I thought flowers would be appropriate for todays post. Spring feels like its here, well every other day it seems, and things are starting to seed tiny green shoots out to welcome the warmer weather. We spent the day cleaning up the yard so the new growth can flourish and I guess I had flowers on my mind tonight. This is one of my favorite images that I created from some poppies we saw on a trip to France. These beautiful flowers were growing In a field just outside the town of Giverny, where we were visiting Monet's famous garden for a week long photography workshop. I took the original photograph with my Canon Mark III and then imported the image to my iPhone. There I used a combination of TouchRetouch, Snapseed, and DistressedFx to create this dreamy image. I hope everyone has a great week. 

Happy Easter Sunday and Happy Spring! I hope everyone had a great Sunday! The snow has melted here in Colorado and spring is in the air! When I think of spring, I think of flowers. Here is a shot I took with my Canon Mark III "big girl" camera and then I imported it into my phone for editing. I used Snapseed to refine the image and then DistressedFX to create the dreamy look. If you have not checked it out yet, DistressedFX has some new fun features that allow masking and new blending modes! You can now upgrade to DistressedFX Plus. I hope everyone has a creative, productive week! 

This weeks heart fell off my slice of pizza. It was a thin crust craft pizza and after I finished my slice, I found this heart crumb on my plate. I decided to take a photo of the heart crust placed on my heart napkin. I hope everyone has a great week! #theartofhearts #hiddenheartmessages #haveyouseenanyheartstoday #pizzahearts #filltheinternetwithhearts 

This week was really long! There was a lot to get done at work and we both had some late nights. It was great to get out to nature this weekend in Rocky Mountain National Park, but it was bit crowded and we discovered we needed spikes for your shoes to be able to fully enjoy the trails. And even though we don't go many places due to covid, we still find a lot of hearts. Here are two special ones. The first appeared from some seasoning in my Chinese take out! And then on Saturday, it was warm enough to eat outside, we found a fabulous new restaurant in Lyons, CO called Mojo Taqueria serving delicious tacos! Charles saw this heart form after a drop of guacamole dropped off a chip into his empty bean bowl. How does that even happen? I am still in awe every time I see heart. How do I see them? How do they keep forming from everyday items? I love seeing them and they make me smile. I hope they bring a smile to you too! #haveyouseenanyheartstoday? #theartofhearts #filltheinternetwithhearts #happyhearthunting #hiddenheartmessages

What a difference a week can make in the weather. Last weekend it was over 60 degrees and we got the chance to eat outside at one of our favorite places here in Colorado, called Stem Ciders. But this weekend we are getting buried under 3 feet of snow! So glad we got to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather, good food and fabulous drinks! When our food came out to picnic table it was literally showing me the love. I found two hearts, one in the pickle on the bun and the other on my french fries! I love finding hearts! #hiddenheardmessages #haveyouseenanyheartstoday #theartofhearts #happyhearthunting #filltheinternetwithhearts 

We almost made it to February. On the one hand the month went by super fast for me, where did January go? But on the other hand, some parts seemed to drag on. But tomorrow we start February, the month of hearts and love. Our world could use some more love, it's been kind of tense here for quite some time. I love seeing hearts. They give me comfort. They help remind me there is good in the world and remind me we need to spread smiles to others when we can. This heart was created from the sun streaming through a window catcher at a restaurant where we were having breakfast in Colorado in October of 2019. There were no hearts in the sun catcher, so again we were in the right place and the exact right time to see the light of this heart. I love the rainbow look created from the sun catcher and how it blends with the rustic floor. As we move in to the first week of February think of a way to make someone else smile this week! Let's start a chain reaction of good deeds and smile sharing! 

Today's image is a rendition of an aspen tree grove we photographed in Rocky Mountain National Park this fall. Our new home here in Longmont is about an hour drive to the park and it is wonderful to live so close to such a beautiful place. This fall we had snow, fall color and I heard my first bugling elk. I used the app Mix to create this colorful view of group of aspen trees. I look forward to many more trips to the park and the surrounding wilderness. 

As we approach the 35 anniversary of the Challenger disaster, I have been reflecting on the events that took place while watching a Netflix documentary on the disaster. I was in the 6th grade at the time and lived in Concord, NH where our hometown hero, teacher in space, Christa was from. It was a devastating event for the world, but especially for those of us who lived in Concord. The documentary sheds a lot of light on the information that was known and ignored about the O-rings. To this day, watching the launch brings me to tears. The loss of seven amazing souls, that didn't have to happen. It's hard to put into words the feelings and emotions I feel. I try to focus on Christa's enthusiasm for life, her bravery, and her beautiful smile. I was a proud recipient of a Christa McAuliffe scholarship when I graduated from high school. It was an honor that has stayed with me for years and I hope I have lived up to its merit. So today, I look to the heavens, and say thank you Christa. Thank you. This image is from an early morning flight leaving San Diego airport, taken with my iPhone.  

Perspective: a view or a point of view. I have been contemplating perspective this week. Take these two photographs of the same tree shot from opposite sides. The majestic cottonwood tree stands tall in a Colorado field with sun setting slowly behind the mountains. It's a beautiful scene. We took a walk down the road and ended up on the other side of the tree, looking back at the tree we found the surprise.... do you see it? A heart! If you look at the cottonwood tree from this angle it appears to be a giant heart, the second photograph. The heart is always there, it doesn't move, but you can only see the heart if you move around the tree and look at it from one particular angle. If you only looked at the tree from the first angle, you would still enjoy the beauty of the tree, but you would never see the magic of the heart. Changing your perspective and being open is an important part of growing, learning and being well rounded. If you don't ever change your perspective, you will see beauty but you might miss out on the magic. Both images were taken with the iPhone 12 Pro Max and edited with the apps Prisma and SnapSeed. 

Welcome to the new year! I know, even though the calendar has changed, not a lot is different so far from 2020. We still have a raging pandemic, but I am hopeful with the roll out of the vaccines that 2021 will see us inch toward a more  normal life. Today, my husband, Charles, and I went for our first 2021 outdoor walk. Being outdoors defiantly makes me feel better and I'm happy that's one positive that came from 2020, more people spending time outdoors enjoying the beauty. On our way back to the car, we spotted this great heart shape in the snow on a rock. The sun had melted it just right to create the heart shape. After playing with the image in the app Prisma and Watercolor and a quick boarder clean up with Snapseed, I was able to create this playful image. We saw several hearts on our walk today, but this one captured positive feeling as we move into the new year. I hope everyone has a great week! Moving forward, I'm going to be blogging once a week on Sunday.