Weekly Summary ~ 4/5/15 - 4/18/15

My apologies for not posting last week.  It was a week of deadlines and blogging just wasn't high on the priority list.  So that means you get two week's worth of photos today.  Oops!  :)

Continuing with the month of opposites in the 365 Photo group on Facebook ...

{April 5:  Black}

After celebrating Easter all day with my family, I realized I hadn't taken a picture for today's prompt. So I used my fall back - a silhouette of our neighbor's tree at dusk.

{April 6:  White}

The tulips I bought from a friend recently are two-toned white and pink. They are so pretty!

{April 7:  Ahead}

Spring is always such an exciting time. So much potential lies ahead. It is like the slate has been wiped clean and we can start anew. I love spring.

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

{April 8:  Behind}

My first blooming daffodil looks much better from the front than from behind.  :)

{April 9:  Brave}

I have several necklaces that I wear from time to time. This was today's choice, which ended up being the right one. Not only for this prompt but because we had a tornado warning in our area this evening. And now that it is still thunderstorming, I keep telling my dog that she can be brave too. I don't think she's convinced though. :)  Guess I know what tomorrow's photo will be.  :)

{April 10:  Scared}

Honey was so scared during last night's thunderstorms. She couldn't seem to get close enough to me. At one point she decided it was safer to lay under my desk at my feet. The storms continued through the night and finally subsided this morning. She's feeling much better today. Although she still followed me around all day.  :)

{April 11:  Many}

Honey and I went for a walk on the bike trail this morning. We saw many of these "weeds" along the way. It was a great morning for a walk!

{April 12:  Few}

Imagine my surprise when I discovered a few of my Johnny Jump Ups survived our bitterly cold winter and are growing in our flower bed.

{April 13:  Hot}

Today was an absolutely glorious day! The temperature got up to about 77 degrees F and the sun shone most of the day. The kids and I spent most of the afternoon out in the sun, which felt pretty hot, but oh so good. No complaints here after the record-breaking low temperatures we had this winter. I hope we have many more days like this!

{April 14:  Cold}

Snakes are cold-blooded animals. This particular one was caught by NIck while we were out on a nature walk back in the fall.

Sorry for the archive pic today but it has been a busy one!

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

{April 15:  Tame}

Our sweet golden, Honey, is very tame. Not much gets her worked up. Except maybe chasing an occasional squirrel.  :)

{April 16:  Wild}

I found these cute little flowers growing on our hillside yesterday. I don't know if they are wild flowers or if we planted the seeds to grow them. Either way, they are a welcome sight.

This photo got picked as one of the Top Shots for the day! WOOT!

{April 17:  Curly}

Found this little curly cue plant while walking around the yard today. I have no idea what it is, but I was happy to see it.

{April 18:  Straight}

My church's steeple points straight up to the sky.

Linking with Tamar:

A quick rundown of our weeks: (feel free to skip this part)  :)
On Easter Sunday I hosted everyone at our house.  We celebrated Easter and Nick's birthday on the same day since everyone was here - instead of asking them to come in two weekends in a row.  The weather was pretty nice and everyone had a good time.
Monday I attended a community meeting at our school regarding the proposed consolidation.  It ended up being a big pep rally about consolidating.  I didn't really learn anything new.  I did get to put a face with a few names though.
PTO meeting on Thursday - making plans to end our school year with a bang, which might be the last one ever at our building.  :(
After PTO the boys has Bible Quizzing practice.  I was supposed to help but ended up not having to so I had a couple hours of peace and quiet at home.  Keira was at worship practice.  Doug was home but he was working on the bathroom.
On Saturday Doug put the tub and shower walls in the bathroom.  We ended up missing the last symphony concert of the season because we couldn't get showered beforehand.  Not a big deal, but I was kind of bummed.  We were finally able to shower late that evening.  It is nice having the new tub/shower in!
Also on Saturday Alex and I were outside enjoying the nice weather when an ambulance and several first responders went to our neighbors' house behind us.  We prayed immediately for the situation but didn't hear anything until the next day when Charlotte called.  Turns out our neighbor, Ken, passed away.  He'd been having renal failure for a while and was doing dialysis.  He laid down for a nap Saturday afternoon and never woke up.  :(   My heart breaks for his wife, Charlotte.
Sunday after church the kids and I walked back to visit Charlotte and offer our condolences.  She gave me a big hug and cried and cried.  They didn't have any children but they do have family nearby - nieces and nephews and cousins - so she is not alone.
Monday was Nick's 12th birthday.  We went to Arby's for dinner, ran a few errands, and then went to Dairy Queen so the kids could get ice cream.  I was tempted to get something but resisted the urge.  Yay me!  :)
Tuesday, April 14, I visited Community Women, the Bible study that I have been attending for a couple years.  I took a break this semester and was missing the ladies.  Tuesday was a work day so I told them I would come.  It was great seeing everyone.  Even though I had to leave a little early to go to Ken's funeral.
The funeral was a nice service.  Very private.  Only family and close friends were there.  Charlotte was surprised to see me, but I had told her I would be there.  She invited me up to her house afterwards where they would be having "coffee and donuts".  I don't drink coffee or eat donuts but I went anyway.  :)  They ended up having pizza, donuts, and pie.  Honey came with me and stayed outside the door the whole time.  After about an hour she barked to let me know it was time to go home.  :)  It was nice meeting Charlotte's family.  
I forgot to mention that the Monday after Easter was the last time I ate sugary desserts.  I ate too many between Sunday and Monday and decided it was time to take a break.  So going to Charlotte's where there were donuts and pie was a bit of a challenge, but I stayed strong.
Charlotte introduces me as her neighbor who raises Monarch butterflies.  It makes me chuckle.  She wants me to teach her about Monarchs this summer.  That makes me happy.  She has about 22 acres - lots of room to grow milkweed.  :)
On Wednesday we got hoagies for dinner.  A friend was having a fundraiser for her girl scout troop.  They were really good hoagies!  And I love not having to cook dinner.
I also had the privilege of speaking to a Daisy troop and a Boy Scout troop about Monarchs that evening.  A friend invited me to come.  The kids were adorable.  So attentive and well behaved.  Mostly.  They love asking questions and telling their stories.  Hopefully a few of them will catch the "bug" (no pun intended) and start raising their own butterflies.
Thursday was a repeat of last week.  The boys had quizzing practice and Keira had worship practice.  Except this time Doug wasn't home.  He was helping with a plant shut down all week, which means long days.  Hopefully they got everything fixed that needed to be fixed.
On Friday morning I met my friend Nikki on the community trail and we walked for about an hour.  She had asked me to have breakfast or lunch with her and I suggested that we walk instead of eat.  It turned out to be a great idea.  I hope we do it more.
I had my 6-month dental cleaning at 1:15.  Walking in the door of my dentist's office I got my happy buzz.  When I reach my 10,000 steps on my FitBit, I call it my happy buzz.  :)  I think that is the earliest I have ever reached my goal for the day since I have been wearing this thing.
Keira stayed after school to help set up for an art show so we picked her up at 5:30.  We ran to Sam's to pick up some ice cream treats for her to take to a sleep over and some dinner rolls to have with supper.  I had made chicken noodle soup and promised Charlotte I would bring her some.  She was coming down with something - probably from all the stress she had just encountered with Ken's illness/death.  We took the soup and rolls up to her and she was so grateful.  She wanted to hug me but decided not to so she didn't give me her germs.  :)   Alex and I dropped Keira off and then went to a local elementary school to check out their magnolia tree.  It was just beginning to bloom.  You'll have to wait until next week to see some photos from it.  I used one as my photo of the day on Sunday.  Unless you follow my facebook page, Kimberly Vensel Photography.  Then you can see it sooner.  :)
Saturday morning the boys had their Bible Quizzing Invitational.  Alex earned a Bronze award and Nick a silver.  Nick qualified to go to Regionals in Boston in June.   Quizzing days are long days.  I have a hard time sitting there doing nothing for hours and hours, so this time I took my sneakers and walked around the cul de sac for about 45 minutes in the morning.  It was actually getting hot being out in the sun.  No complaints here!  I ran to Panera to get a salad for lunch (didn't want to eat a hamburger or hot dog there) and came back and ate lunch with the kids.  Then I hung out with the younger kids while they did their memory verses and went outside to the playground.  I ended up getting sunburned on my arms and neck.  It was such a nice day!
We were supposed to go to the art show that Keira helped set up for but she was tired from her sleep over (you know they don't sleep much at sleep overs) and ended up sleeping through most of it.  So we missed it.  Alex wanted to go without her but that kind of defeated the purpose.  She had photos in the show and I wanted to go see them WITH her.  Oh well.  We popped popcorn and watched a movie.

Okay, if you made it through all of that, I'm impressed!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  I'll try not to miss another week.  It is hard to remember everything when I go that long between posts!

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Nurture Photography ~ Yellow/Shine

Last week the Nurture Photography fall challenge started with the color green.  This week we are exploring all things yellow.  I love yellow!  It is such a cheery color.

Here are a few of the yellow things I have come across lately ...

The promise of things to come ...

A new sign in a park we visit frequently.  I can't wait to see what they do with this!

Even though daisies are usually most common in spring and summer, we came across quite a few on our nature walk this week.

The sunsets this time of year are so colorful and vibrant!  Purples, pinks, yellows, and oranges.  Gorgeous!

My zinnias are still going strong.

And a couple that represent "shine" ...

My daughter on her 15th birthday.  It was a rainy, wet, cold day until right before sunset.  Then the sun came out and shone beautifully.  It was a great end to the day.

Thanks for stopping by!  Before you go, check out the giveaway I am hosting for a sweet children's board book, Ryan and Rufus Go to Church!  Today is the last day to enter.

Have a great week!  Next's week color challenge is Orange/Fiery.

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Scavenger Hunt Sunday 06.09.13

By the time most of you read this we will be on our way to a fun family getaway for a couple days.  A much-needed mini vacation.  WOOT!  Even though school is now out for the summer, I have still been busy preparing for Vacation Bible School and doing photo shoots (yay!).  So a couple days away is just what we need!

I did manage to get all the Scavenger Hunt items for this week.  Even if I did have to take a few Saturday evening.  :)

{dishes}

At a lunch with some ladies from church recently I was telling them how I check the thrift stores for photo props all the time.  I had mentioned that I would like to be able to buy just one plate instead of a whole set of dishes, but they don't offer them that way.  The following Sunday one of the ladies brought me a couple plates she had.  This is one of those dishes.  Isn't that sweet?!

{favorite color}

Purple is my favorite color so I was delighted to find this purplish daisy growing among my flowers.

{sunflare}

I was playing around trying to get some sun flare while Alex happily played in the dirt.  He didn't even know I was taking his picture.

{expression}

A friend of mine gave me this head massager thingy.  It feels really good.  And the kids love it when you use it on them, except Alex and Nick both make this expression every time.  They say it tickles.  But they still don't want you to stop.  :)

{sticky}

Post-it notes - aka sticky notes - are something that get used a lot at our house.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a wonderful week!  Be sure to visit Ashley for more great Scavenger Hunt finds!

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Color Me Weekly + Wordless Wednesday

I always enjoy participating in Rosie's Color Me Weekly.  It is fun to pull colors from your photo.  Sometimes I find myself pleasantly surprised.  This week I have to share more than just one photo.  Keep scrolling and you'll see why.

This photo was the original one I thought I'd share.  I just love all the different colors in and around our sunflowers.  (Just a note - capturing bees in mid-flight is HARD!  I took lots and lots of pictures and still didn't get what I wanted.)

But then this one happened ...

and I just couldn't decide.  I mean, how often do I get such a defined rainbow in my sun flare?!  Not exactly ROY G. BIV but close enough.

Then I had a few other random photos I wanted to share.  So often I share my photo of the day, which I sometimes have to pick between a few, and the others never get shown.  Here are a few that didn't make the cut this past week ...

I got to help this pretty lady out of some wet grass/weeds.  I was checking milkweed for Monarch caterpillars and she was nearby - perhaps laying some eggs?  I get excited when I can capture a photo of a Monarch butterfly that I didn't raise.  I guess because it is more challenging when they could fly away at any moment as opposed to the ones whose wings are still wet.  :)

Often I try to capture a good photo of our dog, Honey.  But she refuses to look at the camera when it is in front of my face.  Perhaps since she can't see my face?  Anyway, she was looking at something just beyond me and was almost looking at me this time.  Not a spectacular photo, but she's such a pretty dog, don't you think?

I told you before that Keira is taking an online photography class for kids this month.  This is how we see her much of the time now.  We were practicing bird's eye view vs. worm's eye view this particular day.  She's really enjoying the class and I am actually starting to appear in a photo every once in a while.  :)

      

We have one more week before school starts on August 29.  So expect to see some back to school photos soon.  :)

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Week 31 in Pictures

Whew!  We made it through a whole week without anyone getting sick ... without having to leave the house unless we wanted to.  :)  And we even managed to throw some fun stuff in too.

We have Alex's follow up appointment at Children's Hospital on Tuesday.  Then hopefully he'll be cleared to resume normal activities.  He's been asking to ride his bike a lot since we've been home.  We might just have to hit the bike trail Tuesday evening.  :)

We also have some fun stuff planned for this week as long as the weather cooperates.  We are really looking forward to spending some time together as a family.  Our local farm show is this week.  We go every year and always have a good time.  I entered some photos into their photo contest again this year.  I'll post them later in the week.

Anyway, let's look at last week's photos, shall we?

{Sunday}

My brother's cow had her calf so we went out to see her.  She's just one week old in this photo.  She was feeding and her mama gave her a big lick on her face right before I took this photo.  Isn't she adorable?  I love her little tongue sticking out!

{Monday}

I planted some other bulbs this year so now we have purple and yellow gladiolus flowers along with the red ones we already had.  I love the deep purple of these!

{Tuesday}

I finally got a photo of a bird nest with an egg in it!

{Wednesday}

Another beautiful butterfly I came across this week.  And, of course, I had the wrong lens on so I couldn't get real close like I wanted to.  :)  The color palette consists of colors I managed to find in the butterfly's wings.

{Thursday}

The kids and I went to a local lake with some friends from church.  While there I got to teach one of the teenage girls how to shoot in manual.  We walked around looking for something interesting to photograph and came across these hibiscus growing along the lake.

{Friday}

We have lots of sunflowers blooming right now.  Some are about 10 feet tall!

{Saturday}

Okay, so I have lots of butterflies and flower photos this week.  :)  This Tiger Swallowtail was loving my liatris flowers.  I sat outside and enjoyed watching it flutter around for about 10 minutes.  It stayed longer but I was getting too hot.  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous week!

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