My Blog List

Friday, April 30, 2010

{ Andiamo - T365 #21 }

I went out to dinner with my friend Rena tonight and took this picture of the sign at the restaurant. Prior to dinner we attended a fundraiser at a local boutique to support the Optimist International, where I got myself a really cute bracelet. Our dinner was quite funny, the waiter spent 10 minutes telling us about the specials and then refused to let us order them, it's a long story that I won't bore you with but finally the manager got involved and we were able to order our dinners, which were delicious.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

{ S is for Snail & Support - T365 #20 }

I am always happy to support a family member or friend when they are raising money for a good cause that is important to them. I received an email with a flyer full of pictures of these beautiful hand-painted brick pavers that were being sold to support the American Cancer Society, and of course I couldn't pass up the chance to purchase a couple for myself. The hardest part was choosing which ones I wanted out of the many designs but I finally did decide on the snail and a Halloween one of Frankenstein. However, of course after I got them home and promptly put the snail on my front porch I realized that I *had to have* more, because I just loved them. I ended up getting three more, a dragonfly (for the back patio), a snowman and then Uncle Sam that reads "God Bless America", oh gosh they are just too cute for words!



Wednesday, April 28, 2010

{ Teacup - T365 #19 }

I have wanted to display some teacups in my kitchen for quite some time now, but I had two problems, I didn't have any and don't know where I'd actually put them in the kitchen. However, the other day I was driving and was stopped at a red light and happened to look over and notice a thrift store and thought I should go in and see if they had any teacups for sale and this is what I found. I love it, I love that it has a hummingbird on it and that it has some orange in it because my kitchen is a burnt orange color, it just goes perfectly.

For $3 I'm pretty sure I got a great deal...

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

{ Regal Geranium - T365 #18 }

I attended a friends baby shower on Sunday and received a pot full of these gorgeous flowers, which are now sitting as a centerpiece on my kitchen table. I am planning to plant them outside in our flower beds but think it might still be a little too cold at night.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

{ Raindrops - T365 #17 }

This past weekend our weather was dreary and wet, thankfully I was able to hide out at home for quite a bit of it. I snapped this picture yesterday evening and am pleased with the way it came out considering I used my standard 18-55mm lens that came with my camera (Canon Rebel T1i). I really want a macro lens next but have promised myself that until I start using the camera and getting more familiar with it I will not invest in other lens (although I did get a zoom lens when I got the camera also). So, a question, how many days of T365 should I have to get done before I reward myself with another lens? You tell me!

April Showers Bring May Flowers

{ Pictured Rocks Framed - T365 #16 }

For our 5th anniversary back in August we took a road trip to the upper peninsula of Michigan and visited some of the beautiful sites. Our favorite place was Pictured Rocks which is a 70,000+ acre park at the south shore of Lake Superior. I recently matted and framed four of the pictures that I took while there and hung them in our hallway, as shown below. The colors and formations of the rocks and water was breathtaking, definitly somewhere I want to go back to and spend more time. I also matted and framed one more picture of another favorite place of ours, which I will save for another photo of the day.

This photo of photos doesn't do the rocks justice, they're amazing in person.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

{ JogStats - T365 #15 }

I've recently started walking my neighborhood in the evenings and using the app JogStats on my Palm Pre to track my progress. As you can see from the picture the app tracks things like speed, distance, session time and much more. I have yet to use the other features such as graphs and maps, so I can't comment on them. I need/want to start getting back to the gym in the mornings for a tough work-out, I just need to find the motivation, I seem to have left it on the cruise ship after our recent vacation.

Friday, April 23, 2010

{ Fuddruckers - T365 #15 }

Jim & I were out car shopping last night and he mentioned that we should have dinner at Fudds since we hadn't been there in in years and of course I agreed (anything was better then going home and cooking). Although they are known for their world famous burgers, I prefer chicken over beef so I got a grilled chicken sandwich and cheese fries, and was not disappointed.

I brought 1/2 the sandwich home for lunch the next day, I love leftovers!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

{ Bloomin' - T365 #14 }

I spotted this tree while running errands with my husband and had to stop to snap some shots of it. I love all the baby buds ready to burst into bloom, they are just so pretty.
"Where Flowers Bloom, So Does Hope." Lady Bird Johnson

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

{ Sitting Room - T365 #13 }

I spent some time reading in our sitting room last night and thought it would make a great photo for the day. I wish I had a wide angle lens so I could photograph the room better, but I do not. When we built our house we had this planned to be a dining room, but finally decided a sitting room would be more useful to us. The bookcase and lamp are two of the most recent home decor purchases we've made and I'm very happy with the way it turned out.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

{ They're Magically Delicious - T365 #12 }

I am not one that eats cereal for breakfast, but I sure am one that eats it for dinner (sometimes)! When I go grocery shopping (which is not often) I tend to worry that the cashier is frowning upon the amount of sugary cereal I'm buying and thinking to themselves that I shouldn't be feeding a child all that cereal, but at least I know it's not for a child, it's for ME! My current favorites are Lucky Charms, Frosted Flakes, Cap'n Crunch Berries, Apple Jacks and Rice Krispies Treats.

I eat all the oats first and save the marshmallows for last!

Monday, April 19, 2010

{ Sexy and Sassy - T365 #11 }

I wore these pumps to a family party yesterday and received a lot of compliments on them so I figured I'd use them as my picture of the day. These Naughty Monkey brand pumps are a beautiful black snakeskin with leopard print trim and heel (which has a hint of glitter), and I love them!

Naughty Monkey Dayliner 2

Sunday, April 18, 2010

{ Full - T365 #10 }

I know this is a pretty boring picture, but it's something all of us love to see in our vehicles. There is not much worse then having to get somewhere and getting in the vehicle to see that you need to stop for gas. I'm lucky that Jim generally takes care of putting the gas in our vehicles, as he'd rather me not do it myself and I am not going to argue with that.

$2.86/gallon, what are you currently paying?

Saturday, April 17, 2010

{ Manicure/Pedicure - T365 #9 }

I treated myself to a manicure and pedicure yesterday and decided to go with a light shade, OPI Greek Isles Collection "Aphrodite's Pink Nightie". I normally don't go this light with my polish but I love it, it's a beautiful frosty light pink, the color pink I'd want as frosting on my cupcakes if I was hosting a princess themed party!

On another note, I want a job that involves having to name colors. I would love to get paid to think up clever names for nail polish, or paint, or crayons, or lip stick, or whatever!

Manicure on my nails-nails!

Friday, April 16, 2010

{ Rings - T365 #8 }

I'm a self-proclaimed jewelryholic. The amount of jewelry that I took on our recent cruise was absurd, but believe me I may have taken a lot but I left a lot more at home. My picture of the day is of all the rings that I took with me.

Not pictured are the many rings that were left at home...

Thursday, April 15, 2010

{ My Tasty Rainbow - T365 #7 }

I enjoyed a nice bowl of my favorite ice cream last night, rainbow sherbet. I've probably tried every brand of sherbet available (well, in Michigan at least) and hands down the generic Kroger Rainbow Sherbet is the best out there.
I can almost taste it..

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

{ Spring Flowers - T365 #6 }

I've finally spotted my first sign that spring may officially be HERE (like really here, not just because the calendar says so).

Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

{ Check(ered) Me - T365 #5 }

I snapped this self-portrait yesterday after work, it was a comfortable day for me. This is my hair in it's natural state when I don't feel like or don't have the time to straighten it. I love this scarf (or scarves in general), I like to wear them with a simple outfit for a pop of something fun (I wore black leggings and a white tee).



Monday, April 12, 2010

{ Coloring - T365 #4 }

I've always loved to color, there is just something so magical about bringing the dull pages of a coloring book to life.

My Nephew Nicholas and & Me

Sunday, April 11, 2010

{ Splash of Fun - T365 #3 }

Yesterday Jim & I spent the day with our teenage nieces Erin and Kerstyn and our 4 year old nephew, Nicholas. We spent a couple hours at our local recreation center that has a great indoor pool and water play area, and we all had lots of fun. I didn't take too many pictures because it was more important for me to actually be in the water playing with the kids, but of the few I got I really love this one. Afterwards we took the kids for ice cream and then came back to our house and watched "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel", and I'm pretty sure I was the first one to fall asleep and the only one exhausted from our day of fun.

Always the modest, wearing his bathing suit and t-shirt

Saturday, April 10, 2010

{ The Last Song - T365 #2 }

I went to see "The Last Song" yesterday afternoon with my sister-in-law Tonya (Jim's sister) and my teenage nieces Erin (my sister Tina's daughter) and Kerstyn (Jim's sister Tonya's daughter). I have not read the book so I cannot compare the two, but I have to say that I loved the movie. It's a great story that shows the strength of family and first loves.

My favorite quote from the movie is "Sometimes you have to be apart from the people you love, but that doesn't make you love them any less. Sometimes it makes you love them more."

Friday, April 9, 2010

{ Gloomy - T365 #1 }

Our weather this past week has been pretty cold and gloomy, I'm really looking forward to spring getting here and staying here.

Clinton River (Taken 4/8/10)

{ I'll take T365 for $100 }

My main reason for making this blog was to challenge myself to do a "Project 365" (http://365project.org/). In short it's where you take a photo per day for a year and document it. My personal hope is that this challenge helps me to improve my skills with my camera (or give me some skills, since I have none), and helps me capture moments in my every day life that I might otherwise forget about. I read a lot of blogs and follow a lot of other people that do a P365 and hope that I can do this a little justice, although I think the best thing about it is that you can't really mess it up! Of course I'm just starting so I have a lot of energy and motivation for the project, I just hope I can keep it up!

So, with that Tamara365 (or T365) for short has been born. Wish me luck, I will need it.

{ A Week of "Freedom" }

I know this entry is sort of out of order, but as you've read we recently returned from a cruise. We spent a glorious 7-days aboard the Carnival Freedom with many wonderful friends and family members. We visited Key West, Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios and then of course had lots of fun on the ship. We made a lot of great memories and can't wait to do it again. The only downfall of such a awesome vacation is that eventually it comes to an end and back to reality we all go, granted I have a great reality, I can't say it's better then being on permanent vacation!

Sun, Fun and Drinks!
Key West- (L) @ the Southernmost Point w/ Friends and (R) Us
Fun On Board- (L) Us, (M) Me and (R) Me and My Older Sister, Tina
Formal Night #2- (L) 12 Couples = Endless Fun and (R) Us

{ Dunn's River Falls, Jamaica }

One of the most memorable experiences from our recent cruise was climbing Dunn's River Falls in Ocho Rios, Jamaica. We went on this cruise with lots of friends and family, but not everyone did the same excursion as us and even others that climbed the falls ended up in different groups, so there was just five of us together. The experience is most definitely one of a kind, it was amazing to climb all 600'(ish) of the falls, with it's natural stair-like steps, water slide and lagoons. I can totally see why these beautiful falls are considered one of Jamaica's natural treasures, they are truly breathtaking.


Thursday, April 8, 2010

{ Gorgeous, Grand Cayman }

During our recent cruise we spent a day in Grand Cayman, which was just beautiful. We rented a Jeep 4x4 and took a ride through the island. As you can see in the pictures (or at least in my opinion) we had a magical view of the crystal waters of the Caribbean, and gorgeous weather to go along with it. I sure wouldn't mind being lost on this island!

{ 1st Entry: I have a blog! }

I'm so excited to officially be a blogger! I love reading blogs and currently subscribe to MANY blogs (via google reader, what a time saver). I think a blog is one of the best ways to share your life with others, near and far. If you don't see your blog listed in my blog roll leave me a comment with your blog and I'll be sure to add it. I hope you enjoy reading my blog as much as I enjoy reading blogs in general!

For my first post I've decided to share some pictures that were taken of us (myself and my husband Jim) on the cruise we recently returned from. For us, it's not often that we get dressed up and have our picture taken, so I'm glad we had this opportunity and am happy with the pictures, they will be perfect to add to the small album of times we do actually get to have fancy pictures taken together.