traditions – nancy merrill photography

A Photo a Week Challenge: Shiny

The end of this week kicks off the Christmas season here. With the LDS Salt Lake Temple currently under major renovations for seismic upgrades, it will be interesting to see how Temple Square is decorated and lit for Christmas. Last year, it was a little sparse. This photo is from two years ago, the Christmas before the renovations began. To me, Christmas is always shiny, from the lights and decorations to the light in the faces of children as they enjoy the joy and magic of the season.

If you’re interested in seeing what’s been happening to the temple, here’s a video of the latest updates:

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE A PHOTO OR TWO OF SHINY THINGS

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ tag.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.

A Photo a Week Challenge: Something Baked

Okay, okay. I know this pie isn’t baked yet, but it was soon after I took this photo. When summer starts turning toward fall and all of the fruit trees are bursting with ripe fruit, my heart turns to pies, especially apple pies and peach pies. This pie happens to be peach. I have been using my mom’s no fail pie crust recipe for many moons now, and it has failed on my only once (and it was my fault; old flour). Not this time. This time, the crust was the flakiest, melt-in-your-mouthiest I have ever made. I doubt I’ll ever be able to duplicate it. I sure love it when my kitchen smells like a bakery.

Here’s the finished product.

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE A PHOTO OR TWO OF SOMETHING BAKED.

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ and “Photo a Week” tags.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.

A Photo a Week Challenge: Nostalgic

I’ve mentioned before that my mom’s dad built a cabin in the Uinta Mountains in the 1950s. He was a postal worker by trade, so it’s a bit clumsy, but after nearly 70 years, it’s still standing. When we go up for a weekend, there are a few things that are “must haves”: s’mores roasted in the fireplace, sugar wafer cookies, and breakfast toast cooked on the old wrought-iron griddle. This is seriously the best toast ever. I’ve tried making it at home. It doesn’t taste the same. Not even close. Years and years of seasoning have gone into that iron, and there’s nothing else like it. Anyone up for a nice mountain adventure?

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE A PHOTO OR TWO OF THINGS THAT SOMETHING THAT MAKES YOU NOSTALGIC.

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ and “Photo a Week” tags.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.

A Photo a Week Challenge: Christmas Memories

Growing up, Christmas was always filled with amazing smells. My mother and both of my grandmothers would bake and make candies and various treats to share with neighbors and at family parties. My favorite were the spider cookies. They are semi-sweet and butterscotch chips melted then mixed with crunchy Chinese noodles and peanuts. Then you drop them by the spoonful onto wax paper and let them harden (or chill them in the fridge if you don’t have the time). Salty and sweet and crunchy all at the same time. I recently made some for a church party, and when I bit into one (to test and make sure I got it right), I closed my eyes and was instantly in my mom’s kitchen, nine years-old, and hearing my mom and my grandmother talk about everything that still needed to be done before Christmas.

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE ONE OR TWO OR MORE PHOTOS OF YOUR CHRISTMAS AND/OR HOLIDAY MEMORIES.

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ tag.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.

Thankful November 16th: Food

I always like to joke that without food, I would die. I suppose for me, the real truth is that I would die a little inside if I couldn’t cook and bake. I love making good food for people I love. And I love watching them enjoy what I’ve made. My mother and both of my grandmothers were very good cooks, and I learned some fun recipes and technics from each of them. Now I get to bake and cook for my husband, who isn’t a finicky eater, but always goes out of his way to praise whatever I make for him.

Thankful November 1st: Traditions

This isn’t a photo challenge, unless you want it to be. I’ve decided to post a photo each day of November of something that I’m thankful for. Our Halloween tradition is to have homemade chili, watch fun movies, and hand out candy to Trick-or-Treaters. If you knock on our door, we don’t even require a costume. You’ll still get a good amount of chocolate. I’m grateful for fun traditions. Traditions keep us grounded with our past. When we start a new tradition, it also helps us mold our future.

A Photo a Week Challenge: Traditions

Our son graduated from college this spring, and his program has a tradition that graduates stand in the fountain in front of the their main classroom building after the ceremony is over. Our daughter also graduated from the same school and the same program (different disciplines). The first photo is our daughter and her friends (she’s third from the left) and second is our son and one of his best friends.

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE ONE OR TWO OR MORE PHOTOS SHOWING A TRADITION YOU HAVE.

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ tag.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.

A Photo A Week Challenge: Lit from Within

lit_within_nmp

Some of my favorite Christmas decorations are luminarias. I love simple ones (I’ve seen them made from milk cartons and Christmas lights) and the more elaborate ones (like this one at Temple Square in Salt Lake City). I love the warmth created by the light within.

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE A PHOTO OR TWO OF THINGS LIT FROM WITHIN.

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ tag.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.

A Photo a Week Challenge: Halloween

Halloween_nmp

In honor of Halloween next Tuesday, this week is all about the spooks, scares, and traditions of this holiday. My husband and I like carving pumpkins. This year, he found the biggest pumpkin I have ever owned. It weighs over 50 pounds. I doubt it will be vandalized because the kids in our neighborhood who are into that sort of things are really wimpy. I’ve also baked cookies and two weeks ago we bought the Costco-sized bag of chocolate to give out. We will stay in that night and watch The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, a spoof of the 50s and 60s B horror/SciFi movies. Wonderfully campy and horrible dialogue. What are your Halloween traditions?

IN A NEW POST CREATED FOR THIS CHALLENGE, SHARE A PHOTO OR TWO (OR THREE OR…) OF OUR HALLOWEEN TRADITIONS OR JUST THINGS THAT YOU THINK ARE INDICATIVE OF THE SEASON.

Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography. Here’s how it works:

Each week, I’ll come up with a theme and post a photo that I think fits. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog (a new post!) anytime before the following Thursday, when the next photo theme will be announced.
To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “A Photo a Week Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use the “postaday″ and “Photo a Week” tags.
Come back here and post a link to your image in the comments for this challenge.
Follow nancy merrill photography so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements.