Ginger-Doodles?

Hey everyone! I made some delicious cookies yesterday. The cookies I made are called ginger doodles and they are a combination of gingerbread and snicker doodles. When I pulled them out of the oven they smelled like tom-thumb donuts! Yum....

Late post

Made this for breakfast today, sorry for such the late post! Good night!

My Favorite Things (not including rain drops on roses and whiskers on kittens)

        Hey Everyone! I thought that I would try something just a little different from what I usually do and give you a list style blog post of 8 of my favorite things. Please excuse my amazingly executed song reference in the title. What are some of your favorite things? Comment below! I hope you enjoy it, happy reading! 

8. Politics:  

At family gatherings almost all we talk about is the depression, World War Two, and politics. So in an attempt to sound like a highly educated member of the family, from a young age I have followed politics. I know that a lot of people like to distance themselves from politics as much as possible but for me watching a political debate is just as (if not more) entertaining than watching The Hunger Games. 

7. Baking:

Baking is a huge thing in my family and is something that I have always loved to do since it is something that my Grandma and I have always done together and something that has created a lot of happy memories for me.

6. Photography:

As I'm sure you know if you have read this blog before I have recently acquired a love of photography and capturing a moment so that you can look at it in the future and have one photo bring back a flood of memories surrounding it.

5. Music:

I love listening and creating music and I have played the piano ever since first grade and I have recently took up the clarinet. Music is something that I am very invested in and is something that I will continue loving for the rest of my life.

4. Drawing:

I know I talk about this one a lot, but I just thought I should mention it since it is such a huge part of my life that I enjoy every minute of. If you want to read some about why I like it you can read my first post or my post In Case I Forget...

3. Reading:

As I'm sure those who know me will tell you, I am a voracious reader. At the moment I am reading Tina Fey's book Bossypants which usually isn't my sort of thing, but I am really getting into this book. It is really funny and I highly recommend it.

2. Decorating:

I have always been a holiday enthusiast mostly because of the beautiful decorations that are always put up in the time surrounding different holidays and seasons. I think my favorite to decorate or is Valentines day because I can string up hearts around my room and I always love an excuse to put up red decorations since it is my favorite color!

And Finally for #1.... Drum roll please...

1. Tea:

I don't know if I have mentioned it before or not but I love tea. For those of you who don't drink tea, or drink coffee I would highly suggest giving tea a try! Some of my favorites are Earl Grey, Green tea, Vanilla Caramel black tea, Sleepy time tea, and Red Zinger tea. I have always loved hibiscus teas and I finally found one just recently that I absolutely love called Red Zinger tea and I would highly suggest that you go out and get some because it tastes sweet and gives me warm thoughts which I definitely need since we are about to get 8 inches of snow on Tuesday where I live.

Lampost in the snow

Have a nice afternoon! Sorry for such the late post but I am really crunched for time today and I don't have any time to post the list of my favorite things but make sure to look for it tomorrow along with my picture of the day! See ya'!

Homework...

I have had a lot of things to do today and I know my schedule will be very full tomorrow so please excuse the late posts. I hope you have had a nice Wednesday, but if you haven't just remember that the week is almost over. What do you look forward to when the week is going slowly? Comment below! I hope you have a nice night! See ya'! 

Playing Some Tunes!

Hey everyone! I intended to post this sooner but my camera's battery died and I had to wait for it to charge again. I know that I haven't done the pinterest hack yet, but I plan to do that over the weekend so stay tuned. Also I will upload a post entitled My Favorite Things (not including rain drops on roses and whiskers on kittens), later this week so make sure to watch for that as well! I hope you have a comfy-cozy Tuesday night! See ya'!

Late nights and politics...

Minnesota Trip!

Hey guys! I'm at home after a long car drive from Minnesota. Here are some pictures of my trip before and after IKEA. 

We saw some people building a wind turbine.

We finally crossed the border.

We saw some friends and went to an intimidating yet delicious restaurant.

We got our meal.

And then we finally drove back home.

My IKEA Adventure!

I got some lunch...We got prepped to shop!

Here's some awesome furniture!

I saw some neat lighting!

We picked up our good buys!

See ya! I'll update you one the rest of my adventure when I get back home tomorrow!

Over the border, and through the corn...

Off to IKEA! I will send you some pictures tomorrow! See ya!

Footprints in the Snow...

Sorry for such the late posts lately guys! I have had a lot of homework and lessons that have prevented me from posting earlier but I will definitely start trying to set aside more time so I can share my daily photo with you guys! What things do you want to set aside more time for lately? Tell me in the comments! Have a great night! See ya' tomorrow (same bat time, same bat channel!).

Today's Post... More Renovation

Renovation?

Hey everyone! Home renovation has definitely been on my mind recently especially with my family remodeling the office soon. Our house usually has some sort of renovation going on, but it's normally happening over the summer. Either way I am very excited and I will definitely show you guys before and after pictures of the room once we get it remodeled! Also I am very excited about renovation since we will be going up to everyone's favorite store IKEA over the weekend. I will definitely be showing you guys pictures of some fun stuff I see there! The poll has officially closed and it looks like I will be trying out a pinterest photography hack sometime soon, so stay tuned! I hope everyone is staying snug inside with the heater on sipping a cup of warm cocoa, and if you aren't, I will be sending you warm thoughts! See ya' tomorrow!

Organization Mania!

         Hey everyone! So lately I have been in a sort of organization craze. The first semester has officially ended and I want this next one to be a breeze. I know that's probably not going to happen but I am hoping for the best. I've just finished taking down all of my Christmas decorations and while I was doing that I decided to organize/redecorate a few other aspect of my room. I did some major redecorating to my desk. My desk has plexi glass over it so I usually put some photos of my friends and family there but this time I decided to put some funny and motivational quotes there to kick-start that "go getter"  feeling. Speaking of some new changes I have started a thirty day workout challenge. I've started a few before this but I never finish them, but I am hoping that this one will be different. Also I have started trying different recipes for breakfasts and cookies to make them more healthy, and I think that's going well so far. What things do you want to get done in the New year? What things have you already accomplished? Comment below, and I'll see you tomorrow!

Baking!

Hey everyone! Today is a baking day, and I am trying out some cranberry oatmeal cookies. There is some nutmeg in it and it tastes so good! What do you guys like baking? Comment below, and don't forget to vote in the polls they end tomorrow! See ya!

Pancakes...

Hey everyone! Today I made some yummy pancakes for breakfast and I decided to share a picture with you of how I spent my morning. What's your favorite thing to make in the mornings? Comment below and don't forget to vote in the poll! See ya' tomorrow!

The Seasons are Confused..

I feel like it's so weird when I walk outside in the middle of Winter and there are leaves everywhere. I get so confused, like "Is it warmer? Where are the leaves coming from?". Well anyway, I saw a bunch of leaves today so I decided to take a picture. Don't forget to vote in the polls before January 18th! See ya'!

A Cotton Candy Sky...

Hey guys! Sorry for such the late post! It's been pretty busy this past week, but the busy-ness has finally subsided. So here today's picture is! I caught this picture in the morning. I always love it when the clouds are tinted pink in the mornings because of all of the light and it looks like floating cotton candy. Just wanted to update you guys on why this post is so late, but I hope you enjoy it! Don't forget to vote in the poll, it's currently in a three way tie! See ya'! 

Jack Frost is a Bully

            I don't know why but I woke up this morning thinking that winter would be over. I don't know why, especially when in reality it was -23 degrees Fahrenheit outside with wind chill (-30.5 C). Walking out was more like Jack Frost giving you a brisk punch in the face than it was Jack Frost nipping at your nose. When I walked outside today to take some pictures for roughly 2 or 3 minutes with my coat, gloves, and earmuffs on when I came back inside I couldn't move my fingers enough to take off my coat, so I had to stay in my coat, gloves, and earmuffs for about 15 minutes until I was partially thawed.
          I think it's definitely safe to say that I like the thought of winter more than I like it when it's actual presence.  Even in December I'm too caught up in Christmas lights and hot chocolate to notice if it's cold, and so it continues until January comes and dumps all of the snow that you were to cherry to notice in December on your head like an avalanche consuming you, and leaves you praying that it won't be one of those years when it snows in May.
         What season do you like the most? What is your lease favorite (or most favorite) part of winter? Comment below, and don't forget to vote in the poll before the 18th of January! See ya'!

It Snowed!

I know that many mid-westerners are sick of this snowy whether and my city thought it was finally over... until today. Hopefully I won't have to shovel. Even if I do, it's the kind of powdery snow that blows away when you so much as step in that direction, so it shouldn't be that bad. Is it snowing where you are? Comment below and don't forget to vote in the poll! See ya'!

New Poll!

Just made another poll! What do you guys want to see me do next? Try a pinterest photography "hack"? Make DIY photography lighting? Recreate a famous painting as a photograph? Let me know! If you have a specific photography Pinterest "hack" in mind please let me know in the comments! To find the poll drag your mouse over to the right side of the screen, and it should be there in the drop down menu. The poll is titled "What should I do next?".  The poll closes 1/18/16 at 11:59 PM central standard time. See ya!

Reunited with Grapefruit!

Finally reunited with my favorite fruit! This is a really random picture, but I am currently eating grapefruit and I haven't had it in a long time, hence my being reunited with it. I hope you guys are having a great day! See ya'!

In Case I Forget...

Sometimes I forget why I like to draw, or photograph things, or play music. So now I am writing something that I can use to remind me, if I have temporarily forgotten. First of all, art reminds me of home. If you read my first post then you will know that my dad is an art teacher and because of that I was surrounded with art throughout my life. The smell of pencils reminds me of the beginning of the school year when my sister and I would hand sharpen about a hundred pencils for his students to use throughout the year. Even the smell of melting crayons reminds me of the holidays when my Dad would melt down crayons and put them into Christmas tree molds or heart molds for Valentine's Day to give to his students.

Music and photography kind of go together in a way for me. They both remind me of when I was little and hanging out at my Grandparents house. Classical music would always be playing on the huge stereo in the dining room that was surrounded by CD's featuring the work of Mozart and Chopin. My Grandpa's Rocking chair in the corner of the living room had a large shelf next to it, and on the floor next to the shelf was a black bag that had his camera in it. When I was little and even now, my Grandpa liked to take random candid photos of us in the kitchen with Grandma and banging out random notes on the piano with graham crackers stuffed in our faces (yes this is an actual photo I am not just making up oddly specific random details from my head).

I am connected to all of the things I love because of the people I love. Because of them I will always be hooked on bread, cheese, and krumkake. I am glad that I was raised the way I was and I am happy that I got to grow up surrounded with the amazing people that I call family.Who are you thankful for? Comment below, and I'll see you tomorrow!

A Forbidden Love...

            Last night made me remember why I took a break from watching football. Watching playoff games is probably one of the most stressful things I will ever do. It's not like normal games when whether you win or lose doesn't mean you might not be in the playoffs or win your seventh super bowl. Of course the Kansas City Chiefs are far from their seventh Super Bowl they have always been one of my favorite teams along with the Steelers so yesterday was definitely a happy day. I feel guilty, but I can't hide away that feeling of happiness you get when the other team lost because of the personal fouls they caused. Of course that feeling of happiness usually gets washed away when you realized that they injured the two most important players on the team.
          Speaking of Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, I totally ship it. Obviously I don't ship them romantically, but I feel like they will be those really good friends who when they are 80 are sitting on their rocking chairs in neighboring houses talking about those 2 (or hopefully more) times that they won the super bowl together. My use of shipping sounds completely juvenile, but I've been reading too many dystopian novels lately, so you can't really blame me.
          This post was kind of different than usual and I admit that I did take this photo at around 11:00 PM of last night. However that happiness from last night has definitely carried over into today so I thought that it would still be a very fitting thing to write about. What teams do you want to be in Super Bowl 50? Comment below, and don't forget to share pictures of everyone celebrating a playoff win! The poll has officially closed as of 11:59 last night and it looks like I will soon be making another post about my interests and hobbies. I hope to see you then. Bye!

It's Not Easy Being Green...

In one of my classes I had to do a photography slideshow, and I chose to make it on how I can be more green. I mentioned a few different things one of them being recycling. Here is the photo I took for that and also the photo of the day! What do you guys do to be more environmentally friendly? Leave a comment below and don't forget to vote, there are only a few hours left! Send your photos to me of your 365 day photo challenge and I'll share some of my favorites on google+! You can follow me on google plus on the right side of your screen, to get updates! See ya!

Lights, camera, action!

Hey guys! I just tried something new and made a collage of photos out of lights! Just by the way if you are into the whole "pinterest photo shoot" thing, then you should know maneuvering lights into letters, or anything for that matter is difficult! So if you ever want to try it, get ready for a fight! The poll closes soon, so please vote! See ya'!

Sunrise...

Took this photo a little earlier today, sorry for the late post! I've been pretty busy lately with getting stuff for a party! Hope you guys have a great night! See ya!

Baby It's Cold Outside..

Just me taking a picture of outside my window in the cold Iowan winter... Luckily, I'm safe and snuggled up inside!!!

When it Feels Like a Friday...

I was sitting in class today thinking about the weekend and it dawned on me... today isn't Friday. Do you ever have those days when you completely forget what day it is and you just imagine that it's a completely different day than it actually is? I get that feeling a lot, and the worst part of it is when you realize that a Friday is suddenly a Wednesday, and it's like a slap in the face.

         I usually get that feeling right after I finish taking a test. Probably because that sense of accomplishment is similar to how it feels when Friday is here and I know that I have completed a week successfully, or in this case completed a test successfully. Which for me means finishing the test without having a major panic attack when I see that the past 5 questions have had the same answer.
But then I start to wonder if the "feeling of Friday" is just a sense of accomplishment, and if it is why doesn't that sense of accomplishment remind of my past achievements or the the resolutions that I have stuck with, instead of possibly the easiest and most common accomplishment of all, just making it through the week. But despite whether or not I am being philosophical and asking unanswerable questions or lounging on the couch stuffing popcorn in my face the days will go by just the same until I finally make it through the week to Friday.
So I ask you, do you ever get that feeling that it's a Friday, or a Monday or any other day when it's not? What is something that the feeling reminds you of? I might be posting my picture of the day a bit late today, but it should be up around 5:45 central time. Don't forget to comment down below, vote on the poll, and share your 365 day picture with me, and I will share some of my favorites! See ya'!

My other New Year's Resolution...

Hey, everyone! Sorry for such the late post!As you can see this picture is of a clock. The other New Year's resolutions that I didn't tell you about was the one where I told myself I would get up as soon as my alarm went off. I've been doing well so far but I think I might have some trouble with it tomorrow when I will have to wake up earlier than usual. Wish me luck! See ya tomorrow!

Translate?

Hey everyone! I just added a new "Google Translate" feature that comes down on the right hand side of the screen, so if you know anyone that might now be able to read it due to this new feature, make sure to share it with them! See ya'!

Today's Post!

Hey everyone! As promised, here is the 3rd photo! Share your 365 day photo challenge with me and I will share my favorites! Also, don't forget to vote in the poll, there are only 5 days left! See ya'!

Back to School...

           Hello Everyone! Today's picture might come kind of late in the day since school is back in session where I'm at. We had a total of 10 days off for winter break, and honestly I feel kind of cheated. The only reason that we had such a short break is so that we would get out earlier for summer, which is great when you are bragging to the other schools in the next city over about how early you get out, but it's awful when you have to go back to school in mid-august. In almost all of the surrounding states they can't start school before labor day and they get out in memorial day, which sounds like a great deal to me.
          Recently, we have been having some discussions about the advantages and disadvantages of year round school, and to be honest it's kind of growing on me. Sure, they get a shorter summer vacation but they also get more short breaks during the year (about every four weeks or so I've heard). In my opinion schools are too stressful. Obviously free education through high school is amazing and I'm grateful for it, but there are a lot of problems surrounding them.
          I think that homework is good in moderation, but in some of the easiest classes they give you a boat-load of homework because there's a complete lack of things that are being taught so they feel the need to give you busy-work that could end up taking all night. Of course in most of my advanced classes it helps to give us homework everyday because it actually helps me understand what we are learning. All in all I think that too much pressure is put on students to get amazing grades and ace every test with flying colors. Obviously it's something to strive for and I try my best to do that, but it's not realistic and I don't think that should be the standard, when kids that are trying their best are stressing about being 0.3% below an A.
         Excuse my ranting, we have all come back to stressful finals and it is something that is definitely on my mind this time of year. What's your opinion on year long school? What do you think is wrong with the current system of education we have? Comment below! My third picture should be up by around 4:30 central time. Don't forget to share your photos on tumblr using #witness365!

Poll!

        Hey Everyone! Since it's kind of out of the way just thought I should let you know that I have created a poll on what you think I should blog about next. You can vote on the poll by going to the right hand side of the screen and and clicking the black tab on the top that says "What should I write about next?". Have fun voting and remember that the poll ends on Jan. 9th 2016!

The Story Behind the Name...

        Hello again! Today I've been  playing the piano quite a bit as you can see from the photo above so I decided that would be what my photo of the day would be of. Now, to change the topic a little I thought that I would explain why in the world I chose "Witness Through the Lense" as the name of this blog.
         While I was searching the internet spending hours and hours trying to come up with a clever blog title I took a break to scroll through Pinterest. While I was scrolling through pinterest I decided to look through some quotes and I came upon two that I really liked. The first one said "The camera is an instrument that teaches people to see without a camera." -Dorothea Lange. The second one said, "The Earth is art, the photographer is only a witness." -Yann Arthus-Bertrand. When I read those quotes I decided that I liked them so much that I would combine parts of them to make "Witness Through the Lense".
        With that being said, if you have any favorite quotes please share them with me in the comments below, and don't forget to share pictures of your day! Speaking of which, you can share your 365 day photo challenge with me on tumblr using the hashtag #witness365 . I can't wait to see your submissions, and if I see some that I really like I will make sure to share them! See ya'!

1 Down... 364 to Go...

 Pine cones in a wooden box

Jan 2. 2016 

My New Years Resolution...

               Usually the beginning of a new year reminds me of how little I accomplished in the previous year and results in me creating unrealistic goals for the year ahead. So this year I decided to switch it up a little and create a realistic goal for myself. But before I get into what that is, and how this blog came about, I should probably give you some background information on myself. 

              One of the things you need to know about me is that I love art. No matter what form that art is in, music, acting, painting, drawing, or photography. My Dad was an art teacher so I grew up with an art studio in my basement and was always surrounded with Prismacolors and paper. As a result of this, from a young age I started drawing and painting and appreciating all of the art around us that is usually taken for granted. Throughout my life up to now I have appreciated and cherished this. 

              Another thing I cherish is my camera. I have had about three cameras so far, not counting the disposable cameras I got when we took vacations when I was little because my parents didn't trust me with a real thing. I've never thought I was a very good photographer so I decided to take a photography class earlier this year. After the photography class I felt a lot better about my photo taking abilities and I wanted to make sure that I retained what I had learned. 

             So this year my New Years resolution was to take 365 pictures. Even though I have started a day late, lucky for me it is a leap year so I had an extra day to spare anyway, which will allow me to take 365 photos. The photos I take will be photos that sum up my days experience or something that I saw along the way. I may not include a story to go with my photo every time but I will try my best to do so. With that being said, I hope that your New Years resolutions will be successful, and feel free to share your New Years resolutions with me in the comments below! Also if you happen take a photo of something that you saw, or you decide to join this journey with me, I would love it if you shared your photos with me! See ya'!