Happy Thanksgiving to my family, friends, loved ones, and loyal readers. If you are reading this, thank you. I am grateful for your presence in my life. I believe every person is placed in my path for a reason… for me to learn from, for me to love. I have a lot to be grateful for and won’t indulge in listing my reasons… just know that I recognize my incredible blessings and don’t take them for granted. I usually try to focus on the positive and have found myself in a bit of a funk for the last several weeks. It’s been a tough fall, no lying, but today I choose to focus on this moment… and this moment is filled with love.
Day 324 ~ Flowers As Art
Saturday, November 19th, 2016
When my aunt and her husband heard of my knee injury, they sent me the most beautiful arrangement of flowers. The florist at Blumen-Meisters is an artist. Truly. She creates the most elaborate and visually stunning arrangements I’ve ever seen. Look at the movement she created with the swirls in the branches. The snapdragons, mums, carnations, tulips, roses, and hydrangeas all work together perfectly. Love.
Nikon D750 | 35mm | f/2.8 | 1/125 | ISO 500
Day 326 ~ New Brace
Monday, November 21st, 2016
Having been stuck in the full leg brace from Tuesday through Monday, I was anxious to meet with the orthopedic surgeon about my knee injury. My knee was still so swollen that I couldn’t bend it at all and I was still in a lot of pain. I found out on Friday that the MRI showed a tear in the tendon connecting my patella to my tibia. Usually this injury is treated surgically and my fear was that instead of repairing this injury, the recommendation would be to just go ahead and do the knee replacement which needs to happen at some point. The ortho said that I probably wouldn’t have a very good outcome with a surgical repair. He put me in a new, much smaller, brace that has a u-shaped rubber insert. This brace is kind of like having orthodontic braces. The rubber insert gently pushes my kneecap back in place while keeping everything stable. I need PT 3x/week for 3 months; that starts next week. Right this minute, I’m supposed to be in Ohio celebrating Thanksgiving with my husband’s family. I’m trying to let go of being angry, but this was preventable and was the direct result of someone else’s poor decision. I’m slowly gaining the ability to bend the knee and I’m hopeful I will be able to rehab it back to full functionality. But no treadmill or elliptical for me for months to come, and I have to use the walker for at least a couple of weeks. It’s hard to not be a little sad about that.
Nikon D750 | 35mm | f/2.5 | 1/125 | ISO 1000
Day 329 ~ Thankful
Thursday, November 24th, 2016
As you can imagine, I didn’t feel much like shooting this week. Today I decided to change my attitude. I took my walker and my macro out back mid-day to enjoy the sunshine. This beautiful lone yellow mum is in bloom in a pot on my mom’s back patio. Yellow is the color of happiness and optimism and gratitude.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/5.6 | 1/320| ISO 500
Day 329 ~ Intimate Folds
Thursday, November 24th, 2016
This potted succulent was just hiding in the shadows. The sunlight kissed the tips of its petals. The folds of light and dark looked so intimate. Succulents are sexy.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/8 | 1/500| ISO 500
Day 329 ~ Alien Landscape
Thursday, November 24th, 2016
There were oodles of these creepy bugs on our fire bush. I don’t know what it is (anyone know?) but I love how its round eye and stalky legs mimic the fire bush buds and stems.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/13 | 1/500| ISO 500
Day 329 ~ Bright Sunshiny Day
Thursday, November 24th, 2016
The Clouded Yellow butterflies are still at work. I love the primary colors here… the deep blue sky, the red blossoms of the fire bush complemented by the green leaves, and the bright yellow butterfly. So pretty.
Nikon D750 | 105mm | f/13 | 1/500| ISO 500
Thanks for looking. Happy Thanksgiving, y’all.
