summer haze

Working my way a backlog of unedited photos, and found this one from last summer.  

It reminds me of warm summer evenings, vintage linens and the smell of lavender.  Of course, this flower is not lavender...I'm not sure what it is!  On my bucket list is to one day return to France to visit and photograph the lavender fields...that would be magical!

deep thoughts from a backyard dahlia

Summer is officially over, but my backyard dahlias are still in bloom.  I love how a little bit of summer is hanging on into fall, reminding me that life is a process, that one season often bleeds over into the next.  It's comforting to go at nature's pace, not having to rush things along.  It's nice when seasons change gradually, allowing us time and space to absorb both the loss of one and the newness of the next.  The presence of this dahlia reminds me to be kind to myself, to allow things come and go with ease and to the enjoy the moment that I have, knowing it won't last forever.

summwer wildflowers

We were hiking at Lily Lake in mid-July and the wildflowers abounded!  Love the way nature is painted in such beautiful colors.

purple poufs

One of the big projects I'm working on right now is developing a portfolio of favorite images from over the years.  I have a TON of undeveloped photos that I am slowly working my way through.  These were taken a few years ago when Mr. Z was a baby during a season when he had dropped his morning nap (such a hard transition) and I was desperate to get us out of the house.   After the girls went to school, we would often take long walks around our neighborhood in Orlando.  It was often very hot and sticky, even in January.  I really do not miss that at all!

I found these little flowers while walking one morning along an open space where the grass was uncut.  I'm sure they are technically weeds, but I love them just the same.  They are so pretty.  I picked a few and tossed them into the bottom of the stroller planning to go back the next day with my camera and shoot them in the field.  But, later that afternoon, the mowers came out and that was the end of the pretty little flowers in the field.  I never saw them grow back.  

But, I'm glad I at least got a few photos.  They look sort of look like they belong in the sea to me.

Like little anemone.  Purple poufs of happiness.

DIY: Napkin Flower Tutorial

I've got a little crafty series planned for this blog.  For the next three weeks, I'll be posting a new DIY tutorial on Monday.  In upcoming weeks, I have a few DIY ideas for displaying photos.  If I get on a roll, maybe there will be more!  :)

Today I'm sharing  a very simple tutorial using napkins to make flowers.  Since napkins are a bit stiffer than tissue paper, the flowers hold their shape a little better.  There are lots of other similar tutorials out there, but I didn't know that when I came up with the idea.  Great minds think alike!

Start by gathering your supplies.  

1)You'll need napkins of various colors, 28-gauge floral wire and a pair of scissors.  I used white, green and orange napkins to add some interest. (A cute vase or mason jar helps too :)

2) Open your napkin out flat.  I found these orange napkins at the dollar store, and I love them because they are white on the backside which makes for a beautiful flower.

3) Cut napkin into four equal parts.

4) Stack them on top of each other, same color facing the same direction.

5) Accordion fold your napkin.  You can see the white backside of the orange napkin here.  It's going to be pretty when we start opening it up!

6) Pinch the folded napkin together.

7) Fold the floral wire over the center of the napkin and twist a few times around itself to secure in place.

8) Cut the edges of the napkin off into a rounded shape.  Alternatively, you could cut them inwards like a "V."  This will make for a cool spikey looking flower.

9) Begin spreading apart the folds into a circular shape.  It will sort of look like a butterfly. 

10) Carefully lift each layer of napkin towards you and away from the center.  Be sure to separate 2-ply napkins into two layers.  This will make your flower fuller and and creates a two-tone look if the second layer is white.

Keep opening the layers up until you have a pretty flower.

 When you are all done, the floral wire will serve as a nice stem to fit into your vase or mason jar.

Heading into fall, this makes a great little centerpiece for the table or a fun accent for any room!

sunflowers

I have a little sunflower patch this summer.  It makes me happy.  I am loving this variety.  They bloom deep purple, and slowly turn into these gorgeous shades of red, yellow and orange.  

flower photo tips

Happy Monday!

Today, I thought I'd share some pretty flower photos and photo tips with you.  I love flowers, and never tire of their beauty.  

The kids and I went to a nearby demonstration garden, the Gardens at Spring Creek shortly after school got out.  

It was a cloudy and rainy day, which made for great light to shoot flowers in.

When shooting flowers, I like to try to play around a lot with the angles I'm using.  In the shot below, I got down pretty low so that I was level with the flowers, and tried to get some interesting colors in the background since I  knew I wanted to isolate the flower stalk in the foreground.  It helped that they were planted in a lifted planter.  By shooting wide open (the largest aperture available), I was able to capture blurs of pretty color all around the flower.  

f/2.8,  1/160, ISO 100

For this one, I shot down on a single bloom, making sure the parts of the flower closest to me were in focus.  The wide open aperture (f/2.8 on my lens)  creates a nice blurry background of green shapes.

1/250, f/2.8, ISO 100

On this shot, I knew I wanted some blur both in front and in back of the area in focus.  So, I made sure there were flowers in front of my focal point.  I chose an aperture that was not quite wide open, but a bit smaller (the aperture closes down or gets smaller as the number gets larger.)  This way, more flowers would be in focus.

1/250, f/4.5, ISO160

I used the same idea on this one and shot down rather than from the side.  

1/250, f/4.5, ISO160

Here's another side-angle shot, getting a bit closer in this time.  On this one, I didn't want any flowers in front of my focal point, so I just focused on the flowers directly in front of me, creating a lot of blur in the background.  This photo is not in super-sharp focus, but I still like it.  I think it gives it a moody and heavy feeling.   

1/250, f/4.5, ISO160

Colorado Springtime

It's Springtime here.  

Most of the time.  One day it was 70, the next day we had snow.

Last week, I got a tan.  This week, I'm back in my fleece jacket.

But, the grass is green again, and my garden is starting to grow.  

Flowering trees are in bloom and so are wildflowers!

I woke up early one morning last week (strange for me!)

and decided to get up and head across the street to a field 

where I knew these pretty flowers were growing.

Happy Spring!

It's hard to say Goodbye!

It's seems apropos that as we are packing up our lives and preparing to move back West that I should choose to resurrect this blog. 

After all, that's how it began 7 years ago when we moved to FL from the West.  It's been severely neglected over the past few years as other things in life have taken on more meaning, but this blog is still a special space.  Sort of like an old friend.  We can always pick up where we left off.

It needs a new name, I think.  "Life in Orlando" won't be fitting after we move back to Colorado.  Any suggestions for me?  I'm all out of mental energy these days.  I've also added some social media links on the sidebar, but can't figure out how to get them nice and close together like they should be.  For today, they'll stay separated.

So, we are moving back to Colorado in a few weeks.  And, I'm so excited--I absolutely adore Colorado, but packing is pretty miserable and I'm pretty tired and overwhelmed these days.  I know I'll be more relaxed after we arrive, but right now life is hard.

We've been in Orlando for almost 7 years now and have really great friends and a pretty extensive network of relationships.  It's going to be a hard move.  I mean, you can always replace stuff, but you just can't go out and instantly acquire new friends.  Thankfully, we have some really great old friends in Colorado...but re-establishing community in our new town will be hard for awhile.

We are also moving away from the life we have always known with the staff of Cru.  It's a huge change for us--moving to a new location without that support network, and it feels a little scary, honestly, but we are ready for it.  New adventures await us!  For the first time in 16 years, I am officially unemployed.  Weird!

I taught my last Jazzercise class at Cru this week, and I have been so sad about that, much more sad than I realized I would be.  I didn't realize I loved it so much.  I mean, I knew I loved it, but I guess I didn't realize how sad I would be to leave that special little place.  It feels pretty huge.  I think I underestimated how much I loved teaching there.  It's hard to say goodbye!

I also find it ironic that in the last 2 years or so, I've made peace with Orlando and the climate.  I think I spent the first 5 years hot.  Just miserable, sweaty and miserable.  But, now, my body has adjusted just in time to move back to a more temperate climate.  I grew up in that climate, but I just know that I am going to be cold for about 5 years before I warm up again!

Well, writing that out was therapeutic.  I'm going to try to start blogging again.  I think it will help my transition to document life for a while.  

Another thing I'll miss about Orlando:  year-long gardening!  Here are some flower photos from a trip this Spring to the nursery.  I've grown to love all the flowers in FL!

winter centerpiece {DIY}

It's always bare and boring in January after the Christmas decorations come down. I've struggled to know what to put up after Christmas. I don't want to see red or green or gold anymore, but I'm not quite ready for Valentine's decor in January. I think I finally stumbled upon something that I like.

The idea began with a simple branch. I broke it off of some nearby shrubs--no, not my neighbor's. These were crazy-wild shrubs that grow along a nearby walking path. Trust me. No one will notice their absence. I was looking for a branch that had several off-shoots, and would look sort of tree-like.



I stuck mine in a carafe and used river rocks to support the base so that it would stand upright. At this point, David was seriously doubting my artistic abilities. What in the world are you doing bringing some dead branch into our house?! He didn't actually say those words, but we've been married 10 years, and I can tell you, that's exactly what he was thinking.



Oh, husband of little faith. Just wait. Next, I dug out some pretty little silk flowers. I really like the flowers, but didn't just love how they were arranged on the original stem. So, I pulled them off. There was a perfect little hole in the center of each flower.



They perfectly fit onto the ends of my dead branch. And now, it's not just a dead branch. It's a winter centerpiece! Totally easy, and totally free. I love that.

winter flower

It's not really a flower, but it's shape reminds me of one!  The girls found these on our walk last weekend too.  If I ever get around to it, I'm hoping to hang this one on my wall somewhere.  Happy Monday!

flower.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom! And, to all my mom-friends, "Happy Mother's Day" to you too! Thank you, Andrew and Lucy for these beautiful flowers after baby boy's arrival. They brought cheer to my room for many days.

what's up??

I realize that the blog has been a bit neglected lately. We've been busy....

I've been teaching lots and lots of Jazzercise....
the girls have been in Kid's Camp all summer...
and David is working like a dog...

We've had time for some fun too.
If you gotta work hard, you gotta play hard too!

Last weekend, we went on our first family hike.
1.34 miles in Lory State Park is not too shabby for little legs!











Hope you're having a good summer too!

orange...

...makes me happy! I think it's my new favorite color.

virtual flowers for my friends

This post is dedicated to my friends, Kendra and Melanee, who have recently given birth to baby girls. So fun!! And, I haven't sent flowers or gifts yet. Sorry I'm so lame! They're in process and will be on their way soon. So, for now, here are some virtual flowers for you both. Hugs! :)

lotus blooms

We went to China over the weekend. Well, ok, it wasn't really China, it was Epcot, but they sure do a good job of making you feel like you've visited China. It happened to be the last day of the Flower Festival, so I though it was apropos to take some flower pictures.