Don't forget...

... this is the last week to get 10% off your float wrap order! All orders must be in by Wednesday, March 31st at midnight.

Get all the details in the original post.

... and we're off!

We're headed down to South Carolina today, and I can't wait. Can I just say how much I LOVE that my husband is a teacher and I will always still get spring break?? It should be a good week. Moving out of town means that you automatically get spoiled by both sets of parents when you return. Being pregnant gets you bonus spoilage.

I've got a few photo shoots sprinkled in during our vacation as well- I am so excited to see my "regulars" as well as a few new clients!

But first up on the list: get two of my most favorite people married. Wahoooo!!!





And on an unrelated note because I can't contain my excitement, I must share a picture of the surprise I got in the mail this week...





Road trip + BFF wedding + vacay + new Epiphanie bag = happy Karin

Blogging will be sporadic, but I will have lots to share when I return!

Some perspective on spring

It's the first day of spring and I live in the city,
so really things aren't yet looking too pretty.





But the sun was so warm and the breeze lightly blowing,
and I was antsy to know that SOMETHING was growing.

I picked up my camera and walked out the door,
on a mission to find spring in Baltimore.

I saw brick and concrete and lots of bare trees
but where were the colors and flowers and bees?





One tree caught my eye with a few blooms of red,
and then I saw white on a tree up ahead.








I found one growing pink and another one green,
but overall there wasn't too much to be seen.





It seemed that I was searching for something not here,
that true spring in the north would show later this year.

As I slowly walked home I let out a long sigh,
but suddenly something bright caught my eye.

I stopped in an alley and my smile spread wide,
and I reached for the camera hanging at my side.

Perspective is key and I had been looking all wrong,
turns out spring has been just out back all along!

Suspicious activity

Fact: I have to learn how to be a mother soon. I think I am a fairly patient person, so that's a plus. But I may or may not be known for my need for "personal space."

Fact: Dogs are just like children. Ok not really but I like to pretend they are. I have a dog and this makes me feel like I know what I am doing already.

Fact: My dog has been acting VERY suspiciously lately. He whimpers for no apparent reason, and nothing I can do makes him happy. He has begun acting out at bedtime. He glues himself to my leg all waking hours of the day. He carries his bone (symbolic of a blankie??) everywhere he goes. I walk to the bathroom. He follows me in, sits his bone on the floor, and wraps himself around my ankles while I brush my teeth. I turn to leave, trip over the dog, step on the bone, and curse his name. I walk to my desk and he quickly grabs his bone and follows. I realize I left my phone on the bathroom counter and turn to get it, only to trip over the impossibly-close-to-my-heels-dog again and send his bone flying out of his mouth. He is not phased, scampering over to pick up his bone and catch up with me. This continues up and down the stairs, in and out of the kitchen, back and forth to the washer and dryer in the basement. All. Day. Long. I have to physically push him out of the bathroom and lock the door in order to shower alone. I love him but would especially love to have two precious seconds of time to myself.

I feel that he has been hired to "train" me in motherhood. Who put him up to this? I am not amused. I will pay you to stop.

The essentials

This preparing-for-a-baby thing has opened my eyes to a whole new world. It doesn't seem like a baby needs a whole lot. Afterall, they just eat, sleep, poop, and cry. But while you really only need a few basics to start off baby life, the more you read and the more you see, the more you feel is absolutely necessary for survival. Which is why of course I now have three separate baby registries. Ridiculous.

In my defense, registering at Babies R Us and Amazon.com were very practical places for us because we found lots of important items like diapers and car seats. But seriously, The Land of Nod has the cutest striped onesies I have ever seen, and suddenly those seem quite essential as well.

What else have I deemed essential? A new camera bag. Now I know that technically my camera is not required to sustain the life of my child, but I would suggest that it comes quite close. And if I am going to be toting my camera everywhere, don't I need a really cute bag that also holds diapers and wipes? (Please note, this is very different than a diaper bag that also holds a camera.)

I have been drooling over these Epiphanie bags ever since they were first announced last fall, and now that they are in production I can't stop dreaming of owning one. While I haven't yet held one in my hands, I urge all fellow photographers to get one immediately.





They are functional, gorgeous, and spacious, and they make you look cooler than you really are. Plus I've deemed them a safety item. When I take the kid out, why would I want to lug a large camera bag that announces to the world, "I am full of expensive equipment and a slightly distracted new mother is juggling a diaper bag and baby while carrying me- steal me!"? So really, I think you'll agree it would be foolish of me NOT to own one.

So to summarize, if you are out in search of a good deed to do today, look no further. You can just order me a present and call it a day. : ) For the record, I love Lola and Belle. Surprise me.

Last chance to book for spring in SC

Ooops. Did I do it again? The forget-to-blog thing? Well lucky for you, those days are over. I mean I think they are, if the pregnancy brain doesn't get in the way. I've been working a temp job for a few months now and it has officially come to a close. Translation: I have 28 extra hours a week to dedicate to my blog. Or laundry. Take your pick.

Quick update to let you know I've got just a few spots left in South Carolina this spring. (By the way, can I just tell you that I am really excited for spring this year??) Full details can be found here.

E-mail me if you're interested!

I've been sorting through files and reorganizing my backup hard drives over the past few days. I never did one of those "year in review posts" showcasing my favorite images from 2009, and since it's March now I think we're a little too late for that. But in honor of spring's impending arrival, here are just a couple warm, sunshine-y shots from last year that make me smile big.











This little guy just turned one this week- wow time flies!

Ooooh... ahhhh...

I periodically add new products to my client offerings and I'm excited to share with you the latest!

Custom CD books
Most of my clients end up ordering a high-resolution photo CD of their session images. You now have the option to upgrade to a customized CD book- a sweet case to store your memories. Each CD case is designed by me and printed front and back and has a spiffy magnetic closure. These make a great gift for grandparents!








Float wraps
I love these and just ordered several for my own house. Float wraps are a more casual and afforable alternative to the gallery wrap canvases that I love so much. Your image is printed on high quality photo paper (shown) or fine art canvas and mounted on padded masonite. These come ready to hang by a 3/4" mounting block and don't need frames, creating a simple, clean look in your home. Float wraps are PERFECT for wall groupings of the kids. A variety of sizes is available and pricing begins at just $75.








For the month of March I am offering 10% off all float wrap orders, so if you've been waiting for the perfect time to freshen up your wall hangings, this is it!

Contact me to place an order or for detailed pricing and more information.

Jeans and chocolate milk

I'm a pretty low-maintenance girl. In a high-maintenance kind of way.

For example, take a look at my outfit of choice. In a perfect world, I would not be required to dry my hair after showering and I would wear jeans, a t-shirt, flip-flops, and a ponytail all day everyday. (And I don't mean "t-shirt" the way some prissy girls do- I mean an actual unisex, 100% cotton, non-fitted t-shirt, preferrably from a touristy restaurant or a race I ran in.) So that all sounds pretty simple and low maintenance, until we start talking about the jeans.

Now I know everyone is particular about jeans, but I'm a little different. I have only owned two perfect pairs of jeans in my life. The first pair I bought seven years ago and is now so threadbare I only allow myself to wear and wash them once every six months in order to preserve their fragile life, and the second pair which I found last year is on a well-deserved hiatus while I rock the maternity jeans for a few months. I have impossibly high standards for my jeans- they have be a certain fabric content and must hit at a very precise spot on my hip and flare at a very particular angle at the feet and be a very exact length. Neither of my favorites are designer labels, but I would gladly pay an astronomical amount of money if I could ever find them again in store or on eBay or at an outlet (you'd understand if you saw my butt in them). Nothing short of perfection is acceptable, and unless I am wearing one of the previously mentioned perfect pairs my mood is noticably less chipper.

Similarly, my taste in foods is quite basic, but I'm still hard to please. While my appreciation for chocolate milk may seem simple enough on the surface, things get pretty complex when it comes to the cup it's poured in and the ratio of milk to chocolate syrup. I'll spare you the details of this and many other examples and get straight to the point. Clearly I am very picky (shocking), but I would venture to say that I can be a little difficult to live with.

It takes a special person to love me and live with me, and I am happy to report that three years after marrying me he has not given up. He's kind of wonderful. Of course he has his favorite jeans, but he doesn't sulk about the rest of his collection. If you make him a glass of chocolate milk he appreciates the gesture and doesn't get caught up in the details, and yet he still goes to every effort to ensure my glass meets my specifications.

Silly way of saying it, but basically my husband is perfect for me. His selfless and loving spirit continually blow me away. I am not sure how he has the patience for me but I am so glad that he does. God planned the perfect person for me and that is pretty cool.

Also, he makes me laugh a lot and he's not too bad to look at.

Happy anniversary, Dylan. Love you tons!




(Photo by Sara Parker)