We got a Drone!
Yup, you read that right...I am the new owner of a shiny drone - a DJI Phantom 4Pro+ to be specific. Will this be a new service Scrappy Doodles Photography provides? Not just yet.
As you can see below, drone operations is also a family affair!
Family Selfie at the controls of a 4 year old
What you may not know is that in order to have your drone be part of your business, you have to be licensed by the FAA and vetted through TSA. After I feel more proficient I will definitely consider adding it as a paid service. Until then, I will be enjoying the thrills of learning about this new way of flying and taking photos. The picture quality is amazing!
Just another day where Katherine is flying with her hands while I fly the drone
Drone v. Plane: It is a MUCH different experience to be at the controls of a drone versus a plane. To keep line of sight of your sUAS (Small Unmanned Aircraft System) you have to look at it - sometimes that means fighting the sun. In a plane you are changing the settings of the throttle, adjusting the mixture and propellers and managing the aircraft as a whole. With the drone, you are using a remote with joysticks. My model of drone has a screen built into it so I don't have to use an old iPhone or iPad to see what I'm looking at from the drone's point of view, so that is nice. Now...the drone is going to be a passenger in the plane when we go on trips. That will be a fun addition to our adventures.
My home from about 200 feet up.
Are you thinking about getting a drone? Or do you already have one? Be sure to check out the FAA's website on sUAS so you are getting started the right way. There is a great app called "B4U Fly" that you should also utilize before flying. For example, if you are within 5 miles of an airport by law you must notify the airport operator and air traffic control (if there is one present) of your flight. At Laughlin AFB, drone use is not authorized. Additionally, you want to make sure you get your hands on the city ordinances on drone operations for your community, to include community standards for gated and private communities.
https://www.faa.gov/uas/getting_started/
I will be offering a complimentary drone image to select sessions, interested in being one of them? The calendar is open for booking!
Click here to start booking your Scrappy Doodles Photography Session
Cohen 6 Months | Brackettville Child Photography
Cohen makes being a child photographer so much fun! It's hard to believe that he's at the sitter stage now! His big blue eyes and beaming smile seriously make anyone's day!
Come Fly With Me! | West Texas Aviation
What makes meeting new friends more fun? Being able to go out flying with them. Earlier this month, we hosted new friends to our home airfield.
This is what it looks like when you have a playdate for airplanes.
It immediately became the "talk of the town" and our friends became quite the spectacle; it's not every day that three Super Cubs are parked on the ramp. Not only did they park on the ramp, they camped out at their planes, under the wing. We have done this before...before we had kids - in Alaska. Maybe I will blog about that another time. Someone even called the local paper to cover their trip. Come to Fort Clark Springs and become a local sensation! :)
Katherine instantly imprinted on Miss Wendy - she was the only soul on board HER cub. That was a big deal for Katherine...she helped Miss Wendy tie down the plane and asked all sorts of questions.
Katherine's interview with Miss Wendy
Our normal Sunday flyday became a Sunday playdate with our planes. We pulled out the Cessna to complete a rather awesome 4-ship of taildraggers. Of course the polite thing to do with guests is show them around. Instead of driving them around the local area, we flew over the area at 500 feet. We went over to Del Rio over Lake Amistad and up the Devil's River.
Lake Amistad
We had never flown over much less up Devil's River before. Let me just say it's pretty awesome. We saw caves that had eroded out of the rock wall, cliffs that looked pretty sharp and tall. The water along the river was a turquoise green color, much different than the brown we have seen at the lake before. From above you could see how the water had created small creases in the river bed, looking alot like hair. It was really incredible.
Devil's River
Devil's River
Devil's River
We had an open invitation to land at a ranch and stroll about, but the terrain was more harsh than we planned for so instead we settled for some low level flying and went to Del Rio International Airport for gas. Four non-military planes coming in to land is quite the footprint, and we were greeted with warm welcomes from the staff. They said that our arrival was the most activity they had seen in a while there, kinda surprising, but we will take it! The manager and I were talking and he asked where we were visiting from. When I said Fort Clark, he looked at me kinda funny, as if he hadn't heard of planes coming from there. Guess we need to get gas in Del Rio more often.
What an airplane gas stop looks like. Long line at the pump!
The youngest pilots in the group
On the way back we flew through Del Rio, pointing out interesting facts about the town along the way. We flew over Laughlin AFB as well; showing someone where you work from the air is pretty cool. You get about 3-5 mins to talk about what you do before you fly completely by it. Talk about learning to be brief when providing a tour!
Laughlin AFB, Texas
I have a tendency, as most of us do, to post photos while inflight on social media. As I had been doing so one of my out of town friends just so happened to be driving into Del Rio for the day. What's pretty cool is that eventhough we didn't wind up able to "see" eachother and catch up, she saw us and was messaging me while we were enroute back to the house. Technology is so awesome.
If you have a plane (or access to rent one) and want to stop in to check out the fort, please let me know! We happily welcome guests. The fort has a hotel on site, we can get you a loaner or golf cart to mobilize in, and of course we love the excuse to fly about and show you the area! I am happy to help you put an itinerary together of things to see while you are here. The fort has a fun event coming up, Fort Clark Days, on March 3rd and 4th. It is a weekend of reenactment and celebration of the Fort's history. This will be the 40th anniversary of the event and it is anticipated to be bigger and better than ever. Tailwinds to all!
Winners of the 3,000 Fan Giveaway!
Thank you to everyone who participated in the giveaway! Ready to see who won?! Winner's names are right next to the prize. Please contact the vendor to get your prize unless it says that I have it.
The winners are:
1. A 20 minute photography session with Scrappy Doodles Photography & Design at one location (Del Rio/Brackettville area) for up to 5 people. The winner of this prize will receive 2 digital images. Alejandra Ramos
2. $15 off a seat in the next Scrappy Doodles Photography & Design Photography 101 or Editing Class. Emily Foote
3. A stuffed plane from Stuffed Squadrons. Jennifer Stapleton
4. Two winners will receive a pair of Babiators sunglasses! Michael Chase and Abril Gonzalez (I have these sunglasses, so please contact Scrappy Doodles to get your prize)
5. A $25 coupon towards the purchase of any regimen from Rodan & Fields Independent Consultant, Tammy Barlette. Jen Sorge
6. $20 gift certificate to Thirty-One from Alicia Guild, Thirty-One Independent Director. Join her Facebook group here to see her specials and deals! Nancy Rodriquez
7. Your choice of a 6 inch cake or 1 dozen decorated cookies from Frosted Kitchen. Abigail Villalon
8. Your choice of a free wrap on your face or body from It Works! Amberly Barrera (please contact Kelly Wylie for your prize)
9. A 2'x4' digital banner with your choice of design from Signs Now. Jesse Bishop
10. A pair of leggings from Lularoe with Lindsay. Chelsie Lee
11. Your choice of a 3 pack of scents or plug in warmer from Scentsy with Elise, shop her latest show here. Jennifer Robson
12. A free 8x10 acrylic canvas painting from REM4 Paintings. Marcela Vasquez
13. A $50 bow box from Girly Murley Designs. Ariel Partlow
14. A seat at an Art Class hosted by the Art Bar. Crystal Heredia
15. A workout program and one week of Shakeology from Kattleya Sommerfield, Star Diamond Beachbody Coach. Tara Richardson
16. One set of Earmuffs for Kids. (Katherine LOVES hers!) Sara Walker (please give me your email address and I will send you an email with the vendor to coordinate your prize)
17. One set of Earmuffs for Bubs. (Juliana used these when she was a baby...they are awesome!) Anna Ledbetter (please give me your email address and I will send you an email with the vendor to coordinate your prize)
18. A Party Heart-y set of Piggy Paint nail polish. Vanessa Ramon (please give me your email address and I will send you an email with the vendor to coordinate your prize)
19. A $25 gift certificate to the Crafty Playground. Leann Salazar
20. $20 shop credit from Younique Lindsey Kazsinski
21. $30 shop credit from Mayberry's Kim Van Ort
22. A free pair of leggings from Lularoe with Dana. Emily Tucker
23. A shirt with custom design of choice from Mar's Decals. Julie Rivera
24. A $40 gift card towards meal purchase from Fragola's Catering. Roxy Woodson
25. A monogram of choice from Jiggity Jig Designs. Lauren Bradford
26. An Isagenix Giftbag from Tina with Isagenix. April Aragon
27. Bag from Fresco Fabrics Stacy Lambert (please contact me...I have your prize)
28. Magic Bullet Deluxe from Realtors, Amanda Stanford and Marcela Robbins of ReloDelRio. Ashley Mack
29. A $50 cruise certificate for a 5+ night cruise from My Sweet Vacations Becky Jimenez
30. A set of two heart wine glasses etched with the plane of your choice from Fly Low Creations. Naomi White
31. A mini sweetheart pretend makeup set with pretend nail polish from Little Cosmetics. This pretend makeup is a huge favorite in my house!! Mess free.... LOVE IT!!! Amber Lewis
Congratulations again and thank you for supporting Scrappy Doodles Photography, as well as all of the other businesses who donated prizes to this massive giveaway!
The Great Divert
Texas weather in February these past two years has been nuts! Last year we had a really bad hail storm and this year, it seems to have attempted to repeat itself. It is not often that we have to divert (last minute change of plans), but I suppose if we were going to divert, it would be fitting to have a complicated dramatic story to go with it...here it goes!
We frequently go on day trips, and Sunday was no different. Since we fly VFR most of our flights we are glued to weather forecasts and radar pictures. A storm was slated to start rolling in around 9 pm so we thought we would be just fine going out to Aransas Pass and coming home. This is one of those trips that we do often. The original plan was to spend the night at the new hotel that Aransas just got, but a hail storm was headed for AP that night, so there was no way we were leaving the plane out to brave the forecasted hail. Returning home looked like a very doable feat, especially since we were in the twin.
Pre-Flight Walk Around...Toddler editionTeach 'em young the importance of the walk around. I will also add that Katherine doesn't wear glasses. She's going through this "I have to accessorize as much as possible" phase. The more accessories she wears the more "stylish" she is.
The flight from our house to Aransas is about an hour and 20 mins, give or take. We had to make a stop in Uvalde for some gas and then continued on our way. There was quite the turbulence too...we stayed low at about 1500ft because Juliana had a double ear infection that she was 5 days into taking antibiotics for, so we wanted to play it safe there.
Fueling up in Uvalde
Just like a hawk, weather watch was on upon landing. We decided that we needed to leave Aransas no later than 4:30pm to make it home in plenty of time to put the plane, vehicles and toys away in time for the storm. All is good until we actually get airborne. The weather built quickly and before we knew it we were faced with making some divert plans. This wasn't the first time we had ever had to divert for weather, but it was the first time with kids. Let's just say that Sunday is the WORST possible day to have to divert anywhere.
Seriously...fun times
The storm had literally settled over our airfield, so we landed in Uvalde with hopes of getting a hangar for the plane and a rental car to just drive home. Zero luck with either. Oh and it's also dinner time now...kids are hungry, just great. After about 20 mins on the ground, we decide to fly to San Antonio, hangar the plane at International and then get a rental there to drive home. Dinner, we would get that on the way.
That radar was still looking terrible, and the weather was starting to move East - towards us...just fabulous. ...and now, we are also night flying. A first all together as a family in the twin for us, a first-ever for the girls, and the first time in 5 years for me since moving to Texas. By this time, we are just dreading the 2 hour drive home, because we really don't like to drive if we don't have to. The girls complained the whole 25 min flight to San Antonio. I forgot how cool it was to fly at night. You literally have to identify everything by lights.
San Antonio
I found an HEB plus! Can you see it?!
Every Texan knows how to spot an HEB from a mile (or 1500 ft in our case) away!Can you see the HEB?!
As we were coming in on final at San Antonio International Airport, a Southwest jet was waiting to take off. Fun...entertainment for the girls!
San Antonio International Airport
While we were waiting for clearance to cross the runway, we got to see an upclose night time departure from American Airlines. Shout out to all of our Southwest and American Airlines pilot friends!
American Airlines flight that we had to wait for to cross the active runway.
We chose to park at Million Air FBO because we had heard some good things about them, and boy were we happy with that decision. Prior to taking off from Uvalde, I had called them to inquire about their hangar space, rental car availability and let them know we were inbound. When we landed, they had our car ready, linemen attending to the plane and a display cabinet full of bribe worthy toys to keep two tired toddlers from having meltdowns. The staff was excellent. The twin even wound up getting a detail job too.
Million Air FBO
Concern over the plane quickly went away and the new issue was at front and center...getting home. We had a rental car, thankfully we had both car seats. Yeti doesn't particularly care for driving in San Antonio, and I don't mind it, so we made an agreement that I would get us out of SA and he would take over driving once we got back to Uvalde, because that is where we would meet the weather. HAHAHA...as if!!
I drive us out of town and through the first two small towns. We were about 25 miles away from Uvalde when out of no where it starts pouring rain. The good news was that the girls were fast asleep - it was only an hour and a half past their bedtimes - and stayed asleep until we got home. Thunder and lightning were the only way that I could see where I was on the road because there was no power anymore in the towns. Driving 20 miles/hour in the pouring rain with a crazy 35 mph + wind factor is alot of fun. Nothing beats traveling white reflective light in the middle of the road by white reflective light. That is literally all I could see. The 10 mile stretch of storm felt like 10 hours. But we made it.
The following 45 mins were spent driving cautiously (and slowly) through spurts of rain until we got to Uvalde, where there was no more weather. It was also conveniently when Yeti got to take over driving. I'm certain there are imprints of my hands still in the steering wheel. After an insanely long day of travel, we were home at 10:35pm. We made it in time to turn on the tail end of the news and see that a tornado was forming in San Antonio! SO thankful we got the plane in a hangar!! Oh and for a bonus, the plane was washed and detailed!
The next day, Yeti retrieved the plane successfully and fought a 30 mph headwind the whole way home.
Home safe and sound
Until the next adventure!