Theme Day - 80's Day

Today is 80's Day at school for Anique. We had fun getting her all dressed up and ready. It's no surprise that my current makeup pallete doesn't quite lend itself to the full vibrancy of the eighties. We made her eyelids as blue as we could and the cheeks as pink as possible but passed on the bright pink lipstick. 

Couldn't find any bright neon plastic earrings before the bus arrived but despite the inclusion of some other decades I think the idea is right. What do you think? 

Do you have a favorite 80's memory? 

When the Cat Is Away

 

What happens when you leave a camera unattended on the tripod in the living room and head off to work? Well, you find some pretty random photos the next time you load the card to edit a session. My kids crack me up sometimes.

 

My father-in-law shares a love of photography and has spent a lot of time since he retired learning as much as he can about it. He takes beautiful landscape shots. He is always trying new techniques and makes a point of spending a few hours out shooting photos on any vacation. On our mountain trips in the winter, he'll drop us off in town to go shopping and head out to find a spot for photos.

 

I came home from work the other night to find a long, skinny box on the counter with a note written on it to call him. Which I did. He had bought me a tripod. Such an awesome surprise. Very grateful for not only the gift but for having awesome in-laws. I get along with both of them and that has been a true blessing in life!

 

Of course, I set up the tripod and tried a few shots just to see how it worked. Then I got caught up in household activities and left it up before heading to bed and work the next day.

 

Apparently, the kids decided to try a few test shots of their own with the self timer. Not sure how they managed to get their dad to look at the camera because he refuses when I ask him. I swear they don't usually look this goofy. Well, maybe they do but I love them anyway.

  

Warmth Shouldn't be Taken for Granted

Okay, so as I sit here in my new office space basking in the warm air blowing out of the heater my thoughts are wandering. 

First I snapped a quick photo of my newish space heater. It has made working downstairs a real possibility because I no longer have to dress in a heavy sweatshirt, socks and slippers to tolerate the cold. 

Then my thoughts wandered to the fact that even though I'm immensely grateful for this heater, I shouldn't take for granted the heat in the house, the roof overhead and the fact that I am both dry and warm each night. 

This has been a chilly winter in so many parts of the country and wet here up in the northwest. It seems like more and more often, even here in the suburbs, I pass individuals who can't count on a dry warm place each night. 

So, yes I feel truly blessed. For all the comforts I have and I will try to remember not to take anything for granted.