Category Archives: Photography

Project 365 – Less Noteworthy Attempts

I’ve been sorting and organizing my pictures, and I see that sometimes I was a bit, um, haphazard or would you say pathetic, in capturing the picture of the day.

Take, for example, this little collection from December 2nd.

A little bit of Paris in our very own neighborhood.

A little bit of Paris in our very own neighborhood.

Nothing says Christmas like a little bit of Snoopy

A Santa Snoopy makes me smile!

Although it doesn’t redeem the quality (or interest level) of these pictures, I should note that these were taken while Tim and I were out on a neighborhood walk. We have a route marked out that comes to just a little more than a mile. We can easily walk in our quiet cul-d-sac most any time of the day (or late evening, in this case) without encountering more than 4 or 5 people, and often less cars.

We have logged many miles, praying for our children and interceding for them. God has been so faithful to meet us on our walks. It is such a blessing to have a praying husband. I am very thankful for Tim’s leadership, love and wisdom.

Maybe tomorrow’s pictures are a little better….

Project 365 – Day 336 (Dec 2)
Kathy

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Blue Platoon Honor Man

This Fall has offered many exciting opportunities for David, as he embarks on his High School career. One such opportunity has been to follow in his older brothers’ footsteps, participating in the Naval Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps (ROTC) program at a nearby high school.

"Sir, yes sir!"

“Cadet Recruit Recruit reporting for duty, Sir!”

It has been fascinating for me to watch him learning to march, how to wear a uniform, and to memorize the Orders of the Sentry. Even learning how to dress in ‘business casual’ attire (as they do sometimes when they don’t wear their uniform) is such a valuable skill for a young man. We are very proud of how David is excelling in the program.

Participating in NJROTC  and running Cross Country in the same semester has been rather grueling for David.

Participating in NJROTC and running Cross Country (at two different high schools) in the same semester has been rather grueling for David.

Whenever they can get the local military bases to cooperate, the Junior ROTC program sends all the new recruits away to a Basic Leadership Training (BLT) weekend, where they are given the chance to learn some simple soldiering skills and to be shouted at by Marine instructors. This last weekend was BLT for David and the other recruits of his class; of course, it rained hard the entire weekend.

"These are the future leaders of the Cadet Corps," predicted the Colonel, as David and a few others were promoted to E-2.

“These are the future leaders of the Cadet Corps,” predicted the Colonel, as David and a few others were promoted to E-2.

Cadet families were invited to attend an award ceremony when the kids returned from BLT — David received a participation award, a swim qualification, and (most prestigious) Honor Man for his platoon. As a result of his exceptional conduct and achievement, David was promoted to Seaman Apprentice (E-2), skipping over the E-1 rank. Next time he wears his uniform, he’ll have two new ribbons and a shiny medal pinned to his chest, in addition to the ribbon for being Cadet of the Month.

This photo was taken even before David got his first ribbon.

This photo was taken even before David got his first ribbon.

It is remarkable to see how quickly David has acquired military bearing, and it warms my heart to hear him address other adults respectfully as “Sir” and “Ma’am”. I am excited to see how military skills and disciplines will open doors of opportunity in David’s life.

David's signature thumbs-up, waiting for the BLT ceremony to begin.

David’s signature thumbs-up, waiting for the BLT ceremony to begin.

Great job winning the coveted Honor Man award, David! We are so proud of you!

Project 365, Day 320
Tim

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Let the Rains Begin

When you live in Western Washington, there comes a time in the Fall when you need to brace yourself.

I suppose this is true nearly anywhere that has swings in the weather — certainly, when we lived in Michigan, there was a time when you needed to brace yourself for the winter ice and snow. (And break out the shovel, snow-blower, rock salt, pick-axe, and any other heavy machinery you might need.)

But here we brace ourselves against the Rains of November™. And so I dove into the hall closet and brought out (with great reverence) the awesome raincoat that Kathy’s Mom gave me back in 1999 when we first moved here.

“You’re moving to Washington, you’ll need a good raincoat,” she told me. Never have truer words been spoken.

The raincoat she gave me is an exceptionally waterproof garment — it makes a duck’s back look positively porous. It is made by L. L. Bean, Stowaway model, very light-weight and with special Velcro closures at the wrist. It also has lots of waterproof pockets, always to be desired in a good raincoat.

When the rains settle in, it is possible for them to stay for months at a time. When we first moved to Washington in March of 1999, people were talking about ’90 consecutive days of rain’. They tended to look a little wild when they talked about it.

We have a new rule in our household: if we want to have ice cream and if we want to watch any kind of video or show after supper, we must go for a walk. As you may know, I will do nearly anything for ice cream, and so Sarah and I pulled ourselves together with appropriate rain gear.

Neither snow nor rain nor dark of night ...

Neither snow nor rain nor dark of night …

When you raise children in Washington, there are certain deleterious side effects which are not immediately obvious. Contrary to popular opinion, people from Western Washington do not actually have moss growing on the backs of their necks and behind their ears. But there are definitely some internal chemistry changes which occur, and it is possible there is also some unfortunate neurological damage.

David and I were driving a few blocks from our home for a sandwich at Subway, and he looked out the windshield at the rain and clouds, and sighed happily.

“Don’t you just love a good, rainy Sunday?” he asked. I returned his gaze rather blankly, not being Washington-bred.

Later during our meal, when the sun broke through some clouds, he became visibly annoyed. “It just won’t be as fun, playing Ultimate, without the rain,” he grumbled.

Some people who move from California to Washington can experience SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder). They buy special sun lamps to fight against the depression that the cloudy skies brings. What will happen to my children if they grow up and move to Phoenix or San Diego? Will they buy special cloud generators for their homes and offices? Time will tell, I guess.

The increasingly-innacurately-named Project 365 — Day 305
Tim

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Michigan Family Time

Sarah and I are in Michigan to enjoy some time with my mom as she recovers from her hip replacement. The surgery “just happened” to coincide with a dear friend’s wedding. I was already planning on coming to Michigan in October to attend the wedding, spend time with my mom, and see Joshua and Kelsie. Joshua was the best man in the wedding – he and Kelsie drove up from Tennessee to be here over fall break.

A few minutes of relaxing before rushing to the next thing.

A few minutes of relaxing before rushing to the next thing.

When Mom’s surgery was scheduled for the end of September, it worked out beautifully for my aunt to come for the first week of recovery time, and then Sarah and I to come for the next two weeks. So many sweet things came together – we got to see my mom’s twin sister, we had time with Joshua and Kelsie, we got some relaxed, intentional time with Kelsie (my beautiful future daughter in law), we were able to attend David and Christianne’s wedding, we shopped for wedding outfits, we pampered Mamie, and then we had time with my brother and his youngest daughter.

Sarah gets some loving from Aunt Kate!

Sarah gets some loving from Aunt Kate!

Wow!

Not sure why I haven’t been blogging all of this. Just know there has been joy. There have been some tears. There has been a lot of reminiscing and talk of my beloved (and SORELY missed) dad. There have been even more giggles. Quite a bit of ice cream and other delicious food. Sweet discussions on faith and life. Quiet moments of Bible study. Painful stretching and hip exercises (we ALL do them with Mamie). Other silly video workouts. Good chocolate. Visits with Mamie’s INCREDIBLE friends. And more.

It was hard being gone for Tim’s birthday, but we managed to celebrate him here in Michigan.

We missed being with Tim on his birthday.

We missed being with Tim on his birthday.

We love you, Tim!!  Happy Birthday.

We love you, Tim!! Happy Birthday.

And he was obviously thoroughly spoiled on his birthday back in Washington. We are a blessed and loved family! A huge thankful to all of our friends for stepping in and partying with Tim in my absence.

Tim and David have been surviving just fine without us (somehow). Hopefully they haven’t been spoiled so much by my sweet friends that they don’t regret us returning home on Tuesday.

Kathy – more to follow
Project 365 – October 7th & October 8th

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Semicentennial Photoblog

Every once in a long while, a person reaches a milestone of importance. People graduate from various schools, achieve promotions, invest in important relationships, and generally press ‘further up and further in’ (as C.S. Lewis would say) as they make their way through life.

I've always liked Lewis' Last Battle, in spite of the troubling theological implications.

I’ve always liked Lewis’ Last Battle, in spite of the troubling theological implications.

For all my seeming potential, my life has been somewhat lacking in distinction. I graduated from college after nine years and only by the skin of my teeth, and I’ve achieved only modest promotions in my career. I did manage to acquire a beautiful and talented (trophy?) wife and five awesome children, but it is hard to say how much of that redounds to my personal credit. If there has been any consistent pattern to my life, it is that I’ve generally benefited from the achievements of others and stood on their shoulders.

You've got to admit, I did have lots of potential, if nothing else.  (That's me on the right.)

You’ve got to admit, I did have lots of potential, if nothing else. (That’s me, stalwart, on the right.)

But the relentless march of time ensures that certain milestones come to every person, if they can manage to simply survive, and so yesterday I celebrated my 50th birthday. There are many who were surprised by this, since I was voted “Most likely to be killed by a low-flying blimp” in several student publications.

My ancient foe, seeking another victim.

My ancient foe, seeking another victim.

Since Kathy is away in Michigan, caring for her Mom in her convalescence, I was left to my own devices to celebrate the big day (or so I thought). Little did I know that Kathy’s arm is as long as her minions are resourceful.

Not Kathy's actual minion horde.

Not Kathy’s actual minion horde.

The day started in a promising way — Tina R. offered to drive the JNROTC boys both ways, as a birthday present. Since David and Will’s Drill Team meets at 0-dark-30, this was a significant sacrifice, and it allowed me to sleep in for an extra 3 hours of burrowed bliss. Eventually, I showered and rushed off to church to pick up a meal that Nicole O. made for David and me, since it is a known fact that neither of us can do much more than boil water. En route, I received a cheerful call from my oldest daughter, who wanted to be the first to officially wish me ‘Happy Birthday’. It was so good to hear from her, and to be encouraged by the way God is blessing her ministry among the freshmen, there at college.

Arriving home, I discovered that Kathy’s minions had made a breakfast delivery in my absence. Breakfast biscuits, hash browns, Diet Coke and orange juice … and (most importantly) a goodly stock of Nutella!

Breakfast of Champions, albeit not especially long-lived champions.

Breakfast of Champions, albeit not especially long-lived champions.

As David and I happily munched our breakfast sandwiches, I confided: “This is going to be a good day, I can tell.” (Some people probably think that my intuitive prescience is legendary.)

I decided to open the huge birthday present that had arrived the day before. It turned out to be a really nice pressure-washer, just what I had wanted (but had not really expected or hoped to receive)!

My actual pressure washer, rated at a respectable 2030 PSI.

My actual pressure washer, rated at a respectable 2030 PSI.

Soon I got word that my namesake nephew and his bride and toddler would be joining me for dinner — a dinner that I was now able to host, thanks to Nicole’s generosity! Next, I heard from Peter, who wanted to take me out for a birthday lunch. I managed to persuade him and John to come to my house for lunch instead, since I hoped to draft them into assembling my pressure-washer.

I even put out a tablecloth to lend a certain dignity to this auspicious day.

I even put out a tablecloth to lend a certain dignity to this auspicious day.

Whipping up a salad, sharing the Shepherd’s Pie that my Mom made for me, and breaking out the Black Forest birthday cake she thoughtfully created, we sat down to enjoy a hearty and delightful lunch. Determined to treat me to some kind of lunch, Peter kindly brought me take-out Panang Curry from a nearby Thai restaurant, which I lovingly stored in the fridge for a rainy day. Rainy Fall days come pretty often in Western Washington.

John needed to build up his strength for the upcoming engineering work in assembling my power-washer.

John needed to build up his strength for the upcoming engineering work in assembling my power-washer.

Once Peter and John had successfully assembled my pressure-washer under my critical eye, I leapt into action on the driveway. Although ten years of moss and embedded grime cannot be easily erased, I feel that I made some significant difference with my first pass. I’m excited to try it on the back patio, which is covered in moss.

One of these sides is different from the other; I hope you can tell which.

One of these sides is different from the other; I hope you can tell which.

Exhausted from my labors, I sat down and spent more than an hour reviewing Facebook birthday wishes including a particularly amusing and touching video presentation by Daniel, and a sweet email from Sarah, my youngest daughter. Then I briefly played my computer game until it was time to drive David around town. (David seems to require a lot of transport, these days; I think it is a plot to incentivize us to allow him to drive as early as possible.)

How many cake decorators can spell out the age of the celebrant in sweet cherries?  Pretty much only my Mom, I think.

How many cake decorators can spell out the age of the celebrant in sweet cherries? Pretty much only my Mom, I think.

Timothy, Sunny and John Mark arrived around 5:30, and we sat down to a delightful meal of pineapple chicken and stir-fry, followed by more Black Forest cake. Noticing our sink full of dishes, Sunny kindly emptied and then refilled the dishwasher, while Timothy vainly tried to keep pace with John Mark as he dashed around, looking for trouble. I looked on with my best “I’m helpless and besides, it’s my birthday” facial expression.

I’ve been practicing that facial expression for days in the mirror, and I must say, I’ve gotten pretty good at it.

Somehow I neglected to get a picture of Timothy and Sunny and John Mark -- here is one from earlier this Summer, instead, with a bonus cameo of my brother and his lovely bride.

Somehow I neglected to get a picture of Timothy and Sunny and John Mark — here is one from earlier this Summer, instead, with a bonus cameo of my brother and his lovely bride.

With John Mark loudly declaring he was ready for bed, Timothy and Sunny decamped, and were soon replaced by Don, Jeff, Peter and John, who came for games (and more Black Forest cake). In a surprising burst of birthday generosity, they even permitted me to win the game (we played Chaosmos).

Round up the usual gaming suspects.

Round up the usual gaming suspects.

It was a pretty good day. It makes one almost want to live another 50 years, if only in hopes of securing another such celebration.

Truth be told, I am very thankful. Thankful to so many who helped to make this a memorable and satisfying birthday, and thankful to my Sweetie for engineering much of it from afar. Most of all, I’m thankful to my God, who has given me breath and sheltered me in His hand, all these years.

Project 365, Day 282
Tim

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