link ups!

I'm entering these two photos in two different challenges.  Have a great weeked everyone!

awkward and awesome thursday

awkward:

- This.  This my dear friends, is the lovely shoe I have been wearing for the last week.  I broke and dislocated my toe.  How?  It's going to amaze you....  It was dramatic...  I kicked a table.  I know right?  Totally awesome!  No?!  Nope.  It's a pretty lame story...  A little girl asked me yesterday at church if it was mismatched shoe night.  Um...no.  No...it's not.

- Having two and a half weeks of History homework to do.  Not good.

- My mom's garden.  Seriously, there is a stream running through it.

- Typing words wrong and then sending an email.  I hate when I do that. 

- Feeling like school will never end even though there are only a few weeks left.  (Not sure if that's awkward.  I'm pretty sure that's called normal.)

- My dogs.  We shaved them for the summer and they look ridiculous.  Never underestimate the skill of a professional groomer.  I will not post pictures.  You might not read my blog ever again if you see them!  (Unless you really want to see it...)

awesome:

- This picture:

The fact that I was able to jump, not get my camera wet, and take the picture is pretty epic for me.  :)

- That I am learning a ton about shooting manually right now.

- I'm signed up for a photography class this summer!  I'm so excited!

- That I almost have 100 followers!  (p.s. Just thought you'd like to know there is going to be a giveaway with some awesome stuff!  If you would like to sponser, please email me.)

- This blog post.  I really like doing this awesome & awkward thing.  I might do it again!  :)

some of my favorite blogs

I want to highlight for you some of my favorite bloggers.  There are a lot of great blogges out there, but here are some of my most favorite ones...

People that I know personally:

Just Passin' Through

Only Here-Only Now

Guarded Hearts

Kristen's Journey

Olive Shoots and Muddy Boots
(This is my mom's blog.)

Family from Afar
(We traveled to Ethiopia together!)

Other blogs:

allie photography

horsefeathers

pastor's girl's ponderings

aspire

Paper Heart

Me. That's all I have to be.

confessions of emma claire

Farmgirl in Flipflops

Those are some of my favorites!  If you haven't already, you should check them out!!  :)

you might have noticed...

You might have noticed that my blog was closed overnight.  Why?  Well, I was making a new design, and I absolutely love this one!  Megan, I have to thank you for your wonderful tutorials!  They help me so much!  :)  So, I think this design will stay up for a while.  I might work on it every once in a while, but for now, it is here to stay!  :)  Hope you like it!

self-portrait contest

Polka Dot (click on the button to get to her blog) is having a fun contest with some really cool prizes!  I'm submitting two of my current favorite portraits of my sisters!  What do you think?

happy monday {siblings}

I knew I had to do this week's Happy Monday.  I have so many pictures of my siblings, so it was really hard to choose one.  I took this picture the other day while I was experimenting with sunflares and such...

My photos have been looking a little grainy lately.  I think it might have something to do with my 50mm lens.  I'm not sure!

learning from an egg

For two little boys, it is hard to remember what Easter really is about.  Admist the candy and toys and traditions, they forget.  We all forget.  We love to have the traditions, but sometimes, those traditions suck us in.  We think that if we don't do that tradition, the holiday won't be complete.  Sometimes, those traditions can even be bad because they are so distracting. 

But for those two little boys, dying eggs teaches them.  They learn what Jesus really did in a way they can understand.  Let's face it.  They are not going to learn very much from the Sunday sermon on Easter morning.  It's just not going to hapen.

But they can learn from an egg.

They can touch it and hold it.  They understand what they can see.  They know that an egg symbolizes new life.  They might not be able to learn that from anything else right now.

For two little boys, and for five others, they remembered, again, what Jesus did.  They remembered that they are small and they are sinners.

They learned that God gave them new life.  Even though they are all different, they are saved by His mercy and grace.  So are you.

Happy Easter!

savannah: part 1

I really believe that Savannah, Georgia is one of my favorite places.  Whenever we go to South Carolina for vacation, we always go to Savannah one day out of the week.  It's a beautiful place.  This year, unfortunately, only some of the family was able to go, but it was still fun!  Of course I had to take pictures of it!  :)  So, for those of you who have never been to Savannah, here's a little tour!

This is the bridge that takes you to Savannah.  It's huge.  And the view from it is amazing!

Because this city is so old, there are a lot of squares that are dedicated to historical figures.  These squares are almost like gardens - there are flowers and trees and fountains.  Of course, there are the signs that tell all the tourists all they want to know about such and such who lived so many years ago.  My brother and I had fun (I guess you can call it fun) telling my dad all about these people.  We just learned about most of them.  You could even call it bragging.  Yah, we're homeschooled like that.  We take pride in telling people what we know.  I'm just kidding.   You gotta love homeschool jokes.  :)

On almost every park bench, there are people playing music or selling sweetgrass that they have woven.  My dad bought this flower.  

The churches are amazing there!!  It would be so neat to go to an Easter service in one of them.  It's so neat to think that 200 years ago, people were worshipping God in these same buildings...

(This picture is a little overexposed, but I love it!)  Savannah is such a beautiful place.  If you ever get the chance, you should go!!  That was Part 1.  I took so many pictures, that I decided to put them into two different posts.  Come back tomorrow for Part 2! 



the best interesting vacation

The title says it all guys. 

I'm glad to be home, but when it goes from 77 degrees to 41 degress in just a few hours, I get very sad.  So, you might be wondering why this was the best, most interesting vacation.  Well, I could vent like I did to my friend (sorry dear!), but I won't.  I'll just tell you that when you live in a family of nine, the stomach flu passes around very quickly.  Very quickly.  Or slowly - if you're on vacation.  Moving on...how about I just show you some pictures?

I took a lot of them.  For now, these are the ones I have edited.  I was so glad I had my camera.  Even though we only got to do things together as a family the last two days (see?  I told you it was bad.  One of my brothers was on the couch almost the entire week), I took almost 300 pictures of anything and everything I saw.  :)

This is SOOC.  I love it a whole stinkin' lot.  (I can't believe I just said that.  I'm starting to sound like The Pioneer Woman.  Help me.)

I got pretty obessed with the brances, leaves, etc. against the sky thing.  It's one of the best ways to capture a palm tree though.

Yes, it was an awesome trip.  Yes, it was well-worth it and much needed.  I am so glad we went. 

City Girl//Country Girl

I do not think that I will ever be able to live in the city.  I know, I know.  Those of you who love the city, gasp now.  But, I just don't like the city. 

I went to the city last weeked - not my city, but another one.  It was an amazing opportunity to take pictures, since I hardly ever see the city. 

You see, I'm a country girl.  I live on 32 acres, I live outside in the summers, and I go on "adventures" with my siblings.  There's no one to see me.  No one knows what we do, no one can here the secrets we whisper in the forest.  Nobody but us knows about those memories.  But, when you're in the city, everyone's watching - or so it seems.  




Please ignore the insanely dirty hotel room window.


I don't know what it is about that the city that I don't like.  There's so many people, so many sounds.  When you are used to living in the country where all you can hear in the summer is tractors in the fields and the occasional car on the road, those sounds are so different.

What I love about the country is that I can be myself.  I can run and play and shout and sing whenever and wherever I want.  I don't have to worry about getting embarrassed.  There's grass and dirt and trees and stars and quiet and peace.  That's what I love about the country.

Weather is Crazy

 So, the other day, I was sitting inside doing my school.  Suddenly, I looked out the window, and this was what I saw...

Isn't this crazy!?  Do you see those buds on the tree?  Um, yes, it's spring - and it's snowing.  Craziness!

It looked pretty.  It really did.  But, it's spring.  It doesn't (or shouldn't) snow in spring!

I just wanted to share this with you guys.  I was actually very proud of my pictures because it was the first time I was able to capture snow falling.  I'm just glad the snow is actually gone now!!  



Murphy's Law

Good ol' Murphy.  He decided to stay at our house this week.  I could make a list of all the things that have happened, but I won't.  Let's just say, they all happened in the week before we leave for vacation.

It's true - we're going on vacation!  *insert screams and jumps and shouts of joy here*  My family and I have not been on vacation in almost two years, so we are very excited. 

Anyway, I know I haven't been good at blogging.  We were very busy.  If you were at my house this week, you might have left shaking your head and thinking I and my family are crazy.  I do it myself sometimes!  :)  That is why I haven't blogging in a while.  Between strep throat, catching up on homework, and packing, I just haven't had time.

So, I am going to schedule some posts tonight, and we shall see if they work.  I haven't scheduled a post before.  If not, you all will have to be patient, because I am going to come back with tons of pictures from the beach!  :)

Basically, this post is me rambling - partly to myself, partly to you.  What you need to know is that I will be gone.  See you later!

A List {of random things}

1.  My 365 blog has officially failed.  I am going to make a ton of changes to it.  Probably a photo a week instead of everyday.  We shall see.  If you follow, you are fine.  I'm just going to change the concept. 

2.  I went outside with a bathing suit on!!  Yes!!  Spring break for my family is in six days, and it was so warm today, that I decided to get used to my bathing suit.  Plus, it always helps to get a little tan before I go.  ;)

3.  I am being featured here tomorrow!  Thanks Nicolasa!

4.  I have so many things I want to post about, I just haven't gotten to them.

5.  I must leave you now.  I have homework.  My weekends are not pretty when I take almost two days off from school.

6.  Goodbye!  Have a wonderful Monday!

Horsefeathers Blog Party

Sorry I've been absent.  I was gone for a few days without internet!  Anyway,  Olivia over at Horsefeathers is having an awesome blog party!  You should go check it out.  There are some awesome prizes!!

Favorite season, and why?  My favorite season is definitely summer!  I love being able to be outside where it is warm.  Key word: warm.

How would you describe your personal style?  Well, this is a hard question to answer.  I don't really have a huge stlye I guess.  I wear what I like and I really don't know how to explain it.  I'm cheap, I can tell you that.  :)

What's one weird thing you can do?  (The stranger the better.)  The answer is actually something I can't do.  I can't touch my toes.  At all.  I can't get even close to them.  That sounds pretty boring.  Sorry. 

Rain or shine?  Shine!  I like rain, but only if it's the rain you can dance in!  :)

Confession time...what's a flaw of yours?  Well, there's a lot.  My main ones are probably being "bossy" toward my siblings, and talking back to my parents.  I do that a lot sadly.

Favorite music?  I like Christian and country, specifically Taylor Swift.  But, to be honest, I don't listen to music that much.  I don't have time, and I don't have an iPod.

Have you ever made a decision you instantly regretted?  What was it?  I tend to think after I speak.  Many times I say something to people I am just meeting, and I think, "Ugh!  Why did I just say that?!  They're going to think I'm a dork or something!"  I'm working on that.  I've done it too many times to narrow it down.

Who do you admire/look up to?  Well, of course I look up to my momma.  I'm a huge fan of Jane Austen too.  Is it possible to look up to your little sisters?  Well, I do.  That sounds a little weird.

You've just won a lifetime supply of...what?  Hmmm...I would have to say clothes.  I always need them, and I'm still growing out of them!  Don't forget the occasional purses and jewelry too!  :)

If you were an animal, what would you be?  I would be my outdoor cat, Will.  He gets to do whatever he wants all day long.  He is free.  He sits in the weeds, quietly, thinking about his purpose (or something like that)!  He gets the attention he craves, then moves on without a backward glance.  There's something beautiful in a cat.

If you were going to die in a year, what would you do with your time?  I'd do all the things I put off until tomorrow.  I'd read that next book, meet that next person, read that next Bible passage, have that next sleepover.  If this were really happening, I'd get on a plane and fly to Ethiopia.  I'd go back to the places I went in November and hold my sponser child and meet my siblings.

You're now a gazillionare...where do you go to spend your money?  Honestly, I'd give it to my mom so she could build her dream home.  With the leftover money, I'd put it away and save for a car and college.  Then, I think I would bribe someone to make our adoption go faster.  Just kidding. :)

Classical music:  love it or hate it?  I really don't like it.  It's OK for a little while, but then, I will have to leave the room so I can regain my sanity. 

Phobias?  Talking on the phone.  I really don't like to pick up the phone and talk to someone I don't know.  It's hard to explain, so I'll use the excuse:  I'm homeschooled.  I'm anti-social.  Don't get me wrong, if I know the person in the slightest, I feel fine talking to them.  I don't know what it is, but I can't talk to people I don't know unless I absolutely have to.

Hop on a plane and go live somewhere for a year...where is it and why?  Take a random guess.  My second home:  Ethiopia.  Why?  I have siblings there, somewhere.  (You guys are going to be very tired of hearing about this I think.  Sorry!)  But, when I went last November, I felt so welcome there.  Even though they are poor and desperate there, I would still go.  I'd meet my siblings.  I would love and hold them.  I would go to the schools I visited and spend time with the kids there.  Oh, and I would attempt to learn Amharic - the language they speak there.

Are you an extrovert or introvert?  I think I'm somewhere in the middle.  I don't go crazy when I meet people, such as treat them like I've known them forever.  I'm kind of shy.  But, I don't hide behind my parents like a five year old either.  Just sayin'.  Thought you'd all like to know that just because I'm homeschooled, I'm not antisocial or anything like that.  I think.

Would you/do you perform on stage?  For my more-than-a-co-op we have performances.  Let's just say that I don't mind performing on stage, but I do get nervous before I do.


Well, that's it.  Hope you enjoyed it.  I will be back this week with lots of pictures!