I'm Blue dabba dee dabba di :oP

Week 10 of evoking you's Project 52 was Blue. (Pardon the subject's corniness, but it was the only song I could think of to go with the theme :oP) I guess I really wanted to challenge myself so I decided to get a picture of my daughter's blue eyes with my macro lens. I really wanted to get a very close up, uncropped shot but I am dealing with a toddler who has energy for days so this is my cropped result :oP Her eyes are really just exceptional and sooo expressive!

The next two images for my other options but didnt crop as well as this one :o)

Take My Hand, I'm A Stranger In Paradise

Week 9 for Evoking You's Project 52 is 'stranger for a day' and again I was feeling quite literal with the theme. The best way to feel like a stranger, I feel, is by going to a small town and usually the coffee shop is the place for locals so you REALLY feel like a stranger. So we headed out to Bisbee (not sure I'd really call it paradise like my subject suggests but the song got stuck in my head) for some antique shopping and 'strangerness.' Luckily every time I have gone here people have been very friendly and not made me feel like an outcast/stranger, then again they are a major tourist town so they are well versed with the unknown :oP

Unfortunately I forgot my Nikon so phone picture it is! It's been one of those weeks where my head has not been where it needed to be. I am learning where I need to go as a mother and wife as things change in our life. Army life is getting more stressful so I'm working on adjusting my hormonal thing and how I handle it so I can help my husband through some very stressful times. And since Zoey turned one she's decided to gain a major brattitude! So me forgetting my camera for the one thing I work on for me every week was just appropriate :oP

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

"No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted." ~ Aesop [Greek Fable Writer]

This week's theme for evoking you's Project 52 is "Favorite Thing." While I wanted to use my husband and baby for this week's subject I (and my hubby :oP) felt it best to spare you another picture of them :oP Okie well I still used Zoey! hehe...

My favorite thing is portrayed in the Toms shoes she's wearing: Giving. For every pair purchased another pair is donated to a child in need of shoes. Most of us are so used to shoes that we take it for granted and dont realize many dont have shoes in this world. So I greatly respect this company for what they are doing and will be a loyal customer because of that (in spite of the funky sizing! I'm 1-1.5 sizes smaller!).

So small acts of giving I love. My mom taught me that if you have the resources or talent that giving is the best. I'm not even going to begin telling you about all she has done but it's a lot, and affects so many! Every smile on a dancer's face from the professional-level costumes she's made, or the feeling a wounded soldier feels when they received a quilt she's quilted, she did that! Amazing! I guess really that's my favorite thing, the reaction to a gift, namely: the smile and feeling of happiness!

But it doesnt always take money or material things to give. A kind word, opening the door for someone, conversing with someone who just wants to talk, or just listening to someone. As the quote in my subject states, small acts of kindness are never wasted.

I saw this quote also on a wonderful photography blog I adore reading:

I just hope if there's anything my daughter learns from me is kindness and giving :o)

Out of the Box

This week's theme for Project 52 with evoking you is "Out of the Box." I was feeling literal this week :oP But another interpretation of this is the "box" being a comfort zone/routine. This cat does NOT like to pose for me so for her it was a bit out of her norm and I will take it! She's a beautiful, sweet cat and it makes me sad that most of my pictures are only of my scottish fold Mollie. So enjoy the additional pictures below as well! :o)

Among The Shadows

Evoking You's theme this week for Project 52 was shadows. For this week I really wanted to be original and veer away from my usual baby pictures. My first thought was Zelda. There's a shadow dungeon in the Ocarina of Time and I've been playing the new game lately so it's on my mind. But then I came ot my senses and decided to try something else :oP I've seen some amazing single light portraits and wanted to do that for myself. I curled my hair and got all dolled up. But my favorite of the bunch was just the focus on my hair and slight light behind to show my profile. So here is my attempt at a more artistic self portrait. :o)

Since this weekly project is to work on my creativity I did get a few other images of a shadowy nature so click here to view those :o)

A Lasting Grip on a Memory

When I found out this week's theme was 'hands' for evoking you's project 52 I knew exactly the image I was going to use. While I do like to expand my creativity and use a new image (and one week I'll try for a non baby picture! :oP) I had to use an image that means a lot me and my husband (and his family).

Before my husband deployed his Gram (one of the biggest influences in his life) had a brain tumor removed and for 18 months struggled with getting better the best she could. After my husband came home from his deployment we made several trips to see her and let Zoey be with her. This is an image from one of those visits; a lasting grip Zoey has on her great-Gram.

Unfortunately Gram passed away about a week ago ending her long painful fight.

I have been so blessed to have been married into such an amazing and welcoming family who make me feel like I've always been apart of them. Gram was an incredible part of that acceptance. We have been so blessed that she and Zoey could meet and that Gram was aware enough to know and love her. Watching Gram with Zoey, you could just see the love she had for her; her eyes never left that child when she was in the room. And when we thought Gram wasn't aware she would surprise us and try to straighten a sock on Zoey's foot. They had a bond from the beginning.

"Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see." - John W. Whitehead.

Heaven gained another angel. We love and miss you. <3

Oh, I Wonder

evoking you's theme for week 3 of project 52 is 'imagine.' My imagination was never amazing. I tried the invisible friend thing and it lasted one trip to the playground. So my image isn't about a world I create or that my daughter creates in her head. It's a little more about the uncertainty of the 'imagine' world: imagining the future. You can't quite control it like you can your own imagination.

I wanted to get a sort of family portrait that identifies my hubby and me, and then Zoey with a mix of the two of us (depicted in her outfit). My imagination runs wild with all the possibilities of what she will grow up to become because of our backgrounds and what we will have to offer her. She will have all the artsy background I have acquired from being an army brat myself and dancing around the world. And she will have all the experiences of meeting new people and cultures because of her daddy's job taking us around the world. I'm excited (but dont mind waiting! :oP) to see what amazing things she will grow up to do.

I started this project last week and was able to finish after a wonderful family visit and a tragedy in my husband's family. So in reference to family, it's wonderfulness, and how we influence our children to become the best they can be: “Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see.“ -John W. Whitehead

Imagine.

The Sweetest Sound

Above is my photo for week 2 of the Evoking You 52 Week Project. The theme is "Belly Laugh." I had a couple images, from 1or 2 days before I found out the theme, of my little girl laughing but felt new photos would be a fun little project for my husband and I. Full story with pictures after the blog hop and jump :o)

Week 1 of The 52 Week Project

In the past year I have become a little more involved with 'like'-ing photography pages on facebook. The few that I started out with grew exponentially and, today, I am overwhelmed with inspiration. So when I saw a couple vendors talking about Evoking You's 52 Week project I decided to jump on board.

I would love to consider myself professional but the fact is I'm a hobbyist and am quite happy with that for now. Creativity has always been an issue with me; in every aspect of my life. In ballet I was always good at seeing the video of a ballet and performing it the same way, much like the failures on American Idol who don't make a song their own. I did eventually learn to experiment with my performances and how I moved my body but it took years of practice and push from inspirational teachers. With this project I hope to branch out with my creative side and hopefully, one day, inspire someone the way all these photographers i've 'liked' on facebook has done for me.

This first week's theme was mirror. There are many things I am grateful for but I had to reflect these two important blessings in my life. One, my husband, who I am so proud of for his service to this country and, more importantly, the way he's evolved into an amazing father and even more amazing, patient husband. And two, the amazing little creature we have created. Every day she smiles I feel more and more blessed, and my feelings for her are more than I can ever express in words. I was warned about how kids will make you feel but you can never understand the intensity until you become a parent. I am blessed beyond words and hope my gratefulness for my family, friends, and opportunities is reflected in my work. <3