….peter gabriel….

sigh….i love my job.

daily mantra: and above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. those who don’t believe in magic, will never find it. {ronald.daul}

some things…are so worth the wait.

daily mantra: the most important thing in life is family. there are days when you love them, and others you don’t. but, in the end, the are the people  you always come home to. sometimes its the family you are born into, and sometimes its the family you make for yourself….

i am taking a break from editing weddings this week to complete my family sessions and had to share a few from the Baker Family. These girls were so fun and full of energy and you can tell the addition of their little brother just added a great element to all the love they have to give.

(elizabeth.messina)

i start to tear up around the Rockland/Rockport town line on Route 17 now. i will be fine until i hit that point, and as soon as i drive by Chickawaukie Lake (otherwise known as Chicki Stretch, also known as the place I have easily gotten about $2,000 worth of speeding tickets in my 14 years of driving) water will stream down my face and i instantly feel excited, happy, and even nervous that i am within arms reach of home. i don’t even have to see anyone i know and no one has to stop and talk to me on the street, but just being there is a pair of flannel footy pj’s for my soul.

the last time i traveled on the ferry to Vinalhaven, an tiny island community off the coast of my hometown in Maine, i was so young that both my hands fit inside just one of my grandmothers. she was wearing her good coat with hard, brass buttons…i buried my dirty blond head into her lap and tried not to think about the rise and fall of the boat. and even on the way to meet baby Finn a few weeks ago, i was surprised at  just how much this ferry moved with several cars, several people, a few dogs, a rabbit, and a dump truck filled with loam. it cut through the fog, and at the end of the 45 minute ride, lobster buoys and boats and seals sitting on the grey rocks appears almost as if by magic.

Sarah grew up on Vinalhaven, and her and her husband Chad had planned to have their sweet little babe right there in the same house as she and her sister were born. Finn had a different idea, and was born 3 weeks early on the mainland…a 45 minute ferry ride, away. in labor. on a boat, sick, getting ready to have a baby…for almost an hour. Sarah’s island life and her incredible gift of writing, is probably what made her a strong candidate for the NPR Baby Project, and she was chosen as only 1 of 9 expectant mothers across the WHOLE country to chronicle their stories of birth and the first few weeks of motherhood.  despite the fact that Finn did enter this world in a hospital on the mainland, actually getting to the hospital was an adventure that few of us have to worry or even think about.

we photographed Finn in the same house Sarah was born in….just that thought gives me tingles. i have to say, i have done a lot of sessions with babies, but this one just felt like home to my heart.

i have to say that i am not the only one who is sad to see the NPR’s Baby Project come to an end. i have so enjoyed reading Sarah’s blog and i am just praying that she will keep an online journal so i can still read her amazing words. click here to check out all of her entries….{click}.

{NPR Photograph Feature}

daily mantra: i feel we are all islands in a common sea…anne.lindbergh

i grew up as an only child, but i have no less than 1,223 first cousins (slight exaggeration, but i have a TON….i bet its over 50), and getting together with them is like a scene out of the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, only we arn’t Greek. so when i see families come together for a session, it always feels perfect. most of you will recognize the older little sweetie as my 2 year in a row Cover Girl, Emery. and her darling little cousin is the lovely and joyful baby Nora. we all met up at one of my favorite locations in the whole world…Gilsland Farm in Falmouth, and the weather could not have been more perfect. many people have inquired on the blog if i have an affiliation with the Audubon, and i don’t, but whenever i get a chance to share this beautiful park with a family, i do. it is filled with trails, rare birds and flowers, bunnies, bees, turtles,  activities for kids, fat ground hogs, and some pretty tame turkeys has we found out on this session. (turkeys are very big up close….did you know that?) and best, its free.

once upon a time, there was an amazing couple….

and they loved eachother so much, that they made a beautiful wish to create a family…

and they were blessed, times two. Emma (below photo, left) and Addison (right).

nothing is more perfect than watching my loving couples become loving parents…watching a family evolve from the beginning is a blessing that makes me teary eyed to write about. and when Jamie announced her pregnancy, i became a Facebook stalker (cough…i mean interested, slightly obsessed, baby bump watcher) on a daily basis. and of course, when she announced twins, and then GIRLS, i had all i could do to wait until their arrival. but they did finally arrive, and Addy and Emma have blessed this family and filled it with more love than every thought possible.

…and the day came when the risk to remain a tight in a bud was greater than the risk it took to bloom….{anais.nin}

nothing in the world is sweeter than a summer night in Maine. a yellow-red magic marker sky, air heavy as if it is carrying pockets of water, and staying out past your bedtime because your parents are on the back deck talking and having a good time too…you just might be lucky enough that they forget all together and you and your dirty feet will get to crawl into the clean, crisp, line-hung sheets smelling like the sun and tall grass you played in all day. that is how i felt going out to shoot this session with Ava and Ben…an incredibly hot evening, with a light breeze for intermittent relief…but also one filled with adventure and fun, and where all things found are amazing and new.

i always try to tell clients about the BEST time to shoot during the day. this twilight time is by fair the best and provides a softness and a rich depth of color. however, i know that not all kiddos are up for an evening session. some little ones are just in better spirits in the morning. if your kids can make it into the later part of the day though, it does produce amazing warm photographs.

it is always a treat for me to photograph kids this time of year in the heat of the stressful (but wonderful just the same) wedding season. and there is something so special about little boys. i would have to say that although i love all little ones, my favorite age to photograph is between 8 months and 24 months. children are so full of the most natural expression, and uninhibited genuine spirit during that time frame, and this little man was just the same…shy and sweet at first, and then adventurous.

i had not been to this spot since i was a little girl when my mom and i would take picnics on the weekends and play for what seemed like hours. so, this was like an adventure for me too. Vesper Hill or Children’s Chapel reminds me of the book, The Secret Garden….it is such an oasis. although dedicated to children in the 1960′s, the outdoor chapel is used for weddings and events, and even an outdoor service on Sundays, but mostly, it is just there for people to enjoy (and its free!!).

i was reading through some old books while attempting to reduce my own clutter last week.

i failed miserably. (shock)

it wasn’t a complete waste of time though, because i found this great little Sark snippet with the page eared down. it still had the library stamp in the back from 2006. i remember that i had loved it so much, that i held onto it for almost a year, accumulated about $50 in overdue charges, and then i finally just called and paid for the book (and the fines). oy. i am the same way with those Red Box movies.

:HOW TO REALLY LOVE A CHILD:

be there. say yes as often as you can. let them bang on pots and pans. if they are crabby, put them in water. read books out loud with joy. go find elephants and kiss them. encourage silly. remember how small they really are. search out the positive. keep the gleam in your eye. go see a movie in your pajamas. teach feelings. realize how important it is to be a child. plan to build a rocketship. stop yelling. express your love. a lot.

children are miraculous

:SARK:

From Sark’s Creative Companion