Weekly Photo Challenge: Carefree

This week’s photo challenge:

In a new post specifically for this challenge, share a photo that means CAREFREE to you!

Photo by Alicia Benton Photography

This photo was taken in St. Croix, where the beaches are beautiful, the water is bright blue, the rum is cold, and the people are hot.  There is nowhere in the world Eugene and I would rather be.  Life doesn’t get more carefree than when you’re enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells of St. Croix – heaven on Earth.

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Weekly Photo Challenge: One Shot, Two Ways

This Week’s Photo Challenge:

One Shot, Two Ways.  This week, photographer Jeff Sinon talked about his process of finding the best shot.  Before taking a picture, he studies his scene — looking at a shot horizontally (as a landscape) and vertically (as a portrait).  With this honed, critical eye, he decides what orientation works best for his photograph.

For this challenge, capture two images — a horizontal and a vertical version — of the same scene or subject.  There are no concrete “rules” here, but a) it should be evident that both shots are of the same place/location or person/thing, and b) your photographs should ideally have been taken during the same shoot — where’s the challenge if you’re just plucking out pictures of a particular location or person from your archives?

Alicia Benton Photography

Alicia Benton Photography

These photos are of the Morris Island lighthouse, which stands about 300 yards off of Folly Beach in South Carolina.

“Some of the best memories are made in flip flops.” ~Kellie Elmore

Source: lovebuildsthishappyhome.blogspot.com

Today’s Be Happy Challenge:

– Three Things You Love About Summertime. –

Summertime and the livin’ is easy…

Ah, summer… my favorite time of year.  Yes, even more than Christmastime.  Warm weather, long lazy days, sandy toes, cold drinks… I love everything about it.

If I had to pick only three things I love about summer, though, they would be:

1. Grilling

I love grilled food – the taste, the smell, and even the aura that comes with cooking out.  In the summer, we resort to grilling everything.  Chicken, steak, shrimp, burgers, hot dogs, fish, veggies, fruit… We’ve even grilled pound cake and peaches for dessert.  In fact, if it can’t be grilled, we don’t cook it.  Seriously.

Alicia Benton Photography

2. Fireworks

Even as a kid, my very favorite holiday has always been the Fourth of July.  There’s something I just love about coming together as proud Americans and watching in awe and reverence as beautiful explosive fireworks light up the night sky.  Sometimes in the summer, it doesn’t even need to be July 4^th to see a breathtaking fireworks display.

Alicia Benton Photography

3. Swimming

We all love to swim, and it doesn’t matter where.  We’ll swim in the pool, the ocean, the lake, or the river.  I even love watching the kids play silly pool games while I lie lazily on my beach chair soaking up some rays.  “Hey Mom, count how long I can hold my breath.”  “Hey Mom, tell us who has the biggest cannonball splash.”  “Hey Mom, tell us who can swim to the other side the fastest.”  That never gets old to me.

Alicia Benton Photography

Like I said, these are only a [very] few of the things I love about summer.  What do you love about it?

Source: Goodreads

“Summertime is always the best of what might be.”  ~ Charles Bowden

I am really looking forward as I get older and older, to being less and less nice. ~Annette Bening

Source: lovebuildsthishappyhome.blogspot.com

Today’s Be Happy Challenge:

– Something You Are Looking Forward To. –

I remember years ago when the biggest thing I was looking forward to was the day that my kids could reach and pour the milk by themselves so they wouldn’t have to wake me up at zero dark thirty to make them breakfast.  Finally that day came, and it was every bit as glorious as I had hoped!

Now, as my kids are nearly high school age, I’m looking forward to the day they move out and I can work on retirement, move to St. Croix, and become an ornery old woman, like Arden has already become.  That day may not come as easily as the kids reaching the milk, however.

So, more realistically and immediately, I’m looking forward to this weekend!  The glorious days of spring have finally arrived in Charleston after a cold, uncharacteristically long winter.  Okay, so maybe not spring… Here we tend to jump straight from winter to summer, and we really only have two seasons: Stinkin’ hot and stinkin’ cold.  Only a few weeks ago, I still needed a blanket on my lap at baseball practice, and now it’s about 97 degrees outside.

Source: someecards

Beautiful [and hot] days call for awesome weekends and free time!  And since I can’t just hop on a plane and take a vacation to my favorite place in the whole world, I’ll have to make due with our beautiful city.

We’re going to spend this beautiful Friday afternoon enjoying some reggae at Party at Point with great friends.

Then, tomorrow, we’re going to float on the Edisto River.  We’ll have lots of beer and lots of friends in tow, and we’re just going to enjoy a nice lazy day – finally!  After the week of hell I’ve had at work, I’m really looking forward to some relaxation.  And did I mention beer?  I can’t wait for a nice cold beer.  🙂  We bought a really cool, ginormous float, and even though the kids can fit in it with us, we got them each their own.  If we’re really going to enjoy the weekend, the kids are going to have to annoy the crap out of each other and not us, right?!

Source: Kmart

On Sunday, we’ll venture to Sullivans Island.  The kids can play in the waves while I dig my toes in the warm sand and even out these tan lines.  Sounds heavenly, does it?  Since I live at the beach, I have to remind myself often not to take advantage of it.  Some people aren’t as fortunate as we are, and they don’t get the luxury of basking in the beautiful sunshine on a gorgeous beach whenever they want.

Photo by Alicia Benton Photography

So, as I enjoy every second of my weekend (that I’m so looking forward to right now), I will also be thankful:

Thankful for my health and my family’s health…

Thankful for our brave American soldiers who are fighting for our freedom this very second so that we can enjoy our weekends without a care in the world…

Thankful to live in the best City in the world…

Thankful for a man who has been more of a dad to my boys than their own father ever was – Happy Father’s Day…

Thankful for a job that I love and get weekends off from…

Thankful that I can hear my favorite reggae music tonight…

Thankful that I can taste delicious, ice cold beer on these hot days…

Thankful for the beautiful sunshine…

Thankful for my amazing blogger friends with whom I can share these great experiences…

Thankful for our beautiful children who find some way to bring laughter to my life every day…

What are you looking forward to?

 

Source: Head to Toe Women’s Expo