Jan P.A.D. fourth

19. Breakfast – This is my preferred breakfast every single day. 8 ounces of fat-free milk, 1 scoop of Chocolate Royale Slim Fast, ½ cup of water, 4 heaping teaspoons of International Cafe Orange instant coffee. Swirl it in the blender and heat it up in the microwave. Pour it into my Bubba cup and I’m a very happy gal.

20. To do list – Of course it HAD to be this very list!! No brainer there!

21. Blue – This is one of the ribbon roses I got for my hats. A couple years ago Sarah took us to a place where there were several little booths with “stuff” and one of them had a display of these. They could be worn as a hair clip, pony tail wrap or a pin. I got several different colors for use on my summer straw hat.

22. Nice! – It’s a bit hard to see, but this grass has rain drops all over! We have been desperate for rain here.

23. Bedtime – We still have the flannel sheets on the bed. Nice and cozy. Just pulls you in, doesn’t it? I had considered this for #18-happy place, but decided it fit better here.

24. My space – This was another one in contention for #18, but I decided my craft room should go here. No one else uses this room. It’s my VERY OWN PLACE.

25. A taste of summer/winter – I guess if I was in Australia, this would definitely be a “summer” entry. But when I took this picture, it was toward the beginning of January and you can see what the temp was in the back yard. So I decided this should be titled “a taste of summer IN winter”…clever, huh?

Jan P.A.D. third

13. Makes me smile – A very dear friend gave these singing kitties to me for my birthday several years ago. I set them up each Christmas, and they never fail to gladden my heart. Thanks, Candy!!

14. Three things – I went for total randomness here. We have my lip balm, a flash drive and a solar flower that a friend gave to Sarah. And just FYI, the products from The Naked Bee are the best!!! That lip balm feels SO good and the lotions are to die for!

15. Black & white – I found this great website where you can take your pics and do a whole bunch of fun stuff with. Make ‘em black + white, make them look like they’d been through a fire, do random highlights on, whatever. I took this pic on one of the walks that Lia and I would go on through the neighborhood. The mirrors are set so when you’re driving down one of the streets you can see approaching cars from the other direction. I was pretty chuffed with this shot. And then I turned it B&W.

16. Sun – I really struggled with this one. I really wanted to do something involving shadows, but things just never gelled right. Finally in desperation I used this painted metal sun I got from the Dollar Tree. Somewhere along the line, this sun will grace the cover of an altered book.

17. Tiny – This is another one I struggled with. Anything really small just did not photograph the way I wanted it to. I tried several things before deciding on this flash drive. Compared to the amount of data you can put on one of these things, the actual “body” is tiny.

18. Happy place – I went back and forth on this one. There were a couple other pictures that could fit here, but I finally decided on the bookcase. I’m at my happiest when I’m in the middle of a good book.

Jan P.A.D. second

6. Happens every day – I have 2 cats that I love dearly. I do NOT love their litter box, but it’s gotta be done…and I have to admit: when it’s bad weather outside, it’s so nice knowing that my kitties can do their “business” in comfort…

7. Upside down – I had originally planned to have Lia do something for this one, but it just never happened. I did this one after I got home, long after the 7^th. Again, I decided to be clever. I think I succeeded.

8. Lucky number – I don’t have a lucky number and I’m not superstitious. But if I HAD to pick a number, I decided I would chose PI. It’s more than 3, but less than 4. I like it.

9. Natural – Sweet Alyssums are among my favorite tiny flowers. I can remember loving these when I was very little. These are growing by the sidewalk in the gated community where Lia lives.

10. Man made – My piano. Actually, it’s my brother’s piano. When I left home after getting married, I took my mom’s piano with me. That’s the one I learned to play on. My brother was still living at home, and he would play the piano sometimes, so my parents got this one for him. When it came time to clear out my parent’s house, I gave my old piano to a friend and brought this one here.

11. Looking down – This is from the loft at Sarah’s looking down at my little Lia.

12. Colorful – Another blurry one of my purse. I love this purse. I got it at DD’s in Fresno some time back. The purple thing on the left is my angry minion that I got from a box of Cheerios. I wish I’d thought to position it so you could see it better.

Jan.P.A.D. first

One of my 2014 resolutions was to participate in a Photo A Day journal. You’re supposed to take a pic each day and post it. You get a list with one thing each day to take a pic of. I don’t do instagram or any of the other things that folks are doing. I take pics. Period. Then when Marv has a chance, I have him put them on the computer in my folder. I knew I would be doing things this way when I started. I also didn’t take the pics in the order they were listed. Depending on where I was and what I was doing or what was around me, I’d take a pic. So I will post a few pics each time and comment on them. I will post them in the order they were on the list though. I’m not the best at photography, as you will quickly learn, but I did my best.

It’s been fun doing January, so I’ll continue on for February in the same manner. Enjoy!

1. Lunch – This was taken while I was in Fresno. Chris’ sister was visiting and we decided to have Taco Bell. I wish Lia wasn’t so blurry in this pic…she is ADORABLE!!

2. Begins with G – At first I thought I’d be clever and take a pic of myself, for “Grandma” but then decided to try and use some imagination and not go for the obvious. So we have Ground Cinnamon instead.

3. My town – I know this isn’t a very good pic. I found this on the internet and made it bigger and then took a pic of is. So sue me.

4. Words to live by – Another one I got from the net and took a pic. Marv wasn’t thrilled that I was quoting the Dalai Lama, but these are good words to keep in mind. It definitely is always possible to be kind. So do it!

5. Found – I wrote about this little lamb several years ago. It’s part of my Nativity set. At one point, this little guy got lost and I didn’t realize it at first. So he was absent at Christmas until the time we moved a piece of heavy furniture. I don’t remember now what it was, but when we moved it…there was my lost lamb!!