Janna and the cousins

I'm very behind! I'm so sorry to all my loyal readers. Much to blog about...

My sister Janna was visiting me two weeks ago and we took a little trip to visit my cousins and aunt and uncle. Lots of fun!

Having fun with their decorations


Seamus munching on a cookie


Sleepy cousin


The big activity for the afternoon was creating paper snowflakes


Violet was making some excellent designs




A quiet portrait of Janna


and another


and a not-so-quiet one


I always love shooting Janna's dreadlocks

Kelly and Matt's album

I recently finished Kelly and Matt's album design. I had lots of fun with this one!

Cutest measuring cups ever

What would we do without Ebay? I was in need of a set of measuring cups a few weeks ago and instead of buying some nice traditional silver ones I explored the depths of ebay to see what folks were selling. What I found is now my new favorite item in my kitchen.

The cups all have little colored bees for handles! (we're looking at them upside down)


So darn cute


And when stacked together, they form a beehive! What more could you want in a set of measuring cups?








I'm currently waiting on my rooster and sunflower measuring spoons :)

Ice

Ice in Chicago! Travel was slow on Saturday, but it was so pretty outside!

Dinner time

Every year my friend Ron's parents and grandma invite all his friends over for his grand birthday dinner. We always look forward to tons of great food and lively conversation. This year Ron and his wife Lisa moved to Ohio, but his family still wanted to keep the parties going!

Neal giving me a common skeptical look.


Jeanne surprised at the camera during dinner


Angela, the lovely hand model


Leece and Ron's grandma


Fabulous boots provided by Angela, the lovely foot model

Kasey and Adam: engagement

We met up at Navy Pier on a rather chilly Sunday morning - but they were up for shooting in the cold! I had been to Navy Pier numerous times in the years I've lived here, but never for a shoot, so I loved the new scenery!

Look at how tropical this appears! There's a greenhouse on the second level that we played in for a bit.




I loved all the lines this background gave us.




A little movement inside


These two were really easy to shoot – not much direction necessary, as they were always cute when looking at each other.






Don't worry folks, he didn't drop her :)




Navy Pier is full of color - I loved these bike racks.


Fun mirrors! How can you possibly walk past them without playing for a bit?






Thanks for an awesome morning, you two!

Thanksgiving

I had wonderful Thanksgiving day at my aunt and uncle's house! My cousins were amusing as always and full of energy.

Violet had her My Little Pony out for some dramatizations.


Seamus and Neal entered into a fencing match.


Seamus stared at me a bunch.


And he entertained us all with his mad guitar skills.

Wizard of Oz

My recent trip to Maine wasn't entirely to shoot animal photos – that was just a fun bonus. My sister Becca directs her jr-sr high school's musical and I really wanted to see this year's Wizard of Oz up in Houlton, ME.

I hung around backstage while everyone was putting on makeup and warming up.








The star of the show:


Ms. DeWan chatting with one of her kids moments before curtain.




The whole cast rushed the center of their circle for a big group cheer.


Let show begin...




Dorothy's shoes were fabulous, though apparently not very comfortable.


I was enjoying playing with the spotlight... here they are walking out of the auditorium


...and back in










One of my favorite scenes - the Jitterbugs! It was a swing dance scene that the kids had been rehearsing since mid-August. The original scene was cut from the 1939 movie.




Loved the tights!