Weekly Summary ~ 7/5/15 - 7/11/15

Spent the week prepping for a Monarch presentation on Saturday.  I presented to the Christian Women's Artistic Connection group and a few guests.  They are a great group of ladies that get together every couple months to learn a new art.  Monarchs aren't art, but the ladies wanted to learn about them, so they asked me to present.  And we made a few greeting cards that I designed.  Nothing fancy.  

Did okay keeping up with my photo a day challenge.  I used a couple recent archive photos this week.  It happens.  :)

{July 5: Begins with "W"}

Wet. 

And soggy. 

And gross. 

Those are the words you can use to describe our month of June. So. much. rain! 16 out of the 30 days in June had measurable rain and I suspect there were a few sprinkles thrown in there during those other 14 days. Now that July is here the weather seems to be shaping up some. Still some rain but this weekend was super nice! We actually had several nice days in a row. Yay!

Anyway this photo was taken a couple weeks ago right after we had a heavy rainfall. The sun came out and made everything sparkle. And since I needed to take advantage of the little sunshine we were getting, I walked around outside with my camera. Our tiger lilies were blooming and looked so pretty glistening in the sun.

{July 6: Rule of Thirds}

This photo was chosen as one of the Top Shots of the day! WOOT!

{July 7: Vanishing Point}

When the sun is dipping below the horizon - nearly at its vanishing point - marking the end of another day. Hope to see it again tomorrow!

{July 8: Bedtime}

Keira obviously stayed up past her bedtime. Or else that was a very uninteresting book. Maybe a little of both.  :)

{July 9: Alphaphotography}

You know I had to figure out a way to include one of my Monarch caterpillars into a prompt somehow, right? Don't ask how many tries it took to get him to stay in the shape of a C for me.  :)

{July 10: Just Another Day}

Just another day of searching milkweed looking for Monarch eggs and/or caterpillars and finding none. frown emoticon I did see lots of blossoms though and several other butterflies, moths, and skippers. I will search again tomorrow. And the next day. And the day after that.

{July 11: Technology}

Thanks to technology, I was able to photograph and instantly share the photo of this super cool-looking caterpillar I found this evening. Ah, smart phones.  :)

It is a Promethea Moth caterpillar. The first I have ever found.

Linking with Tamar:

On Monday I met with Sherry to discuss the details of my Monarch presentation.  We met at Panera and were able to sit outside - it was so nice!
I had a couple things rescheduled due to weather and emergencies.  A family photo session was supposed to happen on Tuesday morning but the rain interfered once again.  And on Thursday I was to meet with my friend, Sharon, about the upcoming wedding she was helping me photograph, but she needed to make an emergency trip to the vet
Saturday I did my Monarch presentation to the CWAC ladies.  I was a little nervous because I was so used to talking to kids about Monarchs.  But I told them they were my guinea pigs for an upcoming talk to a garden club.  :)  Everything went very well and they all enjoyed my presentation.
Saturday afternoon I stopped by a graduation party of one of my senior photo clients.  Her mom and I have become friends and they invited me to her graduation party.  It was a nice time and another beautiful day.  We had so much rain in June, it was great to have nice weather finally.

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Weekly Summary ~ 6/28/15 - 7/4/15

I'm a couple weeks behind in posting.  Again.  {sigh}  

But we're having a great summer!  
Plenty of fun.  
Lots of busy.  
Hence the lack of blog posts.  :)  
Just enjoying life.

I am keeping up with my 365 Photo challenge though.

{June 28: Timeless Beauty}

I don't know about you, but I think this Black Swallowtail is quite beautiful. Or in this case handsome as it is a male.  :)

{June 29: Let's Go}

On Friday I said to my husband, "Let's go to Ohio tomorrow to pick up some Monarch eggs and caterpillars." He, knowing how much it meant to me, agreed to drive. We met up with a very generous lady who so graciously shared some of her babies with me. I now have 16 tiny caterpillars and 6 eggs. Late last night 4 eggs hatched and I stayed up to watch 2 of them. This little guy seemed to take forever to chew his way out of his egg. But, tired as I was, I stayed up to witness his entrance into this world. Here's hoping they all make it to butterflydom.  :)

{June 30: Thankful}

Like many I am thankful for many things. My faith, my freedom, my health ... but today especially I am thankful for this crazy crew that I call my family. We spent the day at Idlewild and had a super fun time. We came home exhausted, which means it was a great day! Keira took this picture with her phone since mine was running low on battery and is being used for my pic of the day with her permission.  :)

{July 1: Wonder in the World}

Or in this case, a wonder out of the world. Tonight's full moon is spectacular! Have you seen it? If you missed it, there will be another at the end of July. The only month in 2015 with two full moons.

{July 2: Adventurous}

The kids and I love to be adventurous and go for walks and hikes to see what we can find. This particular evening Alex and I saw hundreds of these damselflies while out exploring. A few of them were nice enough to be still while I photographed them.

{July 3: Leadership}

Of my three children Keira has the greatest leadership traits. She was born a leader. I can remember when she was in 3rd grade her teacher asked me what her strengths and her weaknesses were. My answer was the same for both. She's a natural born leader, which is a great trait, but that also makes her tend to be bossy and other kids don't like that too much.  :)  She's a great person who has a bright future ahead of her.
This photo was chosen as one of the Top Shots of the day! WOOT! 

{July 4: A Reflection of Me}

If you know me, then you know that I am a butterfly lover. I raise Monarchs every summer and this year am raising Black Swallowtails also. This gorgeous girl decided to arrive today. Our 4th butterfly on the 4th of July.  :)  I have had people tell me that when they see a butterfly, they think of me, so it may be a stretch, but this beauty is a reflection of me.   :)

Linking with Tamar:



A rundown of our week:
June 28-30
Nick got home from his Bible Quizzing trip in Boston Sunday night.  He had a good time and earned a silver award.  The quizzers don't compete against each other.  They try to answer the questions as best they can and are basically graded based on their answers.  Nick's voice was very scratchy when he got home so I suspect he was shouting a lot.  :/
Monday the boys had their 6-month dental check ups.  Both got two thumbs up.
Cupcake, one of our Black Swallowtails, decided to join us.  We had kept Rocky a couple days because of the weather and once we set him free, Cupcake eclosed.  He had to stay with us until Wednesday because of the rain.
Keira had a violin lesson Monday evening.
Doug took a vacation day on Tuesday and we spent the day at Idlewild.  We had a great time!  Nick decided to be brave and try riding some things that always frightened him starting with the roller coaster.  Once he got off that first ride, he got right back on.  In fact, the lines were so short that we rode it several times in a row before moving on to other things.  He also road the ferris wheel with me.  He freaked out a little but I helped calm him down.  We prayed and talked about how safe he was and then he was fine.  We even got stopped at the very top and he did great!  It clouded up a couple times and sprinkled on us a little but overall we had a great day.  Not too hot and no downpours.
July 1-4
Wednesday we had an appointment at PA Cyber to get Keira enrolled for the fall.  We had a little trouble finding the place.  We turned at the correct turn but couldn't find the office, so we stopped and asked a woman who was outside having a smoke break.  Turns out we were at the right building, just on the wrong side.  :)
Since we were already in Wexford, we tried to find Trader Joe's which is just down the road a few miles but I went left when I should have gone right and we didn't find it.  And our stupid GPS is no help at all.  I think we need a new one.
On the way back we stopped at Barnes & Noble so the boys could use gift cards that they had.  Oh the drama!  Wanting to buy toys instead of books.  And not having enough for what they wanted.  I'm such a mean mom sometimes.  :)
July 2 was the 30th anniversary of my dad's death.  I shared some pictures on Facebook.  I don't have very many pictures of my dad, so the few that I do have are precious to me.  It is hard to believe that he has been gone for 30 years.
Doug had Friday off for the holiday.  We didn't really do anything.  Puttered around outside.  He pulled weeds in the vegetable gardens and I pulled weeds in my butterfly garden.
On Saturday we were going to visit Doug's parents but they were coming our way anyway, so they visited us instead.  Doug cooked dinner and we had a nice time talking about their upcoming 50th anniversary party.  Pickle, our 4th Black Swallowtail butterfly, had eclosed before they came so I hung onto her until they got here so they could see her.  We set her free shortly after they arrived.
We were going to go see fireworks but everyone wanted to stay close to home.  Our neighbors up the road set them off so we could see them a little.  There are trees in the way.  Honey doesn't like fireworks so she was very close by the whole night.

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Weekly Summary ~ 6/21/15 - 6/27/15

Vacation Bible School week!  Fun. Long. Exhausting. But oh so worth it!

{June 21: Performance}

Alex's performance in yesterday's kickball game wasn't stellar, but he still had fun. Until he decided that jumping on the trampoline would be more interesting.  :)

{June 22: Loud}

Nick definitely lives life out loud. He can have fun in just about any situation. He can also get himself in trouble in almost every situation.  :)

{June 23: Tickled Pink}

I was tickled pink to see these two Great Spangled Fritillary butterflies loving on my milkweed blossoms this afternoon. They aren't Monarchs, but I'll take what I can get right now.   :)

{June 24: Photographer}

One from the archives. During Vacation Bible School week my time is not my own. Plus I hate taking selfies. That is probably why I became a photographer ... so I could spend time photographing other people.  :)  This particular photo is my profile pic on my Facebook photography page, Kimberly Vensel Photography.

{June 25: Stands Out in a Crowd}

This gorgeous lady, who surprised us with her arrival, most definitely stands out in a crowd. Say hello to Frances, formerly known as Rambo.  :)  We came home from Vacation Bible School to find this beauty had emerged from her chrysalis. Then we walked up to show her to our recently-widowed neighbor and asked her if she would help us rename her since Rambo isn't a good girl name. Her sister's name was Frances, so we blessed her day by allowing her to name our first Black Swallowtail butterfly.  (Posted this in the group on Friday due to being so busy with VBS stuff on Thursday).

{June 26: Tick Tock}

The window of time to capture a gorgeous sunset is limited. Although sometimes when you slow down, sit, and enjoy watching the sun setting, God treats you to an even more beautiful sky.

{June 27: The Big Day}

The big day for this incredible couple is in just under a month. I have the honor of photographing their wedding in July. I can't wait!
This photo was chosen as one of the Top Shots of the day!  WOOT!


I posted in time to link with Tamar!  :)



Sunday we celebrated Father's Day.  Doug cooked dinner, as he often does on the weekends.  I offered but he said he didn't mind.  That way he can cook what he wants (corn and sweet potatoes).  :)
Monday VBS started.  Need I say more?  :)
We actually had a great week at VBS.  Everyone who helped was right where they were meant to be.  Everything meshed together nicely.  We had an average of 40 kids each day.
Also on Monday my sister-in-law sent me a cell phone picture of a Monarch butterfly she saw while out walking.  Yay!  It was about 10 miles from my house.  I have yet to see one with my own eyes.  Soon, I hope!  If this stupid rain would ever go away for more than a day at a time.
On Thursday after VBS Nick left for Boston.  He qualified to go to the Regional Bible Quizzing event.  It was kind of tough letting him go alone but I knew he was in good hands.  They got to the college in Quincy around 2 a.m.
I was up until almost 2 a.m. finishing up the slideshow for Friday's VBS.  I always take pictures all week and make up a slideshow to show the kids on Friday.  They love seeing their pictures up on the big screen.
The last day of VBS we always host a picnic in the fellowship hall for the kids and their parents.  Everyone had a great time.  We had been raising money all week to help dig water wells in Burkina Faso, Africa.  On Friday at the end of VBS, Jenn announced that we had raised $3,000!   But then during the picnic she announced that someone had put in an additional $1,000 taking us up to $4,000 raised!  It costs around $6,000 to dig a water well so the villagers can have clean drinking water.  We plan to continue to raise money until next year when missionaries from Burkina Faso come to visit our church.  I can't wait to present them with the amount we raise!
Keira had made chocolate chip cookies for the picnic.  They were a huge hit!  Several people asked for the recipe and there were NONE left at the end.  
When we got home from VBS, we had a wonderful surprise.  Our first Black Swallowtail butterfly had eclosed!  She is pictured above as the June 25 photo.  I didn't get to post my photo on Thursday because of VBS busyness.  Some days are like that.  :)
On Saturday we got up early (instead of sleeping in like I usually do after VBS week) and Doug drove Alex and me to Ohio to get some Monarch eggs and baby caterpillars.  A very generous woman that I met on one of the Monarch butterfly groups on Facebook offered them to me.  And since she was just over 3 hours away, we made the drive out.  It rained and poured and rained some more, which made me very thankful that Doug was driving.  :)  Sarah, the butterfly lady, was so gracious.  She took us to lunch at a local diner called The Nutcracker.  We loved the place!  They had nutcrackers all over the place and an old jukebox where you can play 3 songs for a quarter.  And very cool retro decorations.  We didn't let her pay for lunch though.  After her generosity with the Monarchs, I couldn't let that happen.  :)  Buying her lunch was the least we could do.
On the way home we stopped at Cabela's.  I bought a tent for butterfly rearing.  Got the idea from Sarah.  I am hoping to breed some Monarchs this year and have eggs and cats to share with others.  Wish me luck!  We made it back home around 7:00, exhausted but excited to be back in the Monarch raising swing of things!
On Saturday I also got word that Nick was awarded a Silver medal at Bible Quizzing Regionals.  So proud of him!

Here's hoping for another great week!

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Weekly Summary ~ 5/17/15 - 5/30/15

Let me just say - I apologize for slamming you with two week's worth of photos.  Memorial Day came and went and we had a great time parading and visiting with family, so blogging didn't happen.  Then the rest of the week was super busy - all with school-related activities, so yeah.  I really should try to get the posts ready on Sunday night.  Someday I'll be that organized.  :)

{May 17:  Windows}

Another photo from our trip to the zoo on Wednesday. (Sorry, not sorry!)   :)   Kobe, the female polar bear, swam up to the window to say hello to my friend Sharon and me. You can see Kona, the male, in the background. We are hoping the two of them make beautiful baby polar bears together.

{May 18:  Laughter}

Okay, so I have been back and forth all day about whether to share another polar bear photo and, as you can see, I decided yes. :)

Our day with the polar bears was filled with smiles, laughter, oooohs and aaaahs, and even some squeals of delight from the kids passing through. I think I'm going to have to go visit them again soon. I'm having withdrawals. 

{May 19:  Breakfast, Lunch, or Dinner}

When these Black Swallowtail eggs hatch, my dill plants will become breakfast, lunch, AND dinner for the hungry caterpillars. I'm so excited to be a caterpillar mama once again! Hoping this is the beginning of a great, butterfly-filled summer!  :)

{May 20:  Running}

I have never considered running for an elected office, but I will be sure to exercise my right and privilege to go vote on Election Day. Yesterday was a Primary Election Day in our area. I almost forgot to go vote but thankfully remembered just in time!

{May 21:  Odd}

This odd, unusual thing caught my eye the other day. I believe it is a cluster of leaves waiting to open up. Nature is so fascinating!

{May 22:  Brilliant Invention}

The key fob is a brilliant invention in my opinion. Being able to have your arms full of groceries or whatever and still be able to unlock and open your car doors comes in very handy! Must have been invented by a woman!

{May 23:  Tree}

I really loved the way the sun was peeking through this tree. And I love that there are leaves on it again!

This photo was chosen as one of the Top Shots for the day! WOOT!

{May 24:  Daily Habit}

I have several daily habits, as I'm sure most of you do also. Of them is, of course, photography. I try to take at least one photo a day. Usually for the 365 Photo prompts. Most days I take many more photos.  :)

{May 25:  Street Art}

I spent this Memorial Day holiday with family so I had to pull a photo from the archives for this prompt. We came across this mural painted on the side of a building a couple years ago. Since my youngest is crazy about trains, we had to stop and take a photo.

{May 26:  Fresh}

I'm so excited to announce that I now have a freshly-hatched Black Swallowtail caterpillar happily munching on my dill! Actually I have two, but the one pictured is the first little guy to hatch today. So happy to be a butterfly mama again!

{May 27:  Parallel}

Had a bit of fun with today's prompt. Alex agreed to help me. He wanted to look like he was behind bars.  :)

{May 28:  A Dime a Dozen}

Canadian geese are everywhere around here these days. I have mixed feelings about them. I like seeing them around, but they make such a mess everywhere they go.

{May 29:  Close}

Thanks to my lovely macro lens I was able to get up close to this newly hatched Black Swallowtail caterpillar and watch him enjoy his first meal, his egg shell. I actually had the pleasure of watching him hatch. I was giddy like a kid on Christmas morning! :)  We now have 6 babies happily munching and growing.

{May 30:  Valuable}

It is said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Well, I think value is also. We all have different perceptions on what is valuable. My family knows what is valuable to me. Life. Even the life of a small caterpillar. My 12YO son brought this caterpillar to me this afternoon, so excited because he knew I would be excited. And I was, of course. It is another Black Swallowtail. The 7th and now the largest of the babies that I am currently caring for. (He's only about half an inch long - my macro lens makes him look much larger). I'm so excited to be a butterfly mama again.

Linking with the lovely Tamar:

Since I have two weeks to summarize, I'll try to be quick and just hit the highlights.  Of course, that's what I usually do anyway.  :)  Feel free to skip this part!
Doug was away the 18th through the 21st - in Scottdale working on his plant.  Fun times.
On Tuesday I watched a Black Swallowtail butterfly lay an egg on one of my dill plants!  So I checked the other one and found two more eggs!  WOOT!
Alex brought home a letter he received from his pen pal at his new school.  Turns out it is from my friend Julia's son.  What are the odds?!  :)
Oh, and I voted in the primary election.  I'm happy to say that several of the school board members that voted for the consolidation are no longer board members.
My friend, Sam, and I went to lunch after our walk on Wednesday.  It was nice to sit down and enjoy each other's company.
Thursday evening was Family Fun Night at the boys' school.  Everyone seemed to have a good time.  Before we left Doug gave both boys a Gatorade.  I was thinking I should have let him take them to FFN if he was going to sugar them up like that.  :)
On the days that Sam and I don't walk, I try to go to the bike trail for a change of pace.  On Friday Honey and I went and made it as far as the golf course (1.5 miles from where we parked) and saw a family of geese.  I didn't have my camera (can't carry it while I run) so I snapped a cell phone photo.  Instead of the geese being scared and moving away from us, they hopped in the pond and swam closer.  It was pretty cool.
Keira had a youth group sleepover on Friday night.  Then on Saturday morning the teens served at a prayer breakfast.  It was good food and a great message.
Saturday afternoon I went to a Lemongrass party at my friend Rainey's house.  Our friend, Kim, is a new consultant and this was her first solo party.  She did great!  They have some great products!  I wish I had more money; I would have bought more stuff.  :)
Sunday after church Doug, Alex, and I went for a bike ride on the trail in Emlenton.  We weren't even 1/4 mile down the trail when Doug's phone started ringing - trouble at work.  He told them he couldn't help them right now and we kept right on biking.  It was a beautiful day and a really nice trail to ride on.
Monday was Memorial Day so we went to the parade, as always.  Then my mom, sister, sister-in-law, and nieces came to visit for the day.  Doug cooked for us.  We played UNO, as usual, and just had a great day.
On Tuesday my first Black Swallowtail egg hatched!   I also spent a good part of the day shopping and prepping for our school's staff luncheon which was on Wednesday.
We had our last Wednesday night kids' class at church.  We celebrated with a pizza party and I spoke to the kids about Monarchs and other pollinators.  It was the fastest presentation I have ever done since I only had 30 minutes once they got done eating.
Thursday was spent at the school once again for Field Day.  I was the official yearbook photographer so I could walk around freely.  It was nice since it got really hot in the afternoon.  We had a pot luck lunch (so much food!) and everyone had a great time.  At the end of the day, I got to climb a ladder to the roof in order to take a whole-school photo.  Going up wasn't too bad; going down was a little scary.  :)
Doug and I went out to dinner at Applebee's Thursday evening.  I received a couple gift cards from helping at church and doing my presentation, so we ate for free.
Friday I spent the day editing the field day photos.  Thanks to Lightroom it went very quickly.  Then we had the 6th grade dance that evening.  I can't believe Nick is finishing up 6th grade this year!  The kids had a blast!  Once again I walked around taking pictures for the yearbook.  We don't usually get to include 6th grade dance photos in the yearbook but thanks for all the extra days added at the end of the year (snow days!), we have time this year.  Which is great since our school is closing forever on June 11.
I was able to finish editing all the photos from the dance on Saturday and getting them to Diane so she could finish up the yearbook and get it sent to the printer.  I can't wait to see it!
I found more Black Swallowtail babies on my dill, parsley, and rue plants.  That put us at six so far!  Then, as I shared above, on Saturday Nick was helping me weed one of the flower beds and found another caterpillar on some wild carrot.  The biggest one yet!  He is now inside happily munching on my dill plant.  Once I have a series of photos of the beauties, I will post them.  Gotta wait for a butterfly first.  :)

Okay, so maybe that wasn't so short and sweet.  If you made it through all of that, good for you!  Now that school is winding down, I shouldn't be nearly so busy.  A few photo sessions here and there and a wedding or two, but this summer should be pretty relaxing.  I hope!  :)

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Weekly Summary ~ 5/10/15 - 5/16/15

We had another busy, fun week!  Mother's Day was great!  The boys (aka Doug) made me breakfast in bed.  French toast and tea.  I'm not a breakfast eater - usually just drink a protein shake - but for them, I ate and enjoyed every bite.  :)

Last week I mentioned a Plumb CD giveaway.  I got busy and forgot to choose the winner, so thanks to random.org, I chose it today.  The winner is Jennifer Pittman!  Congratulations!

I haven't mentioned it in a while but if you ever want to check out my Facebook photography page, here it is:  Kimberly Vensel Photography.  I'd love it if you'd go over and give me a 'like'.  :)

Now onto last week's pics:

{May 10:  Something Orange}

The sun glowing behind a dogwood tree at golden hour.  {love}

{May 11:  Eyes}

Somehow I didn't manage to get a photo of eyes today, so I'm sharing a photo from last week. The eye(s) of this Julia Longwing butterfly look like a checker board. Pretty cool! 

{May 12:  Pieces}

Many little pieces make up this dandelion fluff.

{May 13:  Lucky}

While I really don't believe in luck, in the spirit of playing along with today's prompt ... 

I feel super lucky (blessed) to have spent several hours with my friend, Sharon, and the polar bears today. They were in the water MUCH longer than normal and Sharon and I had a blast interacting with them and taking pictures. This is Kobe. She's 14 years old and is AMAZING!

{May 14:  The Human Condition}

The connections we make and the emotions we feel aren't always with other humans. Love and admiration for God's creatures is indeed part of the human condition. After all, He did put humans in charge of them. 

{May 15:  Under Pressure}

Nick was under pressure this afternoon during his 1600 meter race. He was determined that he "wasn't going to get beat by a girl. No way. No how."   :)  Boys!

He did great and finished in 5th place! He was in the back of the pack in the beginning - starting out slow - but he really picked up the pace and passed several of the other kids during the 3rd and 4th laps. I'm so proud of his effort!

This photo was chosen among the Top Shots of the day! WOOT!

{May 16:  Connections}

I would have to say these two frogs were feeling a connection, don't you think?    :)

Linking with Tamar:

Sunday afternoon my mom and sister came up.  Linda made an incredible apple pie.  I broke my sugar fast for the day just so I could have some.  And some chocolate chip cookie pie that Keira made.  I had a slight headache on Monday - probably because of all that sugar.  :)  We played UNO as usual.  The kids love playing UNO with them.  Doug made dinner.  It was a great day!
Monday night we attended Keira's National Junior Honor Society ceremony.  She wasn't really into it.  I guess knowing that she's going to be cyber schooling next year (her choice) is making this year's events less exciting to her.  Either that or she's just ready for school to be done.  Maybe a combination of both.  :)
Tuesday morning I went to the boys' school to take some pictures for the yearbook.  A couple students and staff members needed their photos taken.  The kids are much more cooperative than the adults are.  :)
Wednesday I met my friend, Sharon, at the Pittsburgh Zoo where we spent the entire time with the polar bears.  Fifteen minutes or so after arriving, Kobe, the female, jumped in the water, followed shortly by Kona, the male.  They were in and out for the next four hours.  That is the longest they have ever been in the water while I've been there.  Sharon, who visits them more often than I do said the same thing.  They were so fun to interact with!  So playful!  Kobe was very interested in my blue back pack.  She tried to bite it through the glass many times.  (That is what Sharon is holding in the photo from the 13th).  She must have thought it was one of her toys.  I can't wait to go back and visit them again!  Hoping to post photos of our visit soon.
Thursday I went to get my car inspected and fixed (again!).  The same thing they "fixed" back in April.  Which still isn't fixed.  :(  Good thing it is under warranty.  While there I had the pleasure of meeting a World War II veteran, Chester.  He's 91 years old and was a joy to listen to.  We told him he should write a book about his life.
After a PTO meeting, I had to dash out to a Monarch presentation.  I spoke to 22 Girl Scouts about Monarchs and other pollinators.  It was fun.  Every time I speak it is a completely different set up that I need to adjust to.  This time I actually took notes to refer to.  I had written them out while waiting for my car to get inspected/fixed.  It went really well.  Several of the kids there had raised Monarchs in 1st grade at school.  And I believe I inspired several of them to try to raise more outside of school.
Friday evening Nick ran the 1600 meter race at the 6th grade track meet.  (See the photo above).  He likes running and thinks he'll stick with it.  Afterward we stopped and ordered pizza, then met Doug at Home Depot so I could pick out a toilet for our newly-remodeled bathroom.  The original one that I had picked out wasn't going to fit.  :(  Then Nick and I stopped to pick up a couple half gallons of ice cream (instead of going to DQ to celebrate his effort at the track meet), picked up our pizza, and went home to relax.
We rented the movie UNBROKEN and watched it Friday night.  Wow!  An amazing story.  If you haven't seen it yet, you must watch it.
Saturday morning Honey and I went for a walk, came home and did some planting.  Doug helped me plant my Spicebush trees and Black Cherry trees - both host plants for butterflies.  :)  After a shower, we headed over to the Spring Garden show at a local park.  We made sure to visit the Master Gardener's area and talked to the ladies we had met last month while volunteering at another local park.  I bought some dill plants (another host plant) and some Shasta Daisies.  Then we went to my niece's birthday party.  It was a bowling party.  The kids had fun bowling.
Oh, and I did week 2 of couch to 5K over again since I had missed running all the prior week.  Today I started week 3.
It was a fun week!

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Weekly Summary ~ 5/3/15 - 5/9/15

Not much to say today so I'll get right to the pictures from last week.

I will mention the giveaway that I am hosting though.  Go check out this blog post for your chance to win a CD from Plumb.

{May 3:  Color theory}

Not sure if I got this one right, but the soft greens and purples in this photo are very soothing to me.

{May 4:  Rough}

Don'tcha think?  Ouch!

{May 5:  Falling}

I decided to dig into my archives today and share a photo of the famous Fallingwater house that Doug and I toured in 2011. It was built by Frank Lloyd Wright for the Kaufmann family between 1936 and 1939. It is built over a waterfall and is one of a kind. Now owned by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, it is a much-visited national monument. If you'd like to learn more, check out fallingwater.org.

{May 6:  Inanimate object}

There's nothing like a fresh, new box of Crayola crayons.

Surprisingly, this photo was chosen among the Top Shots for the day. WOOT!

{May 7:  Tickle the senses}

My neighbor's lilac bushes are starting to bloom and they smell divine!

{May 8:  Minimalist landscape}

It is hard to get minimalist landscape pictures without trees in the background when you live in western Pennsylvania. All these rolling hills. Not many big wide open spaces.  :)

This photo was chosen as one of the Top Shots for the day! WOOT!

{May 9:  Cars}

This rusty old car is part of a bigger display of antique items on a road that we traveled today. I have passed it before but today I was brave enough to stop and take a photo.  :)

This photo was chosen as one of the Top Shots for the day! WOOT! Two days in a row!

Linking with Tamar:  (late again - sigh)

Sunday we had a meeting about the upcoming Bible Quizzing trip to Boston.  Nick is pretty excited to go.  I have no desire to spend 14 hours in the church van again.  :)

Monday I spent the day at Phipp's with my once-Facebook, now in-real-life friend, Sharon.  We "met" in the FMS PAD Facebook group and realized that we lived near each other.  We both love photography and Phipp's so we decided to meet up and spend the day shooting.  It was great meeting her!  In fact, we are meeting at the zoo tomorrow.  She is the "polar bear whisperer".  Her photos of the polar bears in the water are spectacular!  So I'm hoping that she'll rub some of that off on me and I'll get some more good shots of them.  She calls me the butterfly whisperer.  :)

Tuesday I spent the day gardening.  Weeding and planting. 

Wednesday was Grandparents' Day at the boys' school.  My in laws came to visit with the boys.  I was having a rough morning so I decided to stay home.  I usually go to help with PTO stuff, but they had plenty of help so it was all good.

Thursday was Alex's field trip.  I was picked as a chaperone so I got to go to this one.  It was fun.  We saw an IMAX movie at the science center.  That was a new experience for both of us.  We saw the movie, Born to be Wild.  After lunch we walked over to Heinz Field and took a tour.  It was neat.  The kids certainly enjoyed it.  None of the Pittsburgh Steelers players were there though.  :(
Thursday night was Keira's school orchestra concert.  Doug brought the boys and my in-laws came also.  I had to take Keira early so she could make sure her violin was in tune.

Friday the kids had a day off of school - an Act 80 day.  Since the consolidation was voted in during Wednesday's school board meeting, the teachers needed an opportunity to meet at their new schools.  We didn't do much.  Stuck around home most of the day.

Friday evening I had a prom photo session with one of the seniors I photographed back in the fall.  She looked like a princess.  :)  Hopefully I will share those photos soon.

Saturday Keira and I went to my mother-in-law's church for a mother-daughter banquet.  It was really nice.  They had a medieval theme.  There were grapes and bread with comb honey on the tables for appetizers.  Then we had this super delicious salad and shepherd's pie for our meal.  The shepherd's pie was like a turkey pot pie except with mashed potatoes on top.  Yum!  

On the way home I stopped and took the photo of the car that is pictured above.  I have never been brave enough to stop.  I'm not one to trespass on someone's property for the photo.  Knowingly, anyway.  :)  But I was assured that the owners put all that stuff there for the purpose of people to stop.  No one yelled at me, so all is good.  

When we got home, I changed into my gardening clothes and went back to pulling weeds and planting.  I planted my dahlia tubers in the front.  I still have more to plant but this week is so busy, I don't know that I'll get a chance.

I think that about covers last week.  I'm sure I forgot something but this is long enough.  :)

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