The LORD is My Portion

2009-05-01T15:42:00.001-05:00

share, originally uploaded by walkworthy.

I have many complaints about this picture from a photographic standpoint. But as a mother? I love it! Lydia is (finally!) crawling all over the place and I knew once she did she would discover this mirror. We've played in front of it together but it's so much fun when she finds things on her own. I've got to watch my back though, I never know what she might discover next.

Flowers?

2009-04-24T16:15:00.001-05:00

Flowers?, originally uploaded by walkworthy.

The sun was not my friend today. I actually went outside at 7am to get some shots with the beautiful morning light. Usually at 7 I am asleep, even if I'm awake. (That doesn't make sense, but you non-morning people know what I mean.) I knew a storm was supposed to come so I hurried out, Lydia in toe. There were clouds in the sky but there was still that soft sunlight that comes only when the sun is saying 'hello' or 'goodbye'. I took about 3 shots before the clouds took over the sky hiding my light. Not fully defeated I stayed out looking for things to photograph. For an hour I searched, snapped, and hoped the sun would reappear. No such luck. Ready to go back to bed I returned home. Almost as soon as I closed the door behind me the sun popped out again. As far as I know it stayed out for a few hours, and to top it off there has been no storm at all. Oh well, maybe next time.

By the way, are these actually green flowers? Interesting. I wonder what kind of tree this is.

Pretty In Pink

2009-04-23T17:35:00.001-05:00

Pretty In Pink, originally uploaded by walkworthy.

I Hate Spiders!

2009-04-22T16:01:00.002-05:00

Especially when they're on the handle of my refrigerator door. Especially when I go to open that refrigerator door and it floats down. Especially when I'm hungry and want the yogurt that is on the other side of that refrigerator door and consequently on the other side of that spider. I hate spiders that come between me and food. Thank God for Windex and husband's shoes. Sorry spider. (Not really.)

Seth & Joel

2009-04-21T13:12:00.001-05:00

09 -002, originally uploaded by walkworthy.

Finally some photos of these two. (Again from my WA trip.) There are more of Seth as he was quite the eager model. Also, for some reason my auto-focus hated Joel. Most of the ones of him are out of focus, but I mostly put them up for Brenda anyway.

Again, to view the rest of the set click on the photo and it will take you to my Flickr page. Enjoy these handsome men.

Christian

2009-04-18T09:58:00.001-05:00

09 -001, originally uploaded by walkworthy.

Here are finally some of the photos I took of Christian while out in Washington. If you click on the photo it will go to my Flickr page and you can view the rest.

Things You're Afraid Of

2009-04-16T15:57:00.001-05:00

09 -02, originally uploaded by walkworthy.

Have you ever played Scattergories? Well, if you've played it as many times as I have you would know that the title of the post is one of the categories. Usually I have a pretty hard time filling this one in. When a timer is going my brain tends to stop and for some reason I have this idea that "things you're afraid of" is limited to monsters and the dark. According to Lydia that's not true. According to Lydia you can be afraid of practically anything. The list of things that scare her seems to be constantly evolving and is usually surprising. A balloon for example. Balloons are fun, right? No. Balloons are scary, especially when you rub them so that they squeak. Vents in the floor are scary. Dolls are scary. Animals are scary. Vacuums are scary. (You have to agree there.) And fish....well, fish are just plain freaky! So the next time you can't think of anything to write down in the "Things You're Afraid Of" slot, put anything you like. When your opponents protest, you have my permission to use Lydia as your alibi.

Ashleigh

2009-03-30T16:48:00.003-05:00

It was so nice to visiting my family and actually have willing models that do what I tell them to!! :) Here are a few of my niece Ashleigh. I think the last one is my favorite even though I hate the crop.

Lessons Learned

2009-03-14T10:47:00.004-05:00

Lesson learned #1: My house has some great things to photograph. I just have to look for them!

Example:

Lesson learned #2: Any amount of post-processing cannot make a boring picture exciting. If it's dull, lacks color, and is lifeless, it's probably going to stay that way. Mental note to self: if it doesn't jump out at you at first, chances are it won't later.

Example:

Cheap Shots

2009-03-10T13:29:00.004-05:00

I've been playing with editing pictures lately. How true it is that post-processing cannot make a bad picture look good. I'm trying to expand in my photo-taking skills as well as post-processing. Here are a few of my attempts:

Sooc - I couldn't resist the real thing.

A Thought for Each of the 10 Commandments

2008-10-11T21:44:00.000-05:00

1. "You shall have no other God's before Me."

God is God alone.

2. "You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments."

God is the only One worthy of worship, praise, and adoration. To worship anything or anyone else is to be a God-hater.

3. "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain."

God's name is to be held in reverence, not to be taken lightly.

4. "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."

We are to imitate God by resting on the seventh day. If our Lord, who never tires, rested we who are feeble ought to do the same.

5. "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you."

To be a parent must indeed be a tremendous job if by honoring them we are promised long life.

6. "You shall not murder."

Life is sacred.

7. "You shall not commit adultery."

Marriage is a covenant meant to be kept in purity.

8. "You shall not steal."

Taking from others without their permission is wrong.

9. "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor."

God commands honesty. He knows anyway.

10. "You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.”

Be content with what is your own.

The Desire to Write

2008-09-24T17:37:00.000-05:00

The wind and sun are very often a wonderful muse for arts of all kind. The painter reveals two women clutching their cloaks about their bodies as their hair seems to whip at an invisible force. The moment your eyes clasp this mix of canvas and color you begin to wonder whether it truly happened. It is so alive, so real, so human – how is it that this picture began as a thought in another’s head? Perhaps it was an effect of the wind blowing through his window. Then there is the musician. His fiddle, his harp, his trombone, whatever his talent is, must very often be played as an ode to the sun. Sit if you will and listen to the lively music he plays. (The melancholy sort we will not mention; too many tragedies and sad stories are most likely the birthing of them.) Go to the orchestra, stand on a street corner, ride the carousel at the carnival and close your eyes if you want to be more of an accurate listener. (True, the carousel is able to make anyone sick with his or her eyes open, let alone closed. If you take this route, it is best not to close them.) Then, if you will, think hard on his music and tell what it is you hear. Why the sun of course! You imagine a crowd of gypsies or children dancing in the fields as the sun heats their moving limbs. You imagine the grass as it sways in the wind licking at the golden rays. Whatever you imagine, it must be the sun. Surely the composition was written beneath it. And then, of course, there is the writer of words. What did you think that this entire paragraph was not inspired by the sun and wind? Of course you did; it’s entire subject is these. They beckoned to me to write as they came through my window. “Of what?” thought I. I sat down, felt the sun warm upon my skin, the wind brushing me with fresh air, and wrote this.

The 6:30AM Club Got a Late Start

2008-09-22T12:26:00.000-05:00

Carolyn Mahaney and her daughters started a "club" called the 5AM Club. Carolyn gets up at 5am and calls her daughters one-by-one to wake them. This is their unique way of getting up at a good time and having the support to do so. Well, 5am is a little early for me and I don't know what I would do with all that time, so I decided 6:30 would be more like it. Lydia usually gets up around 7:30 and I thought an hour would give me time for devotions, making breakfast, and packing a lunch for my husband. Well, the alarm went off at 6:30 this morning and nothing in the world could have tempted my tired body from that warm, cozy, sleep-inducing bed into the dark, cold, drowsy-but-have-to-stay-awake-anyway morning. So I hit the button on the alarm (formerly known as my cell phone) that turned it off altogether. ('Snooze' was not an option this morning.) This resulted in a chain of events which meant my day didn't really start until 11am. So my 6:30am club has turned into the 11am club. At least for today. Did I mention that I am the President, the Treasurer, and the only member of this club? Right.

A Sweet Psalm

2008-07-31T14:27:00.000-05:00

Psalm 145

A Song of Praise. Of David.

145:1 I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.

10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your saints shall bless you!
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
12 to make known to the children of man your [2] mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

[The Lord is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.] [3]
14 The Lord upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.