Welcome

Thanks for checking out my blog. See the rest of my photos and get some more information about me at my website, www.kendaljeanphotos.com. I look forward to hearing from you, leave me a comment.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Monday, May 18, 2009

Welcome Baby...

Mama finally popped and out came a very cute little filly. We thought she was going to go Saturday night so I gathered together my sleeping bag, pad and pillow and set up shop in the tack room with Kathy. We watched a couple of movies and when we went to check after the second movie Abby was down and pushing hard. It was a false alarm though. We slept really lightly jumping at every noise, but Abby decided to hold on to her baby a bit longer.

As I was pulling out of the driveway last night I got the call. Kathy told me her water had just broke and I had better hurry. I made it just in time with just the feet sticking out and within 10 minutes there was a new little filly on the ground. It was so amazing watching her try and figure things out. Her first little whinny was so cute. I plan on heading out Wednesday to get some more photos of her while she is a bit more steady and playing in the pasture.

DSC_1791


DSC_1791
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

DSC_1916


DSC_1916
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

DSC_1972


DSC_1972
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

DSC_2052


DSC_2052
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

DSC_2070


DSC_2070
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Saturday, April 18, 2009

One Big Momma...

And she's due in a month. I got the privilege to photograph a very pregnant horse today. She's due in another month for her fourth baby. I hope to make it to the birth as well, but with such an experienced momma it might be over by the time I get the camera out :0) It was quite a challenge trying to figure out how to get the best view of her big belly and still be able to tell what it is. You can see more photos from the day at http://www.flickr.com/photos/k-sphotos/

Pregnant Mare


DSC_0544
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Feeling Baby


DSC_0482_BW
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Sleep


DSC_0611
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Pregnant Mare


DSC_0628
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Spring has Sprung

While at the kitchen sink this morning I looked up to see my first flowers blooming! I was so excited I dropped everything and ran outside with my camera. I can't wait until everything is blooming so I can see where things are planted around here. I have had an invasion of bulbs in just about every open area and I'm sorry to say I'm going to have to rein some of them in and rip them out, but until then I can enjoy how pretty they will be. The garden and landscaping around the house are all a mystery since we moved in the fall. We ran into the previous owner and he said that it is about to get really beautiful, so that just makes me more giddy. I've never really had a garden, so it will be fun to experiment.

Other then finally having nice enough weather to venture outside, we've finished the living room and most of the entry. Although the entry way color is still on the iffy list. I think it will stay until I get a few opinions, but then it may leave. Don't worry pictures will be coming. If it weren't for the short time this morning I'd post all of that, but I have to leave you the edge of your seat just a bit.

Enjoy the day today!

Daffodil


Daffodil
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Daffodil


Daffodil
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Monday, March 23, 2009

Sun Mountain Scenery

We set off for a hike down one of the trails at Sun Mountain and soon Jill had a mission. We left the kids with Steve and kept going to each bend in the trail to find the Homestead. Jill had been to the little hut before and really wanted to find it again. I was happy to get out and hike with the camera. Also very happy to get some of the shots that I did. It is always refreshing to get good pictures after being cooped up all winter.

Single Tree


Single Tree
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Homestead


Homestead
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Deadhead


Deadhead
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Moss Head


Moss Head
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Sunday, March 22, 2009

A little from Sun Mountain...

Finally! I got to some photo editing tonight and got some of the photos from Sun Mountain uploaded. There will be some more scenery photos to come as well as another update on how the house is coming along. We got quite a bit more done in the living room and there is more to come over spring break. Not to mention we got our new windows put in too.

I can't believe how busy things have been! Now spring is here and I'll want to get outside even more. Where am I going to find the time??

At the Cabin


At the Cabin
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

We ditched the kids and Jill, Shawn and I kept going to find Jill's elusive homestead cabin. Proof we were there :0)

Sliding


Sliding
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Shawn taught the girls the technique to sliding down the icy snow with no sled.

Sliding


Sliding
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Sliding


Sliding
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Snowballs


Snowballs
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

For Jill

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Not Quite Done...

But pretty darn impressive.

I am so happy with how the living room has turned out so far. Again we have a few more things to do and we'll add them to the list to be whittled away, but we have quite a strong start.

Before

You've seen these next two pictures from the previous post, but it just didn't seem right not to add them to this new post. Again we worked on the white wall which is actually painted paneling.

I took an afternoon and ripped the paneling off. You can read about that adventure here. Here's the wall all patched and ready to go.


During

We chose the paint color way back when we did the bedroom and had samples painted all over the wall. After two coats I was a little concerned with how dark it was appearing, but it got way better by the end.


Having never done any trim work we embarked on the adventure. We were able to quickly decide we weren't keeping the original trim because there was a patched area behind the paneling and right next to the door, so we needed some a bit thicker. We headed down to Home Depot and after about an hour of trying to decide we came home with some door trim. Again I was hesitant with how it would look but plowed ahead knowing we can always change it later.


We had the hardest time trying to decide on the door trim and baseboard because we couldn't find any that looked good right next to one another. Then I stumbled upon the simple plinth block and a happy medium was found. I really like the effect.


The door almost finished. The frame on the inside is primed and drying before we paint it the same color as the trim. I know it's hard to tell the difference but all the trim is the color chinchilla. All I can say is that it isn't white. :0)

After

My crowning achievement for this wall... to highlight our wedding. I think it looks amazing!

Now there are still a few things to do. We need to finish trimming out the other bedroom door (the pieces are drying as I type) and then we need to get crown molding. There is crown molding on the un-paneled walls already, but it is a very old style so we plan on updating that as well. So we are stuck with a funky tan and weird green color as a top border for now, but that's alright, the beautiful quilt from Zanna and the nice wedding photo catches the attention. We want to try and build a cool, fancy molding shelf to go under the wedding picture to even out the wall.

So many plans to come, but I'm loving how it looks! We are getting new windows in the next couple of weeks, so I'll have to venture outside for some before photos, though there shouldn't be a huge visible difference between the old and new windows... just an energy bill difference :0)

Saturday, February 28, 2009

Demo Time

No riding this weekend and Shawn has made the comment that I'm really productive when I'm not on a horse :0)

Our next project we've agreed will be the living room. We know what color we want to do and the only thing that has been stopping us is my wanting to take down the paneling. We were kind of nervous about what might be behind the paneling, but you'll never know unless you rip it down and while Shawn was grading papers I pulled out my pink toolkit.

I won't hold you in suspense, luckily there was drywall behind the paneling and it is actually in quite good condition and not too bad of a color. The good color mind you is in the middle of the wall the borders are quite awful. The blue green color is actually the original drywall (I think) and we plan on covering that up with crown modeling and trim.

Here's a short picture story of the day:

The true before, before we even moved in. Now we are just doing
the painted paneling which is white in this picture. The other
wall is going to hold off until we remove the oil furnace which
is behind the closet door.

If the paneling doesn't cooperate that's when you
get the power saw out :0) It worked well and scared Shawn.

Not a bad color! It is more yellow/tan in person,
kind of pink in some of the photos.


Who throws their poo?! Well not really, this panel was glued
on because there are no studs in this wall. It will take
some sanding to fix those parts.

All patched and ready for priming. We'll see
how long it will stay like this.

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Meet Annie....

You can read all about my adventures with Annie on my other blog, 'Joining the Race.' I've been too nervous to take my big camera out to the barn because of the temperatures, but decided to take (risk) Shawn's little point and shoot. Didn't really expect to get any great shots, but I actually like how this one turned out. I enhanced the blow out that was already happening and bumped up the contrast to really make it pop.

I like how it turned out. How about you? I'm also liking all these little blog kits I keep finding online. Might get to the point that I can just change the blog to suit my mood :0)

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Finally....

We made it outdoors. With the cold spell sort of snapped (I think it is supposed to be 40 degrees this week!) we ventured out to do some snowshoeing. Unfortunately we've kind of missed that window. I think there was a very narrow window to do real snowshoeing back in December and we just never made it out.

Well today we headed up to Scotch Creek Wildlife Area. I hoped to glimpse some wildlife, but alas no critters, or at least live ones, a few drops of blood and a pile of fur was really all that was left. It was actually a pretty pleasant morning. About 20 degrees, but no wind. Hopper was excited to explore a new place and was really all over the place. There is a pretty well worn trail up most of the hill so we didn't need to use our snowshoes, but decided to carry them with us anyway. I'd like to find a way to carry them without my hands, but that can come another day. It was really nice to have them when we got up towards the barn as the snow was pretty deep. Hopper was true to his name and hopped through the snow and kept digging in, probably chasing mice under the snow.

The barn was a great photo site. I have seen it from the Conconully highway and had even tried to take a photo of it with no luck. Today though, I had a blast. It has been so long since I have taken the camera out it was really great to get some good shots. Renews my faith in myself.

Just a Peek


Just a Peek
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Scotch Creek Barn


Scotch Creek Barn
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Open Door


Open Door
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Barn Door


Barn Door
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

Hopper


Hopper
Originally uploaded by Kendal Jean Photos

His longest walk yet. We were probably out for about an hour and a half. He really enjoyed smelling everything that was new to him. Hopper has probably memorized all the smells on his daily walk by now. He really liked the deer trails crossing ours.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Before... During... and After

The hopes of snowshoeing this weekend were dashed by images of paint brushes and masking tape dancing through my head. I know not as good as sugar plums, but hey it was a very productive weekend. We have totally revamped our bedroom. Although it is far from finished it is now much easier to see what we hope to do with the room and the list has become considerably shorter.

Before

Okay, suspense aside here is the room before:

Take notice of those stark white walls. They were covered in wallpaper not too long before these photos. I completely forget to take a picture of the little flowers repeating all across two walls, but here is a sampling of it. Lovely eh?


During

We had originally planned on painting the room red, but were still unsure so we got some of the paint pod samples. After the initial four red samples we decided against red. Just wasn't doing it for us. So we picked a few more colors. In all we had nine different colors on the wall. Though I think we have decided from those samples what color to paint the living room and possibly the sun room.


In addition to the multiple colors we also had a few stains on the walls so up went the primer. With the primer up on the walls, but no the corners you could tell the walls were just dingy looking. They weren't white like the photos, but well, you can see the difference in this next photo.


After

With a bit of a drum roll may I introduce the after photos:

The final wall color was Twilight Gold. We still have a huge list of to-dos but this is a very strong start and helps us to envision the other tasks. Here's the remaining list:
Overall I feel pretty good though.

Hope you have enjoyed this episode of Before... During... and After. I'm sure there will be more to come as we hope to do the living room next.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Back in the Saddle...

That's right, I'm riding horses again. I have come upon the opportunity to learn about endurance racing. This is totally new and foreign to me and I'm excited to learn. You can follow my adventures with Annie on my new blog: Joining the Race.

With riding 3-4 times a week I hope to keep pulling the camera out. We've been locked in quite a cold, foggy spell lately. The fog has been here for a week and the forecasts are saying it will stick around for another week. I'm ready for it to go away, feels too much like Western Washington (of course w/o the flooding).

We do have hopes of going snowshoeing this weekend. I've even picked out the place I want to go, Scotch Creek. The plan is to bring the camera and the dog. Hopper should enjoy a good outing and hopefully he won't scare all the animals away. He's so quiet I hope to be able to have a photo shooting companion.

There are also plans in the work for painting the bedroom. Currently there are 9 different colors painted on the wall (don't worry I'll get a picture before the primer goes on). From that 9 I think we have settled on a color for the bedroom, a color for the living room and a color for the sunroom. It's funny, I kept telling myself to concentrate on picking a color for the bedroom and I seem to have done well working on the rest of the house as well.

Wish me luck on a hopefully busy weekend.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Happy New Year

Welcome to 2009! So far we've gotten 3 inches of snow and it is still coming down hard. Here is my promised year in review. I just went off what was on my Flickr account and realized after it was all said and done, I didn't even comment about the house we bought in September. Oh well! Remember I've got a whole lot more photos, just follow the links and enjoy!