A flower needs sunshine

I discovered an online photo editing tool called PicMonkey. It's got some great features and a fun interface ... I created the above photo/quote using one of my own pictures and a quote I found on Brainy Quotes.  The PicMonkey site is billed as a fun tool to use in creating your own photos to be added to your Pinterest Boards. So check out my Pinterest account for this one being added to my pile!

Have a beautiful day!
~Pam

My Weekend Up North

I spent the weekend in Nothern Michigan (Up North, as we like to call it). I left mid-day on Friday and got home Sunday evening. My base was Mackinaw City but I made it as far west as Harbor Springs and enjoyed
a color tour through the Tunnel of Trees along M119 and down to Rogers City to visit an apple orchard on the way home. I shot over 1000 pictures and of all of them, this is about the only one of me (I nabbed another tourist to snap a shot of me).

For those who don't recognize it -- that's the mighty Mackinaw Bridge behind me. The five mile span that connects Lower Michigan with the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

I've got a few sets of photos - with stories - that I want to share with you over the next several days. There are some spectacular shots of the beatiful autumn colors and some fun pictures of pig races, a goose with an evil eye and even a few food photos (and maybe even an attempt as recreating a recipe or two).

Every time I come home from a weekend of exploring, I'm reminded of just how beautiful Michigan really is. I love that I live in such an amazing place.

~Pam

Reality Check

I've been going through my photos from the past couple years to pick out some of my favorites. I came across this one that was taken about 2 months before my WLS. It's definitely a reality check to realize how far I've come...

Just me ... knitting

The family gathered at my cousin Lisa's house for Thanksgiving. After dinner I found a quiet place on the sofa and started a new knitting project (felted bag). Look at me sitting Indian style. And that's a new shirt from my friend Geri's closet and my super cute Goodwill $3 jeans.

Just thought it was a fun picture to share with ya'll.

~Pam

Photowalking

One of the amazing things about losting 113 pounds is that I have the ability to walk for long periods of time without getting tired or worn out. Saturday's walk wasn't really very grueling or long and didn't really cover that many miles -- but I'm still so thankful that I have the ability to keep up with the crowd. I was part of the Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk this past Saturday. I was just one of over 30,000 photographers in 900 cities all over the world who walked around their own city to take photographs of everyday life. It is amazing to be a part of something so huge. Our group had about 35 photographer ranging from hobbyists like myself to professional photographers. In our group there were pocket point-and-shoot cameras, iPhone cameras, mid-range DSLRs and high end rigs that cost more than I'd like to think about. Here's a link to my top 26 picks from the day. I took over 240 photos, these are my favorites. I need to choose my best two photos to submit to our group's pool. (Votes welcomed!) Then the leader will pick the best from our city and submit that one photo on to be judged on a worldwide scale. There are some pretty amazing prizes. Although I'm happy with how my photos turned out, I have no illusion that I'll be the top pick from 30,000 other photographers - but it's nice to dream, right? Here are some of my favorites. Spent Allium Rusty Fire Hydrant Vintage Window Display Bay City's Riverfront Blue Rust

Latest Pic

My friend Kelly got a new iPhone. I was the first person she took a picture of on Thursday last week. Definitely a bad hair day and feeling like I have dark circles under my eyes. And someone ought to clean off my desk. But otherwise, not a bad shot, huh?

Photog Weekend

Finally!  I spent the weekend with my camera.  I just never have enough time -- or maybe I don't actually TAKE enough time -- to get out and just relax and take pictures.  It felt good.  

Saturday I headed to Midland to Dow Gardens where they had the butterfly exhibit in the conservatory.  So surrounded by a million kids, I made my way through the crowd to find so many beautiful butterflies and flowers.  

Sunday I met a few new friends in a Meetup.com group for a photowalking event at Sloan Museum in Flint.  It was my first experience doing a group photography event like this, but it was pretty cool, actually.  I'm looking forward to more meetings with this group to do more photowalking days. 

Here's a few of my favorites from the weekend.

If you'd like to see more... here's the links:

Saturday's Favorites

Sunday's Favorites

~Pam

A year in pictures

I finally got around to putting together my 1 year of face pictures. The transformation is pretty amazing when you see it all in one place like this, huh? EDITED TO ADD -- I just realized this is my 300th post! Kind of cool that it ended up being this photo collage, huh?

The 365 Project

A few days after surgery I started the Face Project.  I took a picture of my face every day for the first year after surgery just so I could watch the transformation.  I missed some days, but did pretty good overall with remembering to take pictures every day.  And yes... you'll notice I didn't edit myself.  You're getting the good pictures and the bad ones.  And some are really bad... so just close your eyes while those ones are up.

I was so fat!

Before my surgery I knew I was overweight.... ok, obese.  But when I looked in the mirror I don't believe I truly saw how fat I really was.  It's like my brain blocked the image or something. 

Yesterday I was trying to organize the photos on my hard drive (they are a serious mess!) and came across this photo.  It was taken 6 months before my surgery on Mother's Day after we'd taken my mom out to lunch.  I obviously wasn't thrilled to be having my picture taken. 

I'm sad to see this picture.  And a little bit disgusted with myself for looking like this.  That turquoise blouse is one I used to wear all the time, it was a favorite.  

I guess seeing pictures of myself before surgery is a good reminder of how far I've come.  And reminds me of the place I never want to return.  I know that weight regain is a definite possibility after WLS if I do not make the necessary lifestyle changes to keep the weight off .... so I never want to forget how I looked and how I felt when I was obese.  Even if these pictures make me disgusted, I'll continue to look at them to make sure I don't get lax with following the rules.

~Pam

My new favorite self portrait

This was taken with my camera phone a few weeks ago while I was out walking. As you can see, it was a beautiful, clear, sunny day. Love that I'm all in shadow -- just the image of me walking along doing my thing.

Hurley Bariatric Ball 2008

Tonight was the Hurley Bariatric Ball that my surgeon's office puts on for their patients once a year. It was a good time! Thought I'd post a picture my mom took of me tonight.

A Photo Update - 62 pounds lost!