You Can Dress Them Up But.....

You can dress them up but you can't take them out!!  We've all seen it happen where you get all dressed up and go out just to drip sauce on your white shirt, or spill wine on your khaki pants, but these photos really prove just how you can dress kids up but you can't expect them to stay clean.

Note: All the following photos were taken at weddings!

The Flowergirl dress hanging in the tree until right before the ceremony started in order to keep it clean.  Smart move Mom

Oh yes, BBQ and a white dress!! 

And the little ones aren't the only ones that "You can Dress them up but not take them out" applies to...as the following photos prove.....

And then sometimes it's Mother Nature's fault:

                                   Who could forget the photos of the bride's dress from "The Morning After"
                                                               and here are a couple more from that wedding....

Dogwoods and Lighting

Let me first say that I am by no means an expert on Lighting.  That said, I did have fun the past couple days shooting a Dogwood in bloom in different lighting and had so much fun with these photos and I have to share them and a couple tips with you.


Morning light, before the sun is overhead:

I love Spring, warmer days, all fresh bright colors, and love going for walks in the morning and in the evening.  One night while I was walking I noticed how neat the dogwoods looked in contrast to the darkness, so I broke out my camera and played with the photos, this was a challenge since you have to use a high ISO and slow shutter speeds.  It would be smart to have a tripod, but I wasn't thinking of that at the time, so I didn't bring the tripod out.  Some of the photos when right into the trash bin as there's no way to hold the camera without a shake for a 3second exposure, but I did get some very neat photos that I'm proud of.  The only light source I had that I used was the street light across the road.

Dogwoods at Night:

A wide angle shot capturing the tree, this is with no editing

Unedited

adjusted the tint and contrast

same image as the above 2 but did a "Low Key" black and white filter

I love the street light shining through the petals and the contrast of the flowers to the night

This image is slightly blurred due to slow shutter speed but with a contrast adjustment and sepia effect I really like it.

Now to compare them with some harsh direct sunlight (which I really do like on flowers at times) Here is afternoon light:

Blue skies, sunshine green leaves and white flowers, direct sunlight is beautiful.

This is not one of my best photos but I love seeing the sun shine through the leaves,

 Tip:  Be very careful on your exposure as this makes all the difference in your lighting, you can take a photo shot in nice lighting and make it look like it's all in the dark.  Below is an example of two different exposures on the same shot, these are both before I edited the images...The top is the one I like the most I think the exposure is very good for the lighting, the bottom is underexposed and while the flower facing left does stand out and have good contrast the rest of the photo is lost to shadows.

Tip: Don't be so quick to delete an image that the lighting isn't perfect in, I don't like the low exposure in the above image but I took that and did a high contrast black and white and added a diffused glow and I like the image it became here:

The Dogwood at Sunset:

I hope you all go out and enjoy the Spring and take time to find the beauty in nature.

Paulie's HotDogs, Honesdale, PA

 

 

 

One of my favorite places to eat in town is Paulie's Hot Dogs on Park Street, in Honesdale PA. I love the food, family friendly atmosphere, and love that the prices are in our budget. I've been going to Paulies for the past 3 years and still can't get enough of their fries! I swear they have the best fries I've ever had! And that was one of the reasons last summer when I wanted to get a part time job that I went there and applied. Working there really made me appreciate the whole business of Paulie's Hot Dogs as I've gotten to know so much about the restaurant and Paul himself. I was sad in the fall to leave, due to my morning sickness with my second pregnancy. When Valentine's day came around and my husband and I were talking about what we wanted to do and how much money we had I told him the only thing I really wanted was to go to Paulie's for dinner since it had been a while since we'd been there, and it would be fun for our four year old daughter. So that's what we did.

Durning my summer working at Paulie's I knew that all the food was fresh, and I got to try everything on the menu. I have a couple favorites but this night for dinner I wanted my number one choice a hot wing wrap with Ranch not blue cheese (it comes with blue cheese unless you say different) and I added tomatoes, lettuce, and celery (because I love my veggies and wanted to add some more nutrition). It was delicious, as always!


  I love that the kitchen is all open to the customers so you get to watch your food being prepared right in front of you, fresh!!

 

 

 My husband ordered one of his go to favorites a Gyro. And since I was 7months pregnant he let me take a few bits of his, not that I hadn't had Paulie's Gyros before but because I wanted a bit (or 3). It was delish as well! So good in fact that the following week I had a huge craving for a couple days for my own Gyro and finally my husband ordered pick up from there on his way home from work. Yup he's the best! 

What makes a Gyro?  Lamb meat, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, tzatzaiki sauce, feta cheese (optional), all wrapped up in a toasted pita.  What makes Paulie's Gyro so good is that the taz sauce is made fresh in the back of the store, homemade!

The lamb meat cooking.

 

My husband and I got a small order of fries to share. We usually get a medium to share but since we weren't sharing our meal a small was enough for the two of us, when we get a cheesesteak or hotwing wrap to split then we'll get the medium fries and share them as well. I've had all the different types of fries that Paulies has to offer and they are all good! Chili, Cheese, and Disco are my favorite, unless I'm in the mood for something spicy then I'll get the Devil Fries with blue cheese or ranch for dipping. Tonight we went classic and just had plain fresh cut, fries. I had white vinegar and ketchup to dip mine in and my hubby ate his plain. I love that Paul has thought of everything his customers may want, having two types of vinegars, ketchup, and mustard for customers to help themselves to. What makes Paulie's fries so good isn't just all the toppings there are but that they are FRESH! I love that you see the fries being cut in front of you and they are fried twice in fresh peanut oil. Paul takes great pride in his fries and the way they are made and served :) and you can tell. I promise if you get fries at Paulies you'll never look at the frozen fries at other restaurants or home the same again. At least I know it's true for me. 








As I said Paulie's fries are the best there is to eat, you can't even compare to anything else because nothing holds a flame to Paulie's fries. Now why is this? They are fresh cut, right there in front of you, and freshly fried in peanut oil!!

 My daughter ordered a hot dog kids meal. Hot dog, kids fries, and Chocolate Milk, and it came it this cool little car. As always she loved it! And for the next week that's all we heard when we drove through town was that she was hungry and wanted a hot dog from Paulies!

 Not only is the food great, but the night was wonderful because there was no fighting with my daughter to sit down or behave. My daughter was occupied playing on the touch screen games while we waited the 10minutes or less for our food to cook, and she continued to play through the meal. 

 

After our meal we took my daughter back to the game room for her to play, it was the highlight of her night! 

 

 And this is what every parent wants to see after diner, a child with a smile and all the food gone :)

 In April I went back on my due date hopeing to induce labor with a extra hot hot wing hoggie. I was sad that it didn't send me into labor the same day but was happy to be back in and see all the new things that Paul has added to the store and menu. When I finally went into labor and had to stay at the hospital for 3 days my husband and I had Paulies all 3 days for dinner. The first night after our second daughter was born he brought me over deep fried oreos, which I had never had, and OMG they are delish!! Sorry no photo of them as I didn't have my camera at the hospital.  It was so nice to be able to order food up until 12:00 midnight since there were many late nights with a newborn.  And while we didn't take advantage of it Paulie's delivers all the way up until midnight anywhere in town!

 
You don't have to take my word on Paulie's being one of the best places in town to eat, Paulie has several awards, voted best delivery, best fast food, best children's menu, and more by the readers of the Wayne Independent.

 

Enjoy these extra photos I took at Paulies and their descriptions:

A small order of cheese fries to go

New at Paulie's!

A custom edit in Black and White of the outside of Paulie's

The game room with seating for those who want to enjoy their meal and games

One of my favorite arcade games

Not one but 2 pool tables.



I went early in the morning before Paulie's opens at 11 in order to get this photo with no people in it

Of course there's always plenty of Hatfeild hotdogs, try one of the 14 different styles or make it your way, made to order!

The Slaw Dog: coleslaw, yellow mustard, and chili

Get it "ALL THE WAY" with cheese, chili, brown mustard and onions



Or make it the way you like it as this customer did by getting relish and yellow mustard

Award wining cheesesteak! 

*New* Sausage Sandwich

*New* Deserts!!  The Deep Fried Oreos are a must!



Cheesy, yummy, mozzarella sticks

They will use all these potatoes within a week!

 

Be sure to try one of the *new* menu items Fresh Funnel Cake!!  Deep fried fresh right in front of you.  Yum.  Perfect to get in the winter to remind you of what summer time at the fair is like :)

Hot Dog and Fries

*New* Soft Serve Ice Cream!  In a cone or cup also offering 2 different sprinkles!

Fried pierogies with butter and onions.

One very important thing for me is a clean bathroom, and Paulie's is always clean!  And large which is great for mom's who have to help little ones go.

Remember Paulie's is open and delivering late :)

Be sure to check out Paulie's on facebook and stop by and get some great food if your in the area!