Sunday was a day of going to church, having a big lunch, shopping at Bj's, watching the Raven's game, baking oatmeal raisin cookies, and then Laura drove John and I around so we could take photos of the Christmas lights around the neighborhood. First, Larua's favorite house in Pasadena. One house made a statement with only ONE light, a spotlight.   ... Read More

"I'm so glad we had that storm last week," said Chris Matthews,  "...The storm brought in possibilities for good politics." Someone is going to have to help me understand that one. A mother had two of her little sons taken from her in a surge of water and they died! Death toll at last count was 110. Is the liberal media that void of love for others and that much contempt for the other side that they can actually SAY something ... Read More

  Ever since Laura and Miquel were young, they participated in Patch the Pirate at Anchor Baptist Church. It's a great way for young ones to learn Bible truths and memorize scripture. They have a lot of fun too! Patch the Pirate was started by Ron Hamilton, who lost his eye to cancer. Through this tragic loss, he built a ministry and now young people all over enjoy his music and stories. (You can read his story HERE) Now all these years later, I ... Read More

"Simplicity is making the journey of this life with just baggage enough. " ~Author Unknown   Moving around as I now do, has shown me that I need to simplify my life. I already know I can't take it with me, but as long as I live on this earth, I really need to figure out how to move around the world with as few complications as possible. It's not a new lesson by far, as I already have had to take 20 ... Read More

It was time for tearful good-byes. My heart was never going to be ready for it, but I wasn't mentally prepared either. The day to leave came so fast. This is going to be my life. 5 More hours and the total travel time give or take was 38 hours. I slept nearly the whole next day! I am thankful for a boring  and uneventful trip...for loved ones around the world...and to my husband who is patient and does all he can to make ... Read More

Growing up, Christmas music, Christmas plays, Nativity Scenes, and Christmas Cantatas at Church were a part of the season. My sister, mom, and I participated in more than a few Christmas Cantatas. Often times the music would play in my head as we practiced for the special night or day we would sing to Church. Today at our Church Home, Anchor Baptist, we had the Christmas Cantata in the evening service. Laura videoed at Enric's request, Janelle and the children. Laura said when ... Read More

John uses Pentax, I use Canon, and for a long while now, Laura was using a Nikon. I thought we were going to be a three brand camera family. :) It turns out that Laura has made a big switch, not only from a point and shoot camera, but to a DSLR. I think me already having lenses for a Canon helped her decision some, but the price and the stats on her Canon Canon EOS Rebel T3i also made ... Read More

Recent events, if my cell phone photo album told the story... ... Read More

Laura and I spent a part of the last two days taking in the fall colors... (Click on image to enlarge) And on yesterday's outing, this was our welcome back committee. :) ... Read More

We have a lot of trees on our little acre. Which means this time of year, we have a lot of LEAVES! Silas made this one pile his play area the other day. He really didn't want his picture taken, but I couldn't resist. ... Read More

Autumn is my favorite time of year, and I was so pleased when Kimi said she wanted her engagement photos in autumn. We went to Kinder Farm Park for the photoshoot. Please see the photo gallery » » HERE (click the image below if you want to see a larger image of the collage) ... Read More

Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~George Eliot   Today the weather was so autumn perfect, Laura and I decided to take a walk with a little cranky Rubí. I think she needed to get out with her Tia and Nana, because she had a great time and forgot all about being cranky. (Click on image to enlarge). ... Read More

On happier news, Miranda did something different with Rubí's head of curls, she put the hair in cute pigtails!   ... Read More

Today we began in earnest pulling up the carpet from the living room/dining room and putting down new flooring. This is an important event in our household, number one, because it means so much to Mom, and number two, so many people were involved in making it all possible. We are so excited to get this done for Mom! She was all smiles and very happy. I do believe we have a skate in our socks scheduled for this evening. :)   ... Read More

Today Laura and I decided to take a walk at Fort Smallwood Park. We saw a helicopter overhead, at the time we didn't notice that it was channel 13 news. There were these extra large dandelions on the beach... On the same beach, a beautiful butterfly landed. A crab washed up too. There were blackbirds in the trees. Then we saw this great blue heron. and we took a few hundred photos of it! It flew away, sort of frustrated with all the attention we were giving it... Sometimes, ... Read More

On one of our outings in Australia, we spent the day in Fremantle. To come home we drove up the coast of the Indian Ocean. As it turns out, I had to ask John to stop every five minutes to get photos. This sunset, kept changing and getting more amazing as the evening progressed. It was the best sunset ever. Photos » HERE   Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. ... Read More

As promised, I have broken up the wedding photos into three sets. At each wedding there are always the formal "posed" photos. Miquel and Jenny's wedding was no exception. Where I prefer natural and candid shots, everyone seemed to enjoy posing for the photographer. Enjoy, and you can click on the photo to get an enlarged image.   ... Read More

(Two cat posts in a row) There is a place in our neighborhood where it seems to be a haven for cats. They just live there. There is evidence that people bring things to them, I have even spotted a lady bringing a bag full of food from her truck, taking it to them, and then get back in  her truck and drive away. These cats, (and there are times I see many in number, various shapes and sizes), can be a bit ... Read More

We went to Target some time ago, and I picked up these bunny ears, thinking they would be cute for Rubí. But it was Silas who truly wanted them! So we came home with bunny ears. :)   ... Read More

Rubí is our little "munchquinita" of our household. Saturday, she and her brother were left in my care. Silas was busy playing, then she was trying to hang on my leg for attention. I finally bent down with my camera and grabbed these... ... Read More

I finally was able to put up all the photos of Embers for Ashes, (well not all as I took 700), but rather 40 photos of their last gig at Ram's Head Live, Miquel's last official gig with the band as lead VOX. You can see the photos HERE (2 pages of photos, only the first 40 are from their last gig) You can also see a video excerpt below. :)     ... Read More

These children are growing up so quickly! I think Rubí is now at that stage that every day there seems to be something new for her to learn! In today's photoshoot I saw so much of her Mama in her. ... Read More

I am starting to upload to my gallery photos of Wave Rock in Australia. The visit there was short and a lot left to be explored. I hope to go back. :) Wave Rock Photos | Australia Photos Also I've created a short Animoto Slide show: Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. ... Read More

One Saturday, John took Laura and I to Whiteman Park to see the bird show. We loved it! I finally put photos up in my gallery » HERE. I also created an Animoto slide show: Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. ... Read More

Today, Rubí is 7 months old! She is starting to crawl, she loves attention, and she is a happy little baby! We are all looking forward to her first Christmas! ... Read More

While in Australia, we stopped by Yallingup Beach. It was breath-taking. I finally put a few photos of this wonderful place >> HERE Yallingup is a coastal township positioned on a hill overlooking the stunning Yallingup Beach. The coastline here is dramatic, as jagged rocks and high cliff faces are met by a haze of sea spray from the swell below. Yallingup Beach, Smiths Beach and Injidup Beach all offer some of the finest surf breaks in the world. One of ... Read More

My photos are now posted in the gallery »  HERE VALLEY OF THE GIANTS TREE TOP WALK east of Walpole, only 10 minutes from Nornalup, Bow Bridge and Peaceful Bay, in the Walpole-Nornalup National Park. The park is nearly 20,000 hectares of towering karri ... Read More

I just finished putting up Hamelin Bay photos up in my gallery. Please visit HERE! Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. ... Read More

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. Just finished today putting up the photos taken at Cape Leeuwin. Cape Leeuwin is the most south-westerly mainland point of the Australian Continent, in the state of Western Australia. A few small islands and rocks, the St Alouarn Islands, extend further to the south. The nearest settlement, north of the cape, is Augusta. South-east of Cape Leeuwin, the coast of Western Australia goes a lot further south. Located on headland of the cape is the Cape ... Read More

I've posted photos on my gallery of our two visits to Perth Zoo. Click Here, there are two pages to see! Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. ... Read More

Just a quick movie to let you know I have uploaded a good many photos from the Kings Park Flower Festival. To see all the photos, click here, there are two pages. These are amazing flowers, so different than anything we have here in Maryland. Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. ... Read More

Quite a few people have expressed interest in the photos taken in Australia. I took over 6,000 photos, but am trying to hand-pick a few to put in my gallery. The following is a start in a slow process. I hope you enjoy! Here is what I have so far: Random Photos of Australia Perth Hillary's Boat Harbor AQWA In the Hills Caversham Wildlife Park (2 pages) ... Read More

Yesterday I took Jenny and Miquel's engagement photos. Lake Waterford provided a great, lush, natural background for their photos. We all had fun. The rest are here » Jenny and Miquel See more of my portraits here » Barb's Portraits ... 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 had a lovely visitor to our front yard this evening... It just wanted some dinner. Needless to say Laura and I were thrilled! I took these photos from a spot  through the window. So not the best photos, but I didn't want to scare it and have it run into the road! ... Read More