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52/50: Week 2

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I'm down to the wire to post to Kent's P52 site, but not because I was taking photos at the last minute. In fact, all the photos here were taken in Annapolis, MD on Monday. Since then, however, we've been without internet service so there's been no opportunity to post (or comment on blogs.) We arrived in Ft. Myer's Beach yesterday afternoon to stay with Tracy's mom and her friends for four days. The weather is fabulous, and Dick and Carolyn (Ellie's good friends) are experienced birders so our walk along the beach this morning was not only beautiful, but educational. I'll have photos of that later.

Here are some photos from Annapolis, all taken with my 50mm lens.

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I loved this old wooden Native American outside a honest-to-goodness cigar store.

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Loved the textures of the ropes hanging at the end of the pier.

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The sea gull isn't the attraction for me here as much as the reflection in the upper right of the photo.

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A view of the Capitol Building.

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But this is my favorite. I love the colors, the lines, and the reflections of this building along the main street. I'll be linking this one up with P52.

52/50: Week 1

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It's highly unusual that I would post twice in one day, but I found a new photography project for the year this weekend and wanted to link it up to Kent Weakley's P52Sweet Shot Tuesday. The link closes tonight, so I need to be speedy. I found this project through a Photo Jojo post which took me to this site. The premise is to take one photo every week for a year, shooting only with your 50mm lens. I love my 50mm and need some inspiration to continue on with Capture Your 365, so once a week I'll be using my 50mm and linking up with Kent's blog.

Since I was down to the wire, I limited myself to our yard this morning. This is what I found.

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I'm linking the last of these to Kent's blog though I debated about the other hydrangea thinking the composition was better. Ended up thinking the focus on the snow was best here. Which would you have chosen?

Storytelling Sunday: Pick Your Precious

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Sian has been hosting Storytelling Sunday for quite some time, but this is the first time I've joined in. She has a theme for the year, and I'm excited to tell the stories of some of my precious belongings. You can read more about Storytelling Sunday here, and link up your story here.

My old-fashioned Santa wasn’t the first precious object I thought of when I read about Sian’s plans for Storytelling Sunday this year. But as I put away Christmas decorations yesterday, I decided that he would be my first item to share.

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Santa was one of the first major purchases I made for our collection of Christmas decorations. Tracy was selling jewelry at a craft fair for his father, and Sarah, who was just a toddler, and I went up to pay him a visit. When I saw this Santa at one of the booths, I was immediately smitten. I loved his kind eyes,

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his darling sack of toys,

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and the cute Christmas tree tucked under his arm.

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Sadly, the price tag was too high for our budget at that time, so I wandered on. When we got back to the jewelry table, Tracy asked if there was anything out there worth seeing, so I told him about the Santa. He handed me the cash and said, “Go get it.” I’ve always treasured this Santa, and he’s had a prime spot in the living room ever since, some thirty years now.

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Thanks–Two Challenges

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I managed to eek out a few minutes this afternoon and make a thank you card. I'll need a couple while we're away, and this one meets the requirements for two challenges. Completing two challenges a week is a 2013 intention, and although I meant that there would be two cards, this will do under the circumstances.

The first challenge is CASual Friday:  create a Thank You card, and I used the new RetroSketch that was posted this morning. It would have met last week's CASual Friday's challenge as well as it took under 10 minutes to make. Love the RetroSketches! Here's the sketch:

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And here's my interpretation:

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I started with Neenah White cardstock, used a scrap of Dear Lizzy Neopolitan patterned paper that was laying on my desk and die cut it with Spellbinders Small Labels. Two pieces of Washi tape, a Basic Grey "Small Details" embellishment, and "thanks" (AMuse), and it was complete.

 

Christmas Journal: Part 4

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This is a photo-heavy post, but I thought I ought to get the rest of the Christmas Journal posted. I finally finished it last night. This might be the first year I ended on December 25th, but given my current "to do" list, it seemed like the appropriate decision.

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Documenting a couple of other Christmas paper crafting projects beyond the Christmas cards.

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I don't think I've ever copied an entire blog post for an album before, but I loved Rinda's meme and decided to add it to the journal.

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My original intent was to take photos of all the beautiful cards I received from around the world, many of which were hand-crafted. But I really wanted to use the stamps, and there were so many that I decided that would be the entry. For all of you who sent me beautiful cards and holiday greetings—THANK YOU. You have no idea how much I appreciate your talent, kindness, and friendship through this blog.

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My annual page on the weather.

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Matt's first day home and a wonderful visit with Betsy and Skylar.

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After setting the table for Christmas dinner (for 18 this year as it turned out), we go out to dinner on Christmas Eve. Matt decided to change clothes for the church service at 11:00. I wasn't going to miss an opportunity to get his photo all dressed up.

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The first page of six pages for Christmas. This is when I really appreciate the Simple Stories album. The lower right-hand pocket holds a transparency so you can see through it to the next page.

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The end. Jessie and I took over 200 photos in six hours. I narrowed them down to about 100 which I posted on Smug Mug for the family. Once I had a photo of everyone at dinner, I decided I was done with the journal.

The last three days before we leave to drive Tracy's mother's van to Florida for her are jam-packed so I'm not sure if I'll get any more posts up before then. (Although I do have an idea for Sian's Story-telling Sunday. I've never participated with that before and would like to get it up.) I'm sure I'll be checking your blogs while I'm away, but I'll be reading them on my iPad and find commenting on it a bit of a trial. We'll see how I do. 

“DO” in 2013

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I didn't expect to choose One Little Word for this year, but this morning it leaped out at me as I was going over the lists I made a week or so ago after reading similar lists on Karen Grunberg's blog (although now I can't seem to find the specific post). I made three lists for 2013:  What Do I Want to Learn? How Do I Want to Spend My Time? and What Do I Want to Read? This morning "DO" popped out of all three questions, and it seemed like the right word. There is a lot I want to do in 2013, and all of it is not covered by my lists. I tried to be more realistic about my intentions for this year. I've read repeatedly that if you devote just 20 minutes a day to an activity, your performance will improve greatly. I have always had trouble with that, so this year I'm aiming for a few times a week, rather than daily. I made a very quick layout this morning as one way to hold myself accountable.

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I couldn't be simpler:  one piece of cardstock, the printed lists, some AC Thickers and three vellum arrows that came with a Studio Calico kit. 

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Here are a few books (some were Christmas gifts) I hope to use as resources:

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Time

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Three of those books are already on my nightstand (and I've started all three). I have a huge list of books I think I'd like to read, but most of these have been on my list for too long. Both Mary Oliver's book of poetry and Alice Munro's book of short stories are new books. My sister-in-law gave me Happier at Home since she knew I'd loved The Happiness Project.

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Keeping myself accountable is always a challenge. I ordered a gift for Betsy from Lisa Leonard and received this lovely calendar. It's quite small, but I think I can code the things I do each day in it, and hope to do some regular  summing up on the blog as well.

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I've always like the start of a new year. I like setting intentions (rather than resolutions), and I'm always ready for a fresh start. We're leaving on a 10-day trip on Monday, so most of these activities will have to wait until my return to become part of a routine. 

Christmas Journal: Part 3

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I finished culling and editing all the photos from Christmas yesteday so now I can get busy and finish up the last few pages of this journal. If I get a good photo from our small gathering at friend's for the New Year, I'll add that too. Usually I get busy enjoying myself and totall forget to take any pictures. Here are the next pages of the Christmas Journal.

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This year's page about shopping, three-quarters or more was done online. The packages on the right were the ones I mailed to Oregon although many of those went directly from the company. Sarah wrapped Adam's and he wrapped hers. 

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This month's Take Twelve layout. In the journaling I reflected on the two photography projects I took on this year:  Take Twelve and Capture Your 365. I'm not sure I'll do Take Twelve again, but I'm definitely planning on continuing with Capture Your 365. I'll still trying to decide how to document that in 2013. I'm not going to do the Ali Edward calendars again.

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A three-page spread of photos of Betsy and Skylar who came to dinner that night.

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This year's entry on baking. Some topics do seem to get repeated because I have something new to say about them. I wasn't sure I'd like this Starbuck cup cozy as a journaling spot but it worked out well.

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The hardest thing about Christmas this year was being so far away from Caleb! Yesterday was his first birthday, and we did Face Time twice, once for the requisite cupcake, and one for opening presents. Here's the card I sent him.

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And one last photo for the folks who were so surprised to hear we had a snowblower. Almost everyone on our street owns one, although not everyone has a driveway as steep as ours. As you can see, the snow can only be put on the right side of the driveway because of the stone retaining wall. It's not that we don't also use a shovel, but we've never tried to do the driveway without the snow blower when we've had a big snow. It's a pretty long endeavor, even then.

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Have a Happy New Year, how ever you celebrate. I'm just as happy at home, but this year we're going to some friend's for a small gathering. I'll be back with more Christmas Journal, but first with some thoughts about the New Year. 

Christmas Journal: Part 2

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Creating the pages for my Christmas Journal took quite a bit longer than I expected. I love the divided pages and options available by using the Simple Stories album, but it takes a lot of forethought so the pages all go together in the end. I'm very happy with how it's turned out, but I did think I'd be posting pages as I went along. I still have Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and one other page I want to do. I'll post a few pages each day until I've shared them all. Days 1-3 are here.  And the cover and prep pages are here.

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I wasn't sure what I wanted to do for the title page. Then I found this design on the Silhouette site and die cut the numbers with the Typewriter dies by Memory Box.

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I don't attempt to do a December Daily so you won't find pages for each day in December. This spread is about this year's Christmas cards and the family letter I sent to out-of-town friends.

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The annual spread on Christmas decorations.

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Last year I included a calendar and I loved having a record of all we did in December. I still need to finish writing in the activites since I took this photo.

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My friend, Nancy, and I spent a lovely afternoon at two gallery shows and lunch out. This photo was taken at the Memorial Art Gallery in their atrium.

Hope you have a great weekend. We have a very quiet one here. I'm looking forward to some reading, purging, and learning new software!

A Bit of Snow

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We had an exceptionally mild November and December, but yesterday we began to catch up with the average snowfall amount. We got about 9-10 inches overnight, and it was truly beautiful this morning. There wasn't as much wind or blowing snow, so although travel wasn't great, it wasn't as treacherous as they predicted. Matt flew out of Rochester just ahead of the storm, and made it to Denver with about an hour's delay in Atlanta. All in all, his travel was a nonevent—thank goodness!

I always have a urge to purge right after the holidays, so I spent the day sorting through a very large pile of articles that has accumulated over the fall. Now I'm trying to decide how to file the ones I do want to keep—and a system for knowing how to find them. Anyone have a systemt that works for them? I'd love to hear about it.

The only time I ventured out was to take a few photos and to put the cards I made into the mail box. Our birdfeeders got very attractive caps in the snow.

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This was the front walk after Tracy's first pass with the snowblower.

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I liked the patterns the snow made on our glider.

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But my favorite was the railings on the front porch. The pattern reminded me of Frank Lloyd Wright designs.

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And for fun, I hung an ornament in our Korean Pear tree. I think I could have used a narrower aperture, but I like the red against the white.

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I finally have photographed all the pages I've completed of the Christmas Journal, so I'll be back soon with the first of them. Still have three days left to do.

 

Papertrey Ink December Blog Hop Challenge

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It's time for the December Blog Hop at Papertrey Ink, and the inspiration piece is lovely.

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White on white always appeals to me, and with our first snow cover of the year, and a winter storm watch for tonight and tomorrow, it's most appropriate. In addition to the white on white, I kept with the snow image as well.

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I started with Select White cardstock, and embossed a background paenel with the Diamonds Impression Plate. For the focal point, I die cut one of the Doily Details, punched two snowflakes with my Marvy punches, and added a Hero Arts pearl. The sentiment is from Happy Trails, a set I don't use often enough, stamped onto one of the  Double Ended Banner die cuts. There's sure to be lots of inspiration here!

Merry Christmas!

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Christmas Blessings to all! I finally caught up with my Christmas Journal yesterday, and gave thought to posting some of it here today, but there are too many little details left to do before dinner here tomorrow. Matt arrived safely from Denver, there's a bit of snow on the ground, and we are almost ready to celebrate! Have a wonderful holiday! As always, I'll look forward to hearing about yours soon.

Silhouette for Christmas

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One of the best perks of having been on a design team was the opportunity to purchase things at wholesale. I know I never would have bought a Silhouette at full price, but I keep it on my desk and love what it can do. Last night I whipped up a couple of Thank You notes (not yet photographed), but earlier I made a couple cards and a little box. The first card is cased from a Silhouette Blog post. It can't be easily mailed, but it was hand delivered yesterday with a bag of candy.

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I used scraps laying on my desk for red and green (Papertrey Ink New Leaf patterned paper.) The tag is from an office supply store, and the little candy candy with Stickles is from Papertrey's "Tiny Treats: Christmas."

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I love this card, but realized that there's no room for a message or enclosure if you want the brown to show through. I solved the problem by creating an inside flap of the same brown that lifts up to disclose the message.

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And finally, a little box I made to hold one of Sarah's gifts. More New Leaf patterned paper for the circles, and the tag is from Papertrey's "Christmas Countdown" set I purchased for my Christmas Journal this year. (Yes, I'm still working on my Christmas Journal in a not very chronological manner, so I may not post the pages until after the holiday. There have been some challenges with the Simple Stories album, though I love the end result.)

Hope you have a great weekend! Hard to believe it's the last one before Christmas. Matt is scheduled to arrived a little after midnight, and I have my fingers crossed that he'll make his connection and get here on time. We have friends coming for dinner which should help me stay awake until we need to get to the airport.

Drawn Together

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I've spent the last six days praying for the survivors of the Newtown, CT tragedy and wondering what I could do that would be meaningful aside from urging my Representatives and Senators to pass gun control legislation and look for ways to fund better mental health counseling. This morning I found it on Amber Kemp-Gerstel's blog "Damask Love." Please take time to read her blog post, and to contribute in any way that seems appropriate to you. Just sending a card to be included with the kits would be a wonderful contribution.

FMM: Christmas Questions

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Rinda posted a list of Christmas questions on her blog that originated with The BoysMum2Blog and is sponsored by the All the Weigh blog. I’ve been off the computer for nearly a week except to answer important emails, and this seemed like the perfect way to get back to blogging. (Think this will be the next entry in my Christmas Journal, which is coming along, although I’m still not up-to-date.)

Christmas Questions 

1. How will you celebrate the holidays this year? This year Matt will be here for five days over Christmas, so Christmas morning will seem more like the old days. We’ll go out to dinner on Christmas Eve, and then to the 11:00 service at church. On Christmas Day, Tracy’s family will arrive for dinner at 4:00. This year we’ll be twenty strong. It’s always a day of laughter and fun!

2. What’s the weather currently like where you live?  This year it’s been warmer (40’s-50’s), but lots of rain and gray skies. There’s a storm headed our way later this week, so there’s a chance we’ll have snow by Christmas. It looks like the storm will pass through Denver and not quite here when Matt is traveling. I hope that part of the forecast is correct.

3. Do you decorate your home for the holidays? If so, share a picture please!  I love to decorate my house for Christmas and it looks so festive even though I put out fewer decorations every year.

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4. What’s your favorite Christmas movie? We’re not big movie watchers, but we used to watch Christmas at Sesame Street every year, even when the kids got older. I know Sarah has a copy ready to share with Caleb.

5. What is your favorite Christmas song? I love singing carols, and my favorite is “Once in Royal David’s City” which is always the first carol sung at the Christmas Eve service.

6. Do you have an advent calendar? I made this advent calendar when Sarah was two years old. We’ve hung it now for 30 years. (And a sneak peek at some new photos of Skylar who was here for dinner on Friday.)

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7. Do you prefer colored lights or white lights? We have colored lights. The first year Sarah lived in an apartment Matt, Tracy and I decided to give white lights a try. I’m the only one who liked them, and Sarah threatened to boycott Christmas. (An idle threat, I might add.) Here's a shot of some star bokeh I took for the Twelve Days of Christmas class. I'm sure they'd be beautiful in white as well.

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8. What is your favorite food to eat over the holidays? We bake lots of cookies, but the food I look forward to the most are the roasted vegetables my sister-in-law brings to Christmas dinner, and the cheesy potatoes Tracy’s cousin brings. 

9. Do you display a live tree, or do you prefer fake trees? We always have a live tree. All the years that the kids were in town, we cut ours down, and made a day of it. Now that’s we’re on our own, we’ve started buying a pre-cut tree. This year’s is beautiful, but getting the tree is not as much fun as it used to be.

10. What would you need to make your holiday perfect his year? I know I’ll have a fabulous holiday, but it would be even more perfect if we could visit Oregon for a few days and spend some time with Sarah, Adam, and Caleb.

I'll be around to get caught up on all the blogs later this week!

 

 

 

Ten on the Tenth: Photos from Twelve Days of Christmas

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I'm really enjoying the Twelve Days of Christmas prompts in Cheryl Johnson's class. I still have several assignments to complete. Waiting for some willing subjects to appear, and for the rain to subside. But here are ten:

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Here's the most recent one, although late for the prompt which was "Party, Party." It doesn't match the assignment exactly since Cheryl was looking for somewhat goofy group shots, but it seemed to fit the mood. We bought new bows for our outdoor wreaths, and Tracy held it up and said, "You ought to take this for your Photo-of-the-day." Done!

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These were taken for the "Reflection" prompt. I like the first one because I captured both of us in the photo.

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My "festive self-portrait."

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Another self-portrait shot, that could have been used for today's "Reflection" prompt.

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Two of the shots for the White Balance exercise. The one on the right is truest to the actual color, but the one with the flash was a favorite of several people who commented on the forum. If I use a flash, I rarely use the pop-up but will use the external flash Tracy bought me a few years ago.

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The tag was created for the "Spell It Out" prompt and I photographed it with the dies I used to create it.

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And, finally, three photos from the "Festive Photo Walk" that I didn't include in my Christmas Journal.

I'm enjoying this class, and hope to get out soon to take some photos of Christmas lights at night. I'd like it to stop raining, and hope it doesn't get too cold. (Wishful thinking.)