this last week.

We made it home from our Firth Family Christmas and I've been unpacking, washing, repacking all the crap, supplies    gear we need for our annual 3 week Family holiday away to the beach. Insert a day trip to Lincoln, hours setting up profiles, data transfers and getting the hang of the MAC way in computing, kids, husband etc etc etc, and it being bloody hot, I've not done a lot about blogging or taking photos.

today. New Years Eve.

Mind you I was in Ann's pool with the kids in Lincoln yesterday with her gopro camera getting video vision and stills of the kids underwater.

I would love to wish you all a safe, rewarding and happy new year to you all for 2012

Make it your year to dream a dream, the courage to chase the dream and then live the dream.

image source

take care and see you on the other side.!!

christmas eve vistas

Christmas Eve at Black Point was a day of fun, fishing, kids heading out on the biscuit, fine wine, fine dining and wonderful skies.

I've been getting up at 5.l5am each morning to capture sunrise. Christmas Eve sunrise so far was the most spectacular, so far!!

I went for a walk up to the tip of the point with the camera. It was less than a km from the shack, but it took me quite a time to get there and back as there was so much to capture on camera. The skies were really going off!!

high and dry!!

the water was a mirror!!

the colours and textures of the sand were gorgeous!!

the skies were amazing!!

the sky was seriously amazing on Christmas Eve.

boats, biscuits and cousins. sure fire way to have fun   (Adrossan in the background)

Karla the Cockatoo has been the mascot for the Festive Break. He belongs to Dave, my sister in law's other half. Karla is such a smoooooooooch. HE, yes he's a he, is seriously a cool bird!!

christmas road trip.

I'm killing time whilst the big arse Turkey is roasting away for our late lunch.  Everyone is saited on champagne and chocolates for late breakfast.

On our way around to Black Point to our Firth Family Christmas I tested out the iphone camera.  All these shots were taken via the passenger window (which wasn't all that clean) and driving at 110km, I was very impressed with the capabilities of the tool.

I use Camera+ as my iphone app to play around with them.

smile

elbow hill

iron duke

the tanks

the flyover and looking towards Flinders Ranges.

Ruin south of Pt Augusta

always spotting possiblities

Red Hill

At Black Point at last. Drink in hand and feet up

on the beach with the cousins on the first night.

comet lovejoy

I heard about a comet that's on our horizon atm. Comet Lovejoy is passing through with an amazing long tail that can be seen with the naked eye.

I popped out of bed at 3.30am.... I was awake for a call of nature anyway, and headed out for a look. With the camera of course.

This shot was taken at 4.56am. That's a satellite passing through the image and the lights of the Cummins silos at ground level. There must have been a train outloading. 

innocence

Something I finished a couple of days ago and hadn't got round to putting it up. Been such a mad house with everything atm.... lol.... thank goodness Christmas only comes around once a year!!!!  I don't have the time for it more often than that.

hamming it up lol

Last scrap nite with the girls @ Scrapworkz for 2011 last week  :(

Gina had the brilliant idea of a photobooth shoot with her gear. Including props from her daughter's birthday!!!!  The whole gang got in the pic (not posted without permissions)

I didn't take too much encouragement to have a bit of a play!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gina 'the Harry Potter stand in actor'. Shmee.  'Dame Edna??   ' Amy 'the Mo-vember pinup chick'

Top idea Gina B. mwah babe.

sunlit gum in paddock

Yesterday was such a great day for POs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't know what a PO is?????????????????????????

It's a Photographic Orgasm!!!!!!!!!!!!  It's that most fulfilling feeling you can imagine when you now you have just cracked 'THAT' shot. It's addictive and it's better than sex!!!!!

This is a PO for yesterday.!!!

The two posts below show my other PO's...... man what a day

I'm exhausted!!!  **puts back of hand on forehead**

:O)

summer sunset and building thunderheads

Did you get out yesterday after the rain.

YOU SHOULD HAVE!!

We were treated to the amazingness of Mother Nature.  Lots of storm clouds ran through the sky yesterday afternoon, the build up of the cloud line along the Tumby Hill line was something to behold. It looked like the clouds were trying to get up over the hills and met the cooler sea air. Instead of rolling over the hills, it boiled upwards. And really quickly too.

I had the camera pointing east for the sunset last night. That's where all this cloud was and that is where the lightning was (see post below)

How lucky are we to have all this on our doorstep!!!!!!!!!!!!

Taken with the very last light of day. Not long after this shot the tops of the clouds flattened out to anvil heads and the lightning really started!!!  It was such a still evening, not a breath of breeze and so mild......

Pano of 20 shots to show the cloud line stretching all the way north to all the way south, running along the eastern horizon.  I should have headed to the coast  :-/

summer lightning

We had a tremendous show of summer lightning tonight on the easteren horizon. I'd been out shooting this afternoon and watched the cloud building up along the hill line. Instead of the cloud rolling over the hills, it boiled upwards and just grew into huge thunderheads. Big anvil tops.  It wasn't until after sunset that the lightning really shone.

gently

I was so in love with this shot when I took it over 2 years ago  (I'm usually a chronological scrapper) and I still adore it. Pulled out my scraps folder and pulled this one together. 

you are right where you should be - annie

Sometimes I do a his and her LO of the same photo or story. If it's important to both of them or if Kym or I are  in the shot with both of them. Sometimes it might be because both of  them are in it.

The words on the journal tag are a Prima Flocked Iron On from Scrap Therapy. type in Prima Iron On in the search bar and you'll find them.  This one is out of stock atm.

you are right where you should be - sean

Back in August 2009 I took the kids up to the top of the world.  Not far from where we live is a hill line with the tallest one called North Block. The access to this spot is on private property and I was very kindly lent a key for the padlocked gate. Kylie and her kids joined us for a picnic lunch and lots of bubble blowing. They even brought up their little pet Kangaroo.

Kylie took this shot of us and it's one of my all time favorites. 

Scrapped at Scrapwokz with the girls on Thursday night.
:O)

Christmas Trader's Night

Each year on the Friday school breaks up for the Summer Holidays, the Cummins Traders' host a Community Christmas Evening, starting with a street parade. Sean was buckled in front seat of the CFS Appliance, thus putting his Dad in the back seat. =-p

Annie and I watched the parade from the side lines and then made our way to the Railway Triangle where all the action happens.

Bucking Bull.

 

Father Christmas 

There was a couple of Bouncy Castles, plenty of tucker, and music on the stage. The weather was quite pleasant too which was wonderful

bokeh

Scrapped for Scrap Therapy and showcasing Teresa Collins Christmas Home - Christmas Chandelier paper and Red Glitter Paper. Also used as my example for the SHOOT IT, SCRAP IT - All things Christmas Challenge. 

Click the highlights for the deets.

I made the kite and the tail has plastic twistie ties that I cut to shape.

The charms hanging from the ribbon are the little ID dangle thingos that you clip onto your wine glass. I added the little bells found on Christmas Gift Tags. This is the best time of year to gather embellies for your Christmas scrapping to come!!!!  Wired Ribbon from Cheap as Chips.

rural sunset

At the moment, I'm able to put the kids to bed, and then run outside to catch the sunset. I'm about 30 metres away from Annie's bedroom window and I'm by our chook yard. 

When I'm set up it looks like this..... taken with my iphone.....

.......to capture this!!!

this was actually a bit of a no show that night...... some evenings the sky fires up, and sometimes it doesn't . That's all part of the pull of shooting landscapes....... being able to capture the unexpected moment.....

2011 swim carnival

Annie's first ever swim carnival. And she was so excited about it.

The morning was fairly cool, overcast and breezy. I bet she was thankful for wearing her wetsuit in the pool. Because she's slender framed, she gets cold very quickly in the water. At the beginning of last summer, I bought a wetsuit (spring suits) for both Sean and Annie. And they have paid dividends. Now the kids last a whole swim lesson instead of loosing the plot due to being cold after 10 mins in the water.

Anyway, I digress.......

The afternoon saw the sun break through the clouds and it was quite pleasant.

Annie's first event was 25m freestyle. And she did it as a PB for herself. She didn't stop once, she just kept on going and going. She was sooooo pleased with herself and for me that was the highlight of my day. She came 4th in her heat.

Next was 25m breaststroke. Her most disliked stroke. Funnily enough she did that one so well. Again a PB. No stops.

25m Backstroke. Her fave event. She did keep angling for the wall and fortunately the instructors where on hand with noodles on the wall at the point of impact.

I did notice that Annie selected the lane by the wall for each race. I think that gave her no end of confidence in herself just to know she only had to reach out and she was safe.

team games. Tube relay.

Tow relay.

It was a day of fun in the pool, about participation and having a go for your team.

She came home with 3 ribbons pinned to her hat that I'm allowed to have to scrap later on. Lucky me.