my birthday club

for my 30th birthday this year i was in new york.  i'm not totally ready to talk about that trip. it was a big deal for me. yes i was there to work, but i was also there to change, and more importantly be okay with that change. i spent a lot of time wandering, and a lot of time alone. but the universe is SUCH a beautiful thing and always seems to provide me with the exact kind of people at the exact moment i need them. at the very last minute i took on a session with these guys, the gonzaleses. a lead to b to c and somehow i was in their beautiful apartment on the morning of October 25th, blowing out a candle on a cupcake. they became my family for the day.  it was a perfect morning i'll never forget.

furthermore i want you to know that nicole and ivan were high school sweethearts. YES. its unbearably cute. we shot the first part of their session in front of the school where they met. 10 years later they are still in love and its the kind of love that lifts my heart and makes me like the world. plus they have their beautiful lucca to show for it.

lastly i kinda want you to know that nicole has something rad going on over here: http://blog.bluum.com/ and she is one of my fav grammers (you know instagram) find her at @bluumbabygirl

thanks for looking.

two more make seven in chicago

i spend a lot of my life feeling overwhelmed. with everything i have to get done, with money, with whether or not i'm giving my kids enough attention. this that, a,b, or c. this world feels so super loud and busy all the time and it can feel like just.so.much. i don't particularly care for this personal trait. its not something i love, its not a lot of fun, i do it to myself, and i'm trying to be better.

most recently i find myself overwhelmed with sooo many sessions of sooo many beautiful things that i sooo want to share with the world, but where to start? and to combat this i am just blogging a lot faster and more instinctively than i may have in the past, so forgive me for this being maybe the longest blog post ever with an abundance of images i just couldnt say blog no to.

don't worry--i'm getting to a point. and here it comes.

when i walked into the brogle home i thought --- this lady is for sure going to be more frazzled than me. (oh don't look at me like that, you know you compare too! ha) new twins. new twins on top of three other kids. i thought that sleep deprivation just HAD to be ruling this house with its nightmarish reign of complete horror. i braced myself for it, i was ready.

but when i walked in their door, andrea just had this smile. acceptance. it said, "i'm tired. i'm spent. its been a long day and life is kinda crazy right now. but i'm okay. i'm doing my best. this is my family, here we are."

and i found myself overwhelmed in such a different way. the brand of calm among that crazy. the brand of love in the brogle home. the way the older kids held the babies. the way mom and dad and were such a gosh darn good tag team when the twins were screaming and one had to get the bottle and the other had to pose with the kids for their crazy photographer----it was life at its most beautiful messiness. it could have been overwhelming, in a way i guess it was, but  mostly, it just felt like love.

thanks for looking.

queens

some dear friends who gave me a place to stay on my last visit to new york. i grew up with cardon, and wish i grew up with kelly. side note that is not relevant but should definitely be noted: they are the most hilarious duo i have ever known. pure comedy folks. their little koos is a ball of wonder, and has me convinced he will grow up to discover or invent something really really really cool.