Rubí has been placed in front of the camera since before birth, and has been photographed plenty since she was born till now. So it stands to reason that she is more than comfortable in front of the camera, even Nana's cell phone today before church. ... Read More

I'm her mom and her teacher, and am always proud of Laura. Today both those roles were proud again, when she handed in this extra credit English project, a poem, which she put on one of her photos. It reads: Never should you forget the One who formed you in the womb Never should you forget the Mighty One who can save you from your doom Never should your Bible collect dust from neglect For the One who inspired it, deserves your respect. Always put ... Read More

Long ago, I gave my dad a photo collage of photos for Christmas. I made the theme to be "Daddy's Girls." If I recall, he really liked it, and it hung in the living room for years. For a long while now, it got moved to the basement. A few days ago, I don't know what happened, but the glass, photos, and three sides of the frame just gave up the ghost, and it all collapsed to the floor. So I thought ... Read More

It's not unusual for me to announce, "Nice light on some mushrooms outside" or "Spider on the side of the house." while rushing into the house grabbing my camera gear, and Laura doing the same. Today we had a spider, he was quite large. Well, Silas must be learning by example as I found him grabbing HIS camera (an old cell phone that he is allowed to play with) to take a photo of the spider. ... Read More

Yesterday, my son Enric brought in a caterpillar and then later Miquel came in to tell me get the camera ready, there was a stick bug on his car.  Later and very enthusiastically I showed John my photos. His comment? "Nice bum shot." I didn't know that on the stick bug, I didn't shoot the correct end. :) And to be honest, it took me awhile to figure which end was which on the caterpillar. It's not easy sometimes! Anyway, after those two critters ... Read More

We were so pleased to see one tiny flower in bloom today as we walked out the front door. ... Read More

Happy New Year! For my first new thing this year, I started a new Photography Portfolio!  » Please see it HERE ... Read More

Today the popular photo sharing site, Flickr was offline. It set my Canon 40D group in a near panic. Someone shared with the group however, an interesting site to help you determine if indeed a site is down to just you (and the issue is your connection) or it's down to everyone. Down or Not When I went to Down or Not and looked up Flickr.com, this is the information the site gives you;  all the attempts that tried and failed. ... Read More

Heather on Facebook, introduced me to a very cute program called PhotoFunia. Look at some of the cute things it can do to any photo! A Chalk drawing effect. John and I in a puzzle. This one is an animation. That's me in the sketch! Don't know if the world is ready for Barb on a billboard. Try it out HERE, it's fun! ... Read More

A week after we took our little orphan kitty home, I can report that he is growing fast, eating lots from his bottle, and now starting to walk (waddle) around and investigate his new home. Laura has been a good mommy, feeding him, washing him, and taking very good care of him. We don't have a name for him yet, but we have been throwing a few ideas around. 57 Chevy has been rejected, as well as Crowser. We seem to be leaning towards ... Read More

We've had very little winter here in Maryland. The temperatures have been cold, but no snow. Today we had a few flakes. Inspired by Beth Ellen's snowflakes,  I thought to take a close up photo of one as they fell on the car windshield. So, here is my first (and I hope not my last) snowflake photo! ... Read More

Miranda is going to win awards soon for her photography. See this one of Silas. She calls it "Prayers"     ... Read More

Unlike years in the past, I haven't really been watching the Summer Olympics this year. I feel a little out of the loop considering before, I would dedicate time to watch the Olympics, both Summer and Winter. It's a bit of a shame to have missed a lot of it so far, especially when an old neighbor of ours won a silver medal in swimming. Here is another thing that I missed, but Bill O'Reilly talked about it last night. It seems the ... Read More

Have you ever observed a humming-bird moving about in an aerial dance among the flowers - a living prismatic gem.... it is a creature of such fairy-like loveliness as to mock all description.  ~W.H. Hudson, Green Mansions I have been trying now for awhile to capture a hummingbird with my new camera. I finally had a little success! Larger image HERE ... Read More

In our family, spring brings on a slew of birthdays in a row, starting in April, and not slowing down till end of June. The addition of Petra to the family didn't change that. No sooner have we calmed down from Linda's birthday, it's time to celebrate another. This photo was taken of Petra (on the left) and I before a dance. Mom had made both our dresses and we are modeling for the camera. Petra, may all your dreams come true, you ... Read More

The ornaments of your house will be the guests who frequent it.  ~Author Unknown Yesterday we had to say good-bye to Jared. It was nice to have his company. If only for a little while, I had in my home "a camera friend" which Laura has wished for me to have for years now. Mom got to feed and spoil yet someone else. Laura got to pick on (and be picked on by) yet another "brother".   For Miquel, was able to spend extra time with ... Read More

Well as our guest Jared soon found out, not only is our place a nuthouse, it's part zoo. We seem to have aquired a groundhog that has decided to make its home in our yard. Jared quickly went about getting its picture. Jared got some fabulous shots up close. Knowing the limitations of my camera, I just had fun taking photos of Jared getting the groundhog. ... Read More

When my son got back from Northland, the members of the band (Ryan, Simeon, and Doug) presented him with newly written music and a deadline of June 6th at Chapelgate Presbyterian Church for their first gig. After much practice (in our barn) the day was here. They are really talented and their efforts paid off last night. They connected very well. I was happy that I wasn't the only proud parent there (some brought earplugs). I took a ton of photos last night, some in black ... Read More

Mother's Day was a day of recovering from my trip and I spent it with my mom, together with my sister and her family. For this mother's day, I thought I would share this lovely photograph I took of Miranda and little Silas. I took this image as we hiked around Reflection Lake at Northland, in Wisconsin. Many blessings to all mothers!   ... Read More

  I had a conversation of my own with Grit (of Brit and Grit ) and became immediately curious as to the views outside his window, which he was nice enough to supply . However, I was told I need to return the favor. Images of where I live I have posted already at Unique Exposures . Here are two views when all was greener: As you can see we have a barn next to the house. A swing in the front. This is ... Read More

I know I posted some older photos of past Easter's last time, so it only seems right to post the most recent. Easter was a cold one this year, so that explains Miquel's trench coat and gloves. Laura wore a new dress sewn by my mom, and she looked just dazzling in it, which is good because Mom worked hard! The rest of the day was a nice one, spent with family and nice homemade meal of ham, mashed potatoes, and every kind of vegetable ... Read More

With snow in the forecast, and one valentine taken care of already, I decided to take Laura out for our annual Valentine's Day at the Mall early. She picked out more happiness from Hollister - an adorable shirt from Hollister to get ready for summer, a head band to complete the look, and one Hollister scarf to have for the rest of this winter and a few more to come, I hope.       Hope everyone has a great Valentines!     ... Read More

Us web designers just can't seem to get off the net. Our creative minds are always looking for something else to do. I have always wanted to do a lyrics site but didn't have any idea how to make it work. On my photo blog, I started adding lyrics to the photos and saw in my stats how it was attracting a few people there, looking up the words to songs. So that led me to think I could do a Lyrics ... Read More

My son works at CVS pharmacy, and these days pharmacies do more than just medicine. There is a photo-processing section. One particular day, a photo he admired a lot was given to him by a customer. This is his photo of Todd Heap, of the Baltimore Ravens, in what has to be almost the play of the year! Nice customer!   Larger Image here   ... Read More

Not completely sure I have identified this surprise early morning visitor to our backyard cherry tree this morning, but I think it is a red tailed hawk. Larger image here   I am thankful for all the emails and input I have received. Although there doesn't seem to be a grand agreement, I do seem to have it narrowed down to a juvenile Cooper's Hawk, or a juvenile Red-tailed hawk. Now, my dear sweet aussie, gumnut, who has never been to ... Read More

Us website owners never get enough of new projects it seems, and apparently I am no exception. My newest is a weekly photo challenge. If you have a photography site, or a place where you upload photos and you would like to promote yourself, your site, and your photography, weekly photo challenges are a good place to get your name and talent out. I intend to give a new challenge each weekend, so once one sees the topic they have all week ... Read More

While we were coming back from one of our trips to D.C., the rest of us walking NORMALLY from the metro to the car, I noticed Miquel deviate from just walking and leap up on the lamppost as he made his way. Naturally I told him that he should make a warning to his 'Mom with a camera' so I can be ready. He graciously re-did the leap, getting excellent height I might add. I set the camera on making 5 successive ... Read More

These days there are some people who just have more than one. Not sure of their reasons, but as for me, I have decided to create a new and separate photo blog. My reasons: One, to upgrade this version of WordPress scares me. Two, to upgrade this version of Word Press scares me. Ok, so I am a big chicken. But I've put a lot of work into this particular blog and the idea of possibly wiping out my labors in an upgrade is ... Read More

“And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily …” (Colossians 3:23) Said my daughter in law, Miranda to Enric, after inspecting the flat tire revealed on a trip from Wisconsin to Maryland. What could have been a time of dispair for many, was a time for her to make light of a situation, stuck on a highway with a tire that looked like that. You have to admit, when they got a flat tire, they did it heartily . ... Read More

"Everyone smiles in the same language." At Unique Exposures (a photo sharing gallery site for all levels of photography), each month we have a monthly theme. We decide or vote on a new and different topic. For the month of October, however, our RevGary offered a different idea. He asked if the theme could be "Six things that make Barb smile" Well, there are so many things that make me smile, it seemed impossible to restrict them to just six, but ... Read More

You know, one doesn't have to travel far to look for adventure. Sometimes, the gnomes, the fairies, the mythilogical creatures of our imaginations are as close as our own backyard. Spells are cast, incantations overflowing, sprites hide behind the mushrooms as toads hop from rock to rock. Dwarfs surely tell jokes by the Indian Pipe plant. I had such a two day experience. See My photo page, some of the wonders I discovered... ... Read More

"An old memory" that was the subject line from an email from my dearest and most long time friend ever, Myrna. I couldn't imagine what it was going to be, except perhaps, something had happened to trigger a memory of times together so many years ago. Her dad was the minister of our church in Baltimore (and later in Pasadena). Mom often taught Sunday School, Bible School, and later played the piano for services. The photo she sent, sure tugged at my ... Read More

The other night, we had a violent storm roar in, bringing with it pounding rains, loud, earth shaking clapping thunder, and constant flashes of lightning....and something else...something noisy coming from the pool area. Laura was the first to notice it. She tried to get my attention. I wasn't very quick to respond. The storm had been conjured up from the hot and humid conditions of the day, and it had taken all my energy. I wasn't ready for a romp in ... Read More