October 31, 2009

the wicked witch of the wind....

how lucky am I
to live close enough
to see my niece
use all of her magical powers
to keep her scary black hat on
before she climbed on her broom
and
flew away
?
very lucky
I think
*

October 30, 2009

this is as scary as gets around our house...

I'm not dressing up for halloween this year
~actually I can't remember the last time I did~
but
I decided to dress up this photo instead
~~
when my hubby first looked at it
he thought it was fake
and
with a sly smile on his face
and
an eyebrow raised into the shape of a question mark
said
"you totally added that bird in there"
~~
I rolled my eyes at him
gave him the cold shoulder
and
went back to my files
to find the original photo
just so I could whack him over the head with it
~~

the photo above is the original
and
the one below
well
that's a dancing bird photo
and
my hubby
he's fine
I didn't hit him that hard
*

October 29, 2009

I should know what I'm doing...

but
I feel like I'm all thumbs
~~
I went to school for dental assisting when I was 18
then
worked as assistant off and on for 8 years
while specializing in ortho
and
now that I'm 45
you'd think it would be like a riding a bike
~~
but no
instead I feel like I've never seen the inside a mouth before
~~
my daughter had her wisdom teeth out years ago
and
it all went pretty well
and
really I don't remember any of it
except assisting the doctor on a sunday morning
for an emergency visit
when she got a blood clot the size of a golf ball
and
he couldn't get one of his girls to come in
~lucky me~
~~
but
now my son just had his wisdom teeth out yesterday
and
the bloody gauze and ice packs
and
him pale from not eating
and
him not eating because it hurts
and
it hurting because he's not eating so I can't give him his pain medication
arrghhhhh
~~
gosh I love being a mom
edited
he finally ate and wouldn't stop and I got his medicine into him
and
he slept through the night
~
maybe
this won't be so bad after all


so how's your day
?
~~~~~
and
ummm yes, I know these photos have nothing to do with wisdom teeth, but with
halloween this weekend and a gazillion pumpkin photos that I took
well, you know
~
~anyone else gagging over all christmas displays in all the stores already
or is just me~
*

October 28, 2009

a little look...

at the sweet girl who lives across the street from me
whose brown eyes you could fall into
and
whose smile is infectious
~~
at the end of our shoot
~about 250 pictures later~
she said
"sure"
when I asked her if she would do
a few
"beth thinks she can do anthropolgie"
photos
using my vintage suitcase
~~
I think she nailed them
now if only I could find
50 more girls
just like her
*
I've been busy editing photos from the three shoots before this one
~a few are over at ruby luna photography~
but
I can't wait to start playing with these
~
we lucked out with an afternoon where the sun came out
at just the right time
and
gave us a perfect day
~~
which for our october this year
was a huge gift
*


October 27, 2009

sunday in the park...

the park benches were empty
and
looked sad
~~
the picnic tables
looked like they missed having sticky popsicle hands all over them

the lake
looked beautiful and tough
like she was gritting her teeth knowing soon she would be fighting with winter
~~
although
I did see her smile a few times
when the clouds and the sun
~running hand in hand~
came out for a game of marco polo

the swings stood still
like they were sleeping
not letting even the slightest breeze push them around

and
as I walked away
the benches and the tables and the lake and the swings
all started to sing
and
even though it was a sad song and their voices cracked a little
I think I heard them say
"don't forget about us"
*

October 26, 2009

I don't ever want to judge...do you ?

I heard their laughter first
from across the pond
~~
then
as I approached them
they ignored me
the same way I think most adults ignore a group of kids like this
~~
kids who look like trouble
the baggie jeans with their boxers hanging out
girls who think they look tough
with their eyes smothered in thick black eye liner
smoking to look cool
and
hooded sweatshirts with the hoods up
that we often take as
"don't even think about getting too close to us"
and
so we don't
~~
I walked right up to them and asked if I could take their pictures
and
they all smiled and asked me why
~~
I told them that I love real life photography
and
that they were the best thing I had seen all day
and
everyone of those tough faces
smiled
right at me
and
their eyes sparkled
I told them that I couldn't take photos of their faces
due to the fact that a parent might not want a complete stranger
photographing their children
and
they seemed to understand
they wanted to know what they should do
and
I said just be yourselves
~~
so they laughed
and
hugged
and
kept looking over their shoulder at me
~~
one of the girls said she felt like a celebrity
and
that I was the paparazzi
coming out of nowhere to take her photo
~~
it was one of the best compliments I've ever received
when I was almost done
I told them about my jumping photos
and
their excitement was tangible
as they ran over towards me
while I walked a little closer to the pond
~~
they practiced
they laughed
they competed to see who could jump the highest
and
then they thanked me with loud voices of
"this was great"
~~
I said
thank you
for being such great kids
*
give kids like this a chance...I have a teenager close to their same ages and he wears
a black hoodie and also thought smoking made him look cool
but
he wouldn't hurt a fly and almost everyday
has a heart larger than life
~~
maybe this is why I was so comfortable in the park with these kids
who knows
~~
just remember
they're kids
who maybe have parents too busy to notice that they aren't even home from school yet
or haven't had a hug or been told "I love you" in months
or even heard
good morning...have a great day at school...got everything you need
in weeks
~~
i think all of us can make a difference
in the lives of the kids who others ignore
and
the surprising part
is the difference they can make in yours
*


October 25, 2009

it was just sitting there...

I look for them all the time
those abandoned doors and windows
held together by walls that once had a voice
~~
but
sometimes I like to think that they find me
~~
this one was loved
I can tell
because
it's the shade of pink that your cheeks become
after a long walk in the dried fields
while
hand in hand
with your lover
~~
not pink
because the sun has soaked the typical and always blaring red right out of it
but pink
because somebody cared
~~
it is still on a lived in property
at the bottom of a hill where the grass is calf high
near a slight bend in the road
and
where I'm guessing
laughter fills the main house during the day
and
the lights come on at night
~~
my sister has passed this
"there must be a story here"
building
many times
as it's on the way to her friends house
yet
she's never really given it any thought
~~
yesterday was my first time to see it
and
I was instantly drawn to it
the way I always am with these left behind buildings

the sun
was warm and understanding
while
it painted with long brushstrokes
~what I want to believe was a guest house or a child's playhouse~
simple
weak layers of white
that cast ghostly like shadows
~~
someday I'll go back
when I can spend a little more time
and
see if it has anything to tell me
*

October 24, 2009

I agree...

it's hard enough to have your picture taken when you're a little bit shy
and
just turning a year old
but
then they throw you on top of a pumpkin the size of a whale
and
expect you to smile
~~
if he could have spoken I think I would have heard
"come on people
give me a break"
*


October 23, 2009

monkeys, I tell you...a family of monkeys....

and
I'm so lucky to be related to them
remember the sneak peek of my sister up in the tree
?
well
here are a few more photos from that shoot
~~
I've been a little busy and have two photo consults ahead of them
before I can dive completely into all their photos
but
I just had to play around a little bit
with a few of them
because
well because
she's my sister

one of the best parts of the shoot
was that my hubby had my old camera
and
was shooting over my shoulder at what I was shooting at
or as I found out later
right at me
with
my 80-200mm lens
and
caught me in the act of catching these tree monkeys

so
these are some of the photos I took
except the ones that I'm in
~duh~
but
just wait until I show you some photos that the hubby got
~~
he's good
he's really really good
and
now I think he's going to have to stop carrying my camera bag for me
because he's sweet like that
and
instead
I'll have to hire him
*


October 22, 2009

I see, I feel, I hear

the shadows
danced perfectly in the woods yesterday
like they had spent hours in a front of mirror practicing for just the right moment
the sun
glistened off the dried blades of grass
like a warm layer of lotion trying to smooth out the wrinkles
the leaves
that had lost their ability to hang on weeks ago
danced under my feet even though I thought their music sounded sad

the glass covered lake
ignored the geese that were finding last minute landing spots
acting as if it were an inn that was closing up early for the winter

and
the walnuts
fell from the highest of trees
letting out little sighs on their way down
somehow knowing this was the end
for them
*

October 21, 2009

because there isn't always enough room....

I've made a little spot
for some of my favorite photos
because
sometimes they just need a home of their own
~~
remember these munchkins
?
~~
you can see a few more photos of them
over here
at
*

October 20, 2009

she doesn't really know me, know me

but she likes me and my blog
and
I feel the same way about her
~~
lisa is an amazing mom to two adorable boys
that keep her moving all day and night
and
somewhere in her busy days
filled with sticky hands and wet kisses
she makes jewelry
~~
really really beautiful jewelry
made from her heart
with words or pictures that are simple
yet say and mean so much
~~
I've been reading lisa's blog pretty much forever now
and
it seems like I ask her lots of questions
~which by the way she always answers~
~~
after one of my last comments to her
she sent me a personal email and I decided I just had to share her
and
her jewelry
with all my blog loves
~that's you guys~
~~
she sent me this necklace
with my word for next year
~remember I don't do a new year's resolution anymore~
~just a single word~
just because she's nice that way
and
when her package arrived in the mail
~which is as beautiful as her jewelry~
I was blown away
~~
I am in love with this necklace
and
in love once again
with how this blogging world
~in so many little ways that have filled my heart~
has changed my life
~~

the community
the tribe
the connection
that I feel and see
and
am part of everyday
continues to amaze me beyond words
~~
so today my blog loves
please visit lisa
and
fall in love with her and her family
and
her jewelry
all of which she is so incredibly passionate about
and
tell her I sent you
~~
you won't be disappointed
I promise
*
lisa is giving all my blog loves a discount this week on anything you order
~
just use
beyourself
as the discount code when ordering and save 15% on your purchases
~
I told you she was great
*

October 19, 2009

it's in our genes....

to be silly and goofy
and
climb trees
~~
this is my sister
~
my hubby and I did their family photo shoot yesterday
and
laughed until our eyes filled with tears
~~
there's something special about photographing family
~
I guess it's because I know they love me
no matter what I do or say
so the whole experience ends up just being pure crazy fun
~~
there are about a million more photos from this shoot
and
sometime this week I'll get a few more posted
so you can really get a feel for the overall silliness
that swallowed me up yesterday
*

October 18, 2009

the fingers were red and the noses were running....

but
they were all troopers
and
smiled
and
laughed
despite the cold weather
~~
this family is amazing
~
a year ago they were my first maternity shoot
and
then we did a newborn shoot
and
a
7 month shoot
and
now
guess who just turned
ONE
?

October 17, 2009

going crazy with picture sizes....

this is a large photo uploaded through flickr
~what I've been doing lately~
where the right hand side usually gets cut off
and
irritates the crap out of me

this is the medium size photo uploaded through flickr
which is better
but not quite the right size I'm looking for
now I've gone in and started to play around with the html on my photos
which I think is going to make me so much happier
~~
there are a hundred different ways to so this
depending on who you ask
and
bloggers
of course
are the best source of information
some html changes
will make all your photos the same size every time
you upload a photo
and
that's not what I wanted
~~
I like having some control over my photo sizes and once I learned an easy way
to edit the individual html for each photo
I patted myself on the back
and
ate a chocolate chip cookie
~~
for all of you bloggers who answered my questions
THANK YOU
~~
for those of you who would now like my help
I'd love to
~~

October 16, 2009

would you....

fields of light


when the new television season began
we started watching
"flash forward"
on thursday nights
and
we're hooked
~~
~the premise of the movie~
every living soul here on earth
loses consciousness at the same time
for approximately 137 seconds
~
after waking up
it's confirmed
that they have all had visions
of what they are doing
6 months into the future
on april 29 and 30
2010
~
one guy sees himself being shot
another girl sees herself being drowned
one women sees herself with another man besides her husband
and
the women engaged to the man who sees himself getting shot
sees herself getting married
~
it might sound confusing
but
it's intriguing and intelligent and compelling
and
brings up the question you probably already figured I was going to ask you
~
but
before I do
just so you know
we have discussed this in our house and we're on two different sides
~
if given the chance
I would take it and want to see my life 6 months from now
my hubby
says he wouldn't take the opportunity
that he'd rather just wait and be surprised
~~
so now I ask you
"if you could see what would be happening to you or what you would be doing
6 months into the future, would you want to know?"
*