Shot on Location and the Canine Invasion

If Forrest Gump had been into photography he might have said something along the lines of, "Pictures are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get." As a photo hobbyist I've been thankful for any number of pictorial blessings (a.k.a. "happy accidents") over the past several years; many of which I've shared with you. I had a great system: God painted the picture and I pushed the button (actually I'm still using that particular system because, well, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" right?) Not long ago, I started practicing photography by faith. What I mean by that is, instead of heading out with my camera intending to take pictures of something specific, I just ask the Lord to grant me what He will in the way of opportunities (and then I ask Him to PleasePleasePlease help me not mess it up ;o) I've missed any number of "great" shots over the years, but I have slowly developed (see what I did there? *snicker*) a more accepting attitude by focusing instead (Oh! Oh! Who's on a ROLL now? Bwahahaha.... *cough* AHEM sorry) on being thankful for the shots I do get.

A week or so ago, my picture happy gal pal Sarah and I went on our biggest [photo] bender yet. All I can say is my new-and-improved attitude of gratitude must have been the right one, because BOY did He bless me! Did I get every shot? Nope, not at all. Did I care? Nope, not at all. I had a terrific day with a wonderful friend and came away feeling totally blessed all the way around. For those of you who think I may have slipped a cog, I can only tell you that is definitely not a recent happenstance (HehHeh). Although I really can't attest to what the norm would be as far as variety goes, I can tell you that I was absolutely delighted by the myriad of photo opportunities I had in a single day. Maybe I'll just let those blessings speak for themselves (obligatory disclaimer: please remember that I am not a professional, yadda yadda, and that I am using a regular point and shoot camera; though it is a nice one ;o)

To see the image title, move your mouse over the picture. Click on the Brown Thrasher (top left photo) to go to a full-screen slideshow. To see the entire image during the slide show, move your mouse up slightly from the scrolling arrow at the bottom of the screen; look out for an itty bitty butterfly blessing in the lower left corner of the tall water lily photo - I didn't even know he was there! These pictures will ultimately wind up on the photography page at some point, so I guess we can call this the early bird's sneak peek. *laugh* Enjoy! Oh, and there's a bit more to this post below the photos (I have LOTS to share this week ;o)

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DD came for a visit last weekend with her canine entourage, consisting of two tiny tail wagging furballs; Diamond and Faith (who love coming to "grandma's" house; mostly 'cause I spoil them absolutely rotten ;o) This is Diamond [photo inset] saying "Hello" from the ginormous puppy playpen we created from the small training area behind the house. Call me crazy; we wrapped a 40'x40' area with chicken wire so the dogs would have a safe place to play. Yep. Definitely certifiable. Faith [pictured below] was the first born of Diamond's puppies, and captured DD's heart from the beginning. Of course she just had to keep her. Sometimes DD is just so very.... Me. *sigh* Unfortunately, Faith was diagnosed with a seizure disorder (click here for more information on seizures in dogs) known as Canine Epilepsy. It is likely that this is due to a couple of things: Diamond's extremely young age at her pregnancy (she was only 7 or 8 months old) and her subsequent malnourishment; both by her previous [incredibly careless] owner. For those who missed it, Diamond was introduced here. Faith is on seizure medication and a strict organic/gluten free doggy diet (they both are). She has the sweetest personality of any dog I've met and totally adores DD (both of them do).

Believe it or not, I came across some fascinating research about Epilepsy/seizures and organic coconut oil (click here to read more at the Epilepsy Foundation on Ning). I've been taking coconut oil via smoothie for awhile (it's amazing brain food). After chemo for cancer and all the other scary drugs I took for Polymyositis, et.al. I was all over anything that would benefit the brain, believe me. *grin* I bought some for DD to use and she was giving it (in small amounts) to the dogs as well; it's good for them too! Anyway, poor little Faith had multiple seizures over the weekend. We determined that an "all natural" birthday cookie given to Faith by the pet store DD visits was the likely culprit. Although the treat itself may have been organic, we are fairly certain that food coloring was used in the "icing" and was likely the trigger. After the fifth seizure (grandma can only endure extreme heart palpitations so many times; not to mention the fact that it was killing me to watch her convulse as I held her) I got back on line and found that we could safely increase her coconut oil intake to a teaspoon to help control seizures. I gave her a dose (thankfully she loves it), and she hasn't had another seizure since. DD is now giving her two teaspoons per day, one AM and one PM (Diamond still gets 1/2 teaspoon in the morning), so time will tell. Oh, the picture inset is Faith hanging out in the shade by the fan in the puppy pen. Not the best photo, but it's important to keep the grandpuppies cool in the summer (particularly when one of them has Epilepsy).

Below is a better shot of Faith - both of them absolutely love the huge drum we rolled in there for them to play on. Can you say Queen(s) of all we survey? (in your haughtiest tone, of course ;o)

Well. I'd say that's probably more than enough of me for the week ;o) Thank you so much for reading this far, have a big horsey hug and a beautifully blessed day!