Photo Blogging Challenge: Color!

Late to PJ’s party over at A ‘lil Hoohaa this month, but better late than never? Especially since the theme is COLOR!

April was a colorful month and the enticing spring flowers, Easter festivities and warmer weather made sure I got out to enjoy all that color….except for the last three days when Mom Nature decided to dump buckets and buckets of water on us. Oh, and today, it’s barely making it out of the 40sF. So it’s April that’s going out like a lion.

Back to more enjoyable thoughts.

Color #1
The oddest thing happened one day at War-Mart. Four very large hanging baskets of violas jumped into my cart. So, I took them home for some early spring color in the planter pots. The lovely lavender and yellow colors were just what I needed that day to make me smile. 🙂

Color #2
Sometimes Twix gets to go to Preschool Open Gym time a local gymnastics gym. It’s always very colorful in a gym with the mats. And…then there’s the splash of pink color hanging on the rope.

Color #3
I featured this earlier this month, but it bears repeating. This colorful display is what greeted Entrepreneur and I when we went to the hospital for his radiation treatments. The sea of cheerful, yellow, daffodils probably brought smiles to many worried patients.

Color #4
Easter is always colorful with egg hunts and baskets. This year, Peanut found a very colorful lollipop in a basket from her great-grandparents.

Color #5
What self-respecting color addict wouldn’t include a photo that personified her bio? As a 96-crayon-box person, I might resemble this remark….um photo. 🙂

Don’t forget to visit PJ’s place to enjoy more colorful month-in-reviews.

Photo Blogging Challenge: Four

PJ, over at A ‘lil HooHaa has been hosting a photo blogging challenge for four years this month. And, in honor of that momentous occasion, this month’s challenge is centered around……you guess it….Four.

I thought this would be a slam dunk this month. But I would have been misinformed. This was a much bigger challenge than I anticipated. On one hand, I’m still dealing with Entrepreneur’s post-brain surgery adjustment. He’s doing well…I’m the one who seems to be struggling.

So, you all will need to give me a little bit of latitude on some of these selections. 🙂

#1 Four
Included in this row of Bradford Pear trees are FOUR trees in full bloom. They lasted all of about four days before a late spring hard freeze turned all those lovely white blossoms brown..

#2 Four
Bridget is one of FOUR kittens that came to live with members of our family 12 years ago. The no-kill shelter nicknamed them the “Irish Kittens” because they found them on or around St. Patrick’s Day. Three are from one litter, the fourth was found somewhere else, but was assimilated in with the others. All four assimilated together nicely into the bed.

#3  Four
My grandfather’s violin (or is it a fiddle?) still has all FOUR strings in tact. Circa early to mid 1900s, I really don’t know its story other than he owned it. Wish I knew more.

#4 Four
Twix has a puzzle with FOUR separate puzzle scenes in one, which may be a little confusing when you’re only three years old. 🙂

#5 Four
Here’s where I need a bit more latitude. Since March is the month to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day, what better way than to look for FOUR-leaf clovers. What? You don’t see any in this shot? Neither do I. But, there may be one hiding in there so I think it should count. 🙂

Bonus FOUR foto!
Twix turned three years old in February. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, she was not able to have her “official” party until this month. So, here is the ONE-YEAR-LESS-THAN-FOUR-year-old birthday girl with FOUR presents. I thought it only fitting to include this since PJ’s photo challenge is celebrating FOUR years old this month.

Whew….Be sure to visit PJ’s place to see how others interpreted the prompt this month.

February Photo Challenge: Love

Well, I had visions of wonderful “Love” photos for February’s photo challenge from our winter vacay to Mexico. They were going to be fabulous. And then this happened. 

The month became a blur and now it’s time to share……and I’m literally putting this together the afternoon of February 28th. So, for what it’s worth, here’s my five for Love.

Love #1
Twix turned three years old earlier this month….back when life was more normal than it is now. As tough as it sometimes is to keep her mind stimulated, she’s such a delight to have around every day. It goes without saying that the grand girls are right at the top of the Love List.

Love #2
Along those lines, Twix loved getting a birthday phone call from a set of great-grandparents who sang happy birthday to her. When asked how old she was, she was happy to show them.

Love #3
In this part of the state, everyone LUVS Central Dairy ice cream…from a local dairy that made its mark in middle Missouri back in 1920. A second location was established in 1934 and included an ice cream parlor, which is still in operation today.

Love #4
I love it when our family is all together…wherever it may be. This is a feeble attempt to maneuver a selfie-stick at a local restaurant to commemorate the occasion.

Love #5
And why, you may ask, was everyone together in middle Missouri in the middle of February and not on a Caribbean beach? Well, in case you missed the link at the beginning of the post, it was because of Entrepreneur’s recent brain surgery…on the day we are suppose to celebrate Love….February 14th, Valentine’s Day. Not exactly the way I’d intended to spend the day, but there’s nothing like a good old-fashioned crisis to bring together those you love most. And it drives home the importance of those Love vows we took 36+ years ago.

There’s my February Five. I hope you find time to make your way over to PJ’s place to share in some more blogging love. 

Photo Blogging Challenge: Express Yourself!

The first month of 2017 is almost on the books, and here we are again with PJ’s monthly photo challenge. This month’s theme is Express Yourself. And, I must say it was more than a head-scratcher for me.

In the end, I opted to combine two of my loves to express a little of who I am and some of the mindsets that have made me who I am today. Those two components are photography and quotations. No extra commentary will probably be necessary for this month’s five. All the photos except the first one are from a trip Entrepreneur and I took earlier this month to Meridia Beach, Florida. The amaryllis was a December gift and was suppose to bloom for Christmas. Obviously, it knew my muse would need it for January!

BTW, that “star” by the crescent moon is Venus.

Be sure to visit PJ’s A ‘lil Hoohaa on January 31st and see what others expressed this month.

 

December Photo Challenge: Tis the Season

Imagine my surprise when I realized December was almost over and I hadn’t written one word here since Dec. 7th! And now, it’s time again for PJ’s monthly photo challenge over at a ‘lil hoohaa. This month’s theme is, appropriately, Tis the Season.

Tis the Season for many things around here. Tis the Season for losing my mind with the holidayz…which can put a person in a daze. Tis the Season for birthdays…The Golfer and my Mama. Tis the Season for winter activities…bonfires and snowballs. And, Tis the Season for family.

So, here’s my five:

Tis the Season 1
Tis the Season for Christmas! This was the first year Twix was big enough to be the designated tree topper….much to Peanut’s dismay.

Tis the Season 2
Tis the Season for Ho Ho Ho Hats. Last year, Twix was not very cooperative with the Santa hat….or any hat for that matter. This year, she couldn’t get enough of wearing it. Peanut is an old pro at this so capturing this shot was much easier this year.

Tis the Season 3
Tis the Season to burn the brush pile in the backyard. This annual event usually takes place on the first snow so we don’t set the neighborhood on fire. Coincidentally, this year’s bonfire fell during the time when The Floridian golfer daughter was back in town for the holidays. Neighbors are invited so they don’t freak out when they see the flames. We try to make it a time to gather friends and family for “s’more” food and fun. 🙂

Tis the Season 4
Tis the Season for a birthday for The Golfer from Florida. And since she was home, it was also time to try to capture both daughters and grand girls since they were all in one place.

Tis the Season 5
And, finally, Tis the Season for family. A rare occurrence when we’re all together in one place at the same time.

There’s my five for December. Don’t forget to visit PJ’s place on December 31st to see the other seasonal festivities.

 

October Photo Challenge: Water

Here we are again, the end of another month—and ready for PJ’s photo challenge. This month’s prompt was Water. I know everyone is sick of me commenting on how quickly time is passing and how little of said time I seem to have each month. So I’m not going to say any more about that except that I was able to put together five water-based photos to survive another month. 🙂 If this prompt would have come in February, I’d have tons of beachy, vacay photos to share!

Watery #1

My in-laws live on a farm and run a few head of cattle on their land. This is a shot of Entrepreneur’s brother’s house, taken from his parent’s barn lot. This is a shot of their backyard, and the cows are not allowed in this particular pond. But, now you’re stuck with shots from land-locked Middle Missouri.

Watery #2

It is that time of year—Autumn, but our temps still say summer with the thermometer running about 20 degrees warmer than normal. The leaves are falling like rain from the trees and I did finally take in the hummingbird feeders….much to the yellow jacket bee’s irritation.

Watery #3

The change in seasons is usually accompanied by temperature inversions. Here we have water suspended in mid-air (aka: fog). If the temps were colder, we would have had frozen fog on the cedar trees….one of my favorite things to capture with a camera.

Watery #4

What to do while sitting in the car and being pulled through an automatic car wash? Take photos, of course. This might make an interesting photo texture…hmmmm…the muse may need to play around with that idea.

Watery #5

My favorite of this grouping; front porch mums after a watery shower.

For more wet photos, pop over to PJ’s and see what others shared for October.

September Photo Challenge: My Town

Here we are again with PJ’s photo blogging challenge. This month’s theme is My Town. There are many aspects to life in my town, but most of these photos will be primarily in and around the University of Missouri’s flagship campus, located in my little town.

My Town #1

The University of Missouri-Columbia (or Mizzou as it’s nicknamed) began in 1939 with an investment from 900 citizens of Boone County. The library was created in 1841 and the first graduation occurred in 1843. In 1862, the university closed from spring to fall because federal troops engaged in the Civil War were quartered in one of the buildings. This is a shot of Memorial Union, a massive, gothic-inspired building that was built as a memorial to the university’s alumni that died in WWI. Pledges from students and faculty totaled $238,000 and construction began. You can read more about the history of Mizzou HERE.

My town #2

Jesse Hall serves as an admin building and houses the University Concert Series in an ornate theatre located inside the building. The original Academic Hall on campus burned in 1892, leaving the six columns you see in the photo. Jesse Hall was built in 1895 as the new “Academic Hall,” and renamed in 1922 after retiring university president, Richard Jesse.

My Town #3

The university’s mascot is a tiger. The name was selected in 1890 shortly after the football team was formed. The name, Tigers, didn’t originate because of a love of the animal….it came from a band of armed guards called the Fighting Tigers of Columbia who, in 1864, protected the town during the Civil War. This photo was taken at the recent Tiger Stripe football game where each section of the stadium was supposed to wear either black or gold.

My Town #4

The Heidelberg restaurant and bar celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2013.  A group of investors initially purchased former Ever Eat Café and renamed it The Old Heidelberg after one of the world’s oldest universities in Germany. It’s a beloved dining tradition among alums located across the street from the journalism school. The original restaurant burned in 2003 but was rebuilt because it holds many nostalgic memories among students and alums alike.

My Town #5

Just off campus is the Missouri Theatre. It’s a concert and theatrical production venue built in 1928, and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s also the town’s only surviving pre-Depression building that housed a movie theatre and vaudeville stage. The theatre was designed after the Paris Opera House and the interior is done in the ornate baroque style of the Louis XIV and XV periods. In addition to offering theatrical productions, it is home to the area’s only professional orchestra, the Missouri Symphony Orchestra.

There’s my five for September. Please make a point to visit PJ’s place and enjoy touring other towns.