beautiful brown eyes

With a bad foot and a broken beak, somehow he gets by; he is strong in spirit.  The flaws we have are not always so obvious but strengths in their own ways nonetheless.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

Amaryllis ~ Macro Monday #123

I had to poke the camera in my first Amaryllis bloom. No doubt. : )  I didn't realize the stalk put out more than one bloom.  I'm loving the burst of color amongst all the white.  But, what do I do with the bulb when it's done blooming?

Macro Monday is easy to play, snap a macro (or any close-up) photo, post it on your blog and come back here and sign MckLinky. :) MM started on Sept 29, 2008 - Thanx to all of you for helping make it such a fun start to the week!

PS - We are on vacation currently so I won't be visiting anyone until we make it back home. Enjoy the week! :)

forever

Watching the sunset over Lake Pontchartrain I feel like I can see forever!  For a moment my world is suspended - I don't move, I don't breathe, I just am - in forever.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

We timed our crossing of the 24 mile bridge perfectly to watch the sun fade from the sky. Everywhere I looked were glorious colors, water and nothing else. Divine!

Cemetery Sooc #34

I have this weird fascination with cemeteries, but I'm not alone I know. I have had this photo in a file for a long time waiting to be shared and just finally decided to through a few Wisconsin cemetery photos here together. They were all taken fall of 2008.  Currently I'm in New Orleans and one of the reasons I came was to see the cemeteries. :)

Murrieta365

pansies

There are moments I can totally forget cancer ever entered my life.  Gazing at such beauty as this is one of those moments.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

We were not alone

We were in the middle of absolutely nowhere, not a car in sight, but we weren't alone.

No matter where we go we cannot ever, ever, get away from chipmunks! sigh

somewhere warmer

Sunshine is good for the soul!  Using its warmth to keep me from the downward spiral.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

Yellowstone life

I think were called mud pots. Whatever they're called they are pretty cool!

It looks like a dying environment, but there are flowers, elk and birds, so it must be alive in ways we cannot see.

Is it safe to breathe?

He was really too far away, but I tried. . .

armadillo

I had to go pretty far south of my house to find a patch of grass not covered by snow. Seems all my backgrounds have been white for so long that I forgot what grass looked like.  What I wouldn't give to have a hard outer shell like an armadillo.  If my armor didn't work maybe I could bend into a ball and just roll away to a better place.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

Armadillos are pretty weird looking. Hairs along each section and on the face.

Tallest Snowman ever?

Saw this snowman near downtown Stevens Point yesterday morning. It's the tallest one I've ever seen.  Rakes for arms, Christmas tree as a hat, lol.  Cell phone pic - it's all I had with me at the time. . .

Red Gold Tomatoes

Not long ago, I got a fun box in the mail. When I opened it up I found Gold! Red Gold Tomatoes ~ Yum!!  I love their mission, “To produce the freshest, best-tasting tomato products in the world.” - sounds good to me!  Let's give them a whirl.

I eagerly found a recipe in the book, opened up a can of 'maters and set to work. I hadn't ever used Red Gold Tomatoes before so I opened up a can of my typical brand to compare. They look pretty much the same and the flavor was pretty close but the Red Gold can had firmer tomatoes, less mushy.

I made the Cheeseburger Macaroni dish (since I didn't have a can of stewed, I used the can of diced) from page 52, living in Wisconsin I knew anything with cheese would be a hit with my boys. We all loved it, very simple, easy clean up, and I not only used the lean ground beef I used wheat noodles to make it even a bit more healthy.

A few days later, we decided to check out the ketchups - my husband loved the jalapeno ketchup - he said he could taste the flavor of the jalapeno but it didn't drown the tomato taste.  He was pleased.  I love the standard ketchup (I'm not a jalapeno girl), it was thick and tasted very tomatoey - NICE!  We've found a not-so-bad-for-us hotdog that's pretty tasty too - Hebrew National has a fat free version that only has 40 calories per dog - pretty impressive if you've ever checked the calorie content of one - if you pair it with a low cal slice of bread and mustard and ketchup you can have a hot dog for about 90 calories - great for summertime cookouts.

Yesterday we took what was left of the cheese and mixed it with one of the cans diced tomatoes and green chilies and started dipping.  I wouldn't mind getting a box like this in the mail every month!

Red Gold has been producing premium quality tomato products since 1942 and Red Gold’s Tomatoes are processed from vine to can within 24hours from their Indiana, Ohio and Michigan farm fields.

We are trying to eat healthier and the more I read about the company, the more I am impressed. Wish the billboard was still up in Memphis I would stop by on our way through and check out those huge 3D cans "big enough to hold 1,500 racks of Memphis ribs".

Marco?

What state am I in?

waiting

Waiting isn't always bad.  The branches are currently bare, but it won't be long until winter has done its job of helping the tree rest, and leaves will spring forth to dance on warm winds.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

Yellowstone

This deer thought it was hidden, yet there were several of us pointing cameras at it, lol.

I'm so taken aback with thermals, a terrifying concept, yet intriguing too!

How deep does that hole go? Why is white around the edges? So many questions; so much to see!

Amazing that flowers can grow in this environment!

Not sure what these bubbles are about. I wanted to poke them but was afraid the thermal would melt my finger off, lol.

sugar

Did you know cancer cells love sugar even more than we do.  They eat it up and use it as fuel to multiply, to grow.  Thanx Mr Oncologist for ruining my love affair with sweets!

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

books or nook?

We are so close to hitting the road to New Orleans, and while getting things gathered up, I paused and thanked my lovely nook once again for keeping me from lugging 5 books in a bag.  The nook takes up a lot less room and weighs a lot less than taking all of those books. :0)

I still need to name my nook, any suggestions?