Wild Weekly Photo Challenge – Wanderlust

I’m excited to participate in the Adventure and Travel Magazine Let’s Be Wild Weekly Photo Challenge for Bloggers.  This week’s challenge is Wanderlust!  I have had a bad case of Wanderlust at times and looking at past adventures tends to kindle that flame even more.

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Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Water

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge is new to me!  I think I’m becoming addicted to these challenges.  I find it so much fun to look through my photos and organize them according to categories.  I tried to stay away from the typical ocean shots…which I have many of…so I’ve submitted fountain, swamp, oasis, water feature, pool, lake, puddle, and ocean.

Anyway, here are my selections:

San Francisco – 2011

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Illumination

This week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is Illumination.  Looking through my photos, I realized that things can be illuminated from different directions and sources.  It was tough…but I had to narrow my selections down to seven.

This photo was taken in the “Siq” at Petra, Jordan.

Light source from beyond

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This photo is from a yearly event in Cincinnati called “Balluminaria“.  Unfortunately, I had not taken a tripod with me and the wind had picked up…so my photos weren’t as good as I had wished for.

Light Source from below

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You may remember this photo from my road trip through Florida.

Light source from below

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This was taken in Peru…back in 2009.  I remember thinking…”Wow–just the small village is being lit up”!

Light source from above

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This was in New Mexico in 2011.

Light source from above

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This was taken in San Francisco in 2011.

Light source from above

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During the holidays, The Cincinnati Zoo has a fantastic light display throughout the zoo and this is the entrance.

Light source – All Around

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I believe 2013 will bring much clarity or illumination to all of us!

 

 

Weekly Photo Challenge — My 2012 in Pictures

2012 was a year of discovery and fun!

I participated in lots of activities…

Activities

Pinterest inspired me to make over 125 new recipes!  My husband gained a few pounds.

And…I made homemade Febreeze, carpet stain remover, deodorant, In a Pickle Bag, scarves made from t-shirts, and these beautiful Easter centerpieces…

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I attended lots of fun festivals, farmers’ markets, parties, and concerts!

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I was a tourist in my own hometown of Cincinnati and the surrounding areas…

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And–had so much fun seeing familiar places with new eyes through the lens of my camera!

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In May/June, I camped for 26 nights of the 40 nights I spent touring seven AMAZING countries in Africa.  You can read the first post here!

Africa

Met unforgettable people and had once-in-a-lifetime experiences!

People of Africa

Strangers opened their homes to me in South Africa, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida–through an organization called Couchsurfing!

It is an amazing way to meet new people, make travel affordable, and get tips from locals on what to see and do!

Couchsurfing

My six week-4,200 mile-USA road-trip through North & South Carolina, Georgia and Florida was an adventure!  I left in late October and returned home in December.

I so enjoyed walking through all of the cities I visited!

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There is so much beauty in the USA!

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Florida was too pretty for words!!

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I took a wine painting class with girlfriends, went to Columbus, Ohio for a girls’ weekend, and had girlfriends visit me in Florida!

Friends

Last…but most importantly…had quality time with family!  I thank my husband for being a good sport concerning my passion for travel!

Family

My cousins and I had fun taking photos with Santa!!

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I’m not sure what I’ve done to deserve such a rich life…but I’m truly grateful and if 2013 is as good or better than 2012…then all I have to say is…”LIFE IS GOODGREAT IN YOUR 50’s”!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Delicate

I’ve never participated in the “Weekly Photo Challenge” that WordPress hosts, so I’m excited to be able to contribute.  This week’s challenge is delicate…

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This photo was taken earlier this year in Columbus, Ohio.  Everyone can interpret delicate slightly differently.  My perception/interpretation is something or someone who can easily break or that you need to treat gently.  Or perhaps when something/someone touches you delicately, softly or tenderly.

While I’m thinking and writing, the thunder is rumbling and the gray misty skies are lit occasionally with streaks of lightning.  Raindrops are delicately clinging to the branches of a bush in front of my house….nature’s very own Christmas lights.

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My heart is a bit heavy today…so I’m going to meditate and allow my feelings to be.