Day 212

Emily - What amazing colours the sky is painted with every night.










Jeanine - "View From The Bow"

We swabbed the decks today...inside and out. We had lots of help from Emily and Heather and Ian's parents.  Still lots to do on her, but we're getting there.  Looking forward to some trips up the Bruce Peninsula before the summer is over.

Day 211

Emily - Look at that ginormous wave! I love the boat and I love sailing on the water.












Jeanine - "Hope Floats"

The new boat.  Well...new to us!

Day 210

Emily - To kick off the trailer weekend, Heather and I   trashed the yard of the trailer to scare Ian and my mom when they got back from a boat show. Hheheeh I love how Heathers leg is in the shot.








Jeanine - "Chadder the Chipmunk"

Our resident chipmunk at home.  Named by Emily and Heather.  He has been busy storing food for the winter already.  We've been helping by providing peanuts.

Day 209

Jeanine - "Worker Bee"

I went outside this evening to take some shots of the Rose of Sharon bush that is in full bloom in the back yard.  When I got there I realized it was covered in bees...that wouldn't stay still and pose for my shots.  This was the best of the lot.

Day 208

Emily - Look how good it looks! Sorry if I sound arrogant but I'm very very proud of this photo and all that I learned at my photo workshop today with this guy who's a professional photographer.










Jeanine - "Bluewater Bridge"

Whenever I have a trial in Sarnia, Ontario, I inevitably spend the lunch hour down by the water under the Bluewater Bridge that links Canada to Port Huron, Michigan.  I visit my favourite chip truck for fries, defend them from the seagulls, and sit and watch the boats go by and the teens ride the current.  My love of doing that goes back to summers spent camping in Holland, Michigan with my family and watching the boats traverse the channel there (minus the fries).  I love being by the water.  I hope to retire by the water.  For now, I am content to spend the odd lunch by the water.

Day 207

Emily - The most exciting thing there was to photograph today was the actors getting their fittings for costumes. Now that i'm taking about 400 photos a day, it's getting really hard at picking a photo.
















Jeanine - "Untitled"

Not feeling very creative tonight...no photo at 10 pm...but Em is so pumped about her photography gig at the Grand Theatre.  Here she is laying on the couch tonight going through her shots from the day.  So neat to see her progress this year.

Day 206

Emily  - Don't they look real? Eww! So I started my photography job at The Grand Theatre today and I went into the costume room and saw the feet that were used in their most recent play, The Hobbit. Every time I looked over they kept freaking me out because they look so real.

Jeanine - "The Hunger Games"

I'm addicted.  The Hunger Games is one of Em's all-time favourite books.  Ever since my book club read another teen book - Divergent - Em has been after me to read this trilogy.  So - I downloaded the books to my ipod and started listening this weekend.  I'm hooked.  Started book two today.  The movie of the first book comes out March 23, 2012.

Day 205

Emily - These are a few of my favourite things... I love that song, I also love these shoes, they are my favourite. Colourful, comfortable gladiators.







Jeanine - "Create"

I spent some time creating this weekend.  Painting,  drawing and learning to add textures to photographs in Photoshop Elements 9.0.  This shot of my watercolour brushes is an example of added texture and text.  I get the textures from Kim Klassen's Cafe on line.  She is a canadian photographer who creates the textures and distributes them online.  She also teaches excellent on-line classes about Photoshop.  What fun!!

Day 204

Emily - This is my friend Sarah, one thing about her is that she never just smiles for the camera, she always has to make a goofy face. Well I finally got a good picture of her, YES!









Jeanine - "Remember"

I finally finished my fourth and final collage project...using a grid pattern.  It is long overdue.  It reminds me to remember the past...and to be thankful for it and my memories.  It forms part of the crazy patchwork quilt of my life.

Day 203

Emily - Goodbye camp! Goodbye drama! Over the last three weeks I haven't just been counselling I've also helped teach drama. Aren't these kids just so dramatic with their diplomas?










Jeanine - "Camp Staff"

I couldn't wait to pick up Em at camp today.  She loved being a counsellor.  Here she sits at the back of our car with another counsellor - her BFF Heather (also the faithful comment contributor to the blog).  They are all packed up and ready to go...although not really wanting to leave.  Remember camp?  Ah summer!!!!!  She has a lot of catching up to do on the blog now that she's home.  ha!

Day 202

Emily - So today was the hottest day of the year and actually broke records for being the hottest day EVER! Whoa boy! In fact, no other place in the world was hotter except Mumbai. We're the closest country to the arctic and yet places near the equator were colder then us.... it doesn't make sense. Anyways I just find this picture ironic because it's the hottest day ever yet two girls are running in pants.







Jeanine - "Heat Wave!"

This one speaks for itself!  New record temps.  Humidex over 40!!  Stay cool!!

Day 201

Emily - Fcc's tree of life. Ya know the tree of life at Walt Disney World, this tree reminds me of it so much its insane. It's really a beautiful spot because underneath is a beautiful river.
















Jeanine - "35 Degrees Celsius"

So hot!  No rain!  Wilting flowers.  Dying grass.  Hope Em is surviving this heat at camp this week!!!

Day 200 !!!!!!

Emily - Oh the mini trees at camp. This year as a project for camp they planted trees everywhere. The only problem is you can barely call them trees, they're more like sticks and leaves glued together. One of them was even ran over by a car in the field . HAHAHA















Jeanine - "Day 200!"

Wow! 200 photographs posted on the blog.  Thousands of photographs taken.  I wanted to mark this special day in some way - so I counted out 200 pennies and here they are!  Trust me!

Day 199

Emily - Welcome to G4, my last week :( I'm very excited though. I can't wait to see what this week holds.










Jeanine - "It Never Rains but it Pours"

It poured rain last night while we slept...much needed rain.  This morning the awning was hanging heavy with the weight of all that water.  When Ian got rid of it...it kept coming and coming and coming.  I couldn't believe how much water was up there.  Made for a cool shot though.  Ian's idea.

Day 198

Emily - Back to camp. So long camera, I will miss thee :(











Jeanine - "Between a Rock and a Hard Place"

We went for a walk along the beach in the cool of the evening.  The beach was all but deserted after a hot weekend that saw it packed every afternoon.  We sat on some rocks for awhile and Ian spotted these flowers/weeds growing among the rocks.  Amazing what can grow between a rock and a hard place. 

Day 197

Jeanine - "Blade of Grass"

Ah Summer!  Sun...Sand...flip flops...and running barefoot in the grass.  It has been so hot and sunny for the last two weeks that Ian had to water the grass at the trailer today.  I took this shot when he finished.  Love that Macro lens!!

Day 196

Emily - "One Big Happy Family"

Although it was a tough week with more problems then the first, I still had so much fun and will always love these girls.









Jeanine - "One Big Happy Family"

We were up early this morning and down by the water to catch this mom and her kids.  It was a beautiful morning.

Day 195

Emily  - "Camp Life"

It's one of my favourite places in the world. I love it here so much and I love going every year! Can't wait for next week!

Btw - the cabin to the very left is mine.











Jeanine - "Windmill"

Near the Bruce Power Nuclear Plant (on the way to the trailer) there are several windmills.  They are controversial to the locals but we like them.  I caught this one as we drove by.  I love how the foreground is blurring cuz we were moving so fast but the windmill itself seems still - although it was moving too.

Day 194

Emily - So These stairs are in the middle of the camp and they lead over to the girls side. This week I was thinking about how many times I'd walked over them in my 8 years of going to this camp. I think the number is probably over 200. In an average day at camp I walk over them 16 times a day.














Jeanine - "Summer Beauty"

Photoshop Rocks!  I took a photoshop course a few years ago with friends (you know who you are).  I confess, I didn't really get it!  There are great free courses online now.  I am doing one - you can go at your own pace - and will post the link on my blog.  Today's lesson was how to add text.  I know -- very simple, but not to me.  I am so excited to finally really learn how to do this!  I even downloaded a free font to do it.  I am using PSE 9.0.

Day 193

Emily - "The Chill Zone"

This week my girls were really good at catching little details about my personality, such as me saying the word chill a lot. So my girls decided to make a little area where we could chill. No one really used it just kind of became a joke.







Jeanine - "Learning"

In my photography class we were asked to look at our work over the last six months and find a common theme that runs through our photos...to find something indicating what it is we are really drawn to photographing.  I couldn't find a common theme - except for this -- I think my photos reflect my learning process...my attempt to try new things and to see with a creative eye.  I know I have so much more to learn and I look forward to what the next six months of learning this craft...and other creative pursuits will bring to my life.

Day 192

Emily  - First day of the second week. I've been promoted to counsellor so I'm pretty excited! Anyways, at camp we have camp names and mines Elmo so I like to bring along my Elmo shtuff.













Jeanine - "Birch Bark"

Took a few minutes this afternoon to shop for clump birch trees for our front yard.  I just love the bark.

Day 191

Emily - The only unfortunate thing about being at camp is that I don't get to take my new camera along with me :( So while I'm at home on the weekends I fool around with it quite a bit, taking pictures of everything within 5 feet of me.








Jeanine - "Purple Feather Grass"

This is my favourite grass in our garden.  I wish it wasn't an annual.  I call it purple feather grass - but that's not it's real name (it might be called fountain grass but I'm not sure).  It is just starting to feather now...and it looked great with the evening light hitting it tonight.

Day 190

Emily - "Home Sweet Home"

Back home for one day from camp. I don't really ever feel home sick but its always nice to come home where there are real showers and you can do laundry :)




Jeanine - "Camera Bags"

My newest camera bag came today (the one on the left).  I wanted camera bags that didn't necessarily look like camera bags - but more like purses...so I can carry it to work etc.  The Kelly Moore bag will hold my laptop too.  The Emera bag looks kinda like a briefcase.  Love them!  Last week I discovered it it is good to have an all purpose one to carry hiking or put in a bike basket - so it was great that Ian found one for $3 at a garage sale for me (not pictured here).

Day 189

Emily - My beautiful cabin! These girls were such a fun group to have my first week with. I'm going to miss them very much and I really hope to see them next year!









Jeanine - "Marion Anderson"

My teacher - watercolour and acrylic artist, Marion Anderson - whose studios are in her cottage at Southampton and in her home in New Dundee, Ontario.  She is the head of the Art Department at the high school where she teaches, and has taught at the Southampton Art School for over 15 years.  There were 12 people in our class from all over southwestern Ontario.  It was a great week.

I admit...I debated about taking a photo of the piles of laundry that needed to be done after our week away and Em's week at camp...but this shot made me smile -- the laundry didn't.

Day 188

Emily - One of the girls in my cabin made a beautiful













Jeanine - "En Plein Air"

We painted outside today or "in the open air" at the teacher's cottage - it was amazing the difference that made...things dried much faster - which isn't necessarily a good thing when you are working with watercolours believe it or not...but the view was amazing!

Day 187

Emily - Because there are strict rules about no boys on the girls side and no girls on the boys side we made a joke rule in our cabin that there were to be no shirtless men in our cabin. So Citrus (we all have camp names and the campers don't know our real names until the last day, my camp name is Elmo) coloured in this guy a shirt that says FCC. Lol!















Jeanine - "Snow Falling on Birches"

I know - I can't believe it either!  Ha!  I had a great teacher.  Can't wait to take more classes.