i wish you that you will open your heat
to all these presents [light, water...]
and let them flow through you
that everyone that you meet on this day
will be blessed by you
just by your eyes
by our smile
by your touch
just by your presence
let the gratefulness overflow into blessing all around you
then it will really be
a good day.
– happiness revealed | louie schwartz

such a wonderful video. please — just keep watching…

so grateful to gorete, who not only hosted our workshop a couple weeks ago, in san francisco; but also, so graciously opened her heart and home to me the following days.  i cannot thank you and your family enough!!

due to my traveling (and playing catch-up) the past few weeks, i haven’t been able to post my weekly fav finds, so i thought i’d just randomly share this fav find today.

while i think i might be a bit late to the parade, when i was in san diego, my dear friend showed me this video and i laughed myself to tears. when i got home, i showed it to one of my friends and together, we laughed ourselves to tears all  over again.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  don’t watch with children around.

yep, honey badger don’t give a shit!  and i think i might just have to get this t-shirt for myself and a couple friends…

and just because my house has been a disaster lately and well, you know the rest…

just wanted to wish all the moms out there a very happy mother’s day!  i hope you’re being celebrated today — and continue to every day.

some mom photographs i’ve been blessed to capture over the years…

and here’s an interesting little tidbit on the founding of mother’s day.

+++

past few weeks have been crazy. filled with…  
two weeks of traveling.  
seven client shoots.
two editorial shoots.
teaching a workshop.  
taking a workshop.
not much time on the computer.
teaching another workshop next week.
and lots of prepping for africa, which is just a short bit away now.  

hoping to catch up and share more very soon.

hello from san francisco. missing steve and the kids so i’m excited to share this post today. here’s a bit of what our april looked like. we…

watched steve jump into an air show.  that’s him on the right (so proud of him).

spent a beautiful and fun easter with friends.

played with some shadows and light.

flipped, twisted, turned & spent time upside-down (as the littles do every month).

found a new play spot during horse riding lessons because we’re not allowed to visit the animals anymore.

had our family’s photos taken and taught the photographer how to climb walls. so can’t wait to see the photos.

started reading the hobbit.

drew using pointillism technique.

and played with lots of animals. ryder told me “my monkey makes me feel better”.  sigh.

learned new tricks

there’s a circle of 12 photographers participating in this what ____ looks like monthly project.  i hope you’ll check them all out [clicking link to link]. next up… chubby cheek photography | child and family photographer.

headed to san diego for client shoots tomorrow. xo.

to blow a bubble. i have no doubt that bigger bubbles are soon to come.  can’t wait!

most people never run far enough on their first wind,
to find out if they’ve got a second.
give your dreams all you’ve got,
and you’ll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you.
[william james]

this is what i came home to yesterday…

KIELE:  mom, can i show you something?
ME:  sure, what?
KIELE:  you have to come in my room.
ME: okay, what?

and she brought me into her room to see what she had drawn, cut and taped up on her wall…

sigh — i love this child and the magical soul that she is.  she’s taught me a lot over the years, that’s for sure.

ETA: she told me today what she wants for her birthday (may 3rd) — a vintage bird cage from the store down the street so that she can put it on top of her art cabinet (underneath her LET YOUR DREAMS FLY FREE).

i hope

healthy(ish) banana bread

beyond inspiring

custom pillow coming to my home soon

want to do with the kids

homemade granite cleaner

such a cool hanger & holder

i might do this to my own scale

would make a cool tattoo

apple cider vinegar elixir

so wanting to attend this

really?  wow.

yum!  the entire blog looks awesome.

don’t give up

great little gift

love more, fear less

“think less. bitch less. push more. create more.  the universe responds to your diligence but also responds to your joy.” such an awesome post.

fav photo from this week (after school)

hard to believe, but it’s true — i’ve now had my dreads for almost 2-1/2 years now.

this was me the day before dreads and a few days after having them done, in portland.  more photos from over the years can be seen here and here and  here.

and these are my dreads now (all very recent photographs courtesy of jen and alpana)…

my hair pre-dreads was super high maintenance and i always struggled with it.
i’m super lazy about my dreads and do absolutely nothing most of the time.
ninety percent of the time, my dreads are pulled back in a ponytail.
i don’t dread the roots; they dread on their own, as they will.
i wash the front part (the non-dreaded hair) every time i shower.
i wash my dreads about every 4-6 weeks or so (either with apple cider vinegar & baking soda or with castile soap).
i do have to keep them from mingling.  they would grow together if i let them and so i have to rip them apart every couple days.
sometimes if they’ve mingled too much, i can’t rip them so i have to cut them apart.
i have my roots colored about every 3-4 months.
they’re still itchy on my neck, but less itchy, now that they’re a bit longer.
i dream of the day my dreads are really long and i can wear them in a variety of style.
i absolutely love my dreads and have never been happier with my hair(style).
i don’t regret getting dreads for a single second.

how long will i have dreads?  five, 10, 20 years? who knows. only time will tell.

have a question about dreads?  please ask.  i’m more than happy to answer.

watch this (regularly) for inspiration.

i loved these thoughts so much, i wrote down her ten tips for making it happen and posted them to my inspiration board.

01 | you’ll figure it out
strike ‘i don’t know what to do from your vocal

02 | life is on your side
everything that you have done has brought you to this point. that’s a lot of life force.

03 | start fresh
beginners mind is an open mind. an open mind innovates.

04 | fear is natural
fear is part of creative process. keeps you alert.

05 | make tough choices
you can’t have it all but you can always do great things.

06 | passion is fuel
aim for passion. balance is a myth.

07 | come out
declare and share your dream. you’re accountable and help able.

08 | do it now
don’t let perfection become procrastination. launch and learn.

09 | you’re growing
everything is progress.

10 |integrity
do what you say you’re going to do. every day, do a little more of what you want to be doing.

11 |focus
you CAN make it happen. [danielle laporte]

this week has been busy prepping for our upcoming wallflower friends retreat, along with trying to knock lots of things off of my to-do list.  and what a great segue into this week’s fav finds…

a couple of these to-do lists are on their way (i’m a huge written to-do list gal)

really want a big bag like this

love everything about this photograph – shirley temple in the 30s

vintage hand-stamped silverware

i could find a fav find at free people every week

give freely

what a great print to way up to in the morning

i think i’m going to start a ransom box for toys AND clothes

such cool bunks and lofts here

tons of awesome real simple cleaning tips

love the idea of adding a bit of neon to your planters

each and every time i look at vivian maier’s work, i’m blown away by how incredibly amazing she was — for the pure love and passion of taking photographs

pretty cool website

steve and i have talked about doing a home outdoor movie since ryder was a baby

love your decisions

must make this non-dairy, sugar-free strawberry ice cream soon!

loving this blog for getting crossfit workouts that i can easily do at the gym OR at home

my fav photo of the week — which happens to include a couple super hero rabbits (one with a full leg cast), a tagged toothless rabbit, a little one wondering WTF those things were on her head, an elephant with a sword and a couple others.