Music Monday - Damien Rice

For anyone who actually listens to the music that plays at the bottom of my page, I changed my playlist the other day to include 3 of my favorite Damien Rice songs : Cannonball, The Blower's Daughter, and Volcano.  I heard The Blower's Daughter years and years ago...on a Dawson's Creek episode and loved it. I own the song and have it on a CD somewhere....but have no idea where that is  =(  This song is just hauntingly beautiful..."I can't take my eyes off of you...I can't take my mind off of you.."  The story behind this song is pretty interesting too...I can't remember where I read about it, but it would be too in depth for me to try to explain it here =)

At work, we have satellite radio stations, and I always listen to "The coffehouse" which has all these great acoustic versions of songs...and they play Damien Rice songs A LOT...so the other 2 songs I have featured are ones that I heard on that station and that definitely grew on me.  I am actually not a huge fan of the chorus in the song Cannonball...but i LOVE all the verses.  My favorite part is the line that says "There's still a little bit of your song in my ear, there's still a little bit of your words I long to hear..."  I can't say for sure why I like the Volcano song...there isn't a line or anything that jumps out to me, but I really think that the song just grew on me.

Anyways...i'll have these on here for awhile until I find other songs that I like even better =)  If you have artists or songs that you love, share them with me...I am ALWAYS on the lookout for new tunes to listen to =)

Blessings,
~holly~

In the end- LOVE WINS!!!

First, let me express my sincerest THANKS to everyone who took some time out of their day to check out the cards and cast a simple vote!!! 

Next, I would like to THANK my best friend Lauren, from Knowing Norrah for surprising me and deciding to also donate funds to love146 and for all of her faithful blog readers who participated!!!

I would also like to THANK anyone who posted or shared links via blogs or facebook to help SPREAD THE WORD.  My hope in doing this "contest" was not just to be able to donate money to love146 - but to really spread the word of this organization, and even more importantly, the issue of human trafficking and childhood sex slavery....there are so many out there who are oblivious to this growing darkness, and I wanted to make as many aware as possible.  I hope that the efforts were successful and that others will also now choose to do something to make a difference in anyway they know how!  So THANK YOU for anyone who chose to SPREAD THE WORD this week...it certainly has meant a lot to me =)

I decided to do a PICTURE POST to announce the winners and totals and such...so thanks to my wonderful daughters who "suffered" through a short photo shoot to help me out with this!

I will OF COURSE will write everything out here too!

Our grand prize winner is Laurie Horanburg. She will be receiving a photo shoot for up to 2 people that she may use for herself or give to someone else!

Kristie Kachel will be able to choose a love146 t-shirt of her choice!!

Nick Garland will be receiving a $10.00 iTunes gift card!!

** I will be in direct contact with these winners at some point today! **

AS FOR THE FINALS NUMBERS...

We reached a total of 174 votes!!!  66 of them included a mention from the "Knowing Norrah" blog. So between our donation and Lauren and Ken's we will be giving the love146 organization a total of $120!!!  I pray that this would be multiplied and used in mighty mighty ways!!!!

The winning 'card' was.....

NUMBER SEVEN

card NUMBER THREE came in a very close second!!

I ended up voting for number 14, the ice cream card, solely based on the fact that that was my favorite picture that I took...it was a very hard decision for me...right away I also LOVED the way number 7 turned out...but in the end, I went with the ice cream card =)

The 'loser' cards were NUMBER 8 and NUMBER 13 =(  Each receiving ZERO votes..haha...OH WELL!

Again, Anthony and I are extremely grateful for everyone who took part in this first time crazy contest!  We hope to do more things like this in the future!  We encourage you to continue to remember the love146 organization...and the hundreds of thousands just like it that are working day and night to put an end to human trafficking and slavery all around the world!  

In the end...LOVE is what will put an end to these horrible crimes...

Here's to hoping that in the end, LOVE is the WINNER =)

~holly~

Contest has Ended!!

Hey Everyone....the Spread the Word, Spread the Love contest has officially ended! Thanks SOOO much for everyone who participated and who Spread the Word!  Check back in tomorrow for a PHOTO POST revealing all the winners and final numbers!  Have a wonderful day and THANKS AGAIN!!!!

~Holly~

"Spread the Word, Spread the LOVE" - take 50 seconds to VOTE for your favorite, and we donate $.50 to love146!!

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO HELP A CAUSE VERY DEAR TO MY HEART!!!  I sincerely hope you enjoy the cards, as I know had a wonderful time making them!!  Happy Valentines Day to everyone =)

**sorry about the small size of the images, I had to format them that way so that you could see the whole card, you can click on the small version to enlarge it, and you should probably do that so that you can read all of the quotes! **

{one}

{two}

{three}

{four}

{five}

{six}

{seven}

{eight}

{nine}

{ten}

{eleven}

{twelve}

{thirteen}

{fourteen}

{fifteen}

**Artist/Author credits**

two - lyrics by Mat Kearney from the song "In the Middle"

three - lyrics by Mat Kearney from the song "Here we Go"

four - lyrics by Ingrid Michaelson from the song "Corner of your Heart"

five - quote from Kevin Arnold of the Wonder Years.

six - quote by Janos Arnay

seven - quote by Peyton Sawyer from the show One Tree Hill.

eight - lyrics by Snow Patrol from the song "Chasing Cars"

nine - verse from 1 Corinthians 13:7 -the Bible

ten - lyrics from Boys like Girls from the song "Two is Better than One"
eleven - lyrics by Mat Kearney from the song "New York to California"
twelve - lyrics by Mat Kearney from the song "In the Middle"
thirteen - lyrics by Jewel from the song "Fragile Heart"
fourteen - lyrics by Sarah Maclachlan from the song "Ice Cream"
fifteen - based on the verse Psalms 17:8 from the Bible

**all photos taken by Holly L. Reynolds are are property of PFMF Photography blog.**


REMEMBER - you may vote ONCE for your favorite card. You can post a comment on here, or on my facebook album/link.  If you leave an ANONYMOUS comment on my blog, please make sure to obviously include your NAME & email with your vote, so I know who you are!  Also, if you use facebook you MUST leave a comment, do not use the LIKE THIS option... thank you!!!


THANKS AGAIN FOR TAKING THE TIME TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE and SPreAd tHe lOvE ....


~holly~

"Spread the Word, Spread the LOVE" OFFICIAL CONTEST "RULES"!!!

Below you will find the "official" rules for this contest, as well as the prizes being offered for your participation!!!

OFFICIAL RULES *

1. Each person may vote ONE time only for their favorite "web card". You can either post a comment here on my blog, or on my facebook link/album. You can vote based on the photograph, the words, the colors, whatever, just so you vote =) 


If you are not a blogger or have a specific BLOG account, you will need to post a comment on here as an ANONYMOUS user, just make sure to INCLUDE your name and email please, as lwell as the number of the card you are voting for!!!


Facebook users MUST COMMENT on the link or under the specific photo you are voting for...PLEASE DO NOT USE THE "LIKE THIS" feature!!! Additionally, I realize that people who aren't my FB friends will not be able to comment on any pictures, so they will NEED to either comment here on my blog, or send me a personal message telling me their favorite if they wish to participate!! 


OR...you can also email me your vote at reynolds654@hotmail.com!! 

2.  Persons may vote starting MONDAY FEB 8th - up until MIDNIGHT FRIDAY FEB. 12th!!!

3. For every person that votes, my husband and I are donating $.50 to the -love146- organization.  Our hope is to reach at least 146 votes!!!

4. Every person who votes will be entered into a drawing to win either a photo shoot for up to 2 people **,  a love146 t-shirt of your choice, or an iTunes gift card!

5.  There will be 3 winners picked at random.  The "grand prize" winner will receive a photo shoot for up to 2 people that they may use for themselves, their children, or, they may donate it to someone else (just so I am aware of who ends up with it!) The only thing the photo shoot can NOT be used for is wedding portraits =) However, trash the dress sessions would be fine!!  

The second place winner will be allowed to choose a love146 shirt.  There are several options and sizes, so I want whoever wins to be able to pick the best one for them (or again, for someone else if they choose to pass it along.)


The third place winner will win an iTunes gift card!!!

6. The winners will be announced sometime on Sunday FEB 14th. I will also, at that time, display the web card that received the most votes.  (if you are someone who I do not know personally,please make sure that I have a way to get in touch with you to let you know that you have won...leave an email somewhere in your comment!)

                          *THIS IS MY FIRST TIME DOING ANYTHING LIKE THIS, SO PLEASE BARE WITH ME AS I AM SURE I WILL NOT HAVE ALL THE KINKS WORKED OUT...BUT I AM DOING MY BEST!! *

                          **because this contest is taking place here in Lancaster, PA - I will unfortunately only be able to accommodate photo shoots within an hours driving distance.  Should the winner at random be chosen from a different state we will work together to come up with a suitable prize/solution. **  

HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL BACK HERE TO VOTE TOMORROW!!!!

So...wanna know what you will be VOTING on??

I thought I should at least give you all SOME idea of what in the world you will be voting on next week!!

I have created 15 "web cards", which is what I am calling them for a lack of a better word for what they are!  On WED I took my girlies out to play in the snow, and with my camera in hand, hoped to capture some photos of them...BUT...they were not very willing and were much more interested in shoveling snow into their red sled with my kitchen spoons...sooo...I started snapping pictures of random things, and then decided that since V-Day was around the corner, I would create some hearts using random outdoor/indoor objects. That is how this how VENTURE got started.  My mind starting turning fairly quickly and I wondered what all else I could photograph?!  So I ended up with at least 7 pictures that I really liked, and like most pictures I take, I edited them right away and then I even ended up liking them better!

So for fun, I opened them up in Photo Shop and started adding some cute song lyrics or quotes or verses to the pictures...and THEN... I really started getting inspired...I would think of another song or verse that I liked and how I could capture that in a photograph...and alas...I ended up with 15 of these "web cards."  I love them because I got to include two of my very favorite things - PHOTOGRAPHY and MUSIC (most of the cards feature song lyrics, but not all of them...) I am fairly certain I could have created at least 50 of them...but I had to draw the line somewhere =)

So this is where you all come in!  On Monday I will be posting all 15 of the "web cards" and all YOU have to do is VOTE for your favorite!!  That's it!! It will take you NO more than 50 seconds (well maybe longer if you have trouble deciding on a favorite!!), and for every vote, Anthony and I are donating $.50 to love146!!!  It makes no difference to me what you base your votes on...perhaps the photograph, maybe the song lyrics, maybe the object in the picture...it makes no difference...even if you hate valentines day and don't like the pictures...just VOTE ANYWAY!!

I have decided to reveal JUST ONE of these "web cards" to give you a better idea of what I am talking about...but please come back on MONDAY to see the rest!!!

**you can click on the image to view it in a larger format **

*photo by Holly L Reynolds pfmfphotography*

*lyrics by Mat Kearney from the song "Here we Go"*

Check back in tomorrow for the OFFICIAL RULES to this contest as well as the different ways you can vote!  I hope everyone on the EAST COAST enjoys this snowy Saturday and stays safe =)

Blessings...

Until tomorrow...

Holly =)

"Spread the Word, Spread the LOVE"

About a year ago, Anthony (my husband) called me back  to look at something on the computer. He asked me if I ever heard of love146 before, to which I replied, "NO" and then he proceeded to have me watch a video. The video was Rob Morris (co founder of love146) talking about his experience in southeast Asia and the reason behind the name love146.  You can watch that video and read more HERE.  It took all I had not to burst into tears right there and then...honestly.  The story lingered with me for several days...I couldn't shake the idea that these atrocities were actually taking place all over the world, every single hour of every single day...it actually made me sick.  See I knew all about prostitution, and have even heard of sex slavery and human trafficking, but never before had something hit me with so much force as when I heard the story of the girl with number 146 pinned to her little red dress...

A few months later Anthony and I watched the movie "Taken"... I hate to recommend it to anyone because it is one of the single handedly worst movies I have ever seen, solely based on the content matter and the sad fact that it is so entirely accurate to what is going on all over the globe today.   I had nightmares, anxiety attacks, and a severe fear post watching this movie for several weeks - WHY?  Because I realized the sad state of the world we live in...where people, human beings, would actually allow this insanity to exist...and exist it certainly does!  Human trafficking and sex slavery is a 32 billion dollar a year industry...the second most "lucrative" crime in the world ( I am assuming drug trafficking is the first).  Every minute 2 innocent children are sold into this horrible world...and even more sad...a lot of times it is by their own parents who are that desperate for money.

After this, I couldn't ignore my passion for this subject...but what could I do?  So I prayed...for government, for the girls and boys who daily are subjected to this horror, for organizations who are dedicated to put an end to it...and I will continue to pray...but now I am doing something practical, as well, to help....AND YOU CAN TOO!!!

On Monday FEB 8th, I am going to start my first "contest" here on my blog (as well as facebook). I will explain more of the details in an additional post, including the "rules" for the contest, but I wanted to share the WHY.

Anthony and I decided this year, that instead of celebrating Valentines Day and buying gifts for each other or going out to a nice restaurant...that we are going to put our money to use for a good cause, for something that we both feel extremely passionate and broken for.  See, we both know that we love each other, we both feel loved, and personally did not feel the need to spend money to show this to one another...so we are giving money to the love146 organization so that they may use it to SPREAD LOVE to those who definitely NEED it...who don't know what LOVE is, or who have the wrong idea of what LOVE should be...the final amount will depend on ALL OF YOU!!! Don't worry we are not asking for money or donation or anything like that...all YOU will need to do is place a simple vote...and as I said before, I will have another post describing what all is involved and such =)

My hope is not only to make a difference FINANCIALLY for this organization, but to at least SPREAD the WORD...and make more and more people aware of this issue and hopefully stir a few others to want to help as well!!

So please stay tuned for updates on my blog, and COME BACK TO VISIT ON MONDAY!!!  Tell your friends to visit my site as well!!  I hope that others will get as excited about this as we are =)

I will leave you with THIS INFORMATION from love146 regarding what they are doing to help this Valentines Day!!  It tells the LOVE STORY of a girl Diana...and proves why we must do something to SPREAD THE LOVE to these slaves who have no idea what LOVE should be....