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179/365 . . . summertime!


179/365 . . . summertime!, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

It was so hot here yesterday. Thank goodness for the pool!

178/365 . . . milk and cookies

"humans are the only species to keep searching for milk after they've been weaned...we're also the only species with cookies."

177/365 . . . perspective

177/365 . . . perspective, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.
"There is never anything to change but our own perspective."
— Karen Casey

176/365 . . . bees


176/365 . . . bees, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

A couple months ago by husband and I went on a garden tour and one of the homes had a beautiful garden and tucked in the corner of the yard, had two hives of bees. I have a riduculous fear of flying bugs but, for some reason, the bees intrigued me and I told my husband we should look into getting some. He loves to garden and was smitten with idea and threw himself into investigating bees. So we are now the proud owners of a hive of honey bees.

These guys came from a nice man in a neighboring town who had some to give away. They are, my report, Italian, and very docile. They weren't bothered at all when we lifted the lid to snap a few pics. They should start producing honey by next spring.

175/365 . . . {tagged}


175/365 . . . {tagged}, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

I was tagged (on Flickr) by the wildly talented Sarah of Image Bearers. www.flickr.com/photos/theanimatorswife/ so I thought I'd post my responses here too.

Five names you go by:
Ali
Al
Alison
Mom
murpheyblue (just as an online name – I’m stretching here)

Three things you are wearing right now (well, yesterday when I originally post this):
black dress
black heels
Long, camel colored sweater coat. It's summer in San Francisco and it's freezing.

Four things you want very badly at this moment:
a vacation
chocolate
someone to do my laundry
my house to be decluttered. I swear the junk multiplies when I'm not looking.

Three people who will answer this.
?
??
???

Two things you did last night:
Ate Spaghetti Carbonora. So bad for you but soooo good (and easy too). Caught up on Top Chef DC.

Last two people you talked to on the phone:
I’m not a phone talker at all. My most recent calls today have been work calls. As far as personal calls, my oldest daughter called this monring. She's at her grandmother's for a few days which she usually just loves but she had a rough night and she was sad this morning saying she missed us. :( We'll have to plan something fun for the weekend.

Two things you are going to do tomorrow:
Hmm, not sure. Something fun with the family. I've got to go to Target for a new lunch box for the middle kid. While there I will fill my cart with 101 things that I didn't intend to buy when I walked in. Target has that effect on me.

Three favorite drinks:
Diet Coke
Mochas
Probably a good glass of wine or a nice cold beer but that doesn't sound good so I'll say Arnold Palmers

random fact:
I love cereal and milk. I could eat it all the time. My pantry looks like Jerry Seinfeld's.

Would love to hear about everyone else. Play along if you want!

174/365 . . . hands full


174/365 . . . hands full, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

I feel like this picture requires an explanation. The girls got a new package of sidewalk chalk from a birthday party. My son was so excited about it and he kept trying to pick up all the little bundles at once but his little arms weren't long enough to hold all his priczs so he would inevitably drop one, bend down to pick it up and drop another. He was persistent though and occasionally triumphed and got all three in his arms.

In other news, I've decided to start watermarking my images which feels, well, weird. But then there are lots of weirdos out there and it's one small (perhaps needless, perhaps futile) step to protect my images (not from here so much as Flickr). At least it gives someone a fighting chance of telling me if they see an image that was taken, kwim? Still feels weird though.

. . . I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. . .

"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles." -Audrey Hepburn

173/365

173/365, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.
Sigh, she doesn't look like a little kid to me anymore. It's like you turn around one day and - BAM - they're six going on sixteen.

172/365

172/365, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.
I found a cool location with lots of old buildings, peeling paint and just great texture. I can't wait to take the kids back when they're in the mood for some pics.

171/365

171/365, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

167/169/365 . . . so behind

I had a lot of long days last week so I just ended up snapping a quick shot right as I walked in the door at night. Rather inspired. Big development in our house though, the little guy can use a straw. Opens up a world on possibilities! And spills.





The Pioneer Woman - Group 1 - Bugs!

I was so excited to see that my ladybug shot made Group 1 of The Pioneer Woman's Photography assignment on bugs! A bit ironic as I have a major bug phobia. Though I make an exception for ladybugs.



http://thepioneerwoman.com/photography/2010/06/your-bug-photos-group-1/

166/365 . . . full-bodied


166/365 . . . full-bodied, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

I love a dark, rich cup of Joe.

165/365 . . . drizzle


165/365 . . . drizzle, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

We had friends of our over for dinner last night and this was dessert. We're past the rainy season here in Cali so I recreated dessert to capture drizzle.

164/365 . . . ornament


164/365 . . . ornament, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

–noun
1. an accessory, article, or detail used to beautify the appearance of something to which it is added or of which it is a part: architectural ornaments.

163/365 . . . fly


163/365 . . . fly, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

Father, flare, fly. My kids always love a little air time with dad.

162/365 . . . fluid


162/365 . . . fluid, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

My original thought for this word was movement and I took my daughter to the park to capture her doing a cartwheel. Alas, she hasn't quite mastered the skill and let's just say fluid wasn't the word that came to mind from the resulting shots. So a bubble and some bokeh it is.

161/365 . . . grow


161/365 . . . grow, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

As a mother of three, I find myself sometimes almost imploring them to grow. It's always at my most frustrated, harried moments when I think I wish you were bigger so you could get your own water, put on your own shoes, wipe you own nose.

But in the calmer moments, I know that they are growing all too fast. That the baby who sweetly implores ma-ma over and over again will someday think I am hopelessly uncool (and will probably be right), that the little girl who so proudly finished first grade will be off to middle school and all that it brings before I know it, and the sweet preschooler will outgrow her constant desire to dress up as her favorite princess.

160/365 . . . heavy metal


160/365 . . . heavy metal, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

I spent my day considering lots of heavy metal items - a fire hydrant, rod iron fence, tools. And then there was the chunky jeweled bracelet that I tried to get a shot of but I wanted it on and couldn't quite get the shot I wanted on myself. So I decided these rings of the calendar would do.

159/365 . . . multilayered


159/365 . . . multilayered, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

Layer by layer art strips life bare. - Robert Musil

I have this bush in my yard and it is bursting with flowers. When the petals appear as buds they are tightly wound in a cone shape - layer upon layer - and then they slowly unravel to a big flat blossom.

I heart faces - play!

"We don't stop playing because we grow old;
we grow old because we stop playing."
— George Bernard Shaw


The theme at I Heart Faces this week is play and nothing quite says play to me like a school playground. Whether alone or with friends, there is fun to be had. I took this picture of my daughter soon after she had mastered the monkey bars. She couldn't be more proud of herself!




Check out all the fabulous entries at www.iheartfaces.blogspot.com.


158/365 . . .picnic


158/365 . . .picnic, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

Creativity Boot Camp - Day Two. OK, not too creative but it's all I've got today.

157/365 . . . ivory


157/365 . . . ivory, originally uploaded by murpheyblue.

It's been a when-it-rains-it pours-week here. One of the dogs broke a bone in his face roughhousing, so $810, 2 bottles of pain meds, and antibiotics later we're supposed to keep the dogs from roughhousing for a while. Somehow a lecture on taking it easy for a few days doesn't seem to be doing the trick.

The baby and I have been sick. Turns out he has mild pneumonia and I have some lovely constellation of symptoms including an ear infection. We've joined the dog on antibiotics and hopefully we're all on the road to recovery.

I am so excited to be taking part in Creativity Boot Camp! I definitely need the challenge and the change of pace.

I'm behind in my 365 uploads. I think I'm just going to back fill over the next few days rather than dump them all now.

153/365 . . . One can never dim the light that shines from within

-Maya Angelou

The theme for the week for Parallel Vision is shine. It immediately made me think of the Collective Soul song of the same name which probably dates me. I was feeling 'shine' as an internal light rather than an external one. I must be in an introspective mood.
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