The best part of waking up

is having someone else make you coffee. But if that isn't an option, then I still enjoy making some for myself. Last year my husband and I got an amazing deal on a super fancy espresso machine that I am just barely competent enough to use. I really enjoy having him make fancy coffee beverages for me anyway, so I make him be my personal barista as much as possible.

Then life happened. And our schedules don't line up as much as they used to. Now *gasp* I have to make my own coffee. Life. Isn't. Fair.

But I'm getting the hang of it. I still end up with steamed milk that is really just warm- it isn't the airy, whipped concoction that spectacular baristas pour into fanciful shapes at cafes. But it suffices.

I get coffee. The world is allowed to live. Win-win.

Tales from Phd-Land

My charming, sweet and culinary-gifted husband is normally quite intelligent. But sometimes I wonder about Those Who Pursue PhD Programs. Last night, talking about places we'd like to visit, he mentioned that he would love to go to Charleston.

source

I totally agree! A city with history, culture and a lot of beauty to enjoy! However, my sweet husband soon ruined my joy. "I want to go to South Virginia!"  My response... "Um... what?". I gently {between giggles} informed him that there is no such place. He defended his words, stating that he meant South Carolina and was simply tired. I choose to think that he is planning to found a new state somewhere between Virginia, the Carolinas and Montana.

*sigh*

I guess I'm not with him for his geographical prowess.

Nope, I married him for the food. :)

Scavenge

1) Food-It is distinctly possible that I am spoiled when it comes to food. Case in point- creme brulee sous vide cheesecake (instructions can be found here for the culinarily brave). The red bits are raspberry that was frozen in liquid nitrogen. Yum!

2) Purple- I'm working on taking pictures of things that aren't as interesting to me and trying to make them look cool. This is basically my first try at that, and while I don't think it really succeeded, I do like the purple of the cabbage!

 

3) In Disguise- Somehow I didn't get one for this recently. I know- I'm a failure! I love Halloween, but this year I got the house decorated, then pooped out- no costume for me! Next year:) Instead, I shall share a photo of Chowder pretending to be a Hogwarts student!

 

4) Shapes- Meet Bear. He loves playing ball. And swimming. Sometimes. After working himself up to jumping into the water. Such a sweetie! I was trying to get shots of the shapes of the water ripples when he swam into the frame and I love this image!

5) Photographer's Choice- What can I say? I love Pepsi's smushed, sleepy little face!!

Next week's prompts are:
1) Before and After (processing)
2) Opposing Lines
3) Custom Bokeh
4) Which pair of shoes should I wear?
5) Little features (little hands, little feet, etc)

June Photo Hunt

1. Sun/Lens Flare

2. A Street Scene

3. Signage

4. Creative Crop- I took this literally- Tiger melon is a very creative crop to grow!

5. A Fountain- of words?

6. B & W with Selective Coloring

7. Cookout/Picnic

8. Body of Water

9.  Great Outdoors

10. Fish- Ok, so this isn't quite a fish... but scallops do live in the water!

11. Roughin It

12. A Different Point of View

Check out the other amazing entries!

So many photos, so little time!

I love entering all these photo challenges and contests, but sometimes I get confused which prompts go where and who is doing what when! I've found that several other bloggers have great lists of the memes they enjoy, and some (like Mira Crisp's Photo Challenge Index) lay it out so easily! However, I still seem to get lost, so one of these days I will have to make my own list that works for my insane mind. Until then, enjoy some pictures!!

E is for E-Z Walker- this is a hot walker out at my horse barn. If you aren't familiar with them, basically it is a steel and rust colored demon motorized carousel that you can hook your horse to when they need to cool down and it walks them in circles for you. Copper is not a fan. Oh well.

I know this shot isn't terribly whimsical, but I thought the idea of me taking pictures of me, holding flowers picked by me, showing off my atrocious tan line was a bit amusing, so I'll go with amusing=whimsy in this case:).

Mr. Pony made brioche. OMG DROOL!!! So much butter! So many eggs! The house smelled delicious, the bread tasted better, and I wish we could have brioche with every meal! Brioche french toast! Brioche PB&J sammies! It does get a bit dodgy once I think about brioche and steak or stir-fry, but I'm sure I'll figure out a way to make it work:)!

That will do for now:). Thanks for stopping by!

Melons for all!

Just running by to share some Tiger melon with you. Enjoy!

 

Rejoining the Hunt!

Last week I completely missed getting any prompts done for the hunt until Saturday night. At that point, I figured I'd just take a break for a week and rejoin later. Well, that time has come. You are welcome.

In any case, here are my shots for the week {hm... shots... that sounds like an excellent idea! But I digress...}. Stop by Ashley's blog for more amazing entries!!






1) Long Exposure- This one I didn't really get, but the exposure on this image was fairly long, and I love pictures of my boys!!

2) Shapes- This is black gold garlic. We got three heads of this stuff and it cost $8.00!! However, the flavor is really amazing and distinct, and it is seriously gorgeous. The only edit on this shot was the watermark- the rest is just naturally awesome texture!

3) Green

4) Fruit- Our local farmer's market had a huge number of vendors today. Several of them had these adorable little Tiger melons. They are wee and delicious!

5) Childhood Memory- As of May 14th {at about 5pm}, Copper and I have been together for more than half of my life. I think you can say that makes him a major childhood memory! Oh, and he isn't always this cranky looking. He just has a moral opposition to sharing sugar cubes.

Remember to stop by Ashley's blog, check out all the wonderful entries, and join in next week! Next week's prompts are:

1) Emotion

2) From a Flower's Point of View

3) Natural Frame

4) Letters

5) Bliss

Lovely!

Lovely is a lovely word- it makes me think of elegance and style, fine china and lawn parties.

But I digress.

This has been a lovely week. The weather has been lovely (though we could use some rain...). My new shoes are lovely. My new lens is lovely. My friends are lovely. In all, everything is lovely.

Photography is also lovely- I get to express my latent creative side and capture moments of my life forever. Speaking of photography...

1) Straight Out of Camera (SOOC)- Our CSA is giving us zucchini blossoms every week. These gorgeous blooms are delicious in a variety of dishes!

2) Sprouting- Remember that Chrysanthemum I mentioned? The one I thought was dead? Well she isn't. And she looks wonderful. Lovely, even.

3) Isn't it Ironic?- I have always wanted an overstuffed chair. At least as long as I've loved to read and got large enough that all chairs did not automatically seem huge. Earlier this week I found one on craigslist! She is lovely! And large! And soft! The irony?

Pepsi becomes indignant if I try to move her off of her new chair. *sigh*

4) Lazy- Speaking of Pepsi and her my chair... Pepsi wants everyone to know that she has a rough life. For realz.

5) Smells Like Spring- I've been excitedly checking my Magnolia for blossoms, and while it has been putting out a bunch, our recent and never-ending wind storm has pretty much destroyed most of the blooms before they get a chance to share their glory. Today I was able to snap a few quick shots of this one before the wind claimed another victim!

You should definitely join the weekly scavenger hunt! It is so much fun and over at Ashley's blog you get to see so many amazing images!!! Next week's prompts are:

1) Give Me Flowers
2) Visual Contrast
3) Friendship
4) Before and After
5) Dark

And for a couple other photo challenges...


Red- Even as they fall apart, Magnolia blossoms have a stately beauty.

Rock- Maybe not the most traditional interpretation, but when these puppies start pumping, they can really get you to rock out!!