Merry Christmas

"And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch of their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. "

Luke 2:8-11

Have a blessed Christmas! My love to all!

Edit to add:

It just didn't seem right not to post a picture with this message....so here is a really quick picture of my faithful friend Kona singing Christmas carols the best he knows how. His favorite is the same as mine. But he was not super fond of the antlers
(hence the "quick" part) no matter how many times we told him how adorable he looked. Might as well have been a big pink bunny suit. Oh well.

In Style {baby}

So, it seems that babies are back in style.  Not that they ever really went out, but at one busy emergency room there are about eighteen or so new, or soon to be new, mommies.  It is going to be really fun to follow these little ones.  Callie is our first debut here.  You may remember her parents and her first time here.  She is a budding three month old now and getting cuter with each passing day, seriously, off the charts in cuteness.  She's got some lucky parents and I am a lucky photographer to "play" with this cutie for an hour or two.  Her little grins just light up the room.  Santa came a little early for this family.  And we couldn't be happier about it.  I'll let you judge for yourself.























Merry Christmas! Don't forget the reason for the season.....(baby...gift....you know)

Hello Blog...it's been awhile.

And exhale.  

I just finished up on a project, none of which I can post up for fear that hospital administrators may be after me.  (long story that I can never tell, but it did have a happy ending, phew)

Happily, it is back to the business of Christmas and preparing for an upcoming wedding and a couple more shoots in the interim.  It's good to be busy.  I have been neglecting my husband and my dog, and Kona made me undeniably aware this morning.  He can always get my attention by grabbing something he isn't supposed to have and making loud crunching noises with it.  

"Uh oh, what do you have?", I say under my breath.

"Nothing." He innocently replies. (okay, I stretched here. Dogs don't really speak. Not mine anyway)

I glanced over the stairwell to find otherwise.

"This....this Santa.  I don't know how this got here."

"Really, it's just been laying here the whole time.  I thought you wanted me to have it."







"And this little white ball on the top of his hat looks ridiculous.  It must come off.

Let me help."



Almost there...


"I prefer Santa with no hat....now lets start working on that hairdo..."

Don't let the Christmas rush get to ya....don't get to the point where you want to gnaw on 

Santa's head.  But if you do, come on over to my house.  Kona got it started for ya.

Don't forget to breathe and sing your favorite Christmas carol at the top of your lungs...

Mine is "Oh Holy Night", so if you are out shopping and you hear somebody singing that 

a little off key and really loud, it could be me.

Happy Holidays!!  and have a fabulous Tuesday!

It's Christmas in the 'hood

Not even twenty four hours after Thanksgiving and this block gets geared up for Christmas.  It's hard keeping up.  The turkey coma has just barely worn off and we are out putting up lights.

Well, not me, I had to work, but the man and the rest of the neighborhood were getting the 

party started.  Woohoo!!  It's so fun to drive home and find Christmas fantasy street.  I loved it.

There are a ton of great kids on our street, so it has to be really fun for them too.  



So, we can start dreaming about Christmas early...and plan parties, and drink nog cause on this street, Christmas is here.





Yep, we are feeling pretty good on this street...








Happy Wednesday!!

What's black and white and green all over?

The answer is 

One of the most beautiful bridal showers I have ever attended.  My niece Kendall is getting married in January and is currently at the height of her "shower season".  It began with this

elegant affair a few weeks ago to start off the young couple with just the right "seasoning".  The hostess Kim left no detail unchecked.  Everything was stunning.  I can't wait for this wedding. I'll be shooting the wedding with Eric of LOOK photography.

If it's anything like this shower,  the evening will be just grand.  

A few shots of the details...

Kim and Danielle (mother of the bride) checking out the details on the tables...

Some of the guests outside...

Dinner is served... the maid of honor, Dani, and fair weather reporter in Idaho for Local News 8...

A personal detail hand made by the hostess, Kim.  Seriously special.  She made these hangers/ placement tags for each guest.  Wow~

A view of the room...

Kendall and the gals on the other side....

A big yummy canvas from me for the new couple taken right after he popped the all time 

big question and got a huge "YES"

Time for just one game of "Newlyweds" with Brandon answering questions on DVD...



What is Kendall's favorite store?  You could hear a pin drop waiting for Brandon to answer this question....dude, don't get this wrong....

And there was lots of this....


And plenty of this....I think they will be busy playing with all of it.

Check out the details of their upcoming wedding day here

Congratulations Little k!!

I am thankful for....

moments of joy when finding the perfect shell....

Happy Thanksgiving!

After any day spent in an emergency room, it's not hard to realize how much I have to be thankful for.
I wish for all of you a meaningful day however you choose to spend it. I am thankful for the guy I am stuck in traffic with.
He makes everyday just a little bit better. Now go stuff yourself. What are you doing here?

Playing in the rain...

I am not sure how I got so behind. It happens. I am catching up though. I'll be playing catch up for the next couple of weeks. If only they didn't expect me to show up at the hospital. I would be golden. I am posting a few pictures of an edit I just finished today; my good friend and faithful blog reader Miss Kendyl, or Mrs Kendyl, I should say. I have known her since she was a little one, and now she has adorable little ones of her own.
As I am typing this, I am listening to the sound of the rain moving in. Faintly at first, but now its pouring. It's fitting that I am posting these pictures now because it also rained us out on this same morning. In fact, I think it was the last time it rained in southern California when we took these just about a month ago. I really hope we get just a little more rain to atleast keep the brush damp for awhile, but certainly not enough to cause mudslides and havoc for those who just lost their homes and neighborhoods. This rainfall is about a week overdue. I would have loved to have seen it rain ten days ago.

It was really unfortunate that we were rained on...Katelyn and Justin took it in stride. We stayed dry just long enough for a pretty quick shoot. Hopefully, we'll get together again in the near future and shoot in some drier conditions.

















There was a swell moving in this day as well. This picture was taken just before a wave engulfed my camera bag (note to self: put it up on the rocks) and covered my shoes up to my ankles. Unbelieveably, everything inside my backpack was dry. Thank you Canon.





















Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

I love all of it.

Let's face it. Life isn't always one cheery day to the next. And how boring would that be anyway. I like the cheery days, don't get me wrong. But to expect that just isn't, well, real. I am editing this weekend and catching up. I was going through images late last night and this little one just gripped me. I can't even remember what brought on these tears. I'm sure it was nothing, and I know it didn't last long because one minute later her older sister handed her a new shell from the beach, and she grinned from ear to ear and moved on. I love how kids just wear their emotions on their sleeves. I don't insist on the smiling image ( although I'm sure the parents would prefer it) I like it real. So, this might make you sad. It makes my heart kind of break for an instant.
Maybe that is what I love about it. It's real.

This just in.

Me. Just in from Pittsburgh and still trying to adjust to a fifty to sixty degree temperature change. We had a quick and fun weekend to witness an exciting Steelers win. And let me just say that I saw so many Steeler logos EVERYWHERE that I think the logo was burned into my brain. Every time I closed my eyes that emblem floated in the darkness of my mind; a not so subtle form of hypnosis. It was strange. But I love Pittsburgh, the history, the bridges, the people, and they love the Steelers.
So now it is back to work, back to shooting (grin), and back to working off the Primanti Bros cheese fries, a must if you go.
Will post more later. Have a great night.

My new friend Taylor

I have been busy. Really busy. I think it's good. You know what they say about an idle mind. I am behind several posts but will work diligently to catch up here. I met this charming young man about a week ago. He is an aspiring actor and we were updating his head shots. I can sense that his Mom better get used to the 405 freeway. I believe the casting calls are coming.
Taylor knows how to turn on the charm in a moment, as you can see here. He has a serious side too. I was honored when he invited me to stay for awhile and play some Wii. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time that day. Next time pal, you're on!

So, a few shots of my new little friend Taylor. Don't forget me when you're famous!




















Happy (wait, what day is it?) oh yeah, happy Monday!