350/365

wow.

15 more days left in my project.

i did another shoot in durango

with a couple of girls i know from dance comotion.

i love love love this photo!

::my current obsession::

the girl is gorgeous and all that red hair...

the pearls with the pink gun...

*sigh*

i couldn't have asked for better.  

349/365

so all my creative juices have been flowing lately.

i've been on a photography binge it seems

and i can't get enough of it at the moment.

i put the word out that i was looking

for people to do shoots with me.

ralph was one of the people who responded

and i'm so glad he did.

i dont usually get too many guys

that are willing to go do

some sort of artistic shoot.

(meaning something other than standard portraits).

so i was stoked.

we took him to a couple different places.

one of the vibes i was shooting for was

something that just screamed "badass".

i succeeded. :)

348/365

i was driving home from dance rehearsal in durango on saturday.

there's this road when you get off of cedar hill that says "cedar hills cemetary".

i decided to take a detour. not to the cemetary but just a drive.

i went way back on that road until the pavement turned to dirt.

i didn't realize that the road went that far back.

i gotta admit- even for a rez girl from the middle of nowhere- it was a bit creepy.

i'm not thrilled with this pic.

it was much better in person.

347/365

so, at the native american center on campus, they were making these oragami things.

i cant remember what they represented.

i even asked.

twice.

and i can't remember- something about hesperus...

i dunno. sorry folks.

but they had them strewn and hanging from the ceiling all over the center.

346/365

tramping around out property the other day.

this is what i walked away with.

i usually post my pics to facebook before i get a chance

to post them here.

there's no explanation on facebook-

just the date and title.

but someone had commented

"what was the barrier that day?"

my response-

"intellectual thought, it seems."

i was practically a zombie all day.

i'm actually surprised i got this shot with the way i was feeling.

345/365

this is vanessa, one of the choreographers

for the "diamonds are a girl's best friend" jazz dance.

she is so fun to be around!

she has the most gorgeous eye color, too.

sometimes, i wish that i had

a more interesting eye color than just brown.

anyway, i looked up what her name meant

and supposedly it means "butterfly".

befitting.



344/365

so i found out that a good friend

of mine from ignacio is getting married this summer.

they came down to aztec

on a spur-of-the-moment

to have their engagement portraits done by moi.

it was cloudy and everyonce in a while

there were snow flurries.

it was a bit chilly but these two were troopers!

and man! i love the way they came out!

there were so many that i loved

that it was hard to pick my favorite.

i chose this one because it was a candid shot

of the two of them laughing together.

they weren't posed yet

and thought i was just test shooting for light.



343/365

i've mentioned on numerous occasions that my niece doesn't like me for some reason. well, i've decided to stop trying to make her like me since she cries when i even look at her. i've decided to just hang on to her and hug her and love her (kind of like almira from tiny toons) since she cries all the time anyway.

this was after a long bout of crying cuz i wouldn't let her go. well, not crying cuz i wouldn't let her since she was crying before i even picked her up.

342/365

so there's this new place that i really really wanted to try out. i couldn't wait so johnathan and i headed over there today and played around.

i got a few shots of him but he didn't want pictures taken of him today. so i ended up playing model after i set everything on my camera up and told him exactly what to do.

but look at the background on this pic. love it! ♥

341/365

i tagged along on a photo shoot with bree. she was doing pictures for her etsy website.

one of the girl's that was modeling for her brought her two kids along. one of which was so miserably sick. she was wearing this adorable bunny hat and with her big sad eyes, how could i resist?

340/365

i got this elephant a few years ago

from johnathan for valentine's day.

it was my constant companion 

when i was staying in 

the dorm my second and third year of college.

i still love it to death. ♥ 

339/365

one of my new fairies...

338/365

i was at dance rehearsal. i love erika, the choreographer, to death! she's so sweet and fun to be around. plus her dances are pretty much amazing.

we had taken a water break and she was trying to figure out the timing for the next part of the dance. we're dancing to "maps" by the yeah yeah yeahs. here's the song if you wanna give it a listen to... CLICK ME!

337/365

we had our valentine's day the day before the actual valentine's day since i would be at school all day then dance rehearsal until ten o'clock at night.

anyway, i'm pretty proud of what i got johnathan for v-day. a glass with john wayne on one side and a john wayne quote on the other side- "whoa! easy there pilgrim." and a fridge magnet that also had john wayne on it and said "courage is being scared but saddling up anyway."

my favorite v-day gift this year? the strawberry heart shaped marshmellows. the card was super super cute as well.

wonder when he'll figure out that all it takes are strawberry heart shaped marshmellows to make my day?

336/365

aww.

i went to dance rehearsal and one of my choreographers had made me cupcakes for my birthday. :)

not just any ole cupcakes. chocolate cupcakes!

with rasperry liqueur frosting which was deeeelish.

of course my dad got into before the next morning.

and of course, i have to hear about how it raised his blood sugar.

like it was somehow my fault he couldn't control his sweet tooth.

335/365

yes.

i love 'movies we love' on E!

because usually...

wait for it

they're movies i love!

334/365

yay!

the first time in my memory

that i haggled for something.

aaand

i got what i wanted for

the price i was willing to pay!

i got this gorgeous vase for $5.

they wanted like $10 at that thrift store in aztec

i like to look around in.

they're ridiculously overpriced most of the time.

i wasn't sure they would really give me a chance

when i asked if they'd take $5 for it.

okay!

so i didn't really haggle for it.

i just offered a price and they

nonchalantly said "okay."

but i felt a sense of victory anyway.

i'd already planned a bouquet for it on the drive home.

333/365

i got home late from dance rehearsal

and my big strong man was already asleep.

i still find it thrilling

after almost 6 years of marriage

to see that ring on his finger.

332/365

my actual birth day.

stayed home and was lazy.

it was wonderful.

met up with johnathan that evening and we went out for dinner.

i'd been giving him a hard time

a few days before about him never surprising me

with anything.

i always know what he gets me

when he gets me a gift.

i always know what he's planning

when he's planning something for me.

well, i got home before he did

and i guess he went and got me another little cake,

some birthday hats,

a "birthday girl" hat for me,

and those noise makers for parties.

he came into the house wearing one of the party hats

over his dirty work beanie

and blowing one of those noise makers.

he stomped through the house with those.

it made me laugh

(even though laughing at that point left me

in a bout of coughing cuz of my chest cold).

most importantly,

it surprised me.

which was all i wanted all along.

331/365

the clouds have been rolling through the area

but still haven't gotten the storm of

the season, yet.

it's already february and it

looks like we aren't gonna get it.

but, in the meantime,

the sunset in the clouds makes for some

beautiful photos.

not to mention our gorgeous mountains.

330/365

i was lacking for inspiration. was sitting in the office, nearing bedtime, and still hadn't taken my pic.

shot a quick pic of my history degree that's displayed on the wall.

329/365

so. me and my little brother's birthday is a day apart.

we've always had our

birthday cake the day in between.

my dad is pretty proud to say

that he's always gotten us cake and ice cream for our birthday.

chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream for me.

vanilla cake and chocolate ice cream for cardo.

the last two or three years,

we've just gotten one small cake

(chocolate, cuz i'm the one that matters, HA!).

i turned 25 this year and cardo 19.

wow.

i told cardo that i remembered when i turned 19.

and 4 months later i was married.

anyway, i thought this picture was sweet.

i had just blown our my pink candle.

i pretty much always have my camera glued to my hand

and everyone pretty much always waits around for me

to take pics of whatever.

it's like there's a life pause button after everything.

it's not a big deal, but there's always a pause for me

to get my pic of whatever.

i got this cool pic right after i blew out my candle

and was waiting for cardo to blow out his.

328/365

so i got sick enough that

i had johnathan take me to the hospital.

i go all the way to shiprock for ihs.

there was nothing they could give me.

i just had the virus that was going around plus a chest cold.

was not fun.

anyway, 

on the way back we stopped at

'sweet meats' in hogback.

got some mutton for stew.

which was basically the only thing i ate the next day.

tse' yaa' ak'ahi means hogback

in navajo.

327/365

since i got so sick the day before, i didn't take my pic of the day. this was from 2 days after i got sick...

326/365

i got sooo sick! in a matter of hours i went from being perfectly fine and jolly to running a fever with body aches, chills, and a chest cold getting comfy in my chest.

i sucked it up and stayed the few extra hours of waiting for my dance rehearsal. all during dance, i wasn't perfectly fine, but i hardly noticed the sickness.

but as soon as i left there- it hit me hard. really hard. i drove home with the heater blasting full on. if you know me, you know that i can't stand to have the heater blasting in my face since it gives me a headache. but i was so cold that i couldnt get warm. i almost pulled over halfway home and called johnathan to pick  me up because i was that bad.

but before it really hit me, i was sitting in my car waiting for the windsheild to defrost when i remembered that i hadn't taken my pic of the day...

325/365

ugh. the worst thing about having a new puppy- besides them peeing everywhere- is their damn chewing! they chew on everything!

my shoes! oh, my shoes.

i caught him chewing on a flower that i use for my photography prop. i went in close to get a picture of him (before smacking him on the head for chewing on said prop) when he started chewing on the rug, too!

he's starting to be scared of me when i start walking toward him because i'm the only one who disciplines him! he has johnathan so wrapped around his little paw that johnathan won't get after him. i keep telling johnathan "spank him!" when he chews on stuff or pees on the carpet.

 but does he?

no.

and he thinks he'll be able to discipline out kids...

yeah...

325/365

i found this tray and fell in love with it. i still had some photography props out when i went to take a picture of my newest acquisition...

324/365

so we got a new little guy

from the pound.

his name is sam-sam.

i actually didn't really want another dog.

johnathan had stopped by the pound

one morning while i was sleeping.

why he did, i have no idea!

anyway,

he calls me and says,

"come down here and look at this dog."

everytime he says that, we end up with a new dog.

so i drove my grumpy ass to the pound

and we ended up getting another dog.

he looks so much like roxy.

except he had super long hair and it was matted

PLUS

he had gotten sprayed by a skunk prior to being picked up.

we couldn't take him home right away since they had to neuter him before they'd let us take him.

i went to pick him up and they said not to

give him a bath or anything for a week

because of the stitches.

i was home with him for like 5 days straight.

he stank to high heaven!

johnathan spent a few hours with him on his day off

then tells me

"i'm giving him a bath."

i was so annoyed!

he couldn't spend a few hours with him

without wanting to give him a bath

while i spent days with him and i wasn't allowed to give him a bath!

a haircut and flea bath later...

voila!

323/365

i was coming home from durango from a dance rehearsal when i remembered staring at this barn on the way in that morning. i've passed by it so many times that i didn't even see it anymore. i don't remember ever seeing it. i guess that happens when you see something so much that you forget it's even there.

i didn't notice until i started editing the picture that there's a white line shooting across the sky from an airplane. i think that just adds so much to the picture. sometimes, it's the subtleties that make the photo.

322/365

so my bestie bree had a shoot of a small family that she couldn't do outside- it was so cold and the poor baby! so she borrowed my little studio for a few hours.

she went outside with the parents to get some shots of them and i had some one on one time with the little guy. as soon as they left, he became much more cooperative. i got a bunch of good shots of him but i really liked this one. i put some of them up on my photography website if you wanna check them out... http://www.michellealvarezphotography.blogspot.com/

321/365

i like to stop by this little thrift shop in aztec to browse. they have some really cool stuff but they're pretty expensive for a thrift shop.

i was outside looking at their displays and i actually got a couple of different shots but for some reason i kept coming back to this one. i don't know what it is about it that i like so much but... there ya go.

320/365

so i have dance rehearsal late on both monday and wednesday nights since those are the only days i'm in durango.

i'm getting close to the end of my 365 and i'll be the first to admit that i'm getting lazy at it. i'm waiting till the last minute to get my pic which makes for not so inspiring photos.

i took a quick pic of the clock tower. it was dark and the lights and glare from the lights were hell. i'm not too sure what to think of this picture. suffice it to say that it's not one of my best. made me think of the louis armstrong song "moonlight in vermont".

319/365

i'm trying to kick this sweet tooth. i'm having waaaaay too many sweets. on top of that, i'm drinking soda a couple of times a week. no bueno. =(

BUT i did make some cupcakes for my dancers. notice i didn't say i made them for myself. only for my dancers. i may have snuck one or two. johanthan is trying to help me cut down on my sugar. i had to hide the cupcake i was saving for later... ;)

318/365

i'm really liking this picture.

her name is tegan and she's in my dance this semester. i'm also in another dance with her as well.

we had just finished up a dance rehearsal and i hadn't gotten my picture of the day. we were getting ready to leave the studio and knew i'd get an interesting picture with her.

317/365

what is not to love about red high heels??

316/365

awww.

my baby niece. she's so cute when she's not crying.

for some reason, she cries around me all the time. this is my first time meeting a baby who didn't like me. i don't know whether to be amused or insulted.

315/365

i loved loved loved shadowfever!

it was worth the wait and totally not what i expected.

i don't know what i expected

but it wasn't what i got.

but i'm not complaining.

it's funny

because i told my dad and johnathan
that i did not, repeat:

DID NOT want to be disturbed

for two days while i was reading this book.

i told them not to expect anything out of me for that thursday and friday.

i told them i wasnt even gonna get out of bed.

not to expect dinner made by me.

not to expect anything.

and i did not want to be disturbed for

any reason.

it's funny because they usually leave me alone

most of the time anyway.

but for some reason,

they bothered me more in two days than they have in 12 months!!

314/365

i've DEFINITELY got the fever!

after over a year of waiting, shadowfever was released!

i got it on release day but

couldnt start it right away or else

i would not have made it to class

and that would have been bad.

i restrained myself.

barely.

but the next day after class...

it was on like donkey kong!

this is what it looked like all day.

i didn't leave bed for nothing.

i devoured that book in less than 9 hours.

and believe me,

it was good.

so good.

i was fixing to leave campus and i had my camera in my passenger seat...

result:

quick snapshot of durango in the wintertime.

we've only gotten one big storm move through the area which is really weird because by this time we've had like 4 or 5. i told johnathan it was gonna be a dry winter but he didn't believe me.

312/365

i took the dog out to do her business the other evening

and there were so many good photo opportunities.

i took like a dozen really good pictures.

this was my favorite one though.

so you know how i was pretty much obsessed

with the release of karen marie moning's shadowfever?

i was still thinking about it for days afterwards.

in fact, 2 1/2 weeks later,

i'm still thinking about it.

anyway, the book deals alot with

other realms and dimensions besides

what we know as earth.

it's so cool.

this picture totally reminded me of that.

311/365

i love gerber daisies,

they're my favorite flower.

i got a few stems the other day

to kinda brighten up the house.

the only problem with gerber daisies

is they DO NOT last very long.

but they were pretty while they lasted!

310/365

had a maternity shoot that went great! we started off with indoor pics and got a bunch of good ones. then we went up and down downtown aztec and got some more great ones there. i was so worried about her getting cold but i guess she has her internal heater that's getting into overdrive right about now.

i posted more on my actual photography website if you wanna check it out. there some under the "maternity" page and some under the "couples" page. http://www.michellealvarezphotography.blogspot.com/