I was back in the line waiting for Isa’s meds, after only two weeks. Sometimes it hurts when people say ‘He’s always sick, isn’t he?’ but what can a mother do apart from being patient, pray and tend to him with more love and tender care, hoping that God knows what is best for us?

Me and my man. It took me a couple shots and a bribe to get him to smile…

Take 1

Take 2

Man I love this little guy.

My Momo is turning 6 today! Due to some unforeseen circumstances, we had to postpone her birthday celebration this year. Nonetheless, we will order a birthday cake for her sometime next week and celebrate her birthday the week after. This year, we decided to get the cake from The Barkery instead of US Doggie Bakery. I hope she’ll like it and knows that we love her very much. ♥♥♥

Happy birthday to you, my precious Momo! May you have a wonderful year ahead and we’ll try our very best to be your (proud) fur parents. Stay happy, healthy and don’t be too naughty.

One Cup cake baking tray, small pieces of toys, and one toddler. You’ll see enormous amount of joy.

Apps used : Camera+, snapseed pics play pro

Location : Hoboken, NJ transit terminal

Tea and scone. Martha’s Pantry, Cuba Street, Wellington

This week’s Daily Post Photo Challenge word is “culture”.  You can find out more about the challenge here.

I’ve spent the last few days in Wellington – a city that New Zealanders probably regard as the country’s coffee capital. However, I am pleased to say that despite a sense that “coffee culture” has taken over in NZ in recent years, the art of making and drinking tea is also alive and well.

These photos were taken at Martha’s Pantry in Cuba Street – wonderful, old-fashioned tea shop with retro (and very girly) decor; beautiful food and the best pot of tea I’ve had in bloody ages.

Hooray for the two young staff members at Martha’s who, while I was there, were whipping up Neenish Tarts, amazing looking Club Sandwiches, tiny macarons and all manner of other goodies right in front of me while managing to provide cheereful, professional service to customers at the same time.

Tea and scone. Martha’s Pantry, Cuba Street, Wellington

Some good ole fashioned Slap Jack with my niece.

“Auntie you have to take a picture of everything! Even cards!”

After playing in the desert again recently, we escaped the heat and headed to the coast. It was overcast and a little chilly in Santa Monica, which makes for dull photos. I tried to spice this one up with a number of apps, but it still doesn’t pop too much.

Shot with camera+. Edited with Snapseed at first to add saturation,contrast, and to crop. Then TouchRetouch was used to remove a distracting element. Aquarella was used for the conversion to a painterly image. Snapseed was used again to add more contrast and saturation.

We had our dinner there and the food was quite disappointing. I actually told the hubby that the place will close down in 6 months time. Yup, I think their food was that bad.

Oh I so want. So so very much want this truck.

While I was in the bay area this weekend, I decided to stop by the Winchester Mystery House to snap a photo for a friend. I lived in SJ for 21 years and I always end up making a few trips every year, but I’ve never been to the Winchester House. I didn’t take the tour this time because I was about to meet up with friends and it was more expensive than I expected.

This was a difficult shot to get because the lighting was so harsh. It was taken just before noon with the sun shining right into the lens. Using a regular camera app blew out the sky and lost part of the roof. In high contrast scenes you can use an HDR app to try and replicate what you see with your eyes. In this case, I used TrueHDR. I was pleasantly surprised with the result, save for the beam of light on the left.

The blended image from an HDR pretty much always needs to be edited in another app to add contrast so it looks more realistic again. I used Snapseed to do the trick. Then I decided I wanted more texture and drama in the image so I used SimplyHDR. Finally, I wanted to see what a ShockMyPic version would look like (below.)

Is it ever going to be over? It’s been nearly a week since we returned and I still can’t fall asleep when I should, and then I’m so exhausted that I end up falling asleep way too early (or late, on the weekend). I mean, the trip was amazing and totally worth it (photos in the first stages of post processing now) but still! I feel like I could get 8 solid hours right this minute if I had the chance.

H and I agree that flying to Hawaii if you live on the west coast isn’t that much traveling. It’s the addition, for us, of getting to the west coast that doubles the trip time. And, apparently, the jet lag.

I’m back from being on the road again. The engagement shoot was fun and effortless. The couple was awesome to work with and amazing in front of the camera. Unfortunately, I totally forgot to snap a few shots with my iPhone, so I can’t share any of those until I edit the Nikon images.

In the meantime, I found this one from Joshua Tree on my camera+ camera roll. Sometimes I totally forget about photos on that roll. I shot and edited with that app. With the lighting the way it was, I had black and white in mind from the moment I set up the shot. I was going for the same effect as this one from a while back.

Flannery got this little bunny at her birthday party yesterday (forgot to mention in the last post that my gramma keeps Hallmark in business).

So I recorded a little message so that when she’s separate from me, she hugs this super soft bunny and she hears my voice.

Raddest idea freaken EVER!

Yep, so I had to promise Ernest he’ll have his on Wednesday. Not a pink bunny though.

A selfie with my gramma. The bestest, most bad-ass, kick-ass chick I know.

I mean, really, she went through three miserable pregnancies, one of which that resulted in my mom. She’s been married for 58ish years to the same OCD, ex-navy, retired man. She hand quilts blankets big enough to be a bedspread for a queen-sized bed. She drives to and fro Big Bear to the Inland Empire in a huge Tahoe. She just recently had a stent put in by her heart. Oh and around her 76th birthday she rode Thunder Mountain Railroad at Disneyland. And she just knows things.

There are many other things that make her awesome, but if she reads this she’ll blush, say “oh” turn her face to hide the blush and swat her hand. She might even cry a little. Hehe :)

Yep, love this woman. Soooo incredibly much.

Once you get to the top of the steps you go around to the right and end up near that old building right up in the top right corner.

The steps are at a really awkward distance apart as well; I have to take two steps on one then one on the next and when I’m coming down I feel like a little pony daintily trotting down because it’s the same thing – 2 steps then one and you can’t go too fast as it’s really steep. I can never quite work out if I want to step down with my left foot or my right either.

Back down a hill past the end of the beach where not many people go. The water has been crystal clear and it’s still pretty warm in. All those little dots on the horizon are coal ships waiting to come into the harbour – 24/7 they come in and out, depending on the tides.

Finally back on flat ground up near one of the main beaches and the canoe pool there on the left. I have no idea why it’s called the canoe pool and I’m yet to see one in there; what you do see are kids and lots of them. The pool is really shallow and built-in and massive and it’s perfect for little kids. There’s supposed to be a map of the world on the bottom but I think it’s all covered now.

I can’t believe this autumn – we’re going to be in for a shock when winter finally turns up.

About a year ago I wrote about and posted some pictures of the Ski-Hi Drive-In, my community’s shuttered but last remaining drive-in theater – remaining, at least, in the sense of the shell of the screen tower and dilapidated concession stand/projection booth remain in place, where two highways meet north of Muncie.

Since that time I’ve talked to the owner of the property for an upcoming story for publication in my real job. He encouraged me to go onto the property and take pictures, so I thought I would share some here.

The back of the screen tower, which greeted patrons – and now looms over passersby – is in pretty rough shape. The owner told me there was an apartment at the base of the tower that someone once lived in.

It’s not that hard to imagine – and, for me, remember – movies playing out on the big screen framed by the Hoosier night sky.

You can still make out the earthen ridges made to elevate the front ends of patron’s cars, trucks and vans.

The concession stand exterior, with the expected graffiti.

The door broken in the past few years by intruders.

The concession stand is still recognizable, but has put up with a lot of abuse from vandals, the elements and years of neglect.

I’ll update you when I know something about the fate of this once-grand old drive-in movie theater.

It was the first high rise apartment building in upper west side built in 1880s

It was the home for the Beatles.

It was at the steps of this building John Lennon was assassinated.

Shot and processed with my iPhone 4S.

A pink rose…can’t think of a more perfect flower.

Tree Magnificent edited in camera +

Her angry face. Made me laugh forever!

Apps used Camera+, Snapseed and Mattebox