Nancy Lynne Photography

I was planning to go home and mow my yard last night after work but I got a much better offer. My friend Stu invited me for a ride on his boat, so Freckles and I hopped aboard in Toledo and we zipped down the river to Newport. It was a gorgeous evening, warm and sunny with very little wind, so we had a really nice ride. It was a first for Freckles and she took it all in stride. We saw some gorgeous scenery, of course, and the brown pelicans are here en masse. They were busy preening and it does not look like an easy task with those long bills. This was the scene as we headed back to Toledo, trying to beat the darkness. It was extraordinary. Another busy weekend coming up, enjoy your holiday!

As I mentioned in my previous post, my dad turned 82 on Sunday, so a bunch of us piled into a minivan and drove to Salem to take a ride on the Willamette Queen , formerly the Belle of Newport (not to be confused with the Newport Belle, which is currently a B&B in Newport). This is the Willamette Queen as she looks today. My dad and the Captain/Owner in the wheelhouse. Here's dad in the wheelhouse with one of his favorite things in life... And here with the other as well... beer and cigarettes. You rarely see him without one or the other, or both. His adorable girlfriend, Alma Lee... His second-born daughter and my half-sister, Shari... And with Shari's son Scott. Long-time friend Jimmy Higgins was our chauffer... And dad's sister Irene joined in the fun as well. Yours truly in the wheelhouse... This is my dad eating dinner in the Belle's dining room in 1990. And this is the Belle cruising Yaquina Bay in 1990. Definitely a trip I'll not forget, and I wouldn...

My colleague and mentor in Minnesota describes the sound women utter when they see something they really like... awww. Since he pointed it out to me, I hear it all the time when I'm shopping with my girlfriends and from moms when I show them their offsprings' senior portraits and also from mothers of brides. Awww. This is my friend Julie's new Shih tsu puppy, 10 weeks old. Isn't she adorable? Awww. The big boat show is this weekend, I'll be down there serving food for the Toledo Chamber. Come on down! It's a really fun event. Sunday my dad turns 82. Holy cow. Sounds like some interesting celebratory events are in the works, I'll post about that next week. Have a wonderful weekend!!

Some kids are so beautiful I find myself staring at them... and then trying to capture their personality with my camera. This young lady was part of the wedding I did on Saturday, and her blue eyes just captivate me. What do you think? She received the necklace as part of the ceremony and was showing it off to me. She got kinda tired of all the hoopla and chose to 'sit out' the posed photo session... but still had enough energy to give me that killer smile. It's my Monday, got another busy week filled with high school senior sessions, various meetings and event planning, and this event is tomorrow... I hope the weather improves for it.

Sunday my friend Bobby took me to the Bite of Oregon ... we decided to skip OMSI that day and just enjoy the festival. It was at the Waterfront Park in Portland... we walked up onto the nearest bridge for a vantage point. We saw all kind of interesting people there, including this silver guy. He would make like a statue until someone dropped some money into his bucket, then he'd 'come alive' and do a juggling act with crystal balls... he was fun to watch and so was the audience. We met Duke the Great Dane, who is 8 months old. What a gorgeous boy. Lots of people were playing in the fountain next to the festival, it was in the low 80s that day, very pleasant. Monday, I went blueberry picking with my friend Brooke, her mom Pat and her friend Beverly. We had a ball. And picked 6 buckets of berries! Here's Beverly and Pat... And just Miss Pat... And yours truly, taken by Brooke... And Miss Brooke The lines were long to get the berries weighed and paid for... And so...

Today my sweet dog Freckles is two years old. This was taken the day we met, at the Waldport Beachcombers parade. She was 10 months old. That was in June of last year, the same week I joined Weight Watchers. And at my WW meeting today I hit my 40 pound goal. I can't even begin to describe how much better I feel. I still have a long way to go, but I'm a heck of a lot closer to my goal now than I was a year ago. Wowsers. As my friend Toni would say, "How exciting!!" I miss her. So much has changed for me in the last year, it all feels like a whirlwind. And it's all good. Even the stuff that's been difficult... because I've learned so much from it all. And I'm thankful. I'm a better person for having gone thru it. I'm taking Miss F to the beach this afternoon, she's been cooped up either in the house or in the studio so much lately, she really deserves a good run on the beach... she is so joyful when she's on her beach. Th...

Just now getting caught up on all the images I captured last weekend... between the Relay and all the other jobs I had, it's been a whirlwind. Wednesday night there was a Survivor's Celebration at the Aquarium. I ran into some very good friends there. This is Jennifer Locklear and her daughter Abby. Jen headed up the Survivors Committee and has just done an awesome job of it. Her husband Morgan MC'd both the Aquarium event and at the Relay itself, and provided live music for the walkers. This is Therese Bauer, she is the American Cancer Society Rep for our area. A very, very nice person. Thanks, Therese!! Friday, the Survivor's Tent was where I spent most of my time, greeting survivors and capturing pictures as they got registered and all of their goodies... The Color Guard led the Survivor's Lap. Each survivor received a paper chain link for every year they have been cancer-free, and when they were all joined together, it was an amazing sight. Jen had rocking...