Insta-Friday - 10/28

The last couple of week have been..... well..... "crazy" is putting it mildly.  So I didn't have a chance to do anything for last week's InstaFriday, but I have been having a ton of fun playing with Hipstamatic this week!!  It's probably the best app ever!!!!  I've had it on my iPhone for a long time but finally just started playing with it.... and oh how fun all the little add-on packs are!!  Make sure you stop by Angela's blog... she has a TON of fabulous photos this week!

First, you get sweet Max! This is my friend Katy's son and the poor little puddin' fell asleep on this chair and slept just like this!!!! Can you imagine?  I don't know that I could EVER sleep like this, even when I was that young!

View out my back patio door! This tree is gorgeous every fall!

My beautiful baby girl, Lady Isabelle! (Using the VERY cool Cadet Blue Gel flash)

And here are a bunch from Grace's appointment today with the dermatologist. Grace has been suffering from a rash since mid-July. After months of treatments and appointments, she had patch testing done this week. On Monday, she had 70ish different patches put on her back, went back on Wednesday to have them taken off and a preliminary reading done and then today she saw the doctor who went through everything with us. Apparently she is allergic to 8-10 different things - most of which are chemicals or preservatives in personal care products and clothing. The allergy that came back the most severe was an allergy to formaldehyde. At first I was like "Where the heck is she getting formaldehyde from???????" Did you know that formaldehyde in so many things... a big one is cotton-blended clothing!!!! And Aspartame (dang it.... that diet coke is so good! So are all those sugar-free mints and gum!)

I love this aquarium in the lobby of the dermatologist's office. Some day I will have one like this!

My pretty girl waiting for the appointment...

You can totally see her gum in her mouth....

Silly girl with her gown on....

 

And here, Angela, this one is for you.... I didn't even know I took this image until I got home and downloaded photos!! Shoe shot!  Love my fake plaid Toms.



We got lots of handouts... one on each item she has an allergy to.  These handouts share info on what she should avoid.... and then this week, will get huge stacks of papers that outline things she CAN use! the nurse assured me this will be a ginormous manilla envelope.... fun.  I'll have to photograph that for next week's installment of Insta-Friday.



And our drive home.... still some color here in west Michigan!




And here's my sweet sister, Shantel, pouting because she was trying to tell me a story and I was trying to take her picture! :)

Poladroid = Fun!

Do you remember the days of taking instant pictures with a Polaroid camera? I have tons of Polaroid pictures in boxes from my childhood!!!! I totally remember the camera spitting the picture out, and waiting for the image to appear very SLOWLY.... and you'd even wave the picture around in the air as if that helps it develop faster!

I found the most perfect thing on Angela's blog.... the Poladroid!!!! It's seriously the funnest thing ever! It's a free download, and if you were shaking your head at any of those sweet Polaroid memories I mentioned above, you MUST get it! All you do is drag and drop photos on the cute camera that shows up on your desktop and sit and watch it develop. Heck, you can even shake it to try to get it to develop faster! And if that isn't enough fun for you.... make sure you have your volume cranked and you get to hear that wonderful click followed by the camera spitting out the picture! Totally fun! As if I needed another obsession. Oh boy.

My favorite is my friend April's daughter, Madeline, with her pet chicken. I love this one most because you would never guess this image was taken in 2011... I think it's the chicken and the lack of anything modern in the image! Totally fun!


And a couple.... Jeff and I on Mackinac Island and the cute little yellow house on the island that I would die to have.

Insta-Friday

I found this weekly photog blogging fun via Angela's blog and just knew I had to particpate! So.... since I found out about it mid-week, I only have a few photos.... but still loads of fun!!! So what is this all about???? As quoted from the Life Rearranged blog- "Share your silly, sweet, and quirky moments of the week using nothing but cell phone pictures! A DSLR is great, but sometimes the sweetest and most telling moments need nothing more than the low resolution cammy on your phone."

Stop! And look at the raindrops on the windshield! Pretty.

Yum. Must eat this soon! Autumn in Michigan is the best!

He watches me work everyday. *sigh*

"Mom, Why are you taking my picture with your phone (as opposed to your DSLR)?"

My Lady Isabelle sleeps so lady-like! Not!

30 Day Photography Challenge - Day 30 - Self-portrait

Wow! I did it!! Although I was late on a couple days, I completed this challenge! Thanks to Misti for hosting this super fun challenge. It had me totally thinking outside the box and I got to meet a lot of great photographers and bloggers along the way!! Misti is cooking up her own list and will be hosting another one (I hope real soon!)!!!

I've been totally loving everyone's Instagram images lately, and since my camera is way too heavy to do a self-portrait, and I didn't feel like playing with a timer, I went with an iPhone pic! :) Here is me kissing my beautiful baby!

30 Day Photography Challenge - Day 29 - Black & White

30 Day Photography Challenge - Day 28 - Flowers

There's something totally beautiful about dying hydrangeas!

G.O.S.P.E.L.

The Lion King

Recently, Grace, Michael, Shantel and I went to see "The Lion King" in 3D! This is one of my very favorite Disney movies ever. I remember seeing it in the theater when it was first release and there is just something about it, the story, the music, the graphics... that made me emotional. It had been years since I saw it and I have to say, I felt just as emotional. (Yes, crazy, I know... it's a cartoon. I kept telling Shantel, I think I am going to cry! I actually did have a few tears.) And it was absolutely INCREDIBLE in 3D!!!!!! Seeing the Pride Lands with that much depth was absolutely stunning!!! And hearing the music in stereo. Wow. What an experience. I absolutely love the chanting in the beginning of the song "Circle of Life", and I wondered what they were saying and in what language. My best friend, Google, shared with me that it's in the Africian language of Zulu and translates as the following (along with the rest of the lyrics) and the YouTube video to watch the amazing scene (too bad you can't see it in 3D!).



Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba (Here comes a lion, Father)
Sithi uhm ingonyama (Oh yes, it's a lion)

Nants ingonyama bagithi baba (Here comes a lion, Father)
Sithi uhhmm ingonyama (Oh yes, it's a lion)
Ingonyama (He is a lion)

Siyo Nqoba (A lion we're going to conquer)
Ingonyama (He is a lion)
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (A lion and a leopard come to this open place)

[Chant repeats]

From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round

It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life

It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life

30 Day Photography Challenge - Day 27 - From a Distance

I love farms! Especially when it's surrounded by beautiful fall colors!

Day 26 - 30 Day Photography Challenge - Close-Up

I absolutely adore autumn in Michigan!

P.S. First time I've ever used manual focus.... I kinda like it! ;)

Day 25 - 30 Day Photography Challenge - Something Pink

Day 24 - 30 Day Photography Challenge - Animal

This is my wild animal who does a fabulous job at avoiding the camera... the word "treat" didn't even work to get eye contact!

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 23 - Sunflare

Sunflare is becoming one of my most favorite things to photograph!!!

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 22 - Hands

First of all, please forgive me for my tardiness. These last few weeks have been crazy!!! I am going to try to do a bunch of blog posts today in attempt to get caught up on this challenge.

Day 22's challenge didn't saything about "human" hands... so I went with a doggie hand! :)

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 21 - Faceless Self-Portrait

All I had time for was a boring mirror self-portrait, but it is faceless!!

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 20 - Bokeh

I wasn't sure which one I liked better, so I'm posting both! :)

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 19 - Something Orange

Grand Rapids is currently hosting the 3rd Art Prize! It's always a blast seeing all of the different types of art... I am amazed at the creativity and capability of these artists!

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 18 - Your Shoes

My favorite, favorite shoes! I have bad (and wide) feet and a lot of shoes, especially flats, either don't fit right or really hurt my feet! I found these comfy super cute flats at Payless! They are Lower East Side brand.... and a bargain for total cuteness at $16.99. I loved my silver ones so much, I went back and bought the red ones! The denim and the patent black are totally calling my name.... :)

30 Day Photography Challenge, Day 17 - Technology

Wow, we've come a long way....