What goes around....comes around!

So to be perfectly honest yesterday was not one of my best days...
I was emotional, selfish, and just generally struggling with the voices in my head...

I so wish I were a different person some days...

Life has been busy helping out mom in law and juggling home stuff.

Yesterday when I was home between PT exercises with Mom in law I noticed a car parked in the grass of our front yard.

Directly across the stree from our home is a home that has sat abandoned for a year and a half. Lately there has been a flurry of activity...so we figured the bank was finally ready to put it back on the market. This house has a massive pull through driveway - I point this out because yesterday a realator decided to park in my front yard instead of the massive driveway of the house he was checking out...

I have no problem when we park on the grass or when friends come over and park on the grass...I really don't...however I think it is really rude for a complete stranger to decide its ok to park on my lawn...Does that make me unreasonable? (wouldn't be the first time)

So I decided to go out and politely ask him to not park in our lawn...
Which I did - I smiled and said "Hi! I would appreciate it if you wouldn't park on our lawn, if you need a place to park you are welcome to park in our driveway"  He had his laptop out and was on the speaker phone...he responded by saying "I tick people off no matter what I do" - Being taken back with his response to my very reasonable request I replied "I'm not ticked off I'm asking you nicely" he had begun to pull off and I heard the person on the phone ask what was happening to which he replied "oh someone is mad because I was barely on some of their grass" - I went back home thinking "what an ass!"

10 min later he knocked on my door and apologized and told me about what was happening with the house across the street...

Hours later I noticed the conditions looked good for a possible sunset photo...
I grabbed my camera and headed west into Ridgefield.  Jeff and I ride by some rasperry fields with some massive oak trees on the edge and I was hoping to get a shot of them in the evening light.

It is a challenge taking pictures because there isn't always a place to park and sometimes it on someones private property...


I found a place to pull off and I noticed the private property signs and while I was so tempted to walk past them I did not. I deliberatly stayed behind them as I shot.  However Miss SUV was not amused when she drove by and told me to get off of her property...she said "our property our trees, I'm tired of people using them"  Ok - can't argue with that...

I guess what goes around really does come around...

Frychik

Summer?

So this summer hasn't been very "summery" at this point...

It has been filled with relatives moving and having surgery...

It has been filled with rain drops and occasional days of sun...

It has been filled with trying to think of things for my boys to do so they have a reason to get out of bed before noon...

It has not been filled with work for the boys (as we had thought)

It has not been filled with trips to the lake...
Suntans...
Trips to the beach...

My garden is growing slowly...
It needs heat - we all do.

I'm thrilled that my family has moved closer...
I am thrilled that my mother-in-law is on the road to a much improved quality of life with a new knee.
I'm thrilled that its summer...

Some things to be greatful for

1. An observant 14 year old and the quick thinking of my man.  On Father's Day we decided to "fire up" the bbq - it literally caught on fire on the back deck while we were all in the house - Ty happend by the kitchen window and in his causual way said "um the bbq is on fire" my husband rushed out and was able to get the propane turned off - all the while I stood in the kitchen frozen...a mixture of gratitude that we didn't need the firemen and just a tad disapointed... ;p

2. I'm greatful that of the 3 "mini" fires we have had around here none of them have gotten out of control!

3. I'm thankful that I made my first sale on shellyfryphotography.smugmug.com - I can't tell you what a thrill it was to get that notification :) - Help me out friends and share my address on your FB accounts. I appreciate it!


4.  I'm thankful for a healthy strong body.  Watching someone struggle to recover from surgery is a humbling experience.  Its so easy to take the task of getting out of bed or going to the bathroom for granted! Take care of yourselves people!  Having said that I have been impressed by the resolve and strength my Mom in law shows in her determination to "get her life back"

5.  I'm thankful for my family and friends - Hugs!


Frychik

FLS - Heaven is Here

Last night was book club night :)

Over a month ago Melissa revealed this book -

I ripped through the book. I was inspired and awed at Stephanie Nielson's strength and courage in the face of unimaginable pain (physical and emotional).

Now after waiting weeks and weeks it was FINALLY time for FLS to meet again :)

"Juanita" was the hostess with the mostest! Opening her lovely home and providing yummy food to go along with all our laughing, talking and (at times) inappropriateness :)

 



I brought my tripod along to get a group picture.  We always have pictures of the 9 of us with someone switching out to take the picture.  I was excited about this.  So excited that I forgot to check the settings on my new wide angle lens...it appears the auto focus was off :(

However, even thought they are blurry I have to show them and explain...

Suzanne needed a little extra encouragement to get just the right smile on her face so Melissa's sweet dog helped her out :)

If you notice in this picture as in all pictures I take with girlfriends I am the tallest, usually by a head or more.  I hate this when taking pictures and it is well known within our FLS group. 

After this picture I told them they all had to stand up straight! NO SLOUCHING!

Tanna decided to conspire against me and whispered that they should all crouch down, resulting in -

Tanna happens to whisper loudly and I'm very observant so in my hurry to get from behind the camera and in the line up and crouch down with them Jenny sat on me and I fell over completely...

It cracks me up to look at this picture and see how the left side looks so well behaved while the right side...not so much!

So sadly the group shots are no good.  But happily we have next month to try again...

 After Karis faked us out with "Fifty Shades of Grey" to which Suzanne and I were both traumatized by she pulled out the REAL next book choice...

Looking forward to next month!


Frychik

Announcing...

I'm VERY excited to announce

http://www.shellyfryphotography.smugmug.com/

Those of you who have told me I should do this are to blame :)
Its awkward to put yourself out there and say "look at me"
But its amazing to do something you love to do and get positive feedback.

So I'm taking the plunge and I've signed up with Smug Mug.  They are awesome because they handle all the business, printing, shipping which would just overwhelm my little brain.  All I have to do is keep the pictures coming.

I would love it if you would check the site out and give me some feedback (pictures I have chosen, prices anything would be welcome)  I believe you can comment from the site or here would be fine.  I have also posted a link on my FB page.

I will be adding more galleries but it is time consuming to go through all my pics and decide what to put up etc...So keep checking back because it will be updated.

One of the toughest parts of this business will be the marketing.  So if your willing to help I would appreciate posts of my links on your fb pages to help spread the word.  I believe while your in smug mug you can also "like" or "share" certain pictures.  THANK YOU!


Thank you very much for the encouragement as I continue to learn and grow.

Frychik

Father's Day

I hope you had a lovely Father's Day -
We did :)

 We had a lovely Brunch at Mom and Rod's new home

 The girls working on their Father's Day surprises..

 The Family...

 All the grand kids

 The Ritz Family

 Mom and Rod with all their kids - except Hans who is in Germany

 Photo taken by miss Paige future photog :)

Hamming for the Camera :)

Givin Nana some love :)

3 Ps  :)



Frychik

Playing with the Big Boys

Josh has joined an outdoor soccer team of men...
I realize he is a "man" but he is still my kid and these dudes play rough!

Last week he came home bruised and battered so I figured I would go watch this week...

Apparently word was out that "momma" was there because the game was slow...
Josh's team dominated from beginning to end and he rarely touched the ball

 He was excited about his new keeper outfit uniform.  It matches the porta potties nicely :)

He did manage to get a knee to the thigh so he limped home anyway...
I beat the guy up in the parking lot after the game...

Frychik

Dreams Come True

Tyler is spending a week in Ohio...a State that has eluded me...he thinks its great that he is in a State his Mom hasn't been to.
He worked hard and saved up his pennies for a plane ticket and our wonderful friends the Drakes offered to take the kid on his dream trip - Cedar Point and Kings Island amusement parks.  Yesterday he finally made it to Cedar Point and from what I can tell from his text messages it was

A W E S O M E!!!!!!!!

Look at that face!
Could he be any happier?

I'm so glad he is getting to do something he wanted to do so badly...
I'm thankful for technology that allows me to see pictures of him doing it...

Front Row! I think he should be wearing goggles for eye protection... :p

I've been told today is a rest and recovery day...
Because Thursday they are headed to Kings Island for another day of roller coaster riding...

Glad he's having fun but I miss the kid!

Frychik

Doctor's Orders

Less Exercise and Gain Weight...

Seriously!

To be clear the Dr. did not suggest weight gain because I'm sooo skinny....not remotely...because I'm not soooo skinny.

For years and years my ear has bothered me....then it bothered me less and I didn't even realize it...until I lost weight last summer...then it was back with a a vengeance and I thought "that's weird, surely the two are not connected?!" 

Turns out they are...

Yesterday I went to an ENT and was diagnosed with -

Patulous Eustachian tube, also known as patent Eustachian tube, is the name of a rare physical disorder where


the Eustachian tube, which is normally closed, instead stays intermittently open. When this occurs, the patient experiences autophony, the hearing of self-generated sounds. These sounds, such as one's own breathing, voice, and heartbeat, vibrate directly onto the ear drum and can create a "bucket on the head" effect.

Patulous Eustachian tube is a physical disorder. The exact causes may vary depending on the person. Weight loss is a commonly cited cause of the disorder due to the nature of the Eustachian tube itself. Fatty tissues hold the tube closed most of the time in healthy individuals. When circumstances cause overall body fat to diminish, the tissue surrounding the Eustachian tube shrinks and this function is disrupted.

Activities and substances which dehydrate the body have the same effect and are also possible causes of patulous Eustachian tube. Examples are stimulants (including caffeine) and exercise. Exercise may have a more short-term effect than caffeine or weight loss in this regard.






This is so annoying especially when I am teaching and exercising but also just when I'm having a normal conversation...

And of course because it is rare it is difficult to treat - the best way is to literally gain weight.  The Dr. explained to me that most Americans have the opposite problem because of being overweight.

Frustrating...

Dr. is doing more research and is to call me back this week.  There is one procedure but it could result in worse conditions...so encouraging :(

It is nice to know exactly what it is and that I'm not crazy.

It does help explain a few things about me...I HATE blowing my nose because it HURTS...I now understand it is because my middle ear is already filled with air and the extra pressure of the nose blow causes pain.

On the bright side...I asked him about SCUBA diving as Jeff and I plan to get certified in the next year to prep for our 25th anniversary trip.  He said my "rare" condition will actually help in that area...

Oh yea! Maybe I will hang up my teaching hat and become an underwater photographer...

Frychik

An Afternoon in PDX

Saturday afternoon Jeff and I found ourselves alone...
Something that is happening more and more as our kids grow older and discover there is a world away from us...

Our youngest had been delivered to the airport at 4:00 AM! And was safely in Ohio...
Our oldest said no thanks I'll take a nap...

I had my camera and Jeff and I decided to venture downtown to visit the weirdness that always comes out in full force when Rose Festival is in town...

I haven't got the courage to point my camera at PDXs most interesting characters but this is what I did shoot...

 They had some of the floats parked down there.  This one, for Alaska Airlines was my favorite!

 I have learned that all the "real" photographers shoot with their tripods all the time...So in my effort to become a "real" photographer I walked around with my tripod, which I find cumbersome, heavy (collar bone is bruised!) and doesn't go with my flow...but I figure practice will help.  Plus it was fun to use the timer and take this picture :)

 Well, hello...thank you for serving our country...

 Black and White?  I'm never sure if I like it or not...

Times have changed my friends...I remember when I was a girl coming down to Rose Festival the river would be full of boaters getting close to the Navy ships...not anymore...they have the Coast Guard with guns ready patrolling the river, very few leisure boats went by and when they did they were escorted...

 I have never been afraid of Portland...but I am smart about it and I know which areas to avoid and I know how to behave when in a section that I don't exactly fit into...These things are much more difficult to accomplish when you are walking around with a tripod and an expensive camera attached to the top of it...  As Jeff and I were taking pictures of the train station someone drove up from behind us (our back to the street) and asked what we were doing...as I turned to look at him he looked normal enough...I notice he was wearing a Providence scrub shirt, my first thought was he was asking for directions...when we told him taking pictures he just paused and stared at us and then asked "are you gonna go by train?" Not sure where this was going I asked him what he was doing to which he replied "driving around talking to f*%#%s like you...and raced off...as he drove away we noticed tree branches dragging under his car and something hanging from the drivers side window... ummm OK

So then we switched things up and headed up to Council Crest but were quickly bored and went out to eat at a yummy Thai restaurant and then ventured back down to take some night shots...

So - In photography news I am moving forward and trying to set up a professional website...which means I need a professional name...I don't think Frychik will cut it in the real world.

Shelly Fry Photography is all I got at this point...

I would love to hear any suggestions you may have.

Frychik