Day 1050 – A Day At The Zoo!

Today I was testing out my photography skills with a bunch of wild animals….and Shawna and her daughter at Catoctin Wildlife Preserve & Zoo.

It was a really fun zoo with lots of neat animals! Enjoy!

And this is why I love Shawna….

Shawna’s daughter was SO good! I was seriously impressed! She didn’t cry all day…..that is until we were watching TV later and I laughed SO hard and SO loud, it scared her and she cried. It was very funny, but I felt so bad! Ah well. Here’s the cutie pie!

If you know Shawna, you know this is a “her face.” I laugh every time her daughter makes faces because she looks JUST like her mom! 🙂

Day 1049 – Look What I Found! or Happy Birthday Again to Bret!

Today I was formatting some of my Compact Flash cards…my process is double checking I have the files saved in two spots (on the computer and an external hard drive) before I format the card (to the wedding/portrait clients, I TRIPLE backup my originals!). But the images on these cards were mostly for this blog and for my church.

So! While I was checking, I realized I totally missed a few pictures for the blog! What follows is one of the coolest birthday cards. My family got it for Bret. My mom added names to each of the characters.

Gretchen is the dog.

Oh silly family.

Day 1048 – Cooking Fun with Kale and Pinterest Recipes

Last night, I made something I’ve been meaning to make for a while. We had a HUGE bag of Kale and I knew I had to use it soon or it would all go bad. Unfortunately, I was all out of salad materials, so I wasn’t eating it (I was also a little saladed out). I went to trusty Google to find some recipes. I ended up making Kale Chips. VERY easy and mostly tasty. My only complaint was the bitter aftertaste. The next time I make it, I think I’ll add a little honey to counter that.

So, you just put oil and apple cider vinegar in a bowl, whisk to mix.

Mix in Kale until it’s coated.

Lay the kale out a cooking sheet…the recipe I found said to put it on parchment paper, but I just coated the pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle salt over kale.

Cook about 10-15 minutes at 400, until crispy. I think I over cooked the first batch and the second was just a little under. It will take a bit of testing to figure out the best cooking time.

It doesn’t look pretty, but we ate all of it….last night….go us for making food last!

Tonight, I went crazy at the store….just crazy. A ton of veggies, frozen fruit, fresh fruit, tuna, canned veggies, beans. Whew! I spent way more than I’d like, but I think it will last a while (minus fresh stuff). I mostly went crazy because we’ve been getting tired of the same thing….salads for me, tuna for both, and peanut butter sandwiches for Bret. So tired of it! I was so thankful for “past Jennilyn” who Pinned a few great recipes on my Foods to Try board…I ended up trying the Tomato-Basil Parmesan Soup. It took a long time to make….but I was busy cutting up other veggies and cooking other things while it was simmering.

Here’s the finished product!

Whew! You should have seen my kitchen last night! Thankful for a hubby who does the dishes! 🙂

Day 1047 – Last Set From the Style Shoot! Out on the Chesapeake Bay in Havre de Grace!

You know I love all the shots from the style shoot and every set I love in a different way. Overall, I loved being able to do crazy, over the top edits to the pictures. It was awesome to let my creative juices flow! I can’t stop looking at how blue these are! Ah! Love it!!! 🙂

I LOVE the multiple pearl necklaces here. Looks so good!