Cute, Cuter, and Cutest

One of the reason I love photography is that it has been a way for me to reconnect with folks that I have lost touch with over the years.  Andrew, Lily, and Nathan are the children of an old work buddy of mine, Tessa.  I haven't seen Tessa in over 5 years.  Tessa and I used to work together, at Toddler Inn, which was the employee daycare for St. Elizabeth.  The last time I saw Tessa, she had one little guy, Andrew.  Since then, her children have multiplied to 3, with the addition of adorable Lily and Nathan.  We shot our session on a cool Autumn morning, in Devou Park.  The children were not only stunningly gorgeous, but very well-behaved.  I had a wonderful time with this crew.  I can't wait to photograph them again.

The Answer to Happiness

Yesterday, as I was getting ready to leave with my husband for a nice relaxing wedding anniversary dinner, I reached in the pocket of my jacket and found a little folded up piece of paper. My jacket is second-hand, and when I saw it, I knew I had to have it. First of all it was my favorite color, green, and it was corduroy. It is very cozy, and perfect for these brisk fall days. When I looked at the piece of paper, I recognized it immediately as being a fortune from a fortune cookie. Fortune cookies . . .yum. Anyway . . . the curious person that I am had to unfold it and see what my second-hand fortune said. I had to be very careful when I opened it, as it had been through the wash and was pretty fragile. I was not successful in keeping it in tack, but when I put the pieces together on my table I could read it clearly. "Patience is the answer to happiness."

I thought this fortune was perfect. Although, my anniversary isn't until Friday, I was celebrating my marriage to my husband now, and patience is extremely important in a relationship. And my own personal happiness is almost always based on the status of my relationship with John Boy. (Yes, I call my husband John Boy and so does everyone else) I can't say that I always have patience, but I know that it's important. They also say, "Patience is a virtue." I believe that.

"Patience is the answer to happiness". It's very good advice and a good fortune. I wonder if the person who got it before me thought so too.

Well, Hellooooo Handsome!

I introduce to you, Stefan.  Stefan's mom, Stephanie, is one of my daughters childcare providers.  Stephanie has a Facebook account, like the rest of the world, and each time I would drop-off or pick-up my daughter, she would often compliment me on my photography.  Well, when she asked me to photograph her son Stefan, I jumped at the chance.  

Stefan is a junior, at Newport High School, which was the location of our session.  He was a great subject to photograph, and well . . . look at him.  He's gorgeous!  

Deckert Family

Every time I take someone's picture I learn something new.  In fact, I keep a journal and write down everything I pick up along the way.  With the Deckert family, I learned about "The Grandma Effect".

Linda Deckert is an old gymnastics buddy of mine.  Yes, I did gymnastics.  I did it for 7 years, and although I wasn't that great at it, I could do lots of cool stuff that I wouldn't dare try now.

Linda is married to Mike Deckert, and the two of them produced a beautiful, joyful little girl, Ashleigh.  Mike, Linda, and Ashleigh will be moving to Altlanta, in the near future, and wanted to do a photo session with the Cincinnati skyline in the background to commemorate them living here.

Ashleigh was a beautiful subject for picture taking, but like all toddlers, she needed a little prompting and cueing . . . enter GRANDMA.  Although she was not pictured, Grandma Deckert made the photo session a success.  Awww . . . "The Grandma Effect".  I will remember it and I will suggest it to many.

Litte Miss Rosie Red

This week my mom invited my husband, my daughter, and I to the Cincinnati Reds game.  I've been to plenty of Reds games before, but this one was special for many reasons.  This would be my daughter's first Reds game.  We also weren't just going to be sitting in any old seats in the ballpark.  My mom works for a very prominent law firm, in Cincinnati,  Keating, Muething, and Klekamp.  One of the partners, Charles Keating was instrumental in the obscenity prosecution of the infamous Larry Flynt, in 1976.  Needless to say . . . they're kind of a big deal.

Anyway, we got to sit in the law firms very beautiful and very awesome suite.  A suite equipped with 3 flat screened TVs, a refrigerator stocked with beer and soft drinks, and catered with Montgomery Inn and Skyline.

We ate, we drank, we watched a great game.  Kara got a certificate as a memento of her first game and Grandpa Mike bought her a little Reds t-shirt.  It was awesome! 

Although I'm very thankful for all of the blessings in my life, it is nice to get a taste of the high life every now and then. :)

Fireworks

I love taking pictures, but no matter how great your picture is of the WEBN Fireworks, it just doesn't compare to being there and seeing them for yourself.  Here are a few pics that I just thought were cool.

I Heart Jen and Brian

On the most gorgeous day of the year, I was lucky enough to be invited to photograph one of my old high school friend's wedding.  I've known Jen, since I was 12 years old.  Jen is one of those people that you can't help but like.  If you see Jen, she will more than likely be smiling and laughing.  And that is exactly what Jen was doing on her wedding day.  The picture quality on these blogs can be kind of crappy, but you can click on the photos to get a full size version of the shot.  :)