9/365 Collection

As I prepared to do laundry a few weeks ago, I checked the pockets of one of my constant companions. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a wonderful collection of huge leaves, berries, and pieces of tree bark. The entire collection has been sitting on my bathroom counter because I cannot bear to toss them out. This is just a portion of what I discovered.

Truly wonderful the mind of a child is.

-YODA, Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones

148/365 Dinner

One of these days, my constant companions won't have the desire to tuck their LEGOS into their pockets each time we leave our home. One day they won't think to line them up on the side of the pool so the LEGOS can watch them swim. They will forget to plop them down beside a plate so they can share a meal. One day they won't have a desire to share every thought, dream or disappointment with me while we relax at a favorite restaurant. One day they will be on their own and will not be my constant companions. I'm so glad that day has not yet come!

Lesson: While we try to teach our children all about life, Our children teach us what life is all about.
~Angela Schwindt

119/365 Unexpected

I spotted this as I walked through a wooded area today. Someones idea of art--an old church steeple, plopped down in the midst of a clearing. I liked it, very much. This image will remind me that when I come upon unexpected things while moving towards my destination, to just roll with it! To make the best of life's unexpected surprises.

I'm still reading The Last Lecture and learning a great deal more about life and living. The lesson I gleaned today comes from a quote I took from the book.

Lesson: Through the whole ordeal, I don't think we ever said to each other: "This isn't fair." We just kept going. We recognized that there were things we could do that might help the outcome in positive ways... and we did them. Without saying it in words, our attitude was, "Let's saddle up and ride."
--Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture

109/365 Older

Today we went on a treasure hunt. One of the members of our entourage is now a year older, so off we went to collect some special things as a way of celebrating! Our first stop was a skateboard shop where this member chose all of the parts for a custom board. It was such a cool experience; the oldest entourage member even wore the new helmet out of the store and didn't take it off until we stopped a few minutes later for lunch. Of course we added new LEGOS to our large family as well! :-)

It's been a joy learning from, and with, our first born. Boy have I made mistakes, but I'm not lamenting. We didn't have a clue about how to parent. We simply jumped in with our hearts wide open and gave it our best. I look forward to all of the days, and special moments ahead of us.

Oh! I came up with my elevator speech at about 11:45 p.m.! Success! Yay!

Lesson:Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.
--Albert Einstein

108/365 Thinking

I have been trying to come up with an elevator speech (regarding my business) for a few weeks now. Granted, I've never dedicated a certain amount of time just to focus on that one task, but today I did! I still don't have one. Why is it so hard to sum up what I do and how I can help others in just a few words? At any rate, I'm not giving up. By midnight I will have something that I am proud to share with potential clients!

Lesson: How long should you try? Until.
--Jim Rohn

103/365 Muse

Webster defines the word muse as a source of inspiration. There are many people who inspire me and yesterday I found an object that really spoke to me as I took a closer look at a little shop that I pass by frequently. The object is a work of art, a woman made of iron who seems to be filled with energy and has really crazy hair. On the front of her body you can see the words "DREAMS DO COME TRUE". She reminded me of me! I will have her one day soon and she will stand in my home and eventually near my home studio. She will remind me that I am pursuing a dream.

The owner of this wonderful antique store is standing next to my muse. I enjoyed chatting with her and listening to her story about how she came to acquire this house filled with unique art. I had to capture this moment in time! The spunky owner agreed to be photographed and thought it would be cool to stand next to my muse. Click!

Lesson: Dreams are like stars...you may never touch them, but if you follow them they will lead you to your destiny.
--Unknown Source

90/365 Circa 1905

This wonderful house was owned by an Obstetrician. He lived upstairs and delivered babies downstairs. Now it's a gift shop and home furnishing store in the artsy part of town.

I rescheduled a session today because of the weather. Since I was working this afternoon, I spent time doing things just for me. I started with an hour long deep tissue massage, then off to lunch with a good friend.

Lesson: A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are. (unknown source)

79/365 City

I actually tried to position myself so that the children would not appear in the frame and then before I clicked I realized that including them would actually make the image more interesting. They provide balance and make me smile!

Both groups are equally engaged and equally (seemingly) unaware of the other! Wouldn't it be great if we always took our leisure time so seriously!

Lesson: Be intentional about scheduling downtime!

75/365 Death

This was not on my mind this afternoon when I was thinking about my photo of the day. As I drove through the streets of a nearby city, I felt as though I was being pulled in this direction, so I decided to just go with it. As I walked through the oldest part of this historic cemetery I was struck by the peacefulness of it all. I wanted to pay attention to my thoughts, my thoughts about being here. How was my body responding? Was I nervous? Afraid? I found that I was okay with the environment. As I thought about death and dying, I was okay with those things too. I felt at peace and really enjoyed being there.

As a child I loved horror movies and because of all of the things I chose to take in when I was younger, I had some scary thoughts and feelings attached to death and dying. I suppose today was the day that I actually confronted the last of my fears surrounding this issue.

Lesson: “One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure its worth watching.”
(unknown source)

69/365 Me (3)

A few months ago (has it been a year??) I listened to a friend as she spoke about her experience with her self portrait. For her it seemed empowering and enlightening. She encouraged me to give it a try and today I did! I will challenge myself to do a different one every 2 weeks or so to see how much of myself I will feel comfortable revealing. It was fun and I was able to see how my clients must feel when I'm pointing a big lens at them and asking them to relax! Yeah...right...relax!

I finished a small project today and rewarded myself with a tall white chocolate mocha! Yummy!

Lesson: Reward yourself for even the small accomplishments!

51/365 Girlz

At the beginning of 2008 I resolved to set aside time with friends once a month. As 2009 gets into full swing I am pleased to say that I've only missed a couple of months in a years time! I so look forward to those times away when I can really hear other voices and respond without looking at my watch or thinking about my next stop. Since I made the commitment to me, I now have 3 different sets of friends with whom I connect. Each group offers something uniquely different and I'm encouraged with every encounter.

Tonight my newest group met at a restaurant in the city. You create your own Asian meal and the cooks at Chow Baby cook it up for you. It's a wonderful idea and I look forward to going to a similar restaurant on the other side of the city very soon.

On my way home I went through a very busy section of town in an attempt to avoid highway traffic. I avoided the traffic on the highway only to get stuck in traffic on the surface roads. As I sat at a light waiting to move I stuck the camera out to grab this shot of one of our latest attractions. A mini version of the Arc de Triomphe? Perhaps I'll come back one day and get out to think about the best way to capture this structure.

Lesson: Make time to nurture friendships.

Tomorrow: Fun with chalk

50/365 Success

Success is getting out of bed every day and spending time doing what you love. Each day I get to experience AHA! moments with my children. I get to hear their every conversation and to see their eyes light up when they discover something for the very first time. I'm still here to wipe away tears, to climb trees and ride bikes. Success is pulling out my camera each day, purposefully finding ways to bring my imagination to life. Looking for ways to pull ideas together, growing more unafraid of failing because tomorrow is another day.

My definition of success is evolving. I'm not in a hurry to completely define it, I'm enjoying the process. The image today represents a small victory for me. Well, it's a great victory! This is a project that I planned to complete in the spring of 2008, but it never got off the ground for various reasons. Today I completed 12 proposal letters, addressed 12 envelopes and stuffed 12 bags with sample images and business cards.

I have had the recent pleasure of working with a phenomenal business coach. A woman who is committed to helping other moms find individual success in their respective businesses. She understands passion and she knows what it's like for a woman to want to push her own desires aside while tending to the needs of others. Thankfully she won't allow me to just toss my passion aside without first examining the reasons behind such a decision. More often than not the reason to lay ones passion aside stems from fear. Fear that the children will be damaged if I take an assignment or fear that hubby can't possibly cook his own meal, much less a few meals for the whole family! I've been afraid for a long time of fully being ME. I've quieted my desires and tried to put out the flames that burn inside of me, telling myself that I'll get to it later. What if later never comes?

I'm gathering the courage to put one foot in front of the other and I'm taking the kids with me! Hubby has always cheered for me and now I'm accepting the cheers as an invitation to take off! I'm fully embracing being a mom and entrepreneur. Next, I'll consciously work on becoming a better wife, daughter and friend. That may not be the *right* order, but it's the order for me, for now.

Thank you to The Business Coach for Moms! I appreciate being catapulted to success! The view from the top is nice indeed! :-)

Lesson: Examine the fear. Get the lesson it brings. Move forward.

Tomorrow: More macro.

40/365 Mellow

This came as an afterthought. I wanted a change of pace today, so we stayed on schedule for the first part of the day and tossed the schedule for the second half. We went out to lunch and then to the park to play! The weather was beautiful and photography wasn't really on my mind.

I put together a composite of the new restaurant we visited today. There's one important element missing: the pizza! You can't photograph a pizza shop without getting a shot of the pizza or the guys tossing the dough in the air. Live and learn!

Lesson: Think your project through before (and as) you shoot! I am posting this as a reminder for myself.

Tomorrow: Something red.

30/365 City

I almost made it! Totally missed yesterday. I just could not get out of bed and I'm still trying to shake a stomach bug of some kind. Too much information, I know!

Today we hung out with a group of kids who all got together to plan and build a city. It was so cool to see the different design ideas they all came up with and how well they worked together. Of course you can't have a city without Toys R Us.

Lesson: Kids can do the most amazing things if they are presented with the opportunities.

Tomorrow: House stuff.

22/365 Bowling Anyone?

This is how we spent our day so I didn't get a chance to really focus on people as I had planned. This was our first day of league bowling and I had to be more hands on than I expected. After today I can sit back and enjoy my marketing books. Yay! Nothing too exciting, but I did try to capture some of the action and a detail shot.

Lesson: Life is to be enjoyed. Be fully present.

Tomorrow: Street scene

12/365 Being Real

I've shared before about my grandfather being a photographer... Well one of the things he did that I never understood until recently was to fill his home with art. All over the walls he hung art--photography and paintings. He moved two times in the past 9 years, once to downsize, and then once to assisted living. Each time he got situated in his new home, he instructed us to be sure to hang his art work for him. I didn't fully understand just how important that was until I hung my own images in December. I've been seriously into photography for a little under 4 years and I've NEVER hung any images on my walls--not my own, not any others. My walls have been bare wherever I've lived!

When I hung the few images you see here, it was an AHA! moment for me. As silly as it may sound, it wasn't until I saw my work hanging in my own home that I realized I was really a photographer and I'm actually not that bad:-)! It was the catalyst I needed to get serious about what I do--to pursue my business (and all my passions) with abandon. Without fear of failure or rejection!

Here you see a slice of my day. The only quiet part that I will have until probably 9 p.m. or so. The children have just finished one of their lessons and have gone off to play before we settle down for lunch. There is clutter around because I needed a place to store their things while I lay down new floors. Lots to do today and it feels good to be able to post an image early. Life is good!

Lesson: Live life to the fullest each day and live without regrets!

Tomorrow: A street scene