The Call: Something’s Fishy — Cheryl

One of the main attractions at L.L. Bean in Freeport is the large fish tank, with its come-into-this-underwater-world bubble. I’ve never actually gotten in it, but the kids seem to enjoy watching the fish float by (although it doesn’t really look that way in this shot). ; )

The Response: The Cross — Jessica

After a busy Saturday of baseball, my husband and I, along with our oldest son, spent the evening with the other seniors and their parents. There was a lovely piano trio performing several nice selections and cake and conversation afterwards. Before the concert started, I noticed that the cross was floating over the altar space. What luck! I thought — since I hadn’t yet taken my picture of the day.

The Call: Ancient Oaks — Jessica

Step One: Cut down the old trees
Step Two: Build parking garage

Response: I Get It Now — Cheryl

When I worked for the Denver Catholic Register, I worked on a story that mentioned the Ancient Order of Hibernians, and I asked my editor, “What’s a Hibernian?”

He replied, “Someone from Ireland.”

“Oh.”

About 13 years later, I started reading The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff to Luke and Bridget. It’s a great book that takes place in Britain, when it was part of the Roman Empire. A map of the story’s setting appears at the beginning of the book. I find old maps fascinating, and this was no exception. Did you know that York was once called Eburacum, Gloucester was named Glevum, Bath was Aquae Sulis, and Ireland was known as Hibernia?

The Call: Pink — Cheryl

Nearly two years ago, I committed to taking a photo every single day. When I got finished with my 365-day project of photos inspired by poetry, I decided to keep shooting, but with no rules. Shortly thereafter, Jessica and I committed to Call and Response. Maybe about six months ago, my husband had a revelation. One day, he exclaimed, “You can do anything one day at time!” He’s right. I can’t plan much more than one day ahead, but if I know I have to get take a photo each and every day, I’m happy to do so, and it has opened my eyes to some real beauty.

The Response: Crowded — Jessica

My calendar is full of commitments — especially during May. It’s at times like these that it seems more like a tool of oppression than a tool of organization.

The Call: Rainbow Wall — Jessica

The right light and the right lens (and bit of post-processing contrast control) can make even a plain wall look interesting.

Response: White for a Change — Cheryl

Many people saddle vanilla with the label, “plain.” They likely do the same to white chocolate. Not me. I’ll take any of the three and likely enjoy each equally.

The Call: Black Gold — Cheryl

It has been said that “all that glitters is not gold.” That’s fine with me. I’ll take plain, old glitter any day.

The Response: L’Oreal “Because Your Worth It” — Jessica

My daughter loves nail polish. One of her favorite things about homeschooling is that she doesn’t have to remove her polish on Sunday night anymore. The school she went to didn’t allow girls to wear nail polish to school.

The Call: Petals — Jessica

All good things must come to an end. And it was time for the cherry blossoms to fall off the trees but there were helped along by a windy night and a rainy day. Now the sidewalks and gutters are a solid mass of pink. In truth, it’s almost as pretty as when they are on the trees.

Response: Just Trees and Wires — Cheryl

In the course of a week, I generally manage to get out and about a few times. I don’t grab my camera for all of those trips, but it is very often within arm’s reach. I had it with me today when I dropped Luke off at the high school for his baseball game. On the way home, I noticed a couple of trees, heavy with buds.

The Call: An Invitation to Tea — Cheryl

Once again, I spent most of the day working on Bridget’s room (Dennis is rolling the second coat now), and by mid-afternoon, I was tired. So today, a hot cup of tea and a good read were especially inviting.

The Response: A Good Stop — Jessica

“The Mother of Christ calls us, invites us to join with the Church of the living God”
— John Paul II Mother of the Church

The Call: Shady Spot — Jessica

Yes, Luke is actually sitting underneath a school bus. It was very sunny at Tommy’s game this afternoon and Luke wanted to rest in the shade. As soon as I realized that he was really underneath and not just behind the bus, I went and chased him out. He decided to go rest in the van, where his older brother was watching Danny while he napped in his car seat. That’s what happens when you have Saturday baseball games during the little kid nap time.

Response: Bathtime — Cheryl

Stella took a bath yesterday, but when she asked for one late this afternoon, I was happy to oblige. Bathtime for her means time for me to rest, as I sit near the tub and keep my eye on her. I’ve spent nearly all day cleaning Bridget’s room (while Bridget and Luke are at a weekend youth ministry convention), so we can finish painting it.

The Call: Lyrical Life — Cheryl

One definition of lyrical is “Highly enthusiastic; rhapsodic.” I’d have to call it an adjective that can be used to describe Stelly Bean.

The Response: Lyrical Spring — Jessica

I was playing around today (again!) with the pinhole lens getting ready for World Wide Pinhole Day. The nice thing about the pinhole is that it lets me get a nice slow shutter speed on a very bright day so I was able to spin the camera to create that blur and swirl of color. By the way, Danny just loves to sit in the grass — it’s still new to him!

The Call: Almost There — Jessica

My oldest son is almost an Eagle scout. He has one merit badge and one night of camping left. And then the Eagle project. He’s stalling out on that and it’s a race against time. On June 10th he turns 18 and the gig is up. Unfortunately for him, he is also suffering from an acute case of senioritis. Will he make it? Stay tuned…

Response: Dreaming of Eagles — Cheryl

In golfing parlance, an eagle is shooting two under par on any hole. Luke tells me he has about 20 eagles under his belt. He’s hoping for many more.

The Call: What the …? — Cheryl

A pair of pink boxing gloves on a ladder must seem strange to some (most?) people. Believe it or not, there’s a logical explanation, and here it is: Dennis finally painted the stairway today (it has sported five or six shades for about two years now). When he couldn’t find one of the rubber “booties” that go on the ends of the ladder to protect the walls, he simply substituted my pink boxing gloves.

The Response: A Blur of Color — Jessica

After five long months of grey and brown and dead sticks everywhere, Virginia has finally burst into pinks and whites and yellows and a million shades of green. It’s almost bewildering to see all this color after the long dreary winter. And, I’m sorry Cheryl, I don’t mean to be rubbing it in — I know you guys are about a month behind us…feel free to regal me with pictures of beautiful days and evenings in August when we are melting in the heat and humidity. ; )

The Call: The Next Generation — Jessica

Everye white will have its blacke, And everye sweete its soure
— Thomas Percy Syr Cauline

Response: Three Green Life Savers — Cheryl

The green candies in a 5-flavor roll of Life Savers seem like they should be sour. Green is lime, right? Wrong. It used to be — back in the day. But not anymore. Green is now watermelon: sweet, yummy, anything-but-sour watermelon.

The Call: Disorderly Surroundings — Cheryl

The origin of the mess in my studio is my creative mind.

The Response: Buds & Blossoms — Jessica

The origin of the blossom is the bud. And the azalea bushes in the backyard are covered with them — the most I’ve ever seen!

The Call: Garden Plot — Jessica

The first picture of the garden.

But before we can plant, I had to attack the scourge of gardens and gardeners everywhere — weeds. See that back corner behind the lawn chair? That’s my little section of the plot and that was what I had to weed this afternoon. Luckily the ground was soft because of the hard rain Friday evening and Saturday morning.

As we were getting ready to go my husband asked why I was taking the camera.
“Why, to document the growth of the garden over the summer, of course.” I replied.
“Oh, of course!”

Response: Holes — Cheryl

Dennis thinks that our neighborhood woodpeckers are a scourge. I can understand that, but it’s neat to hear them “knocking,” and I’m grateful when I can get a decent picture of one or two.