Friends in Fall: Photo Shoot with Sara

The autumn season never lasts for very long, so it's best to take advantage of it while it lasts. All too soon the pretty colors are replaced with bare limbs and colder weather sets in... again.
Thankfully today was another lovely fall day, so on my way out the door this morning to go visit a good friend, I snagged my camera in the hopes she would be game for a fall photo shoot.
And she was.

Meet Sara

 I've known Sara for about seven years and she's one of the sweetest people I know.

She is generally soft spoken and quiet...

...but has a wonderful humorous side too.

The area surrounding Sara's home in the country is quiet stunning.

So needless to say we didn't have to go too far to find great picturesque locations.

We did however, cover a lot of ground and found ourselves strolling casually through field and wood with no particular destination in mind other than to enjoy one another's company and the beautiful fall colors.

It was so peaceful.

And it's funny how when you have a heightened sense of appreciation for the simple beauty around you, that you begin to see it everywhere.

There's just something about the doorway's of old wooden buildings too. Sort of rustic and classy all at once... provided of course you have a lovely friend standing in the doorway.

Did you know: A moss covered log is nature's own naturally cushioned bench? Yep.

Sara, striking what I call the 'Why?' pose, complete with a perfect raised eyebrow.

Gazing into the distance (all the while standing on a hay bale).

I love how Sara's jacket is the perfect fall jacket color, standing out strikingly against the yellows and greens of the leaves on the trees.

In the one field where we were walking, there was a lot of white mushrooms that sort of resembled gigantic marshmallows... and on closer inspection of one discovered this little green bug:

Throughout our whole walk, Sara's dog Muskua trailed along either in front or behind, but never very far off.

Around noon, we went inside her wood stove heated home and made a really healthy (and equally delicious) salad. Here it is mid preparation...

...and then complete:

After lunch, we traded places and Sara became the photographer.

At some point a few of her cats wandered over in curiosity to see what we were doing.

And then we noticed our shadows on the road, so we had to take shadow photo's. We turned our fingers into 'guns' and while Sara automatically points her gun into the air, my first impulse is to point it at my own head for some reason...

We also took a footsie (except this is called a friend footsie now since there's two pairs of feet in the picture).

Actually we took more than one friend footsie...

I'm so honored I have the privilege of knowing Sara and that I get to call such a beautiful and intelligent young woman my friend.

Thanks for letting me take your picture Sara and for having me over today. You were the perfect hostess and I had a wonderful time.

Poetry Piece: Miss You

Writing poetry has become a part of who I am. Ever since I was little, I've enjoyed writing my own little poetic pieces. But it wasn't until about two years ago that things got serious. Born out of a lack of things to do I challenged myself to write a daily poem for a week. After the initial week elapsed, I realized I liked how many poems I was getting out of the deal... and so I just kept going. Except for a brief period in time where I stopped (due to the traumatic event of having my Wisdom teeth removed), I've never looked back.

Now, I can't imagine NOT writing a poem everyday. It's become so ingrained in me that the day isn't over until a poem is written. Granted, some are terrible awful, but what do you expect when you put off writing until about five minutes before midnight, when technically a new day begins?

Often, my poems reflect my mood, feelings, and things I'm going through. Recently a lot have been about goodbyes and missing people...

Friends In Fall: Photo Shoot with Shynae

One of the most beautiful things about autumn is all the lovely colors. Combine that with a camera and a friend, and you have a great combination that just begs to be photographed.

Meet Shynae:

Shynae is a good friend of mine with a great personality and a wonderful sense of humor. We laugh a lot when we're around each other...

And she's beautiful too:

In lieu of all the gorgeous fall colors surrounding us we decided to go on a photo shoot (aka an adventure) and were blessed with perfect weather. I mean, we couldn't have asked for nicer weather on the 'official' first day of fall.

We went exploring the countryside and discovered some pretty neat spots, including this abandoned house which must have been pretty well to do when it was in it's prime.

And even though it's hard to see in this shot, it actually has a balcony too. Unfortunately someone decided it would be cool do vandalize the one wall. Person: Not. Cool.

Perhaps they were also the cause behind a few of the smashed windows...

...and the broken glass.

It's kind of sad looking around at what once was probably a grand place. It makes one wonder: Who used to live here? What happened? Why did they leave? The front door still stands open, almost as if awaiting the return of someone.

I think both Shynae and I really enjoyed all the exploring we got to do. Here she's standing in the doorway of some random shed we found in the woods. 

And when we saw this leaf littered road, we simply had to back up to take some pictures!

Then, we happened upon this cluster of bugs:

We also met this dragonfly... who turned out to have a very adorable grin!

After a while we switched places and Shynae became the photographer. Considering she'd never used my camera before, she got some really good shots! You go girl.

She wanted me to pose by the flowers, but a standard sort of pose:

...didn't last long.

But that was fine with Shynae...

...because she's such an amazing friend. (This is called a footsie, the opposite of a selfie)

Thanks for being so awesome Shynae and for trekking all over the countryside with me today. I had a blast.

Why blog?

Via

That's a great question! Why blog? Why post all your private thoughts and doings up online for the whole world to read and digest? I think it's because everyone wants to be heard. Everyone wants to have a voice that someone, somewhere, will listen to. It's that feeling of connection, and with today's wonderful modern technology, that opportunity is now more available to us than ever.

Via

And I suppose that's the reason, essentially. I used to blog quite a few years ago but, long story short, ended up deleting them. Now however, I'm about to embark on a new and exciting and slightly scary journey which promises to be very interesting and thought:

"I need to to start a blog. I mean, what better way to keep connected with everyone and meet new people at the same time, all the while being able to share my thoughts and ideas with the world?"

And so, here it is and here I am. And the new and exciting and slightly scary journey I'm embarking on? It's called 'moving out of your parents house.' I know. Scary. And exciting. At the same time. The hardest part? Saying goodbye. Goodbyes hurt.

Via