It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

As hard as it is to believe, and even though it's 141 days until Christmas, the stores are already stocking Fall and Christmas decorations. And even though, for me, the holiday season means utter chaos and fourteen hour work days, I can't help but be a bit enamored by some of the beautiful displays of decorations. So today's photo(s) are from the seasonal department in Hobby Lobby in Altoona:

Everything looks so fresh and new. And not at all picked over...

Loving these colors together

Gold is so hot right now. I was never a big fan, but I have to say I'm digging it lately. 

I had to take this pic of Olaf made from painted pumpkins at AC Moore. Not sure if he's for Christmas or Halloween....

So now that I'm psyched up for Christmas, I have to go pack for my summer vacation, LOL

Happy Scrappin'!!

Gone to the Dogs

Hey Scrap Fans!  Today was a fairly uneventful day for me.  I was sitting at my desk in my scrap room thinking about what I could shoot for today’s photo.  The last few days I had so many to choose from, and today I found myself at a loss.  So I looked down and saw my oldest dog, Spencer, hanging out on the floor, as he so often does anymore.  Spencer is 13 years-old, and I don’t know how much longer we will have him.  How nice, I thought to myself, would it be to have a nice picture of him once he passes on.  

So I lay down on the (hard) floor in front of him to get a nice close-up shot.  And he got up and walked away.  Because that’s how he is.  I followed him out to the hall, where he had plopped down in front of the steps.  Great, I thought, this will make it easier for me to get in front of him, plus I’ll have light from the hall window.  

So I took my place, and started to focus.  And he looked away.  Then looked at me briefly, then looked the other way.  He played this game for awhile doing everything he could to not look at me.  But I waited him out, and he finally gave up and laid his head back down and whimpered until I took his picture.  And here is the result:

Happy Scrappin'!!

Libby and Mommy's Day of Fun

Hey Scrap Fans! In keeping with my effort to take advantage of some of the ammentities in our area, Libby and I spent the day at Idlewild Park in Ligonier. We spent the entire day riding rides and water slides and we are both totally exhausted. Although I tired not to spend the whole time snapping pictures and just be in the moment, I did manage to capture some of our day. 

We started out with a ride on the Ferris wheel. 

I skipped all the rides that go in a circle, as they tend to make me nauseous, but it gave me a chance to take pics of Libby.

We ended our day, just as we started, on the Ferris wheel. 

Happy Scrappin'!!

Happy 94th Birthday, Pap!

A few weeks ago, I sat in the hospital at the bedside of my maternal grandfather, the last of my living grandparents. He had been in a nursing home for rehabilitation after a leg amputation, when he fell ill and they admitted him. We talked for awhile and when I mentioned his upcoming birthday, he expressed the fact that he wasn't sure he'd make it. Well a few weeks later and here we are, celebrating his 94th with a surprise party in the nursing home common room. 

So my picture of the day is of my Pap, who no matter what life seems to throw his way, keeps hanging in there. Happy Birthday, Pap!

Happy Scrappin'!!

Joining the August Break 2014 Project

Hey Scrap Fans! I've decided to join the August Break project developed by Savannah Conway, and commit to taking at least one photo a day and posting it to my blog. Details of the project can be found on Savannah's  blog here .

Here are a list of possible prompts you can use for photo taking. You can also sign up on Savannah's blog to receive daily emails. 

My husband and I have discussed how we often fail to take advantage of the interesting things to do right in our own town. We vowed to make a conscious effort to take advantage of his time in Ohio to explore the area and enjoy it's offerings when we go to visit.  We also decided to stop overlooking all there is to do right here when he is home on the weekends. Today, at the urging of seven-year-old Libby, we visited and rode the Johnstown Incline Plane. 

So today's picture(s) will be from our ride from downtown Johnstown to Westmont Hilltop and back down again.

View from the bottom looking up.

On our way up

Passing the other car

View of the city from the overlook

Trying to get a serious pic of these two was not easy

Pic of me on the way back down to prove I was actually there. The clouds in the background look so surreal. 

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you choose to play along this month and if you do, be sure to tag your photos #augustbreak2014. Until next time, Happy Scrappin'!!