The Happiness Exhibit

Rachel and Chris - our friend and my hubby

I'm one of those people who actually clicks on Facebook ads. Not all of them, of course, but sometimes one will peak my curiosity. The Happiness Exhibit is project sponsored by Lay's, and while I'm no big advocate of potato chips, I do like photographs of happy people.


Tim and Bree - our cousins


Jennifer and Jane - friends that are like family

The project is a collection of photos uploaded by everyday folk to their Flickr group--and they'll be using some at random in future promotions. Promoting HAPPINESS...now, that's an idea I like.


Aimee - our niece


Sarah and Brandon - friends that are like family


Chris and Tinkerbell - Disneyland '09


Naomi and Joshua - also friends, Nay = BFF

The images featured in this post are a small sprinkling of people that make me feel happy. Some were taken by me, some by them, and all make me smile.

Try posting your own Happiness Exhibit and be sure to share it!

Travel: Teardrop Trailers

A Teardrop is a compact travel trailer consisting of a sleeping cabin and a kitchen compartment. The Camp-Inn is styled after teardrop travel trailers from the 1930's and 1940's. A Teardrop gets its name from its unique streamlined shape. Teardrops were popular in the 1930-40’s and have recently been regaining popularity.

Their streamlined shape, small size and low weight allowed for easy pulling by the, under100 horsepower, engines of the 1930-40's. Teardrop trailers reduce gas mileage and you don't need a truck or large SUV. Teardrops are pulled easily by a mid size family car or smaller SUV's. The Camp-Inn trailer weighs as little as 850 lb. and as little as 130 lb. tongue weight.

Although Teardrops are small, there's have more than enough room for 2-3 people. The Camp-Inn sleeping cabin holds a Queen size bed (on 500/550/560 models), and room for storing gear. The sleeping cabin is hard sided and topped without a need for set up or tear-down. The sleeping cabin can double as storage/cargo space during travel.

The kitchen area is accessible from the outside rear of the trailer. The kitchen compartment, has ample storage space for a cooler, dry-goods, portable stove, cooking and eating equipment and utensils. The Camp-Inn kitchen has 5 feet of counter top and lots of storage. The kitchen can be used with minimal setup. It even works well for a quick meal at a roadside rest area.

It comes fully loaded (mattress, linens, pots, utensils, and more), so you do a lot less packing. Rentals are just $175 for two nights―a fraction of an RV’s rental cost.

You can pick up or some companies will deliver to local parks.

Insider tip: Extras like espresso makers and solar shower fixtures are available for $5 to $10 each.

Can I tell you how much I am LOVING this idea? Makes me want to start planning road trips for summer and fall right here in the middle of winter!

Info via Tiny Camper, and Sunset, image #1 via Sunset {by Jack Journey}, additional images via Google.

Merry Christmas

Happy Birthday, Jesus, my Lord and Savior, thank you for the miracle of your birth so I can have the gift of life. Merry Christmas to all my blog friends far and wide--hope yours is peaceful and happy with your family and friends!!

In Memory of 9.11.01

I captured this image of the small candle I have lit today in memory of those who lost their lives, those who survived and for those who gave their service on 9.11.01. It is also for those who continue to give service and protect our freedom across the world. This photograph is our small tribute to say thank you.

If you would like to purchase a copy of this image it will be available in our Etsy shop as a special edition print in various sizes. The proceeds from any sale of this fine art photograph will be donated to Operation Family Fund.

Operation Family Fund receives no funding from the government, is supported solely by private and corporate donations and does not endorse any political party or candidate. They simply provide support and comfort to our service members,veterans and their families, regardless of political or religious affiliation. They do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, or politics in accordance with our United States constitution and in honor of our troops and veterans worldwide who come from all walks of life to serve our country with honor, great personal sacrifice and courage.

NEVER FORGET

Never forget the victims and heroes of September 11, 2001.

Never forget what it means as Americans to persevere.

Never forget the freedoms we cherish.

Never forget our military families.

Never forget the children waiting for Mommy or Daddy to come home.

Never forget the parents who pray each day for their

son or daughter's safe homecoming.

Never forget all those who serve.

Never forget our veterans from all wars.

Never forget to fly your flag.

Never forget those who paid the ultimate price.

Never forget.

FREEDOM ENDURES.

A. Kellermann - Tampa Tribune, 9.11.03

The photos displayed in this post are copyright Pfeiffer Photos 2008. For information or to purchase please contact us via email or visit our Etsy shop...thank you.

Inspiration Sunday

Beginning this week my mission is to find at least one person, place, thing or moment in my week that inspires me and pay my respects each Sunday in the blog. This being the first week of inspiration, I have chosen my husband's grandmother, Eline Goss...we call her "Grammy". Yesterday Grammy celebrated her 90th birthday, and that is an inspiration in and of itself!

Mrs. Eline Goss aka "Grammy", Christmas 2006

A more gracious woman I have yet to meet than Mrs. Eline Goss. A true southern belle, born in 1918 and raised on a dairy farm in South Carolina, she met and married her true love, John, in 1940. They lived and loved for over 50 years, raised their family and made many, many friends. John and Eline were world travelers and visited too many countries to count via plane, train and steam freighter over the years. Every time we visit with her we ask her to tell us the stories of all these places and she just laughs and gives us her best recollections.

John and Eline at the dedication of Goss Stadium, Oregon State University, 1998

Eline is a woman with wisdom and a generosity of spirit. When she asks me how I've been and what I've been doing, I know she really does want to hear my answers. She takes time, she listens, we don't feel rushed through our visits. We eat dessert. We have that second cup of coffee. Nobody checks their watch, we just enjoy each other's company. I can't say how truly refreshing this is in our day and age of this "everyone for him/herself", multitasking, double-booking, high octane, espresso coffee, drive-thru eating, one-stop shopping, ultra-fast data transmitting, Internet, TiVo, "Chatting", Instant Messages, Email, Blogging, MySpace, and Text Messaging world we all know.

Eline has two children, five grandchildren and 3.5 great-grandchildren as of this writing. She introduces me to her friends as her fourth granddaughter. Having only one set of grandparents (of which one has passed, the other is estranged), makes this adopted Grammy all the more dear to my heart.

Tina, Chris & Grammy at our wedding reception, December 2006

Ninety years is an inspiration more than worthy of any blog post, and I am honored to be able to make it the subject of mine.

(Grammy and great-grand kids, Aimee and Haley, 2008)

Happy Birthday, Grammy, we love you lots!

Photos displayed in this post are by Chris and Tina Pfeiffer, The Oregonian, and our wedding photos are by Nicole Wickens Photography, 2006.

Weekend at the beach

We've hit a spell of misty rain in Portland going into the weekend and our outdoor plants are loving it. As a native Oregonian, I honestly like the rain. Yes, I grow weary of it when it comes for weeks on end in the winter but I always remind myself that the rain is what makes our state so green and livable.

(Arcadia Beach by Tina, Pfeiffer Photos 2008)

This weekend we are headed for the Oregon Coast to help celebrate our good friends 25Th wedding anniversary. They've rented two condos facing the bay in Garibaldi and have family flying in from Illinois, San Diego and parts unknown. Chris and I are staying in the lovely little beach town of Manzanita just a few minutes up the highway. Sun, sand, surf, friends, family, food, music and fun are all on the menu...good times!

(Tide pools by Chris, Pfeiffer Photos 2008)

In thinking of just the right gift for this special milestone, we decided that we would give our time and talent and document the weekend with our cameras in hand. Our goal is to find the candid moments and create a photo journalistic style memory. Post-festivities the photos, with the aid of my trusty Macbook, will become a custom photo book and DVD. I've been toying with the idea of offering custom photo book and DVD creation services through our Etsy shop and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this idea so your comments are very welcome!

(Beach at Devil's Churn by Chris, Pfeiffer Photos 2008)

All photos displayed in this post are available as prints and handmade note cards. Please visit our Etsy shop or contact us HERE for more info or to purchase...thanks!

copyright pfeiffer photos 2008 - all rights reserved.