I ♥ Faces

Week 26 - Pets....Roxie

2010-06-28T19:32:00.000-07:00

This is our little Roxie - she will tip her head one way and then the other as we talk to her. She is 1/2 Yorkie and 1/2 Bichon and loves to chase and bring back a tennis ball. She will even throw it up on your lap if you are sitting down! For more pets visit iheartfaces.com

Week 25 'Celebrating Teens'

2010-06-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

Graduatino Day!

Week 24 - All About Babies

2010-06-14T17:14:00.000-07:00

This is a photo of my first grandchild - my daughter and her son when he was only one week old. It really shows how precious he is to her! For more babies, go to iheartfaces.com

Week 20 - Face & Flowers

2010-05-17T18:31:00.000-07:00

This is my grandson - about to 'eat' that dandelion fluff flower! We caught him before he ate this one, but he did manage to crawl fast enough away to get another one and then spit it out. He just loved those fluffy things! For more Faces & Flowers go to iheartfaces.com

Week 17 - Smiles

2010-04-26T16:01:00.000-07:00

This is my grandson with his 'kitty'. He really loves his kitty! My daughter only lets him have his kitty at bedtime or naptime, so it makes him happy to go to bed because he gets his kitty! They were home for a visit and I had him overnight and found out how well his kitty works - no trouble going to bed and when he woke up once, I just gave him kitty and he hugged kitty and went right back to sleep. I could hear him talking to kitty in the morning too - so sweet! Wish I would have thought of that when my kids were little! For more on smiles, visit I Heart Faces!

Week 16 - Photo Collage

2010-04-19T16:34:00.000-07:00

My husband wanted an informal picture of his band while they were jamming - they were too busy playing to pose for me, so I captured each of them and made a collage.

Check out more collages at I Heart Faces

Week 12 - Angles - Bluegrass Picker

2010-03-21T20:07:00.001-07:00

My husband coordinates a Cabin Fever Reliever Bluegrass Festival every spring at a local hotel in our home town. We had over 200 people this last weekend - lots of pickers in the lobbies and other areas at the hotel plus local bands on stage and a headliner concert. This was one of the banjo pickers. I wanted to do an angle so I could get his pickin' fingers and his banjo. For more fun with angles, check out iheartfaces.com.

Amy Wenzel Workshop Giveaway!

2010-03-03T19:20:00.000-08:00

Inspire others? I guess I never thought a lot about me inspiring others – more about who has inspired me. But, if I look back at my life, I would say there are parts of my life that have inspired other people to know that they can do it, too. I am just a regular person with a great desire to always learn and improve. I escaped an abusive first marriage (with 2 girls) about 20 years ago and then met and married my husband of 17 years. Together we raised 5 children. We inspired them to strive to be their best and always be true to themselves. We have a veterinarian, a small business owner (kitchen and bath design), a professional baseball player, a plumber and the youngest is in her third year of college to be an elementary education teacher.

I have friends and acquaintances that have gone through tough divorces and I have been able to encourage them with my story of a successful second marriage and blended family. My husband and I still like each other and love spending time together. We are proof that things can be good and you can get through tough times and be better for it. As I said, we still like each other and that is as important as loving each other.

I am known as the family photographer. I just love taking pictures. Because of my love of photography, several family members have taken an interest in photography. We all had point and shoot cameras and then I got my first digital SLR. My relatives saw what I could do and now they are venturing into that realm. They are looking at how they, too, can ‘capture the moment'. Even my daughter's father-in-law decided to update his Canon SLR to a Canon DSLR and is re-learning what he did back in the 80’s. Now, with grandchildren, there are even more moments to capture.

I work in a busy oral surgery office and when we upgraded to 42” on-the-wall monitors in our 5 surgery rooms, the staff thought it would be a great idea to put my photos in a slide show for our patients to watch while waiting. Two of our staff joined me in the DSLR world and one even took a community education photography class with me. I encouraged them and several other staff members to contribute to the slide show. Our patients comment every day on the slide show – wanting to know who took the photos. We can now say it is a collaboration of our staff's talent. Now, when someone goes on vacation, they are excited to come back and see what I think of their photos and if they will work for the slide show. I even had one gal come back and say ‘See, I framed this one just like you do.’ I love seeing them strive for their best!

I would love to continue to improve my photography and Amy's workshop would be a great inspiration to me! I am trying to stay away from that ‘auto’ button and am encouraging my co-workers to do that, too. One has gone from the ‘auto’ button to the ‘aperture' button and is going to go to ‘manual’ next. I would like to help them more when they come to me and say ‘How do I do this…’ The more I can learn, the more great moments I can capture.

Click here for more on Amy's Workshop & Giveaway

Week 9 - Outakes

2010-02-28T20:23:00.000-08:00

This was caught totally by accident - I was taking a picture of my niece with her little guy and at that same time, he decided to 'cool off' his mom and yes, it was very cold water right in her lap!

I walked in to take a picture of the dogs playing together and our son decided to join them. He just became a major league baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals - does he look like a professional ball player??

All I was trying to do, was to get a nice picture of the 'cousins' at Christmas and the 'boys' had to be 'boys'! I don't even think Nicole knew what they were doing. She was showing off her hat - her cousin on the right, just became a major league pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals and she was so excited to get a team logo hat!

Ok, so I am just taking a nice picture of my mom smiling and when I look at the photo, there is one of her grandson's in the background and guess what he is doing! When I showed him the picture, he thought it was funny and wanted me to send it to his phone. The worst thing about it is that we seldom get a good picture of my mom and now I have to figure out how to crop him out!

Week 8 - Hands On the Dobro

2010-02-23T18:24:00.000-08:00

This is our friend playing the Dobro in my husband's Bluegrass band. I love the sound of the Dobro! Check out more hands at iheartfaces.com

Week 7 - I Wanna Dance....

2010-02-14T17:30:00.001-08:00

This was at my nephew's wedding. Jaydee's mom couldn't dance as she had just had surgery on her foot, so Jaydee got to dance with her dad - he had just done half a twirl and was about to finish. They were really good and had lots of fun! Those big shoes never did step on her little feet! For more 'I Wanna Dance' - go to iheartfaces.com

Week 4 Texture Photo

2010-01-26T17:24:00.000-08:00

This is my grandson! He is trying desperately to get his mom's attention. The background is actually a 'keep the deer out of the garden' fence, but I like the 'texture' it created. Obviously, he is teething, too!

Family Sports Day!

2010-01-17T15:33:00.000-08:00

This is our family cheering on the Vikings. Yes, they won on Sunday, the 17th, but this was actually a close Vikings/Green Bay game that the Vikings won. My husband is on the left. Then it is our 2 sons, our future son-in-law, one of our daughters and my husband's brother. My mother-in-law was there, too - that's who my brother-in-law is looking at. The boys' faces you see are twins and I love their excitement! Can you just imagine the noise they are making! I don't even have to watch the game - they all let me know what is happening by their reactions! For more family fun, go to I Heart Faces!

Anticipation...Snowball Ready!

2010-01-10T21:00:00.000-08:00

This is my sister's grandson - taken December 26, 2009. The family all met at her lake place in Bemidji, Minnesota for Christmas and then got snowed in! We had 3 great days of snow and family! It was beautiful and warm enough for great snowballs! Brody wasn't very good at making snowballs - he had his big brother's mittens on - but he did try catching them! For more great 'Photo Faces' celebrating I Heart Faces one year anniversary, just click here: iheartfaces.com/

"Best Photo Face" Which one is the best???

2010-01-10T18:33:00.000-08:00

I Heart Faces is celebrating their 1 year anniversary with a 'Best Face Photo' challenge. First, I wasn't sure if they meant only one face for the photo or not. Then, it had to be in Dec or Jan, so that narrowed it, but I still had so many to pick from - with the holidays, and all. I had such a hard time picking one, so I listed some of mine that I did find interesting in this post. A couple of them have glare on the glasses that I haven't fixed, yet. Feel free to comment on any of them.

December 26, 2009 - Lots of snow and fairly warm, great for snowballs - ready to catch one?

January 1, 2010 - My grandson and his 'Digital Camera Smile'. My daughter says he is so used to people asking him to smile that this is the face he gives you! Then he wants to immediately see the picture in the camera - then he laughs, but you don't have the camera to capture it!

December 29, 2009 - Kids being crazy! The one on the left just got a new 'St. Louis Cardinals' hat in honor of the one on the right finally making it to the 'Major League Team' for the St. Louis Cardinals and the one in the middle just got engaged to our daughter!

December 26, 2009 - Has he 'gone to the dogs'? This is what happens when you are snowed in for 3 days - you go a little crazy!
December 29, 2009 - 'I got a Viking Hat for Christmas! I'm so proud of it!'

December 25, 2009 - son and Father

'Happy' - Daughter and Mother

December 25, 2009 - Little Brothers!

December 29, 2009 - Big Brothers!

December 27, 2009 - I was taking a photo of my mother, but look what I captured in the background - didn't even see it until looking at the photo later. Some kids just never grow up!

Week 49 - Pets Only - KC loves the snow!

2009-12-14T16:45:00.000-08:00

KC (rescued from Kansas City) loves the snow! See that look... "Uh oh, am I in trouble?" She will find anything to run around the house with - usually sticks, but she found this and took off with it. She loves to have us chase her and is pretty sly about tricking us and she is fast! It was really funny watching her run with this watering can! Check out more pets at I Heart Faces!

Week 48 - "Sweet Dreams"

2009-12-06T21:20:00.000-08:00

We were visiting my oldest daughter, and my youngest daughter was trying to get some extra winks, so we sent the dog in to wake her, she laughed before she even opened her eyes. My grandson was standing at the door laughing at the dog on the bed. For more 'Sweet Dreams', visit i heart faces.

Week 45 - “Autumn Beauty”

2009-11-16T16:15:00.001-08:00

This was in Boston during a 'Sister Trip'. My two sisters and I took a car, then a train, then a bus to get to my daughter's in New Hampshire and then she drove us to Boston for a fast tour. In this picture, it is my older sister, my daughter and my younger sister. What a beautiful time of year it was! We had a great trip with lots of adventure! Love my sisters! For more fall beauty, visit "I Heart Faces".

Week 43 “Balloons”

2009-11-01T20:38:00.001-08:00

This is my nephew's new wife - they were married the day after Christmas. She is from Russia and this was her first birthday away from her family. My sister found out how much she loves balloons, so she had these at the house when Susha came. We know how hard it is to be away from family, especially for special days and we all tried to make up for that. We just love that girl! For more fun with balloons, go to I heart faces!

Week 42 - Halloween!

2009-10-25T14:08:00.000-07:00

This is our friend dressed up as someone from 'KISS'. He did a great job acting the part also. He is already 6' 5" and he had boots that made him about 3" taller! What fun we all had! Check out more Halloween fun at I Heart Faces!

Week 41 - Photo Challenge “Pink” - Make that Call!

2009-10-18T17:09:00.000-07:00

When I saw the 'Pink' Challenge and the meaning of it, I remebered this photo I took this summer. It really is a working 'pink' phone booth. It tells me: "Make that call!" - that call to schedule a mamogram, that call to a friend or loved one who is dealing with breast cancer, that call to someone who has dealt with breat cancer and still worries, that call to volunteer, that call to donate to the breast cancer cause. For more 'pink for the cause' - see I Heart Faces.

I Heart Faces Week 40 - Excited - Animated

2009-10-10T17:55:00.000-07:00

This is my wonderful grandson! He was in his 'jumper' when I captured this photo - he loves bouncing! For more of these 'excited' photos - click here: I Heart Faces.

My Favoite Things

2009-10-05T21:16:00.001-07:00

What a fun project - thinking about our favorite things and documenting them! I could go on and on forever! I love my cameras and keep trying to learn more - I love my 22" monitor, Capture NX and Photoshop for 'tweaking those photos. Of course, I love chocolate, too! Here are more of my favorites....

Dark trees against sunsets!

Fall - my favorite time of the year!

Hearts of any kind and snow, gotta love it to live here!

My beautiful dog - KC - (rescued from Kansas City)

Sunsets and 'fair weather fishing'

Creative photography

Fun with flowers!

Family!!

My oldest sister's lake home...

My oldest sister's grandaughter!

My youngest sister's lake home...

My youngest sister's grandsons!

The great photo oportunities in the city I live in.

Puppies of any kind!! This is KC when we first got her!

Our 10 year old Roxie - she loves to fish with us!

Our gandson - can't wait to see him at Thanksgiving!

Spending time with my husband! Love to 'swing' dance! (Does he look taller than me - he's 6'5" and I'm 5'6")

Blues Have It!

2009-09-28T19:22:00.000-07:00

I like how my Mom's shirt is blue and my Dad's hat is Blue! Aren't they cute! See more 'Blue' at I Heart Faces! The little tiny red cabin above my Mom's shoulder is our cabin in Northern Minnesota.

Adorable puppy...

2009-08-10T20:42:00.000-07:00

This is our adorable KC as a puppy - she is a rescue dog from Kansas City and we just love her! She has grown into a wonderful dog - we couldn't have asked for a better one! She is a wonderful mahogany color with black highlights!

Funny Silly Faces...

2009-08-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

This is my Dad - he's not afraid of the camera - but can't always be serious, either!

Feet! I Heart Faces Week 28

2009-07-21T17:05:00.000-07:00

This was a photo of my cousin's feet - she had her nails decorated for the 4th of July - Red with blue and white/silver stripes. I tried to find something creative to do with the photo and in experimenting in Photoshop Elements 6.0, I found this 'glowing edges' effect and thought it looked pretty neat for 'feet'! Almost looks like a chalk drawing and all it took was one little click! For more great feet - visit this site: I ♥ Faces

Water dog!

2009-07-14T18:35:00.001-07:00

This is our dog, KC. She is a rescue dog from Kansas City. We aren't sure what breed she is, but she loves the water. She will fetch sticks all day! The bigger the better - more of a challenge to get out of the water, then. I thought since it was 'sports and action' week, I would show her in action!

Baseball!

2009-07-14T18:29:00.001-07:00

This is our son, Ben. He is playing in the minor leagues for the Cincinnati Reds (up to the AAA level) and we are having a ball following him around and watching his games. We leave tomorrow to watch him in Louisville! I'm the one who finds the challenge in capturing the 'pitching poses' - some are pretty awkward looking. I like the look on his face in this one - the ' Oh, boy, am I going to get you!', look.

Just for Fun - Week 25

2009-06-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

Yes, he did actually take a bite! This is my grandson and he was having a ball crawling around in the grass. He has his eye on this one dandelion and when he got to it, sure enough, he had to taste it! He didn't like the texture, so he spit it back out. After that, he went up to more of these, but didn't 'eat them'.

For more fun go to I ♥ Faces!

Wedding Bells Theme Week 25

2009-06-28T08:40:00.000-07:00

This was my nephews wedding in Louisville, Kentucky. It was held in a vintage home that was turned into a bed and breakfast. It was a wonderfull setting for a wedding and the mirror was part of the decor in the large upstairs bedroom that the wedding was held in.

For more Wedding Bells - go to I ♥ Faces...

WEEK 24 Theme - Let’s Hear It For The Boys and Men!

2009-06-21T18:47:00.001-07:00

Boys sharing toys! This is my grandson trying to share his new car with his great-uncle.

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WEEK 24 Theme - Let’s Hear It For The Boys!

2009-06-21T18:42:00.000-07:00

Doesn't every boy love to drive a boat! This is my grandson on his first boat ride and grandpa let him drive the boat! He loved it!

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Sepia Toned - Kids

2009-06-15T20:20:00.000-07:00

This is my 11 month old grandson - I love the look on his face - almost flirty! I love his big brown eyes, too. He really does not have a 'wondering eye' - I must have caught one eye moving and not the other. He lives half way across the country from me, so I love his visits and can't get enough pictures of him.

For more great photos check out I ♥ Faces.

Sepia Toned - Adults

2009-06-15T18:58:00.001-07:00

This is a picture of my brother-in-law and his sister at a Bluegrass Festival in Minnesota.

I ♥ Faces - Vacations

2009-06-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

As a celebration of my parents 55th wedding anniversary, we took them on a Mexican Riviera Cruise. Us three girls, our husbands and my mom's sister (same age as my oldest sister) and her husband joined my parents in San Diego to board the cruise. My parents winter in Arizona and several of their friends decided to join us. We had a wonderful time and by the end of the cruise we had made my parents friends our friends! The next winter, we went to see them in Arizona and had a get-together with all of our 'Arizona friends'. What a great time we had. This was all before I got my Nikon or Canon camera so the pictures aren't as good as they would be today, but we have the memories.

Beautiful sunsets we had to 'endure'.

That's my dad peeking around the corner and that's my parents waving to us as we board the ship.

We took a trolly ride around San Diego before the cruise. If you click on the picture, you have to look in the 'rear-view mirror' and see the 'glasses' the driver has on - he was quite a character!

Ever tried to get a bunch of people to cooperate for a picture?

My mom got a haircut from her friend - yes, in the parking lot the night before the cruise.

The Anniversary Couple! 55 years!

Yep, that is a baby octupus - the guys on the boat just got it and let my aunt hold it - yuk! I couldn't do it!

The slide was so fun, but it was up so high and it was really windy!

Our New Arizona Friends...

Challenge #21 - Pets - Puppy Loves Music

2009-06-01T05:15:00.001-07:00

This our dog, KC, as a puppy. She loved sitting at my husband's feet in his case while he played the guitar. She was a rescue dog from Kansas City, so we named her KC. We don't know what breed combination she is - maybe some Sherpherd, maybe some Lab, maybe 'who knows what'. She has webbed feet and a 'waterproof' coat with a a coarse top layer and soft underlayer. She has been a wonderful dog and still loves music! She has kept her beautiful coloring, too - we call it Mahogony and Black.

For more 'Pets' click here for I ♥ Faces

Challenge #21 - Ohhh.. Happy Birthday

2009-06-01T05:11:00.000-07:00

This is my grand-nephew looking at his birthday card - he seems to be reading it and very interested, but if you look closely, the card is actually upside down! I used 'CoffeeShop Creamy Chocolate B&W' to help fix this photo.

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Dew Drops

2009-05-31T08:00:00.001-07:00