Back to September

These are a few pictures that I took at Isaiah and Becky's wedding. (Okay, I didn't shoot the second one, seeing as I'm in it.) I sort of re-vamped them and I like them better now. The top one is really neat. I didn't notice the little blue butterfly in the bottom right hand corner until I looked at it again.



The Bridal party. Left to right: Lizza, Renae, Christine, Becky, Me, Katie, and Jeri.



This one is a new favorite of mine. Red roses contrasting the lush green trees of late summer. There is so much color in this picture. Eeeep! I really like it. :-D

Let It Snow Baby, Let It Reign Deer

There is nothing quite like the first snow of the year. This is a true statement, not just opinion and I happen to know so because there is physical evidence. On the day of the famous first snow, everyone drags out their sleds, parkas, scarves, and snow tires, whether it is cold or not. It doesn't really matter how much snow there is in actuality, because everyone reacts the same way whether there is a quarter inch, or two feet. Emotions range from panic, to sheer excitement. Every one around will tell you that we are going to have a big winter this year. Children sled in their inch of wet slush and hold out a feeble hope that school will be canceled due to "extreme" weather conditions and by noon all of the grocery stores have run out of cocoa and hot cider mix.

Amongst all of the excitement, Canon and I still manage to get out there and snap a few pictures. Here is our latest work.

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This is Corin, stalking his way through the snow. He looks as though he is intently chasing something, and in fact he was. Moments later he pounced upon our unsuspecting parked Jeep.

I thought this was a neat subject. I like the contrast of the fuzzy-looking snow against the smooth wood grain and chrome.

Our dog Dodge huddled under a blanket of snow. We dubbed him "The Pupsicle". I learned something really neat while taking this shot; for years I have tried to catch falling snowflakes on film, but in the picture you can't see them. In the dark with the flash on, the show up really well.

Last but not least, we have Grace-Marie in elbow deep powder making a snowballs.
That will have to be all for now, but I hope to get back to you with the latest weather report.
This is Mary-Hannah McGuffey reporting live from Hosanna Ranch.
Thank you.

And Autumn Came

I guess Summer is my favorite season, but I am always astounded at the beauty of Fall. When I see how gleaming and golden our fields get in October, and the thousand different colors of leaves that fall gracefully to decorate our lawn, when I start drinking hot tea again, these are the times when I think that there is absolutely nothing better than Fall.

Right now I am looking out through the living room window, and I see a hundred Tamaracks that seem to glow bright orange against the deep green Pine trees. One of my favorite things about Autumn, is when you come to our house from town, you can see one tree, just off of the I-90 on ramp, that turns absolutely the most beautiful color of red.When I see it beginning to turn, I get excited, because it marks the coming of a new season.

Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

10 Things

I would like to thank God for 10 things today.

1. First, I want to say thanks for my parents. Not many people have parents who are as great as mine, something which I am not oblivious to, and really, really appreciate.

2. Secondly, I am thankful for my siblings. I have six great brothers and one amazing sister, so today I would like to thank God for Matt, Micah, Isaiah, Ezra, David, Jesse, and Grace-Marie. Without you guys... I would not be the person that I am. (I might be a little more sane, but I would not be who I am today!) As individual as you all are, I will still only count my siblings as one.

3. An utterly amazing church; I have a church who accepts all people, and their only intent is to help. They sing as though they can't contain their love for God, and preach even more sincerely. There has never been a person who was not accepted at Open Door Baptist church and for that I am unbelievably grateful.

4. A free country; I know that there are a lot of really huge problems with America, and I probably complain about them more than most people. That being said, we are still doing pretty well around here. I am still free to homeschool, read my Bible, and dye my hair blue, should I wish to do such a thing. A free country is a good thing, something we often take for granted.

5. A home. I have always had a roof over my head, I've always had a place to come home to. Even here in America, I realize that more and more people don't have that. Even more than just a home, I have a home on a beautiful farm in Western Montana. Could God be any more gracious to me?

6. I am thankful for the privilege to be homeschooled. I have been homeschooled all of my life, and just in the past few years have I been ridiculed for it. I think people make fun of homeschoolers because they simply don't understand. I imagine most people think, those children don't go to school, so they must not be educated, and I know that there are people who are very sad excuses for homeschoolers, but hey, the average high school graduate isn't that impressive either. Homeschooling provides the ability and the resources to become educated in the very best way possible. Homeschooled children are not limited by the walls or cookie cutter lifestyles laid out by the public school system. Laugh if you want to, but I am proud to be homeschooled.

7. Freckles... right. Actually my mom just told me to say that one, but what does it matter? In everything give thanks.

8. Run-on and fragment sentences, without these dear components of my life I would be unable to speak. I'm not kidding, I annoy myself with the way I write.

9. My community. Growing up in a town of nine hundred people you are often unsure of what to expect of yourself. Growing up in a town of nine hundred people, in western Montana, you are secretly horrified that one day you will wake up and realize that you have a full-blown northern accent. Growing up in a town of nine hundred people you are afraid that you might go to New York City someday and have a mental breakdown because of the traffic. Though that may very well be the case, I am thankful for this town of only nine hundred people.

10. I am thankful for good health. I wheeze every once in a while due to asthma and I can't eat splenda because of allergies. Other than that, and compared to most people I have pretty good health and I am really thankful for that. I realize that this is a blessing that a lot of the people in this world can't claim. God has bestowed upon me youth and good health for the time being, and I know this is something that I cannot simply dispose of. Thank you God!

Yours,
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

The Photo Story of My Travels Abroad

Now I present to you the photo story of my travels abroad. ("Abroad" meaning around here... and in Washington.)
The horse silhouettes below are sculptures featured on a butte at the Columbia River Gorge, just outside of the lovely Vantage, Washington. Seeing these horses is always a little highlight of our regular trip to Seattle. This is the first time that I have captured them on camera, and it was a truly fun photo opportunity. I also noticed, though you can't see it on this picture, the last few horses have letters on them. My first thought was that it was the artist's initials, but there seems to be too many letters. Anyway, I found that interesting.

Here are some dandelions in Bellevue, Washington which is just outside of Seattle. Although you may not believe me because it was actually sunny.
Also, the sky-scape was taken in our back yard. It was about 9:00 in the morning and the whole world was just glowing pink. It was so pretty!


Here are some thistles that we came across up on the mountain behind our house while looking for firewood. They were so bright it was almost... hypnotic. Dr. Seuss-ish if you know what I mean.


Below we have Jesse, (survivor man) opening his Swiss army knife and Grace-Marie (woods diva) trying to maneuver the thick underbrush, heavily clad with bling. Notice the glittery pink feather boa.


Hope you all like the pictures!
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

My Sincerest Apologies

Dear Everyone,

I am so sorry that I am just now getting back to the blog. I notified you that I would not be on for a while due to wedding preparations, and chaos etc. but I didn't tell you about my three week trip to Mars. Turns out I left the planet and completely forgot about my blog. Okay, in all sincerity I have been a little busy with a trip to Seattle and such, but not that busy. I stand before you today apologetic for neglecting my poor blog. Maxine almost had a nervous breakdown today when I typed in "blogger" on Google. (Maxine Sony is my ever faithful companion, and computer. And no, I don't name all of my electronics. The microwave has no name... yet. I am considering Lynn. Or maybe Veronica.) Well, I suppose I'll cut to the chase. Here are a few of my latest photography attempts.

Well, I hope that is satisfactory. I will put on wedding pictures in the very near future.
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

The Wednesday Post

Hey all,
I just thought that I should get on and say that I may not be posting for a little while. My brother is getting married this week and it is already getting pretty crazy around here.
Talk to you all after the wedding.
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

Life

Life just got a lot better.

Hey all, I am at the library so this won't be a very long post, but I just thought that I should say "Hi!", and let you all know that life just got a lot better because I got a dose of caffeine, and now I am going to settle in with a good book. Haha. I was going for a record for the shortest blog post ever... but it keeps on growing. Anyway, enough nonsense.

Talk to you later.
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

One Week's Worth

Here is my week's worth of photos. All of them were taken this week, nothing exceptional but I got some pretty neat sky shots. Tell me what you think! Mary-Hannah C. McGuffey

Beautiful reflection. One of Jesse's building experiments got sprayed by our sprinkler.

Yes, they call it big sky country for a reason!

Five pretty deer drink in the river near our house. I like the contrast.
Beautiful Montana sunshine pours through my window, unhindered by even a single cloud. This is the bright sunshine that I will always remember, the heat on your shoulders that tells you there is a sunburn coming, but still you play out in it for hours, hoping the sky will never again be darkened by a rain cloud. Under this sky children catch grasshoppers, and earn the badge of bright freckles on their noses. Sandcastles are built, rivers floated, and gardens grown, all under the watchful eye of our golden sunlight. Is it any wonder they write songs about it?
Later,
M-H

Good Times

Do you ever look around yourself and want to say, "Thank you God!"? I do. I know that life can, and will be sad and heartbreaking at times, but there are also those days that are just happy. The kind of happy that makes you want to remember it forever. The kind of happy that makes you say, "I love this crazy family." When my little brother is ballet dancing in the middle of the living room, and my little sister is asking me "what a pickle sounds like", my mom accidentally calls me macaroni instead of Mary-Hannah, and my brothers are having a water fight in the kitchen, that's the kind of happy that I wouldn't trade the world for. That's when it's okay that there is laundry that still needs to be folded, and the kitchen floor still needs repair, and the animals still have to be fed. It all feels okay because I'm happy. Sometimes those moments only last for a little while but it's worth it. I wonder sometimes if some people never really feel happy. Sure I've had my down times, and I still do, but I know that happiness is achievable without millions of dollars involved. When I see people in public and I smile at them, and they stare, bewildered as if they've never been smiled at before, I wonder: 'Do they ever laugh so hard that they cry?' Because I am sure that I do at least twice a week. I imagine that it is very near impossible to hold a family together without laughter. I'm sure mine would be in poor shape if we didn't have something to be happy about. I guess I have said all of this to say that I love my family, and I thank God for giving them to me. Love you guys!

Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey


Just a few of our family pictures from five and six years ago.
Good times.

Canon Powershot... the 2nd

Hey all, sorry I haven't posted in a while, I have been very busy lately and just got around to taking some more pictures today. I think I should let you all know that I now have (prepare yourself for this) in my possession (this is SO exciting) a NEW camera! It is the newer, bigger, badder version of my old Canon Powershot. Now, a moment for confessions. Yes, your suspicions are being confirmed,
Canon the first and I were having some... relationship conflicts. She insisted that I didn't give her enough credit, and that she had to do "all of the work around here". As hard as it is to say this, I think it was time for her to go. My new Canon and I are getting along marvelously. He is brilliant, clever, and his zoom is much more to my liking. (His political beliefs are also more aligned with mine.) Everyone says that I am jumping into this all too fast, but what can I say, love is blind. Anyway, enough with the talk, let me show you some of his work.

Above: Dad's old tractor is probably one of the more photographed farm vehicles in the nation.
Below: My view from the camera. I'm telling you, it is going to be a sad day in the McGuffey household when those old mis-matched sneakers finally give up the ghost. I've had them for four and a half years now and they are still too big. They're kind of like a good dog, you just love them.

For a noxious weed, Knap weed is definitely beautiful. In small plots all over our ranch it slowly chokes out the grass and sets up an establishment of it's own. I wouldn't mind having it instead of grass if it weren't for the fact that Knap weed has, essentially no nutritional value; not ideal for horse feed.

This photogenic little patch was right in our back yard.
That will conclude the post for today. I'm sure Canon II would love to hear your feedback on his pictures.
Thank you!
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

County Fair

I'll start off by stating that I am very active in my county fair. I am in 4-H, (Horsemanship, photography, etc.) but I also enter a few open class drawings, paintings, and photographs. I just thought that I would show you a few of the pictures that I am entering this year, maybe I'll post some drawings later, but that would require me to scan them, which is quite the ordeal these days. Anyway, tell me what you think!

Only a good friend will put up with hours of photo taking. Way to go girl!

A Razzmatazz sunflower, my favorite kind. This one took second prize at the fair last year. You can't see it so much in this picture, but the flower is a really nice dark red.

Isaiah and Rebekah ~ to be wed on September 4th 2010

Sunlit grass backed by the Clark Fork river.


This is my little cousin Bailey. I'm not sure how well this one will go over with the judges at the fair, but I thought it was just too precious not to use somehow.



This is one of my all-time favorites. It is kind of abstract but I love it.
Mary-Hannah C. McGuffey

Sweet Sixteen

Tomorrow I am celebrating an occasion that only happens once in a lifetime. (Well, once in everyone's lifetime.) My best friend is turning sixteen. It isn't so much an occasion for the usual reasons, she already has her driver's license, she already has a car, and she won't necessarily be gaining privileges or freedoms by this "long-awaited" birthday. It's just amazing to me because I can't believe we made it here. Last I checked we were eight and nine, and we were both too shy to talk to each other, we were little and bony, and giggly, and we thought that teenagers were evil. Cary and I became best friends in an instant. We were on a field trip to an Amish bakery for a 4-H cooking project, and started talking. I had forgotten to bring a water bottle, so Cary kindly shared hers, only I didn't know her very well, so I didn't think I should put my mouth on the bottle. So, I carefully tipped up the bottle and poured about two ounces of good ol' H2O down the wrong pipe. I choked, and choked... and choked some more. After a few minutes her parents started getting worried. But that's how it all started. When I finally got my lungs back in working order, we laughed about it, and it has pretty much been the same way since. In the five-plus years that we have known each other we have never had a single fight or argument. That's rare. Well, I've said all this to say, here's to you on your birthday Cary, and thanks for being my best friend! You rock, and I couldn't ask for a better BFFAA.
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey

Sunflowers... I Think, and One Incredibly Adorable Little Boy

My brother, Jesse found these pretty flowers in one of our fields. They look like sunflowers, but are a little bit smaller than most. Anyway, I thought that they looked like a pretty nice photography project, so I went after them with my camera. What do you think?

Shot #1. Sheep Mountain in the background.
Shot #2. Over-exposed but I still like it.

Shot #3. I think this one probably turned out the best. If you can't tell I like getting more than one perspective on an object.

And last of all, shot #4. This is a closeup of my little brother Jesse, the one who picked the flowers. Jesse is almost nine, and is an intelligent fun-loving little boy. Sometime I'll post a clearer picture. I took about 15 more shots of the flowers, but didn't want to post all of them. Hope you like them!
Mary-Hannah Christina McGuffey
AND Canon Powershot 111

Yes, I Edit Them

Much to my photography teacher's shame, I edit my pictures. Sometimes I will get a really great shot that is just slightly too dark or slightly too off centered, etc. That is when picnik.com comes in handy. Here are a few of my editing experiments.

A friend of mine in our barn. I took this one in June.

This is the same friend, on a picturesque old rail road bridge near my house.


I always seem to use the barn in backgrounds. A close up of a friend, I thought it looked really nice in sepia.

My twenty year old brother and his fiancee. This was one of their engagement pictures.

So far, this one is my all time favorite. It is also shown in my header. The sunset was just right for silhouettes. I brightened it slightly, but this is very close to the original. This is also my brother and his fiancee. I will post more of their engagement pictures later, these are just some of my best edits.
Hope you like them!
Mary-Hannah C. McGuffey