Smashingly Sweet

 

 

Okay, as if I didn’t have enough going on and all – a trip to Kalaloch, Utah, fun photo sessions with oodles of lovely pictures to edit, I snuck a peek on Craigslist.  And just so you know, I did sell Miss Is’ Power Wheels yesterday so it wasn’t all for treasure hunting, but I happened upon something I knew I would regret if I didn’t at least try to lay my hands on it.

 

Be prepared, this would be the smashingly portion of this post.

 

 

 

 

A bloody mess or at least it was,  I smashed the Sam-Billy, H-E-Double hockey sticks out of my thumb just after successfully laying my hands on the loot.  It’s still numb in between the throbs two hours later.  I didn’t swear and only a few crocodile-sized tears fell, but it was worth it. 

 

 

This would be the “sweet” part.  A free, old couch perfect for photos.  I can see it now…  Mom and Dad snuggled up on one end and their kids, eyes-rolled complete with mish-mashed faces in utter disgust on the other up against a rustic brick, Old-Town background  - maybe even some modest graffiti (not that I’m condoning it.)  Or placed out in a wheat field underneath brilliant blue-speckled skies.  Or amid a line of fire maples in their autumn glory.  Or smack-dab in the middle of a grove of river birch or aspens.  Or….     So many useful places, so many fun “poses”, so many families/couples to shoot!

 

Since I’ve scarred you all and will not be posting anything for the next week and a half due to a much needed vacation, I thought I’d share something not so gross and very sweet.   

 

~Stacey

 

 

 

 

Good, Clean Fun.

 

 

Saturday’s Project in Pictures…  Enjoy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prep’n the Patio

 

 

 

Once a young Farmer myself, I remember one of our summertime chores - besides scrapping moss off the rooftop shingles with a putty knife which there is not way in Hades will my children be doing - was pressuring washing the algae-clad patio.  “Grandma and Grandpa M have a lot of patio,”  I told my hydro-help.  I could tell he wasn’t listening to me as I delved further down the snowy road of  ‘when I was a kid’ lectures. 

 

“You’re Grandma’s feet would get so sunburned.  Your aunts and I would write things in the cement and we would spray each other with the water jet.  It would hurt if you accidently got your feet, stings really bad….”

 

Today’s adventure was in preparation for a Father’s Day BBQ we’re hosting Sunday afternoon.  Devin fixed the grill and put together paper lanterns.  D.J. and I swept what the fall and winter winds had blown in and washed the whole thing down.   Little instruction was needed; he was a natural.

 

Breaking up stuck-on, dried up dirt clods,  maneuvering the mud flow around the BBQ and the flower pots.  It was wonderful.  Not a single compliant.  And then I saw this and realized why he was such a “natural”.   

 

Monday Morning Flowers

 

 

These were taken this morning in the backyard.  It was raining and everything was fresh and colorful.  I know what each plant is, except for the

bottom right.  I have no clue and I know I didn’t plant it.  Can you shed some light here and tell me what it is?

 

 

 

 

 

The stalks behind it are my Daylilies.  It has a fairly skinny stalk, a tubular blossom like Foxglove and turns out at the ends like Snapdragon… but it isn’t.

It’s lovely and I certainly don’t mind the intrusion, I just want to know what it is exactly and I’m coming up empty handed.  Any thoughts?

Tip-Toe Through the Temple Grounds

 

 

Last night I stopped by the Boise Temple to do some “homework” for wedding and to take a few pictures for an upcoming Enrichment event.  I believe that it is fair to say that the Boise Temple has one of the smallest grounds with the exception of those literally in the middle of a city.  From a photography stand point, it makes it rather difficult to get “that” shot.  All the pictures that I have seen of the BT have been shot with either a fisheye lens or from across the street or interstate with a wide angle.  I have a wide, didn’t venture across the very busy Cole road and this was the best I got.  Hardly the whole enchilada; maybe the crusty end of tortilla that baked into a rock because there was no sauce to keep it tasty and all the bubbly-hot cheese oozed off – it’s about that good.

 

Yes, more phun with Photoshop.

I took that… me, I did.  Sorry, sometimes I have to convince myself.

 

Back to the enrichment thing…

Maybe something like this.  I dunno, my creative brain is rebelling against me.

The more I look at it, the more I tear it apart.  I think the G needs to be the entire frame or just about.

The RS theme this summer is

Sacred Homes, Sacred Temples

after Elder Gary E. Stevenson’s

conference talk.

 

It’ll be a 12x12” print decoupage onto a tile and distressed/antiqued as one would like.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyway, the grounds made up for my frustration with these beautiful roses.  I’ve been rockin’ manual lately, actually the whole time there and it’s amazing what a few changes to the settings can do.  Success or complete and utter failure.  No photoshop phun, just processed into JPEG’s from the NEF files I shoot in. 

 

Hey, Chick.  Thought you’d appreciate the eye-candy.  lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the Background

 

 

 

 

This morning we ran Devin in to Boise to pick up his new video game from my boyfriend, Craig.  He’s been drooling over Halo Wars for months now and as of yesterday, barring a few more chores, earned enough to purchase a used copy for the Xbox 360.  Eight sausage biscuits later, the exchange went rather well in the parking lot of Micky D’s. 

 

So here we are in Boise on a rainy Saturday with no other place to go in town, that is until I had a brilliant idea.  The fabric store. THE FABRIC STORE!  It’s been a few months since I fed my fabric addiction and thought I’d drag the rest of the Farmers (Dad included) to one of my adulthood Disneyland haunts.  I still don’t have curtains up in my office, surely that was an important enough of reason to go.

 

Hanging from the storefront was a big, yellow and black vinyl banner that read, Store Closing.  What the heck!!!  No way…  I was crushed.   Once I read the sign over again in disbelief, it said that another store had closed and they had all their fabric.  Whew!  I can still feed my need.  Anyway, this particular fabric store had their cotton prints/solids on sale for $3.00 a yard this weekend only.  Such news requires a handful of tissues to wipe the drool from off my face.  My man-slave, a.k.a. Hubby, carried the rolls as I wandered through the aisles.  There was too much to choose from – too many possibilities that I was drowning in ideas.  I kept it under control and limited myself to only five.  I find that I’m struggling with the idea of venturing back as I write this post; hundreds of yards of half-priced fabric tell me yes, but my photog bank account says no. 

 

Now to improve upon the situation, I have to relate to you the real savings.  Regular price was $5.99 a yard.  Not bad and I was ready to pay it.  The rusty damask was actually mismarked, but the sales lady let me have it for the $3.00 yrd price.  Each fabric swatch is 54” wide by 9’ long.  All together I spent $47.00 and change.    Here’s where the kicker comes in.  At “tready” photography supply stores, fancy-pant backdrops just like what I bought in the 4 1/2 ‘ x 9’ size run anywhere between $90-$120 without shipping.  You do the math!  $500.00 or just shy of $50.  

 

 

 

 

The white chain on the green background is really neat, I bought it specifically for Christmas/Spring shots.  And who can say no to a very pretty celadon green and chocolate?  Obviously I couldn’t.  The pineapple-like motif of the green and white floral is quirky.  I reminds me of vintage 1960’s wallpaper.   Damask in rust and gold; the picture doesn’t do it justice.  Last, but not the least, a blue and chocolate damask.  I can’t wait to play around with these.  Any takers?  Of course, Miss Is was ready for a very impromptu shoot – very impromptu – as in less than ten minutes from walking in the door.   I flipped the blue damask over the old radio in the great room, weighted down by a dried floral arrangement and I dare say, my statuette of the Holy Family and snapped away.  Miss Is went into model-mode and worked it.  As you can see from the upper-right hand shot, she’s all that.  We’re so professional…  NOT!!!

 

(All of Maddy’s shots are proudly SOOC with nothing but window light!  I’m getting better, albeit slowly.)

Pomp and Circumstance

 

 

 

Today is the day that my baby girl graduated. 

She has her degree and as they say, ‘everything you need to know you learn in kindergarten’.  

 

 

The first day of kindergarten; it seem like it was so long ago.

 

 

Mjss Is and her teacher, Mrs. W.

 

 

The graduates entered to Pomp and Circumstance and took to the risers to sing a few songs they’ve learned.  The last song, called

“First Grade” was very fitting, the perfect send-off to their official elementary education.

 

 

Kinder is hard work.  Getting up on stage in front of everybody is even harder.

 

 

Congrats, Miss Is!!!!   We’re so proud!