Dizzy Sisters

I've been digital scrapbooking today with this old pic of my sister and me. I think it's because of the seven year age difference between us that we have so few pictures of us together. This is one of the rare ones. My sister, the one with the hand on her eye,  looks as if she is having trouble deciding how many people are out there holding cameras after our spin on the whirligig. We learned to get this thing going quite fast by crunching up our bodies while pushing and pulling the handles as fast as we could pull them.

Celeste Figs, I Think

I'm not completely certain of the name of our fig tree, but according to some pictures I saw in a Southern Living magazine, I think ours would be classified as the variety known as the celeste. Whatever they are, they make really good fig preserves.

Speaking of which, I'm excited to have a project in mind for this year's fig preserves: home-made fig newtons. I'm hoping they will be much better than the store-bought versions or else I have real questions as to why all those recipes for fig newtons are so frequent on the Internet recipe sites. To me, it implies there's a genuine benefit in making them rather than purchasing them. But, I'll make that judgement myself once the weather cools a bit and I have the patience to bake again. Then I'll see if the recipe I've chosen to try deserves a page in my cookbook. 

Dedicated to Timmy

I had several months away from photography  and editing so this photo merge was my first project for quite a while and I'd forgotten how much I enjoy it. 

This dragon fly and this cone flower just could not get together in the real world the afternoon I was shooting, so I had to introduce them in photoshop.

I'm dedicating this one to the little boy I saw yesterday.  He needs my prayers and I want to remember him every time I see this, and pray for his safety. The way in which his mother was treating him was most disturbing and I'm not quite sure what I should have done in that situation.

As I was checking out at Kroger yesterday, I saw this very angry mother grab her son (he was eleven or twelve years in age) by the neck of his tee shirt and yank him up to her face as she began to direct all sorts of snarling words toward him. I'm not sure how long this went on, not really long, but he appeared to be too weak to stand it. So, he put his arms around her and busted out crying and went sort of limp. When he started to cry she put her hand over his mouth  so people wouldn't start to look at them. When she finally released him, she sent him to get something, but he still looked so sad, so weary, a  little disoriented,  and he was still sniffling. I was physically unable to follow him, but I have spent all of  last night and this morning wishing I could have so I could have asked him if he was all right. He was very skinny and the saddest looking little fellow I have ever seen. He was far too young to be so weary and the whole scene broke my heart.

Knowing some one's name helps me to pray for him or her, but since I don't know this little man's identity, I've given him the name "Timmy" and God knows who I'm talking about. "Timmy" needs help; I'm sure of it.

Folded Paper Tree

The first ever folded paper project that I saw was too many years ago when one of my elementary school classes did a project using two Reader's Digest magazines that we folded, stuck back to back,  then spray painted black to make something really pathetic for our mothers. I hadn't thought of it for years until last year when Woman's Day magazine had paper trees like the photo on the left in one of their holiday issues. I followed their instructions to make this one out of two phone books. Their version looked good--mine--not so much, but it was a relaxing project that I could do with my hands while my mind visited other places.

Christmas Baking 2012

The photo on the left shows a sample of some of our baking and candy making this year that we used for Christmas gifts to family, friends, and a few neighbors. We truly enjoyed making all of it and the fun part was  getting to try  some new recipes that I think turned out decent.The only thing I really didn't like was the white chocolate dipped pretzels (not shown). We used Baker's white chocolate and it tasted awful. I could pick out a  strong and distinctly powered milk taste in that chocolate. Unfortunately, I didn't do a taste test of those things before packing the Christmas gift sets, because it never occurred to me that white chocolate could ever taste bad. But this stuff did-- big time! But I thank the Lord everything else was good. 

Our homemade candy and cookie list for 2012:
Wilton sugar cookie cutouts, lady fingers,chocolate samoas, chocolate spritz cookies, white chocolate dipped pretzels, cream-filled chocolate covered cherries, strawberry jelly rolls, and banana taffy.

Learning to make the cream-filled  chocolate covered cherries, the chocolate somoas, and the banana taffy was new for me this  year. About the only candy I'd ever attempted to make was the super easy boiled  chocolate oatmeal candy. I was always just a little afraid to try candy recipes. But  the level of difficulty of these treats proved to be not even close to the impossible  ordeal  I  had imagined it to be.

Cut Glass Vignette

There's no real reason for this pic other than the fact that I just love cut-glass novelties. Not completely shown in the pic is a cut-glass hurricane lamp in the background and this cut-glass candy dish in the foreground.

Centerpiece 2012

We did nothing elaborate with the table this year, but I always love the white tablecloths. Just about anything you stick on a white tablecloth looks good to me, within reason, of course. The stick deer in the photo are part of a fairly large collection that my mother made from oak limbs. She loves to make them and they are a cute addition to our primitive Christmas decorations.

Happy Thanksgiving

Giant Ammorillas

It's a shame these beauties appear only once a year. I  tried to get a shot of them before they were gone for another year.

Happy Birthday Scott

I'm not  partial, just honest: I have the sweetest nephew in the world. What makes him also one of the most beautiful people in the world  is his day-by-day regard and compassion for his family and his little animals. 

I wish I could have had a nice dinner for him for his birthday, but since we are so many miles apart, I did this scrapbook page instead while his birthday was on my mind. 

I don't think he was yet in school, when he drew some pictures for my mother, his grandmother, and she thought they were so brilliant for his age that she saved them all these years. They are overlayed on the bottom of the tan scrapbook page.

Fall 2012 Centerpiece

The Floating Photo Cube Project

Canning Season, 2012

Summer has been all about hard work and canning at our house. A lot of sweating, too! Although canning is a hobby my mother and I share, our plan has been to make Christmas gift sets from our canning pantry this year. As I'm compiling this list  to post, I'm thinking I should probably mention  that absolutely everything on this list is not gift intended, most of it is ours to enjoy.  Hopefully, in the months that remain in 2012, we will put away a few more things such as okra, pecans, and pumpkins, but here's what we have preserved thus far:

1. orange marmalade (9.5 pints)
2. blueberry jelly (13 pints)
3. blueberry juice (43 quarts)
4. blueberry syrup (8 pints)
5. blueberries (5 pints)
6. watermelon pickles (6.5 pints)
7. fig jam (9 pints)
8. pear jam (3 pints)
9. strawberry fig jam (9 pints)
10. strawberry pear jam (19 pints)
11. peach pear jam (4 pints)
12. pineapple pear jam (2.5 pints)
13. okra (6 quarts)
14. pickled okra (11 pints)
15. spiced pear rings (28 pints)
16. spiced pear halves (9.5 quarts)
17. Brunswick stew (3 quarts)
18. peas (11 pints)

Now, my vote for the most and least delicious foods from the list both go to two new items we tried this season: the spiced pear rings  and the watermelon pickles, respectively. The spiced pear rings are, indisputably, the most scrumptiously delicious use for pears that I've ever found, and the watermelon pickles are, undeniably, the worst--never never plan to make those things again. The watermelon rinds would have served a much  greater purpose in my compost bin than they will ever serve in this pickled state. I heard it said once, that the only thing good about watermelon pickles is that they are something to pass at the Thanksgiving buffet. Amen.

Variegated Rose

This is another rose that David planted. It, too, has decreased in size since he is no longer here to care for it. 

David's Rose 2012

This is the first bloom of the season for David's rose. 

New Technique

I was trying a new technique I saw on the internet where you can make the corner of the page look as if it is curling upward via Photoshop Elements. This is my first try at it so I think I'll make the corner a little bigger next time.

Beautiful Male Cardinal

Giant Amaryllis

Maybe I should have titled this post "Heirloom Amaryllis" since these flowers were passed down to us from one of my aunt's  estate. They definitely are of the giant variety and are simply beautiful plants when blooming. It's a shame the bloom frequency is a mere once per year. I tried to capture a shot of them before they deteriorated too much (slugs love them at our house).


We have the giant white amaryllis, also, but nothing compares to this gorgeous shade of red.

Easter Eggs

I will never outgrow coloring Easter eggs.  It's an act that brings back  some of my favorite childhood memories. Those favorite memories are of the big egg hunts for all my cousins, my sister, and me at my grandparents'  home. Our mothers brought the chicken and dumplings, banana puddings, and other Sunday fare as well as other kinds of desserts. After lunch, the men hid the eggs in the lot behind the house. That lot was perfect for egg hunts since it was sheltered by a canopy of Georgia pines that served dual duty in keeping the air cool and the ground soft with a carpet of red-brown straw. After it was determined that the children had found all the colored eggs, everyone feasted again on boiled eggs sprinkled with salt and pepper chased down by RC colas (my Uncle Wilbur's favorite). 

House Shopping

We love the bluebirds that nest every year in a house mounted on our privacy fence. We try to help them all we can because they have fierce competition from the sparrows for that house. Pretty Mrs. Bluebird was very patient with me trying to get her picture the day I snapped this shot. Eventually, she said "Enough of you and that camera--I have eggs to hatch," and she went in the house and didn't come back out for a long time.

Okefenokee Swamp Park

This sign is a reminder of the surprise Christmas in February 2012 we just celebrated. We  hadn't seen each other in 10 1/2 years so it was an extremely special visit for all of us when my sister and my nephew flew in from Texas as a complete surprise to us. We all had such a wonderful time!


We also enjoyed, immensely, a trip to the Okefenokee Swamp Park while they were here.

March Buzzers

The perimeter of our property is hedged with azalea shrubs that both my father and my stepfather planted. Most of the year, they provide us with a nice green privacy fence, the presence of which we appreciate, but rarely consider beautiful. But every spring, our appreciation is replaced with marvel as we watch their branches come alive with color and activity. The branches become heavy laden with blooms in several beautiful shades of pink that attract a host of bumble bees as well as humming birds. So great will be the number drawn here to work the pollen that the sound is something similar to the hum of a high voltage power line.

Gator Country

I may never understand how the Okefenokee Swamp Park has managed to keep tourists safe all these years since all the park's alligators are not in enclosures. This one was right next to the sidewalk where some guests were parked. We saw still more as we were driving from the main highway down to the park entrance. Come to think of it, there were signs stating, "Enter at your own risk," but most people are so glad the long drive is over, they aren't about to let a little sign daunt their site seeing plans. The tour guides warn you not to bring dogs to the park--dogs are a gator's favorite meal.

I'm not at all negative about going there just because I said, "I may never understand how the Okefenokee Swamp Park has managed to keep tourists safe...." In fact, my family and I love to go there when they come to Waycross! It's beautiful to see and to hear all the nature. We are already planning a picnic for their next visit!

Somewhere In the Okefenokee Swamp

The Recipe

Every time I see oranges, I think  MARMALADE. My mother and I are self-proclaimed "Marmalade Queens." We love to make it during the winter months and most people who have been the recipients of a jar of it love our take on making it. Back to the picture, the cinnamon sticks were added  just in our effort to create a composition, we would never never never put that stuff in marmalade.

WANTED: For Stealing My Heart

Nicholas, of course, was the subject for the Valentine's Day theme of this month's digital scrapbook challenge.

Heart Stealer

Not only is Nicholas sweet, beautiful, and very photogenic, but he is also a perfect model. He simply loves being in front of the camera. It could be because of all the attention he gets while I'm working with him, but I don't think that's  all of it. He was so completely relaxed while everything was going on for this shoot that I left him asleep in this spot.


The purpose  for setting up this shot was so that  I could have something new of him to use for a Valentine scrapbook page. After all, he has stolen my heart.

Star

I don't know what happened to my post of this digital scrapbook page I did months ago. I deleted some old posts and probably deleted it by accident--so this is a re-post. 


This page features  my niece,whom I named "Star,"  when she was little. Her mother didn't agree to name her that, but that's my name for her. She's a college girl now, and still beautiful.

Cat Fish

Choosing a title for this picture stumped me for a while. I couldn't decide whether to name it, Cat Fish, Reflections, or Guess Who's Coming To Dinner.

Christmas Table

Candy and Christmas just go together. I've always loved peppermint stripes at Christmas and found a way to incorporate them into our tablescape this year without purchasing a new tablecloth. We had this round glass table topper for a side table in storage which I drug  out and  cut a matching circle out of heavy-duty Christmas wrapping paper. We dropped the glass topper on top of the paper in the table's center and piled on the candies, candle, and picks.

Christmas Table 2011

We removed the extension from our oval table to have a round table this year. I arranged the stuff and my mother made the table cloths and chair drapes. On the white round topper, she applied hand made crocheted edging that took her quite a few hours to make.

Winter Camellia

This is about all I know of you can do with a camellia since they are such heavy flowers they drop from their stems too easily to be used for cut flower arrangements. They are valuable, however, as yard shrubs because they can get quite large and they remain green year round.

As Time Goes By

Just when I get so exasperated I think I'll never try digital scrap booking again, I try it again. The foreground photo I used is one of my mother in early elementary school. To support the theme, "As Time Goes By," I used the faded background snapshots from later times in her life.

For Santa

This photo of cookies and milk for Santa was inspired by a Christmas card I saw and I just had to do it. I'm thinking it's better to photograph this stuff than it is to eat it.


I made the spritz Christmas trees and the chocolate thingamajiggies while my mother made the lady fingers.  

Let It Snow

Each year in early November, we drag out, dust off, and crank up the Christmas music sound tracks and have Andy Williams and Mannheim Steamroller send us decking our halls. We start early so we can take our time and enjoy the whole experience; plus, we need to be finished by Thanksgiving if we plan to have any Christmas parties.  That's what we are doing now and that's what had me wanting to try digital scrap booking again, too. While under the influence of all that Christmas music, the song "Let It Snow" stuck in my head as a good one to scrap if I could temporarily feign non-existent the South Georgia eighty degree real world temp.

The thing about digital scrap booking that is whipping my butt is allowing some negative space on the page. I tend to pack all my pages so full of junk they just look like a collage. Gotta get a grip on that.

My Handsome Boy

Nicholas the Beautiful watching wrens on his afternoon walk. 

Willie Loves Wicker

I was trying to de-clutter the living room and had decided to try this wicker suitcase for magazine storage, but Willie had other ideas for it. To him, it looked like the perfect place for a nap. Of course he woke up when I appeared with the camera.

Mini Pink

Blooming Okra

Ode To Big Toads

The size of this thing is not apparent due to the angle at which I shot it, but it was HUGE!  The first day I saw it, it looked like a turkey baster bulb sticking out of  the ground. The next day, it had opened and the diameter of the top measured nearly a foot  (eleven inches).

Moonshiners

Special brothers, Nicholas and Willie, were the indirect objects of my effort to make the moon shine in a digital art project.

White Orchid

Yellow Orchid

Yellow Rose

Unexpected Guest

This old guy was our unexpected guest Father's Day, 2010. My sister suggested we name him "Horace" (I hope she didn't think our father came back as a disoriented land turtle). He spent the afternoon and night of Father's Day with us and left about 1:30 in the afternoon the next day. Backspace, he completely disappeared about 1:30 in the afternoon of the next day.

First thing the morning following his arrival, we checked to see if he was still with us. He was. Thrilled with the idea that maybe he had decided to stay awhile, I headed to the kitchen to prepare a food offering for him. I assembled a lettuce and broccoli entre’ and returned to find he’d vanished. Seriously, he completely disappeared without a trace or track. I want to believe it was the name, ”Horace,” that spooked him and not that an innate dread of my culinary endeavors is common to all  God's creatures.

From Wild Flower to Digital Art

I have been interested in learning digital art techniques for some time and have browsed many digital art sites searching for ideas to use with my own photos. I saw something that gave me the idea to try this. I experimented with one of my shots of a backyard wild flower along with some brushes from www.brusheezy.com.

The Nutcracker Suite

For years my mother has enjoyed collecting nutcrackers for holiday decorating; this shot features just a few that she displays each year.

During the holidays, I really enjoyed using the night mode feature of the Olympus SP 565 UZ. That was the setting I used for this scene as well as most of my Christmas light scenes.

Nicholas

He is simply beautiful!

Shasta Daisies

 With no horticultural genius in my genes, a problem we're having with these flowers is really irritating me. As they multiply, the number of colors produced  varies inversely with the number of plants produced. For instance, we started out with almost every color available of these flowers. I'm remembering reds, yellows, oranges, pinks, and whites. But  when they reappear after the winter solstice every spring, we have white, almost white, pink, and ugly pink. 

Paperwhites