Tiny beads of melting snow. We found them suspended on nearly invisible threads of silk from the milkweed plants.
“Your first ten thousand photos are your worst.”
– Henri Cartier-Bresson (a French photographer considered to be the father of photojournalism)
This month, more than ever, I feel the truth of that quote. I took over 600 shots, and struggled to come up with 11 worthy to share with you. Photography is not easy! But I’m going to stick with my plan to participate in the ’11 on 11′ project this year – I will be blogging photos each month. A big thank you to those who follow along as I fumble my way through this! I’m trying to learn my new DSLR camera, so I’ve included some of those shots – but I still really love my iPhone. I always have it with me, it’s small, and it just seems to ‘get’ what I’m trying to capture. In other words, I don’t know what I’m doing with my Canon, so mobile photography is my friend! Hopefully, one of these days, I get the hang of shooting in manual mode with my big camera… if any of y’all have tips, please send them my way!
March was the month when winter finally broke. Which means no more frigid temperatures, a few spring snow storms and lots (I mean LOTS) of puddles and mud. . . let me show you. 
Late March snow storm (it left nearly 10″ of snow) all of which melted in less than three days. Sofia was drawing patterns in the snow with her stick.
My instinct was to ask Kate to stay out of the puddle. But I looked down at my feet and realized I was standing in water myself. I’m such a hypocrite. heh heh. On a serious note – as a mom, I feel like I’m always telling my kids to ‘stay down’, ‘stay out of that’ or ‘don’t touch’ … but doing those things is how they learn. This month I made a conscious effort to bite my tongue, and only speak up if absolutely necessary. After all, a little water in your boots is not the end of the world…
Water drop, with Mikhail climbing over the log in the background. He was chasing a squirrel – hoping to catch it. I didn’t have the heart to tell him he didn’t have a chance.
Signs of spring. Sofia found the softest, tiniest feathers near the lake. Right after this she stepped on thin ice at the edge of the water and her foot fell through – she was soaked from her knees down. I couldn’t help myself … chuckling, I said “I told you so!” (I had warned them at least a billion and a half times that day… I swear, I was on auto-repeat.) She scowled at me, but once we were home and she was curled up in a blanket with a cup of hot chocolate in her hands, she told me “I learned a big lesson mom.” And that made my day. I’d rather she learns the danger of thin ice now when I’m around to make sure she’s safe.
I really despise snakes. So much so, that I could hardly bring myself close enough to take this picture. Mikhail, Kate and Sofia were catching garter snakes one day at Nana & Papa’s. The kids had at least five of them in a bucket – snakes are absolutely disgusting creatures – and no offense if you have a pet snake. But, I mean really. They slither, have scales, eat rodents and all that… Of course, Sofia and Mikhail BEGGED me to keep the snake as a pet. Which was absolutely not an option. How do they not know this by now?
We were outside enjoying the warmer temps recently. As I swept off our front step, it occurred to me that Mikhail was awfully quiet. A sure sign of mischief. I walked behind the garage, looking for him – there he was: “Look mom!!! Natural sun screen!” And yes. He was completely satisfied with his work. I ran inside to grab my camera, and as I snapped away, he told me that elephants “grab mud with their trunk and put it all over their backs for sun screen. If they can’t scoop up the mud, they just roll in it. Like a mud bath.” Lovely. My kid is emulating elephant behavior.
After Mikhail’s mud facial, he was plopped in the tub… he cleans up nicely. And when I ask him to hold still for a picture, he always puts up with me. So snakes, mud, and all, he’s a keeper. He really is such a sweet heart.
In Asher’s world, everything is a jungle gym – to be climbed and conquered.
Thanks so much for reading! Like I mentioned earlier, this post is part of an 11 on 11 project that I’m part of this year with a group of talented photographers from around the country: Brooke Schmoe (FL), Marie Sant (UT),Sara Kaleho (MN), Brandi Tejeda (CO), Kelly Sweda (CA).
We link to each other to create a blog circle; so please follow along and check out Brooke’s post. There’s something so beautifully authentic and down to earth about Brooke’s photography and writing style … go see for yourself.
