For my WV Friend…

you know who you are!

(Even the road side rest stops are pretty.)

one more peek…

Hi guys, just wanted to post a few more shots from our session before I head off for vacation. I have to say, the more I “worked” on the images, the more I fell in love with your entire family!

My goal is to finish everything up the week of Nov. 9th and send the CD to you sometime later that week. Will let you know via email when the CD is on its way. Enjoy these for now!

countdown begins…

Sat, Sun, Mon, Tues, Wed…

Thursday, we’re outta here! Beach condo, here we come!

amp it up!

There’s a killer tree right across the street from my house that has THEEEEE most gorgeous yellow and reddish leaves…every year I snap some shots of it and every year I’m rather bored with the results. The pictures just don’t do it justice. Since it’s a rainy, overcast day I took advantage of the dark tree bark and wet leaves to amp up the Wow Factor a bit.

To take these beauties one step further, I opened some filters in PS and got to work. Let me know if you have a favorite…mine is Colored Pencil.

Filter: Poster Edges

Filter: Watercolor

Filter: Ink Outlines

Filter: Texturizer

Filter: Palette Knife

Filter: Watercolor

Filter: Fresco

Filter: Spatter

Filter: Diffuse Glow

Filter: Colored Pencil

the elephant in our bedroom

I can’t believe how sick I have been over this new king bed purchase…see Exhibit A below:

Perhaps I should at least start from the beginning because there is more to the story than just my being a big baby…

Chronic back pain and lack of REM sleep will make anyone desperate. Desperation sent me on a quest to four different mattress stores, totally exhausting every sales person that was “fortunate” enough to help me (hey, I was sleep deprived, why shouldn’t everyone else be?). I also had spent hours on-line researching memory foam, pillow tops and adjustable beds…I read reviews – I did my homework – I was prepared to find the perfect bed and I had the money to prove it. I just had no idea what I was in for (we last purchased a (queen) bed almost nine years ago).

I not only made myself at home at these stores (they say you have to spend at least 20-30 minutes on each bed to really get a feel for how it feels) but I also brought my own pillow. I thought about putting on my sweats and fuzzy slippers but really, that would have been overkill. I jotted down my likes (firm enough for good support but not to drive a cement truck over) and dislikes (sinking into a Black Hole when my husband rolls over) and, of course, price points. I tried Stearns & Foster, TemperPedic, the Sleep Number, BH&G (yes, Better Homes & Gardens – didn’t even know they made a bed!), Vera Wang (she only designs the cover of the mattress and charges a fortune!), and Simmons. I eventually made it home, just in time to hit the hay. Wouldn’t you know, I slept like a baby that night!

I was totally overwhelmed at this point but not quite ready to give it up. I was having coffee the next morning with a friend at Tim Horton’s at Reed & Henderson and lo and behold, there was one of those chain mattress places – Sleep Outfitters. I thought, “hey, a complete store devoted to me!” So, I walked inside and spent an hour with a very personable and knowledgeable sales guy, David. David had a very systematic approach of listening to me, then showing me a bed, then watching me roll around on the mattress, then listening some more, then waiting while I “slept” on the bed, then listening some more, then watching me roll around some more (I’m sure I was his only customer, now that I think about it). After feeling like I could live and die on the Simmons Beautyrest World Class Kimberly Plush Pillow-top King bed set, I signed on the dotted line and left the store, happier than I’ve been in a long time (see what sleep deprivation does to you?).

Exhibit B, C, & D

Said bed was delivered to us on Monday. I was ready…armed with a new mattress cover, new sheets, a new blanket, new comforter, new pillows and new shams. My bed was going to have the best and I was going to bed heaven! But first, the delivery guys asked me if I wanted the plastic covers removed from the three pieces. They explained that I would void the 90 Day Return Policy if I removed the plastic. I looked them square in the eye and said, “No problem, take the plastic off. This bed felt great in the store and I tried a lot of beds, believe you me!”

Mike and I hopped in bed heaven that night and for the next eight hours, I tried as hard as I could to get comfortable in my new, luxurious pillow top. I turned over, I laid flat on my back, I turned on my side, I turned on my stomach, I rolled over into the vast middle, I scooted down so that my toes hung over the end, I changed pillows, I removed pillows, I turned on the light and looked at the tag on the side of the bed to be sure I had the same bed I tested in the store. My neck and shoulders hurt way more than my back ever has when I finally got up at first light. Mike, on the other hand, was sleeping peacefully (MEN! That’s all I’ve got to say about that.)

NEVER, I repeat, NEVER TAKE THE PLASTIC COVER OFF A NEW BED UNTIL YOU SLEEP IT ON FOR AT LEAST A WEEK! I had voided my only recourse and wanted to vomit on my 400 count sheets. A call to customer service got me a transfer to a manager who said there was nothing he could do about my “problem.” Once the plastic is removed, the items are considered “used goods” and can’t be returned or resold in their stores in the Great State of Ohio. I now have a $1,700 bed I can’t sleep on. It’s like an elephant in our bedroom. You’d puke, too.

deep thinker

Posting this image from tonight’s sunset put me straight into the “deep-think tank”…deep blue sky = stream of random thoughts, and here they are, just as they popped into my brain:

I’m going on vacation next week and I couldn’t be happier about it…even printed out my TripTik. No asking directions by this girl.

I would love to attend a workshop by my favorite photographer (for the time being) but will have to save heavily for at least the next year – she works in Orange County, CA.

Why is AT&T the only provider who can sell iPhone service – it’s completely killing me!

Just received a bill for $0.82 from January of this year for a co-pay on a prescription. Come on…

Who designs the kind of house I live in? It has to be a man who has never stepped foot in a kitchen.

Our son is in the process of buying a house and he actually calls me with closing updates…I always get so excited when I see his number on my caller ID!

Had the house power-washed a few weeks ago but for some weird reason, the south side of the house looks worse than before it was cleaned – go figure!

Found an amazing chef that cooks just like I want to so I’ve been trying a new recipe every week – so far so good. Tonight it was fish tacos with chipotle cream. That’s a keeper.

My husband’s parents are winging their way to Sydney (yes, Australia), then taking a cruise back home to LA. Must be nice. Will I ever be that rich?

I never want to take life too seriously. Thankfully, my friends won’t let me.

I’ve been really tired lately and am in the middle of a bad new-bed-decision issue, hopefully to be resolved soon.

My friend got a new puppy a month or so ago and I saw photos of him on her daughter’s FB page…OMG! Must restrain myself from running right out and buying one!

The last time I ate at my fav restaurant was too long ago – looks like this weekend will work AND I have a gift certificate – sweet!

See, nothing earth-shattering…just my ADD kicking in. Probably why I’m not sleeping much…where’s that bottle of wine I opened earlier?

burning up!

Whoever came up with the name for this bush was no genius. I mean, one look at the Burning Bush and the words just roll off your tongue. It’s the COLOR of these beauties that kill me every fall. Our neighbors have two of them right next to their garage so we’re treated to a “fire pit” of sorts right outside our own front door. The soft dusk sky gives me the perfect backdrop to capture these guys in their blazing glory…

And then, there are my old stand-byes – our little Japanese Maple and the bushes keeping guard over it. I know you’ve seen these before, but whenever the seasons change, I just can’t help myself…

As the sunlight fades, I return to the house…smoldering from the heat.

Sneak Peek Time!

I love to photograph new families and this one was no exception! We hooked up at Inniswood Metro Gardens in Westerville on a GORGEOUS fall day…I mean, really, could this weather have been more perfect or what?!

With fall, comes a boatload of red and gold and orange leaves scattered across the forest floor, just waiting to be scooped up and thrown into the air! Unfortunately, visitors to the park are not supposed to wander off the beaten path but who can resist this backdrop? And, unfortunately, we got busted by the ranger, but just as it was time to move on. Sorry, Ms. Ranger, we won’t do it again

This little peanut had on the MOST adorable outfit – red sweater and white top, a red bow in her hair, blue jeans and itty-bitty Ugg boots…totally decked out for a fall family portrait. Too darn cute!

And, now for the boys, in different stages of, well…being boys!

I’m really getting a kick out of going through these shots and putting together the best images for these folks. Thanks again (!!) to this fun family for making my Sunday afternoon a “walk in the park!”

all i need

As with everything these days, people are learning to do with less. We are no exception. In fact, I started cleaning the house of clutter when I realized I had bought several things I already had. Yep, I came home with a cute little set of wooden pumpkins to put out for decoration and my husband said, “don’t we already have something just like that?” “Well, yes, Babe, we probably do…I just can’t find it in that mess in the basement,” I said. Then I found a great deal on a cookbook by one of my favorite celebrity chefs and when I got home and put it away on the bookshelf, I saw the exact same cookbook – it’s been there for over a year. Deja vu all over again

Seriously, it’s time to declutter, organize and appreciate the stuff I already have instead of wasting my time and energy on getting more stuff. This image reflects my favorite Rocktober things – a string of tiny gourds, one of the wooden pumpkins (from the first set I bought), and a frame that contains a photo of our son when he was three, dressed as a ghost and holding a pumpkin in his lap. That’s really all I need.

are you ready for some football?

I posted a sneak peek of this high school senior a few weeks ago but since then he and his family have been over to view the proofs and choose their favorites. Below is just a sampling of the shots they liked the best. It’s always interesting to me to see which images they like and which ones I would have chosen. We were all on the same page with this photo shoot.

This guy eats, sleeps and breathes Wildcat football (he’s also a 4.0 student) so it was no fluke that the majority of the shots would be of him in a helmet or a jersey or with a football in his hand.

BRING IT ON!!

He’s also a super nice kid with a smile that every mother would love.