Wordless Wednesday: The Monastery

These are some photos from our recent trip to a nearby monastery for a fall festival, which included animals and more.

Grace(7) petting a bunny who was trying to find some shade.

Close up of the...kangaroo?  wallaby?  wallaroo?  I'm not sure.

This little guy just looked miserably hot.  Not sure what animal he is, either.

We went inside the monastery shop to look around

(and up)

and Josiah (11) found a ring he liked.

Then we walked around outside some more...

and rode on the horse-drawn carriage before leaving.

Grace's favorite part...seeing the horses!

One of our fellow passengers:  a monk with face painting

This post is linked to 5 Minutes for Mom and Sarah Halstead at The Naptime Momtog for Wordless Wednesday.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

I'm a little late in joining in with this week's scavenger hunt!  Here are my interpretations.

(All photos are SOOC [straight out of the camera] except for cropping.)

M is for...morning glories.  There are still a few blooming each day in our yard.

What you saw today:  A boy loving on our puppy.

Josiah (11) with Bono (18 mos. old).  Bono is a Bouvier des Flandres and weighs over 80 lbs.

Corner:  This one is from a couple of weeks ago, when I took a bunch of photos of a local historic church.  (Click over to see more.)

Pink:  A pink sunset over our church.

Hands:  I've said before how it's a little freaky impressive how often Grace (7) can catch butterflies with her bare hands.  She did it again last Friday...and didn't want to let her go.  She named the butterfly Angel and said she was her most favorite one.  She let little Angel go...it just took a while.  And judging by the look on her face, it was among the most difficult things she has ever had to do.

Click on the link below to see others' photographs or to join in on the fun!  

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

We've had a pretty busy extended weekend, and Scavenger Hunt Sunday gives me the opportunity to share a handful of the photos I've taken.  This week's scavenger hunt items were:

1. Something Colorful
2. Light
3. You
4. Afternoon
5. In Motion

Something Colorful

How 'bout a colorful parrot?  We saw this and other creatures at a fair held at a nearby monastery this weekend.

A parrot one could hold...for $5

Or maybe a monk with a bit of face painting...perhaps a dragon on his cheek?

Grace (7) and Josiah (11) sitting next to a monk during a carriage ride

Light

Light from the window hitting lovely pieces of stained glass and etched glass in the monastery shop.

And then there were the rustic-looking lights hanging from the ceiling of the monastery shop...

You

These are label pins that show the size and shape of a 10-week unborn baby's feet...10 weeks after conception, you had feet that were perfectly formed and approximately 1 cm long.  Amazing, isn't it?

Afternoon

We spent an hour this Sunday afternoon participating in Life Chain along the busy road in front of our church.

In Motion

Friday afternoon, as we were at the end of our homeschool group meeting, Josiah (11) showed his football-kicking skills.  (Click here to see more of my photos of this historic United Methodist church.)

Click on the link below to see others' photographs or to join in on the fun!  

Visiting

This is not a real cow peeking out of the log cabin...

but these are real cows,

and both the real and fake cows are on the way to a friend's house

where there are real chickens

and delightfully colorful eggs.

And Grace should not chase the chickens or else they will quit laying as many delightfully colorful eggs.

But Grace can hug a real cat

(which she can't do around here, because I'm, of course, allergic to them.  Jason is "allergic," too, but his is a different kind of reaction...hee hee).

Wordless Wednesday

This post is linked to 5 Minutes for Mom and Sarah Halstead at The Naptime Momtog for Wordless Wednesday.

Photographic Tour of a Local Church

Our rather informal homeschool group has been meeting at a new location, and I let my kids give me a little tour around the periphery of this historic United Methodist church last Friday since we were (gasp!) the first to arrive.  We began on the right of the front of the church and walked all the way around.

As you'll see, I love the architectural details...

Front corner

Side of church where there was a garden area

Angel statue in the garden area

Around the rear of the church

Sunburst around the rear of the church (SOOC)

Front of church

Front of church

Front corner

 I stalked a butterfly...

and so did Grace.  She caught the butterfly in her hands!  It's pretty impressive how often she can catch butterflies bare-handed.  (And, yes, she lets them go.)

Grace (7)

As a bonus shot, this is one of the "creepy" areas, according to my kids.  I edited the photo a little for effect--it's actually quite lovely with the ivy growing up the outer wall.  

This post is linked to 5 Minutes for Mom and Sarah Halstead at The Naptime Momtog for Wordless Wednesday.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

I'm joining in on Scavenger Hunt Sunday after taking a few weeks off!  This week's scavenger hunt items were

• Rule of thirds
• Made me smile
• Lines
• Alone
• Together

Rule of thirds
I love the translucency of the butterfly's wings...and love that I actually got a shot with the wings spread open.

Made me smile
This little angel statue in a local church's garden made me smile...

Lines
A dragonfly decided our clothes line would be a perfect resting spot.

(And now I get a little lazy with my interpretations...)

Alone
I was alone when I took this shot...

Together
And I went out to eat together with my husband thanks to my Secret Sister's gift for our 18th anniversary earlier this month...a gift card to Longhorn!  This was the shot I took as we arrived at the restaurant.

Click on the link below to see others' photographs or to join in on the fun!