Dare I Hope?

 The above photo is a significant view. One that I only get to see a few months of the year. The sun shining in my window. It was so bright and warm. I had to document it, no matter how silly. Dare I hope that Spring is coming soon? It was "warming up" for awhile (15 above, ha). Then yesterday it dipped to -11, but the sun does that sometimes because it takes away the insulating cloud cover. So, I am going to hope. Spring has to come at some point anyway. Besides the sun feels sooo good.

Averie had her third belt test in Tang Soo Do today. This is her receiving her new belt. Both Gideon and Averie started Karate in August. Averie is a Tiny Tiger, so they have a few more "tests" than the older kids to help them feel like they are progressing I think. Gideon has not had a test yet but it's coming soon. His teacher can be scary on test days, so I'm nervous for him. They work really hard, but they have to get it perfect. Gideon is really coordinated though. He really really enjoys karate and is often picked to be the example to the rest of the class of how to do things correctly. Whew! This momma couldn't take it if he were one of the ones being yelled at and crying every day.....

These pics of Hallie are just showing a technique I read about forever ago but finally got to try today. Notice the shadow on her face on top, and the improvement on bottom? You just use something solid and white, i.e. foam board to bounce the light from a window or light source onto the shadowy side of your subject. I used something similar to foam board used by a sign company in town for making signs for businesses. It was neat to see the subtle, yet difference-making change it can give your photos.