Anniversary

Dear Andy,

I am so lucky to have you as my husband and my best friend. We have two beautiful boys, wonderful parents and siblings, amazing friends, and each other to tackle whatever the world throws at us. You're there for me everyday, making me laugh, encouraging me, and keeping me grounded when I need to be. What I love the most about our life is the simple daily pleasures, like waking up beside you, having breakfast together, spending time with our boys, stories and play with G&M, and the simple silence of just being there together. We will always have each other, and I'm looking forward the the next 50+ years together:) As Grant would say, "I love you more than the sun, the moon, and all of the twinkle stars."

I like this quote:

"Love is not as simple as candlelight and roses...
...love is day-to-day living,
taking time, making time to be there,
with open arms and a giving heart...
Love is the special life we share." ~unknown author

xoxoxo your fiesty, blue eyed girl.

Biking in the Park

Jody is a good friend from my university days. Time has passed (almost 10 years), but I am so glad that we have stayed in contact. Jody is one of those amazing friends who you might not speak to for months, but you can pick up right where you left off, and it feels like no time has passed.

Jody and Alex brought their adorable kids down for a visit near the end of summer. We had a chance to visit, enjoy lunch together, hang out at the park, and then hang out some more before they had to make their trek back to Ottawa. Jods, I had a hard time deciding between a good old 98 degrees song or some DMB, Dave won out!

"Roomie" & Alex, thank-you so much for coming down. Andy and I truly value our friendship and it is so much fun watching our kids grow up together. I absolutely adore your two little ones, they are just perfect:)

I'm looking forward to getting together again...soon! xoxo

Oh, and for fun, I dug up some photos from our university days, horrible quality - but they made me smile (and laugh).

And just for fun:)

Sneak Peak - Kelly & Andrew

I had the pleasure of photographing Kelly & Andrew's wedding yesterday. This one was extra special for me because I photographed Kelly's twin sister, Kerri-Anne's wedding almost three years ago to the date.

Their wedding was like curling up in a comfy chair, with an amazing book on a rainy day. The weather didn't always cooperate, but everything managed to run smoothly and on time. Their wedding had a very vintage feel from the bride's look, to the 1949 Ford Truck, the beautiful foggy fields, old barns, winding paths... Here is a sneak peak of some of the photos, you looked amazing Kelly (and Andrew looked pretty handsome too).

Until later...

Exclusive Fall Mini Sessions

The cool weather + the golden light+ the colors of the trees+ a fun time of the year= the perfect combination for those fall family portraits!

Please contact Lindsay if you are interested in a fall mini session.

Kingston Women's Expo

I had the opportunity to be a part of the Kingston Women's Expo yesterday. The expo was a unique setting, where every booth was either a business run by women, or for women. There were over eighty various businesses participating, with an enormous range of services and products.

I have been running around over the past couple of weeks (admist trying to survive the first two weeks of teaching grade 8 to my new class of students), trying to get everything ready for the expo. My husband was a godsend this past week (are you reading this Andy??). He helped with so much of the "behind the scenes" work, and he even brought me sushi for lunch on Friday. And I can't forget my little men. They were amazing, and such good helpers for their mama. Grant and Max were incredibly patient while I ran many errands this past week, also as we set up, and they helped carry a lot of my items to my booth. It was a nice break in the middle of the day to receive lunch and some freshly picked dandelions from my boys.

I had an awesome day! There was a ton of traffic and I was able to meet so many new and interesting people. I love being able to be "out there" in the community and receive feedback about my work. I have a great family, and wonderful friends, who all made time to come out and support me.

I thought that it would be a long day, it ran from 10am until 4pm, but the time just zipped by. About 10 minutes before the expo ended, I was able to snap a few photos of my booth, as well as the expo (and snag a Stella & Dot product magazine, my absolute favourite jewelry, who just happened to be my "neighbour" at the expo).

Thank-you to everyone who came out and to everyone I met, I'm looking forward to connecting with you soon!

Here are several photos from my day at the expo.

My Booth

Beautiful pink and white gladiolus from the Kingston Farmer's Marker, and my strawberry and creme jellybean treat bag/business card tokens.

A close-up of my table and my posters.

The three aisles at the Women's Expo and my sweet little one month old nephew Henry at his first expo.

My amazing friends who came by to support me:)

Country Mouse, City Mouse...it's time to sell the house!

This session was a special one for me. Carolyn is a dear friend and I just adore her little boys. It is so nice to watch our kids grow up alongside each other. Carolyn and Tim wanted some photos of their family, including Papa (their great dane), outside and around their house before they moved into the city. Their house was perched on top of a hill, surrounded by farmer's fields - the views were stunning! The Closs family loved their house, but with the boys getting older they felt that it was time to move into town. I hope that they can look back on these photos and smile when they are in the hustle and bustle of the city.

Summertime at the Park

This past summer was hot, hot, hot! On the day that I met up with Matt, Tanis, their boys, and their dog Darcy, it was sweltering! They were all troupers and we spent the morning exploring, discovering, finding apples, climbing and swinging with Cohen and Oliver. Matt and Tanis are very laid back people. Their kindness and love for their little boys and each other is evident, and it was a joy to witness:)

Kind words = an awesome end to an already great day!

I truly love what I do. I can't explain the rush that comes over me when I get that awesome photo. For me, taking a photo is preserving a little bit of history forever. Memories fade, but the details come flowing back with that perfect photograph. I know that even if I won the lottery tomorrow, you would still find me photographing families, babies, weddings, and events.

I had a busy, but great day. The kids are in bed, and I finally got a chance to sit down and open a card, from a couple who I photographed their wedding for on August 20th. It was a whimsical black and white card, which totally reminded me of their wedding decor. In it was a beautiful note, thanking me for their photos. Their words mean so much, and for me, kind words are one the best perks of my job. I almost didn't book their wedding because their date also happened to be my youngest son's 3rd birthday. However, after I met Kayla and Adam I knew that I had to be their wedding photographer. They had such a great energy about them that I knew it would be a fantastic wedding.

In the end I want my clients to love their photos as much as I do. I want them to smile every time that they pass them on the wall in the hallway, in a frame on the bookshelf, or propped up on their desk at work. I know that I will smile every time I pass the beautiful card as it sits on top of my piano, next to another sweet note from my dear friend Nicole (who I photographed pictures of her adorable little man Oliver in July). I know that life is busy, but please know that I appreciate the time that you took to put your thoughts down on paper.

Thank-you Kayla and Adam for being so much fun to work with, I thoroughly enjoyed myself at your wedding too, and I'll look forward to the next time that we have the chance to get together:)

(You didn't expect me to write a post without photos?!:)

Back to School

We've had a great summer. It didn't go by too quickly, and I really felt that I was able to spend a lot of time with my boys. We didn't travel too far, but made the most of our backyard and visited the local beaches. We made day trips to the cottage, and the boys spent many hours fishing in Loughborough Lake.

Back to school affects the boys and I in September. Grant was so excited to go into grade 1. He was almost vibrating on Labour Day Monday with excitement! We packed up his backpack several days in advance, and he helped me make his lunch the night before school. On Monday afternoon, Grant wrote a list of things that he needed to do in order to get ready for grade 1. It read:

1. Say "I love you mom".
2. Play ninja.
3. Practice kung-fu.
4. Say "Is everything ready for grade one mom?"

Grant was up early and ready to go. Grandma walked him to school, since I teach at a school with an earlier start time than Grant's school. I had a great day with my new class, but I couldn't wait to pick him up at 3:35pm. I didn't see him coming, but was suddenly hit from behind with an enormous bear hug around my waist. His little hand quickly slipped into mine, and he chatted the whole walk home. Just as we were approaching the house Daddy and Maxer arrived home. Max had an important day as well. He moved up to the "Cool Crocodudes" classroom at his daycare today. With a huge hug from Max and a lot of cuddles, it's been a great day! I can't believe that Grant is in grade one, and look out Kindergarten, Maxer hits the books next year!