March 29th

Friday, March 29th, 2019

Some of you really may not be a fan of this post.

After much thought and deliberation, I’ve decided to temporarily suspend my blog.

I’ve tried to push through, but I’ve seen this coming for a few weeks. I never wanted this project to become a “chore” or an “anchor,” but it has started to become that. I’ve started loathing picking up my camera just to fill an image slot on a post; the drive to post and storytell in my posts has started to dwindle, and my heart just hasn’t been in it for the past couple weeks.

This is by no means the end of this project, I just simply will be taking a bit of a sabbatical. As of now, I’m thinking 2, 3, 4 weeks perhaps? My goal is by May to be back up and running. The grass will hopefully be green by then, and motivation to shoot will also be higher at that point. 😉

So I leave you with some gorgeous watercolor greenery from Spasibenko Art. Happy spring, all! See you on the other side!

March 28th

Thursday, March 28th, 2019

Let’s all take a moment and gush over those sweet squishy cheeks!

If you’ve followed my blog for any length of time, you know that I don’t normally photograph people (unless your name is Paul).

But take one look at this face and you know why I just had to.

My experience with newborns is very limited, however, I do know that they like to be warm, have a full tummy, be held, and sleep — so pictures are usually quite a production. A photographer that I interned for in college would always book three hour newborn sessions; she’d hope to photograph the babe for about an hour spread out between diaper changes, feedings, and quick naps (if you were hoping to get any with eyes open).

So math dictates that 1/3 of the booked time was actually spent taking pictures. The other 2/3’s was spent catering to baby’s needs and ensuring baby’s comfort. Not to mention posing them, and then giving them time to settle into that pose and relax and quiet down.

With all that being said, Ben must be made for the camera. The perfect amount of alert and awake, while still content and relaxed, he happily let me photograph him for an hour without breaks.

To say he was a rockstar is an under exaggeration.

An extremely cute rockstar.

Here are a few more from today, but not many because mom and dad still haven’t seen these, so we have to leave some for a surprise later. 🙂

March 27th

Wednesday, March 27th, 2019

I’d like everyone to take a guess as to what this image is of.

Maybe it’s easy, maybe it’s not.

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Ready? It’s a tire track on our driveway that’s beginning to dry out in the wind and sun. I just loved the texture and the color palette.

 

 

 

March 26th

Tuesday, March 26th, 2019

This handsome guy strutted right up to our house this morning, bold as brass.

We’ve never had pheasants be that comfortable to approach our house, but we wondered if the chickens gave him a sense of confidence.

You never know!

March 25th

Monday, March 25th, 2019

This sweet babe is what the happy text on Friday was about.

Meet Benjamin James, born 12:29pm on Friday, March 22nd.

Paul and I got to meet him today, and it’s safe to say he stole our hearts.

March 23rd

Saturday, March 23rd, 2019

Our house has been like a wildlife sanctuary lately.

Deer, swans, geese, and pheasants everywhere.

Every morning we have 10-15 hens and 4-5 rooster pheasants in our back field. It’s fun to watch that many of them forage at one time.

March 22nd

Friday, March 22nd, 2019

I parked my lawn chair in the front yard today and got myself a sun burn.

It was glorious.

50 degrees, no wind, not a cloud in the sky. Welcome, spring!

I even went a little crazy and turned off our furnace and opened some windows. Our house held steady at about 62 degrees, so it was perfect. You forget how lovely it is to have fresh air in your home.

Anyway, as I sat outside reading my book, I looked up at one point to see three deer out grazing in one field, and a flock of pheasants in another. My chickens were making their happy noises, cruising around without a care in the world, Ruby napped in the sunshine. Geese and swans flew by overhead, happily honking.

And then a text came into my phone, and tears started flowing. The most beautiful, amazing news and from that moment on my day was officially deemed perfect. Once the news is public, I’ll share it in a future post, but for now I have to keep it under wraps. I’ll let the suspense build 😉

Happy spring, everyone! I hope you’ve been able to enjoy the bountiful sunshine!

March 21st

Thursday, March 21st, 2019

There’s nothing like opening your eyes to a bald eagle sitting in the tree outside your window!

He didn’t stick around long, just long enough for me to get my camera, but he was magnificent all the same.

March 19th

Tuesday, March 19th, 2019

It’s crazy to think that this spot was covered by over 12″ of snow just a week ago.

Our yard blended in with the field – there was no definition between the two. We couldn’t see our grass, the remaining soybean stems, or the leaves I raked into the field this fall.

Now today, the girls are in the chicken version of heaven digging through those leaves, finding soybean morsels, searching for little grub.

Their feet and beaks are muddy, their tails pointing towards the sky, and they are making all sorts of very happy chicken noises.

These joyful little creatures have changed our little slice of the world for the better.

March 18th

Monday, March 18th, 2019

If you know me, you know I’m not a coordinated individual.

Graceful I am not.

I can push around 1,000 pound animals without much fuss, but fine motor skills, hand eye coordination…not so much.

I trip over things that aren’t there. Especially when I’m flustered.

So roping horseback has never been a feasible goal for me. I have never even been able to master throwing a rope from the ground with a stationary dummy.

Until today!

Paul walked me through some tips and tricks, critiqued my form, offered suggestions. After slowing down my throw, and focusing on hand placement and release, I actually began to catch the dummy!

It’s still not pretty, but progress was made today. Dare I say it – I actually had fun!

March 17th

Sunday, March 17th, 2019

A true drama unfolded in our backyard today.

My image today just puts me to giggles every time I look at it. The struggle, the damsel. The victory, the defeat.

These two went at it for about a half hour today, with and without female presence.

Enjoy some of my best catches:

Another neat thing from today? I photographed a fox for the first time ever! My image is shaky at best, but I don’t care because I caught him! He was a ways out there, well beyond the capabilities of my lens, but still a neat thing for me.

March 16th

Saturday, March 16th, 2019

I think spring is officially around the corner.

This gorgeous weather we’ve been having, and the weather that’s coming within the next week (60 degrees next weekend!!!) is a sure sign. Yes, we had a snowstorm in April last year, but I’m choosing to be an optimist this year because I’m ready for sunshine.

Anyway, moving on. We had quite a few eagles pass through our neck of the woods last spring around this time, and I’ve been noticing them around again. This morning, I looked out my kitchen window to this beautiful pair relaxing at my neighbor’s. They hung out for an hour after I noticed they were there, and it was such a treat to look out the window and see them sitting there as I went about my morning.