My Loves

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2010-04-28T19:52:00.001-04:00

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It's been a long time :)

2010-03-14T16:20:00.002-04:00

This is a very short post, hoping to catch up at some point soon. But just an FYI there will be one more LOVE to blog about!! As soon as I'm able to hike it to our new 3rd floor 'office', I will be filling you all in. However if you're family or a friend on Facebook, you've got the jist of the happenings. Love to all.

March For Babies Walk!

2009-04-21T11:44:00.004-04:00

This Sunday morning myself and teammates will be walking in the March of Dimes, March For Babies walk. This is the first time I have physically participated in a large fundraiser event and I am so excited to share this experience with thousands of others!! I am honored to help such a special and important cause. Please support our Team ' For The Babies' ! Many many thanks! You can learn more about the event and organization here.

Click here to help me reach my goal!

FIsheye Fun

2009-03-02T19:41:00.002-05:00

Due to inclement snowy and freezing weather I dressed Carver in the brightest, loudest shirt he owns and had a little fun with my newly acquired fisheye lens from Kyle. We didn't step one foot outside today. BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

To The Zoo!

2009-02-27T13:58:00.005-05:00

It's the middle of winter in Philadelphia and this morning it hit 63 degrees (according to my car thermometer)! So.. Carver and I made use of our Philadelphia Zoo membership. The zoo wasn't busy and we enjoyed taking our time watching the animals. Carver made sure to say 'Bye-Bye' to all of them...especially the peacock, he loved saying 'peacock'.

The rain forest carousel ride is new and extremely beautiful!! It's all hand-carved out of wood! I would have loved to photograph the artists building this piece of art.
We were fortunate to get two rides for one! Thank you carousel ride lady! :) My boy LOVES carousels!

Indoor Playtime

2009-02-24T19:20:00.003-05:00

It's been a little while since I posted photos of Carver playing. Here's Cappy and Carver, today.

Cappy will find any sliver of sunlight, lay in it and fall asleep. Fortunately for him, our 'sun parlor' is drenched in it.

I can't wait to get this shot enlarged and framed!

This is the expression you get when you ask Carver to smile for the camera. It cracks me up!

This train table has gotten more play time than any other toy in the house! Thank you Woo-Woo!

Dalton Turned ONE!!

2009-02-23T20:09:00.002-05:00

Days are flying by! Lauren, my BFF's son Dalton turned one a few weeks ago AND it's been MONTHS since I blogged last!

Let's just start fresh with some photos from the first birthday party of one of the sweetest little boys I know! We had such a fun time and can't wait to see you guys again soon!

Stephanie & Tom Wedding

2008-11-25T22:29:00.006-05:00

Since becoming a Mother, I haven't pursued or wanted to photograph my own weddings. Friends who have inquired about me photographing their weddings in 2009, were given the names of photographers who I respect and work for. I love photographing weddings but working as a secondary shooter is what works best for me.
However, with Stephanie and Tom's Annapolis, MD wedding an exception was made, and I had a wonderful time while photographing their day! Kyle, Carver and I, packed up the car and made a weekend vacation out of it. It was so nice to get away and not feel obliged to work on our house!
We didn't have a chance to meet before the wedding, but Stephanie and Tom were sweet and trusted me with any ideas I had. They get my "Nicest + Easygoing + Loving +Beautiful Couple" award! Congratulations to you!!
Here are a few of my favorites from their day.. and a little slideshow as well!

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-03T11:55:00.003-05:00

Halloween 2008 will be especially memorable! We had incredibly beautiful weather, and we had the Phillies parade!! Unfortunately we didn't make it to the parade but we had fun at our parent + tot morning at Waldorf and then went to visit with Gran Ann, El Papa Woo, Papi, Uncle Craig and many others at MPI. Carver opted for an early bedtime rather than and afternoon nap, so he missed trick or treating (I don't think he minded).

Composting Is Cool...and Cute.

2008-10-21T16:07:00.004-04:00

Carver loves fresh apple juice in the morning. Apples are pretty much all that goes through my juicer lately and we're left with fabulous apple pulp for our compost pile. Walking to the compost pile has been one of Carver's daily 'chores' with me. I adore watching him proudly walk with his little blue bucket full of compost goodness...especially in the bright knit hat I made him :)

Morning Nature Walks

2008-10-20T14:25:00.003-04:00

Per Kyle's suggestion we've been going on morning nature walks for the past 2 weekends. They are so much fun and we live so close to the fabulous Wissahickon Park we would be fools not to take advantage! However..these photos are from our walk in a little section of the Fort Washington State Park near Flourtown. It was a crisp morning and we made sure to bundle little Carver up.

Second Shooting Bonanza!

2008-10-16T15:33:00.002-04:00

For about the last two months I've been second shooting every weekend! It's been fun, and the extra money is fantastic... but I miss spending my Saturday's with Kyle and Carver. Another month and it's Thankgiving and the break in between wedding seasons! Joy's been having me go out with her for her weddings, Joe's got me down for a few as well, can't forget sweet Jeremy either, and this Saturday I'm going to work with Jackie Bayne. Huh, just realized the photographers all start with 'J'!
I love being a second, there's not as much stress, I don't have to set up the formal shots and I'm encouraged to be as creative as I can! I've edited down the last four wedding's I shot with Joy to my utmost favorites...if you want to know the who, what, when and where's of these shots, just check out Joy's blog!

Back Yard Fun!

2008-10-07T20:45:00.004-04:00

This afternoon we ran around in the yard chasing Cappy and his blue ball. We also spotted what's eating our very first homegrown pumpkin, and also a g-hog.

Just wanted to post this shot of Carver, not just because I think he's the cutest little boy in Philly, but because I wanted to share the handmade craftiness of his tie-dye onsie. I picked this bright cheery number at Julie Foster's table while checking out the Skippack Days on Sunday afternoon. Thanks Julie we love it!

Welcome Baby Gabriel!

2008-10-06T14:58:00.003-04:00

BFF Erin, Rafael, and proud big sister Stella welcomed baby Gabriel James with all the love in their hearts on September 27, 2008. Baby Gabriel was a whopping 10 lbs. 5 oz. and 22 inches long!! As Erin would definitely say 'HOLY HANNAH!!'.
I was shooting a wedding with Joe the day Gabriel was born, so it wasn't until 4 days later that his titi (that's me) got the chance to visit the happy family.
Of course baby Gabe was doing what newborns do best while I visited, eat and sleep. I did get to see his beautiful eyes for a few seconds here and there :) Erin amazed me with how great she was feeling and looking 4 days after birthing this big boy! Raphael and his mother (who flew in from Puerto Rico) arrived a bit later from the grocery store and I was able to congratulate the proud papa and the abuelita! I can't wait to visit again soon!! LOVE YOU.

If It Were Not For Bees

2008-09-19T13:54:00.003-04:00

Bees are an extremely important organism on this planet. We wouldn't have food on our table if it weren't for them. I appreciate these hard workers to the fullest, just not in my attic window sill. A few months ago I noticed a pile of dirt forming on the floor by the window, it was in my 'to do' list to find out what it was from. Wednesday I finally found out it was from bees. To make a long story short, I googled 'Beekeeper in Philadelphia' and found Anthony M. Buzas. I chose to call him because his address was right around the corner from us. Turns out this Tony Buzas is the 'Bee Master' of the whole east coast! He even told me to keep an eye out for magician David Blain's next show, I'm assuming there's something with bee's and Tony involved. Oh, it's turning into a long story... back to the short story... Tony and his assistant John show up and handle the small yellow jacket hive / colony. My instructions were to make sure there were no bees actively flying in & out of the window sill by next mid-week. If there are, I call him again. I'm not going up there for anything right now! When I photographed the process I stayed way back and only got close when the bees were gone. Tony's been interviewed by the Philadelphia Inquirer (he gave me a copy of the article), and the Daily News. I plan on checking out his whole bee establishment sometime. He lives in Flourtown and rents his honeybees to farmers. I find it a fascinating story and hope to pursue a little documentary photo story someday about Tony and his Apis mellifera (honeybees).
Thank you Tony for ridding our home of the yellow jackets! I hope I don't see them in a week!

Trish's Blooming Belly

2008-09-16T21:36:00.003-04:00

The fam just returned from a week long vacation in Martha's Vineyard, and I'm so happy that Trish and Brian didn't go into labor while I was away! They are due to have their baby next week!
Our BB session was this afternoon and I had such a fun time with them and found myself completely emotional at the end of the shoot. Seriously Niagra Falls. Trish is such a beautiful pregnant woman and is going to be a fantastic mother and I foresee tons of photographs being taken of their little one! Trish is also a photographer, and was a photojournalist for the Morning Call newspaper in Allentown! She's super talented and made my job just a little bit tougher... hope my photographs make the grade!
Congratulations to you again. Looking forward to seeing the little guy soon!

Camden Children's Garden

2008-09-05T14:08:00.003-04:00

Before heading out to photograph Rusty and Jane's wedding two weeks ago, Carver and I made a quick visit to the Camden Children's Garden and met up with Mary and Jack. I had a great time watching Carver and Jack run around, I even had fun chasing after them. The garden was really cute and would be a great place to meet up with families for photo sessions. The colors are beautiful and the children have tons of fun! We took a ride on a train, spun around on the carousel, climbed on dinosaurs, checked out the butterfly garden, ran through tunnels and ran up and down ramps and last but certainly not least, played in the water fountains! FYI - bring a change of clothes.

In case you're wondering...Jack is sharing his raisins with the dinosaur.

Jane + Rusty Wedding

2008-08-28T20:31:00.004-04:00

Last Friday I was part of a very special day, Jane and Rusty's wedding! Rusty is the father of one of Kyle's dearest and long time friends from high school, Luke.
Jane looked gorgeous and had a permanent smile all day long! She was a thrill to photograph and her laugh was so contagious. Rusty was such a gentleman and I came to find out he had quite the outgoing personality! He had invented a little trivia game to play during the dinner where every single guest was involved, and won a beaded necklace! I loved it! I also loved that Kyle and I were guests during their family dinner as well! Their ceremony was at the beautiful Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, cocktails and dinner were served at their club, Gulph Mills Golf Club. The club recently finished their covered outdoor seating area and it's gorgeous!
Thank you again Jane and Rusty! Congratulations!

I think Jane designed and put together these wonderful wedding favors of bunched herbs, each herb had a special meaning to the day and the marriage.

I loved this little moment of Rusty's youngest son, Ben and his fiance Kate walking to their car from the ceremony.

The happy couple...

Thank you again to Luke & Kate for offering Jane my services!

Day Tripping to the Jersey Shore!

2008-08-27T20:05:00.003-04:00

I just wanted to quickly post about today's little adventure to Stone Harbor, NJ today. Summer is almost over and Carver hadn't been to the shore yet and I didn't want him to miss out, especially now that he can walk! We had a great time and met up with our friends Christel and Izzie. Carver didn't waste anytime making friends with the 'big' kids and enjoyed playing in the huge hole they had made in the sand. When I asked Carver if he wanted to walk down to the water he ran to the ocean and didn't hesitate at all, he loved the waves and laughed every time they hit him. Izzie was a trooper and played hard as well, despite her teething pain and short nap. I didn't get any photos of it but, she had a little boogie board in her baby pool and loved 'riding' it! She is totally too cute!
Thanks for meeting us down there Christel + Izzie! We hope to see you again soon.

I hope to post about the great wedding I shot last Friday, by the end of this week!

SuperStar Numero Dos!

2008-08-26T21:29:00.003-04:00

It just so happens that I know THREE women who have the exact same due date!! Crazy! And each of their bellies looks completely different. One of those women is my BFF Erin, and her belly is biggyful ;) Sometime this September she will be birthing a beautiful baby boy. I am so excited to meet him and I hope I can be there when he's born. A few weeks ago we had a little impromptu photo shoot and we had a blast! Seriously, they were so fun and energetic, every minute was a riot. Enough jabbering... here are my favorites! Oh and Stella is a true Super Star!

Congratulations to you Loca!! I love you Mama!

Melanie's Blooming Belly

2008-08-26T20:20:00.003-04:00

Two weekends ago I had the privilege to spend time and photograph the gorgeous Melanie and her husband John for a Blooming Belly session. I went to high school with John and ran into the two of them at my girlfriend Liv's engagement party. I met John's super thoughtful mom, Denise, at the party as well. A few weeks later Denise surprised me with an email asking if I offered gift certificates because she wanted to give one to Melanie for her baby shower. My answer was YES!
Melanie is due to birth her daughter in the middle of September, she was sort of debating whether or not to go with a BB session or a baby session...she decided on the BB session and I'm thrilled she did. I could look through the shots of our shoot again and again. It was such a pleasure to capture this moment in their lives and to do it with such a nice and fun couple! Thank you.

I thought this shot was so sweet. Melanie's mom knitted this layette set for her and her sister when they were babies.

Congratulations again!! Hope to see some photos of your little one next month!

Franklinia's In Bloom!

2008-08-14T15:21:00.002-04:00

Our new home has an amazing garden and quite the variety of blooming shrubs and trees. My new favorite tree is the Franklinia, which we have in our backyard!! I had no idea how special the tree was until I hired a landscaper to remove some shrubs for our new fence. He noticed the Franklinia immediately and told me to take extra care of 'this one'. So I looked up this tree and found out some interesting history on this someday gorgeous tree because right now ours looks like a blooming tall weed.
This is what I pulled from the Bartram's Garden's website..
" The exquisite Franklinia alatamaha tree, which boasts late summer blossoms, striking fall foliage, and an extraordinary history, is the most famous discovery of American botanists John and William Bartram. "

A Joy To Play With!

2008-08-12T16:49:00.003-04:00

It was so great to hang out with Joy yesterday! She took the day off and came over to our place. Lunch, fun at the playground and while Carver took his nap we lazed around kibitzed a little and watched a reality show called Rich Bride, Poor Bride. This episodes bride & groom rented an ATM for their reception, not that they had a cash bar, but so that guests could take out cash to fill their envelopes for the bride & groom's gift!!! Terrible.
Joy didn't bring her camera along yesterday, but I had mine. During our playground adventure she couldn't resist herself and swiped my camera! No complaints here though... she always gets great shots of me and Carver and I just couldn't say no. Thanks Joy!

photo•Joy Moody

photo•Joy Moody

I love love love this shot of Carver on the slide! This is his favorite thing to do at the playground.
photo•Joy Moody

Second Shooting With Jeremy - Elizabeth & Joshua's Wedding

2008-08-11T21:26:00.002-04:00

Saturday was a gorgeous day in August and a perfect day for a wedding! I worked with Jeremy and met the sweetest, kindest couple ever! Liz and Josh had genuine nice vibes radiating from them all day towards everyone! Congratulations to them and their wonderful families.
Here are my favs... But first I have to show you Jeremy in action.

Peach Pickin Time!

2008-08-10T11:06:00.003-04:00

If you haven't gone out and picked your own fruit yet this summer, I highly recommend it! We met up with some of our playgroup friends at Linvilla Orchards this past Friday morning for some peach pickin' and had a blast!! I wouldn't mind doing it again before the summer's up... the orchard's eggplant and peppers looked fabulous!!

Bowling Baby!

2008-08-08T20:25:00.004-04:00

Last Saturday night Kyle and I went bowling with friends, Brent, Mike, Ryan and Wendy. It's been a long time since Kyle and I have gone out 'just because'. Thanks Mom for watching Carver during bedtime and allowing Kyle and myself to go out and act like fools.
We drove up to Norristown's Facenda Whitaker Lanes. It was Laser Lightshow Night, and the country music was killing my game.

Carver 15 Months Old With Family

2008-08-06T14:59:00.003-04:00

It's August Already?!!

2008-08-05T12:43:00.009-04:00

Seriously, where has the time gone?! This post is way overdue and it's a long one (with little verbage).
Moving, packing, unpacking, weeding, caring for Carver, Cappy and Kyle has kept me busy and I'm still unpacking since we moved into our new home 3 weeks ago! This may be a stretch but, I think I get the gist of how a day in the life of farmer's wife must be, and it's incredibly rewarding and hard work!
The end of June was fun and busy. Carver started walking, at 14 1/2 months old. I was thrilled and so tired of hearing "Is Carver walking yet?", now I'm hearing "Is Carver talking yet?". Yes he is...if 'Da-da, ca-ca, and Kala-kalaka', count.

We went to a high school graduation party for my nephew, Mike.

On June 29th I booked two portrait sessions. One family / children / engagement session, and a belly session in the evening! It was such a fun time!

My girlfriend Laurie and her sister Jenny, hired me to photograph their whole family as a 40th wedding anniversary gift to their parents. I also photographed Laurie & Joe's two gorgeous little girls and did a quick little engagement shoot for Jenny & Whit.

Jenny and Whit were a riot! It helps when your subjects are thespians!

My 'Blooming Belly' session was with Linda, a fellow Birth Center mother. She wanted to try and support a TBC mom before looking for other photographers and found me through The Birth Center's online breastfeeding support group. Linda you rock!! Thank you so much for your support. I really need to get my website up and running. Portrait sessions just don't fall out of the sky, like yours! I loved our session and you, Brianna and Jerry were as friendly and outgoing as they come. As Linda put it, some of the photos were rated NC-17, but I'll only post the PG one's here... Linda at 35 weeks gestation.

On the Fourth of July we celebrated Gammy's 85th birthday!

The next day was Izzy's first birthday party! Izzy is the super adorable daughter of Kevin and Christel. I used to work with Kevin, who is an incredibly talented furniture maker at Malvern Design Workshop.

Caitlin flew up from her home in South Carolina during the Fourth of July holiday weekend. It was so nice to catch up with her and the fam for a minute before she left.
Carver just loved Gillian's fountain! So much in fact that I went out that same day and purchased the exact same one for our back yard! We love it!

Our wonderful Wednesday playgroup had their July birthday party at Jen and Ian's. Happy First Birthday to Lukas and Charlie!

My girlfriend Laura turned 30! Welcome to the club Mama! BFF Lauren hosted a purse party and it was Oh so fun!

Cortney was our rep and so sweet and was such a help when trying to pick out fabric. Thanks chica! I can't wait to see how mine turned out AND to finally ditch my diaper bag!!

Happy 30th Laura!!

Jumping from 30 to 50, Kyle's Aunt Ellen celebrated hers this past July. We had so much fun at her party and the food and drinks were fabulous! Especially the desserts.

We set up the tripod to take a shot of all of us for a 'We'll Miss You' photo album that my girlfriend, Amy, put together for Laura, Scott and Brooke. They moved to Greenville, SC last week :(

My mini orange tree sprouted dozens of the most fragrant blossoms you'll ever smell.

So there you have it. That's just a taste of July, Carver's nap time is coming to an end, and I've got piles of laundry to start. This weekend I'm shooting a wedding with Jeremy. Looking forward to it too!

Second Shooting With Joe - Lauren & Dimitri's Wedding

2008-06-26T14:25:00.004-04:00

I had a great time shooting with Joe last Saturday. I've never attended or shot a Greek wedding before, it was a blast! The wedding ceremony was very involved which made it fun because there was always something to capture. My favorite part of the ceremony was when the guests threw rice at the couple as they circled the alter a number of times. I ended up with rice in my shoes and down my shirt! Lauren and Dimitri were fantastic and ALWAYS smiling. They were a really beautiful couple, and Dimitri kinda looked like Kevin Spacey!

Looking through my photos from the day, my favorites seem to all be ones that would probably NEVER make it into the album.

Here's gorgeous Lauren, minutes before walking down the aisle with her father. She was a natural in front of the camera!

Their limo bus driver gets my Best Dressed Award.

Portrait of the Mother of the Groom.

After the ceremony someone had to sweep up all that rice. When I asked the man to sweep right into my camera he looked at me like I had two heads, but didn't question me and just did it. Ha! Wish my husband would do the same sometimes!!

I have such a fun time working with Joe, you really need to have a good relationship with the photographer who hires you. I think Joe and I are pretty comfortable with one another and it's so important...especially if you like to get shots like this one ....Joe proudly showing off his new camera strap capabilities.

Love this woman's eyeglasses! I tried to have my prescription put into a pair of vintage glasses before, but my prescription was too thick!! Drats.

This was my favorite shot from the day.

I'm shooting another wedding with Jeremy, August 9th and looking forward to it! Second shooting is a blast!

Happy Father's Day!

2008-06-15T19:06:00.003-04:00

I hope that all the fabulous fathers out there, had a wonderful day! Our Father's Day this year was a simple but fun day. Kyle opted for a sweet little breakfast, and then went to work on our new home to help get us closer to moving in! Carver and I headed to my father's home and spent the rest of the afternoon with him, Amy,my sister Gina and my mom stopped by to see Carver as well.

Carver and I made his super Papi a silhouette using Carver's first fingerpainting as the background. Kyle loved it.. and Carver loved catching his reflection in the silhouette.

Carver, Pop-Pop, Cappy and Gracy.

Sorry Gentlemen, She's Taken!

2008-06-14T19:47:00.001-04:00

My very dear longtime friend, Olivia, is getting married!! Her beau of about 4 years proposed to Liv about 3 months ago. We are all thrilled and so happy for the both of them! Every time I see Liv she's smiling from ear to ear! And her ring is gorgeous!!! So her, so unique and so kick-ass!
Three Saturdays ago, Kelli and Olivia's Mom, Christine, hosted and threw a surprise engagement party for the newly engaged couple at the First West Chester Fire Co. It was a laid back barbecue with beers, horse-shoe tossing, and lots of babies and children! Seeing my girlfriends with their little ones was special, photographing them meant a lot as well.
Here are a few of my favorites of the girls, Liv and Chris totally surprised, and all our children...
Can't wait for the bachelorette party...and the wedding!

The Happy Couple...

Four mamas and a baby carrying a tub of soda and ice.

Totally surprised when they pulled up with Kelli and Wayne.

Family and friends...

Chris exclaiming 'I had no idea!'.

Liv is just too adorable! Even when slightly distorted by my fisheye lens.

BFF Lauren with big boy baby Dalton.

Laura and beautiful Brooke.

Laurie and Joe's one year old daughter, Emilia, with her grandfather.

Emilia's big two year old sister, Lillie! What a smile!

Amy's too precious for words daughter, Kaitlyn.

Carver and one of the firetrucks.

Here we all are...except for Liv.
Me, Kelli, Amy, Lauren holding Dalton, Laura, Laurie and Lillie.

Makeeda + Marc = LOVE

2008-06-07T10:08:00.002-04:00

Saturday was HOT! But not as HOT as Makeeda's and Marc's love for one another! I had the utmost pleasure shooting their beautiful (hot) day... all by myself! I was asked to cover their wedding for my new photographer friend Jeremy, who had to attend to a very important matter that day. But no sweat (pun not intended) it was a relatively short day and Makeeda and Marc were as laid back and cool as they come!! I think I fell in love with Makeeda when I found out she purchased all of her bridesmaids gifts, Marc's wedding gift AND her mother's gift all on ETSY!! That's my kind of woman!! I love Etsy!
I had such a fun time at their wedding and I felt like I was with an event with my own family and friends.. that's how sweet the day was!
It was so great to meet you and I hope you had a fabulous time on your honeymoon cruise!! Here are a few of my favorite shots from the day. I'm really happy with all the images from their day. I couldn't wait to get home and see all the shots, that's how excited I was!!
Thank you again. The wedding was simply perfect.

They were the happiest couple EVER!! We went for a little walk around the corner from where they were wed at The Colonial Dames.

This is a close number 1 favorite of the day.

I would like to thank my good friend Joe for showing me how to make a sexy image ;)

Makeeda's shoes had to be the most gorgeous shoes I've seen so far this wedding season!

Oooh oooh oooh! I don't know the significance of the flower broach on her bouquet, but she wanted me to get a shot of it. I love this shot!

Quiet Morning Play

2008-06-05T15:35:00.003-04:00

Every very early morning, Carver quietly plays while I prepare my much needed cup of coffee. This morning I couldn't resist testing my new Nikon D300 camera in the low light setting he was playing in. My fabulous, incredibly generous and thoughtful Kyle, surprised me with this camera last week and I love it!!
Here are a few 'quiet' shots from this morning...

God, I love this child.

Second Shooting With Joy - Allison & Barry's Wedding

2008-06-05T08:52:00.004-04:00

The day had finally arrived! Last Sunday I photographed a beautiful wedding with Joy at the Overbrook Golf Club. We've both been anxious to work with each another since I had Carver! It was a lot of fun and so comfortable, PLUS Allison and Barry were such a fun and easygoing pair to boot! It was wonderful to capture your day. Congratulations Newlyweds!! Joy, can't wait for the next wedding with you in August :)

Second Shooting With Jeremy - Bobby & Asha's Wedding

2008-05-14T21:06:00.002-04:00

I worked with Jeremy Evans Thomas this past weekend shooting a huge Indian wedding. A 450 guest wedding!! My job was to start off at Bobby's home and photograph he and his family getting ready before the ceremony. Bobby was such a handsome groom and showed such emotion during his family's blessings before his marriage to Asha. I had a blast photographing this wedding because all the women wore their traditional Saris which added so much fabulous color to the event!

Here are the women getting ready at Bobby's home...

Beautiful Mariam walking down the stairs to meet her son, Bobby. Every time I photographed her she said 'Thank you'! And there were a lot of 'Thank you's' that day! :)

Noah, the ring bearer, with his father.

The young boys seemed anxious to get out of the house and start the show..

Ha Ha Ha.. Jeremy you've got a cute little boy dancing on your head!

The flower girls head down the aisle..

Proud Bobby at the altar.

Bobby and Asha are Married!

Nothing like throwing up a 'Peace' sign with your Bride on your wedding day!!

While Jeremy was photographing portraits of Bobby and Asha, I was covering the gigantic spread of a cocktail hour at the Curtis Center. The front lobby was packed to the gills!!

Details, details..

The First Dance..

Thank you Jeremy for hiring me!! I had a great time and I hope to get the chance to work with you again!
Best Wishes to Bobby and Asha! Congratulations and have fun in sunny Mexico!!

My Second Mother's Day!

2008-05-11T20:19:00.003-04:00

My beautiful mother with me,2, and my brother Tony,1, at our home in West Chester.

Happy Mother's Day to all the fabulous Mamasitas out there! We hope you enjoyed your special holiday. ...however I would like to think that everyday is Mother's day and Valentine's day ;)
My wonderful little nuclear family went to Rae for Mother's Day Brunch, a restaurant in the Cira Center, or what I refer to as, the Amtrak building next to 30th Street Station. It was a lot of fun to dress up and go out with my men :) We had a gorgeous view of the city with floor to ceiling windows which allowed the light to pour right in! Carver was a sweetheart as usual and a woman even came up and told us how good he was! He did however just want to push his stroller back and forth for just about the whole meal. I managed to have a taste of 3 delicious beverages, not finish them.. but taste them I did!! Yumma Yumma! Their Shepard's pie was divine along with their mini funnel cakes!
Thank you so much Kyle and Carver. I couldn't have asked for a more lovely Mother's Day. I love you!

View of the Cira Center from 76.

View of Philadelphia from the top of the escalator inside the Cira Center. Photo//Kyle

Quick observation of the plethora of beverages I consumed..

After a nice one hour much needed nap, we drove down to center city, walked around the Rittenhouse area and I treated Carver to his first pair of Puma sneakers. Watch out all you B-boys... Dub-C's in town!

Cappy Love

2008-05-08T10:08:00.002-04:00

Just a real quick post before Carver wakes up from his nap...
Cappy's been such a great dog and friend to all of us, especially Carver. Here he is napping in his 'pod', and then I woke him up for a quick open-eyed portrait. Before Carver, Cappy was always in the camera's spotlight! Love you Cappy!

A.J. At The Big East Conference

2008-05-05T14:43:00.002-04:00

Kyle's cousin A.J. is a senior at Pittsburgh University this year, and also a very strong man!
Yesterday we checked him out at the Big East Conference for Outdoor Track & Field at Villanova University. A.J. competed in two events this year, the discus and the hammer throw. I just checked out his stats and they are crazy good! Kyle and I are bummed that we couldn't stay for the whole hammer throw event but it was fun to see and support our big cuz'!
Of course we brought our camera along to document...

Here he is waiting his turn for his warm up throw..

This shot cracks me up! Not that I have a ridiculous facial expression, but that I barely come up to A.J.'s shoulder! Seriously my head is almost size of his bicep!

A.J. warming up. I wish I didn't have that net in my way, but I wasn't attempting to sweet talk my way into photographing him from the front side of the net, plus risking my life for photographs isn't on my agenda anymore.

Carver had a blast crawling in the plush grass and went over to say hello to Uncle Tom, A.J.'s father.

Carver tried his hand at the hammer throw...

One last shot before we left :(

Good luck on future events A.J.! We Love You!

Shooting With Joe - Kristen & Yong's Wedding

2008-05-05T09:34:00.004-04:00

This past Saturday I worked as second shooter for Joe. The bride and groom were so awesome they had fantastic personalities AND couldn't keep their eyes AND hands off each other! They were perfect...especially dealing with the gazillion gnats outside. I love shooting with Joe, he's very quick and witty with his subjects and always knows how to make people comfortable for his portraits. I'll be the first to admit that I do not like to set up group portraits, but watching Joe in action definitely teaches me how to get 'er done.

The light pouring into Greenville Country Club was fabulous! We saw beautiful portrait possibilities around every corner, I was in 'light' heaven!

I loved the way the light made each portrait resemble a chiaroscuro painting from the 17th & 18th centuries!

The ring bearer and his father getting ready.

The talented Mr. Joe Pulcinella strutting down the garden path.

Kristen was a gorgeous bride!

I couldn't pass this up while Joe was shooting from above on the stairs. I wish I had photographs of Kyle ravishing me on our wedding day! Hot tamales!

The happy couple on the church balcony after their ceremony.

Yong was so cute with the little babes during the reception. They loved the hamming around too!

Joe clowning around with Linda from Perfect Weddings, who wasn't having it at all!

I asked the girls if they would like a photo together and this is what I got.

Thanks again Joe, looking forward to the next wedding!

Starting Off May With Mon

2008-05-02T18:31:00.004-04:00

One of my bestfriends, Monica Hoover, is in town this week. I posted about the last visit she made, last June. She's in town again for business and set some time aside to hang out with me, Carver, Jess and Mischa. I wish we could have spent more time together but the woman is just too stinking busy!! She is now working on finalizing another business venture in the old Wonder Bread factory in San Diego, CA. and it's going to be amazing! I wish she was setting this up in Philly! A restaurant, art gallery, music venue and photography studio, Voice 1156 is upgrading to Voice 171. We can't wait to be there for the ribbon cutting!!
Mon, Jess and Mischa came by our new house yesterday afternoon and we played in the backyard.

Carver got a very cool birthday gift from Mischa and Jessica..a portable bubble machine!! Thank you we love it!

The talented, the beautiful, Ms Monica Entrepreneur Hoover..

I LOVE this photograph of Carver and I in the garden! Photo by Monica.

Another great shot by Monica.

Best of luck to you Mon! We love you and we're coming to visit you next!

The Last Day In April...Whew!

2008-04-30T19:22:00.006-04:00

I blinked and now it's less than 6 hours away from the month of May. Bye bye April see you next year... or in a few more blinks.
This blog is going to be more photos and less kibitzing, I just don't have it in me this evening to share my thoughts on life ;) Plus, I plan on catching some of the Flyers' action this evening! Go Flyers!!!
I've already posted about Carver turning 1, but I have yet to mention that yours truly turned 30! It was a lovely low key affair and Kyle took me to Buddakan for dinner, per my request. It was divine and I totally recommend the scallops!

These photos were taken with my iphone. I really wanted to bring my big camera, but it didn't go with my dress ;P

We shared this incredible assortment of chocolate desserts....mmmmm.

The weather couldn't have been more perfect on my 30th birthday. Carver and I met up with friends, Mary and her adorable son Jack, at the Morris Arboretum. I purchased a family membership and hope to make it back as often as we can, the gardens and the trees are amazing, PLUS it's only 15 minutes away from home!

Carver and Jack checking out one of the fountains. Mary was right there to make sure neither one dove in.

I also got a ton of hilarious photos of Jack and Carver wrestling in the grass..

The cherry blossom trees were amazingly beautiful!

We sat and had our lunch under this tree.

I was waiting for bluebirds to land on Mary's arms!

I'd like to title this one 'Mary Magnolia'. ;)

Since birthing Carver, we have made so many new friends and still keep in touch through playgroups! Hooray for playgroups!!
It's been months since the end of 'Baby and Me Yoga' at Blue Banyan yoga studio. Carver and I met up with a few yoga 'alumni' on a gorgeous Friday afternoon. We've all pretty much known each other since our babes were 10 weeks old! Crazy! I think I speak for all of us when I say we miss yoga class and our incredible teacher, Tara. It's a little difficult to practice yoga when your toddler is crawling or walking all over and grabbing toys from the little babes, or grabbing your hair or your shirt or making you laugh throughout the class... sorry I'm rabbling. I grabbed some fun portraits and I can't wait to put them on my website (which should be up and running by the end of May).
Here we are at the Allen's Lane park.

Cara and Kieran.

Masimo and Gabi.

Melissa and CeCe.

Liz and Luke.

Anya and Lindsay.

Carverlicious.

Cappy.

In our other playgroup, which we've been a part of since Carver was 3 weeks old... has been throwing birthday parties for the babies almost every month since December! It's so much fun and the kiddos love it! This month Carver and Megan turned the big O.N.E.
Here's an attempt to get a group shot of everyone...

My attempt to photograph Carver while in my arms during the birthday song.

Cutie patootie Megan, hamming it up!!

My BFF turned 30 too! She's only a week younger than me;P Her husband, Brian threw a wonderful dinner in her honor and then surprised her with a huge party at their home after dinner! Unfortunately Kyle, Carver and myself missed the after party.
Here we are indulging in delicious cheesecake!

Carver shows off his walking skills with Auntie Lauren.

Oooh, ooh, ooh... I almost forgot to add some 'observations' Carver and I took note of early in April when all the beautiful magnolia trees were in bloom. The magnolia has got to be my favorite blossoming tree and we're fortunate to have many in our 3 block radius!

I loved all the color on this stone wall.

Carver points out another tree!

I took note of Carver's eyelashes..

Aye Poppy!!

And last but certainly NOT least! I've hired my fabulous, superb, magnificant hard working nephew, Dominick, to help with our gardening. However, so far it's been a whole lot of busy not-so-fun yard work.
Here is the handsome lad mowing our overgrown grass... Thanks Dom!!

Joy's Slideshow For Carver

2008-04-13T22:49:00.003-04:00

Joy just sent me the link to Carver's birthday slideshow! It's amazing! She's shared her talented gift with us and put together a slideshow of fabulous images (to the perfect song), and she was a our guest at the party! Thank you so much again Joy. I owe you... big time.
Here's her slideshow!

Here's Don and Joy amongst the bubbles and laughter... //photo by Kyle

Happy First Birthday Carver!

2008-04-13T19:46:00.004-04:00

Mr. W. Carver turned one year old yesterday! He's a toddler now and this year has flown by! Kyle and I were reminiscing throughout the day about what we were doing one year ago yesterday. I must have sung Happy Birthday to Carver a gazillion times and constantly looked at him and felt amazed at how much he's grown and developed in just one years time.
We threw a small party in honor of our little man at our new home (which we haven't moved into yet), but the space was perfect and our back yard was filled with laughter and smiling faces... thanks to El Woo's bubble machine! Carver was such a good boy throughout the entire party! I couldn't believe he didn't cry or feel overwhelmed at all and everyone loved how he clapped at the end of the Happy Birthday song.
Our simple first birthday menu consisted of Corropolese Bakery tomato pie and roasted pork, Carver's favorite Aunt Gina's roasted red pepper hummus and pitas, Weaver's Way Co-op veggie and fruit trays, nachos, pretzels, all sorts of beverages, and Carver's first birthday cake was a vegan carrot cake made by Kyle and I with a whole lotta love!

On to the photos...I wasn't able to photograph much of the glorious event, but I did snap a few of the kiddos and friends playing amongst the bubbles...Auntie Joy photographed all the special times during the party and I am SO GRATEFUL! Thank you Joy!! I can't wait to see them!

Kyle, Me, birthday boy, Dalton, Lauren and Brian // Photo by Joy.

Carver with his cousins from my mom's side of the family... Nini, Aisha and Priscilla (cousin Anthony was playing with the train set inside)

Endearing photo of Carver and Brian...

Carver spied mommy with her camera!

Cousin Bailey hunting for her next bubble victim.

Cousin Mason enjoyed catching bubbles.

Cousin Aisha caught in deep thought.

Cousin Nini caught picking dandelions... FYI Nini turns 5 next weekend!!

Silly Cousin Ben bearing his belly to the bubbles.

Cousin Will standing still with his mouth wide open, waiting for the bubbles to come to him.

It was so wonderful to be surrounded by all of our loved ones on such a very special day. Thank you all so very very much for everything you have done for our new little family this past year AND thank you for all the fun new gifts!

Vacation Getaway!

2008-03-26T09:59:00.007-04:00

It's been a few weeks since returning from our fabulous and very warm vacation to Naples, FL. We spent the week with my in-laws and were living life! The first day of our vacation was a bit of a travel nightmare. I forgot my luggage in the car at the Philadelphia airport (not going to explain the details of that) AND forgot my camera bag and Carver's coat in the overhead compartment on the plane! Luckily and thankfully I received ALL items a few days later! Whew!
It was hard to edit down to a few photos to post on the blog, so here are a lot of my most favorites...

Swinging at the community center playground...

Having the time of his life cruising in his 'moving seatzee'!

We took a drive to the Shell Factory, and it was like walking into a David Lynch film. This place sold EVERYTHING and anything! They displayed various stuffed animals under fluorescent lighting...

Who needs to travel to the middle east to ride a camel? Not William and Bailey!!

Ben and Will play a game of air hockey..

You could purchase an unlimited amount of yapping toy doggies...

I can't believe I had the opportunity to obtain Angelina Jolie's driver's license!

Ok, back at home now... dying Easter eggs.

Carver and I take our first dip at the beach club's pool.

Kyle and Carver at the Naples Zoo..

Carver with what Kyle calls his 'hard eyes'..

I have the habit of photographing people I don't know when I'm out and about in public places. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to capture this sweet moment between a mother and her daughter, however, I think the mother was giving me her 'hard eyes'!

During one of Carver's afternoon naps, Kyle and I lived it up in the sun..and shade.

I wish we had more photos of all of us together, in ONE photo! It seems it's always me with Carver or Kyle with Carver, but I loved this little shoot we did nonetheless.

Love, love, love this photo of Carver with his El Woo in the pool!

Here's two fun shots to end the blog, from L-R: Bailey, El Woo, Carver, William, Brad and Ben, in the hot tub.

Looking forward to hopefully doing it again next March!

Heart Melters

2008-03-09T11:05:00.010-04:00

Carver and I finally made it over to visit Auntie Lauren and her baby love on Friday. He's almost 5 weeks old already, and this is the first time I've really had the chance to spend time with Lauren since she was in the hospital. Carver and I had be in perfect health before heading over, it's been quite the nasty winter season in the Kielinski household.
Lauren looked fabulous and Dalton was as sweet as could be! He loves his mommy and loves being in his sling. I was able to grab a few photos of Lauren and Dalton, while my 11 month old Carver baby was crawling all over and getting into everything, at one point he was playing with Brian's dirty smelly sneakers!
My good friend Laura also stopped by Lauren's with her 4 month old baby girl, Brooke. This was the first time I had seen Brooke and she is just the cutest baby ever! She has the biggest cheeks and when she smiles it melts your heart. It would be so nice if I lived closer to my friends, and we could see each other much more. I guess I should be happy that I don't live in another state or country though, then we really wouldn't see much of each other!
It was fun to hang out and kibbitz about motherhood, share advice and support each other. I love you guys!

Here is the very handsome, baby Dalton..

Dalton wouldn't take his darling eyes off mommy..

Carver meets Dalton for the first time and went straight for his feet!

Baby wearing is the best :)

Introducing beautiful baby Brooke at 3 1/2 months old...

I can't get enough of her cheeks!

Carver can't believe this little angel right in front of him! Love at first sight..

Playdate Wednesdays

2008-03-07T08:54:00.004-05:00

It has been a while since Carver and I made it out to Jen & Ian's for 'Playdate Wednesday'. I brought my camera along this time, and had a blast photographing the little ones (and the moms too)! It's hard to believe that we have known most of the moms and babes since Carver was 3 weeks old!! We're quickly approaching everyone's first birthdays, a few already had theirs! I can't thank Jen enough for opening her home to all of us! And to Ian who shares ALL his toys with everyone!
Here are a few of my favorites..
Carver and Jack.

This is cutie pie Baby Alex - 7 months old... on his way home, I remember meeting Alex when he was a week old!

Miss Emma - 10 months old

Miss Alex - 15 months old

Miss Alex excited with her bag of snacks..

Alex shows off her walking and snack bag grabbing abilities..

Miss Megan - 10 1/2 months old

Mama Sarah and Baby Charlie - almost 8 months old

Mama Susan and Baby Thomas - 6 1/2 months old

Mama Mary and Baby Jack - 15 months old, getting ready to leave..

Mama April and Miss Emma on their way home..

Mama Tippi and Miss Alex

Playdate hostess with the mostess Jen and baby Ian - 15 months old

Mama Michelle and Baby Josh eating lunch..

Mama Melissa and Miss Megan heading home..

We'll miss you next Wednesday while we're in Florida!

Partay! Pizza Partay!

2008-03-03T14:01:00.003-05:00

Joe's a big talker when it comes to his homemade pizza, and for good reason because it's extraordinarily delicious!
We got our first taste yesterday and Carver and I even had some more today for lunch (thanks for the doggy bag Joe)! Joy and Don were there as well, and we met Joe's new squeeze, Gwenn, for the first time too. Gwenn was so sweet and even gave me great advice about making sure to carpet below Carver's crib and put a gate at his bedroom door, for when he starts climbing and/ or falling out of his crib. I never thought of that!
We were all definitely having a great time! Not soon after we arrived, Joy's pouring her second glass of wine into her 'invisible' wine glass...

And Joe and Gwenn are making me blush!

I loved Joe's custom wine glasses.

Joy was a sweetheart and grabbed some photos of me, Kyle and Carver.

Carver loved the pizza! And he was so funny eating it like he was licking off a plate!

Action shot of Joe tossing on the pepperoni, I should have photoshopped some pepperoni in the air!

The sausage was my favorite and I usually can't stand sausage pizza.

I quickly ran over to see what Tina was laughing so hard about and it was Carver climbing over her!

Huge brownie points on the pizza party! Thanks again Joe and Gwenn!

Finally Out Of The House

2008-02-29T19:07:00.004-05:00

Today we went out briefly to meet up with my friend Bill at the Chestnut Hill Coffee Co. He's a very talented photojournalist who did a terrific job shooting our wedding. Almost two years later and at no one's fault but my own, I'm finally getting our wedding album finalized. It's going to look soooo good!

It's so nice for someone to take a photo of me with Carver for a change! Thanks Bill!

This place makes a killer chai latte! However it would have been great if they had high chairs.

One last photo of Mr. Bill.

Can't wait to see our wedding album! Thank you for giving us such gorgeous photos to remember our extraordinary day!

What To Do, What To Do?

2008-02-28T21:55:00.006-05:00

I haven't left the house much in the past few days, trying to get Carver well rested and recovering quickly from his ear infection and cold. Today I was really going stir crazy and I feel like Carver was too. It amazes me how fast a 10 month old crawling exploring baby can destroy a room! Nevertheless we had a fun time hanging out inside and of course I had my camera...

We thought the lens shade was the coolest thing ever!

I finished knitting this hat months ago, but I can't get Carver to keep it on his head for more than a minute! Cappy gave me a paw and modeled it for me.

Wow! This is the first time Carver's worn this hat for more than a minute! We made it to 3 minutes! Then it was on the floor...

He had fun attacking the sheep skin rug.

Then he had enough of me and my picture taking.

Cappy gave me some love...

Hot To Trot At 82!

2008-02-27T09:26:00.006-05:00

This past Saturday February 23rd, Rosario, my 'Dadafied', Carver's 'Pop-pop' turned 82! He was born in 1926! The cost of a first-class stamp was $0.02, The Queen of Great Britain was born, The Great Harry Houdini dies, actors Marylin Monroe, Andy Griffith, Mel Brooks were born. He's never been much for big parties or receiving gifts on his birthday, he just loves to have the family around. He doesn't even like decorated birthday cakes, just give this man a chocolate Pepperidge Farm cake and he's happy!
I don't know anyone else who lives as simply as my father. I'm sure being a child during the Great Depression has a lot to do with it. However, he's not a hoarder like I've heard other depression babies being, although come to think of it.. he does have quite a collection of cottage cheese and yogurt containers.
Anyway, I could go on and on about how fabulous I think my father is but I'll shorten it for you with just a few of his qualities.. First off he is a MASTER of pretty much ALL trades! Carpentry, masonry (brick,stone,concrete), cooking, gardening, cleaning, mending holes in pants and sewing missing buttons, drawing, painting, photography (which is how I got started), and he can fly planes!
Happy Birthday to my father, who claims that he's been around since West Chester was a prairie. I love you.

I asked my dad to scan and email me some photos of the two of us when I was a child, and here's what we got...

Here we are in Puerto Rico, I think I'm about 1 year old and my dad is 52.

Notice the brick wall we're sitting on at our home... he built it! I think I'm 3, which would make old Ro 54.

Three years old here and I totally remember this bathing suit! I loved it!
Oh man gotta love the 80's! This might be 1984, and I'm 6 or 7? I think my father still has that Mexico t-shirt! Kyle said I HAD to post this photo.

Here are some shots from his birthday gathering. In attendance were... My brother Michael, sister Gina, nephew Dominick, step-mother Amy, Kyle, Carver, Cappy and Gracy (the dogs).

Notice the kitchen cabinets and the kitchen table.. He built those!

Amy, my dad, and the popular square Pepperidge farm cake.

Amy cheering Carver up with a little song and dance. Carver wasn't feeling well with an ear infection and cold. Poor little guy.

Gina's very handsome and crafty son, Dominick, holding his handmade fabulous soap. Dominick should totally sell his soap on Etsy!

Pop-pop and Carver, Favorite Aunt Gina and Carver.

Carver with his Uncle Michael.

Last but certainly not least, Carver with Daddy.

Book Club Mamas!

2008-02-26T14:24:00.004-05:00

Last Thursday night was our third book club meeting, held at Melissa's house. I don't usually read for pleasure, or even occasionally read for pleasure, but the book club that my playgroup put together is fantastic!! There's never pressure to finish the book or even read it for that matter. It gives us a chance to get together minus our little angels and discuss whatever we want (which is usually our little angels). After an hour or so we finally talk about the book for a few minutes, which usually leads to how the book relates to our lives. The book in question was Shopaholic & Baby by Sophie Kinsella. I could barely get through the first chapter because I thought the main character was a superficial, materialistic bitch, and I had better things to do (sorry Mamas). Hey, if there was a test on the book at the book club meeting and prizes to be won, I would have finished it in a heartbeat! So I'm sorry that I can't give you a brief synopsis of the story, but rumor has it that there will be a movie coming out based on one of the Shopaholic novels.
The next book on the docket sounds interesting but may be upsetting. Can't remember the title (I'm not so good with details), but it's something about children bullying in school and how the bullied children go 'Columbine' on their classmates. On a lighter note, here are a few shots from our recent gathering..

Here is our lovely hostess Marvelous Melissa..

The ever so Exquisite Ellen..

Don't mess with the Jazzy Jen's..

Or the Marvelous Michelle and Merry Mary..

Mmmmm...wine, delicious chocolate desserts and beautiful flowers..

Looking forward to the next book club meeting ladies! Thank you Melissa for hosting this time around and for all the divine treats!

Lunar Eclipse Of The Heart...

2008-02-21T10:00:00.005-05:00

First off I would like to share that I LOVE the Moon!! I don't know what it is about the moon but no matter what phase it's in, I can't help but gaze at it and smile. Kyle and I even planned our wedding date on a full moon!
Last night I pulled myself away from American Idol to grab a few photos of the amazingly beautiful lunar eclipse!
Here's some info on the celestial event that I pulled from the Associated Press...

The next total lunar eclipse won't happen until Dec. 20, 2010 (another two years!)
A total lunar eclipse occurs when the full moon passes into Earth's shadow and is blocked from the sun's rays that normally illuminate it. During an eclipse, the sun, Earth and moon line up, leaving a darkened moon visible to observers on the night side of the planet.
The moon doesn't go black because indirect sunlight still reaches it after passing through the Earth's atmosphere (I was wondering about that myself).
Wednesday's total eclipse phase lasted nearly an hour. Earth's shadow began to blot out the moon around 10 p.m. If you missed it, there is a time to plan for another sky spectacular later this year. In August, there will be a total solar eclipse.

Just Married!

2008-02-18T09:04:00.004-05:00

I always have a fun time assisting Joe with his weddings. Heather and Royce were an incredible pair and were so willing and able to do anything we asked of them for pictures. My day started meeting up with Royce and catching him in action before heading to the church, he and his family were seriously the sweetest! We packed about 10 people in the hotel elevator when leaving for the church and Royce and his groomsmen had me laughing with their 'There's just too much sexy in this elevator' comments!
It was a great day for a wedding and I wish Heather and Royce all the best! Here are a few of my favorites from the day...

Gotta give the church organist some love, I doubt they ever make it in the wedding album.

We headed to Pennsylvania Hospital for the bridal party portraits and I'll definitely be going back in the spring for a guided tour! Here's 'new hip' Joe, holding a drawing of a hip in the surgical amphitheater.

Thanks Joe, I had a blast!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2008-02-14T13:30:00.002-05:00

We wish everyone a wonderful and happy Valentine's day today!

We made these Valentines this weekend, and Carver had a great time squishing his hand in the white paint!

Despite his bad cold, Carver still manages to motor all around!

Cappy has been so funny lately with Carver's toys and trying to get Carver to chase him around the house!

Happy Birthday Baby Dalton!

2008-02-11T10:28:00.000-05:00

My BFF Lauren gave birth to beautiful Baby Dalton..Febuary 5, 2008 weighing 8 1/2 pounds and 21 inches long!
Baby, Mom and Dad are doing fabulous!
I can't wait to see him again and again! He is too precious.

Main Street Manayunk Stroll

2008-02-03T22:56:00.000-05:00

This Super Bowl Sunday was a mild 50ish degrees in Philadelphia, so we checked out Main Street in Manayunk. I brought my camera along to document the day and came away with some fun 'journal' photographs. Today reminded me of when we get that first real warm spring day and everyone is out enjoying it.

First we stopped by Mugshots Coffee House where I met John with his two very photogenic Chihuahuas, Alice and Lucy.

In dedication to the movie boxing champion 'Rocky', I would like to title this photograph.. "Eye Of The Carver".

I've always loved the early black & white street photography of famous Philadelphia photographer, Ray Metzger, along with my all time favorite photographer 'HCB' Henri Cartier Bresson. After 13 years of shooting I'm still trying to capture my true "Decisive Moment" photograph.
Although these street shots are not decisive, I think the color is nice and if you're a conceptual thinker maybe you would get more out of them, than I.

I was trying to get this shot of a vacant store front. I loved the architecture.

One shop shuts down, another one opens. This shop is new on Main Street, called Spectrum Scientifics. I didn't get a chance to go in, but it looks like a great place to purchase all your astronomical viewing devices and Slinkys.

Ingredient Specialty Foods carried a delicious assortment of edible delights! I learned a little something about Gruyere cheese and Kyle participated in the olive oil tasting bar. He preferred the spanish olive oil out of the 3 other choices, and I purchased a gourmet chocolate and bacon candy bar. Our buddy Chris thought it tasted like a dog treat, but how would he know what a dog treat tastes like? I thought it was delicious!

The sidewalks were crowded on Main Street and lots of people were walking their dogs.

This dog wins the Biggest Dog I've Ever Seen award. I'll call him the Main Street Mastiff. Seriously, those cute Chihuahuas Alice & Lucy were smaller than this big guy's head!

During the Manayunk Arts Festival, the Artesano Iron Works gallery sets up their tent with working blacksmiths who demonstrate the intense process of making the business's beautiful iron pieces... Kyle loved their big knockers.

After countless times of driving & walking past the Manayunk Design Group storefront, we finally made our way inside! Unfortunately Carver was approaching his nap time and I wasn't able to really browse the shop's treasures. I did however snap a few interior shots and I just loved the old chandelier and their inherited cockatiel 'Tweety'. We found out that the owner and the woman working there that day, are Drexel alumni as well! They were in the graduating class of '83 and '85, I think? Frank, the owner (pictured below), salvages architectural elements of local Philadelphia buildings that have dates with the wrecking ball. You can find all these pieces of history in his shop and incorporate them into your own home or business.

This beautiful dress is at the Nicole Miller shop. Kyle, it would make lovely Valentine's Day gift... hint hint. Although, I don't know when I would wear it? Will one of my single friends get married already! A wedding that I'm not actually working at, is way overdue.

On our way down to check out the furniture shops...

We ran into friends Rachel and Scott in Pompanoosuc Mills! Carver gave them his contagious big smiles!

A Little Bit Off The Top

2008-02-03T14:35:00.000-05:00

I'm sure that at Sharkey's Cuts For Kids in Villanova, they see a fair share of moms bringing in their botched baby haircuts! I mean, I can't be the only mom out there who failed miserably at trimming up their little one's hair, can I? Thank goodness for May at this place! She was fabulous and super quick and excellent with Carver. You can't go wrong with Jeep seating plus Elmo and Friends on DVD! Although Carver didn't crack one smile for the camera, he was completely entranced by the boobtube and it was the best $20 I ever spent!

Before...

and After...

and in between...

Kaitlyn Turns One!

2008-02-03T09:34:00.000-05:00

My very beautiful and good friend Amy threw a first birthday party with friends and family for her gorgeous baby girl, Kaitlyn. It was held at the Little Gym in Frazer. All the kids had a great time and I'm sure they were ready for naps by the end of the party! According to Amy, Kaitlyn was possibly a 'little overwhelmed' by all the action, but she was trooper and her eyes lit up when it was time to blow out her birthday candles!
The babies below are all my girlfriend's babies! We've all had our children within a few years of one another, and I'm sure we're going to have more!
I love this shot of the two gorgeous mommies with their birthday babies! Carly's boy, Trey, turned one also and shared the party with Kaitlyn. Carly and Trey are on the right, and Amy and Kaitlyn are on the left.

Carver getting adjusted to all the happenings around him.

Cutey patootie, Emilia.

Laurie and a very excited Lillie!

The birthday boy, Trey!

Carver cruising.

Handsome eight month old, Luke.

Adorable eight week old, Ava.

Daddy and Carver.

Mommy and Carver.

I'm not sure if this is the first pizza eating experience for Kaitlyn, but she definitely loved the pizza!

And the finale... cake time!
Here are Scott, Kaitlyn and Amy for her very first birthday cake! A year goes by so fast!

Social Butterfly

2008-01-26T18:11:00.000-05:00

This past week has been busy in the social events category, and has flown by extra quickly because of it! Thursday we had a quick but 'eventful' visit with Jess and her 15 month old baby girl, Mischa. Carver experienced his first little kiss from Mischa! It was so adorable! He had a fantastic time playing with Mischa's toys as well, especially her dancing Dora doll! He loved how her hair moved around and he would grab and pull at it.

Mischa loves it when Jess reads to her. She would grab a book and plop right on her mommy's lap for some story time.

I've been trying to get over to visit with Jess and Mischa, since her 1st birthday in October! Hopefully this spring/summer we will get to see more of them.
Mischa is such an adorably sweet little girl who loves to dance, laugh, talk, walk and give kisses!

Next up... we spent the following day with Auntie Lauren who is expecting her bundle of joy any day now!
Carver eating a wagonwheel snack in Wagontown.

Having fun with the door on the entertainment system.

Auntie Lauren putting a movie on for the kiddos.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a few portraits of Lauren and Brian in their nursery. But I was able to snap a few 'work in progress' shots of her super crafty mother-in-law, hand painting a beautiful willow tree on the nursery wall. Paulette even made the ENTIRE crib set! Lauren picked out an understated toile fabric with a gorgeous color of light blue/green, if I were to name the color it would be 'Dreamy'. It all turned out so lovely! Lauren and Brian have worked very hard on preparing and designing the nursery, all we need is the baby...

Cappy Has A Friend For Life

2008-01-22T09:43:00.000-05:00

The days have finally arrived where Cappy and Carver can play together! I keep a very close eye on the two of them when they're playing. Cappy likes to growl and bark when he plays, but that doesn't frighten Carver one bit. Yesterday morning the two had a blast chasing after each other around the coffee table and playing tug with Cappy's teddy bear. Kyle and I are in trouble when Carver wants to run and chase Cappy all over the house. Aye dios mio!
Cappy waits for the right moment to get Carver's attention...

This is the moment...

Or maybe this is the moment...

I don't want to hear ANY comments on Carver's attire! I think he looks adorable in all his different stripes,BabyLegs and all!

BFF Lauren Is Expecting...SOON!

2008-01-21T13:53:00.000-05:00

Lauren has approximately 2 weeks until her 'estimated' due date of February 3rd. Nine months flys by when your having fun! She's feeling well and ready to give birth to baby. I am so excited for her I can't contain it!!! I can't wait to welcome her into the 'Mommy' club with open arms and tears of joy! Lauren and Brian will be terrific parents, baby to be is going to have lots of fun with their mommmy and daddy! They decided to keep the sex of the baby a surprise to them and others, leaving the excitement even more uncontrollable!
Lauren's baby shower was wonderful event a few weeks back, that came and went really fast too! It was held at The Bordley House Grille, the atmosphere and the staff were perfect.
According to how Lauren is feeling... baby could be here any day!
I apologize for my random thoughts, like I said earlier, I am extremely excited!!!

Here's a shot of the lovely and super cool parents to be at Lauren's baby shower.

Before Halloween, Carver, Lauren and I checked out the local shops at Intercourse, PA. It's a popular tourist spot in beautiful Amish country. Carver is 6 months old and Lauren is just about 6 months pregnant! We had a great time and it was uncommonly warm that day! Lauren's wearing a tank top and Carver doesn't have socks or shoes on!

I did a little belly shoot of Lauren for her baby shower invites, here is the one she chose for the invitation.

This is a silly photo montage of sorts, that I did from the day of the baby shower. I cut and paste the group into the foreground of the Bordely House Grille. This group of women have been friends for many many years and we all helped put the shower together for Lauren. However, I can't forget to mention Laura, who is not in the photo but should have been. She recently gave birth to her beautiful baby girl, Brooke, and had to get back to her motherly duties at home.

Ok, ok..I know this post is about Lauren, but I couldn't resist including a photo of me, when I was 2 weeks overdue with Carver. I was HUGE, and I was happy! This was on Kelly Drive in Philadelphia, 2 days before Carver was born.

Lauren's home this week waiting for labor to begin any day now. I'm hoping to get over there for another blooming belly shoot in her nursery before she gives birth! Here is the slideshow of her awesome baby shower.

Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's! Whew!

2008-01-02T19:42:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year! We've had a glorious past few months and are looking forward to the new year. For the Thanksgiving holiday we took the Auto Train! It was the first time for us and look forward to possibly doing it again in a few years. Carver had a great time looking out the window with Kyle and when we had dinner in the dining car, he enjoyed reaching for everything that wasn't bolted down! We had beginners luck with our car being the FIRST off the train! I wish I had video of the passengers clapping and congratulating us as we walked to our car. We were told that you could be waiting for up to an hour and a half before your car was unloaded!

At 7 months old, this was a trip full of 'firsts' for Carver. It was his first trip to Florida, first Thanksgiving, first time wearing sunscreen, first time in a pool... in a moving seatzee, in a stroller along the beach, eating watermelon, dining out and sitting in a high chair, seeing palm trees, it was even his first time getting a professional hair cut at a barber's shop!
Here are the Walter's dipping their feet in the pool...

Carver reaching for his GranAnn through the Lanai screen...

The Walter's strolling down the Naples coastline for the first time together.

Outside a barber shop minutes before Carver's first professional haircut.

Carver and El Woo sharing a few laughs before the deed.
Here's the barber prepping Carver for his first haircut. I really thought that W.C. would have been just fine with someone cutting his hair, but he wasn't! He screamed, cried and arched his back like mad. We felt so terrible but he really was in need of a trim, we just couldn't bear hearing another 'Oh She's so darling'! El Woo hopes that Carver won't remember this experience. I'm pretty sure he won't, but I've got the photos if he ever wants to be reminded.

Thanksgiving dinner was in Florida this year. I welcomed the change of warmer weather and a slowed down pace. The group was much smaller than years previous, we missed the usual crew, nonetheless we still had a great time. Dinner was delicious and we all contributed to the preparation and cooking of the lovely meal. Mama K cooked up a storm with a divine pumpkin,cinnamon soup, mashed sweet potatoes with pecans and brown sugar, baked potatoes with bacon and cheese topped with cilantro and a delicious cranberry relish! Kyle did his usual and cooked the turkey perfectly, and I made a light arugula salad with pomegranate and toasted pecans with a light vinaigrette dressing.
The table was beautiful!! I can't say we ever had pumpkin soup served to us in pumpkin bowls! They were too cute!

While visiting Mama and Papa K, we ate at 3 beach front restaurants! They were all fabulous too! I've only got photos from 2 out of 3 places though...
Here we are at La Playa Beach & Golf Resort in Naples' Baleen restaurant.

Then the next day we went to HB's On The Gulf at The Naples Beach Hotel & Gulf Club. The lunch there was amazing! I had their Tomato Bisque and their Jamaican Pineapple Boat. I hope we get the chance to eat there again next time we visit! If you check out the link to the hotel (above) we sat exactly where that couple's dining in the sunset!

Before we knew it was Carver's 1st Christmas! We had a wonderful Christmas with both our families and ate until we were way past our 'stuffed' point! Christmas eve afternoon was spent at my father's home. Carver was pasted around by all and interacted lovely with the entire family! It blows my mind to see him interacting with people now!
Our Christmas cards went out with these two photos included in them. You wouldn't know it, but Carver had a terrible cold during this photo shoot. He still had a great time though! I knitted his hat especially for these photographs. The pattern is called 'Candy Cane' from a fabulous baby knits book called Itty-Bitty Hats, by Susan B. Anderson.

Here is a typical scene in the Messina kitchen! My father made the kitchen table at least 40 years ago, and every family member (except my mom & dad) has been photographed when they were baby's sitting on it!

All the grandchildren... Mikey, Kenny, Carver and Dominick

The oldest grandson holding the youngest grandson!

Well, here we all are (minus my brother Tony, and Kyle-who took the photo)! Even the crazy dogs, Gracie and Cappy!
Santa meets Carver for the first time and they hit it off wonderfully!

The Walter's and their train set Christmas day. El Woo may finally have a grandchild who loves model trains as much as he does!

I shot more video footage than photographs this Christmas, but our Uncle John was sure to capture some fun moments of Carver on this special day.

Cappy was pooped out by all the running around and playing with the children...

Couldn't pass up the opportunity to photograph father, son and grandson.

The most beautiful Christmas tree ever!

Aunt Joan and Uncle John serving up bread and butter with a smile!

New Year's Eve was very low key. So low key, I've got no photos to show for it! However if you check out Joy's blog you can see it in photos. Joy was good about breaking out the camera! Joy and Don came over and we watched Kyle and Don play Guitar Hero on the Xbox. That was pretty hilarious! And Joy and I checked out website templates, talked about photography, played with her new Nikon D300 (which is awesome!), and really enjoyed each other's company. Kyle and I had planned to just hang out solo, but it was great to have Joy and Don spend the last few hours of 2007 with us.

Family Fun Time

2007-11-19T20:35:00.000-05:00

Kyle and I have an unbelievable amount of photos of baby Carver, but hardly a dozen of all three of us together, so BFF Joy did a family portrait shoot on Saturday. I'm getting a taste of my own medicine waiting to see all the fabulous photos she took from the shoot! The suspense is killing me! Here's the photo she's teased us with on her blog until she finishes putting together the slideshow...

Here's Joy in action during Carver's bath time.

We had such a fun time and Carver was whooped when his nap time came around! Joy came over a little before Carver woke from his morning nap (around 10am) and captured all the fun times before his next nap 2 hours later! Carver was a total ham smiling and posing for the camera. Kyle and I did our share of hamming too! When she finishes the slideshow I'll be sure to share with my friends and family. Thank you so much Joy, your talents will be cherished forever!

Laura's Blooming Belly

2007-11-05T13:22:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday I visited with my friends Laura and Scott. I can't believe we have been friends for over 10 years, boy time flys! They are due to have their angel in about 4 weeks! The baby was super active and it brought back memories watching her beautiful belly move around. It was fun to talk about our pregnancies and our expectations of labor and birth. Laura is an extremely strong and beautiful caring woman who is about to experience the most amazing event of her life!

Laura and Scott are always laughing!

Here are a few shots of her in the nursery.

Friday Field Trip!

2007-11-02T21:43:00.000-04:00

Today was our first Friday Field Trip with the Lankenau hospital mommies and babies. Carver and I started going to the Lankenau Mommy & Me group when he was 3 weeks old and we made fabulous friends with some wonderfully sweet moms and babies! We have started a little thing we like to call Friday Field Trips. So far there have been two field trips, and hopefully there will be many more to come! Thanks to Laura's father-in-law who volunteers at Longwood Gardens who generously offered a bunch to Laura, who in turn offered them to LUCKY us!
It was a gorgeous autumn day for a brand spankin' new Children's Garden outing! The garden was incredible, and I can only imagine how much fun Carver will have when he's running around! We were all there for a good part of the day and the babies were hanging in there for as long as they could, their nap schedules were getting the best of them!
Thank you so much again to Laura and Luke! We really had a wonderful time and hope to make it back to Longwood with dear old daddy.
Here's the slideshow I promised! It was pretty tricky taking photographs and holding a baby at the same time but preserving these memories are well worth it! When and where is the next field trip!?
I think the ladies are looking for the closest restroom.

Laura and sleeping 3 1/2 month old cutey Lukey.

My Carverlicious!

Happy Halloween!

2007-10-31T14:58:00.000-04:00

From the World's Strongest Baby!!

New Mexico Sweater Shoot!

2007-10-30T19:27:00.001-04:00

Since today was such a beautiful day Carver, Cappy and I had a little photo shoot at the park. BFF Joy had gotten this super adorable sweater from her home state of New Mexico. When I got it at my baby shower it was a gift I couldn't wait to put on my baby! It has little alpacas on it and a cute little cactus on the back! And it's GREEN, one of my favorite colors! Here's a few shots out of about 100 that I took!

Visit From Great Abuela!

2007-10-30T16:57:00.000-04:00

Carver's great abuela (grandmother), along with titi Leca and tio Papo (aunt & uncle), are in town visiting from the beautiful island of Puerto Rico! My mom brought everyone over for a little visit today. We walked to the park around the corner from our house and I took some quick shots of them with Carver in his tiger costume. My grandmother has got to be the sweetest abuela there is! I wish we could see her more often, and I wish I could speak better spanish because that's all she speaks. Hopefully this winter we will visit her at her house... in Puerto Rico!
Abuela Carmen, Tio Papo, Titi Leca
Abuela having fun with Carver on the swing.

My little tigre.

Carver and Titi Leca

Linvilla Orchard Visit

2007-10-28T20:55:00.000-04:00

Today was a great day for a Halloween parade and orchard visit! We did both in one shot at Linvilla Orchard. It was our first time visiting and it sure won't be our last! This place was so much fun! If it hadn't been so windy the weather would have been perfect. The gusts made it feel pretty chilly. Carver would have benefited from a pair of little mittens - which reminds me, I need to knit him a pair.
My dad and his wife Amy met us there, so did my BFF Erin with her super cute daughter Stella and boyfriend Raphael.
We watched a little of the Halloween parade, checked out Pumpkinland, the 'no petting' zoo, and ended the visit by devouring some delicious treats. Their hot apple cider was a yummy, anti-wind cure all!

The World's Strongest Baby sitting on a pile of little gourds and wearing a knitted hat I just finished for him!

Stellita Sandwich!

Carver on a bed of pumpkins. In the background you can see how busy this orchard was today!

Kyle and Carver were so adorable, I love seeing the two of them palling around!

Amy can always make Carver laugh! Here they were dancing together.

Amy, Pop-pop, Me and Carver.

Stella is just too cute for words!

Lillie Turns 2!

2007-10-27T19:30:00.000-04:00

Today was Lillie's second birthday party! Laurie was a fantastic hostess! All the little babes were sent home with goodie bags and a little pumpkin! Thank you so much Laurie and Joe! Carver and I had a lot of fun, and it was so nice to see my friends' with their little ones too!
Three of my friends who were there, are also expecting their first babies soon! Lillie's third birthday party is going to be a baby bonanza!
Here is the beautiful birthday girl / Ladybug, and her fabulous mommy.

Lillie's little sister...the one and only 4 month old cutey patooty, Emilia!

Carver, Lillie and precious 9 month old Kaitlyn.

Carver flirting with all the pregnant ladies!
Too cute for words, Kaitlyn.
This was the last time I saw Kaitlyn! She was only 2 days old!
Proud mommy and baby on their way home.
Now that Laurie is a mother of two gorgeous little girls, she has an excuse to wear a shirt only a 'Mom' would wear... She promised to get each one of us a shirt just like it!
Here's a shot I couldn't pass up. Baby Emilia sound asleep on her pop-pop.
My BFF Lauren, as a glowing 6 month pregnant woman.

Baby Josh

2007-10-23T18:27:00.000-04:00

Carver and I usually see baby Josh and our other baby friends, on Wednesdays for our weekly baby playdate at Jen's beautiful home.

Saturday I had the pleasure of hanging out and having my very first baby portrait session with cutey Josh and his mom and dad, Michelle and Matt. Josh was so adorable in his little button up shirt and jeans! He was so observant and would smile and laugh with just a glance at his mom and dad. I had such a great time! Michelle and Matt were fabulous with Josh, and I didn't have to direct them to do a thing!
I put together a slideshow to show them a few of my favorites from our day.

Here's a photograph from July at Jen and Ian's house for our weekly playdate. We now have about 6 new mommy's and babies since then! The babies range from ages 2 to 10 months! Carver and I can't wait to go tomorrow!

Six Months Old Already?!

2007-10-17T09:46:00.000-04:00

Carver turned six months old on October 12th! This month has been full of milestones for our little bear. He sprouted his first tooth. Now his second is coming in, too! He's learning to sit up on his own. He falls asleep by himself for bedtime and naps - this one is HUGE! This month he also started eating solids - well kinda solid, watery rice cereal. Next week he'll taste his first banana! Yes, the grandparents are thrilled that he is finally eating more than breast milk! Especially my mom, who can't wait to feed him her delicious rice and beans. Oh! He also had his second haircut! It was a family affair giving him that one-of-a-kind style, Kyle and I started by trimming the back, and then the next day Kyle and his father trimmed up the sides.
Carver is growing up so fast, it's really been amazing to watch this little love child grow up.
Here is the big boy for his first photo with him sitting up for the camera.

Yesterday we had fun banging on the bongos!

All finished with the gooey rice cereal. I think he ended up with more on his face than in his stomach!

Carver is not one to hide excitement. After dinner he took his bib and swung it around a few times.
Auntie Joy stopped by for a visit yesterday afternoon, after her super cool haircut!

Cappy has been incredible with Carver. He loves him just as much as Kyle and I do.
These mums held up so well after a beating from Carver! He had a blast playing with the flowers.

Beautiful Name

2007-10-12T07:40:00.000-04:00

Ava Grace, a beautiful name for a beautiful baby. Yesterday Carver and I had our first visit with 6 week old Ava and proud parents Holly and Bill. Oh, I can't forget their dog Puddy! She was a sweetheart and covered Carver with wet doggie kisses! I couldn't believe that Carver was ever that little! Holly and Ava were perfect hostesses. They allowed me to leave with some precious memories of our visit. Thank you to Bill for the delicious homemade split pea soup, especially on yesterday's rainy day!

Back On The Horse!

2007-10-08T21:51:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Joe, and my terrific husband Kyle, I was able to spend the day doing what I love! Second shooting for Joe is always a blast! He has the best down-to-earth personality and the best humor of any photographer I have worked with. Two weekends ago we photographed Terri & Steve's wedding. They were an awesome couple, and I really couldn't have asked for a more pleasant pair to photograph on my first day working 'post-baby'!
I thought I would share some of my favorite shots from the day...

This Saturday I'm working with Joe again, the wedding reception ends at 3pm and he said I could wear Carver on my back and shoot! I think I may just do that. Stay tuned for photos of that craziness!

Happy Wedding Anniversaries!!

2007-10-08T19:19:00.000-04:00

October was a popular month to be wed! I wanted to give a belated Happy 2nd wedding anniversary to my BFF Lauren and her husband Brian! Also while going through the photos that Kyle took at Lauren's wedding, I came across Kyle's BFF Greg and his wife Caitlin's wedding photos that I shot! Happy 3rd wedding anniversary to you! And... Happy wedding anniversary to Laura and Scott too! I'm still searching for your wedding photos...
Lauren and Brian after their quick 15 minute ceremony.Beautiful bride Mrs. Lauren F.!This is the beautiful Mrs. Caitlin B.
I loved Caitlin's choice in bridesmaids dresses and flower colors!

Kyle was in the wedding party.

I bet Caitlin loved this picture of the two of them.

Laura's Baby Shower!

2007-10-05T09:56:00.000-04:00

Last weekend was my good friend Laura's baby shower! She's due to have little baby G in November! I am so excited for her and her super sweet husband Scott, they are going to be spectacular parents! I've known Laura since the 6th grade and Scott since High School! When they were married in October of 2004, I was thrilled when they asked me to photograph their wedding. It's so awesome to be there for their baby shower and soon I'll be doing some Blooming Belly portraits of her too!
The shower was at a cute new restaurant in West Chester called Butterfish. The shower was hosted by family and friends and some of her closest gal pals contributed with various goodies for the event. Olivia baked a pile of delicious rasberrry/ blueberry lemon pound cakes, which I overheard was Kelli's recipe (or idea). Lauren put the gorgeous floral arrangements together, Amy searched all over West Chester to find the best location, and forgive me if I don't know what everyone else did. Feel free to leave a blog comment if you wish;)
It was a beautiful day for a beautiful Soon-To-Be Mama! Thank you so much for having me!
At Laura's Bridal Shower I found out that Laura and Scott fell in love at a James Taylor concert, so what better tune to put the slideshow to than a JT tune!

Michael & Nina Are Married!

2007-10-02T15:43:00.000-04:00

Two weeks ago Kyle, Carver and myself packed up and headed out to San Francisco, California for a wedding. Michael, the brother of my BFF Lauren, asked if I would photograph his wedding. I've known Michael and just about his entire family since Lauren and I became friends in the 7th grade! I was honored and thrilled to be a part of his & his fiancee Nina's special day. Kyle was a huge help with setting up lights and taking care of Carver while I photographed the event, he even helped out with covering some of the interior shots!
Michael and Nina were the most laid back couple I had ever seen on their wedding day! Bride's don't get any more beautiful than Nina. She was a natural beauty and so easy going! Best Wishes to you both!
Enjoy your slideshow!

Carver's First Tooth!

2007-10-01T14:22:00.000-04:00

September has been fabulous and very busy! We traveled across the country, photographed a gorgeous wedding in San Francisco, did some wine tasting. Carver learned how to roll over and over and over, reaching and grabbing anything that comes in his view, caught his first cold, and laughed uncontrollably through it all! I photographed a wedding with Joe this past Saturday(first time being away from Carver for more than a minute), and went to my good friend Laura's baby shower on Sunday! I'll be posting all sorts of things in the weeks to come...
I just wanted to post a quick little blog to mark Carver's first tooth appearance! Kyle and I are super excited for our little guy! He's growing up so fast.

Jack and Charlie Visit

2007-09-05T20:29:00.000-04:00

Jaclyn, Jackie, Japalicious, Swoop Deville are all names Jack will respond to. She has been one of my most bestest friends since college, and is on her way to fulfill one of her life long dreams of traveling all over Europe! For 3 months (maybe longer if they find jobs) she'll be adventuring with her very cute boyfriend Charlie. I was so happy that they were able to stop by and say hello before leaving. Carver and I were on our way to Forbidden Drive for a little walk and they happily joined us.
We came across these beautiful boulders surrounded by green and I asked them to stand by them for a portrait. Charlie decided to climb into the boulder and perch himself on an exterior tree root and Jack joined him.
Carver is not shy at all and has no problem invading her personal space. I'm pretty sure Aunt Jackie didn't mind.
Jackie hanging out with Carver and Cappy while Charlie and I went to the Valley Green Inn for some cold beverages.
Here's Jackie a minute after arriving to our house. They drove to PA from Texas in this old Toyota truck. Charlie bought it for only $200 and fixed it up well enough to make it cross country TWICE!
And here's Jackie with her arm caught in the window. She accidently locked the keys in the truck. She said they never locked the doors in Texas and she got all discombobulated. Thank goodness she left the window cracked!
I posted this photo because Jack thinks theres nothing sexier than seeing a good looking man holding a baby. Whoever Jack has babies with is really going to have his hands full;)
Last but not least... Me, Carver and Jack. When we would go out together, people always thought we were sisters and we never corrected them...
Safe travels Jackie and Charlie!! I can't wait to hear all about your adventures when you return! I love you girl!!

Summer's Over All Ready?

2007-09-04T12:59:00.000-04:00

This past weekend was fabulous! Our good friends Luke & Kate got lucky and rented a great house (for a great price) last minute in Ocean City, NJ. We headed down late Saturday morning and met up with Luke, Kate and their adorable 1 1/2 year old son Lowen. Coming in right after us were the Fantastic Four... Shane, Cynthia, cutie pie 4 year old Emma, and her handsome 1 1/2 year old sidekick Sammy! Kyle, Carver and I had such a great time with everyone and it was nice to spend some time with the kids, because we don't see them as often as we would like. I managed to get some time to myself for about a half hour on the beach. It was amazing!! I photographed the families hanging out and playing in the ocean before heading back to the house to feed Carver. After the day at the beach we all took a stroll on the boardwalk and had pizza from Mack and Manco's. Carver and I got up early every morning and checked out the sunrise from the house's roofdeck, and Kyle joined us for an early morning walk on the beach on Sunday. Shane, Cynthia, Emma and Sammy went to the amusement park rides on the boardwalk Sunday, I wish I could have been there to photograph that! Well, between Kyle and myself I think we did a pretty good job at documenting the weekend. I put together a slideshow for all to enjoy!

It's Whats For Dinner!

2007-08-21T16:21:00.000-04:00

Pineapple upside-down cake! No seriously though, if Kyle wasn't making his award winning knockout chili tonight, pineapple upside down cake would be for dinner!

Hibernia Park

2007-08-19T15:25:00.000-04:00

We couldn't have asked for more gorgeous weather yesterday! As my bestfriend Jackie would say 'It's southern California weather!' We packed up the car, headed out to West Chester to pick up my mom and then we were off to find something to do outside. Hibernia Park isn't too far from West Chester so we decided to check it out and do a little walking around. Kyle was excited to test out his latest baby wearing device, the Baby Bjorn. I'm personally not a fan of the bjorn, I prefer my wrap, but Kyle refuses to wear the wrap because it's not 'manly' enough. Anyway, we took a guided tour through the Hibernia mansion, hoping to capture some ghost 'orbs' I took photos of a few antique items and some room shots. Unfortunately I didn't get any orbs in my pictures, but did get some cute shots of Kyle wearing Carver. Tours like this make me appreciate living in the 21st century. Simple daily activities like going to the bathroom outside or in a chair with a little bucket on it, ironing with a hot piece of iron, and wearing multiple layers of clothing on a hot day certainly isn't my idea of a good time.

Here is the Hibernia mansion. Claudia, the tour guide, told me that the bright yellow was the original color of the home.

The two loves of my life...
Claudia the tour guide, standing in front of the original front door and standing on an extremely old woven rug that the county obtained a generous donation to have it recreated!
I thought this was a beautiful door knocker, and the mansion had TWO of them!
Original Victorian baby booties. I couldn't imagine having to button those up on a squirmy little baby.
Antique clothes iron, I played around with the equalizer function in photoshop with this shot.
The motley crew.
Super intricate handmade quilt signed and dated from the late 1800's.

Gammy's Birthday Bash

2007-08-19T14:50:00.000-04:00

It's been over a month since Gammy's 84th birthday, and I finally got the (fairly long )slideshow together of photos that Kyle and I took during the day. Between the two of us we shot over 300 images, but I edited down to 60 or so, for the show! Gammy is such a sweet grandmother and great-grandmother and is always smiling! We had fabulous weather and lots of delicious barbeque goodness to feast upon! I've got Joan to thank for putting the flame under my arse to get this posted.

Enjoy the slideshow!

Cappy In All His Puppiness

2007-08-08T09:13:00.000-04:00

For the past few days I've been going through old image files looking for website material. I came across the photos Kyle and I took of the day we picked up our beloved friend and family member Cappy. We had forgotten how small and cute he was! Now Cappy is 2 years old and has his share of crazy stories to tell the boys! Here's to many many more Cappy years to come...

This is our favorite portrait of Cappy, taken last fall.

Emma's Army

2007-07-27T12:12:00.000-04:00

I pulled this from Emma's Care Page....

I'M CALLING OUT TO MOBILIZE EMMA'S ARMY! It is summertime, which means its time for lemonade! The 2nd Annual Alex's Lemonade Stand in Honor of Emma Johnson is going to be held on Saturday, August 25th 10am-4pm at the Hershey Recreation Center (605 Cocoa Avenue, Hershey, PA). Last year's event will be hard to top, but we are determined to make it even bigger and better. All proceeds will go to Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, a unique foundation that has evolved from a young cancer patient's front yard lemonade stand to a nationwide fundraising movement for childhood cancer. Alex Scott had the same deadly cancer as Emma, neuroblastoma. She is truly a hero and an inspiration in the Johnson household. She said, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!"

If you aren't local or can't make the lemonade stand, PLEASE DONATE ONLINE. Donations will be credited to Emma's Army. Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation uses its donations to fund research to find cures for pediatric cancer. About 12,500 children are diagnosed with cancer every year in the US, and 2,300 die every year. That's more children dying of cancer every year than from cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, asthma, and HIV/AIDS combined, making cancer the leading cause of death in children 1-17. Now this is why organizations like Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation is important... the government's budget for cancer research in 2003 was $4.6 billion. 12% was allocated to breast cancer, 7% to prostate cancer, but all 12 major pediatric cancers COMBINED got LESS THAN 3%, and <0.5% went to neuroblastoma. So we can't just count on the government to fight this battle for our children. Last year Emma's army raised over $35,000 for pediatric cancer research, that means Emma's experience has made a difference in helping find a cure for children with cancer. Let's do it again!!

Emma is doing great. She is eating completely independently (no IV nutrition/TPN and no feeding tube!), and actually has a pretty good appetite! Her platelets are a bit of a problem, though. Attempts at getting her off the steroids (which help keep her platelet levels up) have not been successful, but we are optimistic that will get better. Emma is planning on participating in a soccer camp next month, so she better get some good platelets going by then!

The lemonade stand is held at the local Hershey recreation center which has a great playground! There are great raffle prizes (one being a FREE photography portrait session with me), last year our buddy Luke won a skateboard from FinalBoarding, and there were delicious baked goods galore which you could wash down with an ice cold lemonade! It's an event not to be missed!!!

Painted Portrait

2007-07-26T08:47:00.000-04:00

An illustration was needed to accompany a story on breastfeeding for theADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners magazine, and our extremely talented and very good friend Mr. Paul Palcko, painted this beautiful portrait of me nursing Carver! He painted it from a photograph that Kyle took of us last month. Paul, La Leche League would be proud! I just love it!

Holly's Blooming Belly On The Beach!

2007-07-24T11:48:00.000-04:00

This past weekend we packed up the wagon and headed down to Stone Harbor, NJ! I didn't know what to expect from Carver with our long drive and all but he was pretty good until we hit traffic on Rt. 47! He cried during the last 45 minutes of the trip and Kyle held his composure by allowing himself to go to his 'happy place'.
When we arrived at the shore the weather couldn't have been more picture perfect, for a blooming belly portrait session on the beach!
Holly's family was super cool and super friendly! They treated everyone to a delicious surf & turf dinner with loads of crab and Holly's husband Bill, grilled up two mean steaks a beer chicken and some good ol' grilled zuchinni!
Holly was in her element while strolling along the beach early in the morning, Bill was a great sport by jumping in a few of the shots too! We also had an impromptu photo shoot with 18 month old cutie pie Sierra, her mom Betsy and Mom-Mom Joey! We had a blast! Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful home and wonderful food!

Ooh La La... Longwood Gardens!

2007-07-16T13:02:00.000-04:00

Longwood Gardens has always been a favorite place to visit for me since I was a little girl. Now I can make new memories with my husband and son, what a better year to visit than the year the 'Century' plant blooms!
If Carver has a family, his children will be able to bring their children to see the century plant in bloom!

Unfortunately, we were unable to spend as much time as I would have liked at the gardens, the weather was just too warm for walking around with Carver. We spent most of our time in the conservatories and under trees. Here Carver stops with Kyle to take a closer look at a beautiful hibiscus, and strolls under the trees by the main fountains with me.

The topiary garden was looking great! We especially loved this bush sheared to look like a dog!

If you live in the area, I highly recommend visiting these majestic gardens! We may just make another trip out there before the summer is over.

For He's A Jolly Good Fellow!

2007-07-04T11:12:00.000-04:00

Cappy might as well be wearing a red cape and blue tights, because we swear he is a superdog! He's going to be just fine, a little sore but just fine! Yay! Last night he wanted Kyle and I to throw his squeeky ball around for him, and during the day he did his usual daily sunbathing on the back deck!
Thank you to all who sent him well wishes and did little get well dances. Your thoughts and prayers worked! And I can't forget Dr. Cady Lyons and the whole staff at the Hickory Veterinary Hospital, Kyle loved how he was able to hang out with Cappy while waiting for blood test results and thought that Dr. Lyons was great! She even remembered Cappy from his body wall hernia operation last year.
You can't deny that Cappy is a jolly good fellow!

Hang In There Little Buddy

2007-07-02T14:48:00.000-04:00

Cappy the dog had a fantastic time yesterday at Gammy's birthday festivities. He ran around with the kids, chased balls, swam in the pool and frolicked among the lillies. It was great to see our best buddy prancing around all day!
To make a long story short... Later on yesterday as the party was close to ending, Cappy was kicked by a horse. Kyle rushed him to the Frazer Animal Hospital and waited 3 hours for him to be released. The doctors couldn't find anything seriously wrong (like broken bones) but they didn't rule out any internal damage. We were told to look out for certain symptoms that would cause alarm, and today I noticed one symptom. He had blood in his stool. That's not a good sign, so now Kyle is rushing home to take Cappy to the Hickory Animal Hospital in Plymouth Meeting. We love our little dog so much, and we know that there are a lot of Cappy fans out there. I just wanted to let you all know about this event, and I'll keep you all posted on his condition. Please say some prayers, keep your fingers crossed, do a little 'get well' dance, send your good and strong energy his way! He's going to need it...
We Love you CappyDog!