Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 129

Welcome to the 129th round up of the Tuesday Photo Challenge! Stuff really appreciates all the well-wishes and has had a fantastic birthday week filled with play and shenanigans!

Clearly, Birthdays are great for reminiscing, which produced some truly stunning posts; they range from the hilarious and silly to deeply touching!  There were some really delicious looking cakes, one of which took my breath away and makes me want to have a birthday in China!  I truly enjoyed reading each of your posts and am glad to have you among my blogosphere friends!

Thank you for the effort that you put into your great posts, and please let each other know what you think of your friends’ posts!

By your overwhelming request…

Usually, Stuff prefers to sit on top of the armrest, which would have been easier, as he decided to sit closer to me on the couch. Of course, the moment he noticed that my iPhone was facing in his direction he had to start fidgeting!  He also threw a head tilt, which I got here.  He’s pretty handsome and a rock-solid, muscle-bound 39 pounds of fun!

The following were this week’s participants in the challenge with links to their posts:

1. This week’s entries started with Heart to Heart‘s wonderful post, which went down memory lane with a wonderful cake that her daughter gave to her dad.
2. From Jordy’s Streamings we get just the cutest photo and story of little Luna, whose photo at the age of just a few days is heart-melting!
3. We get a truly lovely post in pensivity101‘s blog, as she reminisces about her mum’s 80th birthday!  It is a joyous read!
4. Eleven years back goes theOnlyD800intheHameau‘s post, as he shares a photo of one of his twin grandsons on the day of his birth; small then, but no longer so at 11!
5. Jackie threw 2 parties for her husband on his 60th birthday, as is seen in her post in Junkboat Travels; he also got twice the cake!!
6. In Don’t Hold Your Breath, we visit the tomb of Hoshang Shah on a foggy day that makes this great site look even more mysterious!
7. Xenia’s post in whippetwisdom celebrates the birth of her book, which is filled with lovely images and great poetry.  Go check it out; I ordered a copy on Amazon and have it in my possession already, and am very happy with its inspiration!  In a second post in Tranature, we celebrate the swans and cygnets!
8. Stella shares some great cake and cookies in her post in Giggles & Tales, as Pastor Frank celebrated his birthday and there were lots of other celebrations!
9. In For an Insight!!, we get a wonderful blog post about her 35th birthday!  It sounds like the first 35 years have been a great start for lots more years!
10. In a walk down memory lane, Go Outside Today takes us back to 1978, the era of K-Tel and nostalgic video games…do you remember/know Coleco?
11. If you believe in coincidences, go to Proscenium, as there is a huge set of them going around…and wish Jason a HAPPY BIRTHDAY (belated at this point), as the date of this week’s challenge is that of his 50th birthday!!  Thank you for sharing it with us!!
12. Brian lights the candles in Bushboy’s World on a cake that looks absolutely delicious!!
13. Yinglan’s post in This is Another Story is about a birthday cake that she asked her aunt to order for her when she visited China.  It was not Yinglan’s birthday, but seeing this cake helps me understand why!
14. In a post filled with that nostalgic sense of birthday magic, Sandy complements the photo with a great poem in Out of my Write Mind; go check it out!
15. In a great post in My Namasté 365 Online, we find out about the significance of the author’s birth date…57 minutes after her brother was born!
16. This week’s post in One letter UP – diary 2.0 compares 4th birthday parties, and I think I know which one I like better!  Which is your choice?
17. Minions are a world-wide phenomenon, and we see the evidence in a great photo in Chateaux des Fleurs; of course, it’s odd for a minion to have a minion…
18. The Roaming Urban Gypsy put together a wonderful post, and I have to give my congratulations to her aunt, who is over 100 years old and looking great!
19. The Minion in Na’ama Yehuda‘s post is really mighty, or is it the cake baker’s talent that is mighty? As long as the kids are happy!!
20. The awesome post in Touring with Kids celebrates a birthday of a government service that I think all of us love: the National Parks Service!
21. Shelley claims that her father-in-law is the smartest man in the world in Quaint Revival; if a quirky and fun sense of humor is the requirement…I think he has a chance!
22. Maria takes an interesting view on this week’s theme in KameraPromenader, as she shares the celebration of the birth of a new marriage!  Well done!
23. A wonderful post in Photography Journal Blog celebrates a big birthday for Saint Louis, Missouri: its 250th!
24. This week’s post for the theme in A Day in the Life provides a really fun look at birthdays in the family!  Great poses!!
25. With another fantastic photo in Land of Images challenges us to accept that they were not there yesterday…what do you think?
26. With a photo that really captures the mood of the moment and has us feel the warmth of the candles, Geriatri’X’ Fotogallery shares a 100th birthday image!
27. I can relate to the sentiment in Woolly Muses‘s post, as there has been many a time that I asked the same question; great to see Taji made it past 1!!
28. Debbie has my vote for sharing a favorite bear in Travel with Intent, as Paddington is definitely my favorite among fictional bears!
29. Susan shares her birthday with her granddaughter Sydney, which is definitely a joyous occasion, as we can see in Musin’ with Susan; awesome photo!
30. In a touching post in A Thousand Miles, Ilka shares a great photo from her middle son’s seventh birthday; a true ascent!

I hope that you enjoy these posts and let the authors know!

Author: jansenphoto

A Fresh Perspective Photography is more than just a vehicle for capturing the world around me; it provides me with a palette and a set of brushes, with which I paint not only what I see, but also look to express the emotions that are evoked by the scene in front of me in that moment. Growing up in the Netherlands exposed me to a wide cross-section of visual arts that laid the foundation of my photographic view of all that surrounds me. Early influences were the Dutch Masters of the 17th century, to whom I was introduced by my grandfather during museum explorations; favorites among them are the scenes of quotidian life depicted by Jan Steen and Frans Hals and the vivid landscapes of Jacob van Ruisdael. My classical high school education was supplemented by the Boijmans Van Beuningen museum, where I spent many a lunch hour exploring its great collection. Here I was introduced to surrealism with a particular love for the approach taken by Salvador Dali; Dali also rekindled my appreciation for the work of Hieronymus Bosch, who often showed the folly of us mortals. Universal Connections My approach to any photographic subject is to look for understanding first; in this I look to establish either a connection between the viewer and the subject or capture the connection of the subject with its surroundings. The captured image then aims to portray this connection from a perspective that is part of my personal interpretation. This interpretation is often a form of externalized introspection, which may alternately display the connection of isolated beings and items with their environment or highlight the whimsy of the profound world, in which we find ourselves. The universe is full of connections, many of which are waiting to be discovered; part of my journey as a photographer is to document these connections. Any assignment, be it an event, a product shoot or a portrait session is always approached through communication with the client; this is where the first connection is established. Ideas are exchanged and a collaborative plan of action forms, ultimately resulting in a set of images that aim to exceed the expectations of each client. And, lest we forget, it is important to have fun while practicing the serious business of photography! View all posts by jansenphoto