#tolfotochallenge Days 23, 24 & 25: Night, Landscape & Mirror, Mirror

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Days 23, 24 & 25: Night, Landscape & Mirror, Mirror

Sincerest apologies for the delay in posting the last photos of the 25 day challenge. I was sucked into a couple of books but I am pleased to report that I have once again resurfaced un-harmed feeling completely enlightened!

Days 23, 24 & 25 looked a little like this:

Day 23: Night

Ireland is a place where the skies can be cloudy and grey most days. However, living by the sea has huge advantages which help with this predicament. The sea breeze gently sweeps away the clouds so that for large periods of the day (and night) the sky which I view from our bedroom window is a cloudless one. The results are usually pretty gorgeous.















Day 24: Landscape

From the bedroom window we have a view which I feel is likened to the view seen in Van Gough's painting of the roofs of Paris. Of course I am embellishing our view slightly with this description, but it is a nice one none-the-less. We have a lovely view of roof-tops and of mountains which in recent weeks have been dusted with snow occasionally. The sky on the evening I took this picture was absolutely magnificent and you can see the outline of the landscape perfectly.



Day 25: Mirror, Mirror

On a recent trip to IKEA I was reminded of my first trip there some two years or more ago. It was a Sunday afternoon, there was oh-so-much to see and I was totally amazed at the sheer quantity of things and the endless decorating possibilities. As we made our way through the kids section I stopped to look at the stuffed animals and came across two gorgeous princesses who really did strike a resemblance to myself and my lovely wife. A mirror image one might say?











And so the 25 Day Photography Challenge comes to and end. Thanks for following it and reading my musings. Stay tuned, I have plenty of book reviews to come :)

#tolfotochallenge #catchup #moretofollow #staytuned

#tolfotochallenge Day 21 & 22: Your Outfit and View from the Window

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge: Day 21 & 22: Your Outfit and View from the Window

Yesterday was a busy day. I watched almost all of 'Girls' season four, went for a run, read some of the book I took out from the library, learned how to use Snapchat, wrote some of my own book and planned my class for this morning.
As a result my photo challenge for yesterday was put aside and forgotten about. I took the picture yesterday and then failed to find time to actually post it.
So here I am on a sunny Wednesday posting day 21 & 22 of my photo challenge!

Day 21:
My outfit yesterday was composed of the following items:

• Faded navy blue jumper
• Purple/blue infinity scarf
• Grey running pants
• Maroon coloured socks

I put on my running bottoms as soon as I came home from work because I knew getting myself to go for a run yesterday in the wind and rain was going to be difficult. I figured being half dressed to go would help me in my moment of doubt and it did!












Day 22:
The view from the window is one of Bray sea front. The sun makes everything look glorious, I was lucky enough to be teaching in a classroom which had this view this morning.

Happy Wednesday!

                





#tolfotochallenge #playingcatchup #beautifulviews

#tolfotochallenge Day 20: The Sky

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 20: The Sky

The weather yesterday was stormy and the sky was basically grey and unphotogenic. 

I also spent the best part of my day in Ikea where there is no sky to be seen. 

This lovely view greeted me as I walked on the sea front this morning. What a view! 

#tolfotochallenge #day20 #thesky #seasideliving

#tolfotochallenge Day 19: Sweet

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 19: Sweet

I have a sweet tooth. Jellies are my favourite and occasionally chocolate. 

In Mexico, they have a different take on sweets. Their sweets are usually a mix of sweet and spicy. I know, it sounds bizarre! 

When I moved to Mexico first I was very, very hesitant to try any of these spicy sweets. Over time as my tastes changed and I became more attracted to spicy foods and salsas I discovered a love for these odd sweets which is still going strong to this day. 

Pictured below are some treasures we salvaged whilst attending a Mexican independence day celebration. We had just come back to Ireland and were experiencing withdrawal from our Mexican sweets. We savoured this collection and enjoyed with immense pleasure every bite! 

#tolfotochallenge #day19 #sweets #mexicansweets

#tolfotochallenge Day 18: Favourites

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 18: Favourites

• having my beautiful wife and best friend by my side
• spending time with my fantastic family
• living by the sea
• books!
• flowers (especially in amazing colours - see photo )
• writing
• street art
• travelling
• running

#tolfotochallenge #day18 #favourites

#tolfotochallenge Day 17: Something Yellow

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 17: Something Yellow

Technically I am a day late with my something yellow, but with good cause. I didn't want to waste the lemons!

Yellow is not one of my favourite colours. As I result I own approximately zero items which are yellow in colour. As we were having a friend over for breakfast this morning we decided to make pancakes and so bought these lovely lemons to accompany them. I did not want to cut open the lemon last night so I postponed my Day 17 post until today. 

As they always say; "Better late then never!" 

#tolfotochallenge #day17 #mellowyellow

#tolfotochallenge Day 16: Beside You

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 16: Beside You

Allow me to present to you Copito (Snowy) and Caballo (Horse).   

Yes, I am a twenty-something who still has cuddly toys. 

No, I am not ashamed. 

Plus, look at how cute these two are? 

Copito is a DIY creation of ours. He originally came to our lives as a fluffy sock. Part of a 'Make it Yourself' kit. 

Caballo was part of a present which I received for my twenty-first birthday from my oldest friend as a reference to an embarrassing teenage story. 

They now live happily together on our bed. 

Long live Copito and Caballo!

#tolfotochallenge #day16 #teddybear #cuddlytoys

#tolfotochallenge Day 15: Fun

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 15: Fun

I recently finished reading Lena Dunham's book 'Not That Kind of Girl'. Of course I had heard of Lena before (I feel I can call her by her first name because I have read her book) but I had never seen her work. I wasn't really sure what she actually did.
Nevertheless I picked up her book and bought it, taking a chance and hoping that my purchase would prove successful. It did.
Her book is literally just her as she is, telling the truth about what it is like to grow up as part of our generation. A collection of essays detailing everything from childhood visits to the psychiatrist to awkward sex, Lena does not sugar coat things and I like that frankness.
Having finished the book, feeling as though I was now friends with Lena, I decided it was time to check out her work so I started watching 'Girls'. This series, now in it's fifth season, was written and directed by Lena and she brings that same level of frankness from her book straight into the show. Following the lives of four twenty-somethings living in Brooklyn it is funny in all the right ways while also having the ability to make you cringe and slip into pensive consideration. I have watched around ten episodes in the last couple of days and while they are sometimes very truthful and serious they are also FUN!

#tolfotochallenge #girls #notthatkindofgirl #lenadunham

#tolfotochallenge Day 14: Morning

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Photography Challenge - Day 14: Morning

According to Facebook I missed rainbow coloured clouds this morning! They looked very beautiful, kind of like the view from my classroom window. 

After storm Henry hitting the Emerald Isle yesterday it was nice to see blue skies and some sunshine this morning.

#tolfotochallenge #day14 #seasidelife #bray #viewfrommyclassroomwindow

#tolfotochallenge Day 13: Lucky

by Dani Mc Mahon

25 Day Photography Challenge - Day 13: Lucky

Sometimes I am not quite sure if I believe in luck. I think the things which happen to us in life are our own making and how we are is a direct result of how we handle them. However, there have been a couple of times in my life where I really did feel lucky. These moments were ones in which I genuinely felt I had not been the instigator. They are as follows:

-Meeting my beautiful wife in Mexico. I had no idea she even existed and she changed my whole world. 

-Saving my brother's life when we were kids. It was just lucky that I was there to push him out of the way on time. (He should thank me more for that!) 

"Sometimes you get lucky and find a soul that grooves with yours."

#tolfotochallenge #lucky #luckoftheirish