I love storms.

Fact: Taking photos of lightning is addicting.

It's always a fight to see if I can get a better shot, especially when it's so difficult to really get a good one. For me - a novice when it comes to photography - it takes probably 1 in 30 shots where I am actually able to capture a flash of lightning.


Most of the time, I don't even have my camera pointed in the right direction. That's when I tell myself, "Keep going. You're bound to get a good one!" And I end up standing outside until the storm passes, or my husband drags me inside, or it starts raining. (Hopefully I'm smart enough to know when I'm putting myself in danger, as well, eh?)


It's not just the photography aspect, though. I just love watching nature, in general. I've finally convinced my 4-year-old that lightning and thunder are things to marvel at and not be afraid of.

He will be very disappointed that he slept through tonight's storm, but hopefully the pictures I took will make him happy!

Baskin Robbins...

When you were a child, did you ever feel limited by your state in life? I had an experience the other night that made me feel like I have finally arrived in the grown-up world. It's pretty silly, actually. Let me explain...

When I was little, my family would take rare trips to Baskin Robbins for ice cream cones. The four of us kids were only allowed 1-scoop cones, or on the VERY rare occasion, a 2-scooper. Mom and Dad were the only ones privileged to glory of the full-on ice cream sundae - extra toppings, whipped cream, nuts, cherry - the whole shebang.

So, the other night, as my little family of four took a trip to our local Baskin Robbins, I peered through the glass, trying to decide which flavor I wanted. I realized, "I can get TWO scoops if I want, AND I can get them in a sundae if I so desire!" And that's exactly what I did. I chose Jamocha Almond Fudge and Black Walnut topped with hot fudge, whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry.



I savored every bite as I watched my two little boys eat their 1-scoop cones. I guess it has come full circle. :-)

I am an adult, after all.

Lightning

Things are in the full swing of moving mode around here. Cardboard boxes are scattered haphazardly throughout the house, junk creeping out of closets, waiting to be placed in said boxes. I got a lot done yesterday, which felt good. I was a little overwhelmed with the feelings of how close some major changes are upon us - good changes - but changes nonetheless. I couldn't help but think of all of that as I crawled into bed at 10:45 last night...

At midnight, I was awoken to the sound of crying coming from the direction of my teething, 21-month-old's room. He's a horrible teether. Thankfully, these are his last two teeth, so I'm hoping he will be able to sleep through the night without any problems after this. After rocking him for 10 minutes or so, he laid back down without any problems.

As I crawled back into my bed, I noticed little flashes of light coming through one of my windows. It was bright, but there was no sound that followed, so I was curious as to where it was coming from. Was it coming from police lights in the front of the house? Was it lightning? I couldn't go to sleep without inspecting the situation. To my amazement, there were big thunder clouds just in front of the house, but the sky above was clear, and there was no thunder accompanying the lightning. As tired as I was, I didn't want to pass up the opportunity to get some pictures of the storm.







After a while, I decided to head back inside. I could have kept going, but I knew the morning would come early, and it was already 1:00. As I crawled into bed the third time that night, I could faintly hear the thunder starting. The storm was moving toward us, not away from us like I had originally thought. That's never a good thing at night because that can only mean one thing: Brady wakes up crying, wanting someone to lay next to him until the storm passes. Because Brett had to work today (just like any weekday), that meant I was on "comfort duty." I grabbed my pillow and headed for the 4-year-old's room. That's where I spent the rest of the night being kicked, prodded, snuggled, and kept from true rest.



The storm was worth it.

Freak For Nature

No, I didn't say "freak OF nature," though some might contest that...

ANYWAY...

I love taking pictures of all the nature-related things around me, and since Spring has sprung, those kinds of things have come out in full force. Here are a bunch of pictures!

Isn't he cute?!








Hank found a new pond.





This is Stache. Brady thought the white stripe by his nostrils looked like a mustache.


This is Frankie. She used to be Tux's gal.


Now she's with Stache.


These are some flowers that Brady and his friend picked for me.


Some of the many flowers in our backyard.










These little lizards come around once in a while. They can change from dark brown, to bright green. This one was extra friendly.

Honeysuckle

Here I am, again... Trying to look at the positive... Hopefully in a few days I will be able to give you the skinny on what's going on, but right now, it's not my story to tell. I must keep things to myself for a bit, mostly because I'm still hoping that the situation might change.

But ANYWAY...

With our move fast approaching, I've been taking every moment I can to enjoy our backyard. I highly doubt we will have anything so nice in our next location. With the weather being so great lately, too, it's been hard not to want to be outside anyway. As soon as I walk out the sliding glass doors, I've been noticing a heavenly scent coming from the general direction of our grape vines. We have honeysuckle bushes growing among the vines and they make the whole backyard smell so good! I've never smelled the real thing before, but their scent is surprisingly familiar. I'm pretty sure I know why...

When I turned 16, I remember my parents taking me to downtown Salt Lake, just the three of us. We celebrated my birthday by going to dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, roaming the adjacent Trolley Square Mall, and then staying the night at the Marriott up on the hill near the University of Utah. While roaming the mall, I got to do a little birthday shopping. It was my goal to get some of the Victoria's Secret lotions that seemed to be so trendy at that time. It seemed like every girl I knew was absolutely in love with the Pear-scented lotion, and try as I might, I always thought it was awful. So, instead of being trendy, but still trying to be cool, I got three other lotions - my favorite being the "Honeysuckle."

Now that I have the real things in my yard, it makes me wish VS still made that lotion. I forgot how good it smelled!

Blackberries

Our yard is literally bursting with blackberries! Brady has been dying to pick them, but it hasn't been until now that they're finally ready. We've got so many! I'm trying to decide what we can do with them. I'm hoping that I can find enough good ones to make a blackberry cobbler of some sort. Mmmmm!

This is a mound of flowers and greenery where a lot of the berries reside.








We also found this lovely thing while picking the berries. Thankfully there weren't any ripe ones near him. My hand was going nowhere near that web!

Birdies

Today was such a beautiful day! While my little 1-year-old napped, my 3-year-old and I sat outside and did a little bird-watching. I never realized what a variety we have just in our backyard!

Is this a hawk? He was swooping all over the sky above my house.


Then he/she was joined by two others. It was really cool just watching them.


This cardinal was my favorite. I think it had something to do with the fact that he's red. Red's my favorite color.


I waited and waited until he flew into the tree by our porch, and he actually did! It was my lucky day!


Mourning Doves


These guys are always in the trees next to our house, crying.


There was this little guy. He moved from branch to branch so quickly, I was lucky to get anything remotely in-focus.


Then there was this pretty bird. I thought he was a robin at first, but then I noticed his back was blue. I thought it was just the shadow of the branches...


but no, he really was blue.

Sunset

This is another photo I found while rummaging around for something to post about. I just loved how the clouds looked that evening.

As I zoomed in, I thought they looked like they could be part of an impressionist painting - my favorite style.