Todd Paints

I’ve known Todd since middle school. Back when we were both skinny little twerps sitting silently on the school bus, staring out the window watching the cows go by. He’s been a great friend through the years and he’s just a darn good person. One evening I was in day three of self-imposed isolation…not because I’m a total freak, but because I had an insane amount of to-dos on my project list. Todd, probably feeling sorry for me, brought his work-his painting-to my house and set up camp in my kitchen. We both worked, in separate rooms, shouting the occasional obscenity and laughing.  It was nice to have another living, breathing, adult in my presence for a bit. Not to mention he’s creative and extremely talented. 
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Bread with Mommy

Mommy makes the best bread. I asked her to come over one morning and teach me the ropes of her family envied recipe and technique. Her experienced hands showed that dough who’s boss! We made what we call “Three Generation Rolls” where she rolled a small ball of dough and then my daughter and I did the same. We put all three in one muffin pan and it was very obvious which one of the three my mother man-handled. It was grey and cold outside and warm and delicious inside. Hope your not wearing your new shirt ’cause this post is mouth-watering!Dough and Hand 1

Fried Bread

Breadmaking 1

Breadmaking 2

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Rising dough

homemade rolls

Bread dough 2

Mommy's hands and dough

Rolling in the dough

mommy rolling dough

Breadmaking 2

bread in pan

cinnamon rolls

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cinnamon rolls 2

cinnamon rolls 3

happy girl with bread

buttering bread

fresh baked bread

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cinnamon roll icing

holy cinnamon rolls

cinnamon rolls with nuts

cinnamon roll taste test

cinnamon roll hand

Dinner Rush, Union Station

Cassie, the owner of Union Station, asked me to come in to snap a few photos of her and her hubby’s restaurant. I’ve done photo work with these two before (and here) so I was up for the challenge. I bopped on into Union Station at 6pm Friday evening, right smack in the middle of dinner rush. Cassie said, “Go on back in the kitchen, I warned everyone you were coming.” Maybe I should’ve been warned. If the kitchen were an animal it would be a fire breathing dragon! I feared for my life in the belly of that beast. *aaah!* As hectic as it seemed, it was a well-oiled machine. I later learned that their kitchen staff is the same kitchen staff they opened the doors with, three years ago! Shew.
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St. Snow Day!

As I mentioned yesterday…it was snowing on St. Patrick’s Day. After the potluck, I headed back home with a car full of kids and friends. The light in the sky shifted when evening came and it looked like a fairy tale in my back yard. I tried to sweet talk the kids into going outside with me for a mini-shoot but they were too engulfed in a full on nerf war and wanted nothing to do with it…so Misti and Ben agreed to be my subjects because I would.not.stop bugging them about it. *cheese*MistiSnow1

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A Day to Celebrate

I woke up to grey skies and a chance of snow. Typical. Last week my son was wearing shorts to school…no big deal. That’s a typical March in Rockingham County for ya. I headed to church then joined some friends for a birthday celebration that just-so-happened to be on St. Patrick’s Day. Perfect. We all met at a local restaurant then headed over to our friend’s place for a delicious potluck. The snow covered the grass and the crockpot aroma filled the house. It’s ok to be jealous.

green juice and green shirts

green juice and green shirts

found...and never opened

found…and never opened

cabbage and taters

cabbage and taters

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shepherd's pie

shepherd’s pie

...well it is st. patty's day...

…well it is st. patty’s day…

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shepherd's pie

shepherd’s pie

jalapeño deer bologna

jalapeño deer bologna

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a birthday complete with candles

a birthday complete with candles

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snow big deal

snow big deal

i love grandparents

i love grandparents

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Madison County

Lee and I have been friends for…a very long time. He lives about 6 hours away now so when I got word that he and his fiancé were in for a visit, I hightailed it over the mountain to Madison County where his family lives. It was a beautiful storm-cloudy drive with a pot of home-cooked goodness waiting for me at the end. And no visit to MadCow is complete without a mother-son guitar-accordion harmony…on the front porch…in the pouring rain. Oh, life. IMG_1034bwWEB

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Wiffle Ball at the Farm

So this is a little dated (2011)…but the light that evening was magical. And dang it, these photos beg to be shared. When I look at these images I am transported to summertime evenings with good people, good energy and lots of…bats. Ball bats. And what better way to celebrate a friend’s 32nd than with a wiffle ball tournament?IMG_8791web

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above photo by Rachel Herr

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above photo by Rachel Herr

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Repurposed Dress

It was just a summery Wednesday evening. Danielle stopped by-I walked out carrying three wedding dresses. I greeted: “Wanna wear these and take photos?!” Danielle (unamused), being the type of friend who is always up for anything, replies, “Sure.” These types of questions are not too uncommon in my presence, I suppose. Besides, she’s a fellow photographer so she gets it. I acquired these dresses from a group of girl friends who once wore them on their wedding day. One evening we were all swapping stories of matrimony and the conversation led to the dress.  Most of the stories associated with this garment were stories of sadness and pain and loss. I asked the gals if I could borrow their dresses for a week.  I wanted to give the dresses a new meaning, to shine a softer light on their dim past…even if only for a moment. The photos below are the photos Danielle and I took that warm Wednesday evening.

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