Doll photography

A close local friend and I enjoy staging Barbies  for photography…

This is my work :-)

Snickers

Snickers with his favorite toy, Little Snickers..This toy is so well loved that the ears are worn off..

Mom went to the Houston Astros game with her friend / church group..Astros-Texas Rangers.
Sept 15, 2025. Astros won 6-3. Mom couldn’t resist finding me a souvenir ball, hotdog, and a beer :-)
Background photoshopped.





It’s been two years since my last entry…Blogging seems much less popular these days..

With that said, my blog is an important photo journal that I want to leave behind for my family and friends…

Today I want to talk about a new addition to my family :-)

Soon after a short term dog sitting gig, a friend asked me to foster her sweet girl Misty..Part Chihuahua, part Shih Tsu..I fostered Misty for 3 months, until my friend secured dog friendly housing..In that three months I began to feel that my life would be better with a dog in it ..This, after  a 5 year period without living with a pet..

I was interested in adopting, as well as fostering..

We visited an animal shelter in Pasadena, and then other shelters in LaPorte and Baytown..Just casually looking..

A month went by..Then another..

The second time we visited the Pasadena Animal Shelter, within 5 minutes, it was love at first sight..A small tan and white dog was in an enclosure for small dogs..He was the one for me, despite the excellent choice of small dogs available that day..

Our eyes met and this little dog squirmed in happiness and joy..I asked to formally meet this nameless little tan bundle of wiggliness..The info tag on his cage had not been filled out yet..

During our meeting this little doggo was somewhat shy, but friendly enough to cuddle us and lick our hands..

My application for adoption was submitted within minutes..We were informed that a 7 day stray hold had to expire before we could adopt..

Adoption day quickly came..We adopted him..This tiny deer like creature jumped 3 feet, lol, and landed squarely in the passenger seat of our truck....In the middle of our ride home, we came up with a name for this bundle of sweetness..We decided to call him Snickers..

A vet visit the same day revealed that Snickers was 12 lbs, about 2 years old, reasonably healthy,  except for a mild heartworm infection..He is roughly in the middle of treatment as of this blog post..So far he is doing well, except that his appetite has been dodgy…

In the four months that Snickers has been with us, he’s had a chance to meet our family and friends.. He likes everybody so far..Kids, grandkids, everybody…Including Chico.

Let’s briefly discuss Chico.. I think Chico will eventually be a close friend to Snickers..Chico is a sweet dog who lives with close human friends of mine..These friends frequently dine with us at our house..They bring Chico with them…

A friendship with Chico may help Snickers overcome his fear of large dogs..Chico, a 60 lb Beagle mix, is a charming chick magnet..He is extremely laid back and friendly..Chico’s 60 lb body is mounted atop short stout legs..It’s as if God used leftover body parts to put this cutie together..He struts from here to there with a suave lumbering gait..No matter how big Snickers tries to puff up to be, no matter how loudly he growls in Chico’s presence, Chico stays calm, doesn’t bat an eyelash…Chico simply likes to hang close enough to Snickers to sniff and lick on him..He also tries to cuddle Snickers....I see a warm friendship in their future…

All in all life with Snickers is joyful and rewarding…..

First meeting at Shelter..Snickers’s original name was Mulder..

Coping with 30 degree temperatures

Raccoon slayer

Snickers, the manly man in his walking gear

Easter

Chico in the foreground..First meeting, both dogs were pretty shy of each other..

Snickers knocked out tired, after 3rd, very recent meeting with Chico…

Snickers is a little shy at first, but warms up to those who are gentle with him..This is a photo of Snickers with Caroline and I, just before we humans left to go swimming :-)

Chico and Snickers are warming up to each other :-)

Spring into Summer

 It has been a long, long summer! Three months of daily actual temps up to 105-107!

Now on the 5th day of fall, the feel like temperature is still over 100..

My biggest joy this summer was having Caroline for overnights..I took her on adventures like zip lining and swimming at the local community wave pool..We also enjoyed our quiet moments of making crafts or watching funny movies..

Another big joy in my daily life, even in the heat of the summer is walking...

Long walks..

Walks are when I scratch my photography itch :-)

This photo and the several posted above it were taken in the last 6 weeks or so..We have been in an exceptionally severe drought..I still love the quiet beauty of early morning, even when the dirt and grass under my feet is dry and cracked…

Early through late spring, I tried my hand at backyard container gardening..

The bottlebrush plant seen in the corner of my yard, I bought at a nursery one day, and planted it, beginning of March 2023, on a whim..I was feeling very depressed due to an immense loss that had just taken place ..

Beginning gardening was one of my ways to stay busy and positive..

Now, as I write this, 7 months later, the bottlebrush is more than double in size…

The flat of vincas in the foreground was given to me by dear friends..I planted them around mid May..Since then, I’ve had 5 months of joy from these colorful flowers..Every time I saw them from my window, or took care of them, I smiled..These vincas grew thick and lovely, they trailed more than halfway down my raised bed..Caroline really liked them too!

Then a strong storm recently came through, the strong wind and rain ravaged and killed the entire bed of vincas..

This is one of my very favorite parks to walk..James Morgan Prairie Park..From April through June, this place is very colorful with wildflowers!

Spring Bluebonnets that appear in late March-April, and disappear around mid May..At my happy place, James Morgan Prairie Park…