A few days after I returned home from vacation, I had the privilege of spending time with Sarah, Hairdresser Extraordinaire, and her new daughter, Cassette. Sarah looked great and was enjoying her time at home, marveling at her tiny daughter's shock of black hair, gorgeous dimples, and perfect, teeny fingers and toes. I love when I get to photograph babies... especially ones like Cassette who, with thier easy-going attitude, were born to be in front of the camera.

Thanks for letting me spend time with you and Cassette, Sarah!

I met Devlynn a few years ago, when we both took the same beginning photography class. We took a liking to each other immediately and bonded in the darkroom over photo assignments and developing chemicals.

Since we both are so busy with jobs and various activities, we tend to book "dates" and block out a bunch of time on occasional Sunday mornings for breakfast and coffee and long, leisurely walks around town. She suggested the Farmer's Market this past Sunday and we let the day take us wherever it wanted. When we ended up at the beach, the light was so great, I had Devlynn pose for a few shots. I am so lucky to have beautiful girlfriends who don't mind being in front of the camera... haha.

I had such a great time on Sunday, Dev. Thanks for being my "date"!

My favorite day of the week is Sunday. It's peaceful, it's pace is a little slower than the rest of the week, and I generally use it as a time to reflect, write in my journal, take photos, or visit with friends. It's my one day to forget about all my other obligations and do ME things. Yep, I like Sundays.

Yesterday I met my friend Devlynn and we went to the Farmer's Market for breakfast and a little bit of shopping. I love the variety of the Farmer's Market and the locally grown fruits, vegetables, and flowers. The children dance in front of the bluegrass band, the artists are hawking their wares and there are free samples of the juiciest oranges, sweetest apples, and most olive-y olives trying to entice you over to their booth. We stopped at the vendor we called "Turkish Magic" for gyros of marinated chicken and beef, with all the fixin's. After the market, we headed out to La Jolla Cove to soak up some sunshine and revel in the salty air. All in all, a wonderful day.

What do you do on YOUR favorite day of the week?

One last note... if you're not the type to click through a bunch of photos, here is the slideshow version. There's no commentary this way, but maybe that's your style. :)

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Enjoy!

I spent a few days enjoying Northern Oregon: taking walks, going for drives, playing with the dogs, chatting with my grandmother and her husband, Hershey, and dreaming in the basement. It was peaceful and relaxing... I don't think I got up before 9:00am on any of those days. Then, it was on to my cousin's house near Tacoma, WA. Although I have thousands of cousins (it seems) that live in Oregon and Washington, there are a few near my age that are more like brothers than part of my extended family. They are the type to drop everything and drive me the 2+ hours up to Seattle and back, just so I can take a photo of the Pike's Place Market sign. (Thanks, Danny & Dougie!) I spent two days up here and had a blast hanging out with my cousins and their significant others.

The first day was spent in Seattle & Alki Beach.

(*Editor's Note: I primarily use this blog to give people a chance to check out some of the photos for their sessions or to let other people know about my style of photography and a sample of what you might get in a session with me. What I don't do very often is share more of the personal stuff... the everyday goings-ons. I think I'm going to change that this year. So, in addition to those fun sessions I post, I'll be giving a peek into some of my more personal words and photos, too.)

The day after Christmas I hopped on a plane bound for Portland, Oregon. I love Portland - have always loved Portland - and one day I'll probably move there to live amongst the fat raindrops, lush ferns, and wild blackberry brambles that adorn the country roads. I was headed up there for a quick trip - to see my grandmother and spend some time with some cousins in Washington - only about 4 days, not counting travel time. Instead of heading into the city while there, this time I stayed out at my grandmother's house in Gresham (about 25 minutes outside of Portland). They have a cute house with a finished basement, an acre of land and garden area and a neighborhood just ripe for long walks. It was so peaceful. The shots below are a few from the basement (where I was testing out the new tripod I got for Christmas) and from one of my walks on a stormy afternoon.

I first met Rick in grade school, or middle school, in the school band. We were actually in different schools, within the same district, so mostly saw each other during holiday programs and some rehearsals. Rick was more serious than I was - I was in it to get out of class - while he pursued band in high school. Luckily, by this time we attended the same school and moved in overlapping circles of friends and got to know each other.

As we've kept in touch over the years, Rick saw my interest in photography grow - from hobby to profession and has been asking me to do a session for him and his girlfriend, Leah. Our schedules kept us from doing so until the weekend right before Christmas, where we spent an hour or two hanging out in downtown San Diego and generally making a spectacle of ourselves. I had so much fun, you guys. Thanks!

Wow-ee, it's been awhile. I don't know if I blogged at all in December, but man, I took a lot of photos. I'll be playing catch-up for a bit, but I've been resolution-ing as of late and near the top of the list is to blog on a more regular basis. So, lucky you...

Sarah and I both had very busy schedules in November and December and we weren't able to get together for her maternity shoot until nearly 2 weeks before her due date! I was worried her baby girl might make an early entrance and foil our chances for our belly shoot, but she remained the Christmas present she was supposed to be and gave us that extra time that we needed. If Sarah looks familiar, she should. Not only is she my most favorite hair dresser ever, but she also commissioned me for a family shoot last spring.

As always, I love photographing Sarah and her family and this time was no different. Maternity shoots are some of my favorites and Sarah was game for nearly everything I came up with. Here are some of my favorite shots from the session.