Memorial Day Weekend

Erin and Kylie put a new desk together for us. Guess who was the boss!



Nathan and Danielle got me an Olloclip for Mother's Day! So much fun to take close-ups with my iPhone! Here are a couple:



It's an iris.



Dandelion fluff.



My friend, Deirdre, me, and my sister, Sally, at Old Orchard Beach near the Pier.



The kids had a blast playing in the cold surf.



And going on rides. L-R: Tori, Michelle, Kylie, and Ryan



Here is Kylie with her head sticking out of this big bubble thing my sister gave her. The kids took turns rolling down a grassy hill in it while Grammy held her breath.



Here's Ryan using it as a seat from which to blow bubbles.



Even teenagers love to blow bubbles. This is fifteen-year-old Tori.


Kylie used the bubble ball as a secret hideaway. Here she is eating grape tomatoes with tunes playing on her iPad Mini.



Yay! What a fun weekend!

Maine

We flew to Maine on Wednesday and, when we got here, it was cold and spitty. Brrrr!

But, the following day dawned bright and warm. It got up into the high seventies. After working around the camper and doing groceries, I went to the beach.











I fooled around trying to catch some bokeh and used my toes to focus on.



On Friday we drove to Berlin to pick up the boat then stopped to get Kylie in the way back.


Here she is playing on her iPad Mini wearing a manatee shirt my friend, Anne, sent her years ago.



And here she is wearing my glasses and making faces.

It feels good to be back here with the ocean just a bike ride away....my escape!

How do you escape?

Motion

Our prompt this week for the self portrait workshop I'm participating in is Motion. Not as easy as it sounds!



No good!



Horrid!



Ugh!




Ah, no!

I finally settled on the following one even though it doesn't show much of me.



Walk

I wait
while the lavender
evening
fades to gray
and then changes
into a little black
velvet dress
before
heading out
for my walk
each night.

I sip
the dark
whiskey
of fresh air
and nibble
on the Ritz
cracker
of the moon.

A little conversation
with myself,
a wave
at the stars
and this cocktail
party
is just the treat
I need
after
a busy day.

Tonight

We went for a walk and I took my camera along.




An orange blossom




A baby orange.




Three baby oranges lost in the bokeh.




A red leaf.




A lily.




A drop of water on the hibiscus.




Shells.




American flag and the moon.




The moon reflected in our canal with the sunset illuminating the rocks.




Self portrait. I'm participating in a year-long photography workshop called 52 Of You. This Weeks's prompt is: Tiny you in the big world. The world's not big enough and I'm not tiny enough, yet, but it was just my first try.

What did you do tonight?

Hey, Kylie

Want to help Grammy catch some bokeh?



No.



No.



No.



Are you done yet?



Grammy! Enough!



Okay, I'll smile!



And yawn!



Go faster, Grampy, so Grammy will stop taking my picture!



No way, little girl! You are just too cute!

It's Been Quite a Week

It started on Monday when I took my new iPhone 5 for a swim. I've only had it two months. I can't tell you how mad at myself I was! I put it in a bowl of rice for two days but that thing was dead, dead, dead!

Luckily, I had insurance so was able to get a replacement for a mere $200! :-(

On Wednesday we took a ride to Ft. Myers Beach and had a nice day



until, on the way home,



this happened! Some jerk came speeding up beside us, lost control, T-boned our vehicle sending us spinning and rolling. We ended up upside down hanging from our seatbelts.

Thankfully, no serious injuries except for a concussion my daughter suffered and mild whiplash and a banged knee for my husband. Kylie and I were in the backseat playing on our iPads and didn't even see it happen.

As soon as we got home, Kylie wrote the following in her journal.



I love how she ends it on an optimistic note!

Today we went boating to Cayo Costa for a day of relaxation on the beach. Sally, Mike, and Michelle went with us.

Erin took this photo of us in the boat.



We all had a great time!













Kylie adores Michelle!



I had fun with my camera.

It was the perfect antidote to a very stressful week!