Note to self . . .

Note to self . . . 

be kind to yourself, not everyone else will

respect yourself even when others don't

you have a kind heart, not everyone can see it

your opinions matter even if no one wants to listen

when you fall down, do your best to get back up

learn to trust yourself, even if others choose not to

love yourself, not everyone is going to love you back

don't let anyone define your self worth, they will put your value below theirs

when things seem overwhelming, keep calm and carry on

and, what you think of yourself is far more important than what others think of you.


Sometimes you start something and you don't exactly know what it's going to look like or how it's going to end up. And, what started out as a photo-art Friday "collage" prompt, quickly shaped up as my photo-heart connection this month. I didn't even go back to look at any of my other photos from the month.

I sat last night in front of my computer, in front of a blank screen with no idea or any feeling of creativity at all. Finally I had to just walk away...it was making me feel even worse than I was already feeling. And I was feeling sad, and somewhat numb and...a little lost. You see every now and again I let people treat me in a way that doesn't make me feel very good about myself. I lose my way, and start to doubt everything.

I let them take control of something that isn't theirs . . . my heart. But I'm taking it back, starting with this note to myself.

Love, Kim
xo

sharing with Photo Art Friday, Photo-heart Connection

A quirky selfie . . .

"Be yourself; everyone else is already taken."

-Oscar Wilde

{Our prompt for photo art Friday is quirky selfie}

Sheesh, it's a full time job just trying to be me, who has time to try and be someone else? Really . . . 

I sometimes struggle just to do me very well. You know, we are always our own worst enemy.

And on those days that I don't get in my own way with that mighty brick wall or allow others to put it up for me, I do feel like I could do anything. Okay, well maybe not anything, but certainly a lot.

I thought about just doing something else for today, because after all I went to bed really late last night

and had nothing planned at all and didn't get my 8 hours of beauty sleep or feel like taking a shower first thing when I woke up or washing the mascara off my face because I was too lazy to do it last night.

So, that's when you grab a hat to cover your bed head, and search for the sunglasses that you never wear anymore to cover the dark circles and smeared mascara, and put on some lipstick.

But what do you take your own picture of you doing? Ahhh, yes, doing something you love...looking at and for caterpillars on your milkweed. {They are officially 1 week old today!} 

Hi, my name is Kim, and I'm a nature nerd . . . and proud of it! ;)

And because some others have said it better than I, I want to share some random quotes I found:

1. "I think everybody is weird. We should all celebrate our individuality and not be embarrassed or ashamed of it." - Johnny Depp  

Yes Johnny I agree, we all have a weird factor, we should accept that in others as well as ourselves.

2. "Be yourself. Be true to that, to your heart. Patience. See what happens if you step back instead of bounding forward." -Nora Roberts

Yep, it's awfully hard to be true to yourself if you are always running faster than yourself. I like patience, and I like slow, and I like quiet.

3. "The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

-Steve Jobs

No, I won't be changing the world like Steve Jobs, but if I can change the mind of just one person's attitude

towards nature, turn their fear of something into curiosity, and their curiosity into passion that will then

change another's mind . . . then yes, I believe I can change the world.

4. "I want to think again of dangerous and noble things. I want to be light and frolicsome. I want to be improbable and beautiful and afraid of nothing as though I had wings." - Mary Oliver

Yes, I want to be alive like the spirit in a child.

5. "Oh, never mind the fashion. When one has a style of one's own, it is always 20 times better."

- Margaret Olipahant

In other words, dance to the beat of your own drum, because fashion is way overrated.

In a nut shell . . . weird is good, let's celebrate it! Be patient it's where you will find yourself. We are all just crazy enough and that makes us capable of changing the world . . . the question is "will we?" If you've  lost your wings, you've forgotten about the child in you, but when you start dancing to the beat of your own drum you may just find them! And last but not least, looking through rose colored glasses isn't a bad thing, it just depends on what you see on the other side.

May you soar into the weekend! ;)

Love, Kim

sharing with Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Photo Art Friday, Friday Finds,

Create-with-joy, Random Five Friday

Abstract flower art . . . and random stuff

It's Photo Art Friday this week, the monthly theme is . . . abstract flowers!
And well, abstract just happens to be my fancy right now.

Rather than working with textures to make the photos abstract, I chose to
abstract the flowers and then add textures to enhance the photo.
All three of these photos are ICM (in camera movement) in combination with
slow shutter speed and manual focus. Yes, there is a lot of practice needed
with this technique and a lot of clicks to get the right one.

{I used Bonnie's texture creative canvas}

I hope you don't fall off your chair from the exciting things I have to share with you . . . it's been a rather slow week.

1. It was nearly 80 degrees this weekend, and we got quite a lot of garden clean up done. Trimmed 2 oak trees, 2 palm trees (okay, I watched), and I trimmed nearly 30 bushes. On Sunday night, we dropped down to 20 degrees....WHAT?

2. Yep, I've got another sinus and double ear infection. I think this is number 5 since last November and

it's getting really old. But, the steroid shot I got has really helped my wrist after all that trimming, bonus!

{This is a combination of three very similar ICM photos also with her textures creative canvas, vintage craquelure and antique me}

3. It would be safe to say that we have a huge, gigantic, enormous problem in this country with health care costs when the cost of your son's ongoing treatment (for one day and before "insurance adjustments") are the same as a new car, let's say a Hyundai Accent. And since I don't have anything else nice to say about that, I'll just leave it ... at that.

4. I was extremely happy to see all my lizard friends this weekend sunning themselves. I had to relocate some of them that my husband found still in the palm fronds that had been trimmed off and set out for

the garbage. This time of year they seem to especially love sitting on my hand or arm because of the warmth.

{Bonnie's textures meadow grasses, flowering texture and sunset supreme}

5. This is the best one of all - Spring break is next week so you know what that means . . . my girl is coming home. We will just be spending it at home and hopefully we can make it to the Houston Livestock and Rodeo while she is here. Turkey legs and funnel cake, yum!

You may not see me here next week as I think I'm going to take a blog Spring break with my kids.
One of the things I would love to do is drive down to Victoria to see the head stone of someone (of whom I can't remember, lol) that my daughter found in our family tree! :)

So, until next time....
Love, Kim xo


sharing with Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Photo Art Friday
Random Five Friday

The journey of one little word . . .

Possible . . . that was my word for last year. A word that ended up guiding me in a completely different way than I had expected. Ever.

I didn't just want to know about the possibilities, I wanted to believe them possible. But what I got was so much more.

In sharing my word last year I told the story of taking our son to an intensive two day camp to learn pole vaulting for the very first time (full story here). About how I wasn't seeing joy in his face, and that I could see his heart wasn't wholeheartedly into it, how it was hard and technical, and how there were no instantaneous results.

Our resilience, our souls, are so dependent on that realm of possible and so often we give up too easily. Because we don't see the joy, and because it's hard and yes at times it feels technical and because there are no instantaneous results. Often, there is nothing tangible to grasp, especially when faced with adversity. And in those times possible sometimes just feels impossible.

What I discovered was a whole new definition of possible. One that reminded me of just how strong I am and that I can still exist in possibility even in the midst of adversity. And that joy, and hope and faith, well they are all still capable of existing through it as well.

God helped show me a path to joy among the pain through the raising of monarch butterflies. I saw the possibilities of hope and beauty that can come from change...it helped me hang on to that mustard seed of faith that I so desperately needed.

I debated whether or not to share some of the details, but I think it's important in understanding the journey of that one little word . . . possible. Because it has come full circle starting with that two day camp.

Not quite 3 months after that camp my son came to me in the morning, after seeming to be perfectly fine the day before, and he had fallen extremely ill. He ran 104 temp (for nearly two weeks) and his hands were swollen and red and after 3 visits to two doctors within a week and many blood tests the doctor called on a Tuesday evening at 6 o'clock and told us to take him straight to the Children's hospital, she had called ahead and they were waiting for us. The doctor in the ER said she had never seen inflammation markers that high before. Needless to say we spent the night in the hospital, and while they ruled out many possibilities there was no definitive answer. Within a few weeks, and after a bone marrow biopsy to rule out yet one more thing, he was diagnosed with a systemic form of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis for which there is no cure. He was weak, had lost weight, and at one point he couldn't hold a cup to his mouth or open a water bottle. He missed 4 1/2 consecutive weeks of high school and was too sick to even get homework.

And then for the next few months we would battle even more issues, and weekly visits to the children's hospital for his infusions and blood work, more tests and a CT scan for a heart scare and MRI's, and then one last setback with a rare leg bleed in the compartments of his muscles that would put him back in hospital that last two days of school. It would be nearly 5 months before he was released to go back to any kind of physical activity and only two weeks before football started.

And through it all this is what I learned was possible from my son . . .

I learned that at 15 years old it is possible to possess humility and courage, he never complained. Not Ever. I learned that it's possible to always hold on to hope, he never lost it. I learned that it's possible to have an enormous amount of grit and determination because when I was unsure and afraid of all the possibilities, I saw my son believe them all possible. And this my friends, was what I had set out to accomplish with my word. I just didn't know this was how it would play out.

You see, not only was he able to get back to playing what he loves, but he worked really hard, with great purpose, and his heart was wholeheartedly into it, and yes it was really hard and no there were no instantaneous results. But his hard work had earned him back his starting position on JV, and at the end of his season he was brought up to varsity for the first (and only) playoff game, starting on kick off return. I wrote this at the end of my story, "That it's sometimes not until that last hour, that last stretch when we see the fruits of our hard work, a glimpse of our own greatness and of our possibilities." And it's taken on a whole new meaning.

At that camp, Coach Hood talked about three important parts to a successful jump. Run...plant...takeoff. They're important because they are the beginning of the jump, and he says that if the beginning is wrong, then the end can't be right. Which brings me, finally, to my word for this year...intentional with a side of simplicity. I want to be more intentional about my take off so that my landings are a little smoother. I want to be more intentional in my photography, and in writing more and in letting my passions drive more of my actions. I want to be more intentional with my time, and trying new things, and just with life in general.. I want to be more intentional about the things that are important to me, and yet I want to keep it as simple as possible.

What about you, have you chosen a word for this year?

Love, Kim


sharing with Little Things Thursday, Thursday's Favorite Things, Photo Art Friday

Being open . . .

"It is a narrow mind which cannot look at a subject from various points of view."

- George Eliot, Middlemarch

Opening....open....opened.

This is our prompt for Photo Art Friday, any form of the word open. And to be honest, I thought of a lot of ways I could interpret the prompt this month.

I thought of things that could be open like doors, windows, or gates. I thought about how rooms open up to other rooms, open outdoor spaces like a patio, or even a wide open space like the beach. I entertained the idea of something that was cracked open, or left wide open . . . even something that might be a real eye-opener.

But there were so many choices that I couldn't decide, so I just started going through some old folders keeping my eyes open to new ideas. 

And this is what I found. This photo of three separate roses all in different stages of "open," that I had taken last April. And there it was sitting on my hard drive, unedited, waiting. I suppose something else had caught my eye and I never looked back.

So this is my interpretation of being open. Open to life, opportunities and most importantly to being open minded. Because really, open means not closed. It means being accessible and relatively free of obstruction.

And you know, isn't the act of having an open mind what keeps our work fresh? Isn't that what gives us new eyes every time we explore with our camera? 

So why would we be any different with people, with each other. We pick up books and going on only a small paragraph on what the book is about we read them anyway. Sometimes it's even necessary to read between the lines, what's not written, to fully understand the story. And it isn't until we reach the end of the book that we make the conclusion of whether or not we liked it or if it even resonated. And whether we liked the book or not is really beside the point isn't it. Because I believe we are better off, always, for having read the book, for stretching our mind.

Many, many times I have run into a brick wall a closed mind. I have a feeling you probably have too and it's not a fun place to be. But whether or not the story is liked, yours, mine or theirs, isn't nearly as important as the message we all get when we retain an open mind.

That message simply says, I see you.

Love, Kim

sharing with Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Photo Art Friday

                   Friday Finds, Friday Photo Journal

Photo Art Friday . . . Embrace

"Our task, must be to free ourselves . . . 

by widening our circle of compassion to embrace

all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty."

-Albert Einstein 

Bonnie gave us the word embrace as our challenge this month and oh the many

ways I could interpret this word . . . but I limited it to two photos.

When I hear the word embrace, my first thought . . . is life.

Wrapping your arms around it, taking it all in with your eyes, your whole being.

Life happens everyday all around us. This we know, yet we still miss so much of it.

  

And the older I get, well,  the more I want to know,

the more I want to see . . .  the more I want to find.

I want to notice everything . . . and embrace it all!

That's why I love my camera. Not just because it helps me to "see", 

but because it allows me to record these embraced moments.

One of my Queen butterflies embracing its new life.

This next photo I chose is one from a recent varsity football game. Before every game our players make

their way to the end of the field and they all take a knee and bow their heads. No matter how many times

I photograph a scene like this I'm drawn to it over and over again. This never gets old.

He was the last one to get up . . . he was completely embracing the moment.

And, so was I.

Take a moment to embrace all the other art work hung in Bonnie's art gallery here.

Embrace your day,

Love, Kim

Join me -----> here for my Friday Random Five

Photo Art Friday

"Water, the Hub of life. Water is its mater and matrix, mother and medium.

Water is the most extraordinary substance! Practically all its properties are anomalous,

which enabled life to use it as a building material for its machinery.

Life is water dancing to the tune of solids.

- Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

{Pixel Dust Art texture - Just a Note}

It would seem that I have a hard time making decisions as of late, and choosing a photo for today's Photo Art Friday was no different. So, since I'm in editing  mode from my over 2500 photos I took on my trip to Chicago, I decided to just stick with a water photo from a fountain on the Riverwalk in Naperville when I was with the gals from Focusing on Life (we had a grand time by the way).

(Holy cow, I have so many things to share with you!)

I chose the square format because I really wanted to keep the focus on the falling water and drops. I used the cinema filter in picasa and then just added Bonnie's texture in overlay ...I really wanted to keep the dashing and darting of the water visible.

And,

you know, it would seem that I kind of like to photograph water... water drops, dew drops, the ocean, water fountains, my hose as I water the garden, reflections in the water, pretend rain with my spray bottle, condensation on soda cans, the rain, oil and water (tutorial here), waves, the sunrise (on the water), and I've even been know to photograph the ice in my drink.

Yep, water is pretty cool stuff, comes in all shapes and forms and it's good for ya!

Cheers!

Love, Kim

linking with Little Things Thursday, Photo Art Friday, Friday Photo Journal

A long lost letter . . .

... a message in a bottle

hard to make out the words

the ink faded from the sun

slightly smeared from salty water

wandering the ocean

waiting to be found

as it makes its way back to shore

to find its journey's end. 

Oh hello my my friends!

I guess my couple of weeks break turned into a real lot.

I feel like I've been floating in the ocean like a message in a bottle

just waiting to come back to shore,

for the right wave to push me back in.

I'm not quite there, but oh I can see land!

I had no idea that I needed this much time. The stress of the last 4 months took more of

a toll than I thought. I've done a lot of sitting on my front porch, and tending to caterpillars,

and watching sunrises, and visiting the beach.

{Pixel Dust textures Vintage Vellum, Qu'il Pleuve, Heartache by number)

This is so very last minute, and I should be packing (more on that in a sec), but I wanted to participate in Bonnie's Photo Art Friday (I almost forgot) especially since it's only once a month now, with today's theme Flower Art. I took a little liberty on this one, technically there are some flowers, but this is the photo as I quickly perused the millions that jumped at me and said make me into art. So...poof...here is my photo art.

While I'm here I shall share some random stuff.....(try to say that fast ten times)

We are on the countdown now for when my girl starts her first year of college, I cried yesterday.

The last of 22 caterpillars are in a j-hang and should pupate before I leave tomorrow. My kids are horrified at the thought of having to take care of another twenty something caterpillars that are almost a week old now while I'm gone. They don't DO caterpillars OR butterflies as in touch or get near to (they can't possibly have my DNA)...I'm trying not to stress over it. I mean I've only been raising them since March so I can send the last generation off to Mexico....no stress here guys! ;)  (the current count of butterflies released will be over 150 when this latest batch emerges)

Oh, and college costs a lot of money...I cried again.

Where am I going you ask? Well, I haven't seen my momma in two years! So, I'm combining a visit with my mom and meeting up with some of the lovely ladies from my collaborative blog Focusing on Life. I leave tomorrow and will be gone ten days...all by myself.

Looks like the weather in Chicago is going to be a little cooler at night (50's-60's) which called for action...I only have one pair of jeans....so I went shopping last night. I smiled because they were on sale AND they weren't two feet too long. And since I had to go up a size....it called for some bling.

I had another birthday....I'm getting closer to that senior discount...rofl!!

  Well, I need to get back on track here, which means packing and such but didn't want to leave without telling you that my boy has been getting better. His leg did get bigger and the MRI did show that he had even more acute blood products in the compartments of his muscles, but has since been slowly and steadily coming down in size. They still have no idea what caused it for sure, it's a mystery. He started back two weeks ago to strength and conditioning on upper body, still waiting for the green light on the lower. I'm hoping it will be soon so he can participate in football practice!! (yes that is a little bit of panic on my face)

I have missed all of you, and as soon as my girl gets settled into her dorm room (send kleenex) and my boy starts back to school, I will be back on a regular basis. If you are even still here reading this...I'm giving you a giant hug...thank you!

Until next time,

Love, Kim

Linking with Photo art Friday, Little Things Thursday, Friday Photo Journal, Random Five Friday

Random letters on Friday . . .

Dear life . . . can you slow down please, or at least spread the excitement.

I can't handle so much at one time, thanks!

{Photo Art Friday - dreamy}

Dear Mother Nature... can we talk? I think you should do something about all the critters who are eating my (your) Monarch caterpillars. Apparently the toxin isn't strong enough to keep away the lizards, the wasps and those nasty assasin bugs. Could you send a memo or something and tell them to leave them alone. There ARE plenty of other bugs they could eat. Thank you, sincerely Mother Nature's helper! xo

Dear sweet boy . . . I'm so sorry you continue to have one issue after another. No one should have to frequent a hospital as much as you have lately. But I was so very happy to hear that cardiology has given you a clean bill of health and their blessing to go back to strength and conditioning for football. Now, all we have to do is wait for hematology to do the same. I know you have a fire in your belly to get back to what you love, and I want nothing more than for you to do what you love to do, but I'm not going to lie it makes me a little nervous.

Dear sweet girl. . . . your dad and I are so proud of you, and watching you walk across the stage with your medal in honor of being a distinguished graduate made us even more proud, if that is possible. See, hard work really does pay off. I'm so thankful and blessed to have been given the privilege to be your mom. Okay, gotta stop now before I cry...again! xo

Dear San Antonio  . . . . I love you, your culture, rich history, and yes your food. No matter how many times I visit your Missions, I am always in awe. There is something so spiritual about standing where so many have stood through history, in the same structures on the same exact floors. Now that my daughter will be going to college here, I know we are going to become even more acquainted. As a history major and future teacher of the children of America, this couldn't be a better place for her.

Dear google maps phone app . . . you stink! You know I'm not very good at getting places and I really needed you and you let me down!

Dear kind soul at the Shell gas station . . . thank you so much for your wonderful directions to the San Jose Mission when I was completely lost! You are better than a phone app!!

Dear bloggy friends . . .  I know I haven't been around for several weeks, or visited you lately. Last Tuesday was our really long day at Texas Children's for my sweet boy. Wednesday, right before I was to watch my daughter receive her medal the doctor called with the results of the MRI on his legs we had the day before. It showed blood that was collecting in the compartments of his muscles in his calves and she sent us straight to the ER again. Thankfully she let us take him after the ceremony. He spent two days in the hospital and thankfully didn't need surgery to drain it. I picked them up on Friday afternoon and when we got home we were met by my in-laws who drove 1200 miles to watch our daughter graduate. Saturday morning we sat outside at our district stadium in the blazing Texas heat to watch almost 600 seniors graduate and then enjoyed a celebratory lunch in Galveston. 

Monday morning (of this week) my daughter and I drove to San Antonio, enjoyed the San Jose Mission, and a nice dinner. Tuesday we got up and I dropped her off at UTSA for her college orientation, I got lost, and then drove home (a 3 1/2 hour drive) but not before getting caught in a horrible storm. Wednesday my sweet boy made up the rest of his final exams that he missed on the last day of school, and yesterday I turned around and drove back to get the sweet girl. We stopped for lunch, to avoid another bad storm, picked up some yummy key lime pie donuts from Krispy Kreme (because we don't have any) and made our way back home. It was a nine hour driving day for me.

And here I am today, tired and exhausted and so discombobulated. Which is why I have decided to take a couple of weeks off to regroup and recharge and to relax. I need to get some things back in order that have fallen by the way side and I would really like to clean my jewelry studio so I can work in there again. AND I have a Monarch series that I keep promising that I need to finish (and several thousand photos to go through).

I will see you on the other side of a couple of weeks, okay?

(I'll still be posting on instagram at kimatpickingpoppies)

Until then...

Love, Kim XO

sharing with Little Things Thursday, Random Five Friday, Friday Photo Journal, Photo Art Friday,

Finding Serendipity {1440}

A self-portrait . . .

"Photography deals exquisitely with appearances, but nothing is what it appears to be."

- Duane Michals

It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but as a photograph can tell a lot of truths, it can also tells us many lies, deceiving at the very least. We choose what to include and more importantly what to exclude. Being behind the camera we simply get to decide what it is we are trying to say and how we are trying to say it.

But what if you are both the photographer and the subject?

For some it seems to be like second nature, as casual as putting on your shoes.

For me it's anything but. It's uncomfortable, scary. I break into a sweat at just the thought of someone snapping my photo. But at least when I'm the one taking it I can be in control of the truths lies.

Today for Photo Art Friday our prompt is self-portraiture. And as one who already breaks a sweat from far too many hot flashes I'm glad I had this one in the archives. Well, that and I have had a really sick boy home all week which has made getting extra things done a wee bit more difficult.

I took this one a year ago January when the sun was flooding into my bathroom mirror, which is always good for telling lies about wrinkles and age spots. The pink highlights, those are real. Oh and I really do have two brown eyes. The rest of the photo was really boring, just the bathroom wall and a doorway. So I started with Bonnie's texture called Drips of rainbow in overlay, her Simply the Best texture in screen, and then added some fake bokeh. 

The water drop texture represents the hot flashes and tears that come from menopause. The writing which is French, represents the feeling I get sometimes when I look in the mirror. You know that foreign feeling of who the heck is this older looking person looking back at me kinda feeling.

So there you have it, a photo that is nothing like what it appears to be. But it is a little fun, I cannot lie, to partake in the art of deception when it comes to my age!

Hopefully, I will be back on my regular blogging track next week. I know I've missed a lot of your posts while I've been gone, but this is the first time in almost a week that I've been able to spend a minute at the computer. I do have some fun stuff to share with you though.....

Until then . . . 

Love, Kim

XO

Sharing with Photo Art Friday, Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things,  

Friday Photo Journal, Finding Serendipity {1440}

It was a sad day yesterday . . .

I've felt a little overwhelmed and a lot behind these days,
so after my bible study, rather than go to my metals class I decided to go back to the nursery.
Not the commercial one, but back to Maas, and acres of paradise where I can just get lost in thought, or rather no thought at all, just nature.

We have been having some pretty mighty wind these days, which makes it pretty difficult to photograph flowers, but I tried, until frustration got the better of me. So I thought I would go see if my little green frog friends were still around, and yes they were. But, I got sidetracked by something else, that was also green.

Meet my little green friend, Akecheta, which means "fighter" in Sioux....

I first spotted him, yes it is a male, sunning himself just a few feet from me on the white gravel rocks on the ground. So, I got down on the ground, and let me tell ya those rocks do not feel good on ones knees, especially without much cartilage left in them. I really wanted a ground perspective of him sunning himself. I was pretty proud of myself and my stealth mode as he stayed, but unfortunately my knees couldn't take it and I had to get up (my really bad knee is swollen today, I never learn). But something just didn't seem right, and as an adult green anole he was just a little too open to letting me get that close. There was a stick nearby, so I used that, not that I'm afraid of picking him up of course, but it was just easier and I coaxed him up on to it. Yep, I knew something was wrong at that moment. A healthy adult male would have had nothing to do with that stick, and I then was able to transfer him to my hand.

Now that is the face of a lizard who doesn't feel well . . . he just wanted to close his eyes and rest.

So I walked around, probably for the next hour, with him in one hand and my camera in the other, trying to takes pictures of things that moved, tricky I tell ya!

And even not feeling well, he still seemed aware of his surroundings every now and then. They will turn brown when stressed, but also if another male is in the area in which they will also raise the ridge on their back and get a dark black spot behind their eyes. But...I noticed one spot that didn't turn brown, and do you notice the lumps? Hmmm...I didn't have a good feeling about this.

He eventually turned back to green again and back to resting.

I continued to walk around with this lizard on my hand...not one person noticed? I came across the bottlebrush tree, and there are bees everywhere! Note to self, don't wear a shirt with flowers next to this tree...

Check out his foot, and those scales, so amazing

I just couldn't leave him there not feeling well and all, and I have been known to make a few lizards feel better. The nursery just happened to have a small box with a lid so I could transport him safely in the car. When I got home I took him out so he could continue to warm himself in the warmth of my hands and the sun. But it was getting really windy, and the temp was falling and he was cold...so, yes I brought him into the house. He was on my forearm, with his back legs completely outstretched (not normal) as I positioned my arm under a spot light from the overhead light fixture for more warmth. What I was about to witness next was heartbreaking . . .and...well, horrifying!! (No worries, I have spared you all any photographs showing what I'm about to tell you, and only give enough information to understand what happened next, but the thought is unsettling....you've been warned)

Remember that strange spot I mentioned earlier? Every now and again I thought I could see something...moving? By this time, he was taking really shallow breaths, sometimes he would take a big one and then not again for what seemed like a long time. And sometimes he would flinch, and I felt helpless. Then the small  movement became very noticeable, and the one lump became many somethings moving around and I couldn't believe my eyes...and not sure how else to say this (and sparing all the gross details) but to say they were trying to make their way out. I was beside myself, in tears, and he was clearly suffering. So I called the animal ER hospital to find out if there was a humane way I could end his suffering...they said I could bring him in and they would euthanize him for free. And for that, I was so grateful!!

When I got home, I did some research and found that the Sarcophagid fly uses, (for some reason) mostly males, as a host. And as wondrous as nature is, it's also very strange and quite mind boggling. I think I learned more than I wanted to know.

The theme for Photo Art Friday is vintage. I wasn't really sure what I wanted to share for that today, until I was looking back to some photos I took last month on my way home from class one day. I actually did the u-turn thing to go back and photograph these cows. I'm glad I did, they make for a good vintage subject. I used two textures, the first I forgot to write down, but the second one is one of my favorites of Bonnie's, vintage craquelure.

So ironic, that I went to the nursery for a little inspiration, and would end up at the animal hospital. It's not the first time I've tried to rescue wildlife and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last. I should have a bumper sticker that says this vehicle makes occasional and random stops for wildlife. I've rescued birds and taken them to rehabilitators, stopped in the middle of the road to rescue turtles, stopped traffic for a snake who had been harassed by a crow and went into defense mode and couldn't make it the rest of the way across the street, and for baby Killdeer birds that couldn't follow mom up the curb and waited for an hour for her to come back for one of them. It's just who I am.....

Love, Kim
XO

Sharing with Photo art Friday, Little Things Thursday, Thursdays Favorite Things
Friday Photo Journal, Finding Serendipity {1440}

One foggy morning . . .

Slowly I walk

and wander

to the edge of the unknown

where my vision is cloaked

and mystery abounds

where there is stillness

yet things move

where there is silence

but I can hear

where there is peace

and I feel at home

I breath . . .

I exhale . . .

I begin to feel a warm glow

as it chases the veil

revealing all

that the heart already knows

of beauty and goodness

of nature and life

. . . and I stand before Him in awe

     -Kim


one foggy morning....one very foggy morning,

I went back to the house to get the camera after dropping off the kids,

and went to a park,

and it was dreamy and beautiful and still,

and you could see the fog literally floating by in little droplets and it was amazing!

This week for Photo Art Friday our challenge was an abstract starting out with Bonnie's free texture Dropped Petals as a background, plus any other pdpa texture, plus 1 or 2 other images .

{Dropped Petals-I started out with 2 layers as a background}

{My three images I used and another of Bonnie's textures Dusty Rose}

And this is what I ended up with . . . 

You'll probably see some more fog photos in the future, I had to save some for a rainy day!

Wishing you all a fabulous weekend....

Love, Kim

XO

Sharing with Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Cool-Clicks Thursday,

Photo Art Friday, Friendship Friday, Friday Photo Journal, Finding Serendipity {1440}

I'm... Dreaming . . .

. . . of a white pinkish Christmas!

Okay, well, I do live in Texas and on the Gulf coast for that matter...so....that's pretty unlikely, right?

This is the last Photo Art Friday until January 2013, AND this week

was the last Texture Tuesday until next year as well. What's a girl to do?

The prompt suggestion was to link up our best work, one that we would be proud to

display on the cover of a coffee table book. Awww geez, that's too hard to pick and I have to

say I might have a bit of a commitment problem...can't even use a hot glue gun on a craft

project, because you never know when you might want to take something apart and use it on

something else....it's the frugal part of me I guess.

But, I was playing around with a photo I took last year at Christmas and really like how it

turned out. These are Bald Cypress trees, that were not bald yet, and their texture was perfect in my post-processing for getting the look of snow I wanted.

"Walking in a Winter Wonderland"

As far as unlikely, it did snow the first year we moved here, during a Christmas choir concert.

Yes, miracles do happen! ; )  And just in case you're wondering....it was white!

Enjoy your weekend! I have boxes of Christmas stuff waiting to be transformed into decorations.

What about you?

Love, Kim

XO