Life in the Bristolwood

I had made a comment that it is difficult to take Chrsitmas light photos, as there ar few lights displayed in the woods!

Last night, as we traveled home from Canandaigua, I took the high (partially dirt) road to our house.  As we drove along, I stopped the Explorer and asked Michelle to photograph the lights our neighbor has draped in the trees in front of her home.  You really need to look hard, as it was SO dark out!!  The camera’s sensor had a bit of trouble seeing in the dark….

We also spotted some really pretty lights at the Wegman’s Organic Farm barn. It is decked out in lots of greenery and white lights.   Again, I think the little camera had a bit of trouble “seeing” in the dark, as it was very, very dark!

We made up four batches of cookies today.  Lots of work, but lots and lots of cookies!!! One batch was sugar cookies in the shape of snowmen. They need to be decorated, but I think we were all very tuckered out after making and baking all those cookies! They will wait until tomorrow!

This morning when I took the Scotties outside,  it was very dark out.  Later, at daybreak, this was what I saw as I stepped onto the front porch! Uh oh, red skies in the morning…..

We had some plans to run around this afternoon and when Cindy called to ask if Michelle could help her this afternoon, it worked out perfectly! We drove down to Naples and then headed south to Bath.

Michelle and I worked on arranging the Christmas  boxes we were sending late this morning….one of our errands was to drop the boxes off at The Family Life Ministries Center. We discovered we were actually early in dropping the boxes off, as the big national drive begins next week, but the boxes were graciously received.  For once, we were ahead of the game!

It was getting late and we were hungry. I told Mark we ought to stop by the local Chinese restaurant. We picked up a menu…

and ordered! The food was fantastic, although far too much for one meal!

I got out of the truck and walked about a bit, trying to work off some of the delicious meal! As I walked along the parking lot, I got a little reminder of home under my feet!

The rest of the photos are random shots taken here and there…..

Sorry to interrupt, but the skies were indescribable today. I kept hopping out of the truck to capture “just one more sky shot”!

It was a bit hard to begin making our way back home. It was the kind of day that one wants to go on forever. The temperatures were so mild, no jacket was even needed! It was simply an amazing day. A wonderful day!

We came home on a road we don’t often take, but there were two barns  I wanted to photograph. The first has the most incredible old silo made from wooden boards banded with metal bands.  The silo was more what caught my eye than the barn, in all honesty, although the setting was very pretty!

The second barn has the date 1876 (I think that was the date) formed from white shingles on the front of the barn. I was unable to get a photo of the date, but this barn….or whole series of buildings….is just so beautiful!  Just look at the hills in the distance, and the spectacular skies!

Well, I guess the sailors and shepherds needn’t worry about the red skies this morning.  This day was like a precious treasure, from beginning to end!

Tomorrow, we are supposed to have “widespread” thunderstorms passing through the area, and then the temperatures are going to plummet downward.  With all of our firewood neatly stored in the woodshed, we are ready for any and all temperature changes!  In the meantime, I am just so grateful for this day and the chance to spend much our time outside in the amazing weather!

This was a somewhat busy day, but much better, overall, than yesterday! I would rather avoid the hospital as much as possible!

I needed to run to the store to get some medical supplies.  As much as WalMart carries, they were missing some components we needed for Mark.  I went to  The Medicine Shoppe, but it was no longer there! It is now The Pharmacy Shop. No problem. But look at the name of the shop next door! I have never seen anything like that before….

 Since  I drove all the way to Canandaigua, I thought I might as well take a lookat TJ Maxx.  As I parked the Explorer, Icouldn’t help but notice all the pretty trees in the parking lot. They are still fully “clothed” and very colorful!

I loved the way this fellow patiently sat in the back seat, awaiting his people.  The weather was amazing today. It was so warm, I drove with the windows open, enjoying the fresh air! I think this guy loved it, too!

 Since I was going home, I had to make one more stop at the city pier…and yes, it really is on the way home. Sort of. 

Look at the nekkid tree in the foreground and note the trees in the background.  Yes, one would be hard-pressed to decipher the time of year this picture was taken! (it was taken today, of course!)

 The gulls were all lined up on the breakwall, totally enjoying the warm sunshine and gentle breezes…

 Like all good things, my little photo op medical errands run had to come to an end.  Well,  even though I had to get along home,  I could still take the scenic route home and enjoy my outing just a bit longer! (And yes, I do “milk” opportunities such as this glorious day!

This looked so much like something in a storybook, I just had to get a photo. 

Fresh air and sunshine…..what a recipe for a fantastic day!

A barn sitting atop the hill, overlooking the lake with glorious views all around! This time, brought to you in living color!

I went to bed at about 11:30 last night and was awakened at 4:00 this morning by a husband with a rumbling stomach.  After tending to him, I began cleaning here and there around the house.  It is now almost 11:00 pm, and I am still awake! (miserably tired, but so wound up after watching the Sabres win a sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat game this evening!)

Our weather was quite the talk today, with snow flurries blowing throughtout the entire day!  I fiddled around with the Nikon for a bit, playing with some of the various editing capabilities.

I have thought about “collecting” photos of old barns and churches for some time,  and I played with one of the barn photos I really like.

After trying cyan, sepia, and black and white, I settled on the sepia in a dark tone, as it just felt the best! I guess the stripe going up the center of the road and the “curve” sign are a bit contradictory to the “old-fashioned” feeling being portrayed. I could just tell everyone it is a study in contrasts!

Because of the bitter, blustery winds with driven rain and snow showers,  the birds were feeeding continuously at the feeder all day.  I have no idea what the speed was of the wind, but when I opened the door to step outside, the sound was similar to a freight train moving down the tracks!

I caught this tiny woodpecker clinging to the tree…no, my vision hasn’t gone bad, the bird was moving much faster than my camera could keep up!

The weather forecast calls for a slight accumulation of snow by tomorrow morning.  We shall see!