e2c 2010

I've been scrapping just a little bit. Yay. 

Amy, you'd be so proud of me. :D

Sitting with Ange and Lou at the 2010 retreat was such a buzz. Awesome to reconnect with the ladies I had met the previous year at a scrapping get together.

With their kind permission, I can post this LO.

a young magpie learns his club's song

So playing around with watercolours has found my scrappy itch very itchy. I want to do more. Lots more. Yay.

The backstory to this photo....... Sean's very first pair of footy boots begged to photographed before they were trashed, as boys do. But my camera was away for a clean at the time. What was I to do?? 

Maryanne lent me her Nikon for a day so I could get this shot. Until then I had only once held a Nikon in my hand. The concepts of photography are the same, no matter what tool, but I did struggle delving into the menu a little bit. It was a bit foreign having the buttons on the other side of the body, but I managed. 

Thanks again Mary, for the trust and the thoughtfulness.

she reads......

..... and reads, and reads and reads..........

she's done the 7 books in the Harry Potter series several times. done The Hobbit series. I'm needing fresh ideas to direct her reading progress. The library staff have been great with this. I swear she'd eat books if she could.

e2c 2010 - the LO

Escape2Create 2010. What a hoot that was. Huge weekend spent with like minded scrappy souls let loose out of the house for a 3 day weekend. 

It was also my first retreat on the other side of the scrap table, in other words, not on the organising team. I do know just HOW much work goes into the planning of the retreats so it seems like it just happens so seamlessly. Believe me, the girls paddle like mad under the surface, but appear to be serenely enjoying the Retreat too.

As this photo has been on other blogs and around the place I've thought it fine to post here. :)

gym fundraiser photos

Over the last couple of weeks I've been madly photographing the Gym kids that I've had written consent for. Their photos are collated onto individualized discs for a fundraising drive. So far I have 47 requests, with more consent forms to collect tomorrow at Kindergym. All this has come to an approx total of some 25 hours of volunteer time to help the gymclub collect funds for equipment and to go towards the new Gym Building.

Its been so rewarding, and also very tiring. By the end I would have been to each session (1 on Mondays, 3 on Tuesdays and the Kindergym sessions) twice to make sure I get each gymnast recorded.

I'm looking forward to getting my life back.....maybe next week :)

A perfect L sit on the Parallel Bars.

Getting the hang of the 'Glide'

eyre peninsula - australia's seafood frontier

whaaahoooooo. see the pic of the boat and vehicle at the boat ramp on the centre panel. that's mine!!!! and that cracker sunrise on the left panel - that's Robert Lang Photography and the one of the bloke by his tent on the right panel. That one is John White Photos whoohoooo Eyre Peninsula Australia's Seafood Frontier showcasing the best spots on the EP.

at the Boat Show in Adelaide.

Regional Development Board Eyre Peninsula and Whyalla Office contacted me earlier this year to submit images for their rebadging of their logo and tourism promotion items. I can't tell you just how excited I was to be asked.

To me this more than justifies where I'm going with my photography. I love the Eyre Peninsula and to promote it in the best way I can with photography is just plain fun. And totally invigorating.

And to be transparently honest, its pretty damn awesome feeling to be recognised alongside the best photographers this area has to offer.

There's something about that shade of shiny green paint that quickens a farmer's soul.

From my Industry set on Tiff Firth Photography found on Facebook

she is......

Sunday afternoon was warmed with gentle sun and without a breeze. Perfect for a photoshoot. This one has been bubbling away for a little while, waiting until we both had the time to get it together. With her commitments and mine, it took a few goes at getting our diaries to work.

Sunday arvo could have not been more perfect.


She is.....a little bit country

She is..... a little bit shmancy

she is......uncomplicated

she is...... looking to her future beyond that next door.

 she is.......genuine.

There are a few more images in this set at Tiff Firth Photography on Facebook

21

beautiful. assured. confident. glows. and 21

Gran created a special 21st book for all the guests at Miss S's birthday celebrations to leave their mark. What a wonderful gift from the heart.

Special gifts from special friends.

back on court

Its been 8 weeks since Annie broke the bone in her foot during the first netball match of the season. (post here) and today was her first match back on the court.

She had 4 weeks of no training by order of the physio, then 2 weeks of straight running on the court while strapped up (no dodging or cutting) but was able to get back into some of the ball skills, then 2 weeks of starting to dodge and cut, again with it strapped. This last week was her first full training session with the rest of the team, with one week of no training as it was an association match.

She's been itching to get back onto the court, but at the expense of cutting her long fingernails. She has awesome nails out of netball season and they had grown again since she's been off court.

Annie played the first quarter and took her a while to slip back into it. I think she was very conscious of her foot and the feeling of the strapping supporting it. She was off for the second quarter to rest it, and back on the third quarter.

This is when she fired up. I'm thinking that she forgot about her foot and started her solid intercepts and started really playing. It was so wonderful to see her really get her teeth into it.

The last quarter was sitting on the bench to rest it. There's no need to push it too fast, and its not like she's representing her country for a do or die effort. So I'm totally agreeing with the coach's thoughts as to slip her back into the game gently.

Was so good to see her back on court.

shoe tree

The Shoe Tree was a landmark for the kids on our trips to Port Lincoln. I'd sing out 'Shoe Tree around the corner' and start counting down till we reached it. The kids always craned their necks to spot their own shoes in the mass of shoes hanging from the branch.

Over the last few months the branch has dropped lower and lower and swinging towards the road. The burden of shoes was very close to being too much. And after a wild wooly winter's night, finally it came crashing down. The branch of the Shoe Tree was on the ground.

I actually felt quite sad about it. And the kids were guttered. We all had invested interest in that tree and we didn't want to see it disappear. 

I figure that in life if someone relies on someone else to do a job, then nothing ever gets achieved. So with that in mind, I decided to go get the shoes in a trailer and relocate the Shoe Tree.

This morning I asked Emma Pedler of ABC Radio if she was able to air my request for a bit of help with the shoe recovery part of the project. Ron Campbell heard it on air, and came with his Media Vision Camera and recorded the tossing of shoes into the trailer. He then put the camera down and helped clear the tree of shoes and came with me to find a new spot.

Channel 7 and Channel 9 news showed vision that Ron took of me tossing a large bunch of shoes over the branch of the new Shoe Tree. I'm pretty damn glad they edited out the interview bit. :D

 The following info supports the images on my Tiff Firth Photography page on Facebook. Each image has its own caption so you will find that some of the info is repeated, ie the new location.

On the Lower Eyre Peninsula, there grew a Shoe Tree. Over the years it flourished and it became known as a tourist spot. In time the bloom of shoes grew too heavy for the branch, and with a battering from Mother Nature, it came down on a winter's night. I was sad to hear of it falling, as my children have a couple of pairs of shoes each hanging on the shoe tree. With the encouragement of a few locals and my kids, I took it upon myself to put out a call for help to relocate the shoe tree. Within a few days it will flourish once more in its new location, not that far from the original tree. It's now on the northern side of Wanilla, near the Warunda railway siding in a car pullover area, off the road and where it is safe for both traffic and admirers of the Shoe Tree.

With thanks to Ron Campbell who helped me gather the approx 300 pairs of shoes from the fallen branch of the Shoe Tree. We had to keep an ear out for the traffic on the road while collecting the shoes to be safe. I had a revolving hazard light on my vehicle and a high res vest for safety. Not many of the laces needed to be cut, but quite a few of the shoes were twisted into clumps, never to be untangled. 

300ish pair of shoes, of many sorts and varieties, were collected into a 6x4 trailer. We were surprised by how many of the shoes seemed to be in really good order. Perhaps some of the children's ones were outgrown, including a little toddlers pair. So small, so sweet.

The 6x4 trailer chock-a-block full of the 300ish pairs of shoes recovered from the fallen branch of the Shoe Tree. They will all be relocated on Friday to a new tree so the Shoe Tree will blossom once again. North of Wanilla, near the Warunda Railway siding, at a parking bay off the road. Plenty of room for caravans to park, children to be safe and away from the edge of the road. The truckies can breathe a sigh of relief as there will be no more near misses like there were on that other corner.

The new branch for the rebirthing of the Shoe Tree. A very strong branch to uphold the blooms of shoes that are to come over the next few days and for the years ahead. North of Wanilla, near the Warunda Railway siding. There is a parking bay on the right side of the road. You can pull completely off the road with a caravan, have a BBQ and throw your shoes into the Shoe Tree with abandon. Shoes are being rehung on a rope system on Friday 7.6.2013 from 11am onwards. Bring your lunch and lend an hour or so. Many hands will make this so much more fun.

The Shoe Tree and its flowering shoes back in January 2010. It began to gain publicity from about then, and it really grew very quickly

The blossoming Shoe Tree in November 2011. Must have been a good season :)

Annie hanging another pair of her worn out sneakers in the Shoe Tree. June 2012.