Eyes Wide Open

such a beautiful morning. breezy. air is crisp and cool. leaves falling. the dogwood off my front porch is full of berries which is making the robins go nuts. flying in and out.

but the best part is, i FINALLY captured my favorite little bird. the black capped chickadee. i swear they are like toddlers. can't stay still or in one spot for more than a second. very flighty little things. but i got him this morning. might not be the best photos i have ever taken. but i got him. and i am proud of that. so surely i had to share with you this morning. the more i photograph, the more i stand in such awe of God's creation around us. what we have right in front of our eyes, if we only look. it is bringing me closer to Him. i am blessed. we are blessed. open your eyes.
if the world we live in awes us..i can't even begin to imagine what God's kingdom will look like.

have a blessed, spirit filled day!

shay

Twirling

rain off and on today, had cleaning, laundry and banana bread baking to do..so didn't get my camera out. supposed to have nice, crisp fall weather coming up this weekend though. looking forward to capturing that. for today though, i've played a little on photo shop. i know there must be millions of things i haven't seen or tried yet. it's all VERY confusing. but i saw on another fellow blogger's post today a note about 'twirling'. do i have twirling on my photo shop? woohoo..i do. it just fascinates me, still, how we can work on beautiful photographs that are able to be left untouched OR turned into a completely amazing piece of art.

so, here goes my first attempts:

Rose~

Fall Leaves~

Stained Glass Window~

i know one thing for sure. our Heavenly Father is one astonishing artist. colors, textures, His hands created it all.

we are SO blessed to see and experience His beautiful masterpiece every day!

blessings!

shay



"Be Still" moments....

i stumbled upon a dear old friends blog today. her message loud and clear to me to 'be still'. funny, it's one of the things i tell myself often. i am one who has a hard time quieting my mind. especially when i need to be sleeping. takes me forever to fall. but when sleep evades me or even during wakeful hours and the migraine is starting because there is SO much tumbling around up there, i repeat over and over 'be still' until i settle. it's God's way of telling me to slow down, look around, embrace, be blessed. i was embarking on this process at my kitchen sink this morning. staring out the window. 'be still, be still, be still' when i saw that little whispered heart from God in the tree. now, i have been staring at this tree for over 3 years, out the same kitchen window, and have never noticed this little heart that is naturally formed in the trunk. why? you ask...i believe it's because God needed me to see it at that very moment in time. a whisper. that He is there and He loves me.

so again i encourage you...

are you keeping your eyes, your heart, your soul open for those SO very important whispers from your Heavenly Father?

blessings!

shay

Random Hearts

departing flights sadden me. watching mom walk towards the gate puts me in a 'funk' every time. my heart feels heavy with loss and emptiness. Monday was this day for me. on my way home from the airport, as the tears fell, i felt led to drive down an old dirt road before going home. i have been down this old dirt road several times. and still stand amazed at what my eye can see at the most random of moments. i truly believe God leaves me little signs to capture through the lens of my camera, to capture into my heart when it's feeling sad and lonely, to give me that little pick me up, that HUGE reminder that having His love in my life is BIGGER than any 'funk' that may come my way.

so i find myself looking for these little hearts He leaves for me. and always seem to find them when i need them the most.

i love photographing old, rusty barbed wire. this road has a long stretch of it lining the pastures. i have never once, on any of my trips down this road, noticed this little heart weaved so gently into the wire, until Monday that is, just when i needed it the most.

are you looking for the signs He leaves you from time to time? i consider them answers to prayer.

blessings!

shay



Sunday Scavenger Hunt

time for 'Sunday Scavenger Hunt' over at Ramblings & Photo's again. had a great time this week searching for my photos, a little challenging too. so here goes...

1) Low Key:

2) The Color Wheel: Monochromatic

(this was challenging for me as i have never tried this, love the end results though!)

3) Circle: i am pretty sure this is called 'penny felting' i see it all over the place in Lancaster county, LOVE all the colors in the piece.

4) Scarf:

(love that i was able to capture my mothers hands, this is a scarf in progress)

5) Phone: (struggling with this one, so i'll be back...)

(ok, captured my special young man in deep thought here. was trying to find an old phone booth, but they seem to be non-existent anymore!)

blessings to all of you on this Sunday!

shay

not a sparrow falls....

sometimes it's hard to comprehend our worth. when life seems overwhelming. when we are lonely. when we have doubt. when we are afraid. when we don't know which path to take.

 we are so incredibly blessed to have a Savior that is always there. a Saviour that knows even when a tiny sparrow falls. when a tiny sparrow is hungry or in need of refuge. His eye is on that tiny sparrow. therefore His eye is always on us.

i struggle with my worth, with lonliness, with doubt and fear, with which path God is leading me down.

but as i continue on my journey, i know that He will lead me. through prayer. through praise and worship and thanks. through love. He is guiding me every step of the way. reaching out his mighty hand. waiting for me to surrender.

so for me to get through...

i constantly remind myself that...

'not a sparrow falls'

Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. Even all the hairs on your head are numbered. So do not be afraid; you are more valuable than many sparrows.

Matthew 10: 29-31

blessings!

shay

My Protector

He is my guardian, my protector. He guards me when I leave and when I return. He guards me now. He guards me always.

Even while I rest and slumber, He is there, awake, watching over me, for He will never doze or sleep.

How blessed am I to call myself His child?

How blessed am I that He stays by my side?

Unbelievably so......

Spirit filled

on the drive to the Uprise Festival Friday night, the sky exhibited proof of the Holy Spirit, descending upon those who awaited...

as the sun set, proof all around us of His glorious creation...

what am amazing sight before my eyes to see thousands of hands raised, in love and thankfulness, bringing my heart such peace and comfort...

 thousands of believers worshiped, lifted their hearts and voices in love for their Savior...

i was moved beyond words

i am blessed to have experienced my children being moved before my eyes...

blessings!

shay



Sunday Scavenger Hunt

sorry, but i am going to have to pull from the archives this week. between my camera malfunction, company coming in and chaperoning teenagers at the Uprise Festival this weekend, i have been a little crazy!

so here goes...

1) Street Photography:

2) From a Distance:

3) Sunday:

4) Liquid:

5) Behind:

have a blessed Sunday!

shay



Pilgrimage.....

tonight i began a connection group for women at the church i have been attending. i have never done this, and admit i was a little nervous. we will be studying a 'beth moore' series which will journey us through the Psalms of Ascent (120-134). a pilgrimage. i am so looking forward to this time surrounded by women of God, all different ages and backgrounds, learning and praying my way on this continued new journey of mine. seeking a deeper relationship with my Saviour.

 i found it so fitting that this group came up...molded right into where i am in my life. my journey of self.

blessings!

shay

p.s. mama and my baby girl fly into BWI tomorrow...

can't wait for hugs and female companionship for a while!

~safe travels~

Capturing Feathered Friends

today i kept waking up, my body refusing to stay asleep, oh the joys of working night shift. i was on my front porch, cool breeze, tempting me to stay awake and enjoy the beautiful day. the black capped chickadees were fluttering around the feeders. i love these little guys. i have a photo of my boys when they were wee ones in their aunt's wedding party in little tuxedos. these birds make me think of them that day all dressed up. so tiny in their tuxedos.

in the house to get my camera. they of course weren't cooperating. not one pic after an hour of waiting quietly. i admire photographers that are able to capture our feathered friends. maybe when i finally have a zoom lens, i will be able to sit from afar and capture them. but for now...found this pic in my archives and played around with contrast and saturation a bit. i have a thing for eyes too. they are the windows to our souls!

blessings!

shay 

Glimmers of Hope

i had a dream that i was holding my camera upside over the garbage can in our kitchen, shaking broken pieces out of the memory slot. (i tend to have very strange dreams...) so i decided to shine a flashlight into the memory slot to see if i could see anything down there. lo and behold i saw tiny blue plastic pieces. my dear hubby helped me gently get those pieces out, they were off of a memory card. and right away the new memory card went in without any trouble.

God knew my heart was heavy without the ability to photograph. i have been hanging my head low and sulking for the last 2 days. He knew what i needed and spoke to me in a dream. i am sooo thankful. maybe He was trying to get me to appreciate this lil Nikon Coolpix L100 of mine for a bit longer until i am able to get the camera my heart desires.

i am definitely doing the 'happy dance'!

blessings!

shay

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

glad i was able to go on such an enjoyable photo shoot with my good friend Steph on Labor Day to get most of my shots for this hunt. (memory card will not stay in my camera for some reason, hence limited photography for now. totally bummed! guess i will have to delve into the archives for a while.)

~but for today, here are my newest SHS pics~

1) Bokeh: spider webs with sunlight gleaming through them fascinate me!

2) Process of Elimination:OK~ so i have a thing for Holsteins' toooo!

3) Remember: love scouring antique shops for photos, the history of things, their stories.

4)Statues: antique photographing again!

(I love old cemeteries too. guess this could go on 'remember' or 'statues')

5) Flying High~ something about these black Amish pants flying in the wind caught my eye too!

so there's my 'hunt' pics for the week!

i am loving joining all you amazing women!

blessings!

shay

Out of Sorts

this passion has been tucked deep down inside me for a long time. i always knew when photographing my sons, i had the ability to see beyond the picture i was taking, and capture their essence with my eye through the lens. i have some amazing memories of them, ones i will cherish for a lifetime. passion passed down to me through my father.

but i didn't feel the joyful passion that is consuming me, when purposefully looking through my lens, trying to capture God's creations, until i started this blog.

why am i out of sorts?

my camera has become my friend.

always with me, just in case.

and now it is sitting in my studio, broken.

i didn't think it would affect me like this.

but i feel all out of sorts.

almost like I've lost my constant friend.

and I've lost the connection i started feeling with my father again, i felt like he was looking through the lens with me and smiling.

so today, being 'out of sorts' is what my mom and i officially call the 'molly grubbs'.

shay

words of TRUTH

people aren't always as they seem or portray themselves to be. they are hurtful and deceitful. even when they may claim to be ones of faith.

had a bad morning. i was angry. i was disappointed. i was misled.

but God reminded me of my favorite scripture and it is bringing me some peace.

Jeremiah 29:11

we give our friendship, kindness, shoulders...but sometimes...as i am learning, we are to just love and pray for people from afar...

this too, shall pass...for i am blessed.

blessings!

shay



Dreaming of Fall

fall...my favorite time of year. i wasn't raised around the beauty of different seasons, we just didn't get to experience that in south Florida. but now, i crave it here. summers heat ending and cool nights arriving. this photo was actually taken while i was in maine, a summer photo of a birch tree. but with a little color saturation, i was able to turn it into the coming of fall. and fell in love. i long to see the fall birch trees in Vermont and Maine.

a few maple leaves are occasionaly turning and falling in my yard. i just had to capture this one laden with raindrops.

fall means so many things to me. freshness. comfort. the smells of cinnamon and nutmeg. apple festivals. pumpkin pie. fall scented candles that make my home feel warm and cozy. the abundance of color in the trees. falling leaves. long walks with the leaves crunching under your feet. listening to the trees and leaves blow. clear blue skies. sweater weather. bringing out my knitting needles again, dreaming of the beautiful scarves and hats that will be made with my loving hands. i love fall. and anxiously await it's arrival just around the bend.

waiting...

blessings!

shay

Flooding here~prayers needed

this is only the beginning...

devastation is everywhere...

the rain is not supposed to stop until Saturday...

we appreciate your prayers...

shay

Through Him

"Everything was created through Him; nothing-not one thing, came into being without Him."

John 1:3

we could not see and appreciate this....

without first seeing and appreciating this...

this journey, of finding passion and beauty in God's creation, all around me through a camera lens, has opened up my eyes, noticing creation i otherwise may have overlooked before.

i feel completely blessed, at peace and hopeful. thankful He lit this spark and desire in me. i feel honored to be glorifying Him. to be sharing His creation and spreading His love.

blessings!

shay



Common Ground

great day. laughter. photographs. friendship. finding common ground. in the heart of Amish country.

the rain could not stop us. in fact it added beautiful stillness to some of our shots.

capturing simplicity at it's finest.

through the lens of my camera.

striving to see, feel, wish.

running off old back roads, turning around and around, back to capture that shot noticed whizzing by, getting a little stuck in a swale ditch and calling dear husband to pull you out (thank goodness we were close to home at that point)

the sunflower field that is closing it's eyes on summer in preparation of fall's crisp arrival

'common ground'

found and now cherished.

memories made.

camera happy today.

my eyes and my heart happy today.

blessings!

shay

p.s. if this blog is anything like my home, it will be forever changing like the seasons of my old soul. but i am happy with it today. thanks to my son for his patience with me on photoshop. and thanks to all of you for your special comments. i love hearing from all of you. inspiration blooms!