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Winter Wonderland 2018

There is no doubt about it, we are experiencing a winter wonderland in Hickory, NC right now! To be located in the city limits, my street is normally very busy. I think I have only seen a small handful of vehicles drive by my house. My husband has been home all day. His boss doesn't want to risk the flatbed trucks getting damaged in severe weather. After all, they are very expensive trucks! He has been laying around most of the day. (Which, he needs the extra rest) Ticia and I worked on her homeschool assignments. After she was finished, she went outside. I played Betty Homemaker and fixed ham & turkey sliders for lunch and now I'm cooking chicken to go into chicken quesadillas for dinner. I did manage to go out for a few minutes to take some pictures of the snow. I destroyed my boots several years ago. So, today I wore my husband's big size 11's outside to take Sassy to go potty and snap some photos to share. :) Also, please remember that these are NOT professional grade photos. They are just snaps from my SLR that I'm sharing. Enjoy!

My dog, Riley. He's supposed to be a German Shepherd. I call him my mutt. When he's bad, I call him asshole. Ha! He's bad a lot. 

Normally, Riley is scared of EVERYTHING! Cars, rain, loud noises, thunder, the air that comes out of his butt when he tootie-hoots. However, he loves snow! He's actually whining now wanting to go back out and play in it and I won't let him. I love this photo of him. He's got a face that only a mother can love! LOL

I should have had my cell phone out instead. He went running down the driveway and got into the road. When he got in the road, he started sliding...which scared him and he came running back up to his mommy. 

It was fun watching him run and play in the snow. At the time of taking these photos, my daughter was in the hallway in shorts and a tank top roller skating. 

The snow on the azaleas in front of my house. The aperture makes this a pretty photo. 

My patio is covered in snow. My fire pit that we have only used like twice. I get lots of use out of my grill. I hate cooking indoors but, I love to grill. The house behind our storage building is the house that I grew up in. The new owners have been working on it little by little for the past year. It's coming along nicely!

The snow beaten trees and our ghost town of chicken coups. The faint pink sky in the background is pretty though. 

The Hickory tower. This is like a street or two over from my house. 

Poor Sassy wasn't having it! She's my ten year old German Purebred Rottweiler. She stands like this every time we are outside, watching everything around us. Not sure if she's supposed to be my protector or if I'm supposed to be hers...maybe a little bit of both. :)

I hope you liked my photos. Until next time! ~Cheri

An Evening on the Parkway

Last Friday, my little girl and I grabbed our cameras, jumped in the car, and took off for an adventure.  We do that sometimes. We don't tell anyone where we are going, other than we are going to take some photos and we just go! That's our way of spending much needed quality time with each other. During the week, life is so hectic with me homeschooling her, babysitting my grandson for my oldest daughter while she works, laundry, taking care of the house, grocery shopping, cooking dinner, and trying to get everyone in bed by 9 or 10 so we can do it all again the next day. I feel that I am spreading myself so thin Monday through Thursday that I feel guilty if I don't devote some extra time just to spend with Ticia to take photos and talk about anything and everything that crosses her mind. (Which is mainly anime and music!)

Ticia is nine years old. She's a tall, lanky, little thing with a huge personality! Her hair is dark like mine but, she has huge, bright, blue eyes. To be nine years old, she's very artistic. She loves to draw, paint, and do photography. The more photos she takes the better she gets. Her art is still very raw and she rarely listens to me when I tell her in areas she can approve but, as long as it is something she loves doing, how can I argue too much? Tim, my mom, her sisters, and her brother would say she gets her attitude from me. Maybe to some degree but, I think she has a personality of her own. I just influenced her gracefully! :) This sunset shot with the strong gold over tones is her photo. I kept gloating about it, telling her that I still can't get a shot with that much color naturally. She would giggle and ask if she was doing good. "Yes, my baby, you are!," I would reply.

I posted my favorite shot below that I had taken. I'm hoping this weekend to head out if it isn't too cold and take some more photos. The last several times I have shot, I have gone to Asheville. I absolutely love that city! In my opinion, it's very artsy. It's very easy for me to navigate through compared to Charlotte or Raleigh. Don't get me wrong; if I sink into my driving zone and not pay attention to where I'm going, I will get lost driving through Asheville. Thank goodness for my iPhone and Siri! Normally, if I'm not driving in Catawba, Burke, or Caldwell counties, I do always use navigation. Another artsy town I love shooting in is Morganton. I am Burke County born and bred...well, I was born there but, moved to Catawba County when I was ten years old. I love history and incase you were not aware, Burke County is loaded with history! Over the years though, Morganton has developed into an artsy town, kinda like a mini Asheville, without the cool murals and amazing factory outlet shops. (haha!) If you haven't been to Morganton lately, I urge you to visit. Try to go during the week and visit the museum or the old Burke County Courthouse. Those are two of my favorite places!

Until next time! ~Cheri