Lights

Over Christmas, I decided to play around with long exposures capturing Christmas lights. It was really fun playing around with the different lights, capturing colored and white, playing with different shapes and sizes. I felt like I was creating a game of "guess this shape". Check out the cool pictures!

 

Little Miss M

I had the pleasure a few weeks ago to catch up with an old friend. She was in town with her husband and adorable one year old girl, Miss M. I hadn't seen Miss M since she was 6 months old -wow does time fly. This little monkey has such an incredible personality - not to mention startling blue eyes. I had fun snapping some pictures of her as she played.

First Snow

Last Saturday we had our first snow of the season. It was the big, wet, amazing packing kind of snow! Evan and I went to the nearby park to walk around a bit and get out of the house. There were the most adorable kids playing in the snow. They came in herds with sleds and toys. It brought out the kids in us watching them dive into the winter wonderland. Here are a few pics of the day...

Hana Pics

The post tonight is going to be short... I wanted to post some more pics from our road to Hana adventure. I have SO many to post still ;) Reminiscing about beaches, warm weather and surreal surroundings is getting me through the first Chicago snowstorm of the season.

The spiderweb is my favorite. Enjoy!

 

Sometimes Breaking the Rules Pays Off...

While in Hawaii, Evan and I drove the road to Hana. For those of you who don't know what this is, I will try to explain - but it's pretty hard to visualize what I'm talking about until you experience it yourself. The road to Hana is famous in Maui. It is a stretch of road that lasts for 37 miles, weaving in and out along the coastline on a road that is definitely NOT wide enough for two cars. It is only 37 miles, but it takes you hours to complete. This is partially due to the numerous scenic stops along the way - hiking opportunities, waterfalls, botanical gardens, eucalyptus trees, black sand beaches, etc. until you finally reach the Seven Sacred Pools. The other reason it takes so long is due to the ridiculous terrain.

Once you reach the Seven Sacred Pools there is a 14 mile stretch of unpaved road that leads you all the way around the back of the island. Evan and I rented a Jeep Wrangler and in the contract it specifically highlights this unpaved road and in capital letter explains that is is a BREACH OF CONTRACT if you drive on this terrain. There are fines involved, no road side assistance provided, etc. etc.

Well, we decided once we got to the Seven Sacred Pools that we were for sure going to keep going - so with me in the passenger side freaking out - we went all the way around. It was unreal, seeing the change in climate. The island goes from luscious green tropical conditions to a dry desert that looks to have been starved of rain since it's existence.

One of the most beautiful discoveries on our adventure along the unpaved road was this marvelous abandoned church. The outside looked almost like marble and the stained glass accents were breathtaking. It also helped that there just happened to be a rainbow in the sky and the church overlooked the crashing waves of the ocean.  Check out the below and let me know what you think!