Grow Your Blog . . .

. . . it's another par-tay!

{A big shout out to Vicki at 2 Bags Full for once again hosting the Grow Your Blog party!}

Welcome to my little space in the universe.

My name is Kim,

light seeker and finder of things,

of ordinary and beautiful.

I record moments through a box with a hole,

and thoughts through a pen.

I am a mom of two, a girl and a boy. One in college and the other soon to follow. A wife of 23 years this year, photographer, dreamer, mess maker. I love little adventures and exploring even if it's 5 feet from my front door. And, you could say I have a little nature nerd extraordinaire tucked into my soul.

Ever since I can remember I have loved creating in some form or fashion, and the need to express myself has appeared through the years in many forms. For me, creating, whether it be in photographs or jewelry or something else, allows me to express myself about the world around me, in ways that aren't always possible any other way. It's my way of working through life, its ups and downs . . . trying to find the beauty in the process through my lens and on paper, and moving from moment to moment.

And, this is me, looking through my milkweed at caterpillars, monarch babies. No, I don't normally take photos of myself, in fact I avoid it at all cost, but this was for "a quirky selfie" prompt (full blog post here).

I guess it was only fitting since I started raising monarch butterflies 2 years ago this coming March. Yep, my family has graciously they had no choice in the matter let me take over the dining room table, and sometimes parts of the kitchen, with caterpillar tents and related items. So far to date, I've raised and released over 1000 monarch butterflies. 

I started a blog series about my journey with the monarchs, and unfortunately got a little derailed this summer. But I'm working on finishing the rest to be ready for spring. You can find the first of three so far here, and each one directs you to the next post.

And when I'm not knee deep in caterpillar poo, I'm at the beach exploring . . . our 30 minutes away from an hour vacation.

Or watching the sunrise . . . one of my very favorite things to do in the world.

You can also find me every other Tuesday, sharing about life and photography on my collaborative blog called Focusing on Life, with 9 other women. I'm looking forward to connecting with other creatives in sharing this journey thing we call life.

Have a wonderful day, and thank you for stopping in!

Love, Kim

Get your blog on . . .

. . . cause it's a party!

Last year Vicki from (2 Bags Full) had a wonderful Grow Your Blog Party hop, and I definitely wanted to do again as I met some great bloggers and I'm always up for meeting new friends. A big huge thank you goes out to Vicki for putting together this epic event, double last year's party.

This is me, Kim, a 51 year old mom of two (half an empty nest) with one in college and one still in high school, and a wife of 21 years.

A learner of life, a seeker of light, and a finder of all things beautiful . . . and I document it here in my little space. I've been blogging here for a little over 3 years now.

I love nature, I tend to be a deep thinker, and share my thoughts and my view of the world through my pen and my camera.

I have a love affair with the beach, and shells, and the ocean . . . 

And sunrises . . . definitely one of my favorite things. I am fortunate enough to live on the gulf coast of Texas near Galveston Bay, and 25 miles north of the island. You'll see a lot of sunrises here because I live 30 minutes away from an hour vacation . . . gosh I love that!

And, last March a friend gave me some cuttings of milkweed that ended up having 2 monarch caterpillars which turned into a nursery in my dining room and the nickname of 'The Monarch Farmer' from my son. Since March I've raised and released over 400 Monarch butterflies. I am still working on getting through all my photos from last summer and putting together my journey in a series from egg to butterfly. They are amazing creatures!!

I also raised queen butterflies, black swallowtail butterflies, a few pipevine butterflies, and tersa sphinx moths (aka hummingbird moths).

I love flowers, and photographing them especially in my garden, when I have visitors.

And I love sharing the beauty in the ordinary I find through my lens. 

Thanks so much for stopping by. I look forward to making the rounds today, although truthfully it will probably take a week with this many blogs!

You can follow along with me here: Flickr (I'm attempting a 365 day project), instagram (kimatpickingpoppies), and you can like me on my Picking Poppies facebook page. I am also part of a collaborative blog, Focusing on Life (my recent post), with 9 other women of all ages building a community for people passionate about photography and life. You'll find me musing there every other Tuesday.

Until next time,

Love, Kim