It all began when I looked out my window to see the masts of two tall ships, parked at the wharf here in town. I sent the Boo down to go see what was going on. She came back and reported that there where two ships, Lady Washington and Hawaiian “something” and a sign on the wharf said that they were selling tickets to sail on the cove that evening. So I did what every modern person does… googled the ships’ names. If you google them, you’ll quickly learn, as I did, that the Lady Washington was used as the Interceptor in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Well, seeing as I live with two of the biggest Johnny Depp fans EVER, I of course purchased tickets! I thought I was buying tickets for Wednesday night, but apparently I wasn’t careful with my mouse clicking and instead bought tickets for Friday night. Well, that turned out to be Providential, as my husband was then able to join us for the sail. So we set out for an incredible relaxing and enjoyable sail around Penn Cove. And I didn’t get sick! In fact I didn’t feel bad at ALL, until we were docking. Then we began to rock a bit more and well, I couldn’t get off that boat fast enough at that point!

So please leave a comment and tell me your thoughts! Black and white or Vintage Colour?

And well, the obligatory photo…

This VERY COOL fence is created from 1000 iron wheels. It surrounds a barn in Uniontown, Washington that has been restored and transformed into an artists’ community.

AJ’s grandmother let AJ and her friend drive to lunch in Grandma’s BMW convertible. I’m pretty sure there is a rumour that the car was a gift. No such luck for AJ. We hit a lot of “big sky” in Montana, discovered the darling town of Leavenworth, WA – and then proceeded onto our island home. Our first night, I found a heart shaped rock and a couple of days later I found a crab, holding a crab town council. That amazing poppy is growing in my new front yard. Yep, I’m a happy girl!!!

As if I didn’t have quite enough going on in my life, I also opened an Etsy.com shoppe (pronounced with the “e” in our family!) to market and sell prints, notecards and other items featuring many of the images I’ve taken on my travels. If you’ve not discovered the wonderful wonderful world that is Etsy – I HIGHLY recommend you get a cup of coffee/tea and get comfortable as you browse through the amazing offerings there. It is THE market place for all things handmade and art. The best way to connect consumers directly with the people who create the items we love to use and display. From soaps/lotions/lip balms to jewelry/clothes/accessories. Vintage items of all sorts and art of every genre and style. There is truly something (or lots of somethings!!!) for everyone on Etsy. My shoppe is still new and so I will be adding additional images and items as I get my feet back under me. If you are looking for art for your walls and love black and white photography, check out my little corner of etsy here. There are colour images too, as well, somethings NEED to be in colour! I will be bringing many of these items to the Family Fun Day at Fredericksburg Christian School on February 20th – contact me for further details if you are interested in dropping by.

I mentioned the house being listed for sale… yes, the time is quickly coming for the Mietus family to embark on the next leg of their journey. We will be relocating to Whidbey Island, Washington (almost to Canada) this coming summer. After our oldest graduates high school and the house sells. The house selling is the biggest unknown factor. SOOOOOOOO…. what this means for you, my wonderful clients is that I will NOT be shooting sessions, after Saturday, May 1st… pending further notification. IF the house does NOT sell and it looks like we will be sticking around longer into the summer then I will amend this date as needed. I simply do not feel as though I can guarantee the service I desire to offer my clients if I am jamming sessions in, right up until I move away. If you have been waiting for spring for your senior portraits or other sessions – do NOT delay in booking as openings are limited and will be first come, first serve.

I hope that you are all safe and warm, bundled against this blustery winter day… and I leave you with an image, perfect for Valentine’s Day. As my oldest and I wandered around the back streets of Oxford, England this summer (lost!) we came upon this one brick, painted just so… Of course I HAD to take a photo!
This image is available in my etsy shoppe *wink wink

So start thinking now – who on your list would LOVE a fine leather photo gift. And stay tuned… I’m working on a holiday special! In fact you can help me – YOU tell me what items you would like to see a special offer for! Just leave a comment below.

So the condensed and abridged version. My husband spent months planning an amazing adventure jammed packed with so many sights and experiences. Started in England with Stonehenge as the first stop, then off to Bath. The weather was a little dreary the first few days… though it wasn’t cold, just very very damp.

Next day brought us to Oxford and Stratford-Upon-Avon. The garden’s at Christ’s Church were simply divine. We were unable to enter the great hall due to timing… but it’s where the dining scenes in Harry Potter are filmed.

Cedric enjoyed the side trip out to Blenheim Palace… and the weather dramatically improved.

Returned to Stratford-Upon-Avon for dinner and to catch a showing of Julius Caesar at the Royal Shakespeare Company Theater. We spent the morning enjoying the beautiful gardens of Anne Hathaway’s cottage – no not the current actress, but the wife of the Bard.

We then hit the road to stroll through the grounds of Rockingham Castle – only to arrive and learn they were not open… so a quick little stroll around the village, a new set of plans and we set off to Fountains Abby. Unlucky for us, we hit bumper to bumper traffic and we reached Fountains Abby at closing… but not willing to not see at least a little bit, we took of at a run to enjoy the INCREDIBLE grounds.. even if only for few minutes.

We did have the opportunity to entertain some of the locals AND get our Christmas card photo!

We then headed north to Scotland. The family, no joke, enjoyed some haggis, did NOT enjoy being eaten alive by the midges, DID enjoy the amazing coast and DID enjoy Eilean Donan Castle.

alright… where was I? That’s right, Scotland. So a couple of castles and off we flew to London. London was well, London. We enjoyed Tea at Claridges – to which the Boo requested we come back the next day… uhhhhh, No. Shopped at Harrods, took a double decker tour bus, visited Buckingham Palace, went to the British Museum and a whole lot more!

If you get really bored, there are about a bajillion photos on my flickr stream. Enjoy!

All in all, we had a wonderful holiday! The only real downside we experienced was the torture doled out by the BBC on it’s radio stations… which seemed to be the only thing our rental car picked up. We were so excited at the Broadway Tower the radio played both the Killers and The Kings of Leon, back to back! Excitedly, we asked the gentleman at the register what station… then hurried back to the car to tune in to BBC 2. Knowing that no one would believe us, I pulled out my phone and made a voice memo of the songs that came on… No joke, in this order… we heard:

Love is a Battlefield – Pat Benatar
Addicted to Love – Huey Lewis and the News
don’t know title – Martina McBride
Living by Numbers – New Musik
The Corrs
Thin Lizzy
Purple Rain – Prince
British Pop –
Look of Love – ABC
Daniel Merryweather
Mama Mia – ABBA
Just Can’t Get Enough -Depech Mode
British Pop
Annie Lennox
Millennium – Robby Williams
Ice Ice Baby – Vanilla Ice
Hung Up – Madonna
Rhinestone Cowboy – Glen Campbell
Walk On By – Dion Warwick

We also heard Elvis – remixed, at least 5 times during our trip. The original Star Wars theme medley and countless other terrible songs that really shouldn’t be played on the radio. Best part of being home was our Sirius Radio!!!!

The kids took great pride in decorating their transport and when the parade was completed, of course one HAD to hit the farmer’s market and the craft fair.

And just for fun, a lovely home all decked out in it’s holiday finery as well. Sigh, to have a front porch to hang buntings from… one day.

And of course, life on water, with boats and bridges everywhere.  Those who know me, know I don’t have what they call “sea legs” so I wasn’t really loving all the boat travel.  But I survived as it is the quickest way to get from point A to point B.  It was the only portion of the trip where the weather was less than idyllic.  Though sunny and beautiful, the wind was howling.  So it dampened my wander lust and kept me from wandering, especially at night when it was COLD!  But I still managed to see a fair amount of the city and observe how life happens, Venetian style.  Notice in the bottom right image of the first collage… moving, the Venetian way.  That little boat was full of personal belonging and furniture.  

I hope you enjoyed my adventure and of course, more pics are available on flickr… link below!

Click here for flickr set.