This is the first session I did in Berkeley, California. I LOVE this family. They captured my heart. Especially Sophie. You're thinking she is the adorable little girl, right? Nope. She's the lovely black lab that I couldn't keep my camera off.
The week before we left for California, I had the opportunity to hang out for many hours at my sons' school, the Discovery Center. They love it there and now I really know why. What a great place. The kids are looked after, entertained, educated, loved and nourished. What more could you want? I love so many of the shots but here are some favorites. If you really want to see more, you can check out the slideshow for ten minutes of pics and some of Frances' wonderful music.
Last night I managed not only to go out of the house to a cultural/social event AT NIGHT, but I also patronized a local independent bookstore here in Austin where I handed over 25 big ones to buy a GASP hardcover book. Can't remember the last time I did that. But this was a special occasion. Stephanie Klein's newest book, Moose was being released and she would be reading from it. Her first book, Straight Up and Dirty was HILARIOUS and all too close to my very own life and love story. That is, minus the ultra adventurous sex life and uber cute clothes and super chic lifestyle. Okay, maybe not SO close.I took a stalker photo of Stephanie on my iphone to PROVE that I actually did go and to show how cute she looked in her little yellow dress. Also, watch this promo video for the book.
There are not many causes I am good at devoting myself to. I am just too darn lazy. I try not to eat meat and a hamburger beckons. I want to eat only organic, but I don't want to have to hike it to the farmer's market. I want to support independent bookstores, but Amazon is so cheap and easy. I know that I am selling my future soul and those of my children and it grates on me. But there was one area I was very proud of, and that was that I had NEVER spent even one of my hard earned dollars at Walmart. I HATE Walmart. There. I said it. No lightning yet, although I do think I hear the scampering feet of lawyers coming over to take all my worldly goods away for defamation of character or the likes.Notice that I wrote 'HAD never'. I think you know where this is going. A few weeks ago I went to an amazing workshop near Dallas called The Lab. I guess I was so excited at the prospect of getting away from the house for a few days that I didn't realize until the next morning that I had forgotten to pack my breast pump. But I figured it would not be that bad. I was only nursing a few times a day. How bad could it be? Well, let me tell you. BAD. By the end of the first day, I approached the only person who lived in town, the FABULOUS Amy and asked if she happened to still have a pump, even though her girls are much older. She did not and made some calls on my behlaf and nada. So that night when everyone was just sitting down to dinner, Amy whisked me off to Walmart (the ONLY store in town that would carry such merchandise that was open that late) and I procured a hand pump. Now let me tell you that this was not done light heartedly. I was in agony. I kept looking around at the pedestrian traffic on the sidewalks looking for a baby to grab and stick to my breast and BEG IT TO NURSE. Ultimately, I decided that it would be better to patronize Walmart (aka the store that is single handedly destroying the American way of life) than to end up in jail on god only knows what the charge would be for abducting a baby and forcing it to nourish itself at your breast. So now the one unblemished record I held is soiled. Shit. I am a very bad activist.
I have decided that the best way to understand your child's perspectivie on their world is to hand them a camera.
Another shot from the Discovery Center fundraiser. Glitter encapsulates the spirit of the school as well as being something that is ALWAYS on the kids. Yes, we have even found it in Ben's diapers.
Yesterday Ben and I went with Geni and her two youngest girls to a little town about an hour away called Gruene. I took a bunch of photos that I will post later, but this one just seemed to fit what I wanted to write about today, as does the town's slogan, which is "Gently Resisting Change Since 1872". This is a little story about the conversation Ben and I had this morning. As usual I was trying to get the boys out of the house and dressed in a hurry. As I was putting Ben's pants on, I was a little more abrupt that necessary, so I said "Sorry Ben. Mommy is just stressed". He said "I want Mommy to laugh". Okay. Heart falls to floor. I am officially a schmuck. So I stop and laugh and then he hugs me. I thanked him for reminding me about what was important in life. And then I rushed him out of the door to school.
Put it in the history books. This is Ben's first girlfriend. They L-O-V-E each other. She rubs his back when they go for a class walk. SO cute. And like all great love stories, there is a tragic aspect. He is moving to the next classroom soon and she will be left behind. Just like a man to leave a woman waiting.
Sam sure does like his Cheerios. These were taken at his school during the fundraiser shoot a few weeks ago. There's something about photographing my kids 'on the job' that makes me feel like a slacker.
I mentioned the other day that we had our photo taken in Southern California by Tara Whitney. I brought my camera along for the ride and took some 'action' shots. The first of Ben was from before she arrived while we were playing around and the rest are during the shoot. I just realized I didn't get any of her face, only her backside. Silly, silly me. But you can see an amazing one here taken by the uber talented Jefra Linn.
If you have ever done a photo session with me, you probably had music on your slideshow sung by the splendid Frances England. She is a San Francisco based musician who is not only incredibly talented, a wonderful mom but also a good friend. And I have only met her a few times in person. She is one of those people you meet and feel like you have know for a million years. Her second children's cd (here is a nod to her first) is out now and it is, of course, amazing. Frances' cds are the only kids ones that I listen to on my own. I have already listened to the new one about ten times in a row. With no children present. Which for those of you who know me is amazing. I usually try to pretend to be childless when alone.AND she did all the artwork for the beautiful cover. It is so great. And I am a tough critic. Ben is even worse and he stared at it ALL the way over the Bay Bridge (for you Texans, that's a long ass trip). She even put a little nod to me in the liner. It's as close to producing a music cd and I will EVER get.
We did a little shoot last weekend and with our crazy schedules we almost didn't pull it off. And I would have been so sad. Frances and her brood always brighten my day. My favorite part was her older son's glee at being on my business card. I haven't finished going through all of the photos, so there will be more later. But for now, here is a sneak peek.
I love you Frances. Come to Austin soon. And the rest of you, go buy her cd NOW!
Our friends Matt and Tre's son turned one last month and yours truly was there to document every last minute. They were gracious enough to invite Josh and the boys who had a ball. I even included one of Sam here becasue it makes me laugh.
We got back from California on Monday afternoon just in time for Ben to start throwing up on the way home from the airport with the stomach flu. And then we all fell, one by one, except baby Sam (thank goodness for small favors). It has been hellish. Josh even had to clean up my sick (let's just leave it at that vague description). I don't care what they say, that's true love. It's easy to get all hot and heavy with each other. It's harder to take a mop and tackle your partner's unmentionable fluids.So now I will be on a blogging tear. It has been three weeks since I have posted a photo (yes THREE!) and I took almost 15,000 of 'em since then. So get ready. Set. Go.
Our time in California is winding down. Actually, it is more like long skid after several miles of crazy activity. Our tour of insanity has continued with more visits with more friends and more alcohol as well as more photo shoots with some wild and crazy families. I am too wiped to write much now, but suffice it to say that I have taken a million photos and will now spend the next ten years post-processing and blogging them all. We fly back on Monday, so watch out Texas. We're coming home.
This is such a great trip, but it's no vacation. It is hard work. In order to maintain the schedule we have been keeping lately we need some serious stamina and frankly we are all a bit exhausted. Yesterday I had a photo shoot with Gretchen and Tomas and their little guy as well as their dog Hannah (whom I adore!) and we had such a great time as well as a nice visit. Then it was off to lunch for Sam and I with the photography girls. Such fun to hang with these three fabulous and oh so talented women, Amy, Rebecca and Mary as well as the adorable Skylar. The hard part about having such fun with my friends is that I want to stick them all in my suitcase and cart them back to Austin with me. I miss them SO much. And that would be the perfect solution because then all my old and new friends would be living in the same town as me. And really, it is truly all about what is best for me, right?And then the cherry on the sundae was dinner with all of my art school friends, Brooke, Ali, Stephanie and Leslie. They are all such smart, funny, beautiful women who I spent time in the trenches of thesis etc with. You never really know someone until you have seen them after an all nighter and strung out on coffee. We went to a great restaurant in San Francisco called Firefly, which was one block from Ali's fab new house in Noe Valley. At 10:15 we headed back to our abode in Berkeley, all four of us so tired we needed to be peeled off the floor. And while Josh was worn out from all day childcare I was happily buzzed on yummy red wine, prosecco, chocolate and the best company. I owe him big time.
Another lovely day in the golden state. Last night we had dinner at our dear friends' James and Claudia's and their three lively children entertained our terror of a three year old. Apparently the highlight of the evening's activities was for the oldest to send the remote controlled car down the sidewalk and for Ben and their youngest son to bash the hell out of with foam bats. Who said kids don't get any exercise these days?Then this morning we visited with Laura at her studio. She is a woman I do some design work for. She is Ben's new best friend because not only did she give him grapes and yogurt, but she let him draw all over her bathroom doors with chalk. Crazy artists. Then we had lunch with my dear friend and fellow photographer Amy Perl at my favorite Vietnamese place in Oakland. Home in time for the daily nap (the best thing about vacation) and now off to eat AGAIN in San Francisco with one of my oldest friends, Leslie. Leslie and I not only went to high school together but college as well. She had planned for ages to go to UC Santa Cruz and I decided to tag along on a visit there and fell in love. Bet she regrets asking me along for the ride.
They always say that you can't go home again. Even though that may be true, it sure is nice to visit. We have been having such a nice time seeing old friends. We drove by a couple of places we used to live and I must have gotten used to living in "everything is bigger in Texas" because those places looked miniature. How did we manage to live in them and not kill each other? And everything seems SO expensive here. I honestly have no idea how people afford to live here. Seriously. Are you ALL selling drugs?
Ihope all you hard working moms out there had a semi-relaxing day. I had Ramos Fizzes with my mom and my 92 year old grandmother. So it was a good day.I have not been posting because I have not had access to a computer since leaving my parents house and all erhave on the road is Josh's crappy work IBM ThinkPad. Man. Whoever thought up that red button thing in the middle was a moron.
It has been so strange to be away from the internet for DAYS. We have been busy as bees. Before we left Southern California, we had a photo session with the Incomparable Miss Whitney.It was SO great to meet her. She is a fabulous person and, of course, an amazing artist. She left me wanting to grab her and her family and drag them to Austin so I could have some more cool friends. Not to mention someone to geek out over photography with. It was a real bummer that Josh couldn't make the trip in the end, but I think we will have some great shots of me with the boys. She kept asking me what I wanted or what I had in mind and I would shrug my shoulders as if to say "I don't know". Quel lame client. It's funny because I usually have such a strong vision for my clients but none for myself. It was relaxing to leave it all in her hands.We got up here to the Bay Area on Tuesday and met up with Josh. We are staying in Palo Alto until tomorrow when we head up to Berkeley to settle down for the remainder of our trip. The first morning that I walked out into that wonderful Northern California air, I felt amazing. Like I was home. But I have definitely noticed the congestion here and I have already begun to long for the sight of an empty field. I had conveniently glossed over the fact that I would have the boys on my own for the three days that Josh was working this week. On Wednesday morning it dawned on me and my heart sunk a bit. I had just been the sole caregiver for the three previous days (with some help from my parents) and I was tired. So yesterday we escaped up to my friend Amy in Berkeley and the wonders of Totland. This morning I had my first client photo session with Meagan and Adam and their beautiful little girl. I will post some shots when I can, but I think we got some good ones. It was quite the childcare challenge during the session because Josh was working in Palo Alto so I had to beg for childcare help and luckily my friend Maura came to save the day. This involved some crazy early morning driving and I, of course, being me, got pulled over by a cop for making a left turn (that I was not allowed to make during the hours of 7 and 8 in the morning). WHAT HAS THIS WORLD COME TO?
Wow. Flying with two kids sucks. Flying with two kids by yourself REALLY sucks. And flying with two kids, by yourself, with a migraine headache. Well, that's just cruel. And so my return to California thus began this morning. And as soon as my parents picked us up I spent the next thirty minutes puking non stop in their car in a plastic bag. Bet they were happy to see me huh? The only nice thing about getting sick when you visit your parents is that your mom is already there to pick up the pieces. There is no need to think "I want my mommy". So we got back to their house and I immediately ensconced myself in bed, let the children be damned. But they were, of course, more than amply provided for by their doting grandparents. Now I am better, but my outfit needs to be burned.I also called Josh to tell him that we arrived safely and to relate the vomit story. I asked him how he was enjoying his liberty and he said "It's lonely". That's the only problem with complete freedom. No one to share it with.