some red

I snuck as close as I could to this cardinal that was back lit on my fence by the evening sun.

Then when I went inside I was able to get a couple more through the window while he was at the feeder.

I was so happy to see these boys late Monday night! They had a great time with their grandparents. Apparently, Alec forgot to take the jacket off when he left Michigan. I can assure you if you come to Louisiana in June, you do not need a coat.

I took a few photos last winter of this canoe by our neighborhood lake, but it's much prettier now with green grass in the background.

And one more reddish flower~

cupcakes

I discovered something new at the mall last weekend~ a lovely little shop called Cupcake Couture.

Their cupcakes are beautiful and they sound delicious with flavors like wedding cake, bananas foster and white chocolate strawberry just to name a few. They were kind to let me take a few photos of their delightful displays while I was there.

I'm sure photographing them and playing with the images in photoshop was just as much fun as eating one would have been. Okay... maybe not. Next time I'll get one. But, I did have fun using a Kim Klassen texture on these two images. I added the golden texture at 100% soft light, and then duplicated the layer at 25% opacity.

i heart faces: whimsy

Dandelions just aren't very abundant where I live. So when I found this lone dandelion in the neighbor's yard, my nephew was the first to volunteer to help me make a photo. Don't you think he did a great job?

scavenger hunt: june 26

1. window/doors - This is the home of Jefferson Davis. It's right across from the beach in Biloxi. I love how Biloxi has beautiful live oaks right near the beach. I'm hoping you'll focus on the window and not the lousy clone job. (It's not my fault there was an ugly a/c unit right where I needed to take a pic)

2. eyelashes - I hope you forgive me for being a cheater this week. Mason has the best eyelashes in our family and I haven't seen my sweet boy in almost two weeks :( so I had to use an old photo. I can't wait till Tuesday when my boys will finally be home!

3. paint - This is another one from the archives, but what's cuter than Brinkley getting her toes painted by her Aunt Becky?

4. leaf veins - This little patch of new leaves is on a tree near Biloxi that is called the friendship tree. It is an amazing 500 year old live oak. To compare, if you've ever been to Oak Alley, their trees are 300 years old.

5. faceless portrait - One more of my little niece Brinkley from when we went swimming right before my boys left.

project 365: week 25

1. my favorite shot from bellingrath gardens
2. bamboo
3. boats in a marina in biloxi
4. gulf of mexico at biloxi
5. lunch with a great friend*
6. blooms in fountain after the rain
7. flower from susan's yard

*do you ever have to order white chocolate bread pudding because you need a pic of the day and you forgot to take a photo of your lunch? :)

bellingrath gardens

If you ever find yourself in the vicinity of Mobile, Alabama, I highly recommend a visit to Bellingrath Gardens. We spent about four hours last Saturday touring the home and grounds. I was finally able to find a butterfly to capture because there were lots of them in the butterfly garden.

But I think this bumble bee was my favorite shot of the day.

The home and the courtyards and fountains and bridges were all so pretty.

But mostly I enjoyed taking photos of flowers.