Project 365 Day 60 - February 29th

The first flowers on the bushes are coming out.  Spring is in full swing already!

Project 365 Day 59 - February 28th

Today was all about relaxing, so I snapped this photo of water pouring out of the faucet as I prepared for a long hot bubble bath. 

Project 365 Day 58 - February 27th

My friend Kathy made my daughter this beautiful blanket as a Christmas gift - it's fleece on one side and satin on the other.  Daisha insisted that it be my photo of the day today because she wanted to show it off.  LOL

Etsy Shop and Facebook Page

After hearing several people tell me I should set up an Etsy store to see all of my crafty things, I am finally taking the advice and doing just that.

The official From Jamie's World Etsy shop is up but not yet open for business.  I will be offering prints of certain photos I have done, as well as crocheted items and anything else that I come up with along the way.  My goal is to keep the prices realistic and affordable while still being able to make some pocket change for myself along the way.

There is also a Facebook page now set up for From Jamie's World.  You can find it here.  It's pretty bare-bones right now but I hope to change that very soon!  You can bet that as soon as I'm up and fully running, all of my followers here will be the first to know!

Project 365 Day 57 - February 26th

Spring is in the air - the stores have in the mulch and potting soil.  Let the fun begin!!!

Project 365 Day 56 - February 25th

I am not a girly-girl... those of you who have known me for awhile are already aware of this fact.  Actually, I love looking at girly-girl things, such as shoes, but I am not a fan of shopping, so I rarely end up actually buying them.  This has caused me problems recently, as it's difficult to shoot photos for a wedding when you don't have the proper clothing to wear.

Fortunately, my neighbor and good friend, Kathy, gave me this beautiful pair of heels to keep.  They are snakeskin and have the most beautiful coloring to them.  It changes from a purplish to a green depending on how the light is hitting it.  And my favorite part - they're Naturalizers, so it's like wearing tennis shoes.  :)

Project 365 Day 55 - February 24th

It's been another day of rain!  :(  I decided to go for a different point of view than I normally would and shot the raindrops on the window.

Project 365 Day 54 - February 23rd

After many years, 8 specifically, of having only a cell phone, our family has made a change.  With every increasing cell phone bills because of Tony's job, I gave up on trying to get a plan that works for our family and went back to a landline.  Our bill is less than half of what it was every month, and that's including having our internet on the same bill.  Yay for saving money!!!

Project 365 Day 53 - February 22

Over the weekend, I received a gift from a friend who works for Sephora - LipFusion XL.  When I was younger, my lips were pretty full and kissable.  Unfortunately, over the last few years, the fullness has started to decrease and I refuse to have any kind of injection just to make them look fuller.

That is where the LipFusion XL comes in - it's a spearmint-flavored lip gloss that is meant to wear on your lips overnight.  It as micro injected collagen that is absorbed into your lips overnight.  It even hydrates your lips and helps to decrease the fine lines that so many of us find more noticeable as we get older.

Now some of you are probably thinking I sound like an advertiser - I promise that is not my intention.  I'm not being paid by Fusion, Sephora, or anyone else - I just LOVE this product, which is why it was the subject of my photo today.

Project 365 Day 52 - February 21st

LAISSEZ LES BONS TEMPS ROULER!!!  Okay, my french is a little rusty so I'm not sure if I spelled it right or not, but HAPPY MARDI GRAS!!!

Project 365 Day 51 -February 20th

It has been one of those days.  I've spent all day in front of the computer editing photos from a shoot I did last week, as well as organizing the photos from the wedding I shot yesterday.  Unfortunately, my kids have also had me ready to pull my hair out as my husband worked a 12-hour shift.

Needless to say that by the end of the day, I was ready for a shot of tequila - or anything else I could get my hands on.  I behaved myself though and had a glass of soda instead.

Project 365 Day 50 - February 19th

It's Joe Cain Day.  Joe Cain is the man who brought Mardi Gras to Mobile and is celebrated each year wth a full day of parades on his behalf.

We didn't make it to Mobile as we have hoped to do the last several years.  Tony had to work and I wasn't willing to take two kids by myself on what is always a crazy day!

Project 365 Day 49 - February 18th

Today was the wedding of two wonderful friends of ours, Chuck and Lori.  This meant a rare occasion to have my entire family all dressed up at the same time.  It was the first time we succeeded in getting Keiran into the suit that my step-mom gave me - it used to belong to my brother and Keiran has finally grown into it.  He was so not into the whole wedding thing, and in the midst of his crabbiness, I managed to get this shot.

He is tops when it comes to working those big puppy dog eyes!

Project 365 Day 48 - February 17th

I was totally amazed that we ended up with just as many beads from an elementary school parade as we would have at a big city parade.  LOL  Daisha had so much fun with her classmates, and my friends Kathy and Cecilye and I enjoyed seeing all of the creative floats the kids created.

Project 365 Day 47 - February 16th

Tomorrow is the last day of school before the Mardi Gras holiday.  That's right - here in Southern Alabama the kids get time off school to celebrate Mardi Grad!  That means that my daughter's school will be holding their Annual Kindergarten Mardi Gras Parade.  The kindergarteners have to all create their own "float" by decorating bikes, wagons, or boxes they can wear and then go through the school like a big parade.

One part of the parade includes the King and Queen.  The school holds a contest every year to determine the King and Queen in a way that the kids have to work to earn the privilege.  This year's Queen just happens to be one of my neighbor's daughter, Delaney.  She is such a great kid who works hard and deserves this opportunity. Delaney borrowed a wagon to decorate as her float for the parade. 

Well, another neighbor, my friend Kathy, as well as her daughters and I, all saw Delaney's attempt to decorate her "float" without much to work with.  That wasn't acceptable... I talked to her mom and we decided it was time for "Pimp My Ride - Mardi Gras Style!!!"

We're keeping it in Kathy's apartment overnight, with Delaney's mother's permission, and will pull it out in the morning before she leaves for school.  I'll be downstairs waiting for her to come down with a camera in hand... we're all dying to see her face when she realizes what we've done.  Kathy even made her a special Mardi Gras mask to wear that we'll present to her in the morning.

Project 365 Day 46 - February 15th

So I kind of cheated today... I've spent most of the day editing photos from the shoot I did on Monday.  I figured that since I posted a regular photo on Monday rather than one from the shoot, that I'd use one from the shoot today.

Let me just say that after trying several different techniques to remove unwanted shadows from photos, I finally found something that works.  YAY!!!  I bring this up because this particular photo shoot resulted in many unwanted shadows.  The temperature dropped too much to keep the 6-month outdoors so I pulled out some of the sheets I always have with me and set up a makeshift studio inside the client's living room.  Unfortunately, there wasn't much natural light, which meant having to use several overhead lights and my flash.

I got so discouraged as I started going through the photos, wondering if I'd be able to make any of them work.  Rather than letting my frustrations get the best of me, I did some online research and got started.  Today's photo is probably one of my favorites from the shoot, which is why I wanted to share!

Project 365 Day 45 - February 14th

Happy Valentine's Day!  My hubby decided that despite all things, he wanted to do something for me for this God-forsaken Hallmark Holiday this year.  LOL

I've been wanting a miniature dachsund for awhile now.  Unfortunately, I'm not one of those people who wants to have a dog while we're living in an apartment, especially with the fees that are associated with having a pet in most complexes.  In lieu of a real dog, Tony got me this big stuffed dachsund.  He also picked up this beautiful wine-themed recipe box that I've been eyeballing for some time now.  :)

I can't wait to get some of my latest finds out and get them onto cards and in this pretty box!

Project 365 Day 44 - February 13th

The photo shoot I had this afternoon was in one of the more rural parts of our county, which isn't saying much since more than half of the county is rural.  Anyway, I was out in an area that has a lot of farmland, which gave me today's shot.

This is the sprinkler system that a lot of the local farmers use to irrigate their crops.  We see a lot of cotton, corn, and strawberries around here.  I can't wait until spring so I can try to get some shots of the various crops as they're growing!

Project 365 Day 43 - February 12th

No, they didn't have sprinkles as their breakfast.  They did, however, get chocolate waffles topped with Oreo crumbs and sprinkles.  LOL  I couldn't resist snapping a photo of the sprinkles dumped out on a plate looking  all colorful first thing on a cold morning.

Project 365 Day 42 - February 11th

As I've stated previously, Tony and I don't really get into the whole Valentine's Day thing.  If I do anything for him, I usually make sure it's something special and from the heart.  This year is no different - the craft I've been working on for him consists of a wine bottle filled with quotes about love for every day of the year.

I can honestly say that when I started this project, I never imagined it would take so much to find 365 different quotes on love (keeping in mind that they needed to fit on 1"x4" slips of paper).  LOL

Project 365 Day 41 - February 10th

I'm not a difficult person to please, especially when it comes to anything photography-related.  Well, I finally got something today that I have been in desperate need of... a rapid battery charger.  I have two batteries for my camera, which is plenty under most circumstances (at least for now).  Unfortunately, the only way I had for charging my batteries was in the camera itself.  That sucks when I want use my camera while the other battery is charging.

I gave Tony the money from a photo shoot and while he was out running errands for work, he stopped at Best Buy and bought this charger for me.  It will charge a fully drained battery in an hour - and I tested it!  The coolest part is the LCD screen that allows you to see how much of the charging process has completed - and it's free entertainment for my 3-year old.  LOL

Project 365 Day 40 - February 9th

Tony and I have never been big on celebrating Valentine's Day.  It's become more a Hallmark holiday than anything, so we don't normally do anything special just because we're "supposed to".  However, having a daughter that is now in second grade, we've accepted that it's a holiday we have to deal with.

Being a crafty mama, as Daisha calls me, means that she doesn't take store-bought valentines for her classmates.  Every year for the last three years we have always made her valentines.  This year we chose coffee filter roses.  At first I wasn't sure how they would turn out... in the end, we loved them.

She got a full set of the roses in four colors that she'll be taking to her friends on Tuesday, along with a couple of small bouquets we made for her current teacher and her teacher from last year.

Project 365 Day 39 - February 8th

The weather was absolutely beautiful today, and since Tony had the day off work, we took Keiran to the playground for a little while.  Despite all of the things there for him to play with, all he wanted to do was take his bucket and shovel and play in the sand.  LOL  That's my kid for ya...

I absolutely love how this shot turned out - and without any editing other than bringing the color up just a little.  If you haven't seen my son in person, those eyelashes are real.  Everywhere he goes he has women drooling over them (and it doesn't hurt that he has big blue puppy dog eyes to go with them).

Project 365 Day 38 - February 7th

All day I had contemplated what I was going to do for today's photo.  I had no ideas floating in my head whatsoever.  My hubby had to go to work this evening to take care of a few things, and right after he left he told me to wait about 30 minutes then to go out on our balcony and look at the moon.

I was so excited when I realized how clear and bright it was tonight, not to mention it was a full moon.  Since I knew I'd need my tripod in order to get a clear shot, I had to wait another hour until it was high enough that I could see if from the ground over the surrounding buildings and trees.

After about 35 minutes outside and 30+ shots later, I finally narrowed it down to two shots.

Project 365 Day 37 - February 6th

I'm not perfect, nor do I claim to be.  And I'm not always great at handling rough situations with my kids.  Today was one of those days.  My daughter has had major attitude issues for several days, and I reached my breaking point when she got home from school this afternoon.  After more than an hour of her arguing and screaming about anything and everything, I needed a break.

I am a former smoker... most of the time that is.  On occasion, while around a certain group of friends or when I'm overly stressed, I'll give in and have a cigarette.  This was one of those occasions.  I stepped out onto our patio to submit to this bad habit.  Along the way, I decided I'd use this moment as inspiration for today's photo.  I have to admit - it worked great!  I ended up smoking less than half of the cigarette because I was more focused on trying to get a cool shot.

Project 365 Day 36 - February 5th

I decided to do my first Pinterest activity of the week for breakfast this morning.  I opted to make a syrup rather than a glaze as the recipe called for.  In the process, I became enthralled by the rolling bubbles in the pot.  LOL  What can I say, I'm still a kid at heart in many ways.

Project 365 Day 35 - February 4th

I figured that we're just over a month into this year's Project 365 and I have not yet posted (or shot) a self-portrait.  I absolutely detest being in front of the camera.  It's not that I'm not photogenic, but I would just rather be on the other side of the camera.

I figured if I was going to do a self-portrait, I'd do it in a way that resembles me in the best possible way - behind the camera.

Project 365 Day 34 - February 3rd

In addition to this Project 365 Challenge for 2012, I'm also participating in a 52 Weeks of Pinterest Challenge.  I am totally addicted to Pinterest.  It is probably the best website ever invented, especially for those of us who blog.  It is a great way to get your blog out there on the web and promote it for free simply by "Pinning" the photos you post to your own Pinterest page.  From there, others can repin and so on and so on.

The main reason I love Pinterest is because it gives me inspiration for crafts, decorating, recipes, and many other areas in my life that I enjoy.  The problem I have run into with the challenge so far is that in an attempt to save money, which is very tight right now (and that's putting it nicely), has been to use recipes or crochet projects.  I am determined to break out of that shell over the next few weeks.

This is my collection of magazines, and this is how I'm going to change up my Pinterest Challenge.  There are so many awesome things I've come across that can be done with magazines so that you can recycle them in a fun way.  I really need to go through my magazines, pull out the things from them that I want to keep, then either file them or scan them.  Starting that is going to happen this weekend... since I still can't get up on my foot for long, it's something productive that I can do to occupy my time. 

Project 365 Day 33 - February 2nd

Several days ago, my husband introduced our 3-year old to "Peanut Butter Jelly Time".  Keiran (my son) absolutely loves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches but didn't understand the reference his daddy kept making whenever we'd serve up his favorite sandwich.

For those of you who may not know what I'm talking about (I didn't know about it before Tony showed Keiran either so don't feel bad), you can find it here.  Well, needless to say that ever since Keiran saw the video, it has been used all over the house.  As a matter of fact, anytime I ask my son what he wants to eat now, his response is usually "It's peanut butter jelly time!" with as much excitement as he can muster up.  LOL  It's kind of funny, cute, and annoying all at the same time.

My photo is such because when I gave Keiran his requested sandwich at lunch time today, he begged me to "take a pitcher of my sammich, mama".  My son has the biggest blue puppy dog eyes and knows how to work them to his advantage whenever he really wants something.

Project 365 Day 32 - February 1st

I can't believe it's February already - where did January go!?!  I'm thrilled to have made it a month into the challenge without any problems so far, and without suffering from lack of inspiration too often.

We had quite a bit of rain today, which left the possibilities for shooting something outside from our balcony slightly limited.  As the rain poured off the roof at the corner of our patio, I looked down to a view that reminded me of being behind a waterfall.  I grabbed my camera and snapped away.  I wish I'd had better luck with the water being in focus, but I'm content with how the shot turned out.