The Window

The beautiful windows inside the lighthouse at St. Michaels~

All the windows to my heart I open to the day.

~John Greenleaf Whittier

Maritime Museum Floating Fleet

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, Maryland is lucky enough to have a floating fleet of Chesapeake Bay historical boats including skiffs, workboats, and log canoes.  I loved reading and photographing them when I visited back in early December.

I know what you are thinking...these pictures could not have been taken in December!  I know, right?  Look at that beautiful sky.  Believe it or not, it was FREEZING that day with windchills down in the teens or single digits.  I am here to tell you, people, it was COLD and windy.

I was smart enough to take a picture of the markers next to some of the boats so I could share some information about these unique treasures with you!  How is that for preparedness?

The first specimen, the Delaware pictured above, is a tug.  The Delaware was built in 1912 by William H. Smith of Bethel, Delaware.  Tugs like the Delaware were very important to the economic development and viability of the Bay region.  Large sailing vessels carrying various products such as lumber, wheat, produce, and fertilizer were a common sight until the 1930's.  With the Bay's narrow, winding rivers and shallow harbors, the waterways were difficult for these large vessels to maneuver.   That is where the tugs, such as the Delaware, came into play. They would meet the large vessels in the open water and tow them safely to port or up the winding rivers.  Today, with the expansion of coastal trade, most freight is transported by barge.

The Volunteer is a replica of a Smith Island crab scrapping boat built in 2002 by staff and volunteers at the museum.  In the shallows around Smith Island, crabbers use boats such as this one to harvest the animals.  They drag a special dredge called a crab scrape behind the boat to rake up peeler crabs hiding on the bottom.  These boats are designed to move easily around the shallows where the crabs hide in eelgrass to shed their shells.  The low sides on the boat allow the crabbers to pull the crab scrape over the edge of the boat more easily.

And that is where my brilliance ends because, folks, I forgot to take a picture of the rest of the markers.  My apologies if you were looking forward to more information about the Bay's boats ;0)

I hope you enjoyed your little look into the floating fleet of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.  Of course, there are many more to see there in person, so I highly recommend spending a day there if you are ever in that area.

I still have more pictures from this beautiful spot to share with you and some include more of the floating fleet, so don't be sad that this is it.  

There are more on the way for all of you water lovers ;0)

Have a blessed Wednesday, y'all.

Working

Before the holidays I told you all I had the pleasure of working with 

the amazing premiere Baltimore area photographer, Jodie Otte.

I was honored when she hired me to assist her in some

commercial print ad shoots and for a live action video

that is now on the internet and national television.

All I can say is this was the highlight of fall/winter.

I loved every minute of working with these amazing professionals 

from the models (who despite what most believe, do NOT have a glamorous job!). 

to the executives at the ad agency,

to the director and crew,

to the executives at the baby formula company.

It was simply amazing.

Jodie asked me to capture some images of her working

while we were on the set of the live commercial shoot, 

so I was happy to oblige.  

I used her Nikon to shoot these and she edited them.

Here is Jodie working with the infant models on set:

Jodie watching the monitor to precisely position the baby

Jodie talking to the director about the shot

Jodie working with the baby and adult models to get everyone in position
The lady in the foreground was wardrobe/makeup

Jodie working her magic with the baby as she transfers her to the model

To see the inner workings of how a production such as this works

was a dream come true.

I long to do more of this type of work and hope I have 

the opportunity again in the future.

Here is the final live video clip:

( They ended up going with one continuous shot.

After shooting what felt like a million hours, it all comes 

down to this thirty seconds.  Truly amazing!)

The Boat House- St. Michaels, Maryland

Taken inside the boat house at the Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, Maryland.

I hope all of you had/are having a wonderful holiday season.

The Nine Acres clan had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying 

our time together while the kids have off school.

Sending love to you all.

Makes a Momma Proud

Seriously? I think we have all lost it! LOL!

Images From St. Michaels and Bah Humbug

Today we are celebrating the twins' third birthday with a family party.
Tomorrow we are celebrating Christmas with my side of the family.

Someone send help.
Quickly.
I am drowning in the sea of wrapping paper (birthday and Christmas),
tape, boxes, bags, and presents.

I thought I was prepared for December.
Turns out I was not.

These pictures from St. Michaels calm me a little bit.

Not much, but a bit.

Oh, and don't get me started about singing holiday songs...
in particular Frosty (or Chasey or Chunky as each of the twins pronounce it) the Snowman,
Rudolph, and Jingle Bells.
These songs are fantastic a few rounds a day,
but by singing song number 2,348 in one day, well,
it gets a bit old.

Just call me Bah Humbug.
Go ahead, I can take it.

I am all for the arrival of January.

So, how are you all weathering the holidays?
Hopefully better than me.

The Christmas Gift

I want to thank all of my wonderful friends and family,

including my bloggy family,

for all of their support, encouragement, and prayers 

during this very exciting time for our family.

Yesterday Brian and I were able to come one step closer

to adopting the foster children we have in our home.

Thanks to the loving decision of the biological parents

who were able to look beyondt their own wants

and consider the future of their children,

the children may be adoptable in the new year. 

I, of course, can't give details,

but I wanted to let you know

that your prayers, thoughts, and positive vibes

were felt all day yesterday.

I truly believe in the 

power of meditation and positive thought.

Thank you all again...

Reflections...

Please keep us in your prayers today and tomorrow.

It is a HUGE day for us tomorrow as a family.

I can't go into details, but we need everyone's 

positive focus, energy, and vibes.

You all have been so supportive all along

and I can't tell you how much we appreciate it.

Hopefully soon I will be able to tell 

you all about the wonderful things happening to us.

One day, my friends, one day.

The Old Brick Inn

Brian and I stayed at the

Old Brick Inn

when we visited St. Michaels.

It is a lovely bed and breakfast

that has rooms with the most amazing themes.

We stayed in the Guinevere Suite 

and we had our own knight in shining armor

watching over us ;0)

This suite is located in an adjacent building to the main house

in what is the old carriage house.

If you notice, the walls and floors are brick

and that is because the old carriage house of days gone by

was renovated to accommodate four guest rooms.

Brian arranged ahead of time for some romantic additions 

to the room including a bottle of wine, 

a romantic movie (Serendipity), 

a box of chocolates, a flower arrangement,

and rose petals sprinkled about the room and bed.

He really went all out to make our 15th anniversary special.

If you ever have the opportunity to visit St. Michaels,

I highly recommend the Old Brick Inn.

The staff was wonderful,

the rooms are gorgeous,

and the food was to die for.

Thanks, Brian, for a wonderful weekend!

The Road to St. Michaels

My Year in Facebook Status

I saw a blogger friend, Nora, on Facebook post this on her wall

and I couldn't resist getting the application and doing one for myself.

This is a random selection of status updates 

from the past year on my Facebook page.

Looking back, it is a good summary of the year.

I can remember 99% of these status updates and

what they are referring to.

For a few, I couldn't figure out what I was talking about!

Too fun.

I hope you all have a great Friday.

TGIF everyone!

Wordless Wednesday: Images of the City

Please Tell Me it Gets Better

Ok, y'all.

I've started reading this book

after hearing so much hubbub about it.

It is not normally the type of book

that I would choose, 

but with all the hype I was afraid I would miss out

if I didn't read it.

I am on Chapter 3 and I am bored silly.

All of this talk about the financial world

and the Eastern Bloc has me falling asleep.

I also hate it when the names in a book

aren't typical names that are easy to remember

because I get everyone confused.

I wouldn't mind giving up on it,

but the problem is the book blurb on the cover 

sounds really good.

I just don't know if I have the patience 

to stick with it long enough.

So, tell me...

Have you read this book?

Does it get better?

Should I finish reading it and 

giving it my precious pre-holiday

almost non-existent free time?

I need opinions!

Inside Out

Recently I have been really paying attention

to the reflections in windows.

Particularly when a person can

see the view outside and the reflection of the inside

of the building.

Often times, such as this image, 

it creates a plethora of lines, patterns, and reflections

that are interesting.

In this image, you can see through the window

to the brick building on the other side

but just as prominently see the reflection of a

framed historical photo and my husband's profile

from the inside.

I loved how it is all wrapped up into one.

Thus, I have begun a new series,

Inside Out,

just like my Resting Places series.

I hope you like it!

I am off for a very much needed haircut and color today.

Wish me luck ;0)

Back to Reality

Taken at the Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, Maryland

I had an amazing time in St. Michaels

but it is time to get back to reality.

As soon as we walked in the door

the daily grind set in...

Kids:

"Mom, what are we having for dinner?"

"I have a project due tomorrow and I haven't started!"

"I WANT yogurt!"

Phone messages:

"This is the doctor's office calling, reminding you of your appointment tomorrow."

"This is DSS trying to catch up with you on details of your foster childrens' case."

And then there is the laundry

and the unpacking,

and the cleaning...

And you know what?

As much as I loved the quiet 

and the ability to do whatever our hearts desired,

I missed that.

I missed the multi-tasking and the noise and the hubbub.

I won't complain about a vacation every now and again...

but home is where I belong.

Where In the World is Tracey?

Even I don't know, apparently.

Last post I told you that Brian and I are 

away for the weekend.

For some reason I said we were in St. Mary's County.

We are not.

We are in St. Michaels.

At least I got the St. part right.

That is why I needed to get away. 

My brain has ceased to function.

We ate a wonderful dinner tonight

that will for sure rank near the top

of my favorite meals list...

and now we can not breathe.

We are like two beached whales

gasping for breath.

We ate at Bistro St. Michaels and I had

the roasted tomato soup with crab, basil pesto, and that other stuff.

Oh. My. Gosh.

That's all I got to say about that, y'all.

Brian had the crab cakes.

Double Oh. My. Gosh.

We were so stuffed, we couldn't eat dessert,

so we ordered it to go and we are waiting for 

just the right time to eat it.  

Maybe it will be breakfast :0)  

We ordered the vanilla cream cake with carmel.

Be still my heart.

Ahem.

Um, if you will excuse me...

I think I might be able to squeeze in 

a bit of dessert now.

Typing a blog entry burns a lot of calories.

*The picture and the menu are from Bistro St. Michaels.

We Are Off!

Hey y'all!  Brian and I are off on our weekend away to St. Mary's County to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary.  Our anniversary was back in October but Brian surprised me with a weekend away at a historical bed and breakfast and this was our first available weekend!  This is our first time ever going away for our anniversary.  I was about 6 months pregnant with Ty on our first anniversary, so we've always had kids to worry about.

Friends and family are pitching in to help with the kids.  My father in law is staying at our house to hold down the fort for the weekend.  Thanks Dad!

I will probably drop in a time or two with some pictures while we are gone but if not, I will be back to regularly scheduled programming on Monday.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Connected by DROID on Verizon Wireless

Passing Through

Strangers Walking Past Me at the Hippodrome

I am so proud of Ty and Ladybug.

Both made the honor roll first quarter in school

and we had the privilege of going to the assembly to 

honor those students who accomplished this achievement.

It does a Mama's heart proud to hear her child's name called

for a reason such as that.

I am excited that tonight

I get to have a date with my hubby

to head back to where this image was taken...

the Hippodrome in Baltimore.

We are seeing Rock of Ages

and I am so looking forward to it!

Have a great Thursday, y'all!

Wordless Wednesday: Wishing Well?

Giraffe's Version of a Wishing Well or a Drinking Hole?