Bébé Diplomé

A wise person once said that childhood is the most beautiful of all life's seasons, and nothing is truer. Not only that, it’s the most fleeting season of our life.

That’s why I am so passionate about children’s photography. I love to photograph those special stages of your children’s development. After all, those innocent eyes and gap-tooth grins won’t last forever. Our Bébé Diplomé program documents the important milestones throughout your child’s first five years.

Last month I had the pleasure of working with one of my favorite clients (but then ALL my clients are favorites!), Shelly G. After she placed her order, Shelly sent me a card and said, “Thank you for beautifully documenting our children’s growth.” I can’t even begin to tell you how much that made my day. The morning I held the session for Shelly's little girl was beautiful. Her daughter wore the cutest little bonnet and sat holding a stuffed bear. It was precious!

I was conducting an indoor Diplomé session the other day, and another client told me that she loves the way I capture just the right moment. She brought a tear to my eye when she said that I’ve taken the greatest loves of her life and made them the most beautiful artwork for her home.

Isn’t that what it’s all about?

If you’re interesting in participating in the Bébé Diplomé program, you’ll receive special package pricing for children age 18 months to five years old. And you’ll also receive lovely heirlooms of you beautiful children.

A child's smile is one of life's greatest blessings.

Summer!

Summer is coming . . .

 

It is so nice to be outside shooting.  I love watching the children when they show up at the park for their session. There is something magical about working outside. The natural settings are perfect for a child’s imagination. Running, jumping and just being silly are all a part of my typical day. It is sometimes hard to believe that this is my job. When I am outside, enjoying the day, it feels like a game.

 

I am sure that in a few weeks those 100 degree plus days will slow me down a bit, but for now, I am happy!

The Journey Home

Knowing that we had about a 15-17 hour drive, we decided to leave after the Chicago show. Sam was beat after her show, so Jessica decided to be the truck driver. It was 3:00am when we finally pulled into the hotel, only to determine that in order to get home, we would need to leave at 6:30 a.m.

 

So much for Beauty rest! At the crack of dawn, Sam took the wheel, and we were off like a herd of turtles. Let’s just say between rest stops and restaurants, we thoroughly enjoyed the road home!

 

A few memorable sites were the cornfields in Nebraska and the cornfields in Illinois. Did we mention the cornfields? Our saving grace was a stop to Best Buy for new music. The new Coldplay album took us almost through the day. I must say, that for three women stuck in a vehicle together for days on end, we are becoming great friends, great dancers, and we still can’t sing!

Memphis – St. Louis – Peoria – Chicago

As the tour continues, we are becoming experts, and we are fixing, building finding and all-around-doing everything.

 

Oh and driving! We had a great time working with our tour helpers, and the baby models were great as well.

 

Our only mistake was that we planed a show on Father’s Day. In spite of our oops, we still had a great crowed attend. In Chicago, we had Jessica’s sister show up to assist. In addition to bringing us food, she was an awesome roadie and is welcome back at anytime!

Break Day

Ahh . . . Time to relax!

 

Today we treated ourselves to a ½ day at the pool. The sun felt great and we spent the morning just hanging out. Well, except Sam, who brought tons of work with her. She set up a little office and started to work, but within minutes she decided that a dip in the pool was a better idea and gave it up! 

 

Once we were done, it was off to set up again. We had great tour helpers and everything was ready in no time! Sam really enjoyed herself and she went on a bit late, but the crowed hung on until the end.

 

Tomorrow, we are off to Memphis. Now that is going to be a LONG drive!

Henryk Puc’ ~ Losing my father-in-law

Tonight my father in-law passed away.

After many months of pain, he quietly slipped away leaving his wife and five surviving children behind.

It was a blessing that my children were able to say goodbye before he passed. Each of them had a private moment to chat with him while he was still able to do so.

He will be greatly missed, and he was loved by all. Having known Dziadzi (Polish for grandfather) for over 19 years, I too feel an empty space in my heart. It is hard to imagine a Christmas holiday without his jovial laughter and warm smile. His true loves were golf and chess. He was unable to play golf for many of his last years due to a debilitating illness that left him unable to walk, however he never gave up the game of chess.

I will always remember his efforts to teach his grandchildren the finer points of the game. It is especially hard to watch my children go through the grieving process. It is their first real experience with death, and you can see that it will change a part of them forever.

Tomorrow we will all say goodbye at the funeral. I can only imagine what this will be like for them and especially for my husband Edward.

Our youngest daughter seemed particularly sad, and Edward asked her if she was okay. She said, “Dad, I am sad. And I will miss Dziadzi, but I am also happy. Dziadzi is with his mom and dad and all of his family, and he can finally walk again.”

Arizona

Well, we survived our second long drive and made it all the way to Scottsdale AZ. We actually loved watching the scenery change from the mountainous green foliage of Utah, to the red rocks and prickly cactus of the Arizona desert.

 

We decided to finish the drive in one day, so that we could rest a bit before the following night’s show. Even with a quick stop at Sam’s parents house, we were able to make it all the way. Our favorite part was the last hour as the sun was setting. The sky glowed as if on fire, and giant cactus was everywhere. Awe inspiring to say the least . . .

Salt Lake City

Sam was so excited to be back in her home state of Utah. It has been several years since she has taught there, and she always loves to visit. The drive was amazing. Being surrounded on all sides by mountains is just breathtaking. We all loved seeing the animals and foliage along the way.

 

The show was wonderful. The audience was lively and seemed eager to learn. Sam received a great surprise as her friend James (whom she has not seen in 18 years) showed up for a visit. They shared many stories of the adventures they had when they were young and living on the east coast.

 

It is hard to imagine someone being more adventurous as Sam, but James just might have her beat! He has spent the last 18 years traveling the whole world. He has hitchhiked in every continent, and he has spent years studying people. He is in the process of building a giant tree house to live in and it looks like he is truly happy with his chosen path. Perhaps Sam will post some of her old images of the two of them just for old time sake.

Trucker girls!

It is official: we chicks bought a truck and a trailer, and we are hitting the road! We were sad to say goodbye to the RV (Jeff the starship), but it was time for us to strike out on our own.

We are well over halfway to Salt Lake City and already we have learned a few things. First, pulling a trailer in wind can be scary!