Photo of the Day

I shot this photo on a self-guided tour of Denver several years ago. I was there on a business trip and some colleagues had invited me to stay an extra day to go hiking... however they arrived in CO having neglected to inform me that something had come up and they were unable to stay after all... leaving me alone to fend for myself in a new place! I ended up having an extremely enjoyable day and shot all kinds of neat things, including this beautiful birch on the hotel golf course :o)

Photo of the Day

Well I knew it had been awhile since I last posted... I didn't realise it'd been a month and a half!! So much has happened in my photography career since then...! I will post an actual update next time, but today I just wanted to get a new photo out there... I shot this one a few weeks ago when I had some downtime on an amazing fall afternoon and spent about an hour and a half wandering around a cemetery near my fiance's house. It may seem a little morbid, but I really like shooting in cemeteries, I find it calming somehow.

Photo of the Day

I took today's photo last night of my parents, and I absolutely love it. I'm putting together a page on our wedding website that introduces people to our families since not all of our friends have had the opportunity to meet the whole group... mom likes another shot better so I am using my blog to still get this one out there :o)

Wedding Updates

Well we officially set a date and location about a week ago now... 18 September 2010 at Bluewater Campgrounds in Lexington, MI. That is the place where we met a little over 4 years ago. We also set up a wedding website through theknot.com where we can keep people posted on the plans as they develop (http://www.theknot.com/ourwedding/RachelvanRossum&AustinThorp)

I also had my first wedding nightmare last night... I'm chalking it up the the stress I've been under this week (not wedding related) and the fact that I spent from 3.30pm on yesterday sick in bed, but it was a terrible dream nonetheless. I dreamed that somehow invitations for the wedding had been sent out (I hadn't even seen them, no idea how they got out or why we knew about it) and they had the wrong year on them (2009 instead of 2010) and so the whole dream took place on 18 sept 2009, with me stressed to the max and crying my eyes out because absolutely everything was wrong... there was no photographer, we were getting married in a small chapel in a shopping mall (like in the hospitals how they have a chapel room, only we were in a mall... I don't know either...) no one had brought my jewelry, my dress hadn't been touched at all so it didn't fit quite perfectly and it was still covered in lace, and most of our guests were unable to make it due to the extremely short notice. I was absolutely beside myself.

So here's to that not becoming reality and here's to me feeling better today so that I think I can make it into work this afternoon (had to call in yesterday only a half hour before my shift... that was AWFUL I hate doing that and try to avoid it at all costs but it really couldn't be helped yesterday, I was super out of it)... just needed somewhere to get the dream out of my system so I can not get hung up on it! Yikes!

Photo of the day - A Dedication

One of my readers occasionally posts fun "shadow portraits" of herself (as I like to call them), so I thought I'd dedicate this post to her and do the same :o)

I took this photo sitting on a bridge in the park near our house (Firefighters' Park). It was a gorgeous fall day and dad and I took Micah to go run around. Clearly I was tired of running around ;o)

Photo of the day

Welcome to Pet-a-Palooza 2009! This is the first year we've ever gone... it was dad's birthday and he wanted to take Micah to see all the other dogs. It was actually pretty cool, lots of pet-supply/service vendors exhibiting and selling stuff, and a few cool dog shows like this obstacle race one. The tough part was the giant tent with the seriously THOUSANDS of pets up for adoption... how we managed to leave without a new critter I'm still not sure! I did get a new magnet for my car that reads "Peace, Love, Adopt" with a cute little pawprint on it. Sooooo many homeless critters just wanting to be loved... so if you don't have enough pets already, go adopt one from one of your local shelters because they need happy happy homes!!

Photo of the day

I am in a wonderful fall mood today! I biked over to Starbucks to meet my friend Erica for a workday (we both work from home so we meet up periodically to work somewhere else and keep each other company). Her husband Michael joined us a little while ago and is hanging out for a bit before heading into the office, so it's good times. The way the sun is shining today makes me think of a warm fall day, plus I got 2 samples of fake fall leaves in the mail yesterday that I had ordered to compare for wedding decorations, so my world is shiny :o)
I took this photo last fall in my backyard. The wind was blowing leaves everywhere and I was so inspired. I love fall, and any warm sunny fall day with amazing colours that I can run around and shoot for awhile is always a great day in my book!

Photo of the day

I took this photo in Berlin on my and Austin's first day there. We stopped for lunch at a pizza place around the corner from our hostel and they had these sitting out for decoration, I loved the contrast and the boldness of the red so I shot it :o)

Photo of the day - An Introduction

Meet Smudge! She is the newest addition to our family, since after 4 months of searching, it doesn't appear Fowler and Herman are coming back to us... :o(

I used some of my birthday money this year to adopt Smudge (10 weeks in this photo, day I brought her home). Jared and I went to the Michigan Humane Society, "just to look" and inevitably I fell in love and couldn't leave without her. She is the most precious kitten in the world and has a huge personality (as do most van Rossum kitties...!) She is so soft and full of life. When I brought her home she had piercing blue eyes, but they are starting to turn green so we'll see what happens there. She had been dropped off at the home of one of the MHS staffers and was not doing so well... she had fleas, earmites and an upper respiratory infection. Now she's doing very very well, and has almost kicked the upper respiratory entirely (fleas and earmites are all gone too!) She has doubled in size in the 3 weeks that we've had her and loves dogs. She and Micah have great fun chasing each other around, and she and Chloe (my fiance's very high-maintenance Weimeriner) actually get along great too! Zieltje (the matron of the house) has adapted very well to her, and tolerates her most of the time, though she doesn't hesitate to beat the crap out of Smudge when she's had enough of the kitten energy, which is kinda funny to watch. Anyhow she's so freaking cute I just had to post this pic and introduce y'all to her! (I can't take credit for her name, her foster mom named her, but it was so perfect I had to keep it this time!)

For more Smudge photos, click here!

Photo of the day

This was taken in Myrtle Beach, SC a couple of years ago when my mum and I went on a little getaway vaca to originally visit my cousin, but she was sick so we detoured to the beach instead :o)

We woke up early to take some beach pics before it got crowded and this was one that I just loved :o) Makes ya wanna go sit out in the sun doesn't it?

New Shutterbug Storefront!!

Well I finally figured out how to add a storefront to my website that is WAY more user friendly than my old storefront, so now you can order my products directly from www.ShutterbugDesign.com!! The products currently available include several stationary sets featuring my photography, and hand-painted onesies (all designed and painted by me!)

Please check it out, and pass it along to anyone you know of who may be interested! I will be expanding my products quite a bit over the next 6 months to include more stationary, calendars, mouse pads, reusable shopping bags, and some cool coasters I've started making from recycled magazines...

Hope you enjoy, I welcome any suggestions y'all may have. Also remember that I am currently saving up for a place to live and a wedding... so happy shopping!! :o)

Photo of the day

I've been slowly reorganizing and backing up my photo files, and came across this one I took a couple of years ago over at Austin's house. I love later afternoon sun, and that day I was just walking around his house shooting random stuff because the sun was so nice :o)

Photo of the day

I love finding plants growing out of places that you just wouldn't expect. I shot this at Little Pigeon River in Gatlinburg TN on one of my & Austin's many trips down there. The light was playing off the leaves to make them so bright and cheery, like it could care less that it was having to force it's roots through solid rock in order to find water! I also loved the surface of the rocks that had been worn so smooth by the water over time... provided lovely texture and shadow play.

Cellulitis, tra-la-la

Somewhere around Wednesday of camp I got bit by something. My best guess is it was a spider of some sort, but I noticed a slight pain in my ankle if I bumped it. There was no redness, no bite mark that I could see, and no itching or swelling, just the feeling like I had a bruise if you pressed the spot. Two days went by and no change in that condition. Friday night (ok Saturday morning at 4.15 when I was finally done filling photo orders) I headed down the hall to my room and had to limp the whole way coz I was suddenly in ridiculous amounts of pain in the same ankle. I got to my room and checked it out in the light and it was completely swollen and bright red. It was burning hot to the touch and severe pain even just laying down. I took a couple of benadryl and elevated it overnight then let the camp nurse look at it in the morning at breakfast. Her diagnosis was to go to the doctor when I got home coz it looked like a nasty infection. After some debate with my mum I finally caved and we stopped in at the ER on the way home. Turned out I had cellulitis and had I waited til monday to come in things could have been very very bad. I spent about 5 hours in the ER on the 4th, then they let me go under the condition I'd come home in the morning to have it re-checked (usually they admit people right away for this but they believed me when I said I'd stay off it... the fact that I looked like I hadn't slept in a week probably helped my case). So skip to next morning - Happy birthday me! I had breakfast, then mum and I headed back to ER before church. Aaaand the infection had spread. Stellar. So I got to spend the rest of my birthday at Troy Beaumont. I hung out in the ER for about another 6 hours until they admitted me and brought me up to a room. The ER staff was awesome though, they brought me a birthday treat, made party hats and streamers out of cast gauze and everything.

Once I got into a room I had a pretty steady stream of visitors to keep me company. Austin came and spent some time with me reading comics and chatting. He even went down to the cafeteria to bring me french fries :o) I decided that IVs suck a whole lot, especially when they're in my hand. I didn't sleep very well because for a place of rest and healing hospitals are loud and annoying. There was a man somewhere on my floor (I was actually in the infectious diseases ward!) who was pretty sure he was going to die and spent almost all night screaming. It wasn't until mid morning that a nurse finally settled him down or hooked him up with some pain meds or something, but by then I only had a half hour to try sleeping until they woke ME up for another IV. An hour later my docotor woke me up to take a look at my chart, my ankle and to send me home. All in all it was good times... in that I never want to do this again kind of way! So there's your update on Rachel's life part 2... next time: Death and Kentucky... :oP

Bluewater Reunion 2009

So the last part of June/first part of July I spent (again) running around like a crazy person and not sleeping much for our church family camp (Reunion). It was a COLD week this year, very rainy and not the most exciting as a result of the weather, but all in all we still managed to have fun :o) Matt was there again this year (thank GOD!!!) to be my right arm for the Cube Squad (our photography team that I started several years ago to raise funds for the camp). I haven't wrapped up all of the final accounting details yet, but I think we came close to the amount we raised last year, so I'm very excited about that...!

I'll post more later, but wanted to get something up for a few people who'd been asking about it :o)

My 50th post

So this marks my 50th post since beginning this blog. One would think that would be cause for a super cool post, but I just needed to log in and apologize to my readers for not having been around much the last month. I'll be updating hopefully later in the week and adding some fun pics, but in the meantime here's the breakdown:

1 week @ camp
3 days in and out of hospital (I'm ok now, full story later)
5 days recuperating from hospital at home
6 days funeral related events and prepping for Mamo (Austin's maternal grandmother)
1 day wedding (Austin's cousin)
1 day desperate attempt at getting control of life again and relaxing

Now I'm back in my office and doing my very best to get back to my life... it's been an insane month and I'm more than ready to move on... just wanted to send you all a shout out to let ya know I'm still alive ;o)

Photo of the day

So I usually have no problem with Austin appreciating the beauty of other women... neither of us has much tolerance for the whole "I'm so insecure, if we're together you're no longer allowed to find other people attractive or I'll get super pissed and unreasonably sad and depressed" crap that so many people do in relationships. This one was a little bit of a shocker for me though... lol... we went to the Renaissance Festival a few years back and there was this mime there. Austin decided it was a woman statue (apparently it was far too pretty to be a man) and all he could do was stand there staring for like 20 minutes until he worked up the nerve to get a photo taken with "her" :o) It was kinda cute and kinda weird all at the same time. He asked for her number, but being a mime kinda saved me there lol...

In any case it was still a great photo opp and an entertaining story... at least I thought so! :o)

Photo of the day - A Tribute

Dear Readers, today's photo is a tribute not specifically to GM, or to the auto industry, but to Detroit... this just happens to be the most iconic Detroit photo I have in my folders right now... I understand that things are rough all over right now, but it feels like Detroit is really crumbling. It's hard to watch the people around me lose jobs, fall further and further into holes due to lost income, lost medical coverage, and lost hope... People lucky enough to still have jobs are mostly waiting for the notice to come that they're being cut as well, and no one has any money left to invest in the new industries that are trying to grow in our area (alternative energies, film, etc).

When I moved to Detroit in 1997 I was pissed and sad and resented it with every fiber of my being (come on I was 14). I wanted nothing to do with the city or even the entire state of MI... but it's really become home for me, and today I am proud to be here and love the city... I'm sad to see it in such rough shape and keep trying to do my part to make it better... so basically my point is this: don't give up on Detroit yet, and hang in there Detroiters... things have to get better sooner or later!!

Photo of the day

So I don't even like Jack, but we took a tour of the Jack Daniels' Distillery in TN last summer. One of the last rooms had this floor to ceiling lit display which was super cool. I liked the way this shot turned out, it's got pretty colours :o) Even if you're not a drinker, I highly recommend the tour, it was fun and our guide was very knowledgeable and very entertaining.

Photo of the day

Today's photo of the day was also taken on Mackinac Island. I had been a little stressed out and cranky from all the rain, and my last night on the island it was just starting to get a little dusky and the rain had stopped... I grabbed my camera and bike and took off until the sun was gone and I was damp and ready for bed. It was awesome. If you look veeeerrrrryyyy closely on the horizon you can see the Mackinac Bridge.

Pet Peeve of the Day: "Mackinac" and "Mackinaw" are NOT allowed to be pronounced the same! If you're going to take the time to have 2 ways of spelling it, you better say it differently too! SO many people yell at me when I say MACKINAC... losers ;o)

Photo of the day

Today's photo is dedicated to my mum. I took this a couple of weeks ago up on Mackinac Island while I was there for the Mackinac Policy Conference. This was the view in front of Mission Point Resort (hotel I stayed at) and it was just lovely. While it rained almost the whole entire time we were there, I did manage to get a few nice shots, and this one just reminded me so much of my mum I had to snap it... it's like her idea of paradise, only it would need more sun :o)

Wedding Updates

So Austin and I have started some of the planning for the wedding and are pretty excited about it... we're hoping to have (at the very least) the ceremony at the Royal Park in the conservatory because we've both spent so much time there and love that room oh so very very much... it's the only location we've really been able to both say "yeah, that has meaning" so far. We'll be meeting with them this week to see if it's within our budget or not, if not it'll be time to come up with a plan B but with my incredibly long standing relationship with most of their sales and management team I'm hoping we can work something really great out!

We're also hoping to have a really great home-cooked meal for the dinner piece... we're talkin' multiple grills being fired up and everyone just kickin' back and enjoying some quality food and each others' company... we haven't solidified that decision yet, but if we do absolutely decide that I can't wait to ask the team we have in mind, coz I think it'll be a total blast to have them in the kitchen backin' us that day :o)

We're on the fence on some of the lesser decisions like music and ceremony details (though we did make one decision about the ceremony, yay!) but hopefully by this time next week we'll have a location locked down and we can start working all out on the guest list and other pieces. I have someone in mind that I would like to ask to head up our decorating campaign and can't wait to make the final decision on locale because she will make it look oh so amazing (I haven't asked her even to consider it yet so until then she will remain nameless).

The coolest part for me so far is discovering just how in sync Austin and I really are... so far on any of the major decisions any idea he or I have come up with the other has been in nearly perfect agreement... I knew we were well paired and very compatible before this (obviously or we wouldn't be getting married!) but it's just cool to see that our values really are extremely similar and we are both having fun with the planning!

If anyone has any cool ideas, especially ones that are eco-friendly, please feel free to post comments or send them to me in an email... we're open to many suggestions... especially pertaining to the ceremony at this point... we are very anti-cookie cutter on most events, so we're wanting to come up with creative ideas that really express our personalities (laid back, fun loving, socially and environmentally conscious, stress free - as much as possible! and creative... I mean come on, we're both artists!)

For my photo of the day followers, here's one to go with the theme of today's post :o)


I took this photo at our friends Airen & Tim's wedding a couple of years ago. They had it up in the mountains in Asheville, NC at a place where they go every year with their bike group (as in motorcycles). It was one of the most casual and simple weddings I'd ever been to (in a good way!) honest to goodness backyard wedding with a small boombox for music, a friend liscenced online to perform the ceremony, and a bring your own meat BBQ afterward! We had so much fun that weekend driving down there and back, and I got some great photos for my portfolio at the same time (yes, Airen picked her bouquet herself off the side of the road, how cool is that?)

Photo of the day

I inherited my grandmothers' love of butterflies... I took this photo in the butterfly house at the Detroit Zoo a couple of summers ago. I was having a crappy day and needed a pick-me-up so I grabbed my camera and headed to the zoo... I actually got a discounted rate because I got there about 20 minutes before closing time, but I spent the whole time in the butterfly house and it was exactly what I had needed... a great way to relax, breathe again and really enjoyed myself! I must have taken 50 shots of this particular butterfly trying to catch him with his wings just starting to open like this... I actually ended up with a bunch that were either totally closed (no blue showing at all) or flat open so it looked like it was dead just sitting there on the ground... finally got this one though and was very pleased with the results! :o)

Photo of the day

Austin & I spent the first 2 days of Memorial Day weekend up in Gladwin where he was the opening act for the Rodeo both nights. I am always so stressed out when we go to Rodeos... they are amazing places to shoot, and I always enjoy myself, but the moments like these have me permanently perched at the very edge of my seat... as if I could at any moment launch myself into the ring and rescue whoever needs rescuing... can you believe this poor kid actually stood up and walked himself out of the ring? It takes a special kind of someone to be able to live that rodeo life, that's for sure... They loved Austin's sets, and especially his song, Rodeo (go figure, lol). We had a great weekend together, a much needed break from the rest of the world, and sold a bunch of cds to boot... woohoo! :o)

Photo of the day

I took this shot several years ago, and the lead singer liked it so much he had me frame a giant print of it for him to add to his studio (that's right, I'm a rock star...lol!)

Austin often opens up for the Orbitsuns and this was the first time I'd been to the New Dodge for one of their shows. The venue is small, dark, very old world pub like and fabulously cozy and shady ;o) The is a balcony level that covers 2 side of the main room, allowing for some pretty sweet shots like this one. The lighting that night was pretty cool too, allowing for this one and another close up of Vinnie that makes him look like he's made of pure light... it's wild, I'll have to post it sometime.

Enjoy!

Photo of the day

Woohoo!! Dad and I finally got back into the garden today and finished digging up my veggie patch! Now Jared and I can go get dirt and finish it up on Thursday and PLANT!!! It looks great I'm excited! :o)

I took this photo in the front garden a few weeks ago after a rain and the tulips were looking just lovely and fresh. Last year I'm pretty sure my dad planted like a thousand so they've just been sprouting up all over, it makes me homesick!

Photo of the day

I took this photo a couple of weeks ago at a baby blessing for some friends of mine. 2 of their great grandbabies were being blessed and they asked if I would take some shots for them. The church building itself I've never found to be overly exciting (architecturally speaking) but there is this incredible stained glass window that reaches almost floor to ceiling along one strip of the front wall of the sanctuary. I always find myself gazing into it and just losing myself in the colours... it brings me a great sense of peace.

Photo of the day

I took this photo a few weeks ago at my cousin's commencement at Hope College. We were all so proud of him... I shot about a dozen 'caps off' frames, but this one turned out exactly as I was hoping... I love the various heights in it... thought about removing the large yellow shirt man, but decided I didn't care enough to dedicate the photoshop hours...! lol... anyway, hope this gives your heart a lift, it makes me feel excited every time I look at it :o)

Photo of the day

I took this photo in Daytona Beach, FL a couple of years ago when Austin and Donna and I took a little mini vacation. It was such a nice time away, some fun in the sun to beat out the mid-winter blahs... it was great :o)

Photo of the day

This photo was taken in Scottsdale, AZ at the Breakthrough to Success seminar I've mentioned a few times (and posted a few photos from!) I loved these leaves and how fun they looked... the way the light was catching them was just perfect:o)

We're Engaged!!!!!

That's right y'all, he asked me to marry him!!!!!!!! It's been just over a week and I'm still grinnin' like a fool...! :o) Since most everyone keeps asking the same questions I'll try and capture some of the essentials here so you can get the whole scoop :o)

WHO: Austin Scott Thorp & Rachel Elizabeth van Rossum
We've been dating for nearly 4 years, I met Austin at a family church camp and we hit it off right away... we hung out a lot and started dating a few months later and we've been pretty inseparable ever since... Austin is a musician who not only won my heart but won me over to country music... a genre I had no tolerance for before I met him... but I love his sound and it's been a real adventure learning to be a part of the music industry!

WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 April 2009, evening- the Berkley Front (Berkley, MI)

HOW: here's the story kids!
Austin was a part of this great gig that his mandolin player Ben had coordinated. There were several artists performing and this girl was on stage before Austin went on. He and I were just hanging out in the back of the room dancing and sitting at the bar chatting. He was really impressed with the girl on stage and said "She should play at our wedding!" Well, he and I say things like that all the time and it means nothing... so I was like "yeah ok great... just as long as you ask me before you ask her!" Later we were sitting at the bar and he said the same thing, so I responded in the same way. He turned around, looked me right in the eye and said "will you marry me?" ... to which I responded "are you kidding me??" (yes I actually said that!) he said "no, I'm serious" and I said "don't mess with me... you do NOT joke about this...!" ... and so we went back and forth a few times, me being convinced he was not actually proposing to me... it wasn't until he said "well, I don't have a ring..." that I went "Oh my god you're serious!!!! Of course!!! Yes!!!!"

It was amazing... I kept asking him all night "really?? we're engaged??" even the next morning! :o)

We decided to keep it quiet until we could tell our parents at the same time (they love each other and all get along really well) so I manipulated everyone into getting together for dinner. The soonest we could get everyone together was Tuesday night so I was basically flipping out for 4 days waiting to tell my folks... it's amazing I didn't make myself sick! We got everyone to meet in Ferndale at a place called Maria's Front Room (or something like that). It was this amazing little Italian place that couldn't have been more perfect for our announcement. We managed to control ourselves and let our folks catch up a bit before I made Austin spill the beans... I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to eat if we hadn't told them yet, as it turned out I barely ate even afterward! :o) So we're sitting there and Austin says "well there's a reason we wanted everyone to be here together tonight... I asked Rachel to marry me and bought her a ring..." Donna (Austin's mom) started crying and jumped out of her chair to run over and hug him, my mum said "are you kidding?!" and grabbed my hand... and our dads both started grinning. It was awesome. hugs and congratulations and smiles all around and then came the questions and the suggestions and the random giggles and smiles... it was fantastic!

The Ring: Austin and I had gone out ring shopping Monday night and actually ended up walking out of the store with a ring. I had expected it to be a longer process, checking many stores, price shopping a ton, and making sure we had really found the perfect ring... turns out we found it in 40 minutes :o) We bought it at Rogers & Hollands and just had a phenomenal experience. We even had the perfect soundtrack! Every song that came on over the speakers while we were discussing the ring and making our decision was one we both loved... very cool... it was as if the stars had alligned. He bought me an incredibly beautiful ring, and we got it for 60% off so that made it even more amazing!! :o)

The Plans: Since both Austin and I still live at home we've decided to first take a look at our finances and our housing situation before we set a date for the wedding. In all reality I think we'll probably be setting a date within the next couple of months as we start a serious house hunt. Our goal is to make our wedding as stress free as possible... as I like to say: easy breezy beautiful! (I should copyright that, no? lol) We intend to make it as simple and comfortable as we can and just enjoy the whole process. The only 2 things we have absolutely settled on are: 1- we're getting married (I still am not used to hearing that!!!) and 2- my uncle Steve from TN is going to perform the ceremony. Whenever we go down to Nashville we stay with Steve & Cherry and Austin has stayed with them the times I haven't been able to go along. They've known me my whole life, so it was an easy decision for us because he knows both of us very well and has been a pivotal person in our relationship with each other.

New Blog Feature: So from now on, in addition to the Photo of the Day feature on this blog and the occasional non-photo related entry, there will now also be periodic wedding updates :o) That way friends and family can follow along with what's going on. :o)

In Conclusion: OMG I'M GETTING MARRIED!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! :oD YAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

Photo of the day

I took this photo several years ago at one of Austin's gigs. The gig was in celebration of a new beer this brewery had brewed especially for the Maibach occasion (if you are a beer enthusiast I'm sure you know more about this than I do).

The weather that day was great, and as much as I hate beer it was really a fabulous day... everyone had a blast, whether they were drunk or sober... :o)

Photo of the day

Every year I brave a single flower in the garden... I am not much of a gardener, but I love tigerlilies so much I had to give it a try. The first year I only got about 3 blooms, but now they've grown and spread so much I get a lot more than 3 :o)

I always end up shooting a bunch of photos whenever they bloom... I took this one a couple of years ago after a rain. I love the way the shutters behind it contrast with the petals... blue and orange, two of my favourite colours, and my all time favourite colour combo :o)

Week One

So Fowler and Herman are still MIA... and each day gets more frustrating for me. In the last several days we've probably had a dozen people call to let us know they've seen cats that may or may not be ours, but every search we've then gone out and conducted has turned up zero kitties... ours or otherwise. We've been checking in at shelters regularly, have posted hundreds of fliers and passed them out door to door in at least a half mile radius of the house, and have even posted fliers in all of the businesses we live near, just in case.

I know a few people who have had cats gone missing only for the worst to happen, but many many many people I've come in contact with over the past week have shared stories of their own cats (or cats of people they know) who went missing for up to a month and then one day showed up back at home, just fine.

I keep holding on to the hope that they are in fact fine and healthy and will be home soon, but my sleep is really suffering in the mean time... which is really unusual for me. Stress doesn't normally effect my sleep, but I haven't had a single good night's rest since they left. Last night my brother took me to Meijer where we bought some lavender bath foam and a lavender candle. He ran a hot bath for me while I dug out some comfy pjs and I soaked for awhile in lavender bliss... then I had the candle on my warmer next to my bed, and I slept *better* last night than I have all week... so at least it helped (still not an amazing night's sleep, but way better than it has been!)

I just miss my kitties... so do Zieltje and Micah, both of them are still very restless... they know something isn't right.

So here's to hoping Fowler and Herman are safe and sound, and that they will both come home very very very soon!!! :o(

missing kitties :o(

So Herman and Fowler have been missing since Sunday... that in and of itself worries me enough, but the act that we've been having snowstorms since Sunday night makes me even more worried... we have been out every single day shaking the treats, calling them, looking, passing out fliers to neighbours, posting fliers on lamp posts etc and there's still been no sign of them. At first I thought maybe they had been trapped in someone's garage over night which made me feel a little better thinking they'd at least been sheltered from the rain and snow... now it's been 3 nights and they're still missing and I'm worried that maybe they're trapped somewhere without any food or water...

the house is so quiet without them... micah keeps pacing by the doors and whimpering, and Zieltje keeps snuggling up to us and curling up in front of the patio doors...

my poor kitties... I just hope they are safe and that they find their way home soon... :o(

Photo of the day

This photo was taken at the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp last fall when Todd and I visited it on our final trip to Berlin for the GLD. I had always wanted to have the opportunity to visit one of the WW2 Concentration Camps, but was too young when we lived in Rotterdam for my folks to be willing to take me to one. Sachsenhausen was primarily a labour camp (vs. death camp) and housed more political prisoners than jews, but the experience was still extremely powerful. The site has only been partially preserved, and even those parts that have been preserved have been done so in a very sterile way, so it wasn't as if you were stepping completely back in time, rather as if you were walking through a museum that just happend to be built in the same location. It may sound crazy but even with the changes that had been made to the place, there was still a very haunted spirit about the place. The old prison building (sounds odd doesn't it, a prison building in a concentration camp?) was kept mostly in tact, as was the yard, and walking through that extremely narrow hallway, looking into the various tiny cells... it was terrifying... even in broad daylight. Before you enter the actual camp through the gates, there is a garden of memorials and monuments that various organizations and individuals have placed within the outer walls of the camp, but not in the inner santcum. Some were very striking, some were very abstract, all were touching. I don't exactly know what I believe about the afterlife, but I do wonder sometimes if I had a past life that was in some way deeply and directly connected to the Holocaust, because I have always felt a very strong draw to it, and I can't figure out any reason why I should feel that way.

I absolutely recommend that anyone who has the opportunity to visit one of these sites should do so, or visit a more local Holocaust Museum (the one in DC is phenomenal, but there are much smaller ones across the nation that are also very good)... the experience will be a powerful reminder to us that we are all human, no matter what, and that no matter how big differences between us may seem, they are no excuse for letting atrocities such as this ever happen again.

Photo of the day - A Dedication

Today's photo is dedicated to my friend Mary. She sounded like she could use some inner peace today, so I hope this helps create that.

I took this photo while at a wedding for a former boss of Austin's on their property up north a little ways from us. It's a huge piece of land with some beautiful scenery and plant life, they guy did high-end landscaping and clearly took care of his own space as well. I loved the way the petals of this lily fell, and the slight reflection in the water.

Photo of the day

This photo was taken inside the dome of the Reichstag in Berlin, Germany. My friend Larissa took me on a walking tour of the city one day when I was there over a weekend with nothing to do. When I say walking tour, I mean WALKING TOUR... we walked ALL OVER the city, for like 8 hours... my legs felt like goo... :o) It was great, and many awesome photo ops... and it helped me see the city in a little different light than I had previously held it in. Plus I got to know Larissa better, and she's awesome :o)

a fabulous weekend...!!!

Mum and I just got home from a weekend in Ohio where we were visiting my adorable goddaughter, Natalee, and her parents (Dave & Mary) :o) We had a great 3 days hanging out with them, giving mom & dad a chance to have a night out to themselves, and bonding with my Nat! She's gonna be 4 in a few months and is constantly moving... she loves to talk, draw, and colour... love fairies and Farmyard Tales, and she hates eating... in fact she has gone on record in the past as claiming she doesn't like food. It's funny when it isn't frustrating, we're all hoping she'll get over that soon!

We visited the West Side Market on Saturday, which totally made me want to go cook some huge fresh complicated meal... :o) Dave & Mary are part of a co-op that gets them farm fresh foods, so I'm gonna research that for up in our area and see if I get us into something like that too... the food is MUCH healthier, and it supports local agriculture, so I think it would be awesome.

There are a ton more photos, if you want to see them just click here :o) I'm looking forward to seeing her again, hopefully in a couple of months again once it's summer and we can all go to the zoo or something fun like that :o)

Notecard Sales

So my notecard sales have been going pretty well, and I'm really pleased with the response I've been getting to them... I currently have 3 sets available: Doors & Windows, Bridges, and Flowers. It's great to see I've finally found a product that works for people, showcases my photos, and doesn't cost me too terribly much in time or financial investment! If you haven't checked them out yet, you can order through my website www.ShutterbugDesign.com
The photos included in this entry are one from each series (each set contains 10 different photos on the front of blank notecards). Enjoy!

Leading with IMPACT!

So the early bird registration for our program Leading with IMPACT! ends this Friday... and I'm still waiting to get our first official registered participant...! We have a few who have RSVPed as "yes I'm coming" on our various networks (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc) but haven't actually registered yet... despite my promptings and reminders.

I have put soooo much work into this program, and I know it's still a few weeks out, but I am soooo worried that it will be a no-go at the last minute because not enough people are registered! :o/

So if you read this, and you know anyone who is into leadership development, or needs it, or wants it, or whatever, please send them to www.ImpactSuccess.com/events to register! I'm offering discount codes for anyone who is a chamber member or for anyone who is coming in from out of town... just ask!