Monday, March 08, 2010

Feel the Brown, Hope for the Spring

“It's spring fever.... You don't quite know what it is you DO want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!" - Mark Twain

snowdesert

We have had bright sunny days here and warm-ish temps for the past few days. The 40's!! I had to shed my coat yesterday when I went on a walk if that tells you anything. The snow is beginning to melt revealing the brownish-ness underneath.

When the sun comes out, the brown can be actually quite beautiful!

walk 020-1

On my walk, I heard a rushing stream which came from the melting snow.

walk 011

And then, to top it all off, I saw a neighbor who told me proudly of her daffodils sprouting through the earth. I wanted to see it for myself.

walk 013

Labels: ,

Tuesday, March 02, 2010

Sunshine on the Deck Makes Me High

sun 01 003-1

Sunshine, sparkling snow, slanted shadows... what's not to love?

sun 01 004-1

Labels:

Monday, March 01, 2010

Celebrating 4 Years of Blogging

mosaic 4th anniversary
Some of the highlights lately...

This past February 17 was the 4th anniversary of Kingdom Jewels and this is post 1334. When I look back to first post, I remember having no idea where it would lead, but soon it became a photo blog. I love having a place to share my photography and even more, I love meeting people from all over. Thanks for the comments, it's fun hearing from you!!!

Labels: ,

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Advice from Einstein

maria 245 bw sep
"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow."

Labels: ,

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Wonder Years

edward 007-sep
Edward, November 2009

We usually only see Edward on Sunday downtown at church and sometimes afterwards when he comes home for a quick lunch, and you know, he only lives on the Calvin campus about 25 minutes away. Yet, whenever I see him, I feel the need to get my camera out. Pictures for me are a way of holding on to memories and I feel if I have one, I will never forget. What I've had on my mind lately is that Ed will be taking off in about 5 days for Amsterdam and I won't be able to shoot these simple photos. I'm going to miss that. I expect we'll keep in pretty good touch through Facebook, Skype, e-mail, etc. but it will be the longest time in over 20 years I have ever had to go without taking his photograph. Will I make it?

Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose. ~The Wonder Years

Labels: ,

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Love Thursday

january ps 074-1

january ps 075-1

"Except for the point, the still point, There would be no dance, and there is only the dance"
T.S. Eliot

I love bokeh.

Labels:

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

January Antidote, Part 3 - Reflections, Warmth and Colour!

When our fingers had reached the freezing point, we decided to head over to Calvin College. We found a warm cozy place in the Prince Conference Center complete with 2 roaring stone fireplaces, a grand piano and some dried flower arrangements, aka the colour we sought.

january ps 060 copy

january ps 054

january ps 078 copy

january ps 069-1
It was a good, good day!

Labels: ,

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

January Antidote, Part 2 - Rushing Water

After brekkie, we headed from Eastown to downtown GR after a brief stop at Deirdre's home in East Grand Rapids to pick up our camera equipment. We are amassing a fairly large arsenal though Deirdre's backpack is now bigger than mine! :)

january ps 044-1

Our first stop was near the 6th street dam across the river from the fish ladder. Above is a view from the south of the infamous Sixth Street Bridge which I usually picture from the north. We took photos of the water rushing over the dam and it did feel good to listen to it flowing by.

january ps 034-1

Looking south on the river into Grand Rapids, I saw these bridges which reminded me of the bridges over the canals in Amsterdam for a second.

january ps 030-1

As I look again at these photos of the icy cold water rushing underneath me, I am recalling with gratitude Deirdre's warning to me to be careful.

january ps 018-1

Later that afternoon in my own bedroom, I tripped over a cord and bit the dust on the soft carpeting and that was bad enough!

january ps 017-2


january ps 031 copy

Labels: ,

Monday, January 18, 2010

An Antidote for January

january ps 007-1
Liquid energy

When the deep cold and grayness of the Michigan January settles in, truly one of the best remedies is to meet a friend for a combined breakfast and photo shoot. This past weekend, my friend Deirdre and I headed out on a quest for colour after a wonderful breakfast at the cozy Brandywine Restaurant.

Deirdre ordered the Eggs Timothy, and I thought of how the Queen Mother would enjoy it because of its corned beef hash and the english muffin toast on the side.

january ps 001

I had the Greek god Omelette which was also very amazing. We impersonated Japanese tourists and photographed our food, while the chef looked on from the kitchen with approval.

january ps 005

To my astonishment, I ate the whole omelette without getting a stomach ache which was a good thing as we headed into parts 2 & 3 of our photo journey. To be continued...

Labels: ,

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

January Thaw

I love it when we get a reprieve from the cold snowy bitter harsh winter. Today, we are thawing out a bit.

drip

I used this opportunity as I always do to clean and hose out the garage of the oily gray slush that collects on the floor. So not worthy of a picture! I took a nice long walk instead and found this with my camera.

pine cone3

And when I zoom in it looks like a painting.

pine cone4
I feel better now!

.

Labels: ,

Monday, January 11, 2010

Weekend Rest

fireplace 007-1
When the weather outside is frightful...

Labels:

Thursday, December 31, 2009

A Big Post Counting Down to 2010!

This morning since it is the last day of the year, I thought back to some of my favorite images that I've taken this year. I thought of 3 or 4 that stood out to me and then I decided to try to come up with my favorite for each month of the year. This was hard! In some cases, I had to choose more than one. One thing that's true is I always remember times the best when they are preserved like this.

January: the beautiful skies of Rehoboth, New Mexico

e1

February: Leo, my cat, always around even when it's ugly outside

leo squ

March: Edward, Maria & Bridget in a booth

maria's b-day

April: Rejoicing at sunset, Panama City Beach

rejoicing square april

May: Magnolia Blossoms and Tulips

magnolia

yellow3 may

June: Cousins jumping at the beach and our family walking in the sand

cousins4

smildes2 june

July: Marcus & Stella's wedding/Barkley & Diana's wedding

sm squ 4x6 july

shower 371-1 linen bw

shower 376-3

August: Maria's Senior Photos

maria 121-1

maria 333,2-1

September: Chris & Lindsay's wedding on Kelleys Island and John fishing

KI 579-2

KI 464

john1

October: Autumn on the Flat River and a nearby stream

up 070-1

stream1

November: Fall finery

yellow leaf3

puddle leaves

jj 084 november

jj 067 november

December: My neighbor's new grandaughter

willow 100-sep

willow 036-sep2 willow 126-1sep willow 026-1

Wishing you a blessed and happy 2010 filled with many beautiful images!

Labels: ,

-->