the family that makes me want to move to california

blogging late at night is a bad idea for several reasons. a, your clients are waiting to see their blog post up and who wants to stay up until 3am to view their photographs, no matter how lovely and. b. your clients happened to have also housed you when you photographed them in and around their redondo beach, california home, and you want to say something about them that properly illustrates how they made you want to dissolve into their sunkissed beach life forever.....but its sooo late, and you're so tired.

and you labored over this blog post until it was just right.

but in the end, no matter the hour, you decide you  can't give up until you say the right words  to accompany the just right blog post.

so....

. the mom you see in the images below is about as bright and warm as the california sun. of course i am aware of how cheesy that sounds --but if you met tory for even a second, you would know immediately its true. she is the easiest person to be around, the funnest person to work side by side with late at night on a couch with our matching laptops ('cept hers is bigger). tory is incredible at so many things which include but are not limited to:

being a freaking rad mom

being a freaking rad photographer

and being one of the freaking rad  co head hanchos over at the best new (kinda old now, i guess) blog on the block, let the kids.

on my photo extravaganza in california, i stayed with tory for 2, or was it 3 nights? and let me tell you when i left,  i cried a little, and would like to blame my crying on the fact that her precious little leighton and pierce fussed first. gah, i miss them.

also, just so he doesn't feel neglected you should know that tory's husband  sean spoiled us with ice cream (rocky road!), on not one, but two evenings, served to us on the afore mentioned couch where we worked and laughed together.

sigh. in short, the o'leary's made being so far away from my own little ones way way way more bearable. let me take you through their photos...

we started early by sneaking in to wake up sean...there was many a morning snuggle to be hadquick change of clothes into that dress i regret not sneaking into my suit case...and we lounge on the bed in the pretty light for some more lovin. i'm sorry did i say we? i meant them, i was a mere observer and clicker of their awesomeness. pit stop at the sink for a drink of water before we head out to the back yard---and the moment was so real, i just couldn't help myself...

and then bam, this blue guy. which is actually theirs! and it actually runs!!! and it was a photo dream come true...

after a brief intermission, we head to the beach, which you can literally see from the o'leary's home and although a red dress isn't  necessarily beach wear, tory and i agreed that it was just too stinking cute on leighton to leave out of the photos. 

i finished the shoot with my feet in the ocean and the happiest feeling in my heart. thank you so so so much tory for letting me come and do this. you know i love you and all of your crazies.

i miss you guys so much already.

i finally met a girl named mykol

and even though its not spelled the same way as the title of that old song by weezer (my favorite band in high school), this real life mykol exceeded all of my expectations for mega radness. i was able to photograph mykol and her family in their home earlier this month, during one of my all day mentoring sessions. i won't embarrass the photog i mentored by naming her here, but i have to tell you that she made me laugh all day and swears more than a sailor. we. had. a blast. and usually on principle, i don't believe people when they say that--i mean, the phrase is so cliche---but believe me on this one. it was a day of photo phun.  oh my gosh, i have to stop.....

BEST OF 2011 FAMILIES

i never wanted kids. the number of times i fantasized about being a mom as a young girl was -2. ladies at church would ask me to "babysit sometime," and i would smile and nod, then pray they'd never call. when i found out i was pregnant, 2 days before my 1 year wedding anniversary, i cried. not happy tears. i clung to marty, terrified, and tried not to think about anything at all.

the next day i went on a run. we lived on oahu , and let me just tell you that sweating in hawaii feels like secreting sticky glue from your pores.  i ran my normal route to the end of laie point,  cursing the hawaii sun because i was so freaking hot.  i was so uncomfortable i started to worry. not about myself, about something else. then suddenly a feeling rushed through my chest,  shocking me and relieving me all at once.

love.

fierce, crazy love. a desire to do anything and everything to protect my baby. and i know this sounds incredibly dramatic, but the fact is, it was dramatic. the change was so night and day, i could hardly believe it myself. the fear i felt finding out i was pregnant was replaced by love and curiosity. what would it possibly be like to become a mother? it became something i definitely wanted to find out.

when i look at this post--that is waayyyy too long because  i suck at editing sometimes---when i look back at the families i photographed in 2011, that is what i think about. how family changes everything even when you don't want it to. its a miracle and a curse, and its the most beautiful power i've ever witnessed.  it will always be my favorite thing to photograph.

p.s. can you find the one photo that was actually shot in 2010?

studio blast from the past

over thanksgiving break, i got to visit my old stomping grounds.  i am so happy that my old studio is now in the talented hands of justin hackworth. i would have died if it had gone to someone i hated or who's work i did not respect. i don't know what that says about me or my character, but there it is.

and look! he even painted the walls to give it a fresh new look and it really makes it his own.

i'm also pretty happy justin was nice enough to let me use it when i rolled back into town. otherwise i wouldn't have gotten to connect with this special family.

a few things worth noting: this mom is also a talented photographer and film shooter. this mom didn't want her picture taken. but she humored me. and i am so, so, so glad she did.  because she is honestly one of the most in tune and talented mothers i have ever met. and that deserves to be captured.