Shadow Shot Sunday #131

This walking tunnel goes under the main highway so folks can walk from the downtown parking lot to the Indian casino. It was quite a controversial addition to our small Idaho town, as it didn't "come cheap". After a few years though, the ruckus has passed. We don't use it, but I did discover it casts some pretty cool shadows!

For more Shadow Shots visit Tracy at Hey Harriet. I hope your weekend is spent with people you love. Don't forget to hug them and let them know how much they mean to you. Life is fleeting.

Rest in Peace John H. Phillips ~ God Bless You & All Our Veterans

Patrick's father, John, and Patrick at our home on Father's Day, June 18th, 1995.

This is a day early for Veteran's Day, but I wanted to post it in honor of my dear father in law, John H. Phillips, who passed away today at the age of 87. He was a WWII Army veteran and a special, godly man. He and my mother in law had been married 65 years (today)and raised 3 daughters and one son. Dad had Alzheimer's and began fading quickly in the past month. Patrick has gone to see him (and Ouma) the past 2 days, so knew this was inevitable. We love you Dad.

Shadow Shot Sunday #129

The sun shone brightly whilst we were dog walking at Dover Bay. For more Shadow Shots please check out Tracy's blog HERE!

Little Cassie

Baby Cassie at about 6 months. I think little Cassie is about 3 here. Harley, Cassie and Wayne. Yup, those are matching dresses..see where I get that from?!

Decided to thrill you with a few old photos of little me, since I just turned the big 6-0. Funny, I don't feel like an old lady!!

Blessings and love,

Cassie

ps-The large birthmark on my cheek was a dysplastic nevus. I had 8 plastic surgeries on my face from the age of 6 months to 12 years. It was always part of me, so I really wasn't self conscious. Being from a small town everyone knew it wasn't chocolate or dirt on my cheek. Only people who didn't know me would comment to that effect. :<)

Shadow Shot Sunday #128 ~ Part 2 of Helloooo Autumn

Lake Pend Oreille has it's own Statue of Liberty! It is a tiny replica (of our Lady Liberty in the New York harbor) at the city beach in Sandpoint. I kind of like the little gal & the shadow she casts!!

For more Shadow Shots go visit our hostess, Miss Tracy, at Hey Harriet. Hope you all are having a great weekend. I was sick for over a week, but am recuperating nicely now that my hubby is back home. Will try to catch up on visiting your blogs! Blessings to all who pass this way.

A Portrait ~ My Early Birthday Gift

Look what the UPS man delivered on Tuesday!

This oil painting was an early birthday gift from Patrick. I had been wanting a portrait of our 2 babies for some time, so we asked NY artist Amarillis Kroon if she would do us the honors. These photos don't even do it justice. I currently have the portrait in our bedroom so I can lay in bed and enjoy it. (Dogs on the bed with me~dogs on the wall!) I can't believe how well she captured Hootie and Baby Rocket Dog's personalities. I'm thrilled. If anyone is interested in commissioning Ami to do a portrait her website is www.amikroon.com . If you are a dog-blogger you will recognize Ami as Asta, the Wirehaired Fox Terrier's mama. Thanks Ami. We will enjoy this painting of the pooches forever.

Shadow Shot Sunday #126 ~ Saying Hello Autumn/Goodbye Summer, Part 1

Wandered around Lake Pend Oreille's deserted shores the other day seeing what shadows I could capture. The gulls wouldn't hold still long enough for me to get a good shot, so I photographed the inanimate. This is part 1, as I have a few more Shadow Shots from this day I'll share next week. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about our beautiful lake:

Lake Pend Oreille is a lake in the northern Idaho Panhandle, with a surface area of 148 square miles. It is 65 miles (105 km) long, and 1,150 feet (350 m) deep in some regions, making it the fifth deepest in the United States. It is fed by the Clark Fork River and the Pack River, and drains via the Pend Oreille River. It is surrounded by national forests and a few small towns, with the largest population on the lake at Sandpoint. All but the southern tip of the lake is in Bonner County. The southern tip is in Kootenai County and is home to Farragut State Park, formerly the "Farragut Naval Training Station" during World War II. The forests consist of ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, Poplar, Quaking Aspen, Paper Birch and Western Larch. Local animal species include whitetail deer, elk, gray wolves, moose, squirrels, black bears, grizzly bears, coyotes and bobcats, along with bald eagles, osprey, owls, hummingbirds, hawks, woodpeckers, ducks and the mountain bluebird. The lake is a home for several species of migratory water fowl.

For more Shadow Shots take a swim over to our hostess, Tracy's blog, Hey Harriet. Happy Sahdow Shot Sunday!

Shadow Shot Sunday #125

It's pouring rain here in Idaho, so no natural shadows to shoot. Here's a prickly shot from my archives. I took this at our condo in Phoenix, where there are lots of different cacti.

For more Shadow Shots, go see Hey Harriett. Hope you are all having a good weekend.

Blessings to all who pass this way. love, Cassie

Kid In Toy Claw Machine

A post on FaceBook about a 9 year old kid (yes, 9yrs old!) who crawled into one of those toy claw machines at WalMart inspired this post. #1, are these children so hard up for toys that they need to use their contortionist skills to get a toy? And, #2, where are their parents when they get into this mischief?? Unbelievable.

Shadow Shot Sunday

These are 2 shots of some windows at our daughter & SIL's place in Seattle. I slept in their living room while there and had to get out my camera for this nifty night time shadow. The shot below is what it looked like with my flash on.

This cute little kiddo is C2's daughter M2 when she was a mere 9 year old. Her 11th birthday was Sept.27th so I thought I would share these shadow shots I took while visiting them for a gymnastics review in Tucson the beginning of 2009. It's amazing how quickly they grow up. I'm kind of M2's surrogate granny...or maybe her fun old auntie!!

For more Shadow Shots please step on over to Tracy's blog: HERE!!