Pre-Merry Christmas!

Christmas Wishes

Most of my blogging circle has taken a break, so I wish I had thought to post this sooner. My warmest and best Christmas wishes to the most wonderful blogging friends on the planet! I love and appreciate each one of you!!

The Rose Lady

Well, here it is, Christmas week, and I have yet to post any Christmas-themed photos. Scheduling posts weeks in advance is a wonderful feature, but it does take some planning. And I forgot to plan for Christmas!

My daughter bought me a very special Christmas ornament when she came to visit last year. It's an actual sugar maple leaf dipped in 24k gold. The Rose Lady has developed a rigorous process to preserve items of nature; a process which takes up to seven days. She sells orchids, roses, fruit, key rings, vases, and even dog biscuits! All preserved perfectly using various methods. Leave it to my creative and beautiful daughter to find something like this. My tree is gold and red with musical instruments, angels, poinsettias, and fleur de lis (recent collection). Out of all those, this is my favorite. I have since purchased a Japanese Maple leaf from the same company. It is beautiful!

The attached tag reads:

Sugar Maple

In early spring, a crisp chill

lingers in the air and the

steadfast sugar maple offers

its sap to be made into tasty syrup

This product contains a real leaf

that has been carefully selected,

preserved and transformed from

nature into treasure.

I had a plan

Oh, yes I had a plan; however, as with most of my plans, it went horribly awry. My idea was to take Christmas pictures of the dogs. I had the props, a fully charged camera battery, the Christmas tree decorated, and a fire blazing. Have you ever tried to pose three dogs at once? I'd get one situated and the other two would wander off. Reminded me of my three toddlers from long ago. So I got the bright idea to lure them with treats. Lawdy, lawdy, Miss Claudy! All they were interested in was my hand and pocket. I tried outside shots and inside shots. Outdoors I was rewarded with muddy knees and shoes and nothing to show for it. Inside I was clean, but just as frazzled. Well, see for yourself how all this played out.

Daddy tried to help, but he only has two hands. Okay, two will do. He got the squirmy worms posed as best he could and I metered the shot all wrong. I had to rescue in Lightroom which caused major grain, so I imported to PS and added this lovely texture by Kim Klassen called Word.

Now Chance decides to enter the frame, but the settings are still all wrong. Then I got the giggles because nothing was going right which resulted in camera shake. You see? I cannot shoot indoors. I hate it. I suck.

Let's try outside! Light is too bright, creating harsh shadows. No matter, my precious babies are not cooperating anyway.

I gave up on the chihuahuas (temporarily) and decided to work on Chance. "See boy? I have a treat!"
He only looked at my hand from there on out. :/

Finally! A pose. But the sky is blown. Jeepers, what's a mother to do?

Okay, let's return to the chi chis and try the patio chair. Where's Izzy? Oh, never mind, I can at least get one dog to pose, right? Sigh. I guess not.

I know! I'll lure Sparky with the treat by putting it in the angel statue. Chance, unfortunately for Sparky, figured this out much quicker. And he's much taller. :/

"PLEASE MAKE HER STOP. I BEG OF YOU."
IZZY!!!! Where'd Izzy go? Oh, there she is, hiding in the monkey grass, hoping I won't find her. Ever. I think she's pretending to be a lawn ornament.

Oops, Chance discovered her hiding place, too.

Back in the house we go! Let's try a more controlled setting. "Nah, ma, I don't feel like cooperating. If you don't give up that treat, I'm going postal on you. Doggie style!"

I just want one shot with your face and the antlers in focus! Just one, dadgummit!

Aaaaaannnddd! That's a wrap. This is good as it's gonna get. Notice that I did not put my watermark on a single one of these. Heh.

Okay, I need a nap now. I think reliving it added to my exhaustion. Hope y'all had a more productive afternoon than I. Or is it me? My English Major daughter will know. I'm off to make dinner, so I'll be back later to catch up.

Has anyone else had trouble with my blog pics downloading? Only one person has mentioned it so far, so I don't know if it was just her or if everyone is having that issue. Thanks!

Geaux Local

Now that Thanksgiving is over and our bellies are full, it is time to concentrate on Christmas.

Giving is a joyful experience, or it should be. Supporting a local or independently owned business is a wonderful way to magnify that joy. Corporations are made up of people, so I'm not saying to avoid them completely; however, instead of buying all your gifts from huge corporate retailers, it would give such a boost to mom-and-pop stores if we each purchased at least one item locally this Christmas. With that in mind, even our blogging neighbors can be considered local, offering unique, well-made crafts, one of which I will showcase in this post.

Maureen at Cottage960 caught my attention with these beautifully crafted camera charm necklaces. I think these would also be fun to hang on the rear view mirror in your car. On one side is a vintage photo of a woman holding a camera and the other side has a saying or quote of your choice. I love these pieces and a very special someone will be a recipient this Christmas.

Aren't these delightful? Maureen did not ask me to promote her business, nor was I compensated in any way. I thought to do this post only after I received the order. As part of my Geaux Local mantra, I am happy to share her talent—it's as simple as that. Check out Maureen's Etsy shop here. I will be sharing similar posts like this one from time to time. YOU could be next! :)

1 John 3:18 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.