Autumn's burning love

Burning bush shrubs make a wonderful backdrop for photos in November. 

I took all these shots last week but now it seems the brilliant leaves litter the ground instead of populating the branches. Such a shame watching the bright colors fade away, knowing what we have in store for the coming months. 

Winston ... a surprise shot for sure!

I love it when Lily's ears flop backwards. Love that.

Although I know I'm supposed to get down on a dogs level to take there picture, every time I did this is what I got . . .

I'm not sure if it was nap time or what but she wouldn't open her eyes for me.

So are you ready? Ready for Thanksgiving and December? Because both will be here before you know it. My daughter is so anxious to go skiing. She talks about it all the time. Me, I'm just anxious for Spring. To see all the bulbs I planted last week burst forth from the unfrozen ground. To see the buds on the trees. To feel the warmth of the sun on a brilliant afternoon. 

Okay, back to reality

One day at a time

Sweet floral mosaic ~ Instagram style

Okay, I know Pioneer Woman is doing it, and Lisa Leonard is doing it too, but I really didn't pay much attention until my daughter mentioned it.

Instagram

And now I'm mildly addicted.

Above are a few images I've Instagrammed over the past couple days. It's just so much fun!

Unfortunately it's also an iTunes app so if you don't have an Apple product you're pretty much out of luck. At least for now anyways. Instagram is working on an app for Droids, as well as a desktop version.

The good news is that you don't have to have an app to see someones photos! Here is a link to my images, here are PW's images, and finally these are Lisa Leonards!


Linking up with Mary's Little Red House for Mosaic Monday

Winter photos: Enfield, NH

I would just like to start by sending a brief message to the person who left the hurtful, anonymous comment on my Vlogging post last week:

I would appreciate it if you would no longer visit my blog, you are not welcome here. Your message might have only been one word but it stung. Please, just go someplace else.


***********************************************************************

Below are a few photos I took this past Sunday while my husband, daughter, and her boyfriend were skiing at Whaleback Mountain in Enfield, NH

There was a light dusting of snow falling for much of the day. Perfect for the Queen Anne's Lace

One lucky Crow I'd say!

Looking out over the Lake Mascoma

The best way to go sledding ... with a snowmobile to take you back up the hill!

Enfield was originally a Shaker Village

The Enfield Shaker Museum, which seems totally out of place in this NH town. For more info click HERE

My husband, daughter Elise, and her boyfriend, Logan

Maybe next time I'll go skiing too! Maybe . . .

As always, thank you for stopping by : )

In the Pink

I cannot image my life without animals in it. There may be days when they're tearing up the furniture, scratching the floors, chewing up a sock, stealing food, throwing up, or worse, but the joy they bring to my heart on a daily basis far out weighs the challenges.

I love Lily and Winston.

My Girl

Lily's absolutely favorite ball in the world, the Squeaker ball. There can be a whole bag full of tennis balls and this is the one she will sniff out and find . . . every, single, time.
You can buy them in a 4-pack at Target.

. . . and that's the truth.


* Do you feel the same way about your dogs/cats?

Hey, bud!

Although I should be posting more photos from my trip to Vermont, and I will, I was just so inspired by today's incredible weather that I decided to hold off a bit longer. Hope you don't mind.

Thought I would go side this afternoon and see what's budding. Turns out about everything is! I'm loving the Forsythia. Odd how the only flowers-in-bloom on this bush were right down at ground level. And you know what else? I just noticed there's a bug on one of them!

Bug-ug-ug (it's from a book the girls had when they were little)



The Honeysuckle has a long way to go, but nothing smells sweeter on a warm, early summers day.



Ahh, one of my favorites . . . the Double Flowering Cherry tree. It breaks my heart when the last flower falls.



Spring fireworks: Maple tree flowers



After chronicling some of my 'buds' the dogs and I went out for a little ball time. Oh yeah, run like the wind Lily and Winston! He was hot on her heals! There's no way she's giving up that ball though. No way.

While the dogs cooled down I decided to put up the flag, which has been sitting in the entry since last fall! Unheard of for us. Usually we put out seasonal flags. For some reason that didn't happen this past winter. It felt good to see old glory fly once again.

And finally, I hung my new 'Welcome' sign. After that it was nap-time, then shopping with my younger daughter, and finally dinner. Now a little mending, then off to bed.

What a fantastic day we had, weather wise. Finally Mother Nature dealt us a good, and well deserved, hand. I hope you had as good a weather as we did!

Tomorrow, we wear shorts! Or at least Capri's.

The Sweetest of Days: Let's Get This Party Started

Wet Dog Syndrome (& about those ads)

Lately I'm reminded of the song from Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day ...

...and the rain, rain, rain
came down, down, down...

It seems relentless and unending. This is the 3rd week in a row of flooding rain for us here in New England.

When you have ducks in your backyard where you don't usually even have a pond, then you know it's been raining, a LOT!

Lily is not a fan.
She especially hates being toweled down. Hates it. She runs through the house like a madwoman trying to escape my advances.

The rain does nothing for her hairdo. At least she's clean so she doesn't smell. My husband might beg to differ.

These are good days for her to take long naps, basically because there's not much else to do. No going outside to take walks or play ball or even chase Winston. All she can do is follow me from room to room, staying on my heels at every turn. Sometimes she helps me wash the dishes.

Winston is quite skeptical of the rain as well, preferring to do his business inside if he can get away with it. You dirty dog, Winston. Yeah, you!

Come the end of the week it will all be just a bad memory, and a lot of mud. Upper 60's on Thursday, 70's on Friday, and 80+ on Saturday! I can only hope the weatherman has it right. The flowers and birds are hoping the same thing!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I wanted to take a moment and discuss the BlogHer ads that I've added to my blog. I know it's not a popular decision with some people, but, it's a decision I made based on what was right for me and my family.

First of all I didn't put the ads on my page for greed. I'm an interior painter who's been unemployed for 2 months and in a dual income family we are feeling the pinch. Second, after 26 years with the same company we thought my husband could possibly lose his job this month. Plus my older daughter had a minor car accident, and my younger daughter had braces put on. Oy Vey! It's been a stress filled month to say the least! I'm sure you've all been there! So far it appears my husbands job will remain intact, and I actually have a little work on the horizon, provided it doesn't fall through like previous jobs have. Damn this economy!

So often I hear people say I should sell my photos or be a photographer. Thank you so much for the positive words! Your feedback on my progress means the world to me! I tried selling my photos on Etsy. Not a lot of action. And though my photos might look good in the cyberworld, my camera is not good enough for professional use. Therefore putting ads on my page is sort of a compromise. It might give me a little reward for my work but won't cost anyone else a penny. You don't even have to click on the ads, it's mostly based on page impression.

One condition I had when I put the ads on my blog was that I would not compromise the size of my photos. I like the larger format and I believe my viewers do too. I understand if some people are put off by the advertisements but BlogHers ads seem to be pretty tasteful and I didn't go overboard with multiple ads, even though they give me that choice. To be eligible for BlogHer ads I had to fill out an application and be accepted into their program. Though they aren't accepting general applications they liked my blog and felt we'd make a good match.

Just one more thing. I think most (though not necessarily all) women who have ads on their page are doing it for the same reason, they love blogging, spend a lot of time doing building a following, and have worked hard to maintain it. If they can reap a small reward for that hard work then so be it. It's their choice.

I know, I don't usually ramble on and on like this and hopefully I haven't put my foot in my mouth like I tend to do in these situations. I appreciate any feedback you can give me. If you don't feel comfortable leaving a comment, you may email me instead. sharon01@comcast.net

Thank you,
Sharon

Breakfast with Winston

THIS ...

is Winston


This is Winston and his Dad having a moment

If HQ is available I suggest clicking on for higher quality images

Yesterday morning as we sat at the kitchen table eating breakfast, the shadow of my husband and Winston against the island caught my eye.

What started out as a profile shot of the two of them together quickly turned in a different direction. In the end I was laughing so hard I had tears running down my face. You'll notice Winston likes to lay his head on the table which is just as well since he is a bit overshadowed at times.

Have you been Naughty ... or Nice?

That's what Lily wants to know.

So have you? Been Naughty or Nice I mean?

Be honest now because Lily can sense when someone isn't telling the truth. She's very intuitive and reads people extremely well. You see those beautiful brown eyes? They can look right into your soul.

I'm not so sure Winston's eyes can look into your soul ... but he has been a good boy. He's tried to be anyway. Does he look guilty? He sort of does, doesn't he. Either that or he has an eye problem. Could be both.

**********


I think Winston's a little stressed because he has to share the bed, and the sun, with Phineas. He's not always good at sharing with the cats. Something he needs to work on in the New Year.

Lily still wants to know ... naughty ... or nice?

And if you could have one thing for Christmas ... anything (be selfish here), what would it be? And please don't say world peace. As far as Lily knows there is peace in her yard and that's all that matters.

* If Lily could have one wish it would be for her mom to stop being so lazy and take her for walks every single day. Even when it's only 15 degrees out, like today.

*If I could have one wish it would probably be that Lily could live with me forever.

Collar Instructions

Since a couple people mentioned it I thought I'd show you how Lily's holiday collar was made. It's pretty easy, though I didn't make it.

Cut a piece of elastic to loosely fit your dogs neck. Sew the ends together.

(Note the red ribbon)


Measure out your decorative pieces of ribbon to however long you want them to be, then start tying them on. Mine are only tied once. You can use multiple colors, or one color. Add little sparkles or gems or whatever you like onto some of the pieces with a hot glue gun.

That's it! If you have a cat you could probably make it in record time!

An Evening at the Beach

Since it was such a gorgeous night last Tuesday, Brent and I packed up the dogs, treats, poop bags, and water to drink, and headed to the beach. While Lily remained good as gold, belted in the backseat, Winston (our Pug) sat on Brent's lap whining and crying the whole way there, and part of the way home. At times almost to the point of a scream! All this because he wanted to be on my lap as I drove, which we refuse to allow since it's so dangerous.

Once we were at the beach (about a 20 minute drive) things calmed down and we had a wonderful walk! Low tide is the best time to go!

As you can see, I'm sticking with an orange Halloween theme. I loved this shirt in the store but now it sits in my drawer being bypassed for the most part. I look like a canine Life Guard!

Winston and Brent doing a little exploring

I had hoped to go back to the beach this week, just the two of us, but due to the almost constant rain, we've been hibernating in the house! Summer's not over yet though!

Believe it or not neither dog even likes the water! We walk just far enough away so they can enjoy it from a distance.

A Pug Kind of Day

There's nothing like a day at the pool to cool a fella down and work on a tan!

Elise and Winston

Later on . . . more relaxation with mom on the swing.

Phew! All that rocking really knocks a guy out!

Now I'm revved up and ready to take on the world! Okay, maybe not the world, but look out Lily, here I come! (As you can see, she and I had a good staring contest before the running started. I like to tease her.)