I brought my closet!

The phone rang. "Are you here yet?" "I'm just pulling in..." "Ok, good, I'm parked on the side." I got out of my car and walked up to her side door. She opened the door and said, "so I brought my entire closet." There, hanging in the back, were several shirts, dresses & skirts. On the seat were a couple bags filled with other treasures and, of course, several boxes of shoes. "What should I wear?"

This is what I love about Senior sessions. It's always about the clothes. We picked a few outfits that would go nicely with our surroundings and we were off to explore the train station! For me, a picture has to have good textures, colors & light and the train station in Everett never disappoints.

Kelsey is a senior at Woodinville High School and is one of my daughters close friends. They met each other playing volleyball a couple years ago and have been fast friends ever since. Plus, she is probably the only other person we know who loves all things Disney like we do. And of course, that makes her extra special. Kelsey, it was fun to wander the station with you! You are beautiful inside and out and I can't wait for you to get us free tickets into Disneyland once you are working there :) Thanks for giving me the chance to document this time of your life... you know our door is always open to you.

Sisters, Seniors & Summer weather!

This wasn't just any Saturday. The rain hadn't stopped much in the past 3 weeks, but on this Saturday it was beautiful. Clear blue skies, greens that ranged from deep forest to lime. Cool breezes that made you want to grab a book & blanket and lay for a while. I know our warm days are numbered... but this Saturday made me forget all about that.

I met Mark, Carolyn, Lindsay & Leslie at the Chateau St. Michelle Winery in Woodinville for a family/senior session. We wandered through the grounds and ended up across the way at the Willows Lodge. We used the light, warmth, and gorgeous surroundings to inspire us. Mark is the Librarian at my kids elementary where I volunteer with all sorts of fun library duties. It was wonderful to spend some time meeting the ladies in his life. Lindsay & Leslie are sisters, seniors & twins! It was fun to see their different personalities at work while I put them through their modeling paces. And I can't forget Carolyn. This was the first time I had met her but I felt like I had many times before.

Thanks for spending the afternoon with me in front of my lens! I hope you love the results of what was a beautiful Saturday.

How do you know Fall has arrived?

My mom always tells the story of when I was a baby and she would feed me vegetable beef soup {yes the Campbell's type}. We didn't have much money, in fact I grew up in the low income housing ghetto in Everett until I was 6 or 7 {go ahead and cry for me now, it's a sad, sad story {wink} then my mom married my wonderful "real" dad {you know the one who actually cares for you with his heart and money even though you don't carry his gene's} Ok, sorry, back to the story. I guess I would sit in my high chair and eat bowl after bowl, the whole time "mmmmm" and "mmmming" my way through it till every bite was gone.

I was the epitome of the Campbell's "mmm mmm good" slogan.

As I grew my mom would make a homemade version of vegetable beef soup that to this day is my favorite and if you are lucky enough to have had some you know what I am talking about.

It's full of

red potatoes - carrots - onion - yellow & green zucchini - broccoli - cauliflower - tomato base - and beef.... mmmm good!

The weather here in Seattle has been, um, should I say, rainy lately! You may ask... "isn't it always rainy in Seattle?" And I would say "not usually in September." Our average is 1 1/2 inches during September which is low for us. At 3 weeks in we are over 3 1/2 already! But here's my point... My family isn't all that obsessed with vegetables or soup like I am, but I can always tell it's Fall when the request is my mom's vegetable beef soup. So the other night I made this...

It's wonderful, a tradition, and my way of knowing fall has arrived. If you want the recipe {it's a bit of a family secret} leave a comment and I will tell you how you too can enjoy this fall favorite

{it even gets better the next day as leftovers, gotta love that!}

Who doesn't love coffee?

So about a year ago, Jay and I were walking through Costco {it's always a dangerous thing} and we stumbled on this beautiful espresso machine. I had seen this very machine at Starbucks selling for $1200! You heard me TWELVE HUNDRED BIG ONES! I had always envied it's sleek look, detailed buttons, the metallic finish, and of course that brand with the magnificent name MAGNIFICA. It all seemed to call my name but the $1200 price tag was like financial suicide. I tried justifying it in my head, running the numbers to see how many years it would take to pay off in less bought coffee's. But at the end of my calculations I would walk away and hang my head low {ok that's a little bit dramatic but it paints a good picture}.

So anywhooo back to Costco. I looked at Jay and squeeled with delight "Do you know what this is?" He looked and me and said "Ahhh, a coffee machine." "NOOO it's not JUST a coffee machine, it's THE coffee machine. The one I have wanted." He looked at me again with a blank stare. Keeping up with my wish list is tough but one thing I know for sure is that Jay loves coffee. So with that he was hooked. As we began to look it over we couldn't resist the urge to buy it, but that price tag? Well you will be happy to know that at Costco it was farrrr less! It was even on sale! {yes Costco does that, look at the tag and if you see a * in the corner it means it is being discontinued and they have lowered the price, you can thank me for that later} We talked, pondered, calculated and came to the conclusion - WE MUST HAVE THIS!

While the price we paid was a fraction of what it was selling for at Starbucks, it was still a chunk. But I am happy to tell you that it has definitely paid for itself. And I have this lovely little thing in my kitchen. Where it graces my counter with it's sleek design. We have added a vast array of flavorings and I can probably make you anything your heart desires. So if you're ever in my neighborhood, pop in and let me make you a coffee {I even have paper to go cups}

Now who doesn't love that?