Allison is the BOMB...please vote for her!

Remember when I asked you to vote for my friend Allison the last time?



(photo taken from Allison's blog. Allison, need more photos of YOU.)

Well...you did...would you do it again?

Vote here

Third video down entitled:

inspire me mexico

I think she is totally rad. She deserves this.
and WE are all rad, and can do great things when we help each other.
Thanks mucho.

And have a kick-a V-day.

xoxo

Pray for Weston

Blatant thievery from Jon's Blog: Image by Jonathan Canlas

Our dear friends Jon and Callie
are up at PCMC in the PICU with their baby Weston.

Weston and Millz are the same age.
(I secretly have them betrothed.)

(You will recall his beautiful photography here.)

Weston was born with Tetrology of Fallot, and is now battling RSV.
RSV on freaking speed. It is bad.

You can read more about it here:

Our Life Right Now - Fuji FP-3000B

Will you please. Please. PLEASE...

Take the time to pray for this sweet, loving family.

Especially pray for Weston and a swift recovery.

It is not a question, but a begging from the bottom of my soul.

Love to Jon, Callie, and the kids.
Squishes and huggs from all of us.

Pray like you have never prayed before...

pic courtesy of natalie's blog

I have been watching this story unfold via twitter and facebook throughout the last week.

I met Natalie two years ago at the Film is Not Dead workshop in Hawaii.

I immediately liked Natalie, she and I had a lot in common.
I recall discussing adoption with her during that workshop...she and I were in similar boats and circumstances when it came to building our families.

Happily and miraculously, 8 weeks ago she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy whom she named Gavin after her brother who had passed away.

Baby Gavin is in the hospital at this moment fighting for his life.
He has Pertussis.
Also known as whooping cough.

What Natalie doesn't know is that as I have been reading her tweets and facebook, part of me has wanted to turn away...reliving too well the moments my nine day old Memms was admitted to Primary Children's Hospital at the tiny age of nine days...she also had RSV and they were throwing around all sorts of things at me like Pertussis...and Whooping cough.
(luckily for Memms the incubation period of Pertussis was before her birth...so she only had RSV to deal with.)

This baby Gavin has much more on his tiny shoulders.

Will you PLEASE...PLEASE...PLEASE pray for him?

Pray like you never have before.

I cannot bear to watch my friend go through this alone, but if we all can pray, she can feel our love for her and this little boy can pull through.

Thanks you guys.

All my love Natalie.

ALL. OF. IT.

In a posting mood apparently...

Shooting for oneself, and editing for oneself can be very therapeutic. That is a little of what I have done today.

I came across these from Miss BG's workshop. I, of course was not doing what I should be doing, instead I grabbed my co-attendee and new friend Shanna...and asked to photograph her. Seriously...isn't she STUNNING? I came across these today, and shed a little tear.









I have been thinking back to March when I attended the Film is Not Dead Workshop. I took SO many, many things away from that workshop, but it was there that I really think I gained an eye and a love for intimacy in a photograph. I love the way Jonathan captures people in headshots. I took what he taught us and ran with it...and dare I even say...took it a little overboard? I dunno...but either way I have learned to not fear close proximity to my client, that to get truly amazing art, we must get in close...see who someone really is, and capture that essence.

Anyway, just thought these shots of Shanna said so much. About her, about me as a photographer. How thankful I am to have grown so much this year. Thank you to my mentors!

Now, maybe someday you'll see all the work I did at these fabulous places...but then again you are...in each new session I post as I have been forever inspired. :)

Dole Plantation

March 2008

Lately...

I have been working on a lot of different things, but not accomplishing much. I am just starting to feel better, still watching the work load as I notice when I "do too much" my body starts betraying me. So, little by little I have been adding my Hawaii images to my photography blog.

I dive back into sessions next week. I am pumped, I am stoked, I CAN'T wait. I have shot a bit here and there this past week, just things around the house. I am anxious to HAVE to get out and work. I hunger for it.

Anyway, just wanted to share...have a FAB Conference Weekend!

LOST

Since that is how we have been feeling since last Monday, and since JC has invited all of the attendees from The Film is Not Dead Workshop to a "LOST" party, Flavio and I have been watching every episode from the beginning.

I must say it is a really bad thing to be doing, only because we are pretty much OBSESSED and want to be watching every episode we can instead of cleaning, folding laundry, actually working real estate, or photography. Even now, Flavio just came in when I told him we can catch up on Season 4 he freaked out to get his work done faster so he can watch Episode 4 of Season 2. I don't know if I should be jealous, but Flav has an incredible crush on Kate. I think I need to hit the gym because she looks WAY hotter in her skivvies than I do right now. ;) I wish there was someone more attractive than Jack or Sawyer, they just don't do it for me. And what in THE world is up with Sayid and his nails. YUCK. If a man ever touched me with those nails I would die.

We have a long way to go, but it has been SO incredibly good to just have that time for US...we put the kids to bed and before Flavio goes to work we watch an episode or two...it is great.

Haleiwa, Hawaii

So, there is this town on Oa'hu, called Haleiwa. I am sure if you have ever been to Oa'hu you have been to this town. Holly and I went almost EVERY night for some reason or another. The day before the workshop (I know it was Sunday...I have to say I was paying my "tithing" just not to my church. ROFL...) we stopped through the little town. There is this little church there that does this "Huli, Huli Chicken" every Sunday. It is like a weekly fundraiser. There is just this huge BBQ with this amazing dood just standing out in the heat making the chicken. They baste the chix with a fertilizer spritzer from Ace Hardware. Ace definitely is the place, 'cause man, the chicken was goooooooooood!
It doesn't look like much. I got this and a bottled water for $5. This is what they call 1/2 a chicken. Holy cow, did I mention how good it was? Huli Huli sauce is like a mixture between a really sweet teriyaki and I dunno...heaven. (I love chicken so...).
Anyway, the thing about this place is...well it seems to be a kick'n place. I saw this huge set up of band equipment, this church must rawk out during services.

They send you out back to eat your chicken on some picnic tables and this is what you see roaming around your feet:
I don't think he was too excited that we were eating his friends. They sure tasted nice tho.


The day before our trip we heard that THE best place to get Shave'd' Ice was at Matsumoto's. I guess the place has been around FOREVER. This sign dates to 1976...so we're talking longer than that. I'm not one for 'snow cone like creations' but this, holy cow this was GOOD SCHTUFF!

So love the '70's feel of this sign. I really wanted a Matsumoto's hoodie but couldn't talk myself into it. It really was all it was cracked up to be and more...
You may or may not be aware that Adam Sandler is one of my FAVORITE actors. 50 First Dates which just happened to be filmed in Hawaii is probably one of my all time favorite movies. While standing in line Holls and I saw this photo. That is Adam Sandler professing his love for the all mighty Matsumoto.
Check out these people...lined up forever. This side enjoying the fruit of the wait...
And mine. Bubblegum. My favorite flavor of anything ever. Since I was a kid it was bubblegum Slurpee's and ice cream from Baskin Robbins. Anyway, what makes this so special? They put a scoop of the most delicious vanilla ice cream on the bottom, so when all of they syrup runs down it makes this yummylicious mixture of bubblegummy Shave Ice goodness.
I've been a little weepy this week. I am missing the Hawaiian warmth and sun. The sun here just isn't the same. I am missing the Shave Ice. I went to Baskin R's twice for some bubblegum ice cream. It just wasn't the same either. Oh well...just gives me a reason to go back!

Aloha!

Aloha everyone. I am FOB from Hawaii. My sincerest apologies for the lack of blogging. Our lovely hotel (and I say that with all the sarcasm I can muster) who claimed they had wifi, never once did they indeed have internet access for us. So, it is kind of hard to blog when you have no way of bloggin. ;)

Needless to say it was everything Hawaii is cracked up to be. The workshop was amazing, fantastic, and life changing...needless to say, a lot of things will be changing in my vision, my photography, my offerings, and my company. I am really excited to share with you about the workshop as soon as my film is back. I figure it will be more enjoyable to share that experience with you when I have photos to go along.

For now, I am JET-LAGGED and didn't sleep a wink last night and I have two kiddies waiting to be LOVED on!

Missed you ALL!