Had to get that cell phone to my eye as quickly as I could to capture this composition. My son had called the kids to help me load up the car as I prepared to leave Columbus for Pittsburgh. Henry is tagging along.
They were all (including Henry) going on their own trip, a couple of hours away, to select the Airedale puppy they’ll pick up Labor Day Weekend.
Stay tuned!
Anna as photographed by her mom, Erika, holding their choice- Josie.
Lots of shade in both photos
It’s been awhile since I’ve stitched up a sock monkey. The classic.
One for new baby grandson in Ohio and one for a friend of my sister in New York City. The pairs of socks have been in the house a long time. Once I stitched on the faces, they seem to look at me and smile.
Both Anna and Jack have set up a crew of sock monkeys, told them to smile and photographed them. This evening I placed the newly completed monkeys on the couch in my living room. And took their picture
Very cooperative!
One of the smiles needs a bit of straightening out, I see upon examining the image. Ooops.
And yes, my sister and I visited the Sock Monkey Museum in Rockford, Illinois when we were visiting relatives. (The relatives live in Rockford, not the museum)
Sock monkey duo, going in different directions, more than 500 miles apart.
Here are some old sock monkey photos from previous blogs.
When I was a kid (c. 1958)my family lived in the city of Newark NJ. there was a Youth Consultation Service behind our house on Broad Street. At least a dozen girls lived there and each girl had a handmade sock monkey. My mom thought sock monkeys weren’t appealing but I always wanted one. Some people think they are ugly, others think they’re cute. These two have a bit of scrap flannel from the sock monkey pillowcases I stitched for the grandchildren for Christmas. Going with a theme, here. That will be another post.
I don’t think I owned one until I stitched on in 1976.
The first sock monkey I ever made was for my son Mark (39),father to the grandchildren in the photos above. He name it the Doonie Monkey and it was stuffed with old stockings. I use fiberfill now. And for some unknown reason, I never added a tail on his monkey. He resides with the grandchildren in Ohio, too.
I’ve make pink and blue and purple monkeys but my favorite is the classic.
If you would like to make a sock monkey, there’s a terrific youtube tutorial by Professor Pincushion on how to make the classic monkey. I don’t add the ears or buttons on mine.
Maura was getting ready to go outside and the accessories were on the floor in a nice light.
The boots, scarf and gloves looked like a still life to me. Their placement.
She’d gotten on the snow pants and coat already.
It was an effort but a successful one.
She ignored me as I photographed her preparing to go outside and play. Gave me an opportunity to experiment with the mirrorless camera. 
It was Jack’s idea. Take a picture of him tossing his sock monkey in the air.
This weekend I got to be a useful grandma and help watch the younger 3 grandkids while Anna and her mom went to Cincinnati to a swim meet.
The bonus is I got to practice photography- catch motion, suffed animal mid-air, press the shutter, experiment with the new SONY mirrorless camera. Get a sense of the timing.
The kids were in jammies and ready for bed.
But hey, let’s throw stuffed animals in the air! Maura got the groundhog up and his shadow appeared on the wall!
Today’s post shot with the mirrorless Sony camera.
Henry was ecstatic it was snowing this morning.
He ran around like a rabbit. Playing in it. Rubbing his nose into a drift. Snow in his beard. He posed for me on the fire pit.
I didn’t even ask him to. I never saw a dog enjoy a snowfall as much as Henry did today.
The kids got on their snowpants and boots and slid down the front lawn and built a snowman
We came inside to warm up and I made sour cream pancakes.
I tell the grandkids, “okay guys first a crazy pic- then a nice one.”
This is at the Columbus zoo.
I didn’t tell the tiger anything.
Good thing for the glass between us.
When one of the grandkids sees something when they’re out and about and thinks-
“oooh, a good one for Grandma’s Blog”, takes a picture to send to me, I like to share it.
Good to encourage their “seeing”.
I told Anna I’ll help her start a blog of her very own. I think she has a great eye. She could start once a week, not daily.
Two years ago Anna took the photo of the pick up truck filled with mannequin legs, headed “to the dummy store.”
The challenge of unexpected seemed fun but challenging.
Added a couple you’ve seen but seemed good for the theme. Knowing when to stop adding to the gallery is the difficult part.
The grandkids swim coach dressed as a leprechaun
Mr. Wholey on his lobster phone
Headstones and a railway car as we headed to Idlewild Park
A man seemingly peeking out of the back of the van
Quick, close your eyes for a birthday surprise, Michael.
Laura is surprised for her 30th birthday- nice party James!
Alligator and Ostrich Jerky at the Renaissance Festival
Downtown by the Convention Center a wall of pink water for Breast Cancer Awareness
A cigarette butt and a teabag in a planter downtown
Fried Pickles sign at Eat ‘N Park
Stuffed Animal Window in New York City
A churchyard full of memorial flags in Millvale.
Police having a snack in NYC
Birthday gift from her brother
Dog Wash?
Whoa
Discovering the rush of air
Two fake geese that I thought were real in Powell , Ohio
Finding the costumes at the History Center in Virginia.
Hardy, Virginia (near Roanoke) weekend at the other Grandparents’ home.
Grandkids and their cousin on the move.
Grandma has to be fast with the camera – lens and shutter, barely time to check focus. Everyone growing up before my eyes.
Culled from the day’s catch- didn’t photograph any food making today but here is what I photographed on Saturday.
School’s out for the summer so I’m not in my home territory. Most days I shoot photographs as I drive around the city. But I am seeing different scenery these days. We went to a T-ball game on Saturday morning.
Four Annie’s Cheddar Bunnies fell out of the van onto the pavement and their bright orange caught my eye but I thought, nah, four bitty snack crackers are not worth a photograph since we have to get to the game and haul the fold-up chairs and the bag of snacks for the team. I mean another day I could do a Snack Cracker still life but we were in a rush.
Imagine my surprise when we returned to the van. The neon orange obliterated. Ants working hard to live.
and a close up detail
and then as we pulled out of the school parking lot by the baseball fields, there was a church parking lot and a scene I wanted to photograph. This is when you are probably annoying to your daughter-in-law but she doesn’t mind and pulls over by the dumpster and I got out and took about 4 quick shots on the gray day.
and the detail. My DIL asked if I wanted to come back and pick it up to take back home since it wasn’t broken!
A quick trip to the zoo and the reptile house. The kids got a chance to touch the Rosy Boa. I photographed the Pythons devouring rabbits but it is too graphic.
The Columbus Zoo has a lovely 1914 Carousel, restored. The youngest 3 grandkids took a ride.
and youngest granddaughter Maura in a quiet moment
