One Weekend, Two Shots (Aug 21 & 22)

Do you know how hard it is to capture a moving go cart on film?  Well, I do!  We visited Speed Zone on Friday night and had such a good time.  Mostly, I played.  However, I did try to get a few photos for Elena to take home. It was very difficult to get good pictures when everyone was actually racing - in fact I only got one that wasn't a blur of motion.  So, here's a shot of the trash talk that occurred before each race started.  You know how that goes. "You're going down! etc... " Paul kept nudging Ash before the go signal was released. She got annoyed. eventually.

We also visited the amazing Gaylord Texan Resort for a fabulous lunch on the river walk. The hotel was a set up like Alice in Wonderland and the garden was even more spectacular. These are metal flowers bursting with color and quite artistic centers that I had to show you two shots to give you the full picture. They were huge too!

I've got a few more adventures with Elena to share. I'll do that later in the week, as they aren't great weekend photography.  And then it's back to normal, routine life at the Hakes home.

One LONG weekend, three shots (Aug 12 - 15)

I took loads of photos during our weekend activities. This weekend actually started on Thursday in Glen Rose, TX.  We took a road trip to Fossil Rim, a drive through, Safari type park and then visited Dinosaur Valley.  The kids really enjoyed both and were even quite daring in their interactions with some of the animals. Here's witness to how they fed some...

I do believe this challenge is improving my skills.  I'm trying different angles, different lighting and really stretching myself to get better shots. The kids really wanted the giraffe to poke his head through the car. That wasn't possible this trip because we didn't take my car.  Granny's van doesn't have a sunroof, so they tempted the guy to stretch over the van to the other side for his treat. This is the resulting shot...

Ashleigh's best friend has an awesome mohawk that she striped last week.  Ruben resembled the zebras and I tried and tried to get a picture of the two together for compare & contrast.  Due to lighting issues it didn't work out.  This shot does however, show off the effects and you can see what I mean with the hair...

Flowers, flowers, everywhere!

The trees and bushes in my yard are just busting with blooms. They thrive in the extreme heat of summer and boy are they getting it this year.  The Crepe Myrtles on the back fence are just gorgeous; however, I keep thinking the Little Gem Magnolia tree in the front is on it's last bloom. I love that it keeps surprising me with more.

The Crepe Myrtles provide privacy to our tiny backyard during the summer. They stretch all across the back fence creating a beautiful 25 ft. screen.

This magnolia tree was planted just two short springs ago. It was pounded by a hail storm last summer and I feared it was permanently damaged. To my delight, it is just fine! I'm glad I went out last weekend and captured a few of the blooms before they fully opened.

One Weekend, Two Shots (August 7 & 8)

My goodness - it has been so hot! I don't want to venture outdoors for anything. The lawn did have to be mowed and the bushes are loving the heat. I got some great photos of the magnolia tree and our crepe myrtles in the back.

According to Elena, it's never too hot to bake. (I disagree!)  She loves to cook and found a yummy recipe for Black Forest Cake in one of my old cookbooks, so we did that. The resulting shot was taken AFTER we had devoured part of the cake. Not so great photography, but the cake was oh so scrumptious!

Vote for Me!!!

So I've entered a photo contest through EFTours to win an iPAD. I'm shamelessly begging you.  Please, please vote for my photo on the following link. (At least I think it really is a cool photo!)

http://apps.facebook.com/eftours/contest/1/233

You can vote daily and tell all your friends to vote too!

One Weekend, Two Shots (July 30 - Aug 1)

What a weekend! Hillsong Live was amazing worship on Friday night and the lights were awesome before the band actually began to play. Here's a shot from that night as the opening built up.

It's so hot here in Texas that we tried to escape to the lake for some relief with my sister and brother-in-law.  Their boat had other plans for us, as the starter gave Captain Bob trouble. The girls managed to each get a ride on the tube before he decided not to shut the motor off again. I missed my turn, but I'm so happy we didn't need a tow back to the launch ramp. This picture of Ash and Elena is much better in black and white. Can't you just feel the temperature rising?