SNAKE!

I don't know what it is about our front porch, but for some reason it attracts a lot of wildlife.  I'm pretty sure I could spend the day in the forrest and not see as many creatures as I do on a daily basis on my front porch.  We always have at least one lizard with its tail hanging out from under the shutters.  Toads and tree frogs are frequent visitors as well, not to mention the plethora of insects including praying mantis, and a wide variety or spiders.  As a result, the neighborhood cats treat our porch like a prized hunting ground.  

This guy showed up on our porch recently......

I am not a fan of snakes.  This isn't the first snake to venture onto our porch, be he is definitely the most colorful.  After a quick google search, we realized that he is harmless and will eat our annoying bugs, so I allowed him to stay.  However, I am extremely paranoid every time I step out of my front door!

Cherry Blossoms

Since it is such a dreary day here in Savannah, I thought I'd post something cheerful.  This is the Yoshino Cherry tree that is in my front yard.  Yoshinos have a special place in my heart.  I am a native of Macon, GA.  If you don't know much about Macon, they have a big Cherry Blossom Festival every spring with over 300,000 Yoshinos is full bloom.  

It all started in 1949 when William A. Fickling, Sr., a realtor in Macon found a the flowering tree in his own backyard.  In 1952 while on a trip to Washington, D.C., Mr. Fickling saw the same trees blooming around the city.  These were the trees that Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo had gifted 3,000 of to the city of Washington, D.C. in 1912.  These trees are very rare to the South.  When Mr. Fickling returned home to Macon, he began growing even more Yoshinos and shared them with the community.  They are now all over the city.  You can still see Mr. Fickling's trees today.  The long, winding driveway down to his old house is covered on both sides by big, beautiful Yoshinos. 

Yoshinos are my all time favorite tree.  Unfortunately, they grow painfully slowly.  I planted this tree about 4 years ago and it is still only slightly taller than myself and only had about 50 blooms this year.  When I was a kid in Macon, my dad planted 2 Yoshinos in each of the front yards of the houses we resided in; one for my sister and one for me.  We still drive by and check on them every now and then when we go visit family in Macon.  Do I recommend the Yoshino?  Heck yes, but only it you have a lot of patience!

Miss Stella

This is the first thing I see when I wake up in the morning.....

This is Miss Stella. Her name came from the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire. If you haven't seen or read it, you need to. It is a masterpiece! Stella has been a very important part of my life for almost 7 years now. She truly is the most loving creature anyone could ask for. She lives to snuggle and follow me around the house. Stella has 2 major flaws; her flatulence and her distaste for the camera. Boston Terriers are notoriously gassy by the way, it isn't just her. I'm not sure how I managed it, but I live in a house full of camera haters. Between Stella, her 3 feline brothers and my husband, I have a lot of pictures of the backs of heads. I have found it best to photograph them all while they are asleep (yes, I know it is pretty creepy).

Keep an eye you for Stella. She will be showing up from time to time on the blog for sure. She rarely leaves my side.

"We long for an affection altogether ignorant of our faults. Heaven has accorded this to us in the uncritical canine attachment." ~George Eliot

Crazy bugs!

These crazy bugs have been showing up on our gardenia bushes lately. I have no clue what they are but I thought that they were kind of cute. Anyone know what they are?

Update!!! Thanks to Doug Chase for informing me that these are Assassin bugs. Apparently they will bite (but rarely do) and are actually pretty helpful little guys because they eat a lot of nasty little critters that you don't want around your yard.

Kim Davies & Craig Reilly

On February 26, 2011, Kimberly Davies & Craig Reilly were united in married at the Mighty 8th Air Force Museum in Pooler, GA. I was so excited when Kim asked me to be their photographer and share their happy day with them! It was such a beautiful day! We could not have asked for better weather.Yummy, yummy cupcakes!

The chapel at the Mighty 8th is so adorable! If only the sun hadn't been so bright, but at least it wasn't cold or rainy!

The garden around the chapel was starting to bloom. Don't you love this little arbor?

Congrats to the happy couple! I wish you many, many years of wedded bliss!

Femme Fatale's Femme of the Year

Last week, I had the great pleasure of photographing Femme Fatale Salon's Femme of the Year, the beautiful Miss Tara Nguyen. After Paul and Lauriel did her hair and makeup, we headed over to The Mansion. Unfortunately, it was an incredibly windy day so we could only shoot indoors. That didn't really seem to matter, because Tara's images came out beautifully, if I do say so myself. It helps when your subject is gorgeous and your hair and makeup artist are incredibly talented.

Thanks to Tara for being such an amazing model! Go see Paul and the rest of the Femme Fatale team for some seriously amazing hair! www.ffsalon.com