What a Vibrant Weekend...

My hubby and I had a fabulous 3 days off together!  All in all it was a relaxing break from the daily grind.  I think this photo sums it all up... peaceful, still, and soaking up some rays.  :)

In Saturday's blog I told you about hiking up this mountain...

...where we watched some kayakers down on the lake from our bird's eye view.

There was a lot of gorgeous mountain laurel blooming near the rock cliff.

On our way back down we saw a huge snapping turtle.  There was a boy scout leader there that was trying to see if he could get him to snap.  This snapper's legs were incredible, and he had a very peculiar tail.

When we made it back to the lake, my parents were there with a delicious picnic all ready for us!  Then after the great hike and lunch, I hit the lake in the kayak while the hubs kicked back and did some Hidato.  (Whatdya think... describe our personalities?)

If you look closely, you can see the rock cliff on the peak of the mountain.

We even stumbled upon this awesomely bright two-toned butterfly!!!

All in all, our day at the lake was terrific! I can't wait to go back!!



Tired yet?  That was just Saturday!

On Sunday, we met up with these super cool kids for some drive-in fun.

We showed up way early because we wanted to ensure a great spot... and we got one!

While we waited, I got these photos :)

We didn't get home until about 4!  So it goes without saying that we slept until noon. 

What a terrific holiday weekend!  I hope yours was great too! 
What adventures did you have??

Sleep well tonight and have a great Monday!

-JB

Bound and determined!

Today is the day my hubby and I had been waiting for all winter.  Last summer we had climbed an amazing mountain near where I was living, and we had talked and talked through all of the snowflakes about doing it again.  We both had realized that as the dreary cold months continued on that we felt like we were getting out of shape, but there's nothing like looking at a huge mountain to bring the "health reality check" to life.

I am out of shape.  There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it.  I realized it about a fourth of the way up the mountain, and I came back down bound and determined to do something about it.  I need to brainstorm and create a plan of attack.   When I was first out of college, I could run 3 miles no problem.  I was in great shape... and I felt great.  And that is where I am going to be again.  There are many more mountains in my future, and I need to be in great shape to climb them. 

So it's set.  I'm getting in shape!!  Woohoo!

Check back tomorrow to see all of the awesome pictures from today!  It will be an awesome photo story chronicling the adventure! 

As for now, I'm off to watch Country Strong with the hubby!  Have a nice evening!

-JB

It's Friday!

I can hardly believe it's Friday!  This week has been fantastic and so busy!  I feel like I have so much to catch up on... the week has breezed by.

First of all, I'm sorry I didn't post anything last night.  It seems like most of the state got hit with a zinger of a storm - that left me hiding in the little downstairs bathroom for close to an hour.  I never dreamed to plan that activity in to my day!  Anyways, it was a set back to my evening - and I didn't want to miss "So You Think You Can Dance!"

This week has been terrific for getting out and exercising!  My friend Bri has been in town the last 4 days, and we had a walking date the last 3.  Needless to say my body is feeling the burn, and I've been a bit more tired in the evening than I usually am... regardless, I have been so happy to get back out and exercising!  I plan to keep up the work outs once she goes back home ~ and she and I are talking about doing a food journal together!! This would be terrific accountability for us both.  So I'm super excited about us starting that together :-D.

What else....

Ahhhh, yes, you all are waiting for my announcement.

*drum roll please*

Next week my Etsy.com site is going to go live!  I am going to give it a shot trying to sell some of my prints and other pieces I have done!  I will post the official link once it is up, but it's a huge step for me to announce I'm doing this - because it means it's really happening!

If you currently use Esty.com and you have any advice for me, I would love to hear it!  Please send me a message - any messages of wisdom or encouragement would be so appreciated. You can contact me at oneofthelovebugs@gmail.com.

I'm also sad to say that this week we fell a little short of the amount of feedback I needed for the giveaway! 
So here's what I am going to do.  I'm going to extend it in to next week.  I want so much to give something away - I'm a photographer, a stamper, a scrapbooker, and a bit of a painter, so my giveaway is AWESOME!  Get in on it!!!

We need 10 comments, follows, adds or shares from 10 different people.

LET THE FUN BEGIN!

I hope you all have a fun and safe Saturday - I'm planning on it!!! :)

-JB

Thinking through transition...

I've been spending a lot of time lately thinking about my dreams.  I've been in this time of transition (moving and looking for a new job) for a little while, and it causes me to really do some soul searching - just about every day. 

I'm really ready for my next part of the journey, but while I am in this place, I have been trying to make the most of it.  I've been working to increase my number of stock photos, and am ready to pursue having them published... the time is here to take that step.  I'm also going to look in to doing some freelance work.  There is one other part to this huge step - but I will save that announcement for Friday! 

I would love for more of you to comment, follow, and share so that you can get yourself in the running for this week's giveaway! (I need to have at least ten names in the hat for the drawing, and we're only about half way there!)

Hope your week is going great!

Tune in for a longer post tomorrow... I'm rather tired this evening!  Goodnight :-)

-JB

Blossoms of all kinds!

What a beautiful day. :) 

It was finally a warm sunny day without rain, so I was very excited. This called for a trip to the greenhouse... and I'm happy to report that I brought home 3 beautiful tomato plants and a cucumber plant! I also bought a vibrant pot of impatiens! It will be fun to share with you the progress with you as they sprout blossoms and grow.

I'm excited to show you some of my latest creations!  One of my biggest surprises this week has to do with a few of the projects I have been working on lately.  Since I'm not quite ready for my big surprise yet, I will share a canvas I painted for our home!  I wanted a unique piece of art for a blank wall in our upstairs bathroom, and after shopping for a while, I decided that it would be a great opportunity to design something myself!  So here it is!

A few blogs ago I mentioned that the great folks at the Wayside Inn gave us a beautiful bouquet of fresh roses on our honeymoon. 

I wanted to keep them forever as reminder of our honeymoon and the wonderful stay we had there, so I decided to press them. After a month and a half in a book, I felt confident they were "ready".  Today I retrieved them, and they are gorgeous!

I know exactly how I want to preserve them, and I will show you tomorrow. I am super excited about the finished project!

Check back tomorrow for more excitement!  Don't forget about the shoutout, share, and smiles for this week!  They will get you automatically entered in my giveaway!!!

I hope your week is going well so far!

Leave me something to smile about :-D

-JB

Currently Reading: "Heaven is for Real" - Todd Burpo (almost done!)

Currently Listening to: "Without You" - Keith Urban

Shoutouts, Shares, and GIVEAWAYS!

Happy Monday!!! This is going to be such an incredible week!

Last week I felt a lot like this squirrel...

But today I have a jump in my step, and I feel like this...

I have so many delightful things to share with you all in the next few days. :-) 

I'm going to start off with what I am most excited about - there will be a giveaway at the end of the week!  I'm not going to say what it is yet, but what I will tell you is that it has to do with one of the amazing things that is going to take flight this week!  Check back for more details!  I will reveal more and more day by day, and it's so exciting!

I think right now, the bigger deal is how you get in the running for the giveaway!  Here's what I need a little help with - I'd love to have people follow me, love to see what comments and feedback you have for me, and I'd love for you to share my blog with your friends!  So, let me in on what you're doing, thinking, and saying, and for each shoutout, share, or smile, I will put your name in a drawing for the end of the week!  (And let me tell you, it'll be worth it!)

-JB

Currently Reading:  "Crafting a Business" - Kathie Fitzgerald
Currently Listening to:  "Just a Kiss" - Lady Antebellum (Check it out!!! It's awesome!)

What is it with me and flowers???

Wow... Spring is really flying by.  We are officially less than a month from the start of summer! Yay!

Last summer was completely amazing, and I am so excited to kick off another wonderful season of drive-ins, picnics in the park, and digging my toes in the sand.  I was a "summer baby", so it holds a special place in my heart - plus, who doesn't love ice cream cones, summer nights, and outdoor concerts?

All of the photos in today's blog are throwbacks.  I have a lot of photos from my pre-blogging days that I would love to share, so I intermittently toss them in as a "special".

My hubby is always telling me that it seems like I focus on flowers in my photographs.  Part of the reason is my love for "macro photography".  It seems like the smaller the object is, the easier (and more naturally) the photograph comes to me.  However, I have been working on landscapes and portraits, and I'm getting pretty good at them! :-)

The other part of my love for photographing flowers is due to their extreme natural beauty.  I think that there are so many beautiful things about each of us - no matter how different we all may be.  Flowers are the same way!  My best friend lives in North Carolina, and even though we are not Duke fans (GO UNC!), there is one good reason to visit their campus - the gardens.  Last summer, I visited this paradise for my second time with my boyfriend (who became my fiance on the same trip, and he's now my hubby!).  He's not usually much for flowers, but I think he really enjoyed our time there.  If you ever make it down to the Durham area and have some free time, I hope you'll go check it out!  In the meantime, here are some photos from Duke Gardens to hold you over.  :)

I hope you all have a great start to your week - and make sure you take the time to look for some natural beauty around you!!

-JB

Currently Reading: "Heaven is for Real" - Todd Burpo
Currently Listening to: "This" - Darius Rucker

Sweatpants, Sushi, and Saturday...

Blessings in life come in all kinds of different forms.  Yesterday, so many people blessed me, and that made me so happy.  I love all of the people in my life - you are my support system!  I am so thankful for you!

I have a terrific husband as well that is always boxing in my corner.  Today he gave me a lazy day... you know the kind, we laid around in our comfy clothes while watching "Happy Feet", and we got some awesome sushi takeout from our favorite little Japanese place.  I clearly needed this. 

We had our takeout picnic style -

So fun!! and yummy!!

We got out of the house for a little bit this afternoon to go biking.  Now the hubby and I are willing to admit that we've both developed a bit of  "relationship gut", but I don't think I had realized how out of shape I have gotten.  Next weekend, we are planning on hiking up a mountain near our house... and let's just say, I've got some serious work to do this week to prepare.  So each day with my regular post, I'll let you know what I did to get active!  Maybe it'll help you to get out if you're in my shoes, or if you exercise regularly, you can help me!  Either way, it'll be a good thing!

Hope you all are having a nice Saturday!

-JB

Currently Reading: "Heaven is for Real" by Todd Burpo

Overwhelmed...

I feel like I've been through the washer.  I don't want to get up here on my pedestal and complain, so instead I'm going to ask for prayers.

I'm overwhelmed.  There are so many things that inspire me, and I am starting to get lost in the cloud of all of my dreams.  I want to be somebody.  Somebody that is known for being good at something - so I do a lot of different things.  I do stamping, I make cards, I recently bought materials to make jewelery, and I am always taking photos (my God given gift). 

I've been wanting to start up my etsy shop, but I struggle with feeling like I don't have enough great things to market.  Like a certain writer I know, I worry that my stuff isn't good enough and that eventually someone is going to tell me so. 

I hope and pray that you all will leave me words of encouragement and advice. 

-JB

Don't miss "the moments"...

I had been waiting for a rainbow all week.

Yesterday before dinner, my hubby came in from work and said "I think you're going to get your wish."  He walked out onto our back patio, and excitedly came back in announcing loudly that my moment was here.  I shifted into "go mode" to get my camera, ran outside, and when I went to turn it on, the only thing that happened was this message - "change battery pack" (<- and it looks just like that in an ominous red print).

So I'm not going to lie, my initial reaction was to feel pretty angry.  Granted, it was my fault it was dead, but still, I'd waited all week for this.  And the real kicker was that I had used the camera the evening before and I had two power bars left.  Since it was dead without reason, I ran inside and traded it for an old point and shoot Canon.  The shots I got weren't nearly as exciting as what I had hoped for, so I put that camera down as well and just enjoyed the moment.

Lots of times I think photographers can get so caught up in wanting the perfect shot, that we forgot to enjoy where we are and what we are experiencing.  Sometimes the same thing happens in life - we are just to busy to enjoy what is happening right where we are.  While I have included one of my shots, I realized something long after the rainbow was gone - the rainbow was for me.  I'm sure you've had a week that has been particularly trying, and that is where I am this week.  The moment with the rainbow was for me to soak it in, remembering the peace, love, and hope that rainbows symbolize.

I hope that as "the moments" come and go in your day to day life that you take the time to enjoy them.  Whether it's a happy song you hear an older gentleman whistling through the grocery store, a stranger holding the door for you, or a rainbow after the storm, let it be the reminder in your day that there is something to smile about.

I hope you are all having a good week :)

-JB

Things that make me smile...

It's raining again today. 

I know that the rain makes the grass soft and green, and inspires the beautiful flowers to shoot up and blossom, but today I just feel like it makes me soggy.  I don't particularly like driving in the rain.  It doesn't really inspire me to do great things.  When it's raining I want to relax on the couch watching HGTV.  While that is a fun way to spend the day occasionally, that isn't what this Wednesday had in store for me... so I packed it all up and am finding my inspiration in Panera with some good ole caffeine. 

After getting what felt like a second shower on the walk from the car to the door, I decided that I needed a good smile.  I have some pictures on my laptop for an occasion such as this.  These are all photos taken with my iPhone - so the quality isn't as great as I like, but they make me smile.

Maybe you need a smile today as much as I do, so I'm going to share these with you all.

Enjoy!

my friends' brand new baby - her name is Maci.

my nephew wearing my scarf.

relaxation.

the flowers that the spring showers bring.

Have a nice evening :)

-JB



To Charleston, With Love

If you like to travel, I'm sure you've found a spot that you call your home away from home.  It's that place that has "your" beach, "your" favorite diner, or "your" favorite spot.  Charleston, SC has all of this (and more) for me.  Oh, and I get annoyed when the tourists don't know where they're going - because I certainly don't consider myself one. 

I live in the north, was born in the north, and I don't have a Southern accent, but in a lot of ways, I wish I was a real Carolina girl.  Someday down the road, I could see the hubby and I packing up and making a permanent resident in the Palmetto State.  For now, I'll settle for having a "Southern State of Mind" (Darius Rucker reference). 

my dream beach house.

on the isle of the palms.



night sky from the water.

the new cooper river bridge from the water.

I can't wait to get back down to good ole SC. 

In the mean time, "No matter what state I'm in, I'm in a southern state of mind." (Darius Rucker)

-JB

My shutterbug gene...

Have you ever looked at your life and specific interests and wondered "who did I inherit the love for this from?"  For me, I don't have to give any thought at all to the answer.  My Uncle Randy is one of the coolest people I know - and it's possible I think this because I am more like him than anyone else I know. 

Randy is my dad's older brother.  I can remember so many times throughout my childhood when my dad would call me "Randy" because of the ways my actions would resemble him.  I would always giggle and think it was such a fun compliment because Randy has always been one of my favorite people. 

For the last 5 summers, I have been able to visit him and my Aunt Robin at their home in Charleston, SC.  Each year when we (my best friend has gone with me the past 4 summers) have visited, we always have an amazing experience!  Last year he bought us tickets to see Tim McGraw and Lady Antebellum (two of my favorite bands)!  We ended up stagefront, and the evening would have been "the event" of the year for my best friend and I, but our boyfriends proposed to us that summer!  But it does say a lot when it takes sparkly diamonds from our loves and planning two big weddings to top an event! 

In addition to so many awesome life experiences, he also shared with me his love for the camera.  He sent my one of my first fancy 35mm's when I was a kid, and I'm sure that he sent the shutterbug gene along with it!  I'm thankful to have an uncle with such talent and awesome taste! 

Have a happy Monday!

-JB

Stay tuned for a feature on Charleston, SC and the amazing concert shots!

"Be like a duck. Calm on the surface but always paddling like the dickens underneath" - Michael Caine

Life must be great for ducks right now.

All this rain and all of the places where water is high, it must be so easy for them to find places of relaxation this time of year.  The other day, I stumbled upon a duck and goose wonderland. 

I was driving along some back roads looking for a quaint little bridge I had seen years ago, when I noticed an even bigger bridge connecting two pieces of crisp green lawn - with a brook gently flowing through them. 

Once I started trekking through this property, I discovered goslings and ducklings nearby.  It's impossible to watch them and not smile!  They are all so fluffy and cute!!

A really fun little fact about geese is that most mate for life (as do swans).  If you thought you're parents were over protective when you kid, I'm sure they had nothing on these geese.  The whole group always stayed together.  Much to my delight, they even posed for a family portrait.

The geese lived next door to a group of ducks.  The ducklings were so tiny compared to the goslings.  They beautifully resembled a family swimming together - with the mallard standing on shore assuring their safety.

The ducks and geese also shared their home with a muskrat.  I was there during his lunchtime, and I got to watch him scour for food in the grass.  Eventually he swam back to his home under an old delapadated wooden structure.  This little guy wasn't much for pictures - but I suppose it could have been due to his messy hair-do after his swim! :-D

My afternoon was so peaceful.  I would love have a wonderland like this in our backyard.  One can dream!

It is possible that I take such interest in all of these creatures because I can so easily relate to them.  I would like to think I am elegant like the goose, even though I can feel like the skittish muskrat.  In most cases, I am probably most like the duck - "calm on the surface but always paddling like the dickins underneath"  -

Michael Caine. 

Hope you all had a great weekend!

-JB

Secrets, Scrapbooks, and Strawberries...

Every now and again, we find something that we love to do.  My most obvious affection is photography, but what some people might not know is that I love, love, love making things with my hands.  Whether it's playing in the dirt to plant flowers, being up to my elbows in raw beef making meatballs, or looking like an ink pad attacked me while I was doing a stamping project, I am energized by creating things.  This isn't much of a secret if you've spent any time with me, but my life dreams are still a secret to most people - and these dreams have to do with my passions.  I will slowly reveal them piece by piece.  I'm a lot like a great novel or a complex puzzle, in that after some time, my secrets will make themselves known.

As for the time being, my next creation is a big endeavor.  I am going to design and create a 40 page wedding scrapbook - which if you have done any scrapbooking you know is a Mt. Everest sort of task.  It's a project that must be thoroughly planned to come out best.  I'm going to share this project with you along the way.  Maybe it will inspire and help you to create your own scrapbook.  Maybe you'll feel overwhelmed.  If that's the case, maybe if you ever want to have a piece like this for your family, you will contact me - because I would love to continue to put my skills to use.  :)

I've been planning for this project for some time.  I began collecting designer paper to use for the pages, and I currently have 23 pages that have created the color palette for the book.  These are the beautiful backgrounds I have chosen for my pages.

There are so many photos that need to be included in this project.  The stack in itself is overwhelming!  I had to divide these into piles so that I would be able to decide which photos should be kept together.

In addition to the beautiful papers, I chose a number of sticker sheets that I felt would fit the overall feel of the scrapbook that I was hoping to create.  My wonderful hubby also surprised me with a number of the sticker sheets.  A well balanced page will have many different elements of design to add texture, pop color, and create emotion.  These are some of the tools I'm planning on using.

After I organized all of my materials, I made some notes of my intentions.

I have always found it helpful to have a plan.  When I was a kid, my dad was famous for saying "Plan your work, and work your plan".  I have no idea who he was quoting, but I will say that's it's great advice.  And just because I have a plan doesn't mean I always stick to it if I think up something better in the process.   The plan simply prepares for the launch, but the project will guide itself throughout the flight. :) 

So you're probably wondering how strawberries come in to this whole thing.  Well, the other day when I was shopping for some design paper, I came across this awesome sheet that is sitting under this bowl of strawberries.  I have no idea what to use it for, so I'd love to hear your thoughts.  :)

Hope your Friday was happy!!

-JB

Currently Reading: "Cure for the Common Life" by Max Lucado

Currently Listening to: "Your Love" by Brandon Heath