Shutterbugs and photo-lovin’ friends glad to have you join me for The World Through My Lens 03.2022. Today I am sharing my snapshots for the February and March prompts provided by my blogging buddy Terri at Second Wind Leisure Perspectives and my friend Lysha at A Camera and a Cookbook. Terri hosts the one-prompt-a-week Sunday Stills monthly photo challenge. Lysha hosts 5-pictures-a-week iSpy link ups each Saturday.
I put all the photos for these 2 months into this one image-laden post. Was stumped by some of the prompts and then had company, and went out of town. Finally sat down this weekend to add the final photos to this edition and get ‘er published.
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THE WORLD THROUGH MY LENS 03.2022
Taking pictures has become one of my favorite hobbies. When I am not participating in a challenge, I lose my enthusiasm for photography because I don’t know what to do with the pictures I am taking!! Glad to be participating in these photo challenges even if I have fallen behind in sharing my photos with you.
ISPY WEEK #5
– plant (quarterly): our magnolia weighed down with snow.
– chaos: mornings at Lauren’s house can be quite chaotic. Lauren works from home and has to begin working by signing into her computer at 8:00 am. But many mornings she is trying to get Lucia and Cami out the door and into the car for school while attempting to corral their pup Pumpkin into her crate. Things have been further complicated with Dr. Seuss festivities this week…Cultural Headdress Day, Favorite Seuss Character Day. I caught a little of the chaos with my camera on Monday when we were trying to take pictures of the girls and Pumpkin decided to photo bomb the shot.
– love: sisters. These two adore each other.
– covered: to go with the photo for ‘stacked’ below, these are the tokens Lucia was able to spend at Peter Piper Pizza when we took them on Presidents Day. She and Cami had a lot of fun just stacking the tokens and covering them with their token cups.
– your choice: visited a local shop called The Hippie Girl. Outside the brightly colored bungalow turned boutique was this bottle tree. Goes to show anything can become art.
iSPY WEEK #6
– spot in town (quarterly): my community library. Have just started using the library (I know, for shame) since Covid. I like listening to books. And if I am not listening to them, I usually buy them for my Kindle. Decided to start reading the books on the 2022-2023 Texas Bluebonnet list and I am borrowing them from the library. Enjoyed Memoirs of a Turtle and The One Thing You’d Save, both from the list.
– starts with Y: little yellow shoes Lauren bought for Lucia’s 6th birthday. Along with some ruby red shoes and sparkly silver ones.
– spent: as one of my winter bucket list activities, we visited a small store that I thought would be a boutique but the gal who was creating and selling jewelry at the location has moved. Now Hippie Girl specializes in soaps, candles, lotions and potions with a few pieces of clothing thrown in. There were smudge sticks hanging in an interesting way. But I was most taken with the ‘spent’ flowers suspended from clothes pins on twine just below the ceiling.
– stacked: both girls were out of school on Presidents Day but Lauren, who works from home, had to work. We took Lucia and Cami to Peter Piper Pizza for lunch and games. The girls really enjoyed riding the carousel. In this photo. Lucia has stacked her game tokens.
– your choice: stopped to capture the falling snow in the streetlight beyond the chain link fence and the railroad tracks. I like the lines of the fence, the lines in the braces above the tracks and the lines of the tallest building in the distance.
iSPY WEEK #7
– the sun shown/shone: happened to catch this interesting sunrise where the sun shown/shone around the single cloud in the morning sky and reflected a warm golden color on the entire neighborhood.
– plugged: this octopus-like extension cord has a bunch of gadgets and chargers plugged into it. My blue tooth earbuds. The charger for my fitness tracker. A portable charger. All plugged into this octopus under my craft table. I forget these things are here!!
– rock: we live on the foothills of the southern-most range of the Rocky Mountains, so there are rocks everywhere. And rock walls around everything!! I originally took this first shot for this prompt. But while Cady was visiting earlier this month, she and Lucia had a wonderful time making a little rock home for roly-polies they rescued from the pool. I kind of prefer the second photo, myself. Even if the rocks aren’t the focal point!!
– walking: was with my sister Valerie in Lexington last week for our mom’s 95th birthday. We had a grand time and took her out somewhere every day. Although she struggles to do so, Mom can still walk with her walker. This was her birthday and we were walking her down to the dining room for cake.
– your choice: in the short time I was in Kentucky, the dogwood trees went from bare to full bloom. I couldn’t take enough pictures. They were just beautiful. The clumps of blossoms almost looks like snow, heavy on the branches.
iSPY Week #8
– backyard (quarterly): taken from the westside of the backyard looking southeast. Our grass is just beginning to green underneath. The Japanese plums are in full bloom. And our peach tree is just beginning to get bud. This weekend our highs have been in the upper 80s so spring has definitely arrived.
– across the street: I snapped this shot as I was coming up on a dozen or more emergency vehicles parked across the street. Often times when there are that many police, fire and Ems units up in the mountains it means that a hiker is lost or hurt. Never heard anything on the news about this event so maybe it was just a training exercise.
– starts with L: Lucia Carolina, making a wish in the water fountain.
– next: my phone cannot understand a thing I speak into it when I am trying to send a voice-to-text message. If we are texting friends, you have no doubt been on the receiving end of some of my crazy texts. But my Samsung A21 does create some cute things with my photos. It put together this collage of 3 photos I took of Valerie, Mom and me during my visit. Thought this series of photos works for the word next.
– choose anything (monthly – same vantage point): I am going to capture our peach tree and the changes it goes through each month, each season. Hope it will bear fruit this year. It is just beginning to bud. Hard to tell yet how many peaches we might get. Thinking maybe I need to pluck some of the blooms so that we have fewer peaches but sweeter ones. The first picture was taken in January.
iSPY Week #9
– window view (quarterly): taken from the formal living room window looking across the street at my neighbors’ houses with an unexpected March snow in the foreground.
– topped off: one of the concourses between terminals in the Atlanta airport is topped off with these abstract organic shapes that almost look like butterflies or leaves. The backlighting makes the colors so vibrant. Even though I was dashing to my gate, I had to stop long enough to capture this shot.
– on time: the other day we were on time to see these Star Wars characters rounding the corner in the parking garage at the Fountains at Farrah. Not sure if they were parking a car or a spacecraft.
– starts with p: My Prince C., Prince Charming, Paul Clingan.
– your choice: bounty of blossoms on our Japanese plum tree.
iSPY Week #10
– weather (quarterly): our first of 2 snows this winter. Good thing I wasn’t driving because I was snapping photos left and right!! I love snow. The snow and wind make parts of the photo look like a painting with coarse brush strokes. Interesting how the street sign reading Gateway North is so clear when everything else appears to be smudged as if it is in motion.
– opposite: we found these bright floral sundresses in all sizes at the Fayette Mall in Lexington. Wish I could buy one for all the gals in my life and have us all dress in them for pictures. I am always wishing for a family photo, aren’t I?
– statue: came across this maiden on a walking course in Lexington. Interesting how her arms, her hair almost become wings.
– behind the scenes: at the bowling alley. Trying to get Cami to wear bowling shoes was more than Lauren and I could do. She won that battle. And bowled in tennies.
– your choice: even in the dark, the dogwood blooms are mesmerizing.
Sunday Stills 02.2022
– 02.06.2022 feed the birds: tossed this little fellow a bit of my breakfast from the patio of La Madeleine.
– 02.13.2022 color challenge: amethyst (purple): El Paso has a number of pieces of neon art along the I-10 that runs through the city. Some nights these arcs change color but on this snowy evening, they were set to a shade between pink and amethyst.
– 02.20.2022 love your pet: we have 2 kitties, as you may remember. But have also cared for 3 years for a neighbor’s kitty that is badly neglected. So, we kind of have 3 kitties. This is a picture of Snick. Purrsnickitty. She is sprawled out all over my quiet time and devotional books. Do you think she is trying to tell me something? Sure is hard to read when someone is lying on top of your books.
– 02.27.2022 fresh: snow. This photo was taken about 11 pm just as the snow was beginning to fall. The snow made the photo look bright.
Sunday Stills 03.2022
– 03.06.2022 meaningful memories: scrapbooking the memories we made in South Padre Island last summer.
– 03.13.2022 monthly color challenge: jade: I was in Lexington shortly after St. Patrick’s Day. A number of the residents had these darling wreaths on their doors, made during a craft class at mom’s assisted living apartment complex. Really would like to try to make one next year. Clothes pins. How clever.
– 03.20.2022 daylight in black and white: late afternoon sun beginning to set at on an American Airlines plane the Atlanta airport.
– 03.27.2022 urban: downtown El Paso on a snowy night.
YOUR TURN
Whew, that’s a lot of photos!! What have you been photographing lately? Do you tend to take mostly family snapshots, selfies or photos of places you visit? I am going to try very, very hard to stay caught up in April so that I don’t wind up with another mega post
Hoping for a few quiet days at home before PC returns from his whirlwind trip to Ohio. Need to get started on the spring cleaning. And would like to have a manicure once I get it all spic and span. What does the week hold for you?
Thank you for stopping by.
Hugs and kisses,
Joanne
You got some really amazing shots! I love them all but my favorites are the snow taken through the chain link fence, Those beautiful blooming trees and of course any of the photos of your family.
Leslie Roberts Clingan
Thank you so much. Hope I can stay caught up with the challenges now. Life just keeps getting in the way.
Terri Webster Schrandt
Wow, no wonder you took a while to get this post published, Leslie! I-spy prompts alone will keep you running. Some great shots of your sweet Lauren! You caught some great moments for Sunday Stills for two whole months. Love that fresh February snow–looks like my neighborhood, minus the pool! I’m also amazed you got snow late in March for your urban shot! You’ve been busy with your family and that is how it all should be! Thank you for sharing for Sunday Stills. If you check out my recent post, you’ll know I’m taking a two-week blog break and won’t be back to the blog until the April color challenge which is quartz or diamond–think clear, milky white, or clear like water droplets. But at least you’ll have only two prompts in which to be challenged 🙂
Leslie Roberts Clingan
I was so relieved to see only 2 prompts for April!! Sharing your blog with a couple of other gals who are wanting to start participating in photo challenges. Hope they will join us.
The snow amazed me in March. But I enjoyed it. And it stuck around just long enough for me to capture some photos. Perfect!
Marsha Banks
Leslie, these photos must bring you so much joy because they do me! How wonderful to have this blog to look back and remember the events!!
Leslie Roberts Clingan
Thank you, Marsha. My blog is kind of like my baby book!! Or online diary. I love taking pictures and blogging gives me somewhere to park them!!
Deb
What great photos – you certainly have an eye for an interesting picture. I can’t believe that you have had snow and we haven’t! I like the idea of photographing the same view from the same place every month to record how things change.
Dara
These are all great. This week I need to capture “emotion” for 52 Frames and I don’t know what I’ll take a photo of!
Leslie Roberts Clingan
Will be anxious to see what you come up with for emotion for 52 Frames. I know it will be a beautiful, creative capture.
Susanne
I enjoyed seeing your photos that show some about how your life has been. That photo of snow falling while out on the road is spectacular! And how nice to see sisters who adore each other! I also really liked the one of the rocks. And the plum tree blossom, how lovely! My ornamental cherry tree is in bloom now (probably last week now), it’s one of the first to really blossom in spring, and it’s such a treat!
I’d like to join some of those prompts now that I have the time again to do such things, but I never seem to find the prompts in advance.
Leslie Roberts Clingan
Come do the iSpy challenge or the Sunday Stills. Find the prompts here https://acameraandacookbook.com/ispy-64/ and here https://secondwindleisure.com/photography/sunday-stills-photo-challenge/ !! You can just participate when you can. Participating in a photo challenge really encourages me to look for the beauty in everything.
Thank you for the kind words about my photos. And my granddaughters. They truly love each other.
Jennifer
Oh, I so enjoyed your photos! What a fun peek into your life!! All those snow photos…oh my!! I thought if I could ever move to Texas, I could get away from snow! Is that even possible, my poor heart wonders!!? My favorite photos are of you and your mom – celebrating 95 years! Just precious!! Here’s to a beautiful month ahead with plenty of moments with all your favorite people!!
Leslie Roberts Clingan
Thank you!! My visit with Mom was a delight. I was a little worried when I first got there because she seemed really vacant but as soon as she got used to having us around, and having us take her out and about, there was a renewed spark in her eyes.
Christie Hawkes
Thanks for sharing your photos, Leslie. I really enjoyed looking at them. I haven’t taken many photos lately, and I don’t know why. It has really put a damper on my Thank You Notes posts, because those are based around what’s on my camera roll for the month. I did stop yesterday and take a picture of a tree laden with pink blossoms, and I got a picture with my sister and stepfather earlier in the week, so maybe my dry spell is coming to an end. Here’s to many “Kodak moments” in April! (There’s a phrase I haven’t heard since our phones became our cameras.)
Leslie Roberts Clingan
Here’s to Kodak moments all summer long! XO