before the end of my shift (on a friday ... none the less) i found myself hunting down a doctor to get medication orders!  i couldn't wait to get home! what a delight it was when i checked my email & discovered one from alycia who informed me she featured one of my photos in her posting.  she's all excited about the emergence of fall.....& so am i!