Welcome Spring :)

Last week... before the *official* first day of spring, there was some glorious spring-ish weather. After work, I decided to be spontaneous! I skipped my daily gym workout, headed home to grab my camera and started walking through my quaint little hometown.

The first sign of spring was in my own front garden. And I smiled.


Remnants of winter...


And I love stone architecture...

and church signs..

a lonely stairway...

This former Governor's mansion is my second-favorite house in town! I have a faint memory of seeing the inside of the ballroom once when I was a child. Sadly, it was only used as a huge storage room. I still remember the double stairways that came down towards the dancefloor. This place has been a part of my historical fantasy world... maybe one day it could be bautiful inside again!

I guess it is Bellefonte's claim to fame.


And the true test of Spring? When the weather becomes too warm for me to justifiably drink a hot latte! My walk-about-town ended with a good hour of contemplation on the patio of my favorite local coffe shop.. drinking this lovely bit of heaven. A frozen mocha!

Happy Spring! I am SO. GLAD. to see you!

Funny Friends... on a Winter Walk

While I am stuck inside my house during yet ANOTHER snowstorm, editing pictures from the last few weeks, I thought I would remember one lonely day of beautiful weather... A couple weeks ago, there were a few friends hanging out at my house on a Saturday. Liz, Kelsey and I decided to go for a walk --- since the weather was gorgeous!! Trekked through the snow, to my favorite coffee shop, and made some cute and funny pictures along the way... enjoy!




And then things got funnier...











(c) These photos are the property of Naomi Elle. They may not be copied, altered or reprinted without written permission of myself. Stealing makes me sad.

Mirror Images

One downside to being a photographer... is that you're always the one taking pictures... and never the one with pictures being taken of me! My solution to that problem --- I find mirrors and randomly take photos of myself. :) Sure, it's a little over-the-edge and quirky... but it's fun. And now you can see the variety of situations!

In January 2009, I took my youth group to the Baltimore Aquarium and there were some very, very cool escalators with mirrors!


Trying on funny hats at an antique store..


Riding a carousel in North Carolina with the nephew & nieces..


Capturing a bride during my first experience 2nd-shooting a wedding!


Youth group road trip enroute to Texas... sweet summertime clouds.


Winter photo shoot with my roommate. :) MMMMM, snowflakes!


And yesterday...

My New Niece

Today I was blessed with a new baby niece!! That's the 2nd niece born in just a short few weeks... and while I'm still waiting to meet baby Serenity (SOON!), I did get to meet this little sweetheart today!

Meet Baby A.! (Mommy & Daddy want to protect Baby A.'s identity online.) :)


A. has two big sisters who were absolutely thrilled to meet her!!

They thought she was so "cuuuute" (imagine this spoken in little girlie high-pitched voices)! And they loooove to touch her and kiss her and hold her tiny little hands.

Sometimes that made lil' A. a bit squirmy!

And this had nothing to do with sisters... but I lOVE the expression!
Like, "Are you kidding me?!?"


Of course, my sis came through the delivery like a trooper.. praise God! And was lovin' her dear sweet little girlie.

*sigh*... I love being an auntie!! Especially, an auntie with a camera! :)

SNOW---When It Was Still Exciting...

It's January. And this month is bleak, freeeeezing cold and the thought of snow is pretty much---boring. Rewind about 3 1/2 months? Mid-October. SNOW? Are you kidding me? Yes, it happened. Before the brilliant autumn colors had faded, central Pennsylvania experienced its earliest recorded snowfall..

In some areas, I described the heavy snowfall's damage as a "warzone."

Picnic, anyone?


I liked the ice + snow mix.



By the time I went out to "capture the [snowy] moments," the snowflakes had turned to raindrops... and I was soaked while attempting it. :)


My favorite image!

I'm a Cook for the People!

I have always loved to make food. Cooking, baking, anything of that nature. Always loved it! When I was a teenager, I loved to cook and my sister loved to clean. And that's how the division of duties in our household fell... But ze problemo with this was, I figured, since I'm making the food, I better like it!! Not everyone in the family agreed with my slightly-selfish philosophy. (Give me a break; I was a teenager!). My brother and sister protested loudly, vehemently and very often!

And thus the family joke... "We want a cook for the people, not a cook for the cook!!!" :) HAHA
I don't remember my mom protesting much though... She liked it when I cooked. She still likes it when I cook. :)

My revelation of this past weekend is that I must have gotten over my cook-for-the-cook tendencies. My sister is expecting a baby veeery soon, so I planned/hosted a baby shower tea for her... While working hard with food preparations on Saturday, I was chatting with my mom about the menu... and my comments brought a revelation:

Egg Salad Sandwiches... "I'm not really a fan of egg salad"


Mushroom Phyllo Cups... "I don't really like mushrooms much either" (actually I kinda liked these--garlicky!)

And then there was the Roast Beef Sandwiches ... (so-so)

After awhile, I realized I had grown as a cook (slight overexaggeration here). I liked variety. I liked having something for everyone, more than I liked something for me!! YAY! Personal growth!

Some other good tea-time food...




The best part of any party.. is knowing that people are having a fantastic time!

The Guest of Honor & Mommy-to-Be (Again) = My Sis


Happy Sisters!