Jackie Petersen

52 fridays 20/52 {in the kitchen}

Jackie — Fri, 18 May 2012 12:00:38 +0000

In preparing for our week at hotel Loyola I cleaned out the cupboards.

by the looks of my sweet potato I was a little past due -

I still made use of the ole potato and the lines and colors are pretty sweet…

now if you want to see some fun “in the kitchen” head over to see Sarah. She loves to be in the kitchen and is always making and creating some good stuff!

it’s time -

Jackie — Mon, 14 May 2012 02:29:07 +0000

It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged to blog, I have so much on my mind and in my heart I wanted to share just a little of my feelings today. The past few years we’ve been empty nesters and while I’ve loved the alone time Scott and I have had I still miss hearing “mom” and “Jackie” from our little rugrats that filled my days with errands, love, extra wash, and meals. Those were the best days ever! I’m so proud of the fine individuals they have become though, each on their path to do good and be good, what more could I want? They are healthy, happy, kind, respectful, hard workers, I could go on and on. In the last month we’ve been able to spend time with all of our children, not at the same time, but that’s okay. We cherish every moment we can get, even if it’s face time or photos. Our family has always been our priority and consumed the largest part of our heart. What an honor it is to be a “mother” and I don’t take the role lightly. As Scott and I have been given this health trial to learn and grow from I’m always wondering if I’m setting a good example for our children in how to deal with hard times. I hope so, I’m trying. I’ll admit, I’m tired of talking about cancer and I’m so beyond tired of hearing about “cancer” on the tv, radio, conversations, everywhere. Walk in the mall, a billboard about cancer. How is one to forget about it when it’s so in your face. Sometimes I wonder if the reason there isn’t a cure is there is so much money being made centered around cancer. It makes me crazy!

A weed is no more than a flower in disguise.

- anonymous -

So if a weed is a flower in disguise, is cancer a blessing in disguise? I say yes! My heart has never hurt so much and my eyes continue to fill with tears but I know without a doubt the Lord is blessing us more than we could have imagined. We recently had all of the tests done on Scott – his peripheral vision is all back, he still has double vision but he is improving – the tumor on his lung has shrank have the size again – the tumor in his head is now so small they would not consider surgery, in the beginning it was so large three dr.’s would not even think of touching it. Miracles, blessings?! YES! Tomorrow we start the final round of IL2, it’s the hardest, scariest, four weeks! Last time we were in the hospital a lady endured six doses and passed away, the time before we met a sweet couple but he could not handle the drug and has since passed on, these situations remind me again how blessed we are. I’m grateful for the experiences we’ve had together, we’ve cried, laughed, grown much closer together and our relationship with our Lord is what gives us the strength to push ahead. We know we have many family members and friends who pray for us and we love and appreciate you more than you’ll know!

There are always flowers for those who want to see them.
- Henri Matisse -

52 fridays 19/52 {maternal}

Jackie — Fri, 11 May 2012 04:49:36 +0000

Being a mother at any age is a blessing, but as we age and our children become interesting and productive adults we really begin to savor the joys of the harvest, the fruit of our labors.

- Marjorie Pay Hinckley -

You won’t want to miss Chay’s post this week, click here to check her out.

52 fridays 18/52 {opposites}

Jackie — Fri, 04 May 2012 12:09:57 +0000

When thinking about what to photograph this week I asked the hubs what would be an example of opposites. Without even taking a second to respond he said, “us” and he is right and it’s a good thing. Opposites are necessary and make life interesting and in our case we even each other out. So as I mention a couple of our opposites it’s not complaining, we are just opposites. Well actually, I do complain a bit about his lack for fresh herbs in our food. He is a very picky eater and recently his food must be very bland, (thank you IL2) he can’t even stand the smell of herbs, garlic, onion, etc. let alone the taste….and I love it all.

I am up for trying natural alternatives / not everyone is.

. . . is the glass half empty or half full . . .

“Just can’t live that negative way. If you know what I mean, make way for the positive day.”
– Bob Marley

hope you enjoy our circle this week, next in line is Lisa.

52 fridays 17/52 {weather}

Jackie — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 10:42:26 +0000

Our theme started out focusing on rain and we happened to have a little rain on Monday so packed up and headed out before it stopped. I wasn’t fast enough so I had to make the best of “rained”. I used my macro for the first three and but wasn’t wowed with my results…

I love when people capture the surroundings in the rain drops, I’ll have to try again.

Looking for something with color and action. I would have loved this if some kids came splashing in it…

well what about some dog action…hoping for some muddy paws but it didn’t rain enough.

but this gal was darling and was great to let me take a few photos of Lola. Don’t you love her red rain boots…I do!

One thing I love when it rains is how rich and vibrant the earths color becomes. I zone metered on all of these with very little processing in Lightroom which makes me very happy.

click here to see what Tifani has captured for our theme. Tifani is very creative whether she’s using a camera, sewing machine, or expressing herself…

52 fridays 16/52 {details}

Jackie — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:00:24 +0000

I’m very detail oriented, like overboard. I can’t wear jeans with the wrong color of stitching – but who ever said there is a right or wrong color – I know, but that’s how I work. I used to not wear black and brown at the same time but I’ve relaxed up on that. I love looking at the whole setting/style/picture/ but I always zoom in on the details, what makes it work, what catches my eye. For this weeks theme I chose an area of the house that I don’t really love and used the tools for what I do better, hopefully you can see what I mean. If I had you over for dinner you’d be able to taste what I mean. All these items have a handle but it’s in the details at the end that determines how they are used.

Head over to see what details Lisa captured this week . . .

52 fridays 15/52 {humor}

Jackie — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:00:08 +0000

I humored myself with this idea of blue Easter egg lips for Juliet.

hmmmm, what is this?

didn’t take her long to enjoy my humor

after all who doesn’t paint their lips at Easter.

now be sure to click on over and visit Liz to see her take on humor

10 on 10 April Edition

Jackie — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:00:56 +0000

while this may look like just another trip to the Morton Arboretum on a beautiful spring day it was so much more than that for me. Scott finally felt up to walking around with me so I took advantage of this good day and we walked places we had never been. It’s interesting how going through trials really makes me appreciate every moment we have together!

“Cultivate an attitude of happiness. Cultivate a spirit of optimism. Walk with faith, rejoicing in the beauties of nature, in the goodness of those you love, in the testimony which you carry in your heart concerning things divine.”
–Gordon B. Hinckley

52 fridays 14/52 {backlight}

Jackie — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:00:21 +0000

I always love the backlit light on others photos but I struggle to get it right on my own, so this was a great motive for me to practice. It’s definitely a skill I haven’t mastered. yet. Echo has mastered the look away pose though.

for a quick trip to see beautiful light in New Jersey be sure to visit Kathy.

he shoots, she shoots

Jackie — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 19:18:32 +0000

and this is what we came back with. This idea was inspired by this post on Davina Fear’s blog. Her blog is full of ideas to keep your family active and making memories. Scott and I did this January 2nd (yep, I’m slow) after rough year, I wanted to start this year doing things different, making and creating new memories. I hesitantly asked Scott at lunch if he’d be up for having some fun. He gave me the look and said sure. So I told him we would go to Target and for fifteen minutes we would go through the store separately and take photo’s of what reminded us of each other. It was so much fun! We would run into each other and laugh or spy on one another.

this set is what reminds me of Scott.

and this is what Scott came back with.

it’s a given that we will grow old but we don’t have to be boring doing it! What do you do to add spice to your life? I love new ideas if you care to share.