Alas!  I have decided to embark on a ’30 day blog challenge’.  It has been on ongoing trend for recent bloggers, and I’ve decided to join in on the fun {and challenge}.  I really didn’t want to attempt a ‘photo a day’ off a list of different subjects you must photograph each day, which seems to be the rage right now…instead, I have decided I would dig up old photos before I went pro, photos that inspired me to venture down the professional path.

Mind you, these will mostly be from my beloved Canon SD6OO {this point-n-shoot had a fabulous macro ability, which macro is~pretty much~my favorite}.  This particular camera has been through the ringer, but has recently proven to still take some good photos.  Never replaced the battery.  Some pixels are shot.  LCD screen has seen better days.  This Canon is the last Canon I owned.  I’ve since switched over to Nikon products, as I was curious {I grew up with Canon equipment}.  I seriously nabbed some priceless shots with this camera.  I’ve been in the market for a new all-in-one, and since I’ve been so partial to my Canon SD6OO, I’ve searched for a Canon replacement all-in-one that will serve me with stellar macro shots.  It’s been a while, and I have found ‘the one’, but will be holding out a bit longer until I can squeeze it into the budget {I talk myself out of a lot of purchases…}

I digress.

I am beginning this challenge today in particular, because today marks new beginnings for me.  How do I put this?… pretty much, yesterday I tried on bridal dresses for my youngest sister’s upcoming wedding and realized I am a far cry from having my bodacious, youthful and sporty body back from my recent pregnancy.  WOW.  Ya, I’ve gone for some walks, and yes, I may have eaten a trifle too much chocolate ice cream, and SURE!  I did some gardening {that’s actually a pretty good workout}, BUT judgment day has fallen upon me and now is the time to get back to my regimen.  I am so serious that I ran for a half hour today!  AND did some strengthening {for the first time in my life, I had to complete ‘girl’ push-ups, my lower abdomen region just could not take it}.  And most importantly, my sisters and mother will be holding me accountable for my promise to steal my body back from the death-grip of post-partum.

I digress.

So, in the spirit of new beginnings, I present to you a very special photo of the beginning of a random day:

Cadillac Sunrise

This photo was taken atop Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, Memorial Day Weekend of 2010, during a gorgeous sunrise.  You see, Maine is ‘Where America’s Day Begins’ {this slogan used to be on the Maine driver’s license, but they recently gave it a face lift, dropped that portion and added a moose}, and Cadillac Mountain is one of the first places in the states to see the sunrise.

My husband, dog and I were camping in the area for the weekend with friends, and upon our last day we awoke at 2:30am with most of our gear already packed, and set out to the base of Cadillac Mountain.  Some of us rode on bike, some of us hiked.  My husband, pup and I hiked.  When we approached the summit, we were greeted by a mass of tourists in their cars, gawking at us.  I assume it was because we were the only ‘crazies’ to have scaled the mountain that morning by foot and on bike.  Nonetheless, I am happy we did as it made the warmth and angelic view of the morning sun all the more worthwhile.  It was frigid when we arrived {thus the sleeping bags} and huddled together for warmth.

I took this photo of my friends without realizing the blazing sun was reflecting so marvelously off of our friend’s shades.  I found it appropriate to make this photo black and white – minus the shades- to emphasize the magnificance of the moment.  This is the only photoshopping conducted on this photo.

Cheers, all, and look forward to delivering a 30 Day Challenge to you ☼