Photo 365 #149

January 3, 2015January 4, 20152 Comments

Well, would you look at that – they’re wearing their coats!

coats

It’s the middle of winter, so you wouldn’t think this would be so remarkable. But Monday night, Bubbles went to spend a week at his dad’s and left his coat at home. It was maybe 15°F the next day, so his stepmom drove him over to pick up his coat.

We were supposed to get a bunch of snow this weekend, but so far, we’ve only got a dusting. At any rate, Friday night his dad stopped to pick up his boots, because he hadn’t taken those with him, either. *sigh*

Apparently Bubbles is going to be one of those kids who wears shorts when it’s five below. Insisting his sweatshirt is good enough is only the beginning.

Photo 365 #147

January 1, 2015January 2, 20154 Comments

What a way to ring in the new year!

gas

I can’t remember the last time gas was this cheap, but I’m sure gonna enjoy it while it lasts. Here’s hoping it lasts a long time! 🙂

Photo 365 #142

December 27, 2014December 28, 20144 Comments

I had to run some errands in the next town over this morning and as I rounded the curve into town, I was greeted by a huge plume of smoke. At first, I thought maybe the fire department was doing a controlled burn, but they weren’t.

Like so many others, I circled the block to see if I could figure out what was burning. It looked like the local furniture store’s warehouse, but as I got closer, it turned out to be the building behind it. The fire destroyed a heavy machinery shop.

I managed to snap a few pictures before I ran my errands, and on my way back home, I thought I’d snap a few more. But by then, the police had blocked off the street I’d been on before.

I hope the business will rebuild in town so that no one will lose their job, and I hope that no one was hurt in the fire.

Photo 365 #130

December 15, 2014December 17, 2014Leave a comment

Sometimes, it’s the simple things in life that are the sweetest.

besties

Like visits from best friends on cloudy days, or – in this case – a night out with great food, great friends, and great fun. I still maintain that Gaelic Storm concerts need to be an annual thing. Who knows? Maybe 2015 will be the year we revisit the Englert and have a rollicking good time!

What simple things do you enjoy?

Photo 365 #124

December 9, 2014December 10, 2014Leave a comment

It was a beautifully sunny day the other day, the kind that makes you feel glad to be alive. I couldn’t help taking a picture of it:

The snow is gone now, and so is the sun. It’s beginning to feel a lot like February, weather-wise, instead of nearly Christmas. I can do without the snow, but I dearly miss the sun.

Photo Friday: The Food Coma Express

November 28, 20142 Comments

We went to my in-laws’place for Thanksgiving yesterday. It was a nice visit, complete with enough food for a small army: ham, turkey, corn, potatoes, rolls, deviled eggs, pickles, jello fluff, pumpkin pie (without the crust), and ice cream.

And there were only nine of us!

After all that food, it’s no wonder that this was the view on the way home:

There was some snoozing going on in the front seat, too; Miss Tadpole curled up next to Seymour and slept most of the way home. If the rest of us could have napped, too, I think we would have.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, full of great food, great family, great friends, and great fun. If your celebrations are continuing this weekend, stay safe! 🙂

Photo 365 #111: Edge

November 26, 2014Leave a comment

If the following picture seems familiar, it’s because you’ve likely seen it before in sepia:

edge

I took this picture back in 2007. I was doing someone’s senior pictures, and I couldn’t help taking a few shots of this bridge for myself. It’s an old railroad bridge spanning the Iowa River, but it hasn’t been used for trains in I don’t know how long. I have a deep and abiding love for the relics of my state’s history, a bit of which you can read about here.

How about you – what are some of your old loves?

Photo 365 #108

November 23, 2014November 23, 20146 Comments

Well, this post is later than I’d intended. I spent the morning moving a pile of lumber from one outbuilding to another as part of a farm clean-up effort. I had two adorable little helpers, though Thumper petered out after about five minutes.

Cricket, though? He was a fantastic helper. He didn’t quit till the job was done, and what a big job it was.

We were expecting rain this afternoon, but it showed up early, just as we were getting started on our project. By the time we finished, we were all soaked to the bone. But the rain really made our one apple tree stand out, and I couldn’t help taking a picture or four. I love the way the colors pop in this picture, a bit of variety on an otherwise gray and dreary day.

Photo 365 #107

November 22, 2014Leave a comment

reindeerbunny Because it’s that time of year, and because I can’t find half the kids’ winter things after moving this past spring, we bought the boys some new mittens last week. Thumper’s mittens came with a hat.

He’s the cutest. Reindeer. Ever. And no, I’m not biased. Not in the least. 🙂

Photo 365 #106: Landscape

November 21, 201415 Comments

I love landscapes. I think the majority of pictures I take are either of my kids or landscapes (49% landscapes, 49% kids, 2% other). Iowa is such a beautiful place that I can’t help whipping out my camera (either of them) and capturing the glories of nature.

quixotic

As previously mentioned, I also love sunsets. The arrival of snow is seriously hindering my ability to capture them through the break in the trees that form the western borderline of our property.

I may or may not have mentioned, however, that I’m not fond of the wind farms that are springing up all over the area (seriously, I can’t remember if I’ve talked about it or not). There’s one that stretches for a good ten miles south of where I live, and the blinking red line on the night horizon is one I find quite annoying. Now there’s another one that mars the northern horizon on my way to work. If this keeps up, I’ll be living in the middle of a wind farm inside of ten years.

Still, I do like the silhouettes these particular turbines made against the darkening night sky. And I love the hint of blurriness evident near the horizon and the edges of the turbine blades; it makes the whole scene feel a bit dreamy and surreal. When I took this picture, I was reminded of Don Quixote tilting at windmills, and I love it when nature makes me think of books.

What do your favorite landscape photos depict?