Ashlyn and her Triple Thread

If you're anything like I am, you have your daily go-tos in the blog world... you know, those blogs that give you your daily dose of inspiration or humor or just eye candy for the soul. I have found someone else to follow recently and (get this) we're related! Not in a blogosphere sisterhood kind of way (although those are absolutely some of THE best relationships) but in a real life kind of way. She's my first cousin once removed. (Thank you Genealogy.com for explaining that to me!)

Not long ago, one of my cousins shared a link to Ashlyn's blog through Facebook. Being a blogger myself, I couldn't wait to visit Triple Thread and see what was going on. And I was hooked, and impressed, and just pretty much wowed over by the whole thing. You see Ashlyn can write, well. Her blog is of professional quality, and her photography looks like it stepped out of the pages of Vogue. This girl is talented. Seriously.

She describes herself as "19 in years, 100 in soul," and says that her blog is her way of chronicling her "daily outfits, whimsies, inspirations, and passions." And while most of her posts are focused on fashion (this is a fashion blog), she claims that fashion "isn't just mindless consumerism.... 

Even after you've gotten all dolled up, your brain is still your best accessory."

Ashlyn shoots most of her own pictures, setting up self-portraits herself, but does let her boyfriend step in and help every now and then. I'm blown away by this girl. She's a huge talent, and I'm pretty thrilled to say that I'm related to her.

Tick Tock ...

goes the clock.

Is it just me, or does time seem to race past you, too?

It seems that everyday is a rush toward a finish line.

For what? To hit repeat and do it all again the next day!

I'm looking at the calendar and realizing that this school year

is.almost.done

Which makes me a bit nervous

because it's been a crazy, busy year

and I'm hoping that my school kiddos

will be ready for ninth grade and those, uh,

little standardized tests that

come at the end of the school year.

I usually have complete faith in my ability as a teacher

to encourage, motivate, cajole, push, pull, catapult

a student across the finish line.

But this year has been different.

I've been on other assignments off and on most of the year.

My substitute has hung her family pictures at my desk.

(not really, but I wouldn't be surprised if she did!)

 And the weeks are blasting past

like a gush of water from a fire hydrant.

And my child is nearly grown!

As The Steve Miller Band once sang...

"Time Keeps on Slipping, Slipping, Slipping

into the future...."

 

Happy that ...

I was thinking that most of us working folks kind of regret the ending of our weekends. Yes, I'm extremely grateful for my job, but at the same time, Sunday nights signal the end of extra time with my family and just puttering around the house doing my own thing. 

To kick off the week on a happier note, I decided I would "happy that" for this post. As in...

I'm happy that my student teacher created lesson plans for this week (and that she'll be doing it again - x5 - as she completes her student teaching with me).
I'm happy that she and I got most of the grading done before the weekend.
I'm happy that I went to church on Sunday.
I'm happy that I heard birds singing early in the morning.
I'm happy that I got to spend time with my daughter, just chatting and being together.
I'm happy that my husband planned an outing for all of us on Friday that included music and food.
I'm happy that we had blue skies full of sunshine today even though rain is supposed to set in again this week.
I'm happy that I can be silly and listen to music and sing along even when I'm not that good of a singer.
I'm happy that there are people in the world who can sing well.
I'm happy that I can buy songs with just a couple of clicks on my phone and listen to them while I'm cleaning up the kitchen.

That's not everything I'm happy about, but at least it's enough to snap me out of my Sunday night blues. I hope that YOU have a happy Monday and a great week ahead!

She Colors My World...

When my daughter was little, she was always writing and drawing. Her stories were full of adventure and engaging dialogue. Her art work always had a way of putting a smile on my face. We would often find a picture of us, her family, posted on a door or mirror. She would spend hours creating families of people or groups of friends and would name each and every one of them.

Over the past couple of years she's been using acrylics to create artwork for herself and her friends but recently took up watercolor. And this was one of her first pieces...

I'm pretty much amazed at how well she can handle this medium. 

And, you know what, I'm pretty much amazed by her. 

On another note, the sun finally came out. Boy have I been tired of the rain.... I know the spring flowers will appreciate it, but day after day of pouring rain or drizzle was getting old. So, hurray for the sun!
 

Be Mine

Happy Valentine's Day!

Signed, Sealed, Delivered...

Twenty-two years ago today, I married someone who I'm sure was put on this planet for that very reason. He has loved me and given me a sense of security and safety that I had never known. He is my rock. And for some reason, he lets me be me. And loves me anyway.

Happy anniversary to my wonderful husband....

If you're interested in the beginning of this story, you'll find it here. It's kind of amazing that we got together way back when.

Telephoto Tuesday: Flower Circles

I still haven't decided on photo editing software for my desktop

but thought I'd share these images I created using

the percolater app on my iPhone.

 

 

The original photo was of a Sunflower I shot last summer.

And this... a Hibiscus.

 

 

I love the bright colors and the polka dots.

Really.

Happy Tuesday!

 

 

 

A Little Bit of This...

and a little bit of that is probably how this post will turn out.

It is so hard to believe that my daughter is the same age I was when I graduated high school and began my first full-time job. She came home yesterday wearing her new class ring and will be visiting colleges soon. To my relief, she still has one more year to go before she takes off on her own. I need to soak up every minute that I still have left with her before she does leave. 

This picture of her was taken years ago during one of our trips to the beach. I played with it on my phone using the Instaframe app. That and Aviary are my go-tos for quick mobile processing. What I need though is photo editing software for my desktop.  I'm not sure whether to get Photoshop or LightBox but am thinking about trying out the limited version of LightBox first.

Speaking of photography, I really want to save up for a mentoring session with Caroline at NoWordz Photography. Her photos and processing are absolutely gorgeous and I've often wondered how she creates her soft, dreamy images. She's offering one-on-one mentoring via Skype, or you can have one or two friends join you for a group session. If anyone is interested in a group session, let me know! I'm absolutely positive that it will be a great experience. If you'd like to see some of her images, click here.

Did I mention like 1,000 times already that I saw Ellie Goulding in concert recently? My daughter and her friend wanted to go, and I figured if I went with them I wouldn't have to worry about her being on the road late at night. (Yep, I'm that kind of worrier.) So I drove. And after letting the two out of the car to get in line, I promptly drove across a sidewalk and right off the curb to get to the parking lot on the other side.

You do start to realize your age when you stubbornly decide to stand in front of the stage with the teenagers and 20-somethings, so you can be in the midst of the excitement. After an hour or so of being jostled a bit by the eager fans, I was looking up at the balcony seats with a little longing. But it was fun. Afterwards, we decided to step next door from our hotel for a late night dinner at a Waffle House. The valet at the hotel assured us that it was safe. "They have security," he said, "and we're right here." Maybe the fact that they needed an armed policeman at the restaurant was a sign.

Oh, and the opening act, St. Lucia, was pretty amazing, too. They reminded me of Tears for Fears. Remember them, or did that just totally date me?