One of the biggest complaints (obviously the ONLY complaint) that my husband Jeff has about me is that we have a noticeable lack of photos in our home. It's hardly for lack of shooting them,
They always told me it would happen. "They grow up so quick", they said, with the smile of a person who had 8 hours of sleep the night before. "Enjoy every second" they said, with the
Better late than never, right??My family and I are so thrilled to announce the birth of our new baby boy, Archer Cole NorwoodHe was born at 6:06pm, 8 pounds,
Happy Valentine's Day! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, by the way! No, this doesn't mean that from now on, I will only be blogging on holidays :) As you
Stuck in a rut. It's official--I have been stuck in a rut. Somewhere between keeping up with emails, changing diapers, going to the grocery store, and trying to stay out of the heat,
There's only a few days each year where you can look back and say, "I remember EXACTLY what I was doing this time last year". For me, those days are usually Christmas, New Years' Eve,
They say that when things are good, life goes fast, slowing to a standstill in the harder times. While my hazy memory can vaguely recall the exhaustion, tears, and frustration that accompanied
For the first time in a long time (and by no coincidence because we had the youngest baby this year), we got to stay home for the holidays and our families came to us! It was so nice to
Last week, we hit a milestone--we have a three month old! Most people would say that time flies, but I feel like it's crawling along--life moves in a fog with so little sleep. Things are
If you are reading this blog, THANK YOU. I know it's been a little slow around here lately, and you've been very patient. If you're out there, reading this, I'd love to know in the
Well, if ever there was a good reason for a blog drought, it's probably having a baby! This is going to be a long one...So, after having my maternity photo shoot, I continued to
"Are you going to do maternity photos?" was the question I'd been asked at least 20 times or more since getting pregnant. To tell you the truth, I really wasn't sure I wanted to. I mean,
Before I got pregnant, I told Jeff I wanted to get another puppy. Acey has just brought so much fun and joy to our lives, wouldn't another puppy just double that? It seems that in the
The most frequently asked question lately is, "So, how's the house coming?". Well...here you go!It's been exactly one month since we moved into our new house! I have to say, I am
Our baby girl Acey turned ONE year old yesterday! We woke up and congratulated ourselves at having kept her alive for this long. Perhaps we are ready for parenthood after all!Our
I've been blogging since 2004. When I think about the last seven years, I can't believe how much has changed! I started my blog when I was living temporarily on the third floor of my
Not too long ago, I was out in Palm Springs for Natali & Brian's absolutely fabulous wedding at the Horizon Hotel. Palm Springs is a bit of a hike from the OC so I spent the night before
Well hello there! You may notice that things look a bit...different around here, but at least in my humble opinion, they're a whole lot better!I think change is always a little hard to
One thing that Jeff and I have in common is a love of entertaining! We love to have friends over, the more the merrier, and don't need much of an excuse to do so. I would say that we regularly have
Yesterday it occurred to me...the year is almost over! Thanksgiving week is usually my indicator that it's about time to start wrapping up and planning for the new year. Growing up on the East
Dear Acey Puppy, Today, you are 7 months and 25 days old. And yesterday, you escaped out of your pen (again) but for the first time ever you didn't: a) destroy anything of
Over the course of this blog (which I started in 2005!!), I've gone back and forth with regards to what, if any, personal things to post here. I've always shared some things of course, but I would
Happy Monday everyone! It's time for another installment of "Stuff I Love"! It's been a few weeks, and I've been storing up a few things I love to share with you here, so here we go
A few years ago, the phrase "Trash the Dress" started to pop up here and there. It was the concept of trashing your wedding dress since you're never going to wear it again I will confess it
Today is our first anniversary! In the past two years, I've gone from a single twenty-something to a married thirty-something, and I'd be remiss if I didn't take a moment to reflect back. And for
My husband Jeff comes from a family of excellent homemakers. His mother, his sister, his sister in law--all of them are amazing women who take pride in cooking, taking excellent care of their
Because soon the summer is going to fade away to fall, I'm finding myself clinging on to every last bit of green and pretty! I found these photos that I shot for fun when I was in West Virginia in
This week, I flew down to St. Thomas for Pete & Jenn's wonderful wedding weekend! It's SO gorgeous here, and in every direction is yet another beautiful view. This is a stitched shot of the lookout
What, you say? No postings for a week? I know, I probably should have warned you, but between back to back weddings last weekend and then a redeye flight across the country to relatively little
I've been having some thoughts about parenthood lately. Maybe it's being married and I know that it's probably the next step, or maybe it's that many of my close friends have had kids this past year
One of the things that I am surprised people want to know more about is my house! I'll admit--I've waited a long time to really spend some time and thought decorating and choosing things. My goal
My little Acey is getting to be such a big girl! I don't take nearly enough photos of her--I am feeling a little parental guilt :) Before we brought her home, we were able to visit with
"You're getting a puppy? That's so exciting! It's kind of like having a BAAAABBBBBBYYYYYY", they said to me, while visions of a furry little puppy in a white bonnet listening attentively to my
Jeff and I have been talking about getting a dog since day one. We both grew up with dogs, and both just adore them! But we've been hesitant, because although they're cute, fun, and bring tons of
I remember when I first heard about Facebook. I had just graduated from college, and some of my friends who were still in school were telling me about this new website where you could find people
Hi everyone! I am going to be working on a new section of the blog called Life in STYLE, and one of the things I'll be doing is posting about something in my house in each post. Today's
Yesterday was mine & Jeff's six month anniversary! I'm not a fan of celebrating any kind of "versaries" other than the actual annual ones (with the possible exception of my half-birthday), but since
WPPI. Yes, it's a photography convention, but aside from that, it's also where I have made SO many friends and connections over the years. I remember going when i was 19 or 20 and an
I used to LOVE Anne of Green Gables. I would watch the movie over and over again, clinging to the idea that girls with red hair were a valuable part of the world. The movie somehow gave me hope. My
Happy Thursday everyone! A place where I will recap the events of the past week. However considering I only blog a few times a week, I may relegate Thursday thoughts to the last Thursday of the
Is it Thursday again already? Yikes! I need to stay up on keeping my blog updated--once a week isn't going to do the trick, now is it?! Here is what is going on in my world this
Hello everyone! In an attempt to post more personal stuff on my blog, I am starting a new feature called Thursday Thoughts, where each Thursday I'll chat about recent happenings, things that I think
The 101 in 1001 List: My goals for the next few years! For some reason, I LOVE doing this more than making New Years' resolutions each year. I made one of these lists over three years ago
2010. It sounds so futuristic, doesn't it? It could be a movie title with flying cars and the world ending, it's that epic! Normally when the New Year starts, I feel generally the
In my family, Thanksgiving is the big holiday. It's the one we all go home for, and is my favorite holiday. There's no pressure, no huge gift-giving expenses, and usually relatively little drama.
You might be wondering what's up with the silence on this blog after my declaration during the State of the Blog address a few posts ago. Not to worry, I have lots to tell you, but very little
How do you recap the summation of a dream you've been having your entire life? I think every little girl grows up thinking about her wedding. Boys are different--they might think of their
And...I'm back! I will post the full recap of everything with photos and details and stories starting on Wednesday, but I just wanted to thank everyone for being forgiving of my absence on this blog
If you're reading this, Jeff and I are officially MARRIED!! I'm off to my honeymoon but I can't wait to share photos and post a full recap of everything when I get back. Here's a little sneak peek
Wow, thank you so much for all of the comments on the invitations! I wanted to share a little bit more about the process of their creation, now that there are finally photos to go along with them.
I've been in business over 10 years now. One of my goals, or maybe not so much goals but desires, has been to have a meeting space that really represents myself and my brand. I want every bride,
This is the 28th consecutive year of Beach Week, the annual week my family spends together, all in one house, at the beach. I have never missed one. I'm not quite ready to tell the story or
It's already July 22 on the East coast where I was born, so I'm considering it my birthday now :) Today I turn 30. The truth is, I had a much harder time turning 29, and I've been
And they're mine :) Sorry everyone, I have the two cutest flower girls on the planet. Marrying Jeff comes with quite a few perks, and one of them is his family! I went out to Ponca City
I just thought I would share this little scene I snapped last night while shooting an engagement session. It's nice to take a minute every once in awhile to look around and just be present in your
I'm sure that as much as ya'll loved seeing my mom's surprised face as we shocked the bejeezus out of her for her birthday, you're ready for a new post, huh?! Oh, there are plenty of new
This year, my mom had a very big birthday (although I'm not going to mention which one). We decided to surprise her by flying to North Carolina, showing up at a play my grandmother was performing
I used to absolutely LOVE the show "Trading Spaces". They'd come in, take some neighbors and $1000, and completely change the look of a room in someone's house. Most of the time, the rooms were so
Whew, I am finally home from Sweden and Turkey, and after sleeping through the weekend, I am finally feeling almost back to normal, even if I am still falling asleep at 9 and waking up at 5. Could
Over the three days we spent in Istanbul, I mostly shot what I always shoot when I travel: colors, patterns, textures, and little things that the ordinary tourist might not notice or capture (if
One thing I've never done before is travel with no plan at all--literally just show up at a train station or airport and head on the next trip out of there!
I have a (very) long post coming about this just as soon as I can get some legit internet to upload photos, but for now, let me just say this: Istanbul is an amazing place! I shot for a full long
It's been a long time since I've spent any REAL time disconnected from the world. For two weeks, I am out of the country, mostly in Sweden to teach two workshops with Becker, one in Stockholm, and
As I looked down at the gorgeous ring on my hand, I thought to myself, "Okay, so we're planning a wedding"! Should be easy, right? I mean, I go to a wedding practically every weekend, all I have to
You may have noticed that there's now a new category on this blog called, "plan!", which will be dedicated to my wedding planning experience. This is so very strange to me to be on this side of the
As I write this post semi-blinded by the ring currently residing on my left hand, I can't believe that this weekend was actually real! So remember how I went on and on about Jeff a few posts ago?
I go to WPPI every year. I have actually been going for the past seven or eight years, and I can't believe how much life has changed since then! I remember sitting in the way back of a crowded room
On Friday night, I threw the Boutwells a little neighborhood baby shower! Chenin requested there be no measuring her stomach or too much baby shower BS, so for months I debated about the best way to
2009 is going to be a good year. I know because in the past, I've been able to tell whether a year would be good or bad within the first few days and have been accurate in my predictions thus far.
Hey everyone! I know, I know, I've been letting this blog slide, big time, huh? Never fear, starting the first of the year, I have a new resolution for this site that should make everyone quite
Getting to know each other is fun, isn't it? Below are lists of things about me--50 things I love, and 50 things that bug me. Also, a photo from Nicola's 5th birthday party which I shot a couple of
For an ugly sweater party, that is! There's not much I love more than a good ugly sweater party, and the one last night hosted by the always hospitable
Social networking. It's the buzzword on everyone's lips these days, isn't it? I think that as a photographer and small business owner, I have a need to connect with people that is intensified by
For those of you who don't know, today is the 25th anniversary of Becker's 10th birthday! For those of you who are math-challenged, he is the big 3-5. In honor of such a special occasion, here's a
Ah, the perils of traveling! This blog--dead in the water. My sleeping schedule--erratic at best. I do plan on making up for lost time as soon as I return back home in a couple of weeks. For now,
Since tonight I am working on several LONG blog posts (two maternity sessions, a wedding, an engagement, a kid shoot, and several others), here's a little political humor to brighten up your
So this afternoon I decided to drive up to Commerce Casino to play in the shootout tournament. A shootout is a format different than a regular tournament because instead of combining tables as
Wow, thank you for all the great suggestions below of things to blog about! Now when I have a day where I just don't have much going on, I have a great pool of suggestions to pull from. So
Tonight starts one month of posting EVERY DAY! That's right, it's that time again--daily blog posts from September 12 to October 12. I'm taking you with me on my travels over the next month, and
Let me preface this post by telling you that I LOVE to travel. I love seeing new things and people, I love shooting in new locations, and I love that my career is going well enough that people want
This post has been awhile coming! You might remember Hillary & Peter's Boston wedding from a few weeks ago. Well, before we knew that it was going to be rained out, it was originally going to be
Oh no! I'm off for my annual family vacation so I looked up the weather forecast and it's not looking good. The whole point is to go spend a week at the beach, but we happen to go to a place where
You might have noticed that there hasn't been much activity on this blog this week (whistling and looking around). I have a good reason, I promise! My friend from high-school, Amanda, is in town
Yes, I realize that it's not my birthday anymore and trust me, I wasn't trying to prolong it. I've had a nightmare of a travel experience and am sitting in the Denver airport as we speak. Due to a
Today: July 22, my 29th birthday! I can't believe I'm 29. For the last few weeks, I've been throwing myself a little pity party, doing some kicking and screaming leading up to this day.
Yesterday I shot Hillary & Peter's engagement session! I'll be posting that probably later today or tomorrow, but in the meantime, here's a couple quick snaps of Oklahoma for your
That's right folks, I'm here in Oklahoma City this week for several shoots! I already love it here because look at what was waiting for me here in my room as a dinner
Well, now that I've had a couple of days to recover from my royal spanking, I can finally blog about the trip to Vegas. First of all, let me preface this post by saying that I had a fabulous time,
**fun fact about this post: EVERY single image below was shot with Gene's 50mm 1.0 lens shot at 1.0 which i borrowed for the day. the thing is heavy and slow, but DANG, 1.0 is
This week I am out in Vegas for some shooting and some fun! I have two shoots out here which I may or may not be able to share, I'll have to let you know on that one. However, yesterday I had a
Today I shot another absolutely killer kids birthday party which I'll show you in a day or two once I go through the images, but for now, something random. This is going to sound weird, but I
Wow, was I ever gone for a long time! Between my traveling and shooting in Chicago, NYC, and North Carolina the past two weeks, I needed a vacation from my not-really-a-vacation, but I am now back
Did you ever notice that hearing a certain song can bring you back to a particular time in your life so quickly and realistically that it feels like you're actually there? I have many different
Hello all! I'm so sorry it's been a slow blogging week! I've had tons going on this week, but practically none of it, oddly, has included shooting, but don't you worry. There will be more than
Although I've been technically signed up for Twitter for awhile now, it hasn't been until the last week or so that I've actually been using it. For those of you that don't know, Twitter is basically
The wedding was absolutely amazing, however, my laptop power cord got a little too excited and died, and I don't have enough power left for my blog entry. I will be picking up a new cord tomorrow
Since Cortnie and Andrew got married this past year in Greece, we didn't have tons of time to get tons of fun photos of them because traveling all the way to the other side of the world is
I am finally home from Vegas! The thing about WPPI that makes it different from all the other conventions throughout the year is definitely the social element--it's a 24/7, up all night, don't sit
Here I go! I will be blogging all the way, so stay with me! Today's agenda: Two poker tournaments, two dinners, and one crazy party!If you don't hear from me, I cashed big in a poker
Perhaps I should say, today is my favorite day once every FOUR years. Leap Day. That elusive February 29th that mysteriously gets added to the calendar once every four years. Truth be told, I
The auction where you can bid on a mentoring session with me is ending in just 9 hours, at about 6:00pm PST this evening. If two people are bidding for me at that time, it will extend, but if there
It's that time again, folks, the second annual charity mentor auction! Once again, I have offered a session to be auctioned off to take place at WPPI in Las Vegas this March. If you aren't going to
Hey everyone--if you play online poker at Full Tilt, there's a weekly wedding photographer private tournament every Wednesday night at 7pm PST. Including tonight!!You have to go to
I've been feeling a bit under the weather since I got back from Laura's wedding--cough, headache, general ickyness, so as a result, I've been laying low and watching a few movies. One movie I've
Some of you may know that I am an avid stat checker, that is to say, I love to check the statistics on this blog and see how many people are here, where they're coming from, and what they're looking
I have spent the past week down in Tampa for both a speaking engagement at the Digital Wedding Forum convention as well as to help out at the Shootsac booth over at Imaging USA. It was an absolute
"New Year's Day: Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual." ~Mark TwainNormally, I don't
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! I will be shooting a wedding tonight, so I will be posting all about that in the next couple of days, but for now, I wanted to wish everyone a great New Year and I hope that
For the second year in a row, I've been fortunate enough to spend Christmas with the Becker family. Although I was sad not to go home, they have become a second family to me here, which I am so
**ETA**A lot of people are asking where she got the shoes--sorry to say they are one of a kind, made from other shoes by a fabulous costume designer here in LA. But if you want to splurge,
Today I am having a bad day. An album came back wrong from the bookbinder, it's pouring down rain (VERY rare for So. Cal), my hair is frizzing up because of the weather, and I got rear-ended. Yick.
Ah, if only that were true! No, this year, I must say, my wish list is quite long as for the most part, I've stopped buying stuff to try to save for buying a house sometime next year. Here's what's
For those of you just tuning in, I made the commitment to post on this blog every day for a month. I now have a new respect for those people who have been blogging every day for months or even
I learned how to play poker at about 10 years old when my cousin Roz married Steve, who was a professional gambler. After family get togethers, we would pull out the cards and the cash and learn the
I am about to post an entry here that will make you think that every stereotype you've ever heard about North Carolina is true. So yesterday, the day after Thanksgiving, we (the family) had a day to
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Well, I must say that this year I have a lot to be thankful for, and so do all of you! I hope to be able to post the winner of the contest tomorrow, but there are
I don't think I have great taste in TV. Usually, I rely on Becker to just tell me what the good shows are, because any that sound good at the start of the season, he tries out and makes the
Tomorrow I leave California for Thanksgiving break! I am flying into NYC to spend some time with my dad and hit up my cousin's wedding in Connecticut. It should be interesting to say the least
You might have noticed that for the past couple of months, when you leave a comment on this blog it doesn't show up right away. This is because I get quite a few nasty grams from anonymous posters
I should preface this post by telling you DO NOT TAKE ANY KIND OF FINANCIAL ADVICE FROM ME. I don't know what I'm doing and am poorly educated on the subject. With that said, I did a cool thing
Yesterday I started item # 11 on my 101 in 1001: Blog every day for a month. So from November 3-December 3, I am going to attempt to blog every day!This weekend I am in Delaware for my friend
It's been a long time since I did a "what's going on in my world" post, so I thought I would bring back something I posted about awhile back--my goals.So I have this list of 101 in 1001,
Sorry for my absence the last day or two! I am in MAUI for Jessica & Andrew's wedding today at the beautiful Four Seasons Wailea. This wedding is going to be so much fun and I can't wait to show
So I guess there was this thing going around the blog ring that if you were tagged by another blogger, you had to post 8 things about yourself then tag 8 more people. I thought i wasn't ever tagged
One of my favorite things to do whenever I shoot a destination wedding somewhere new is take a day or two to shoot for my personal portfolio around the area. It's also a good opportunity to get off
I'm still working on my blog post of all the beautiful locks, doorways, windows, and scenes from Greece that I should be posting late tonight, but I thought I'd show you the one item I purchased
Well, I've arrived safe and sound here in Santorini, Greece! I still have to show you images from this weekend's two weddings, but it won't be until tomorrow or the next day.Just to update
My life is about to get a little crazy for the next few weeks! I will be out of the office for the better part of the next three weeks. Here's a schedule of where you can find me:Today, I
Tonight I am prepping two weddings to blog and working away, so I thought I might try something different. I know how many of you there are out there because as you know, I am addicted to checking
I arrived back home today after another successful beach week! I don't know exactly how many years this has been going on, but it's probably about 25 years or so, which is an amazing tradition for a
This year, next week, Nana turns 90 years old! My mom and Aunt Lori invited all of her nieces and nephews down and we spent the evening celebrating her life, which has certainly been full and
Well, it's that time of year again, Beach Week! Every year, my whole family gets together down here in beautiful (hot and humid) South Carolina in the house at the beach to sit around, play
Hello blog readers! It's been awhile since I gave an update on things going on in my world, so here's what's up! First of all, I had a lovely birthday, low key and simple, but that's
I've been out of town this week returning tomorrow, and I've got lots to blog about! THREE amazing weddings, a trip to Vegas, the Bludomain crew, the grand Shootsac reopening and more--all in the
Yesterday I posted the slideshow of Lauren & Scott's wedding, but I wanted to talk about a few of the things that they did that made their wedding so special. One thing that I loved was Lauren's
There are so many things I need to blog that I just can't decide what to do! I'm quite behind on blogging even though it may not look like it. I've been traveling for the last two weeks with no
I just returned from the Anti-Workshop with the Boutwells and the Coopers in Seattle, and the whole experience just blew my mind! These people are amazing speakers, unbelievably talented, and so
Today I want to show you something I've been working on for the last few years, The Lock Project. Every time I travel, the first thing I look for to shoot is locks. Padlocks mostly, the dirtier and
I hope everyone had a fantastic Memorial Day Weekend! As you can see in my last post, my friend from high school came into town for a visit. She's also running the marathon down in San Diego this
Today I am up in San Francisco! One of my best friends from high school, Beth is in town and we took a last minute flight up here yesterday to visit another friend, Lisa, and her husband Dennis.
Oh my goodness, what a week it's been! I am so sorry for the lack of timely updates--you can expect stellar blogging from me in the future. The worst of it was probably being home in NC and having
Yesterday, a bunch of us went down to San Diego for a hot air balloon ride in honor of Alex Hill's birthday! Julie, Alex's wife planned the whole thing as a suprise and got us all together for this
I don't usually blog boring things, but this totally creeped me out! I was shooting George & Amy's engagement session yesterday and after we were done and walking on the path back to the car, we saw
**NOTE** I have had a lot of emails asking if people who couldn't make it to Vegas or find the Shootsac booth would be able to get the show special discount. Unfortunately, the show price was only
Today is THE DAY! I am heading to Vegas for almost a week of fun times, learning, seeing old (and new) friends, and of course LAUNCHING SHOOTSAC! Come by Bally's registration area today from 2-5 to
My mom is in town! Ever since I moved to California two years ago, I obviously see my family a lot less, but it's always fun when people come out to visit me. My mom came not only to see me, but