My Boy is Turning 3

Maybe it's my boy turning 3 or perhaps my own milestone birthday that gets me thinking about how time passes so quickly; it's so important to me than ever to make the most of each day, live in the present and be happy with what you have and with the simple things in life. Perhaps that is why these pictures taken in this corn field seem so appropriate. Takes me back to my hometown, where life is at a slower pace, maple syrup and farmers markets, horse and buggies, and back to the smells of the farm - oh that sweet smell, I couldn't bike by it fast enough on the way to school. lol!  And summer dinners that were just that...corn on the cob.  We would buy 2 dozen and finish it all off that night. Husking the corn on the front porch and wrapped up into big piles of newspaper. When I was a little little kid, we used to have big corn roasts, the big black kettle pot on the fire boiling the water for that fresh-picked corn.  mmmm mmmmm mmmmm.   Sometimes I tire of the city, the corporate world where it's often dog-eat-dog, or everyone always "keepin' up with the Jone's", trying to "outdo" other people. I want my boy to appreciate the simple things, understand that food isn't from a can or from a take-out restaurant, that the vintage chair and table he sits at has more stories in it's wood grain than any particle board can every hope to attain, and will probably be around a lot longer.  As the rest of the world turns seemingly more into particle board with each passing year, I am happy age right along with my vintage chair and table...and maybe pass it down to my grandchildren some day.

A Magnolia for Magnolia's

This one is for my cousin Lisa! :)

Enjoy! 

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

We have done our share of flying the last couple of years...here, there and everywhere for this wedding and that event.  So I was REALLY looking forward to a long weekend road trip to go camping, just our little family, but alas it was not to be...hubby had to work. : (

Instead....I took my first morning off just relaxing before catching up on some long overdue things....such as a fresh haircut and highlights and a trip to the spa.  While relaxing with my morning coffee watching another episode of Handy Manny, I got these shots of Nico playing with his train set...the morning light was perfect coming through the living room window.  Just with these few images I feel I made up for what would have been Nico's first real camping trip and the images I won't be caputuring. 



Yesterday is History, Tomorrow a Mystery, Today is a Gift, Thats why it's called the Present

Such is life....now off to the spa! Ta ta!

 

Hats Off Burnaby Heights Parade

A collage and a few favourites from the Hats Off Burnaby Heights Parade last week....a week late but had a busy busy week! Now to catch up on laundry...ugh!

Caught up in the Details

As far back as my art classes in high school, it was suggested to me by my teacher that I was a bit of a perfectionist when it came to creativity. And once in college in Interior Design, I was accused of tracing what was supposed to be sketch of a slipper chair in perspective...on tracing paper none-the-less, which all of our mini-projects were to be done on. I can assure you that I hand-drew that sketch without a bit of assistance from that tracing paper. In the end my instructor gave me perfect marks on that project. That all being said, I have found mother-hood to challenge that need for perfection.  Maybe it's that I just don't have as much time as I used to to mull over the details, or that part of me matured and found peace somewhere along the way (...part in thanks to The Artist Way!).  What I love about lifestyle photography is getting caught up in the details....especially when it comes to images of our children, their rooms, and the little details that are a snapshot of their lives in that moment, whether neat or messy...it captures the essence of who they are.  I remember the little trinkets that I kept in my little girls room as I was growing up, but there are no photos to reminisce over.  For Nico, it's the shoes on the toy box, the tattered books (he liked to "eat" his books in his 2nd year), his toys and things all put away and hung up in it's place, and even if it's not all put away and the room looks like a bomb went off...well, even I have learned that one day when Nico is all grown up I will long for those days again.

Ashleigh & Mommy Mini-Session

This is my newest niece and her mommy from an inpromtu mini-session. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

West Coast Beauty

 We spent the weekend at my brother's cabins in the Sqamish Valley; the kids always have a blast running around outside from morning til night.  Of course we do our due diligence in keeping them within sight and scaring the bejeebies out of them with stories of  "monster bears" in the wilderness.  Early on in the weekend, Nico said he wanted to watch Treehouse.  It occured to me that perhaps we were not doing enough to get Nico outside and enjoying the outdoors.  Since I have dove into photography, television has become a complete bore for me albeit a few shows here and there. But this means Treehouse channel is always on in the background, especially on those rainy West Coast days. Don't get me wrong, we go out walking and talk about the mountains we see from our living room window.....but I definitely don't want to raise my kids to become couch potatoes! So when we got home from the cabins, I dug out my little Pentax point and shoot, charged up the battery and gave it to Nico. Good thing that little camera is water-proof for those wet, West Coast days, when we are out walking and taking pictures together.....camping, at the cabin, or Mundy Park, just near our house.