Photography Goals

"The sooner we become more intentional about communicating through our photography, the more powerful and clear our results will be"

- Mitchell Kanashkevich in Natural Light - Mastering a Photographer's Most Powerful Tool

Have I an Object, Lord, Below?

Have I an object, Lord, below

Which would divide my heart with Thee;

Which would divert its even flow

In answer to Thy constancy?

Oh teach me quickly to return,

And cause my heart afresh to burn.

Have I a hope, however dear,

Which would defer Thy coming, Lord!

Which would detain my spirit here

(Where naught can lasting joy afford)?

From it, my Saviour, set me free,

To look, and long, and wait for Thee. 

Be Thou the object bright and fair

To fill and satisfy the heart;

My hope to meet Thee in the air,

And nevermore from Thee to part:

That I may undistracted be

To follow, serve and wait for Thee.

I have recently come to the conclusion that I lack a lot when it comes to memorization and storing away in my mind. I became aware of that when, as I sang to Bia through the day and its tasks, I saw that my repertoire was very limited.

Therefore I have made it a personal project to memorize hymns and verses. I do a considerable amount of work in the kitchen, and as there are kitchen cupboards on the walls, I got a clothes hanger with clips, snapped the hymnbook in and hung the improvisation from the cupboards' handles. Now, as I wash the dishes or cook, I work on memorizing whatever is hanging by either singing it or reciting it to Baby as she sits in her chair. So far I've learnt "Great is Thy Faithfulness". Now I am working on this one, which, as an  added thought, is one of my very favourite hymns. So beautiful! 

Next will be "How Great Thou Art"

Butterflies Next to the Window

A pretty window always calls the attention...

Out and About with Papa

This past winter and spring has been somewhat Hubby-less as he has had a couple of extra jobs he could only work at late in the evenings or on Saturdays. Therefore, it was with joy and excitement that Bia and I headed out with him last Thursday for a day together in the countryside/mountains. He had a small job to complete in a beautiful part of the country, so after he had finished we had the rest of the day to spend together among grass, rivers and hills.

Experiencing flowers for the first time! She also loved walking barefoot on the grass. I got to make her very first daisy chain! 

"That mountain over there is... (insert mountain's name)"

What a joy it was to go out once more among the beauty of creation with those whom I love best!

Hubby should finish the extra jobs soon, hopefully before the summer ends, so I am looking forward to more outings with him and Baby! ♥

Cherries

My parents-in-law have a very healthy, fruitful cherry tree. I had no idea how very fruitful a healthy cherry tree can be till one Saturday about a month ago my husband packed us off to my in-laws and spent the morning picking cherries. As my dad said later when I told him about it, "if the cherry tree is good, you can get bored of cherries!" I honestly don't know how many kilos Hubby picked in one morning - and the tree still had plenty left!

Needless to say, I spent the following week in the kitchen, choosing the best, fattest, juiciest cherries for cherry preserves and halving and stoning the rest for cherry jam.

I learnt last year that if you pick cherries, pick 'em with the stem attached. They will last longer and won't spoil.

Nine large jars of preserved cherries. Eat them cold during the summer or warm them up for a cozy winter snack!

I had to ask Hubby to pick some more the following week so that I could bake a cherry pie for him as an anniversary gift. He didn't know, of course, he just knew he had to pick some more because I'd used all of the cherries for preserves and jam.

Last winter we finished up all of the jams and preserves I'd done the previous couple of years, so this summer I have to get enough jam and preserves ready for another couple of years! Cherry jam and preserves, check.

Introducing...

...our first addition to the family:

Our baby girl Abigail Sofia (Bia for short), born January 24th at 17:14 hours and weighing 2,76 kg!

I know this blog post is more than four months overdue, plus I have no idea whether this blog is still read by anyone. However, one of my favourite sayings is "better late than never". Amidst giving birth in a different country to that where I live, becoming a mother, still being a wife, and catching up with studies, housework, and - yes, sleep, I haven't really had a chance to sit down and write on the blog.

Now I have, and I take the chance to let you know about this huge change in our lives! Little Bia is a funny, sweet baby who has just started to sleep well. She started out tiny, and is now wearing six and nine month old clothes. Everything that she manages to grab goes into her mouth, and she loves cooing, squealing and screaming. True to her name, she fills our days with joy!