photo challenge

Note: Please make sure you see the end of this post for the new way of doing things. It’s only one small change we made in November, but a change nonetheless. Thanks!

And just like that, the first month of 2021 is in the books.

For me, it felt like several months packed into one, at least with everything going on – in my world, as well as the world beyond.

Change and hope is something I am sure many of us look forward to, though I’ll admit, we may be looking at it in different ways. We’re still in a global pandemic, and there’s still a ton of tension politically around the world. Here’s hoping by the end of this year we are somewhat back to normal. People need that in their lives.

Alas, we’re here for a photo challenge.

I hope you all had a good first month of the year and here’s also hoping for the future months to be as good or better. Be safe and healthy and here are my five for the month.

1. Hope for peace

We’ve had quite the year behind us. I know this is a big hope, but I can wish, can’t I? Even if the peace is just a little more calmness in the States and around the world. It would be nice for people to get along more. I understand many people are on opposite sides of thoughts and opinions, but let’s remember we’re all human.

I chose this photo as when I see visions like this, I always wonder how we can’t get along and enjoy these beautiful parts of life.

2. Hope to explore

I didn’t explore enough in 2020. I want that to change this year.

Again, with the pandemic, many things shut down, and often extended work hours, I got out of the practice of doing things I could still do – such as hiking, visiting parks, and geocaching. This needs to change in 2021. I have to get out and see things. There is so much within a couple of hours of me that there isn’t an excuse to not go.

3. Hope to geocache more

Piggybacking off No. 2, I hope to just get out and cache more. I barely did anything in 2020 when it comes to geocaching. I just didn’t have the drive. So far in 2021, I’ve made the effort to get out a few times and I hope that will continue throughout the year. I’m not saying I will be getting 1,000 finds or anything, but it would be a nice change to actually go participate in this hobby some.

4. Hope to take more photos

This one is a little different and is a change. By change, I mean actually get out with the intention of taking photos. I took a bunch of photos in 2020, but not usually with the ideas of it being a photo day. I want to get out with my camera again – not just my phone. I want to use some of the lenses I have and find places to get good images. I’m not saying my phone won’t be a major part of photography for me, but I want to do more with it overall.

5. Hope this glove got home

The glove sure seemed lonely. Here’s hoping the owner found the glove, or at least this glove continues to keep the lock warm!

And there are my five for the month!

If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully it can be a place where things are discussed and some interaction etc. You can access it here.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for December. Make sure you drop your link there. The theme for February is I spy with my eye … Remember to come back on March 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month!

Photo Blogging Challenge: January 2021 results

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Note: Please make sure you see the end of this post for the new way of doing things. It’s only one small change we made in November, but a change nonetheless. Thanks!

The magic of the season.

It seems like this year needed a little bit of the magic and I hope each of you experienced it this season and that you were all safe and healthy; and also that you got to spend time with friends and family — again, being safe!

Now, we turn the page to 2021, and I’m filled with hope.

Still, the month of December was interesting. We got walloped by a snow storm on the 18th, and I thought that meant we’d have a white Christmas. Nope. On the 24th, we got ton of rain and warm weather. Some areas flooded near us (though I didn’t see anything that was devastating; though I also admit I didn’t see all reports) and we had some snow, but mostly green on Christmas.

Again, I hope you all had a wonderful month. Keep staying safe and healthy and let us look ahead to a hopeful better year. My five for the month are below.

1. Winter wonderland

Snow during the season is magical to me. Especially out for a night walk.

2. Excitement

This is the magic of the season to me … watching Cameron open his gifts.

3. Chasing Christmas lights

Each year, usually on Christmas Eve, I take my mother around to see some of the area’s best Christmas displays. This year, with Covid, the regular gathering on Christmas Eve didn’t happen. So we went out on Dec. 23 and it turned out to be the best night to do so. One place has a crazy cool set up and I got my mother with the giant teddy bear.

4. Lights

I still think Christmas lights are magical.

5. Caramels

The caramels are a yearly tradition and done within our family. So good! People wait for these wonderful treats and they are magic!

BONUS PHOTO

OK, I didn’t take this one obviously. My niece did — with my phone! Anyway, in the past, when we were all younger, we used to get gag gifts (me and my brothers). This year, I saw this on Amazon and couldn’t resist. If you know the movie Slapshot, you know these jerseys. The magic? Christmas was magical this year because it was relaxed and calm. No bickering or anything!

And there are my five for the month!

If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully it can be a place where things are discussed and some interaction etc. You can access it here.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for December. Make sure you drop your link there. The theme for January is Change and hope. Remember to come back on February 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month!

Photo Blogging Challenge: December 2020 results

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

And we continue on! Not sure how the weather is been by you, but it feels like fall!

I’ve been trying to make sure I get outside a little bit more as well, trying to enjoy the

As bad as 2020 has been, I’m going to say that one thing that has been great is the colors so far this fall. The past few years, we’ve had some crappy color years. But this one … some great colors. It seems the oranges and reds are really popping, The yellows have life. I’m enjoying the drives. I need to get out and do some photos of it, and other great things in the fall. That will lead to our theme for this month.

So keep staying safe Try to smile. Enjoy life to the best of your ability!

The new theme is below!

So with that in mind, let’s look at the monthly “group” challenges:

Challenge 1: Tell others about this photo blogging challenge and get some friends to come join us.  Let’s see if we can get people interested in the challenge again.

Challenge 2: Make friends with your camera and see what you can come up with. Have fun!

Challenge 3 is at the end of this post (the theme!).

Before this, here’s some housekeeping items. For those who might be new to the challenge, here’s how it works.

• See the theme (first day of the month);
• Take photos throughout the month (don’t use old ones!);
• Select five photos and create a blog post;
• Come back here and link up on the final day of the month;
• Use the official hashtag — #Photoblogchal — on social media posts;
• Hopefully go visit and comment on other blogs.

That’s it. There’s no rules on equipment or anything else. Blog posts can be short and to the point, or in-depth. Interpret the themes as you see fit.

The one big rule?

Have fun!

This month’s theme? The great outdoors! Pretty open ended. So show us what you have! Please make sure your blog post publishes Saturday, October 31. Then come back here and link up.

If you think you are going to take part in this, drop a comment below so we can see who all might be trying to tackle this challenge!

There is also a Facebook group for those who are interested.

If you would like to visit the history of the challenge, which started in 2013, please go to the Photo Blogging Challenge page for more!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

What the heck was I thinking?

I do love sports and this has been a fun theme before, or at least variations of it. But I know around me … sports are not really going on much. I thought I had changed this theme around, but it turns out — I hadn’t!

So, I had to work fast and see what I could come up with. We’ll see how it all comes out.

Sports is an interesting thing right now. Pro teams playing without fans. Other sports having some fans. It seems like it depends what level and what state you are in, at least in the US. I am not sure about other parts of the world.

Around here, there’s not a lot going on. Some club sports. Travel things and all. But high school and college? Not so much. High school is waiting to hear and see if they will have a fall season. People are so divided with all of this. Basically, that’s society now when it comes to Covid, that’s for sure.

To a point, sports has been pretty nice for me. The Islanders have been playing well in the NHL playoff bubble, the Phillies are doing OK and hopefully are improving .. but it gives me something to watch.

Anyway, I hope you are all being safe, smart and healthy. My five are below!

1 and 2. Sports games

If you can’t take part in sports right now, or can’t watch in person and you need some excitement, there are many sports board games out there. These two are ones I enjoy as they can be played solo — Bottom of the 9th and Strat-O-Matic — both baseball, of course!

3. Floor hockey

Do you remember playing games like floor hockey in school? Oh those days!

4. Reporting

Each year, in anticipation of all the baseball trips I plan to make, I always get these items. The Baseball America books — especially the prospect guide, travel with me from game to game. I got these before the Covid world rain down on us and, unfortunately, never got to use these at a game this year.

5. Mask up!

This is the sign of the times, isn’t it? Wear those masks and let’s hope this Covid eventually goes away enough so we can get back to some sort of normalcy. But … if I am going to be wearing a mask, may as well get a team branded one or two!

And there are my five for the month!

If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully it can be a place where things are discussed and some interaction etc. You can access it here.

Make sure, too, to come back tomorrow (most likely Thursday, to keep this out there a little longer) to see September’s theme!

Photo Blogging Challenge: August 2020 results

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!