Photo Challenge #26 - Weather

This week's challenge brought to mind an old saying...."There's always weather, whether or not!" Boy, there hasn't been much going on here weather-wise in the last week....certainly nothing specatular enough for picture taking! Given a week or two, we'll probably have our first real snowfall, snowstorm or perhaps a blizzard!! You never know, living in Colorado!! As we say in our state (and I guess many other places around the world from other's comments here in blogland!), if you don't like the weather, just wait 10 minutes!!

I did manage some nice photos of the whispy clouds during a ride on Saturday afternoon. This one is my favorite.


And this one was taken earlier in the week out my backyard at the beautiful autumn sunset! Yes, the clouds and weather patterns do create the sunsets!! (And it gives me another reason to take pictures of more sunsets, like I need another!! I'm definitely addicted to sunsets!!)

Here's hoping that everyone is having a wonderful week!!!

Photo Challenge #25 - Low Light

I enjoyed this challenge, but found that I had better pictures in my archieves from the last year than I was able to take tonight. This one was the best of the bunch from this evening, when I lit the candle and took out the camera.

This is my favorite from our Hanukkah celebrations last December. James loves to light the candles and say the Hanukkah prayers. Being a bi-religion family (my husband was raised Methodist and I was raised Jewish), James gets a little bit of both.

And I took this picture over the summer on a camping trip. James is always mesmerized by the campfire and can sit for hours looking into it and talking quietly with us.......treasured moments!

While I wasn't terribly successful this week, this challenge has heightened my awareness of how to take low light pictures. I shall continue to work on it!!

Photo Challenge #23 - Make Over

While working on this challenge over the weekend, I came to realize why I don't do much editing. The editing program that came with my digital camera just doesn't do a whole lot! I have my sights set at upgrading my camera in the next year and with that, will do so with an editing program as well. But I did have fun poking around with what I do have and tried some things I hadn't really used before.

Using a picture of our son James standing in a field of wild flowers, that I took this summer while camping, I used some of the edit modes that my digital program offers. I like the effect I got when I used the "fisheye" feature together with the "spotlight" feature. Thanks for stopping by!!

Before

After

A Fun Halloween for "Ninja Boy"

Every year I make James' Halloween costume. In 8 Halloweens I only didn't make it last year, when he wanted to be Darth Vader and I gave in and bought the costume. Over the years, I've made a bumblebee, a devil, a dinosaur, a skeleton, the Tin Man (from the Wizard of Oz), and Count Dracula.

I am by NO MEANS a seamstress!! I take the sewing machine out once a year....to make his costume!! I can make do and my philosophy is, "It's a Halloween costume and it'll be dark outside!!" I can get away with almost anything and get by. The costumes I've made are never perfect, but are always cute, enjoyed and appreciated. That makes it all worthwhile!

This year James decided he wanted to be a Ninja, so a Ninja he was! Though, wearing the finished product made him look a little bit like a terrorist (I thought!!) he was quite pleased and proud of the outcome. Slipping into the costume, he became the "King of Drama", fulfilling the role and loved posing for the camera, as you can see!!

The Ninja didn't scare Lacey. She knew that was James under there!!

Halloween night, James' school had a party for all the kids. This was taken out on the playground before the party.

This is James and his best buddy, Cameron, who dressed up like a StormTrooper from Star Wars. After the party at school, I took the two of them Trick or Treating through the neighborhood close to home. A great time was had by all!!

As we sat quietly in the livingroom winding down from the evening and getting ready for bed last night, James looked at me and said, "Gee, Mom, I wonder what I'll be next year!!?!!!" Good grief, give Mom and the sewing machine a rest for awhile, OK?! I love you, my little Ninja.....you are the best!!!