Lighthouses, Windmills and Sculptures...

Module 7 - shaping the subject and yet again I found myself touring the local area for things to photograph. Thankfully I took the photos on Sunday and Monday when the the weather was still good and the skies relatively clear - unfortunately I cannot say the same of tonight and as I type it is raining.
After hearing the nicknames for the "Lady of Tranquility" - "Nuala with the Hula" and "The Doll on the Ball", my beloved sister has nicknamed me the "Nutter with the Shutter"!!

I am still wearing my crocs and I fear that they may need to be surgically removed from my feet at the end of the summer.
My rather dull life at the moment means that I really have nothing else to blog and to prevent me boring you to death with my endless twitterings, I will bid you goodnight as I leave you with my 3 photo entries.







P.S. Janine, you and the boys are welcome anytime to enjoy the Jungle Gym and whatever else we have in the garden for that matter!!

Love them or hate them?

Crocs. Last year I made a conscious decision not to fall for these fabulously brightly coloured, comfortable, breathable, anti-microbial and washable shoes - that was until today!! I can honestly say that these have to be the most comfortable shoes I have ever worn - go on, give them a try!

It's here !!!

Dropping by really quickly to show you our Jungle Gym. It only took the guys an impressive 3 hours to put it up and in typical Northern Ireland fashion - the weather is now rubbish!! :(
Lauren is impressed and Amy is frustrated that she can't climb it ....yet!! As you can see from the picture we bought Amy a swing seat as she loves the swings in the park - however we seem to have developed a slight "fear" of swings etc. in the last week or two, no bad thing I may add because until now this child has been fearless!!

Sun, Friends & Photos

Ok, so it has been a week since I last blogged, but I have been too busy enjoying this glorious weather, catching up with friends (and eating some deliciously fab cake - thanks Janine) and taking photos for my next photography module - portraits.

Tomorrow sees the installment of our Jungle Gym. It is really an early birthday present for the girls as they both have summer birthdays. I am hoping that this summer does not turn out to be a repeat of last year as I am banking on spending a lot of my sunfilled days in the garden and the girls kept busy exploring the Jungle Gym.

I have just got back from the DELTA course being held at Lauren's future school - and *gulp* I think I need to go back to school!! Tonight was all about reading and writing and whilst it is exciting to think that by the end of next year Lauren will be able to read and write, I feel a little nervous about my role and how I am going to entertain Amy, who is magnetically attracted to trouble, whilst giving Lauren "her time." Assured by friends who have been there - it can be done!!

I leave you now with the photos I submitted to Module 6:

What's missing?.....

That's right, the stabilisers are gone!! In one afternoon Lauren is now cycling competently without her stabilisers. Determined as she is she would not be put off, even after a few falls - and it paid off!! We are so proud of her!!
Here she is cycling in the garden.

Beautiful

After a misty and dull start, today turned into the most beautiful day, so untypical of bank holiday weather, not a cloud and blue, blue sky - just to show you how blue I photographed a tulip against the sky -



We didn't have to rush to school either as Lauren was off and the girls had great fun playing in the garden and watering, to the point of drowning some of our potted plants.

I headed off to Ballyholme beach after the girls bedtime rituals to watch and photograph the sunset as part of my photography course. This week its all about silhouettes. Can't believe I am now half way through the course and it has totally transformed the way I compose photos - hopefully for the better!!
Have you had taken the time to sit and watch a sunset? I honestly don't think I have ever taken the time to watch the colour of the sky change so dramatically - what a beautiful end to a beautiful day. Here is what I captured -

Update...

My Mum had her operation yesterday which went well and without complications. She made good progress last night in ITU and will hopefully be able to chat with my Dad this morning.

Thank-you to everyone who has offered prayerful support. I thank God that He was with her,(and continues to be) and the rest of our family during her operation yesterday.

Another week...

Lauren's first GB display was on Saturday night and she was a little star!! Lots of proud mummy moments as she skipped (59 to be precise), played musical chairs and performed a little dance with the others, complete with raincoat, wellies and umbrella.
I was also thrilled to discover that she had won a cup for being the best girl in her age group and a lovely pink ballerina skipping rope for the highest number of skips on the night.





Amy has just this morning discovered some new acrobatic skills - head over heels complete with welllies on!! I have no doubt that the first one was a complete accident, but afterwards she stood up, gave a hearty laugh and repeated the whole thing again. She has also discovered that head over heels on carpet is good, whilst head over heels on wooden floor is bad!!

I have also been busy taking....and deleting photos for the 4th module "turn & tilt" of the photography course. I'm not overly happy with the 3 I have submitted but time has not been on my side this week.


Coloured pencils


Ballycopeland Windmill


Lauren and her "dreamy look"

I was simply delighted to see that summer had arrived on Tuesday and bitterly disappointed to find that it had gone by Wednesday. Unfortunately that is N.I. for you and you just have to grab whatever summer clothes you have at hand and make the most of it.

Today, my Mum has gone to Dublin for heart surgery tomorrow. I am somewhat anxious for her, yet I know that God will be with her at this time. I would appreciate your prayers for her, for I know that God listens to and answers our prayers. Thank-you.

And so, it is near the end of another week, where do they go?