frozen treats ... 106/365

frozen treats ...
/ˈfroʊzən trits/ -noun
entertainment, food, drink, etc., given by way of compliment or as an expression of friendly regard. a food that is frigid; very cold.

... a yummy treat after a long day at the zoo ...

follow the leader ... 105/365

follow the leader ...
/ˈfɒloʊ ðə ˈlidər/
–noun
a child's game in which players, one behind the other, follow a leader and must repeat or follow everything he or she does.

... a very cute follow the leader game at the local zoo ... mamas and babies.  is there anything cuter?

fences ... 104/365

fences ...
/fɛnsez/ -noun
a barrier enclosing or bordering a field, yard, etc., usually made of posts and wire or wood, used to prevent entrance, to confine, or to mark a boundary.

... a very important fence.  on the other side?  a cliff tumbling into a raging waterfall that looked like root beer ... wish i could remember why ... exactly.  maybe i should have taken a picture of that sign?

dirt ... 103/365

dirt ...
/dɜrt/ -noun
1. any foul or filthy substance, as mud, grime or dust.
2. earth or soil, esp. when loose

... i'm sure i can find you a bagazillion pictures depicting dirt and dirty ... but i love the dirt and the roots and the moss and my biggest little's legs ... the texture and the angles in this picture make me happy.

cutlery ... 102/365

cutlery ...
/ˈkʌtləri/ -noun
cutting instruments collectively, esp. knives for cutting food

... my first time allowing stella to use a sharp knife to help me cut corn from the cob to freeze for the winter.  as a mama, scary.  but completely and totally supervised.  still a little eek.

cookery ... 101/365

cookery ...
/ˈkʊkəri/ -noun
the art or practice of cooking.

... cora ... doing her part to make some chai tea.  not necessarily cooking ... but still ... cooking. 

communication ... 100/365

communication ...
/kəˌmyunɪˈkeɪʃən/ -noun
1. the act or process of communicating; fact of being communicated.
2. the imparting or interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information by speech, writing, or signs.
3. something imparted, interchanged, or transmitted.

... aboard a no-longer utilized ship up north ... this device was used as communication between personnel in the different areas of the ship.

clown ... 99/365

clown ...
/klaʊn/ -noun
1. a comic performer, as in a circus, theatrical production, or the like, who wears an outlandish costume and makeup and entertains by pantomiming common situations or actions in exaggerated or ridiculous fashion, by juggling or tumbling, etc.
2. a person who acts like a clown

... definitely the latter definition ... my husband ... who humored me by allowing me to take his picture while acting like a clown attempting a laugh from the girly-girls.

circle ... 98/365

circle ...
/ˈsɜrkəl/ - noun
any circular or ringlike object, formation, or arrangement

... a circle sculpture that we found at the arboretum ... just wish the girly-girls would have posed a slight bit better in it, rather than attempting to climb the thing!

chores ... 97/365

chores ...
/tʃɔrz/ -noun
the everyday work around a house or farm.

... a chore that i'm assuming that stella is SO GLAD that she does not have to do on a daily basis ... the act of stirring the pot to make soap.  hot.  sticky.  hard.  and not fun when it is 104 degrees outside.

childhood favorites ... 96/365

childhood favorites ...
/ˈtʃaɪldhʊd ˈfeɪvərɪts/ - noun
a person or thing regarded with special favor or preference during the state or period of being a child

... my childhood favorite. my bike. pink with a banana seat. now passed down to stella ... with the intention of getting her to ride a bike without training wheels. thus far? unsuccessful. but we'll keep trying.

bodies of water ... 95/365

bodies of water ...
/ˈbɒdiz ʌv ˈwɔtər/ - noun
the part of the earth's surface covered with water (such as a river or lake or ocean); "they invaded our territorial waters"; "they were sitting by the water's edge"

... i'm an ocean girl ... but ... a lake is the nearest i get most years.  and lake superior is quite the beautiful body of water, in my opinion.

barren ... 94/365

barren ...
/ˈbærən/ -adjective
unproductive; unfruitful

... what appeared to be a very barren tree ... against a very blue sky ... in the middle of the summer.

autumn ... 93.365

autumn ...
/ˈɔtəm/   –noun
the season between summer and winter; fall. In the Northern Hemisphere it is from the September equinox to the December solstice; in the Southern Hemisphere it is from the March equinox to the June solstice.

... a trip to the apple orchard resulted in what i hoped would be an awesome picture of a bunch of gourds.  in beautiful shades of greens and oranges.  fall-ish.  a true symbol of autumn.  picture didn't turn out like i had wanted it to.  oh well. 

abandoned ... 92/365

abandoned ...
/əˈbændənd/, adjective
forsaken or deserted: an abandoned building

... an abandoned lily pad ... discovered during a photo shoot on the beach ... played with and loved ... and then abandoned.  you'll see more of the played with and loved soon.  it's gonna take me a long time to upload and edit and talk about all the things i've been capturing.  be prepared for a gaggle of pictures from this blog.  i can't not finish the challenge.

what am i? ... 91/365

what am i? ...
/wʌt əm aɪ/ - inquiry
used interrogatively to inquire as to the origin, identity, etc., of something

... amazes me how things in nature when viewed REALLY CLOSE UP ... take on an artwork all of their own ... crazy, huh?


of course.

the wild side ... 90/365

the wild side ...
/ðə waɪld saɪd/
living in a state of nature; not tamed or domesticated side of things.

... she was on the wild side of this fence ... i was NOT ... (but she has a sleeping face that i could cuddle with) ... or maybe not.

stripes ... 89/365

stripes ...
/straɪp/ –noun
a relatively long, narrow band of a different color, appearance, weave, material, or nature from the rest of a surface or thing

... stripes ... that i don't really want to get much closer to ... but i want my camera lens to get closer to there ... any (relatively less expensive) suggestions for a nikon d50?

puzzle ... 88/365

puzzle ...

/ˈpʌzəl/

–noun
1. a toy, problem, or other contrivance designed to amuse by presenting difficulties to be solved by ingenuity or patient effort.
2. something puzzling; a puzzling question, matter, or person.
3. a puzzled or perplexed condition; bewilderment.
4. a crossword puzzle: Did you do the puzzle in the newspaper today?
5. a jigsaw puzzle.
–verb (used with object)
6. to put (someone) at a loss; mystify; confuse; baffle: Her attitude puzzles me.
7. to frustrate or confound, as the understanding; perplex: The problem puzzled him for weeks.
8. to exercise (oneself, one's brain, etc.) over some problem or matter.
9. Archaic. to make intricate or complicated.

... hmmm ... it's puzzling why i decided to post this under the puzzle theme ... maybe because i'm truly amazed by the spots and how they puzzle together so perfectly on a giraffe ... or maybe because the girly-girls were puzzled as to why the brand new baby giraffe was not in view ... or maybe ... just because ... i wanted to.

regal ... 87/365

regal ...
/ˈrigəl/ –adjective
stately; splendid.

... had to find some theme to place this rose in ... i love love LOVE the colors of this rose ... and i would say s/he stands rather regally ... wouldn't you?

jumping leaping bouncing ... 86/365

jumping leaping bouncing ...
/dʒʌmpɪŋ lipɪŋ baʊnsɪŋ/ –verbs (used without object)
to spring clear of the ground or other support by a sudden muscular effort, to spring through the air from one point or position to another, to spring back from a surface in a lively manner

... perfect trampoline verbage ... (as a side note ... i edited in the focal zoom ... to add a bit of crazy to the photos ... they were actually very clear ... albeit patterned ... with a net between me and my subjects) ...

upside down ... 85/365

upside down ...
/ˈʌpˌsaɪd daʊn/ -adverb
in an inverted manner

... always with the upside down sunglasses ... always ... no matter how many time mama tries to show her which direction they go ... she will turn them over and put them back on ... upside down ... i've given up ...

from ground level ... 84/365

from ground level ...
/frʌm graʊnd ˈlɛvəl/
from the height of the ground on which something stands

... probably my most favorite picture of cora ... ever ... total cora ... i was attempting to get the perfect birthday picture amidst the (finally) green foliage ... she heard a plane ... found it and pointed ... dere's daddy ... hi daddy! ... come home daddy ... he showed up at the party 20 minutes later ... perfect timing ...

spelling errors ... 83/365

spelling errors ...
/ˈspɛlɪŋ ˈɛrərz/ –noun
a deviation from accuracy or correctness in the manner in which words are spelled; orthography.

... to this day ... two years after my nephew was born ... (his birthday falls the day before cora's) ... people are still spelling his name incorrectly ... good thing that frosting is removable ... and that they just added an extra -e- ...

portrait ... 82/365

portrait ...
/ˈpɔrtrɪt/ –noun
a likeness of a person, esp. of the face, as a painting, drawing, or photograph

... a portrait of my little sunshine ... two ... inquisitive ... intoeverything ... silly ... smart ... beautiful ... bossy ... lovely ... loved ...

candy ... 81/365

candy ...
/ˈkændi/ –noun
any of a variety of confections made with sugar, syrup, etc.

... my favorite ... jelly belly jelly beans ... thank you mom ... i mean ... thank you easter bunny.

dessert (ed) ... 80/365

dessert (ed) ...
/dɪˈzɜrtɪd/ –adjective
a cake, pie, fruit, pudding, ice cream, etc., that has been abandoned; forsaken

... sorry ... i couldn't resist ... this poor dessert had been dessert(ed) for far too many hours in the hallway of our hotel ...

celebration ... 79/365

celebration ...
/ˌsɛləˈbreɪʃən/ –noun
an act of celebrating.

... cora's second birthday ... whenever we asked what she wanted for her birthday ... she would say a-dora-cake ... which we (originally) took to mean a DORA CAKE ... when we asked if that was indeed what she was saying ... she would always say NO ... but would say yes to "polka dot cake" or "chocolate cake" ... so eventually i took the plunge and made chocolate surprise cupcakes and slapped a dora on top ... when she walked out that morning (we had a birthday brunch) ... she yelled "ADORACAKE!" ... thank goodness!

(water) fowl ... 78/365

(water)fowl ...
/faʊl/ –noun
any bird (used chiefly in combination): such as waterfowl; wildfowl.

... rachel and i scoped out these pelicans ... driving on some (what i would guess) were slightly "no trespassing" roads that were not well marked ... so therefore (in our minds) tresspassable ... because ... pelicans??? ... that was so worth noting through photographic means ... and sadly enough ... out of the 8394 pictures that i captured of them ... the one where they were slightly super fuzzy is my favorite ... am i the only one out there that enjoys pictures where my subject is out of focus?? ...

outdoor seating ... 77/365

outdoor seating ...
/ˈaʊtˌdoʊr ˈsitɪŋ/ – positionally described noun
an act or instance of furnishing with, assigning, or escorting to a seat that is characteristic of, located, occurring, or belonging outdoors.

... why do lonely benches and such make such good photographic subjects? ... it's wonderful to have them full of friends and family ... when you can ... but why oh why do they look so neat on their own too? ...

on the water ... 76/365

on the water ...
/ɔn ðə ˈwɔtər/ –description of placement
so as to be or remain supported by or suspended from a transparent, odorless, tasteless liquid, a compound of hydrogen and oxygen, H2O, freezing at 32°F or 0°C and boiling at 212°F or 100°C, that in a more or less impure state constitutes rain, oceans, lakes, rivers, etc.: it contains 11.188 percent hydrogen and 88.812 percent oxygen, by weight.

... whew ... that definition exhausts me ... but watching this pair of loons so didn't ... if you've ever been around loons ... you'll know that this is a rare sight ... catching them this close to shore with humans anywhere in the vicinity ... they must have had a nest there ... beautiful ...

backlighting ... 75/365

backlighting ...
/ˈbækˌlaɪtɪŋ/ –noun
a controlled technique of lighting, used in photography or the theater, in which a light is placed behind or at right angles to an object, person, or scene to produce such effects as depth or separation of subject and background.

... i've been playing around with light lately ... trying to achieve this flare and backlighting effects ... it's coming ... but what i don't see is the depth or separation of subject and background ... keep trying.

sign, sign, everywhere a sign ... 74/365

sign, sign, everywhere a sign ...
/saɪn saɪn ˈɛvriˌʰwɛər ə saɪn/
lyrics from the song ... signs ... from the album Goodbye's And Butterflies by five man electrical band ...

... signs of spring ... popping up everywhere ...

distorted ... 73/365

distorted ...
/dɪˈstɔrtɪd/ –adjective
twisted; deformed; misshapen.

... after seeing this picture pop up on my camera and being completely unable to delete it ... i tucked it away ... and then over the weekend i read a little photography article ... and this idea stuck with me ... there is a fine line between a mistake and beauty ... occasionally errors (movement during the click of a camera button, perhaps?) taken one step further actually lend themselves to the beauty of a photograph ... and maybe that's why this picture needs to be documented. there is a certain quality about it that shows a flurry of activity around my little birthday girl ... but at the same time shows her relishing in the chaos surrounding her. whoa. deep ...

transparent ... 72/365

transparent ...
/trænsˈpɛərənt, -ˈpær-/ –adjective
so sheer as to permit light to pass through

... what could be more transparent than a bubble? ... in a warm bath after running in from the chilly night air? ... (note ... i love love LOVE her little fingertips reaching for the bubble.)

trio ... 71/365

trio ...
/ˈtrioʊ/ –noun, plural tri⋅os.
any group of three persons or things.

... a trio of photographs, of my girly-girls on easter morning ... i may regret posting this as my trio picture another day ... when i come across something more trio-worthy ... ah well.

computer ... 70/365

computer ...
/kəmˈpyutər/-noun
an electronic device designed to accept data, perform prescribed mathematical and logical operations at high speed, and display the results of these operations.

... me ... or at the very least ... my hand ... working at one ...

flare ... 69/365

flare ...
/flɛər/, -noun
in photography. a fogged appearance given to an image by reflection within a camera lens or within the camera itself.

... a first attempt ... not perfect ... advice is appreciated ... but i'm gonna keep trying ... i'll get it (almost) perfect eventually ...

playground ... 68/365

playground ...

/ˈpleɪˌgraʊnd/ –noun
an area used for outdoor play or recreation, esp. by children, and often containing recreational equipment such as slides and swings.

... my favorite shot from the playground ... pretty much 'cause i find it funny that the short people were attempting to help the other short people cross the monkey bars ... they both SO WANT TO cross those monkey bars ...

baby ... 67/365

baby ...

/ˈbeɪbi/, noun
an infant or very young child, the youngest member of a family

... meet max ... the newest member of a family that is oh-so-very close to ours ... welcome little guy.

living the green life ... 66/365

living the green life ...
/ˈlɪvɪŋ ðə grin laɪf/
active or thriving while covered with herbage or foliage

... sorry ... i couldn't resist ...

looking down ... 65/365

looking down ...
/lʊkɪŋ daʊn/ –verb
to turn one's eyes toward something or in some direction in order to see something below

... what i saw when i looked down during our valley exploration ... snow ... on ... my ... boots ... ugh ... is winter over yet?

bridge ... 64/365

bridge ...
/brɪdʒ/ –noun
a structure spanning and providing passage over a river, chasm, road, or the like.

... a little wooden bridge that crosses a little stream ... this is my view from it ...

show us your bokeh ... 62/365

show us your bokeh ...
/ʃoʊ ʌs yoʊr boʊkə/
to cause or allow to be seen; exhibit; display your subjective aesthetic quality of out-of-focus areas of a photographic image

... this would be the one that i needed to look up ... but also my very reason for wanting my new camera ... this is what i saw others doing that i wanted to be able to do ... and i find myself doing it ... probably too much.

on the road ...

on the road ...
/ɔn ðə roʊd/
so as to be or remain supported by a long, narrow stretch with a smoothed or paved surface, made for traveling by motor vehicle, carriage, etc., between two or more points; street or highway.

... on the road ... i love how little cora looks here ...

green ... 61/365

green ...
/grin/ –adjective
of the color of growing foliage, between yellow and blue in the spectrum

... a wee bit of green poking out beneath the decaying leaves ... i think this was truly the picture that prompted the need to break out from the editing square i've been using ... i could not remove those trees ... something about their need to reach upward was beckoning me today.

valley ... 60/365

valley ...
/ˈvæli/ –noun
an elongated depression between uplands, hills, or mountains, esp. one following the course of a stream.

... the valley down the street ... where a large majority of my nature shots are taken ... this is my entrance into my valley ...

... and on a sidenote ... i'm starting to get a little flustered and feeling captive with the square format ... minimal framing that i've set forth in all 59 pictures prior to this one ... i'm probably going to be mixing things up a little ... hope that's ok.

cross ... 59/365

cross ...

/krɔs/ –noun
a structure consisting essentially of an upright and a transverse piece

... i'm not a religious person ... i don't find myself coming upon a cross in my world too often ... i've always said that i find religion in nature ... is this photo description edging too close on personal? ... i'll save that for the other blog ... i promise ... but ... this had to be captured ... because it truly is a cross ... and i'm happy found something that could qualify.

rusted ... 58/365

rusted ...
/rʌstɛd/ –adjective
the result of any film or coating on metal caused by oxidation.

... my husband gave me a silly sideways glance as i bent down to take this picture of a rusted broken up old bike leaning against a garbage can ... it's days were definitely over ...