Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Your Love is a Song by SWITCHFOOT
This song is one of my favorites. I dont care for the homemade video, but i love the song, Switchfoot is one of the best Christian bands around! Enjoy!
Monday, December 26, 2011
Chocolate Dipped Candy Canes
Me and my mother in law Melba, made some wonderful Chocolate covered Candy Canes, to stir our Hot Chocolate with. See the Recipe below on how to make your own!
Hot chocolate is one of my fave things to drink in the winter time. ive got a Keruig and can make a single cup of Hot Cocoa anytime and its an addiction, and when you add a chocolate dipped candy cane, it's heavenly! These are delicious eaten on their own too!
RECIPE FOR CHOCOLATE DIPPED CANES
ITEMS YOU NEED:
•candy canes
•chocolate chips or melting chocolate--white & milk/dark
•floral foam
•tinfoil or wax paper
DIRECTIONS:
1. Starting at the crook, unwrap the candy canes halfway.
2. Melt your milk or dark chocolate in a large glass bowl.(You can use a double boiler, and stir frequently, or you can microwave it in only small 10 second at a time, and stirring in between, honestly I like a double boiler better, because if you microwave too much, you can "cook" the chocolate and it ruins it. (or so Ive heard.)
If you're using chocolate chips, make sure to add a little shortening--it will make the chocolate much more smooth and easier to work with. For one bag of chips, use about 1 Tablespoon of shortening (Crisco) My mother in law likes to use "ALMOND BARK" chocolate.
If you have a sweet Gram to help you, (like I do) then by all means, solicit her help!3. Dip the crook and top half the candy cane into the chocolate, holding it by the bottom wrapped part. Twist and shake off any excess chocolate, then stick it into the floral foam to dry. Once you're finished dipping, place into the fridge to firm up--about 5 or so minutes.
(I forgot to take a pic of this step!)
4. Once firm, take the candy canes out of the fridge, and lay them out on a piece of aluminum foil or wax paper. Melt the white chocolate chips in a small glass bowl until smooth. Place the white chocolate into the corner of a sandwich bag, then snip off a tiny piece of the corner--now you have your piping bag! Drizzle the white chocolate over the chocolate, then let harden.
You can put the in bags, or display them pretty like I did here and give them to anyone! Remember babies and toddlers can choke on hard candy.Merry Christmas and Happy New year yall! (BTW, I wonder how these would be in Coffee? hummmmmm might have to try that in the morning.)
BIG HUGS YALL!
For my local friends, stop by and Ill share some with you!
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Merry Christmas from the Dobbins family
Christmas is so many things, Its the birth of our savior, its family, its love and comfort and peace. Its seeing childrens faces opening gifts, its spending time with loved ones that maybe you dont see as often, but mostly it is to celebrate Jesus Christ, our savior.
We enjoy watching all the movies, "Its a wonderful life" (my favorite) "Miracle on 42nd street" but one of my silly favorites is "A Christmas Story." I dont know why I like it so much but I do. I guess I had a pretty eventful childhood and this little boy does too. I love the part where he puts his tongue on the pole and it freezes to the pole. I actually did that once, but it was in the freezer, when I was in 3rd grade. My dad was close by thankfully and poured some warm water on it and it unfroze, but I still tore some of the flesh off my tongue!
So this year I wanted to do something fun for us. I hope you like our silly card this year! I came up with the idea, shot it in the studio (on self timer) and did all the artwork. Fun stuff. Anyway, Merry Christmas Yall! From Photography by Dixie and the Dobbins family.
Friday, December 16, 2011
The Horton Girls!
I have had the pleasure of photographing these sweet sisters for several years now! Holland, the oldest for 3 years and her sweet 1 year old baby sister Britton for the past year. Their mama is very organized and always gets them in, each and every single month for the portraits their first year!
Thank you Leah and Kirk, its been a lot of fun, they are beautiful babies.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
My father-in-law is with Jesus now.
This a cell phone photo, my uncle took of my Husband giving the flag from his fathers casket to his mother Yesterday. It was a full church and very long procession. My father in law was very loved and respected by so many. He was buried in the beautiful veterans cememtary in Dallas yesterday. Thanks for all your condolences and acts of kindness of late. I was able to hold in my grief until a pastor who knew Jerry well said the words. I know that when Jesus greeted Jerry, he said "Well done, my Loyal and Faithful Servant, well done."
Thursday, December 08, 2011
Childrens Christmas Pictures, Wichita Falls, Texas
We're having lots of fun taking different pictures this Christmas season in the studio! We've got 3 different sets for children including our white twinkle lights and Pajamas session pictured here!
I'll post the some of the others here this weekend! Give us a call, (940) 761-5111, we've got great deals on our Christmas Cards and holiday packages!
Monday, December 05, 2011
The Daffodil Principle
I love this story! I hope you'll take the time to read it!
THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE by Jaroldeen Asplund Edwards
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come and see the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. Going and coming took most of a day--and I honestly did not have a free day until the following week.
"I will come next Tuesday, " I promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call.
Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove the length of Route 91, continued on I-215, and finally turned onto Route 18 and began to drive up the mountain highway. The tops of the mountains were sheathed in clouds, and I had gone only a few miles when the road was completely covered with a wet, gray blanket of fog. I slowed to a crawl, my heart pounding.
The road becomes narrow and winding toward the top of the mountain. As I executed the hazardous turns at a snail's pace, I was praying to reach the turnoff at Blue Jay that would signify I had arrived.
When I finally walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and greeted my grandchildren I said, "Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these darling children that I want to see bad enough to drive another inch!"
My daughter smiled calmly," We drive in this all the time, Mother."
"Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears--and then I'm heading for home!" I assured her.
I muttered all the way. After about twenty minutes we turned onto a small gravel road that branched down into an oak-filled hollow on the side of the mountain.
We parked in a small parking lot adjoining a little stone church. On the far side of the church I saw a pine-needle-covered path, with towering evergreens and manzanita bushes and an inconspicuous, lettered sign "Daffodil Garden."
We each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path as it wound through the trees. The mountain sloped away from the side of the path in irregular dips, folds, and valleys, like a deeply creased skirt.
Live oaks, mountain laurel, shrubs, and bushes clustered in the folds, and in the gray, drizzling air, the green foliage looked dark and monochromatic. I shivered. Then we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight, unexpectedly and completely splendid. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and slopes where it had run into every crevice and over every rise.
Even in the mist-filled air, the mountainside was radiant, clothed in massive drifts and waterfalls of daffodils. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, saffron, and butter yellow.
Each different-colored variety (I learned later that there were more than thirty-five varieties of daffodils in the vast display) was planted as a group so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue.
In the center of this incredible and dazzling display of gold, a great cascade of purple grape hyacinth flowed down like a waterfall of blossoms framed in its own rock-lined basin, weaving through the brilliant daffodils.
A charming path wound throughout the garden. There were several resting stations, paved with stone and furnished with Victorian wooden benches and great tubs of coral and carmine tulips. As though this were not magnificence enough, Mother Nature had to add her own grace note -- above the daffodils, a bevy of western bluebirds flitted and darted, flashing their brilliance. These charming little birds are the color of sapphires with breasts of magenta red. As they dance in the air, their colors are truly like jewels above the blowing, glowing daffodils. The effect was spectacular.
It did not matter that the sun was not shining. The brilliance of the daffodils was like the glow of the brightest sunlit day. Words, wonderful as they are, simply cannot describe the incredible beauty of that flower-bedecked mountain top.
Five acres of flowers! (This too I discovered later when some of my questions were answered.) "But who has done this?" I asked Carolyn. I was overflowing with gratitude that she brought me -- even against my will. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
"Who?" I asked again, almost speechless with wonder, "And how, and why, and when?"
"It's just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's her home." Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A-frame house that looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory.
We walked up to the house, my mind buzzing with questions.
On the patio we saw a poster. " Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking" was the headline. The first answer was a simple one.
"50,000 bulbs," it read. The second answer was,
"One at a time, by one woman, two hands, two feet, and very little brain." The third answer was,
"Began in 1958."
There it was. The Daffodil Principle.
For me that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than thirty-five years before, had begun -- one bulb at a time -- to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountain top. One bulb at a time.
There was no other way to do it. One bulb at a time. No shortcuts -- simply loving the slow process of planting. Loving the work as it unfolded.
Loving an achievement that grew so slowly and that bloomed for only three weeks of each year. Still, just planting one bulb at a time, year after year, had changed the world.
This unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. She had created something of ineffable magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.
The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principle of celebration: learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time -- often just one baby-step at a time -- learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time.
When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.
"Carolyn," I said that morning on the top of the mountain as we left the haven of daffodils, our minds and hearts still bathed and bemused by the splendors we had seen, "it's as though that remarkable woman has needle-pointed the earth! Decorated it. Just think of it, she planted every single bulb for more than thirty years. One bulb at a time! And that's the only way this garden could be created. Every individual bulb had to be planted. There was no way of short-circuiting that process. Five acres of blooms. That magnificent cascade of hyacinth!
All, all, just one bulb at a time."
The thought of it filled my mind. I was suddenly overwhelmed with the implications of what I had seen. "It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years. Just think what I might have been able to achieve!"
My wise daughter put the car into gear and summed up the message of the day in her direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said with the same knowing smile she had worn for most of the morning. Oh, profound wisdom!
It is pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson a celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use tomorrow?"
THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE by Jaroldeen Asplund Edwards
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come and see the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. Going and coming took most of a day--and I honestly did not have a free day until the following week.
"I will come next Tuesday, " I promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call.
Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove the length of Route 91, continued on I-215, and finally turned onto Route 18 and began to drive up the mountain highway. The tops of the mountains were sheathed in clouds, and I had gone only a few miles when the road was completely covered with a wet, gray blanket of fog. I slowed to a crawl, my heart pounding.
The road becomes narrow and winding toward the top of the mountain. As I executed the hazardous turns at a snail's pace, I was praying to reach the turnoff at Blue Jay that would signify I had arrived.
When I finally walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and greeted my grandchildren I said, "Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these darling children that I want to see bad enough to drive another inch!"
My daughter smiled calmly," We drive in this all the time, Mother."
"Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears--and then I'm heading for home!" I assured her.
I muttered all the way. After about twenty minutes we turned onto a small gravel road that branched down into an oak-filled hollow on the side of the mountain.
We parked in a small parking lot adjoining a little stone church. On the far side of the church I saw a pine-needle-covered path, with towering evergreens and manzanita bushes and an inconspicuous, lettered sign "Daffodil Garden."
We each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path as it wound through the trees. The mountain sloped away from the side of the path in irregular dips, folds, and valleys, like a deeply creased skirt.
Live oaks, mountain laurel, shrubs, and bushes clustered in the folds, and in the gray, drizzling air, the green foliage looked dark and monochromatic. I shivered. Then we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight, unexpectedly and completely splendid. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and slopes where it had run into every crevice and over every rise.
Even in the mist-filled air, the mountainside was radiant, clothed in massive drifts and waterfalls of daffodils. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, saffron, and butter yellow.
Each different-colored variety (I learned later that there were more than thirty-five varieties of daffodils in the vast display) was planted as a group so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue.
In the center of this incredible and dazzling display of gold, a great cascade of purple grape hyacinth flowed down like a waterfall of blossoms framed in its own rock-lined basin, weaving through the brilliant daffodils.
A charming path wound throughout the garden. There were several resting stations, paved with stone and furnished with Victorian wooden benches and great tubs of coral and carmine tulips. As though this were not magnificence enough, Mother Nature had to add her own grace note -- above the daffodils, a bevy of western bluebirds flitted and darted, flashing their brilliance. These charming little birds are the color of sapphires with breasts of magenta red. As they dance in the air, their colors are truly like jewels above the blowing, glowing daffodils. The effect was spectacular.
It did not matter that the sun was not shining. The brilliance of the daffodils was like the glow of the brightest sunlit day. Words, wonderful as they are, simply cannot describe the incredible beauty of that flower-bedecked mountain top.
Five acres of flowers! (This too I discovered later when some of my questions were answered.) "But who has done this?" I asked Carolyn. I was overflowing with gratitude that she brought me -- even against my will. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
"Who?" I asked again, almost speechless with wonder, "And how, and why, and when?"
"It's just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's her home." Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A-frame house that looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory.
We walked up to the house, my mind buzzing with questions.
On the patio we saw a poster. " Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking" was the headline. The first answer was a simple one.
"50,000 bulbs," it read. The second answer was,
"One at a time, by one woman, two hands, two feet, and very little brain." The third answer was,
"Began in 1958."
There it was. The Daffodil Principle.
For me that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than thirty-five years before, had begun -- one bulb at a time -- to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountain top. One bulb at a time.
There was no other way to do it. One bulb at a time. No shortcuts -- simply loving the slow process of planting. Loving the work as it unfolded.
Loving an achievement that grew so slowly and that bloomed for only three weeks of each year. Still, just planting one bulb at a time, year after year, had changed the world.
This unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. She had created something of ineffable magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.
The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principle of celebration: learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time -- often just one baby-step at a time -- learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time.
When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.
"Carolyn," I said that morning on the top of the mountain as we left the haven of daffodils, our minds and hearts still bathed and bemused by the splendors we had seen, "it's as though that remarkable woman has needle-pointed the earth! Decorated it. Just think of it, she planted every single bulb for more than thirty years. One bulb at a time! And that's the only way this garden could be created. Every individual bulb had to be planted. There was no way of short-circuiting that process. Five acres of blooms. That magnificent cascade of hyacinth!
All, all, just one bulb at a time."
The thought of it filled my mind. I was suddenly overwhelmed with the implications of what I had seen. "It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years. Just think what I might have been able to achieve!"
My wise daughter put the car into gear and summed up the message of the day in her direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said with the same knowing smile she had worn for most of the morning. Oh, profound wisdom!
It is pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson a celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use tomorrow?"
Prayers for my Father in Law
Im very sad to say, that my Husbands dad, Jerry, is battling Brain cancer. He has bravely fought for a few months now and according to his neurologist, only has days left to live. We've each told him our goodbyes and told him it is OK, to relax and go to heaven. Hes fought the good fight. Jerry and his wife have been very involved in their church, the church we were married in, Northgate United Methodist in Irving, for over 45 years. Jerry taught Sunday school and his wife has been the church secretary and volunteer for many many years.
I'm glad that Ive been able to spend time with him. Our son is taking it very hard as he is very close to his paternal grandparents. They attended almost every single football game he played in, and many many of his power lifting meets. They would make the 5 hour round trip drive to support him in his athletic events and has never missed a Christmas with him in 18 years, including his very first Christmas in Japan!
Please say a prayer for Jerry and our family, the Dobbins, who are all gathered with him in Irving, during this difficult time. I for one know, that once he does pass, Jesus will say to Jerry, "Well Done my Loyal and Faithful Servant. Well Done."
I'm glad that Ive been able to spend time with him. Our son is taking it very hard as he is very close to his paternal grandparents. They attended almost every single football game he played in, and many many of his power lifting meets. They would make the 5 hour round trip drive to support him in his athletic events and has never missed a Christmas with him in 18 years, including his very first Christmas in Japan!
Please say a prayer for Jerry and our family, the Dobbins, who are all gathered with him in Irving, during this difficult time. I for one know, that once he does pass, Jesus will say to Jerry, "Well Done my Loyal and Faithful Servant. Well Done."
Surprise Snowfall Last night!
This morning I woke up and my husband and I were getting ready for our day and I happened to notice out the window that it snowed last night! WoW I didnt even know it was supposed to. It was a light snow fall, but snow NONETHELESS! As i was gazing out the window, I noticed the house across the street that is for sale, had snow on its beautiful rose bushes. Since Ive been watering these roses with my own water the past few weeks, I had to go and rescue them. You see I cannot stand to see any living thing suffer.
I've always been that way. Seeing the snow on the beautiful roses and rose buds, made me think about how life can be hard on the delicate things in this world. That something so beautiful and fragile was happy one day and basking in the warm temps and the next, was shocked by ice and snow landing on it. Made me think of the song "CANDLE IN THE WIND". I want to rescue the world. I cant help it. Ok, I know im getting corny here, but I mean it. Lets all take care of the delicate things in this world. Children, animals, dogs, cats, squirrells, Lets be good Stewards of the things that God puts in our paths. We are not supposed to only think of ourselves.
We are to think of everything and everyone, that comes across our paths. Lets slow down and give what we have to help others. Espically this holiday season. Now I have a beautiful Vase of flowers on my bedroom night stand to enjoy.
In my life, espically when I was in my early 20s, there have been times when a few people had noticed my vulnerbility and had helped me.
Had brought me in from the cold. Had seen the beauty inside me, the vulnerability and how fragile I was, and then rescued me of sorts. And there have been those, who turned a blind eye and let me suffer.
God is like that also, he knows we are weak, and he knows we need him and each other. He will shelter us from the cold and from the ones who wish us harm. So that we can bask in the warmth of his love and his comfort. I chose to love, to give and to help. You see, when you help and give, you get back too. But thats not the reason to give, just give and help and it will all work out in the end. Have a beautiful week!
Sunday, December 04, 2011
Gig 'em Aggies!
I made an ACORN Wreath, see post below a couple of posts, and I decided to make a 2ND one for our son.
I found the acorns in the park, so this was a very cheap project. The most expensive thing was the Snow man, whom I picked up at HOBBY LOBBY for $5. Its a very heavy wreath but I think he will love it! Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas Y'ALL!
Saturday, December 03, 2011
Shelby!
Love this young lady and her family. First time I photographed her, she was just a young girl, and shes been back several times. Now shes graduating from MSU with a degree in Psychology! So proud of you Shelby! (Shes gorgeous and gets it from her beautiful mother.) I also love Shelbys great sense of humour, she makes me laugh so much my cheeks hurt.
Tis the Season
I love making things for our home, especially things from nature! Doesn't Nature have the most beautiful things in the world? I recently made a wreath from Large acorns I found in the park near my home. (See below this text on how I did it!) Ive never seen Acorns that big in my life! (They were the size of PECANS!) And whats amazing is I had just enough to make this wreath. My fingers were sore from twisting off the rough tops that the acorns grow on the trees from. Ive been acorn crazy this year.Since my 4 year old grandson told me "I love you Grammy, like a squirrel loves an ACORN" and then he laughed hysterically for a few minutes. So now, Ive got acorns all over my house to think of him! And he and I collected some together a month ago when he was here for a sleep over.
I am going to make two of these and paint one of them and leave one natural. I made the natural one, so now time to make the other. I think I will paint it Aggie Maron to surprise our son who is a Freshman at Texas A&M at College station. Ok, So I gotta go out and collect more Acorns in the rain now. :-) Have a blessed weekend, and hope you can do some crafts with your kids to get ready for the holiday season!
The wreath weighs a lot, I am not going to use this ribbon, its all I had on hand, Im going to use Raffia, but I wanted to hang it for a photo for you. I bought the straw wreath at MICHAELS store and I hot glued the acorns on the wreath. It took me a couple of hours to hot glue them, but i did it while watching David Letterman and enjoying a glass of wine one evening. I only burned my fingers two times! It is very heavy, but I think its beautiful. The reason that you bake the acorns in the oven is because occassionally there might be "critters" inside the acorns I have heard and you dont want them boring out and damaging your acorns. The extra ones, i tossed in the front yard for the squirrells to find and store away. I hope you enjoy making your own wreath, when I finish the 2nd one Ill post images of it too! Happy Weekend!
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