Beauties of Nature

We have been getting rain at least daily and sometimes multiple times daily here.  The grass is growing like gangbusters and everything is green (various shades) which makes for real beauty.

A few nights ago we were under a tornado watch but the weather didn't really develop into much until very late (like after bedtime), but around 6:00 p.m. I noticed some interesting clouds, so I grabbed my digital camera and went outside.  I ended up walking down our lane, down the gravel road and back up the other lane that come into our farmstead.  The views, looking in different directions, with different amounts of sunlight, front-lit and back-lit were pretty incredible.  And I also got some photos of the sunset over the horizon.

Saturday evening on our way home from the homeschool conference, there were quite a few storms brewing on either side of us.  We managed to avoid all but a little bit of rain, but as we approached home there was a beautiful pink sunset with sun rays showing through the dark clouds.  Was sure missing my camera.  While we had it in the vehicle, it was in the very back and we didn't have time to stop and get it to take pictures.  Hubby was trying to get home before dark so he could do a few things before it got dark and another storm hit.

A couple days ago, I hung a decorative wooden birdhouse on a nail on our porch.  Lo and behold, today, we have a couple of wrens, just singing their hearts out as the build a nest it in.  It is right out my office window and I am really enjoying their diligent work and beautiful songs, given the gray, cloudy backdrop that the weather is giving us.

Sorry to disappoint but I didn't get a card reader yet and it seems that my laptop and my camera dock, don't like to work together.  Hopefully this weekend, I can get one.

Wordless Wednesdays - aren't working for me right now

It seems that my camera likes to give me fits, so while I always have lots of pictures, my battery on the camera isn't holding a charge well and the cheaper one that the Walmart employee told me would work in my Kodak camera (instead of the name brand) won't fit. So it takes hours to recharge the camera. By the time it is charged, I don't have time to upload pics to the computer.

Hopefully I will get a new battery soon and resume putting more pictures on my blog. I have blog posts on hold for Homeschool Day at the Capital, the christian concert we attended Saturday night and others. This week we have the education fair and a baby shower for my sister, so I am sure to take lots more pictures. I just hate having to fork over $40 for a battery. Especially since I wear it out in less than 18 months (a rechargable).

So instead of being wordless, I am having Wordy Wednesdays.

Roller Skating

Our homeschool group went rollerskating today. There were 100 people attending, which blew me away. We got there a little late (1/2 hour), but the kids had plenty of time to skate (1.5 hours).

I got to visit a little bit with some of the other moms and attempted to take pictures but due to the poor lighting in the roller rink, my camera didn't want to cooperate very well. Most of the pictures were blurry unless the kids were standing still and posed. After attending a scrapbook retreat last weekend and watching a 20 minute video on improving your pictures, I thought I had the problem figured out. I switched to the sports mode (and the pictures turned out worst). So I just kept shooting, hoping for a few that turned out.

However, I don't think any are worthy of posting, The kids managed to do the chicken dance, the hokey-pokey and the crazy trio dance and didn't fall a ton. Unfortunately, they usually only got 1-2 times a year, so it is hard to get proficient at it.

A big thanks goes out to Melanie who organizes weekly phys ed activities for our group (of 100 families). She puts a lot of time into this and it is so appreciated by all of us. There is a great variety as well: ice skating, roller skating, climbing wall, flag football, hiking, biking, frisbee and gym time, etc.

Finally Some Photos on my Blog

I let the digital pictures really pile up on my cameras digital card (like for 6 months). When I downloaded them, I wasn't able to send them online to be developed because the connections would time out (on their end evidently, because we have broadband), so I finally just took my card into Walmart and got them developed there. There were 376 photos (that was a chunk of developing cost all at once) in all!

When I got home I messed some more with things and got them download onto my ancient (but working wonderfully yet) computer that is getting old (for a computer), so I can back them up to a CD. Now that they are on the computer, it is much easier to access them to post with. So hopefully, in and around other committments this week, I can post some photos of the puppies, our field trips, etc.

Of course if you are a scrapbooker, you already realize that developing 376 photos presents another problem: that even if I was caught up with my scrapbooks (I am not), I would be instantly behind. Oh well, it will help me use up some of my huge stash of scrapbooking supplies (heaven knows that I have plenty!).