Week 17: Pink Popsicles

So one day as I was browsing on Pinterest, this seems to happen too frequently, I came across a recipe for Homemade Orange Creamsicles.  Well, I was able to talk my younger sister into making them ;).  We used half n half in place of the heavy cream because that is what we had, we also didn't have the orange extract.  They turned out really good!  They were very creamy and orange-y.  I don't have pictures of those.   But, that recipe gave my sister the idea to make a Strawberry Popsicle.  I did manage to get some pictures of those.

 

The perfect treat on a hot Summer day!!

 

 

Or a cool Spring day!!

Even the little boys like them!!

 

 

 

Strawberry Blast Pops

3/4 C. Orange Juice

1/2 C. Half and Half (or whole milk)

1 C. Frozen Strawberries

1/4 tsp. Sugar if needed

 

Blend all ingredients, pour into popsicle molds or small cups.

Insert popsicle stick and freeze for 4 hours, or until frozen.

To remove the popsicle from the mold, run the outside of the cup

under hot water for a few seconds.  This will melt the outer layer next to the cup

and the popsicles will slide out.

Enjoy!!

 

 



Week 16: A Black and White Barn

Some more barn pictures!!  My Aunt asked me to take some pictures of the old barn that her Dad grew up with, so of course I said yes!  I was originally planning on getting some pictures of the barn in Winter with snow and some in Summer.  But, I never got any with snow on the ground.  It will have to wait till next Winter I guess.  Unless we get snow tonight, as it is in the forecast!  This Spring doesn't seem too eager to warm-up, that's for sure.

 

I have been playing around in Photoshop and came up with this edit.  I think the grey banner goes well with the black and white coloring of the photo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is another edit without the banner. 

 

 

Originally, I wasn't going to keep this photo as it had a weird bluish tint to it (my fault in not getting the settings correct).  After some editing, I was able to save it!  I liked how it turned out.

What about you?  Do you ever edit a photo that you originally didn't like, and then end up liking it afterward?

Week 15: Spring Is Here, But Winter Came to Visit

Spring is finally here!  The grass is green, the daffodils are blooming, the birds are singing and new baby calves are being born!  But Winter isn't going to give up that easy, so for the next few days he'll be hanging around until Spring kicks him out for good. 

Over the last week I have been busy planting potatoes and strawberries.  We had several days in a row where it was in the 70*s and the nights in the 40*s.  I planted 10 lbs. of seed potatoes and hope to get 4 more planted soon.  This year I am going to try to grow some purple potatoes, they're called Purple Majesty.  I should've taken some pictures of the cut seed but I didn't.  I'll have to get some pictures of the harvest to show you guys.  In all I am growing seven different varieties of potatoes, they include: Purple Majesty, Purple Viking, German Butterball, Red Pontiac, Kennebec, Irish Cobbler, and Dakota Pearl.  I was going to grow Yukon Gold instead of Dakota Pearl and Irish Cobbler, but I was too late in buying the seed tubers.  I couldn't find them anywhere.  We grew them two years ago and they tasted amazing!

As for the Strawberries I planted 3 varieties: Jewel, All Star, and Honeoye.  Seventy-five plants in all.  They are all June-bearing.   I planted them about 12-14 inches apart both ways in my strawberry bed and another small bed we had.  The last Strawberries we had were Honeoye, they grew very well and the berries were big.  Hopefully we will have lots of strawberries next summer!!

We have been getting lots of rain the past few days.  Maybe not a lot, but some.  Compared to last year we are getting a lot.  I'm just thankful to be getting rain at all!  I like cloudy-rainy days!  The rain seems to make things all the more pretty.  It makes the grass greener and the trees darker.  Not to mention the lighting, even though it makes taking pictures all that more difficult.  IF I can figure my camera settings out, the dark rainy days make for better photos than the bright sunny ones do.

                                                 I'm so excited Spring is here!

                            The Grape Hyacinths are blooming, aren't they so cute!

                                           The Chickens are also happy Spring is here.

How has the weather been in your area?  Are you seeing signs of Spring yet?

"In the light of a king's face there is life,

and his favor is like the clouds

that bring the spring rains."

Proverbs 16:15

 



Week 14: A Stormy Pasture

This is also one of my favorites, edited with the Pioneer Woman's Photoshop Actions.  I had edited it several times before trying to lighten up the trees without making the sky too bright.  My last edit was pretty close to the way I wanted it.  Yesterday when I downloaded the actions I was trying them out on a few pictures and thought I would try it on this one.  It finished the picture up nicely!  This goes to show that the right editing can really benefit the over all feel of a picture, making the difference between a good picture and an ok picture.

To see the before edit click here and visit my Flickr page.

Week 13: A Pine Cone

This is probably one of my favorite photos.  I have edited it so many different ways.  I think this is probably my favorite edit though.  I used one of the Pioneer Woman's Photoshop Actions on it.  I had never used any actions other than the default ones that came with the program.  I'm glad I finally decided to give the Pioneer Woman's Actions a try!  If you have Photoshop or Photoshop Elements you can download the actions for free by clicking here for Elements users and here for Photoshop users.

I took this photo at a cousin's house.  They have big pine trees bordering the north side of their yard, and there just happened to be some pine cones on!  I tried several different angles and this one was always my favorite!  To see some more edits of this picture visit my Flickr here, they can be found in the set titled "Nature".

Week 12: Golden Light

As the sun is going down I'm helping my Dad load a bull into our trailer to take him back home.  He had escaped into the adjoining pasture, and we were using the land owners corral to get him into the trailer.  The rest of the cows stand back and watch curiously.  A gentle breeze is blowing, stirring the dust up and bringing a welcoming break in the heat of the day.

We get the bull loaded and Dad is talking to the neighbor.   I get my camera out to take some pictures while there is still some golden light left.  By now, little bugs are starting to come out and fly around on this warm summer evening.  

 

I liked how the sun filtered over the corral boards.  I took this in August of 2011.

Week 11: One Fancy Dude

This guy is one fancy dude.  He insists on fixing his hair everyday!  Sometimes his obsession gets annoying!  As if that isn't enough, he goes around showing it off, strutting here and there all day!!

Though I can't say all of the other guys are jealous, they think he's just weird.  Especially since he can't see too clearly, what with his hair in the way and all.  But don't tell him that, he won't listen.

The Fancy Dude

 

I took this picture in 2011.  He is a Polish Crested (I think, but who knows!) rooster that our friends gave to us because they had too many.  He definitely doesn't blend in with the rest of them!

See another picture of him on my Flickr

 



Week 10: A Lone Tree

This picture was taken two years ago.  It was one of those times where you decide you are going to get a picture of something that you had been driving past several times a week.  Have you ever done that? 

 I have always liked this tree, and the fact that there wasn't anything behind it.  Perfect for a silhouette-type picture.  I'm thinking about doing a four seasons collage with this tree.  Of course I will have to get the other three seasons first!

 

 

 

 

 

I turned this picture black and white because the color version just wasn't working for me.  I will still mess around with the color version and see if I can get it figured out.  If not I could always take some more!  That is until the tree dies and falls over, but in the mean time....