Photography

Forgotten Angels: A Horse Rescue With A lot Of Heart

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This past weekend, I took my daughter to a wonderful, non-profit, local horse rescue called Forgotten Angels Equine Rescue.     The rescue saves healthy horses that are sent to slaughter and sick and abused horses in need of intervention and care.  Their mission is to promote public awareness of needless horse slaughter and animal abuse.   They involve the local community through events, and activities teaching patience and kindness to all creatures.  You can also follow the cause on Facebook.

We could not have asked for a more perfect weather.  The sun was shining and it was a perfect day to spend on the farm.  The toddler apprentice was particularly enchanted by Snowflake a 7 year-old mini mare up for adoption.  She enjoyed feeding all the horses and donkeys carrots, and handfuls of plucked grass.  She even had a chance to sit on Snowflake’s back.  For those of you unfamiliar with my past, for many years I worked as a Vet Tech and have a deep love for helping sick, unwanted and abused animals.  It is especially sad how we treat our horses who evolved with us through time and have contributed so much to our evolution and humanity.   I want to pass this love, and respect on to my daughter, and it made me smile to see her face light up just being around these gentle creatures.

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My daughter feeding Snowflake, a miniature horse currently up for adoption.

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We had great conversation with one of the volunteers on the farm about all its residents and learned about the rescue which has been operating for the last two years.  I also had an opportunity to engage another hobby of mine photography.   I photographed the animals and they did not disappoint and seemed to love all the attention, and “Ham It Up” for the camera.

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PHOTOS: Residents of The Forgotten Angels Equine Rescue

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“Dreamer”

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“Noel”

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“Glory” The rescue is raising money so this blind horse can have eye surgery.  You can donate here.

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“Wendy”

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“Stanley”

Currently, The Rescue Sponsors a program where you can adopt a horse for the month for a donation.  Please see the following link for more information. http://forgottenangelsequinerescue.com/photo.html    They also accept donations large or small, and you can also purchase Rescue “Swag” at their online store to help raise money for the cause.

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Our daughter was especially good on Saturday, and her daddy gave her a small reward which she “happily” donated to her horse friends.  I was told that thanks to our daughter’s efforts, the horses would have more carrots to snack on.

In Memory Of

Pickles

 

“Pickles” Photo courtesy of Forgotten Angels Equine Rescue

This post is dedicated to Pickles.  We met Pickles during our visit briefly, but she was not feeling well.  Pickles was an elderly horse who sadly developed colic that due to her age, she could not recover from.   She passed away later that evening.   It was a huge loss to all those who loved her as Pickles was a kids and rescue favorite.  We are blessed to have had a chance to meet Pickles on her final day.  God Bless this beautiful horse forever free crossing the Rainbow Bridge.

 

 

The Genealogy Series: Greetings From Niagara Falls

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It has been slim pickings lately on the upcycle front.  It seems everyone (myself included) is battling the impact felt from mother nature. Thrift store stock is limited and picked through, and the curb sides are piled with (you guessed it…snow)  Thank goodness I have yard sale season to look forward too as it is only about a month or two away.  To remain occupied, I now look around the house and get ideas on how to improve on things we already have.  One such item is my husband’s side table,  which adorned his childhood home. I have wanted to work on this piece for a very long time. This table has seen better days, and I am in the process of hand sanding it, a messy and sometimes slow process.  Working on it made me think of treasuring and preserving those family heirlooms, even if they are worth no more than sentimental value. For me, the more sentimental, the better.

Recently, I have been scanning and uploading old family photographs, and trying to unlock their mysteries. It has been a while since I have blogged about family history and genealogy but don’t let my inactivity on the subject fool you.  Sure, I take a rest from it from time to time, sleep on it, put it away, but it is always pulled back out, and revisited. I came across this wonderful photograph of my Great Grandfather Harry Long with my Great Grandmother Daisy (Plummer) Long at Niagara Falls NY.

Harry and Daisey at Niagra

Photo taken some time between 1935-1945

Many things do change with time, but natural beauty can last for generations.  Millions of people have passed through New York or Canada to see the wonders of Niagara Falls.  They pose with their loved ones in front of its massive beauty.  It reminds me that although the years become an obstacle keeping us from knowing our beloved ancestors,  the experiences and places that remain allow us to walk in their footsteps.  What is left behind allows those who have passed away to have a “voice”  This I believe brings us closer together.  Different time, but we are not so different.  I think this photograph proves that.  Just an ordinary married couple leaning into the mist as so many others have done before and after them.

A Halloween Treat

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We had a great time tonight, handing out candy to the kids, and taking our daughter trick or treating in our neighborhood.  It brought me back to when I was just a kid with a pillow case and a dream!  I remembered the excitement I felt running from house to house collecting candy.  Our little butterfly seemed to get the hang of the art of trick or treating easily and was happily carrying her bucket which seemed to fill up rather quickly!

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Hope everyone had a Safe and Happy Halloween!

Looking for some fun Halloween crafts?  Check out: Kitty Cat Halloween Candy Tray and Decorative Black Cat Halloween lamp.

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A Day in The Life Of The Animals At America’s First Zoo

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The daughter and I were invited by a friend to the Philadelphia Zoo today and we had a wonderful time! It was unseasonably warm for a day in October and it felt more like summer than fall.  Seeing the animals was a great opportunity to enjoy one of my other hobbies, photography.  I took the Nikon to the zoo with us and broke out the closeup lens and started shooting.

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The toddler apprentice especially enjoyed the otters.  Hope you enjoyed getting to know our wild friends!

Good Golly! Miss Molly!

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Yesterday the family drove three hours to Maryland for my niece’s 7th Birthday Party.  It was a great time especially watching the kids play musical chairs, and I got to talk upcycling with my sister’s fabulous neighbor!  My daughter loved the swing errr maybe a little two much *insert two-year old temper tantrum here* It was not pretty when we tried to take her off.

My sister also just added a new four legged member to their family. She is a sweet beagle/lab mix named Molly….

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Doesn’t she have the sweetest face?  Hope you all had a great weekend and are enjoying these final days of summer with family and friends….

Now back to the Upcycle!

Danielle

Checking In While Checking Out: Upcycled Photo Refrigerator Magnets

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As I was on-line at the thrift store waiting to check out, I noticed they had a bunch of refrigerator magnets behind the counter. I began to drift off in thought and Then it hit me! I imagined these would make great DIY photo magnets and they were only .59 cents each! I decided to buy two of them for this project.

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I printed wallet sized photos on my printer I wanted to use. I then traced the magnet onto the back of the photos.  I cut them out with scissors, and set aside.  I applied the Mod Podge to the surface of the magnet, and carefully adhered the photo to the surface.  Once dry I applied the Mod Podge over top and allowed to dry in front of the fan.

This was a great Monday night project, simple and easy and there is no better way to upcycle old magnets then using family photos!

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Weekend Warriors: A Thrifting Revolution.

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This past Saturday, My sister and I took a trip with the little one to Red Bank Battlefield in National Park NJ.  An important battle was fought here during the Revolutionary war, and the area is now part of the Gloucester County, NJ Park System.  My daughter loved the playground and refused to get off the swing (insert 2 year-old temper tantrum here) Despite this, it was a beautiful day to get out and enjoy nature, after weeks of torrential rain and heat waves!

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We also got to visit an awesome thrift store called Glassboro Thrift Village.  To say they had everything would be a understatment! I especially liked the “free” items they had out front.  They happened to have a chair marked free and I was very excited to see it! I have been for sometime, searching for a spare chair seat.  I have a great chair I have been wanting to restore with a broken seat.  I scooped up this “free chair” and was amazed at all the great items they had inside.  This would be a great place to get furniture for college students or people just starting out.  I picked up a few future crafting items and a magna doodle for my daughter for a dollar.  They also support local charities with a portion of their sales. I want to go back here sometime in the future to take a more thorough look around.  Can’t wait to get started on a few new projects this week!

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DIY Recycled Wooden Photo Plaque

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We have all seen them at the thrift stores and swap meets, and outdoor flea markets.  They are wooden plaques with various images painted or printed on them.  Sure, you can purchase wooden plaques at your local craft store brand new, but this one cost only .99 cents and I rescued it from a possible trip to the landfill.  Purchasing “pre -owned, only added one additional step to the project. I had to use a white, latex primer first before I could paint the plaque black with acrylic paint.   As far as projects go, it doesn’t get any easier than this!   This is a great beginner project if you are using Mod Podge for the first time.

First, I formatted and cropped the black and white photo into an oval shape and printed it out on photo paper.   I can’t afford photo shop, but there are plenty of free great photo editing software on the web.  I use  Paint.net .  This is my one of my favorite photo’s.   I took this when my daughter was only two days old.  Amazing how those days go by so quickly!  Even more reason to immortalize these special  moments  in time.  I left some time for the ink to dry on the paper and cut out the image carefully with a pair of scissors leaving a white border around it.  This I thought  would make the photo stand out from the black plaque.  I then glued the photograph down to the plaque using Mod Podge Matte finish.  Once dry, I covered the photo plaque with two coats of Mod Podge allowing the plaque to dry between coats.  The nice thing about recycled plaques are often times than not, they come ready to hang on the wall!  I was more than happy to add this Photo Plaque to our photo wall leading upstairs.

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Pictured above Before and After

Materials:

Wooden Plaque/New or Recycled

Mod Podge Matte Finish

Printed Photo to decoupage

Scissors, Paint brush

Black Acrylic Paint

White Latex Primer

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