Welcome Baby Richard!

I am so happy that Kijsa and Richard called me for their maternity and newborn baby photos! They are naturals in front of the camera, and their little baby boy is the cutest little thing ever! He was very curious and alert, looking very intensely into my camera lens. Kijsa and Richard are such tender and happy parents, they were truly a joy to photograph.

During their maternity session Kijsa and Richard told me that they did not know whether they were expecting a boy or girl (I tried to convince them that Enna would be a wonderful name for a girl!) They couldn’t settle on a girl’s name but all was well since their baby turned out to be a boy!

Congratulations Kijsa and Richard!

Book Review: Going Local

Q: What is one thing that makes everyone in the house happy? A: Good Food.

We're often bemoaning the fact that we live in the city so don't get to listen to crickets, look at stars, walk in the woods.... We dream about our place in the country, but the truth is we're pretty settled in here in our sunny Jamaica Plain apartment. We realized that we can take other steps to get back to the basics right now.

We've decided to start eating better, and rather than follow a specific diet or count calories, we decided to simply go local. There are plenty of economic and health reasons to eat locally, but we wouldn't do it if it didn't also a) taste better, and b) make us feel better.

We probably won't be quite as strict as these authors were (we'll still allow coffee, chocolate, and hot dogs into our kitchen for instance), but as much as possible we're going to shop whole, local, and organic.

Chips, Anyone?

We've been having a lot of fun together since the weather has warmed up! Today Ollie and Will and I visited Drumlin Farm, which is a working farm run by the Audubon Society. Since we're working on following the "100 Mile Diet" I thought we could pick up some fresh meat and veggies at the farm. Alas, we forgot to bring a cooler, and since today's temp hit the 90s I decided it would not be a good day to drive home with fresh produce and raw meat. So on the way home we actually had to break our 100 mile diet and stop at McDonald's. Oh well, we're not following the diet with 100% strictness... tomorrow we'll visit the farmer's market and get more groceries for the week. I'm bummed about missing out on stocking up on meats at the farm though, because while their meats are organic, grass-fed, hormone free, and SUPER healthy, they are only 50-70% the cost of regular meat from our local grocery store! So while the 100-mile diet requires extra planning (and an empty cooler in the car), it is not more expensive than typical grocery shopping... in fact it may even be cheaper! See how you can start eating within your 100-mile radius here.

Here's a cute picture from my cell phone of Ollie walking Will around the chicken barn. The chickens seemed to be Will's favorite farm animal - probably because they were smaller than him and completely enclosed in their wire paddocks. Ollie loved the piggies the best!

Linsay and Ryan

Can you tell these two are totally in love??? They are going to be a joy to photograph on their wedding day. Linsay and Ryan decided to do their engagement session in Portsmouth, and Matt found all kinds of fun backdrops downtown and near the water for their sunset session.



Click here to watch their slide show.

Mother's Day Portrait Extravaganza

We're just catching up from editing our Mother's Day weekend portrait sessions. We did 4 engagement sessions, one Maternity, and one editorial assignment that weekend! Here are our favorite shots from Kijsa's maternity session. She and her husband were a joy to photograph, and their little baby is already so well loved! I can't wait to do their newborn portrait session in just a few weeks (or sooner!!!)






ADDENDUM on 5/24: It turns out that as I typed this post, Kijsa was in labor! I'm off to meet their new baby boy in the hospital this afternoon. If he's anything like his parents, he's gorgeous AND a complete ham for the camera.

JUMP up and support finding a cure for Cystic Fibrosis!!!

Here's my cousin Erik demonstrating fantastic form on his amazing FlyBar, autographed by Andy MacDonald himself.



Erik has Cystic Fibrosis and believe it or not, this jumping fun is part of his physical therapy!

Please join us in supporting Erik and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation by making a donation or participating in a Cystic Fibrosis Foundation walk in your area. You may make a donation to Erik's team and learn more about CF here.

Erik has set a fundraising goal of $5000, but we're hoping that by sharing his story here we can help him raise a whole lot more!

We Trashed the Dress

Not really - the dress just got a little dirty... and salty... and wet...

Debra is such a good sport - it took absolutely no convincing to get her to do a morning after photo shoot on the beach in her wedding dress. The sky was gorgeous, the water was warm, and her dress didn't actually get trashed.

Charleston Harbor Love Story

What a perfect day! The forecast called for rain, so Matt and I pulled some strings to make sure that the weather would be perfect (just kidding - this setting was so beautiful that any weather would have allowed for gorgeous photos).



Since they wanted to enjoy every minute possible with their guests, Debra and Chipper opted to do their portraits before the ceremony. We made their "first sight" special, and Chipper shed more than a single tear as he viewed his beautiful bride for the first time.




We had a lot of fun photographing Debra's parasol and Chipper's hat:





Debra and Chipper put a lot of thought into every detail, right down to designing their own 'signature' drink, a wine-rich Sangria.

Charleston: more than a golf mecca

We just returned from a whirlwind week of travel... first we went to Charleston SC where we photographed Debra and Chipper's wedding - we'll post pics from the wedding in our next entry - then we attended a professional photography conference in Chicago.

Our visit to Charleston was great, thanks in large part to assistance from our concierge at the Holiday Inn. Kevin is a Clefs d' Or concierge, and he went above and beyond in helping us pick out restaurants, a walk around historic sites, and arranging for a top notch babysitter for Will. Kevin's favorite breakfast restaurant became our favorite breakfast restaurant, and I'm embarrassed to write how many times we ate there during our 4-day stay.

On Sunday morning after the wedding Matt, Will, and I visited Drayton Hall, a plantation house that is preserved largely in its original post-Civil War state. We can't wait to make another visit to Charleston to see more of the sites, and eat more of the wonderful food.






Here's Will making friends with someone he found in a garden:

PCT Through Hiker

Life Rule 1: Everyone should have a dream! Life Rule 2: Everybody has to eat!

Last week my dad embarked on a journey that he has dreamed of for many years, the Pacific Crest Trail. He will be traveling from the Mexican border to the Canadian border over the next several months, and you can read all about his adventures here.

So this week's book is recommended because it was his main reference for building his trail meals. You might ask, "what do I have to do with backpacking?" "Why should I care about freezer bag cooking?" and those are valid questions!

The answer is: everyone should have a dream, and EVERYONE should find a way to connect with nature. We hope Mr. Dole's trip will inspire you to follow your dreams and to connect with nature! And if you find yourself planning your own long-haul backpacking trip, check out this book!



PS Here's Mr. D's interview with the local news station!

Crimson Roses of Tolima

Matt brought some lovely coffee beans back for me from his trip to New York City last week. He also brought me *YUM* a huge syringe full of chocolate - I always need an emergency shot of chocolate.

Here are a couple of Matt's shots from Karen and Danny's engagement session... these two are so romantic, they're going to be awesome to photograph on their wedding day!