Smooth Sailing

In honor of our new president and all the freedoms he represents (or NOT) the first thing we did when Daddy got home from his last trip offshore was to go shooting! Even little sweetie pie had fun shooting the .22. It's great here in Louisiana. Not too many laws, and as long as you are outside the city limits you can pretty much just find some open space and shoot! We happened to know some people that let us shoot in their backyard. Dad, with the ultimate hunting rifle! Darn good marksman I might add. Little Man has been shooting since he was 5 1/2 yrs. He owns two guns now and is a very good shot. Gun safety is always a big deal and is reviewed all the time. I remember taking Gun Safety classes in 6th grade in Utah. Seems so uncommon in so many places now. He just look like a little Louisiana boy! The bumper stickers around here read..."Kids that hunt and fish don't steal and deal!" I believe it. And they all say "Yes, Ma'am" to their Mama, no m...

Happy Reformation Day!

Have you ever seen snow like this in April? This snow...completely covered the rest stop at the summit on our way to Denver Coloroado from Utah. The rangers had to dig a tunnel to the front door. It was late at night and we were all in flip flops...running and freezing to the bathroom! Yes, dad had to throw a few snowballs at us too. I was organizing some of our MANY digital photos and thought it would be fun to share some of them. We have made 13 trips coast to coast...in the last 5 years! Our Suburban has treated us well and has been more of a home to us at times. On this trip in the above photo...we were moving our belongings from Utah to Louisiana. The Budget truck is "with us". Money for gas anyone??? If you have never driven across this beautiful country of ours, you should. Put away all those fears of "what if" and just do it. We have done it in 3 days with very small kids. In fact my "little man" likes to tell people "When the roa...

For years I have been meaning to do one of these. So, for those of you that sent them to me...here you go! A-Attached or Single: Attached, for 23 years...22 married! B-Best Friend: My husband. I definitely married up! C-Cake or Pie: Homemade Apple Pie. Traditional Style D-Day: Saturday. Can't wait for Sunday! E-Essential Item: hot showers. Sailing makes you appreciate EVERY one. F-Favorite Color: Candlelight Yellow (It's a girl thing) G-Gummi bears or gummi worms: Swedish Fish. My mom got me hooked. H-Hometown: Pleasant Grove, UT I-Indulgences: Cinnabons J-January or July: January, my birthday month. Wait, is it my favorite now? K-Kids: two L-Life is incomplete without: My Family and our instruments. M-Marriage Date: August 29, 1986. My husband says he was "86'ed". N-Number of Siblings: two brothers and two sisters. I'm the queen, ruler of them all. O-Oranges or Apples: Apples if they are super crispy. P-Phobias or Fears: Cockroaches. N...

At being a photographer.... My niece Harmony posted some new family photos on her blog. The pictures were amazing. The photographer (her neighbor) is so inspiring. Her style is so fresh. She really captures the true moment with her work. You can see some of her work at http://artphotographs.blogspot.com/ So after looking at EVERY photo on her site, I became inspired again. Especially since some of her photos were taken with a "point and shoot" camera. My sister says that Photoshop is the new "darkroom". Hopefully I will have more time to learn how to add such great color and effects. The above photo was taken off the Oceanside California Pier. Sometimes though...we capture pictures that just naturally turn out surprisingly well. The light just happens to be right and everything works. (Haulover Cut..North Miami, FL) I decided to be brave and post some of my favorite pictures. Non-Photoshop...just regular dumb luck! Most of these were taken with a 1 ...

Some friends of mine at the apartment building that we currently live in were joking around the other night calling me the " welcoming committee ". Seems I get to know people or at least say hello even quicker than Louisiana natives around here and I was getting hassled for it. When I got back home I got to thinking about what makes me just not waist anytime in saying 'hello'?? Well, having spent 9 of 22 years of marriage on a sailboat, doing quite a bit of long distance traveling I have learned that friendships have to be made on the "fly". You see when you are out there on the water, and you anchor for the night, you might have 1 or two other boats come into the anchorage too. Being friendly and free-spirited as sailors are, we usually dingy over and say hello. We are usually invited aboard and then one boat or the other makes dinner and we have a great time. We might, if we are lucky, stay in the anchorage one more day and get to know them better ...

We'll another post about Louisiana just has to be written. Too many interesting things here, at least to me. I get joy from the simplest things. Hmmm, is that a sign of a simple mind? The banner above is from a little town called Golden Meadow WAY down south where the land is disappearing. Fishing Rodeo's here are a big deal! These small towns take you back to the good ol' days where honesty was just expected and not a joyous suprise. The wooden "box" was just held together with a couple of bolts, to keep the wind out. No Lock! On my last trip I stopped at a little Satsuma stand (similar to Cementine oranges) and bought a bag. I noticed this sign and just had to capture it. How simple things used to be. The owner, which I chatted with for 30 minutes, was a boat captain for 35 years and "now does oranges". I wonder how many permits he had to have to put this stand on his property? NOT! Oh yea, we are not in California anymore.... . This is a...