A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

Photo Blogging Challenge (October 2026): Make your month about living

A quote from the amazing movie Shawshank Redemption:

“Get busy living, or get busy dying.”

What do you choose?

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This month was about living. I don’t plan to ever have a theme with the opposite as I’m not interested in people trying to defy the odds all for a photo challenge!

Anyway. this month was something where I continued to work on myself. By doing so, I think living has become easier and more fun. I’m able to get out without as much stress and I keep plugging away at anything that does.

The reality of life is you have to take care of yourself if you want to live. I realize these days it’s harder. There so many things that are blocking people and being happy. Reality also is making sure you spend time with those you care about and trying to make sure you make memories with people while you can. Memories will last us a lifetime — for us when people or pets are gone, and for others when we are gone.

Let’s get living.

My five are below.. and it was pretty hard this month to choose just five. What did you come up with?

If you participated this month, share your link down below. Here’s my five for the month!

1. Sunrise

On any trip to the shore, me and my mother will get up and out early to catch a sunrise. We then get breakfast and start the day. This year, we were only there for two mornings and one was cruddy, so we had to make sure we went for the one. It was a real colorful one!

2. Watching it rise

Snagged this photo of my mother as she watched the sun start to rise. It was chilly out!

3. Exploring

One thing I love about geocaching is the exploration and especially doing it with friends. So many great trails and adventures to have memories of. And it’s truly awesome to have friends who love traveling and/or caching with Harper!

4. Ice cream!

OK, two photos make up No. 4. When at the shore, Kohr Bros. is a must! So we hit the boardwalk in Wildwood one of the nights and made sure to grab this deliciousness. OK, well I did and Harper did. My mother thought it was too cold. But as I had mine, my mother gave Harper hers.

5. Changing of the seasons

While I totally understand people not necessarily liking the northeast because of winter, I do love the changing of the seasons. And I like that we have all four seasons. But fall is one of my favorites. Harper likes it, too, but not sure she enjoyed this photo shoot! haha.

BONUS PHOTOS

Like I said… totally had too many to choose from! Had to share two more. One was this spot to enter the boardwalk in Wildwood and the other… thinkHarper is a beach girl?

There’s my five for the month! Let’s see what you came up with! If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully here.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for February. Make sure you drop your link there.

OK, so it’s time to keep on moving! And our theme for the November? Make your month about being a storyteller. Remember to come back on (hopefully) December 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month! I’ve set a calendar reminder for me, so let’s see if that works!

October 2026 photo blogging challenge linkup:

Link it up!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

Video challenge: September 2026 (What makes you tick)

In this crazy world, there’s a lot of things that can make one tick.

A friend. Family. A spouse. Kids. Pets. Travel. Food. Hobbies.

So. So. Much.

Clips from this challenge video were taken in multiple places, including Lake Ontario and the Atlantic Ocean, as well as places around each spot.

Reality is — what makes us tick is something that should make us happy.

Here’s my video for the month!

Theme for September: Where you live

For those who might be joining — the challenge is set up to have videos be 1-3 minutes long (ish), and follow the monthly announced theme. Do a blog post — or even a youtube post, and come back and link up here. I *try* and post the link up on the 5th of the following month. Any other questions about the challenge, let me know!

October’s theme will hopefully post November 5!

If you took part, link up below!

Link it up!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

Photo Blogging Challenge (September 2026): Make your month about you

How does one define “about you?”

Is it what you did or do? Or, is it about things that might surround you? This theme was huge in regard to how one could interpret it. You could be as literal as you want – or not.

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September is my birthday month. Not that I go crazy about it as some might. On my birthday, I went for a nice 5-mile hike with Harper and two friends as we grabbed a bunch of geocaches. We had a late lunch that included pizza and just enjoyed a very nice day. The weather was fantastic.

This month, though, was also filled with a lot of unnecessary stress, mainly at work. It’s tough being in a society that truly seems hell bent on making sure the working class just continues to have to do more and more just to get by.

But as people, we also need to find ways to be ourselves. I’m doing my best in that regard.

Was this month about you? I can’t say I put myself over everything this month, but I sure did try. And when I did, I didn’t think about work and such because it just doesn’t make you better overall in that regard.

Stress is bull.

So, how did you make your month about you?

I look forward to seeing how you did it.

If you participated this month, share your link down below. Here’s my five for the month!

1. Selfie world

Before Harper, I rarely would take selfies. I do them a lot more now, though Harper is a bit of a diva and doesn’t always comply. This was during the birthday hike and I love how big her smile is and that her eyes are closes. And the black and white version of this (using Hipstamatic) is really cool.

2. Why is this here?

Dogs and fire hydrants are connected. This was on the trail and really made no sense. The trail is a rail trail, so a former railway. However, I am not sure this fire hyrant from that era. Maybe it was. But there it sat, on the side of the trail. Seemed like a good photo for her and I.

3. At the end

This was near the end of the hike. We’re both smiling, but we were both cooked. It had warmed a little, and we had just had a drink. When I think about “me,” it’s hard to think about it without Harper in it.

4. Baseball

This was one of the final games of the year I went to this year. It was a nice night watching some baseball on a bark in the park night, and being able to keep a scorebook and enjoy the game.

5. My oasis

It’s becoming the time of the year where sitting out back gets dark a bit earlier, and it’s a bit cooler, but still nice. Harper enjoys hanging out back whenever I’m there as well. If you can’t tell, she’s chewing on one of her Chuckit balls.

BONUS

From one of the final bark in the park baseball games I went to this year. They had a pup parade and Harper was on the big screen. Thankfully I got my phone up quick enough for a photo!

There’s my five for the month! Let’s see what you came up with! If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully here.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for February. Make sure you drop your link there.

OK, so it’s time to keep on moving! And our theme for the October? Make your month about living. Remember to come back on (hopefully) November 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month! I’ve set a calendar reminder for me, so let’s see if that works!

September 2026 photo blogging challenge linkup:

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

Video challenge: August 2026 (Fun)

I’m trying!

This challenge has been harder than I thought. I had this video taken in time. I did this on purpose, actually. A one-shot mini of Harper enjoying this treat.

For one, it’s fun to watch her when she has an ice cream. So it fit the challenge. And for two, it was kind of easy to plan this one out.

It seems once again — bad. I was even reminded, and I still slugged away.

The real life has been rough at times. If I can ever get my thoughts straight, I’ll do a blog post. In fact, there’s so much going on — a post would probably help me. We’ll see! Ha.

For now, here’s my video. I have some thoughts for the next theme, so hopefully I can hit a deadline. However, look below. I changed up due dates moving forward.

Theme for September: What makes you tick

For those who might be joining — the challenge is set up to have videos be 1-3 minutes long (ish), and follow the monthly announced theme. Do a blog post — or even a youtube post, and come back and link up here. I try and post the link up on the 5th of the following month. Any other questions about the challenge, let me know!

September’s theme will hopefully post October 5!

If you took part, please link up below!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

Photo Blogging Challenge (August 2026): Make your month about thinking outside the box

All the best plans …

Thinking outside the box can be a good thing, but also can be challenging. I had some ideas, and unfortunately a couple of them failed for a couple of reasons.

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Ah well, it happens.

This can be interpreted in many different ways. It could be different ways of taking photos. Or different vantage points. Or different subjects. Or .. or … or …

It’s all about being different.

So how do you think outside the box?

Rather, how did you think outside the box.

Or maybe you stayed inside the box but in a different way.

OK, OK … I think you get it. Let’s get on with it!

If you participated this month, share your link down below. Here’s my five for the month!

1. Filter

I ordered a couple of lens filters from Amazon for my small camera lens. The idea of this one is to give circles around the main subject. I like it so far, but I need to figure more with it. I had ordered a second filter, but they sent the wrong size!

2. With light

I rarely try and get different types of light features in a photo. In fact, I often avoid it. This month, I did a couple different things with available light. This is the first one. I love how the sun shines in from the upper left corner over the image.

3. Light 2

Chubby Checker (a post to come eventually) was at my local county fair. It’s amazing how good he still is at 84. But the lights behind him throughout the night were pretty cool. I loved this one.

4. Black and white

When I first started in photography, black and white was my start. I developed my own film and made prints etc. This month, I did a couple of black and white images using Hipstamatic and I love this combination of the “film” and “lens.”

5. Vantage point

When we went to Chubby Checker, my mother thought we should stand on the track. This is from her vantage point. My mother went to high school with him, so this was super cool. Again, a post will eventually come!

BONUS

I’m not sure this is outside the box per say, but it’s a bonus photo. Me and my mother went to dinner at a local spot where you could eat outside. I really loved how this photo came out.

There’s my five for the month! Let’s see what you came up with! If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully ithere.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for February. Make sure you drop your link there.

OK, so it’s time to keep on moving! And our theme for the May? Make your month about you. Remember to come back on (hopefully) September 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month! I’ve set a calendar reminder for me, so let’s see if that works!

Photo Blogging Challenge: August results

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!