Happy New Year

2011 is almost history,and what a year it has been.

I am sure that each of us has seen our share of trials and also blessings.

As I stand poised at the threshold of the new year,I wait on God to show me the way.

THis was the scene in my area yesterday.Finally we for some beautiful snow.

I spent a delightful time with my son,photographing all this beauty.

I am sure you will be seeing more of those pictures in days to come.

Since I have not been posting for a little while I just wanted to take the time to wish all of you a Wonderful New Year,rich in love and peace.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

I expect that this will be my last post before Christmas,so here is my wish for you.

I am also including the letter which I sent out to people with a card.

I count all of my followers as my friends,so this later is to you as well.

To you my dear friends,

    As you all know, the last 15 months or so have been filled with change for me.. I would not have chosen the path on which I find myself right now,but God knows what is best for me. When my beloved Jake took his final breath on November 10th of 2010, my whole life was turned upside-down. Now I can honestly say that it is beginning to be turned right-side up again. 

    2011 has been a year filled with many sad moments,yet,I can also say that there have been many good times.God has taken my hand and walked along with me through the ups and downs.

    I feel so richly blessed to have you as one of my friends.I want to thank you for the support and love I have felt from you. It is during a time of deep sadness that we find out who our real friends are,and you are definitely one of them. Thank-you. 

   I look forward to what God has in store for me in the coming year.

    What are my plans? I make plans very loosely,as I know they can be changed in a heartbeat.I do want to continue to pursue my photography,as this is something which I very much enjoy.I also plan on staying with my job as a school bus driver,at least for a few more years,Lord willing.Besides this I am always willing to join friends for coffee and a visit.

Thanks for your friendship and I will be back after Christmas,but first I will celebrate with family and friends who are near.

Wintery Scenes from 2006

I have not been out taking pictures recently,so I went back into the archives and pulled a few from there.

All of the pictures in today's post were taken by Jake,on an early morning walk around our town,back in 2006.

The first picture is taken,looking west down the main street of our town.

Note all the snow in these pictures. This is the way it usually looks around here at this time of year,BUT,not this year.

We have a dusting of snow,but lots of dry grass and bare ground showing.

The following pictures were all taken in our local park. This is a very busy place in summer,with kids at the playgrounds and pool,and picnics being had.

In winter it is a place of quiet,and on this early morning it was beautiful.

There is some hoar frost on the trees and that adds a special touch.

The picnic tables stand empty,waiting for the first warm days of spring.

Here is another view.Looks like someone else was in the park.

I am sure glad Jake took these pictures,so that now we can enjoy these pretty scenes.

Shooting in low light tends to make the pictures look more purple than what is natural.

This is the same as the one above,but in a black and white version.

I like this almost as well as the coloured one.

Which is your favourite?

Thought for today:

A SNOWFLAKE IS ONE OF GOD'S MOST FRAGILE CREATIONS,

BUT OH WHAT CAN HAPPEN WHEN THEY STICK TOGETHER!

Christmas Cookies

Today was a fun filled day.

Kai came over in the morning to help me bake cookies,no not just any cookies,but, Christmas cookies.

We had a lot of fun doing this,as we always do,but the real fun started in the evening.Steve and Kai came for supper,and after that we set up shop and began decorating the baked cookies.

I apologize for the darkness of this picture,but this was the scene at my kitchen table.The sugar,sprinkles and frosting.

Of course Steve had to capture this time as well.He is using his iPhone,while I used my regular camera.

I have star shaped cookie cutters,which when stacked just right form a tree.

Kai looks pleased with her tree,all decorated with frosting and sprinkles.

Here she is still putting on a few more sprinkles,to make it just perfect.

She decorated two trees. I must say they are perhaps the sweetest trees I have ever seen,both in reality and because they are made by my favourite baker/decorator.

This looks good enough to eat.Will you join me for a cup of tea or coffee and a piece of this beautiful Christmas tree?

I spent two days with Jake's brother and his family,over the weekend.

They live in Winnipeg and so we went out looking at all the Christmas decorations.

This house was by far the best I have seen in a long time.

All the decorations were synchronized to music,and the best part — they were accepting donations for Cancer Care.

The cookies are delicious,the lights beautiful,but let us not forget the REAL reason for Christmas,the birth of Jesus Christ.

Roses in November

I just finished editing some pictures taken on November 11.

I know this post is not at all Christmas related,but then,roses are always in season.

A dear friend of mine had roses delivered to my door,right around the time of the anniversary of Jake's passing.

First let me say I appreciated the roses for the message which they brought.,but I ask you,what is a woman with a camera to do when she gets roses in November?

All around outside everything is drab brown and grey.Roses bring colour,so it is time for a photo session.

Thanks Hannah for supplying the props,(roses).

Now I do believe that roses and pearls are a great match.

These orange/peach coloured roses were different than any I had seen before.

Look at all those petals.

I think turning the image into a sepia tone,shows the petals even better.

The yellow roses were  the traditional florist roses.

They opened beautifully and lasted longer than any I have ever had.

I threw the last rose out at the two week mark.

The above rose is the same as the one below. 

I think it looks quite dramatic in sepia tone.

I know that this photo is way over done,but I kind of like the gold look.

I added a warming filter in Lightroom

It is fun to play with the different effects.Some turn out good,but others are a total flop.Tell me whether you like this version.I would like to hear what you think.

Like I said,I kind of like it,but am not totally convinced.

I am sure that you will be seeing more of this bouquet of roses,as I took MANY pictures.

Because I know that these roses were given in love,this thought seems to fit:

The love you give to others

Is returned to you by the Lord - - -

And the love of God

Is your soul's rich reward.

Thanksgiving Everyday

I know that we are in the Christmas season,but today I want to step back about two months,into October.

I have picked a few pictures which I enjoy.

All of today's pictures were taken from my deck.I can hardly wait to enjoy that space again,come springtime.

This little Yellow-rumped Warbler,dressed in the subdued colours of fall and winter,is checking me out.

At one end of my deck I have this heated birdbath. Obviously it was not being heated when this picture was taken,but now that we have freezing temperatures I do have it plugged in so the birds can enjoy a drink,even in winter.

The Black-capped Chickadee is one of my favourite birds.

They can be counted on to show up when all others disappear.

I really like how this little fella would come and sit on the lattice which surrounds the deck.I think he is a perfect addition to my deck.

Looking up and away from the birds I noticed these cloud shadows.

I think they are unique and pretty.

 The heavens declare the Glory of God!

The tree in the picture above is the same one you see in this picture.Here you can see it's yellow leaves,because the sun is highlighting it so well.

This is also taken from my deck and it is looking south-east,into my yard.

Perhaps a thought about Thanksgiving is still in order.

Thought for Today:

Dear God,no words are great enough

To thank You for just living,

and that is why everyday

Is a day of Thanksgiving.

The Reason for the Season

December is the month of Christmas. Everyone seems a little kinder and friendlier.

Today I want to share a few of my decorations with you. I do not decorate in an elaborate way,but I love Christmas and all it stands for.

A few years ago we found these pretty ornaments and knew that we needed them on our tree.

This year my tree is done in blue,white and silver.

A friend of mine did the decorating for me.

I also like these little doves. They add so much to the tree.

Of course every tree needs some plain balls on it.

At one time in my life I enjoyed painting the Christmas Village houses. 

I have this set standing under my tree.

You will also see the sparkly snowflakes and a red ornament in my header. The red ornament was a gift from Steve,many years ago.

Thought for today:

Jesus is the reason for the season.

Advent and My Little Tree

On this first Sunday of Advent,I pray that you will be filled with wonder at the season we are in.

This is my little Christmas tree,which God so graciously placed on my window last year.I like it just the way it is.

Please don't look at the dirty window,but rather enjoy my God given tree of frost.

I thought it would be fun to decorate this little frost tree.

I just wish I could translate the decorations onto the tree in my window.

Thought for today:

APPRECIATE SIMPLICITY.

Snowy Memories

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American Friends.

In Canada we celebrated this holiday in October,but now I wish for you a day filled with love and laughter,family and friends.

I went back to pictures taken about a year ago.

These are scenes from on my yard in the end of November of last year.

Today we had a high of +11C or 51F.

Needless to say,the little snow we had is now gone.

I think I like the looks of last year better,it is so much prettier than dirty brown.

These light and fluffy snowflakes clung to every little seed head,piling up to make snow cones everywhere.

The last rose buds of the year were adorned with sparkling white snow flakes.

I enjoy seeing the snow accumulate on the tips of the evergreen boughs.

It looks like each tip has it's own little hat.

This picture was taken in the end of November 2010,but i don't remember having that much snow on the ground at that time.

I guess this proves that I need to take pictures just so I can remember what has happened in the past.

That is a good enough reason for me,now if only we would get a nice soft layer of snow so I could get more pictures. LOL

Thought for today:

The color of springtime is in the flowers, the color of winter is in the imagination.  ~Terri Guillemets

Seeing Beauty Everywhere

With snow on the ground here and the temperatures sitting around −15C/5F,fall is a memory.Thankfully I have a some pictures to help relive that memory.

All of today's pictures were taken on my yard.

You will also notice that I have added a Watermark,in hopes of making it  harder for anyone wishing to steal my images.

This shows a few leaves from the Amur Maples on my yard.

In wandering around the yard looking for photos,I saw the Peony leaves and noticed how pretty they looked.

The rest of the pictures all show the varied faces of the Amur Maples. I love how they light up with the sun.

Spotting a lone red leaf on the ground,was reason enough to get another picture.

A few orange or rust coloured leaves clinging to the twigs.

The gentle colours are pleasing to the eyes.

This coming week I am dong two presentations about my photography. I am nervous,but also excited to share this passion with others.

I have entitled my talks, Photography:The Art of Seeing Beauty Everywhere.

My post today is a good example of that.I decided to spend some time just walking on my yard and looking for beauty.All it takes is a little time and open eyes,to see beauty.

Let us all take time to really 'see' the beauty around us.

The Heavens Declare…...

It seems that sunsets are always a favourite. 

I have not been as diligent as I should be in getting out to capture these spectacle,but I did  go out in October and was treated to a beautiful sunset.

Here are a few images from that evening.

The evening started out fairly slowly and I thought that perhaps I had spent this time in vain.Here is how I first saw the setting sun,pretty, but not spectacular.

I turned around and looked to the east,and saw the sky tinged a soft shade of pink.

I love those soft colours almost as much as a vivid sunset.

Slowly the sun dropped down below the horizon.

I found a spot with a little tree to use as a foreground.

As the sun dropped even further,the whole sky turned a deep orange.

I was reminded again that when God puts the world to sleep,He does in a spectacular fashion.

Starting down the road to go home,I was once again greeted with this soft colour in the east.softer and more subdued,but equally beautiful.

Thought for today:

The heavens declare the glory of God;the skies proclaim the work of His hands.

Psalm 19:1

Focus on Flowers

Looking out the window,all I see is drab brown,so to brighten things up I have gone back to some summer images.

I know that I have many pictures which have never been posted,here are just a few of them.

These Hollyhocks were blooming right outside my door.They are an old fashioned flower,but I really like them.For me they evoke memories of my childhood.We always had a patch of Hollyhocks in the garden and I enjoyed walking through them,feeling small among these tall plants.

I slipped over to my neighbours yard one day and took this picture.

Some of these Lilies came from my garden.

This natural bouquet is beside their deck and dresses up the area beautifully.

Of course,I have to include at least one picture of Daisies.I love them and their simple beauty.By now it is a challenge to see how I can photograph them in a new and different way than before.I am already looking forward to next summer and more Daisies.

I have many varieties of Lilies on my yard. Unfortunately I am not organized enough to remember all their names,but I can appreciate the beauty.

This is one of the more unique ones.I am still undecided as to whether or not I really like it,but it is different. Each petal is all blotchy,and as the flower fades it turns a light pink,but still with the spots on it.

Thought for today:

When Christ is the centre of your interests,life will be in focus.

365 Days…..

365 days or one year have passed since I last gave my Sweetheart a kiss and told him,"I love you".The quick reply from him was,"I love you too",and those were the last words he spoke on this earth.

Here is the way it used to be.Together,happy and enjoying life.
This picture was taken by our Granddaughter Kai.

When we got married I thought that we would always be together,and we were for 38 wonderful years.So much has changed in one year,yet so much has remained the same.

Grandpa and Kai sharing a special moment.
I pray that Kai will always remember her Grandpa.

Yes,I have cried buckets of tears,but I have also laughed heartily.At first I thought this would never happen,that I would once again laugh.

God has been good to me,His love has not changed and it never will. Praise God for that.

Being a widow is not something I had ever considered for my life,but once again,God had other plans.

Both of these people,Jake Hiebert and Dorothy Schritt are with the Lord now.
They went home to heaven about one month apart.

Now as I stand at the start of year two in this life of aloneness,I wonder what God has in store for me.I know that I do not need to know just what every day will bring,but I do need to rest in God and all will be well.

One more picture of the way it used to be.
Oh,how I miss those happy times. Now all I have is the memories,but I am thankful for those,and the many pictures I have.

I am so thankful for each of you,my blogging friends.Here is a place where I can share my sorrows,but also my joys.

Thanks for being a part of my life.