Catching up from OBX

I'm sitting in the kitchen overlooking the Currituck Sound at our beach house in the Outerbanks, blogging while my dad and sister make tacos for dinner. The rest of the family is slowly wandering back in from the pool and beach looking relaxed and happy. I spent the afternoon snoozing in the sand and finally got a tiny bit of sun into my skin. It's been a good day.

After a long, busy but wonderful Saturday celebrating Kait and Kent's wedding, my sister and Dylan and I went home, slept for four hours, and then got up at 3AM this morning to drive down and meet the rest of my family at the beach. The vacation has officially begun!

Ironically enough, it is because I am on vacation that I have some time to catch up on my blogging. I shared a picture of Emily in my last post this week- here are a few more from her birthday party I shot a two weeks ago. I can't believe she's three already- I feel like I just did her two-year-old session yesterday!

















Serious rainstorms rolled through during the party, but Emily didn't seem to notice. She was happy as can be to play in the rain!





I'll have more sessions to share with you this week- that is, if I can force myself out of the ocean and in front my computer. : ) I'll try.

Midweek Q&A

Question: Karin, why haven't you blogged much this week? Are you slacking off?

Answer: Heck no. I have gone into turbo-mode and am editing photo sessions like there is no tomorrow because NEXT WEEK I AM ON VACATION!

Question: Ok Karin, but when will you post the pictures on your blog?

Answer: Hopefully by the end of this week once I get these sessions wrapped, but if not you will just have to wait a little because NEXT WEEK I AM ON VACATION!

Question: Karin, why does your internet cut off every time your phone rings?

Answer: If I had the answer to that and all the other problems with my cable/internet/phone company I would be a very rich girl.

Question: Karin, what kinds of things are you excited about right now?

Answer: Well, I am greatly looking forward to Kent & Kait's wedding this weekend (since they belong to two of my favorite families on the planet) and then the following Saturday my best friend is getting married and I am MOH which is of course awesome. Oh and did I mention that in between those two weddings, which would be NEXT WEEK, I AM ON VACATION!?

Question: Karin, what do you think about frilly toothpicks?

Answer: I'm for 'em!

Question: Karin, can we see just one picture from one of the sessions you are working on right now?

Answer: Ok, fine, but only because you asked so nicely.





More questions or things you want to know? That's what the comment box is for. Ask away!

Alison & Michael

Alison and Michael (like so many of us *coughcough*) hadn't had any portraits since their wedding day. When she called to schedule a photoshoot I was so happy that our busy schedules coordinated- my only open slot was their only free time. She and Michael are moving to Raleigh next week and really wanted their session done at their home here in Columbia.

Sidenote: I love it when clients choose their homes as their session location. People are so comfortable at their own houses, and you learn so much about them! Houses have so much character. For Alison and Michael it was extra sweet- they've lived in this home since they got married and have put a lot of time and love into it.

I met them at their beautiful house in historic Shandon, one of my favorite downtown neighborhoods. (Luckily for Alison, she has more sense than to decorate their house floor to ceiling with wedding photos. Some of us just don't have that restraint. I mean really, it's been over two years since we got married and my dining room looks like a wedding shrine. We need to rectify this.)

It was a gorgeous morning and their street and yard made for fantastic photo locations. We of course started off the session with their dog Miles included. He really seemed to enjoy the continuous stream of treats if he obeyed- so much so that we brought him back for the grand finale.







Michael built this archway at the gate to their backyard

















We did get a few shots indoors before heading back out again











Alison and Michael, I had a great time meeting you and I am so glad we were able to get your session in before the big move! Good luck in Raleigh!

Miles

I'm busily editing images from several sessions over the past ten days. No full posts tonight, but I did like this one and decided to share.

Meet Miles, a three-year-old Labradoodle:





The legs belong to the people the shoot was REALLY about, but for now you just have to settle for their furry friend.

FREE TREATS!

Tomorrow (Saturday 5/16) is the grand opening of Rita's Water Ice on Harbison Boulevard, and to celebrate they are giving away FREE ICE for seven days!

My parents (from Philly) and my aunt and uncle (in Philly) are the proud owners of the first and only Rita's in the Irmo area, and it's basically the bomb dot com. Yeah, I just said that.

If you are excited, come visit.

If you like it, come every day.

If you are broke, remember that it's free.

If you are skeptical, ask yourself if I have ever lied to you.

If you are confused, let me assure you that when I say "ice" I don't mean frozen cubes of water, and let me kindly direct you to the web site to learn more about Rita's delicious treats.

If you are drooling, get a napkin.

If you have friends, tell them. (About the free ice, not your drooling problem.)

If you are jealous, tough luck. Tell your parents to open their own store.

If you are awesome, grab your keys and go camp out in the parking lot. Cause 12:00 noon is going to sneak up on you pretty quickly, and you don't want to miss your chance to be the first customer, now do you?

The many faces of the weekend

So, more pics from last weekend, as promised. It was a really busy (but great) time spent with friends and family. From Dylan's hooding ceremony to graduation to his graduation party to a bridal shower for my best friend to a big get-together out at a lake with out-of-town friends, here are a few of my favorite pictures from the weekend.

And just for kicks, it rhymes.


This is the face of my USC grad





And this is his face with his proud mom and dad





My face is so happy this grad is my spouse





I love that this little face wore her Gamecock shirt to our house





These silly faces drove in from out of town





And not one of these faces was wearing a frown





This is the face of the excited bride-to-be





And most pictures have Cayden's face, as you can see.











This is the face of a fish that was caught





And this hat is too big for the face of this tot.





I have nothing clever for this last line,
but these faces are the friends that are mine.

Timeout to brag

When I was in high school I dated this boy. He was on the varsity soccer team, had bleached hair, wore skater shoes, was way cute, and rocked out to Blink182 all day long. He didn't care much for school or homework (unless it was a project with his girlfriend/super-hot chemistry lab partner.)

Fast forward nine years, and you might do a double take. Because this boy is now my husband, and not only did he earn a double major in college, he went back for grad school, and he now reads books FOR FUN, and while he still enjoys the occasional Blink182 on his iPod, his hair is a normal color. He's still super cute, and this past weekend he graduated with a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) in Business Education, because of all things, Dylan wants to be a high school principal.

Ignore for a moment the photographic and artistic quality of the image below and look at my baby walking across the stage!! (Seriously, cut me some slack, they don't light those arenas very well.)





Dylan, I couldn't be more proud of you right now, and I am so excited for your new teaching career and God's plan for you. You've worked so hard over the past 18 months all while still being the bestest husband ever. You're going to make a phenomenal teacher and soccer coach, and an even better principal. You're pretty awesome.

I haven't really had time to sort through all my images from the weekend, but I have much more to share: a beautiful Saturday morning photo session, more of Dylan's graduation, a bridal shower for my best friend, and some more of sweet baby Cayden and our friends out at the lake. So check back soon- I'll be posting as quickly as I can!

Whirlwind weekend ahead

I thought about literally sharing my to-do list with you. Just typing it all out and calling it a post. Then I decided not only was that boring and not at all the reason you stopped by my blog, it might stress you out a little.

Instead I will simply say I have a very busy weekend! and leave you with these pictures. Our good friends Courtney and Kirk and their daughter Cayden are in town for a wedding, and we don't get to see them often so we all got together for pizza last night. I took their picture so I don't forget what they look like till I see them again. : (





Last time I saw Courtney she had a little bump for a belly and last time I saw Cayden, well, she WAS that little bump! She's almost four months old now and got passed around a good bit, but when I did get a few minutes to hold her I asked Sara to grab my camera and snap a pic of us.





Ok, maybe Cayden wasn't interested in smiling at the camera with me, but she also wasn't crying in my arms, so I consider it a victory.

Sara did a mini session of Cayden before dinner and I know she got some great shots! Once she gets a second to breathe I am sure we'll see some on her blog.

Tri this

I am a marathoner, and while not a speedy marathoner I still consider myself no stranger to athletic accomplishment.

I do not, however, consider myself a potential triathlete. As cool as it looks and as often as I've thought I would love to be able to add "Ironman" in front of my name in my e-mail signature to impress people, the fact of the matter is that I would never survive. I am a terrible swimmer and my last bicycle experience was a wobbly and stressful one in Germany where they ding their bicycle bells at you if you are not going fast enough on the narrow special bike path among cars, trams, dogs, and pedestrians.

All that to say that I find triathlons incredibly cool and I was so proud of my friend Ryan this weekend as he completed his first one! We woke up bright and early to watch Ryan and his dad Doug swim 750 meters, bike 16 miles, and finish it off with a 5k run at the Lake Murray Triathlon.

We brought quite a contingent of cheerleaders, and Sara and I were both out in full force shooting the event. : )

My triathlon experience would be over five minutes into the open water swim. They'd have to send an emergency kayak over to scoop me and my brightly colored swimcap from the bottom of the lake. As you can see, Ryan and his dad were much more successful.











Then it was on to the bike ride








...and just when I am sure their legs felt like complete jello it was time to hop off and run three miles to the finish line.





Ryan and Doug both were AMAZING, finishing about five minutes apart. We are so proud of you!





So I still don't think I am brave enough to do one. For the record there are four levels of triathlons, and I really want the Ironman title- which would involve a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile (full marathon) run.

It's like what Navy Seals, insane people, and ultra-athletes do, but hey, a girl can dream. Basically it's the quickest way to put myself in a coma, but I would at least get to put "Ironman" in front of my name on all my medical charts.

Thoughts, anyone?