Today is opening day for our St. Louis Cardinals. They will be playing in our new stadium which we got to tour on Saturday night. I'll share more later, but wanted to give you a little peek at these nice, cushy seats for those lucky enough to have tickets!
Another step towards the big project was completed today, with a LOT of help from this wonderful crew of people (and a couple who had to take off before this shot). Here we are standing in our "pole pyrimad" after the first coat of paint was applied to all 93 banner poles.
Today was like a mini vacation. I went to the CKC in Collinsville and had a blast! I took three awesome classes taught by Elsie Flannigan, Beth (Rusty Pickle), and THE Donna Downey!
After a pretty intense day (that is blessedly over now) I went out on the deck to throw a couple of steaks on the grill. What a surprise to find that some of my feathered friends have decided that this would make a pretty cool condo! 
"We find no real satisfaction or happiness in life without obstacles to conquer and GOALS to achieve. - Maxwell MaltzIf I didn't have so much on my mind I would remember where I recently came across this quote, but I jotted it down because it was one I wanted to pass along to my kids. Then I decided to give them a visual to go along with it (and maybe gain some sympathy so they would help me).
I've been working on this big project for the Sesquicentennial (that's 150 years) celebration of our city since last April. My photo club has been out shooting "life in our town" photos to put on these 3' x 5' banners to display in the parks this year, to mix in with some historical shots we are fortunate enough to have. FINALLY it is all coming together. The permits have been obtained, money has been raised, the photos have been edited, the computer files have been completed, two tons of posts are resting in the hands of the parks department, the banners are being printed as of today. It's taken a lot of work and a lot of people have helped out with this. The next step is to get all the banner poles sanded, primed, and painted. Got them to a borrowed warehouse - all 1280 feet of them - so we are almost there. When this is completed and on display it will be a site to see.
SO......I just thought that quote was appropriate for the postcard tonight. How satisified and happy I will be to see this goal become a reality at the end of the month. Stay tuned.......I might just drop you a postcard of the finished display.
Gotta love those Scots!
This is the view from my bedroom window today. No need to go to Washington DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival.....I've got my own right here.
How in the world could I possibly finish folding that laundry with my new camera staring me in the face? Here's my "self-portrait Thursday" from the outside looking in.
So what does one do with a blog? What if my computer crashes (gasp!) or if computers are obsolete in the future? How will I preserve my postcards for my grandbabies to see?
Along the way you meet some of the most interesting people. Here is one that I've had the good fortune to get to know. He is helping me with a big project I am working on with my photo club. Today he came out in the cold and rain to help me out again. Thanks, Mr. J. Here's the photo I promised you.
This photo was taken 21 years ago, just one day after Joey's first birthday. Today he turned 22. He's much taller now, but he's still my boy.
First of all I know I didn't follow the "rule of thirds" on this photo, but sometimes you just have to break the rules. 
On the first day of Spring I was to shoot some photos at a nursing home. It turned out that a group of ladies from a local garden club came to help the residents make a little bird's nest as their craft project. Watching them decorate their nests and listening to them recall stories of gardens they had tended made me especially grateful for this particular first day of Spring. 
I went to watch my nephews in their season opener high school baseball games today. Eric is as cool as a cucumber when he is pitching, and he's a very good pitcher. And a good pitcher always makes sure of the score.
Where did this saying come from? 
I was the "people" for a cooking show on my deck Saturday. The dish? Sand Cake, of course!
My two little buddies were playing with their canine litter when they came to me and asked if they could borrow my camera. They know to put the strap around their neck as soon as I hand it to them. Peyton even figured out that he needed a flash for this shot. They posed the pooches, did the little entertaining act to get them to "smile" and shot their little family portrait.
And here are the other kids.......Lindsay is so pretty in this shot, but she hates it. That's why I'm putting it up here. LOL! Joey & Tinney here at my birthday party. He's coming home tomorrow night also, from a Spring Break (his last one!) golf trip.
My daughter is coming home tomorrow! Isn't she lovely?????
A man works hard (or at least he claims he does) for the past 41 years he deserves a little recognition. Here you go, John. Your retirement is being posted for all my blog readers to see.
SOMEBODY has reached the age where he thinks it's not so cool to give his Grandma a kiss goodbye in front of his little friends. He's pretty smart though. I'll give him a week or two to think this over. I'm sure he'll realize that all he has to do is follow me out to the car. Maybe I'll just have to give him a hint.......
I ran across this photo the other day and it made me smile, remembering the fun that we had on this particular evening. I've had a long ride with this guy, some bumps along the way, some smooth sailing. But in the end he's the one I'm glad I've been down that road with.
When my little girlfriend told me she wanted to be a nurse, I said "Why don't you become a doctor?"
The difference between girls and boys at the playground, I've found, is that girls always go down the slide feet first.
Can you guess what these items have in common? Give up?
They all live in my JUNK DRAWER. Or rather, my old junk drawer. I had to go to the cabinet makers today to have a new drawer made. The one being replaced grew old and weary of bearing the heavy load and constant opening and closing several times a day.
"Where is the ______?"
"It's in the Junk Drawer."
OR
"Do you have a AA battery/screwdriver/glue stick/deck of cards/nail file/extra chap stick/roll of hockey tape/pair of scissors/magnifying glass/bottle of wood glue/package of plant food sticks/needle & thread/tool to crank the frozen garbage disposal/plastic golf ball/red paint pen/take out menu/bag of colored pencils/walkie talkie/sunblock stick/cell phone that doesn't work?"
"It's in the Junk Drawer."
Looking at all these items spread out on the counter, I wondered what I should really keep, and if I could transfer anything to a more appropriate place. Where should the batteries be kept? If I put the screwdrivers & wood glue in the toolbox I'd have to go all the way in the garage to get them and the glue would probably freeze. Someday I might find the mate to the walkie talkie and then where would I have put the other one?
So, for now, I've put all these items in a large box lid. That will be "their place" until the new drawer is installed. Then everything will be back as it should be.
Is it any wonder why my little girlfriend wants to stay "one more night" with the Shopaholic Queen, the Goofy King, Old Princess, Middle Princess, the Minstrel, two court Jesters and a kingdom of new Barbie dolls? She looks pretty content here on her pink throne.
Basic Grey sent me their newsletter today. It had a layout titled "Eye Spy". All I could think of was this photo I had taken of my little people last year when I let them play with some old binoculars. Notice they are looking through the wrong end, but it didn't seem to matter to them. They stood at the window "spying" for the longest time. Another of life's simple pleasures only carefree little people seem to know about.
" Never underestimate the Power of a parent's prayer, " I say.
I am a "first born". My daughter and granddaughter are first borns also. Here is what the experts say our traits are:
Sometimes you need to really search through the rubble and noise to find that there still is hope. Some days the rubble is harder to sift through than other days, but it can be done.
This is the day that you let people you care about know that you love them. Here are just two of the people I love, in their pretty valentine's shirts, posing without complaint. Now isn't that just one of the nicest gifts of all? To me, it is.
Just wanted to share a couple of photos from the party where we celebrated young Tim coming home from Iraq. Welcome home, Tim. We love you and are very proud of you. Thank you for serving our country and defending our freedom. And I still think you grew taller!
I'm teaching my little Einstein how to blog. He had his selection on images to use and this is the one he picked. He thought his mom looked pretty and happy because she's holding her favorite thing. How sweet is he?
Glen recently repaired the damage that the squirrels did to our bluebird houses. I was looking out the kitchen window, wondering if they would come back this year. No sooner was my thought complete (a rarity these days) when I saw this lovely pair checking it out. Looks like we've got new tenants.
We woke this morning to a blanket of snow on the ground, and huge snowflakes continued to fall for a couple of hours. By afternoon it was all but gone - except in the park. No one there to trample and play.
Even though you might not be able to tell, this is an orchid. (hey, I shot A LOT so you'll have to bear with me a couple more days) It might not look like the typical, growing from a slender long stem, delicate blossom - but it is. I guess every family has a member that doesn't look or seem the same, but they still have that connection. This particular shot keeps standing out to me and I think I really like it because it IS different, growing in it's own free form, just a bit rebelious. It seems appropriate that it is also red. How boring it would be if we were all typical and delicate. I am glad to see a red, non-traditional orchid every now and then - even if they do require different care and nurturing.
So here is the top portion of the Chihuly tonight for my friend, L. I would love to go at night and shoot this when it was all lit up, but this is what I have for now. You can see more of his work here http://www.chihuly.com/chands/chand001.html
This little trio reminded me of dancing starfish. The lighting wasn't so great on these, but I loved the lines and texture.
This is one little section of an incredible blown glass sculpture by Chihuly that is hanging in the atrium entry of the botanical gardens.
I went to the Orchid show today at the botanical gardens. It was magnificient! Since we've had such a warm winter there were several species in full bloom that normally don't put in an appearance this time of year.
I don't know.......I think I see a shadow......but they say it wasn't there. Looks like we'll have six more weeks of this "winter" weather! Happy Ground Hog Day.
I love "old things". People, houses, barns, dishes, linens, books, buildings, trees, iron fences. To me, they are interesting to photograph. 
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