HAPPY THANKSGIVING :)

Hi All :)

I hope you are all doing well :)

I just wanted to take a minute to wish all my American Blogger Buddies a BIG 

"HAPPY THANKSGIVING"

Also, to wish everyone of my lovely Blogger Buddies, a Wonderful Weekend :)

As we gather with our families to give thanks, I am truly grateful for all of you for following along with me on this journey and for your encouraging words and support :)

Thanks so much to Everyone :)

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T. 

My Year in Photos :)

Good Morning Everyone! :)

I hope you are all well :)

In 2011, I took over 12,000 photos with my Nikon D90 camera! I uploaded them and then didn't have time to go thru and look at all of them. Over the past few weeks I have been looking at them and found so many that I wanted to share with you. Last year I shared 2 previously unpublished photos for each month of the year on my blog and I thought it would be fun to do that again this year! :)  It was really hard to keep it to just 2 photos for every month of the year, but here is my 2011 year in photos.

I hope you enjoy them :)

JANUARY

Click on photos to see larger images :)

Sunset over Willamette Falls New Year's Day 2011 (SOOC)

Sunset ove the Willamette River New Year's Day 2011 (I love how the light just catches parts of the railway tracks) (SOOC)

FEBRUARY

Coastal Range approx. 100 miles away (shot taken thru the window in my Dining Rm.) (SOOC)

The glow of a Wintry Southern Evening Sky shot thru my office window (SOOC)

MARCH

Magnolia's at the Crystal Springs "Rhoddie Gardens" Portland Oregon. (SOOC)

Goose on a Mission (SOOC)

APRIL

Magnolia in my Garden :)

Easter Bonnets in the window of John Helmer Haberdasher, Portland Oregon.

MAY

Red Tulips in my Garden

Beautiful Rose, taken as I was driving around a neighbourhood

JUNE

Lovely Peach Iris in my garden :)

One of my "Babies" I really am crazy in love with my Poppies :) (SOOC)

JULY

Stars and Stripes on the 4th of July to honour at a local Cemetery.

It isn't everyday you see Vultures on the roof of a suburban neighbours house, well, not the feathered variety anyway (He! He!) (SOOC)

AUGUST

Flowers in pots in my front garden :)

Surfers on the Oregon Coast, the one and only day I went to the Oregon coast last year, but it was a great time, I went with my son before he went back to college and we sat and watched these guys for nearly 2 hours :) (SOOC)

SEPTEMBER

Rows of Grape Vines in Napa Valley, in the California Sunshine :) (SOOC)

Grapes on the Vines in Napa Valley, great reminder of our lovely vacation :) (SOOC)

OCTOBER

Then the leaves start to change colours, so prettily :)

Fall Leaves, Lake Oswego, Oregon :)

NOVEMBER

Fall Leaves, Portland Oregon

Fall Leaves West Linn, Oregon

DECEMBER

This sign was originally "the White Stag" sign, then the "Made in Oregon" sign and now it is proudly displaying the University of Oregon colours as they have a campus in that building. It is a huge part of the Portland historical landscape and every year over the Holiday Season the Stag's nose is lit in RED :) (SOOC)

Light display in a restaurant we went to over the holidays to celebrate with our whole family together :)

I tried to do more SOOC (straight out of camera) shots this year and it is an interesting challenge when you are taking the photo to know that you are not going to be colour enhancing or adding bits or taking away anything. It is a fun aspect to photography for me. After spending 2010 learning how to alter photos, it felt more like using a film camera, what you take is what you get kind of thing.

I really am enjoying my photographic journey and I truly appreciate you coming along for the ride, cheers, T. :)

 Don't forget to enter my Blog Giveaway to win this lovely

11 x 14 Photo of The Golden Gate Bridge :)

Hope you all have a wonderful Day! :)

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

Thankful Thursday :)

Good Morning all :)

My Blogger Buddy Annette at So Many Memories blog has a "Thankful Thursday" post every, well, Thursday and I LOVE the idea that we, at least for one day a week, stop and think consciously about what we are Thankful for :)

So, she will soon be making this a linked up posting and I am very excited about this :)

But I thought I would get on board now and join her today :)

Fall Leaves

This is what I am truly Thankful for; being able to go out and take photographs of these beautiful Fall Leaves :)

Don't forget to pop over and visit Annette at So Many Memories to see what she is Thankful for today :)

Hope you all have a wonderful Day! :)

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.