'Tickled Pink' by phunnyfotos

Tickled Pink, a photo by phunnyfotos on Flickr.

As it's the 29th February today I felt I should blog something about leap day. However, when it came down to it I really don't have much to say. It's just an extra day really isn't it? Therefore, in order to feel like I've done something, here is a very nice "leaping" photograph. I think the black and white with a hint of pink works really well. It's a really bold image. I bet this was a lot of fun to shoot as well.

'Flower Power 6758' by mjhpdx2

Flower Power 6758, a photo by mjhpdx2 on Flickr.

After all the beautiful spring weather we've been having lately it was a bit of an anti-climax to see drizzle and grey skies today. Fingers crossed the sunshine comes back soon. In the meantime I need to keep the bright colours alive and I thought this picture would hit the spot. These bright primary colours are an instant mood lifter. And I like that the photographer has done something different when presented with a bunch of flowers. It's so easy just to take a general picture of flowers in vase but this really is thinking outside the box. Oh and check out the little detail in that water drop. Very cute. Hope this picture makes you smile too.

'Tulips - Jardin des Plantes_5' by Ofir Peretz

Tulips - Jardin des Plantes_5, a photo by Ofir Peretz on Flickr.

So what did you all get up to this weekend? I had a lovely time. Got lots of baby shopping done (and spoiled my daughter a little too), met up with friends, cuddled a teeny tiny baby and actually went out without a coat!! Got to love the British weather!

I thought I'd celebrate the beautiful weather with a photo full of blue skies and sunshine. This one is great and full of spring time too with the gorgeous tulips. I love the angle this was taken. These flowers look just as pretty from any angle. I love tulips, I love blue skies, I love spring weather. Let's hope there will be lots of all these things in the coming weeks.

'Stonehenge' by Me

Stonehenge, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

I took this when we stopped at Stonehenge on our way down to Devon last month. Oh my goodness it was so cold that day. My feet were ice blocks but it would have been impossible not to stop and take some photos of this fascinating site - and I really do find it mesmerising. Even my three year old daughter thought it was amazing and surely to someone her age it should just be a pile of big stones.

The weather when we left home was nice and by the time we reached Devon it was all sunny again so it was a real shame that when we were here it decided to be very overcast and grey. I think I've managed to do OK with the colour on this though. The bad weather kind of makes it look a little more dramatic and mysterious.

'sunny day, picnic day.' by bubustudio

sunny day, picnic day., a photo by bubustudio on Flickr.

Firstly tonight I want to say how incredibly proud I was of my little girl today. This afternoon she had her pre-school booster jabs and she was an absolute superstar. She wasn't worried, didn't get upset and didn't even cry. Unlike her emotionally challenged mother. Seriously, ever since she was born I have been rubbish when it comes to her getting her jabs. I can't stop shedding a tear. I don't know why as I don't have a problem with getting injections myself. I guess I don't like the thought of anyone hurting my little girl.

In other news.... Today was spring. I don't know how long this beautiful weather is meant to hang around for but it was so sunny and warm. It's hard to believe that only a couple of weeks ago we were playing in the snow and trying not to slip over on the ice.

Here is a lovely picture that makes me excited about the arrival of spring. The sunlight is gorgeous. I also love the inclusion of the polaroids. They look like pretty photos too. Come on spring, bring it on. I need to be having picnics and taking pictures in the sunshine!

'breakfast' by C.Mariani

breakfast, a photo by C.Mariani ( mostly away ) on Flickr.

So, did you have pancakes yesterday? We did and they were delicious! I love pancakes. I said to myself last night that I wasn't going to be obvious and post a pancake photo but I've since changed my mind as I've been thinking about them all day. Why oh why don't we have them more often? And you know what else I've realised - I don't think I've ever actually had them for breakfast. Now there's something to think about.

So here it is - a lovely pancake photo. I think this is composed really well and I love the idea of the eggs resting in the bowl of flour. And you know what I love the most? The plate and the bowl. Got to get me some red spotty crockery now!

'The sparkle of the sea' by Me

The sparkle of the sea, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

Whenever I'm at the beach on a sunny day I think the sun shining on the sea is so beautiful. Of course I always try and capture it in a photo but it never seems to come out as I hope it would. I had another go on Brighton beach the other weekend and you know what, for once I'm actually quite pleased with the results. What do you think? Have I captured the sparkle of the sea? If not, any good tips for getting it right?

'KermitSnowAngel (Honoring Mr Jim Henson)' by David Lee Tiller

KermitSnowAngel (Honoring Mr Jim Henson), a photo by David Lee Tiller on Flickr.

Well I spoke too soon on Friday when I said I was feeling rather good as I felt hideous all weekend. Everything was aching and baby seemed to get itself in all sorts of really uncomfortable positions. I also managed to get myself in a real panic that there was still so much to do before the baby arrived but my husband has convinced me we're doing OK really. I feel slightly better today but definitely going to try and take it quite easy this week. I'm already counting the hours until bedtime! Urgh, I so hate feeling this useless as I'm usually an active go out and do stuff kind of a person.

It wasn't all bad this weekend though as we took the little one to see The Muppets at the cinema. It was really good actually and she loved it too. Therefore in honour of The Muppets I have found this super cool Kermit snow angel photo for you to have a look at. It made me smile which is what I needed today! I mean what's not to love - snow angels and Kermit the frog - perfect! I love how bright and vibrant this is. Hope it made you smile too.

I promise I'll try and moan a little less in my next post.

'(not my) birthday flowers' by macsoapy

(not my) birthday flowers, a photo by macsoapy on Flickr.

I've had a lovely week this week. It's been half term and my daughter and I have had such fun together. Not been up to anything crazy just hanging out with friends or chilling at home. To be honest I thought I'd be totally exhausted by the end of this week but I actually feel pretty good. Still tired and achy of course but I'm used to that now!

This photo seems like a lovely one to start the weekend with. I love the bright and pretty flowers against the plain background - especially as I think tulips and roses are probably my favourite flowers. I think this is a picture I'm going to find myself coming back to look at time and time again.

Happy weekend everyone!

'Winter in Amsterdam I' by Marc Rauw.

Winter in Amsterdam I [Explored], a photo by Marc Rauw. on Flickr.

I've been feeling a little uninspired blogwise for the past couple of days and really thought I'd have nothing to show you today. Luckily though I stumbled across this great photo which made me stop and look twice. Now all the snow and ice has gone here I feel I can look at icy scenes like this again with rose tinted glasses. Doesn't it just look so romantic and lovely skating along a frozen canal in Amsterdam? I love how the photographer has captured so many different types of people. I love how sharp the photo is too and I also love the colour and tone. Hope you like this too.

'Roses are red' by Me

Roses are red, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

As it's Valentine's Day I thought I'd dedicate today's post to my gorgeous husband. I want the world to know that he is an amazing person and I love him so very much. I would have been happy to have even met him. It would have been fantastic just to have him as a friend. I would have been over the moon to have dated him for a while but to be able to say we have been together for 15 years, are married and have made two beautiful children together (I'm guessing the baby in my belly is going to be as beautiful as my daughter) makes me feel like luckiest woman alive.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone. I hope you're all feeling the love today.

(P.S. Almost forgot about the photo. It was taken by me of the roses my husband bought be for Valentine's Day. It was taken from above and I love how the flowers seem to jump out at you. And of course I love the bright red!)

'Cold castle' by eyecandyfotos.com

Cold castle, a photo by eyecandyfotos.com on Flickr.

This is Bodiam Castle in East Sussex. I'm showing you this photo as I think it's terrific and I love the reflection. You could almost turn the picture upside down and get the same effect. This has so much atmosphere too, probably because it was taken early in the morning. I've been to Bodiam Castle and taken some photos myself and I have to say whilst there's not a lot inside the castle, mainly ruins, it is a really photogenic place to visit.

'Brighton seagulls' by Me

Brighton seagulls, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

So how was your weekend? Mine was pretty good actually, especially yesterday when we went down to Brighton for the afternoon with a friend. After the week we'd been having weatherwise I was starting to wonder if we were making a bit of a mistake heading to the coast but it was a beautiful day. It was chilly of course but nowhere near as freezing as I thought it would be. In fact we sat on the beach for ages and only left because we were getting hungry and felt in need of pizza.

I wasn't actually planning on taking many photos really as I always take so many down in Brighton but as the weather was so beautiful I found it hard to resist. I love this one of the seagulls just hanging out with West Pier in the background. I made the colours look a little bit retro too and I think it works quite well.

'Uncrowded Sugar Beach' by Still The Oldie

Uncrowded Sugar Beach, a photo by Still The Oldie on Flickr.

I thought as the beach huts in the snow photo was so cool I would share another great snowy beach photo with you. Like in the previous picture I love the contrast of the bright colour against the white snow. It looks so bright and summery whilst also looking freezing cold. And of course here comes my surreal observation... I think the umbrellas kind of look like alien space ships hovering low over the snow. You must totally wonder how my crazy brain works sometimes mustn't you.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

'Blythe beach in the snow' by Swaffs

Blythe beach in the snow, a photo by Swaffs on Flickr.

Apparently it's meant to snow again tonight. In fact it could be snowing right now - I just haven't got the energy to move to the window to have a look. As much as I really enjoyed playing in the snow on Sunday, I can't say I'll be overly impressed if we do get more as it's only just started melting from last weekend. I wouldn't normally be such a grump about the snow but the pavements have been so icy this week and as I'm pregnant I'm extra worried about falling over.

Oh well, I guess it means more excuses for lovely snowy photos and this one is fabulous. Love that it's a snowy beach and love the bright colour of the beach huts against the crisp white snow. I think the thing that makes it's most striking is the perspective and how the lines of the huts and the fence meet up.

Right, I'm off to look out of the window as I have a feeling it might have actually started snowing since I starting writing this post!

'011208: The Quentulus Quazgar Mountains' by * Madonna *

011208: The Quentulus Quazgar Mountains, a photo by * Madonna * on Flickr.

I found this photo really fascinating when I stumbled across it today. It's hard to explain why, after all it's essentially just a loads of pencils, but they some how have come alive in this image. Perhaps it's the colours, the focus or the way they are lined up but to me it looks like a quite a crowd. The photographer has compared this to mountains which does make more sense but my strange mind definitely sees a crowd of people. What do you see?

'bonne st-jean !' by Ms Ryan

bonne st-jean !, a photo by Ms Ryan on Flickr.

Hands up who's heard of poutine! Well I am seriously craving it right now after seeing this photo. Poutine is a Canadian dish of fries covered with cheese curd and gravy. Probably doesn't sound that tempting but mmmmm, it's so delicious. I spent nearly a year living in Canada and have realised I really didn't eat this enough.

I was drawn to this particular photo because it feels so real. I really feel I could be sitting there right now. I would love to get better at taking pictures like this. I think it is such a skill to capture a really ordinary, perhaps even mundane moment in time but make it seems fascinating and beautiful.

'Been using my polaroid' by Me

Been using my polaroid, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

As predicted we had a lovely lazy day at home today. Also as I predicted the little one was super excited about the snow and couldn't wait to get out there to play. I didn't actually take many photos today as quite frankly we were too busy throwing snowballs and despite my protests, being pregnant didn't stop hubby and daughter throwing lots of them at me too!

I feel I should share one photo I took from today though so here it is. This picture is proof that I do use my new polaroid camera even though I've not shared any of the photos on here yet. Hopefully I'll have something I really want to show you soon.

'Winter Benches!' by judo_dad1953

Winter Benches!, a photo by judo_dad1953 on Flickr.

Well, the weather forecast was correct and the snow is here! It's been snowing for a couple of hours now and although it's not coming down heavily I reckon there'll be a nice enough amount fallen by morning for my daughter to play in. The snow couldn't have come at a better time to be honest as we have absolutely no plans this weekend. Therefore tomorrow we can go out and have a play in the snow then come in and spend the rest of the say snuggled up with hot chocolate and DVDs. And by DVDs I mean The Chipmunks on repeat at that's what my daughter is obsessed by at the moment! I hope if you have snow you have a really fun snow day tomorrow and it doesn't cause you too much distruption.

This photo made me smile as I'm not imagining the snow here will get this deep. It does make me want to just dive in though never mind how cold it would be. Love the black and white, and the fact that this was taken at night makes it even more moody. Fingers crossed there'll be loads more lovely snowy photographs taken over the next few days that I can enjoy looking at and hopefully a I'll get to take a couple myself.

'A different angle' by Me

A different angle, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

I love blogging, I really do. It's not just about my own blog - I also adore reading other people's. I've said here before how great it is to have had the chance to "meet" so many amazing and inspitational people. I also love that blogs are full of things that people love and make them smile. That's what I try to do with my blog anyway. I want it to be a sanctuary away from all the stresses and strains of life (and this week's been quite a stressful one). I also think that blogs are written by people who love life. Even if they are having a hard time and feeling negative they still love life enough to get to a keyboard and blog in an attempt to feel better.

Today's picture is therefore something I love. Beach huts - suprise, surprise. This one's from the last summer in Southwold just newly edited. I like the different angle this was taken from. I was down on the beach below, in case you were wondering. Not lying on the ground!!

Happy weekend everyone!

'Tulip Vase' by M J M

Tulip Vase, a photo by M J M on Flickr.

As you already know I have a thing about beach huts and beach hut photos. Another thing that always makes me smile are tulips and I love photos of them too. They are just so photogenic. And now it's February that means spring is on it's way (not that it feels like it) and spring means lovely spring flowers like tulips. I love the way this single flower is displayed. It looks so elegant. And it has been captured perfectly by the photographer as well. It's such a clean and bright image. It would make a lovely print on the wall of a lovely white house.