Fungus

It's a spooky kind of day...and this fungus is pretty scary-looking. Artistic... but scary!

Pumpkin Festival

Visited a nearby Pumpkin Festival this evening. There were THOUSANDS of carved pumpkins. Some looked alike, but many were quite individual. Quite a sight!

Waning Moon

"Mom, I think you're getting just a little carried away with the moon!" These were the words of my daughter this morning upon seeing my latest moon shot, captured early this morning before school. I'm afraid it's another phase (no pun intended) much like my spring flowers and fall leaves. This one shows features in a new light. Sorry- I still find it fascinating, and hope my viewers do too.

Fall Rain Gauge

A big rain storm blew through last night, leaving "ye olde" CoCoRaHS rain gauge full and drenched this morning. The beautiful maples made a pretty background for the gauge cover.

Dollar Bill

Although this is my 292nd post, this is day#300 of the year. I never thought I'd make it this far! If only this bill just had a few more zeros on it!

A Little Light Reading???

Ordered two new professional resources last week that arrived on my doorstep today. Both target struggling readers. I'm excited to dig in- hoping for some new tricks to add to the bag!

Stained Glass Window

I love the artistry involved in stained glass windows. I particularly love the way they diffuse light. This shot of a window in a local church doesn't do it justice, but I was equally impressed with the workmanship on the outside, so decided to share it.

Got Mistakes?

I've got the solution!

Boo!

I shot the pumpkin lights from 2 weeks ago during the day. The sun almost makes it look lit up! Oh ya, and I went back for a do-over on the moon. Shot it at a much faster shutter speed. I'm much happier with take #2!

Full Moon

My daughter and I drove to an open field in town to get this shot. Little did I realize just how bright (photographically speaking) this moon would be! If I were to do it over again, I'd use a higher shutter speed. My students were showing some "lunar effects" today. Glad that this will be somewhat behind us before Halloween arrives next weekend!

Practice

I went out yesterday and purchased one of these colorful, spiral-bound index card holders for each of my 2nd graders, on which to write high-frequency words for them to study. The thought behind it is that they can practice with an ed. tech., parent, or high school volunteer. Every time they read the word pretty much automatically, we add a sticker to the card. Once they get 10 stickers on a card, they get to rip it out and take it home. Second graders LOVE stickers! I hope it will be motivating. And people wonder how teachers can possibly use so much of their own money in the classroom? If it gets the job done...

Fading With Fall

Caught this bee on my aster this afternoon. We had our first frost last night, and this little guy was moving so slowly. Sadly, he and the aster will soon be fading with the advance of fall.

Gravestone Art

So I realize some of you will find this post just plain creepy! This decorative arch was made from a gravestone rubbing. I bought it at a regional genealogical conferences last year from a vendor who creates decorative, sculpted artwork from the beautiful (yet possibly creepy) images carved on old gravestones. This image was found on the headstone of a small child who passed away during the 1700's. The skull is a little spooky-looking, but the wings symbolize the little girl's "flight" up to heaven. Hey... Halloween's just around the corner!

Marvelous Maples

I hope people aren't tiring of fall leaf shots. They will only be around for so long, you know!

Subaru Love

Almost two months with the new car. Yes, the commercials are right- it's Subaru love!

Portrait Experiment

Just experimenting with an off-beat portrait. Not sure if I like how it came out or not.

Moroccan Plate

About 15 years ago my parents were trying to start a business where they imported items from Morocco, and then sold them here. The business never really took off, but items still remain as a reminder of this business venture, including this small, metal Moroccan plate that adorns our dining room hutch.

Moon's Made Of...

Okay, so I might be getting a little obsessed with improving my moon shots. This was done with the new zoom lens, cropped to accentuate the details. The craters on the lower left edge kind of remind me of- yes- cheese!

Crescent

Okay, so this is actually a slight "cheat" shot, taken last evening after already posting for the day. Decided to save it for today- the first moon shot with my new zoom lens. Not perfect...but getting better!

College Visit #2

We visited a college in Massachusetts today as a possible fit for our son next year. The campus had a blend of new energy-efficient buildings, as well as many older buildings with beautiful architecture. Next visit(s) to come in November!

Burning Bush Berries

Noticed these bright red berries on my burning bushes today! Love the red-green contrast!

Spooky Lighting

I hung some new pumpkin lights from the deck railing today to get into the Halloween spirit. Gave me an excuse to experiment with some night shots. Boo!

Wet Deck

Some showers overnight left our deck (recently painted this summer) showing the reflection of the balusters, and somewhat littered with leaves.

Thursday Night Lights

My daughter had a nighttime field hockey game tonight. Took this shot at twilight. Couldn't quite figure out the mysterious reflection on the left, although it almost looks a little ghostly!

Spare Change

Lots of bills last month = little but spare change this month. Good thing payday is on the horizon!

Fall Perennial

I planted this perennial many years ago. It is routinely the last of my perennials to bloom. I probably should remember what it is... but I don't. Very tall stalks on it. Love the colors!

Leaves Ablaze

Scoped out this beautiful maple tree on the way home from school today. It's located near the town fire department. Good thing since it looks like the leaves are literally ablaze!

College Visit Weekend

So it's been a few days since my last post. Hopefully these 6 photos will make up for the lack of daily offerings! This weekend we drove to upstate New York to check out a college with my son. Along the drive we encountered an entire ridge of over 200 wind turbines! This is a very small portion of what we saw- just staggering!

Then there were the copious amounts of Canadian geese flocking in several open areas. (By the way, that's Quebec in the not-too-distant background.)

Then this morning we awoke in the Lake Placid area to some beautiful scenes poking through the morning fog...

...the above here is my favorite...

...and this is a calming scene as well...

...finishing up with a view of Whiteface, home of the 1980 Olympic ski jumping. Tonight we're all back at home, and enjoyed learning about a college many hours away, but are thankful to be home just the same!