Yep, we’re a day late. I know. Happens to be how the workdays fell this week.  Now let’s get to it!
1. How is it February?  For real, I can’t believe its already February.  How did that happen so fast? I suppose I should get working on Jacksons Valentine’s day cards, eh? I hate when I forget about those… I feel like I do them last minute every year!.. hmm..

2. I am in love with how Mollly’s little personality is blossoming into such a character!  She is really starting to make things clear on what she likes, what she thinks is funny, and what she doesn’t like.  Oh lord, we could have a problem in about 12 years.

3.  Jackson has been loving having some special Daddy/Jackson days. I love hearing them giggle and play from the room over – or even have Jackson tell me his favorite part of the day was playing with daddy.  Metls my heart.  I have a good man – our kids have an amazing father.

4. I need to get my camera serviced.  I’m a little scared to let my baby go somewhere too far out of my hands but I am having shutter release problems – focus issues and i’m getting crazy lines through my images.  Yes, not good.  Photographer friends, do you have any suggestions besides sending it to Canon?  Maybe I’ll rent the 5D Mark II while its away getting fixed to play… It sure is purty .. I saw Ms. Erin’s last week.

5.  Still totally excited about the Gym.  Crazy, right?  I need to actually set up a training session but I am happy to report I’ve been really enjoying that time for me.  I never knew I could love the gym – let alone feel upset when I don’t get there.  Yes, this is the girl that HATED running. Huh..

6.  I am really excited for how much work I’m getting done on our new schedules but I sure am missing our playdates.  Hopefully next week we’ll be able to change somethings around a bit — the kiddos are asking for their friends and I’m asking for my coworkers

7.  Playmobil.  Jackson’s new obsession.  He got this for Christmas as it was the only thing he wanted.  He spends houuuursss playing!  It really is a wonderful imaginative toy and he loves to tell stories about it.  Mimi got jackson a few of the rooms that you can get to outfit the house.  If you have a toddler/preschooler I totally recommend them.  They even have a smaller version for the little tikes like Molly — Playmobil 123.  Be warned — the regular playmobil does have a LOT of VERY small pieces so you have to be careful around the wee little ones.. Hence why Molly got her own Playmobil 123.

8.  Super excited to be having dinner tonight with our good friends.  I have to say this new year has really been wonderful reconnecting and actually GETTING OUT with our friends.  Perhaps its because the kids are a little older, or perhaps we’re just making it a priority but it’s so very true.  You need to maintain a little bit of your own life – socially and emotionally – outside of the Crazies ..er. kids.

9. Hello Lost.  You make my head spin I don’t know WHAT just happened last night.

10.  Twitter.  Do you follow me? Clients –  I’m going to announce a 24 hour promotion so hurry – get on there — ADD ME!

Whew… made it

I am so excited and so very grateful for this opportunity.

After I had Molly I spoke with the wonderful people at my OBGYN’s office and asked them if they might be interested in allowing me to decorate their office with my images.  They had just finished renovating and with a blank canvas I thought my images would be a nice compliment to their waiting room, exam rooms and hallways.  Lucky for me, they fell in love with my images and style and were gracious and kind and allowed me to pick 16 images to display in their Danvers office.  They have asked me to display my work in two other locations as well.. super exciting!
I chose images that were mostly newborns and toddlers given the location and I couldn’t be happier with the way they look!  The best part is some of the images are actually from patients of the office – I always get text messages or emails when a Mom goes in and gets to see her little blessings photograph on the wall.  It warms my heart to know how happy it makes them

Check out some snapshots of just the waiting room I took today while dropping off more cards with all my information… (there were supposed to be three images per wall but they ended up moving some around so they could add them to the exam rooms instead..)

left and front walls

closer of front wall

right wall

peaking around the hallway corner

**NOTE:  If you are a patient of Essex County OBGYN, you receive a special promotion on your session fee and print order when you schedule your session!  All the information is located on the cards at the reception desk.  Be sure to mention it when you call to book!

I had the pleasure of meeting sweet Erin Cobb last week.  She has been such an inspiration to me as I began building my business and at the risk of sounding dramatic, she is a big reason why I am blessed to be where I am today.  Do you ever feel like somehow things are so connected its hard to get your head around how it all worked out!? That’s how I feel about how lucky I am to have the greatest job in the world..  It all started about 3 years ago..

Jackson was a newborn and I had started snapping crazy amounts of photographs of him.  I didn’t want to miss anything.  I didn’t want to forget anything. I knew with every passing day he was one day older, one day bigger, one day away from this newborn little precious miracle I loved more then myself from the second I knew he was going to be my son.  I knew in a blink he was going to be graduating! Although photography had always been a passion of mine, I never had any ‘formal’ training.  I played with my camera, tried different things, tried to figure out but mostly didn’t really know what I was doing.  When I was getting married, I did a lot of research on ‘The Knot.’  I was kicked over to ‘The Nest,’ after I had Jackson and there were some women there that were in my exact same position! They loved taking photographs of their children and they were learning about their cameras and how to get the photographs we’d all fallen in love with online from other great photographers.  Those women started a message board and before I knew it we had so many members who enjoyed the love of photography and many of them had young kids at home so it was an instant bond!  It was there that I became to ‘know’ Lyndsay.  We have never met, and I’m not sure she will ever know how grateful I am for her gifts she doesn’t even know she’s given me, but I know. And I am forever in debt to her.

She made a post one day about a friend of hers, Erin Cobb, whose daughter was in the running for the Gap Casting Call.  Sarah (Pigbear as she is nicknamed!) needed votes to win so Lyndsay posted the link to Erin’s blog and of course on Erin’s blog you could click to vote for Sarah!  It was that day that I added Erin to my favorites and have been following her ever since.  I started reading about her and her adorable little family and I felt like if she lived near me, we’d totally hang out!  That’s the amazing thing about blogs, isn’t it?  We feel connected and friendships for people that we may really have never met – how incredible.   It was about that time that Rick and I began seriously considering photography as a business.  I had been doing a lot of thinking and a lot of praying about it.  I had just finished my Masters in Elementary Education and received my license to teach, but Jackson was a newborn and I was nannying at the time.  I needed to work but with the great family I worked for, he could come with me and I could still work and watch him grow up – again, a huge blessing.  Should I go back to teaching just because I could? Should I try to start a business following my passion? Who knew which was the ‘right’ answer?  We discussed it, a lot.

One night after Jackson went to bed I was reading Erin’s blog and she had posted about her friend Wendy Schulz.  Wendy had mentored Erin and took her under her wing to teach her about her photography and help her grow into what she wanted to be.  After I read Erin’s post, I immediately went to Wendy’s blog and saw that she started offering an online workshop – to do the same thing!  SOLD.  I talked it over with Rick and we decide this was it.  Let’s give this a shot.

So I signed up for Wendy’s class and without a doubt, SHE is the reason I am where I am.  She gave me challenges and feedback that has taught me about myself, about my camera, about my craft.  She is amazing. She is inspiring, and boy is she hysterical!  I have since sent Wendy a few of my friends and even my cousin Jake took her online course.  I’m sure her waiting list is long, but if you want to know about photography from one of the greatest teachers, SIGN UP. You won’t regret it.

So lets recap.  Lyndsay ‘introduced’ me to Erin. Erin ‘introduced’ me to Wendy, and Wendy is what gave my business the foundation  to become a business.  Well, this past week Erin was visiting her friends in Boston and asked if any Bostonians would like to come out to get together — It was about a second of  before I responded – ME ME ME! Remember, we were friends in my head already! Ha..

So luckily, Rick was sweet enough to come home after a long day of work and let me take off to Starbucks to meet Erin, finally!  In typical Boston fashion, there was traffic so of course I was late but nevertheless, I made it and guess what…  She was JUST as sweet, if not more, in person!  Just like I knew she would be!  She jumped right up and gave me a hug and we all started laughing right away – like we were all old friends.  Just the way it should be with someone who has helped shape your life, right!?

Ellen and Diana are from Boston and also follow Erin’s blog so it was nice to make new friends too -  Samantha and Erin have been friends for a long time and the 5 of us had a great visit together just chatting it up!  The time passed too quickly of course, but hopefully the next visit Erin makes to Boston we’ll have some more time to catch up!

Totally ‘borrowed’ from Erin — You can see her thoughts from our meet up here:

(l->r) Ellen - Erin - Diana -Yours Truly - Samantha!

So Lyndsay, Thank you for posting Erin’s link.  Erin thank you for posting Wendy’s link and Wendy, thank you for making me jump when I wasn’t sure their was a net under me.  Turns out I didn’t need it anyways thanks to you.. For that, for all of you, I am grateful

We are grateful.

Much love.

Thankfully,

Two different days. One adorable little face.

The Ladybug: Often found with one sock on; a book in hand; in the child rocking chair. Always with a smile on her face.

She  is really coming into her own personality … I can’t get enough of this little face.  She loves hamming it up!

Spent the day just her and I.  Her swim class. Errands. Snuggles.   It’s these regular days I love. Full of giggles. Full of love. Full of the memories I burn into my heart.
Love you Molly girl.

xxoo

My heart is breaking right now for the sweetest family.  Remember this family:

The cutest, happiest, most delightful family.  I just spoke with another favorite client (friend), Erin, who informed me that sweet Charlotte has just been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia..

On a positive note, we are blessed to live 30 minutes from some of the best hospitals in the world here in Boston.  Charlotte is in Boston now beginning her treatments and will hopefully begin the road to recovery.    For those of you who are the praying type, please keep her and her family in your prayers.  Her sweet spirit, her precious smile, and her adorable heart needs it.

If you’d like to keep up on Charlotte’s progress you can follow here her:

Charlotte’s Caring Bridge Page

Charlotte – I’ll be looking forward to our next tea-party!  Get better love! xxoo

Ted and Constance.  Our love and prayers are with you and your family.  We will be here to lift you up and help you through this difficult time and see you onto the sunshine. Please know we are surrounding you in love and light…  We will be wishing on stars for you…

**And to my photographer friends – THIS is why keeping all your photos from sessions is important.  This session now has an entirely new meaning and I will for sure be going back through the images I didn’t show to see what is there.  Another reminder why I am honored to do what I do and feel blessed to share the gift of memories and moments…

Much Love, Many Prayers and lots of Hugs.

xxoo