One-day Winter

Hello again! I'm still here...are you?! I sincerely apologize for my long absence from this blog. I picked up some freelance work, on top of staying home with the kiddos, and working my regular job, so blogging (unfortunately) took a back seat. :(

But, I'm still here, and I'm still taking pictures! So, I'll attempt to catch up a bit over the next several weeks, and show you a bit of what I've been photographing these days. Because of my two little ones, I haven't had a lot of photography adventures in the past several months. So, I've found myself trying to find the "adventure" in the everyday. I think that's a great thing to do, by the way. No day is ordinary. There's a spark of mystery and adventure in each and every moment. You just have to see it...or for me, capture it!

Here in Kentucky, we really didn't have that much a winter this past year. That's a huge bummer for someone like me who LOVES winter and snow. But, we did have one bright and GORGEOUS snowy day on March 5, 2012. The drifts were huge, and the sun was bright and beautiful. The sky couldn't have been bluer. It was amazing.

We have an old pin oak in the back yard. It's sick, and probably needs to come down soon. That makes me really sad. I hate to see older trees come down--especially when they are as big as this one. But, with the bright white snow covering it's branches, it was in all its glory.

Today's Snow

I know it probably won't last long, but I'm reveling in today's snowfall. I love snow!! I had to run outside in my slippers this morning to snap a picture to document the fact that it's REALLY happening. My daughter keeps wanting me to come over and look out the window with her, so we frequently huddle together on the couch, cheek to cheek, and watch the beautiful white flakes flutter down. How can I resist that?

Manhattan

Euonymous- Manhattan

Ok, ok . . . so I'm not talking about the city of Manhattan. I'm talking about a shrub. These shrubs are outside our apartment, and looked so pretty with the snow we recently had. I hurried outside to grab some pictures, and saw their tiny pinkish berries with the snow on them. Well, I just had to snap a shot.

I've been missing the snow since it went away. The winter's just been so gray without it. We've had rain the past several days, and I'm ready for that to go away. They are forecasting a teensy, tiny bit of snow sometime in the next little bit, but I don't think that it will amount to much. I'll still be crossing my fingers though!

Stone horse fence in the snow

We live in horse country--serious horse country. Not rodeo, cowboy kind of horse country. No, no. This is Equestrian country. In fact, our city is known as "Horse Capital of the World." THE WORLD! Anyway . . .

These kinds of "horse fences" are littered throughout the area. Some people have built newer ones to resemble the ones from long ago, and some of them are the real deal--ruins from a different era. This is a newer one that stands outside our home, and it actually acts as a retaining wall. It was really pretty with the new snowfall on it, so I had to stop and snap this image. One of these days, I'm going to take a short, slow drive through some of the nearby country roads to capture the real ones.

Leaf in the snow

Here's another photo from the recent Kentucky snowfall. This poor, frigid leaf was actually buried in the snow on top of a plastic storage cabinet on our patio. I was pretty cold by this point, and was actually headed back inside to warm up when I spotted this leaf.

Snow at my doorstep

I'm use to snow in Michigan, which is considerably more snow than we usually see in Kentucky. However, I love snow no matter where it falls or how much! So, I'm really enjoying the little bit of snow that recently fell at our home here in Lexington. It's been really cold (highs in the 20's), and it's been nice to look out my windows to watch the snow fall. I jumped outside for just a few minutes this morning to snap some shots that caught my eye. This is the mat outside our patio slider. I liked the way the scrolls were showing through the dusting of snow.

Winter Light

South Haven Pier Light in Winter

Sparrow in Winter

Although these sparrows are invasive, I couldn't resist taking a picture of this one as he posed for me in our Forsythia bushes. We just got about 2.5" of snow with this snow system that has swept the Southeastern US. I'll be getting out there today to snap some shots. I've been seeing a lot of birds landing in our Forsythia, and their not sticking around long enough for me to get some pics, because we're out of birdseed! Can you believe that? We have Junkos, Cardinals, Tufted Titmice, Crows, and Wrens flitting around in the beautiful white snow, and I can't get a good shot. Maybe today?

South Haven Pier Light

South Haven Pier Light
South Haven, MI

My husband and I took a weekend to getaway in South Haven, MI, several years ago. While we were there, we took the opportunity to do a bit of snowshoeing and sight-seeing. The snow was just beautiful. The South Haven Pier Lighthouse was covered in ice and snow, and I had to stop and take some pictures. I took a lot of them! This is definitely one of my favorites. I had to snap them really quickly, because the wind off Lake Michigan was extremely cold, and I had to duck out of it after a few pictures to get feeling back in my hands.

Point Betsie Foghorn in Winter

Point Betsie Fog Signal Building in Winter

This fog horn is located in one of my favorite areas in Michigan—Benzie County. The day I took this photo was a beautiful, crisp, winter day. It was the kind of day where you see your breath, and you bundle up before going outside. After being out for a while, you love the thought of getting into the warm car and going home for a nice warm cup of hot cocoa. Ahhh . . . I love winter!

According to www.pointbetsie.org, "Renovation of the Fog Signal Building, which sits immediately north of the lighthouse, is also complete. It, too, was returned to a look not seen in many decades. It’s exterior siding replicates the original iron needed to house the steam boilers that powered the fog signal in pre-electricity times. The exterior and metal interior walls were restored in 2008, enabling the building to house the lighthouse's Sesquicentennial exhibition of juried works of art inspired by Point Betsie's structures and surroundings."

Christmas Tree Hunting 2006

I know we're a long way from Christmas, but I couldn't help but think about it today. Whenever we go Christmas tree hunting, we try to really make it a fun day. We listen to only Christmas music, drink hot cocoa, and bundle up nice and warm. There is a tree farm nearby that really capitalizes on atmosphere, so we like going there. They have great big Percherons that drive sleighs throughout the farm—complete with sleigh bells. It's just perfect! When you come back from picking out your tree, you can step into their barn and sip on warm hot cocoa and eat cookies. We have such a fun time! It really starts to feel like Christmas once we've been there.