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Celebrating 40 Years!

It was our parents’ 40th Wedding Anniversary on Sunday; and before our parents left for their trip commemorating this milestone, we gave them a surprise anniversary gift.  The three of us, including our spouses, gave our parents money to use towards taking a trip to England; and we also made a custom anniversary card along with photo cards spanning the past 40 years beginning with our parents’ honeymoon in 1975 to the Virgin Islands!

Below are a few images (courtesy of my sister), taken at my sister and brother-in-law’s house, of our parents opening their surprise gift from all of us, which they loved!


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Honoring 40 Years Together

Happy 40 Year Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Thank you for setting a wonderful example of a steadfast, loving, and happy marriage, that we only hope to emulate.  We have a great deal to aspire to.  We are very grateful for your constant unconditional love and support.  We are truly blessed with loving and supportive parents who are always there for us.

We know that you will have a wonderful trip together commemorating this admirable milestone!  We wish you many more happy years together!

We love you always.

“To love someone deeply gives you strength.  Being loved by someone deeply gives you courage.” — Lao Tzu

 

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Good Read: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

I recently finished reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo.  Japanese tidiness and organizing expert, Kondo, believes that decluttering your home can truly change your life.  Kondo has a waiting list for her services, and apparently, she does not have repeat customers as her “KonMari Method” really works.  Kondo firmly believes that serious tidying up cannot be done in baby steps of fifteen minutes daily or throwing out a few things every day.  Her philosophy is to do it all at once.

Kondo focuses on the relationship between three things: “In essence, tidying ought to be the act of restoring balance among people, their possessions, and the house they live in.”  She believes that the art of de-cluttering is “a special send-off for those things that will be departing,” and part of the process should be “a ceremony to launch them on a new journey.”

I do not like clutter and this book provided great suggestions for de-cluttering, which is really freeing.  Some of my favorite quotes from this book are shown below.

“The best way to choose what to keep and what to throw away is to take each item in one’s hand and ask” ‘Does this spark joy?’  If it does, keep it.  If not, dispose of it.  This is not only the simplest but also the most accurate yardstick by which to judge.”

“When you put your house in order, you put your affairs and your past in order, too.  As a result, you can see quite clearly what you need in life and what you don’t.”

“Keep only those things that speak to your heart.  Then take the plunge and discard all the rest.  By doing this, you can reset your life and embark on a new lifestyle.”

“Tidy a little a day and you’ll be tidying forever.”

“Clutter is caused by a failure to return things to where they belong.  Therefore, storage should reduce the effort needed to put things away, not the effort needed to get them out.”

“I recommend you dispose of anything that does not fall into one of three categories: currently in use, needed for a limited period of time, or must be kept indefinitely.”

This book inspired me to go through my closet and attic and get rid of items that do not bring me/us joy!  If you are looking for help getting your house in order, I recommend this helpful book!

 

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Victory: Photography Project — 66

Beginning in January 2014, I started a weekly photography project with my muse, Victory!  I will continue to share this project on the blog this year!  My goal is to document all of Victory’s changes, while preserving fleeting moments and memories, while capturing moments of our everyday.

Victory had a good weekend and the weather was very nice!  We are all enjoying the summer weekends! Victory got a bath, to her dismay, and she is looking great!  Doug grilled steak this weekend and, of course, little Victory had to try some.  She was in heaven — a big fan of steak tenderloin!  After eating dinner on the deck, she did not want to come into the house.  So, I got my camera and captured a few shots of Victory as the sun was setting, shown below.

We find out this week, hopefully, whether her infection is gone, which we really hope that it is gone for good this time!

Happy Tuesday!

 

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Good Read: The Power of Starting Something Stupid

I recently finished reading the book entitled, The Power of Starting Something Stupid by Richie Norton.  This was a good read. This book is full of helpful information, while providing a new perspective.  Richie illustrates how stupid is the New Smart—the key for success, creativity, and innovation.

What if the key to success, creativity, and fulfillment in your life lies in the potential of those stupid ideas?  This inspiring book will teach you:

-How to crush fear, make dreams happen, and live without regret;

-How to overcome obstacles such as lack of time, lack of education, or lack of money; and

-The five actions of the ‘New Smart’ to achieve authentic success.

One of the best takeaways for me came towards the end of the book.  In the conversations Richie had with older people near the end of their lives, their greatest lament didn’t have to do with failure, but with regret.  Therefore, if you have a wild idea that everyone says or thinks is ‘stupid’ — don’t discount it.  There is great value in those ‘stupid ideas’ that are actually not ‘stupid’ — instead, they are very insightful — and you should give them more attention and thought.

Have a great weekend!

 

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Inspirational Photography Quotes

Since I love photography, below are some of my favorite photography quotes.

 

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“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” –Dorothea Lange

“To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event.” –Henri Cartier-Bresson

“The things that are close to you are the things you can photograph best.” –Sally Mann

“Photography, as a powerful medium of expression and communications, offers an infinite variety of perception, interpretation, and execution.” –Ansel Adams

“All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth.” –Richard Avedon

“Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving.  What you have caught on film is captured forever…it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.”  –Aaron Siskind

“Your photography is a record of your living, for anyone who really sees.” –Paul Strand

“It’s not when you press the shutter, but why you press the shutter.”  –Mary Ellen Mark

“Photographing a cake can be art.” –Irving Penn

“The picture is like a prayer, an offering, and hopefully an opening through which to seek what we don’t know, or already know and should take seriously.” –Emmet Gowin

“In Photography there is a reality so subtle that it becomes more real than reality.” –Alfred Stieglitz

“Photography to the amateur is recreation, to the professional it is work, and hard work too, no matter how pleasurable it may be.”  –Edward Weston

“To me, photography is a major force in explaining man to man.” –Edward Steichen

“Look and think before opening the shutter.  The heart and mind are the true lens of the camera.” –Yousuf Karsh

“It has never been my object to record my dreams, just the determination to realize them.” –Man Ray

“Which of my photographs is my favorite?  The one I’m going to take tomorrow.” –Imogen Cunningham

“Everything is a subject.  Every subject has a rhythm.  To feel it is the raison detre.  The photograph is a fixed moment of such a raison detre, which lives on in itself.”  –Andre Kertesz

“What makes photography a strange invention is that its primary raw materials are light and time.” –John Berger

“Stare.  It is the way to educate your eye, and more.  Stare, pry, listen, eavesdrop.  Die knowing something. You are not here long.”  –Walker Evans

“Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas.  It is a creative art.” –Ansel Adams

“I really believe there are things nobody would see if I didn’t photograph them.” –Diane Arbus

Victory: Photography Project — 65

Beginning in January 2014, I started a weekly photography project with my muse, Victory!  I will continue to share this project on the blog this year!  My goal is to document all of Victory’s changes, while preserving fleeting moments and memories, while capturing moments of our everyday.

Victory had a good, long weekend!  She did well  — and she even didn’t run upstairs when we had friends over.  However, she did make sure to sit right near us, though, never leaving our side, while were friends over.  Doug grilled some of the best hamburgers and corn on the cob that I have ever had on the Big Green Egg!  Doug grilled several times over the weekend; went to the pool a few times; caught up on our reading; and we also watched a few movies!  It was nice to have some down time with no schedule.

 

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The images below show Victory a year apart, each taken on the Fourth of July!  2015 is on the left; and 2014 is on the right!  (At that time last year, Victory had been with us for approximately nine months.)  You can see how much she has physically changed in only a year!  She is now full of fur!  Victory chewed through the bandanna from last year, which was Biscuit’s, so we had to get her a new one!  Now we know not to leave anything on her without one of us being home.

 

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We hope that you had a great weekend!

Things I Love: Summer 2015

Well, it is already July and it is officially summer, and I wanted to share some items that I love, shown below!

We hope that you have a great 4th of July weekend!  We plan to enjoy time reading by the pool, relaxing on the deck, and having some friends over for a cookout this weekend, and it should be fun!  We hope for good weather.

Have a great long weekend!

 

loving summer 2015

 

1. Toms – I love Toms.  These are hands down the most comfortable spring/summer shoe around.  I highly recommend them.  I have four pairs!

2. Lululemon Undies — These are the best undies I have ever had.  If you are looking for extremely comfortable undies, particularly in the warmer months, I highly recommend these!

3. Shiseido Face Sunscreen — This is a wonderful sunscreen, which you can apply prior to makeup, which goes on smoothly and easily, while helping to protect your skin from sun damage.  It works great and protects your skin well.

4. Gain Scent Boosters — I love clean sheets, and the scent boosters work really well to keep your sheets smelling like they were just laundered.  I use the Midnight Breeze Fireworks Gain Scent Booster.  I also generally use Gain lavender detergent; and Snuggle white lavender liquid fabric softener; and lavender serenity Downy dryer sheets.

5. Skinny Pop – My Mom told me about Skinny Pop.  It is really tasty and low-calorie if you are looking for a tasty snack!

6. Propel Water — I have been trying to drink more water, and I really like Propel water.  It has a hint of flavor and therefore it makes me want to drink water more often.

You can view other things I love here!

Victory: Photography Project — 64

Beginning in January 2014, I started a weekly photography project with my muse, Victory!  I will continue to share this project on the blog this year!  My goal is to document all of Victory’s changes, while preserving fleeting moments and memories, while capturing moments of our everyday.

On Sunday, Doug and Victory came with me to a photo shoot in Annapolis, and then we went to Kent Island for crabs.  We found a place to eat where we could take Victory along with us!  Doug enjoys picking and eating crabs.  I am not too fond of crabs, but I had some good shrimp instead!  Victory was a really good girl and she was very patient while Doug worked through all of his crabs!  Everyone at the restaurant loved our fur girl!

After eating lunch, we went to the Eastern Shore and had a great time together!  Little Victory did not get her nap, as we were gone all day, so she was quite tired by the time we made it home where we found her on the sofa all sprawled out!  She got lots of good walks in, though!

We (hopefully) find out in about two weeks whether Victory’s infection is gone.  We sure hope it’s gone as she finishes up her antibiotic at the end of this week.  Who ever knew that a UTI could be so tricky.  On another note, Victory is starting to bark more, but her barking is only limited to ‘night-night’ one of her favorite times!

Below are a few images from our time together this past Sunday!  We are thrilled that it is officially summer!

Happy Tuesday!

 

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Tips: Five Summer Dangers for Furry Family Members

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) contacted me to share some tips to help keep your furry family members out of harms way this summer.  Hopefully, everyone is staying cool!

1. Fireworks & Thunderstorms: Loud noises like fireworks are one of the top reasons furry family members go missing, so secure your furry family member in an escape-proof place.  If your furry family member does go missing, download the ASPCA app for a free step-by-step digital toolkit to help find your pet.

2. Sun and Heat: High summer temperatures can mean dehydration, overheating, and scorched paws.  Know the signs of overheating (excessive panting, increased heart rate, and weakness) and bring your furry family member indoors or to a cool, shady place.

3. Toxic Chemicals: Insecticides, citronella products, and glow sticks are toxic to pets.  Keep your furry family member away from areas where chemicals have been sprayed and ensure dangerous products are out of reach.

4. Parties & Barbecues: If your furry family member is joining the party, make sure guests don’t feed your furry family member human food (especially grapes, onions, avocado, and chocolate).

5. Hot Cars: Even with the windows open an inch, a car’s temperature can reach over 100° in 10 minutes on an 85° day.  Therefore, leave your pet safely at home on hot days.

 

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The above image is courtesy of the ASPCA.