Wednesday, June 22, 2011

365 Project - Day 273 - Goodbye Blogger

Okay, so I have been fed up with Blogger for awhile now. If you are a complete computer and internet novice looking to start a blog, then it might be right up your alley. But, if you're looking to do a little something more with your blog and have any interest in tweaking it to make it uniquely your own, you would be much better off going somewhere else.

In short, Blogger just has too many issues for my taste.

So, I am finally jumping ship and moving to Wordpress. Eventually, I will also be upgrading the blog to be more of a website, since I want it to eventually be my writing website--a place to display some of my work and where I hope I will continue to grow as a writer. Right now, it is a work in progress. I am just getting everything moved at this point, and then I will start fine-tuning

If you've enjoyed the blog and the stories you have found here, I hope you will continue to follow me in my new venture. So, for today's real 365 Project blog post, head over to:

http://www.loriromano.com/

I'll see you there!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

365 Project - Day 172 - I Heart Faces Photo Challenge - Let's Hear It For The Boys

There's something about watching a well-orchestrated offensive play unfold--the crack and thud of helmets and pads colliding on the field. There's something about seeing a member of your team running toward the end zone so fast you'd swear he was flying. There's just something about football.

For this week's I Heart Faces Photo Challenge, I am submitting one of the photos I took of my brother Beau's football team as they huddled for a little halftime pep talk. Come on everybody, let's hear it for the boys.



Today's 365 Project Entry is dedicated to the boys who fight their battles on the playing field and to their dedicated dads who coach them.

Be sure to head over to I Heart Faces to check out the other amazing entries this week.



Monday, June 20, 2011

365 Project - Day 171 - Wedding

When I first decided to take my photography and go into business, I wasn't sure that I ever wanted to shoot weddings. It just seemed like such an enormous job, and an enormous amount of pressure. Plus, I wasn't sure that I would feel comfortable taking on a wedding when I had absolutely no prior experience shooting one. But, when I asked to shoot Andy and Henny's small backyard wedding, I jumped at the chance. Not only are they good family friends, but I also knew that it would be a small, laidback affair. It was the perfect opportunity for me to get some practice and to see if I might want to add weddings to my professional portfolio.

Now, I know that future weddings are not guaranteed to be as much fun to shoot as this one was, but I have to say, after spending the day with this gorgeous bride and groom, I'd be willing to give professional wedding photography some serious consideration.

After spending the day uploading the photos I shot at the wedding, I had to pull this shot to share for today's 365 Project post. Here's to Andy and Henny, and a long happy life together!

Sunday, June 19, 2011

365 Project - Day 170 - A Good Time

Besides being able to see my father steadily improving and celebrating Steven's second Father's Day watching a few episodes of The Sopranos, the highlight of my weekend was definitely being hired to photograph the backyard wedding of some of our best family friends. I haven't even had time to go through and upload all of the photos yet, but I had to pull these two for tonight's blog post.

All I'm going to say about the wedding right now is that when you show up and see the family dogs dressed like this, you are pretty much guaranteed a good time.



Today's 365 Project is dedicated to the Samuelson family. Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to share in your special day!

Saturday, June 18, 2011

365 Project - Day 169 - The Duaner

When my husband (then my boyfriend) first met my father and spent some time with him, he immediately dubbed him The Duaner.

"Yeah, he's The Duaner. Gotta add 'the' to his name, like The Beatles, because he's just that cool," Steven explained.

And it wasn't long after that, Duane dubbed Steven his "Eye-talian Stallion".

It's safe to say that the two of them hit it off pretty well.

Steven and Electra arrived in Kearney today, and after quickly dropping Electra off at my Uncle Tim and Aunt Leslie's house to play in the yard with their lab Maggie, we headed to the hospital for a visit. Mom sat with Cadence in the waiting room while Steven and I went in to see The Duaner.

When we arrived at his room, we were surprised to find it empty. The TV was on, but there was no sign of my father. The nurse said that he was in the bathroom, and that we could have a seat and wait if we liked. And in the meantime, she filled us in on his progress.

He did end up getting the epidural the night before, and it seemed to be helping immensely. His oxygen levels were way up, and staying up, in spite of the fact that he did end up developing a bit of pneumonia. Because he was so much more comfortable with the epidural, he has been able to cough up the phlegm from his lungs and clear them out well, which is a good sign. They started him on antibiotics for the pneumonia, and he seems to be responding very well. He managed to eat breakfast, and even a bit of his lunch before calling the nurse to help him into the bathroom. Finally, the triple doses of laxatives worked their magic. Victory!

When Duane emerged from his trip to the bathroom, I was surprised at how well he was moving. The nurse helped him manage all of the cords and tubes, but otherwise, he was walking and easing himself down into his recliner on his own. His color looked better, and he was only wearing the oxygen tubes in his nose, instead of the full face mask. And when he finally began to speak, his voice was much stronger.

"So Duane, tell me. What were you thinkin'?" said Steven.

Duane rolled his eyes and groaned. "Oh jeemanee, don't even ask! I don't know."

We visited for a bit, before I finally had to excuse myself to head to the Samuelson's in Loomis to photograph my first wedding. While I was gone, Mom and Steven kept Duane company, and by the time they left him for the night, they were both marveling at his progress. His oxygen levels are continuing to hold strong and he seems to be managing the pain well and gaining his strength back. A couple of the nurses even remarked that he just might be starting to get ornery enough to be ready to move out of the ICU. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

Tonight's 365 Project entry is dedicated to The Duaner. Whether those laxatives worked their magic or not, anyone who knows my father knows that he is still full of shit.


The Duaner and his Italian Stallion going for a joyride.