Modern Prairie Girl

via Work is not a job

…my spirit is dwelling in a small Texas town this week. Can’t wait to see you all!

Thanks to my parents and PH for holding down the very busy fort.

Lots to share when I get back!!

OX.

I’ve learned something very valuable as I journey into the pre-teen years with my precious girls.

It’s something that might be easy to complain about for many of us. There are times I’ve dreaded it a little, but I’ve learned that it’s an asset in the act of parenting.

image via Zeddsaver

Heaps of time in the car looking in my rearview mirror…

Drives to school

soccer

horse riding

piano

tennis

mall trips

birthday parties

grocery adventures…

It’s all good.

What would make me relish such insane amounts of time behind the wheel, you ask? Because for some reason, when the girls see the back of my head (and not my expression), they feel comfortable talking about things going on that I wouldn’t otherwise hear about. Those conversations we have in the car flit-fly-fleeing from one activity to the next are the most valuable exchanges we have all week.

I love it.

I love that they ask my opinion on things…everything from the “mean girl” stuff to how a teacher handled a situation to foods being swapped at lunch to the dance coming up on Friday. I listen more than I talk (a feat of huge proportions, I assure you) and I do a lot of nodding. I honestly think I would miss a great deal if I didn’t spend so much time in our gas guzzler with the ladies. Funny thing.

I love being a mom to girls. It’s a special gift and I marvel at their ever-growing (different) personalities each day.

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Speaking of lovely girls..I was fortunate enough to capture Rachel’s best buddy, Sarah, on Sunday for “31 Portraits”.

Sarah will be moving away at the end of the school year and they’re both dreading the goodbyes. We all are. It’s a heart breaker to leave. I know this because I was blubberychildmess when I was standing in the driveway in New York holding on to my friend Kathy’s hand when we moved home to the NW almost six years ago. It was an ugly cry and it hurt in my gut like I was 10 year-old.  I do believe opening yourself up to let someone step into your mushy heart is totally worth it…even when the goodbyes are so difficult. Kathy and I did Facetime on our iphones the other day…after we got over laughing how absolutely horrible we looked on the screen (snow day: no makeup, crazy bedhead and a messy kitchen), we did the “take the tour” thing on our homes…caught up on everything. I got that same tight feeling in my chest when it was time to say goodbye…like the driveway feeling of 2006. Seeing someone’s face who’s far away is a bittersweet thing..so great to feel like you’re actually sitting there for coffee, but terribly sad when you have to turn off the screen and they’re gone.

Just some thoughts on technology and relationships…sentimental blathering on this Sunday morning.

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Just a couple of days until my Texas adventure. I guess the Rodeo Queens are cookin’ up some major magic and I couldn’t be more excited. Life is a PAR-TAY to those ladies and they always make you feel so special!

 Come join the fun..it’s not too late.

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Image via World Top Journeys

Also, wanted to let those of you who have been inquiring that we finally have dates for “Ignite the Heart: Italy”:

April 20th to May 7th…it includes Rome and the Amalfi Coast.

Please email me and I will send you a flyer with all of the details. More info next week!

OX.

I continue to love this process.

It’s been a different feel to every mini shoot…the one below was a no-brainer, as my friend Salina and her family revel in their new sone from Ethiopia. It was a long wait and they are so grateful he’s home.

Teared up working on these. Love in pure form…

Jan. 13~ Salina: proud mom of two, abs of steel, encourager of abs of steel at Barre3, luminous, graceful and hilarious.
Marquise: Home now.

Technical info: Shot in studio…iso 100/f/8..shutter 1/125th…used Hilite backdrop from Lastolite (which was f/16)  to expose subjects on white perfectly.

Jan. 14~ Reed: website/animation expert, gentle giant, devoted husband, lover of the “home zoo”, loved by Leni, Pink Floyd fan, the rescued princess.

Technical info: In studio… iso 100/f/5.6…shutter 1/125th.

Jan. 15~ Sierra: Horse whisperer, lover of nature, and fiercely devoted to compassionate vegan lifestyle.

Technical info: iso 200…small softbox set-up with a sb 800 Nikon flash unit at a 45 degree angle on a Pocket Wizard remote…f/2.8 (with a 70-200 mm lens), shutter speed 1/250 to darken backdrop a bit.

Jan.16~ Parker: lover of cars and basketball, the “little brother”, Pixar movie afficionado, snugglebug..favorite animal: Mr. Thumper.

Technical info: window light only, small reflector to put in catchlights in the eyes, iso 600…f/2.8..shutter 1/60th.

Jan. 17~ Heidi: birthday girl, big dreamer, glass is half full believer , hostess with the mostest…..BRAVE GIRL.

Technical info: small softbox set-up with Nikon sb 800 at a 45 degree angle…f/2.8..shutter 1/125th…it was a dark night outside and we had minimal ceiling light.

Jan. 18~ Jack: 3rd grade superhero, co-owner of the coolest treehouse ever, basketball player..favorite movie: Pixar’s “Cars”.

Technical info: snowy day so light bouncing all around off the white. I didn’t have reflector, but was wearing white, so I reflected in his eyes for catchlights. iso 200…f/2.8..shutter 1/250th. Freaky image look post procesed with a “bleach pass” in Nik Color Efex software after importing into Photoshop.

Jan. 19~ Ivy: Woman of style, mom to girls, Singaporean citizen, cat lover…would rather cozy up in front of the fire than lie on a beach.

Technical info: Shot in studio, fabric backdrop (bought in the upholstery section) behind her, beauty dish light modifier on a Alien Bee at f4..shutter 1/125th.

This week should be interesting as I head to Texas and I’m sure some truly fabulous “31 Portraits” subjects are waiting there.

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I hope your week is going well, lovelies…we are well into the new year. Have you stepped up your game on any big dreams or wishes so far? Re-check your list and see what one thing you can do in the next few days to propel you closer to realizing something big.

his is the time!!

OX.

Okay…so it might be that I secretly was born in this sassy state and was kidnapped at birth and moved to the Northwest.

It’s the strangest thing…

I felt so at home there when I went for Petticoats on the Prairie last year. It was probably the people that made me feel that way, those lovely Rodeo Queens and all the fun they bring…but I think there’s something about the place that gets under my skin and makes me feel like I belong there.

Could it be the boots?

via Don’t Mess with Texas

Or the fact that real live cowboys live and work here?

via Need a Sweet Distraction

Or the presence of Cowboy Churches and barbed wired bouquets?

Or Texas FLAT-ness and the joke that you can see your run-away dog for three days?

via National Geographic

Or interesting Texas facts, like all long horned steers are registered with the state?

via Cowography

Or how a barn-turned house seems so totally authentic there?

via Barns and Buildings

Or that women come together to make some special in a place that is very tough to live weatherwise?

 Honestly, I think a lot of is the dreamy vision I create in my head of that wild horse-riding woman with hair flowing running across the prairie….she’s inside, waiting to come out…

via.

…but for now, I will just visit my sweet friends and do a little dreaming as I go.

Eight days until the fun begins at the Windmill Ranch Preserve in Snyder Texas…so excited to meet all of you!

(snow day here today…very rare in these parts, but appreciated by the kidlets…they’re out there now in the dark at 7:30 a.m. before it all melts!)

OX.

The little things.

Ever notice how much they can add to every day existence?

Instagram always helps me see which little things mean the most to me.

1) Tea Time  2) Neighborhood walk  3) Magic Forests  4) Airstream Dreams  5) Horse braids  6) Fresh Cilantro  7) Disney spoons for grownups  8  ) Cakes under glass  9) Dog scarves  10) Portland dates

I think as women many of us are creature comfort seekers. Asthetics junkies, looking for the most inviting environment to spend our days. It’s the reason Pinterest is such a craze right now. We’re obsessed with how these images make us feel….

Cozy

Mod

Artsy

Fun

In Love

Loved

Stylish

Silly

Organized

All things we crave in our daily lives. All things we feel are important to add zest…”the parsley” of life. I’m all about the parsley. In love with how much my environment makes me feel. It’s not enough to sit and have acuppa tea…I need the pretty napkin and sprinkled mini cupcake to sit beside it. It’s important to me that tulips grace the table when spring finally arrives…you know…in a rainy NW June

It’s important to pay attention to what your “parsley” is.

Do you require a lot of window light to keep your mood up?

Do you need bright colors in your world in the winter?

Do you feel unfinished without donning  a pretty bracelet before leaving the house?

We’re all made of little things…and I think if we gave them more of a chance to become bigger players in our daily lives, we would feel the joy-bringing qualities more intensely.

I was thinking about my joy bringers..there are many and they’re not huge and hard to come by, thank goodness.

~Lots of arm candy

~Peonies or tulips on my desk at the studio

~Bookstore  and hot chocolate dates with my girls

~A really satisfying workout

~Champagne (the good kind) with a friend

~Coffee in a cup with a saucer

~Frenchie sandwiches in sidewalk cafes’

~Matinees’

~Date night at a trendy bar where PH and I are 15 years older than everyone else

~Reading great Euro glossies by the fire

~Phototaking walk-abouts in unfamiliar places

~Love letters

~Artist dates

I love how the course of a day can turn on a dime when just one of these lovelies is sprinkled into the daily routine.

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So honored to be a guest artist in Jeanne Oliver’s fabulous ecourse, “Creatively Made”. If you’d like to participate–there’s still time!! Sign up here.

There’s also still room in my January “Top Secret in Texas Ya’ll” workshop in West Texas. ‘Would love to kick up my heels with all ya’ll!

Happy week, lovelies!

OX.