247/365 Cake

"Late Night Treat"

Thank you, Brookie!!!

246/365 Back to School

"School Buddy"

It seems that for most of my life that I have been on the quest for the perfect purse.  Well, maybe not my entire life - just since I had to start carrying a purse and we all know when that was.  And still, at 51, I have yet to find the perfect purse.   Today I had an epiphany and realized why that is.  

As I mentioned a few days ago, school has been a part of my life for 47 years.  For 30 of those years I have been carrying a backpack.  Let's face it, no purse can compete with the utility and practicality of a backpack.  All those compartments and pockets for everything from my iPad to a water bottle.  I can (and do) carry everything I need.  The boy scouts would be so proud of me; I am always prepared - except for the minor little detail that I have lost my keys.  Let me say though, this is not a failing on my backpack's part.  It is a failing on my memory's part.  I took them out of my backpack before we went to England and placed them in "a safe place."  That place is so safe that its whereabouts have eluded everyone in my house!

Back to my backpack … the one I have now is the closest thing to perfect that there is in a backpack - a place for everything and everything inits place.  And it is blue.  What more can I ask for?  All of these things are definitely assets but the "cherry on top" is my Uglydoll, "Cozymonster", that the girls gave me.  He makes me smile every time that I look at him.  He's just so darn cute and has an amazing personality.  Here is a bit of Cozymonster's story:

How can you not love this guy?  And, he's orange!

So, now after all these years, I am giving up my quest to find the perfect purse.  I am making a commitment to a a lifetime of carrying a backpack.  Oh so feminine, right?  Well, in my mind, utilitarianism trumps style every time.

245/365 Still Life

"Flowers is a Vase"

It was nice to see that the day's prompt was "still life" because still life is exactly what I had planned for my day!  We had nothing on our calendar that had to be done. Yay!

We slept late - really late.  Considering that most of our mornings begin at 6 am, anything past 8:30 seems late.  Past 10 constitutes really late!  Oh well, it is the last time that we will get to do that for a long time.  We savored every moment of those sleeping hours.

It was nice to have the time to cook a big breakfast at home.  Breakfast is my favorite meal to eat and though I don't mind cooking it, if you have a big breakfast, it becomes labor, dish and clean-up intensive.  Today, none of that mattered.  We had awesome breakfast burritos -filled with potatoes with hatch chilies, scrambled eggs and a little cheese and pico de gallo.  All I can say is YUM!

After all the hard work of preparing, eating and cleaning up after breakfast, we watched a few episodes of 30 Days.  If you have not seen this or aren't familiar with it, it is one of the few TV programs that I think is a "must see."  It is a little dated having begun its three season run in 2005, but the message is still fresh.  If you are interested, it is available on Netflix.

Despite a lazy day, I did manage to get all of our laundry done, the rest of last night's party stuff cleaned up and my preparation for school this week done.  I consider today to be a successful day!

I also had time to play a little with today's photos.  I am fond of the picture above because of its blue and orange.  That is a no-brainer in my world.  But, I tried some other shots as well.  I really like the photo below.  The single flower in a recycled jar as a vase has a simplicity about it that speaks to me.  Compositionally, it is a little odd, but still, I like it for some strange reason.

 'Flower in a Jar"

I am trying to learn more about conversion to black and white.  It seems like it should be simple.  It's not.  I did convert the picture above.  I like the way the jar converts; the flower takes on a whole different character.  The jury is still out on this one.

"Flower in a Jar 2"

I am thankful for this low-key day, especially since it will be Thanksgiving before we have another one like it.  How depressing!  Forget I said that.

Have a great week everyone!

244/365 Everywhere A Sign

"Not Your Kid's S'mores"

For some time we have been wanting to have a get together at the house.  It has but put off several times in hopes that all of the renovations would be finished.  We are not quite there, but close enough that we decided to go ahead with it tonight.  This seemed like a good way to begin the new school year.

it was fiesta time - empanadas, tacos, refried beans, corn,slaw and homemade salsa and guacamole.  Brooke did all of the cooking - except the carnitas.  Then there was dessert - almond shortbread, homemade coffee marshmallows,and  Mexican dark chocolate all drizzled with goat milk dulce de leche.  I don't usually care for marshmallows, but this was pretty darn good!

We had a fun evening.  I was so busy talking, eating and drinking a little her that I didn't take pictures of any people.  It was kind of strange that I never even thought to get my camera out.  Oh well, maybe next time.

243/365 Bright Background

'Saturday Siesta"

242/365 Smack

"Puppy Love"

Today's prompt was "bump."  Elaboration on that was given as jolt, crash or smack.  Thankfully I did not have anything in my day that could be described by any of those words.  I had a day at home.  I did do some work, but it was at a leisurely pace and did not require that I be dressed by 7 am.  

We spent this evening with friends.  It was a wonderful evening during which we shared a meal and good conversation.  I also managed to take a few pictures.  They were not taken under ideal circumstances, but hey, not everything in life happens under perfect circumstances.

At the point we left for dinner, I had not taken a picture for today and had no idea what I was going to do.  As is often the case, however, luck and a little creativity jumped in and saved me.  I had to go with a loose interpretation of the prompt, but it works for me.  Smack is a kiss, right?  I love the way Tyler, the dog, is looking into his dad's eyes.  And as a bonus, I got a picture of my friend as well.  Thanks guys for helping me out today!

And not to be left out, here is Tyler's brother, Trevor.

"Party Animal"

These guys are fun to photograph!

241/365 Fashion Statement

"Hell on Heels"

We have already established here that I have no fashion sense.  Clothes at best are a necessity and are at worst an encumbrance.  Therefore, I knew that I was going to be searching for a willing participant to help me with today's photo.  Brooke is definitely the one in our family who uses clothing to make a statement.

We always kid her about her shoes.  She already towers over all of us by a couple of inches naturally.  Add to that the five inch heels that most of her shoes have and we all become midgets.  Self expression through clothing has been her thing for a long time so she actually volunteered to help me today.  

These particular shoes definitely make a statement - I'm not exactly sure what they are saying, but I do know they are saying something.  Come to think of it, it may be better that I don't know what they are saying. 

I was OK when the "spikes" on her shoes came in the form of soccer cleats.  

After we were done taking pictures, we noticed this critter climbing along the wall.  As we got a better look, we noticed that he/she too is making a fashion statement by shedding old skin.  I have seen snakes shed their skin, but I have never seen a lizard do it.  This one didn't seem to be camera shy at all.