welcome home fletch!

I'm finally posting a Fletch update. I'm trying to get caught up on everything after my trip to Florida (I'll be posting that soon). Yesterday, the flu totally tapped me on the shoulder, and when I turned around to see who was there, it was all like "hello there, I will now incapacitate you".

Fletch is now in his new home at the ripe old age of 7 weeks. He's ridiculously awesome. He ignores the cats, he's super calm, and he's already potty trained. I fear this may be the calm before the storm. I'm sure one morning I'll wake up and he'll have eaten my camera equipment, pooped in my box of pancake mix, and incorrectly balanced my checkbook. So for now, I'm going to enjoy this perfect little fluffilicious love nugget.

i'm off to the magic kingdom!

This is the first time that my packing list for a trip has included "sparkly plastic tiara". Check.

I am beyond privileged to have been chosen to photograph Bert's Big Adventure this year. Bert is the host of Q100's morning show, and this is the 8th year he's organized this all-expenses paid incredible trip for families with chronically or terminally ill children. This experience provides these families a much-needed break from all the challenges of daily life, and allows them to just have fun together.

I can't imagine a more wonderful event to photograph, and I am SO excited to meet all the families, the Bert Show staff, and hopefully take some beautiful images for them.

They will be posting updates daily, so check out what we're up to, by clicking HERE.

Bye everybody! I'll give Mickey a big hug for you!

if you give a mouse a cookie

The folks at Synchronicity Performance Group have a lot going on right now. I recently posted about their show "Looking for the Pony", and they're also running a kids show called "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie". Based on the book by Laura Joffee Numeroff, it's a fast-paced, fun-filled tale of mischief.

The props are whimsical, the acting is high-energy, and there were lots of giggles from the little ones in the audience. Hooray! If you're not a parent, you should quickly have some kids or borrow some, and go see this show.

don!

Meet Don #1 and Don #2. I've done headshot sessions before where we photographed the pre-shave look and the post-shave look, but I think Don gets the prize for most dramatic transformation.

Not only is he a master of disguise, but he's also a barrel of laughs. Many thanks for a super-swell session. Maybe someday I'll find out what he was thinking during his "I have a secret" facial expressions. Believe me, it must have been good.

ode to etsy - necklaces

Here's the latest installment about my shameless love affair with Etsy. Today's focus is on necklaces. If all these fabulous creations had been available back in the day, maybe Mr. T would have skipped the barrage of gold and opted for a nice hand-crafted earthy number instead.

1. Bird Trio Necklace by TillyBloom $24
2. Puzzle Necklace by marieflyfly $53
3. Garden Bloom in Winter by RachelleD $28
4. Silver Circles Necklace by roundabout $15
5. Migration Summer Bicycle Necklace by paraphernalia $25
6. Skinny Rectangle Necklace in Sterling Silver by kusu $42
7. Molly Necklace-Large by thepebblecollection $26
8. Unfurl by UntamedMenagerie $18
9. Little Wings, Gold by locallibrary $46
10.Chatterbirds by wearthou $48
11.Moonlight Silk Yoyo Necklace by cookoorikoo $20
12.Tree on the Lake Glass Necklace by photoglassworks $25

love springs infernal

Happy Valentine's Day! Was just reading on the web about how this all got started. It sort of came to be when women started being pursued by courtship instead of pillaging. Kind of like when Matt impresses me by sweeping the floor versus making me smell his farts. Chivalry is not dead.

his future's so bright

Mary and the boy were out for a stroll on this beautiful day, and they stopped in for a quick visit. Had to grab the camera as soon as I saw this...

Henry T is lookin' too cool for school. And also too young for school.

Our Lady of Hanson

I have a sin to confess. I love Mmm Bop. This video makes me happier than a jug of communion wine.

my kind of bling

Oh, Amy gets me. The fabulous Amy Stephan-Babcock sent me the link to an awesome craft site called Pancake Meow. Arguably the best blog name ever. She saw this ring, and thought of me. Can you guess why?

Thanks Amy! Let me know if you find any bacon necklaces or key lime pie ankle bracelets!

looking for the pony

The latest show by Synchronicity Performance Group to open at 7 Stages Theater is Andrea Lepcio's "Looking for the Pony". The story is centered around two sisters and the happiness and heartache they experience throughout their lives.

The cast includes Suehyla El-Attar, Jennifer Levinson (also known as Souper Jenny!), Stacy Melich, and John Benzinger.

It's running now through March 8th! Holla!

grounded!

Yay! Time for more yoga photo playtime! Last year I had a blast taking some quirky and fun shots of Tiff and Cheryl for their yoga projects. Now they are joined by Amy, and are working on yet another endeavor called "Grounded". Z (Tiff's talented boyfriend) is creating a website for them, and they needed some photos as well. The only thing that could have made this more enjoyable is if my photo-taking could have somehow made them as sore as I get after one of their yoga classes!

During the last session, I had taken pics of Tiff and Cheryl holding cute pillows with happy messages on them. We had to get one with Amy too! Here she is being adorable with "love".

For those who don't know Tiff, she can NOT take a bad photo. It's terribly annoying. I present Exhibit A...

Cheryl has a natural beauty and inner light that I love to photograph.

Here's the latest addition to Cheryl's furry family...Courage!

Y'all probably recognize this gentleman. "No damage"! We tried putting him in yoga poses, but he needs to work on his flexibility. Probably could use their "Yoga for the Stiff Guy" class.

I put together a few layouts for their "grounded" concept. They wanted shots portraying the bad version of grounded and the good version.

I love this pic of Tiff and Cheryl

I got to meet Cheryl's fabulous hubby, Bruce! Yes, they are one of those painfully attractive couples.

A few more "grounded" layouts...

Thanks so much, you lovely ladies! With you, I'd be happy to be grounded, detained, or doing time in a cell block. At least we could do some yoga in there!

fletch is workin' overtime!

FLETCH!

Oh boy! This is our new little Great Pyrenees pup. We don't have him home yet, but we went for a visit today. We have to wait another 3 whole weeks before he's "ready". "Ready" basically means that we will tragically tear him away from his doting mother to fulfill our own selfish puppy needs. He will surely seek revenge by turning our lives into a frenzied song and dance number called "2009: A Poop Odyssey".

Until then, we are just so excited about finally being dog owners. Wait...hang on for a sec...

Dear cats,

We still love you. Please don't hate us or start plotting anything. If I see an anvil suspiciously propped above the closet door, I'll know. I promise that you will still be fed, still hold your places of honor in front of the heating vents, and I will still tell you how pretty you look, even when you might look a little crappy.

Love,

Stacey

Ok, so as I was saying, we're SO thrilled about our pup. We're getting him from a lovely lady named Liliane, who breeds Great Pyrs and llamas. In fact, she's known as the "Llama Mama". She has a big farm, and her dogs guard her other animals. We decided to get this breed since they are calm, protective, smart, good with cats and kiddos, and they are fluffiliciously adorable. I have never owned a dog before, so if anyone wants to pass along some advice, please help me! Lately, I've been watching more Cesar Millan than Stephen Colbert, but I still feel clueless.

In case you're wondering, the name "Fletch" comes from the 1985 film of the same name. It's one of our favorites and is quoted on a regular basis in our home. "I love your body, Larry". Of course, this means that his full name is Irwin M. Fletcher. I will never call him that. Well, maybe he'll hear his full name when he eats a tube of lip gloss or tries to hump my yoga mat.

I'll be sure to keep posting puppy updates until this photography blog eventually transitions into Fletch's personal video diary.

Here are some shots from today. He's now 4 weeks old. Just minutes after these pics were taken, he grew to the size of a school bus.

Some Matty snugs!

Here I am performing a series of exhaustive tests to determine whether or not he can deal with my "off" days.

This is his sweet momma, Lorraine.

Hangin' with the sibs. Fletch is the one with the dot on his head.

Here he's doing his bunny rabbit impression. This is a sign that he will get along with our cat Pasi, since she has also mastered the bunny disguise.

I luvs him!!!